Two Sides of Vegas

By David E. Gates

An accompanying piece to Omonolidee.

Two unique travelogues exploring the gambling capital of the world from different angles.

• Language: English
• Publisher: David E. Gates
• Release date: Apr 3, 2018
• ISBN: 9781370298655

David E. Gates

David E. Gates has published several books and short-stories. His first book, Access Denied, is a true story.  A deeply personal and heart-wrenching account of becoming a father and having to fight the mother and Family Courts to see his daughter and also battles against the incompetence and lies of the Child Support Agency who seem hell-bent on ruining him, emotionally and financially.. It has garnered 100% positive reviews. The Roots of Evil, his first horror novel, is a graphic, violent, intense and gore-laden horror story. His second fictional novel, The Wretched, is an original horror story set in and around Portsmouth. David has made a documentary film about the battlefield memorials in Ypres, Belgium called Ypres – The Battlefield Tours and previously wrote film reviews for Starburst and Samhain magazines and interviewed the likes of Clive Barker, Terry Pratchett, James Herbert and many others. He has also written many short stories and poems, a full-length motion picture screenplay, the screenplay to a short film and in his spare time hosts a rock radio show. Also by David E. Gates: Access Denied The Roots of Evil The Wretched Omonolidee First Words Unzipped: The Mind of a Madman The Projectionist A Planned Demise The Ghost of Clothes Fixing the Faker The Christmas Carol Omonolidee - Morgado, Portugal, 2018. Two Sides of Vegas

Book preview

What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

Is there anyone who has been to Las Vegas who hasn’t said that? And, I’d imagine, for the very large percentage of people that do visit, there’s not much that needs to stay in Vegas anyway.

My first visit was as part of an excursion with some work colleagues. We, that is to say Butch, Grant, Grant’s wife Tessa and I, got a special deal via a social club offer at the company we worked for at the time. Five days (four nights) for about £400, staying on The Strip in the heart of Las Vegas, with us arriving on a Sunday evening. Bargain!

Virgin Atlantic, the only airline at the time to fly direct, took us on an eight-hour flight to the city that I would later hear described, and refer to, as Disneyland for adults. Las Vegas bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World and is famous for its mega casino–hotels and associated entertainment.

We should see a show. Butch said during the flight. Tom Jones or someone else who’s playing. Everyone agreed but it was doubted that Tom would be there at the same time we were.

As we came in to land, the stewardess announced our arrival.

Welcome, She said, To Lost Wages.

We disembarked the plane to find the weather quite warm, dry and very windy. Las Vegas is situated within Clark County in a basin on the floor of the Mojave Desert and is surrounded by mountains, which gives it abundant sunshine virtually all year-round.

We passed through the terminal, noticing the numerous slot machines in the waiting areas.

Even at the airport they want you to gamble! I told Butch.

We took a mini-bus taxi from the airport to our hotel, The Stratosphere, located at the opposite end of the strip. We passed all the big casino-hotels and resorts, The Grand, The Bellagio, The Luxor, The Venetian and many others as we were driven north along The Strip which is actually a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard South.

Everywhere was plastered in neon. There seemed to be millions of neon lights. Huge billboards covered any space in-between the hotels, advertising shows such as Siegfried and Roy’s famous magic show featuring white tigers and boxing events at places like Caesar’s Palace.

While we drove along, I browsed a copy of "What’s on" magazine that I picked up from the holder attached to the rear of the front seat and saw something I couldn’t quite believe.

You know you said it would be nice to see someone like Tom Jones, if he was playing... I said to my fellow travellers. "Well, he is! At The Grand!"

When? Tessa asked.

All week. Afternoon and evening shows. I told her.

We’ll never get tickets. Not this late. Grant said.

Got to be worth a try. I offered. If we go down there tomorrow, we can see if there’s any left. We all agreed we’d at least try and get tickets.

After a few minutes, we arrived at our temporary residence. Our hotel, The Stratosphere, at the time of our visit, incorporated a 1,149-foot tower and was the tallest freestanding observation tower in the USA. At the top of the tower there were observation decks, a revolving restaurant called Top of the World, a roller-coaster (yes, a roller-coaster on top of the tower!) called The High Roller and a freefall ride called "Big