Aerosmith in Vegas and other adventures there (April 2019)

When we discovered that Aerosmith was going to start a residency in Las Vegas, we immediately looked into getting tickets. We opted not to go to the very first show to allow them to work out any hiccups that might occur on opening night. Well, there was a hiccup the night we were there but it was still a great show.

I was able to score an unbelievable rate at the Park MGM Grand where the band was preforming. This hotel casino hadn't been open for very long but we were NOT impressed. There were so many things wrong in our room; blinds didn't work, sink wouldn't drain, check in was a cluster. We would not recommend this place to anyone. Again the room rate was ridiculously cheap for Vegas so we tried to keep that in mind.

But I've gotten a little ahead of myself.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10th
We left Indianapolis on Wednesday, April 10th early (but why?) which had us landing in Vegas at 11:00 AM local time. We happened to be in a exit row on one of the flights out there so I had plenty of leg room...which is never really an issue for me anyway. 😜 

Once we FINALLY got checked into our room, we set out to enjoy the sights and grab some food. Our eating schedules were definitely off - not only "in general" but from each other as well.

Hubs would have purchased this had it not been CRAZY expensive!

While walking around in New York New York, we were up by the restaurants and shops and out of the corner of my eye I saw a sign that said Pete Rose was going to be there that day. So we went in and waited. He was super nice and he and John talked about some guy from Ball State that they both knew.

At some point, we had cream puffs! 

The main adventure for today was that we were going to see the Neon Museum at night and then attend the Brilliant! show immediately after the NM tour.

Here are (a few) pictures from the Neon Boneyard:

And here are some pictures from the show, Brilliant! Take a close look at these signs that are "lit" because...they aren't from the bulbs that are on them. It is how the lights are projected on them to make it look like the bulbs are really working. It's a giant optical illusion and it was amazing.

I'm so glad we went to both of these places and they will be something I will recommend to everyone taking a trip to Las Vegas. It had been a very long day so we called an Uber to come get us and once back at the hotel it was lights out!

THURSDAY, APRIL 11th - Concert Day!!!

Breakfast at Denny's across the street and some walking around Vegas. The only real plan for the day was the concert later that night. 

We ventured back over to New York New York and stopped in at Hershey's Chocolate World and got some snacks for now and later. 

We stopped in the bar (sports book?) for a cocktail prior to the show and meet a young couple that had ties to Indiana. 

Back in August of 2018, some guy found an old van deep in the woods on property that he had purchased. He called American Pickers and they were able to verify that it was the original Aerosmith van the guys used to tour in. My husband and I figured at some point that would either be in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and/or be on tour with the band. Since the band was doing a residency, it was super easy for it to be on tour with them! Oh the stories I'm sure this vehicle knows! 

This time we didn't get the VIP package but did get premium seating which included having food and beverage service at our seat. My husband was disappointed with the actual seat location - he thought we'd be closer - but I thought they were fine. 

Aside from when Steven got ready to play "Dream On" on the piano and the piano wasn't working and then neither was the mic (this did not make Steven happy! 🤯), it was another perfect Aerosmith show. 

We did a little gambling afterward and I found a "KISS" quarter slot machine that was very good to me. I won $100. I lost my husband for awhile and it took an hour to find him. I was concerned that this was going to end up like one of those Investigation Discovery shows where someone tampered with his drink and then harmed him. Maybe we watch too many of those shows? He had merely moved to a different blackjack table which brought him some good luck too. 

FRIDAY, APRIL 12th

Today was a double adventure day; we were going to do the FlyLINQ zipline and then a walking tour of "old Vegas" later in the day.

This zipline is down by the High Roller Observation Wheel. It was fun but if you want a better zipline experience go do SlotZilla on Fremont Street and chose the Super Hero option! Next time we are in Vegas we have to try the VooDoo zipline at Rio.

Off to the Bellagio before our walking tour of old Vegas to cash in our BOGO free gelato. The botanical gardens at the Bellagio are always incredible. 

We met at the Mob Museum to begin our "Pop Culture Walking Tour" with our guide, Rick Hooker. There was only one other couple (a mother & daughter) with us which was nice. Smaller groups are so much better on these things. I was so caught up in everything that Rick was telling us I didn't even take any pictures other than the front of the Mob Museum.

Sadly I'll admit that other than doing stuff "ON" Fremont Street, I'd never really paid attention to all the other hotel and casinos in this area. Did you know that inside the men's restroom at the Main Street Station Hotel and Casino is a piece of the Berlin Wall!?!? We learned so much history; why there are "seats" at slot machines, that Vegas Vic is older than the Welcome sign, you get to see the Praying Mantis of Burning Man at the Downtown Container Park. Our final stop was at the Casino at the El Cortez Hotel which is the oldest contiguously operated hotel in Vegas for our complimentary cocktail. You could literally spend hours with Rick and never get tired of hearing all the stories he knows. 

SATURDAY, APRIL 13th

Technically not quite the 13th yet but our fight was leaving at 11:25 PM (local time). Since our hotel rate was a bargain, we paid for an extra day so that we could leave our stuff in the room and shower one last time in case we got too sweaty walking around Vegas one last time. 

You just never know what you'll see in the Las Vegas airport. It really is an extension of the Strip. #NotTheRealGeneSimmons 🤣🤣🤣