So lately...Vegas!

Right. I haven't posted in a while. Well, not really. It's only been a week or so. Not bad?

I think technology and I don't get along very well because I'm centuries behind on Instagram. And lately I've been completely obsessed with looking at random people's pictures online. I'm a visual person so I really like seeing pictures, whether it's a glimpse of a person's life or just car pictures. My latest profile is a combination of cars and purses, because well...surprise surprise. I like both. After stalking people's profiles and what not, one thing that I noticed was no one really had an account which talked about cars and purses. Or I mean showcased both. I figured I might as well start one up, because it's just a cool thing!

Either a person has a purse account, showcasing all purse essentials and small leather goods, or you come across an account (in this case, many of them) with lots and lots of cars. But no purses. I created it to share with others with the same passion as I, and taking random photoshoots with both. Happy stalking!

I noticed I haven't talked much about my Las Vegas trip. Long story short, it was a wedding party trip and it was a blast!

For some people, Vegas is an annual trip so it's like whatever man. For me, it's my third time going (and it won't be my last). Unfortunately I did not drink until I passed out (hey, I'm too old for that anyways), but a lot of times, after some good food and buffet, the group pretty much suffered bad food coma and passed out in the hotel room for a couple of hours at a time. So that ate away at the time we could've been walking the Strip or exploring random shenanigans around the Strip.

The Strip itself has had some improvements since my first time going there (2009). Some new hotels have been built, along with shows and shops. The thing about Vegas is: you have got to check out the shows. Vegas is known for many things, but the shows are absolutely bomb. I'm not a gambler so gambling does not intrigue me. Of all 3 times I've been to Vegas, I've played $2 in total and lost. I kid you not. I'm that cheap when it comes to slot machines. Because I rather take the money I have and pay to eat food, than pay to lose and have nothing to eat. Besides, you never win at casinos. There's a reason why the industry is a multi-billion dollar business.

This time we stayed at New York New York. I have stayed at the Venetian, MGM and Excalibur before. Of all the hotels I've stayed at, the Venetian was the best one but the priciest. NYNY is known for its mid-air roller coaster ride above the hotel/city. I've never went on it but maybe one day when I visit again. I have not been to all of the hotels (and I mean walk inside them all) because it would require a lot of time to hit up all the hotels.

The shows we saw: David Copperfield, Fantasy, and Aussie Hunks.

1) Watching David Copperfield live was like my childhood dream come true. When I was a kid, my dad would plop in one of his shows on the VCR and we would watch all his magic shows together. Copperfield still looks pretty much the same as 20 years ago when I saw him on TV (ok, maybe the botox showed a bit too much), but he's pretty funny in real life. His show engages the audience and that's what makes it worthwhile to watch him live. In this show, he integrates his upbringing and his path to becoming a magician/illusionist but I noticed his underlying theme was his dad/family. It was heartbreaking to watch him talk about his dad, but it also gave him the strength and the reason to where he is today. I thought that was a really nice dedication to his dad.

Right after the show, I texted my mom about the show, and told her that dad would have loved to see his magic hero live. Our goal now (as a family) is to come back to Vegas where I can bring them both to watch Copperfield live.

2) Fantasy, located in the Luxor hotel. I've never heard of the show until I was actually watching the show. It's basically a strip tease show. The ladies are fantastic, especially the ones doing acrobatics and pole dancing. Those take a great amount of skills and muscles. The singer (forgot her name but I believe she's Latina) was super fantastic. Beautiful voice! And there was also a comedic sketch in between the singing and dancing. In this case, it was Sean E. Cooper. Halfway into the show, this dude acting like James Brown showed up. At first I thought it was all a mistake. Why is this dude in a strip tease show?! So confused. But then I realized it was all entertainment. He was pretty hilarious! He kept picking on a guy in the front row (Matt), and his girlfriend. And supposedly his mistress named Amy. I think we left the show remembering more about the comedy versus the strip tease. This show is definitely for adults 18+.

At the end of the show, you have the opportunity to take pictures with the girls (and I'm sure there's probably a fee as well).

3) Aussie Hunks. Yes. You can probably figure this one out. A bunch of guys from Australia stripping on stage. This time, they do a lot of hip hop choreography and break dance. MY TYPE OF THING YO! And my goodness. The Australian accent is HOT! Now, before the show started, we are forced to wait outside, where some of the guys come out to talk to the girls (and some guys...I'll elaborate later) about the show. You have the option of buying fake $1 bills, 10 for $10 or 25 for $20. Something like that. During the show, the guys don't want the audience filling their pants with real dollar bills due to hygiene issues, so that's why they offer the fake dollar bills route. We opted out because well, yeah.

The beginning of the show has all the guys dancing a hip hop choreography, with very minimal stripping involved. After the choreography, that's when the stripping begins. It's usually a solo act or a duo act. Then there will be the times when they come down into the audience and start giving people lap dances, and that's where you can stick the fake dollar bills in their pants.

Remember the guys I mentioned above? So there were 3 guys sitting beside us 3 girls at the back. The theatre is not that big. I would say it's like a small auditorium. Probably equivalent to an elementary school auditorium, if not slightly smaller. It was hard for us 3 girls to get lap dances properly because they had to pass by those 3 guys. And those 3 guys were reaching into the dancers' pants, which did not impress the dancers. However, they all still did their best, but we could definitely see the front rows got way more lap dances than those in the back.

In the end though, it was all good. The host came around to give us all a hug and dance, and asked us if we had fun. So that was really nice of him to do that. They also offered picture opportunities to take with the guys on stage, for $10. You can do a PG group selfie, or a rated R selfie. Totally up to you.

There are so many shows to watch in Vegas, it's ridiculous. I have watched the Cirque du Soleil "O" show back in 2009 and it was super amazing. This time around, my friends wanted to watch it but the entire weekend we were there, tickets were sold out. "KA" was available but from what I remembered, O was recommended over KA. One tip for O is before you go to Vegas, you have to purchase the ticket in your hometown. It's almost impossible to get discount tickets for O, especially when you're in Vegas already. So if you know approximately when you'll be heading to Vegas, check out the showtimes first and see if there are tickets available. If there are (and I mean you need at least a month or two in advance), purchase right away. Because by the time you get there, it will be sold out. Buy in advance in order to avoid disappointment.

Shopping in Vegas is awesome as well. Considering the Canadian dollar sucks balls at this time, it wasn't worth buying expensive purses in Vegas. There is a mall by the Aria hotel that has all the high end brands: Christian Louboutin, Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton, Miu Miu, Fendi, Pucci, to name a few. Chanel is not there, but there is one location in the Bellagio shops. Prices are (obviously) all in USD. In terms of selection, I've noticed the US Chanel stores don't have as much variation as Canadian shops. When I asked about the mini, the SA was super confused and said they don't carry those. They do have the latest collections (the Chanel Airlines collection) but otherwise the classics were hard to find. Strange.

Clubbing. We were suppose to go clubbing but because our shows ended late, we were too tired to dance until the wee hours (yes, us grandmas). Considering this is my third time there and I've never been clubbing there before, I had hoped to pop my clubbing cherry but nope. Not this time. There are a lot of promoters on the streets handing out cards/drink cards to any one who is interested. And if you're a smooth talker, maybe you can get into the clubs for free. Because hey, it ain't worth paying $20 for cover. So look pretty, be a smart talker and you can have a night of dancing for free!

Outside NYNY at night, there is a DJ guy who sets up his own thing by the Brooklyn bridge. Every night, there is music blasting and people dancing/having fun on the bridge. And it's free! So that's another option if you can't get into the clubs.

There are a lot of free shows around the Strip, especially near the night when all the lights come on. The Bellagio fountain show is a must watch, which occurs every 30 minutes. Then there's the show outside Treasure Island. And then another weird ship show nearby (forgot the name). Inside Caesar's Palace, there's the Atlantis show which has a showing every 30 minutes during the day/evening time. There's a lot of things to keep you busy. You don't have to be stuck in front of a slot machine.

Buffets are awesome. If you're the type of person who loves food, you have got to try out the buffets. They range from anywhere between $25 to $45 USD per person, lunch or dinner buffet. Line ups can be long so be sure to arrive early. The two buffets we tried were at the Wynn and Bellagio. Wynn had more food selection, but it was $8 more than Bellagio. I personally liked Bellagio more because they had more pasta selections. The desserts, Wynn had more creative ones. Fruits, Bellagio had more.

Overall, I had spent basically nothing on buying items for myself. But I spent a lot on food. I would say about $150 this time around, in 4 days. The first time I was in Vegas, I must have spent way more considering we went to the Eiffel Tower Restaurant to eat, and when the bill came, we all almost had a heart attack. One thing I find in Vegas is the food can get expensive. So make sure you bring enough money for food.

In terms of people, yeah people can get rowdy. What do you expect in a place that is legal to carry open bottle alcohol everywhere? Yes, hide your boyfriends and girlfriends, and children. Right. I saw families there with young children and babies. Why would you bring them to Vegas?! Go to Disney World or something but it's not really the right place for young children, considering the amount of rowdy people and explicit shows.

There are also quite a bit of exotic car spots. The most memorable this time around was the Lamborghini Aventador and Mclaren P1, both parked outside the Mandarin Orange hotel. Apparently there are a lot of exotics around that area, so if you're a car spotter, that's one place where you don't want to miss!

So that's all I can remember from my trip. Cheers!