Our Babymoon to Las Vegas

So I’m finally sitting down to write about our last trip before Noodles arrives. I’ve never been to Las Vegas. It’s been on my list of places to visit. B’s been there several years ago back…pretty much before all of the ‘mega’ hotels started to sprout.
Since this was our last ‘hurrah’, we wanted to stay in a nice place. We chose The Palazzo. As my co-workers said, since LV hotels are always trying to out-do each other, go with the newest hotel. The fact that the rooms STARTED at 720 square ft. might have played a factor. And I must say, the room was…quite lovely.

View from the foyer...you can see the living room at the back.

When you walk in, there’s a large bathroom two steps into the suite…almost as big as the one back home. There’s a LCD screen TV in the bathroom to watch as you are getting ready…or while soaking in the tub.
You really can’t hear anything in the shower, however. The shower heads are so wonderfully powerful, you don’t hear much at all. (We both agreed we HAVE to get a shower head that massages you like that back home.) I’ve decided for our ‘forever home’, I want a spa-like bathroom.
It really was nice to have such a luxurious surrounding. And a well appointed vanity area. It actually made me want to put extra time into my makeup! (When B saw me put makeup on every day, HE suggested we get one in our bathroom now. I did remind him that if I started to do that, one of the things he loves about me…the fact I can get ready faster than he can…may come to an end.)
He’s weighing the pros and cons.

ANYWAY, like I said, the room was huge. There was a plasma TV that we could watch from the bed. There was another plasma TV that we could watch while sitting in the living room. We both loved the sectional that they had. (modern, square shape with a chaise at one end) I enjoyed playing with the remote curtain and blind opener.

Oh, and the view! We got a “strip view” overlooking the pool and the Strip. At 9, we could look directly down on the Treasure Island hotel’s show they put on every night. And of course in the evening, we could watch the sunset over the mountains.

All in all, I really enjoyed the Palazzo. (with one exception…which I will detail at the end) Especially since I spent so much time in the room!

Why? I got REALLY tired walking around in that heat. It was about 107 degrees for most of the day.

Now, I’m from Dallas. I know heat. But I’ve never felt anything like it before. The heat bouncing back from the cement felt like a physical pressure on you. I wouldn’t be surprised if you couldn’t fry an egg on the sidewalk. But a few hours of walking in that, I NEEDED to take a nap during the middle of the day…which kind of worked out, schedule-wise, for us. B was able to go and play some poker while I slept.

Strangely enough, he did not mind the heat. In Dallas, he walks outside, he breaks a sweat. Immediately. Las Vegas, he hardly did. That was really weird. He kept saying, “This is dry heat. I can take this kind of heat.”

Oh, dear. This entry is getting long. Shortened version:

Food: it was EXPENSIVE there. The days of $5 for steak dinners or all-you-can-eat buffets are apparently gone. The Palazzo did have a wonderful breakfast buffet…I think the restaurant was called The Grand Lux or something like that. We both thought it was worth every penny. Our favorite dinner was at the Postrio in The Venetian. It was in the middle of the St. Mark’s Plaza. I wanted to sit on the ‘patio’ so we could hear the musicians. It was so quaint…like a cleaned up version of the real thing. (and of course climate controlled, no bugs, no pigeons pooing on you, etc.) Our FAVORITE part of the meal was the salad. It was amazing in its simplicity…grilled eggplant with greens topped with ripe tomatoes and fresh mozzarella drizzled with good quality balsamic vinegar. Simple, huh? But oh so good. We’re going to try it soon.

We also got to watch a Cirque du Soleil show, Ka. (click to see a trailer) I’ve always wanted to see a Cirque show. After seeing it, I can almost understand why tickets are $162 each. If there were 50 people ON stage, there must have been hundreds behind the scene to make sure everything goes smoothly and safely.

This scene above had me tense the entire time.
Yes, you see them do this…and sometimes with motorcycles…in circuses. Still, it was going so fast…and the guys were walking in, out, around, every which way. I was very nervous for them.
As for the show itself, it wasn’t what I expected. It was good…just not what I had in my head. I was thinking it would be a lot more acrobatic. Although there was much of that, I think this one emphasized the story aspect of it, and it built up slowly.
I think I’d like to try “O” if we see another one…maybe. Or something totally different: Stomp or Blue Man Group

This is getting long so I will end with this:

I’m glad we went. I can check this off my list of ‘things to do/see before I die’. I really liked the room we stayed in. It was quite nice.

At the very end, I had a situation I wish had been resolved differently.
Basically, I decided to take a bath. As SOON as I got in the tub, I felt a stinging sensation. I just thought the water was hot. I got in, but I couldn’t stay in there long. Immediately, I started to get a rash all over my body. I waited thinking it would go away in a day or so. But it didn’t.

I talked to the manager asking for her to find out what the maids used to clean the tub. (That was the only think we could think of that I did differently the entire week.)  She said later that they (the maid manager) didn’t know. That just seems weird that a huge chain wouldn’t buy cleaning product in bulk. She did send the house medical team up. They told me it was a heat rash. Again, I’m from Dallas. I know heat rash. I’ve had it before. This was NOT a heat rash.
So 2-3 weeks later, my skin where I had the rash is now dry and scaly feeling. It’s finally starting to heal. I still don’t know what it is.

That was the only thing I really wish had been different. But at least it wasn’t anything big.

All in all, not a bad way to end our traveling days until Noodles can join us.