Vegas Day 1 Observations.

I just have to start off by saying there are two EXTREMELY important things to know about Vegas: 1. Vegas is ridiculously hot.

I've been to India in the summer. Vegas was a thousand times worse. Granted, we did go in August, but man. That dry desert heat is something else. Prepare yourselves, people. It is so hot, the air HURTS to inhale. It is so hot you sweat out of every orifice in your body. It is so hot, you'll break out in a rash as soon as you set foot outside (just me? alrighty then).

2. Vegas is bigger than you think.

When Adam, who has been to Vegas 4 times already, suggested that we do one side of the Strip one day, and the other side the next, I thought he was insane. It's a road! A single road. How much time can it take to see it?! Well. I had not taken into consideration either of the two very important things above. Each resort, is like 5 city blocks. It took almost 15 minutes to walk past Caesar's Palace! That's ONE resort. And there are 33 resorts on the strip (I looked it up). Do the math. Adam was right. Combine that with the sweltering heat and I was more than happy to hang out at the pool for the majority of the morning.

The Mirage Pool

This pool is GORGEOUS. It's one of the nicer ones on the Strip (says Adam--I have zero things to compare it to). It's in a funky shape, with lots of palm trees, and it's pretty quiet--perfect for relaxing. The drinks there are exorbitantly expensive ($33 USD for ONE cup) but it's like a litre of booze and you get to keep the cup as a souvenir, so it's worth getting at least one. You will not realize how strong they are until you try to get out of the pool and proceed to fall on your face.

After relaxing (and getting day drunk, let's be real) we decided we needed food, and we knew we wanted to take advantage of Las Vegas' amazing restaurant scene while we were here. Made sense to see some of the Strip then at the same time. We explored and saw: The Bellagio, Caesars Palace, The Cromwell, and the Cosmopolitan, where we decided on Chinese-Mexican fusion restaurant, China Poblano. (It's exactly what you think it is, and it's damn good).

It doesn't sound like much, but walking/exploring the strip took up most of the day. We also wandered into each casino, and I got hooked on the wonderful world of slot machines. Sex & The City and 'The Hangover' games were my favourite; I have never seen a way to spend money faster. Be warned! It's a lot of fun though.

Losing my Vegas Virginity

When we arrived in Vegas in the early evening (after flying over the Grand Canyon, which was epic), we got a cab, where I immediately proceeded to drop my iPhone on the sidewalk and shatter the screen. Standard Kat.

We were booked into the Mirage for the first part of the trip, and our final night at Monte Carlo, because if you are a rewards member anywhere, you can do things like this and save a ton of money (more on that later).

Anyway, the Mirage was cool--modern rooms, although the fridge was weight-controlled, meaning we couldn't remove anything to put our own, much cheaper booze from the drug store in there to cool. Boo!

We headed out to the Strip to grab a bite to eat and see some sights. Adam (my partner in crime, who you'll be seeing frequently on this blog) is a huge fan of Guy Fieri, so naturally the first place we tried had to be his new burger bar. I ordered some tuna tacos, and he had a heart attack  a burger. The food was pretty good, and the cocktails were especially delicious.

After that, we headed over to the Linq, which is basically an outdoor shopping promenade with lots of cool shops. It reminded me a lot of the Santa Monica Pier, but more Vegas-y. You can also catch a ride on the Highroller from here, Vegas' answer to the London Eye. We didn't do it because it was $35 per person but it's probably a pretty cool view.

That's all for Night 1! Stay tuned for more on the Strip and other fun Vegas activities coming up.

Arriving in the UAE

When you quit your job, and are lucky enough to have a few days off before your new one starts, the most logical thing to do is obviously book a trip. Halfway around the world. Somewhere you've never been before. Where did that land me? In the land of opportunity, mystique, and SUN: where else, but Dubai!

First things first: whoever said that booking flights last-minute is a good idea was a LIAR. $1956 dollars later...I was on a plane. Connecting through Heathrow to Dubai (no directs available, in part because Emirates holds a monopoly on that route for the time being). Because of the recent ice storm, Emirates was completely booked. Unless I wanted to fly Business class for $7k. I have a job, but it ain't THAT well-paying! Ugh. Someday I will be able to afford a suite on an Emirates Airbus...and then never buy one because that's a waste of money! Think of all the travel you could buy yourself with ONE ticket!

So I get there and have to pass through the visa-on-arrival process. Which took forever, but seems even longer after traveling almost 24 hours and arriving in the middle of the night. Nevertheless, when I finally had my turn, they took my photo as is protocol, and the nice Emirati informed me he would send it to me so I could Instagram it. Am I THAT #obvious already here?

As some of you might know (if you know me in real life), I suffer from chronic migraines. They suck, almost nothing works, but Tylenol 1's seem to do the best job at making me functional when one happens. That being said, T1's are a combination of acetaminophen (Tylenol), caffeine, and codeine, so they're definitely stronger than aspirin. You can buy them over the counter in Canada though, no prescription necessary, no big deal, right? I *may* have had some in my bag for the trip, cannot confirm nor deny..

I passed through the final check, no questions asked. I only found out once in the country that I *may or may not have* just smuggled contraband into the country by accident, and if they had discovered my activities in the airport, it carries a mandatory 4 YEAR jail sentence. Terrifying!!! I was off to a rocky start. So folks, drugs are very bad here. Including ones that are fine in your home country. Be extremely careful!

I was so rattled I didn't take advantage of the duty free, which is a real shame, because the UAE is a Muslim country and you can only purchase alcohol at hotels or if you have a special license. Oh well! Lesson learned on two fronts.

Next up, my first full day in Dubai! Can't wait. Stay tuned...

K.