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Vegas 2010 21st June - 8th July Semi-Live TR

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by Marky147, Jun 20, 2010.

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  1. Marky147

    Marky147 VIP Whale

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    My Trip Report

    I'm currently in a hotel at Gatwick airport before I fly out to Vegas for my 4th trip and 3rd consecutive summer in Vegas. I'll be playing some poker at the Venetian in their deepstack series, possibly a couple at the GN too.

    A little background on myself would be the best thing I suppose....

    I'm Marky as you can probably guess, I'm 29 years old from the UK. I was a poker player/lazy degenerate from xmas 2004 until the beginning of 2009.

    The reason for stopping, I was diagnosed with MS. The Dr said that obviously stress is linked to relapses and poker is quite stressful as a job. I couldn't really argue the point and had to stop playing fulltime.

    I didn't move away from the industry altogether and now work as a manager for the company who I was involved with when playing. In a way getting the condition has helped me out as my life is a lot more balanced than it was before. I also get to have more fun in Vegas as opposed to spending all day in the ice cold cardrooms :beer:

    Enough emo nonsense anyway, I'll try to update semi regularly and limit the poker content as I know it can be quite boring to those who are heavily into poker, nevermind those who aren't :evillaugh

    I think BeeeJay has set the bar too high really and made things rough on us mortals. I will try to remember to post anything entertaining that transpires amongst our group. Embarrassing or not and I'll give mini reports on dinners etc.

    Just don't expect too much as I was never that great at putting thoughts down onto paper. Hopefully I provide a little entertainment and not an epic fail. Here we go Vegas 2010 is almost here!!!!
     
  2. Marky147

    Marky147 VIP Whale

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    There's no real plans set out for the trip aside from a few poker parties put on by the sites we're associated with.

    Staying at Harrahs the night we arrive as the Palazzo was $500 for the 21st.

    Palazzo 22nd-29th

    Wynn 29th-8th

    We plan on going to see 'O', Terry Fator and Love. Nothing else is planned as of yet, if anyone has any suggestions and we get time then it would be appreciated.

    Food wise I would like to get to SW, Cut for def and Lotus of Siam off strip. I've got lots of others that I'll no doubt remember as I go.

    Drinking is most likely to be the main part of the trip and of course I've got my Roulette numbers from Beeejay so putting those into play some nights (at a much downsized betsize) will be fun too.

    I've been before but I just can't sleep, like a kid waiting for xmas day!!
     
  3. breanna61

    breanna61 Super Moderator

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    Have a great trip Mark; looking forward to your live updates! I'll be in Vegas June 30th - July 3rd.:eek:
     
  4. Lovegas95

    Lovegas95 Too much work...need more play.

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    Live the moment!

    I understand the disease of MS as my wife was diagnosed a few years ago. Although you carry it with you, there's nothing quite like a Vegas jaunt to de-stress and live the moment. Have fun and good luck! Thanks for the TR.
     
  5. jgates8

    jgates8 VIP Whale

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    My suggestion for a show - Human Nature at the Imperial Palace.
     
    Easter again..:
  6. BeeeJay

    BeeeJay President of The Red Lobster Hostess Satisfaction

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    thanks for doing this report, it may just help me surive the next 2 weeks at work before my next trip.

    we will be neighbors at wynn-encore 8uly 2-5 so we will have to meet up and clean out one of those roulette tables!

    good luck,hope u win big!
     
  7. Gino

    Gino "The King of Inappropriate."

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    Welcome Mark. My sister in law has MS, and I know the ravages and swings of the disease as well. However, a nice relaxing trip to the desert is exactly what you need. Good luck and here's to you beating the tables and more importantly MS:beer:..

    Gino
     
  8. JaviSRK

    JaviSRK High-Roller

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    I am also looking forward to the updates! I'll be in Jun 25 - July 1. Planning a live trip report as well!
     
  9. Blondie76

    Blondie76 Low-Roller

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    Stay hydrated

    Important to remember the heat may be less way tolerable with your MS. Drink lots of water and try to avoid too much activity out in the heat. Good luck with your poker sessions. I am looking forward to reading your continuing report. :)
     
  10. pumpkinfish

    pumpkinfish Tourist

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    Marky I'm here and following right along!!! Hope you have/had safe flights and will be checking in often to read your adventures :beer:.
     
  11. pebbles

    pebbles Micro Roller.

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    Have a good one Marky, I'll be checking out your posts.
     
  12. Marky147

    Marky147 VIP Whale

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    Vegas Baby!!!!

    (Crawfs is my room-mate for the trip a poker buddy of mine from Scotland)

    So we arrived at around 3pm Vegas time after an uneventful flight and surprisingly the queue at immigration is non-existent. We scoot through and await our baggage which also arrives quickly too. Out to the taxi stand to find there is no queue here too, I'm starting to get confused now as on my 3 previous trips, we've been like 100 ppl deep min waiting for cabs... I'm not complaining though :)

    20 mins later we're at Harrahs for our 1 night stay before we move to Palazzo. Must be a lot of conventions in town I think as I tried to book the first night at Palazzo and it came out at $499 for just a standard suite. We walk through the doors and I'm greeted by a gargantuan queue, It's probably the biggest I've ever seen. Crawfski's face screws up as he sees this and I let him sweat for 30 seconds before I swerve into the Diamond check-in and explain my situation. The lady is most helpful and within 5 minutes I have our keys which she hands over saying 'You guys have a great room'.

    Well I had booked a 'deluxe' twin so not sure how great that can be I think as we hit the elevators and make our way up. 30th floor so I think we must have scored a sick view or something, I should have known better. We enter the room and there is a sofa, tv, 4 person dining table and a fridge and a doorway to a bedroom with....... Yep you guessed it 1 bed :grrr:

    I'm so tired and after only a few hours sleep, none on the plane bar a couple 30 minute dozes and just say whatever we're only here one night anyway lets just suck it up and I'll take the sofa. On the upside the bathroom is magnificent, there is a jacuzzi tub in the corner, twin vanities and a walk-in shower big enough for a 5-a-side Soccer team.

    I take a shower,change and decide I need to get some room service. Crawfs is itching to go play some poker and shoots off down to the cardroom. My Chicken tenders and Strawberry shake arrives about 30 minutes later and it's edible but nothing special. I'm so tired though it probably tastes better than it actually is in reality.

    I can't find much worth watching on TV so flash up my laptop and put on one of the few episodes of House MD I haven't seen yet from S6. Travel 6000 miles to catch up on TV shows hahaha. I didn't even make the end of 1 episode before I crashed out. Crawfs woke me up when he arrived back at araound 8pm asking me about some hands he played, I was half asleep and think I just nodded my head a couple times and gave autopilot answers before falling asleep again.

    I've just woken up now and was toying with the idea of a midnight stroll but decided that would probably end up badly. Watching a movie and trying to grab a few more hours sleep so I'm fresh for tomorrow is the smart move and what I'm gonna try and do.

    Thanks for all the good wishes everyone they're much appreciated, I see there are a few of us out here at the same time so hopefully we can all catch up and take somewhere to the cleaners.... or just get blinding drunk :drunk:

    Best wishes to your wife Lovegas and your sister Gino, hope they both hang in there doing well until they can progress with treating us. Things in the pipeline are getting exciting so hopefully they can finally start to work out how to repair damage instead of just trying to slow it down.

    I know what you mean Blondie with regard to heat as a lot of my friends over in America with MS suffer in the heat. I don't have to worry about it too much in England :evillaugh

    Thankfully in the 2 years I've been here since I had MS the hot weather hasn't affected me. I've probably jinxed myself now and it will this year haha

    Hopefully my next update will have something a little more interesting than Greg House and Chicken tenders :)
     
  13. jimowl

    jimowl Tourist

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    looks like it's a busy few weeks out there. we fly out in 8 days and i'm soooo excited. have a great time Mark. Assuming we sneak past Slovenia do you plan to watch the world cup anywhere in particular? I fancy a trip up to Lagasse Stadium (the 1/4's are whilst we are in town) or a cabana at the Aria pool if they have tv's that will be showing the games (ESPN?).
     
  14. sam_marques

    sam_marques Vegas Vlogs Youtube / TeamClareVlogs

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    Enjoying your updates so far, hope you're having a FAB time, looking forward to more live TR updates:beer:
     
  15. Marky147

    Marky147 VIP Whale

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    I'm watching the match today in my room as I got a bit carried away last night. Crawfs and I were back in the room at 1am after getting owned by a bartender at the Rio :drunk:

    Few of my friends went to Lagasse for the Eng v USA match. Think they have suites or something you can hire and by all accounts it was good I gather from the pics. All games are on ESPN yeah, I just play it by ear according to how much of a mess I'm in on the day of the games lol
     
  16. Marky147

    Marky147 VIP Whale

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    So yesterday we moved into the Palazzo, we checked out of Harrahs around 1030am and cabbed it over there. I said to Crawfs that we would most likely just have to leave our bags with baggage services and come back in the afternoon. As it happened there was no queue so I asked if a room was available and we got checked in right away.

    Got a strip view on the 41st floor, once we'd unpacked our stuff we took a walk over to Fashion Show so I could get ripped off for a phone charger ($45) :grrr: Still my own fault for leaving mine at home. We then headed back and grabbed some lunch at the Grand Lux. I had a 2 eggs breakfast and Crawfs had the Soup & Salad with a sandwich both of which as always is the case were good.

    I was a little tired so headed up to the room to chill for a while whilst Crawfs went to the pool for a while. It had gotten pretty hot and whilst I don't mind the heat, I've never been much of a pool kind of guy. I have been blessed with my mother's complexion, which means any attempt at tanning results in me going red-white-red-white-red-white... highly irritating so I just tend not to bother :evillaugh

    I got a call from Ewan the guy who I arranged the room through, he works for SportingBet/Paradise Poker. They had booked a block of rooms for the WSOP and after scaling down their packages came to be left with a bunch. They were being sold off for £600/$900 for 7nights with internet/gym access all included which is a steal basically.

    They also have a Paradise suite up on the 47th floor which has a big screen tv, pool table and bar in the corner which is free for the week. We headed up around teatime to introduce ourselves to a couple of the other guys. There are also a couple Escalades which we can call up at anytime and the girls pick us up and take us wherever. Pretty cushy deal in honesty and prob the best £600 I've spent for a while.

    After a couple beers we now had the taste for it so head back to the room to shower and change. Crawfs wanted to go buyin to the WSOP event he's playing on Friday so we headed over to do this and meet up with a couple guys from home who were playing in the event running currently. When we arrived they were just finishing up in Mah Jong as I was to find out later the food was about as appetising as it looks.

    One of the 3 guys was out so he retired to the Shutters bar for a few beers and some people watching. We started on the beers and after a few hours decided to get the Vodka and Amaretto going. This bartender who we had been tipping well like 3-5bucks a round, poured the first shot of Vodka and basically filled the glass and had to give another for the mixer. As you can imagine half a dozen round of what must have been at least trebles, things started to deteriorate :drunk:

    Pete who was the third guy has never been to vegas before and I had told him about the bar being a popular spot for the working females of Vegas. We were sat at the far corner right by the high limit lounge and as I had finished telling Pete about this, a girl sat down on the other side of the bar next to a guy sat alone. I said to him that she was working, he was sceptical as to how I could be sure. I said if she orders a drink that's non alcoholic which she drinks slowly, starts playing VP slowly then you can be quite sure.
    Sure enough 30mins later she's hardly sipped her Red Bull :evillaugh

    Unfortunately due to lack of sleep over the last few days, Crawfs and I started to feel the effects of our bartender's over zealous pouring arm and headed to Mah Jong to try and soak up some alcohol with a quick bite. I had the General's Chicken with steamed rice and he had Chicken with mix Veg. Neither were particualrly good and I think Panda Express is much better lol.

    This didn't work and after a quick and loud stop at the Roulette for a couple spins which amused the guys already playing no end. Crawfs threw $100 on red and when it came in the shouting that ensued led to the guy asking if we were from England once we told him we were the high fives came out and they were loving it. As we walked away 5 minutes later I heard one of the guys girlfriend asking him if we were football hooligans :drunk:

    Things had caught up with us and the new bartender on our return wasn't as much fun so we decided to call it a night. The football was on at 7am so it all fit quite well. Leaving at midnight ensured we'd be up to watch the match today. At the moment I'm glad we did as we're winning 1-0 :banana:

    Tonight is the paradise poker party at Lavo, never been there before so should be fun to check it out. Gonna try and have a quiet day to ensure there are no early finishes tomorrow!!!

    Time for some room service breakfast and the 2nd half :beer:
     
  17. BeeeJay

    BeeeJay President of The Red Lobster Hostess Satisfaction

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    great reports, loving every painfully drunken moment of it!!!
    :drunk:
     
  18. sam_marques

    sam_marques Vegas Vlogs Youtube / TeamClareVlogs

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    Love it!! What a good deal you got for 600 Pounds. More More More!! BTW What a game:evillaugh
     
  19. Londonlady

    Londonlady Guest

    Great trip report so far!!:thumbsup: I loved the comment from the guys girlfriend!!:drunk:
     
  20. Marky147

    Marky147 VIP Whale

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    Not much activity yesterday really, we spent most of the day in the Paradise poker suite watching sport. Firstly the 2nd WC match in which Germany became our opponents in the 2nd round. Gives us a chance to extract some revenge for '90 and '06 :)

    After the England game we went up to the room Paradise have hired out for the week. I'm not sure exactly what type of suite it is but there's a pool table and complimentary bar. In the room which is separate from the lounge area there's also a gym and jacuzzi tub. The only part of it that seems to be used is the lounge though :beer:

    After a lazy afternoon upstairs we returned to the room to grab a quick power nap before the Paradise party at Lavo in the evening. We headed back up to the suite around 10pm for a few pre party drinks and to catch up with a few of the other guys there with Paradise too.

    Around 11 we headed down to Lavo where they had booked out the whole patio area for the group. It's the first time I've been to Lavo and have to say it's a very nice club/lounge. I'm not usually a great lover of the 'table service' style of nights out and much prefer strip crawling and the Harrahs/ 'O' Sheas type of night out. I find it a little uncomfortable having someone stood next to your table for no other purpose than to pour you drinks. Maybe it's me that's strange I don't know?

    I thought I was fully adjusted and had caught up with all the sleep I'd missed during travelling but after a few hours in Lavo and with the night only just getting into swing I found myself falling into a Ketel 1 induced coma. I headed back to the room around 130am which is a little irritating and unfortunately leads to a poor update :grrr:

    Just about to head out to watch the second game after waking up to find Italy lost to Slovakia and are out of the WC. Some surprising results thus far in the tournament and hopefully England can throw another one in there and beat Germany on Sunday!!

    I'm probably going to be playing a tournament tomorrow so the plan is to stay sober. Given my track record thus far I won't be surprised if playing is cancelled and I end up skipping the tourney and making a similar report again tomorrow. Hopefully I will actually remember everything that happens today though.... :drunk:
     
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