Hey all! We are back from an over packed week in Las Vegas! I know this is a bit out of the norm of our usual conversations here in this space, but nonetheless, I'm hoping some will find these life/travel posts of interest, as well. If not, feel free to check back next week when we resume normal programming. :)

The husband and I have not had any REAL travel plans since way back at our 1 year anniversary trip to Savannah, Georgia. We were WELL overdue for some fun and travel. The husband is a huge fan of a video game called Fallout, a dystopian type story set in Las Vegas. So, we decided to travel to Las Vegas and check it out for ourselves!

Day 1

We flew into Vegas on a Sunday and were already so exhausted by the time we arrived to our hotel room that we really had no big plans for the evening.

Where did we stay?

We arrived late Sunday night and were already extremely exhausted and hungry. We had few plans of any real activity on this night other than checking our our resort and any nearby happenings.

We chose to stay at the Golden Nugget, one of the original hotels in Las Vegas dating back to the startup of the casino culture. Our hotel was beautiful and even though it wasn't located on the Strip, we felt it was perfect for us as newbies to the Las Vegas culture. Some of the amenities included on site casino, several 4 and 5 star restaurants, a spa, a pool that boasts an aquarium with a live shark, gift shops, chocolate shops and almost any other comfort and luxury you could think of needing.

We were very pleased with our room and I found the price of this hotel to be very affordable compared to some of the others in the area.

That night we dined at the Grotto Italian Ristorant in the hotel and the food was amazing. Sorry, no pics of this because it was too dark.

Pros

Located directly beside the Fremont Street Experience and Fremont Light Show attraction.
Affordable and offers many of the same amenities as other hotels on the Strip.
Hotel rooms very comfortable and nicely decorated.

Cons

Not directly located on the Strip.
Located directly on Fremont Street, which could be a negative if you don't like all the noise and crowd.

Fremont Street Experience

Fremont Street is located just off The Strip on the North end and is it's own "experience" of Vegas. The vibe on Fremont was very laid back/party style and most everyone was out in the street drinking, singing and dancing. The main attraction on Freemont Street is the overhead Light Show, the largest screen in the U.S. to view. The Light Show plays after dark every hour, on the hour for most of the night. (We know because our room was directly above the show, lol!)

Day 2

Container Park / Arts District

On our second day, we decided to venture out on foot on Fremont Street and into the nearby Arts District area. Here you find what is known as the Container Park, a hipster like shopping center where the small boutiques are fashioned out of recycled shipping containers and other recycled goods. We grabbed coffee at the Black Cup and strolled along checking out the small shops and some of the artwork from recycled materials. A very cool little spot!

Las Vegas North Premium Shopping Outlets

The next stop was a walk to the North Premium Shopping Outlets located not too far from the Fremont Area. The hubby had forgotten his sunglasses at home, so our main purpose for stopping here was to purchase him some new glasses. I also decided to purchase some athletic type sandals at the Nike Outlet. I had brought walking shoes, but the weather was a blazing 85 degrees on this day and clearly the flip flops I was wearing were not working out for all the walking.

The Mob Museum

After the shopping outlets, we hopped back on the city transit bus (more on this later) and caught a ride back to the hotel. We rested up and then decided to check out the Mob Museum, which was a short walk from the hotel. This was easily one of my favorite things we did on the trip. The hubby and I love historic and educational type activities, so learning all about Vegas Mob culture was very interesting! I also really liked how the Museum included many of the popular mob movies, like Casino, into their exhibits and how those movies were influenced by history. Very cool and highly recommend!

The Chart House

After having only snacked since grabbing coffee earlier in the day, we were famished after the museum. We were also still a little tired from the time difference and from flying the day before so we decided to call it an early evening and head back to the hotel to grab dinner. We had dinner at the Chart House, an upscale restaurant offering steak and seafood cuisine.

I had the Blackened Salmon which comes with string beans and stick rice. This dish was so amazing I don't know if I'll EVER be able to have salmon again without comparing. So good!

The hubby had Coconut Shrimp with a side of Baked Mac and Cheese. He also proclaimed this to be one of the best meals he has ever had.

I loved the ambiance of The Chart House and highly recommend if you're staying at the Golden Nugget or just visiting the Fremont Street Experience. Though a bit pricey (entrees ranging $40 - $50), it's worth every penny.

Bellagio Water Fountain Show

After dinner, it was still a bit early, so we decided to venture out to the Strip for the first time. We took the bus transit system to the Bellagio and and took advantage of some of the Vegas free attractions. We watched the beautiful fountain show display. The fountain show is often listed as a 'must see' in Vegas and I can understand why. It really was amazing.

We also wandered inside the Bellagio to check out their amazing Botanical Garden and Conservatory display. They change the flowers and scene with every season.

The Fall scene featured a sort of rain forest type scene with forest creatures, trees with faces that moved and beautiful fall foliage flowers.

It smelled absolutely amazing inside the hotel because of all the flowers. I really do feel like seeing this free, and spectacular display is something everyone traveling to Vegas must do!

```````````````````````````````````

That's all for Part 1 of Vegas. I'll be discussing the rest of our trip later in the week in Part 2!