Tuesday December 22nd

The day started off like all the others. I couldn't sleep worth a damn, so I got moving early. By the time I was ready to walk out the door it was about 10:45. No restaurants would be serving breakfast, so I wandered through to the lobby and spotted Julian Serrano. I figured I'd give them a try, and eat up the rest of my resort credit that came with my booking.

The approach they're taking is that you order a few different selections as most items are served as small bites. That way you get to try a few different items instead of one big entree.

View towards the entrance.

To my left.

Menu cover.

Lighting.

Menu page 1.

Menu page 2.

I was seated towards the back of the restaurant. There was only one other table dining when I was seated. I didn't have anything in particular in mind when I went to Julian Serrano, however it seems my selections would fall mostly under the seafood umbrella. I decided to go for the lobster and pineapple bites, oysters, octopus, and some chicken croquetas.

Lobster and pineapple bites.

Oysters with caviar.

Octopus.

Croquetas.

And one split open.

Final tally before tip.

The lobster and pineapple wasn't anything mesmerizing. The sauce offered no flavor, and it was rather boring in my mind. The oysters with caviar were fresh, however only the centered oyster had any caviar on it. They were basically a plain oyster. It would have been better if I were in a seafood bar and grill, and had some tabasco and lemon at my side with a foreign beer in one hand. Borrrring. The octopus came on a few slices of steamed potato, but was also pretty lame. It wasn't chewy, but like the lobster bites the sauce didn't offer any sort of additional flavor. Another boring selection. At the last minute I decided to go for the chicken croquetas. They were rather filling and probably the best thing I ordered. I like the concept of the menu, but the flavors are lacking. The presentations are fine, but they need to kick it up a notch. Maybe have some sauces that actually add some flavor to the dish instead of color? Just a thought.

Once finished I opted to give Aria's poker room a try. The previous day they had a $1/$2 pot limit Omaha hi lo game going, so I thought I'd sign up for that. Of course the table isn't going at the moment, so I put my name on the interest list. To kill time I buy into a $1/$3 no limit Texas Hold'em table. I was playing tight and just hoping for some cards. Since getting killed in my previous two sessions at Mandalay Bay, I wanted to actually come out ahead for once. My cocktail of choice was a hot tea with lemon and honey this morning.

There was one crazy player to my left who was a truck driver out of San Diego. He'd call with any draw, and they'd always miss. He eventually made two separate trips to the ATM just to keep playing. We were all hoping for some decent cards when he was in the pot. Before too long I my chance to bust him. I held a 6♦ 7♦ and the board came out K♦ Q♦ 10♦. I pushed all in right away in hopes of taking down the pot. I didn't want another diamond to show up. Well, my truck driver buddy did call. The turn was a J♦ which is not what I wanted to see. The river was another king. In the end, my friend held the A♣ J♣ for a flopped straight, yet my hand held up. Whew.

I made a move again when I held pocket kings and a flop came out showing 2-9-J. I put my opponent all in for his last $75 and he reluctantly called. He also held an ace jack, yet he got lucky when the river produced another jack giving him three of a kind. Shortly after he cashed out and left. (grrrr) Pocket kings have not been good for me this trip.

My end came when I held a dismal ace five, and managed to flop top pair. The board showed A-10-4, and I moved in. Of course my crazy truck driver friend called with his 9-10, and he too made trips on the river. I was done. I've had enough. I hate poker.....

When leaving the poker room I noticed I was still the only one listed on their interest list for an Omaha game. Oh well. From here I decided to get some souvenir shopping done for the family and ventured outside and checked out the near by shops across from Monte Carlo. I knocked that out quickly enough and even managed to snap a picture of Elvis at a Walgreens. When you're the king, you can do whatever the hell you please.

No comment.

Even Elvis likes a good sale.

Some bad ass City Center pics.

They lean more than the tower of Pisa...or so I'm told.

I'm about 4 floors from the top, right in the middle.

More Aria.

The tram.

After dropping off souvenirs in the room I wandered back down through the casino to see if I could find a game that caught my eye. I bought in for a round of Pai Gow Poker on the floor. My initial dealer's name tag read "Tyler" but I came to find out his real name is actually Paul. Paul came from Foxwoods in Connecticut and his main game is craps. I guess when he started at the property they didn't have any "Paul" name tags, and according to him they were also out of "Dirk" so he went with Tyler. The property has been open a week and they can't even get their employees an adequate name tag? Niiiice.

I broke even on that session with Paul / Tyler and decided it was time for a snack. I wasn't in a paying mood, so I again utilized my Sky Suites key to finagle my way to some cheese and crackers, a grey goose, and a chocolate and pistachio covered strawberry.

The hooch in the Sky Suites lobby.

Coffee...tea....etc.

The spread.

A mid afternoon snack.

Throughout the rest of the afternoon I'd gamble here and there without any significant wins or losses. The pit bosses were really cool. They'd remember me by name, and one even recited my players card from memory from a previous session.

After wrapping up a losing blackjack session, I wandered over to the craps pit which gave me a beating the night before. I buy in at one end of the table and begin talking to the couple next to me. A few rolls into the session I scan the players at the opposite end. Sure enough, I notice Flavor Flav rolling the dice. He was alone (well, except for his gargantuan security guard next to him) and didn't appear to be in such a good mood. It only took a few points for him to wrap up his session and walk away. I couldn't even really tell how much he had bought in for. Shortly after he left the table turned from cold to hot. We had a craps virgin rolling the dice next to me, and like all other craps virgins, she was making points and hard ways like nobody's business. I finally had a refreshingly positive turnout, and cashed out when I had just more than doubled my money. Whew! I didn't cash in the chips right away, as I knew I'd be gambling some more.

The pai gow poker table seemed to be calling my name again, and sat down again with the dealer named Paul / Tyler. We were talking about celebrity sightings with Flavor Flav, and got on the topic of who he's dealt to in the past. He says Ricki Lake is the biggest drama queen even though she only bets $5 a hand at blackjack. He said Whoopi Goldberg is hilarious and more down to earth than most people. The lady sitting to my left said she saw Flavor Flav losing big time at War, and blatantly turned down a fan asking for an autograph. I guess my chance of getting a pic with him was strongly diminishing. Oh well, next time.

Planet Ho, from Aria.

Close up.

More strip.

Towards MGM.

Monte Carlo.

Mandalay Bay and Luxor.

Towers.

MikeE and I manage to make contact and agree to meet up. In short order, we manage to find ourselves a $10 blackjack game. The game was fun and decent, but unprofitable. Argh. We haven't had enough battering around yet, so we convince ourselves to buy into a Let It Ride table. Again, nothing but a slow bleed was my end result. I think I hit something once that paid out, but it was all for nothing. What's another kick in the balls?

We decided to settle a bit at the View Bar and met up with "J" from vegastripping.com. MikeE reminded me that he owed me a drink, so of course he had to go and order the most feminine item on the menu he could find. He landed on....the "Diva." All I recall about it is a fizzy strawberry flavor and not much else. Hell, it could have been non-alcoholic for all I know. I couldn't make much progress on it.

In short order we venture towards the Sky Suites lounge again. MikeE had the brilliant idea of ordering nachos from room service, but putting it on his room at Mandarin Oriental. The three of us walk into the check-in desk area, and Mike starts the smooth talking. He points at me and says "He's staying at the Sky Suites, but I was wondering if I could order some room service and charge it to my room at Mandarin?" The clerk says that will be no problem. Before she starts to ask any questions, as I'm wandering out Mike says "this would be a good time for you to walk out." I was already halfway out the door.

While Mike wraps up things on his end, I pour myself a Grey Goose and diet. Before too long the food arrives and we settle in for the task at hand. It was a mountain of food, and the sour cream, guacamole and some extra cheese came on the side. It hit the spot after a day of gambling and drinking. I did have a little breech of etiquette when I spilled some guacamole on the brand new carpet. Heh....my bad. I think my attempt to clean it up just made it worse. Time to get outta here!

We exchanged a few texts with Mr. Scotch and soon met he and elvis66 across the way at the Baccarat lounge. We shared a few drinks and a few more stories before calling it a night. As things concluded I said my good byes and turned in for the night.

A Goose and Diet.

Really? Good to know.

A "Diva" from the View Bar. Thanks Mike...

Insane nachos.

No fake flowers at Aria....anywhere.

We are the victors!

My final drink of the trip at the Baccarat Lounge.

All in all, it was a spectacular trip. I managed to stay at two properties I haven't been in before and met a ton of new faces in addition to some previously familiar ones.

Thanks to everyone for making it a spectacular trip. In no particular order thanks to: Mr. Scotch, BeeeJay, MikeE, Darko, Alexanbo, "J", elvis66, that hot drunken prostitute at Mandalay Bay, the people that insist I can't play poker, the doormen at the Sky Suites, Paul/Tyler the Pai Gow dealer, Johnnie Walker, Zeek at Mandalay Bay for kissing my ass, and all the other miscellaneous dealers who stuck it to me this trip. Next time, I'll have my revenge.