First order of business after we dropped our luggage at the bell desk was to head to Walgreens. Exciting, huh? (And why would you go to Walgreens BEFORE you've opened your luggage and know what you forgot to pack, anyway??) No, we weren't headed to the Walgreens over by the Fatburger, we were headed to the soon-to-be Walgreens over at the Palazzo. The hubby is in the sign industry and had a big hand in getting all the right pieces to all the right places to get that puppy hung, so he had an interest in seeing it.
So, we walked over there and had a look, snapped some pictures.
Then we headed into the Venetian so I could get a cheese danish from the Bouchon Bakery stand. Funny moment along the way... some cops had pulled over a yellow Lamborghini and everyone around was taking pictures of the poor (well, obviously not poor in money) guy. Hubby wasn't hungry, so we just grabbed a table in their food court while I enjoyed the loveliness that is that cheese danish.
We went back to Caesar's. Number one order of action was trading in our old "gold" Total Rewards cards for the "platinum" ones we now qualify for. Doesn't mount to a hill of beans as far as comps in Vegas, but the hubby was determined to enjoy that Platinum as much as he could.
We went to try and check in, but the line was LONG. And of course, they were only giving "cuts" to the Diamond and Seven Star members. No luck from the new card, there.
We decided to head over to La Salsa at the Forum Shops for lunch to kill some time. We ordered chips and the "salsa flight" (really... c'mon... a smidge pretentious) and hubby had a beef burrito, and I had the chicken/avocado enchilada thing... chunks of chicken, avocado and cheese melted between some tortillas, with a cabbage/radish slaw thing on top. All the food was good. And it was very, very nice to sit outside and watch the birdies play on the fountains.
After that, headed back to Caesar's to check the check-in line. Still as long. Sigh. Gambled a bit, I managed to blow a couple hundred and the hubby described the tables as "like gambling at church." Got in line, and it was about 20 minutes before we made it to the desk.
Hubby had the $20 clearly in view in his hand, and the clerk reminded us that he could not take that now, but would be happy if we felt like giving him a tip at the end. Basically, for our first stay here at the "free" rate I was expecting not much in the way of a room. Clerk starts typing, we start with the chit-chat, and he tells us there is a great room for us, and I get a big surprise when he says "43rd floor of the Augustus Tower". Whaaaa? Like, as in, one of the newer rooms?
We happily gave him the tip, and headed up to the room.
We were floored. We're not used to nice rooms. And boy howdy, this was a nice room.
And even a minibar???!?!?!
We explored, giggling and with all the anticipation of checking out your first college dorm room.
Oh yeah. Score already.
Lollygagged around the room for a little, and then we had to head to Fatburger for dinner. Had to? Why yes. That day was actually our anniversary... four years ago we got hitched while in Vegas. And after we got hitched, we went out for Fatburger. When we got all the way over there, the place was pretty cleared out from the usual dinnertime crowd, and they were doing some cleaning of the place (and the guy doing it was downright surly in yelling at people about trying to walk on the floors). We were still somewhat full from lunch, so it was just a baby Fat for each of us and we split some fries.
Walking back to the hotel we got Odd Vegas Sight Number One for the trip... a lady in a burqa and her husband. I think the lady was a little extra-tricked-out for Vegas as her burqa (full, head to toe with only eyes showing) had some bling in the form of jewels around the eyes. Very pretty, actually.
Quick freshening up in the room, and down to the casino floor. I dropped the hubby at a Three Card Poker table and I headed for the VP machines.
Apparently I'm blessed with the superpower to go invisible. It seems to happen mostly with cocktail waitresses in Vegas, and also with one dude I work with who NEVER directly invites me to meetings I need to be at. But apparently the Gods must have been playing with me, because that night there were NO cocktail waitresses to be seen at all near the VP machines.
I finally got fed up enough, and went to the nearest bar (that was more than half empty) and after twenty minutes of waiting for the s-l-o-w-e-s-t bartender ever, I was walking, double-fisted, back to the VP machines with some refreshment.
I did manage to get 4 deuces while playing Deuces Wild. That was nice, and it made up for my losses for the day.
Finally went to find the hubby and we hit a casino bar since I wanted some more drinks, and we played some VP for a little while. The hubby was remarking recently that he was a little sad that he's never been approached by a hooker in Vegas. I have to wonder how many times he has been, and hasn't noticed. While I was coming back from a bathroom trip, I saw a woman approach him and talk to him, and I knew right away. I made a comment along the lines of "there was your brush with a hooker" and he was all "Huh?" She'd asked if the seat next to him was taken and he said "Yeah, my wife is sitting there" and didn't think anything of it. I pointed to the gal who moved on to a guy sitting about four seats down, who was already deep in the situation and being way too familiar with someone he just met.
After that, off to bed. After we raided the mini bar. Because we could.
Friday
The hubby usually wakes up late in Vegas, so a ritual of mine has been hiking it over to the Venetian to the Bouchon Bakery stand as many times as I can. I was thinking of doing it on Friday morning, but the hubby was up early along with me, so we ordered some coffee from room service and I headed down to the Payard to get some pastries for breakfast. We ate, had coffee, and just sat around and enjoyed the room (and also our current reading material... over the course of this trip I went through three books, he went through one). Finally showered, and headed to the FS mall. Hubby wanted to see if any of the shoe stores around there carried the high-top Slayer or Iron Maiden Vans that he's wanted for awhile. They didn't.
Headed back towards the room, and since it was starting to get windy, we cut through TI. As we passed the Canter's Deli, we figured it was about lunch time and we stopped and decided to split a sandwich. Wow. Hubby declared it to be the best Reuben sandwich he's ever had (loved the "not to sour sauerkraut) and I know he was regretting the decision to split the sandwich. Headed back to the room figuring it would be clean by now... it wasn't. A nice new trick for getting people down to the casino? Because when she knocked, we gathered our stuff and went down to the casino.
Apparently the power of invisibility for the cocktail waitresses was lifted, because they were actually around this time. Yay! I asked for a Miller Light, she said she had a Bud Lite on the tray, did I want it now? Sure! Tipped five bucks, and apparently that cocktail waitress must be independantly wealthy, because she kept floating by me after that, not seeing me. Thanks!
No winnings for me, the hubby was winning but was just not enjoying the playing as much (no one talking to each other, dealers who yelled at you if you did something they considered wrong, etc.).
We went back to the room, freshened up, and grabbed some cash. Headed over to Trader Vic's for some dinner - which means mai tais and a whole bunch of finger food, aka "the best bar food EVER" for us. We usually eat outside, but the wind was so bad that night that all outdoor places were shut down, so we ate inside. Got some calamari, the crab rangoon, some duck tacos (two orders... the fact the come in an uneven number makes for a bad stare-down on who gets to have that 3rd taco) and decided to try their lobster pot stickers. I think the lobster pot stickers are going to be a new staple on our order list. Crab rangoon were not quite as good as previous visits. It was pretty sad to see the place only about half full.
After that, we headed down to the Flamingo to throw some money away there. On the way, we passed the usual porn-slappers, but also found the new addition of the religious dudes standing right across from them in some great "porn vs. religion" showdown. Now, I'm all for the right to participate in the organized religion of your own choice, but street corner preachers have put me off for a LONG time after the ones who tried methods of intimidation in college (BTW... I learned the easiest way to get out of the invite to their service or whatever is to ask which night it is, and say "Well, I don't know.... that's usually MY night to slaughter the goat...." I've actually had people think I was serious when I said that). So, in a little act of defiance, I gladly took the cards and gave a big "THANK YOU!" to each person handing them out. The slappers were ROLLING by the time I got to the end of the line and called "Wait! Come back! We still got flyers to hand out!"
Ahh.... Vegas.
The VP machines at the Flamingo are never kind to me and they seemed extra spiteful, like they knew I wasn't staying there this time. But I did end up having a good time sitting next to a talkative lady at one of the three-play machines who was at the Flamingo for the first time and asking about the VP options to keep her occupied while her hubby was in the high-limit room. I was hoping her luck (she was just racking up the credits) would rub off on me, it didn't. I bled out 200 to the video poker gods in yet another fitting tribute of my devotion that this game will SOMEDAY be kind to me.
However, I also reached a new low (high?) in my powers of invisibility to cocktail waitresses. Not only could I not even get her attention when I was calling as she passed, the waitress breezed by me and actually took away my ashtray WHILE I WAS SMOKING. I could only laugh, at that point.
I needed more cash so I hit the cash station/hubby and headed over to Bugsy's Bar for a seat at a VP machine. I was getting some fair action and I managed to stretch out fourty bucks for awhile as I told the bartender about the invisibility problem (he got a chuckle out of it) and waited for the hubby to finish up his gaming. I could see him from where I was sitting, and he got a table massage and he highly recommends the service.
His table kind of broke up, so we headed to cash out. But hubby still wanted to play, so we hit the floor at Caesar's again.
Again, no cocktail waitresses to be seen. I started to realize that I don't like the layout of the casino at all. The big section of VP machines (at least the quarter ones) is right by the Forum Shops entrance/exit, and really, it's like it's a big hallway. Just people moving through. I have to imagine it's a bear to try and waitress in that area to begin with, and it doesn't help that they just have it under-staffed (or at least did while I was there). I checked on the hubby and he was still happy, so I moved to the penny slots that were right near the entrance/check in for the hotel. Stretched my money out a little better there. You know how sometimes, when you pass through a casino a couple times, you just see a machine that looks loney? This one Coyote Moon slot looked so loney. Plunked in a $20, turned it into $230, should have cashed out, but I was having fun and actually getting waited on. Happily, the cocktail waitress there was quick to catch on me to and my $5 tips and was even bringing me two beers at a time if she suspected it was going to be awhile before she got back.
We finally headed back to the room, raided the mini-bar again, and hit the sack.
Saturday
Woke up on Saturday and ordered some room service. It was a long time coming and the lady who brought it into the room was obviously having a rough morning as she apologized. I simply told her "Hey, it's never the fault of the person who brings you the food that it's late!" Their "house" eggs benedict was very, very good. Hubby was less impressed with his over-warmed and dried out ham steak.
After that, I figured it was time to finally take the whirlpool tub for a ride. It took FOREVER to fill and I was a little awed about how blue the water was.
Too bad that the blasted thing was broken.
I figured there had to be something wrong with the room when we got it, and I was sad that this was it. But I was raised to not look a gift horse in the mouth and go complaining about the tub. Too bad, so sad, there are bigger things in life to stress about. We got an otherwise flippin' fantastic room for no charge. I was happy enough.
Trying to think of something to do that would keep the gambling budget to last through the night, we headed back to the FS mall. I'd forgotten to pack a shirt for traveling (meaning, a shelf-bra tank top since flying in an underwire bra is damned uncomfortable) and I was through with reading material for the trip and wanted to pick something up. So, we hit the mall and were back in time for the start of the basketball action, and we just hung out in the room with the main TV and the bathroom TV going.
And speaking of the mall... we thought we entered a time warp, looking at all the 80's style clothes on all the younger people. Twice, we even saw free roaming packs of metal dudes (complete with Metallica patch on denim jacket). When did slouchy boots, tight colored jeans and general 80's become fashionable again? I think about a quarter of the clothes in my closet are actually hip again?
Eventually, it was time to get spruced up for some eats at the bar at Guy Savoy. We did it two years ago and were anxious to do it again.
Hubby started off with a gin & tonic, and I got one of their "by the glass" champagnes. At $30 and the money I'd been dumping on the casino floors with a lack of beer, it was probably the cheapest cocktail I'd had over the weekend. Hubby ordered the Oysters in Gelee, veal sweetbreads and beef tartar. I had a lobster salad, the scallop dish, and also the beef tartar.
Hubby declared that they were the best oysters he'd ever had, with everything this is good about oysters there, and anything bad about them not there. The lobster salad was amazing... and it was funny, when we arrived there was a group and one lady had gotten the salad and was complaining about it since not everything in the salad was listed on the menu (I think the menu only said lobster, morels and asparagus). Lady... can you just trust that the guy knows what he is doing and enjoy it? Because it was wonderful. The hubby also now has a new favorite food - veal sweetbreads. I was somehow not really surprised that at least part of my scallop dish was sandy. It always happens to me. I had two rounds of seared scallop and one of a scallop sashimi on the plate... it was a cooked one that was sandy, and the sashimi was far superior anyway.
The beef tartar... it was amazing. We did the "bites" portion which was three spoon fulls of beef tartar with a pomme dauphine next to it. The mixture of beef and potato and hot/cold was just amazing. It was like the best beef + potato dish ever. As the hubby said... "Oh yeah, I'm coming back for a big boy portion of this".
After that, it was back to the room for a costume change and then back down to the casino. I thought they might have had a Guy Savoy cookbook on sale at this little kiosk right by the Augustus tower, but the kisok-y thing (obviously trying to get people to make reservations) was closed by the time we went back down. Also sad because the guy working it that day had been our very nervous waiter the first time we were there and I wanted to bust his chops again (in a good way... we had him laughing when we were there the first time because he kept apologizing for things we had no clue he'd done wrong).
That night, the "hallway" aspect of the slot area was starting to get to me. And the cocktail waitress that ignored me after a $5 tip. Likewise, all the young, drunk and just plain rude packs of 20-something hipster frat-boys. After comments from two groups as they passed me that were obvious remarks about the 40 pounds I am trying to loose, I'd had enough. I found the hubby, said I was headed back up to the room, and stopped at the gift shop for a few beers. And right then, I vowed that although I might stay in the hotel again, I will never, ever gamble a damned dime in that casino. Yes, the casino is not responsible for the behavior of all the people there - but they are responsible for the people that they are trying to pull in. And apparently I don't want to be anywhere near the people they want to bring in.
Ok... if you happen to be like one of those young, hipster, "being an asshole makes me popular with my friends" types... grow the hell up. The utter rudeness of it all just took me aback (especially after getting on a bit of a high the previous night when chatting with the bartender about my invisibility with cocktail waitresses and the comment that I could be waving a hundred dollar tip in one hand and my shirt in the other and I'd still go unnoticed and the guy next to me trying to make it VERY clear to be for about ten minutes that he'd sure notice if I took my top off). Maybe I'm just used to the "older" and less hip crowd of the Flamingo where the main goal on the casino floor is to have a good time. It's my vacation. I put up with enough assholes in my everyday life. I don't need that on my vacation.
/endrant
Sunday
Up early to clean up, threw the last few things in the suitcase and had an uneventful ride to the airport. It was eerily empty when we went thought security, no line whatsoever.
Our gate was in the "new" section of the terminal that United uses. I was excited to check out the "Burke in the Box" stand that they have - until I saw all the prices. $12 for a chicken lettuce wrap? That's two bucks over the NYC prices. I know you're dealing with people who are trapped, but $12 seems steep for a take-away sandwich in any condition.
Uneventful flight home.... but apparently we should have stayed on at least some casino floor because we had some luck left. We picked up our luggage at O'Hare in record time, and in even more record time made it to the El and to the Rosemont stop to wait for our ride home.
It's nice to see Vegas seems to be picking up a little from how dismal it was in August.
And even if my trip didn't end on a up note, this post can....
Bye-bye, beautiful room on the 43rd floor!
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