Elepent

So what’s there to do in Las Vegas, if you aren’t a gambler (which we aren’t)?  Well, fans of the weird and wonderful owe it to themselves to take a walk through the surreal landscape that is Vegas.  Wander up and down the Strip, in and out of the big casinos, and marvel (or roll your eyes) at the sheer madness of it all.  Taken in the proper spirit (that is, not seriously), Las Vegas is quite the architectural fantasyland.  In the evening, of course, many of the casinos have free light, fountain and pyrotechnic shows as you walk up and down Las Vegas Boulevard.  This is not a secret, of course, so we don’t have to tell you to watch for the fountains at Bellagio or the Mirage’s volcano.

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The historic part of downtown Rapid City is home to one obvious sight, and two you’ll have to go looking for.

As soon as you enter downtown, with its strip of antique stores and coffee shops lining Main and St. Joseph streets, you’ll see the “City of Presidents” exhibit, or at least some of it.  Life-size bronze statues of United States Presidents stand on every street corner.  This series of privately-funded sculptures adds four Presidents every year, two recent and two historical, with the final installation planned for next summer.  Created by local artists, the bronze Presidents present interesting photo opportunities, to say the least.

Not as obvious is Art Alley.  Located in the alley between Main and St. Joseph and bordered by Sixth and Seventh Streets, this outdoor art gallery started life as a bit of civil disobedience, when local artists began painting over the graffiti that marked the power poles.  The activity quickly spread, with original works being painted on the walls, canvases occasionally nailed up in the middle of the night, and elaborate collages being produced.  The popularity of the exhibit with local art students and tourists seems to have ensured its survival, and artists have demonstrated marvelous creativity in integrating the alley’s fixtures and features into their work. Graffiti and art combine in a landscape that’s just as entertaining as any museum. Continue reading

The twin cities of Deadwood and Lead (pronounced like the verb, not the element) are about seventy miles from Custer.  Deadwood has a rowdy history (you’ve seen the HBO series, right?), and these days it’s heavy on the casino-and-tourist-trap side.  This surprisingly small city is tucked away in the Black Hills, and if you blink you’ll miss one of the better attractions.

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