2014--Las Vegas, NV
Day One--
Here is a link to Margo’s jump off the Stratosphere. Jolene took a video with her phone, but so far we have not been able to transfer it. She is not big on social media, but we will get it figured out.
http://www.billkretzer.com/margos-skyjump.html
After we finished up with Margo’s jump we had a couple of hours until we could check in to our hotel, the New York New York. They offer early check in for an additional $20 per room. That did not sound like a good value and we were comfortable where we were at. The Stratosphere appreciated our decision, as their slot machines treated us poorly. No one won anything, and we had a hot dog lunch there, so they got a small bite of our vacation cash.
We left the Stratosphere for NYNY about 3 PM, and drove back up the strip. The traffic was still not too bad. We decided to self park and we did so on the same level as the check in desk, so it was not too bad. We had no trouble checking in, except that Jessi and Pete wanted a smoking room. So they got that changed after the fact.
We gambled there for an hour, maybe as much as two, before our lack of luck prompted a change of venue. I had heard that the MGM Grand, across the street had a decent buffet. It was OK. I spent about $200 for the six of us, including a tip. It was not that good. We could have had a better meal for the half the price. The days of a buffet being a good value, are long gone on the Las Vegas strip.
We gambled for awhile there, and no one was having much luck. So we decided to checkout M&M World and Everything Coca-Cola, where are right next door to the MGM. Those are always interesting to see, with all of the memorabilia and the dozens of kind of M&Ms to buy (at $12.99 per pound). We didn’t get any, but did admire the new Personalized M&M station that was on the top floor.
After that short tour of the strip, we went back to NYNY. I was tired and headed back to the room first. Tired and I had lost my allotment of money for the day. No sense pushing it.
http://www.billkretzer.com/margos-skyjump.html
After we finished up with Margo’s jump we had a couple of hours until we could check in to our hotel, the New York New York. They offer early check in for an additional $20 per room. That did not sound like a good value and we were comfortable where we were at. The Stratosphere appreciated our decision, as their slot machines treated us poorly. No one won anything, and we had a hot dog lunch there, so they got a small bite of our vacation cash.
We left the Stratosphere for NYNY about 3 PM, and drove back up the strip. The traffic was still not too bad. We decided to self park and we did so on the same level as the check in desk, so it was not too bad. We had no trouble checking in, except that Jessi and Pete wanted a smoking room. So they got that changed after the fact.
We gambled there for an hour, maybe as much as two, before our lack of luck prompted a change of venue. I had heard that the MGM Grand, across the street had a decent buffet. It was OK. I spent about $200 for the six of us, including a tip. It was not that good. We could have had a better meal for the half the price. The days of a buffet being a good value, are long gone on the Las Vegas strip.
We gambled for awhile there, and no one was having much luck. So we decided to checkout M&M World and Everything Coca-Cola, where are right next door to the MGM. Those are always interesting to see, with all of the memorabilia and the dozens of kind of M&Ms to buy (at $12.99 per pound). We didn’t get any, but did admire the new Personalized M&M station that was on the top floor.
After that short tour of the strip, we went back to NYNY. I was tired and headed back to the room first. Tired and I had lost my allotment of money for the day. No sense pushing it.
|
|
Day Two
Our second day, we had a Segway tour planned. We ate breakfast at NYNY at a place called 48th and Crepe. It served Krispy Kreme Doughnuts and various creations made with crepes. We all opted for donuts.
We were to meet next door at the Monte Carlo valet area at 10 AM. Our guide ended up being half an hour late. But, we did not let that hamper our good time. When Margo and I took our first Segway tour at Epcot, they gave us 45 minutes of instruction. Segway Bob gave us five, total. It was plenty. Jessi and Jolene were a bit apprehensive about them, but they mastered them very quickly. Jolene had one instance where she was going to bail, because someone walked out in front of her, but Randy yelled at her and she got it under control.
Segway Bob took from the Monte Carlo, across the street and then north all the way down to The Venetian, across the street again and back down to the Monte Carlo. He told me that we put in about twelve total miles. That might be an exaggeration, but we did have a great time. It was fun to zip along at more than 6 miles per hour, passing pedestrians and seeing how jealous they were. Segway Bob kept giving us little nuggets about Vegas history, places to eat, and such. But not a lot of stuck, because we were having fun just riding his machines.
Probably the most memorable part of the tour was getting in and out of several elevators. On the Las Vegas Strip and several of the larger intersections, it is just too dangerous for pedestrians. So the city has built elevated walkways that span the boulevard. To get up to them there are stairs, an escalator, and an elevator. Only one of those is suitable for our Segways. At the first of these, it was large enough where the seven of us on the tour, could walk the machines in. Then when we got to the top, we would walk them out, and reboard. But others were a little smaller, so we rode them in, and maneuvered our selves so we were crammed in. At the top (and bottom on the other side) we would ride out, one after another. We looked like one of those clown cars at the circus where one after another of us would come buzzing out of the elevator. People waiting would just stair. We heard “How many of them are there” a couple of times.
The tour was over in about 1 ½ hours. It was a real hoot. Randy wanted to have a genuine Nathans Hot dog for lunch, so we went back NYNY and ate lunch there. I was paying for all of the food, and the kids were feeling guilty about the abuse my credit cards seemed to be taking. It tried telling them over and over again, that I budgeted plenty of money for food, but it did little good. I think Nathans was also cheap and that played a part in the decision. They were good hot dogs and it charged us back up.
We decided to try our luck at the casino again. I was thinking about the will call tickets I had for our two shows this week. A set over at the Hooters casino and a set over at the Luxor. I told Margo I was going to walk over and get the tickets. I put in six miles every evening on a normal day. The weather was gorgeous outside so I wasn’t seeing much downside in forgoing slot machine time for this task. NYNY sits on the strip between Rue de Monte Carlo and Tropicana Ave. You cross The Strip to the MGM Grand and across Tropicana Ave is the Tropicana hotel. Imagine that. Continuing east on Tropicana is Hooters Hotel and Casino. So I went there first. It was about a 10-15 minute walk and their casino is pretty small. On a Tuesday afternoon in January, it was also about empty. Not very impressive at all. I quickly found the box office, and found that it was only open from 5 PM to 8 PM. Great. We would have to be back to pick up the tickets by 7 PM.
I left, backtracked to the Tropicana and crossed The Strip to the Excalibur, which sits across Tropicana Ave NYNY. The Luxor was just south, on the Strip, of there. Another 10-15 minutes total walking and I was inside. It had to ask to find the box office. Actually someone asked me if I was looking for someplace, and his direction got me right there. I pick up our Carrot Top tickets and decided to spend a few minutes gambling. $10 later (Yes, I am a big spender) and I decided to go meet up with the rest of the gang.
It was getting to be late afternoon by now, and after a little gambling at NYNY we decided to try our luck at MGM. By now lady luck was occasionally visiting our group and Randy was starting to win with a bit of regularity. But, we broke to eat around 5:30 PM to eat. We decided on the Rain Forest Café. The food was OK, but the restaurant was fun. As we had to pick up our tickets to the Kevin Lepine Hypnosis Show by 7 PM, we headed over there.
More gambling with mixed results. We had VIP tickets for the show, which meant that we got front row, plus a free beer. This front row stuff is pretty nice. No one in front of you and the action is right there. But at a hypnosis show, they need volunteers. Everyone in our group was adamant about not going up, but when they were coming up short on volunteers and mere seconds before I was going to give in, Margo volunteered. This turning 50 stuff had made an impression on her, I guess.
The hypnotist, Kevin Lepine, put the ten of them under, and then decides that four of them were not good subjects for the show. Margo was not one of those. She ended up being very good for the show.
The first thing he did was teach them to sleep. Not really how to sleep, but more like which way to slouch when he suggested/ordered/asked them to sleep. He wanted them to all end resting their head on their neighbors shoulder, towards the middle. The one guy in the middle would end up with two ladies heads on either shoulder. Margo was one of those.
He next made them “cuddle”. He suggested that the shoulder they were on was very comfortable and desirable. It was pretty comical to watch them try and inch up a little closer. He next pulled out a big package of napkins, and told everyone they were 100 dollar bills. After commanding them to stay in their seats, he began tossing them up in the air, to them, near them, and around them. They all were scrambling to get as many as possible. Towards the end Margo was stuffing them in her shirt. When Kevin saw this, he walked over and began handing her one after another. Margo kept filing them away as fast as he would give them to her.
This show was supposed to be R-rated, and so far we had been experiencing Disneyesque stuff. But, he had also promised he would not make fools of anyone. So, we were kind of wondering exactly what was coming and how “bad’ it would get. We were about to get a taste of that.
He next instructed his minions to see the funniest movie they had ever seen. Then he changed it to the scariest. He had them scream on cue. Margo let out a pretty good one, but everyone in the audience was clapping, shouting and cheering as well. We had been instructed to do just that to bring out the best in those hypnotized. The scary movie was turned into a porno movie. A couple of those under looked like they were really enjoying the movie. Margo was kind of neutral. That changed when Kevin changed the movie to porno staring your parents. Faces of revulsion appeared instantly, as we in the audience roared.
He suggested that the hypnotees were naked. There was much covering up. Then he suggested that the audience was naked. I think Margo might have gotten red. She later apologized to the boys for seeing them naked. We just laughed, as she was only half kidding.
He next suggested that those under his influence would see him, Kevin, as normal from the front, but when he turned around he would be naked. They could react as they saw fit, except that they had to stay in their seats. There was one guy, literally the size of an NFL linebacker who thought Kevin’s butt was pretty attractive, because he ignore the “sit” command and pursued him across the stage to cop a feel. Kevin’s assistant, had to escort him to his seat.
Next he changed it to normal in back, but naked in front, and that Kevin was very, very well endowed. The reactions were varied and hilarious. Margo was repulsed and put up her hands. Then Kevin began to shake about and twirl his asset. That brought out more revulsion from Margo and huge laughs from the crowd.
He next made their chairs vibrate which culminated in him telling them to have an orgasm when he tapped them on the shoulder. He told them that the “tap” on the shoulder would last after the show, and that anytime someone who they came to the show with tapped them on the shoulder they would have another orgasm. Later, after we were all telling Margo how well she had done, Jolene taps her on the shoulder, and Margo does a body shiver, and tells her to stop, while she smiles it off. She later explained that the sensation she felt was like a body shiver.
By this time we were in tears. I know that I am not doing it justice and you had to be there. By this time he had noticed that Margo was really a good subject so he focused on her. He asked me how we were together and such. In the end, I was up on stage, too! This was too much for Jessi, who yelled out “No!” Kevin asked her why and she explained that we were her parents. Kevin asked if she knew how she had gotten here.
I got up, was seated off to one side of the stage and asked my favorite color. Kevin suggested to Margo that anytime I said the word “blue”, that she would give me the most passionate kiss of my life. OK, I’m game. I yelled out blue and Margo got up and did the suggestion proud.
The finale of the show was a little tame, but funny. He started them off cuddling again, first telling them that the person beside them smelt Oh-So-Good. Then he turned that around and that they smelled horrible and to tell them. Margo was yelling at the guy that he needed a shower.
After getting interacting like that he had the guy in the middle pretend he was Brittany Spears and do her routine. Then the other five on stage got to join him as the Village People. Margo was the only one who knew the moves to YMCA.
That was pretty about the end of the show. He did a little more, but soon we were done. The show was being videoed and Margo wanted to get a copy. I wasn’t a hundred percent sure of that, thinking “Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas”, but the decision was made for us, when Kevin told us after the show that the equipment had malfunctioned and there was not video. Margo was very disappointed.
We had a fun time reliving that as we walked back to our hotel. The night was still fairly young and we spent it spinning slot wheels until well after midnight. I was back at the room first, actually up a few dollars. I had hit for $80 on one machine and had not given it all away. I think Margo joined me about 1:30 AM.
We were to meet next door at the Monte Carlo valet area at 10 AM. Our guide ended up being half an hour late. But, we did not let that hamper our good time. When Margo and I took our first Segway tour at Epcot, they gave us 45 minutes of instruction. Segway Bob gave us five, total. It was plenty. Jessi and Jolene were a bit apprehensive about them, but they mastered them very quickly. Jolene had one instance where she was going to bail, because someone walked out in front of her, but Randy yelled at her and she got it under control.
Segway Bob took from the Monte Carlo, across the street and then north all the way down to The Venetian, across the street again and back down to the Monte Carlo. He told me that we put in about twelve total miles. That might be an exaggeration, but we did have a great time. It was fun to zip along at more than 6 miles per hour, passing pedestrians and seeing how jealous they were. Segway Bob kept giving us little nuggets about Vegas history, places to eat, and such. But not a lot of stuck, because we were having fun just riding his machines.
Probably the most memorable part of the tour was getting in and out of several elevators. On the Las Vegas Strip and several of the larger intersections, it is just too dangerous for pedestrians. So the city has built elevated walkways that span the boulevard. To get up to them there are stairs, an escalator, and an elevator. Only one of those is suitable for our Segways. At the first of these, it was large enough where the seven of us on the tour, could walk the machines in. Then when we got to the top, we would walk them out, and reboard. But others were a little smaller, so we rode them in, and maneuvered our selves so we were crammed in. At the top (and bottom on the other side) we would ride out, one after another. We looked like one of those clown cars at the circus where one after another of us would come buzzing out of the elevator. People waiting would just stair. We heard “How many of them are there” a couple of times.
The tour was over in about 1 ½ hours. It was a real hoot. Randy wanted to have a genuine Nathans Hot dog for lunch, so we went back NYNY and ate lunch there. I was paying for all of the food, and the kids were feeling guilty about the abuse my credit cards seemed to be taking. It tried telling them over and over again, that I budgeted plenty of money for food, but it did little good. I think Nathans was also cheap and that played a part in the decision. They were good hot dogs and it charged us back up.
We decided to try our luck at the casino again. I was thinking about the will call tickets I had for our two shows this week. A set over at the Hooters casino and a set over at the Luxor. I told Margo I was going to walk over and get the tickets. I put in six miles every evening on a normal day. The weather was gorgeous outside so I wasn’t seeing much downside in forgoing slot machine time for this task. NYNY sits on the strip between Rue de Monte Carlo and Tropicana Ave. You cross The Strip to the MGM Grand and across Tropicana Ave is the Tropicana hotel. Imagine that. Continuing east on Tropicana is Hooters Hotel and Casino. So I went there first. It was about a 10-15 minute walk and their casino is pretty small. On a Tuesday afternoon in January, it was also about empty. Not very impressive at all. I quickly found the box office, and found that it was only open from 5 PM to 8 PM. Great. We would have to be back to pick up the tickets by 7 PM.
I left, backtracked to the Tropicana and crossed The Strip to the Excalibur, which sits across Tropicana Ave NYNY. The Luxor was just south, on the Strip, of there. Another 10-15 minutes total walking and I was inside. It had to ask to find the box office. Actually someone asked me if I was looking for someplace, and his direction got me right there. I pick up our Carrot Top tickets and decided to spend a few minutes gambling. $10 later (Yes, I am a big spender) and I decided to go meet up with the rest of the gang.
It was getting to be late afternoon by now, and after a little gambling at NYNY we decided to try our luck at MGM. By now lady luck was occasionally visiting our group and Randy was starting to win with a bit of regularity. But, we broke to eat around 5:30 PM to eat. We decided on the Rain Forest Café. The food was OK, but the restaurant was fun. As we had to pick up our tickets to the Kevin Lepine Hypnosis Show by 7 PM, we headed over there.
More gambling with mixed results. We had VIP tickets for the show, which meant that we got front row, plus a free beer. This front row stuff is pretty nice. No one in front of you and the action is right there. But at a hypnosis show, they need volunteers. Everyone in our group was adamant about not going up, but when they were coming up short on volunteers and mere seconds before I was going to give in, Margo volunteered. This turning 50 stuff had made an impression on her, I guess.
The hypnotist, Kevin Lepine, put the ten of them under, and then decides that four of them were not good subjects for the show. Margo was not one of those. She ended up being very good for the show.
The first thing he did was teach them to sleep. Not really how to sleep, but more like which way to slouch when he suggested/ordered/asked them to sleep. He wanted them to all end resting their head on their neighbors shoulder, towards the middle. The one guy in the middle would end up with two ladies heads on either shoulder. Margo was one of those.
He next made them “cuddle”. He suggested that the shoulder they were on was very comfortable and desirable. It was pretty comical to watch them try and inch up a little closer. He next pulled out a big package of napkins, and told everyone they were 100 dollar bills. After commanding them to stay in their seats, he began tossing them up in the air, to them, near them, and around them. They all were scrambling to get as many as possible. Towards the end Margo was stuffing them in her shirt. When Kevin saw this, he walked over and began handing her one after another. Margo kept filing them away as fast as he would give them to her.
This show was supposed to be R-rated, and so far we had been experiencing Disneyesque stuff. But, he had also promised he would not make fools of anyone. So, we were kind of wondering exactly what was coming and how “bad’ it would get. We were about to get a taste of that.
He next instructed his minions to see the funniest movie they had ever seen. Then he changed it to the scariest. He had them scream on cue. Margo let out a pretty good one, but everyone in the audience was clapping, shouting and cheering as well. We had been instructed to do just that to bring out the best in those hypnotized. The scary movie was turned into a porno movie. A couple of those under looked like they were really enjoying the movie. Margo was kind of neutral. That changed when Kevin changed the movie to porno staring your parents. Faces of revulsion appeared instantly, as we in the audience roared.
He suggested that the hypnotees were naked. There was much covering up. Then he suggested that the audience was naked. I think Margo might have gotten red. She later apologized to the boys for seeing them naked. We just laughed, as she was only half kidding.
He next suggested that those under his influence would see him, Kevin, as normal from the front, but when he turned around he would be naked. They could react as they saw fit, except that they had to stay in their seats. There was one guy, literally the size of an NFL linebacker who thought Kevin’s butt was pretty attractive, because he ignore the “sit” command and pursued him across the stage to cop a feel. Kevin’s assistant, had to escort him to his seat.
Next he changed it to normal in back, but naked in front, and that Kevin was very, very well endowed. The reactions were varied and hilarious. Margo was repulsed and put up her hands. Then Kevin began to shake about and twirl his asset. That brought out more revulsion from Margo and huge laughs from the crowd.
He next made their chairs vibrate which culminated in him telling them to have an orgasm when he tapped them on the shoulder. He told them that the “tap” on the shoulder would last after the show, and that anytime someone who they came to the show with tapped them on the shoulder they would have another orgasm. Later, after we were all telling Margo how well she had done, Jolene taps her on the shoulder, and Margo does a body shiver, and tells her to stop, while she smiles it off. She later explained that the sensation she felt was like a body shiver.
By this time we were in tears. I know that I am not doing it justice and you had to be there. By this time he had noticed that Margo was really a good subject so he focused on her. He asked me how we were together and such. In the end, I was up on stage, too! This was too much for Jessi, who yelled out “No!” Kevin asked her why and she explained that we were her parents. Kevin asked if she knew how she had gotten here.
I got up, was seated off to one side of the stage and asked my favorite color. Kevin suggested to Margo that anytime I said the word “blue”, that she would give me the most passionate kiss of my life. OK, I’m game. I yelled out blue and Margo got up and did the suggestion proud.
The finale of the show was a little tame, but funny. He started them off cuddling again, first telling them that the person beside them smelt Oh-So-Good. Then he turned that around and that they smelled horrible and to tell them. Margo was yelling at the guy that he needed a shower.
After getting interacting like that he had the guy in the middle pretend he was Brittany Spears and do her routine. Then the other five on stage got to join him as the Village People. Margo was the only one who knew the moves to YMCA.
That was pretty about the end of the show. He did a little more, but soon we were done. The show was being videoed and Margo wanted to get a copy. I wasn’t a hundred percent sure of that, thinking “Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas”, but the decision was made for us, when Kevin told us after the show that the equipment had malfunctioned and there was not video. Margo was very disappointed.
We had a fun time reliving that as we walked back to our hotel. The night was still fairly young and we spent it spinning slot wheels until well after midnight. I was back at the room first, actually up a few dollars. I had hit for $80 on one machine and had not given it all away. I think Margo joined me about 1:30 AM.
|
|
|
Day Three-
The next morning, Wednesday the 15th, our plan was to be at American Shooters by 11 AM. I had called these people to have a few questions answered and based on what I heard was really looking forward to this. On my Bucket List, #40 to be specific, is to fire a Tommy Gun. American Shooters is a gun range that rents firearms, among them was a Thompson submachine gun.
We had breakfast as Denny’s, on The Strip, and then made the ten minute drive to American Shooters. The girls were not real big on this whole thing. Margo was OK with it. In my letter from last week, I forgot to mention that we had finally made it over to Jayme’s place to shoot some of his guns. Margo went and fired Pam’s Sig Sauer Mosquito, a .22 calibre handgun. She liked shooting it, and we chose that as one of the four pistols we would start our day with. The others were a Glock G-19 (9mm), a Nighthawk (Ladyhawk), and an FNH 5.7. The Ladyhawk is also a 9mm and the FNH fires a 5.7mm round, which is not common in a handgun.
I wanted to fire the Glock because I was thinking of getting one. But, I did not like the way it felt in my hand. I also couldn’t hit anything with it. That was almost certainly more me than the gun. No one liked the FNH. Randy is the most experienced shoot among us, and he said the sights were way off. I thought the same thing after seeing everything hit down and to the right by four to six inches.
I really liked the Ladyhawk. At about 20 feet I was hitting what I was aiming at. I later found out it is a $3000 handgun. So that is probably out.
All three of us guys fired the two 9mm, going through about 100 rounds between us. We burned through 50 rounds of .22s and another 50 rounds of the 5.7mm bullets. Jolene and Jessi were content with the Mosquito, just so they could say they participated. I think Margo got to fire the Glock, too. She didn’t like it.
That left us with the automatics. I had to talk Pete into it. Not that he was afraid or intimidated. It’s just that the guys were feeling guilty about the money we were spending. I had to keep reminding them that they had already kicked in for this. In the end, he decided to fire the Thompson, too. Randy chose the M-60. This is a web fed automatic rifle, with a tripod, and firing a 7.62mm NATO round. Randy would be firing it from the prone, or laying down, position.
I went first, and I was kind of glad I did. Because after giving us very careful instruction, he failed to tell us one thing the range considers important. We were not allowed to due a “magazine dump”. That is where you hold down the trigger and let it rock and roll, like on TV. Hell, that was the whole reason I wanted to fire one.
I fired off a short burst, and he, the instructor, corrected my posture. Then I fired off another short burst. I was ready now, and I held down the trigger and burned through at least 10 rounds before he tapped my on the shoulder and admonished me for doing it. He explained that this would burn up the barrel. Their guns, their rules. He did allow bursts of more than three. I think I did about five at a time, but most of my clip was already expended. Luckliy, I had paid for two a piece. I tried to be a little more accurate with my second magazine, but I was more concerned with just having fun. When was I ever going to do this again?
Pete went next, but he limited himself to three round bursts, and focused on accuracy. He was much more accurate and looked to be having a good time. Randy went last. We had to move to another range that could accommodate the more powerful weapon. The instructor got him set up, and the Randy squeezed off his first burst. It was loud. After the handguns and the Thompson, we thought we were ready. We all jumped.
Randy’s ammunition came in belts of 20 and I bought him two. Even in three round bursts, with him taking his time to be accurate and use the scope, it still seemed to be over in the blink of an eye.
That was it. I have several regrets. We got no video. All the girls had their phones, and not one of us thought to video the automatic portion. We also did get any pictures of us holding the guns afterwards. Margo got a few pics of me shooting. I got a few of Pete shooting. I don’t think anyone got any pics of Randy. Oh, well.
Jessi had mentioned that she wanted to make sure to see the flower arrangements at the Bellagio. The Bellagio is one of the most prestigious hotels on the strip and caters to the well to do. That ain’t us, but I kind of figure it’s like steerage class on the luxury liners of the late 19th and early 30th centuries. The publicity and money is spent on the first class passengers, but the ship lines made their money by selling 3rd class tickets to the immigrants coming to America. As such, the Bellagio makes their money by harvesting tourist money on their slot machines. We helped.
Jessi got to see the flowers, but said they were not as good as the last time she was there. We didn’t spend a great deal of time there. Long enough to lose about $20 and drink a beer. Since Caesar’s Palace and The Forum Shops were right next door, I drug everyone over there. I seemed to remember that there was a show in which the statues come to life. I was right about the show, but we got there a few minutes after the hourly show ended. It would be about 40 minutes until the next on.
While getting to the place where this Atlantis statue show would begin, we passed a gelato stand. That seemed like a good way to kill a little time and back we went. The gelato was good; the lady running it, not so much. We would ask for a sample of one flavor, and she would mix it with another, telling us what a good combination it was. We all ordered a single flavor, much to her annoyance. She didn’t get a tip.
We still had to wait a few minutes for the show, which was OK. The animatronics statue of the King of Atlantis and his two children rose out of their pedestals. The king needed to pass along the kingdom to one of offspring. They are both demi-gods and both thought they should rule Atlantis. They “fought” via lights, sound, and gestures. They destroyed Atlantis and it sunk into the ocean; every hour on the hour.
None of us were very impressed with shops at the Bellagio or The Forum. You had to both have to money and think that spending $500 on a purse was OK. While I do hope to get that rich, I pray that I will always have the sense not to get such poor value for my money. So we walked back to the valet at the Bellagio, where our car was sequestered.
Pete had suggested pizza at Sirocco’s back at NYNY. They are open 24-7, but as it was only about 5:00 PM, this was not a problem. The Italian ice cream dessert we had had at the Forum Shops was wearing out, at about the time we got back to NYNY, so we had a nice dinner listing to the music coming out of The Bar at Times Square, across the “street”.
Our evening plans were to go down to downtown Las Vegas. The Strip had slowly been killing off downtown Las Vegas business for years. So in the mid-1990s several blocks of Fremont Street, “the” street in downtown LV was covered with a metal canopy, 2 million lights, and a state of the art sound system. Then every hour on the hour, a light and sound show is put on. It is something to see, when a large bird or airplane, made of lights, “flies” several blocks on the canopy, accompanied by the music I grew up with. It’s a very popular place and seems to have the desired effect, as people abound. We got there just as the 7 PM light show was ending. We got to see the sign off, where they thank everyone. It did give the kids something to look forward to.
As had been our norm established over the last several days, we designated a meeting place, and time, and went our different ways. The kids seemed more inclined to gamble, Margo and I wanted to see things we had missed on other trips. Binions Casio had an Elvis museum and a million dollars (literally) on display. We took that in. We gambled some and wander a bit outside.
Margo discovered a little kiosk where the owner would write your name on a grain of rice. He would then sell you some form of jewelry to keep it in. After the 8 PM light show she ended up getting herself a necklace. Jessi also got something from them as well.
We split up again and resolved to meet in an hour for the next show at 9 PM. I mostly wandered around seeing all of the street performers and characters working for tips. Apparently this is a thriving business. As on performer explained to Margo, as long as they worked strictly for tips and did not set a price, the street performers did not have to have a business license. So we saw people dressed up in a lot different ways; Elmo from Sesame Street, Hello Kitty, Showgirls, Robots, Superman, Wonder Woman, and on and on. The Showgirls were very flexible, with the ability to lift one leg over their heads as they posed for a picture. Who could resist such talent? Margo took my picture with them.
We stuck around until the 10 PM show ended and then we found our car back the California Hotel and drove back to NYNY. I was having little luck with slot machines, so once we got back, more gambling was not on my short list. But, we all decided that a snack sounded good, so we got something at New York Pretzel. I went up to bed around 11:30. Margo came in about 1 AM. I was a little surprised at that, as tomorrow was going to be an early day.
We had breakfast as Denny’s, on The Strip, and then made the ten minute drive to American Shooters. The girls were not real big on this whole thing. Margo was OK with it. In my letter from last week, I forgot to mention that we had finally made it over to Jayme’s place to shoot some of his guns. Margo went and fired Pam’s Sig Sauer Mosquito, a .22 calibre handgun. She liked shooting it, and we chose that as one of the four pistols we would start our day with. The others were a Glock G-19 (9mm), a Nighthawk (Ladyhawk), and an FNH 5.7. The Ladyhawk is also a 9mm and the FNH fires a 5.7mm round, which is not common in a handgun.
I wanted to fire the Glock because I was thinking of getting one. But, I did not like the way it felt in my hand. I also couldn’t hit anything with it. That was almost certainly more me than the gun. No one liked the FNH. Randy is the most experienced shoot among us, and he said the sights were way off. I thought the same thing after seeing everything hit down and to the right by four to six inches.
I really liked the Ladyhawk. At about 20 feet I was hitting what I was aiming at. I later found out it is a $3000 handgun. So that is probably out.
All three of us guys fired the two 9mm, going through about 100 rounds between us. We burned through 50 rounds of .22s and another 50 rounds of the 5.7mm bullets. Jolene and Jessi were content with the Mosquito, just so they could say they participated. I think Margo got to fire the Glock, too. She didn’t like it.
That left us with the automatics. I had to talk Pete into it. Not that he was afraid or intimidated. It’s just that the guys were feeling guilty about the money we were spending. I had to keep reminding them that they had already kicked in for this. In the end, he decided to fire the Thompson, too. Randy chose the M-60. This is a web fed automatic rifle, with a tripod, and firing a 7.62mm NATO round. Randy would be firing it from the prone, or laying down, position.
I went first, and I was kind of glad I did. Because after giving us very careful instruction, he failed to tell us one thing the range considers important. We were not allowed to due a “magazine dump”. That is where you hold down the trigger and let it rock and roll, like on TV. Hell, that was the whole reason I wanted to fire one.
I fired off a short burst, and he, the instructor, corrected my posture. Then I fired off another short burst. I was ready now, and I held down the trigger and burned through at least 10 rounds before he tapped my on the shoulder and admonished me for doing it. He explained that this would burn up the barrel. Their guns, their rules. He did allow bursts of more than three. I think I did about five at a time, but most of my clip was already expended. Luckliy, I had paid for two a piece. I tried to be a little more accurate with my second magazine, but I was more concerned with just having fun. When was I ever going to do this again?
Pete went next, but he limited himself to three round bursts, and focused on accuracy. He was much more accurate and looked to be having a good time. Randy went last. We had to move to another range that could accommodate the more powerful weapon. The instructor got him set up, and the Randy squeezed off his first burst. It was loud. After the handguns and the Thompson, we thought we were ready. We all jumped.
Randy’s ammunition came in belts of 20 and I bought him two. Even in three round bursts, with him taking his time to be accurate and use the scope, it still seemed to be over in the blink of an eye.
That was it. I have several regrets. We got no video. All the girls had their phones, and not one of us thought to video the automatic portion. We also did get any pictures of us holding the guns afterwards. Margo got a few pics of me shooting. I got a few of Pete shooting. I don’t think anyone got any pics of Randy. Oh, well.
Jessi had mentioned that she wanted to make sure to see the flower arrangements at the Bellagio. The Bellagio is one of the most prestigious hotels on the strip and caters to the well to do. That ain’t us, but I kind of figure it’s like steerage class on the luxury liners of the late 19th and early 30th centuries. The publicity and money is spent on the first class passengers, but the ship lines made their money by selling 3rd class tickets to the immigrants coming to America. As such, the Bellagio makes their money by harvesting tourist money on their slot machines. We helped.
Jessi got to see the flowers, but said they were not as good as the last time she was there. We didn’t spend a great deal of time there. Long enough to lose about $20 and drink a beer. Since Caesar’s Palace and The Forum Shops were right next door, I drug everyone over there. I seemed to remember that there was a show in which the statues come to life. I was right about the show, but we got there a few minutes after the hourly show ended. It would be about 40 minutes until the next on.
While getting to the place where this Atlantis statue show would begin, we passed a gelato stand. That seemed like a good way to kill a little time and back we went. The gelato was good; the lady running it, not so much. We would ask for a sample of one flavor, and she would mix it with another, telling us what a good combination it was. We all ordered a single flavor, much to her annoyance. She didn’t get a tip.
We still had to wait a few minutes for the show, which was OK. The animatronics statue of the King of Atlantis and his two children rose out of their pedestals. The king needed to pass along the kingdom to one of offspring. They are both demi-gods and both thought they should rule Atlantis. They “fought” via lights, sound, and gestures. They destroyed Atlantis and it sunk into the ocean; every hour on the hour.
None of us were very impressed with shops at the Bellagio or The Forum. You had to both have to money and think that spending $500 on a purse was OK. While I do hope to get that rich, I pray that I will always have the sense not to get such poor value for my money. So we walked back to the valet at the Bellagio, where our car was sequestered.
Pete had suggested pizza at Sirocco’s back at NYNY. They are open 24-7, but as it was only about 5:00 PM, this was not a problem. The Italian ice cream dessert we had had at the Forum Shops was wearing out, at about the time we got back to NYNY, so we had a nice dinner listing to the music coming out of The Bar at Times Square, across the “street”.
Our evening plans were to go down to downtown Las Vegas. The Strip had slowly been killing off downtown Las Vegas business for years. So in the mid-1990s several blocks of Fremont Street, “the” street in downtown LV was covered with a metal canopy, 2 million lights, and a state of the art sound system. Then every hour on the hour, a light and sound show is put on. It is something to see, when a large bird or airplane, made of lights, “flies” several blocks on the canopy, accompanied by the music I grew up with. It’s a very popular place and seems to have the desired effect, as people abound. We got there just as the 7 PM light show was ending. We got to see the sign off, where they thank everyone. It did give the kids something to look forward to.
As had been our norm established over the last several days, we designated a meeting place, and time, and went our different ways. The kids seemed more inclined to gamble, Margo and I wanted to see things we had missed on other trips. Binions Casio had an Elvis museum and a million dollars (literally) on display. We took that in. We gambled some and wander a bit outside.
Margo discovered a little kiosk where the owner would write your name on a grain of rice. He would then sell you some form of jewelry to keep it in. After the 8 PM light show she ended up getting herself a necklace. Jessi also got something from them as well.
We split up again and resolved to meet in an hour for the next show at 9 PM. I mostly wandered around seeing all of the street performers and characters working for tips. Apparently this is a thriving business. As on performer explained to Margo, as long as they worked strictly for tips and did not set a price, the street performers did not have to have a business license. So we saw people dressed up in a lot different ways; Elmo from Sesame Street, Hello Kitty, Showgirls, Robots, Superman, Wonder Woman, and on and on. The Showgirls were very flexible, with the ability to lift one leg over their heads as they posed for a picture. Who could resist such talent? Margo took my picture with them.
We stuck around until the 10 PM show ended and then we found our car back the California Hotel and drove back to NYNY. I was having little luck with slot machines, so once we got back, more gambling was not on my short list. But, we all decided that a snack sounded good, so we got something at New York Pretzel. I went up to bed around 11:30. Margo came in about 1 AM. I was a little surprised at that, as tomorrow was going to be an early day.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Day Four-
Our final full day, Thursday, was to be spent with the morning and early afternoon doing the Hoover Dam. Our evening entertainment was the Carrot Top show at the Luxor. We were going to meet at 8:30 AM at our usual spot; in front of America Café, near the Check In desk. But, before we went our separate ways the day before I changed that to 9:30, as the sole reason for getting an early start was to beat the crowds. While there were no shortage of people, we had not had any trouble with long lines for anything we did. I decided the same would hold for the dam.
Jessi and Pete must have had a pretty late night, as they did not get down until 10 AM. They kept us informed via text, and it wasn’t a big deal. Breakfast was at Denny’s again. I had not detected any enthusiasm for Hoover Dam. Margo confirmed this and told me the kids really didn’t want to go. I figured there was no reason to do something that both the majority did not want to do, and that I had already done. So, I told them we did not have to go. I was proclaimed the Best Father-in-Law ever and got a hug from Randy. Everyone thought that pretty funny. Jessi did insist that if really wanted to go, we could still do it, but it wasn’t a big deal.
Anyway, it seemed that we all had plenty of shopping to do, to get our various gifts from people back home. So we split up again. This had worked pretty well the whole trip. The kids did not feel stifled by having to hang around us the whole time, but we met up at certain times for meals and entertainment that we could enjoy together. We planned on meeting at 3:30 PM by the up escalator to cross Las Vegas Blvd, in front of the MGM.
Margo and I shopped and in a reasonably quick amount of time had our gifts for everyone. We did a lot of the shopping at M&M World, getting Jaeden personalized M&Ms, and Devon an airplane dispenser. We only had one gift left to get, and knew where it was. So I was feeling pretty comfortable about the time, and with the various things that we planned to do; Stratosphere Tower Rides, the Slotzilla Zip Line, and now the Hoover Dam, but had not done, the money.
The kids had let us know they were running behind. They were at the other end of the Strip trying to get to Circus Circus. I had Margo tell them not to worry about it and to meet an hour later. Then with our deadline extended, I suggested that we go to the MGM and do the CSI Experience. Margo was game. So we went back to our room and dumped off all the goodies. Then we crossed back over to the MGM and hiked about 3/8 to ½ mile to the back end of the complex to where the attraction was set up.
In the CSI Experience, you get to pretend that you are a Crime Scene Investigator, just like on TV. They have three different crimes and you get to help solve one of them. You look for evidence, and note it on your form. Then you get to go various labs and have your evidence analyzed. It sounds more high tech than it is. You compare finger prints to just a few samples. The same goes for the tire tracks and bugs. You look at the texts in her cell phone and figure out what the victim was doing. We had fun. It was a little expensive for what you got, but I think they have discount tickets somewhere. No matter, we solved the crime and had our diploma e-mailed back home. We were running short on time, so we did not have time to take any pictures in costume. That would have been fun. Maybe if we go back, we can spend more time doing that.
After checking in with the kids, they thought that pizza at a place in The Paris casino would be good. They were going to head back to the MGM to meet us, and then we would all go to Paris. But Paris was at the end of the strip that they were already at. So we decided to meet at this pizza place. Margo and I found the monorail, which while not far from CSI Experience, by the time we had made this decision we were well away from it. A day pass for the monorail was $12. Which is not bad, but it’s not as convenient as you would imagine. The built the thing on the backside of the hotels. That is at least a quarter mile hike to it, and then you wait up to 10 minutes for the next train, and then hike back to the strip. In that time you could walk to where you were going. A lot of people have come to the same conclusion and locals have dubbed this the Snail Rail. But, it was nice to sit after all the walking and we were at the Paris casino shortly.
The kids met us almost as soon as we arrived at the pizza place. We were all disappointed with it. The pizza had been sitting out to long. Mine was getting hard. And the service really pissed Margo off. The one lady running the little shop spoke broken English and had a hard time understanding that we wanted six of the combos. Rather than ring them all up, and then get several of them together at once, she insisted on doing it one at a time, and then could not keep track of what she had done. She kept tying to put back a bag of chips, which belonged to Margo, thinking that she had already put out the correct amount. Margo straightened her out, while the kids looked amused..from a distance.
We ate and went our separate ways again. This time we were to meet at 7:30 PM, at the Luxor Check In desk. I had wanted to have a drink at the Hard Rock Café, but we still had our last gift to get. I knew tomorrow would be a little hectic and the gift was for Jessi. She would be around the whole time tomorrow and the gift would end up not being a surprise. So we headed off to the store to get the final gift; a neon green Las Vegas sweat jacket. By the time we got it was just too late to go to the Hard Rock. So we ambled over to the Luxor.
We met the kids and found our way to the showroom where Carrot Top was performing. I’ve seen him on TV and was expecting a good show. We got a great show. We laughed so hard. When I got the tickets, I was able to score front row seats. He likes to abuse those in the front row, based on reviews I read of his show, but rewards them later with a shot of Crown Royale. We did get a bit of abuse, but it was nothing too bad and we all enjoyed it immensely. I asked everyone later about the favorite part of the vacation, and it was unanimous; Carrot Top won. Who would have guessed?
Jessi and Pete must have had a pretty late night, as they did not get down until 10 AM. They kept us informed via text, and it wasn’t a big deal. Breakfast was at Denny’s again. I had not detected any enthusiasm for Hoover Dam. Margo confirmed this and told me the kids really didn’t want to go. I figured there was no reason to do something that both the majority did not want to do, and that I had already done. So, I told them we did not have to go. I was proclaimed the Best Father-in-Law ever and got a hug from Randy. Everyone thought that pretty funny. Jessi did insist that if really wanted to go, we could still do it, but it wasn’t a big deal.
Anyway, it seemed that we all had plenty of shopping to do, to get our various gifts from people back home. So we split up again. This had worked pretty well the whole trip. The kids did not feel stifled by having to hang around us the whole time, but we met up at certain times for meals and entertainment that we could enjoy together. We planned on meeting at 3:30 PM by the up escalator to cross Las Vegas Blvd, in front of the MGM.
Margo and I shopped and in a reasonably quick amount of time had our gifts for everyone. We did a lot of the shopping at M&M World, getting Jaeden personalized M&Ms, and Devon an airplane dispenser. We only had one gift left to get, and knew where it was. So I was feeling pretty comfortable about the time, and with the various things that we planned to do; Stratosphere Tower Rides, the Slotzilla Zip Line, and now the Hoover Dam, but had not done, the money.
The kids had let us know they were running behind. They were at the other end of the Strip trying to get to Circus Circus. I had Margo tell them not to worry about it and to meet an hour later. Then with our deadline extended, I suggested that we go to the MGM and do the CSI Experience. Margo was game. So we went back to our room and dumped off all the goodies. Then we crossed back over to the MGM and hiked about 3/8 to ½ mile to the back end of the complex to where the attraction was set up.
In the CSI Experience, you get to pretend that you are a Crime Scene Investigator, just like on TV. They have three different crimes and you get to help solve one of them. You look for evidence, and note it on your form. Then you get to go various labs and have your evidence analyzed. It sounds more high tech than it is. You compare finger prints to just a few samples. The same goes for the tire tracks and bugs. You look at the texts in her cell phone and figure out what the victim was doing. We had fun. It was a little expensive for what you got, but I think they have discount tickets somewhere. No matter, we solved the crime and had our diploma e-mailed back home. We were running short on time, so we did not have time to take any pictures in costume. That would have been fun. Maybe if we go back, we can spend more time doing that.
After checking in with the kids, they thought that pizza at a place in The Paris casino would be good. They were going to head back to the MGM to meet us, and then we would all go to Paris. But Paris was at the end of the strip that they were already at. So we decided to meet at this pizza place. Margo and I found the monorail, which while not far from CSI Experience, by the time we had made this decision we were well away from it. A day pass for the monorail was $12. Which is not bad, but it’s not as convenient as you would imagine. The built the thing on the backside of the hotels. That is at least a quarter mile hike to it, and then you wait up to 10 minutes for the next train, and then hike back to the strip. In that time you could walk to where you were going. A lot of people have come to the same conclusion and locals have dubbed this the Snail Rail. But, it was nice to sit after all the walking and we were at the Paris casino shortly.
The kids met us almost as soon as we arrived at the pizza place. We were all disappointed with it. The pizza had been sitting out to long. Mine was getting hard. And the service really pissed Margo off. The one lady running the little shop spoke broken English and had a hard time understanding that we wanted six of the combos. Rather than ring them all up, and then get several of them together at once, she insisted on doing it one at a time, and then could not keep track of what she had done. She kept tying to put back a bag of chips, which belonged to Margo, thinking that she had already put out the correct amount. Margo straightened her out, while the kids looked amused..from a distance.
We ate and went our separate ways again. This time we were to meet at 7:30 PM, at the Luxor Check In desk. I had wanted to have a drink at the Hard Rock Café, but we still had our last gift to get. I knew tomorrow would be a little hectic and the gift was for Jessi. She would be around the whole time tomorrow and the gift would end up not being a surprise. So we headed off to the store to get the final gift; a neon green Las Vegas sweat jacket. By the time we got it was just too late to go to the Hard Rock. So we ambled over to the Luxor.
We met the kids and found our way to the showroom where Carrot Top was performing. I’ve seen him on TV and was expecting a good show. We got a great show. We laughed so hard. When I got the tickets, I was able to score front row seats. He likes to abuse those in the front row, based on reviews I read of his show, but rewards them later with a shot of Crown Royale. We did get a bit of abuse, but it was nothing too bad and we all enjoyed it immensely. I asked everyone later about the favorite part of the vacation, and it was unanimous; Carrot Top won. Who would have guessed?
|
|
|
|
|
|
Day Five
|
|
|
|
|
|