North America Travel: Night Tour of Las Vegas, USA (Photo)

During the reporter's North America trip to the United States, the night tour of Las Vegas and the daytime exploration of the Grand Canyon were the most unforgettable. On November 17, 2015, at 21:00 Los Angeles time in the western United States, the reporter joined a tour group called 'Exploring Renowned City Charms on the East and West Coasts of the US' and after a four-hour drive, finally arrived from Los Angeles to the dazzling world-famous Las Vegas. This also marked the start of the third major leg of the North America journey. It is called 'major' because besides the night tour of Las Vegas that evening, the next morning they would head to the Grand Canyon for a full day of sightseeing.

Las Vegas Hotel at Dusk (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

The reporter's group arrived in Las Vegas, Nevada, just before sunset. As soon as they entered the city, distinctive and uniquely designed hotel buildings caught their eyes one after another. Tour guide Wang Wentao then said, 'Some people say that Las Vegas during the day is like a sleeping maiden, and only at night does she come alive with passion...' His words immediately stirred a sense of excitement and anticipation among everyone: what kind of passionate night scene would this city reveal?

View outside the hotel (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

Las Vegas, the largest city in the U.S. state of Nevada, derives its name from Spanish, meaning 'fertile meadows.' Because it was the only oasis with a spring in the surrounding barren desert and semi-desert areas, it gradually became a stopover on highways and a railway transfer point.

Photo in front of the hotel (Photo by Wang Jue)

Las Vegas was founded in 1854 by Mormon missionaries in the western United States. Later, the Mormons moved away, and the U.S. turned it into a military station, but the population remained very small.

Las Vegas at dusk (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

Las Vegas was incorporated as a city in 1905. After gold and silver mines were discovered in Nevada, a large number of gold rushers flooded in, and Las Vegas began to prosper. However, like other mining towns in the West, once the mines were exhausted, it would be abandoned.

Statue of Liberty at night (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

Today's Las Vegas, being a gold mine, attracts tycoons from all over the U.S. to invest, as well as Japanese billionaires, Arab princes, and famous actors. In 1990, even a Chinatown was established in Las Vegas, quickly becoming a gathering place for Asian Americans. Las Vegas has become the fastest-growing city in the United States.

Candy store in Las Vegas (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

Today, Las Vegas, built on the desert, boasts world-class resort hotels, top-notch large-scale shows, and high-tech entertainment facilities. In just ten years, it has transformed from a gigantic playground into a truly vibrant and lively city.

Boat ride inside the hotel (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

In this desert-surrounded place, all attention is focused on the bustling Las Vegas Strip. It is said that nine of the world's ten largest resort hotels are located here, with the largest being the MGM Grand Hotel, which has 5,034 rooms. Both sides of the Strip are filled with grand replicas such as the Statue of Liberty, the Eiffel Tower, desert oases, skyscrapers, and sculptures of gods. Every building is meticulously crafted, showcasing the extraordinary prosperity of Las Vegas.

Photo inside the hotel (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

Furthermore, Las Vegas, known as the 'Wedding Capital of the World,' has a marriage license bureau that never closes. On average, nearly 120,000 couples come here to register for marriage each year, with out-of-towners and foreigners accounting for 65% to 75%.

Colorful billboards (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

At the marriage license bureau, you can see couples of young, middle-aged, and elderly people filling out marriage forms. Some have large age gaps, and some even carry bamboo baskets with sleeping infants. No identification documents are required; as long as you pay a $55 registration fee, the bureau will fully believe any fabricated story, and you can get a marriage certificate in 15 minutes, then find a priest at a nearby chapel to perform the ceremony.

Clock tower on the Las Vegas street (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

If a couple comes to Las Vegas to get married without any friends or acquaintances to witness, they can simply pull a stranger off the street to be a witness, provided they give the person a tip of a few dozen dollars. For those seeking excitement, they can have a wedding in the air with a priest aboard a helicopter or hot air balloon, costing around several thousand dollars. Someone vividly put it: getting married in Las Vegas is as easy as having fast food.

Night view of Las Vegas hotel (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

Easy to marry, easy to divorce. According to Nevada state law, as long as one party has resided in Las Vegas for three months, they can obtain a divorce decree. Many movie stars and celebrities like to get married in Las Vegas, and eventually divorce in the same city. In the early morning of January 3, 2004, singer Britney Spears and her childhood friend Jason Alexander secretly registered and held a flash wedding in Las Vegas, fooling the American entertainment media that followed them everywhere. But two days later, Britney and her groom received a judgment from a Las Vegas court declaring the marriage invalid, ending their sensational 55-hour marriage.

Flowing chocolate in the hotel (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

In this diverse city of Las Vegas, there are also luxurious resort hotels, world-class large-scale shows, cheap but fine dining, world-class golf courses, water sports facilities, and children's playgrounds.

Group photo with the tour leader and guide in Las Vegas (Photo by Wang Jue)

Morning is the start of the day, but Las Vegas is the opposite. As night falls, it ushers in its most glorious moment. Many hotels start spectacular shows at their entrances—volcano eruptions and musical fountains are not to be missed. There are also a variety of theater performances: song and dance, talk shows, acrobatics, hypnosis, magic—so many that you don't know which one to watch...

Colorful fountain show (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

Listening to tour guide Wang Wentao's vivid explanations, the group gained a vivid and profound understanding of the city in a short time. That evening, under Wang's careful arrangements, the reporter and the group first photographed the colorful nightscape around the Las Vegas Strip with the Statue of Liberty as background, watched the spectacular musical fountain show in front of the Eiffel Tower, the unique volcano eruption spectacle, and strolled through the lively, crowded old town, fully enjoying the prosperity of Las Vegas by night.

Volcano eruption show (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

Especially the magnificent large-scale fountain show left a deep impression on the reporter. Accompanied by famous Western opera music, the fountains gracefully moved with the melody, presenting a beautiful and spectacular scene—sometimes like gentle streams of a tender girl, sometimes like a majestic, overwhelming force. When the music ended, the fountains stopped abruptly. At that moment, everyone felt a lingering aftertaste and endless reminiscence.

Magnificent old town scene (Photo by Feng Ganyong)

In the bustling and dynamic old town of Las Vegas, the splendor here blends with passionate street dance and rock music. The video shows on the canopy change endlessly with the dynamic music, stirring the emotions of everyone in the old town. If you want to understand what magnificence means, what decadence means, what indulgence means, what passion means, only here can you gain a profound insight. (Text and photos by Feng Ganyong)