As I mentioned last week, I was going to go to Las Vegas on Thursday the 20th. Well, I've returned (and recovered), and now, for your entertainment (or punishment), here's a brief summary of my Las Vegas vacation.
Before I get started, I want to mention a few things:
1) This was a family vacation (yes, that means my parents and my 17 year-old brother came along, but they planned out the whole trip. Plus, they actually encouraged me to gamble by giving me money).
2) No, I did not see hide nor hair of either Chris or Dion.
3) Sorry Bobak, I wasn't in Vegas long enough to see USC stampede Michigan in the Las Vegas bowl.
Now, with that out of the way, let's start:
InsaneBen's Las Vegas Vacation
I had arrived in Las Vegas on Thursday the 20th at about 1:30pm local time. From there, I took a taxi on over to a hotel I was staying at, called The Venetian. I had already been there once before (back in February 2000, when my Mom celebrated her birthday), but it was nicer the second time around. After viewing the spacious room I stayed in, I went off to Caesar's Palace, where I played a few of the arcade games (namely Ehrgeiz and Street Fighter Alpha). After that, I walked over to the casino part of Caesar's Palace, where I played my first casino game: slots. I heard from a friend that the best slot machine to play was Betty Boop, so I gave it a shot. After spending roughly $3.00 in quarters, I nailed the Love-O-Meter (which multiplies your winnings by a certain amount) and got 60X my winnings (which is 120 quarters, or $37.50). After that, I called it quits for now, cashed in my winnings, and decided to celebrate by having dinner at Spago's. After dinner, I wandered around Caesar's Palace a bit more before heading off to Forte Street (home of the original Las Vegas), where I played nickel and quarter slots at the Golden Gate Casino. I ended up making about $7.50 before calling it a night, heading back to my room in The Venetian, and getting some rest.
On Day 2, I went back to Caesar's Palace, took a look at the Virgin Megastore, and ate lunch at some new-age Chinese resturaunt (forgot the name of the place). After that, I walked around town, through the Bellagio, and all the way up to New York, New York (which is an excruciatingly long walk). While there, I saw Tekken 4, three (yes three) Neo Print booths, and tens of other arcade games. Afterwords, I walked over to Gameworks, where I played Street Fighter Alpha 3 (got up to the 7th stage as Guy, couldn't get past Ryu), a prize grabber machine (where I won a Gameworks keychain), and retro arcade games (spent most of my time playing Missile Command, Gorf, Space Invaders, and Robotron 2084). After that, I took the long walk back to my hotel, where I rested my feet. After the rest, I took a taxi on over to Paris, where I ate dinner at L'amon Gabi (an excellent resturant). Then, I took a taxi on over to the Luxor, where I saw the Blue Man Group perform (they were incredibly hilarious). After that, I went up to the arcade, where I saw a Neo-Geo 2-slot MVS (it had Galaxy Fight and Metal Slug 2) and played The New Tetris (I clobbered my human opponent and made it to the 6th level). After that, I went back to my room to get some shut-eye.
The next day, I went to Caesar's Palace (again) to have lunch at the Stage Deli. After that, I went over to two stores: Gameworld and Alternate Reality Comics. Then, I got a ride on over to Circus Circus, where I saw Metal Slug 3 and played Capcom vs SNK. A short time later, I went back to my room, and then went off to Mandalay Bay, where I ate dinner at the Red Square (an excellent theme resturant; they gave me a birthday cake since it was my birthday [abeit 8 days late]). After that, I took a taxi on over to Harrah's, where I saw three comedians (Chris Mancini, Geoff Brown, and Vinny Favorino) perform at the Improv (all three were great, but Vinny Favorino was the best; I got his CD autographed by him). After that, I went over to New York, New York (again) and played Roulette. I bet $1.00 on a single spot, and ended up making $36.00! After cashing out, I went back to my room to get some well-deserved rest.
I left on the 23rd, but not before playing slots one last time. I played the Monopoly slot machine, and ended up making $17.50. All in all, I had an excellent time, and I can't wait 'til I go back next time. If you have any questions about what else I did on my vacation, please let me know.
Before I get started, I want to mention a few things:
1) This was a family vacation (yes, that means my parents and my 17 year-old brother came along, but they planned out the whole trip. Plus, they actually encouraged me to gamble by giving me money).
2) No, I did not see hide nor hair of either Chris or Dion.
3) Sorry Bobak, I wasn't in Vegas long enough to see USC stampede Michigan in the Las Vegas bowl.
Now, with that out of the way, let's start:
InsaneBen's Las Vegas Vacation
I had arrived in Las Vegas on Thursday the 20th at about 1:30pm local time. From there, I took a taxi on over to a hotel I was staying at, called The Venetian. I had already been there once before (back in February 2000, when my Mom celebrated her birthday), but it was nicer the second time around. After viewing the spacious room I stayed in, I went off to Caesar's Palace, where I played a few of the arcade games (namely Ehrgeiz and Street Fighter Alpha). After that, I walked over to the casino part of Caesar's Palace, where I played my first casino game: slots. I heard from a friend that the best slot machine to play was Betty Boop, so I gave it a shot. After spending roughly $3.00 in quarters, I nailed the Love-O-Meter (which multiplies your winnings by a certain amount) and got 60X my winnings (which is 120 quarters, or $37.50). After that, I called it quits for now, cashed in my winnings, and decided to celebrate by having dinner at Spago's. After dinner, I wandered around Caesar's Palace a bit more before heading off to Forte Street (home of the original Las Vegas), where I played nickel and quarter slots at the Golden Gate Casino. I ended up making about $7.50 before calling it a night, heading back to my room in The Venetian, and getting some rest.
On Day 2, I went back to Caesar's Palace, took a look at the Virgin Megastore, and ate lunch at some new-age Chinese resturaunt (forgot the name of the place). After that, I walked around town, through the Bellagio, and all the way up to New York, New York (which is an excruciatingly long walk). While there, I saw Tekken 4, three (yes three) Neo Print booths, and tens of other arcade games. Afterwords, I walked over to Gameworks, where I played Street Fighter Alpha 3 (got up to the 7th stage as Guy, couldn't get past Ryu), a prize grabber machine (where I won a Gameworks keychain), and retro arcade games (spent most of my time playing Missile Command, Gorf, Space Invaders, and Robotron 2084). After that, I took the long walk back to my hotel, where I rested my feet. After the rest, I took a taxi on over to Paris, where I ate dinner at L'amon Gabi (an excellent resturant). Then, I took a taxi on over to the Luxor, where I saw the Blue Man Group perform (they were incredibly hilarious). After that, I went up to the arcade, where I saw a Neo-Geo 2-slot MVS (it had Galaxy Fight and Metal Slug 2) and played The New Tetris (I clobbered my human opponent and made it to the 6th level). After that, I went back to my room to get some shut-eye.
The next day, I went to Caesar's Palace (again) to have lunch at the Stage Deli. After that, I went over to two stores: Gameworld and Alternate Reality Comics. Then, I got a ride on over to Circus Circus, where I saw Metal Slug 3 and played Capcom vs SNK. A short time later, I went back to my room, and then went off to Mandalay Bay, where I ate dinner at the Red Square (an excellent theme resturant; they gave me a birthday cake since it was my birthday [abeit 8 days late]). After that, I took a taxi on over to Harrah's, where I saw three comedians (Chris Mancini, Geoff Brown, and Vinny Favorino) perform at the Improv (all three were great, but Vinny Favorino was the best; I got his CD autographed by him). After that, I went over to New York, New York (again) and played Roulette. I bet $1.00 on a single spot, and ended up making $36.00! After cashing out, I went back to my room to get some well-deserved rest.
I left on the 23rd, but not before playing slots one last time. I played the Monopoly slot machine, and ended up making $17.50. All in all, I had an excellent time, and I can't wait 'til I go back next time. If you have any questions about what else I did on my vacation, please let me know.
