Back in November a bunch of us were talking about the
possibility of a Vegas trip. My best friend Amanda. G was there at the time, as
well as my brother’s girlfriend Amanda. S and both of them (plus me) thought
this would be an awesome idea – mainly because Britney Spears was doing a
residency at Planet Hollywood! Nothing really came of that conversation until a
few months later, when within a day we got everything organized and booked. (I
can see why people tell me I missed my calling as a travel agent!)
Our flight to Las Vegas was an early one – 8:55am, meaning
we had to be at the airport by 6:30am. Mom, Dad, the Amanda’s and I all went
together, and met Uncle Beau and Aunt Honey at Pearson. Within the last few
months they have changed the way in which the airport operates at Terminal 1. As
long as I can remember, for any flights going to the US, you clear US Customs
in Toronto. It makes the process longer at the beginning but allows you to land
in the US domestically, and proceed right to baggage and then the exit.
Terminal 1 handles most of the US bound flights, so customs has always been
full of long and slow lines. The new system they have implemented only allows
you to proceed through customs once your departure time is called. This
prevents long lines of everyone trying to get through at once, and instead
moves groups along at a steady pace. It still wasn’t a breeze, but it was
quicker then the last time we traveled from this terminal.
We all got separated at the customs line, with my parents
going in one direction, and Amanda G in another, but fortunately Amanda S and I
were able to stay together. We all reunited once we were through
customs/security and into the actual terminal. Breakfast was an assortment of
bagels, granola, and Starbucks drinks leaving us very little waiting time at
the gate. The one downfall of the newer customs system is that it leaves a lot
less time in the terminal to either eat or look through the duty free shops.
All seven of us were on the same plane going to Vegas, but
Honey and Beau were further back. It was a newer/larger plane on the Air Canada
Rouge system. AC Rouge is Air Canada’s newer and cheaper airline group. For
shorter flights it is fine, but I personally find it lacking in the comfort and
services that you would want for longer journeys. The flight itself was okay –
a bit turbulent, but nothing out of the norm. It was early enough that most of
us were able to get a little bit of sleep which ended up being beneficial when
you mixed a late evening with the time change.
Upon landing Beau and Honey got their luggage first as they
were priority (one of the perks Uncle Beau has from traveling so much for work),
so they headed to the rental car agency. Initially we had talked about taking a
trip out to Grand Canyon or Hoover Dam so having a car made sense. Plus, with
there being seven us, relying on cabs could become complicated. Once we had our
bags, and they got the car we headed away from the airport and to the Wyndham
Grand Desert. This was one of my dads timeshare properties, and I had stayed
there twice before. It’s a great property that has pools, a café, a fitness
center and more. It’s located off the strip, but there is a shuttle service
that takes you to Harrah’s which is in the middle of the main downtown area.
Dad was able to check us in, but the rooms weren’t ready yet
so we opted to hit the grocery store. We knew we would be eating out most nights;
so we just bought things to make breakfast with, have as snacks, drinks and a
couple things for lunches. We bought a bit more then we planned, which made
loading the van problematic since we had all seven of us, and luggage still in
there. Our ride back to the condo consisted of us girls being buried by bags in
the back! Thankfully it was a short ride.
It was 2:00pm when we arrived back at the condo, and the
rooms were ready. We had booked two units – both of them two-bedrooms and
across from each other. The Amanda’s and I took one – with Amanda. S in one
room, and Amanda G. and I sharing the other. They are great units – consisting
of a living room, kitchen, eating area, and two bathrooms. We all had lunch
together in one of the units, and then took an hour to rest/relax before
heading out. Everyone but Amanda. S had been to Vegas before, so we were trying
to optimize the time so she would get a chance to see as much as possible.
For our first night, we decided to head down to Freemont
St/Old Vegas. We had dinner at this Italian restaurant in the Golden Nugget
called “The Grotto”. Five years ago, Mom, Aunt Honey, her aunt and myself went
to Las Vegas for Honey’s 40th and we had found this place tucked
away. The food was really good and the prices reasonable, so it was on the list
of places to return to. Dinner was fun, the highlight being the usual banter
between Amanda. G and Beau. Both of them have a huge sense of humor – sometimes
bordering on inappropriate – and when together can go back and forth for hours.
Most of the time the rest of us are left laughing, sometimes rolling our eyes,
but it made the trip hilarious. If there had been cameras rolling, we would
have made millions as the new must-see sitcom.
After dinner we walked outside around the Golden Nugget pool
area which has a shark enclosure in the center. Everywhere in Vegas – even the
older side – is over the top! Mom, Dad, the Amanda’s and I had tickets to see
Gordie Brown, so we split up for that. Gordie Brown is a
comedian/singer/impressionist that has a show at the Golden Nugget each night.
Mom, Dad, Beau and Honey had already seen him, but mom and dad thought he was
great and wanted to see him again. It was okay. I found 50% of his material
funny/enjoyable, but the other 50% not so much. It may be an age thing, as some
of the people and songs Amanda, Amanda and I hadn’t heard of. I would
definitely recommend the show to people – but only those my parent’s
age/older. It was still a fun way to
pass some time – and reasonably priced unlike a lot of the shows in Vegas.
Afterward we met up with Beau (Honey had a headache and had
gone back to the condo) and wandered around the casino for a bit. He and my dad
took off to the tables, so us girls took the time to walk outside and up Freemont
St. That in itself is an experience – there are so many different characters
out there! People dressed up in insane costumes some just for fun, and some to
make money through posing for photos. In this area, it seems as if Halloween is
every day! We wandered up the street stopping to look at the enclosed “roof” of
the street, which is a screen that flashes various multimedia. We also looked
in a few of the booths and shops that line the street and posed for photos with
the women dressed up as Show Girls. On Wednesdays they set up a bunch of food
trucks in the area, so we passed by those – food trucks are really popular
these days, and its incredible the different cuisines they serve! We made our
way back to the Golden Nugget, and waited for Beau and Dad to finish blackjack.
By this point we were all exhausted from such a long day.
Beau took the scenic way back, past all the wedding chapels
and down the strip. This was Amanda. S’s first time seeing it all, which was
fun. Earlier in the day, Amanda. G started singing “Anything for Love” by
Meatloaf, so Beau downloaded the 8 minute version of the song for the ride
back. Amanda being Amanda, decided to serenade us best she could – which was
really just the chorus. The windows were down, so we got a few strange looks
but it was hilarious.
It was a long day, but a great start to our Vegas adventure!
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