Las Vegas: Day Four

Our last day in Las Vegas started a bit earlier then I would have liked, as mom called my room at 7:00am wanting me to come down and save pool chairs with her. Since Uncle Beau, Aunt Honey, the Amanda’s and I had been up until 3:00am playing the game, 7:00am felt super early. The way in which my mom was talking, I expected the pool area to be packed. So when I got down there and saw only five other people, I was a bit annoyed. But I got a coffee from the café, and sat down with her and started to wake up.

Slowly the other ladies joined us – first Aunt Honey, then Amanda. G and finally Amanda. S. I will note that my mom called all of them as well – just not as early as me! We spent the day relaxing by the pool in the 97 degree temperature! It was lovely!  The pool was busier since it was a Saturday, and this time there were a number of children – some of which weren’t well supervised and kept playing with the fountains and spraying other people. We went up to the café and brought lunch down with us, and basically spent the entire morning/early afternoon sitting in the lounge chairs or in the pool. Most of us got a bit burnt but we were happy to finally have come colour!

Dad and Uncle Beau spent the morning at a casino and came back around 1:00pm. The entire trip they had talked about getting all seven of us to play blackjack together at a low-cost table. I was intrigued as I had only played once, and Amanda. G was interested in learning. But it wasn’t really high on our list of must-dos. However since they kept talking about it, it became obvious it was important to the guys, so we planned to do it that afternoon. We came up from the pool and got changed, and headed out.

Our first attempt was at the Westin, which is off the strip. It’s a very small casino/hotel and is smoke free. Since it is so small, there were only a few black jack tables open so there wasn’t room for all of us. Then we tried the Rivera – which is a very old casino, and pretty run down. It’s much different then the newer casinos in terms of crowd and atmosphere. We had the same problem of not having room, so we decided to try one more. Circus Circus was across the street, so we walked there. Dad talked to the pit boss, who agreed to open a table for us, on the condition that we all played.

My dad, Uncle Beau and Amanda. S were the only seasoned players. Aunt Honey and my Mom, knew how to play, and Amanda. G and I were the novices. Dad helped Amanda and I, and Uncle Beau offered assistance to Aunt Honey and my mom. We only planned to stay for a bit, but ended up being at the table for almost 3 hours! It was a lot of fun, and most of us either broke even or where up a little but by the end. The funniest moment of the night came when a dealer asked how we all knew each other. We explained most of us were family, and how we were all related. Then Amanda. G quipped that we just “randomly found Amanda. S and her cat in the house.” It embarrassed Amanda a bit, but was hilarious since its pretty close to the truth! 

We had plans to visit the Venetian, Palazzo and Wynn casinos that night. Since we stayed at the tables so long, we were only able to do Palazzo and Venetian, making it my 3^rd trip where I missed out on seeing the Wynn! (It just means I will have to go back again soon!)

We parked at the Palazzo and walked through that hotel, which is also gorgeous! It leads into the Venetian, which was a great way for Amanda to see two more casinos. We posed for a few photos by the gardens and fountains, and stopped at a few of the stores. We were all gambled out, so we just walked through the casino without stopping. We made our way into the Venetian, which is my favorite casino in Vegas. It’s so extravagant, and stunning, with the gondola’s being rowed through the inside canals.  

We walked through the shops, and over the quaint little bridges. We ate dinner at this awesome place that was in the main square. It was an Italian restaurant that acted like an outdoor café. Since the square was covered, with the ceiling painted with blue skies and clouds, it felt almost like we were outside in Venice. The food was delicious and the atmosphere very relaxing.

It was late by the time we finished, so Dad and Uncle Beau went to get the car and Mom, Aunt Honey and the Amanda’s and I walked up to the hotel. We wanted Amanda. S to see the grand hallway, with the paintings on the ceilings. Every time I see it, I am overwhelmed by how beautiful it all is. Though my dad has timeshare there, I do hope one day to stay in that hotel, as I bet it would be amazing!

On the way back to get the car, my dad and uncle ran into the Canadian comic Gerry Dee. I was a bit jealous, as I think he’s hilarious. They spent a few minutes talking to him, and then came to get us. We went back to the hotel and spent time packing up and getting ready to leave in the morning.