The second coming of 'First Friday'

For locals of Las Vegas, First Friday has been the bastion of the city's creative and artistic side since it started nine years ago. For travelers like myself, it was a welcome surprise that gave me something more worthwhile to do on a Friday night aside from just hitting the newest clubs.

First Friday, as the name suggests, is a monthly event that gathers thousands of arts and culture fans for a night of festivities--with lots of singing, dancing, and dining. But, of course, the highlight remains on the extensive display of Vegans' creative pursuit in various forms.

Under new management (Las Vegas First Friday), the event got a much-deserved "facelift" this month, after a brief hiatus (while change of administration was ongoing). Today, there are more dedicated streets closed for traffic. This time around, the event took place in a bigger area--at the Casino Center and Colorado streets, where it is originally held; and, for the first time, at the Fremont Street East.

As to be expected in an event such as this, there were a million things to do--from viewing (and possibly buying) art and specialty pieces; to food tripping; from watching breakdancing exhibitions; to getting involved with non-profit organizations.

My initial reaction when I got the chance to roam around is this: "It's like (the Philippines') Mercato Central and Salcedo Village's Saturday market combined, only 20x more festive!"

My friends and I helped out a friend in his booth for Repurpose America, a non-profit organization which aims to give a new lease on life to materials that cannot be recycled anymore. I'll blog about this later, as well as post the best looking painted pumpkins for Halloween that was also exhibited in the event.

For now, here are other snapshots from the event. Enjoy! :)