My Wedding/Honeymoon Trip Report – day by day and lots of pics!

INTRO

It’s taken me a while to find the time to put this trip report together since it was a LONG trip and we’re busy getting ready for a post-wedding move across the country, but I’m glad to finally be sharing with everyone. I will warn you of two things in advance:

1) This is going to be a LONG report since the trip was 12 days and we took advantage of every minute of it. But hopefully you all enjoy it!

2) I’ll do my best to keep the day-by-day flow going, but some days will have more stories and details than others. The honeymoon portion, in particular, would be quite long if I told every single activity we did, so I’ll focus on the highlights each day.


SUMMARY AND BASIC SCHEDULE

Bethany and I planned this trip as a destination wedding and honeymoon all-in-one with close family and friends, about 15 total. This was my sixth trip to Las Vegas and her second, as we went together about a year before the wedding and stayed at Mirage that trip.

The overall schedule this time around was a flight out on Thursday August 30th when most family and friends were arriving, the ceremony Saturday September 1st, and then Sunday the 2nd through Monday the 10th alone on our honeymoon portion of the trip (most guests left Sunday the 2nd).


FLIGHT AND RENTAL CAR

Bethany and I flew out on a direct flight from Hartford at 8:30am Thursday and arrived in Vegas about 20 minutes early at 10:20am or so, which seems to be par for the course with my flights out (the early arrival). This was my first direct flight, though, and it was great not having to change planes and kill valuable Vegas time, even though we had plenty of it ahead of us. As with many things on this trip, we figured this was a once-in-a-lifetime kind of trip for our wedding, so why not splurge in a few areas where I usually like to save cash?

We grabbed our luggage and had a quick ride to the main rental car building, then another quick ride to Fox rental car where we waited in a long line and eventually drove off with a Chrysler 200, which was possibly even slower than our Mitsubishi Gallant from the previous trip. The price was right and the car was clean and got us around, though, so I would definitely use Fox again. The extra ride from the main rental car building took all of 10 minutes, so no big deal.

Here’s a pic of the car so you can picture us cruising around in Vegas:




MARRIAGE LICENSE AND LUNCH

So as not to waste any time and also comply with the schedules of our arriving guests, the first thing on the list was the not so glamorous trip to the Marriage License Bureau downtown. We took the highway and got there in no time, so we snapped a necessary pic of the bride to send to family and friends.



There was almost no one inside and we literally walked right up to the counter, filled out our documents, and were out in no more than 5 minutes total. After dealing with the DMV and other government offices up here in the Northeast, this was probably the most shocking experience I’ve had in a long time.

Quite hungry at this point, we were pointed in the direction of the Courthouse Bar and Grill, one block down. I got a BLT with fries and Bethany got…well, I don’t remember exactly, but something similar. Perhaps we were both just starving, but I DO remember the food was quite tasty. I would go here again if I was in the area and wanted a quick lunch.


CHECK-IN

After a short lunch plagued by texts from friends and family who received the previous picture reminding us that it’s not too late to back out, we stopped at Walgreens for some supplies and then headed to Caesars to find out what a substantial sum of money got us for 11 nights. As I said, this was a once in a lifetime wedding and honeymoon trip - plus I’ve always wanted to stay at Caesars with no good reason to spend that kind of money – so we took advantage and opted for a King room in the new Octavius Tower.

Upon parking, I was fairly disappointed to find out that the walk from the self-park garage to check-in, especially with two bags each in tow, was pretty much the length of the property. It didn’t help that I unknowingly parked about as far from the elevators as possible, but some better signage would have helped cut the walk in half for a person who’d never driven to Caesars before, and even then it was a long walk with the luggage. I’m physically fit and don’t usually complain, but this was pretty inconvenient for anyone with a car who intended to use it, as we did.

That out of the way, check-in was quick as we walked right up to the counter, probably around 2:00pm. Although we were informed that no upgrade was available since we were already staying in their nicest tower, we were given a room on a higher floor with a great view of the pool and mountains.

On a random funny note, we overheard - via chatter between a supervisor roaming back and forth and the person helping us - that there was a party going on in the back for another employee. When they mentioned to us that they had some sort of delicious fudge cake all the employees were enjoying, I responded that this was my favorite kind and I was jealous. To my surprise, the supervisor came out a minute later with a piece for Bethany and I to enjoy during check-in. Sometimes it’s the little things that make your day (and it was well-timed on his part since we just carried four pieces of luggage a mile across their property haha).


THE ROOM

The best way for me to sum up the room is to say that it was everything we needed and wanted in a hotel room for our honeymoon. It was very clean, very spacious, and high quality all around compared to most hotel rooms I’ve ever been in. The décor was pleasant and up-scale. The view was great. The bed and pillows were comfortable and plentiful. The bathroom was classy with a private room for the toilet, a nice rain shower with glass door, and separate Jacuzzi hot tub (which was number one on Bethany’s list when we booked the room and something we took full advantage of). Probably the only downside I can come up with is that the TV was EXTREMELY slow to respond to the remote, almost to the point of not wanting to use it. One random nice feature was a light switch next to both sides of the bed that controlled the foyer light near the bathroom, which made it easy to move without falling over something or disturbing the other person in the middle of the night.

Here are some pics for your viewing pleasure:

Main room area –



Hallway / foyer –



Walking into the bathroom –



Jacuzzi hot tub with sweet wall mirror –



Separate toilet room complete with phone –



View of the pools –



View of the other tower across the pools –



I also have a nice pic showing the view of the moutains/sky on our wedding morning, but I can’t seem to locate it at the moment.


THE REST OF THURSDAY – SUNCOAST HOTEL & CASINO

After relaxing for a bit in the room and letting it soak in that we were on our wedding/honeymoon trip and had 12 days in Vegas, we headed down to check out the pools, grab some food, and play a little. Nothing of note in any of these areas that evening, but afterwards we took a ride out to The Suncoast in Northwest Las Vegas where my great aunt and uncle, grandparents, and parents were staying. Their rooms were nice, clean, and spacious for the price they paid and also offered a great view. The hotel itself had an old-fashioned feel and the ambience of the casino seemed on par with most mid-level off-strip joints.

I am ashamed to admit that we ate at TGIFriday’s that night at Suncoast. By the time we got to dinner, some of the better restaurants were closed and I guess our older acquaintances (my aunt and uncle, in particular) weren’t feeling particularly adventurous. Not exactly my first choice for our arrival night dinner, but they did fly across the country to be with us, so we just went with it. Afterwards, it was back to Caesars and off to bed.


FRIDAY – HASH HOUSE A GO GO, FAMILY, TREVI

This was a planned day for spending with friends and family showing them around Las Vegas. My parents, in particular, had never been before and I have to say it was shocking seeing them in this city. Both don’t particularly care for casinos and gambling, big shows, and pretty much everything the entertainment side of Vegas has to offer. I kind of took advantage of this with the wedding to give them a reason to actually visit (they drove from Florida making a long trip out of the whole thing).

For a late breakfast, we met my parents, grandparents, and aunt and uncle at Hash House A Go Go on West Sahara. Bethany and I had been before and loved it. No one else was prepared for the sheer quantity of food delivered, but everyone enjoyed their meal. It’s hard not to at this place. My dad, bringing his fancy new camera he purchased for the trip and wedding, snapped this humorous picture of me with some sort of Café Mocha type drink:



Bethany also snapped this picture of me about to devour my country sage fried eggs benedict dish. I’m not sure exactly what it was called, but that sums it up. And yes, it’s as delicious as it looks:



The rest of the day was spent showing my parents Caesars and a few places north of that on the Strip before they headed back to do the scenic route of Red Rock Canyon with other family before the wedding.

One of the funny highlights of the trip occurred with my parents in Venetian, though. Bethany and I were showing them around and on our way back to the entrance to leave when I called my mom over to a random $0.25 slot machine. Keeping in mind that she is a religious conservative type and very opposed to gambling, I threw two singles into the machine, bet two credits, and laughingly convinced her to pull the lever. No win. Two more credits and had her pull again. Ding ding ding! She won me $0.75 over my original $2.00 I had put in the machine. I promptly cashed out, informing her she had officially beat Vegas. It was the only gambling she’s ever done and will likely ever do, so she’ll remain a lifetime winner in the casino.

Here is a pic I snapped of them in the Forum Shops, which I then sent to my three brothers as proof that my parents had, in fact, set foot in Vegas:



That night, we met up with our younger friends and family who were arriving for dinner at Trevi in Forum Shops. I had eaten here once before with another friend and really enjoyed it, plus Italian seemed safe for everyone, so we went with it. The service was fine and the food was very good. We stayed relatively light on the drinking since we all had to be up early for the wedding, but a great time was had by all.

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SATURDAY part 1 - THE WEDDING CEREMONY AT RED ROCK CANYON

We awoke to beautiful, warm weather on Saturday September 1st, THE BIG DAY! The sky was blue, the sun was shining, and my alarm on my phone popped up a reminder telling me that I was to be married this day. I got a kick out of it but Bethany found it less humorous, commenting that it wasn’t a good sign that I needed a reminder set for our wedding (her response, of course, was exactly the reason I set it in the first place – a good start to married life as far as I’m concerned ).

My dad drove out to Caesars to exchange my mom for me. I went back to Suncoast to get ready with my dad and grandfather while my mom stayed at Caesars to help Bethany get ready. I got one final phone call from my uncle back home who couldn’t make it out. He is a seasoned Vegas veteran who I’ve traveled there with twice before and he called to jokingly tell me that this was my last chance to change my mind and he’d come pick me up if necessary. A few standard form pictures later and we were on our way to the ceremony.

We chose Red Rock Canyon for the ceremony because of the fact that it’s absolutely stunning and one of our favorite places in Vegas. We went through Weddings Las Vegas and aside from a few minor communication issues pre-trip, they did a fantastic job. The minister, photographer, and limo driver were all great, the location was breathtaking (the Overlook) - especially for those guests who hadn’t been to Las Vegas before - and the weather was near perfect. High 90’s and, of course, dry with a slight breeze that kept us all cool. Everyone was smart enough to dress appropriately, which helped.

The ceremony went beautifully with my good friend and fellow band mate Dom singing and playing acoustic guitar for us while Bethany walked from the limo to the overlook, then afterwards while we took pictures. Literally a thousand or so pictures were taken between my dad and the pro photographer, but here are a few that really show how great the location and overall experience were. She was about as stunning as it gets:









And here’s a great landscape picture a friend took with his phone while we were doing the “wedding band” shots with the photographer:




SATURDAY part 2 – THE WEDDING RECEPTION AT MON AMI GABI

After the ceremony, Bethany and I rode with five of our friends in the limo back to the Strip via the more scenic Blue Diamond route. We arrived at Paris a little earlier than expected for the reception, but we only had a brief wait while they finished preparing for us.

We had a private room perfectly sized for the 15-16 of us, which was located just to the left before you exited out onto the patio. The walls of two sides of the room were floor to ceiling windows that gave us a view of the Strip. You could catch the fountains going off when the curtains were open. Everything about this restaurant went perfectly. Our main server was top notch and friendly. The other wait staff were all prompt and remained relatively invisible and quiet. The food and drinks came out in a timely manner and every person enjoyed their meal.

We ate appetizers, then our main course, then dessert, then a small cake that was included with our wedding package (and actually pretty tasty). The desserts were all phenomenal and I exercised my right as the groom who was paying for everything to taste everyone’s dessert. Here is a picture of me walking around the entire table sampling all of them, to everyone’s amusement:



Aside from the food, we didn’t have a DJ or anything, so Dom played us a song to have our first dance to, and I then played a song at the request of everyone there. Here is Bethany twirling me during our first dance, again to everyone’s amusement:



After the reception, most guests went back to their hotels since everyone was exhausted, but Bethany and I walked around with my dad and her cousin getting pictures in front of Paris, the Bellagio Fountains, and in the Bellagio. Here is the gratuitous Vegas Elvis shot in front of the Bellagio Fountains. There is no more iconic wedding picture for Vegas, as far as I’m concerned:



And another of us in front of Bellagio that almost looks super-imposed:




SATURDAY part 3 – THE AFTERPARTY, GAMBLING, AND DRINKING

After all the photos, we went back to the room late afternoon/evening to “rest” for a bit. No, we really DID do some resting since we were exhausted from the day’s activities. As this picture demonstrates, Bethany had done enough smiling for photos that she was ready to end it via bridal vale asphyxiation:



Somewhat rested, we moved forward with our plans to meet up with the younger guests in our party and go celebrate Las Vegas style! Funny story time (well, funny in hind-sight as I tell it…).

We all decided to meet at the Chandelier Bar in Cosmopolitan to start the drinking before moving on to other destinations. Bethany and I had changed into more comfortable but still “bride and groom” appropriate clothes, I in dark jeans and a white button up shit, her in an all bright white, more comfortable short dress she purchased just for this occasion, along with her bridal vale.

JUST as we were walking up to the bar to and tapping the shoulders of our friends who were already there, one random drunk guy in a suit bumped into another random guy in a suit who just happened to be holding a full glass of a deep red cranberry drink. The drink proceeded to fly over the guy’s shoulder and directly onto Bethany, splattering red all over her white dress.

At the time, it was absolutely dreadful and no one really knew how to respond. The guy who was at fault, of course, was gone in the blink of an eye when he realized what he had done. Luckily a female friend of ours jumped into action with club soda and, after 20 minutes or so, got enough of it out so that it wasn’t really noticeable. Looking back on the situation, though, I always chuckle a little then get smacked on the back of the head by Bethany when I recount the story to others. It really couldn’t have happened any more “perfectly” on this day of all days (not in a good way, obviously, but you know what I mean…I hope). You have to have a sense of humor about situations like this in hind sight, in my opinion.

After things calmed down and we all had a few drinks, we started walking around checking out different bars and gambling as we went, walking South. After losing a few people, we wound up playing video poker at NY-NY. By this time, we were all having a merry old drunken time and a few hours in wound up with just Bethany, her cousin Andrew, and I playing and drinking. None of us hit anything big, but we played for a LONG ass time on a very small amount of money.

Then as we were starting to get ready for the cab ride back to Caesars where he was also staying, the cocktail waitress came around one more time. Bethany refrained from an order, but Andrew and I were downing rum and cokes as quickly as she would bring them, having already enjoyed ourselves a bit at the reception and over the past few hours, so we ordered one more each. To our delight - and I have no idea why – this is what the cocktail waitress brought back for the two of us in one trip (minus the two empty plastic cups which we acquired at the piano bar in NY-NY just before this):



After finishing them off, we all hopped a cab back to Caesars and grabbed some more drinks in the bar to mellow out and relax, probably around 6:00am. We briefly checked out the monstrous suite her cousin had booked for himself complete with about four different rooms, baby grand piano, marble foyer, etc, then finally headed back to our room for the night after a long, tiring, fun, and honestly, near perfect wedding day enjoyed to the max.

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THE HONEYMOON – SUNDAY – RELAX AND PLAY

This was the day most of the guests left. A few stayed around a couple extra days (who can blame them?) but most were staying off-Strip and kept to themselves knowing we were technically on our honeymoon now. We got a late start for obvious reasons, then spent the first half of our day lounging by the pools at Caesars and paying excessive prices for large alcoholic beverages. I can definitely say these were the most expensive drinks I’ve ever had in my life, but hey, we’re on our honeymoon in paradise! Why not?!



That afternoon and evening were spent wandering around the hotel gambling and eating. In particular, we acquired a taste for the $3 CRAPS machine at Caesars. This was my first time seeing one of these and with the right group of people it was an absolute blast, especially when winning or even just playing for a while on the $20 at a time we’d each throw in. Nothing of note in the food department yet (at least that I can remember since I didn’t take any food pics this day, but there will be plenty of that to come).

Later on, we walked over to Bally’s to say goodbye to our good friend who is pretty much responsible for us being together. I had never been in Bally’s before so we stayed for a bit and played. I had particular luck at Casino War, of all things, and also on a $1 Double Diamond Deluxe slot in the high limit room. Nothing over the top but I believe it paid for all our food for the day and put us in the positive gaming-wise. We gamble a lot in Vegas but mostly low-limit stuff unless we’re doing really well. I am also now recalling that we at a late dinner at The Tequila Bar and Grill. Not bad, nothing special. Perfect since we wanted to keep it low key.


MONDAY – STRIP WALK, HYAKUMI, DEADMAU5

Feeling refreshed after relaxing the previous day, we spent Monday walking the majority of the Strip. Being a holiday, Bellagio had a special brunch buffet going on, so we decided to give it a shot since she had never eaten here before and I had only had dinner once. Smart move on our part. These two pictures pretty much say it all (and this was only a small portion of the awesome food we had):





We both continued to have good luck on some digital Top Dollar quarter machines when we arrived at NY-NY (my favorite slot machines), then continued to walk South. My original goal was to get some 9/6 quarter Double Double Bonus video poker time in at Excalibur, since this is my favorite game, but I unfortunately discovered that they had removed all 9/6 machines and only 7/5 were available. This was disappointing to say the least since I play here every trip and just recently started receiving free offers for rooms, which I was going to take advantage of. Oh well.

Next up was Luxor where we got these great pictures:





Then on to Mandalay Bay, which Bethany really liked and where we had a great run on one of those CRAPS machines. Bethany and I were playing one seat and another couple each had a seat, all of us raking in the dough for a good hour or more with the machines to ourselves. I also snapped this awesome picture of her:



After getting back to Caesars, we prepared for a night out. We started off with dinner at Hyakumi at Caesars, which was good quality sushi and edamame, plus this fancy green drink Bethany got:





We then walked down to Encore where we spent the night and morning drinking and dancing away to Deadmau5 at XS The Nightclub. I had never been in Encore or Wynn before, so it was nice to finally get in there. As far as Deadmau5 goes, the place was completely packed and I got a pic of me wearing the mouse head:



On the walk back, we got a pretty funny semi-drunk video of Bethany and I discussing our future married life together and throwing in some comments to our future kids. I’m not gonna post it on here but it should be entertaining for us in another 20 years or so.


TUESDAY – GORDON RAMSAY STEAK

Tuesday was a relaxing day and a bit of a blur except for dinner. One of the only TV shows we watch regularly is Hell’s Kitchen, so we were both very excited when we found out Gordon Ramsay Steak was opening at Paris not too long before this trip. We’re also both huge steak fans, so it worked out nicely.

Ambience was pretty cool. Kind of modern European, almost dance clubby, and a lot of red. The Chunnel concept as you walk into the restaurant I thought was a neat idea, though I imagine most find it corny and you probably wouldn’t get it if they didn’t explain it to you. After pondering what to order while perusing the iPad menu…



After the delicious bread and sea salted butter they brought out, I started with a Caesar salad and Bethany got a half dozen oysters. The salad was phenomenal with very tasty dressing and she loved the oysters.



For the main course, we shared a Beef Wellington (we had to try this since neither of us had ever had one before) and a ribeye, both of our favorite cut. The Wellington was pretty tasty, not something I’d normally order myself having tried it, but definitely not something I’d turn down. The puree with it was awesome mixed with the sauce. The ribeye was cooked perfectly, as expected, but I found it to be a little bland. I’m a big fan of big flavor and honestly I just didn’t think this one brought the flavor. Perhaps I’m too used to a lot of seasoning, even though I know a good steak shouldn’t really need it. I felt like this one did. For a side, we split the mac and cheese dish, which was very good except for one flavor in it I couldn’t pick out that neither of us liked.







Overall, I felt like we paid huge for the Gordon Ramsay name, not to mention the service. I expected this, of course, but I also expected to enjoy the food a bit more than I did. I’m sorry to say the most impressive part of it for me was the salad dressing. In any other lesser name restaurant, I would have been pretty disappointed to pay $100 less than I did for what we got. I can’t really explain it since the quality and service were there, the flavors just didn’t all agree with me, especially for that price. And to be honest, the service got on the verge of annoying. Bethany pointed this out when she kept moving her drink and a plate to where she wanted it and TWICE they came back and rearranged it for her since I guess it wasn’t “properly” placed.

Oh and here’s the check for your reference (not including tip, which brought the total to $260 for two steaks, two glasses of wine, 6 oysters, one Caesar salad). It’s worth noting that these glasses of wine at $18 and $19 each were on the cheap side. That certainly didn’t help.




WEDNESDAY – EGG & I, RED ROCK CANYON AND CASINO, YARD HOUSE

Refreshed after another relaxing day, Bethany and I decided this would be a good day to get off the Strip. On our way out to Red Rock Canyon, we located a breakfast place with great reviews called The Egg & I. We each got an Eggs Benedict dish, hers a traditional style and mine a sausage, gravy, and biscuit style. It probably wasn’t the best thing to eat right before a hike, but it was well worth it. The waitress offered to snap a pic for us.



After breakfast, we continued our drive out to Red Rock Canyon for some hiking. I was happy to finally be refreshed enough out there to really get adventurous, climbing up rocks and down into crevices farther than I’d ever previously gone. I snapped a couple good pics and vids along the way. Bethany didn’t go quite as far as I did but instead chose to find a good spot on the warm rocks to relax. These are a few of my pics.







On our way back from hiking, we stopped at Red Rock Casino - which I always thought would be a great place to stay if it weren’t so far off the Strip (maybe 20-25 minutes) - for some 10/6 quarter Double Double Bonus. As we were walking in, I realized there was a Yard House there, which was great because we intended to visit one for the first time this trip. The next few hours were spent trying various beers from Yard House, playing video poker, and then going back to Yard House for more beer and food. The food was decent, the fries were awesome, and these were the two highlight beers for us: a Young’s Double Chocolate Stout Beer Float for me and a St. Louis Framboise Beer Float for her.





Bethany also had some luck this time around at VP with four aces (no kicker). Not a huge payout but with that and some smaller hits we paid for the day’s food and activities. Even though I taught her how to play video poker, got her hooked on it, and tell her what hands she should play when she asks, she ALWAYS has much better luck than I do. For every four of a kind I hit (which isn’t too many), she hits four of them at least. It was like this the whole trip as we played quite a bit at Casino Royale, which appears to be the only place left on the Strip that offers 9/6 DDB $0.25 except for NY-NY, which doesn’t offer comps on that game. And hey, I’m not complaining; we’re married now so everyone four of a kind she hits is half mine.

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THURSDAY #2 – SERENDIPITY 3, SHOPPING, JAPONAIS, AND NIGHT CLUBS

As with most days, you can just assume that we spent our morning and early afternoon lounging by the pools at Caesars, as this was par for the trip. When you’ve got pools that look like that, sunshine and blue skies, and hot, dry 90-100 degree temps, there’s really no reason not to take full advantage as far as we’re concerned.

For late breakfast or early lunch, we grabbed a spot outside at Serendipity 3 at Caesars looking right up and down the Strip. I got what equated to a Cobb salad which was decent and Bethany got a grilled cheese which she liked. The featured item on the table, though, was this delicious frozen something or other drink:



After food, we walked down to the Fashion Show Mall for a little shopping. Bethany ended up with a really nice pair of sunglasses she found and I wound up with nothing except some pictures of items I could buy at home or on the internet for a fraction of the price.

For dinner, we had reservations at our favorite restaurant from the previous trip, Japonais at Mirage. Our favorite type of food is Japanese and Sushi, and the overall ambience and quality of the food here is just stellar. We basically just order a whole bunch of a la carte type items and sushi and go to town. Here are a few dishes we had and a picture the hostess took of us on the way out.







After dinner, we wandered a bit and wound up at King Ink, the tattoo shop at Mirage that turns into a nightclub. We had free drinks until a certain time, which we took full advantage of, then shot across the hall to 1 Oak, the new dance club at Mirage. After buying a single drink each and almost passing out at the price (significantly more than other night clubs we’ve been to in Vegas), we agreed we’d rather spend that kind of money gambling, so we left after finishing them. I will say, though, that as a musician and ex-sound man, this place had THE best sounding audio system I’ve ever heard in my life. I can only imagine the money they spent and if I ever find out who designed it, I’ll buy him a drink or three to talk his ear off.

By this point in the night, Bethany and I were pretty far along alcoholically speaking, and after wandering back to Caesars, making a few funny videos along the way, and then playing a bit, the inevitable night spent on the bathroom floor for Bethany arrived.


FRIDAY #2 – HUNGOVER BETHANY, PAYARD, TODD ENGLISH PUB, A GOOD COVER BAND

Suffice it to say, Bethany wasn’t doing so hot this day. She actually spent all morning and well into the afternoon sleeping it off. I, on the other hand, couldn’t seem to get a hangover on this trip no matter how hard I tried. And I tried. I have no idea why, but I drank on and off pretty much all day every day and never once got more than a slight headache, which some Advil took care of.

While she was sleeping, I did some more playing, learned Texas Hold Em Bonus poker with some new found friends, enjoyed a bit of food at the food court at Caesars, a delicious Mocha at Payard, and then brought her back some food. Now since I don’t remember exactly which day we ate breakfast at Payard (it may have been earlier in the week), this seems like an appropriate time to mention that one morning we decided to try it. Let me see, how can I sum this up? Breakfast bliss. That’s how. We each had simple eggs benedicts and a glass of orange juice. $50 with tip. Worth it. Best breakfast and eggs benedict I’ve ever had in my life. Flaky, moist, crispy, warm croissant and perfectly cooked eggs. I don’t really know how something so simple can be so good as to merit “best breakfast ever” status, especially for $50, but it was.

Later on when Bethany woke and got ready, she soldiered up and went out to dinner with me at Todd English PUB in City Center. All I can remember about it was good beer (if a little pricey), some sort of sliders that were really good (I believe chicken parm), and good quality food. Nothing spectacular but definitely worth trying. Bethany actually wants to go back and try it again next time since she didn’t eat much being in the state she was.

After dinner, we wandered the Strip a bit and wound up at Planet Hollywood where I hit on a penny machine playing a whole lot of pennies per spin, then doubled my money on Casino War (if I’m doing well, I tend to sit down at War and either lose the money I sit down with or double it in a matter of 60 seconds or less – quick but always fun and I seem to win more than I lose, so why not?).

The nice hit came for Bethany tonight on some sort of Triple Diamond machine, though. She put $10 in and was already doing well when she hit this for over $150. She just happened to play 3 credits on this one as she was changing it up every few spins.



On our way out and in a good mood from both doing well, we stopped to check out a cover band that was playing and I had another drink. They were all solid players. The singer had a good musical theater type voice, the bassist held it down with the drummer, and the keyboardist had a great gangster style hat and suit on. The drummer also had a phenomenal voice on the songs he sang.

Before heading back to the hotel, Bethany stopped at a candy shop (don’t remember which one) and got some candy cigarettes, so I snapped this pic that I really like:




SATURDAY #2 – WICKED SPOON, SPAGO, TEXAS HOLD EM BONUS

With Bethany feeling better today, we decided to try the Wicked Spoon. I had only heard about it so I had no expectations. After a modest wait in line, we got our table and dug in. Between us we tried a little of just about everything they had to offer and overall I’d give it a solid 8/10. The majority of it was very good and I liked the unique platings and styles of food compared to other buffets. It was nice to go to one that didn’t just serve the same old stuff. I’d definitely go again, especially if I had some sort of coupon or deal since it wasn’t cheap. Here’s a picture I snapped that’s actually making me very hungry right now:



We played and relaxed some more throughout the day and then decided on Wolfgang Puck’s Spago at The Forum Shops for dinner. We’d heard and read so much about the guy over the years that we figured it was time to give one of his restaurants a shot. And I’m glad we did. This was probably the most “solid” meal of the entire trip. We each had a drink, I had a salad appetizer, I can’t remember what Bethany had for an appetizer, but then she had the duck and I had whatever this is:



Here is Bethany’s dish:



Absolutely delicious. Every item on every plate was prepared and cooked perfectly and the flavors were fantastic. We will definitely be trying more of his restaurants next time around.

On a totally unrelated note, on our way to dinner I noticed that my shirt matched the walls in the hallway at Caesars, so Bethany snapped this pic:



Now after dinner, this turned into one of the best nights of the trip for us gaming-wise. We wandered for a good amount of time playing video poker and some other games, at which Bethany hit these four queens while already up a bit:



Then after some more wandering and random playing, we went back to Caesars.

If you recall, I mentioned that the previous day when I was wandering alone while Bethany recovered I made some new friends and learned Texas Hold Em Bonus poker at the tables. Having refined my skills over the past day and a half at random low limit tables (Harrah’s and elsewhere), I decided to take my last $50 in my pocket to an empty $15 minimum bet table instead of going to bed. Basically, I had one hand to win or lose with $50 in this game. I won that first hand and a couple hours later I had turned it into over $400 after tipping the dealers. Bethany and I were having a great time chatting it up with all the dealers on rotation and the occasional second player who would stop by for a hand or two. The table mostly stayed empty, though, which seemed to work out well that night. Needless to say, we both went to bed in a great mood.

continued next post...

 

SUNDAY #2 – THE Eiffel Tower RESTAURANT, IL FORNAIO (NY-NY)

Though we hated to admit it, this was our final full day, so we had nothing special planned. We walked to Paris with the intention of getting breakfast/brunch at a little café place we’d eaten on our previous trip, but when we walked by the elevator to the Eiffel Tower and were told there was no wait for the restaurant, we decided to give it a try. We were given a great window seat where we watched the Bellagio fountains while we sipped mimosas.



This setting just seemed an appropriate way to be ending our wedding/honeymoon trip. We shared a stuffed French toast with bacon and an Eggs Benedict, both of which convinced us to come back to this restaurant for dinner next trip, then we video taped the fountains and sent them to family and friends. Here are the dishes:





Although, I don’t quite remember how we ended up down there, we found ourselves in NY-NY around dinner time and I was really craving some Italian food, so we tried Il Fornaio. Good Italian, that’s pretty much all I need to say. Nothing over the top taste or price-wise, it just fit the bill for someone craving some Italian food. This picture doesn’t really do it justice, but I enjoyed it very much.



Being that we were doing pretty well financially at this point - about even for the whole trip playing-wise and WELL under budget with our spending money (I budget per day for both) – we decided to end on a high note and kept the playing to a minimum. A few $20 plays here and there at the machines. Sometimes we doubled it and sometimes we lost it. Still being on a high from the previous night’s winnings, we didn’t mind the lack of big hits.


MONDAY #2 – TIME TO GO HOME

After all of the planning and waiting involved in organizing this trip and the wedding and the reception, it was hard to believe it was over. But as they say with all good things…and this was one hell of a great thing.

Even though we got to bed pretty early the previous night, we both appreciated that I was smart enough to book us a 3pm direct flight back to Hartford. We slept in, called for a late checkout, packed everything up, then headed for the airport early afternoon. Security wasn’t bad and in true Las Vegas fashion, we spent the time waiting with a beer in hand.



I snapped this quick pic of the Strip to say goodbye before heading to our terminal, then off we went, arriving in Hartford right on time where my brother was waiting to pic us up at the airport.




CONCLUSION

Without exaggerating (and at risk of sounding a bit cliché), I can honestly say that this trip was everything we hoped it would be and more. The wedding, the reception, and the entire honeymoon went better than we could have imagined and even though it was a little sad not to have a few of our close friends and family there who couldn’t make it, we agreed that neither of us would change a thing because it was even better than expected. I even received a call from my grandparents after they got home while we were still there telling me that this was THE best wedding/reception they’d ever been to, and these are my Catholic grandparents who were extremely upset when they found out we weren’t doing a giant traditional wedding in CT at a church with 200 guests and all that. Hearing that from them really put a big smile on my face.

Having an entire week to ourselves for the honeymoon worked out perfectly and definitely made the trip long enough that we didn’t feel like we needed more time. Of course, we would have TAKEN more time if we could have, but this trip left us completely satisfied and looking forward to future Vegas adventures since there’s always more to do and experience out there.



THE END

 

Congratulations, you make a cute couple. I am laughing about the text messages about not being too late to back out.

We got married (31 yrs) at my brother's house with a judge and my 3 older brothers kept telling me it wasn't too late to change my mind before the judge arrived.:evillaugh In good fun of course.

Our original plan was to get married in Vegas, but they convinced us to do it at their house.

 

Great Report! It looks like a great time was had by all. The pics were fantastic. Congrats on your wins and on your wedding!

 

Nice trip report. I really liked your food choices (well other than the first night...)

Congratulations and thanks for sharing your wedding with us.

 

congrats and great post!

 

That was a stellar trip, and thanks for the pictures. We also did the "get married then have a honeymoon" thing in Vegas. When we went to get our license, there was a line out the door. Quite a pain.

The pictures at your ceremony are awesome. Congrats.

 

Congratulations to you both!!! Loved the trip report........you did an awesome job. ;-)

 

Thank you for the TR. We are getting married in Vegas in 2 months! Congratulations to both of you!

 

Congrats !! Good luck you two seem great .

 

Congratz !
It's a wunderfull TR with the pictures!

 

One of the best reports I've seen one this site. Well done.

 

Congratulations! Love Red Rock - glad the weather was not too hot.

 

Thanks! I'm really glad we ignored pretty much everyone's opinions when they all got upset that we weren't getting married in CT (well, most of them; some were very supportive right from the start). It turned out exactly how we wanted and it's great knowing we did it the way we wanted to.

Thanks!

Thanks, and yeah, TGIFriday's wasn't exactly my idea of a great start to a Las Vegas trip, but as I said in the report, if that's what made family who flew 3/4 of the way across the country for us happy, then we could endure it for one meal.

Thanks!

Thanks, and that sucks about the line. I was shocked there was no one there as I figured it would be mobbed if anything.

Thanks!

Congrats and thanks! Post pics and a story!

Thanks!

Thanks!

Thank you very much. I did my best to make a story out of it while trying to recall as many details as I could. With that long of a trip it was difficult to remember everything we did every day. There are still a lot of activities and reviews and stories I didn't mention but am recalling as I go through the rest of the pictures. I think it's long enough for now, though, and I can't always remember which days they happened.

Thanks, and us, too!

 

Great TR. Love the pictures of the food. I'm a big eggs benedict fan also.

Congrats on the wedding!

 

PSM - First of all, Congrats on your marriage. As a lover of all things Vegas, it seems you and the Mrs. picked a great place to get married. ( I got engaged in Vegas Feb. 11th, 2012, although we won't be getting married there, I at least snuck half in).

Although a bit late, here is a favorite Irish blessing of my now deceased Grandfather, whom I heard give this blessing to many members of my family at Wedding Receptions) for you and the Mrs:

"May your mornings bring joy and your evenings bring peace.

May your troubles grow few as your blessings increase.

May the saddest day of your future

Be no worse than the happiest day of your past.

May your hands be forever clasped in friendship

And your hearts joined forever in love.

Your lives are very special,

God has touched you in many ways.

May his blessings rest upon you

And fill all your coming days."


Good Luck in your marriage

Regards,

Vinegarjoe - just a complete stranger who read your trip report and thought it was way cool of you to share it on this board.

 

Great trip report! Congrats on the awesome looking wedding and honeymoon!!!! It looks like was all you both wished for!