Second Annual Thanksgiving in Vegas

First trip report!

Mr. & Mrs. K. and Dad and Stepmom ("Red") returned to Vegas for Thanksgiving for the second year in a row. We are in our late 30s, Dad and Red are 72 and 65 and are still intrigued with what the youngsters do, as you will see.

As we did last year, we stayed at the Monte Carlo and they stayed at Aria. We arrived separately from different cities on Thanksgiving Day.

Thursday, 11/27

First up when we arrived was the ever-important taxi test. We said, "surface streets" and the driver scoffed at us. "Of course," he said disdainfully. Well soorrrrry mister! We've been driven in circles before (and would be again this trip later.). Checking in was a long wait, about 20 minutes. Mr. K. got us some tall cans of Miller Lite to keep us company. No $20 trick, but I requested a high room and got it. But the desk clerk asked if two queen beds were ok and we said no. When we got to our room, it was two queen beds. Ugh, have to meet Dad and Red at the Aria buffet in an hour. Forget it, we'll keep it.

We met up at the buffet and even with the Mlife line pass it's almost a two hour wait. We haven't eaten all day so we decided to go to the Aria Cafe instead. It was not too busy in there but it looked like several large groups had just left. The food was ok but our waitress was crabby. Look, I know it's Thanksgiving but if you were even a slight bit nicer you'd get a huge sympathy tip.

Both groups were tired so they went to hang out in their room and read and we walked around Aria and Monte Carlo, gambling a little here and there. Lost a bit, won a bit. Went to bed around 1.

11/28

I always wake up several hours before Mr. K. In Vegas this means uninterrupted slot time! I creep out of bed and throw on some sweats, trying not to wake him. I go downstairs and lose $100 quickly. Now I want him to wake up so I stop losing! I play a little VP to slow down the losses. Finally he texts me that he's up and I bring him a Starbucks coffee to distract him from my losses.

We make plans to meet up in the early evening with Dad and Red and decide to get our free drinks (that promotion where you take a picture of a sign - it's been on our phones for months) at NYNY. Neither one of us cares for the vibe there but they also have some good food options and I'm hungry. We stop at the first bar we see and ask for our free drinks. "Well and draft only," the bartender snips. We get our draft beers and roll our eyes. NYNY does it again. I'm still hungry (and now buzzed) so we take our beers to Chin Chin and get some sushi.

After some decent but not great sushi we waste a few bucks on slots. Mr. K. goes to the restroom and I check my phone. Whoa, multiple calls and even a text from Red. She has a flip phone so a text is not easy for her and she usually doesn't text! All it says is "call me" so we go through a round of each of us dropping the call (damn coverage) before I understand what she's saying. They bought all four of us tickets to see Justin Timberlake! In three hours! Mr. K. returns and I babble some gibberish about Timberlake and we book it back to our room to take a nap and get ready! We meet them at Aria and scarf some pizza at 50/50 on the way.

We had some hiccups on the way to MGM. We took a taxi thinking we could get dropped off close to the arena but they had closed the street leading to the entrance. The taxi driver was pissed and the fare was only $5. Dad tipped him well and we walked the rest of the way. Once there, our tickets were somehow not scanning. Thank goodness the Aria concierge had printed them because we quickly gained entry anyway.

More later!

 

11/28 continued

The show was preceded by a DJ playing some of the best and most current hip hop music. We loved it! But the music was definitely not "clean" and we cringed a little bit thinking of Dad and Red. They didn't seem to mind the crude language but I could tell the volume of the music was getting to them a little. The show started over an hour late, and they were already getting tired. Justin did not disappoint. I highly recommend seeing him live if you ever get the chance. Dad and Red loved it too but left a few minutes before the end. We stayed until the end and joined the herd of people traipsing through MGM. We decided to see if we could get more free drinks with our sign photos at NYNY. We plopped down next to the DJ (more great hip hop) in the casino bar and proceeded to drink the night away enjoying the music and people-watching. We bought three rounds of drinks and got a few comped ones with some video poker along with our sign freebie. There was a couple in their 40s wildly dancing and trying to get us to dance with them. Later we overheard them trying to find someone to sell them drugs. Guess they wanted to dance all night! They didn't seem to find what they were looking for and left. We realized it was after 2am and went back to Monte Carlo for some hangover-preventing fries and egg McMuffins.

To be continued...

 

Good start!

 

11/29

The next day was like all my mornings in Vegas. Sneak out with a red bull I had hopefully put on ice the night before which sadly this day I had not. The ice machine on our floor was broken the entire time we were there and I was too lazy to go to another floor. I made my way down to the casino and promptly lost $100 in a penny slot. I decided to play my $25 free play from MyVegas on a "Wild Thing" old-ass dollar slot. Max bet $2. While I was trying to remember my PIN number the waitress came around and I ordered a red bull on ice. I was so distracted and excited for a cold red bull I accidentally put $40 in the machine instead of the $20 I had planned. Oh well, fuck it. I played through until my $65 became $40 and I hit max bet one more time and I got three symbols all the same. Huh, that looks good. I look down at the paytable and realize I just hit the max payout. $1600. My first hand pay. My red bull arrives and I tip the $1 I've been clutching and the CW says "wow! Someone will be over soon!" I felt sort of bad I didn't tip her more but I think I was in shock. I waited, waited, waited. The machine just played a tinny verse of "Wild Thing" over and over, A woman comes over and sits down next to me. I'm thinking she wants to jump me in the bathroom for my cash. She's a soccer mom wearing a wedding ring. I think the song was getting to me. Meanwhile I've downed the red bull and opened my warm one and had that too. While I was waiting, I texted Red and Dad and Mr. K. and spoke to each. Dinner's on me! Dad starts going on about ordering lobster and caviar. Finally the powers that be arrive, "verify" the win and give me my cash and tax forms. I get chided for not having my SS card with me, which irks me but I still tip $20. I beeline back to my room in case the soccer mom is waiting with a knife somewhere and throw a handful of money all over just because I can.

 

We make plans with Dad and Red to meet up for dinner at Yusho and head out to The Linq shopping area. Here's where that bad taxi happens. The driver takes us on a frontage road behind Caesars and to a side street by the Forum Shops, where we encounter a huge traffic jam. Our driver does not seem shocked. Did he bring us this way on purpose? I can see The Strip and the traffic is heavy but moving. We're stuck. We start asking the driver why there is so much traffic and he says its the backup from people trying to get into Caesars' taxi line and realizing it's the wrong lane and holding everyone up trying to get over to the left. "You get out here! You walk, it's close," he says. We pay and hop out, only to find the sidewalk is closed! We look back at our driver and he's disappeared into the taxi lane. Guess he wanted to pick someone up at Caesars.

We walk through the traffic to the corner and cross to The Linq. I cannot for the life of me remember what used to be here. I'm starving so we stop at Chayo for some passable but not very good Mexican food and margaritas, shop at KITSON, check out 12 AM Run and buy some candy for Dad at the Ghirardelli store. Dad and Red call us and tell us they looked at the menu at Yusho and don't think they want to eat there so we plan to go to Todd English P.U.B. instead. We walk through O'Shea's and The Linq casino where I win another $50. We head out back to the taxi stand and there is a line of about five groups and no taxis. So we wait and wait. Each set of headlights coming around the bend causes us all to crane our necks wondering is it a taxi? No, a limo. No, a car going to the valet. Another limo. Finally a taxi arrives and we all move up one space and keep waiting. We waited almost 30 minutes. On the way back the taxi driver got on his radio and yelled at the dispatcher to send taxis to The Quad. She radios out that taxis are needed at "The Linq, aka The Quad."

Will write more tonight.

 

Good report and congrats on the handpay!

 

Awesome so far....

 

So as promised we took Dad and Red out for dinner at Todd English P.U.B. I had a salad, Mr. K a lobster roll, Dad had salmon and Red had a portobello burger. Everything was great, though Mr. K said the lobster roll was more like lobster toast. When I went to the restroom I was disoriented by the unisex washing area and attendant stand with hairspray, perfume, and the usual assortment of goodies you'd find in a club bathroom. When I exited the toilet area all of a sudden an attendant popped up holding a soap dispenser! Um, I can't tip you because I left my purse with my husband and parents. I'm just eating dinner, I have no ones stuffed in my bra for cocktail tips. Not that I would ever do that. I awkwardly accepted the soap, washed my hands and went back to the table. We lingered over beers (us) and iced tea (them) before planning to meet up at the Aria buffet for dinner the next night. I have no idea what they do during the day but I think it involves breakfast which is not our thing.

More later or tomorrow. It's the holiday season and these cards aren't going to address themselves.

 

well written and overall great TR - thank you !!

 

Congrats on the handpay!

 

I think I'm going to have to post a Part 2 next week or maybe after the holidays. But here is what is to come: Crystals, The Pub, Cosmopolitan, Planet Hollywood, Aria buffet, Aria and Monte Carlo casinos, 800 degrees. Sadly, no more hand pays.