Vegas 2019 Trip Report Part One

Headed out for the long drive to Vegas after work on Friday 11/15.  The drive was fairly uneventful with a small clusterfuck of a traffic delay in Paso Robles when we tried to stop for gas that we never got and got stuck for 15 minutes trying to get the less than a mile back to the freeway.

Arrived at Bally’s around one the following morning. Total nightmare to find out how to get to the parking structure. They do not make it easy, had to research on the phone as we were circling around Bally’s. Blah!
Our registration lady was an absolute doll, she laughed at all my husbands bad jokes and apparently upgraded us from a resort studio suite to the executive kind with the tub. It’s a smoking room, but I’m not going to complain as it’s pretty cool.

No gambling was done that night as it was almost two in the morning and food and bed were priority.  The only place open at that hour was S’barro’s in the food court so I grabbed two sad looking stromboli’s and a cheesecake and we were unpacked and in bed by four AM.

Saturday morning we were up at ten and off and running to the convention center to get Rob’s packet for the 10K race the next day.

He cashed in a MyVegas bogo for a 4 day pass on the monorail and off we went.
I have done the half marathon four times before and have always sort of enjoyed the Expo, not the crowds, but the activities and things. For some reason this year I found it lacking. Still just as many people but I didn’t see as much fun stuff. Meh, just my opinion.

We mono-railed back to the hotel and rested for a couple of hours. I’m no longer in the shape I used to be and at 45 with as little sleep as I got last night, I was FEELING it that day after all the walking around we did.

Having said that, we didn’t do much the rest of the day other than head down to the Grand Bazaar Shops and get some dinner from Ramen-Ya.  While we were waiting for our take out we perused a shop called It’Sugar and they had a lot of hilarious items.

I didn’t buy any of those, though I wanted to.  If I bought all the things I wanted to there, I wouldn’t be able to fit myself or Rob in the car for the drive home.

This is what I bought…I feel like I will go through them quickly:

The Ramen was super yummy and decadent.  The only Ramen I have ever had comes in a little block in a shrink wrap package with a flavor packet so this was amazing!

It was soooooo goood and I fell into a food coma.

On Sunday we slept in and kicked around the room for awhile.  Rob’s 10 K didn’t start until almost four so we had some time to kill.

When we finally got on the Monorail, it was just packed full of people-like body pressed against body…have I mentioned that I am claustrophobic?

The great thing about the 10K people is that they are just fun.  They know they are only doing six miles and they are all wearing the wristband that gets them a free beer at the end.  They have hardly trained because they are just going to walk it and take pictures.  This is the PARTY Monorail.

When I did the half marathons all those years ago, the entire monorail was full of people being completely silent, stretching and trying to get in the zone.  Which I get, but it was such a different dynamic to see that it was almost laughable.

Anyhoo, we finally got to the stop at Sahara and walked over to the start line.  There was a whole lotta humanity there but I braved it out and then left him to head over to where I could see the start of the race and get pictures of him running.

Once that was done, I mono-railed over to Flamingo where I played some gamble and then headed over to Flamingo to play gamble and then to O’Sheas to get a frozen Bailey’s.  Once I got that I walked over to the finish line but I couldn’t get to his side because everything was still all blocked off since the marathon was in full swing.  I texted him and then met him over at the Bally’s area as he was getting off the escalator.

Once we were done with the race, we stopped at Giordano’s and got some Italian food.  We got an Apple and Blue Cheese Flatbread, Alfredo Lasagna and a Chopped Salad.  It was all delicious!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!