Elvis, Paris and Soil Erosion by Julie Miller
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It’s 3 am, and I'm sitting at a bar in Paris with Elvis Presley. The King is in disguise, wearing a track suit and baseball cap to cover his black quiff. We knock back shots of bourbon and talk about love, life, backpacking and UFOs.
Only in Vegas.
In Las Vegas, Nevada, imitation is more than just an art - it's a way of life. Here, the Bridge of Sighs is just across the road from an erupting volcano; you can stroll from Manhattan to Ancient Egypt; and the shores of Lake Como overlook the Arc de Triomphe. You can ride a rollercoaster around a skyscraper, or catch a gondola through an indoor shopping mall; and there's nothing unusual about hanging out with an Irish Elvis impersonator beneath the struts of the Eiffel Tower.
Every year, over 30 million tourists flock to this concrete-and-neon oasis in the desert to indulge their every whim - be that winning the jackpot on the slot machines, getting married in a drive-through wedding chapel, watching big-name entertainers take the stage, or visiting one of the new theme hotels which have transformed this city from a gambling mecca to the ultimate fantasy destination.
Gone is the popular sleazy image of strip joints, smoky casinos and underworld crime - Vegas is now just as appealing to families who come to gawk at the amazing hotel constructions, ride the theme parks and enjoy the free street entertainment.
Of course, old Vegas is still alive and well - old-fashioned budget hotels like the Imperial Palace still pack in small-time gamblers, hunched over 5-cent slot machines for hours on end, stopping only to down the all-you-can-eat buffet or grab a free drink from a cocktail waitress. But scattered along the Strip are new mega-resorts which have transformed Las Vegas, attracting a new clientele who are more concerned with entertainment and family values than making a quick buck.
In fact, it's possible to visit Las Vegas and not spend a cent on gambling. But it would take a saint to do so - the temptation to empty your pockets of loose change is overwhelming. There are even slot machines at the airport beckoning those who can't wait or want a last chance at Lady Luck.
Despite the recreated hotel-cities, the impeccable shopping malls, the theme parks and the family attractions, the casinos are still the major money spinner, and even the new resorts have elaborate gaming rooms, all competing for the tourist dollar.
And a healthy, deep wallet it is indeed - visitors spent over $24.6 billion dollars in Vegas last year, well and truly justifying the mind-boggling development which has made it America's fastest-growing city.
It seems only imagination can limit of Vegas' architects: the more over-indulgent, opulent and bizarre the better. For instance, beyond the gilded dome of the Venetian's reception area lies a recreated St Marks Square complete with canals, romantic bridges and striped-shirted boatmen steering genuine Italian gondolas through the green - though not quite murky enough - water. Happy tourists queue to take a $10 gondola ride (much cheaper than the $100 you'll fork out in the real Venice), eat in the outdoor (so to speak) cafes and shop in exclusive boutiques featuring the best of Italian designers.
It's an amazing optical illusion, down to the perpetual twilight sky. All that's missing are the pigeons and the smell. And the beauty is, if you get sick of Venice, Paris is just down the road!
When Hunter S. Thompson wrote Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, I'm sure he had no idea that the city would become such an hallucinatory trip in itself. There is absolutely no need for mind-altering substances here - simply open your eyes, take in the bizarre sights, and be prepared for reality to blur into fantasy.
For an antidote to this man-made madness, however, there's one place you mustn't miss whilst in Las Vegas - and that's the Grand Canyon, the most impressive piece of soil erosion in the world.
Physically, spiritually and ideologically, it's hard to imagine two more vastly different places. Geographically, however, they are only 480 km apart, and you'd be crazy not to take the opportunity to view this amazing natural icon whilst you are in the vicinity.
By car, it will take you a good six hours to drive to the Canyon - so it's best to plan an overnight stay. Make time to view at least one sunrise and sunset - it's an incomparable, awe-inspiring experience. There's plenty of accommodation, both within the National Park itself (in environmentally-sympathetic lodges) and in the nearby town of Flagstaff.
If you are strapped for time, however, or desperate to get back to the slot machines, the best way to see the natural wonders of this region is by air. To The Edge and Beyond is just one of the air tours operated by Scenic Airlines, the largest aerial sightseeing carrier in the world. This five hour tour departs from Las Vegas and provides a birds-eye view of the Strip before heading east above Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and the glistening Colorado River, snaking its way through the desert.
The one-hour flight is conducted in a 20-seater twin Otter. It's not the most comfortable way to travel - it's all a bit squishy, and the desert thermals can create some stomach-churning flying conditions - but the views through the large picture windows more than compensate for any discomfort.
Rather than flying to the densely-touristed South Rim of the Canyon, Scenic flights land at the West Rim, located on Hualipai Indian territory. This provides a rare opportunity to experience real wilderness - apart from the Scenic terminal, there's not another building in sight, and you are well away from the chatter of other tourists, the click of a million cameras and the endless stream of visitors walking the paved cliff edges.
The best, however, is yet to come - as you load into a waiting Heli USA chopper for a five-minute trip over the edge of the rim and into the heart of the canyon. On this awesome ride you get up close and personal with the Canyon, soaring within inches of the red cliff faces, through impossibly narrow gorges and over looming rock formations before landing on the cactus-dotted basin floor, on the edge of the mighty Colorado River.
Within minutes of departing the rim, you're sipping champagne under an Indian shelter, absorbing the vast terrain and the overwhelming silence which emanates from the canyon walls. Wander just 100 metres from the tour group, and you'll get a real wilderness experience - cacti, red boulders, soaring eagles, and the gentle ebb and flow of the muddy river.
The canyon floor visit feels all too brief, and you are soon whisked back up to the rim for another unique experience - a genuine Haulipai Indian lunch of cornbread, chicken and beans, served at an outdoor restaurant with arguably one of the best views in the world. This is a leisurely meal, with plenty of time to wander along the rim knocking off a roll or two of photos - an inevitability on this trip!
The Hualapai tribe owns and occupies more than 1 million acres of land in and around the Grand Canyon, and tours are only possible because they are gracious enough to allow helicopters to fly below the rim and land near the river. Naturally, part of the ticket price goes to the Haulapais.
Within an hour, the Scenic flight gets you back in the heart of Las Vegas, where the Strip is firing up for the night ahead. Backstage at the Imperial Hotel, young Elvis has donned his gold suit and slicked back his hair, preparing for his legion of adoring fans. When this Elvis, or Graham Patrick as his mother knows him, signs autographs, he gives his fans a harsh dose of reality - signing his real name, but adding "as Elvis"... just in case they are confused. Knowing Vegas, they probably are!