Our third and last day of Las Vegas happened to be Easter. For the longest time that morning, I was unsure how I felt about small girls wearing what I thought were playboy bunny ears. But then I realized that the ears were for Easter, not something scandalous like the Playboy Club.
We quickly took a cab to the Wynn hotel after breakfast and had the opportunity to see the luxurious side of Las Vegas. The hotels were super magnificent and swanky with loads and loads for luxury shops. We even passed by a Longchamp boutique and I was dying to go in. The Nordstrom's near where I live no longer carries Longchamp's bags, and I want one for school!
Anyways, lots of picture taking happened this day. It's funny because that day we were dressed the most casual we had been the entire trip, but we were in the fanciest hotels on The Strip. We walked and walked down the strip and finally returned to the Luxor after a few hours. I felt very accomplished that day because we had pretty much walked the entire strip and found souvenirs too! (There is a store called the ABC store, which I swear has the best [read: cheapest] Vegas souvenirs.)
We got our last drinks at the Luxor and gambled for the last time. Then we hopped in a Taxi, and said good bye to Las Vegas. Our trip to the airport was probably our most amusing taxi ride because our taxi driver had a lot of character and wit. It was a good way to end things.
We flew home with a stop in Oakland and a minor league baseball team joined us. They were funny. When I got home, I felt so tired. I took a hot bath to scrub off all of the Las Vegas dirt on my feet and found it relatively easy to doze off to sleep.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Friday, April 20, 2012
Las Vegas (Part Two)
After an interesting long first day in Las Vegas, it was nice to sleep a whole night before hitting up The Strip again. One of the first things we did on our second day was go on the New York New York hotel's roller coaster! I hadn't been to a theme park or on a roller coaster in 4+ years, so I was (I think) understandably anxious waiting in line for the ride. Thankfully my friends and I discussed all of the safety measures roller coaster designers take into account to make sure the riders don't fall out of the ride :) I think that falling out of a ride scares me more than the actual "drop" or "height" aspect of the roller coaster.
The roller coaster was outdoors and it was so sunny when we got on it--not too hot, just perfect! My friend got a great view of The Strip and the land surrounding it but I could only focus on was how high we were going up (the first drop is the biggest right?). It's funny, the only thing I can remember about that ride going up was looking at the hotel and seeing the reflection of our cart moving upwards. (Un)fortunately, I was seated in the middle of the cart, so I couldn't actually see the loops or corkscrews that were coming up. The ride was long and pretty much amazing. I would definitely suggest it to any thrill seeker who is going to Las Vegas. The line to the ride was short and if you're in line with friends/family, it goes pretty quickly. Also, I remember the ride being less than $20, which is so cheap in comparison to all the other activities in Las Vegas.
After the ride, we continued walking north. We didn't really walk too far beyond where we walked on our first day, but we did get to make it into Caesar's Palace. This was definitely one of my favorite hotels. Also, it doesn't hurt that as we were walking into the hotel to look around, a promoter for Pure, the night club at Caesar's Palace, asked us if we wanted to get on the VIP list. I had heard great things about Pure, so I was very excited about getting on the VIP list :)
Our feet were becoming uncomfortable again, so after walking around and looking at Caesar's Palace, we returned back to the Luxor so we could spend some time by the pool. Fortunately, our second day by the pool was much warmer, so I was able to get most of my body in the pool. My feet felt so much better after being in the water and I'm so glad we made time for the pool.
Later that day, we got dressed up and took the tram to Mandalay Bay. We ate at Lupo, a Wolfgang Puck restaurant. It was probably the fanciest (read: pretentious) restaurant I've ever been to. In fact, when I ordered the merlot and our waiter served me a bit of it in my glass to taste...I had no clue that I was indeed supposed to sip the wine beforehand and "accept" it prior to him serving me the rest of my wine. Awkward. I'm glad though that our waiter got the hint that we were four pretty casual girls, so he really warmed up to us and he ended up being a pretty cool guy (not as pretentious as I thought he was). Oh! And since it was one of my friends' birthday, we got some dessert, on the house! It was delish!
Although our dinner was spectacular, we had to rush through it to make our Ka show at the MGM Grand. We quickly walked back over the tram (after having shoveled a large amount of food into our bellies) and walked at a break neck pace over to the MGM Grand to get our tickets at will call. Fortunately we made it in time, but I discovered during the show that I really don't like the dark or people in costumes. This fear preoccupied my mind for most of the show...
The show itself was pretty cool though and there were parts that I thought were funny and cute. I was glad to get out of the dark though at the end. When the show ended, our group parted ways. Half of us went gambling and the other half of us went to Pure.
...I went to Pure.
When we got in line to Pure, it was already pretty late...so we unfortunately didn't make it into the club until after midnight, so we weren't able to get any free drinks. But the music was amazing at Pure, the people were cool, and the place looked so much better than The Bank. My friend and I were able to dance without too many creepers and Darth Vader and a storm trooper even made an appearance while we were there!! It was probably the best part of the night for me....oh! And there was confetti everywhere :) It was a great night out!!
We returned back to the Luxor, and we continued the night by sneakily crawling up the side ramp of the hotel to get a picture of the sphinx. The main entrance was closed, so we found a detour! Then we went gambling for a bit and I continued to lose money, so we returned back to our hotel room and called it a night.
Now that I've typed all of that up, I've come to realize that WOW, that was such an eventful day!
The roller coaster was outdoors and it was so sunny when we got on it--not too hot, just perfect! My friend got a great view of The Strip and the land surrounding it but I could only focus on was how high we were going up (the first drop is the biggest right?). It's funny, the only thing I can remember about that ride going up was looking at the hotel and seeing the reflection of our cart moving upwards. (Un)fortunately, I was seated in the middle of the cart, so I couldn't actually see the loops or corkscrews that were coming up. The ride was long and pretty much amazing. I would definitely suggest it to any thrill seeker who is going to Las Vegas. The line to the ride was short and if you're in line with friends/family, it goes pretty quickly. Also, I remember the ride being less than $20, which is so cheap in comparison to all the other activities in Las Vegas.
After the ride, we continued walking north. We didn't really walk too far beyond where we walked on our first day, but we did get to make it into Caesar's Palace. This was definitely one of my favorite hotels. Also, it doesn't hurt that as we were walking into the hotel to look around, a promoter for Pure, the night club at Caesar's Palace, asked us if we wanted to get on the VIP list. I had heard great things about Pure, so I was very excited about getting on the VIP list :)
Our feet were becoming uncomfortable again, so after walking around and looking at Caesar's Palace, we returned back to the Luxor so we could spend some time by the pool. Fortunately, our second day by the pool was much warmer, so I was able to get most of my body in the pool. My feet felt so much better after being in the water and I'm so glad we made time for the pool.
Later that day, we got dressed up and took the tram to Mandalay Bay. We ate at Lupo, a Wolfgang Puck restaurant. It was probably the fanciest (read: pretentious) restaurant I've ever been to. In fact, when I ordered the merlot and our waiter served me a bit of it in my glass to taste...I had no clue that I was indeed supposed to sip the wine beforehand and "accept" it prior to him serving me the rest of my wine. Awkward. I'm glad though that our waiter got the hint that we were four pretty casual girls, so he really warmed up to us and he ended up being a pretty cool guy (not as pretentious as I thought he was). Oh! And since it was one of my friends' birthday, we got some dessert, on the house! It was delish!
Although our dinner was spectacular, we had to rush through it to make our Ka show at the MGM Grand. We quickly walked back over the tram (after having shoveled a large amount of food into our bellies) and walked at a break neck pace over to the MGM Grand to get our tickets at will call. Fortunately we made it in time, but I discovered during the show that I really don't like the dark or people in costumes. This fear preoccupied my mind for most of the show...
The show itself was pretty cool though and there were parts that I thought were funny and cute. I was glad to get out of the dark though at the end. When the show ended, our group parted ways. Half of us went gambling and the other half of us went to Pure.
...I went to Pure.
When we got in line to Pure, it was already pretty late...so we unfortunately didn't make it into the club until after midnight, so we weren't able to get any free drinks. But the music was amazing at Pure, the people were cool, and the place looked so much better than The Bank. My friend and I were able to dance without too many creepers and Darth Vader and a storm trooper even made an appearance while we were there!! It was probably the best part of the night for me....oh! And there was confetti everywhere :) It was a great night out!!
We returned back to the Luxor, and we continued the night by sneakily crawling up the side ramp of the hotel to get a picture of the sphinx. The main entrance was closed, so we found a detour! Then we went gambling for a bit and I continued to lose money, so we returned back to our hotel room and called it a night.
Now that I've typed all of that up, I've come to realize that WOW, that was such an eventful day!
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Las Vegas or Bust! (Part One)
Hey,
I just returned from a three-day Las Vegas trip a few days ago. I went with three friends and I, for one, had a blast!
When we first arrived to Vegas, it was about 60 degrees and there was so much sun! The weather felt very Spring-ish and I think it was the perfect way to ease us into what we had in store for the rest of our trip.
Day One:
After having an interesting conversation with our taxi driver, we went to the More Buffet at the Luxor, where we were staying. We ended up gambling a little after lunch and it was my first ever experience at a slot machine. I had some difficulty understanding and using the slot machines at first, but after watching my friends play for a while, I got the hang of it. All I played were the penny slots, so I didn't lose more than $2 that day.
When we were done checking in, we found ourselves in one of the Luxor's well-known "slanted" elevators. The shaking elevator doors were definitely not comforting as we ascended to the 13th floor of the hotel to our room. Our view from our floor was pretty cool and I'm still in awe about how the Luxor is built to cancel out the noise from the public areas of the hotel.
After changing into my comfortable clothes, we went to get one of those large frozen (and sugary) drinks in the lobby and started our walk up The Strip. It was so cool walking into the different themed hotels. Everything was so big and flashy, I loved it! We walked all the way north to the Bellagio, where we watched two great Bellagio water fountain shows! I think that those performances were the best part of my first day in Las Vegas.
We got tired of walking and our feet were dying by the time of the show, so we walked back to our hotel. Some of us napped and the rest of us went down the pool. One slightly disappointing thing about the trip was that the water in the hotel's pool was ridiculously cold. Even with really hot weather, I'm not really sure I'd be able to fully submerge my entire body in the pool. The pool layout was nice though, there were multiple, sectioned-off pools and lots of (free) chairs for guests to use. The water was great though for cooling off our feet and improving our aches and pains.
As night approached, we changed into our dressy nightwear and dolled up. We went over to the MGM Grand and ate dinner at the Rainforest Cafe. I got some nachos, which are my favorite food in the world, and my mood and energy was immediately uplifted. The crazy moving animals around the restaurant were also awesome, but I'm so glad that we weren't seated anywhere near the crazy gorilla.
Earlier in the day, we had been contacted by a club promoter for The Bank (at the Bellagio) and we were able to get on the VIP list there for free. So after dinner, we took a taxi from the Luxor to the Bellagio so we could dance the night away. Too bad that cab drive was the worst drive ever and I never want to be stuck in a vehicle on the strip (at night) ever again. When we entered the Bellagio, we were quickly greeted by more club promoters and found the line to The Bank. Seeing the other girls in the VIP line put me at ease...they were dressed similarly and were probably just as casual in nature as we were.
To get into The Bank, you have to take an escalator up to the club area. It's kind of cool because you're going up in the dark and you walk into this area and immediately see this descended dance floor. On both sides, the dance floor is saddled by bars. We got to The Bank early (like 11p), so there weren't that many people inside. But by midnight, the floor was full of people, but no one was actually dancing...or even swaying. The music was all right, but not amazing. I didn't know a ton of the techno songs at the beginning...but towards midnight more top 40 songs were playing that I knew.
The best part of the night was seeing the presentation of this one type of alcohol. Two bartenders would carry it out in this plastic, lit up diamond and some dancers would have these fire thing-a-ma-jigs and dance around the guys holding the bottle. It was definitely a great show for a bottle...but it probably cost a lot.
Around midnight, we decided to call it a night and returned back to the Luxor. Personally, I was a little disappointed by the club. I was expecting a lot more: better ambiance, better music, more dancing...just a better club vibe. I went home tired and not completely sure that I wanted to go out clubbing again the next night. The only issue was that I felt like the dance-bug in me wasn't satisfied yet.
Back at the hotel, things got a little more interesting with the help of vodka. We went to bed around 1a and in all, our night ended a high note, after the disappointing time at The Bank.
More about my trip later.
S
I just returned from a three-day Las Vegas trip a few days ago. I went with three friends and I, for one, had a blast!
When we first arrived to Vegas, it was about 60 degrees and there was so much sun! The weather felt very Spring-ish and I think it was the perfect way to ease us into what we had in store for the rest of our trip.
Day One:
After having an interesting conversation with our taxi driver, we went to the More Buffet at the Luxor, where we were staying. We ended up gambling a little after lunch and it was my first ever experience at a slot machine. I had some difficulty understanding and using the slot machines at first, but after watching my friends play for a while, I got the hang of it. All I played were the penny slots, so I didn't lose more than $2 that day.
When we were done checking in, we found ourselves in one of the Luxor's well-known "slanted" elevators. The shaking elevator doors were definitely not comforting as we ascended to the 13th floor of the hotel to our room. Our view from our floor was pretty cool and I'm still in awe about how the Luxor is built to cancel out the noise from the public areas of the hotel.
After changing into my comfortable clothes, we went to get one of those large frozen (and sugary) drinks in the lobby and started our walk up The Strip. It was so cool walking into the different themed hotels. Everything was so big and flashy, I loved it! We walked all the way north to the Bellagio, where we watched two great Bellagio water fountain shows! I think that those performances were the best part of my first day in Las Vegas.
We got tired of walking and our feet were dying by the time of the show, so we walked back to our hotel. Some of us napped and the rest of us went down the pool. One slightly disappointing thing about the trip was that the water in the hotel's pool was ridiculously cold. Even with really hot weather, I'm not really sure I'd be able to fully submerge my entire body in the pool. The pool layout was nice though, there were multiple, sectioned-off pools and lots of (free) chairs for guests to use. The water was great though for cooling off our feet and improving our aches and pains.
As night approached, we changed into our dressy nightwear and dolled up. We went over to the MGM Grand and ate dinner at the Rainforest Cafe. I got some nachos, which are my favorite food in the world, and my mood and energy was immediately uplifted. The crazy moving animals around the restaurant were also awesome, but I'm so glad that we weren't seated anywhere near the crazy gorilla.
Earlier in the day, we had been contacted by a club promoter for The Bank (at the Bellagio) and we were able to get on the VIP list there for free. So after dinner, we took a taxi from the Luxor to the Bellagio so we could dance the night away. Too bad that cab drive was the worst drive ever and I never want to be stuck in a vehicle on the strip (at night) ever again. When we entered the Bellagio, we were quickly greeted by more club promoters and found the line to The Bank. Seeing the other girls in the VIP line put me at ease...they were dressed similarly and were probably just as casual in nature as we were.
To get into The Bank, you have to take an escalator up to the club area. It's kind of cool because you're going up in the dark and you walk into this area and immediately see this descended dance floor. On both sides, the dance floor is saddled by bars. We got to The Bank early (like 11p), so there weren't that many people inside. But by midnight, the floor was full of people, but no one was actually dancing...or even swaying. The music was all right, but not amazing. I didn't know a ton of the techno songs at the beginning...but towards midnight more top 40 songs were playing that I knew.
The best part of the night was seeing the presentation of this one type of alcohol. Two bartenders would carry it out in this plastic, lit up diamond and some dancers would have these fire thing-a-ma-jigs and dance around the guys holding the bottle. It was definitely a great show for a bottle...but it probably cost a lot.
Around midnight, we decided to call it a night and returned back to the Luxor. Personally, I was a little disappointed by the club. I was expecting a lot more: better ambiance, better music, more dancing...just a better club vibe. I went home tired and not completely sure that I wanted to go out clubbing again the next night. The only issue was that I felt like the dance-bug in me wasn't satisfied yet.
Back at the hotel, things got a little more interesting with the help of vodka. We went to bed around 1a and in all, our night ended a high note, after the disappointing time at The Bank.
More about my trip later.
S
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