During my birthday party last July Teresa mentioned she wanted all of us to join her in Las Vegas in mid March to celebrate her niece Ashlea visiting Vegas after turning 21! This trip would be the first time after my birthday that Gwen, Teresa, Liz and I would be in Las Vegas again together! Part one is Gwen's trip report and part two will be mine. Since I'm always the slacker part two will be posted a couple days after Gwen's. Enjoy!
Day 1 -
by Gwen (yourstarla)
VEGAS! I was up and at 'em early, and I took the crack of dawn Southwest flight to Vegas! Teresa was flying in from Ohio so I scheduled my flight to correspond with her arrival time. We both flew on Southwest, both landed early, and both into the B gates. Hugs and happiness! I booked Bell Limo to pick us up, and the driver who arrived was Ray, who had coincidentally driven me twice before. We picked up Teresa's baggage and we were off! We made a quick stop at the CVS on Paradise and then pulled up to the Encore, which would be our home for four nights.
Neither of us wanted to mess with the front desk, since it was so early in the morning, so we took our happy selves to a video poker bar and inserted money to get the party started right. Neither of us hit anything during this first session, but I don't think either of us cared at that point!
We ended up gambling around the Encore for a while, eventually both getting our rooms. My Encore room was very nice, perfectly clean, with a great view of Circus Circus and Ross Dress for Less. At my request. I was hoping to actually sleep this trip, something I'm not particularly known for, and I knew a room on the other side of the building would be filled with the ruckus of club noise.
View from my room.
Liz and John arrived later that afternoon, after a long drive from LA, and Teresa and I went up and checked out their room in the Encore Tower Suites. It was nice, but it is exactly like a regular room, with just a few more perks.
We gambled most of the afternoon, with none of us really hitting anything, until it was time to jump in a cab and go to Aria to meet Diana! The Fabulous Four reunited (with John along as our photographer...)!
The original plan was to gamble for a while, but we were all starving so we asked if Javier's could seat us an hour and a half before our reservation. Not a problem! Yum! We shared chips and guacamole, had delicious drinks - mine being a pomegranate margarita, and fun conversation. Oh, and tacos. Yummy yummy tacos.
Feeling great, we all hopped in a cab to Encore, with me taking the very back seat, where there was no circulating air. This was a mistake. Our cab driver won't get any awards soon for his stealth, and by the time we got back to Encore I knew I was in trouble. Not someone who has been motion sick since she was a kid, I was pretty surprised at the feeling of death that had come over me, but I guess the combination of food, a margarita, and a death ride with no fresh air got the better of me. So I excused myself the moment we walked in the door at Encore.
And went upstairs and puked my guts out and went to bed.
Don't worry, I was in Vegas for a week. It only goes up from the puke and the 8 pm bedtime.
Well that's what the crack of dawn looks like. Okay, dawn was nowhere around. It was more like the middle of the night. But I was wide awake so I got myself up and about and wandered downstairs to find a cocktail waitress with coffee on her tray. I played slots, found that lovely cocktail coffee lady, and watched a really young guy hit a handpay on Buffalo Grand. He was SO excited. He kept asking me if it was real. So funny.
Eventually Teresa and Liz and John got up and wanted breakfast so we all headed over to the new Jardin, where Botero used to be. It's a very bright, open room, and the perfect spot for a nice breakfast.
Liz had eggs benedict, John had pancakes and eggs, I had eggs and toast, and Teresa enjoyed a veggie frittata.
Watermelon juice.
It was a first time dining experience for everyone at this restaurant, and everyone enjoyed their food. In fact, the three of them actually went there again for lunch that day.
We also took a field trip to North Las Vegas so Teresa could go to the Navy Federal Credit Union. Want to do something fun? Have Liz and John drive you to North Las Vegas in their Porsche Macan Turbo. It's a great way to watch steam blow out of John's ears like a cartoon character.
I skipped lunch that day and gambled instead. That afternoon I hit a handpay for a little over $1200 on Ultimate X video poker, so that helped keep the bank roll flowing. I hadn't been doing poorly but I hadn't really been winning, so that was a nice jolt to the wallet.
At 3 pm that day Teresa, Liz and I wandered over to Canyon Ranch salon at Palazzo for pedicures. The spa pedicure there is a fabulous service, and one of my favorite splurges. A full hour of foot bliss in a comfy chair, it's the best $85 I spend in a trip. Plus you get to keep the bottle of polish for touch ups. I don't get pedicures anywhere else now. And I'm slowly getting all my friends hooked.
After the pedicures Teresa and I grabbed a cab and went to Cosmopolitan to meet Diana, who was excited to get the first crack on the new Austin Powers machine, as Cosmo had just opened it. Teresa and I were able to play as well, and it was a fun game, but I didn't win on it. Teresa cashed out quite a few hundred up though and her machine was on a roll! I'd try it again. It seemed to bonus in streaks though. Once mine stopped - it reeeeeeally stopped. Ha.
We didn't have a lot of time to play though, since we had to go to Encore to meet Liz and John. We had a pick up scheduled. Casa di Amore was our dining spot for the evening, and they offer complimentary rides (please tip the driver!), so I had them pick us up and schlep us over to one of my favorite places. Plus it was Monday - half price wine night!
All bottles are half price. We have a long history with half price wine night, and that history involves many nights of Diana and Teresa drinking out of the bottle. I wanted to join them, but after my pomegranate puke the night before I decided to pass. Instead I happily shared antipasto salad and bruschetta with my friends, and listened to the band play Sinatra songs, and waited for my delicious bowl of fettucini alfredo.
What was left after I attacked my Fettuccine at Casa!
It was another fun night at Casa, and I got to enjoy something that doesn't get enough play here on Las Vegas Daze - Tipsy Diana. I love sober Diana. She's one of my best friends and one of the best people I know, but Tipsy Diana is a riot. We were chatting about pot and she mentioned that she knew someone who used to grow it and then said that it "grew like a weed." We lost it. She managed to somehow inadvertently say grass, weed and herbs within a five minute period and I was seriously in jeopardy of losing bladder control from laughing so hard.
Eventually we rolled our well fed selves out of our booth and our ride took us back to Encore. We ended up gambling for a while, before we all rambled back to our respective places. I went to bed pretty early that night, since I had been up so early, but it didn't do me much good. My three hours of sleep the first night would only be topped with a short five the second night, but I was in Vegas. I can sleep when I'm dead.
