My friend, Patrick, and I went to Las Vegas for five days to just get a break. The last time I was in Las Vegas was 18 years ago when I was 18. So much has changed! I can't believe how they keep building and building more and more into such a small area. I also forgot that people still smoked cigarettes. It was a pretty strong smell both inside and outside of the casino hotels. Also, walking along the strip we would frequently smell weed.
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| We stayed at Harrah's because it was centrally located on the strip |
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| My hotel room--on the 52nd floor |
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| The view from my hotel room |
Day 1 - We flew Allegiant Airlines because they offer cheaper direct flights to places like Las Vegas from smaller airports. It's like Ryan Air in that it charges for everything. To print a boarding pass is $5, for example. It was nice having a direct flight for once. At least you know that your luggage won't get lost.
We arrived to Las Vegas mid-afternoon and were starving by the time we checked into our hotel. We tried out Bobby's Burgers which is from chef Bobby Flay. I've seen so many of his cooking shows! Much to my disappointment, I could have had a better tasting burger at Five Guys. Oh well, you don't know until you try it.
We didn't do a whole lot the first day but walk around a little bit and get oriented.
Day 2 - Our big agenda for day 2 was to walk down to Downtown Container Park, which was about 4 miles from our hotel, then we had tickets to a magic show in the evening. We even had time after the show to do more exploring. Patrick treated me to my first cannoli which we tried from Cake Boss Buddy's food truck place. Busy walking day!
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| Two miles into our walk, we stopped at the STRAT hotel for a much needed break |
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| So very Las Vegas lol |
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| Container Park, which is a cute shopping area with stores that are containers |
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| Boba tea! I picked pineapple, coconut, and dragonfruit--yum! |
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| Downtown Vegas, waiting for our Lyft back. There was no way we could walk back! |
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| This is how close we were to the stage for the magic show |
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| We went to see Mat Franco who does a lot of card magic. It was EXCELLENT. |
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| Exploring after the show. Getting ready to ride the High Roller! |
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| The High Roller Observation Wheel is like the London Eye where you get inside a pod ferris wheel to see amazing views of the city. |
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| It's continuously moving so you have to just step on and off as it comes around while it's still going. It does move slowly. Takes 30 minutes to make a complete loop. |
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| Me inside the pod |
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| Scenic city views from the pod |
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| This is some sort of stadium that they're building. It looks like the Death Star! |
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| More views as we go around |
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It's hard for me to process the amount of people enclosed in such a tiny area
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Day 3 - Patrick and I spent the day with Robbie and Kash. They picked us up at our hotel and brought us back to their place and made us a delicious breakfast of pancakes with fresh blueberry topping, bacon, and sausage. Robbie is stationed at Creech which is close to Vegas. From their place we went to Area 15 which can best be described as an interactive art warehouse. It has "experiences" that you can buy tickets to try, or you can just walk around and look at stuff. They had several stores too with all sorts of interesting items. After walking around and trying a few things, Kash and I chatted at the bar with some drinks and Robbie and Patrick played vintage video games in the arcade. From Area 15 there was a small break where they picked up Sarah from school and we all headed out to eat. I finally got to try dim sum for the first time! Thankfully Kash was experienced with dim sum and ordering so I didn't feel too awkward. It was very good! After dinner they dropped us off at the STRAT because we had tickets to a Vegas-style burlesque type show. While in Vegas, right? It had raunchy slapstick comedy, synchronized dance routines, and lots of really impressive acrobatics. It included both male and female performers in sexy costumes and it would rotate through different themed performances. It was a great day and I'm so appreciative to Robbie and Kash for being amazing. I'm a blessed to be able to still call them family.
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| I tried my luck at curling my hair. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures the rest of the day of anyone. Ugh! |
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| Taken from Robbie's car while driving to Area 15. Always so much to see to include mountains! |
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| Even outside of Area 15 there was art |
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| Upon entering the building. The skull has lights projected onto it that change. |
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| One of the experiences was Mega Mart. We didn't try it, but it looked interesting. I don't think I really understand it... |
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| Taken from the upstairs level of the warehouse. To the left is a shopping area with clothes, jewelry, etc. |
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| A seating area outside Mega Mart |
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| A bar area |
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| There were two of these bird VR stations where you lay face down and fly like a bird I guess lol |
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| The hallway leading to the arcade |
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| Brainstorm is an experience where you answer questions and get a personality printout. Kash tried it. |
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| The four of us tried this light show experience. You put on 3D glasses and you could walk around this large room with moving lights that were timed with music and sounds. It was a bit overwhelming, but a neat experience. |
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| Dim Sum restaurant! I tried several of the steamed and baked options. Definitely would go back! |
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At the burlesque show. It's hard to tell but there's a whole seating area between us and the main stage, but there's also a mini stage directly in front of our table. Male and female performers would dance directly in front of us at different times throughout the show.
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