A First-Timer's View of Sin City (Part 2: Do Your Homework Ahead)

Before heading off for five days of fun, I did a little research to try to get some sense of what Las Vegas would be like.  I talked to friends and colleagues, bought a guide book, and read a few blogs in an attempt to try to wrap my mind around what to expect and decide what to do and see.

Having never seen a Cirque du Soleil show before, I wasn't sure which of the eight shows that are available in Las Vegas would be the best.  So I did some searching and found a USA Today article from 2014 that was very helpful.  It listed summaries of all eight shows, ranked them, and even advised  first-time-Cirque-goers about which show to choose.  We took their advice and went to Mystere at Treasure Island.  There were some amazing performers, but this girl had a hard time staying awake during some parts.  Having to lean my head back against my comfy seat to see the trapeze artists coupled with a starting time of 9:30 pm didn't help.  9:30 PM??!!  Haven't these people heard of matinees?  We did get a buy-one-get-one-for-$15 discount deal about a month ahead of time from www.travelzoo.com , so at least I didn't pay full price to take a nap.  Don't judge.

For more tips, I also read this  not-very-pretty-but-very-informative post about 25 things women should know before visiting Vegas.  It gave some good tips, though many of them weren't just for women.  The best advice I received about what to pack, however, came from my colleague, Kelly, who told me I'd need comfortable shoes.  I didn't realize that walking from hotel to hotel exploring the different themes would be such a "thing," so I'm glad she warned me about footwear.  This post gave some good tips, too, though I DID still wear some sequins and DID NOT take any athletic shoes, in spite of their advice. (Puh-lease.  No sequins?  In Vegas?  Why have sequins if you don't wear them in Vegas?)

Fodor's is my go-to travel guide publisher, and their Las Vegas one didn't disappoint.  We bought it for a buck at the library book sale, and it didn't matter that it was from 2014 since little has changed since then.  It even had a whole chapter on gambling including a cheat sheet for blackjack.  Had I decided that $10 a hand was something I was willing to lose, I totally would have sat there at the blackjack table, unembarrassed, with my cheat sheet open.  Fodor's assured me that this was perfectly acceptable, and that, in fact, the dealer would even be willing to tell you what your best odds are as you play if you tell them you're a newbie.  Aren't they thoughtful?!

Another valuable tip came from my colleague, Holly, who had been to Las Vegas just a couple of weeks before our trip.  She encouraged me to get tickets to see Showstoppers at the Wynn.  And oh.  My.  Goodness.  Not only was it just my style (a string of awesome Broadway numbers with amazing dancers and fabulous costumes), but it was at one of the most beautifully decorated hotels in Vegas.  The chandeliers made of glass bubbles made me swoon, and the theater perfectly channeled the glamour of the Art Deco period.  That my in-laws sprung for 3rd row seats was the icing on the cake.  

Even though I had seen live stagings of several of the shows represented before (Chicago, A Chorus Line, Guys and Dolls), I hadn't seen them from the 3rd row!  I had serious leg envy, people.  I'm not gonna lie.  I mean, check out this chick in the picture below doing the splits while in a handstand.  that alone should motivate me to get my rear end to the gym.

And the clever staging of "Sit Down You're Rocking the Boat" from Guys and Dolls with vintage Vegas signs had me slack-jawed.  Loved it.

In spite of my best efforts at preparing myself for what to expect during my first trip to Las Vegas, nothing can really prepare you for the spectacle that is Sin City.  So read the blogs, pore over the travel guides, and poll your friends for their best tips.  But in the end, just go and see it for yourself.  And maybe write a comment or two here about your best advice!

A First-Timer's View of Sin City (Part 1)

It may surprise you to know that though I have visited six continents, I had never been to Las Vegas until yesterday.  Josh attends a national conference each November, and this year's destination is none other than Sin City itself.  Since Las Vegas wasn't a trip we were likely to take without a reason, we decided to go together with my in-laws, leaving the kids behind with friends.

Though I'd heard that there was gambling everywhere, even in the airport, I was surprised to see slots at our gate the moment we got off the plane.  I was too concerned about meeting up with my in-laws at baggage claim to be tempted by the garish lights, so on we went, passing the welcome sign on our way.

Within minutes of arriving at our hotel, The Cosmopolitan, I met a celebrity!  Scott Hamilton (1984 Olympic Men's Figure Skating gold medalist) was in line behind me when we were checking in.  

He was exactly as nice as you'd think he'd be, and he was super patient when the camera on my phone didn't work.  (Twice.)

Since Josh has gold status with Marriott's reward program (and the Cosmopolitan is part of the Marriott system), we asked for a room upgrade when we checked in.  Though none of the rooms facing the Bellagio fountains were available, we did get a huge room on the 56th floor with a vertigo-inducing balcony.  But the coolest part to me is the artsy vibe - the room has a collection of art books and colored pencils in an art glass cup just in case I feel inspired by the surrounding glam.

Oh Cosmo.  We only just met and you know me so well.

After unpacking, we headed to the Rio for dinner and to see Penn and Teller's magic show.  We ate at Buzios, a seafood restaurant near the entrance to the Penn and Teller Theater.  (Josh and I shared the ceviche and the shellfish pan roast, both of which were fantastic.).   

Though my favorite illusion of the show was performed by Teller, it was Penn that we met after the show.  Both performers were outside meeting fans, but Penn was far more efficient at crowd control.  Even without a real line, he worked through the hoardes of people who wanted a photo with him with an efficiency that would make a DisneyWorld character's handler jealous. 

And I told him so.  I don't think anyone has ever said that to him before because he looked at me kind of funny before thanking me for what he finally assumed must have been a strange attempt at a compliment.  (It was.)

Back at The Cosmo, I decided to take advantage of the Jacuzzi tub in our room while Josh worked on his convention presentation.  I had brought a Lush bath bomb from home to use (who wants to leave a colored ring around their own tub when you could leave one around someone else's?), and I luxuriated in the scented water while trying to figure out the controls for the jets in the tub.  I pushed a couple of random buttons and finally got a satisfactory stream of bubbles.  Unfortunately, the jets were loud so I began to worry about bothering guests in neighboring rooms and ended up turning it off.

Once we were both ready to turn in, Josh starting turning off the many lamps and overhead lights in the room.  Strangely, the desk lamp wouldn't cooperate and refused to go off.  He tried, I tried, and we even tried the button by the door that was supposed to turn off everything.  

And still the desk light continued to glow.  Josh called the front desk where a girl who surely thought we were idiots told us to push the goodbye button.  When we assured her that we'd already tried that, she promised to send someone up.  A few minutes later, a maintenance guy knocked on the door and said with obvious incredulity, "Um, they said you can't turn off your desk light?"  Josh gestured to the offending illumination and moved out of the way to let the guy give it a try.  Of course, I sat across the room worrying that a simple push of a button by this guy would reveal us to be the idiots he thought we were, but I needn't have worried.  He pushed the buttons (with increasing frustration) and eventually decided new batteries were in order.  He changed the batteries on the control pad, and then turned the light off with one push.

To be sure it was fixed, he pushed the button again to turn it back on.  Nothing happened.  He tried again and again, and eventually said, "Well, the goal was to get it off, right?" Josh laughed and agreed that yes indeed, off was better than on.

The guy left and we settled into bed in the now completely dark room.  Suddenly, a horrible, thundering sound filled our ears.  We both jumped and desperately tried to turn on some lights to figure out from whence the room-rattling noise was emanating.  Lo and behold, one of those random Jacuzzi buttons I'd pressed earlier had decided to pull itself out of hibernation and work.

Josh, bless him, stumbled into the bathroom and managed to turn off the offending appliance so that we could finally get some sleep.  As I closed my eyes, I thought, "Oh, Cosmo!  I thought we really had something here - a connection, an understanding!  How could you do this to me?"

So, dear Cosmopolitan, take note.  Colored pencils and art books only get you so far. Get the kinks worked out because what happens in Vegas is going on my blog.