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Two sisters, one son & one bi invade vegas, july 31-august 7, 2009

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by northerngirl, Aug 15, 2009.

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  1. northerngirl

    northerngirl High-Roller

    Joined:
    Jul 3, 2007
    Messages:
    813
    Location:
    Northern Minnesota
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    40

    My Trip Report

    THE PLAN

    Our annual trip was touch and go this year. My husband was forced into early retirement and I was feeling guilty about the thought of spending money on “my†vacation. My good friend, Marsha, aka the BI, had been invited to join the festivities and then her husband quit his job thinking he would find a new position within the month. Erik (my 27 year old son) and his wife Tracy currently live in Surabaya, Indonesia and his company provides them a two week trip home as part of his package for living overseas. My middle son, Jay, was trying to figure out dates to come home from Seattle before his deployment at the end of August. Between husbands not working and trying to coordinate dates with my sons, things miraculously fell into place.

    Right after booking our tickets with Allegiant Air for $202 (round trip) each, I received offers from both the California Club and the Plaza. I received an offer for free nights at the California for Friday, Saturday and Sunday; free slot tournament at MSS and $30 in food vouchers. The Plaza sent me an offer for three free nights and an additional free room for three nights for a friend. The best part of this offer was upon check in I would receive $200 in cash. We would end up only paying for one night. So our total hotel stay for seven nights was $9.00 each. I applied my $200 in cash toward my airfare. This math is easy--$2.00 for air.

    THE VEGAS INVADERS

    Cathy (me) with my Vegas name of Catarina. I love downtown, love to gamble, and love the freedom that Vegas has to offer. I am fortunate to be married to a husband that doesn’t gamble but knows how much this yearly trip means to me.

    Tammy (Tamika), my baby sister who goes with me every August. She is a winning combination—a great sister who is also one of my best friends.

    Marsha (Marishka). My husband lovingly (I think) refers to her as the BI (bad influence). In defense of Marsha, I think it is a combination of when the two of us get together it just can create trouble. Marsha and I used to go to Vegas every other year with another friend so I know firsthand that we are more than compatible traveling together. P.S. In Vegas only, we call each other by our Vegas names. This is probably semi-juvenile for three grown women (with one of us a member of AARP) but we find it amusing.

    Erik (could not come up with a Vegas name for him). I took him to Vegas for his 21st birthday gift when he was just a poor college student. He immediately fell in love with downtown and he is very easy to travel with. I had not seen him for a year so this was an added bonus that it worked out for him to join us. Side Note: He originally toyed with the idea of meeting Tammy and me in Vegas but as soon as he heard Marsha was to be joining us, he immediately started checking on flights. Erik and his wife, Tracy, would arrive in Vegas Thursday evening. Tracy had never been to Vegas so it worked out great for her to spend the weekend with us and then fly to ND for the rest of her vacation with her family.

    THE MISSION

    Marsha and I discussed money management and we both agreed that it would not be difficult to make a $200 profit per day. This would be $1400 that we would each be taking home. Tammy thought this was impossible and it would never happen. Okay, Tammy, you are on—we will now each make a profit of between $200-$500 each day.

    FRIDAY

    Rise and shine! The dreaded time has arrived to pack the final items in my suitcase and check the weight. The three of us had divided up the list of extras to take (room snacks, coffee pot, alcohol, etc.) My suitcase weighed 53 pounds. Ouch! In a panic I made a call to Marsha for some help. Luckily her suitcase weighed 48 pounds so I told her to run over and grab some of my stuff. Silly girl—I gave her five pounds of items and she happily took it. The husbands drove the three of us to the airport and waited outside while we checked in our bags and got our boarding passes so we could all go have burgers/cocktails together before we departed. My brother-in-law works at the airport so it helped in getting the coveted exit row seats. My suitcase weighed 48 pounds so I was thrilled it didn’t exceed the 50 pound weight restriction. Marsha’s suitcase is next to get on the scale—53 pounds. The ticket agent says to Marsha “You are heavyâ€. Marsha looks down at her body and replies “Thanks for telling me something I don’t already knowâ€. After glaring at me and hitting me on the head, Marsha tries to work her magic by sweet talking the ticket agent telling her that it was all MY fault that her suitcase was overweight. We know that the weight will not be an issue on the return flight as the alcohol and the snacks will have been consumed. The only salvation is my BIL is an airport employee so the agent begrudgingly lets the overweight suitcase slide. The five of us have a great last meal of the day (who wants to get to Vegas and eat?) and head back to the airport.

    Allegiant is right on time. We just love this airline with the direct flight from Duluth to Vegas and a three hour flying time. Our bags are already on the carousel by the time we walked to the baggage area. We had an awesome cab driver who kept us thoroughly entertained during our ride to the California Club. We had him make a quick stop at the 7-11 to pick up our 7-up and diet coke. Life is good. Fare & tip were $35.00. Side note: At the beginning of the trip we each contribute $100 to the petty cash fund and designate one person to be in charge. Luckily I have a bad habit of losing things so I am safe from being designated as the keeper of petty cash. We use this fund to pay for cab fares, tipping, bus fares, etc.
    In the excitement of finally being in our room and a cocktail in hand, I totally forgot to take any pictures of the room. Tamika and Marishka had never stayed at the California Club and they were both very pleased with our free room. We made a quick trip over to MSS so I could register for the slot tournament and receive my $30 in food vouchers. The three of us strolled down to the El Cortez to get my $50 in free slot play for my birthday month (I only had four hours left to use it). Since this was “free†money, it made sense to me to use it on a dollar slot machine. I managed to take $70 out of it. Erik and Tracy met us here and after many hugs, the five of us started playing blackjack. Erik is very nervous about drinking his bottle of beer as the last time at the Cortez, he managed to knock a full beer all over the table. We were sure after that incident the Cortez would have invested in cup holders. Tracy is not a degenerative gambler like us; however, they just had a 25 hour flight to LA and Erik spent many hours teaching Tracy the game on the plane. Kudos to Tracy as she played as if she had played cards all of her life. Luckily, I got the first BJ which gave me rights to the bed to myself the first night. Marsha got the second blackjack so she would have the bed to herself the second night. You know what that means for Tammy.

    Cards were difficult so we decided to check out the new and improved Gold Spike. As we were walking toward the Spike we see the marquee on the side of the building that says “Sexy $3.00 Blackjackâ€. We all liked the Spike before, and with the new improvements, it was hard to even remember how seedy it used to be. We used to use the buddy system when a restroom break was required. There is one roulette table that Erik joked had seven weeks of dust on because during our week stay we never saw it being used. There are three BJ tables and typically only two are open. The outfits the dealers wear consist of wife beater t-shirts and heels which were not offensive. The new tables are great with built in cup holders. Erik and I wondered how much the tables weighed as we contemplated hauling one down to the Cortz so he wouldn’t be afraid of spilling his beer. The five of us are all relaxed and having a great time playing. Out of the blue, Erik drops the “F†bomb so the mom in me had to inform the pit boss of my son’s language. She (Rita) looks at us and says “I don’t “F Bomb†care. We love her already. We were told to have a great time and as long as no one insults the dealers, just about anything goes. We love these rules. Erik and Tracy are still trying to get adjusted to the time change so they call it an early evening. Erik had booked eight nights at the Golden Nugget and said it felt like he was staying on the strip as it took them at least 15 minutes to get to their room. The three of us girls walked down Fremont Street and were astounded (and not in a good way) at the pole dancing girls in Binions, Golden Gate and the Las Vegas Club. What happened to good old-fashion gambling with no gimmicks? The MISSION for me did not happen today. However, Marsha went to bed with a $500 profit.

    SATURDAY

    First full day in Vegas and the three of us were at our private pool by 8:00 a.m. The pool area is very small and certainly does not even begin to compare to any of the strip casino pools. But we love the quietness and no fighting for lounge chairs. I’m anxious to get some good reading done every morning and I am just totally relaxing. Tammy is questioning why she doesn’t see me jotting down notes for “our†trip report. This past year has been a very strange one for my family and I was just not feeling like I would have anything interesting to write. But wanting to keep my baby sister happy, I started writing notes every morning.

    I walked over to MSS for the slot tournament at 11:30. This was the first time I had ever been in one in Vegas and found it very boring pushing buttons for 20 minutes. I kept myself entertained by watching people and their different systems for pushing and pounding on the slot machines. After the tournament the five of us met for lunch at 777 to use my food coupons that I had received. We split orders of the 5 cheese pizza, fish & chips, and chicken wings. This was the first meal the three of us had in 26 hours and it tasted great. The five of us stayed at MSS until I finished my second round in the tournament at 2:30. I ended up placing 52 out of 214 in the tournament which wasn’t bad; however, it didn’t pay either. Tracy and Erik played cards and made over $200 between the two of them. They were still very tired and trying to get their body clocks regulated so we split up and made plans to regroup around 5:00. Gambling was still a struggle and I am beginning to doubt that I will accomplish my MISSION for the day. However, I remind myself that we all have some bad days during every trip. I am hoping that the bad days will be out of my system soon.

    The five of us head back to our new favorite casino. We are warmly greeted by our new friends who include the security guard Dave, the pit boss Rita, Yolanda the cashier, and the sexy $3.00 blackjack dealers. We have another great night at the Spike despite the horrible cards. Erik came up with our sayings for the week while playing cards. DEALER INCENTIVE PROGRAM (DIP)—everyone tips the dealer after a full table win; and DEALER ASSISTANCE REQUESTED (DAR)—we all have horrible hands and the dealer is showing a bust card. During this session of cards, Marsha gets into her French speaking mode. I was always amazed at all the French Marsha still remembered from her high school days. However, it doesn’t take Erik long to realize that she only knows three sayings. Erik begins to teach us some Indonesian phrases. Between two languages being spoken and DIP and DAR, it was another great night at the Spike.

    We then headed to the El Cortez to try our luck. We were very surprised to see a party pit consisting of three tables, scantily dressed dealers and some very tacky strobe lights. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the cards were even worse. Using some leftover coupons for Careful Kitty’s from our last trip, we ate at the new and improved Cortez Café. The food was good as ever. Erik and Tracy headed back to the Spike to get the name and directions of a Thai restaurant that Rita had raved about. Rita took it upon herself to do a map quest and printed out the directions for Erik. Once again, over and above the call of duty from our new favorite pit boss.
    Saturday evening in Vegas and it was packed everywhere. We walked through Fitzgerald’s to check out the BJ rules. Eight decks and the shoe is literally cut in half. Another place scratched off of our list. On to Binion’s to check out what changes they had made. The casino itself looks much brighter and modernized with a sports bar located above the basement restaurant. However, 6:5 BJ, single deck dealt out of a shoe, dancing girls, and dealers that look like strippers. Another casino checked off of my favorite list. I know it will be an early night-- the streets are jammed, cards are horrible, and the slot machines are very hungry. I went back to the room, had a cocktail, and was out cold by midnight. MISSION incomplete.

    SUNDAY

    Had a great night’s sleep and woke to Tammy’s great news that she had hit for $200 in a machine with a $5.00 investment. This makes me think that today will be my day. We all head to our “private†pool with Tammy and Marsha reading and me taking notes for this report. (Tammy, you owe me something!) Marsha is reading “Marley & Me†and is really getting into this great book. She told us she hesitated on telling us this, but decided what the heck as she is among friends. She is reading the chapter where the Grogan’s pick out their puppy and are driving home trying to decide on a name. Marsha can’t put the book down until she finds out what the puppy will be named—duh! The book is titled “Marley and Meâ€. It was a great laugh to start our day. We had our usual cocktails in the room while getting ready and, for some reason, they really hit us hard. We literally tried every available table at the California Club with absolutely no luck. The only fun part was when Marsha tipped over her fresh drink. We found it extra comical as her drink was in a cup holder. The pit boss must have taken sympathy on our losing morning and comped us for the Market Street Café. We all ordered breakfast and Marsha was determined she was going to use every dollar of her comp. In order to accomplish this, she ordered a strawberry milk shake with Eggs Benedict which I thought was a strange combination. Because the shake failed the straw test (the straw needs to stand up straight in the shake), she ended up returning it twice. Luckily, she decided to order milk instead or who knows how long we would have been there. All in all, it was a fun breakfast with picture taking of the waiter.

    Tammy and I headed to the bus station to meet Erik and Tracy at TI to see Mystere. We were disheartened to see that the park in front of the bus station was gone. All the grass was torn up and the benches were gone. A chain link fence surrounds the area with “No Trespassing†signs. We felt bad for all the homeless people who frequented the park and wondered where they were now. I have never had a desire to see a Cirque show, but Tammy has always wanted to see one. Being that this was Tracy’s first trip to Vegas it seemed appropriate to add this to the agenda. We met Erik and Tracy who had been touring the strip for most of the day. Tammy absolutely loved Mystere and I gave it a rating of a seven. Next year it will be my turn to decide which show to see. I finally will be able to see Jersey Boy’s.

    We took a cab back to the California Club to connect with Marsha who spent a relaxing day by herself. The five of us headed to the Spike for Tracy’s last evening in town. All of our favorite employees were working and we were surprised that “our†table was full of people louder than us. This table consisted of a newly engaged couple and their friends. Dave, the security guard, passed out Gold Spike T-shirts to everyone and if you wore the shirt, personnel would sign your back. I will leave it to the imagination the autographs. Marsha was concerned what her husband was going to think when he saw her signed T-shirt. We asked Rita if we could get a cocktail waitress as we had not seen one yet. An older gentleman comes over to our table with a notepad and asks for our order in a very high squeaky voice trying to imitate a cocktail waitress. It turned out that the cocktail waitress that was to work the evening shift had quit. Eugene has been with the Spike for over 15 years and is an employee that does a little bit of everything. We nicknamed him Eugenia for the evening since he was our new waitress. I took the notepad from our “waitress†and wrote down our orders with specific instructions to him (her) not to lose the order and we would just continue recycling it throughout the evening. Rita tells both tables that she has a surprise in store for all of the blackjack players. Five minutes later staff comes over with a huge slice of cake for the newly engaged couple and trays of chicken wings and dipping sauces for everyone. This certainly was a first for us to be eating chicken wings while playing cards. Rita’s only rule was that we try to eat the wings with one hand. What a sweetheart! Throughout the evening both tables bantered back and forth hollering “You’ve been Spiked!†and we kept trying to get their table to tip at the same time as us. We knew that this evening could easily been a scene from the movie “Hangover†and we would have fit right in. The tables closed at 1:30 so we said good night to Erik and Tracy and made plans to meet them for lunch at Binion’s before Tracy headed to the airport. The evening could not have been any more entertaining and we were happy that Tracy’s last night in Vegas will be one that we will always remember. Thank you Gold Spike for such a great evening.

    The three of us walked back to the California Club and I’m thinking my MISSION still has not happened. I sat down at our favorite bank of penny progressive machines called Deluxe Penny Jackpot and I was playing the Olympus machine before calling it a night. It was getting late and I told myself only two more spins and time for bed. I got into the bonus round and within the bonus round I get in three more times. I now have a total of 60 free spins. I hit the mini, minor and finally the grand progressive. The W-2G was for $3,291.25 along with $500 more from my 60 free spins. Finally, MISSION complete and off to bed at 3:30 a.m.

    MONDAY

    Quick pool time for our last morning at the California and time to check in at the Plaza. We were very happy that our adjoining rooms were ready at 11:00. I was hoping for rooms in the north tower, but was told that tower was completely closed due to renovations and a drop in vacancy rates. Our rooms were very worn; however, we had no complaints as we had adjoining rooms and we each now get our own bed. We joked that it was the closest we would ever get to having a suite in Vegas. We met Erik and Tracy for lunch before her flight to ND. I am very fortunate to have such a sweet DIL and was hoping we didn’t corrupt her too much.

    Erik and his favorite three women took the shuttle to Sam’s Town hoping that we would have better luck there playing cards. Once again, none of us could do anything. Erik and I shuttled back downtown almost immediately and Marsha and Tammy stayed checking out the plethora of machines. After the four of us reconnected we walked to the El Cortez for our second meal of the day and to use more of our coupons. Once again, the cards were horrible. We are all starting to see a pattern developing. However, we are not giving up and go to the Gold Spike. The only familiar face is Eugene as it was the rest of the staff’s day off. Once again, I wrote our drink order down for Eugenia as well as taking an order from the new pit boss. The bad card theme continues on. Since I only had slept four hours Sunday night, I decided to be practical and get a good night sleep in my own bed. It was a horrible gambling day for all of us and I was hoping it was now out of our systems. The MISSION that Marsha and I developed is really hard to complete. I slept from midnight until 8:00 and it felt great.

    TUESDAY

    Need I say pool time again? One of the great advantages to a seven day trip is that you never feel you need to rush. We all enjoy spending time by the pool or just in our room relaxing with a cocktail and a remote control that you actually have control of. We met Erik at the Golden Nugget pool to see if we wanted to take advantage of it the next morning. The couches that Tammy and I have used in the pool area are now roped off with a drink minimum to sit there. We decided to eat at the Fremont buffet using our 2:1 coupons. Great plan but we spotted an empty BJ table at the Nugget and got sidetracked for the next several hours. Marsha ended up having a great run and the rest of the group ended up even. I’m hoping this is a sign of good things to come.

    After the Fremont buffet, we walked to the Western as Erik and Marsha had not had the pleasure. We are joking that if anyone decides to mug us that they will change their minds once they see a male with us. I couldn’t help thinking this is one of the reasons why Vegas is so great. Playing cards at the Golden Nugget and then at the Western was such a contrast. Vegas definitely offers something for everyone. We stayed at the Western for just a few minutes--long enough to know the cards were not going to be kind. We walked back to the Gold Spike surprised to find out that the tables do not open until 5:00. Eugene was gracious to take a picture of the four of us in front of the building and made us promise that we would return later that evening. We split up and made plans to meet again in a few hours for our daily Spike fix. The four of us travel great together as we thoroughly enjoy each other’s company, yet are comfortable going off by ourselves. I spent several hours in the room totally relaxing by myself.

    We returned to the Spike around 7:30 and our table was waiting for us. Being that we found eating at a BJ table amusing and unusual, we ordered onion rings. Rita, the best pit boss ever, took the liberty of going to the restaurant and treated us to two orders of rings. Life is good--$3.00 BJ with sexy dealers and a pit boss who goes out of her way to make sure we are enjoying ourselves. We usually have the table to ourselves, but tonight we made a new friend named Jason. He appeared down on his luck, but seemed like a good addition to our table. He sat at first base and Tammy was playing anchor spot this evening. About three hands into the shoe Tammy makes a basic BJ hit that saves the table. Jason is now in awe of Tammy for saving his $3.00 and tells her she is the best third base woman ever in the history of the game. Several hands later the sexy dealer shows an ace. Tammy has a $3.00 bet and has two tens. Tammy has never taken insurance in her life but for some odd reason decided this was the time. I am slightly stunned at this new move of hers. Jason had just upped his $3.00 bet to $18.50 and notices that Tammy took insurance. Because she is the new blackjack guru, he immediately jumps on this opportunity to follow the hero of the table. It takes awhile for Jason and the dealer to figure out how much insurance is needed on an $18.50 bet. The four of us are looking at Jason’s hand (which was a 16) and can’t believe he would take insurance. But, of course, he was following Tammy’s lead. The dealer did not have a blackjack and takes both Tammy’s and Jason’s insurance money. Now it is Jason’s turn to play. He looks down at his hand and says “crap, I have a 16!†It was one of those moments that we will not forget. Jason stayed on his hand and the dealer ended up busting. It was a fun laugh and we were happy that Jason made out okay with taking insurance on a 16. As much fun as I was having, I was down at this table $80.00. Fun is great, but I have a MISSION to complete.

    I said goodbye to my friends and decided to try a different downtown casino. Anyone that knows me will tell you one of my many flaws is my sense of direction (or non direction). By the time I figured it out, I was almost to the El Cortez and it was too late to turn back. I played a penny slot and made $60.00 almost immediately. Not wanting to push my luck I took my TITO and left. I then noticed an empty BJ table and thought I would try my luck and play 1:1. I was getting great hands and immediately was even for the day. Darn--an older gentleman (okay, he was probably my age) sits down at “my†table. I would have left then if not for the fact that he was pulling out hundreds and hundreds from his wallet. I found this interesting and wanted to see how this was going to play out. He did a lot of talking to himself and quite a bit of tongue thrusting, but I was still intrigued. He kept asking the pit boss for cigarettes even though we were sitting at a non smoking table. He lost at least $1,000 in 20 minutes and tells the dealer he will be back shortly as he has access to $20,000 in the ATM machine. Both the dealer and I are shaking our heads. She was probably thinking along the lines that I was—that would have paid my electric bill, telephone bill, cable bill, house payment, etc. He returned with more money and was losing that also. Every now and then when he would finally have a winning hand, he wanted to knuckle high five me. This definitely was my sign that it was time to leave. I was in my own bed at 12:30. I decided the MISSION was to be aborted.

    WEDNESDAY

    Since Marsha had not experienced the Nugget pool and we were guests of Erik, we decided to take advantage of this opportunity. People watching was quite entertaining; however, we were used to our pool at the California Club and the Plaza where the lounge chairs were not on top of each other and no fighting for them. We decided to take advantage of my comps at the Plaza and the four of us had the buffet. Luckily, none of us are particular on what we eat.

    It is tradition to see Big Elvis during each trip. Erik had never seen him and Marsha had only seen the last five minutes of his set several trips ago. I guess you really don’t know everything about your kids as Erik informed me when we arrived at Bill’s that he really dislikes Elvis (not quite his words, but these sound kinder). During the performance, Big Elvis requested four male volunteers from the audience. Immediately Erik’s favorite females are pointing and volunteering him. I was very surprised how easily Erik gave in. When I asked him about this later, he told me he knew he had no choice as we would be relentless until he volunteered. If I ever wished I owned a video camera, this was the moment. Erik was absolutely hysterical dancing around Elvis and strumming his inflatable guitar. The other three contestants were like statutes. Erik claims he would have won hands down if it were not for the gentleman who was also on stage celebrating his 45th wedding anniversary. Erik said he only tied due to sentimental applause from the audience. I wish I could say that Erik was very happy to win a certificate saying he performed with Big Elvis and won a Big Elvis cd.

    Last year during our three sister trip we went to Hooter’s and had the best night of our trip dancing in the Damn Dixie Bar to an awesome band. Even though we had only played machines there for approximately 20 minutes each last August, Tammy and I had received coupons for two free shows for two people to see Todd Paul and Men of X. Being that Erik is outvoted, he begrudgingly goes to both shows with his favorite gals. Todd Paul is a comedian/magician and his show was very entertaining. Men of X was similar to the Chippendales (I’m guessing here), but cheesy. We were happy that our tickets to Men of X were free or we would have requested a refund. We were hoping to go dancing in the Damn Dixie Bar after the shows but found out that they only had the great band last year. If we stayed at the bar, we would have the opportunity to meet the Men of X. Taxi, please?

    Erik and I played cards together at Fremont after Marsha and Tammy said goodnight. I was sitting on first base and Erik was on fifth base so it was easy to converse with each other. We swore the waitress had roller blades on as we could not keep up with the flowing drinks. Erik (into his cups) starts embellishing on his childhood and telling the table about his horrible time growing up. I know he is totally joking, but the table was engrossed in his tales of his horrific upbringing. Throughout the BJ session we would each pool $20.00 and see what profit we could combine. Great night with my son and we both ended up leaving the table with a nice profit. Bedtime was at 3:30 a.m.

    THURSDAY

    I woke up at 10:30 to our final day in this great city. None of us can believe how fast this week has flown by. We met Erik at MSS for the lunch buffet. Using our 2:1 coupons and combining some comps, the buffet for four people came to 64 cents. We took a cab to the Outlet Mall as Erik and Tammy had never been there. I was hoping to treat myself to something special from my one great win of the trip. Erik made some clothing purchases that he cannot find overseas, Marsha bought a watch for herself and a Coach purse for her daughter, Tammy bought a bracelet for her daughter, and I returned downtown empty handed.

    After shopping, we headed back downtown for our last night of cards and still hopeful that we would get that one great run. “Our†table was waiting for us at the Spike and the cards were difficult. Many group hugs and handshakes with our new friends. We all thanked Rita for the memories of many fun evenings at the Spike that we will always remember. We exchanged email addresses and promised to stay in touch.

    Erik agreed to give the dreaded California Club one last chance to redeem themselves. Luckily, the two of us managed to make $100 each and did not want to push our luck. We decided to call it a night knowing Tammy would stay up until our arranged 5:15 meet to catch a cab for the airport. Typically, I would stay up all night also, but I knew when I got home my son, Jay, would be home from Seattle on leave and I did not want to be exhausted when I saw him. I also was aware that I didn’t want to waste time taking a shower at 4:30. I concentrated on sleeping on my back so I wouldn’t get “bed hairâ€. Sorry, Marsha, that my snoring disrupted your sleep.

    All four of us met at the cab stand at the Plaza at 5:15 to catch our 7:30 a.m. flight. Marsha told me that I was snoring like crazy during the flight home. Very sorry about that too, but I slept great for another three hours.

    FINAL NOTES

    I am very fortunate to have Vegas buddies that travel so well together. I have a great son, awesome sister, and, of course, the BI.

    Tammy and I are hoping that the middle sister, Colleen (Colletta) is able to join the festivities in August 2010. Throughout the entire trip Tammy and I would say “Colleen would really be having fun right now†or “Colleen would be very loud right nowâ€.

    It was an added bonus to spend a weekend in Vegas with my daughter-in-law for her first time there.

    Airfare, hotel, food, tipping, and Mystere cost me under $200.
    It was a winning trip for me and it feels great to be able to put money aside for August 2010. Even had the trip not been profitable, you just can’t put a price on spending a week in Vegas with your sister, son, and the BI.
     
  2. sabrina

    sabrina Low roller

    Joined:
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    TN
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    I really enjoyed your report!!
     
    Seinfield
  3. redzone

    redzone Low-Roller

    Joined:
    Jan 13, 2009
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    Thanks for the great report and great trip. I went with my son for the first time earlier this year and it will be a trip I will never forget.
     
  4. keno

    keno obsessed with countdown timers

    Joined:
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    Thanks for the TR!
     
  5. chef

    chef Resident Buffetologist

    Joined:
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    The Spike get slammed a lot, just because of its previous reputation - so it's neat to hear from someone that sings its praises.
    After hearing you describe the service you received there, it makes me want to check it out.
     
  6. VegasDiva

    VegasDiva VIP Whale

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    great TR you folks know how to enjoy Vegas :)
     
  7. timmysmom

    timmysmom Low-Roller

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    Awesome trip report!
     
  8. texas_aggie_girl_93

    texas_aggie_girl_93 VIP Whale

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    Messages:
    2,251
    Location:
    Katy, TX
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    39
    Great report! Thanks for posting.

    Congrats on a winning trip! That's always a nice feeling.
     
  9. darnae

    darnae High-Roller

    Joined:
    Aug 28, 2007
    Messages:
    558
    Location:
    St. Robert, MO
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    9
    Great report!!
     
  10. Jamie in PA

    Jamie in PA High-Roller

    Joined:
    Jan 25, 2003
    Messages:
    737
    Location:
    Greensburg PA
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    24
    Great report!!!
     
  11. Kuch1000

    Kuch1000 Low-Roller

    Joined:
    Mar 2, 2008
    Messages:
    136
    Location:
    Kansas City, MO
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    25
    Was this a special offer you received, or does any Club Cortez member get $50 in free play during their birthday month? Just curious since we love the 'Tez and will be visiting during my birthday month. Thanks and very detailed report - love it!
     
  12. DonD

    DonD VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Nov 5, 2004
    Messages:
    9,135
    Location:
    So Cal 91748
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    300
    Whenever you go to the El Co, aways go to the club desk and ask them if you have any goodies coming. We have been surprised on many occasions. :peace:
     
  13. zerofan

    zerofan VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Mar 26, 2009
    Messages:
    2,241
    Location:
    New York
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    22
    Awesome report because I love downtown also!!

    Plus I killed a ton of time at work, reading each part......good job!
     
  14. northerngirl

    northerngirl High-Roller

    Joined:
    Jul 3, 2007
    Messages:
    813
    Location:
    Northern Minnesota
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    40
    I received the offer in the mail from the Cortz. However, it never hurts to check at the casino player's club to see if they give anything for your birthday month.
     
  15. Dewey089

    Dewey089 VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Aug 4, 2001
    Messages:
    4,786
    Location:
    averill park ny
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    26
    Thanks for the report. Great details. Good to have yet another note on the Spike.
     
  16. GrtWitHntr

    GrtWitHntr Low-Roller

    Joined:
    Oct 16, 2007
    Messages:
    241
    Location:
    So California
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    50
    Great Report and well written, very entertaining!
     
  17. gotavegasjones

    gotavegasjones VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2004
    Messages:
    3,104
    Location:
    South Texas
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    31
    Great TR.

    later, GVJ
     
  18. Gambler15

    Gambler15 Tourist

    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2009
    Messages:
    42
    Location:
    British Columbia, Canada
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    6
    WOW I really enjoyed reading your trip report! You ladies sound like a real "hoot" to be around! I would love to sit at a bj table with you! Great to hear you enjoying life. :beer:
     
  19. marcianofan

    marcianofan High-Roller

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2009
    Messages:
    841
    Location:
    portland, or
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    50
    I thought BI meant Bi-sexual, not bad influence,hehe. I love DT also. I stopped at the spike last trip but didn't have enough time to really 'experience' it.I did like Binions better than its been the last few years but you have to really watch the BJ tables when you sit down. You ladies do sound like a lot of fun. Tks for the TR....
     
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