The Beginning, Las Vegas
OOC: This is the post @Joe Bonkers was referring to when we spoke of a vignettes thread in addition to the Three Amigos world. That TL has basically reached the end of our original planning for it, but all three of us had many more details and additions we wanted to add into it, and so they are going to go here.
Ideas people have for additions and comments are quite welcome. I can't make promises on handling everything, but we can certainly take them all into account. 🙂
So, without further adoo....
IC:
Reid-McCarran International Airport, Las Vegas, Nevada
May 18, 2023
8:25 AM
"Japan Air four-five-seven, you are clear for landing on runway zero-eight left. Winds are zero-five at one-zero-five."
"Roger Las Vegas Center, we are on final approach now." The captain of the Japan Airlines airliner radioed back to the tower at Las Vegas' massive airport, confirming that their trip was almost at merciful end.
"Ready for a day off in Las Vegas?" The co-pilot commented with a smile to the captain.
"I most certainly am, Kikuchi." The captain smiled. "But I won't be hitting too many tables until I get a good sleep first." That drew a grunt of agreement.
"Yeah, I understand that well, Captain." The co-pilot checked out his instruments. "Flaps at twenty."
"Make it fifteen, we're flying into the wind."
"Only five though."
"We're light now, and these birds fly well at these altitudes." The co-pilot agreed, and quickly followed the Captain's instructions.
The flight from Tokyo to Las Vegas via Honolulu was one of the most popular ones for both its crew and passengers, as it was almost entirely made up of holidaymakers heading from Japan to either the stunningly-beautiful beaches of Hawaii or the entertainment city of Las Vegas, both of which were very popular places for tourists coming from the land of the rising sun. It was sufficiently popular that it rated an Airbus A380-800, the largest aircraft in the JAL fleet, simply because the much-faster Boeing, Mitsubishi McDonnell Douglas and Airbus supersonics simply didn't have the capacity for this route. JAL had adapted to that, though - the A380s had long since dispensed with the old-style economy sections in favour of better seats and facilities on these long flights, something passengers very much appreciated.
It was just after eight-thirty in the morning when the big jet began its descent in to Las Vegas, and by that point the bright sunshine of the late spring in the American West had long since made the city of Las Vegas quite visible, with its towering hotels along Las Vegas Boulevard and Flamingo Boulevard easily visible for the airliner for passengers on the aircraft's left side as it gracefully drifted through the sky, a handful of clouds in the sky being the only things blocking a beautiful day that was, though, expected to be almost brutally-hot - the expected high for the day was 97 degrees Fahrenheit, or 36 degree Celsius, either number being a clear sign of just what this place was famous for. The hotels, resorts and attractions all had air conditioning, though, and thanks to developments over the previous thirty years, water was not in short supply here despite the ocean being 235 miles away and being in the middle of the desert. Las Vegas' growth from just being about casinos to being about entertainment of all kinds had seen football and baseball stadiums, hockey and basketball arenas, convention centers, a massive concert venue, two car racing tracks, a giant amusement park, golf courses, museums, indoor and outdoor water parks and other attractions built, while the building of the Las Vegas Aqueduct in the 1990s and its matching water treatment and recycling centers had given Las Vegas such a water supply that, like Los Angeles 200 miles to the southwest, had allowed Las Vegas had built multiple artificial lakes and ponds using treated wastewater, helping to give the city a much greater sense of being an Oasis in the desert. The land along the two main boulevards for casinos had become some of the world's most expensive real estate and the properties there had been built to match, taking in the tens of millions of tourists who came here every year. This growth had seen the city completely fill the usable parts of the Las Vegas Valley, spreading north along Interstate 15 and south towards Boulder City, Goodsprings and Jean and west towards Pahrump as well as resulting in many homes being built in the rocky hills that stuck out of the valley.
Like most cities in the Amigos, Las Vegas had long since developed an ethos. Locals referred to it as "The 702" after the central city's telephone area code, but with so many visitors and the obvious wealth of the area, Las Vegas residents often treated many aspects of their lives as being a show that performed all the time. Vegas' massive collection of custom clothes shops had allowed the city to probably be better dressed than anywhere else in the West - Unlike Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area, Las Vegas was a place where formal style was much more common and accepted - and the relatively-accessible land prices combined with higher wages meant people had extra income. Many men and women alike sported expensive watches and good jewelry, luxury cars and SUVs and sports cars were everywhere and motorcycles were highly common for those of lesser means. Employees in the casinos from the highest of high rollers to the sawdust joints wore suits to work (unless one was doing physical labor or a job where they would be expected to get dirty), a commitment to physical fitness was something espoused by many (and the many gyms and outdoor sports facilities that Las Vegas hosted were very well used indeed) and quality food of all kinds was available. The overall ethos among Las Vegas residents towards each other was that this was a city that showed its best face to the world every day, and it showed - it was cleaner and better maintained than the vast majority of cities its size, and being a newer city, it didn't have many of the scars of past injustices that some places in the United States had. Few residential neighborhoods were anything less than complete melting pots for many different peoples. Americans of Latin American, African, East and South Asian and Arab origin shared neighborhoods with Whites, and they had all long since developed their own ways of contributing to the style, and more than just about anywhere else, being a bigot got a viceral response.
For the Japanese arrivals in the city, they had many different plans. Many were headed for the Casinos and massive hotel resorts, though others were wanting to go golfing, a popular past time in Japan that was, nevertheless, a difficult and expensive one due to the price of land there. Families with children were often bound for the casinos that were child friendly, particularly those with indoor water parks. Six Flags over Las Vegas was certain to be the destination for a few more still. A handful of young men who'd come over were headed to see and work out at Peter Kennett's famous Metallic Militia Las Vegas gym, which had been playing host to Mr. Olympia competitors since in opened in 1998. Four car nuts from Osaka were headed to Stardust Raceway to drive exotic cars at Experience Fast, and some more were headed to conventions in the city. All, however, had their eyes on enjoying their visits to Las Vegas.
The airliner drifted in to make a very good landing on the runway and then quickly taxi off of the runway, clearing the way for the next landing and moving out to Terminal D, where one of the airport's three-jetbridge gates was ready for the massive airliner. No sooner had the aircraft docked against the gate than the pilots got shut down the aircraft and headed for their exits, grabbing their bags and headed for a good sleep at one of the hotels near the airport that regularly catered to air crews arriving after incredibly long flights from the Far East or Europe, which were increasingly common in Las Vegas.
Ideas people have for additions and comments are quite welcome. I can't make promises on handling everything, but we can certainly take them all into account. 🙂
So, without further adoo....
IC:
Reid-McCarran International Airport, Las Vegas, Nevada
May 18, 2023
8:25 AM
"Japan Air four-five-seven, you are clear for landing on runway zero-eight left. Winds are zero-five at one-zero-five."
"Roger Las Vegas Center, we are on final approach now." The captain of the Japan Airlines airliner radioed back to the tower at Las Vegas' massive airport, confirming that their trip was almost at merciful end.
"Ready for a day off in Las Vegas?" The co-pilot commented with a smile to the captain.
"I most certainly am, Kikuchi." The captain smiled. "But I won't be hitting too many tables until I get a good sleep first." That drew a grunt of agreement.
"Yeah, I understand that well, Captain." The co-pilot checked out his instruments. "Flaps at twenty."
"Make it fifteen, we're flying into the wind."
"Only five though."
"We're light now, and these birds fly well at these altitudes." The co-pilot agreed, and quickly followed the Captain's instructions.
The flight from Tokyo to Las Vegas via Honolulu was one of the most popular ones for both its crew and passengers, as it was almost entirely made up of holidaymakers heading from Japan to either the stunningly-beautiful beaches of Hawaii or the entertainment city of Las Vegas, both of which were very popular places for tourists coming from the land of the rising sun. It was sufficiently popular that it rated an Airbus A380-800, the largest aircraft in the JAL fleet, simply because the much-faster Boeing, Mitsubishi McDonnell Douglas and Airbus supersonics simply didn't have the capacity for this route. JAL had adapted to that, though - the A380s had long since dispensed with the old-style economy sections in favour of better seats and facilities on these long flights, something passengers very much appreciated.
It was just after eight-thirty in the morning when the big jet began its descent in to Las Vegas, and by that point the bright sunshine of the late spring in the American West had long since made the city of Las Vegas quite visible, with its towering hotels along Las Vegas Boulevard and Flamingo Boulevard easily visible for the airliner for passengers on the aircraft's left side as it gracefully drifted through the sky, a handful of clouds in the sky being the only things blocking a beautiful day that was, though, expected to be almost brutally-hot - the expected high for the day was 97 degrees Fahrenheit, or 36 degree Celsius, either number being a clear sign of just what this place was famous for. The hotels, resorts and attractions all had air conditioning, though, and thanks to developments over the previous thirty years, water was not in short supply here despite the ocean being 235 miles away and being in the middle of the desert. Las Vegas' growth from just being about casinos to being about entertainment of all kinds had seen football and baseball stadiums, hockey and basketball arenas, convention centers, a massive concert venue, two car racing tracks, a giant amusement park, golf courses, museums, indoor and outdoor water parks and other attractions built, while the building of the Las Vegas Aqueduct in the 1990s and its matching water treatment and recycling centers had given Las Vegas such a water supply that, like Los Angeles 200 miles to the southwest, had allowed Las Vegas had built multiple artificial lakes and ponds using treated wastewater, helping to give the city a much greater sense of being an Oasis in the desert. The land along the two main boulevards for casinos had become some of the world's most expensive real estate and the properties there had been built to match, taking in the tens of millions of tourists who came here every year. This growth had seen the city completely fill the usable parts of the Las Vegas Valley, spreading north along Interstate 15 and south towards Boulder City, Goodsprings and Jean and west towards Pahrump as well as resulting in many homes being built in the rocky hills that stuck out of the valley.
Like most cities in the Amigos, Las Vegas had long since developed an ethos. Locals referred to it as "The 702" after the central city's telephone area code, but with so many visitors and the obvious wealth of the area, Las Vegas residents often treated many aspects of their lives as being a show that performed all the time. Vegas' massive collection of custom clothes shops had allowed the city to probably be better dressed than anywhere else in the West - Unlike Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area, Las Vegas was a place where formal style was much more common and accepted - and the relatively-accessible land prices combined with higher wages meant people had extra income. Many men and women alike sported expensive watches and good jewelry, luxury cars and SUVs and sports cars were everywhere and motorcycles were highly common for those of lesser means. Employees in the casinos from the highest of high rollers to the sawdust joints wore suits to work (unless one was doing physical labor or a job where they would be expected to get dirty), a commitment to physical fitness was something espoused by many (and the many gyms and outdoor sports facilities that Las Vegas hosted were very well used indeed) and quality food of all kinds was available. The overall ethos among Las Vegas residents towards each other was that this was a city that showed its best face to the world every day, and it showed - it was cleaner and better maintained than the vast majority of cities its size, and being a newer city, it didn't have many of the scars of past injustices that some places in the United States had. Few residential neighborhoods were anything less than complete melting pots for many different peoples. Americans of Latin American, African, East and South Asian and Arab origin shared neighborhoods with Whites, and they had all long since developed their own ways of contributing to the style, and more than just about anywhere else, being a bigot got a viceral response.
For the Japanese arrivals in the city, they had many different plans. Many were headed for the Casinos and massive hotel resorts, though others were wanting to go golfing, a popular past time in Japan that was, nevertheless, a difficult and expensive one due to the price of land there. Families with children were often bound for the casinos that were child friendly, particularly those with indoor water parks. Six Flags over Las Vegas was certain to be the destination for a few more still. A handful of young men who'd come over were headed to see and work out at Peter Kennett's famous Metallic Militia Las Vegas gym, which had been playing host to Mr. Olympia competitors since in opened in 1998. Four car nuts from Osaka were headed to Stardust Raceway to drive exotic cars at Experience Fast, and some more were headed to conventions in the city. All, however, had their eyes on enjoying their visits to Las Vegas.
The airliner drifted in to make a very good landing on the runway and then quickly taxi off of the runway, clearing the way for the next landing and moving out to Terminal D, where one of the airport's three-jetbridge gates was ready for the massive airliner. No sooner had the aircraft docked against the gate than the pilots got shut down the aircraft and headed for their exits, grabbing their bags and headed for a good sleep at one of the hotels near the airport that regularly catered to air crews arriving after incredibly long flights from the Far East or Europe, which were increasingly common in Las Vegas.
