We arrived in Las Vegas after a long journey all the way from California. My group of 5 crammed into a tiny SUV for 7 hours of what was supposed to be a 5 hour trip. It seemed that everyone from California had the same idea to go to Vegas and ring in 2011. Hauling the luggage was the easy part compared to carrying our packed full cooler of mixers and my favorite tequila! Imperial palace was our destination and I had to crack open a Corona Light while setting my stuff next to a slot machine, waiting for my friend Mark to check us into our room.
After all that stress we were all happy to get to out room and start the night! The girls as usual busted out the hairspray, and when I say girls I mean Mark and Justin making sure their faux hawks were on point! It was then around 8 pm that we decided to head out and start this adventure. Mark, Justin, Amy, Wendy, and I (Devin) made our way through the casino in our best "Vegas" looks, which basically meant a lot of sequins and black. Leaving the hotel we obviously had some drinks. Our friend Wendy had one too many Patron shots and we all could tell she was going to be "That Girl" of the night We headed to Planet Hollywood to kill some time although we were all feeling pretty good and it was only 9:30pm!
Wendy and Amy wore tiny sequined dresses which didn't have pockets, so they gave me their phones to hold. At this point we are at some bar at Planet Hollywood which I don't remember, having a good time. It's now almost 11 and we want to start heading to the Bellagio to watch the fountains for midnight but Wendy and Amy are nowhere to be found.
Mark and Justin who were on the prowl to find their New Year's kiss and I seem to be the only one worried about Wendy and Amy. Fast forward…we counted down to 2011, couldn't even see the fountains, Mark and Justin just ended up making out with each other at midnight, and I may have found someone myself. The first clear thought was to return back to the room and see if Wendy and Amy had enough sense to stumble back there.
After about 30 minutes of constant shoving and inching along, we arrived at the hotel room to find Wendy snoring on the bathroom floor and Amy passed out on the cot. They decided to go back to the room and were not even on the Strip for the countdown. Wendy barely made it to the room to pray to the porcelain god, and Amy took care of her until she later passed out.
All in all our Vegas New Year was a great time even though we didn't get to spend it together. The rest of our stay in Vegas consisted of laughing about the past, savoring the present, and preparing for the future!
Rumor has it, Vegas is the shhh...
Traveling to Las Vegas for the first time I didn't know what to expect. I live in San Francisco and I'm used to having so many different options for nightlife. Typically when I go on vacation to other U.S. cities my friends and I end up going to whatever seems to be the most popular bar or club in town and a lot of times we feel like outsiders in a locals-only community. This was NOT the case in Las Vegas. We were happily shocked to find so many fun places for our nighttime shenanigans.
After getting settled in at the fabulous and gay friendly Rumor hotel, we spent the rest of the daylight hours at their incredible pool. Soaking up the sun on the day beds, sipping cocktails in our cabana, and dipping in the water to cool down turned into a daily ritual for us. I think someone even attempted to make a drunken sand castle, but don't look at me. Staying at Rumor was one of the best decisions we made in Vegas.
Now that our tans were in full development, it was time to hit the town for the before-mentioned shenanigans. Of course we went to the ever popular Paradise Fruit Loop, just around the corner from us. Early drinks at The Buffalo turned into a competitive not-so-early game of darts, but no worries, midnight is only the beginning of the night in Vegas. After thoroughly "quenching our thirst" we went into 8 1/2 and Piranha and danced our faces off. Between tearing up the dance floor and making friends at the bar I realized that I felt very much at home there. The staff and patrons at Piranha and 8 1/2 treat tourists very well. It was so nice to be on vacation but not have to feel like an outsider.
While most of our friends back in San Francisco were stumbling out of the bars at home due to the law of last call, we were simply switching venues and still going strong. We decided to catch a cab and head downtown to check out the First Friday After-Parties a friend had told us about. The only thing we really knew was that it was a hip artsy kind of scene and to go to Fremont St. east of Las Vegas Blvd. A little apprehensive, we were soon relieved when the cab driver turned the corner onto Fremont St. and all of a sudden there were people everywhere. Not the crusty sketchwads that you might expect downtown in a big city, but a young, fun, and friendly crowd. Though there aren't any gay bars in this area, the places we found were just as welcoming and full of kind people as those in the Fruit Loop.
Finishing up our night, we headed across the street to the El Cortez for $3 Blackjack with a couple of local friends we had made at Don't Tell Mama, the piano bar on Fremont St. that is a bit gayish if you ask me. All in all, to say that I was impressed by Las Vegas would be the understatement of the year, and that was only the first night!
My Grand Canyon Nightmare
This was going to be my 4th time to visit Las Vegas, and as always I was excited to relax and do the regular Las Vegas things. My two friends Katie and Geoffrey accompanied me on what was planned to be a relaxing and fun weekend. I should have known that my friend Katie was all about itineraries and made sure she did everything on her checklist. It wasn't until the second day after a crazy night out at the gay bars Piranha and 8 ½, that she announced her next adventure of wanting to see the Grand Canyon. Immediately I said "Hell No" why the hell would we go there? Geoffrey was indifferent about going which made me look like the "Debbie Downer" of the group.
There were multiple reasons why I didn't want to go, one being we are in Vegas why go to another state? Second it's so far away it's a waste of time, and finally WE ARE IN VEGAS! Katie tried to convince me that there was this cool glass walkway that you could look down through, and it would only take 3 or 4 hours to get there. I was still not convinced, but then after a while I was said "Fine, as long as I'm not driving!" Next thing I know we are getting into the rental car. I told Katie and Geoffrey that before we left to get directions and information about the place they wanted to go. They assured me they did and that they knew where they were going.
Already having doubt about why we even came in the first place, we finally arrived. We parked and went to the only building in the middle of nowhere with a vague image of the Grand Canyon far in the distance. This is where it gets is better, turns out you can't go to the "Grand Canyon" without purchasing a $70 bus pass along with other things to even get to this stupid glass walkway. To top it all off I had Google mapped it before we left, and said "This just looks like an airport…" turns out it was just helicopter pads for the tours.
At this time I was half angry and half satisfied that I was correct in saying this was a waste of time. There was no way I was paying that much money to see mountains, and Katie and Geoffrey agreed. In the end Katie got a postcard and a picture by the fence with the Grand Canyon barely visible in the background. I then earned the right to say "I told you so" all the way home. So word to the wise, research the places you want to go before you invest in going. This can go for the Grand Canyon or just any place on the Strip you want to go, it just might end up not worth your time or travel. Lesson to be learned STAY IN VEGAS AND ENJOY!
Submit Your Vegas Story
