CRAAAAZY old lady dancing in a ghost town and other Las Vegas, NV Off The Beaten Path Tips

If you are up for about a 1.5 hour drive and enjoy crazy, surreal experiences, I HIGHLY suggest you make a pilgrimage out to Amargosa Valley just northwest of LV, to Marta Becketts theater, the Amargosa Opera House. She is an amazing older woman who bought an abondoned complex of buildings in Death Valley Junction and turned it into her lifelong dream. She does a 2- person performance of various musical pantomime in the theater where she has painted her own audience floor to ceiling (she is an accomplished artist and many of her works are displayed in the motel attached to the theater). I'm actually not into musicals or theater but this is an experience you will NEVER forget, believe you me. I could go on and on but check out this article about her from Smithsonian magazine: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian/issues96/jan96/theplayers_jpg.html

My wife and I were married in Death Valley at the Furnace Creek Inn which is only another 45 mins. down the road (Death Valley National Park). I highly recommend that you stay the night at the Longstreet Casino http://www.longstreetinn.com/, just 6 miles north of DV Junction (we have stayed at Marta's motel, but it's a little reminiscent of a certain Hitchcock motel and the beds aren't too comfy, esp. for the $50- plus price tag. It's not too far of a drive to the Park, and the hotels at DV National Park are at best incredibly expensive (in the cool months), or at least not worth the price for the small, lame motel-esque rooms). The Longstreet has super swank rooms, some with fireplaces for $50-80, and the food in the cafe is really quite good.

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Phone: (800) 508-9493 (Longstreet)
Website: http://www.amargosa-opera-house.com/main.html
Other Contact: (760) 852-4441 (opera house)

Golden Nugget Hotel- 129 E. Fremont St. This is one of the swank, old-school casinos downtown and is worth a visit (while you wait for the next Fremont Experience show) to see the biggest damn hunk of actual gold you'll ever see in your life.

'Discovered October 1980 near Wedderburn, Victoria, Australia, this magnificent gold nugget, named the Hand of Faith, is the largest on public display in the world, was discovered, using a metal detector, lying six inches below the surface in a vertical position. It weighs a massive 875 troy ounces (61 pounds, 11 ounces average).'

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*** on a real-life hunk of the actual Berlin Wall! No, Really! In the main men's bathroom at the Main Street Casino- 200 N Main St. you can see a true chunk of world history and then make a political statement by relieving yourself on it since the urinals are mounted right on the wall. Sort of reminded me of the Madonna Inn near San Luis Obispo in Ca. as one of those truly sublime urinatory experiences.(AP Photo/Laura Rauch)

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For entertaining snob-watching check out the Mall at Caesar’s (esp. near Spago). I enjoy totally slumming it when we go there and occasionally wear my billy bob teeth and blow peoples minds. You can also see the robotic Roman statues doing a swank Vegas laser show for free. Although it’s a crappy chain restaurant, the Cheesecake Factory is also at the mall and is always good eats in spite of the long wait (get there before 6 pm)

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The Attic Vintage store
This is a fun place to check out for cool retro stuff although it has a rep. of being somewhat (ok, very) inflated price-wise (while yer in the n-hood check out the Catholic Charities Thrift Store 1 block down, which is probably where they get most of the stuff anyway). Hit El Sombrero for lunch/dinner right accross the street.
1018 South Main Street
Las Vegas

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China Ranch is a family owned and operated date ranch only three miles from Tecopa (and the Tecopa Hot Springs), about 1.5 hrs. from Vegas on Hwy 127. It is set in a spectacular desert location, in a green little valley with a stream, and date palms standing out against the sky and hills near the Old Spanish Trail. The ranch has a store which offers all kinds of date-injected goodies. Guided nature walks are a feature of the ranch also. Don't pass up a soak in the mineral baths at Tecopa- it is an experience you'll never forget.

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Phone: 760-852-4415
Website: http://www.chinaranch.com/

It pains me to know people who have lived in Vegas for years have either 1, never been to Southern Utah and seen any of the National Parks there, or 2, never been to the Tecopa Hot Springs. It is a fantastic, truly surreal experience, and being only 90 miles from LV (on Hwy 127 going toward Death Valley), it is really something you shouldn't miss. The place consists of two concrete block buildings at the base of a tiny hill where natural mineral hot springs have flowed for millenia (ok, a long time). It is operated by Inyo County as is EXTREMELY clean and sanitary. It is a Mecca for transient retirees (snowbirds) who migrate from Arizona to spend days or weeks soaking arthritic bones and sore muscles in the magic water. The people who go here are all super friendly and talkative (sometimes a bit too much considering you are completely naked while in the baths). I'm not a nudist or exhibitionist and was very uncomfortable with the whole idea (it is required by the health code to be nude and to take a shower first), but got very used to it quickly after feeling the incredibly soothing water. Unfortunately there aren't any decent hotels around and I would recommend staying in Shoshone or at the Longstreet Casino at Death Valley Junction if you are passing through toward DV. Drop those drawers and I guarantee you'll never regret (or forget) this experience! There are also a couple "iffy" motels here, including the Tecopa Springs Resort, but I would recommend camping.

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Phone: (760) 852-4420 (Tecopa resort)

Tecopa Hot Springs: Another picture of the actual bathing buildings (but don't judge a book by its cover...). The guys are to the left and the gals are to the right. The gals are lucky enough to have smooth river rock on the bottom to massage their tired tootsies and also have an open roof to view the stars at night. (the guys are relegated to a plain concrete bunker but can sit outside in a private courtyard to cool off in between dunks).

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Cliff's Barber Corral, 3330 E. Tropicana Ave- at Pecos Rd. 5 mins. from the strip- The absolute BEST haircut and most memorable haircut experience you'll ever have. Walk in, grab a coke out of the fridge and watch old westerns on the big screen TV until Cliffie gets to you. Ask for the neck/scalp massage if he pretends to forget about it. Give him at least 15 bucks and he'll be happy (he won't tell you what the charge is).
(Photo by John Gurzinski.)

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The Binion's Horseshoe Casino on Fremont St. downtown has a nice pool with the best view in the city. I imagine if you grease someone you could probably hang out up there w/o getting a room. (trans.: grease=tip/bribe)

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