Frosties ... they're Grrrrreat

 

Very pleased to welcome today's guest bloggers, Tom and James Frost. James turned 14 the day before I turned the big 5-0 so it was good to help him grow up (and up and up) in Vegas. Tom Loaf is one of my oldest friends, we have been studying, travelling and having the occasional beverage since 1991 when as a young Fresher at Southampton University he took me (a second year) under his wing and got me to up my game in so many ways. (running been the most recent)

(James)

I woke up today expecting to be taller than my dad. Unfortunately, that was the only part of the day that didn't go to plan. This was my first day in Las Vegas and it was my 14th Birthday. We got up very early - at 4 15 - and after measuring a quarter of an inch shorter than my dad,  we went down the Vegas strip and saw the massive hotels like the mirage and New York New York, stopping half way for a coffee and croissant. We then came back to our hotel, Excalibur, and went to the pool to round off the morning. After a walk through Excalibur and into the Luxur, we met up with the Williams for a massive lunch buffet. I don't think any of us will eat ever again! There was food from all over the world, like Chinese and Mexican. I had some Chinese chicken wings and rice with bacon and hash browns! 

After the massive buffet, we all went for a steaming stroll down the strip, until we reached the high roller wheel, the biggest observational wheel in the world. The views from the top were tremendous,  we could see the perfect pools and the cool casinos. On the way back from the wheel we left the Williams' and walked through more casinos until we reached an Irish bar in New York New York, which was one of the only bars where I was allowed in! After that we went back to Excalibur, and while my dad went and won 180 dollars playing blackjack me and my mum went in the kids casino called the fun dungeon! There were lots of fun games there like air hockey and flappy bird. We finished the day by coming back to our hotel room and chilling before having an early night, going to bed at 8:00 o'clock.

(Tom)

My day started excellently despite the 4am alarm. I'm still taller than my son!

That settled we went for an early morning stroll down the Strip from the Excalibur where we are staying up as far as Treasure Island. Highlight was an almost healthy berry compote at Starbucks Mirage and browsing the Grand Canal Shoppes at the Venetian with no-one around.

Then it was back to the room and present time before a dip in the pool. Slightly disappointing there's not enough staff to open the main one and I'm still confused why there aren't changing rooms and we have to drip dry back to the room.

Next up was the Luxor lunch buffet with blog and birthday boy Lloyd and the stubbornly vegetarian Chrissi. We had a feast fit for a pharaoh. The Son King was shovelling it in with a spoon like Tutankhamen whilst I had a pyramid of brownies!

Suitably barrel like we rolled back down the Strip impressed with the Williams aircon seeking radar. Then up the High Roller for views over Vegas and working out if there was more water in the Bellagio fountains or approaching rain storms. Rain in Vegas, again!

 

Ended the day with some success at cards. Not enough to retire on!

Thanks for the opportunity guest blog as our family holiday and the 50th birthday celebrations coincide as planned.

Stay lucky!

(Lloyd)

So bed at midnight, fell into a deep, deep sleep, awake and alert at 3 am ready for the day ahead. Chrissi all up for heading out, but somehow we managed to fall back to sleep for a bit and suddenly it was 8ish and really we had the best part of a normal nights kip.

All excited about being in Vegas though and so it was straight down to do a little bit of exploration of Caesars, but mainly to grab a coffee, bagel and reflect on the previous 24 hours.

Chrissi went off to the pool for an hour so I amused myself with the video poker and signed up for the Caesars Palace Reward scheme. They clearly didn't come looking for me, so have not recognised my potential as a high roller. It only of course exists in my head.

Our focus of the first part of the day was to meet our friends, the Frosties, for lunch at midday in the Luxor. They are staying at that end of the strip in the Excalibur, a good value casino, and one we have stayed in before with our kids. A great place for their lad, James, to see in his 14th.

Chrissi and I used our expert knowledge of the southern strip to duck in and out of casinos, and not get lost too many times. Once you are in them you do lose all sense of direction, but the air conditioning far too good to waste instead of following the more obvious Las Vegas Boulevard.

A Vegas buffet at the Luxor turned out to be the only thing we ate all day. If I'd realised that I might have had a little more.  We've eaten there before, and such is the merry go round of a Vegas buffet I only have a couple of samples of the kinds of things we ate. Water melons shared their plate with sushi, pizza with mexican, sausages with eggs, cakes with custard, so some more traditional bedfellows than others.

It was great to spend some time with the Frosties, and we continued in that vein walking back up the Strip to share one of James many birthday treats, the Linq Wheel. I heartily recommend the 30 mins on there, some absolutely magnificent views of the Strip, the outlying desert, the airport, Vegas in all its grotty, barren, beautiful glory.

Opportunities for a drink with an under 21 in our presence were limited so they went south and Chrissi and I took a quick look in Caesars at Spa and Fitness Centre for tomorrows plans.

More friends appeared, our Irish Canadian buds who stumbled drunkenly out of Hells Kitchen. Andrea and Dave also went there too.  Andrea (yesterdays blogger) says great paired wine with food, and Dave could not stop talking about the Beef Wellington Pastry. Was all I could get out of him as he became more drunk.  3 hour sitting felt non rushed and great happy atmosphere. A third hand review for our foodies there.

We had a first cocktail, I left them to it as I wanted to engage with my first poker tournament. I'd like to call it a warm up, a few early hands where I made some ground, and then a few hits and sitting on a short stack for the most part, busted with 10s v KQ, always remember your losing hand!

Rejoined the revellers at the Carneval Court next to the Linq Casino, where there was a live band, and in the casino next door Harrahs, a pair of twins bantering and duelling on their pianos

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There were different stages of merriment, I was in the low alcoholic version but high on vegas and painkillers. Our final bit of jeopardy was watching the delayed arrival of our last friends who were travelling on the same BA flight 24 hrs after us, but had a few more hitches. Not least a thunderstorm in Vegas that temporarily closed the airport, lightening on landing.

But the Roman gods continued to smile and we were soon a full house in Caesars with the whole crew here as the clock ticked through midnight which technically meant my birthday started here. I stayed 49 for 8 hours longer in Vegas.