Weird Vegas Trip For Me -- Jan 16th - 23rd

#1.....I haven't been to VEGAS in the winter time
in well over a decade.
So, this was a weird trip just to start off.
My packing was different....no golf shirts - only 1 pair of shorts /
jeans ( long pants ?.....in VEGAS ? )....a jacket !???!...?:Þ
.
#2......Flight from NYC --
from Pittsburgh to Kansas City.........oh god........TURBULENCE !
And more weird.....I was sober !
It was a morning fllight....so I was trying to arrive sober for
a long afternoon of NFL playoff games......when I would erase
any sobriety !
I am not an "easy" flyer......I do not "do" rollercoasters !
The jet took a dip + several screams were heard.....It wasn't me -
but my knuckles were white !
We were in turbulence several times for 25 minute legs.
Oddly....we arrived ONE hour EARLY !...??....how the hell did that happen ?
.
#3......After 3 days ( at MSS ) my wife turns to me, and says -
" Geez, I feel like we've been here for a week, already ! "
I was amazed cos I was feeling the same --- but I have no idea why ?
Normally, the days FLY BY - way too fast.
.
#4.......And here's my WEIRDEST Vega experience ----
Yup....the dreaded FOOD POISONING !
Now, I have always had a "problem" w/ the Vegas tap water -
It gives me a slight case of "the trots" - so I avoid drinking it.
I did have a glass at breakfast ( on our 5th morning ) +
very promptly had to hit the casino floor bathroom.
My wife, too.
I had a few stomach cramps....but then was fine the entire day.
I forgot all about it.\
Got some Panda Express (chinese) at the food court - and we
retired to our room for bed.My wife ate something else.
Awoke in the middle of the nite - very uncomfortable at first ---
Then.....all hell broke loose !
I wretched SO LOUD........I figured I had to wake our neighbors !
Next 4 hours were HELL
I spent the ENTIRE 6th day of vacation lying in bed -
watching the "Burn Notice" marathon on TV.
I didn't eat for 24 hrs.
Wow !.......thank god- it was not my last vacation day or travel day !!!!!
.
#5........SNOW !..........in VEGAS !.....????........this is CRAZY !
It rained all week long.
We could not see The Strip from our Red Rock windows.
Aiport delays.....thick clouds.
Then, we had to turn the heat up in our room....a Vegas "First" for me.
My wife says "Hey..it's snowing ! "
I laughed + said "You are not gonna get me to look."
Well.....there were photos in the next day's paper of a kid throwing
snowballs in
"the Red Rock recreation area."
The Canyon Mt. peaks were beautiful + we were right there !
.
So.....this is end of part I
.
Gambling....Jersey Boys....and more rain....to follow.

 

That sucks about the food poisoning!

I had the same experience of only being there for 4 nights and it felt like 40. Not really, but it felt longer than 4 nights.

 

The lovely jet stream.

Bumpy as hell especially if it's a tail wind, but it sure gets you places faster

The jet stream can sometimes be moving in excess of 150MPH...hence the bumpiness when you enter it.

 

lol @ bouncing into Vegas a bit early Turbulence is no fun

sorry to hear about the food poisoning, that makes for a blah trip

looking forward to the rest of your report

 

The Jet Stream flows WEST to EAST.
Hence, our return flights to NYC pretty
much arrive 15 - 30 mins early every flight.
.
I have NEVER arrived 60 mins early to McCarran
flying AGAINST the stream.
I'm guessing, a counter-clockwise, front of bad
weather, may have propelled us FASTER ? toward the west.
.
I saw on our TV screen -
The pilot took the plane down to 26,000 ft
from the usual 32,000 ft.
.
Still.....one hour early,,,,is a record !
.
.
Zerofan,
So, the Time Warp thing has happenned to you, as well -
i just can't figure out why.
Was it because i had no "pool time" ?

 

It is usually because I am losing! The days just go on and on and on!

 

A flight from Chicago was formerly (several years ago) schedule for 3:15 to Vegas and 3:00 from Vegas.

Now, it seems like both flights are scheduled for 4:00 to maintain their "on-time" arrival rates and to allow for more nonsense waiting for gates / take-off ramps. As a result, being 1/2 hour late is touted as 15 / 30 minutes early.

Most likely a portion of your time savings was due to these airline shenanigans.

Joe, sorry to hear you were sick in Vegas. Looking forward to the rest of your report.

 

I had the misfortune of having Food Poisoning in Vegas 2 years ago. It was awful. I fly all the way to Vegas for the Superbowl only to be forced to sit on the bowl for the whole game with the TV up loud so I could hear it from the bathroom and my friends texting me every 10 minutes telling me what a (insert insult of your choice here) I was because I wasn't at the bar with them.

To this day I don't know what caused it because I didn't eat anything different from my friends, and they were fine. You mention tap water....I don't know if I had any or not, but I'm certainly gonna avoid it when I go out for the Superbowl this year.

It's the only time I've ever had food poisoning in my life, and it was brutal. My body felt like it was hit by a truck, I had constant explosive diarhea and the inevitable 'ring of fire' that comes with it, and couldn't eat anything, much less drink, gamble and raise hell, which is the reason to come to Vegas. For 48 hours I was like a prisoner in my room.

Still....it was better than being at work.


TFK

 

Let me know when you book your next trip, so I can avoid booking the same week. If it wasn't for bad luck, you wouldn't have any luck. Bummer on the trip, vegas owes you a big one.

 

sorry to hear about the food poisoning!

Will have to keep the tap water thing in mind, sometimes all the booze has the opposite effect.

 

A lot of the flight times (arrival times) are factoring in delayed departure gate time in loading the plane, taxi and line up time in the runway for takeoff, maybe not getting a direct shot in on approach and having to do a lap around Vegas out towards Lake Mead, waiting for a gate to open upon landing, etc, so they build in a time buffer to account for all this to keep their on time records fairly intact. If you hit all these factors on time (load the plane on time, first in line for takeoff, direct approach without circling, and coupled with the jet stream (?) you could possibly make up as much as an hour.

From L.A. area, they always claim our flight time is 1:15 - 1:30 depending on airport, when the flights are really about 45 minutes. All of the extra time alloted is for the above factors possibly making for a longer "flight" time.

 

PART 2 ...Vegas Jan 16th - 23rd

So......
My NY Jets are to take on the mighty San Diego Chargers.
I can't wait for the game + Sunday has arrived.
I do play craps....so I can sense the Jets are "on a roll" -
forget the entire regular season !......forget the talking heads
on TV + radio !......forget the point spread !
These Jets are on a roll !
So, I go looking for the best "Money line"...... I'm downtown -
so I look around and find +260....and +280.
I was hoping for ALOT more but.......I think "the bookies" still have
the NY Giants playoff run to the Superbowl Champs still
burned into their minds -- I believe that Money Line was about
+650....and they got hurt financially on that line -
So, I bet $100 at The Cal......+280 on The Jets to win OUTRIGHT !
Of course, they win !
And the $280 I won would be my best win of my trip .
No Royal Flushes this trip !
.
.
My wife had told me "We're gonna see "Jersey Boys" this trip.
We check Tickets4Tonight at The 4 Queens -- and buy 2 seats
at a 30 percent discount.
We head up to The Venetian early + get our seats assigned.
We get 2 row / middle loge/ --- excellent seats !
We've got time to kill........
I buy the 2 disc - 4 Season's anthology CD - in the store front
next to the theater entrance.
The price was steep......$30....but I know, if I don't buy it now...
I'll never get around to it.
We go out to the Casino + look for some VP bartop action.
We almost choke on the payscales !
I have not gambled on The Strip for many years + this was
a shock !
We found 6/5 JOB !.........holy crap !
"Oh...fuggit.......we settle in anyway."
Funny thing was - my $20 lasted quite awhile - I got several
Heine's out of it + my wife had a couple umbrella drinks -
it worked out.....and even after i quit playing the bartender
set me up w/ a freebie while i just sat there.
Amazing what a decent tip + friendly chat will do.
.
.
Jersey Boys
Great show !
Alot of my childhood flashed before me when those songs started up.
I was on a school bus, with a school boy crush, on Nancy...?....
geez, I can't remember her last name now ?....but the sound track
of that memory was "Sherry".
Blasting away from the bus driver's radio + watching her walk down
the bus aisle !
Man, was I transported back in time !
.
I knew some of the history of The 4 Season's beforehand.
And as a songwriter, myself - I was in awe of Bob Gaudio's prolific
catalogue of hits ! The guy had ALWAY'S amazed me.
What I took away from this show, that night.....was....
the Frankie Valli performer was solid....but...I felt his falsetto
voice was his weakest asset.
Which as I tossed it over + over in my mind -- points me to
the fact that the REAL Frankie Valli's falsetto voice was
INCREDIBLY amazing !
I have renewed respect for his unique sound.....just .....WOW !!!!
.
.
I gotta tell ya -
The Strip was SO CROWDED.....I am not used to it.
I stay Off Strip + Downtown ( mainly ) for the last decade of trips.
We grabbed The Duece outside Venetian.........and sit......and sit....
on a bus that was not moving !....WTF ?
After 10 mins - I hear some complaining on the lower level.
I'm starting to get pissed, too --- glad someone is saying something !
Bus finally lurches forward......and stops at Wynn.
We sit...........and sit.........and sit.........
Now, i hear more complaining downstairs -- apparently, these
young guys have drinks + the bus driver's had enough !
But I'm all for these guy's complaining -- cos why the hell are we
sitting here ?
Bus driver orders them "OFF ! The BUS !"
They leave........we sit.
After we get passed Wynn....we get on a regular pace.....
and yes....even I raise my voice down the stairwell -
"C'mon let's get going !"
.
We get back to MSS -
I play VP at Boar Bar w/ no luck.
Not much luck this whole trip, really....but I never lost my money
management skills !
I did take a break + have a Cherry Ale in 777 Brew Pub.
Normally, I don't care for cherry ale....but this was PERFECT !
Our 3 nite stay at MSS was over + we were "Taken care of "
once again.
We will return in the spring !
.
On to Red Rock !
.
I just wish it would STOP RAINING !:Þ
.
Part 3...next.
Thanks for reading.

 

6/5 JOB? Boy, the casinos are really finding new ways to increase revenue. I wonder if they feel that the average gambler does not even look at pay tables, much less understand if the pay scale is good or bad.

 

Nice again Joe.....good pick with the Jets on the moneyline, I just hope you didnt do it this past weekend against Indy, they are the real deal.

 

I couldn't even watch the second game this weekend -
I was so heartbroken after the Jets lost.
As soon as Manning took control - I said,
"Oh, sh*t !......here goes the season !"
.
I did watch some of the Convention Types playing VP
around me at The Venetian Bar.
I don't think they were very good at VP.
I might even guess, they didn't even look at the payscales !
6/5 might be the worst I've ever seen, now that I think
about it ?
BTW...the beers were about $8 or $9 a piece.
I know why I don't stay/play at Venetian.

 

Thanks for posting your TR.

later, GVJ

 

Thanks for the report. Awful to start off with a turbulent flight, then get food poisoning. I loved the Jersey Boys show. I was there same time as you and hated the rain.

 

Part 3.... Jan.16th -23rd... "Rain + Snow ?"

Okay....I'm reading my notes at this point.
I'll fill in anything I forgot to mention.
.
McCarran to Plaza ( downtown )via Paradise Rd.
Cabfare was $26.50
I'll mention this because most cabbies are taking us
Downtowner's via the highway.
The usual excuse I hear "Not that way...too much construction ! -
The highway is faster."
No...it's more expensive - it'll run ya about $8-$10 more.
.
.
3 "twenty-something" yr. olds sitting behind us on the plane -
NEVER SHUT UP the entire first 2 hours of the flight.
This was a morning flight....everyone else was trying to sleep.
Even w/ my earbuds on...that droning conversation NEVER ceased.
.
.
I see my first day losses were ONLY .... -$66.....not too bad
Sun/Day #2.....MSS......VP + NFL Bet : +$222
Mon/Day #3......VP/Craps/slots : - $150
Tue/Day#4......moved to Red Rock....Craps/VP : -$190
Wed/Day#5.......VP/slots.........5x points...a zillion points,but......-$260
...............Got my very FIRST "Senior Discount" of my life at RR
movie theater. Finally, saw "Blindside".
Sandra Bullock deserves an Oscar.
A great tear jerking/comedy !
Also.....this was "Food Poison Evening" !
.
THRS/Day#6........"I didn't lose !!!!"......I laid in bed trying to recover.
..................never left my room, so, no losses in the casino.
It SNOWED !!!!!....and Rained....and snowed !....and rained !
.
FRI/Day#7......VP : -$150
.....................I racked up a zillion points on my card....but
didn't win,today.
.
.
Finally, met the guy from Marketing who sets me up w/ offers at
Red Rock.
I told him "we'll be back in late spring"
he said, "You have the same standing offers."
Funny thing is......Red Rock's Check-in Desk ---NEVER HAS
THE CORRECT COMP OFFERS."
I swear they do it to me on purpose ?
Like I'll forget exactly what offer i was given ?
I ALWAYS have to straighten it out.
"No...it was 4 comp'd nites, not just two.......and there is NO
RESORT FEE.":Þ
Every time, they try to pull that on me ?
.
.
So that's about it -
A VEGAS Week + all I paid was airfare + $125 for meals ---
everything else was Comp'd.
Wish I had better luck at VP........it beats working !
"I LOVE VEGAS - IN A BAD ECONOMY !":evillaugh

 

Well that Thursday had to suck Joe, but you rested, got better and didnt lose money that day!

Thanks for sharing Joe!

 

Zerofan -
When are you headed out, again ?
I usually go in late April ---
but I might go in May, when I know it'll be
hotter.......haven't decided ?......but
Virgin America is running a great airfare -
I have to book in the next couple days --
so I'll have to decide + book quickly.