Some Things That Won't Be Staying In Vegas

Here are some final photos from our trip last month:

One of the grand hallways in the Venetian.

On the lower level of the Venetian are the Grand Canal Shoppes. This 'statue' was standing on the platform. He would only come alive if you put some money on the platform. It was fun to watch when passersby were surprised by the sudden movement.

The hourly performances are called 'Streetmosphere' and feature strolling musicians, costumed singers performing Italian arias/opera music, jugglers, and contortionists. The man in the pointed black cap is on stilts. There are benches to sit and watch the show and gelato is sold just a few steps away.

I took my daughter to Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. She had wanted to go after researching things to do for our trip. The first room we entered, we were surrounded by Brad Pitt, Sandra Bullock, Gwen Steffani, and a host of others. I could tell she was a little freaked out, as some of them REALLY looked true to life. I told her to take a picture of me with Will Smith, but even I didn't sit too close to him.....LOL! After about five minutes, we got used to it! The fun part was that they had props near many of the statues. For instance, you could put on boxing gloves and take your photo sparring with Muhammad Ali.

Her is my daughter, cheering on Babe Ruth. She ended up having a really good time with it.

No trip to Vegas is complete without seeing the flamingos at The Flamingo. They also had a black swan, which I don't think I'd ever seen one before.

We went to the breakfast buffet at the Bellagio one morning and stopped to admire one of my favorite sights, the Dale Chihuly glass ceiling.

The Bellagio changes its conservatory displays seasonally. We were lucky enough to see their 'Under the Sea' display this time. It's an incredible sight to see so many flowers, but I thought this whale covered in succulents was really unusual.

At the Wynn, there is an area of the lobby similar to the Bellagio, where you can walk through a beautiful floral display. This merry go round made up of flowers was amazing.

We went to the Auto Collections show at the Linq. It takes up an entire floor. They had just about any car you could imagine, from every time period. This one seemed like old school Vegas to me.

At Mandalay Bay, we went to the Shark Reef and Aquarium. It was pricey, but was actually bigger and better than I thought it would be. It had two of those tunnels that you walk through and are surrounded by sharks, sting ray, etc.

I probably enjoy the shows the most about Vegas. We let our daughter choose the shows she wanted to see. Our first night, we saw Human Nature: Jukebox. They were a 90's boy band from Australia. They sang with both a band and performed a capella. It was a high energy show, with costume changes and some dancers. Most of their music was Motown, but they threw in a few songs from other eras as well. My favorite were their renditions of some Bee Gee songs and Men at Work. Another night, we saw Mat Franco, an illusionist who won America's Got Talent a few seasons ago. He was AMAZING!!!!! My husband was cracking up at me, because I'm normally not someone who gets all that impressed, but I admit, my jaw was hanging open. Plus, Mat was only 29 years old, and very charming and down to earth. I'd highly recommend his show to anyone. We also saw an old school magician, Nathan Burton, during an afternoon show. It was cheesy, but family friendly and cheap!

We ended our last night by stopping to see the fountain show at the Bellagio. Always a treat!