> H O M E

I’m increasingly annoyed with the last-minute travel assignments. I mean, I don’t mind travelling on the job — I actually enjoy it most of the time, but knowing what to expect a couple of weeks in advance would be nice. I feel it’s been getting worse as of late, too.

Anyway, yesterday I got notified that I’ll be spending next week in Fabulous Las Vegas. I guess there are worse places to be sent to — I’m talking on this continent alone, not counting Iran or other such resort paradises. Not exactly my favorite NA city, but still a cool hangout.

So it got me thinking — it’s funny how most people seemed excited for me or wished they would be going instead. I guess we all look for different things in a trip, be it on business or leisure. Whenever I go somewhere I’m really looking forward to experiencing the city, and to me Vegas lacks the sense of place you can find in a busy urban street lined with hundreds of stores, food joints and diverse buildings — as opposed to the oversized, climate-controlled gambling malls whose extravagant themes still place Vegas firmly in the “once in a lifetime” category. And it’s not just a question of urban vs. suburban, or walkable or not, either — car-centric LA is there to prove it, with its ethnic neighborhoods, two-story retail plazas and general vibrancy. It is there, it just takes a while to understand and appreciate it. Of course Vegas is not all bad either — if I can get away from the Strip for a few hours, it’s essentially the other googie mecca.

So anyway, I’m going to Vegas and not Pittsburgh, Portland, Minneapolis or any one of the dozen other cities I’d really like to see. That’s cool, I got to go to Hong Kong after all and well, a trip is a trip. Another interesting thing is that I won’t be going alone this time. I’m still the most junior on the team so I guess I’ll lay low and see how things play out, but hopefully it’ll be fun. It also feels a bit weird going to Vegas for work this time, though it is known as a huge convention city. I guess this is all part of this whole “growing up and having a real job” thing I’ve been toying with for a year and a half now.