99 Flights on the Wall
I started today in Las Vegas on a trip that had a stop in San Francisco the day before. I’m writing this in Denver on my way home for 56 hours before my next flight to Detroit via Denver. There is suddenly a lot of Denver this week.
Las Vegas is an interesting place for an expo. The city is perhaps the best prepared place for events anywhere in the world. They can host anything, anytime and do it with the same ease that hotels and casinos help people part with their money. The airport is close to the Strip, yet there is no train or hotel shuttle system to get to and from. Inevitably, a train would need to have slot machines or it wouldn’t be Vegas. I think there is a local ordinance that says there must be a slot machine within a certain number of feet of every tourist.
Walking the Strip is an adventure in technology, psychology, debauchery and hopelessness. I’m amazed that an Eifel Tower, a pyramid, the canals of Venice and the streets of New York can be located so close to each other. I’m fairly sure the Pharos didn’t imagine a burial monument full of cigarette smoke, unlimited alcohol and the incessant sound of slot machines. But I could be wrong. They did find beer in the pyramids of Giza.
Yesterday I went local and had PF Chang’s in the Planet Hollywood casino. I think this is fitting, as I’m fairly sure PF Chang’s has more in common with California than China and I’m certain there are a couple of the chain’s restaurants in Hollywood near Hollywood and Highland. It was a nice change from hotel food.
Today I started thinking I would take a noon flight to San Francisco and an evening flight home, getting in around 7 p.m. or so. After an issue with the aircraft’s landing gear on the flight from Las Vegas to San Francisco, I thought it best to reroute via Denver so I could get home today rather than at 1 a.m. tomorrow. According to United, my last flight was my 98th for the year with airline. This next flight home will be my 99th. I don’t think there is a prize for 100 flights on a single airline in a single year, but there should be. Perhaps a giant box of airline snacks?
I’ve been fortunate that my flights this year have, for the most part, been fairly smooth and noneventful. Sure, there was the airplane with the bomb threat in Frankfurt, a couple of medical emergencies early in the year, some misconnects and missing luggage, but given the sample size of flights so far it has been mostly uneventful. I’ve also been able to go to some amazing places and see some incredible sights from the air. The flights and layovers are fading with each day, but the best entertainment available on the plane – the window seat – rarely disappoints.
The Sphere in Las Vegas
