In Other News
I also had a response from the restaurant in Las Vegas where we had the reservation snafu. I wasn't anticipating an answer from them, as they're not the ones who made the mistake. I had emailed the hotel's reservation service, they're the ones who screwed up. They passed the buck on to Fleur to deal with. Fleur, being as gracious as ever, has noted my account and will be giving us free cocktails and desserts on our next visit. This place has always had impressive customer service. I will be visiting them in October on my way to Sirens. I've emailed them and asked to have their offer postponed until Nyssa can be there to enjoy the meal, which won't be until next summer. I have no doubt that it won't be a problem.
And I totally left something off my trip report for Las Vegas. I said we made it to the final round of the slot tournament but failed to mention what happened when we played that round. It's done on banks of promotional machines. They're only there for the tournaments, can't be played in the standard "insert money" kind of way. You get 20 minutes on the clock and just started hitting the button to spin the reels. The top 4 scores win. The top 3 get to split up the entry fees and 4th place gets a prize. Nyssa didn't make the top 4. I made 4th place. I got a very nice black leather purse as my prize. Btw, constantly hitting the button for 20 minutes is very tiring on the hand. You have to keep switching between one hand and the other.
Lastly, I've booked my flights for Sirens. Still not registered for the conference yet, but that will come after I start getting paid from the new job. Flights were seriously on sale. I am flying to Vegas again, spending 2 nights there, and then flying to Sirens. Am also spending 2 nights in Vegas on the way home. Again, more economical than flying straight there. If I wanted to fly straight there I had a couple options. I could take the only flight on Thursday that gets me there in time for the shuttle and pay almost $1000. I could fly there Wednesday on a flight that has only 1 stop for $816 and pay for a night's hotel in Portland (as I would miss the shuttle). Or I could fly there Wednesday on a flight with 2 stops, pay between $625 and $710 and pay for a hotel. Those flights go through Vegas, go figure.
Or I could do what I opted for in the end. I fly to Vegas for $346, spend 2 nights in a hotel on my comps (see, that gambling does pay off a bit). Then fly to Portland Thursday morning for $172, arriving in plenty of time for the shuttle. That's slightly less to fly to Portland than I paid for the bus ticket to Vail last year. And a much faster trip. :) Two hotel nights on the way back should run me about $62 plus tax.
Aside from dinner at Fleur, which I will do with a restaurant.com certificate, eating at and around my usual hotel will run me very little. I arrive late on the Tuesday, so dinner at the brewpub at my hotel will run me about $15. Breakfast buffet at the hotel is $6.99 + tax. Dinner at Fleur, with the coupon, will run me about $25 max with tax and tip. I'm sure I have other restaurant.com coupons that we didn't use that I can take advantage of on the way home. Bar + Bistro will work, though I think the others have a 2 entree minimum purchase while Bar + Bistro only requires a $35 purchase (will save $25). If I feel the need for more, there are lots of happy hours with cheap food.
Even adding in a gambling budget, the additional time in Vegas won't cost me more than the difference in the cost of airline tickets. Works for me. :)
And I totally left something off my trip report for Las Vegas. I said we made it to the final round of the slot tournament but failed to mention what happened when we played that round. It's done on banks of promotional machines. They're only there for the tournaments, can't be played in the standard "insert money" kind of way. You get 20 minutes on the clock and just started hitting the button to spin the reels. The top 4 scores win. The top 3 get to split up the entry fees and 4th place gets a prize. Nyssa didn't make the top 4. I made 4th place. I got a very nice black leather purse as my prize. Btw, constantly hitting the button for 20 minutes is very tiring on the hand. You have to keep switching between one hand and the other.
Lastly, I've booked my flights for Sirens. Still not registered for the conference yet, but that will come after I start getting paid from the new job. Flights were seriously on sale. I am flying to Vegas again, spending 2 nights there, and then flying to Sirens. Am also spending 2 nights in Vegas on the way home. Again, more economical than flying straight there. If I wanted to fly straight there I had a couple options. I could take the only flight on Thursday that gets me there in time for the shuttle and pay almost $1000. I could fly there Wednesday on a flight that has only 1 stop for $816 and pay for a night's hotel in Portland (as I would miss the shuttle). Or I could fly there Wednesday on a flight with 2 stops, pay between $625 and $710 and pay for a hotel. Those flights go through Vegas, go figure.
Or I could do what I opted for in the end. I fly to Vegas for $346, spend 2 nights in a hotel on my comps (see, that gambling does pay off a bit). Then fly to Portland Thursday morning for $172, arriving in plenty of time for the shuttle. That's slightly less to fly to Portland than I paid for the bus ticket to Vail last year. And a much faster trip. :) Two hotel nights on the way back should run me about $62 plus tax.
Aside from dinner at Fleur, which I will do with a restaurant.com certificate, eating at and around my usual hotel will run me very little. I arrive late on the Tuesday, so dinner at the brewpub at my hotel will run me about $15. Breakfast buffet at the hotel is $6.99 + tax. Dinner at Fleur, with the coupon, will run me about $25 max with tax and tip. I'm sure I have other restaurant.com coupons that we didn't use that I can take advantage of on the way home. Bar + Bistro will work, though I think the others have a 2 entree minimum purchase while Bar + Bistro only requires a $35 purchase (will save $25). If I feel the need for more, there are lots of happy hours with cheap food.
Even adding in a gambling budget, the additional time in Vegas won't cost me more than the difference in the cost of airline tickets. Works for me. :)