| |
Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família
This is one of Gaudís unfinished masterpieces and pays tribute to the Sagrada family. La Sagrada Familia the magnificent surreal church is designed by Gaudí. While still unfinished its like no other church youll ever see:
Its design is a combination of a dragons cave and a castle made from whipped cream. (You can take an elevator up one of the spires but be prepared to cover your earsthe bell may gong while youre up there. The view is awe- and vertigo-inspiring.)Dai7)> opened 9-18 in wintertime and 9-20 in summertime.
address: Pl. de la Sagrada Familia Justin : I must say I was a bit disappointed. Sure, it’s very strange and it’s huge and world famous, but I found that the structure as a whole was lacking in unity. Still,you can’t afford to miss it.
address: C/Mallorca401 tel: +34 93 207 30 31
Matthias Church
Matthias Church – This was the coronation church of Hungarian kings since King Matthias. The records of 1247 first mention this church as the main church of Buda Castle. The originally French building in early Gothic style has been consistently enlarged and rebuilt over the centuries. In 1526, when the Turks conquered Buda, the church was transformed into a mosque. After the reconquest of the city (1686) the church belonged to the Franciscans and later to the Jesuits. Between the years 1874 and 1896, Frigyes Schulek completely reconstructed the Church of Our Lady in the neo-Gothic style.
The Matthias church is on Szentharomsag utca in the castle district of old Buda. Although extensively rebuilt in the 1890s, it is a beautiful gothic church with a colourfully patterned roof and some excellent murals. The church is a focal point for Hungarian nationalism as it was here that Hungary’s kings were traditionally crowned and where Franz Liszt (or Liszt Ferenc as they say in Magyar) first performed his Coronation Mass in 1867. Although the real Crown of St Stephen is in a heavily guarded vault in the National Museum, there is an excellent replica in the Museum of Ecclesiastical Art within Matthias Church along with a detailed account of the extensive scientific research which has been carried out in the effort to date the Hungarian crown.
Venetian Hotel and Casino
No expense was spared creating the Venetian Hotel, in fact $2 billion was spent recreating Venice in the Nevada Desert and the result is fairly spectacular. Guests can travel around the hotel in a gondola – real canals run through the hotel – and a replica of St Mark’s Square and the Basilica turns from night to day every three hours; visitors have to look carefully to notice that the sky is actually a vast fresco. The only thing missing are the pigeons and the backpackers. The casino itself is massive, featuring 2,500 slot machines and 125 gaming tables. For guests taking a break from the tables, there are five swimming pools, a fitness centre, and 17 restaurants – mostly pizzerias.
Address: 3355 Las Vegas Boulevard; Telephone: (702) 414 1000; Website: www.venetian.com; Opening time: Daily 24 hours; Admission: Free
Bellagio Hotel and Casino
Belagio fountains © Belagio
The Bellagio is one of Las Vegas’ most opulent hotels and most popular casinos. With an Italian theme, the great bulk of the Bellagio sits in its own vast garden. It has over 3,000 rooms and hundreds of slot machines and gaming tables, however its best-known attraction is its amazing water show - a breathtaking union of water, music and light. Every 15 minutes between 7pm and midnight Bellagio’s world-famous fountains ‘dance’ to opera, classical or whimsical music with carefully choreographed movements. Beyond the Bellagio’s gracious lobby lies the Conservatory & Botanical Gardens, a magnificent garden abounding in fragrance, texture and colour. The hotel also has a new fine arts gallery that hosts contemporary art exhibits; it is currently exhibiting a series of celebrity portraits by Andy Warhol.
Address: 3600 S. Las Vegas Boulevard; Telephone: (702) 693 7111; Website: www.bellagiolasvegas.com; Opening time: Daily 24 hours; Admission: Free (hotel and casino)
The Mirage
Another MGM mega-casino, the showpiece at the Mirage is a Volcano that shoots flames 100ft (30m) into the night sky every 15 minutes (7pm to midnight), spewing smoke and transforming a tranquil waterfall into spectacular streams of molten lava. As you’d expect of Las Vegas, it’s all quite naff, but great entertainment. Siegfried & Roy’s White Tigers are the other signature attraction at the Mirage (unfortunately the Siegfried & Roy show has been cancelled indefinitely due to the near-fatal attack on Roy Horn by one of the tigers during a performance). Unlike conventional tigers, which have black and gold markings, the white tiger is white with black stripes, pink paws and ice-blue eyes. There are only a few dozen white tigers in the world, which makes them rarer than the panda bear. The open-air Tiger Habitat features a swimming pool with fountains and simulated mountain terrain for the tigers’ enjoyment and the public’s entertainment. Another popular attraction is the aquarium located behind the Front Desk. This 20,000-gallon saltwater aquarium is home to angelfish, puffer fish, tangs, sharks and other exotic sea creatures.
Address: 3400 S. Las Vegas Boulevard; Telephone: (702) 791 7111; Website: www.mirage.com; Opening time: Daily 24 hours; Admission: Free
The Luxor
The Luxor is themed on ancient Egypt and is one of the most prominent sights on the Strip. It is a massive black-glass pyramid containing 36 floors of hotel rooms, and shining through it up into the night sky is the world’s most powerful light beam, which they claim can be seen by planes circling Los Angeles. The ground floor of the hotel is given over to a massive casino, which stands beneath a recreation of Tutankhamun’s Tomb. Other than gambling, entertainment at the hotel includes an IMAX theatre, gyms, swimming pools and shows by the spectacular Blue Man Group.
Address: 3900 S. Las Vegas Boulevard; Telephone: (702) 262 4000; Website: www.luxor.com; Opening time: Daily 24 hours; Admission: Free
Liberace Museum
The Liberace Museum was founded 1979, by the late entertainer and features ‘Mr Showmanship’s’ dazzling jewellery, outfits and other memorabilia. Liberace was a massively popular musician in America and best known for his outrageous outfits and stage sets. He was a regular visitor to Las Vegas. The museum houses his vast collection of pianos and cars, which include a custom-made Rolls Royce covered with tiny mirrors. His costumes, stage props and jewellery can also be seen. His ‘crown jewels’ include a spectacular piano-shaped watch with diamonds, rubies, sapphires and emeralds, and a piano-shaped ring containing 260 diamonds in a white- and yellow-gold 18-carat setting with ivory and black jade keys. Proceeds from the not-for-profit museum support scholarships for the performing arts.
Address: 1775 E. Tropicana Avenue; Telephone: (702) 798 5595; E-mail: info@liberace.org; Website: www.liberace.com; Opening time: Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm; Sunday 12pm to 4pm;
Imperial Palace Auto Collection
With over 250 classic antique cars on display (all are available for purchase), the collection is an absolute must for all car buffs. It is actually part of a larger collection and cars are rotated in and out of the showroom on a regular basis; once a car is sold it is replaced by another. Exhibited are rare models, race cars, muscle cars, touring roadsters and dozens of vehicles once owned by the rich and infamous.
Address: Imperial Palace Casino, 3535 S. Las Vegas Boulevard; Telephone: (702) 794 3174; E-mail: info@autocollections.com; Website: www.autocollections.com; Opening time: Daily 9.30am to 9.30pm; Admission: Free entrance vouchers are easily available at the Imperial Palace casino
Gitter Gulch
The downtown area of Las Vegas is where it all began and is known as Glitter Gulch for the bright neon signs and thousands of flashing lights that line the streets - this is where you’ll find Vegas Vic and Sassy Sal, two of the nations best-known neon icons. Some of the city’s most famous vintage casinos are found here, including the Golden Nugget and the Gold Spike, as are most of its strip clubs and stage shows. Most entertainment is on, or just off, the Freemont Street Experience Mall.
Address: Intersection of Fremont and Main Streets, Downtown Las Vegas
Roller Coasters
There are four roller coasters on The Strip: the Manhattan Express at New York, New York, the Canyon Blaster at the Adventuredome, the roller coaster at MGM Grand Adventures and the High Roller at the Stratosphere. The MGM theme park is probably the best, although for sheer terror factor head for the High Roller. At 1,149ft (350m), the Stratosphere Tower is the tallest freestanding observation tower in the United States and the tallest building west of the Mississippi River, and thrill seekers can enjoy excitement over 100 stories above the ground on the Big Shot thrill ride and the High Roller roller coaster. There is also a revolving restaurant at the top of the Stratosphere, which offers great views, but pretty average food.
|
|
|
|
