Friday, May 24
The weather forecast for Friday was warm, sunny and beautiful, so I woke up early around 7 AM, got ready, and headed down to the pool to grab some chairs. Everyone else staying at the Mirage seemed to have the same idea, because there were hardly any chairs left at 7:45 AM!
I spent the morning relaxing and listening to podcasts. And pounding water to rehydrate myself and prepare for the day ahead.
The pool at the Mirage is beauuuutiful! It is heated so it wasn’t too cold. There was also two hot tubs, a VIP pool, and a pool at Bare Lounge, an adults-only day club.
After Justin’s late night adventure, he slept in and joined me a few hours later. We decided to get a couple of drinks to kick off the day. A little “hair of the dog” you might say.
I can’t remember what the name of mine was, but I know it had frozen pineapple Dole Whip and Blue Curacao in it. Justin got a Miami Vice (strawberry daquiri & pina colada mixed).
We went to lunch at In-N-Out Burger! The fries are nothing to write home about, but their burgers are delicious! I have never seen a fast-food restaurant so crowded that you could hardly walk in.
Justin snapped my photo with my idol, Dark Chocolate, outside of a candy shop. 😉 We did some souvenir shopping in the shops near In-N-Out, then we went back to the Mirage to check out the Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden & Dolphin Habitat.
When we walked in, they were training and feeding all of the male dolphins. The photo on the left is Lightning. Unbeknownst to us, you could pay extra to touch and feed the dolphins, and I was so upset that I did not know this!!
To put it simply, I was completely IN AWE of these beautiful creatures. Dolphins are totally my new favorite animal.
We explored the rest of the exhibit while we waited for the female dolphin show and feeding.
Siegfried & Roy are a German-American duo of magicians and entertainers, who became known for their appearances with white lions and white tigers. From 1990, until Roy’s career-ending tiger injury on October 3, 2003, the duo formed Siegfried & Roy at the Mirage Resort and Casino, which was regarded as the most visited show in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Wiki)
Next up, was the female dolphin show which also included two baby dolphins, Carly and Coco. Literally, the cutest things ever! They loved doing tricks and getting attention from the crowd. I ended up running out of storage on my phone after taking so many photos and videos.
Selfie with a female dolphin!
Justin practically had to drag me out of here, but then we headed back to the pool to catch the last of the day’s sun before heading up to the room to get ready for dinner.
After some shopping inside the Venetian, we ate dinner at Buddy V’s Restaurant. It was spectacular. We had grilled garlic bread as an appetizer. Justin had Fettuccini Alfredo with Shrimp, and I had the Shrimp Scampi.
Once again, our server was exceptional. I asked her if she had ever met Buddy, and in fact she has met him several times and even served him and his family. He visits the Las Vegas restaurant frequently, and has a favorite table by the windows, overlooking the Strip. I told her how we met his sister and her husband while honeymooning in the Bahamas!
We went across the hall to Carlo’s Bake Shop for dessert (always a must when I’m on vacation). I picked up a chocolate cannoli and two chocolate chip cookie sandwiches for us.
We ended the night with more gambling at The Mirage, and a couple rounds of drinks at the Rhumbar.
Saturday, May 25
We woke up and hit the pool for a couple hours again. The sun was shining and the weather was perfect.
After catching some rays, we did more exploring. We rode the tram from the Mirage to Treasure Island and walked around a bit.
Selfie with the Pirate Ship!
We headed over to the Fashion Show Mall for some shopping. We missed a few things when we were buzzy-shopping, haha! I picked up a beautiful necklace and set of earrings from the Kendra Scott store that I had been eyeing for several months. #TreatYoself
After that we headed up to Caesars. We walked around the hotel and did some gambling, and stopped for drinks at the Spanish Steps Bar. I loved this little spot! It had the most perfect breeze running through, and the shade felt nice after being out in the sun most of the day.
The Rum Runners were so good! Justin, if you’re reading this, lets make some at home this weekend!
We were tossing handfuls of change into this fountain (at Caesars) making wishes and spotted a rainbow in them afterwards! I think our wish was heard. 😉 The money collected is donated to the Children’s Hospital.
Fun Fact about the Caesars fountains:
On December 31, 1967, stunt performer Evel Knievel arrived at the hotel to watch a boxing match and convinced Sarno that he could jump over the distance of 140 feet (43 m) over the fountains. ABC came in to film the jump, in which Knievel hit the top of the safety ramp after the jump and flew over his handlebars into the parking lot of neighbouring Dunes. Fracturing his pelvis, several bones and suffering a concussion, he lay in a hospital unconscious for 29 days in a coma before recovering. On April 14, 1989, Knievel’s son Robbie successfully completed the jump. (Wiki)
Caesars Palace is huge, and so cool. I would love to stay here during our next visit. I’m totally infatuated with their pools, too.
Later that night, we went to dinner at Otoro for Sushi, and then drinks at The Still.
Though we had seen it several times while we were visiting, we headed down to The Bellagio to catch the fountain show at night.
We went inside and played some more Roulette, and Justin kept his winning streak alive, yet again! (Side note: I’m upset that we didn’t snap any photos of ourselves gambling. These posts make it look like we didn’t do any, but I swear we did a lot!)
I snapped a few random photos on the walk back. Next time we will have to check out Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen. The exterior looks awesome!
Sunday, May 26
We woke up and started packing while we watched the US Women’s National Team defeat Mexico 3-0. I wanted to place a bet at the Sports Book on the USA to win the 2019 World Cup, but they are favored by so much that I’d barely win anything.
We checked out of the hotel by 11, put our bags in the bell stand and headed out for the day. We walked around a while trying to decide where we wanted to eat lunch. We wanted to try Gordon Ramsay Burger in Planet Hollywood, but the wait was incredibly long, and our stomachs couldn’t wait. We ended up at Budweiser Beer Park, a rooftop bar and restaurant that overlooks the Bellagio and Caesars.
We explored a bit through Planet Hollywood, Paris, Bally’s, Flamingo and Harrah’s on our way back to the Mirage. We hung at the Sports Book at the Mirage, and gambled the day away.
We split fries and a shake from The Stack before Ubering to the airport. One final unhealthy meal! 😉
Despite a ton of turbulence, we made it home Monday morning in one piece. We landed in Cincinnati around 5 AM, so we spent the day catching up on sleep, doing laundry, and snuggling with Rudy.
The Petes Take Vegas 2019 was a successful trip!
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