I flew up this time...normally I drive. The flight is right around an hour, but all-in the trip is about 3 with airport craziness on both sides. Driving takes just over five hours, so the difference isn't huge, but the Southwest flight was so cheap I couldn't resist: $49 there and $69 back. So, I worked pretty much a full day Thursday before taking the 5 o'clock hop. Had beer #1 at the airport and #2 in the ridiculously long hotel check-in line. A good start to the weekend. Jasonwas on the same flight so he went on a beer run while we were waiting to check in.
I've stayed in the Luxor pyramid before - with my parents a few years back. It's ok, but not great. You can tell it's an older property, the hallways are narrow - you can't walk two people side-by-side, and it's beginning to show some wear-and-tear. Several elevators were out of service, etc. But, at the price we got it ($45 for the first night and $68/night on the weekend) I shouldn't complain. I don't think I'll go back, though, unless I find another ridiculous deal.
Lotus of Siam: me, Jennifer, Adam, Jason, Dan and Keri
Thursday night Jason and I met up with Dan and Keri - and found out it was their 13-year wedding anniversary. I did know, however, that they eloped and got married in Vegas, so this was a fitting way to celebrate. They got their room upgraded to the spa suite, which meant that they had a corner room (windows leaning in from two directions - very odd), with an extra room and a hot tub next to the bed. Klazzy!
Anyway, Jason and I had walked over to New York New York and sat down at Pour 24, a bar with a solid selection of American micro-brews right next to Coyote Ugly. We met Dan and Keri there and walked downstairs to Nine Fine Irishmen for dinner, live Irish music and some Riverdance-style dancing. Dan Lord of the Ganse was right at home. Like many places in Vegas, loud and overpriced, but fun.
For afterhours - ok it was only around midnight, but it was Thursday! - we ended up atAurora - a lounge at Luxor with a live, female 80s band, complete with 80s haircuts and, strangely enough, a rather large tuba player. After a round of drinks, Jennifer S and Adam met us there for another round. Jason ordered an amaretto sour that showed up withwhipped cream and four maraschino cherries, while he tried to entice our waitress and a few other passers-by with repeated promises of Dan and Keri's hot tub.
Dan and Keri in their Spa Suite
Friday the six of us went to Lotus of Siam (the place I mentioned in my last post) for lunch. The place indeed gives an underwhelming first impression, but the food was really good. I don't know if I'd go as far as some of the accolades but it's clearly a couple of steps above your typical Thai fare. And, for the price, in Vegas, I give it my wholehearted recommendation. The wine list has a lot of gems, especially in the higher echelons, but since it was lunch and my friends aren't wine geeks like me we shared a straight-forwad, but nice German riesling that complemented the food well: a 2007 J.J. Prüm Graacher Himmelreich Spätlese.
Jenn and Alex arriving Friday night
Friday night game-time started in Dan and Keri's party suite. Dan and Keri had picked up cheese and crackers at the grocery store and I'd brought two bottles of Aubert chardonnay (the 2006 and 2007 Ritchie) from home. People make fun of me for traveling with high-quality Austrian 24% lead crystal wine glasses so I didn't bring my Riedel stems and we had to drink from the sad excuses for glasses found in the hotel bathroom. I should have known better. So, the wines didn't show very well but we still had a great time. Jason had brought his iPod speaker-set so we had entertainment and around 8 pm Jenn F and Alex arrived directly from the airport. And there was much rejoicing.
All of us at Giorgio's
Around 9 we decided to head out for dinner. As nobody wanted to walk far we picked a mid-priced Italian restaurant called Giorgio's next door at Mandalay Bay. Here comes the funny part. Jason was still in shorts so he headed back to the room to change and would meet us at the restaurant. Well, Jason forgot that there's a walkway connecting Luxor and Mandalay Bay so he tried to take the tram over. One of the two tracks was out-of-service, so the tram at Luxor only went north to Excalibur, and from there he could stay on the tram for express service back south to Mandalay Bay. So, two tram rides later, Jason walked through Manadalay Bay onto the walkway back toward Luxor and found us about 50 yards from where he started. What happens in Vegas does not stay in Vegas!
Dinner was fun but the food was only so-so. Vegas is kind of like that - either you should go really cheap and expect nothing or splurge and get something nice. There's almost no middle ground. After dinner we ended up at minus5 Ice Lounge at Mandalay Bay, seemingly very similar idea to the ice bar in Stockholm. The concept is that there is a bar made out of ice where the temperature is kept at -5 degrees Celsius (23 Fahrenheit) and you pay $30 for entrance, a warm coat and a drink served in a glass made out of ice. We didn't feel like it so we only had drinks in the regular bar outside.
Jenn being served by the ice-babes in a shot-glass made of ice
Saturday morning we spent some time at the Mandalay sportsbook - placed some bets on my Celtics, Red Sox and Patriots (all to win their Championships). Then we walked upstrip...Jenn and Alex ordered Margarita-yards and later regretted it. That's a lot of cold liquid to get down in the middle of the day. We checked out the remodeled Planet Hollywood, the under constrution City Center, had lunch at Paris and walked over to The Bellagio to check out the fountains and the conservatory.
The Fountains at Bellagio
Alex and Jenn at the Bellagio Conservatory
Watering jugs pouring
Sat night we went out pretty late. Dan and Keri had gone to see Jersey Boys - a musical about Frankie Vallie at The Palazzo (the newish expansion to The Venetian) - so we met up with them at one of the fun, trendy bars there: Lavo. Then we had dinner at Sushi Samba - a Brazilian sushi-joint. Very typical Vegas - over-the-top and showy - but well done and the food was good. I had a drink with plum sake, muddled plums, daikon radishes and beer. Sounds crazy, right? Well, it was actually a very subtle drink, with no discernible beer flavor and a nice radish finish.
Palazzo atrium outside Lavo
Alex, Jason, me, Jenn, Keri and Dan at Lavo
Finally we walked over to The Wynn and their new expansion Encore where we sat down in the Eastside Lounge for drinks. A few of us split a bottle of Vincent Girardin white burgundy (chardonnay) while Alex decided to try a Campari on the rocks. If you've never tasted Campari, it's a very bitter aperitif that most people don't care for unless it's mixed into a drink - frequently soda water or OJ. (I'd been told it was made from artichokes, but that doesn't seem to be true.) Well, Alex did not care for it at all, and neither did anyone else except for Jason and me. Score!
Sushi Samba
Spicy Tuna, Freshwater Eal and Salmon (top to bottom)
Sunday I met up with my old friend Dylan Rivas who had just arrived in town with his mother, aunt and grandmother. Now there's a party waiting to happen! Dylan and I walked up from Flamingo, where they were staying, to Caesar's Palace and had brunch outside at Serendipity 3. Then, some ice cream at Sugar & Ice at the Wynn with a nice view of the waterfalls. Then, off to the airport and home!
Dylan and I under a red awning - Serendipity 3
Dylan at Sugar & Ice
Whew - that was long and a lot of boring details. But, I wanted to document it for myself...
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