HOW VERY COSMOPOLITAN - LAS VEGAS, NV on "TRAVEL TUESDAY"

Sitting next door to the Bellagio and its beautiful gardens is the most recent and, by far, most extravagant jewel in the Las Vegas crown - The Cosmopolitan opened its doors in December 2010.

Not to be missed - billed as the most expensive hotel ever, the centerpiece of the Cosmo is "The Chandelier" - a three story bar boasting 2 million glass crystals.  Playing tourist for the day, I snapped some shots of the artworks (aside from the jaw-dropping bar) that make up this grand Vegas adventure...

Evident as soon as you enter from the parking garage (actually, the parking garage is an amazing work of art, itself...large lighted signs indicate just how many spaces are available on any level, as well as green/red lights over each parking space so you know where to aim on your travels down any aisle), the artwork throughout the hotel and casino is spectacular.  The blue gal welcomed us as we were waiting for the elevator from the garage...the pink blown glass chandeliers, while I can find no information on them, I have a suspicion are Chihuly glass - someone correct me if you know for sure...

The lobby of the hotel boasts an ever-changing display of artworks - large columns of LCD screens feature moving displays of some very beautiful art pieces, while mirrors on the ceilings capture visitors below.  This day we were treated to peacefully twirling and undulating sea anemones...

that eventually changed to black and white moving graphics on all the columns.  I had heard, since the opening, that one of the displays had what appear to be people trapped inside of the columns.  I always called "malarkey" since on my numerous trips through, with out of town guests, I had never seen it...until last week.

These images were all taken within minutes of each other - like I said, the display is in constant motion - along with your mind.  Cosmo's now famous tag line?  "Just the right amount of wrong", which was exactly what I was thinking as I was snapping away - almost like a voyeur.  This really was cool, though.  There was a wolf in there, too...don't ask.

Glass and crystals abound...

Some of the most interesting and beautiful pieces are on the ceiling.  The upper right, and lower left photos are of chandeliers constructed entirely of ball chain...teeny tiny ball chain!  The yellow and orange stained glass lighting can be found above a bank of escalators.

Fabulous shopping and eateries can be found on the upper levels of the casino...if you squint at the lower right photo, you can see what it spells out a little easier...it was changing so fast, I had to snap the shot quickly, before it disappeared, which is why it's a little fuzzy.  I hate subliminal messages - they make me thirsty!

And, if you get hungry while exploring, and are up for a Cosmo version of "Where's Waldo", you can try and find the little joint known only as Secret Pizza...there is no particular name it's known by...nor is there any signage leading you to it.  Nor, is it advertised as even being in the hotel - AT ALL!  But it's there, and it's worth finding!  Don't ask - try and find it on your own...once you have, the aroma and a long hallway covered with record albums leads back to a little slice of NY pizza heaven.  If you're absolutely stumped and desperately hungry, you can ask a hotel employee, or get ahold of me.  Definitely worth finding!

And more glass and crystals!  I can attest to some mighty spectacular rooms at the hotel (my husband's company installed the elevators and escalators, and we were treated to a night there, before the grand opening).  Even if you're not staying, this is an absolute MUST SEE on the Vegas Strip.  And, by all means, do the silly touristy thing and succumb to the subliminal - have a "Cosmopolitan" at the Cosmopolitan (I liken it to holding up the Leaning Tower of Pisa in your souvenir travel photos of Italy).  I admit - I downed one, the first time I went.  Damn sign!

COSMOPOLITANS AND CRYSTALS...

This past Saturday evening, we had the immense pleasure of being treated to a night's stay/dinner & drinks at the newly opened Cosmopolitan Hotel and Casino, at the City Center, in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip...and yes, I had a Cosmopolitan at The Cosmopolitan - it just seemed like the thing to do.   This is a project that has been five long years in the making - my husband's elevator company (Thyssen-Krupp) installed all of the escalators and elevators in this fabulous building - lots of blood, sweat and tears in this project, and a well deserved evening out for the guys, who did not have to ask the wives a second time to tag along.  I'm sure the write-ups in the papers will far surpass my little blog about it, but I snapped a few pictures and wanted to share the decadence of it all (make sure you click on the pictures to enlarge)...

This greeted us in the lobby of the hotel - they've taken a beautifully modernistic, artsy approach, for lack of a better sounding description...OK, artsy fartsy maybe, but absolutely jaw dropping!  Most of the things I tried taking pictures of were SO massive in size, it was hard to get it all in, so even harder to put it all in perspective.  These LARGE, four-sided LCD screens (there are people in the second photo - this was taken at check-out the following morning, hence the lack of bodies) are constantly changing their displays, and the displays are perpetually in motion.  These beautiful flowers were actually moving like they were real.  When we checked in, there was a different show on these, and I was told one of the more interesting ones involves a woman who appears to be trapped inside the columns.

One of the many escalators in the building - this was stunning!  The globe sculpture actually had water cascading over the screen behind the balls, while the whole display changed colors - it was blue just the second before I snapped this.

A glass drape ceiling display and the entrance, back down the hall, to the casino, were just a hint of what lay ahead, but first things, first...

Our incredible room was located on the 60th floor - very beautiful, minimalistic, and soothing styling in a room with a king sized bed; two (count em, TWO) 42" flat screen TVs; a sitting area with a full sized wrap-around couch; and wet bar.  The walk-in closet housed the greatest wallpaper.

The second picture here is of the wallpaper in the gorgeous bathroom - at first glance I just thought it was beautiful scroll work.

The most fabulous part of the room was the view of The Strip, facing South, towards CA.  I am uncomfortable with heights, so the fact that I crawled between the two railings on the balcony (walk out balcony with patio furniture) to take the photo looking towards Planet Hollywood, was no small feat on my part, and perhaps it could be attributed to that Cosmopolitan I had before we actually got to the room.  Final photo is looking down at one of the pool areas.

The showpiece of this grand resort is undoubtedly the 3-story, Chandelier Bar, in the middle of the casino.  I was standing with my mouth open at the sight of the bar with the crystals in the first picture, when my husband grabbed my arm, told me to close my mouth, and prepare to be amazed - that I hadn't seen "nuthin'", yet!  I don't think I've ever seen anything as truly fabulous as what I beheld when I rounded the corner.  The bar is swathed in crystals...SIX MILLION crystals, according to the concierge I spoke with at check out.

Crystals as far as the eye could see, and then some...

There was a faint color change, ever so slowly, throughout the evening, casting a different glow every so often - absolutely stunning, and obviously, in just letting the pictures speak for themselves, I'm still speechless.

Vegas has something for everyone, and who would have thought that I would have found what I did after dinner that night (which was at STK - an unbelievable steakhouse with amazing ambiance, helped by a live DJ in the middle of the room).  Allsaints Spitalfields had HUNDREDS of antique sewing machines in two LARGE front windows - attached to steel, threaded poles - believe me...HUNDREDS!  Probably the best window display I've ever seen, even if I wasn't a seamstress!  The inside of the store was done totally in greys, and was reminiscent of a turn of the century sweat shop - sewing machinery and antiques as far as you could see, past the fabulous clothing line they carry.  I'm taking my daughter and going back, without the boys, for some serious looking around.

And then there were these...the lighting in the hallway made these pictures next to impossible to take, true to color.  These three glass chandeliers were Pepto Bismol pink, in color - truly, decadently gaudy, and more than likely outrageously expensive, if I only knew the story behind them...which brings me to one of the million dollar, round glass elevators at the side of the bar...

...and out the door, back to my humble little abode.  An amazing evening out - many thanks to my husband, his company, and his employees that put in many, MANY long hours on this incredible project.  Truly the most fabulous place I've ever stayed, and I have them to thank for it.  Don't miss it, even if it's just to go in and gawk at the crystals - all 6 MILLION of them...I think I was impressed!