the bedspread is
shockingly ugly. the hallways are carpeted with a
spectacular pattern of neon jugs and plants. the pool
area is a vast expanse of cement and two tiny little pools packed with the
bronzed bodies of people meat-marketing and drinking. the
hotel is a dump and the armoire is edged with gilt. the
casino is a bleak, dark, freezing monument to depression. the
bars are twenty-four hours and full of drunks and depressives. the mall attached to the hotel is a circle of things to
consume. there are people looking desperate and people
looking bored and a man with a three-foot drink strapped to his chest with a
straw in his mouth holding hands with his girlfriend, and no one appears to be
buying anything. dinner was only passable and we
waited an hour for a cab that never came, because we ventured beyond the strip
to eat at a restaurant that was supposed to be wonderful and was not, though a
very nice waiter finally drove us back to the hotel at midnight, poor guy. we paid him, anyway. so my plans of
lying by the pool reading are thwarted, as there is no shade anywhere in the
pool area and all the lounge chairs by the pool are taken anyway and i would bake myself completely and not be able to see my
book for the sun. so there is no way to get any sunlight at all, except through
the miniature window in the hideous room, which barely lets in any light at all
so it is dark and many-patterned in here. the only
saving graces are the gym and the spa. which are sort
of dumpy but at least quiet. so i
will try to kill an entire day there.
have you ever been to vegas?
everyone told me i would
love it. i have no earthly
idea what they are talking about. at least megan will be here for the next two days so we will venture
out onto the strip to explore all the weirdness, and at least there will be
sunlight out there. and then we are going to a lot of
good restaurants, ones that are in the vicinity so we will not get stranded. and then on wednesday we are
moving to the bellagio, which thank god has an art
gallery, a botanical gardens, and a lake, and hopefully the pool will be nice,
and the rooms are not dumpy, so the rest of the week will not be too
horrifying. i hold out hope
that i will be able to lie in the sunshine and read
one of the many books i brought. this
is not a good place to vacation, no matter what anyone says. i would give anything to be in
and that is my bitch-fest for the day. to top it off, i can't even sit in
the room and read, because my eyes are fucked and i
can't see the words. i can't
see the words i am writing, either, so please forgive
the typos.
how are you, my dear?
love and hogs,
MAX
(a.k.a. Marya Hornbacher)