vegas...all you need is 'love' and a couple lucky pennies!

(Nothing art-related, just some highlights from our trip...if you are interested. Warning: I do tend to babble)

Man, did that time go fast! Stephen and I got back from Vegas last night after four wonderful nights in Sin City. We stayed at New York New York. As a treat, we upgraded our room to one with a jacuzzi tub right in the room...sweet.
It isn't a trip to Vegas without indulging in a tasty beverage from Fat Tuesday! Gotta love that "extra shot" for getting a little Vegas buzz goin'!


One of the highlights of the trip was seeing the new Cirque show Love, which is performed to remixed Beatles music. The only Cirque show where the music isn't performed live. It was absolutely wonderful!

The music and sound was amazing and the performances were very different from the other Cirque shows (very little make up, toned down costumes). The acrobatics had a very urban feel. In-line skaters in half-pipes, break dancers, etc. In the theatre, you feel as if you are part of the show, and everyone actually is at one point (won't spoil it). It was a very intimate setting. Very unique, but still very Cirque.

After six trips to Vegas, we finally made our way down to the Stratosphere. What an incredible view from up top! We hung out for a couple hours, taking in the view and watching the people brave enough (or maybe crazy enough) to go on the rides 109 stories in the air! The X Scream is one ride I don't think I could ever manage to convince myself to go on. A teeter totter style ramp that tips and slides you down off the side of the building and leaves you hanging there only to tip you back and repeat the process. Eek!

While we were there, we also got to enjoy a lightning storm off in the distance. Quite the show. Because of the lightning, they had to shut down the rides and the outer observation deck, so we watched from inside.

We didn't have too much luck on the gambling front until our last full day, Thursday (the day we saw Love). Up until that point, we would win enough to give us some play time, but by the end, we would give it all back. I did have a bit of luck at craps, but ended up losing it on roulette. The turning point seemed to be when Stephen found a 2 cent cash voucher next to a slot machine in the Mirage and as we just happened to be right beside a redemption machine, he cashed it in and said, "These could be our lucky pennies." Turned out they were! We has a great run of luck at the slot machines after that! Stephen started things off by turning $20 into $248 playing Lobstermania! I love the B52's Rock Lobster song in the background. A little after that, I turned $20 into $148 playing on a Price is Right slot machine (one of my favorites..."Come on down!").

Late in the evening, back at NYNY, Stephen played Deal or No Deal slots and got to the Cash Box Bonus (just like the game on TV) and ended up picking the highest value case (10,000)! ...pennies that is! Another $100...not bad for us small $$ gamblers.

Seemed every machine we touched gave us a little something back. This continued on through yesterday. We decided to check out our the points on our players card and were surprised to find out that we had earned enough that we were comp'ed two nights of our upgrade (about $80 value) plus we were given a money voucher for $14. We took that money and dropped it into a Risque Business slot machine (another one of my favs...gotta love that stripper bonus). Well, by the time we cashed out on that machine we were up $100+ again.
So much more fun when you win a little!
Our flight home was good (even after getting stuck out on the runway for an additional 20 mins, due to shifting winds). Alaska Airlines is one of our favs.

Wes managed just fine on his own for the first time. Of course, mom called home every day to make sure he was doing alright. It was great to get away, but feels good to be back home. Must go catch up on everyone's blogs and read all the emails that have been flying around regarding Artfest!