Las Vegas Highlights, and some Lowlights

• all of our flights were on time, and our flight from Salt Lake City to Las Vegas was a half hour early
• we then had to wait for about a half hour to collect our luggage
• wearing t-shirts and fleeces at the end of December
• mind you, we did the same thing in Red Deer today
• seeing palm trees again
• the lights of The Strip
• not having Christmas dinner and it not even bothering me
• in fact, we didn't even have dinner Christmas night
• we shopped and gambled Christmas Day
• oh, yes, the stores were all open on The Strip Christmas Day
• the slightly depressing nature of hearing Celine Dion sing Christmas carols (not live, over the sound system) whilst competing with the constant "ding, ding ding" of the slots
• hitting an Eddie Bauer store closing sale
• having the sales guy tell me, "You sure got some good deals, missy"
• your dollar goes a long way when everything is 25 to 50 percent off
• hitting awesome Bath & Body Works sales
• of course the downside of that was my luggage was 10 pounds overweight when flying home so we quickly had to transfer some goods from my suitcase to Ryan's carry-on to avoid paying a $25 US penalty
• staying in a much nicer hotel this time (Treasure Island) than last time (the Excalibur)
• having a Starbucks on the casino level of our hotel
• I half-expect to go downstairs at home and be able to order a tangerine frapp (a new fave)
• seeing Jerry Seinfeld live
• he performed for almost an hour and a half
• seeing Cirque du Soleil's Mystere
• I watched the entire performance with sweaty palms and on the verge of a panic attack
• why, you ask?
• for one, the ability of one man to stand and balance another man standing ON HIS HEAD is pretty impressive
• the trapeze portion was also heart-stopping
• we tried to get tix to Cirque's O show but it was sold out until January
• next time
• not being a gambler myself, coming home with $420 US off slot winnings was exciting
• helps pay for aforementioned shopping
• know your limit and stay within it!
• the wind warnings and gusts the last day and a half were warranted
• seeing a couple get married on the Venetian canals was kind of cool
• I think I took the most pictures of the lions at MGM Grand and the tigers at The Mirage
• pictures to come
• hey, cats are cats!
• getting off the plane in Calgary, proceeding straight to a customs agent because there were no lines yet, getting our luggage almost straight-away, and leaving the airport within about 15 minutes of de-planing
• the absolute worst part of the trip and one of the longest days of my life?
• the day we leave, we have to get up at 5 am
• I was awake most of the night with a stomach ache
• the next parts aren't pleasant
• started throwing up in our hotel room at about 5:30
• felt better
• sit around the Las Vegas airport for about 2 hours because you have to be there so early to go through security, no liquids in your carry-on, take off your shoes, blah, blah, blah
• just as they announce our section of the plane can board, I look at Ryan and tell him I'm going to be sick, I have to go
• I hurry down the main corridor of the departures terminal of Maccaran to get to the washroom
• I don't make it
• right in the hallway
• but I'm not done so I continue on into the washroom and get into the stall but don't even have time to close the door behind me because it's still coming up
• I had to tell myself I'll never see these people again
• I make it back to the gate and am able to board (of course Ryan and I are about the last to board at this point)
• I then sob in the plane because I'm so humiliated
• I sleep through the flight, then just as we're starting to descent, my stomach wants to ascent and I start dry-heaving
• because we're descending, I can't take my seat belt off to go to the washroom
• yeah, air sickness bag
• we then had a 4-hour layover in Salt Lake City
• all I wanted was to be in my bed
• I wasn't sick again, but was in bed by 8 that night
• tummy's still a little tender but at least I can eat now
• kind of a crappy way to end off a great trip
• well, not kind of, IT WAS
• but in the end, I can survive Christmas without my family and without tears, but I sure did miss them
• maybe we can all go to Las Vegas next year for Christmas??