Dirty Thirty Vacation Las Vegas, Nevada

May 29, 2015

The next morning we woke up to sound of furniture being dragged across the floor above us. Which was strange because the only floor above ours was the penthouse. We tried to sleep for the next hour or so, but it wasn't happening. So we started to get ready for the day. We could take our time because it was pretty early.

While getting ready we ate our breakfast, which consisted of yogurt and kind bars from the cooler. I brought breakfast over to aunt Karen and Bre, but I forgot to see if the tanner worked.

It was my official birthday!!! So, I opened the presents, an awesome shirt from my sister and a tennis bracelet from my g'ma!

After we were all ready we decided to walk down to New York, New York to ride the roller coaster. We also wanted to get Starbucks because it was my birthday and I wanted to get a free drink.

There was one next to our hotel which isn't that surprising as there are many on the strip. Inside it was a little crowded but the line went fast. All the baristas were dressed up as Disney characters though some had better costumes than others. Anyway, I found out after I ordered that the Starbucks doesn't do free birthday drinks!!! Only one on the strip does! I was so sad. But I ordered my coffee anyway and found out that the price was double what it normally is. That's just peaches. We stayed at the Starbucks so 'Nana, a nickname for Bre, could eat a bagel.

Then we went out to the strip and started towards New York, New York. We stopped in at Paris on the way because I thought other people wanted to shop but other people were their because they thought I wanted to shop! So we walked around that place for no reason until we realized the error and went back to the strip. We then walked all the way to New York, New York. Occasionally, we were stopped by promoters and once Melissa had some eye cream demo done on her. However, we eventually made it to New York and made it through the Hersey factory, past Coyote Ugly and up to the roller coaster.

Melissa decided not to go so we brought a four pass and got on. It was so cool. I loved being pulled up to the top and looking all around the strip. I could see MGM's lion, Excalibur's castle and the Grand Canyon...well a sign that read Grand Canyon. Then the coast dropped us! The initial drop gets me every time but then I like it. The coaster was a little jerky and not as smooth as some of the newer coasters, but I got to coaster around the Statue of Liberty...the fake one not the real one. I enjoyed it over all. We got two free pictures from our ride. Caitlin looks like our mom in hers.

While waiting Melissa sat down in a photo booth to hide. When I went to look at her to get our receipt for the photos I couldn't find her. So I sent Bre out and she found her right away. They are the same person!

After finding Melissa and getting the photos we went back to the Hersey store and looked around. There were free samples and Bre got a present for Paul, a custom wrapped Hersey Bar. Super cute!

Then we went back down to Diablo's Cantina for lunch. We tried to eat inside but it was loud inside so we decided to eat outside which was interesting because we had to order at the bar. So Cait, Bre and I got to relive our waitress days. We first got two pitchers of margaritas that were delicious and chips with salsa and guacamole. For lunch I ordered the taco with soft corn shells they were so good, Caitlin, Karen and Melissa split two orders of fish tacos that looked great. During lunch the song Shook Me All Night Long played and we sang it at each other. Also, Melissa told Caitlin to do a cartwheel on the sidewalk which she did without question.

Lunch

After lunch we went back towards Planet Hollywood so that we could finally do some shopping, but we were distracted by the craps table! I was a terrible roller, but only put a few rounds on the pass line. Caitlin and Melissa were the only ones that did all that well, but we did get free drinks. During the game two guys came up to play and we thought they were friends, so we asked the one closer to us what the other guy's name was and he said Jason, that wasn't his name, but Melissa and Bre kept calling him that, which we decided was lucky because when we finally learned his real name he rolled a 7! During the game, one of the dealers thought that Caitlin and Jason were a couple, so for a while they played like they were. Caitlin kept telling Jason to roll her number and they'd get married, and we all took turns fluffing Jason's aura to add to his luck. It was pretty fun, but by the time we had to go Caitlin was down, but not by much and my mom was up, but not by much. We would have stayed longer but we needed to get back because we had to get ready to go to One, the cirque show that is at Mandalay Bay featuring all Michael Jackson songs.

We went back to the hotel and took time getting ready for the show. I thought we all looked really nice. We decided to take a cab over so as not to be late, but walk back later. When we were waiting for a taxi cab Bre realized her shoes weren't that comfortable, but she decided to stick with them, which turned out to be a bad decision. In the cab, Caitlin and Bre started to sing along with the radio, but in our family singing is not music to ones ears, so I'm sure that the cab driver was glad to get rid of us. We arrived about twenty minutes before the show and took our seats, then took turns going back to get drinks from the water fountain, eventually Caitlin bought a bottle for everyone to share.

ONE!

One was like many cirque shows where people dance, acrobat and tumble to a story that is amazing and partially unbelievable. The show was designed like the others and it was very good, but I have to admit that it was not my favorite cirque show. There was more dancing than acrobatics and the dancing wasn't as good as the other shows. I still enjoyed the show, but if you haven't seen Ka, Love or "O" then I would recommend seeing one of those before seeing One. I did like watching the lighting effects paired with the music and sounds, I thought they did a really good job with that.

After the show was over, we decided to go back to New York, New York using the monorail to go to Coyote Ugly or the Nine Irishmen. On our way to New York, New York, Bre decided her shoes hurt too much and she ended up buying sandals to wear the rest of the night. She left her other shoes behind, what a bummer! However, it turned out to be a good thing because we ended up walking the rest of the way back to our hotel, and it would have been way too painful to do so in the shoes she was wearing.

Martini

We tried to go to Coyote Ugly first, but the bouncer was a huge dick! We had a card from the manager at Gordon Ramsey's and he had told us that we could use it to get into Coyote Ugly and get a free drink. It didn't work, but instead of being cool about it not working, the bouncer was a jerk about it. He was so rude we decided not to go inside! So we went downstairs to Nine Irishmen. There was a live band playing music, they played Drunken' Lullaby's and Rattlin Bog which I really love! Also there were Irish dancers both performing at the bar and also some patrons that just knew the dances and were dancing near their table. We sat outside again which was cool because we could see all of the lights. Caitlin and I ordered martini's and everyone else got Dublin Ice Teas.

When we were finished with our drinks we moved on and were crossing the Brooklyn Bridge where we were stop by a bunch of people doing the Cupid's Shuffle, which we were forced to do in order to cross the bridge. Melissa and Karen made it across in one dance, but Caitlin, Bre, and I had to also dance to the wobble in order to cross. There were a bunch of other people on the bridge trying to cross and having to dance too, but so many of them were stuck dancing, and dancing. They were probably stuck there all night.

Double Barrel Bathroom Adventure!

Then we went across the street, to the Monte Carlo and stopped at the Double Barrel. There we got shots. We had coupons from the girls outside so we ended up getting six shots. Someone had the bright idea of drinking Jameson's shots which tasted about as good as firewhiskey, I mean like battery acid. It was so gross and after the first shot, Melissa divvied up the last shot in our shot glasses so we all had a bit more to take. Then, Bre, Caitlin, Karen and Melissa spent a weird amount of time in the bathroom. The bathroom had the stalls in a separate room and the sink and mirror were outside so that the guys and girls could share it, but the entire time they were crowding the mirror, the guys were not washing their hands! I was outside the Double Barrel waiting for everyone to finish with the bathroom.

After that we continued our journey down the strip, back to the hotel. There was an interesting encounter in the Cosmo with a bachelor party. There was about nine guys all in various stages of being inebriated. The bachelor wasn't the most drunk, but he was a close second, also one of the guys had a camera and was filming, he was the least drunk. Anyway, the bachelor was wearing a shirt with a list of things to do while he was still a bachelor, like a scavenger hunt. They asked if we would sign the shirt with a little note of advice. I wrote, Stay Single. And a few of the guys pointed out that someone had written that the bachelor had a small dick, so Bre wrote a note saying that it was large.

While we were signing the shirt, the guys were trying to get us to do some of the tasks listed on the shirt, only most of the easy things like give a kiss on the cheek, were already checked off, some were checked off more than once! So there were only hard things like, get a girl to flash you, or get a girl's thong. Hearing this Melissa said, Caitlin will do it she will flash you. Which got the entire bachelor party laughing. Caitlin quickly denied that and explained to Melissa what exactly flashing was. In the end, Caitlin gave the bachelor a basic twerk lesson, and we got away.

PBR Rock Bar and Grill

After that we went across the street to the PBR Rock Bar and Grill. We were able to get in without a cover charge, Caitlin and Bre ordered drinks and we went back towards the beer pong tables. In the bar the music was playing loud and so we were dancing, singing and drinking, also taking pictures. It was so much fun.

Then we continued on our way, Bre and I were ahead, and we almost made it all the way back, but then we saw a bunch of guys dressed as Superman, at Margaritiaville, so we had to ask them why. They said they just did it because, but Bre and I decided it was because then girls ask them why! They were from Australia and really nice. We asked them what was the weirdest thing in the United States and they said that tipping is pretty weird, and also sales tax. I guess they are used to the price listed being the true price of what they are buying.

When we got back to the room, Caitlin, Karen and Melissa were already there and they were eating cheese, nut thins and salami. So we joined them and I think we ate all of the cheese and salami, but only one box of nut thins. Afterwards everyone went to bed!

Dirty Thirty Vegas Vacation

How it began. For my thirtieth birthday celebration, my sweet sister, Caitlin, orchestrated a birthday trip to Vegas from May 28-31 2015. The party-goers include Melissa, (my mom) Aunt Karen, and Briana (Bre). We decided to stay at The Linq a hotel on the strip, see One, a cirque du soleil show and have a pool day, but like any great Vegas vacation, so much more happened.

Thursday, May 28, 2015 Phoenix, Arizona to Las Vegas, Nevada:

The previous evening, Aunt Karen and Bre traveled up from Tucson, in Uncle Jim's new truck, and stayed with Melissa. I also spent the night so that we could have an early start in the morning. The plan was to be on the road by 8:30, but we left closer to 9. Aunt Karen and Bre followed Melissa and me to Caitlin and Dave's house which was down the freeway a bit and on the way to Las Vegas. After giving Aunt Karen and Bre a tour of the house, and leaving my car there we piled in Uncle Jim's truck and started on our adventure.

Joshua Trees, from the Public Domain

Aunt Karen drove. We had to take the 101 all the way up through Sun City and it seemed to take forever to get out of the Phoenix area, but eventually we made it. The hills in that area of Arizona are pretty cool to see especially when we reached the area with the Joshua trees. If you don't know what a Joshua tree is they kind of look like a tree from a Dr. Seuss book with funny little tuffs of leafs. They grow in the Mojave Desert in the southwestern United States. There were a lot of them in between Wickenberg and Kingman. 

When we got to Wickenberg we stopped at McDonalds, for a bathroom break, and Caitlin saved a little elderly lady from the giant curb! She also walked her to the door. Go Caitlin! At McDonalds, we also took apples from the cooler in the back of the truck and snacked on those, since none of us had breakfast. Then, we were off. We traveled through up 93 through Nothing and Wikieup, Arizona on our way to Kingman. 

In Kingman, we decided to stop for lunch at the In-N-Out, because they serve their burgers protein style which means that Caitlin and Aunt Karen can eat them. The wait was long when we got there, but it was longer by the time our meal was ready because 13 bikers from Sweden, on a tour of the Southwest, United States, decided to stop to eat there as well. They had just spent two days in Las Vegas and were on their way to the Grand Canyon and from there Scottsdale, Arizona. They were really nice guys!

From Kingman, it barely took any time to get to Las Vegas, recently a bridge was built over the Hoover Dam so instead of spending time driving down to cross over the dam we were able to travel over it in minutes. You can see a little of the dam from the bridge, but it's easy to miss. We were still able to see Lake Mead after going over the bridge.

Bernadette, Bre and Caitlin

We made it to the hotel with out much of a problem though there was a moment where we weren't exactly sure where the valet was. We were able to check in online before we arrived so it was a matter of getting the keys to our rooms and then we were up in our rooms. At first we agreed to head down after making sure out bags got into our rooms, but by the time we left everyone had changed outfits, and were looking cuter for it.

Bre had never been to Vegas before, so we decided to walk down the strip a bit so that she could get a look, and then try to see the water show at the Bellagio. The Linq is across the street from Ceaser's Palace, and we stayed on our side of the strip as we walked down past the Cromwell and Planet Hollywood. There were plenty of people out on the street, though it was too early for the strip to be lit up. We stopped to talk to a promoter about going to a pool party at Drai's later that weekend. We crossed the pedestrian bridge near the Bellagio and found a good spot to watch. The water show was set to "Your Song," by Elton John and it is always cool to see the water shows on the strip.

After the show was over we went into Cesar's Palace in hopes of finding a place to eat. Inside, Aunt Karen told me that the ceiling changes from a dawn sky to dusk sky over an hour. I had seen that before, though I hadn't realized that is what happened, so it was interesting to see this time. We also got to see a replica of The David! He was almost as cool as the real one, and you can take pictures of him!

We finally settled on, Gordon Ramsey's Pub and Grill for dinner, I am not sure how this was decided, but I think it was because it had a gluten-free menu, but also because we were really hungry by then. I ordered a Shepard's Pie which was really good and a Stella beer. Bre ordered me a dessert because it was my birthday! It was so good, but it wasn't gluten-free so Caitlin and Aunt Karen couldn't eat it. More for the rest of us. The manager came out while we were eating dessert and told us to visit Nine Irishmen later that week and gave us a card. He also got me a shot of tequila for my birthday. It was delicious.

After dinner, we walked around the shops at the Cesar's Palace, Bre wanted to try to get the self tanner that my sister had used the night before, so we found a Sephora, and Angela helped us. She said the self tanner Caitlin used was good, but was supposed to be left on over night and turned your skin a little green, but another kind dried faster. She said that if Bre didn't like it we could find her the next day and return it for the other. We never returned! I also got free lipsticks because it is my birthday! Bre also got free lipstick. If you are in Sephora in Cesar's Palace ask for Angela, she was great!

When we were finished with our purchases we decided to go back to The Linq. It dark then and we could see the lights, but we only had to go across the street to get back to our hotel so we didn't see much of it. Bre and Aunt Karen decided to go up to bed, they both said they were tired, but I think Bre wanted to try on her new tanner.

Melissa wanted to play blackjack, Caitlin and I kibitzed. Well, we started too, Caitlin sat down with Melissa at a losing table and when Melissa decided to move tables she stayed there and talked to the dealer about craps. I went with Melissa to kibitz some more. She found a better table and was winning her money back. I stayed around for a while, but some of the younger guys at the table were making some blackjack moves that was worrisome, so I went back to the first table to talk with Caitlin and the dealer until Melissa was finished. She ended up pushing for the night and we decided to go to bed.