Friday, August 22
The start to my August trip started out nicely. Although I was going to be in Las Vegas with 3 other friends, we were all on different flights. I took the first flight out of Chicago at 7:30AM (American Airlines) and my upgrade came through. The fight was uneventful and we actually landed 15 minutes early. The bags came out quickly and the bus to the rental car facility was quick and efficient. Dollar was also very efficient and soon I was on my way in a white Chrysler PT Cruiser.

My first stop was to grab some breakfast at Bootleggers. Ever since I had become aware of this place last year (JMT and Lena Prima had recommended it at our Meet last year), I had wanted to try it. The restaurant was basically empty and they sat me in one of those tufted leather booths in the bar area

Wow Mike. You never forget to eat on these trips. As you know, eating is one of my favorite hobbies.

I can't believe that they let you rent dag's car. I hope that you took good car of it.

Did you happen to check out the entertainment schedule at the Bootlegger when you were there? They've been mixing it up lately and I haven't kept up. You were a few days late for Lena, and I forgot who Kelly had for Sunday night. It probably would have nice ending of the night after Cher and a BLT burger. Was there any entertainment there when you had the Pizza?

I do like BLT fries and shakes. The burger is not bad either, but I like Stripburger's burgers better. When BLT raised the prices $5 just to be in line with the competition, that soured me out of there.

Did you hear what they are putting in the center of NYNY? It was just big green walls when I was there last and you couldn't tell what was going on. I was also disappointed to see the advertisement of Rok Vegas on a NYNY tower. I'm about sick of those promo films they put on the windows.

I know that the Maple Tree is closed on Mondays, but I have still stopped by only to find it closed when I go into work on Sunday night and not realize it is Monday when I get off work.

Good score on the Bette tix.

Mike,

Sorry to hear about the noise at NYNY. I know that you already knew about the construction but I'm curious if they warned you about it when you made your reservation?

If we'd have ever gotten to bed at a decent hour, maybe we'd have run into you at HHAGG. I really wanted Patti to try on of their pancakes but we never made it. In fact, we never ate breakfast the whole trip.

I'll be anxious to hear your comparison of Cher and Bette. I really enjoyed Bette but at this point am not interested in paying that much to see Cher.

Thanks for the report!

Okay Mike, I just ate dinner and thanks to your report I'm hungry again! (wonder if there's any truffled mac and cheese in the house?)

I'm curious to know if your host - or your level of play would be affected by playing less due to the jack hammer symphony.

Also - does it still look like the village green area is staying thematic? What about the New York decorations (like the skyline painting) - are they staying?

Glad to hear the monkeys and Glinda were good to you. It is fun, but it seems its an unusually volatile slot game - either you win big or nothing at all.

Thanks for writing another of your tasty trip reports!

JMT - I did check the entertainment schedule at Bootleggers but didn't recognize any of the names. The night I was there, there was a guy playing piano in the other room. But since we were in the bar area, I couldn't hear him very well.

I will have to try Stripburger the next time I'm there. Yes, BLT was a little on the pricey side but it was convenient (JD was staying there) and the atmosphere was fun. And I agree that the shakes and fries were excellent. But quite honestly, I still think Fatburger is the best burger in Vegas!

My understanding is that there's going to be a big bar in the center of the casino, with all the table games fanning out from it, sort of like a star. At least that's how it was described to me.

Jeff - Yes, I knew there was going to be construction but I had no idea it was going to be that noisy. There was construction there during my April visit but the noise wasn't nearly as deafening.

My friend Justin has seen both Bette and Cher and he wouldn't say which show he liked better. He said both were excellent but the shows were very different from each other.

I had never seen Cher before and had no idea what to expect. I had heard she sometimes "goes through the motions" during her shows plus I saw her on Oprah shortly before she opened. She seemed less than enthusiastic on Oprah and the song she performed wasn't all that good (maybe she was tired?). So I guess I had low expectations when I went to see this show. Maybe because of that I enjoyed the show much more than I expected. But I thought she was great and would see her again.

On the other hand, I've seen Bette Midler 5 or 6 times over the years and know exactly what to expect. She always gives 110% and I'm expecting to be wowed. I just hope she doesn't disappoint!

Kestral - I'm not too concerned about my level of play being affected by playing less on this trip. I think they rate me on an average over several trips. Plus I'm such a regular there, they have to take that into account.

But I also had to be sensible about my gambling. It was no fun gambling with all that noise, plus I was losing and had reached my loss limits in many of my sessions. I do try to manage my money and be responsible. So with all that noise plus all those losses, it made sense just to stop.

I'm not entirely sure but I think that village green area is going to stay. I can't imagine what else they would do with it.

As far as the other decorations go, who knows?

I did talk to my casino host about all the changes and some of what she said made sense. She said all the trees required a lot of work and expense. In addition to general maintenance, with all the smoke and dust flying around, they get dirty very easily and constantly have to be washed. She was optimistic that once it's all done, it's going to be nice. Different from what was there, but nice.

Those Wizard of Oz machines were fun. In addition to the flying monkeys and Glinda, I did get to "visit" the Emerald City a few times but didn't win too much while I was there. In fact, that mean guard at the gate slammed the door in my face and I only got 40 nickels for that bonus round!

always hungry after reading your reports at least this time we can read the senators report to balance out the eating.i love the pt for zipping around vegas,and being a person of size,it is real easy getting in and out with plenty of room up front.not going to work out for thanksgiving this year maybe in the spring time will have to put the wizard on my play list

I keep think you were lucky all that JACKHAMMERING didn't keep you awake at night.

Sorry the gambling gods weren't smiling, but your dining alone seems to make your trip worthwhile. FWIW, I think I was chasing deuces much longer than you've been without a Royal.

Daisy - Maybe you should changes the name of your trip reports from "Escapades" to "Chasing Deuces!"

Mike,
I finally got around to reading your trip report.....I needed a vegas fix.
Pizza and donuts....WOW....I don't know what to say! That's quite an evening!
Did you wash it all down with a nice dark beer? LOL

One thing about your trip reports, you ALWAYS eat well!

Sorry to hear the gambling wasn't so good, but then there is always next time!
See you in November!

Oh, and thanks for the GREAT REPORT!!!!

Lee -

Yes, I do treat myself and eat well!

People always ask me why I go to Vegas all the time and I tell them:

- The gambling
- The food
- The shows

Those are my Top 3!

Vegas has something for everyone, doesn't it?

I hope to see you in November! But I won't be joining you for pizza & donuts! LOL

Our problem is when visiting Vegas we always seem to be forced to make a choice, eat well, or do shows. Doing both on the same night is such a challenge, and the rushing around, just seem to ruin one of them. When I'm on vacation, I don't want time schedules, I want to go at MY PACE, not someone elses showtimes or dinner reservation times that are available.