I take issue with how nice it is - everything perfectly preened, perfectly sculpted. Large marble statues adorning every hallway, giant saltwater fish tanks filled with exotic creatures. Hall after hall perfectly environmentally controlled to maximize your shopping experience in way-too-expensive stores (but hey it's Vegas so live a little) or at craps tables where the odds are stacked against you but the waitress keeps bringing free drinks (live a little) or in restaurants where mediocre food is served at ridiculous prices (again, live a little). All in the middle of a desert because it was the only refuge for east coast criminal cartels to set up new shops back in the '60s, legitimatized by years of positive marketing and faux nostalgia and Elvis and Sinatra.

I didn't really care about the tourists other than feeling sad that a lot of them were probably being duped like that. I'm sure if I didn't think so much about it I would've been wowed by the whole ordeal (and to be fair, I did take a number of pictures of some of the more impressive statues). It just all seemed exemplary of American excess and was too much for me after a few hours of walking around.

Anyways, I'll stop being Buzz Killington now; there's absolutely nothing wrong with anyone else liking Vegas, and I'm sure there's plenty of valid reasons that's so beloved, but it's definitely not for me.