There's no Bay in Mandalay!

Mandalay:
Mandalay Bay:

Looks just like it... right? Not really. Besides the extensive [over]use of gold and a few ornamental details, I'm not entirely convinced that Mandalay Bay is successful in capturing the true essence of Mandalay. To be honest, I wouldn't have even know they were going for a South East Asian theme had it not been discussed prior to the visit. Tropical theme, maybe, based on the jungle foliage in the casino... but South East Asian? Where are the pagodas, the statues of Buddha? I'm no geography expert, but even a quick Google search is enough to realize the disconnect between the two. It was also interesting to read that there is in fact, no bay in Mandalay... there's a river. I'm disappointed.

Fun fact: the sand at Mandalay Bay's 11-acre-beach (pool) is from our very own Wasaga Beach! Because there just wasn't enough sand in the desert...