One of key thematic elements of this accentuated brass and rich wood toned hotel involves early days of railroad. Inside, there's over $1 million in Victorian train memorabilia, and antiques arranged throughout hotel, meeting rooms and casino. Outside, it's hard to miss Good Old No. 7. This is Laughlin's only working steam train railroad and has been dubbed, "The Gambling Train of Laughlin." If you've got twelve minutes to spare from your hectic schedule of gamling or feasting, then why not take a ride on this ¾-mile train route? For you history buffs, turn of century steam train is a replica of Genoa, which hauled freight on Virginia and Truckee Line in Western Nevada over 100 years ago. The fare for this train that's been hauling over 2 million guests since June of 1988 is, "Only a smile," says conductor.

American war heroes are treated like special guests at Ramada Express. First, 9,000-square-foot Pavilion Theater, aka American Heroes Museum, is complimentary and is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and is loaded with war memorabilia, uniforms, medals, photos and memories, and it is certainly worth checking out. Second, Veterans from World War II, Korea and Vietnam are paid tribute in free 15 minute multi-media show, "On Wings of Eagles" which relives America's bravest moments and finest hours, and runs daily on top of each hour from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. Third, every Tuesday at 1:15 p.m. is another installment in their American Heroes Speaker Program, in which a veteran is scheduled to speak about his or her experiences and how they were able to contribute to overall cause. Fourth, Ramada Express has also established The American Heroes Foundation, a non-profit foundation to raise funds, promote and support American Veteran causes. Lastly, veterans are given free gifts at slot club booth just for registering. Talk about targeting a market audience!

Shopping is always a worthwhile escape from reality of losing too much in casino. Feel free to take free shuttle offsite to Horizon Outlet Center to watch a new release movie, and/or, shop 'till you drop. Onsite, there's The Boutique and a 24-hour convenience store, and my favorite, The W.O.W. Store. WOW is a wacky store with numerous fun and interesting items that are mostly priced below US$20. The Whistle Stop Smoke Shop in Gift shop is for serious smokers that need to restock their supplies.

To read this entire feature FREE with photos cut and paste this link: http://www.jetsettersmagazine.com/archive/jetezine/hotels/nv/laughlin/ramada/express.html

Don and Kim Tatera, Jetsetters Magazine Correspondent – Read Jetsetters Magazine at www.jetsettersmagazine.com To book travel visit Jetstreams.com at www.jetstreams.com and for Beach Resorts visit Beach Booker at www.beachbooker.com

The carnival theme was: "We Potpourri of Splendor and Fun."

The carnival season celebrates Netherland's Queen Beatrix' birthday, culminating on April 30. It takes a couple of more days to wind down from month long party, so they toss in a holiday for rest, and carnival spills into May, with Last Lap Jump Up and presentation of prizes and burning of straw King Momo on final day. Carnival is a historical festival "Jump Up," a sea of unification with no borders or generation gaps, banging through island for over 30 years. The Queen wasn't present, and I doubt anyone really cared if she was having a birthday—it was just an excuse to "ParTee." Everyone was here for music!

When bands played, I knew why they called it a "Jump Up."

The Rolling Tones

The headline marquee one evening was Caribbean group that was restarted in 1994 by well-known businessman Adolphus Richardson, an original member of band's first generation, formed in 1964, with him as trumpeter and singer. The senior group dispersed in 1992 and reformed in 1994. Their 1999 Barbados produced album, "A Six for ah Nine," is their best yet. The band blends a mix of soca, reggae and calypso, as a united group of professional musicians. The band's musical journey landed it two USA-based 1997 Sunshine Award nominations for "Soca Man,"—for promotion of calypso and steel band music. The Rolling Tones CDs are very difficult to find, and are quite collector items, so it is probably best to rip your own in an MP3 file.

To read this entire feature FREE with photos cut and paste this link: http://jetsettersmagazine.com/archive/jetezine/globe02/Carib02/maarten/Carnival/Calypso.html

Kriss Hammond, Jetsetters Magazine Correspondent – Read Jetsetters Magazine at www.jetsettersmagazine.com To book travel visit Jetstreams.com at www.jetstreams.com and for Beach Resorts visit Beach Booker at www.beachbooker.com