Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
bars, clubs, casinos, and restaurants, so
be sure to carry photo ID with you at all
times. Recently, Vegas changed its open
container laws to make carrying alcoholic
beverages on the street illegal (so empty
that Eiffel Tower margarita before you
leave Paris Las Vegas!).
Electricity
The United States uses
110-120 volts AC (60 cycles), compared
to the 220-240 volts AC (50 cycles) that
is standard in Europe, Australia, and New
Zealand. If your small appliances use
220-240 volts, be sure to buy an adaptor
and voltage converter before you leave
home, as these are very difficult to find in
the United States.
Embassies & Consulates
All embassies
are located in the nation's capital,
Washington, D.C. Some consulates are
located in major U.S. cities, and most
nations have a mission to the United
Nations in New York City. If your country
isn't listed below, call for directory infor-
mation in Washington, D.C. (
%
202/
555-1212
) or log on to
www.embassy.
org/embassies
.
The embassy of
Australia
is at 1601
Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC
20036 (
%
202/797-3000;
www.austemb.
org). There are consulates in New York,
Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, and San
Francisco.
The embassy of
Canada
is at 501
Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC
20001 (
%
202/682-1740;
www.canadian
embassy.org). Other Canadian consulates
are in Buffalo (New York), Detroit, Los
Angeles, New York, and Seattle.
The embassy of
Ireland
is at 2234
Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC
20008 (
%
202/462-3939;
www.ireland
emb.org). Irish consulates are in Boston,
Chicago, New York, San Francisco, and
other cities. See website for complete
listings.
The embassy of
New Zealand
is at 37
Observatory Circle NW, Washington, DC
20008 (
%
202/328-4800;
www.nzemb.
org). New Zealand consulates are in Los
Angeles, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, and
Seattle.
The embassy of the
United Kingdom
is at 3100 Massachusetts Ave. NW,
Washington, DC 20008 (
%
202/588-
7800;
www.britainusa.com). Other British
consulates are in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago,
Cleveland, Houston, Los Angeles, New
York, San Francisco, and Seattle.
Emergencies
Call
%
911 for the police,
to report a fire, or to get an ambulance. If
you have a medical emergency that does
not require an ambulance, you should be
able to walk into the nearest hospital
emergency room (see “Hospitals,” below).
Holidays
Banks close on the following
holidays: January 1 (New Year's), the third
Monday in January (Martin Luther King, Jr.,
Day), the third Monday in February
(Presidents Day), the last Monday in
May (Memorial Day), July 4 (Independence
Day), the first Monday in September
(Labor Day), the second Monday in October
(Veterans Day), the fourth Thursday in
November (Thanksgiving Day), and
December 25. The handful of museums that
are open on Monday tend to stay open on
holidays, though almost all museums in
the city close for Thanksgiving, Christmas,
and New Year's. Do note that the casinos
close for nobody and nothing—they stay
open round-the-clock, year-round.
Hospitals
The following hospitals are
well regarded and have emergency rooms
that are open 24 hours:
University Medical Center
(1800 W.
Charleston Blvd., at Shadow Lane;
%
702/
383-2000);
Sunrise Hospital and
Medical Center
(3186 Maryland Pkwy.,
between Sahara Ave. and Desert Inn Rd.;
%
702/731-8080).
Mail
At press time, domestic postage rates
were 24¢ for a postcard and 39¢ for a let-
ter. For international mail, a first-class
letter of up to 1 ounce costs 84¢ (63¢ to
Canada and Mexico); a first-class postcard
costs 75¢ (55¢ to Canada and Mexico);
and a preprinted postal aerogramme costs
