Elvis once sang about the bright lights of this
city setting his soul on fire. Today it's more like an inferno. This is
one of the most artificially enhanced cities on the planet. A city
which can be seen from outer space on the earths surface thanks to it's
plethora of dazzling lights and astronomical energy consumption per
square mile.
Las Vegas is like an old lover you still cant shake
your feelings for. For me, this was the ultimate love/hate
relationship. Mesmerized by the enormity of it all, the theatrical
architecture, the jaw dropping shows, the money, the shopping and the
sheer grand scale of this city left me almost exhausted. As much
as I was astonished by the detail and grandeur of it all, I was also
left puzzled as to how a place like this can keep on growing. Each year
brings a bigger hotel, a more elaborate show, a brighter star.
The
enjoyment level of your stay depends on the duration of it. I stayed a
week and found that 3 days would have been plenty. The strip of hotels
and casinos is like a long road to heaven, or hell depending on whether
you win or lose. Of course, there’s only one hotel you need to
consider when coming to Vegas. Enter the Bellagio Hotel.
Aside from it's size, the first thing that attracts you to the hotel is
it's amazing fountain structure and its location (situated right in the
middle of the strip). Classified as Las Vegas' biggest and best, the
fountain takes you on a musical journey with classical and opera themes
coupled with an aquatic choreography like nothing I had seen before,
its kind of cool. One thing that the Bellagio did amazingly well
was beds. Not only did they look enormous from the first glance, they
were exceptionally inviting. The only way to describe laying on this
bed is the feeling of being gently devoured by something remarkably
comfortable. Ecstasy in bed. That is the only way to describe the
approach the Bellagio has to bedding. So comfortable are these beds,
that you could easily stay there all day. Room service redefined
itself. Ordering from your room had graduated from a waiter bringing in
a tray, to a waiter wheeling in a small dining table. One would expect
the theme 'be our guest' to accompany the food complete with dancing
cutlery and plates.
Apart from being seduced by the enormity and
grandeur of the Bellagio, you will also want to relax and that's where
the extravagant pool and spa areas of the hotel come in. The outdoor
pool area is like something out of an overproduced Hollywood movie of
the 1950's. It's size alone commands your respect, once that is given ,
feel free to jump right in and laze about the surrounding grounds all
day. The spa area is equally as lush and roomy enough to accommodate a
small army, its worth spending a few hours here.
Shopping at
Bellagio is equivalent to the world's best shopping strips, with
Armani, Gucci, Fendi and the fashion world's leading luxury labels at
your fingertips along with the shops next door at Caesars Palace. I
found the gaming floor at the casino to be of a high class than other
places in Vegas. The settings of the gaming tables alone (very Monte
Carlo) and the variety of gaming was meticulously selected and making
the gaming areas as luxurious as any other part of the Bellagio. One
thing that can be off putting in many of the casinos in Vegas is the
retaining cigarette smoke odor in many of the gaming areas. The
Bellagio has addressed this issue by creating ingenious drapery which
actually absorbs cigarette smoke and odors and eliminates it from the
rooms. Las Vegas is nothing if not excessive and the Bellagio
follows suit. A trip to Vegas, no matter how short deserves the respect
of a grand hotel with all the trimmings. The Bellagio provides that and
more. by Billy T
It's
always useful to have a multi-purpose man at home to help you out. From
Librarian to office boy to guardian of precious objects, Compartment Man
- and his substantial physical assets - are at your service. This
amenable giant, with his 34 small, medium and large compartments will
store anything you give him. Designed by Susi and Ueli Berger,
Comportment Man is sold by the Swiss furniture editor Röthlisberger. Choose between a natural finish and stained black. Just don't forget that he can't talk back. by Yvan Rodic
If you thought legitimate science did not play a crucial part in the design of childhood games and toys, think again. Zubbles
are the latest playful creation that took 11 years of science by its
inventor, Tim Kehoe to formulate a vibrantly colored product that would
disappear after popping. Zubbles are non-staining and non-toxic and
this product scores high on both the child and adult fun meter. by Isla Verde
Since 1988, the French graffiti artist Honet has covered the walls of hidden and disserted places across Europe with melancholic beauty. He mixes elegant trash illustration with the romantic atmosphere of the secret places he visits: Balkan balls with Yugoslavian soccer supporters, top-hated skeletons, happy monsters, ram-like women and masked and bound men, these are the images he uses to describe a universe that exists only inside him. "I express nothing special, I live, I'm in the city... and graffiti is like a Eurythmics song", he says. Honet is taking a drive by night in the ruins of Sarajevo; he's invisible in the undergrounds of Bucharest; by the window of the train, destination Warsaw, Berlin fades away. Honet dressed in black and Paris is waiting for him. by Yvan Rodic
Coming in 2006 to a theater near you: a cool hunter will be the star of
a movie. Peter Weir, director of The Truman Show, will soon film the
thriller Pattern Recognition, co-written with David Arata (Spy Game) for Warner Bros. The film, based on a William Gibson novel,
follows the adventures of a cool hunter who finds herself in a
dangerous puzzle when she's hired to track down the source of a strange
collection of video footage on the Internet. Pattern Recognition is a
masterful snapshot of postmodern consumer culture and hipster
esoterica. Set in London, Tokyo, and Moscow, Pattern Recognition takes
you on a tour of a global village inhabited by power-hungry marketeers,
industrial saboteurs, high-end hackers, Russian mob bosses, Internet
fan-boys, techno archeologists, washed-out spies and cultural
documentarians. Can't wait to see it? Don't worry; as good cool
hunters, we will keep you updated on the release of the film. by Yvan Rodic
Music with depth, substance and a story to tell has a new name. Rosie Thomas.
With her debut in 2001 (When we were small) and follow up in 2003 (
only with Laughter) Rosie Thomas has proven to be an artist with raw
talent, solid integrity and a forte in storytelling. No Depression
calls her voice “delicate, exquisite”, and Paste Magazine labeled her a
“powerhouse vocalist.” As an artist Thomas believes in removing herself
from her comfort zones and familiar environments in order to push
herself and her work into new frontiers. She demonstrated this by
moving from a serene environment in Seattle to the fast pace of L.A to
record her latest album. Rosie Thomas posses a voice which is both
soothing and progressive in its delivery. She has completed touring
with the likes of Iron & Wine and The Shins and is currently on the
road supporting her 2005 release 'If Songs Could Be Held'. Listen to her here.
Take a risk in life with your personal image or take a risk in business with your corporate image. Forget all the marketing and communication rules: trust Fauxpas Grafik desigers'intuition. Send them any text with a maximum 30 characters and they'll send you back an Ambassador Stamp with a matching surprise logo. Your courage makes you unique. Let Fauxpas reveal you. by Yvan Rodic
The
large and clunky electronic fish finding equipment of the past which
looked more like a bad prop from the Dr Who set, has been replaced with
this incredibly clever and compact device. Taking the form of a wrist
watch, the sonar sensor unit operates within a 75 meter radius and
scans ocean depths of 120 meters. The floating sensor attaches to your
fishing line and transmits the images of the fish onto the LCD screen
on the wrist unit in real time. Like something out of Star Trek, the
wrist watch is the command center controlling functions such as the
fish proximity alarm, sensitivity level, depth range, and fish
identifier. With 400 hours of battery life under its belt, there's no
excuse to let the big one get away.
Unwrapping a gift can often be a frenzy brought on by the anticipation of what's contained inside. The crew at Suck U.K have changed all that. Thanks to their new gift wrap range its what's on the inside of the wrapping print itself that has people carefully removing the tape and taking a peek. Ordinary stripes act as a plain decoy on one side, whilst sexy fleshy girly shots fill the paper inside. It's the kinder surprise of the gift wrapping world. Sold in great jumbo sizes of 840 X 590 per sheet, this paper has got unique wrapping ...wrapped !
We've all had that uneasy feeling when faced with
the task of unplugging a cable amongst a sea of cables. Ok, maybe
that’s a bit of an overreaction, but the point is that if you have
more than two cables plugged into a power strip and you cannot see
where the cables begin, you have less than a 50/50 chance of unplugging
the correct item. Not very good odds.But we have come to the rescue
with the design of the Cable ID. This product is a true marriage of
form and function. Its helix shape and labeling area allows for you to
properly secure and identify the cord with the item in which you intend
to unplug. This product is reusable and will save you plenty of
headaches. By Billy T - Contact us to purchase product in bulk quantities -
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You are what you eat, its a much-used adage but no one it seems has taken it as literally as skincare nutraceuticals brand Borba.
The top selling US brand, available at Sephora stores, has created a
line of products that you actually eat or drink, including nutrient
enriched drink mixes which are proven to decrease facial wrinkles by
28% after month's use. The brand's Healthy Skin from within motto is
made possible by a special maturation process that injects nutrients
and vitamins into water molecules. Sweet tooth's will love the Skin
Candy range we're talking jellybeans and gummy bears which work like
the drinks. Oh, and don't think all of those extra nutrients will
affect your waistline, all of the Borba products are calorie and
carbohydrate free.
The 2 Meter Dome is the latest and greatest technologically-saturated and aesthetically pleasing tent offered by The North Face. The geodesic form of this tent allows room for 8 occupants to be shielded from the elements. Whether making your way up one of the world’s several challenging peaks or staying on level ground miles from the nearest increase in elevation, you will definitely be the envy of base camp. Then again, for $5000 you'd want to be. by Isla Verde
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