Friday turned out to be a bittersweet day for us. We were definitely sad to be checking out of the Palazzo and leaving Vegas, but we were also very excited about the adventures to come in Hawaii. We tried to make the most of our last day, but also needed to stay cool as well. The weather in Vegas has been hovering at about 100 degrees during the day, so we sought refuge indoors where we could. Friday was also a day for us to fulfill our Vegas traditions that we’ve formed.
We woke up on Friday to breakfast in bed, ordering Eggs Benedict for room service. This was the first time either of us had room service, and were very excited to be able to eat great food up in our room.
We quickly began to pack for Hawaii and loaded our luggage into the car for the day, and then checked out of our lovely room at the Palazzo. Looking to escape the heat, we took in Transformers 2 at The Orleans Hotel. This was our first movie we saw as husband and wife. We didn’t find the movie that great (which Jeromey will probably post on his other blog), but this was a very relaxing way to spend the afternoon.
After the movie we fulfilled another Vegas tradition by visiting the Bellagio and taking in the gardens. The gardens were beautiful as always, as we marveled at the giant Farris Wheel and Bethany stopped to smell the geraniums.
A visit to the Bellagio wouldn’t be complete without visiting the chocolate store behind the gardens. We shared a banana crepe and gelato, then started heading towards our other Vegas tradition: Battista’s Hole in the Wall.
We’re pleased to say that the staple of Battista’s – the old man that plays the accordion – is alive and well. In fact, he serenaded us with “Love Me Tender” for our Honeymoon. We ate far too much and tried to walk it off on our way to the Venetian to see the Phantom of the Opera. Bethany was especially excited to see Phantom, as she saw the play once before during a traveling production stop in Denver, but she was also excited to share the experience with Jeromey for the first time. Both of us were blown away by the performances. Phantom is currently celebrating their third year in Vegas, and it’s incredible some of the things they were able to do with the permanent stage setting. The chandelier scene was spectacular, so much so that the audience shrieked. We were pleasantly surprised by our seats, as we only purchased orchestra-level, but found that we were actually in the 4th row off to the side. At one point, performers were doing scenes only a few feet away from us. The only complaint we had about Phantom was that it was too short and wouldn’t tide us over until we had to leave for the airport.
After taking in Phantom, we thought it would be romantic to experience the gondola (boat) ride through the stream around the Venetian. We shared a boat with another couple on their honeymoon as well. Santo, our guide, shared great stories as he navigated us through the waters then topped off our experience by serenading us three different times.
We topped the night off by playing penny slots, then gathered our luggage for the long flight to Hawaii.
Next up: Flying to Kauai, our first day in paradise.
Note: We have an abundance of pictures that we would like to share, but our internet connection is limiting us from posting too many on Flickr. We hope to upload our first batch of pictures in the next few days. Stay tuned.