Mar08
04
MIX08 First Impressions
If one could ever get used to 24+ hour trips in a plane, I’m starting to. Or at least accept them as a necessary evil.
In comparison to Virgin Atlantic, SAA had an inch or two extra legroom (which makes a world of difference to me), but crappier food and nowhere near the variety in entertainment. All in all about the same value then.
Our trip from Jozi to Washington DC via Dakar for refueling was uneventful. I had space next to me as the flight wasn’t full so I can be thankful for that.
The huge surprise of the trip was the truly magnificent experience I had at the hands of the crew aboard United Airlines flight 1549 (a Ted flight - extension of United) which took us the almost five hour trip from DC to Vegas. These guys were phenomenal. I had been previously warned that American domestic airlines were terrible, but I could not believe how much the crew clearly loved what they did (or how well trained they were to act like it) and how contagious it was among the passengers. They were fun, inventive and interesting people. Even the captain’s landing was remarkable - smooth as anything. Only time I’ve ever landed in a plane where the passengers clapped and cheered for the pilot - though some credit must once again go to the crew who encouraged this sort of behaviour. The pilot even banked left and right two or three times when we flew over the Grand Canyon so we could all get a good look at it (check pics here). Super. Our South African domestic airlines - even Kulula which I love dearly - could learn some tricks from these folk.
Vegas is an amazing place. It’s clean as anything - even the air is remarkably crisp. I can imagine that early in the morning, once the desert chill has lifted that it must be pretty spectacular to stroll around outside. With the timezone difference being what it is it’s likely I’ll be up at 3AM so this is an option!
It really is purely an entertainment destination - a beautiful girl dressed up for one thing and one things only - a damn good time. Everybody seems to be in a good mood here. You cannot take two steps without stumbling into a slot machine (or non English-speaking Mexican imports forcefully shoving call-girl biz cards into your hand - yeeuch).
The buildings are pretty cool, in a casino-y sort of way, but not breathtaking like the ancient buildings of Europe. It’s more the culture of the city that’s breathtaking, and it’s strange familiarity. I say strange familiarity because most buildings I’ve seen here I recognise from a movie, a heavyweight boxing bout or random TV series - they’re a part of my frame of reference already even if I’ve been miles away. These trips are showing me just how Westernised we are (as South Africans), without having to be in the West at all.
Our hotel, The Venetian, is spectacular for it’s sheer size and - to quote my friend Michael Mol of Top Billing - opulence. I met Kath Roderick from Microsoft who kindly helped me check in and got settled in quickly. My suite is awesome with (genuinely) high speed wi-fi to boot.
After catching up on some mail I decided to kill some time on the strip. Killing some time landed up being a four hour walk up and down the full length of the strip, which was awesome, but in retrospect perhaps not so wise. I began to feel to crap at about 16h00 LV time (02h00 SA time) and got progressively worse until I staggered back into our hotel looking like a bit of a wino. I was dizzy, genuinely sore and so tired I could barely stand up. Morale - at least build up some energy and drink multiple Red Bulls (yay for Red Bull) before embarking on exciting, albeit jet-lagged stroll through Vegas.
Regardless, I loved it, and despite the fact that I’m still exhausted (and will be for some time), I’m really looking forward to sinking my teeth into the conference.
Ok, that’s me for now, time to go have supper and a (relatively) early night…
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