Vegas, baby!
Apr. 29th, 2007 12:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bunchofgrapesAll the dirty details are under the cut.
Okay, so there aren't any dirty details, namely because one of us had to drop out of the trip a couple of weeks before we left so only two of us went. Still, we had a great time but it was much more tame. However, this means I'll definitely be going at least two more times in the next nine months.
We left on Wednesday and got in around 4:30 Vegas time. I sat next to a stinky French lady who spoke no English for 5 hours. And by stinky I mean she smelled like a combination of cooked onions and BO. Every time she moved, I got a whiff of her and couldn't help making a face. Luckily, she was very petite so she didn't take up a lot of room and she wasn't actually touching me. That would have squicked me out.
Even though our other friend didn't go, we didn't cancel the rooms or trade down so we had a King suite and an add-on Queen suite on the 28th floor of the Spa Tower in the Bellagio. Very, very, very, nice rooms! And the view was...amazing! We were on the strip side, over looking the "lake" which means every time the fountain did its thing, we had a perfect view. I was also right across from Paris so the night view of the Eiffel Tower and that balloon thing was great. The only downside is that they are building a new hotel or something right next door so every morning at 6:20, the construction started. Not good.
After we dumped our stuff and checked out the hotel, we drove over to Fremont Street and had dinner at this place called Binion's. It's dark and old but it's got this great atmosphere of old Las Vegas. Last night I was watching "Kiss, Kiss, Bye, Bye" and there's this scene where Brass and Grissom go see Faye Dunaway at this restaurant. That's exactly what Binion's is like. They are known for a few house specialties so we had the one that came highly recommended: chicken fried lobster. OMG! So good! I know I easily gained 10 lbs just looking at it but I also knew we were going to do a lot of walking around so the guilt only lasted a few seconds. I had a very strong Mojito that got me a pretty decent buzz (it was probably 90% rum). After that one drink, I didn't need any more. Another notable thing about Binion's is the view. It's up on the very top floor of the Binion Gambling Hall (I'm thinking it was the 33rd floor but I could be way wrong) and it's got an awesome view of Vegas and since Binion's overlooks The Fremont Experience, after we finished, we walked around there for a while. CSI was just there filming the previous day so that will be cool to see the episode when it airs. Oh, and if you're ever at The Fremont Experience, try the deep fried Twinkies at Mermaids. We didn't have them because we were so stuffed but the cops in Vegas recommend them.
The morning of Day 2 in Vegas was spent sleeping late (despite the construction noise) and making arrangements for Day 3. My friend wanted to do the helicopter trip over Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon. I get queasy in small planes so I decided to schedule a massage at the Bellagio spa instead. We both scheduled manicures for that evening as well. This was a relaxing Vegas trip, if you haven't figured that out yet.
We hit the Bellagio buffet for lunch and then again for dinner because we were stupid and didn't make reservations at any of the dozen restaurants in the hotel. It really is good but I've heard the one at the Wynn is better. We didn't really have an agenda during the day so we walked over to Paris and then down to the Venetian. Both are cool hotels and I'd definitely stay there on my next trips, although I'd give the edge to the Venetian. I have a thing for Venice.
We had tickets for the 10:30 show of "O" and I'd like to thank everyone who recommended it. There aren't enough adjectives to describe how amazing it was. We had great seats too--front row of the balcony--so we could see everything perfectly. Next time I go though, I'm definitely seeing Ka. Seeing that on CSI was the whole reason I wanted to go to Vegas.
Day 3 was our last real day in Vegas. My friend did her helicopter thing and I did my massage. Now, everyone who goes to Vegas needs to have a story to tell when they get back. So here's mine: when you get a massage or facial at the Bellagio, they take you back to a changing area and then, when you've got on your little robe and slippers, they herd you back to a waiting area. They tell you the waiting area will have men there so make sure your robe is secure. Okay, no problem. So I'm sitting and waiting and the men come in. Okay, no big deal. This one guy who definitely had the whole "chicks dig me" vibe going on sits down directly across from me. He was sitting by a window that I had been looking out and yeah, I look down at him and yeah, his johnson and his nutbag are hanging out there in all their shaved glory. He made eye contact with me so I know he knew his junk was on display and it was about that time I smirked and looked at my nicely manicured nails. Gotta tell ya, I wasn't very impressed. Oh, and the best part? His name was Rusty Keeler. When his massage therapist called his name, I nearly burst out laughing. We did other stuff on Friday afternoon but after you've seen some guy's junk, it doesn't really measure up, you know?
Friday night was the time we'd planned to get inked however, when we got to Hart and Hunnington, they didn't have what I was looking for and I wasn't going to compromise so no tattoo this time. But it's still going to happen. It also lost some of its fun when our friend dropped out. She is the mostest craziest one of us and I really wanted to do it when she was there. Anyway, we went to this place, Nora's, for dinner. It's way off the strip (on Flamingo, past The Palms) but a few people who live in LV recommended it as the best place to eat not in or near a casino. They were right too. The place was packed and the food and drinks were great. On the way back we'd stopped by The Palms. Seeing that place I quickly realized I'd never stay anywhere off the Strip. Scary! And yeah, I'm a hotel snob.
Took an early flight out on Saturday, which I highly recommend. Saturday is their least busy day of the week so there were no lines to speak of when we checked out, no traffic getting to the rental car return place, and a short wait to check in. A United pilot named Frank sat between us on the trip home and he was great fun. All in all, it was a good trip but I didn't feel like I had the full Las Vegas experience so I'll definitely be going back--hopefully this year.
Oh, and this morning? I go outside to find that one of the stray cats in the neighborhood had four kittens in this bin full of peat moss I have in my back yard. She picked a really good place to have them. It's partially covered by a potting bench and it's under the eave of the roof so she's protected from wind and rain and the heat. She's a feral cat so I'm keeping my distance. I'm afraid she'll move the kittens and they really are safe where they are plus, if I can, I'd like to get her and them to the animal shelter once they're older. But I did put down some food for her. I gave her the good stuff since she's a new mommy. She's a really pretty cat and her kittens are beautiful. Each have unique coloring though so I'm guessing they each had a different daddy.
Okay, so there aren't any dirty details, namely because one of us had to drop out of the trip a couple of weeks before we left so only two of us went. Still, we had a great time but it was much more tame. However, this means I'll definitely be going at least two more times in the next nine months.
We left on Wednesday and got in around 4:30 Vegas time. I sat next to a stinky French lady who spoke no English for 5 hours. And by stinky I mean she smelled like a combination of cooked onions and BO. Every time she moved, I got a whiff of her and couldn't help making a face. Luckily, she was very petite so she didn't take up a lot of room and she wasn't actually touching me. That would have squicked me out.
Even though our other friend didn't go, we didn't cancel the rooms or trade down so we had a King suite and an add-on Queen suite on the 28th floor of the Spa Tower in the Bellagio. Very, very, very, nice rooms! And the view was...amazing! We were on the strip side, over looking the "lake" which means every time the fountain did its thing, we had a perfect view. I was also right across from Paris so the night view of the Eiffel Tower and that balloon thing was great. The only downside is that they are building a new hotel or something right next door so every morning at 6:20, the construction started. Not good.
After we dumped our stuff and checked out the hotel, we drove over to Fremont Street and had dinner at this place called Binion's. It's dark and old but it's got this great atmosphere of old Las Vegas. Last night I was watching "Kiss, Kiss, Bye, Bye" and there's this scene where Brass and Grissom go see Faye Dunaway at this restaurant. That's exactly what Binion's is like. They are known for a few house specialties so we had the one that came highly recommended: chicken fried lobster. OMG! So good! I know I easily gained 10 lbs just looking at it but I also knew we were going to do a lot of walking around so the guilt only lasted a few seconds. I had a very strong Mojito that got me a pretty decent buzz (it was probably 90% rum). After that one drink, I didn't need any more. Another notable thing about Binion's is the view. It's up on the very top floor of the Binion Gambling Hall (I'm thinking it was the 33rd floor but I could be way wrong) and it's got an awesome view of Vegas and since Binion's overlooks The Fremont Experience, after we finished, we walked around there for a while. CSI was just there filming the previous day so that will be cool to see the episode when it airs. Oh, and if you're ever at The Fremont Experience, try the deep fried Twinkies at Mermaids. We didn't have them because we were so stuffed but the cops in Vegas recommend them.
The morning of Day 2 in Vegas was spent sleeping late (despite the construction noise) and making arrangements for Day 3. My friend wanted to do the helicopter trip over Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon. I get queasy in small planes so I decided to schedule a massage at the Bellagio spa instead. We both scheduled manicures for that evening as well. This was a relaxing Vegas trip, if you haven't figured that out yet.
We hit the Bellagio buffet for lunch and then again for dinner because we were stupid and didn't make reservations at any of the dozen restaurants in the hotel. It really is good but I've heard the one at the Wynn is better. We didn't really have an agenda during the day so we walked over to Paris and then down to the Venetian. Both are cool hotels and I'd definitely stay there on my next trips, although I'd give the edge to the Venetian. I have a thing for Venice.
We had tickets for the 10:30 show of "O" and I'd like to thank everyone who recommended it. There aren't enough adjectives to describe how amazing it was. We had great seats too--front row of the balcony--so we could see everything perfectly. Next time I go though, I'm definitely seeing Ka. Seeing that on CSI was the whole reason I wanted to go to Vegas.
Day 3 was our last real day in Vegas. My friend did her helicopter thing and I did my massage. Now, everyone who goes to Vegas needs to have a story to tell when they get back. So here's mine: when you get a massage or facial at the Bellagio, they take you back to a changing area and then, when you've got on your little robe and slippers, they herd you back to a waiting area. They tell you the waiting area will have men there so make sure your robe is secure. Okay, no problem. So I'm sitting and waiting and the men come in. Okay, no big deal. This one guy who definitely had the whole "chicks dig me" vibe going on sits down directly across from me. He was sitting by a window that I had been looking out and yeah, I look down at him and yeah, his johnson and his nutbag are hanging out there in all their shaved glory. He made eye contact with me so I know he knew his junk was on display and it was about that time I smirked and looked at my nicely manicured nails. Gotta tell ya, I wasn't very impressed. Oh, and the best part? His name was Rusty Keeler. When his massage therapist called his name, I nearly burst out laughing. We did other stuff on Friday afternoon but after you've seen some guy's junk, it doesn't really measure up, you know?
Friday night was the time we'd planned to get inked however, when we got to Hart and Hunnington, they didn't have what I was looking for and I wasn't going to compromise so no tattoo this time. But it's still going to happen. It also lost some of its fun when our friend dropped out. She is the mostest craziest one of us and I really wanted to do it when she was there. Anyway, we went to this place, Nora's, for dinner. It's way off the strip (on Flamingo, past The Palms) but a few people who live in LV recommended it as the best place to eat not in or near a casino. They were right too. The place was packed and the food and drinks were great. On the way back we'd stopped by The Palms. Seeing that place I quickly realized I'd never stay anywhere off the Strip. Scary! And yeah, I'm a hotel snob.
Took an early flight out on Saturday, which I highly recommend. Saturday is their least busy day of the week so there were no lines to speak of when we checked out, no traffic getting to the rental car return place, and a short wait to check in. A United pilot named Frank sat between us on the trip home and he was great fun. All in all, it was a good trip but I didn't feel like I had the full Las Vegas experience so I'll definitely be going back--hopefully this year.
Oh, and this morning? I go outside to find that one of the stray cats in the neighborhood had four kittens in this bin full of peat moss I have in my back yard. She picked a really good place to have them. It's partially covered by a potting bench and it's under the eave of the roof so she's protected from wind and rain and the heat. She's a feral cat so I'm keeping my distance. I'm afraid she'll move the kittens and they really are safe where they are plus, if I can, I'd like to get her and them to the animal shelter once they're older. But I did put down some food for her. I gave her the good stuff since she's a new mommy. She's a really pretty cat and her kittens are beautiful. Each have unique coloring though so I'm guessing they each had a different daddy.
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no subject
Date: 2007-04-30 02:07 am (UTC)I have to say that this was easily the most money I've ever dropped on a hotel stay but I'd do it again. The suites, especially the King Suite, are just amazing and the hotel is all about customer service. It's like Disney World for adults.
no subject
Date: 2007-04-30 12:52 am (UTC)I'm actually quite curious as to what you intended to have inked while there.
no subject
Date: 2007-04-30 02:13 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-05-01 06:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-05-02 02:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-30 03:00 pm (UTC)Glad you had a good time--did you hit the black jack tables?
no subject
Date: 2007-05-02 03:03 am (UTC)You know, I didn't do any gambling at all. I had fun and all but I came back feeling like I didn't get the full Vegas experience. I did learn though that it's better to play blackjack in the morning or early afternoon. In the evening they jack the prices way up and the tables are a lot more crowded.
Oh, and I'm really ticked because I started getting all these writing ideas while I was there but the minute I got home, nothing. I hate work.