WEDNESDAY
I'm up at 0930 and a little bleary eyed from lack of sleep..long hot shower brought me around along with a couple of cups of coffee. I'm curious what the Bellagio folks have done to the conservatory for the Chinese New Year, so I hike over there with camera in tow. They did a great job this year; I've seen several of their past displays for Chinese New Year and this one was done up right- year of the dragon....very nice. Afterward, the pangs of hunger got the best of me and I settled onto a stool at the bar at Margaritaville and ordered up a tall, LOVELY, Landshark draft and an order of their fish tacos for lunch.....delicious. It was a bright sunny day, so I grabbed the rest of my Landshark and parked myself on the balcony overlooking the sidewalk in front of Margaritaville and quietly sipped my adult beverage and watched the sea of humanity pass by on the sidewalk below...enjoying the warmth of the sun on my face...bliss.
I then played some VP at the bar at Harrah's, played some BJ at Bill's, then caught the shuttle over to the Gold Coast to play some more 9/6 JOB at their center bar. It wasn't a great session' the gin and tonics were pretty strong though. After I had gained 400 points I cashed out down $50. It was approaching late afternoon so I decided to avail myself with an ACG coupon for a free buffet with 200 points earned(and you get to keep the points). While I was standing in line at the players club , I realized that I had a $5 matchplay coupon and then saw that they had a promotion for a free gift on Wednesdays during the month of January for players that had earned 400 points or more. Got my coupon for a free buffet and for my free gift and then ambled over to the roulette table to play my match play coupon. To my surprise, there was a "reserved" sign on one of the roulette tables...at the GC???? Some older gentleman was sitting at a table by himself, playing with intensity..writing down furiously on his notepad after each spin of the wheel and betting heavily. I moved over to the next table, placed my $5 matchplay coupon with a fin..got out Helen(my lucky Alabama State quarter) and naturally black came up...pay me.
There was no line for the buffet( around 16:30) so I was seated immediately, placed my drink order with my smiling server and then ventured to check out the food selections. The lettuce at the salad station was fresh and crisp. They had a Mongolian grill, so I loaded up my plate with various vegetables, told the server behind the counter that I wanted chicken for my meat selection( you had the choice of beef, chicken or shrimp) and soy for my sauce selection. A few minutes later I sat down and enjoyed a very satisfying meal. I couldn't resist sampling their fried chicken(good) and nice slice of key lime pie to finish at very nice meal...all free. Their normal price of $11.99 for their dinner buffet is very reasonable for the quality and variety of the foods offered...no Tums needed....a solid value in my book. I got in line for my free gift, which turned out to be a very nice tea kettle....took some creative packing, but it came home with me. Then it was off to the Rio Wine Cellar.
Jose was working tonight; told him to set me up with a Sauvignon Blanc flight...his choice of wines. As it turns out one of his selections was a New Zealand wine called Cloudy Bay, which is one of my favorites(I have 4 bottles in one of my wine racks at home), the 2nd one was another NZ wine called Craggy Ridge, the 3rd selection was a white Bordeaux which was definitely not to my taste....can't win'em all. Shortly after Jose set me up my flight, a gentleman sat down at the counter next to me, and it became obvious that he was a "regular" at the Wine Cellar. The manager came over immediately and engaged in a spirited conversation about which wine he should have. It ended with the manager and himself going back to their storeroom and emerging with a bottle of some sort of Italian, Tuscan red. This guy is definitely an upper tier player at the Rio..turns out he is 7 star....and is a regular guy. We start talking about this and that in general and then about wines. He is telling me about how he is building a wine cellar in his basement at home and that he has over 450 bottles of wine..which puts to shame my measly 85 bottles that I have racked in my basement. I told him about my trip to Sonoma and Napa Valley a couple of years ago, sampling wines from 30 vineyards in a week's time and he is really fired up about taking some time and doing just that. This is what I like about spending time at the Rio Wine Cellar; you get to sample some great wines, relax and talk to some very interesting people who just appreciate drinking wine. Wow, stayed a lot longer that I originally planned, but that is not a bad thing..thanks Terry for some great conversation..hope to meet up with you another time.
Took the shuttle back to Bally's and then hooked up with the SDX to downtown and the Golden Gate for more BlackJack. The place was really packed (around 2100 hrs). I met the guys from North Carolina who were playing at a BJ table which was full, so I had to sit at 3rd base at an adjacent table...they told me that they would let me know if an opening at their table would pop up. I played at a table with 3 young girls from Houston, Texas and were really having a good time....they welcomed me with open arms and shots of tequila...I like this table. I immediately go on a heater ...hitting every double down opportunity and my new found Texan tablemates are all winning. Change in dealers....one of my Texan girls has the habit of calling out the count on the cards which really hacks off the new dealer and there is some nasty reprimands from the dealer to cease and desist from this practice....immediate buzz kill at the table. Fortunately, the guys from North Carolina come over and want me to come to their table....sweet. I did not do as well at my new table, but had a great time interacting with my tablemates and dealers...cashed out a midnight up over 50 bucks..after my tips to the dealers and dancers, which were fairly generous.
Caught the last SDX to the strip, stopped off at Harrah's, had a couple Heinekens, won $30 and moved down the line to the Flamingo where I could not lose on a slot that kept paying out. I finally decided not to tempt fate and cashed out with an $80 profit and head to my home base at Bill's and play some craps. It was a rather choppy table and I was down early. but a guy on the end had a good roll, consistently hitting 6's and 8's. Put a $5 hardway bet on 8 and the next roll the shooter hits that hard 8. I let my $5 ride(should have pressed) and 3 rolls later he hits the hard 8 again...sweet. I cashed out up about $50 upafter a couple hours of play and had a great time interacting with the dealers and other players...lights out at 0230.
THURSDAY
I'm up at o900 and ready for my last day in paradise. Breakfast is at the Victorian Room....made $20 profit at a slot machine while waiting for my name to be called. Corned beef hash skillet was satisfactory and I was soon ready to hit the tables for my last day in Vegas. I had rented a video from Netflix about a roulette betting system before my trip, which looked interesting and which I decided to put into active practice. I sat down at a roulette table at Bill's, bought in for $100 and played this betting pattern for the next 90 minutes or so, betting $11 per spin of the wheel on the inside numbers. I had a rather nice time with the CW and roulette dealer and ended up losing just $20 ...not bad considering the house advantage for this particular game.
Next, I move over to a LIR table and lost $50, then to a $15 BJ table with several young players who were very friendly and entertaining..had a great time and cashed out up $75 after they decided to leave the table. I then bought in at the craps table at Bill's and had a great time for the next couple of hours. I placed a field bet for the dealers after the first couple of rolls, and one of the dealers said that I was the first player that had made a dealer bet since she had started her shift at the table....sad. After the shooter hit a 12 on the next roll, I had the dealers on my side...rock on. The table was really choppy and I was way down then way up during the next couple of hours...ended up with a dollar profit, but made the dealers some nice money...put money on the line with odds and hit my point twice for the dealers. It is really nice to place your chips down on the felt and the dealers automatically place your bets according to your past betting pattern without having to say a thing.
Time was getting short, so I cashed out and headed over to the Flamingo in hopes of having the bartender make me a Side Car cocktail(a Vegas tradition with me)..no dice...had to settle for a decent Rob Roy. Played some $5 6:5 BJ back at Bill's and got hammered at the table. Time was short so I bumped my last couple of bets and ended up just losing $50...after being down to my last red chip. Checked out, and caught a cab at Bally's to the airport. Told the TSA lemmings that there was no way I was going to submit to the Nude-o-scope..pat me down suckers..they were not too happy with my decision..screw them.
Took the tram to D concourse and grabbed a seat at the bar at the California Pizza restaurant. Bartender asked me if I knew where Hampton, Mn was...sure I go thru there all the time from MSP to my home town of Rochester. Bartender introduces me to the guys sitting next to me..all from Minnesota. Great conversation, good pizza and delicious Blue Moon until it is time to catch my flight home. I sat with a nice couple from St Cloud in an exit row..not familiar with airline travel, so I helped them out with storing their carry-on bags and how to get the food tray out of the armrest. Nice people...reminds me of why I like living in Minnesota...people are down to earth. Flight was without event and we landed smoothly on time.
I called the park and fly shuttle to pick me up after getting my bag and was soon chiseling the ice off of my windshield in their parking lot...welcome home. The 90 minute drive home was smooth and my cat was very glad to see me when I arrived home at 0230. It had snowed while I was gone and my sidewalk was a glaze of ice, which took some effort to remove of the course of the next couple days. I had planned on a return trip in April, but so far the airfares have been outrageous. Gail and I will definitely make a trip in September and Madman Mike is on board for a trip in December...hope I can squeeze a trip in before this summer.
CASUAL OBSERVATIONS
Sun Country runs a very nice and efficient airline
Jack, at the Art of Shaving is one hell of a barber
Hope the guy in the front row at Absinthe recovers from the full "on the lips" kiss from the Gazillionaire
Sigma Derby rocks
Cosmo pizza...meh
Bullet martinis at the El Cortez ......can't wait to have another next trip.
Rio Wine Cellar is Aces
Some people are just have no business wearing leather pants....EVER
RANDOM THOUGHT
This was the very first trip to Vegas..out of close to thirty...where it was painfully obvious about the lack of tipping from the average tourist. Take the Harrah's free shuttle, I was one of the very few on the full shuttles that bothered to tip the driver. I was consistently the only player to tip the dealer or make a wager for them at most of the table games that I played during this trip. I was rather surprised by the gratitude from the CW's for my tips, even when I ordered a bottled water...they were genuinely surprised that I would tip them a dollar for a bottled water. Every tip that I handed out during this trip was received with a smile and a Thank You from the receptor.
EPILOGUE
This trip was just what the pharmacist ordered.....escape from the Midwest winter and the reality of work and everyday life. I came back with a couple of hundred dollars more than I went with... after paying for my tips, food and misc. expenses....more money for my next Vegas war chest. Can't wait until the next Vegas Adventure. Thanks for reading......
I'm up at 0930 and a little bleary eyed from lack of sleep..long hot shower brought me around along with a couple of cups of coffee. I'm curious what the Bellagio folks have done to the conservatory for the Chinese New Year, so I hike over there with camera in tow. They did a great job this year; I've seen several of their past displays for Chinese New Year and this one was done up right- year of the dragon....very nice. Afterward, the pangs of hunger got the best of me and I settled onto a stool at the bar at Margaritaville and ordered up a tall, LOVELY, Landshark draft and an order of their fish tacos for lunch.....delicious. It was a bright sunny day, so I grabbed the rest of my Landshark and parked myself on the balcony overlooking the sidewalk in front of Margaritaville and quietly sipped my adult beverage and watched the sea of humanity pass by on the sidewalk below...enjoying the warmth of the sun on my face...bliss.
I then played some VP at the bar at Harrah's, played some BJ at Bill's, then caught the shuttle over to the Gold Coast to play some more 9/6 JOB at their center bar. It wasn't a great session' the gin and tonics were pretty strong though. After I had gained 400 points I cashed out down $50. It was approaching late afternoon so I decided to avail myself with an ACG coupon for a free buffet with 200 points earned(and you get to keep the points). While I was standing in line at the players club , I realized that I had a $5 matchplay coupon and then saw that they had a promotion for a free gift on Wednesdays during the month of January for players that had earned 400 points or more. Got my coupon for a free buffet and for my free gift and then ambled over to the roulette table to play my match play coupon. To my surprise, there was a "reserved" sign on one of the roulette tables...at the GC???? Some older gentleman was sitting at a table by himself, playing with intensity..writing down furiously on his notepad after each spin of the wheel and betting heavily. I moved over to the next table, placed my $5 matchplay coupon with a fin..got out Helen(my lucky Alabama State quarter) and naturally black came up...pay me.
There was no line for the buffet( around 16:30) so I was seated immediately, placed my drink order with my smiling server and then ventured to check out the food selections. The lettuce at the salad station was fresh and crisp. They had a Mongolian grill, so I loaded up my plate with various vegetables, told the server behind the counter that I wanted chicken for my meat selection( you had the choice of beef, chicken or shrimp) and soy for my sauce selection. A few minutes later I sat down and enjoyed a very satisfying meal. I couldn't resist sampling their fried chicken(good) and nice slice of key lime pie to finish at very nice meal...all free. Their normal price of $11.99 for their dinner buffet is very reasonable for the quality and variety of the foods offered...no Tums needed....a solid value in my book. I got in line for my free gift, which turned out to be a very nice tea kettle....took some creative packing, but it came home with me. Then it was off to the Rio Wine Cellar.
Jose was working tonight; told him to set me up with a Sauvignon Blanc flight...his choice of wines. As it turns out one of his selections was a New Zealand wine called Cloudy Bay, which is one of my favorites(I have 4 bottles in one of my wine racks at home), the 2nd one was another NZ wine called Craggy Ridge, the 3rd selection was a white Bordeaux which was definitely not to my taste....can't win'em all. Shortly after Jose set me up my flight, a gentleman sat down at the counter next to me, and it became obvious that he was a "regular" at the Wine Cellar. The manager came over immediately and engaged in a spirited conversation about which wine he should have. It ended with the manager and himself going back to their storeroom and emerging with a bottle of some sort of Italian, Tuscan red. This guy is definitely an upper tier player at the Rio..turns out he is 7 star....and is a regular guy. We start talking about this and that in general and then about wines. He is telling me about how he is building a wine cellar in his basement at home and that he has over 450 bottles of wine..which puts to shame my measly 85 bottles that I have racked in my basement. I told him about my trip to Sonoma and Napa Valley a couple of years ago, sampling wines from 30 vineyards in a week's time and he is really fired up about taking some time and doing just that. This is what I like about spending time at the Rio Wine Cellar; you get to sample some great wines, relax and talk to some very interesting people who just appreciate drinking wine. Wow, stayed a lot longer that I originally planned, but that is not a bad thing..thanks Terry for some great conversation..hope to meet up with you another time.
Took the shuttle back to Bally's and then hooked up with the SDX to downtown and the Golden Gate for more BlackJack. The place was really packed (around 2100 hrs). I met the guys from North Carolina who were playing at a BJ table which was full, so I had to sit at 3rd base at an adjacent table...they told me that they would let me know if an opening at their table would pop up. I played at a table with 3 young girls from Houston, Texas and were really having a good time....they welcomed me with open arms and shots of tequila...I like this table. I immediately go on a heater ...hitting every double down opportunity and my new found Texan tablemates are all winning. Change in dealers....one of my Texan girls has the habit of calling out the count on the cards which really hacks off the new dealer and there is some nasty reprimands from the dealer to cease and desist from this practice....immediate buzz kill at the table. Fortunately, the guys from North Carolina come over and want me to come to their table....sweet. I did not do as well at my new table, but had a great time interacting with my tablemates and dealers...cashed out a midnight up over 50 bucks..after my tips to the dealers and dancers, which were fairly generous.
Caught the last SDX to the strip, stopped off at Harrah's, had a couple Heinekens, won $30 and moved down the line to the Flamingo where I could not lose on a slot that kept paying out. I finally decided not to tempt fate and cashed out with an $80 profit and head to my home base at Bill's and play some craps. It was a rather choppy table and I was down early. but a guy on the end had a good roll, consistently hitting 6's and 8's. Put a $5 hardway bet on 8 and the next roll the shooter hits that hard 8. I let my $5 ride(should have pressed) and 3 rolls later he hits the hard 8 again...sweet. I cashed out up about $50 upafter a couple hours of play and had a great time interacting with the dealers and other players...lights out at 0230.
THURSDAY
I'm up at o900 and ready for my last day in paradise. Breakfast is at the Victorian Room....made $20 profit at a slot machine while waiting for my name to be called. Corned beef hash skillet was satisfactory and I was soon ready to hit the tables for my last day in Vegas. I had rented a video from Netflix about a roulette betting system before my trip, which looked interesting and which I decided to put into active practice. I sat down at a roulette table at Bill's, bought in for $100 and played this betting pattern for the next 90 minutes or so, betting $11 per spin of the wheel on the inside numbers. I had a rather nice time with the CW and roulette dealer and ended up losing just $20 ...not bad considering the house advantage for this particular game.
Next, I move over to a LIR table and lost $50, then to a $15 BJ table with several young players who were very friendly and entertaining..had a great time and cashed out up $75 after they decided to leave the table. I then bought in at the craps table at Bill's and had a great time for the next couple of hours. I placed a field bet for the dealers after the first couple of rolls, and one of the dealers said that I was the first player that had made a dealer bet since she had started her shift at the table....sad. After the shooter hit a 12 on the next roll, I had the dealers on my side...rock on. The table was really choppy and I was way down then way up during the next couple of hours...ended up with a dollar profit, but made the dealers some nice money...put money on the line with odds and hit my point twice for the dealers. It is really nice to place your chips down on the felt and the dealers automatically place your bets according to your past betting pattern without having to say a thing.
Time was getting short, so I cashed out and headed over to the Flamingo in hopes of having the bartender make me a Side Car cocktail(a Vegas tradition with me)..no dice...had to settle for a decent Rob Roy. Played some $5 6:5 BJ back at Bill's and got hammered at the table. Time was short so I bumped my last couple of bets and ended up just losing $50...after being down to my last red chip. Checked out, and caught a cab at Bally's to the airport. Told the TSA lemmings that there was no way I was going to submit to the Nude-o-scope..pat me down suckers..they were not too happy with my decision..screw them.
Took the tram to D concourse and grabbed a seat at the bar at the California Pizza restaurant. Bartender asked me if I knew where Hampton, Mn was...sure I go thru there all the time from MSP to my home town of Rochester. Bartender introduces me to the guys sitting next to me..all from Minnesota. Great conversation, good pizza and delicious Blue Moon until it is time to catch my flight home. I sat with a nice couple from St Cloud in an exit row..not familiar with airline travel, so I helped them out with storing their carry-on bags and how to get the food tray out of the armrest. Nice people...reminds me of why I like living in Minnesota...people are down to earth. Flight was without event and we landed smoothly on time.
I called the park and fly shuttle to pick me up after getting my bag and was soon chiseling the ice off of my windshield in their parking lot...welcome home. The 90 minute drive home was smooth and my cat was very glad to see me when I arrived home at 0230. It had snowed while I was gone and my sidewalk was a glaze of ice, which took some effort to remove of the course of the next couple days. I had planned on a return trip in April, but so far the airfares have been outrageous. Gail and I will definitely make a trip in September and Madman Mike is on board for a trip in December...hope I can squeeze a trip in before this summer.
CASUAL OBSERVATIONS
Sun Country runs a very nice and efficient airline
Jack, at the Art of Shaving is one hell of a barber
Hope the guy in the front row at Absinthe recovers from the full "on the lips" kiss from the Gazillionaire
Sigma Derby rocks
Cosmo pizza...meh
Bullet martinis at the El Cortez ......can't wait to have another next trip.
Rio Wine Cellar is Aces
Some people are just have no business wearing leather pants....EVER
RANDOM THOUGHT
This was the very first trip to Vegas..out of close to thirty...where it was painfully obvious about the lack of tipping from the average tourist. Take the Harrah's free shuttle, I was one of the very few on the full shuttles that bothered to tip the driver. I was consistently the only player to tip the dealer or make a wager for them at most of the table games that I played during this trip. I was rather surprised by the gratitude from the CW's for my tips, even when I ordered a bottled water...they were genuinely surprised that I would tip them a dollar for a bottled water. Every tip that I handed out during this trip was received with a smile and a Thank You from the receptor.
EPILOGUE
This trip was just what the pharmacist ordered.....escape from the Midwest winter and the reality of work and everyday life. I came back with a couple of hundred dollars more than I went with... after paying for my tips, food and misc. expenses....more money for my next Vegas war chest. Can't wait until the next Vegas Adventure. Thanks for reading......
