Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
takes to be an animal trainer, its rewards and its headaches. Paying about equal to
what they'd pay to simply take a short dip with the dolphins, participants really
get to know these mysterious creatures in a very individual way.
“Dolphins are all different from one another with different personalities,” a
trainer told me. “Some are thinkers and some are more acrobatic. There are some
who are really cuddly and like to be petted, and the younger ones tend to be really
playful and energetic.” In the day I spent observing (as they only allow three to
four participants per day I wasn't able to do the training myself; spaces are tight
and it's necessary to reserve far, far in advance), the amount that the participants
grew in their 1-day jobs was remarkable, as they became more proficient at keep-
ing eye contact with the dolphins, mastering the timing required to “command”
a dolphin, and playing with them when it was time for a reward. The trainers here
believe the program also benefits the dolphins. “They really enjoy working with
new people, it keeps them interested,” one told me. “And there's one who likes to
give the new trainers a bit of a hard time. He's a devil, so he gets a kick out of it
toying with the participants.”
Is it worth the money? Only you can decide, but one participant I spoke with
at the end of the day gushed, “After my wedding day, this was the best day of my
entire life!”
MARTINIS WITH THE MAYOR
Oscar Goodman, mayor of Las Vegas, is everything you'd think a mayor of this
over-the-top city would be: a brash, controversial, humorous character who makes
a point of going to most public ceremonies flanked by a showgirl on one side and
an Elvis impersonator on the other. He made national headlines in 2005 for
telling a local fourth-grade class that if he were marooned on a desert island the
one item he'd bring would be a bottle of gin—and that one of his favorite hob-
bies was drinking. Before becoming mayor, Goodman was most famous as a mob
lawyer, having represented some of the city's most famous accused criminals over
the years including Meyer Lansky, Nicky Scarfo, and “Tony the Ant” Spilotro.
That's all part of the public record. But what most people don't know is how
accessible Goodman makes himself to his constituents. At least once a month he
holds a “meet and greet,” where he goes to either a local diner or restaurant and
invites whoever wants to show up, to have either “Martinis with the Mayor” or
“Breakfast with the Mayor.” You can find out where and when he'll be doing his
thing by surfing to
www.lasvegasnevada.gov
; the website will list the date and
place, and then, you just go (there's no admission charge).
Do I have to make the point that this is a fellow who's a heck of a lot of fun
to hang out with? At the breakfast I showed up for, I asked him what his favorite
martini bar was and he had me in stitches with a long drinking story that ended
with his admitting “After two of them, it doesn't really matter where I'm drink-
ing. I always have Bombay ice cold with the olive on the side, and after a few of
those I don't remember what I had for dinner or if I've even eaten or even where
I am.” It might not sound funny on paper, but he said it with such good humor
and such a twinkle in his eye that the whole place cracked up.
Beyond meeting Goodman himself, it's pretty compelling to watch the wheels
of local government turn. As I sat there, a parade of locals came up to make some
