Luck Be a Lady

Yesterday was our final day in Vegas. Both of us were very tired and not having much luck at the tables the past few days, so we decided to change our game up and go Vegas Classic.

At Vicki's suggestion, we headed over to Caesar's Palace and played in the old casino where Frank Sinatra and his pals spent some time. Generally, when Vicki suggests a gambling venue, I usually win and this time was no different.

TJ and I played some blackjack. I won quickly and left TJ and headed into the high limit salon to play baccarat on the big table. Very few places deal baccarat on the big tables anymore - the game has gone high tech with computer screens and a single dealer. The big table has 4 people working as dealers and bankers and is much more fun.

There was only one guy playing and had a big stack of chips in front of him. He asked if I wanted to see his scorecard when I sat down. I declined saying that I would just bet player. He said that he was winning with his strategy of "follow the table" which basically bet player or banker based on what won the prior hand. I said that I would just do whatever he did and not asked any questions. I sat down with $2,000 and was matching his bets of $100, $200, and sometimes $600 or $800 a hand. We started winning immediately and as long as I was up, I wasn't going to question Don's wisdom.

After 10-15 minutes, TJ found me and I convinced him to join us and play. The winning continued and I got up to $4800. My target was $5000 to quit, but it was not to be. We started losing and by then end of the shoe, I was only up $800, TJ had lost $300 or so. The experience was great and we had a great time hanging out with Don the high roller.

We relaxed at the hotel after our time at Caesar's and decided to head over to the Wynn casino and have dinner at the Sinatra restaurant. This very classy restaurant is a tribute to Frank - they have his music playing in the background and portraits and pictures on the wall. They serve classic Italian fare and our dinner was excellent. TJ and I discussed how cool it would be to experience Vegas in the old days of the Rat Pack.

To top off our classic retro day, I suggested that we head over to Bellagio for some gelato and then we could watch the Bellagio fountains. As we walked out with our ice cream, the fountains came alive to Frank Sinatra's "Luck Be a Lady". It was almost as if Frank was following us from dinner. It was a great ending to a classic day in Vegas and a great ending to our trip this year.

Comedy for Dessert

On Saturday night TJ wanted to go back to CraftSteak and get the Wagyu skirt steak and grits. TJ declared it number 1 - ever. That is good, but it also raises the bar for other more pedestrian dishes like filet mignon and lobster.

After dinner, we went to a Comedy Club and saw Gilbert Godfried. We were in the second row in the center. The warm-up act was very funny - Gilbert on the other hand was more creepy than anything. A couple sitting right in front of Gilbert, got up and walked out 10 minutes into the act and Gilbert lost it and started to talk to the guy as he tried to leave. The guy sat down for a few minutes, but the whole act devolved to Gilbert trying to keep the guy from leaving - his date was long gone. Eventually, Gilbert ended up chasing the guy to the exit and then ended the show abruptly. I didn't care too much because he was not that funny this night and it was interesting to see him creep out.

I was able to snap a picture of Gilbert and TJ together - he is slightly taller than Heather.

After the comedy club, we headed over to the Rio Casino to check out the Voodoo Lounge on the roof of the hotel. The Rio is off the strip so the view of the Las Vegas Strip is great. Check out pictures and video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kF0WkjUG4bk&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Helicopter to Grand Canyon

On Saturday morning we took the helicopter tour to the floor of the Grand Canyon.  Very cool.

From the local airport, it is about a 40 minute ride to west part of Grand Canyon.  We flew over Hoover Dam and then went over Indian reservation lands and into the canyon landing on a bluff just above the river.

It was my second time in a helicopter and TJ's first.

The scope and scale of the canyon is hard to imagine.  Since there are no reference points, estimating size and distance is very hard.  Check out the video links and pictures.

Grand Canyon - Video 1

 http://youtu.be/pNHZUpH9I0U

Grand Canyon - Video 2

http://youtu.be/ifUiT0FusJM

David Copperfield

Last night we went to see David Copperfield at the MGM Casino.

He is a magician and he did stuff that I can only assume is magic. Perhaps there are explanations - but more than likely he is in touch with the dark arts.

Before the show we went to CraftSteak. TJ got filet with bernaise and mashed potatoes. He did so assuming that that is the best there is. It is, in fact very good, but what I ordered may in fact be the best. Wagyu skirt steak with gratin grits and bacon. Wagyu is like American Kobe beef. Trust me - there is no filet on planet earth that is in the same league. When TJ tried some his filet all of a sudden looked like Salisbury Steak.

Anyway, everywhere we go they check TJ's ID they are awestruck that he is actually 21. When they found out that it was close to his birthday they threw him a small birthday cake.

Europe in Vegas

Yesterday, in between gambling, we continued our European Tour of Vegas.

Here is TJ in front of the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower.

We made our way down to Casino Royale, which in contrast to our luxurious appointments at the Aria, is the skeeziest joint on the strip ($1 beers and $2 foot longs).

We decided to stop for authentic Mexican food at Chipotle Mexican Grill. TJ wasn't feeling 100% from the prior night because of too many martinis and the fact that his old man (me), beat him in a beer chug at the Todd English Pub.

You had 7 seconds - timer on the bar - to lift a pint of ale and have the empty glass back on the bar. Finish in 7 seconds and the beer is free, otherwise $10. I made it with a second to spare - TJ was 3 oz. short. There are still things I am good at.

Venice in the Desert

While nothing beats the real thing with respect to travel, Vegas does offer a legitimate imitation to being there.

Having just returned from Venice with Babydoll, I can attest that through the lens of a camera, Vegas can offer similar ambience. The main difference is the water in the canals - pool water vs. semi-sewer water.

TJ took some time in St. Mark's Square to contemplate and cavort with some local performers.

We ended our trip with a 45-minute session on Oxygen Bongs. When the girls started the massage while we were hooked up to both the bong and electrode muscle stimulant devices - it was hard to remember exactly where we were at.

It is close to 3:30pm and we have to go to the Todd English Pub for happy hour before we get ready for evening debauchery.

Tour of Vegas

On our first day, we started out with the Gambler's Champion Breakfast - steak, eggs, hashbrowns, toast, coffee, and juice - most excellent.

After breakfast we toured around 5 casinos - playing here and there. But
gambling fever hasn't really hit and it feels like we are just getting warmed up.

TJ was able to get his picture with Elvis, the statue of David, Tony Rumjog in front of Caesar's Palace, the Trevi Fountain, and some NFL Players.

I think I see Venice in the distance......

Hello Vegas

TJ and I made it to Vegas late last night. We checked in just after midnight local time which was 3AM in New York. We are staying at the Aria Casino Resort which is where I stayed for the Super Bowl this year.

The rooms here are very nicely appointed. When we walked in the draperies automatically open to reveal floor to ceiling windows and nighttime view of the Las Vegas strip.

Notwithstanding that we were very tired, we walked around and I showed TJ the different areas of the hotel and casino. We got TJ a casino players card but decided to wait to gamble until after we got some rest. By the time we hit the hay, it was after 2AM, or 5AM on our body clocks.

Day 2: Wildwood

After such a long day yesterday, I was hoping for a bit more relaxed pace today.

We slept in and ventured out for breakfast around 10am. We went to the rooftop cafe overlooking the ocean at the Waikiki Motel. Back in the 70's, we used to go there when we stayed across the street at the Nautilus Motel with octopus painted on the bottom of the pool.

Almost 40 years later, the Nautilus is gone, but the Waikiki Coffee Shop on the roof is about exactly as I remember. To honor this achievement of staying the same, I ordered scrambled eggs and scrapple - just like Gunny used to get. I tried to get Heather to try it, but after I told her what scrapple was - no luck.

After breakfast, we looked into parasailing, but Heather was a bit more timid today on thrill rides. She wanted to go back to the boardwalk and go on rides and play games in the arcades, so that is what we did.

After a few hours of rides, we headed to the arcade for skeeball and other games. We won a bunch of tickets that you can redeem for junk like vampire fangs, a cheap harmonica, and oversized playing cards.

Heather did win a chance to go on the money booth to grab some quick cash. Check out the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LldGtjk4n8I&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Tonight we have something different planned - NOT. More boardwalk time and rides. I have had about as much as I can stand for a while. I have noticed in my 36 hours here that the barkers on the boardwalk who are hawking goods are, in most all cases, recordings on a loop. Sit in one place long enough and you here it repeat every 4-5 minutes. I would imagine the workers on the boards all take a heavy doses of lithium to keep from going mad.

Tony Rumjog's Princess

There was very little rest at the motel before Heather was clamoring to get back to the boardwalk and go on rides.

I challenged her to ride the Sling Shot and surprisingly she agreed.  The Sling Shot is a spring loaded cage for two people.  The cage is attached to cables on springs and when the springs are fully loaded, the cage is released and you spring, very fast, to 265 feet in the air.

Check out the video:

Sling Shot Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hq40ATW2X5Q&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Before we went on the ride, Heather warmed up on the trampoline:

Trampoline Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLk6aUNkulA&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Heather surprised me going on the Sling Shot, not just once, but twice.  It was a very intense ride and she was very excited that she could do it when there were very few kids doing it.

The last thing we did was go into the Haunted House (actually Haunted Ship).  There are actors in costumes who jump out and scare you as you make your way through the ship.  This is where Heather got very scared - eventually yelling at everyone to stop scaring her.

It was a very long day, going on 16 hours, but not so long that we couldn't stop for some fudge.

By the time we made it back to the room it was about 12:30am and Tony's Princess took about 30 seconds to zonk out.

Tattoos and Rides

Heather wasted no time once we hit the boardwalk. First a tattoo and then about 30 rides.

As soon as she gets off a ride, she jumps back on to ride again. I remember when I was a kid and riding over and over again was a blast.

She is barely tolerating my request to go on ferris wheel and merry-go-round. Tonight we will come back and walk the boards at night. There are fireworks at 10pm on the beach.

Hello Wildwood

We arrived at around 12pm at motel and they were able to let us check-in early. We are about 2 blocks from the beach and out hotel has a nice little swimming pool for Heather.

The motel is clean and retro, about all you could ask for.

While we were waiting for the mid to clear out of the room, we walked down to the boardwalk to check out the neighborhood.

After we checked-in, first things first. Swimming and Pop-Tarts.

We are now off to the boardwalk for more snacks and rides.