Day One: The way you make me feel
Night number one in Vegas led me to a bachelorette party featuring a great cast of women ready to celebrate the last days of the lucky Danielle’s singledom. I walked from the MGM past the larger-than-life golden statue of MGM mascot Leo the Lion, through the crowds of card snappers (yes, I believe that is their official name) and to meet the rest of the group at Cabo Wabo Cantina inside Planet Hollywood. We didn't know it when we got there, but it was karaoke night, lucky for the other patrons we decided to keep our singing to a minimum. Just on cue, when we finished singing “The Way You Make Me Feel,” a Michael Jackson look-alike jumped on stage to do his rendition of Billy Jean with exuberant amounts of classic moves including both the moon walk and crotch grab.
Night number one in Vegas led me to a bachelorette party featuring a great cast of women ready to celebrate the last days of the lucky Danielle’s singledom. I walked from the MGM past the larger-than-life golden statue of MGM mascot Leo the Lion, through the crowds of card snappers (yes, I believe that is their official name) and to meet the rest of the group at Cabo Wabo Cantina inside Planet Hollywood. We didn't know it when we got there, but it was karaoke night, lucky for the other patrons we decided to keep our singing to a minimum. Just on cue, when we finished singing “The Way You Make Me Feel,” a Michael Jackson look-alike jumped on stage to do his rendition of Billy Jean with exuberant amounts of classic moves including both the moon walk and crotch grab.
After dinner we explored the strip, watched the always-mesmerizing Bellagio water show, and stumbled upon a talented clown who sculpted balloons into hats looking like abstract versions of male unmentionables. As if we didn’t garner enough attention, the hats made sure we were the subject of double-take looks and prepositions for group photos with strangers.
A quick stop for some of the ladies to switch shoes (unfortunately I remained in my heels all night since the MGM is on the other opposite end of the strip), and we were off to the Casino floor. My bachelorette button, though it said “lucky,” did not provide me with anything resembling luck. I managed to only loose $20 my first day on the penny slots and my first time playing Wheel of Fortune. The good thing about the slots is that even if you don’t win, “free” drinks are flowing, so, even though I lost $20, there was still something to be gained.
I was, however, lucky enough though to get home before the guys, at around 3:30, to catch a few hours of uninterrupted sleep. And even with the slight disturbance when they got back to the hotel at sunrise, the black-out curtains and white noise provided enough peace to keep me asleep for at least another four hours.
Day two: Oh, Canada
We woke up on day two a little before noon, and even though we had only been in Vegas one day, Vegas' ability to distort time made our late start seem perfectly normal. There are things on the strip, however, that I'm not sure I could ever get used to, like the sidewalk closing down due to unexplained police/bomb squad action (walking down the strip past the most tempting place in Vegas, the M&M Candy store, police informed us that we’d have to move along since they were closing this particular part of the sidewalk. Nothing looked too out of the ordinary to me, but something must have gone awry. Hopefully it wasn’t something too serious, and to make myself feel better I’m telling myself it was a drill), or people dressed as Sanrio characters or Jack Sparo posing for photos.
A quick stop for some of the ladies to switch shoes (unfortunately I remained in my heels all night since the MGM is on the other opposite end of the strip), and we were off to the Casino floor. My bachelorette button, though it said “lucky,” did not provide me with anything resembling luck. I managed to only loose $20 my first day on the penny slots and my first time playing Wheel of Fortune. The good thing about the slots is that even if you don’t win, “free” drinks are flowing, so, even though I lost $20, there was still something to be gained.
I was, however, lucky enough though to get home before the guys, at around 3:30, to catch a few hours of uninterrupted sleep. And even with the slight disturbance when they got back to the hotel at sunrise, the black-out curtains and white noise provided enough peace to keep me asleep for at least another four hours.
Day two: Oh, Canada
We woke up on day two a little before noon, and even though we had only been in Vegas one day, Vegas' ability to distort time made our late start seem perfectly normal. There are things on the strip, however, that I'm not sure I could ever get used to, like the sidewalk closing down due to unexplained police/bomb squad action (walking down the strip past the most tempting place in Vegas, the M&M Candy store, police informed us that we’d have to move along since they were closing this particular part of the sidewalk. Nothing looked too out of the ordinary to me, but something must have gone awry. Hopefully it wasn’t something too serious, and to make myself feel better I’m telling myself it was a drill), or people dressed as Sanrio characters or Jack Sparo posing for photos.
Tommy and I continued our trek down the strip while Brad was fulfilling groomsman duties at the rehearsal. We met a Canadian eager to give us coupons for free drinks and shows if we filled out a questionnaire, but, to his dismay our 10 year platonic relationship was not enough to qualify us for the timeshare he was trying to promote to happy couples. He didn’t let that discourage his Midwest-rivaling Canadian friendliness though, he spent the next half hour or so regaling us with Vegas trivia and hints about the best places in town. It’s been a while since I’ve talked to someone for that long without knowing their name, but we left with plenty of must see locations to make it to during our trip, including the newly constructed City Center. It cost 60 billion dollars to construct, and houses its own fire house, police department, hospital and has its own zip code. It's also home to high fashion shopping, a restaurant made completely of redwood, ice column water fountains and water tornadoes reminiscent of the tornadoes I made in elementary school with two soda bottles and duct tape.Day three: Happily ever after
Day three of Vegas was Danielle and Johnny's big day. I only met the couple earlier that week (they are long-time friends of Tommy and Brad), but I felt so welcome at their celebration. They are two of the sweetest, most kind and generous people I've met in a long time. A group of about 40 people watched the happy couple exchange vows in front of a gazebo in a lush garden chapel at Cesar's Palace and enjoyed a fabulous outdoor meal at Serendipity (for me it was a double decker grilled cheese with brie, swiss and cheddar...amazing). The night continued with a reception in an overwhelmingly beautiful two-story suite at Cesar's, and ended with smiles all around and great memories that will be held dear for years to come.Day 4: Come on down!
If you thought the possibility of winning a washer/dryer combo was only for those lucky people on tv, think again. Bally's in Las Vegas has a live version of
As is the case in Vegas most of the time, our "it's five o'clock somewhere" attitude brought us to Margaritaville for dinner. Every hour on the hour, to Jimmy Buffet's classic "Margaritaville," a woman slides down a volcano exploding with dry ice fog, into a giant blender. She dances her way out, grabs onto an over sized fish hook and does insane acrobatic work to get back down to the floor. Needless to say, cheers were abundant.Day 5: Ka-mazing
During the whole trip we kept meaning to buy a yard or guitar of tasty beverage to enjoy on the strip, and Thursday night even planned to sip them while shopping, however, it was an epic fail. Although we did make it down the strip on our last day for shopping, I did not get my delicious guitar. I did, however, get to pretend to be Louis Vuitton wearing fashionista. I didn't have the confidence to ask to try anything on for fear that the saleswoman would have asked to check my credit first, but I did admire many things from afar. One dress, my favorite, I even held up in front of the mirror. My description won't do it justice, but I'll try. It was pink and black with a black trim that had a handkerchief skirt, zipper down the front of the bodice, and tied back. It was only $3,100. As to not leave empty handed from our shopping extravaganza, I did buy an awesome silver mesh bow tie ring from a store in the Miracle Mile that had a dj spinning live. It was less than 1 percent of the cost of that dress.
That night we went to see Cirque du Soleil's Ka. Our minds were significantly blown. When you first walk in the theatre decor blows you away, and the when the music starts you are already at the edge of your seat, the athleticism and gracefulness of the performers is unreal, the vertical moving stage is unbelievable, at the end you are left speechless. If you have the chance to see it, go. Go now! And, if you don't believe me, check out this trailer: http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/ka/default.aspx.
The last night in Vegas was spent at Rio, well, first I crashed for a bit while the rest of the group went up to the Voodoo Lounge which is now a must see for me when I go back after hearing how amazing the view from the 54th floor is, and how fantastic a time everyone had dancing on the outdoor patio. By the time I met up with the group they were ready for some food. We went to the Flamingo where everyone else got the $2 burger special. I opted for the fruit plate. I don't think I've ever been so stoked for fruit. My steady diet of grease and liquor throughout the week was finally catching up with me, and the fruit was everything I hoped it would be, and more. We stayed out until sunrise that morning finishing out late night snacks/breakfasts, and said our goodbyes. I went home and packed for my early flight, and the guys passed out for the last time in our MGM accommodations.
I left the guys dreaming of sugar plums, tried my luck one more time at the slot machines (and lost) and took a taxi to the airport ready for continued adventures north in San Fransisco.
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