Massive Vegas Mall, Hotel, Casino Project To Be World’s Largest

by Chris Owen on

Las Vegas is no stranger to over-the-top attractions, hosting a variety of them over the years. In a single day, travelers can see a volcano explode, ride a roller coaster in “New York,” race cars, jump off the top of a hotel and more – in the middle of the desert. Coming up in 2014, construction will begin on a new project, designed to be largest, most engaging experience in the world.

Eurasia Vegas will feature indoor/outdoor theme parks, an 800-foot Ferris wheel (bigger than the 683-foot Dubai Eye), multiple golf courses and 15 million square feet of retail space. Anchored by six hotels, 39 casinos and a world-class convention center, Eurasia Vegas looks to have something for everyone, including “nation pavilions” featuring native food, products and entertainment from around the world.

The 1200-acre project is being put together by Eurasia Resorts International, Ltd. Of Nassau, Bahamas, and will be built on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land located not far from the Las Vegas Strip.

Believing that Las Vegas is “no longer the gaming location of choice for many of the world’s top professional gamblers and high-rolling tourists,” Eurasia Las Vegas looks to change all that by making the desert resort “the most compelling, must go and see and shop experience in the world,” says the project’s developer in an 83-page proposal.

The New Reno: Yes, Virginia, There Is Gentrification

by Laurel Miller on

I’m going to go out on a limb here, and say that Reno has historically not been one of my favorite places to visit. But I spend a fair amount of time passing through, because my brother and his family live nearby, in the ski town of Truckee. Flying into Reno is convenient for anyone wanting to visit Lake Tahoe.

For years, my brother, Mark, has been telling me that Reno is undergoing a renaissance of sorts, what with the implementation of Wingfield Park – the city’s kayaking park that runs through downtown – and the Truckee River Walk with its galleries, cafes, and brewery. But don’t worry: Reno is still The Biggest Little City in the World, rife with the requisite prostitutes, crack houses, tattoo parlors, pawn shops and all the unsavory characters one would expect to find.

Yet, I discovered a younger, gentler, hipper Reno over Thanksgiving when I was in Truckee. Reno is trying to dial down its hard-core gambling, all-you-can-eat, come-all-ye-societal-fringe-dwellers rep. The most noticeable change is the gentrification underway along the South Virginia Street Corridor, the major north-south business artery. The street is paralleled to the east by a mix of decrepit and charmingly restored Victorian and Craftsman homes. Housing, Mark says, is ridiculously affordable.

I did a book signing over the holiday off South Virginia at a bustling new cheese shop, Wedge. A lovely addition to the area, Wedge has an excellent selection of domestic and imported cheese, as well as house-made sandwiches, specialty foods and primo charcuterie. Want a good, affordable bottle of wine, some soppressata, and a hunk of award-winning, Alpine-style cow’s milk cheese from Wisconsin? Wedge has it.

When Mark and I arrived at the shop, he commented on how much the area was changing, citing the soon-to-be-open wine bar, Picasso and Wine, next door. The employees cheerfully agreed that there were lots of exciting developments underway, but that “there’s a crack house just two doors down.” They weren’t joking, either. We were parked in front of it.Close to Wedge is Midtown Eats, an adorable, farmhouse-modern cafe, and Crème, a sweet breakfast spot specializing in crepes. Get lunch at popular soup-and-sandwich spot Süp, imbibe (and eat) at Brasserie St. James brewery, Craft Beer & Wine, and mixology geek faves Reno Public House, and Chapel Tavern (over 100 whiskeys on shelf!). Making dinner in your rental ski cabin or condo? Visit the Tahoe area’s only Whole Foods.

If you’re in need of some sweet street-style, hit Lulu’s Chic Boutique or Junkee Clothing Exchange. If it’s your home that’s in need of an inexpensive upgrade, Recycled Furniture is the place. As for those tats and street drugs? You’re on your own.

Future plans for the South Virginia Corridor include greater emphasis on facilitating more pedestrian-friendly walkways, public spaces featuring art installations, fountains, and benches, and street-scaping. Gentrification may not always be welcome, but for Reno, it’s the start of a whole new Big Little City.

[Photo credits: Reno, Flickr user coolmikeol; bike path, VisitmeinReno.com]

Coolest international gambling destinations

by Justin Delaney on

As a connoisseur of risk, I have seen my fair share of glory and agony within the walls of lady luck. In Latin America, the casinos feel seedy and desperate, and a shower always seems to be good idea after leaving these smoky dens. Singapore casinos feel simple and clean, as though an army of robots lurks just beyond the curtain, meticulously tending to the unseen cogs that keep the experience running. Macau on an off day feels like the world just ended. Gigantic empty rooms full of smiling Macanese croupiers all enthusiastically welcome you to tables with delicate waves of upturned hands. It is like a creepy dream.

Vegas reminds me of the imitation crab in a California roll. You may know its fake, but you don’t care because it is delicious. Likewise, the Vegas pyramid, faux Eiffel Tower, and mini New York skyline are obviously not real, but the kitschy feel speaks to the synthetic appeal of the modern American dream. In Europe, the casinos are ornate old world establishments where you will feel like you forgot your velvet smoking jacket, even if you don’t own one.

So where are some of the coolest international places to thrown down on black and let it ride?

Macau, Macau
Macau was the first and last European foray into Chinese colonization. Portugal controlled the small administrative district until 1999 when they handed it back over to China. A gambling center since the mid-nineteenth century, it was once known as the “Monte Carlo of the Orient.” Today, Macau is an autonomous region of China and is considered one of the most densely populated countries in the world. The one time fishing village on the pearl delta is China’s ambitious version of Las Vegas – a sprawling complex of mega-casinos, shopping malls, and theme parks. In the Fisherman’s Wharf area, a replica of a crashed black hawk helicopter with American soldiers clutching assault rifles sits next to some faux Middle Eastern buildings (above). It is one of the stranger pop culture nods I have found in a world with no shortage for bad taste.

Macau has surpassed its stateside desert brethren in overall gaming revenues – raking in four times the revenue of Las Vegas. Macau boasts many familiar gambling franchises: Wynn, The Venetian, and MGM Grand. All are pager friendly. Also, the Casino Lisboa is an Asian classic that has been dealing hands in Macau for forty years. Macau is just an hour ferry ride away from Hong Kong.

Marina Bay Sands, Singapore
One of the most prosperous countries in the world, Singapore is just beginning to stretch its gambling legs. With the construction of the Marina Bay Sands hotel and casino, Singapore has begun capitalizing on its unique position in Southeast Asia and the rising economic standards in this region. While the Marina Bay Sands looks like something a tsunami with a sense of humor would create, it has opened to resounding success and aesthetical complaints have been minimal. The three 55-story buildings serve as pillars for a “sky park” shaped like a boat. The building is extremely unique looking, and the views from the rooftop pool are exceptional. What do you think of the design (above) of the Marina Bay Sands?

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Monte Carlo Casino, Monaco
Monte Carlo is located in Monaco – a playground for the mega-rich nestled between the French and Italian rivieras. Pearl white yachts sway in the calm Mediterranean harbor, and the bourgeois gamble away first world fortunes on carefree whims. Opened in 1863, the Monte Carlo Casino is as old school as it gets. Men are required to wear coats and ties. Women dress formal. This is the type of place where you feel like James Bond…until you lose all of your money and shamefully walk back to your hotel.

Baden-Baden Casino, Germany
The Black Forest of southern Germany is an unlikely place for world class gambling, but in the old bath town of Baden-Baden, gamblers wager euros inside the swank Casino Baden-Baden. The casino has a an aristocratic French air about it that is almost excessively opulent. Red carpets, crystal chandeliers, and gold moldings contribute to make this one of the most attractive casinos on the planet. Walking through the royal halls makes one feel like a working class Hapsburg. The town of Baden Baden is known for its natural baths that have been in use since Roman times. It is a really stunning city, and the Baden-Baden Casino fails to disappoint.

flickr images via justindelaney, william cho, myhsu, and m4tik

Russia plans Las Vegas clone in Siberia

by Justin Delaney on

Siberia is known for many things. Long train rides that cover almost 6000 miles, massive tigers that hunt wild boar in snowy enclaves, and a lake whose depths reach deeper than any other lake in the world. Oh and cold. Wintry, unrelenting, freezing cold weather drapes Siberia in snow and below freezing temperatures for roughly half of the year. It is a place so remote and foreboding that if you look up “Siberian” on dictionary.com, you will be greeted with this definition:

“any undesirable or isolated locale, job, etc., to which one is assigned as punishment, a mark of disfavor, or the like.”

Despite this damning etymological association, Russia plans to build its version of Las Vegas in the wintry depths of Siberia. This Las Vegas East has been given the moniker “Siberian Coin,” which sounds more like a local band from Moscow than a mecca of gambling. The Altai region of Siberia will host the ambitious project located near the boarder of Kazakhstan and China. Russian developers have budgeted about $1 billion for the cause which includes the construction of 15 casinos and 30 hotels. According to Businessweek, outside experts expect the project costs to total $50 billion.So why Siberia? Several years ago, “President” Vladimir Putin banned casinos in all major Russian cities, restricting gambling to the far flung reaches of the Russian Federation. Overnight, successful Moscow gaming parlors shuttered their doors forever, and it is estimated that the edict cost Russia about half a million jobs. So far, casinos have been built in three faraway locations: Kaliningrad on the Baltic Sea, Azov City, and Primorsky in the Far East. None have been very successful. While hopes for the “Siberian Coin” are high, its fate may follow a familiar trend due to the sheer remoteness of its geographical location. Siberia is known for many things, but it will be a long uphill battle before gambling is added to that list of associations.

Berlin’s latest attraction: The Computer Game Museum

by Sean McLachlan on

If you’re under thirty, computer games have always been a part of your life, but for us old farts wise elders, we remember the first time we took hold of a joystick and moved a spaceship through an asteroid field, or ran a ravenous little yellow circle around a maze while being chased by ghosts. If you’re under twenty, you probably don’t even know what games I’m talking about.

Here’s your chance to learn. The Computer Game Museum has just opened in Berlin. The Computerspiele Museum, as it’s called in German, presents the history of gaming from its early days on room-sized computers in the 50s and 60s, through the arcade craze of the 80s and on up to today. There are even experimental installation pieces examining possibilities for the next generation of gaming, such as RaveSnake, an eight-player game controlled by cell phones via Bluetooth. The developers call this a new genre of “party games for the sidewalk.”

The museum has an archive of about 14,000 games, and some are set up so visitors can play them. According to a detailed article by Deutsche Welle, this is the second incarnation of the museum. It was previously open for a few years in the 90s before shutting down. In following years it created temporary exhibitions for other museums until it got a space of its own and opened on Friday.

In case you’re wondering, the screenshot is of Pong, a table tennis simulator that was one of the earliest games available to the general public, being released in 1972. That’s before even my time!

[Photo courtesy user Bumm13 via Wikimedia Commons]