Archer-Ver Eecke Company Leading the way to your dreams

MISSION STATEMENT It is the mission of of Archer-Ver Eecke Company to: pursue personal and professional goals that will provide for our physical, spiritual, emotional, and educational growth; be the best that we can be, any day, anytime, anywhere; and be a source of support, encouragement, enrichment, and pride for our family, friends, and customers.

Trips & Travelogues

Las Vegas - December, 2003

Tom and I visited Las Vegas just before Christmas 2003 for our 10th Anniversary.  Tom had never been and I had not been in over 10 years.  Boy has Las Vegas changed!  When we booked the trip we decided to stay at the Las Vegas Hilton since Tom has "Diamond" status with the Hilton brand - this usually gets us LOTS of perks and a really nice room.  Not in Las Vegas!  It was very nice, but we could have stayed on "the strip" for less money and not had to take so many cab rides.  Ten years ago, the Hilton was just two blocks from the main drag - now it's a 15 minute cab ride.  We walked it our first day - Hilton to the Mandalay Bay and back to Aladdin - and I am still recovering!

We saw all the great hotels - and then some....

The most impressive property by far was the Bellagio - and that is a tall order to fill in Las Vegas.

This place was FANTASTIC!  The ceiling of the lobby was covered with a huge art glass sculpture that just blows you away the minute you walk in.  This is, of course, after taking in one of the numerous fountain shows that are professionally choreographed to some of your favorite music - The Bellagio has a full time choreographer just for the fountains!  In addition to all the neat stuff to see for free, we also took in the Cirque du Soleil production of "O" while we were in town.  My best description of this experience is summed up by recapping our conversation after the show.  Tom says, "So what did you think?"  I responded, "You know, we can just pack and go home after that!"

Now our trip was a short one, just three days, so we spent most of our time walking the strip and seeing all the new properties.  You can visit Las Vegas and just wonder through the hotels and be entertained.  We did a tiny bit of gambling, and spent the rest of the time soaking ourselves in our huge tub in the hotel to get our feet rejuvenated for the next outing.  Those of you who are not big walkers beware.  Many of the properties easily take up 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile of frontage.  The strip that used to be a couple of miles is now many miles.

And to finish off this travelogue, I have a confession to make.  I am a closet "Trekkie".  Yes, the "other" reason we stayed at the Hilton is because it is the home of the Star Trek Adventure.  Tom and I spent Saturday "boldly going where so many have gone before..."

Until our next adventure...be well - or shall we say "Live long and prosper".

All our best!  P&T