Deb's Big Adventure

Back and not broke. I consider it a winning combination. So here's what I did on my mini-vacation. This is huge and probably only interesting to me. Consider yourself warned.

First I gotta say I do like travelling in Vegas solo. The place is "short attention span theater" to start with. Since I was on my own I was able to move when I wanted to move and park it when it suited me.

Second, I love downtown. If you can afford the gorgeous spots on the strip (Bellagio, Paris...) do it, otherwise downtown was definitely the way to go. Freemont street is not upscale as a whole, but the Golden Nugget definitely was. There aren't that many variables in a hotel room but the differences were obvious. Little things like a bath mat that was a mat and not a glorified towel, towels that fit around a sizeable individual such as myself, and food service rolled in on a table that could be used to eat in bed. All that for a price that is very reasonable. I also liked the party atmosphere on Freemont street. It's a pedestrian mall where the music is alway playing and it's rarely too crowded to get through. One end has a theater and shops and the whole length of the street is this funky overhead light show.

Friday was the evil air travel. Suprisingly on time. The plane was packed to the gills. Happily the movie was "Die Another Day", I hadn't seen it and it was just right for an airborne diversion. While I arrive in Vegas at a not horrendous hour, the three hour time zone change and full day at work had me beat. So I slept.

Saturday I was up early. I dined (at McDonalds because I wanted a McMuffin). Then I spent the next 2 hours hemoraging cash. I realized that at the rate I was losing I'd be broke in no time, so I took a break. I walked Freemont street, spent a little time in the room reading then went down to try again. Still not my best time of it. I spent some time in my room trying to call my niece, then hit the pool for an hour or so. All I could think as I swam was "a week ago I was shovelling snow". After a sit in the sun I retire to the room to change. Made a date to have lunch on Sunday with my neice and her daughters. Tidied up and hit the strip.

First stop, the Monte Carlo for my show tickets then over to the Bellagio by tram. I visited the art gallery there, where they were featuring a series of Andy Warhol celbrity works. A nice show but with the most annoying audio guide that I've ever had. It was Liza Minelli and she was tedious. From there to the Conservatory which had some bizzare Chinese New Year decorations. Must see is the lobby outside the conservatory where the ceiling is covered in Dale Chiluly art glass pieces.

From there to the Cafe Bellagio for a late lunch. Best meal I had all weekend. Excellent cocktails, excellent food, excellent service. Amusing if annoying people at the next table. A young black couple with two elderly ladies. They must have been out of their price range because they ordered 1 soup (and split it), 1 appetizer and one sandwich for 4 people and drank just water. The young girl talked constantly. She was talking about the soup (which I was eating) and made it very obvious that she was basically sitting there watching me eat. The other amusement was the continuous parade of brides coming into the Conservatory for their pictures. Probably 8 or 10 during the time I was eating.

Back to the Monte Carlo where I started actually winning a little money. Then to the show. I'll give him credit, Lance Burton is impressive at sleight of hand. Unfortunately he is so obviously bored with the whole thing that it is not as much fun as it ought to be. Only 2 things amused me, and talking to a consultant at work one of those was scripted because it was identical at his show. That left the little kids he used as assistants - they were the best part of the whole darn show. Next time I'll spend more in hopes of getting more. After the show I went back to Bellagio to buy something I admired earlier then out the front to watch the fountains. There was an awesome dancing fountain version of "Singing in the Rain".

I zipped over to Caesars to the Forum Shops to hit the big toy store for a munchkin gift. That mall makes me crazy because it is designed to keep you trapped and looking for a way out. From there up to the Taxi Stand and back to Freemont Street. Gotta say I was beat. Yep, in the city that doesn't sleep I chose bed by 11pm.

Sunday was gambling, gambling and a bit of gambling. After my mixed results on the other options I decided to sit down and play some nickle slots. I like them because they are cheap enough to play a lot of and there are so many themes with amusing bonus rounds. My morning selection was the winner of the trip a game featuring a Knight, a Dragon and a Damsel in Distress. I started with a $20 in the machine and walked away with over $150. I played that one for quite a while. I lunched with my neice and her wonderful daughters age 12 and 2. We ate at the buffet and just talked and talked. I followed that up with more gambling. I seriously considered the Liberace museum, but they closed early on Sunday and somehow a little over an hour just didn't feel like long enough. This gambling session was mostly even I won enough to balance the losses and generally enjoyed myself.

Then I decided to catch a movie since the theater was right down Freemont street. Saw Daredevil. Came out and watched the light show, checked out the casino giving out Mardi Gras beads (which seemed to be the fashion item of the moment). Came back around 11 and treated myself to room service while watching a bad Jean Claude Van Dam movie.

Monday was travel day. Up early, eat breakfast, gamble a bit, gamble a bit more. I never did well in the mornings gambling. Then off to the airport. For waiting, waiting, and more waiting. The flight was delayed an hour so I waited some more. Then flying, snoozing and home again.

The best part was doing whatever I wanted and seeing my niece. The worst was not winning big, which means I had to come home again.