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Lianne, Vegas is an amazing place. I went there in January, and the only gambling I did was to feed $10 in nickels into slot machines. It was fun watching the wheels spin, but I didn’t win a damned thing. The only place I did win a little something was on “Let’s Make a Deal”. The episode airs on March 31st. I’m the one dressed like Carmen Miranda.
Anyone with impulsivity issues should strictly limit their exposure to the temptation of gambling. I set a limit of $10 and stuck to it. I was there more for the shows and the pilgrimage to the Liberace Museum, where one of the ladies who works in the Costume wing gave me a one-on-one tour, and even let me touch one of Liberace’s costumes—which is completely unheard-of, but I guess she figured that anyone who works with feathers and rhinestones so much that she can identify bird (in the case of the feathers) and colour & size (in the case of the rhinestones) probably wouldn’t break anything.
Look into discounts on show tickets. There are heaps of them out there, but beware of people handing out vouchers for free tickets to a show. These require you to buy a drink or two, at $10 each. So it may be cheaper to just buy a ticket and go without the drink, especially if your drinks of choice are non-alcoholic. $10 for one of those is really pricey.
Mack King’s comedy magic show is wonderful. Penn & Teller consider him a god of prankster magic, and he lives up to that distinction. It’s a G-rated show, and he has a wonderful rapport with the audience, which often includes children…or, in my case, children who refuse to grow up. After the show, he comes out into the lobby to sell and autograph his magic sets and books which teach you how to do things like swallow goldfish, or puncture your eyeball with a fork very graphically. Of course, I got one of those books. You never know when you’ll need to know how to do stuff like that.
You should also see “Jubilee”, at Bally’s. It’s the last of the old-style (topless, but far from nude) showgirl revues, and the costumes are truly breathtaking. When they were first mounting it, about 30 years ago, they actually caused a worldwide rhinestone shortage, primarily with Bob Mackie’s finale costumes. With coupons, you can get a $90 seat for around $40, and there’s even a backstage tour you can go on. I saw this show twice, but then, I really love my feathers & rhinestones & excess.
I couldn’t afford a ticket to see Donny & Marie at the Flamingo, but I did see Donny’s “Technicolor Dreamcoat” and Marie’s “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” costume (from “Dancing With the Stars”), in glass cases in the lobby of the Flamingo. I noted that the rhinestones on Marie’s costume were size 20ss Swarovski crystal flatbacks in Aurum, with a few in AB Crystal along the cuffs, and some 30ss in Jet on the tie. (I really have worked with rhinestones too much…)
Vegas has a weird sort of perspective. Things look really close by, but once you start walking towards them, you discover they’re actually a mile or more apart, which is great if you’re looking for exercise, but can be hard on the feet. And everything there is fake. Like a movie set. It’s a really odd feeling to be in the middle of it. It also has some great cheap eats, but you have to take the Deuce (the double-decker bus that runs along the Strip) to Fremont Street (old Vegas) to get them. Still, it’s worth the trip for 12-ounce prime rib and all the trimmings for a mere $7.99.
Just focus on the shows and the touristy stuff, and leave the gambling alone—especially on the Strip, where the odds are higher and the slots are tighter. It’s all a mug’s game anyway.
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