TOWNSVILLE vs VEGAS

Now first up l wish to apologize to anyone who takes offence to anything that l post on this trip report.l"m just a loud mouth,know it all Aussie,you know, you have seen my type in Vegas, when you were there.My opinions are my own,right or wrong,too stupid to know any better.l"m posting this report in repayment for all the entertaining reports others have done.Loved them all,no matter how good they were,l"m sure everyone would agree with that as they sit at home on their computers.Here goes.
DAY 1
Locked the security door to the house at eleven a.m. Tuesday.Jumped into the car that was taking us to the airport,only to find two kids perched on the back seat with their yia-yia.These two should have been at their primary school, not going to see their grandmother heading off to Las Vegas.My thoughts were "What will their memories be of their grandmother in the future, when they are adults?"Something along the lines"at least she wasn't boring".This is the Pokie Queen"s fifth trip to The Promised Land. Farewells were said at the Townsville Airport to the kids and their mother.Proceded through security into the waiting area,we had a ninety minute wait for our flight to Sydney.Better to be early than late,can"t trust these airlines.Had a totally uneventful flight,two hours and thirty five minutes of boredom.Bought lunch on the plane just to help pass time. Not so sure about the Bourbon and Cola at this time of the day.What the heck,l"m on holidays. Landed in Sydney at quarter to five daylight saving time for N.S.W.,got through the airport in quick time as we only had carry on luggage.Out front of the airport we caught a taxi to take us to the Ibis motel where we were staying that night.Yes you guessed it,it was the afternoon rush hour traffic that we had to contend with.Even though the motel was not far away it still took us twenty minutes to get there.The cabbie was good about it,easy to talk with,even rounded the fare down to thirty dollars for us. Very fair considering.[pun intended].We booked in and then dropped the luggage off in the room.Then went out on the streets to find a place for dinner and where to buy some red wine for me.Of course it was raining whilst this was going on,life can"t be too easy.Found a local bottleshop about a block away,wine purchased and returned to room,one thing out of the way.Next door to the motel was a K.F.C. joint,therefore we indulged at this fine dining establishment [yes Sheldon that is sarcasm] then returned to our room.Turned on the T.V. and there is a documentary on about a bloke who goes to Vegas to try and double his money,he succeeded.Good Omen for us?Time will tell.

 

Perhaps you are seeing your own future. No, wait...double may not be enough...quadruple at least!
Have a great time!

RICHARD

 

This trip was taken in November,l"m the dummy who could not download photos from his phone,nevermind posting them on my posts,if that makes sense.Stubborn perseverance and it looks like l have achieved what was required.Yes that could only mean l am a BlackJack man.

 

Good start. But I would like to suggest a couple of important things before continuing. First, a space follows every punctuation mark you make. Second, make sure you leave a full blank line between paragraphs.

I don't want to sound like a grammar teacher, but historically, people often ignore TRs here without a reasonable amount of flow breaks. Also pictures are nice flow breaks!!! Also leave a blank line around those too.

 

Agree totally with you, please see post above yours for the problem. Will try harder next time. So scared whilst typing the post that l would loose or stuff the whole thing up.Please have patience while l try to improve. Thanks for your suggestions.

 

Sowhatyouresayingistopostinawaythatpeoplecanreadeadily?

 

DAY 2
Wednesday morning we got up, showered and just had a coffee for breakfast.Went out front of the Motel and caught our 8 a.m. shuttle bus for the Sydney International Airport. Once again we were caught in the rush hour traffic. No problem though, we had allowed plenty of time for such eventualities. When we got there we went straight to the Virgin check in desk to dispose of our bags. Got our boarding passes and got our usual "what the f - - - look from the check in lady". We only had carry on size luggage to give to them. After making an enquiry about excess luggage on our return trip, her suspicions were calmed. Pokie Queen"s explanation regarding our shopping trip in Vegas whilst there, seemed to impress her.Shopping she understood, gambling not so much. Each to their own l suppose.

l hate to admit this, but we then went and had brunch at Mac Donalds. Two junk meals in a row, it would be another eighteen days before we would resort to this rubbish again. Thanks to the large varieties of food available at a reasonable prices in Vegas.[reports coming out over here regarding cheap junk food/obesity/poverty][me thinks that laziness/internet life/bad parents has more to do with it]. Sorry just an observation, seen to many parents more interested in their phones than their kids.

Boarded VA 0001 flight for the Tom Bradley International Airport at 11:40 a.m. on Wednesday, arrived 6:30 a.m. Wednesday morning on the same day. With a flight
duration of 13 hrs.50 mins. Go figure. Cleared customs and then went to the Southwest waiting area to catch the 9:55 a.m. flight to Las Vegas Being the cheapskate that l am, we were the last people to board the plane.There were then four unhappy people on the plane as the Pokie Queen and I took seats between them. l don"t see the point of paying extra to choose your seat when people like us just hop in right beside you. Purpose defeated.

Anyhow landed in the Promised Land at 10:55 a.m.,bolted through the airport because we only had carry on luggage, makes life that much easier.Found the bus departure point and grabbed a $2 ticket for the downtown 108 bus. [should have waited for the WAX, blood must have rushed to my head.] On the trip down town the Pokie Queen ended up getting a broken Noddy Spring, had to continually keep prodding her to stop her from falling off her seat on the bus.She was absolutely buggered after that trip.l"m the one who does all the planning for these trips,therefore l"m on guard all the time until we arrive at where we are supposed to be.She knew we were in Vegas, so she must have thought subconsciously all was OK, therefore the relaxtion mode.The bus stopped short of Freemont Street, so we had to walk a couple of blocks dragging our little cases behind us, at least that woke us up.We had been travelling for 24 hours by now and we are in Vegas, what could possibly go wrong now?To be continued, as it"s only noon on the second day of our trip,first day in Vegas.

 

Help, cannot figure out how to separate the photos from the text as suggested.l"ve tried harder as you can see,very slow with the one finger type method.Anybody?

 

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Please do not reply to my request for help anybody,Black Jack brain sorted it all out.Thanks any way.God bless you all.{yes Sheldon that is sarcasm}
Trip report will continue with the passing of time.Reality,one finger typing makes it extremely hard,but l will get there. For your amusement/repayment for your efforts for my amusement. Thanks all for your patience.

 

DAY 2 continued.
Fronted up to reception at the Four Queens to drop our bags off, so we could go and explore without the bother of dragging them behind us. However it was our lucky day, as they had a room ready now that we could have. Signed in and was then given the mail that was there for us [Thanks Steve Bourie, two American Casino Guides as ordered, with all their discount vouchers. Great service.].We were also given the Four Queens discount book whilst at the reception counter. Things were looking good.

Got in the northern elevator and went up to the floor where our room was. Found our room, just as l expected for the price we paid, comfortable but nothing flash. Hell we were here to gamble, not sit in the room. Then l looked out the window, horror of horrors, all l could see was the top of the Fremont Street canopy. No way Pokie Queen, grab your bag as we are heading back down to reception, l had requested the quieter side of the building. No, that was not going to happen, she had a room now and she was not prepared to wait for a 4p.m. check in. This will do no matter what. Well l did warn her, l have no problem sleeping with earplugs in, she not so.

So we unpacked and freshened up a bit before heading down to Fremont Street, to see what it had to offer. First up we headed over to the Binions Café for lunch, it was the same as last time, nothing changed so it was good value as always.When we finished there, we went on a Casino check out tour, just to see what changes had occurred since our last trip. Plenty of changes [closed casinos, demolished casinos] but a lot of familiar things also. That killed the afternoon, so we went back to the Four Queens for a bit of play on their machines. The decision was made to eat at Magnolias at about 8 p.m., so we went and got a table. Ribeye steak dinner was the choice for both of us because of our past few meals [if they could be called that]. Meals were delivered promptly and we started to tuck in. Next thing l know the Pokie Queen is spitting out pieces of plastic from her mouth. It looks like the plastic cooking indicator for the steak had fallen into the sauce and she had cut it into pieces whilst cutting the steak, talk about ravenous. The staff were all apologetic/confused about how this could have happened, they took the steak and removed/replaced the sauce. The meal was good but l suspect someone may have been very fatigued not to notice what was going on when she cut into the steak.

Magnolias would be seeing a lot more of us on this trip as we both enjoy the place. Meal finished so we went outside to find a bottle of wine for my night cap. Bought a cheap bottle of red from the Mini Market/Souvenir shop opposite the Four Queens. It came from Chile, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Went back to the room to settle down for the night. Removed the wrapper from the wine bottle top to open it, be buggered it had a cork. Now who the hell uses corks these days? Obviously the poorer countries do. Back down to the street to find a corkscrew, third shop and l was in luck, purchase and return to the room. Settle in once again, then attempt to open my very inexpensive bottle of wine. Well we all know what happens with souvenirs, it bent like it was made out of plastic. Desperation set in, so l ended up gouging the cork out in little pieces using the blade on the cheap arse corkscrew, it was not going to beat me. What could go wrong next l thought to myself?

Switched on the T.V. and found something that was mutually agreeable to both of us.[ very hard to do, opposites attract kind of a thing ]. Yes l know you have already guessed what happened next, Fremont Street Experience erupted outside our window. Well the Pokie Queen levitated above her bed, that was the straw that broke the camel"s back. She was going down to sort reception out, this was not the quite room we had requested.[ conversational de-ja vu crossed my mind, but l didn"t comment ] Into the bathroom to change out of her PJs she goes, next thing l hear is cursing, the toilet is now blocked. Look out reception, l raise my glass of wine to her as she leaves the room, it just infuriates her even more.

About ten minutes latter she returns to the room with a new room card in her hand. Instructs me to pack my bag as we have another room ,there seems to be a look of smug accomplishment on her face. Whilst packing there is a knock at the door, upon opening we find the maintenance man there to do his job, plunger in hand. Now that is what l call prompt service.

With the Pokie Queen leading the way out front going down the hallway, the maintenance guy and l were having a quite chuckle to ourselves behind her back, as l explain to him what happened. I think it brightened his day up.[Not being a whinging guest for a change.] Ends up reception found us a handicap room in the south tower that did not exist before all this happened. When the Pokie Queen had settled into the new room she explained to me what had happened at reception. Seems it makes a hugh difference to things when you have four more nights booked in the next week, which can be cancelled with twenty four hours notice. If the weekend had not been booked out l would have stayed nine nights at the Four Queens.

Lesson learnt from this is that thirty four hour days are really not a good idea. However, you got to do what you got to do to get to Vegas.

 

Really enjoying this trip report! Keep it coming!

 

hope you got the meal comped, good interesting report!

 

I'm always fascinated by people who come from far away to experience Vegas. Almost makes me feel guilty I'm just a short hour away by plane. Love the details and photos, don't worry about spacing with the photos. I have a feeling you will do well gambling wise. Not a psychic, just a feeling....

 

You may be right,but trust me,l would have never predicted in a million years how this gambling trip losses where returned to us.

 

Yes it was ,but l still feel we had a lot to do with it, due to fatigue from the trip over.Trust me l think we covered the cost of the meal many times over with our patronage of The Four Queens/Binions. Shall explain as l go along with the report.

 

Day 3 Thursday
Woke up around mid morning, showered, had the obligatory coffee, but still felt like I had been hit by a bus. The decision was made that we would have brunch at The Golden Nugget buffet. So we headed on downstairs to Freemont Street with the American Casino Guide in hand. [ this time l had full intention of using the vouchers contained within as much as l possibly could.] Very happy with the meal and the service provided by Michele, our waitress. Two for one was the added bonus.

Next business of the day was to go to The Fashion Show Mall to buy a Sim Card for my phone from A.T.& T. We therefore bought our bus passes, then jumped on board a south bound bus from Fremont Street heading towards the Strip. Since Donald was elected the share market in Australia had taken a nose dive. l desperately needed to keep in contact with my bank, as my margin loan was in buffer when l left Sydney. Sixty dollars later and l"m back in the game, gambling in both Vegas and Australia simultaneously. how good is that?????

 

Day 3 continued.
After getting that out of the way we headed over to The Wynn Casino for a look around at the Christmas decorations, casino floor etc.





Followed up by a visit to The Palazzo with the same intentions in mind. We are not inclined to do any gambling at these fancy establishments. We feel that it"s bad enough loosing your money at the Downtown Casinos [ supposedly looser machines / rules ] than these extravagant places.





We did however stop in at The Cromwell for a pokie session, had a bit of luck here on our last visit. Both of us received five dollars of free play when we went and got our replacement cards. Earned because of play on our last visit they claimed. Much appreciated, thank you. Lets get into it. One thing l do like about The Cromwell is the selection of beers that they allow the punter to pick from.



When darkness descended on The Strip we decided to grab a bus back to Fremont Street. Went to The Four Queens and played Pokies there for a bit before going to Magnolias for dinner once again. We both had the New York Sirloin steak meal, on a two for one voucher out of the booklet given to us when checking in. This time everything went well, as you would expect. Very nice meal, especially when you add one of their twenty two ounce Old Town Brown drafts to go with it. Delicious and great value.

Meal out of the way so we head on over to Binions Casino to give them a bit of play. we both earned the required points to have a free spin of their promotional wheel. Result was that we both got five dollars free play, Thank you very kindly. Left the Casino around midnight, this was in an effort to get our body clocks back into the swing of things. Tomorrow will supply the answer to our efforts.

 

I am really enjoying your trip report and looking forward to hearing about your adventures!!

 

Thank you, as l said previously, this is repayment for the many hours that l have sat at home enjoying every other trip report posted by others. Running out of data at the moment [ yes l know what everyone is thinking, here in Australia we are still getting ripped off by Telstra, their time will come, soon l hope, Singapore maybe? ] As we all know it is the photos that matter most, hence the data usage problem. Heaps more to report about the trip.We"ll get there. Again thank you for your interest, makes me more determined to continue.

 

Attached files, W.T.F. is going on here? Promise l will nut it all out eventually. Sorry.