Vegas Baby! Sister's Edition

There are a few things you should know about Las Vegas before you go.

• If you go in the summer it will be HOT.  100-110 degree are we in a sauna hot; but the warm nights feel amazing.  
• There is no need for a car but there will be tons of walking.  I mean, miles and miles of walking.  It could take you a good 10 minutes just to walk through one of the larger hotels.  Pack your shoes accordingly.  
• Drinking alcoholic beverages in public is perfectly acceptable so your drinks are free to travel with you.  There will be people walking around in the streets with giant waist high drinks; and if you want one for yourself expect to pay about $30 bucks for it!  
• In the streets you will see people dressed up like movie characters and super heroes and doing random street performances.  Yes, you can take pictures with them if you want to.
• No need to worry if you forget something.  There is a Walgreens, CVS and two Ross's right on the strip.  
• You will see go go dancers in casinos on poker tables just dancing their little hearts out while people play cards like business as usual.  You might be shocked at first but eventually it all seems quite normal.
• There is plenty to do besides gamble.  There is something for everyone.
• There are tons of coupons, 2 for 1's and other deals to be had for shows and dinners once you get there.  It is a place of excess and luxury but you can go there on a budget.
• There will be malls filled with many many stores that you can only dream about shopping in.  Good luck finding a cash register in any of these posh high end stores (not that you will need it).  They hide them in the back so the actual exchange of $1,000 for that pair of shoes is oh so discreet.

The drive there on Friday was all good until an overturned big rig had us sitting in traffic for 1 hr and 45 minutes.  We were pretty outdone by the time we finally checked into our hotel but so happy and excited to finally be there.  It's changed so much in three years!  The Vdara and the Cosmopolitan hotels were still being built when I was here last.  We stayed at Polo Towers where I have a timeshare which is a non casino hotel but a perfect location right in the middle of the strip.  It was 1 bedroom, one bath and a full kitchen so it felt more homey and less like a hotel room and we had plenty of room to store snacks and drinks.  We made our own much needed Margarita's on the rocks with light margarita mix and Tequila and drank it on the way over to MGM Grand where we ate dinner at the Rain Forest Cafe.  Then we hung out at the hotel and waited for little sister who had a late flight in.

 

Me and big sis Dani

At the Pool at Harrah's

 

We were at Ross at 9am Saturday morning right when they opened.  Little sis brought work out gear but no tennis shoes and it was imperative that we find a decent going out dress for my older sister.  She shows up in Vegas with a dress more appropriate for a company Holiday Party and we could not let her go out like that!  I don't know what the heck she was thinking!  We worked out at the gym and then walked all the way to The Flamingo to meet my friend J at the pool.  One problem.  This is a major party pool.  The music was loud, there were bodies everywhere and no place to sit.  They even had a poor tired looking bikini clad go go dancer in a little cage dancing in 102 degree heat.  We couldn't take it so we went over to Harrah's where J was actually staying dropped off our beach bags in her room, ate lunch and then went to their much more relaxed pool.

Out to Dinner

Me and my LBD

Out at the Club

Dancing All Night Long

Lil' Sis and Me

Normally even the idea of going out at 10:30 at night is exhausting and I'm ready to end my night by then but in Vegas I sucked it up because I didn't go there to watch a movie and go to bed.  We took a nap after the pool, I got my 2nd wind and we had a BLAST!  I finally got to wear my LBD that I bought a long time ago and it was so much fun to get all dolled up.  We bought an open bar Groupon for Koi Ultra Lounge-Planet Hollywood so we had free drinks for our night out which saved us a ton of money. We met up there with J, got our first drink, went to dinner at a restaurant inside the hotel and then went back to Koi.  The music was great.  We literally danced all night long.  When we were done there we went to Gallery Night Club (also in Planet Hollywood) where we'd gotten a wrist band for no cover and danced some more.  We didn't leave until after 3am.  I can't remember the last time I stayed out that late.  Dani pushed herself too hard at the gym so she was kind of in pain for the rest of the trip.  Poor thing!  She looked like an old lady limping around in her party dress and heels but she made the best of it and it did get a little better each day.

Eating Pizza in bed...life is good!

Three girls....two sinks...thank goodness

Dani and Little Sis in front of the Venetian

Little Sis actually switched shoes with Dani just so she could make the walk home

 

No hang over the next day.  Yes! We were up  Sunday morning by 9am so we could get a cabana at our pool.  Normally, they want to charge you an arm and a leg but at Polo Towers it's 1st come first serve and it is not a party pool at all; which was nice.  Having a cabana meant we didn't have to roast in the sun like a rotisserie chicken and it made the pool experience so much better.  I went to the gym again first then met my sisters at the cabana.  After Dani and I each got our massages at the spa we hung out in the room and ordered pizza from room service and ate it in bed.  Then it was time to head to our show Illusions at the Riviera.  We have no idea how this man locks himself in a box, then is suddenly outside the box and his assistant is in the box.  The guy is no Lance Burton-those tickets woulda cost us a heck of a lot more-but he did some amazing things and it was entertaining.  We took a cab there but we walked back...and it's about 2.5 miles! We stopped at an outdoor Fat Burger on the way to our hotel.  My sister's split a meal but all I wanted was some ice cold beer.  Then, we headed back to the room and got packed.  I think we made it to bed around 2am.   

Me and my BFF J

Poor little sis; she had an 8 am flight Monday morning so she only got a few hours of sleep.  I was so sad to see her go!  She hugged us while we were half asleep and when Dani and I got up around 9am it was so sad to see her bed empty; it wasn't the same without her.  We checked out of our hotel and stored our luggage with the bell desk. Between all the walking and my two gym workouts my legs were good and worn out by Monday.  We walked some more to meet J at the Bellagio for their Breakfast buffet.  Best french toast ever.  I wished I could have eaten more but the belly can only hold so much.  After that it was time to hit the road.

I really love the upbeat, yet relaxing, casual yet glamorous anything goes atmosphere in Vegas.  It can really be anything you want it to be.  It can be romantic or party central.  There is shopping, eating, gambling, pool parties and shows.  There really is something for everyone.  The beautiful massive hotels and the lights are a beautiful sight and it's just a whole different world out there.  It was so much fun getting to hang out with my sisters and my BFF.  I had an amazing time!  We definitely want to do it again; maybe next year.

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As for this weekend Gymnastics Olympic Trials is on.  The ladies are on Friday and Sunday night Live on NBC at 6pm West Coast, 9pm East Coast.  Can't wait!