There have been many photos floating around that show the empty streets of the Las Vegas Strip. While many are impressive photos, most are taken in the early morning when the streets are close to empty anyways. I wanted to correct that. These photos were taken around midnight on a Saturday in the middle of spring break. Normally, at this time, the party would just be getting started and the throng of people would already be so thick it would be hard to navigate a path down the sidewalk.
Now, the streets and sidewalks are empty save for police, security, and the 5 normal people I passed during the hour or so I was taking photos: locals out to see their home turned into a ghost town. On a normal day, the noise from the crowd would be so loud you could barely hear the person next to you speaking. This night, a single “Woo!” could be heard echoing for several blocks, and a booth with “The King” erupts into the silence startling the rare passer by with promises to tell their future.
Souvenir shops are boarded shut while a National Debt billboard looms overhead, counting up the amount of money this country doesn’t have and owes to others.
The fountains at the Bellagio no longer entertain the guests every quarter hour. They are off for the first time since their installation in 1998 and the viewing area in front of them is so desolate, one might expect a tumbleweed to go rolling by.
Fremont street is grimmer still. The party area is walled off to visitors. The normally welcoming neon of the Vegas sign and blue Martini are dark, making the message very clear: “Vegas is closed. Go home. We’ll still be here when this is all over.”
