Tag Archives: las vegas

Been Through the Desert

The first few weekends of August are ones I spent in the desert. Both were nice chances to get out of the house and have what felt like normal times, even though we absolutely are not living in normal times.

First up, Vegas! It had been just under 2 years since the last trip we took all together, including Larry, as a group of friends. I had managed to wrangle up that group back then because I knew Larry was going to be having that massive surgery back at NYC and, I guess my gut was telling me you need to do this. That was a spectacular weekend back in August 2019, and I’m glad that Larry was able to have that kind of an outing before it all got really difficult. In that trip, there was 6 of us going and then of course meeting up with Michancy.

Anyway, I’ve been missing Vegas. I am certainly my mother’s son and gambling is in my blood. So, I just finally wanted to go again. It probably wasn’t the wisest time to go with Delta variant coming on strong, but I still just wanted to go. One thing I had to do was disperse some of mom’s ashes, so that was another reason for me to go. I’m not going to drive all that way to just turn around and come home.

I booked a swanky room at the Cosmopolitan (Larry & I had stayed there when we met up with Jon & Alyssa in Vegas in 2015 and loved it). I wasn’t sure if anyone else would be up for going, but I reached out to Maj as she’s truly the only other in the friend group who likes gambling as much as I do. Turns out she was able to go so that was the group! Small but fun.

Here’s where mom’s ashes are – they are where Harv’s ashes are too, so I’m hoping this helped with her spirit.

I had decided to make this a 3-day weekend, so I left Thursday afternoon. I got to Halloran Summit around 3:30pm, and that left about another hour before I pulled into the Cosmopolitan. Even though Vegas is not a ghost town, it’s still noticeably less crowded than if I had gone two years ago, even on Thursday. Which I’m completely fine with, as I hate when it’s overly crowded, especially with covid.

The room and the view were amazing. I decided to pay good $$ for this trip, so yeah, you get a pretty great view and room. Maj had made it right around the same time as me, but she stayed at the Tropicana, which is a bit away but still sort of walkable. She made it up and we had some drinks at the Chandelier Bar first and caught up. We then took an Uber downtown to where Michancy was waiting for us at this really cool sushi restaurant. It’s the Arts district there, and it was a nice way to do things as it’s otherwise very hard to get reservations at a lot of places spur of the moment. I also got to meet Michancy’s sister, Nova, and it was just a great night to start things off. Michancy dropped Maj and I back off at the Tropicana and we walked over to New York New York as that had the more fun casino. And we had a really great time at the blackjack table! That was my only good time with blackjack that entire trip! Happily, at midnight on Thursday, Nevada instituted a mask mandate indoors, so that made me have some relief. I was actually very happy to see lots of masks up even before that, but it was reassuring to have the mandate kick in while we were there.

The next day, we wandered over to the Linq and O’Shea’s to gamble and drink, and then we had lunch at a fun pizza place (with a cute waiter) and continued to drink. There was more gambling after, and then we all got ourselves collected to have dinner at Esther’s Kitchen, which was across the street from the sushi place we ate at the night before. Delicious food and hipster vibes (Larry would’ve loved it) and then we had ourselves a table at Piranha’s, a gay bar off strip. Oh yeah, before the club, we stopped by Michancy’s apartment, and that was the first time I’ve ever actually been to her place. Any of them, lol. We then drove and parked at Cosmopolitan and then took a Lyft to Pirahna’s. Needless to say that was a blast. We got there at 9:30 (Waaaayyy early for a club) but were there till about 2:30am and it was just so nice and fun to have our own section, our own alcohol, and space to dance without being too much around others.

After recovering a bit the next day, we had reservations for brunch at Mon Ami Gabi, which is basically a tradition at this point. What was cool was that while I didn’t bother trying to get an outdoor table, or even one in the sun room, we managed to get one as the inside table we did get needed to be added to a big party, and the manager not only comped us our first round of bloody mary’s but also got a swanky table in the sun room. We also saw Spike Lee there. It was a fun day. I ended up having a reallllllll good time at the craps tables at Paris Las Vegas – one time at the glass craps table (it’s an electronic table and you bet via a personal screen) and while I had been down there I kept playing because I just didn’t care, and holy shit, this one guy started rolling and I made all my money back. Once he left and others couldn’t roll, I stopped and cashed out, and while looking for Maj, I couldn’t find her, so I decided to go and play at a real craps table again, and holy shit, I rolled really good (and I had been having spectacularly bad rolls this trip) and then this guy to my left rolled INSANELY good. I had texted Maj to get over here and she managed to ride some of that wave too. Oh, craps can be so good when the rolling is right. Yeah, I had a good gambling time this trip. I choose to believe Larry and my mom were helping nudge the dice the right way. That evening we had reservations to Water Grill, which is where we all had dinner back in August 2019 too. It’s a delicious restaurant. Anyway, that evening I kind of wound down as it got really crowded as there were a few sporting events happening that night and on Sunday. It brought everyone in, and I was just ready to be done. It was a wonderful trip with Maj and Michancy. I am really wanting to go back, lol.

The next day was time to head home. I’m happy to have finally been back to Vegas and visit Michancy, and I don’t appear to have caught covid during my time there, and I want to head back there again soon. It’s fun to have a gambling buddy, and Maj is exactly that. So figuring out how to go back and have the right group is paramount.

The following weekend (August 6-8), I went out to Desert Hot Springs to celebrate Stacie’s birthday. She had got an AirBnb and invited a few family and friends over to stay and have fun. Two weekends in a row was admittedly exhausting, but at least in this case, once I got there, there was very little in having to move around again. In Vegas, I routinely was hitting 15k+ steps each day. That’s insanity. Here, there was a pool, there was air conditioned great room, and that was mainly it. We drank, we danced, we hung out in the pool, we cooked meals, and it was just a really wonderful time with this group. This will likely be Stacie’s last hurrah here in California, so it was meaningful. Her plan is to eventually get to Tennessee in the next few months, and I’m excited for her.

Now it’s August 15 and I spent this weekend at home and it was glorious. I did some needed cleaning of the bathrooms, grocery shopping, catching up on The White Lotus in advance of tonight’s season finale, and got the motivation to update the blog again. 2 times in a month? Don’t call it a comeback.

Fun Times in Vegas

This past weekend was a wonderful getaway.  Larry & I flew up on Thursday night to Las Vegas to meet up with Fran and Joel.  They were in this neck of the woods because they were headed to a conference in Phoenix this week, so why not meet up in a fun middle ground?  So of course, we were in for that!

We all stayed at the Palazzo, which was unsurprisingly fantastic.  It’s a huge hotel and has a smallish casino, to be honest.  But it was good enough as I ended up having quite a bit of luck playing there.  Well, the first night, not so much:  I decided to try Blackjack that Thursday night before going to bed and immediately lost $100.  ROUGH.  But it was on Friday when I played some craps and holy shit, I had a fantastic roll.  I was at the table by myself, which is usually a risky move, but it was $10 and sometimes it’s nice to not have the pressure of others betting on you and your roll. But that morning?  I was on fire.  I kept hitting the points and rolling 6s and 8s like crazy.  Started with $100 and walked away with $450.  That’s a nice session.    Our first activity that day was walking around the Strip in that area, as Fran hadn’t been in Vegas for over 40 years so it was worth walking her through a lot of it.   We walked south from the Palazzo, past the Venetian, Harrah’s, through Flamingo, then past Bally’s and into Paris.  We finally took a drink break at Paris and enjoyed the ambience.

After that respite, we crossed the street over to Caesars Palace as that is definitely something that can’t be missed when looking at over-the-top splendor.  The Forum Shoppes suitably impressed them, as did the curvy escalators!  After that, it was time to walk on back to the Palazzo and past the Mirage, which we’d return to on Saturday night.

Another drink stop back at the Palazzo casino bar area, and then it was finally time to get some Roulette in!  I don’t usually play, but it was the game that Fran was up for as Jon had asked her to play some #s.  Well, crazily enough, she was able to get some wins in – hell, so did I!  The best one was 33 hit, which I had bet on, and on the next spin, it came up again.  Sweet, and I had put another dollar on there.  35-1 odds, buddy!

That evening we had dinner at the Lavo Italian restaurant in the Palazzo, which was pretty great.  Joel’s boss and wife were also meeting us there for dinner.  The food was great, but I ended up unable to finish off my veal parmesan as it was ginormous.  But very good!

On Saturday morning, we awoke and instead of having breakfast again at the Grand Lux Cafe, we found Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bistro – quite a trek to find, but sooo damn good.  It’s a French restaurant and oh man, their weekend menu is delicious.  I ended up getting one of the specials, chicken with waffles, and it was fantastic.  Perfectly cooked chicken…bacon in the waffles….delicious.

After breakfast, that day’s walking adventure was to take the Monorail down to the MGM Grand so we could then not only see that but also see the New York New York casino.  We had to show them the fun theming there, even if it is kind of lame.  We then walked through the Excalibur and into the Luxor, where we had another drink break.  It was a lot of fun to stop there as they were playing music videos and all of them were just a blast to watch.  Larry & I could have probably hung out there, drank, and watched videos all afternoon!  We did then check out Mandalay Bay before catching a cab back to the hotel in order to get some rest.

We still had a fun night ahead, as we had gotten tickets to see the Beatles’ LOVE show at the Mirage!  Yay!  Michancy also joined us, so it was a blast.  I was excited to see it again (yes, again, I know) as for its 10th anniversary, they changed it up a little.  After having seen it, I think I preferred the original version to the tweaks that were implemented.  It’s not a giant overhaul by any means, but there did seem to be additions and removals that changed the overall excitement, maybe?  Regardless, still a great show and the newbies all loved it.  After the show, we then headed back to the Canal Shoppes and got dinner at Sushi Samba, which is quite an experience.  Really good food in a fun atmosphere.  Michancy suggested keeping going, but both Larry & I were done at that point, so we walked her to her car and then headed back to the hotel.

And then it was Sunday and time to go home.  We actually did have a good bit of fun in the morning, as we had breakfast at the Grand Lux again (their beignets were so good and their French Toast is insanely thick) and then after getting packed, we killed some more time at the casino, with Fran able to play roulette for a while longer and I went over and played craps again.  It was great as I was able to win some money – although not as much as some guys who were playing one of the particular-table bets I’d not seen before – Repeater bets, in which if you roll two 2s or three 3s or four 4s etc before 7-ing out, you get insane paydays.  It’s of course bigger at the 6 and 8 (120-1), but the 2/12 is still 50-1 I think, and it just goes up.  For those rolls in which craps numbers get rolled a lot, which sometimes happen, these bets are ridiculous.  One of the guys at the table literally won $1000 on those bets alone.  But I know full well that those are sucker bets too, as those great rolls don’t come all that often!

Anyway, it was wonderful to see Fran and Joel even if for a little while.  They drove off to Phoenix while Larry & I took our brief Southwest flight home.  I freakin’ love flying to Vegas now – so much less stressful.

Our New Neighbor

When I say “our”, I of course mean the royal “our” with regards to PwC.  You can just see our petite building behind this new upstart, the Grand Wilshire.  Pretty glassy, eh?  Also LA’s tallest structure with the spire factored in.  LA is going crazy with all the construction, let me tell ya.

Anyway, off to Vegas for the weekend – don’t let the world get destroyed while we’re away.  I’m kind of fond of it.  It’ll be wonderful to see Fran and Joel, as well as Michancy.  Haven’t been to Vegas in quite a while, so I’m excited to get back to the tables!!!!!!!  🙂

Vegas, Cosmopolitan-style

We made it back to Vegas!  This weekend though we met up with Larry’s sister, Alyssa, and her husband, Jon.  It was a very quick trip and I could probably have stayed longer but we did put a healthy dent in spending money as we ate at some NICE places.  We also stayed at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas hotel and damn, that was nice, yo.  As you’ll see in the pictures below, it really was just a spectacular location.  It was so good to hang out with Alyssa and Jon though, and I think we all had a great time, even if the weather was uncharacteristically cool.

2015 05 07 – Flying out to Vegas

07-May-2015 17:54, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, ISO 32
07-May-2015 17:54, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, ISO 32
07-May-2015 17:54, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 2.65mm, 0.025 sec, ISO 40
 
07-May-2015 17:54, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, ISO 32
07-May-2015 17:54, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, ISO 32
Baker
Baker07-May-2015 18:12, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 32
 
07-May-2015 18:12, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 32
Solar Panel Farms beckon us
Solar Panel Farms beckon us07-May-2015 18:16, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 32
07-May-2015 18:17, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 32
 

One of the first things that was different about this trip was that we flew out from Burbank airport.  The drive to Vegas isn’t a terrible drive by any means, but it was kinda nice to just go on a 42-minute flight.  Burbank is also an especially convenient and easy airport to fly from and has absolutely none of the stress involved with an LAX departure.  I wish Burbank had direct flights to NYC from there but I’ll take the small wins when you can.

Getting to Vegas / Riding the High Roller

Our awesome room in the Cosmopolitan
Our awesome room in the Cosmopolitan07-May-2015 19:18, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.033 sec, ISO 100
Alyssa & Jon as we head to the Linq
Alyssa & Jon as we head to the Linq07-May-2015 21:51, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 640
07-May-2015 21:54, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.059 sec, ISO 250
 
07-May-2015 21:55, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 320
07-May-2015 21:55, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 250
07-May-2015 21:56, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 320
 
07-May-2015 21:56, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 320
About to board the High Roller
About to board the High Roller07-May-2015 22:08, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.033 sec, ISO 250
All 4 of us!
All 4 of us!07-May-2015 22:08, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.059 sec, ISO 250
 
07-May-2015 22:08, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.033 sec, ISO 250
07-May-2015 22:11, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.042 sec, ISO 250
07-May-2015 22:12, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 640
 
07-May-2015 22:12, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 1250
07-May-2015 22:13, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 400
07-May-2015 22:13, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 400
 

We didn’t get into the city until around 6:30 and into the Cosmopolitan until about 7.  Jon and Alyssa met us at the lobby and awesomely our hipsteriffic host at the check-in desk not only got us near their room, but also upgraded our room into a 1-Bedroom and DAYUM, that is some fine-ass living.  You’ll see it in a later set of pictures, but that is some quality shit.  We had a view looking west so it wasn’t a strip view but the accommodations were just amazing.  You may have heard the tagline for Cosmopolitan in their TV ads, “Just the right amount of wrong.”  It’s sort of appropriate for these rooms, as your bedroom has a full on view of the shower and tub.  So if you’re in the mood for putting on a show, go for it!

Anyway, we then had reservations for dinner at Rao’s in Caesar’s, a very good Italian restaurant.  So we walked over there with plenty of time although it was a fun goose chase to find Rao’s as Caesar’s is one confusing layout.  After that delectable dinner, we then went across the street to the Linq area where of course the main attraction is the High Roller.  It’s a great way to see everything from a unique viewpoint, although I think Alyssa may not have loved the experience all that much.  It is a very high, enclosed capsule overlooking the strip.  But I loved going on it for a third time!

Shots From Our Balcony at Night

07-May-2015 22:59, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 400
07-May-2015 23:20, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 1250
07-May-2015 23:20, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 400
 
07-May-2015 23:20, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 640
07-May-2015 23:21, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 400
07-May-2015 23:21, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 640
 
07-May-2015 23:21, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 1250
07-May-2015 23:21, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 500
07-May-2015 23:21, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 1000
 
07-May-2015 23:26, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.042 sec, ISO 250
07-May-2015 23:26, Apple iPhone 6, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.059 sec, ISO 250
 

I didn’t take the following picture but found it on the Wiki entry for the Cosmopolitan and just loved it – so I’m definitely not taking credit for having taken this picture myself:

05-May-2011 21:56, Canon Canon PowerShot S90, 5.6, 6.0mm, 1 sec, ISO 80
 

After that we ended up taking Alyssa back to the room so she could sleep while the rest of us went over to the Aria hotel to see if there was slightly less expensive gambling than $25/table.  Turns out the answer was no.  But Jon stayed there to play some poker while Larry & I walked back to the Cosmopolitan chandelier bar and had two drinks and enjoyed the glitz and glamour of that place during a fun night.  I hadn’t been too buzzed most of the night but after those two drinks, I certainly got that way!

2015 05 08 – Good Morning!

I think we all were a little bit tired so the going was a little slow but we were on vacation so why not?  Jon and Alyssa had tried breakfast at the Henry restaurant within Cosmopolitan but weren’t impressed, so instead Alyssa had suggested a French place they’d seen while walking around the day before….ha!  Of course I knew the place they were talking about as it was Mon Ami Gabi in the Paris LV.   We’d never had breakfast or lunch there so it was going to be a new experience for Larry & me too!  The verdict?  Pretty fucking great food!

Daytime Pics From the Balcony!

08-May-2015 09:27, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 200
08-May-2015 09:27, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 100
08-May-2015 09:27, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 4.0, 6.319mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 100
 
08-May-2015 09:28, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 5.0, 15.939mm, 0.005 sec, ISO 100
08-May-2015 09:28, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 11.0, 4.5mm, 0.005 sec, ISO 200
08-May-2015 09:28, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 5.0, 11.63mm, 0.002 sec, ISO 125
 
08-May-2015 09:30, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 5.0, 15.939mm, 0.006 sec, ISO 125
08-May-2015 09:30, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 11.0, 4.5mm, 0.003 sec, ISO 400
08-May-2015 09:30, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.003 sec, ISO 200
 
08-May-2015 09:31, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 5.0, 12.0mm, 0.002 sec, ISO 100
08-May-2015 09:33, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 5.6, 25.699mm, 0.003 sec, ISO 100
08-May-2015 09:33, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 5.6, 48.695mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 100
 
08-May-2015 09:33, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 4.0, 5.803mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 200
08-May-2015 09:36, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 5.0, 10.591mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 200
08-May-2015 09:36, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.008 sec, ISO 200
 

Mon Ami Gabi, Breakfast-Style

08-May-2015 10:31, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.033 sec, ISO 320
08-May-2015 10:32, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.02 sec, ISO 200
08-May-2015 10:32, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.008 sec, ISO 400
 
08-May-2015 10:32, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.003 sec, ISO 400
08-May-2015 10:58, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.013 sec, ISO 400
08-May-2015 10:58, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.033 sec, ISO 200
 
08-May-2015 10:58, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.033 sec, ISO 200
08-May-2015 10:58, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.033 sec, ISO 200
08-May-2015 10:58, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.017 sec, ISO 400
 

Afternoon Activities

After a great breakfast with mimosas, we sauntered through the Paris casino, observing that some things had changed like the gazebo area which had become a bit more open, part of the Paris Cafe had been turned into a noodle restaurant (note for next visit!), and one of the Italian restaurants in the French Village area got a very modern upgrade.  Walked through Bally’s also and their “Market” in the front area where before it was just a moving walkway surrounded by lawn.  Can’t say I was impressed with what they did – very generic and just meh.  Maybe they’ll figure out what to do to make it a compelling attraction.  Our destination was O’Sheas today though, as it always guarantees cheaper tables and a laid-back environment.  We did get to play blackjack for quite a while and we even got Alyssa playing – and she liked it!  The cards were good for a long time but of course, they ended up turning on us.  Whatever, it was fun for a while and we got to talk to some fun dealers.

08-May-2015 11:58, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.05 sec, ISO 800
08-May-2015 11:58, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.033 sec, ISO 800
08-May-2015 11:59, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.05 sec, ISO 1250
 
08-May-2015 15:37, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 125
08-May-2015 15:49, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 200
08-May-2015 15:49, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 200
 
08-May-2015 15:53, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 11.0, 4.5mm, 0.004 sec, ISO 200
08-May-2015 15:53, Apple iPhone 5s, 2.2, 4.15mm, 0.067 sec, ISO 320
 

LOVE in the Evening

We had wanted them to see a good show and there’s no better show than the Beatles’ LOVE in the Mirage.  So we went back to Cosmo to get freshened up and then had a snack at the Holstein’s restaurant there before taking a cab to the Mirage.  We made dinner reservations for after so we wouldn’t have to rush, as the LOVE show was at 7.  We did have to stress a bit though as we ended up leaving the Cosmo later than we probably should have!  We managed to get the tickets and then had Jon and Alyssa get to their seats while we waited in the alcohol line as if it took too long, at least they’d see the show from the beginning.  Awesomely, we got our drinks in the nick of time, getting to our seats a minute before the show started.  One of the mimes even asked for my beer and took it for a little while!

08-May-2015 17:49, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.04 sec, ISO 800
08-May-2015 17:49, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.05 sec, ISO 1000
08-May-2015 17:53, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.05 sec, ISO 1000
 
08-May-2015 17:53, Canon Canon PowerShot SX600 HS, 3.8, 4.5mm, 0.05 sec, ISO 1000
 

After that, we had dinner at Stack, a very nice restaurant in the Mirage.  These restaurants really spared no expense in their decor and of course pass that cost on to you in the menu.  Ah well, you’re on vacation.  By this point, we were definitely hungry.  We were also “thirsty” and I think I drank quite a bit.  Not extremely sloppy but highly-buzzed nonetheless!

2015 05 09 – Departure Day

On our last day, it was a little bit harder to get up yet again.   Once we finally did get up, around 11:30, it was time to check out and have the hotel hold our bags, as both flights weren’t leaving until that evening.  We met and walked down to the Linq where Hash House a Go Go was, as we thought someplace new would be fun for brunch.  Turns out everyone thinks that as the wait was 1 hour and 40 minutes!!!!  Yeah, so we checked if Mon Ami Gabi was a shorter wait and we could get in immediately, so back to Paris LV for us!  Bloody Marys were on the menu for me this day and they were glorious.

The pool was on deck for Larry, Alyssa and Jon while I kind of stumbled around trying to feel better.  I played some craps and some electronic craps, and that was fun for a good time as I started to feel better.  The blackjack that day was NOT nice to me though and we shall never speak of it again.  😉   But it was a lot of fun regardless and then it was time to have some dinner, and we opened up the Blue Ribbon Sushi restaurant in the Cosmo.  That’s where we had some good food and also said goodbye, as our flight left before theirs did by about 2 hours.

The Las Vegas airport is a ghost town on a Saturday night as no one really leaves or arrives on a Saturday in that town, so security and check-in is pretty much painless.   A very quick but action-packed vacation with lots of good food and drink and a wonderful time with Jon and Alyssa.  Looking forward to another round with them!!!