Oh, man. Vegas. That city will kick your ass if you let it. And we let it. Mike celebrated his 32nd 27th birthday better than he has ever celebrated a birthday, I'd argue, and we really did have the best time. I'm still digging myself out of the hole that is always created when leaving work and home behind to gallivant somewhere, so instead of a proper re-capping post, you get lists!
Good
1. It's Vegas, so behavior you'd never, ever deem appropriate at home seems perfectly normal under the bright neon lights of Sin City. Bottomless mimosa brunches? Why not! You get a lot more odd glances when you're tipsy at 10:30 a.m. at your desk than at brunch in the Bellagio.
2. Bottomless mimosa brunches deserve a second mention. When I saw the sign that encouraged me to pay five extra dollars for the champagne breakfast, I might have turned to Mike and said, "DO YOU EVEN HAVE TO ASK?"
3. Nine Fine Irishmen in New York, New York. We were in Vegas celebrating my husband, so I wanted his birthday dinner to be a highlight. An Internet friend suggested this restaurant/pub, and the food hardly disappointed. The food, in fact, was some of the best I've ever tasted. Thankfully, we traveled with people who let me eat bites off their plates. If you ever go, try the goat cheese mashed potatoes and then thank me. Preferably in cash gifts.
4. The bartenders at Dick's Last Resort. This isn't a Vegas-only must-eat place, but it was fun and it was in our hotel (The Excalibur), so we stopped in for drinks two nights in a row. All the bartenders were fun and lively and one in particular, Craig, entertained us with his ridiculously talented card tricks. He'd rival any actual magic show on the strip.
5. The Burger Bar in Mandalay Bay. Giada featured this place on her show Giada's Weekend Getaways, and I do just about anything Giada tells me to, you should know, but it also came highly recommended by some locals. My burger -- the Angus patty with fried egg, spinach and chipotle aioli -- was just so-so, but Mike's -- Kobe beef and cheddar cheese -- was unbelievable. As were his zucchini fries. (Not cheap, though, as every single burger topping is an extra cost.)
6. Two beers for $6 in the food court at Caesar's Palace. That doesn't sound like a steal, but, trust me, it is.
7. In Excalibur (and probably many other casinos/hotels on the strip), there was a convenience store within the hotel. It was, as we dubbed it, a non-gas gas station. We bought a bottle of champagne for $10, which was nice since every other glass of champagne we bought/drank was $10 A GLASS. We only wish we had stumbled upon such a find earlier. We would have saved more money than I care to admit.
8. The Bellagio fountains. Not every city's major tourist attractions are worth the hype, sure, but when you get goosebumps standing outside in 90-degree heat, you know something is good.
9. The new Encore hotel. It's the fanciest, prettiest hotel I've stepped in. I'd like to stay there next time, when you foot the bill.
10. Penny poker. I could spend a long time with the same $10 bill if I didn't get all stupid and greedy and play max credit when I'm on a roll. And then, of course, immediately lose the entire $10.
Bad
1. Most of the drinks are outrageously expensive, and they have exactly three drops of alcohol. Stay away from all mixed drinks and cocktails and stick to straight beer or straight liquor. Because of how expensive drinks are, your dinner bill may come one night and kill you dead on the spot. That'll suck. I budgeted for our dinner at Nine Fine, and then that budget doubled plus $40. Even the Irish car bomb I chugged during dinner couldn't dull the pain of the most expensive dinner we've ever eaten. The dinner that cost more than my electricity bill this month. Plus our cable bill.
2. Your feet will hate you at the end of your trip to Vegas. You think, Oh, that hotel is just down the block. I can see the sign! Let's just walk. And then an hour later, you're still not there. But you'll still see the sign! You're also sweating and bleeding and sober.
3. I don't know why the creators of What Not To Wear haven't moved to Vegas and settled there permanently. I saw more fashion nightmares in four days than I ever have in my life. Also? Cleavage. There is much, much cleavage in Vegas. Mike would probably question why this is on the bad list.
4. Everything costs money. The tigers at Mirage -- the ones you could see for free five years ago -- cost money to see now. They cost more money than the entrance fee to any zoo I've ever been to, and the last time I checked, zoos had more animals than just tigers.
5. There is an insane amount of construction on the strip. I heard, before going, that Vegas' economy is hurting. Someone forgot to tell Vegas that.
6. You can smoke in many, many places. I have had a days-long headache and a scratchy throat, and I'm billing Vegas directly if I ever get lung cancer.
7. If you decide to gamble in order to get free drinks, you'll have to gamble for at least a half hour to get service (it seemed). By that time, my free beer cost $20.
8. A vacation in Vegas is about as relaxing as all the other times you stayed up all night drinking.
**
We had a really fantastic time, all in all, and I have pictures and memories to share on flickr sometime later. Until then, I have to go chug gallons of caffeine to get me to the weekend and to the precious few uninterrupted days I get to spend with my boy, the boy who keeps changing at rapid-fire speeds, the one who is closing in on nine months old. The one who makes even an alcohol-soaked weekend in Vegas pale in comparison to spending any amount of time with him.