Vivaaaa Las Vegas...

Hello to my small audience of blog readers!

Sorry it's taken a while for me to get to writing a new post...it's been a bit hectic! Lots of traveling-and well, quite a lot to catch up on! Expect a few new posts within the next week or so...

So my friend Jen decided that since the 4th of July is a hard time to get everybody together (it happens to be her birthday), we were going to hold the celebration in Las Vegas.

Yes, yes. Y-E-S yes...DONE! How exciting would that be?!

So Jen, Steph and I were all in the same sorority and have all managed to stay close and keep in touch. And then Lindsey, Jen's old college roommate, joined us as well.

That, plus Jen's friend from home, her husband...and some of this guy friends.

I arrive in Vegas, wait for Steph, and we both freak out in the cab about how EXCITED we are! We get to the Monte Carlo-meet Jen (you know the girly squeals in the middle of the lobbby, etc) and head up to put on our suits. Jen and Lindsey were outside by the pool-so we all decided to grab lunch before we started drinking from the giant footballs!

There is a food court inside with just fast food type stuff, so we all decided on Subway-which, of course, Jen and Steph begin singing the commercial "5...5 dollar...5 dollar foot long". So imagine the shock when Lindsey pays for her 6 inch sub and it's $12.

"12 dollars for half a sub, are you joking?" she asks.

"This is Vegas" man with 3 teeth behind the counter responds.

"So? I'm from New York and that's ridiculous."

So we had to revamp our singing "12...12 dollar...12 dollar 6 inch"...Jared would be proud.

We head to the pool...get our Mai Tai filled footballs, and enjoy some relaxation while the others get in throughout the day.

Night 1: Wanted to just do something low key, american type food for dinner. So we walk over to the MGM Grand and go to Wolfgang Pucks Bar and Grill. Absolutely delicious! It was the whole group, so we had a huge table. A few of us got a glass of wine. It was fun getting to know everybody.

So then we go back to the hotel, freshen up and of course, do the girl thing. (Make drinks, blast music, dance around, etc). We had gotten on a list for Voo Doo at the Rio, so we were excited because it looked beautiful in the pictures we had looked up.

Sure enough...50 floors above Vegas...this place was awesome. The inside has the funky decor, crazy walls, etc. We get shots to toast our first night in Vegas! Then we go outside on the gigantic deck overlooking Vegas. An absolutely breathtaking view...and awesome spiral staircase leading downstairs...and a great DJ ("This is my JAM!" was heard several times throughout the evening)

(Jen and I on the steps at VooDoo)

It was a ridiculously fun evening...maybe a little drama later that night...but nothing blogworthy I swear.

So after about 3 hours of sleep (so it was some late night drama) Jen and I wake up, put towels out by the pool, and then wake Steph up because the three of us had made massage appointments! We get into the spa, put on our robes, and throw back some water (a little dehydrated!) and wait for 60 minutes of amazingness. And that it was. We weren't ready to leave the tranquility, so we got in the hot tub for a while and just giggled about the previous evening. Night 1 was a success...Night 2 was going to be even better!

We chilled by the pool (many characters started to come out on Friday) ate lunch, had a few drinks, and before we knew it-it was time to get ready for dinner! I had made reservations for all of us (all 11) as Tao, which was at the Venetian. We politely remind the guys (still drinking in the pool) that dinner was kind of early, so they needed to be ready to go by 6:30 at the latest.

So how is it that 4 girls in the same room manage to be ready quicker than 5 guys? A fact that no science can explain.

We get ready, head over to the hotel-the rest of our party swearing they were right behind us (I told the I would kill them if they bailed-because it would be $25 on my credit card if people didn't show). At 6:55, we get there but were informed that we would be seated when the rest of our party arrived.

7...7:10...oh my goodness, really? We left at 6:35 and they were right behind us! So as we're sitting and waiting, there is a long line of people that have walked in from shopping or whatever and are putting their name on the list. At the end of the tunnel, I see somebody step out to see how long the line was.

I grab Jen's hand. "Oh my god, oh my god oh my god" What? she asks. "Holy shit" What? she asks. "I swear, that guy right there, is Jay" No way, are you sure? "It's either him or he has a twin"

So I walk out to investigate. For those of you who don't know, Jay was a guy I knew from Penn State. Since there is just not enough time to explain our relationship in a blog, we'll just equate him to an ex. An on an off ex for the almost 4 years I was there...

Well, whoever I saw wasn't in line...so I peek my head into the store next door. Yup, it was Jay. And his fiancee.

Who goes to Vegas and runs into an ex you might ask? There's a reason I call my life a reality show people...I can't make this stuff up.

Well...our party finally shows up, so we had to be seated. Tao is absolutely breathtaking. I am fascinated by Asian culture-and the decor in this place was absolutely beautiful. The giant rock garden on the wall, the 50 ft. Buddha statue right behind our table. The murals on the ceilngs with Japanese characters. It was awesome. The food was ABSOLUTELY fantastic as well-and our waiter was too funny. I was a little taken back by my encounter-so I wasn't going to settle for a fruity martini. "I need a Grey Goose, dirty martini with three olives. And I mean like, really dirty. Offensively dirty actually"...the waiter looks at me and says "Like Britney Spears?"

Now we're talkin.

(The girls in the entrance to Tao)

Celebrity sightings? Robert Horry of the San Antonio Spurs (booo) and Jason Taylor of the Miami Dolphins. Apparently the very next evening Randy Jackson was at the restaurant celebrating his birthday...

So after dinner, we gamble a little after a crash course in Craps from Lindsey. Had a great time...and we were introduced to Gary and his kick drum. (K, there's a thing called the "come line" which can get you more money. So somehow we started singing the scene from "The BreakUp with the brother going "Gary, on the kick drum. Come come. Come come on the kick drum"...yeaaaah, guess you had to be there...we found it hilarious though)

Then we headed to Pure at Caesar's Palace. We had a pass to let us skip the 2+ hour line, yet when you got in -it was awesome...buuuut, NOWHERE to sit. Our feet were hurting. So we just walked to the bar and were pretty much leaning on it...until some Australian guys asked us to come sit at their table with them.

"I'm just going to use you for your seats, I'm not gonna lie"

They ended up being a really fun group, they were so nice to all of us and we had a great time talking to them. But...we couldn't really dance. So Jen texted the guy who got us on VIP at VooDoo...so we decide to head back there. It ended up closing shortly after, so we went downstairs and gambled some more. They played craps, one of the guys and I headed to a black jack table (my feet hurt and black jack tables have chairs!!).

It was a crazy crazy evening...a few stories I just don't feel like writing for the world to see...cause SOME of what happens in Vegas has to stay there. But there were some great quotes that evening...

The next day, we are all dragging from our late night. Jen and I make it to the pool...Steph turns into a corpse on the bed...and poor Lindsey had to do some work for a class she was taking for the bar. We were going to make an attempt to head to the Bellagio for the buffet at lunch and do some shopping, but naps were more important that afternoon. We ended up going for an early dinner and OH MY GOODNESS...most amazing buffet I have ever seen in my life. Seriously, you name it, they probably had it! Sushi, pizza, pasta, beef, chicken, different veggies, desserts, etc.

Also, the Bellagio is absolutely gorgeous. Just the glass flower display on the ceiling in the lobby was beautiful! Jen and I ran over to Tiffany's (we were on a time crunch) because I had been eyeing a ring there...they had it in my size...done! Quickest little blue box purchase I've ever made!

So we get back to the hotel, have about 30 minutes to get ready, and head over to New York, New York to see "Zumanity". It's a Cirque de Soleil show, but the "sensual/erotic" side. Jen's friends had gotten tickets and then invited our room along, so we figured it would be cool to see a show and we'd heard awesome things.

The show was a mixture of the very sensual, amazing artistry that involves people on ropes, doing movements with their bodies that hurt to watch combined with a little of the raunchy, yet hilarious, stand up bits. It was absolutely awesome and I'd recommend it highly...if nudity and sexual humor don't offend you. You also have to be 18 to see it...how funny that our group got carded.

After that, we were all just in need to hang out and lay a little lower than going to a club. We headed over to Paris and played craps for many hours. The casinos amazed me with all of the detail that goes into the theme behind it all. The entire ceiling of Paris is painted like a sky, so it's a very odd sensation at 2am when it looks sunny out with blue skies!

Our group makes friends easily at the craps table, with all of our chants and trying to get people riled up. Particularly with the dealers who stand around and joke with us. Even more enjoyable were the nicknames for other gamblers who would join our table. On gentleman, dubbed "Eyebrows", was at the opposite and of the table and kept arching his eyebrows in our direction every time he rolled.

The waitress walks up and hands me a beer-which I hadn't ordered. "The gentlemen bought this for you".

"Which one?"

"The one rolling m'am"...she nods to "Eyebrows"

We all try to keep from laughing as he gives me the nod...I mouth "Thank you" back and smile.

I look at the girls..."He bought me a free drink?"

We couldn't help but laugh...

So Lindsey had to wake up nice and early to head back to NYC. Steph and I made it out around 9:30 to head to the airport. It was an absolutely amazing trip...although the flight back was close to making me sick with all of the bumps we went through the first hour!

Overall, an incredibly successful trip! We had so many laughs and bizarre events happen that we will never forget.

Angie...I hope you have been able to live vicariously through this blog since you didn't get your trip this year. Let's just say if you ever need a partner in crime in Vegas...call me!