Well, not really. Where exhaustion is concerned, yes, but gambling and overall fun, I win.
Yesterday was touch and go. The morning was tough, the afternoon got better then worse. Last night the debate and my softball game were both on the upswing. So that's more good than bad, but man, I was tired all the way through.
The story of Vegas would be long. It started Friday in Houston and ended with an almost flat tire Monday night at 1030pm. (before driving back to Austin) Anyway, that would be too much, so here are the highlights.
The Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, this place is all fun. The crowd is young, the rooms are gorgeous, and the gambling and partying is some of the best. Our room was on the 10th floor overlooking the Rehab pool and the set up for the Dew Tour that was taking place at the hotel this particular weekend. The room's "rock star" theme was right on par with the rest of the hotel and the beds, when we did sleep a little, were fabulous. I was a huge Wynn fan before this trip, but now, I'm all Hard Rock.
The rooms were not the best part. Actually I'm not sure what was the best part...the people I guess. Everyone is fun at HRH. The dealers were all hilarious (and helpful!) the bartenders were quick, not to mention the crowd is young like I said before. We only left the hotel to go to the races, and to visit The Strip once. I think that alone says a lot for the place.
The next part of the trip that I have to highlight is In N Out Burger. This is always a West Coast must do. And we did it, and it was so delicious. I'm not going to tell you exactly what was ordered, but know that my boyfriend put down an impressive lunch and a chocolate shake was put away by yours truly. We were full and ready for the races to say the least.
And that brings me to The Monster Energy Cup. This event was really spectacular. We got there easily and headed straight for the pits. We literally hung out with everyone in the SX/MX industry. I got a few pictures with myfavorite Kevin Windham, and we even saw the rider that ended up winning the whole thing including the million bucks. I've been to races before and the pits are always fun, but this was very different. It was much less commercialized and more of a backstage atmosphere. It was exciting and a great build up to the main events.
That all started around 7pm, and we were seated in our amazing seats just before the electric guitar version of the National Anthem. Could this be more appropriate for the weekend as a whole? No.
Anyway, the races began and even the heat races were great. My favorite, Windham, didn't have the best night, but all the other top riders did pretty well. When it was all said and done, Villopoto, the overall Champion from SX and MX this year, ran away with it. It was pretty unreal watching someone win ONE MILLION BUCKS in a single night of racing. There was a nice fireworks show and then back to the Hard Rock we went.
Sunday we hit up Rehab for the Sunday Funday party. I will say this: While the pool is pretty fabulous, it was not quite as crazy as I expected. I kind of imagined tons and tons of people and a circus atmosphere I guess. It was not that. It was nice though. We all waded across the sand bottomed portion of the pool and hung out in the pool within the pool in the middle for a bit. Then we walked over to another section and went down the tube slide. It was fun to pretend to be a kid again and slide into the water like we were 7 years old. After some lounging we decided to call it early and get back inside the casino.
And inside the casino we did what almost everyone in Vegas does, gamble! Well I didn’t do much, but my boyfriend did and our friends did some too. One gal with us kept putting one dollar in slot machines and kept turning it into 8 and 10 and 20-something bucks. Overall, only playing slot machines, she was in the black, and I'd say that's pretty good.
I rolled the dice. My boyfriend did the betting and I rolled the dice. Now Saturday night we didn't have too much luck, and then Sunday we weren't doing very well again, so I made a strategic decision. I changed outfits. The silver, glitter heels and black wedges were obviously more for show than luck, so back to the pink sparkly heels I went and it worked. Well it worked a little. We did better than when I was in the other shoes.
Monday, in my brown wedge heels, I played some Black Jack. It started as just a, "let's throw in 20 bucks each and try to break even so we can burn some time before we have to leave and maybe not be in the red as much" type of a decision to play. And in the first few hands we were already down. So my boyfriend made a strategic decision this time and it had nothing to do with his shoes. He made me play. And I won. I won all our money back. Not just the 20 bucks we threw in that morning, but also from the two nights before too! We had this really fun dealer named "Lorri." She was hilarious and helpful. We had a fantastic time at her table with two other guys from France. It was the perfect ending to our time in Vegas.
Other notable mentions are: Johnny Smalls-- a great place for a small meal at the HRH, from flatbreads to sushi and Pink Taco-- a West Coast chain Mexican spot that has a nice little patio and yummy breakfast.
To end the entire trip, after our flight home that we mostly slept through, my boyfriend and I ran into Five Guys. I told you folks, I love cheeseburgers. They are my ultimate comfort food. So after a 3 hour flight, what is better before a 2 hour drive home? Nothing, duh. And after having In N Out only 48ish hours before, I can tell you with 100% certainty, I like Five Guys more. It is a bigger burger, and better toppings and the fries, well if you have been there you understand the fries. Five Guys wins. End of story.
No really, that is the end of the Vegas post. Like I said before the whole story would have been incredibly long, and there are way too many details I'd forget. So those were the highlights! I can't wait to go back, but before that I have a nice get-a-way to San Diego coming up for my birthday. Here's to that!
xoxo Sara Marie
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