Vegas looks like another planet, and probably is

 Dear Blog, 

As I sat in my window seat, soaring over Las Vegas, I could not help but admire the mountains, strange clastic sediment forming strange patterns. It looked like nothing I had ever seen before. I could see each individual layer. 

Almost like a topographical map.

It was so nice to see those red mountains and hills made up of Aztec sandstone, knowing there is more to Vegas than poker and craps. I wondered if  millions of years ago these mountains were ever covered in water, turns out they were. All of Vegas (and much more) was once submerged in a shallow sea around 500 million years ago. 

 It seemed like a different planet and soon enough I started to believe I was flying over Mars. 

Then we made it to the point where we saw civilization. Vegas is made of of tightly packed squares and rectangles full of houses and the occasional bright blue pool. There was one surprisingly green rectangle filled with tall trees, but as soon as it started it seemed to stop. I wonder what it is like, entering that small pocket of green, imagining you are in a forest, when you are really in the flattest town to ever exist probably. It looks like such a dismal town. Like the old west evolved, but they kept playing roulette and let the tumbleweeds stick around.  

I guess it isn't all bad though. There is something so fascinating about these red rocks with such obvious sedimentary patterns. This is a photo from the Seven Wonders route at the Valley of Fire state park in Vegas.