The CityCenter Tram at the Monte Carlo Casino

I did a little more exploring that I expected to today. I needed to get to the Bellagio this morning. Sure, I knew there was a big ol’ marathon going on right on the Vegas Strip. I just figured I’d go around it and somehow slip into the parking lot at the Bellagio Casino from the back. Great plan. It was a living Hell.

I took Desert Inn to bypass the Strip because the Strip was closed to all traffic. I went over the Strip and a million other things, turned left at the first light, did a U-turn and headed to the freeway. I took the Flamingo exit and all was going well until I hit the traffic jam. Everyone else and their brother did too.

The security funneled us into the Bellagio and right back out again to Frank Sinatra. I figure that’ll be fine, there must be a back way into the self parking. Well, there isn’t. There is Bellagio employee parking and the security guy there wasn’t about to let me park to cover a story or any other reason. He also had zero suggestions and just as many ideas on how to get into Bellagio’s parking lot.

After some driving around, I ended up over by the Monte Carlo. I saw a pretty empty parking lot and pulled in there. It was for sales and leasing for something at CityCenter. As I was packing up my new nifty camera, I got to meet Mr. Security Guard. It seems there is a reason that lot was pretty empty, yeah, you got it, Mr. Security Guard. I was getting pretty frustrated at this point and the guy and I talked. He was actually very nice and even helpful.

The security guy suggested I park in the next lot which was a temporary lot the Monte Carlo set up for just these sorts of emergencies. He also recommended I take the tram from there to the Bellagio to save myself all that walking in the freezing cold. (It is about fifty degrees here and that wind is icy cold.) Great idea!

Outside of Sar Bucks and onward to the tram

I took him up on all of his suggestions and it was a breeze. The tram was super easy to find inside Monte Carlo. You just go through the shops area and walk into the StarBucks and you’ll see the sign on where to go next. I even got a little exercise because one of the up escalators was broken or just turned off. You know, just to get my blood flowing.

Up the escalator

The wait for the tram was exactly three minutes in the blowing, freezing cold. But it was only three minutes. I lived.

On to the landing and up another escalator

The ride was quick. Real quick. It was toasty warm inside the tram. Before I knew it, me and our friendly passengers were at Crystal’s shopping at the CityCenter. That was really fast. Just as quickly we were at the Bellagio Casino. This is one cool ride.

It dumps you out on a landing then you go down the escalator and you’re in the Bellagio shops. This was too easy.

The tram at the Monte Carlo Casino

The tram is very quiet and clean. I love the price of tickets – free – and there are no tickets. For some reason it seems so much easier to find and closer to where you are than the monorail. Of course, the tram doesn’t go where the monorail does, but still, it seems so much easier.

The tram was really a blessing for me today. Without it I would have been walking quite a distance and outside in the freezing weather. I think I’m going to like this tram.

Come tram come! It is cold!

My ride home was a real curse in comparison to my ride there. Everyone and their brother, we can’t forget the brothers, was on Frank Sinatra trying to get the Hell out of there too. Roads were blocked and they funneled everyone down to one lane for what appeared to be no damn good reason. Some lady almost ran my car over. After probably forty minutes I made it to the freeway and got off at Charleston to get back to my hood without anymore detours and traffic jams.

And off at the Bellagio Casino Tram Station

This certainly was not the morning to go to the Bellagio Casino. My quick one hour trip to get a story and get home took over three hours. As usual when shit happens, there was a blessing. I love that tram now! It would have been a long time before I got on it otherwise.

The CityCenter Tram goes to the Bellagio, Crystal’s shopping center and the Monte Carlo.  I’m not sure how often the trams run but it looks like every three minutes. The cost to ride is none.

Mayor Oscar Goodman turned out for the event

The Rush Tower at the Golden Nugget had its grand opening last night. Our Mayor Oscar Goodman was in attendance with his trusty martini, as was Miss Nevada USA and other celebrities who I have no clue as to who they were. I heard a rumor that one guy was Quentin Tarantino’s dad, but who knows? It was a big bash and lots and lots of people turned out to see the new digs and spill stuff on the new carpet.

A little beefcake for us ladies

There is a new valet parking in front of the Rush Tower so you can have an easy check-in. You walk into the gorgeous lobby and look up to a huge, 75,000 gallon aquarium filled with over 1,000 tropical fish. Part of the Chart House restaurant is right there behind the registration area and behind that is the aquarium.

A wet hello

It was really funny when we were standing there waiting for the ribbon cutting ceremony. I looked up and saw a diver in the aquarium holding up a sign and waving. I started taking pictures and slowly all the photographers started seeing it. It seems no expense was spared during this big celebration.

The Lobby

The theme throughout the new Tower is sort of a chocolate pallet with rich browns and reds. The style is really reminiscent of the 1960s. The chandelier covers much of the lobby area and twists and turns into the next room with a nice spiral.

Beautifully designed rooms

The $150 million Rush Tower is currently open and accepting reservations. They have more than five hundred guest rooms. These rooms are twenty percent larger than the current standard rooms. The tower also includes four Penthouse Suites and seventy Junior Corner Suites which provide incredible views.

The standard bath in the Junior Corner Suite

If you read this blog regularly, you’ll notice I’m always raving about the Golden Nugget’s pool. And I can’t stand pools! But I love the Golden Nugget’s pool area. You could spend all day and all night down there. Well, now they’ve done it one better! They’ve added an upstairs pool called “H20.”

The reflective sign at H20

This is an 85 degree pool that has a see-through edge. You can lounge around the pool in one of the many cabanas or sit out in the sun. The best part of this pool is children are not allowed. You must be at least sixteen years old to enter. There is also a bar up there next to the pool so your margarita may never run dry.

Poolside at H20

They do have the usual game tables and roulette right to the side of the lobby. The tables are smoke-free, but you can smoke at the slots. The slots are right along the wall next the card tables so I don’t know what the point of that is. I guess it is really annoying for nonsmokers to have a cigarette constantly burning in their face at blackjack. I saw some of the minimums were quite high at those tables, $25 and $50.

Blackjack tables

There is the usual array of slot machines around and some are progressive. Everyone can probably find one of their favorite slots. I did notice a bank of Wheel of Fortune.

Some slot machines

Okay, let’s talk rooms. These rooms are simple but spectacular, in my opinion. They went with sort of a chocolate type of color scheme which sounds awful, but it is so very beautiful. So, gorgeous, in fact, I’m going to do my best to copy it in my bedroom.

Rooms with fabulous views

The furniture will remind you of the 1960s, and for an older hotel like this, it seems to be the perfect choice. Everything is simple, sleek and the bathrooms are to die for. Such a beauty this place is. The room rates will hover around $200 for high end weekend, but they are really going to give some of the strip hotels a run for their money on value. I want to stay there!

Ribbon cutting ceremony

The ribbon cutting ceremony went off without a hitch. Our Mayor only spilled his drink a couple of times that I saw. I did overhear him telling someone that this was a real martini, not one of those chugging ones he usually carries around. What? Our Mayor will be seen carrying a huge, fake martini?! Yes, you just heard it here first. But this night, he had the real deal.

Charles Williams

I saw a guy wandering around in a lime green suit that was a lot like a zoot suit. A lot of people seemed to know this guy, but I didn’t. Eventually I cornered him and asked him who he was. He said his name is Charles Williams and he’s been gambling at only the Golden Nugget since the 1960s. He was a sweet man and I talked with him about gambling for a little while. His favorite game is betting on sports. He did really well last year, but this year not so much. The gold medallion around his neck is actually a design made with his name. I saw he had a great smile, but I put the camera on the guy and he froze up. I tried a couple of shots but I couldn’t get that guy’s great smile out of him. So much for my dreams of a photography career.

Table games area

So, on your next trip to Las Vegas, you should probably stop into the Golden Nugget and see what they’ve done over there. It is really pretty cool. Especially those rooms and that new upstairs pool!

Vinny Blue and Vinny Red

Today was the day! This morning the announcement was made to see who won the contest for the new Vinny Spokesperson for the New York New York Casino in Las Vegas. The announcement was supposed to be made last week, but there were so many votes to count that they put off the big day until today.

Vinny Blue and Vinny Red just before the announcement

Vinny Blue and Vinny Red made their grand entrance with big smiles just after a long parade of fans came in wearing red t-shirts and blue t-shirts. They were ready. They both looked like they thought they had won, but there was only going to be one winner. Both Vinnys were in a great mood and joking around with each other.

Literally handcuffed to the briefcase containing the winner's name

A long speech was made to thank each Vinny for all the effort and fun they put into the contest. Each Vinny brought something special and unique to the festivities and they were equally deserving of the new title.

The winner's name was brought to the stage

It was time to make the announcement. A man off stage showed how he was handcuffed to the briefcase which continued the name of the new New York New York Casino spokesperson. He came up to the stage and a couple of guys wrestled with the brief case a bit to get it open. The envelope was handed over.

Vinny Blue was declared the new Spokesperson

The new Spokesperson is Vinny Blue! The fans of Vinny Blue loudly cheered and the fans of Vinny Red politely clapped in their disappointment. Vinny Red gave Vinny Blue a congratulatory handshake.

Vinny Red now has big plans

Vinny Red was thanked for his participation and was given a weekend pass for the new Aria where he could party all weekend with the person of his choice. A couple of gorgeous girls took the stage and escorted him away. I’m sure those beauties will keep him warm until Aria gets open. He didn’t look too terribly disappointed.

Vinny Blue signs his oath

Vinny Blue signed the ‘oath’ of his new position and put on the official T-shirt and he was renamed just “Vinny.” As the official spokesperson, Vinny will embody the New York-New York brand.

A true ambassador of fun, Vinny will be a hands-on-host, available day in and day out to tell guests where to go, what to do, what’s hot and what’s not, in a totally honest, no-apologies New York kind of way.

Vinny in his new T-shirt

“Thousands of you voted throughout this very close competition,” said Cynthia Kiser Murphey, president and COO of New York-New York. “Now it’s time for your chosen Vinny to get to work, making sure each and every guest has the time of their life here at New York-New York.”

Pizza showed up for everyone

People voted from all over the world for their special Vinny. I think they said from fifty different countries! Including, of course, Italy. Many, many people joined in in the fun of picking Vinny from the two worthy candidates. We all watched since October 20th, as they were pitted against each other for hot dog eating contests, who could dance the best jig, who could go fastest around the center bar on a tricycle and more. Vinny Blue won some of the events and Vinny Red won some of them, but the contests were really so that people could get to know them. It was the votes that picked which would be Vinny, not the contests.

Vinny with the key to the Casino

Ready to jump in and embrace his new title, Vinny Blue took to the stage and said, “Today is a new day at New York-New York and I’d like to welcome everyone down to the hotel for a big celebration. The party is happening every day so come see this native New Yorker and learn why New York-New York is the place to hang on the Las Vegas Strip.”

Vinny getting used to his new title

View of Hooters Casino from the Tropicana traffic jam

When I went to Hooters Casino I got caught in a big old traffic jam on Tropicana. That pretty much sucked. I was so happy to be zooming along because the construction was done! Woohoo, and then I hit the slow down. Somebody got in an accident and was clogging up my good time. So I pulled out the camera and took photos while I was in a standstill.

Finally pulling into Hooters Casino

Once I was done with what I had going on at Hooters I thought I would drive down the Strip to see how it all looked. I usually try to avoid driving on the Strip because it is a traffic nightmare. On this particular night, the traffic wasn’t bad at all. That was good for my driving, but really bad for a Friday night in Las Vegas during prime time!

At a red light on the Vegas Strip

I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go and I remembered that someone on Twitter told me that I should go visit a place called Slots A Plenty or something. He said it was next to Circus Circus.

Traffic was actually very light on the Strip that Friday night

Somehow I ended up behind the Encore and Wynn, or something. I don’t know, I was sort of lost. That is just an opportunity to get a new view of something I’m tired of looking at every day. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it! I don’t know how I ended up over there, but I did, and here are the photos.

I guess Koval Street ends at the Encore

So I pulled into Circus Circus thinking I would park there and walk to where this Slots A Plenty is. Now, there’s this thing about Circus Circus. I haven’t been in there since June of 1975.  So, like, stop me if you’ve heard this story…

The Wynn Casino

When I graduated High School in Southern California, all my classmates went on their senior trip to Disneyland. My boyfriend and I packed a bottle of gin, jumped into his VW bug and headed to Vegas to play and see his brother. Upon arrival, his sister-in-law decided to dress me up so I looked legal and we’d all go out on the Strip to party. Lots of make-up later, we found ourselves at Circus Circus.

The Vegas Strip

We were all running around gambling and I was alone at the slots shoving quarters into machines waiting for my big win. Well, I met security. They were some big guys, if I remember right. This was 1975, and we all know who ran Vegas in 1975. They asked me for ID to prove I was 21 years-old like I was saying and not seventeen like I really was. Well, they took me to the door and told me never to come back.

So, I was sitting in my car inside one of the many parking garages, debating if it was time yet to go in. There are an awful lot of parking garages behind Circus Circus, by the way. It is like a whole city back there. Anyway, I thought it over and just couldn’t bring myself to get out of the car and go inside that place. Sure, it has been a long, long time, but I’m still mortified. I shoved the bloggermobile into reverse and got the hell out of there.

Treasure Island Casino

Hey! I found Slots A Plenty on the way out! It is in what looks like a tiny strip mall just to the south of Circus Circus. The problem is, there is no place to park. The McDonalds there had a tow truck hauling away someone who had the idea of parking there and wandering off first. So I waited for my turn to get into traffic on the Strip and took photos of the Riviera for you. There was no way I was going to park at Circus Circus and walk through the casino to get there.

The Riviera Casino

Well, maybe one day I’ll make it into Slots A Plenty. Maybe I’ll have Vegas Cabbie drive me over there one night when he’s not too busy.

The Riveira Casino shopping area

Kari and Sammy Hagar

Because it is my job to ask what nobody in their right mind would ask, I passed over some of my questions for Sammy Hagar and asked the ones you guys who read this blog wanted asked. Mr. Hagar, fun guy that he is, was totally up for that.

The first question was from @adogam on twitter who asked: Ask to take shots of cabo wabo with him. If you don’t want to ask if I can.

Oh, such a giggle came out of Sammy Hagar on that one. Once he recovered, he said, “I am not doing shots now, its too early! I don’t want to walk into this place drunk and pass out before its over. It’s possible… but I’d rather not.” And then he started laughing some more.

Next, Judy asked: Ask him how he liked playing with Eddie? I used to love Eddie.

With a serious tone, he replied, “Eddie was a great, great guitar player the years I was playing with him. We wrote some of the best music in the history of rock and roll, I think. And… it was awesome. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

Jessica wanted to know: What did your mom think about you becoming a rock ‘n roll guy instead of say, a banker, a lawyer or some other 9-5-er?

Sammy said, “Like I said, my mother always said, ‘you can’t do this for a living, you know, you’ve got to have something to fall back on. A real job!’ So, that’s what she thought of it.” And he started laughing again, “Until I bought her her first house!”

Gary asked: Of all the gigs you have worked, where is your favorite place to perform?

Without a moment’s thought he just blurted out, “St. Louis, Missouri.”
“Really? Why St. Louis?” I asked.
“They love me,” He said.
“Yeah?” I said and he started cracking up. “But everyone loves you!”
“But they love me more!” he said, still laughing.

Sammy Hagar

Chase wanted to know: What happened to your shoes?

I had no idea what Chase was talking about, and Sammy didn’t either at first. He thought for a bit and then exclaimed, “Ohhhh! I had, I used to have Red Rocker Shoes! I used to have a line of shoes with Vans. Okay, I’ll tell you the whole story. I had bicycle stores, in Mill Valley I used to have these mountain bikes stores. When they first started, mountain bikes. So I built a mountain bike store and I had mountain bike clothing. So, I said, ‘oh, so I’ll sell my own shoes!’ So, my deal with Vans was that they couldn’t mark the price up just because it had my name on it. They had to sell them for the same price that they sold their other shoes. And when I ordered my shoes from them, they had marked them up by ten bucks a pair. So, they broke the contract. I really didn’t want to make shoes anyway. I was bored for five minutes.” He smiled.

Susie, dear, Susie, do you have any idea how tough it was to ask this question of yours? I figured my best approach was to save your question for last. Why should I throw out what little credibility I have right at the beginning of an interview? I’m sure Susie was joking, but I asked it anyway, thinking it could crack him up.
Susie asked: Do you think there is any chance of Jon and Kate getting back together?

Well, he was confused, “I don’t know who she’s talking about. Oh, they must be some celebrities or something.”
“They’re some reality TV thing,” I told him.
“AWWwww,” he yelled like I had stabbed him in the gut. “How would I know?!”

This Jon and Kate thing is like some horrible disease on the earth and I just infected yet another poor soul. He was a very good sport about it, though.

I leave you with a little Sammy Hagar music. This is his new super group, Chicken Foot. Some good, old fashioned rock and roll.

Sammy Hagar showing his true fun nature

My first clue as to how my interview with Sammy Hagar was going to go was when I was doing some research to come up with some questions that didn’t have anything to do with Van Halen. Surely, there is more to this guy than when he played with Van Halen. I was listening to some sound files from his website with my trusty parrot at my side. My bird started singing along and bobbing his head. When Hagar was talking, my African Grey was laughing at his joking around. My bird, it seems, loves this guy already.

As it turns out, there is a whole lot more to Sammy Hagar than playing music. And, well, my African Grey parrot was right, he’s a fun guy.  Sammy Hagar is handsome, charming and as I quickly discovered, he is one intelligent businessman. There are zero celebrity pretenses with Hagar. Talking with him was exactly like meeting up with an old friend I haven’t seen in years. On the other hand, just about every bad boy alarm I have was ringing loudly in my head when talking with this rock demigod.

Sammy Hagar was attending Emeril Lagasse Foundation’s 5th Annual Carnivale du Vin at the Venetian Casino, which I’ll write about later. “Emeril Lagasse is one of my dearest friends since we met about eighteen years ago. He cooked for my wedding,” he said. “This is a night out for us. A night off the beach. We scraped the sand off our feet and came straight here!”

Sammy Hagar, Emeril Lagasse, Aaron Neville

Hagar has a huge bash every year for his birthday in October in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The party goes on for a couple of weeks and all his musician friends turn out for it. Every year, he donates a party package for Emeril’s foundation. This includes Emeril Lagasse cooking you dinner at Sammy Hagar’s home in Cabo San Lucas. After dinner, you are taken to the Cabo Wabo where Hagar’s band will play. “It’s a great little weekend,” he said, “It raises a lot of money.” Oh, no doubt!

“One guy even bought it twice, he had so much fun. Emeril cooks at my house for three days!… It is a special event,” he explained.

Sammy Hagar teasing Lagasse's children

Sammy Hagar is no stranger to business. He has numerous commercial ventures going including Cabo Wabo, his tequila company and his matching Cantinas around the country and in Mexico. I wanted to know how a rock and roll guy ends up with so many successful businesses.

He removed his sunglasses and told me he was glad I didn’t have him on camera because he can’t stand looking at the lens. “I can look in a person’s eyes, but not a lens,” he quipped. So, that is why he wears the glasses in photos.

“You know, it’s so funny,” he started, “I think when I was a kid, I was four years old and I would go to my aunt’s house, who was the richest person in our family and she would pay me to do things. I would wash her car. I would trim weeds or take out the garbage. I would love to go over there because I could make some money, you know, because I was a poor kid. And so I have always been interested in how I could make a living. When I started making a living in music, it was boring making a living that way because I’d do that for free!”

Cabo Wabo Tequilla

“So how could I make some money?” he laughed. “So that’s what drove me to do other businesses. And my mother always telling me growing up, ‘You gotta have something to fall back on, you know. These musicians and actors and actresses, they always end up broke and all this.’ And I was worried about that, so I started a little business here and little bit there and I like it! And I give most of the money away. Sammy’s Beach Bar and Grill, every penny of that goes to children’s charities in the area.”

Sammy Hagar has a big heart and a big piece of that is with terminally ill children and their families. “Their families spend everything they have to try to give these children back a couple of years of their life,” he explained. “And then they end up with nothing! They lose their homes. I want to support them.” He further explained that he makes sure the money raised in a city will stay with that city. If the money is raised in Las Vegas then it stays in Las Vegas to help the locals and it is the same in each city.

I had read about his Cabo Wabo Cantina opening up right on the Las Vegas strip. I thought it was opening in December, but he said it opened a few days ago. He told me that it is the Grand Opening that is on December 4th, and he will be playing there that night. It will be an annual anniversary show every December. The Cabo Wabo Cantina is located in front of Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino right on the Vegas Strip.

There was limited time for this interview as it was taking place just before he was to go into dinner at the Carnival du Vin event. Readers of this blog had sent me some questions they wanted me to ask so I passed on asking some of my questions in order to answer yours. I will post the rest of the interview tomorrow giving his answers and his chuckles to what you wanted to know.

The Two Vinnys

The race is still on between Vinny Blue and Vinny Red to win the job of being the new spokesperson for the New York New York Casino. That race was a literal race this afternoon in the middle of the casino floor, but it was a race on tricycles. Yep, tricycles. The rule was they had to keep their butt on the thing, which appeared to be no easy task.

There were three competitions left to wind up the spokesperson competition and they all took place this afternoon at the casino. First it was the trike race, then the knowledge about New York New York Casino and it wrapped up with seeing which Vinny could get the most people to ride the roller coaster.

I hung around a while to watch the tricycle race.

They started by doing some stretches and general mugging for the onlookers. A crowd started to gather once they were sitting on their tiny bikes. The rules were read to them and then they were off…. slowly, but they were off all the same.

Vinny Blue & Vinny Red getting ready to race

My vote was leaning towards Vinny Red. I don’t know why really, maybe because I see him as more of a New Yorker. Having only been to New York once, I feel I am a very good judge of who is more “New York.” Okay, I was only in Flatbush, never made it to Brooklyn, but whatever. I like Vinny Red.

Vinny Red

When I met him this afternoon, I told a couple of the New York New York suits that I was voting for Vinny Red in front of him. “He follows me on twitter,” I said. If someone follows me on twitter, then they should get my vote, you know?

Vinny Blue

Vinny Red, of course, overhead this and exclaimed, “Is it YOU?” He was being awfully nice about not remembering my name, so that pretty much cemented it for me. He took my hand and cradled it in his and sort of cupped it with his left hand as we talked. What a gentleman. If I wasn’t a foot taller than him, maybe I’d give his wife a run for her money.

The race is on!

So the race was on and they were peddling as fast as they could while actually staying on the little bike. Around and around the center bar they went while the crowd cheered. I don’t know what happened to Vinny Red. There was some sort of commotion on the other side of the bar during round two. I think he might have crashed and burned.

The crowd watching

Vinny Blue was declared the winner. Then they both fell down and lay there with their red bikes on top of them, for a little rest. They weren’t given much in the way of rest because it was time to prop them back up on their bikes to be grilled on their knowledge of the New York New York Casino.

Answering questions for the second round of the competition

“What was the name of the band playing at Fine Nine Irishman during the last competition?” Huh? What? The crowd even groaned. That was too hard! Most of the questions weren’t too terribly hard. They were questions any employee could probably answer, but each stumbled on them here and there. When one of the Vinnys had the answer he honked his horn on his bike and was allowed to answer. Vinny Blue was honking in a lot more than Vinny Red, I’m afraid. I think he was the one who took that competition too.

Shedding "tears" after being anointed honorary security guards

I needed to move along so I couldn’t hang around to see how many people they got to ride the roller coaster at New York New York Casino. I’m guessing they got a bunch. Maybe one of the Vinnys will pop in here and tell us how it all turned out in the end.

Tricycle racing just isn't his thing, I don't think

The posters around the casino said that Vinny Blue is ahead in this competition. One of the suits I was talking to said there have been an awful lot of votes already. People are voting with the ballet boxes on the casino floor, the Facebook page they have and also the casino’s website. Monday, November 16th, they will declare the winner. After that day, there will be an official Vinny running around the casino floor helping tourists and pointing them in the general direction of fun and great deals. I hope its Vinny Red. But, may the best Vinny for the tourists win!

Vinny Blue

Monster Mash playing on the Canopy

In my wanderings downtown, Las Vegas, last week, I did take a bunch of photos that I thought you’d want to see if you’re into ‘old’ Las Vegas. I do find ways to amuse myself when waiting on a friend.

Binions Casinos

I got new photos of the standard casinos and some of the other businesses down there. I even stopped to take a photo of a young couple who were vacationing from Hungary. They had asked me to take their photo with their camera. Because I have a spanking new, super duper camera, I offered to take another photo with mine and email it them. They were a bit suspicious of that at first, but eventually realized I wasn’t going to make them pay me for it.

Fitzgeralds Casino

I do think the casinos and shows taking your photo for tips or pay is getting a bit overdone now, don’t you? So I’m fighting back. I’ll take your photo and email it you for nothing. Of course, you run the risk of appearing on this blog, but that’s the chance you’re going to take. I do try to keep those photos off the Internet, but if it is a particularly interesting one, well….

The Fremont Casino

The videos on the canopy are now a mix of the standards they’ve been showing for a while and some new ones. One thing I noticed on this last trip is that the Fremont Street Experience is selling advertising space on the video overhead.

George Thorogood playing"Bad to the Bone"

There were not a lot of ads, but there were a few mixed in. I’m not sure I like that, but who am I to complain? Did I pay to go watch it? No. So, it makes sense that they would do this to help with the production costs. I’m dealing with my disappointment.

"The Time Warp"

Halloween is the theme this month, of course. Even the roaming saxophonist, Carl Ferris, was in his Halloween best. He has his sax stand all decked out in skeletons and deadly decorations. He was dressed as, well, I’m not sure what, but it involved a cape and long, black wig.

Carl Ferris and his saxophones. He's hiding in the background.

The Golden Nugget is having a tournament this Friday and Saturday. It is the Spook-Tacular BlackJack Tournament. Click on the photo to see the enlarged size and you can get all the particulars on that.

The Golden Nugget's BlackJack Tournament

The party girls from Wisconsin and I were going to sacrifice the Deep Fried Oreo Virgins over at Mermaids Casino. But two of them ran off back to their rooms before we were even beginning the party. The third one ran off… in fear, I think, when she caught wind of our plans.

The Gift Store

That left just Julie and I, so we went ahead and braved the more than Halloween scary back end of Mermaids Casino, to get ourselves some Deep Fried Oreos.

Mermaids Casino

There is something about heading to that counter that brings the episode “Soup Nazi” to mind, so the first order of business is to reminisce Seinfeld shows as you get into line. The “Chef” can get cranky and although I have never actually seen him say, “NO OREOS FOR YOU!” I can bet it has happened. Lucky for us, he was fairly relaxed when we were there. It was a slow night, it seemed, and we were the only people in line.

Julie pointing out the sign. Click to enlarge to read it.

There is always something to see in Las Vegas that you have never seen on a prior trip. On this trip, Julie pointed out the sign. Was that sign always there? I have never seen it before. It lets you know that you must “Place Order Her.” Did they run out of room and just print it anyway? Did an engraved letter evaporate? Hey, this is Mermaids Casino. Don’t ask questions.

A touch of class there at Mermaids Casino

Mermaids is a class joint, I tell ya. Look! They are now offering a jar of Grey Poupon for the discerning hot dog eaters.

By the way, I guess the new, cleaner air in Mermaids was fairly short lived. It smells bad in there once again from the grease. It does have a way to go yet before my eyes will burn, though. It is still much better than it was last year, but I have faith it will get there again.

Deep Fried Oreos now come three to an order instead of five

There is nothing quite like Downtown Las Vegas and Fremont Street for a little cheap fun. Splitting an order of Deep Fried Oreos was just the whip cream and cherry on top.

La Bayou Casino we dubbed the worlds smallest casino

The New York New York Hotel & Casino

The New York New York Casino in Las Vegas has unleashed two Vinnys in Las Vegas. The two New York natives are competing in a showdown to become the next spokesperson for the New York New York Casino. I watched as “Vinny Red” and “Vinny Blue” competed in the first of a series of contests to prove which of these two guys are the most deserving of the title of the Official New York New York spokesperson.

The Candidates are introduced

Patrons of the casino are encouraged to vote for their favorite Vinny. There are voting boxes on the casino floor. This isn’t Chicago, but I am sure your favorite Vinny will block everyone’s view if you’d like to stuff his ballot box for him.  Make sure you stuff the right one! They are color coded, red and blue.

She is all for Vinny Red

“Vinny is real, a little irreverent and quite fun. He is a hands-on host with all the answers; served up with true New York attitude,” said Cynthia Kiser Murphey, president and COO of New York-New York. “Vinny brings our brand to life and enhances the exceptional customer service our employees are well known for.”

Firefighters waiting for the Vinnys to compete to see who can raise the most money for the Clark County Fire Department’s Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) boot drive

The Vinny who makes it through the challenges will be the ultimate guest go-to guy for all things New York-New York. The Casino wants you to come in and vote for either Vinny Red or Vinny Blue in order to pick the most New York and the most accommodating guy.

The Brooklyn Bridge outside the Casino. Click to enlarge and look carefully at the photo.

I watched as each Vinny gave his speech. Vinny Red declared, “I like to consider myself a one man party machine.” And Vinny Blue challenged him with, “Sleep? It’s overrated, in my opinion… Nobody ever says on their death bed they wished they’d had more sleep.” These two guys are pretty much proclaiming to take the best care of the guests and party like there is no tomorrow, but with different styles. Different, sure, but still all New York.

The side of the New York New York Casino outside on the Brooklyn Bridge

What better way to kick off an event on the Brooklyn Bridge just outside the New York New York Casino than with a hot dog contest? The Vinnys went through a little of their own preparations for the big event and five hot dogs were laid before each of them.

Vinny Blue and Vinny Red preparing for the hot dog eating competition

They dove in with great gusto, showing they were legitimate New Yorkers and could eat hot dogs.

The Vinnys off to a great start

Vinny Blue decided to taunt Vinny Red with the mustard but Vinny Red just brushed him off and kept right on shoving them in.

"A little mustard, Red?"

After a few minutes they looked like they might toss those hot dogs back up and I was ready for a great gross out shot, but they kept them down.

They don't look so energetic anymore

I think Vinny Blue won. I am not sure. I remember hearing he ate three hot dogs, but a cute guy wandered by and well, what can I say. I was slightly distracted! Shut up!

Vinny Blue shoving one more hot dog in for the cameras

There are going to be more events inside New York New York Casino that the public is invited to attend. You can get to know the Vinnys personally and see what they each plan to do for you.

Vinny vs. Vinny contest dates and voter events include:

Monday, October 26: ESPN Zone Challenge
1. Sports arcade contest
2. Wing eating contest
3. Sports trivia contest
Friday, October 30: Nine Fine Irishmen Challenge
1. Drinking song competition
2. Irish jig contest
3. Stand-up improv contest
Friday, November 6: Casino Challenge
1. Rascal race at Center Bar
2. Fun facts memory quiz
3. Vinny vs. Vinny steak challenge at Gallagher’s Steak House

Personally, I think I’d most like to see them compete in the Irish Jig contest. I’m doubting either of them can do it at all.

Follow the Vinny vs. Vinny competition and vote online at www.NYNYHotelCasino.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/vinnyatnewyorknewyork.

Speaking of Facebook, you can become a friend of this CasinoGuide on Facebook also.  You can also become my friend on Facebook.  Many times I’ll let you know what stories I’m working on in advance or give a sneak preview of photos I have taken.

The event started bright and early on Saturday morning. These poker runs are mainly for motorcyclists, but cars were allowed also at this event. I tried to find a bike to attach myself to, but didn’t have any luck, so I just drove it.

A poker run involved going to different stations, pulling a card, having it written on your scorecard and after you hit all the stations, you return to find out if you had the winning poker hand. The stations where you draw the cards are all over town, so you get to see the sights as well.

The Station #1 Girls

Station #1 was right there at registration at the Gold Coast Casino. Not too terribly difficult for Miss Lost, namely me. I drew a Queen of Clubs, so I was off to a great start! Or so I thought.

On my way into Red Rock Canyon

The time limit to get to Station #2 was 11:15am. I had started around 10am so I had plenty of time to get there. This spot was located out on Bonnie Springs Road and I needed to drive through Red Rock Canyon in order to get there. Actually, I think it was in Red Rock Canyon.

I putted along through the beauty of the place. Signs with pictures of burros were everywhere to warn drivers some wild pack of jackasses just might decide to cross the road at any given moment. So, I felt at home, it was just like being inside a casino.

This was not Station #2

I went all the way down the road like the map said, but the guy who was looking for a twenty dollar entry fee into the recreation area hadn’t heard of a poker run and didn’t know what I was talking about. He was real nice about it and let me drive in to the parking lot for this recreation thingy for free to look around for my Station #2. By the second time I had pulled down in there confessing I was lost more than usual, he suggested I go back up the road a bit to where the train loads to look for my station. Well, Station #2 wasn’t there either. Time was clicking away and I had to admit I just wasn’t going to find it. There was a cool little train there, by the way. It is a miniature and has an engineer driving it around on a track. You can buy tickets to ride it. If I had kids I probably would have, but I don’t, so I admitted defeat and moved on to find Station #3.

On my way to nowhere land

In order to get my next card (and hopefully my second card), I had to drive to Saddle West Casino which was 31.1 miles away. As it turns out, that is Pahrump. I have never been to Pahrump before. I sort of like the name of the place, though.

Found the middle of nowhere and kept on going

I saw more jackass signs and a little desert rat sort of creature ran out in front of me when I was going 70, thought better of it, then turned around and ran off. Yes, he was fast.

No Billboard shortage in Pahrump

I knew I was in Pahrump when I saw a billboard advertising Heidi Fleiss’s book was being sold at the local bookstore, complete with the Hollywood Madam’s signature. You know you’re in BFE when there is a billboard advertising one local resident’s obscure book.

The Saddle West Casino for Station #3

Pahrump was everything I imagined it to be, which is sort of not a lot. It is a bit of a billboard city, which I didn’t expect. There were huge signs everywhere, but not much in the way of actual buildings. Lucky for me, the Saddle West Casino was big enough for me to actually see and it was an easy pull in.

The Helpful People at Station #3

The nice ladies there allowed me to pull an extra card due to me being an idiot and not being able to find Station #2. I pulled a two of Hearts and a 5 of Spades for the third. Hmmm. I don’t know a lot about poker but I think I just abandoned my fine start at this game.

The Mountain Springs Saloon for Station #4

Station #4 was back tracking a bit from where I just came… thank God. This time it was the Mountain Springs Saloon on NV-160 S and Williams Ranch Rd. It sounded easy enough to find and it was. I wasn’t the only car there. There was one other car, the rest were motorcycles. I parked and got in line to draw my next fabulous poker card.

Only one other car there

Now mind you, I’m standing there in my shorts, sandals, girly top and cute cotton hat along side guys with long braids, decked out in leather and their babes who are every bit as leathered. I looked like a dufus.

The very friendly girls at Station #4

Everyone was nice to me though. In all rights, they should have sacrificed me to the Harley gods. I know you’re dying to know, I drew a 9 of Spades. Yeah, great hand, huh?

Bathroom Art at Station #4

I guess there wasn't enough room on the door

I didn’t hang around like the others did, I hit the road because I was getting hungry and I knew there was a barbecue waiting at the end. All hope of winning any of the prizes with my poker hand were lost with that last card draw. It was time to get a Coke and some food.

Back to the Gold Coast Casino for Station #5

I zoomed on down the road back to civilization as I know it to get those eats at the Gold Coast Casino and pull the fifth and final card. That was an uneventful ride, except for the part where I thought I’d take a short cut across Valley View to avoided getting on the freeway. I went directly into a road block. Who knew? Well I do now, Valley View is a dead end between NV-160 S and Flamingo Road. Jesus. That cost me another hungry five minutes in the turn around time.

The Band Rocked!

The barbecue was there but only about ten people were there for it. There were tables everywhere and the band was starting. I got some eats and sat with everyone else at the one occupied table. I talked with the fellows there and listened to the ,“Gee, where ever shall I sit?” jokes as each person arrived. The band was good, but I felt for them because they had to start before there were a lot of people there to dance. I think people must have lagged behind with the beer at the Saloon.

Goldy Rox

The sun was getting too much for me so I just headed home before the big prize was awarded for the best poker hand. What did I draw as the final card? I just know you dying to find out. The 6 of Hearts.

My final hand was: Q Clubs, 2 Hearts, 5 Spades, 9 Spades, 6 Hearts. I was anxious to go home and play with my parrot and forget about poker for a while.