Thursday dawned in Paradise, and Tom and Kodi relaxed in the room, him making coffee, her drinking it.  They planned to use another TWO Fun coupons today, one before they left the 4 Queens, and one later in the day, for they had discovered the previous day, while cutting through the D, that the coffee shop there was closed. Kodi had planned to eat there at least twice during their stay.  Showered and packed except for toothpaste and brushes, they headed down to Magnolias  at 10:30 for breakfast.  

Hmm, the line was up the stairs, down the stairs and 30 feet into the casino.  Tom began to fret. “ There’s no way. We won’t be able to eat here and get out of our room by noon.”  A sweet arm patted his back.  “Don’t worry. I’ve been here before, remember.…30 minutes to get seated, 30 minutes to eat, and we’ll be fine. “  He fidgeted and sighed. They moved closer to the stairs. A group of 4 got impatient and left ( Witchy Mind Power made them do it, since they were all smoking and Kodi was choking.) They then  moved ONTO the stairs. Tom kept checking his watch and fidgeting.  After 27 minutes, they were at the top of the stairs. Kodi smiled to herself. She loved being right.

Then, they were moved to the purgatory section…two benches and a couple of chairs against the wall… sort of a holding pen for certain guests during triage. (The word triage comes from the French word trier, which means to sort or select.) Finally the hostess realized that the next few groups were also couples, and not larger parties so they were seated in a booth that had been cleaned and ready, sending them come hither signals even before they were condemned to purgatory.  

The coupon was a 2/1 deal that specified  the “Kings Court”…a meal consisting of 2 eggs, toast, bacon or sausage, and potatoes. Tom doesn’t eat eggs, and there were no substitutions, even when Kodi  sweetly enquired about getting one of the meals that was  $1 cheaper on the 2/1..and wouldn’t that be good for Magnolias?  The rules were rigid though ( unless of course your name was Royal Flusher, probably) so they would just have to manipulate the food when it came. 

Tom ended up getting a double helping of potatoes, an extra piece of toast, and bacon.  His companion had 4 eggs ( one too many) bacon, and a slice of toast. 

They accomplished this neatly too…even with nice soft yolks. They ate the tasty breakfast,  paid,  and were in the elevator headed to the room at 11:45…and closed the door to room 1240 behind them for the last time a few minutes later.

Kodi got in a long line and settled the bill for the two night stay.  She had found that her points entitled her to $18 cash back, and she elected to leave that on the account, since they were returning in 3 days.

Tom had done reconnaissance the previous day and knew they could leave the lobby there and walk outside and down the back street to the D’s parking valet and lobby area, so they rolled, rocked and stumbled a bit on the uneven pavement, feeling pretty smug, because they weren’t fighting a crowd.  It was close to One p.m. and a Thursday, so they hoped they could get into the room early.

The line was fairly long, but moved quickly.  The room was NOT ready and the gal told Kodi it would be done in two hours or less, but they would text her.  So she sat at a machine in the corner, luggage tucked against the wall, and wasted 4 $20s in a dumbass machine. She even made Tom sit next to her and play a twenty, in hopes that her machine was the only bloodsucker in the row. Nope.  She was so angry at herself.  There were no cocktail waitresses around because… THE CORNER.   Not that she could have heard them anyway.  How on earth can the Front Desk clerks work and try to communicate with guests when the loud rock and heavy metal music blasts the entire area all day and night.  Pretty sure that’s as hazardous to their health as the second hand smoke they must endure, day in/day out.

Kodi stood in line again 2 hours later…after not hearing anything.  Nope not ready yet…check in time was suggested but not guaranteed, she was told, rather sharply.  On both sides of her, guests got their keys and went on their merry way.  She wondered if because the room was comped, and paying guests were getting preferential treatment.  Back she went to where Tom was hovering over the luggage.

  “ I’m thirsty.”  He had looked around and saw a server go by a couple of rows away, in the middle of the room, and called out, but she hadn’t heard him.  That made him more thirsty of course.  Kodi suggested he go over to the coffee cart by the elevators and get himself an orange juice.  She also requested a favourite of hers there…Chai latte with ginger and turmeric. It’s heavenly, and was as good as she remembered it to be.  She was  nearly finished the drink when her phone vibrated.  Sadly, she had to wait in line once again to register and get her key. They wouldn’t even let her do the paperwork up to then.  She also hadn’t been able to get the $50 free play  that came with the room, so still needed to do that later.  

They finally arrived in  room 609 at 5:30 p.m. that Thursday…not the way they’d planned the day. 

Because they were still eating on East Coast time when possible, Kodi suggested that they drop the bags as they were and go out to eat, before it got too busy. They quickly freshened up and headed over to Binions.  The 4 Queens Fun Book had also included a 2/1 coupon for an entree at the Cafe there…so dinner of some sort awaited them. They discovered a short line, and waited until a table was ready.

The lovely hostess had a tropical flower tucked behind her ear, and greeted everyone like they were long lost friends.  She was adorable!  They got water and menus promptly, and both decided on the Chicken Parm over spaghetti . It came with  soup or salad, and garlic bread, and the servings were huge!    Their waitress chuckled when she brought the meals out, as a couple one table over had ordered the same meals, right down to the husband ordering the salad with blue cheese and the wife ordering the soup as Kodi had.  She had two of everything on her large serving tray.

Neither could finish the meal, but we’re so glad that they’d gone to the cafe.The headed back across the street, and up the escalator to the top of the D. The crowds were beginning to grow as the  weekend approached.

 

 Tom watched as his sweetie played the Derby game for a while, then left to find a dragon link game that appealed to him. Kodi did well for an hour or so on her $25, but then increased her bet and foolishly began betting on long shots.  Sadly, since Rich Strike was not running, that ended in a disastrous way.

 

Tom found a Happy and prosperous game that liked him, and was finally able to contribute the first $100 bill to their Take Home Envelope…which was waiting to be filled with wins over $100.  He had to shake it awake, because it seldom had waited this long to do it’s job.

They finally had stretched bedtime to 11 pm.  They planned on walking down to El Cortez and the Container park in the morning.

Kodi’s body had other ideas when she woke up at 7.  Tom went downstairs and got juice for himself,  muffins and a Chai for her.  They hung around the room for a while and then went downstairs.  She finally decided that she could make the walk to Circa, as they wanted to see the newest star on the Fremont Street Experience.    Since they were living at the D, they were also able to get access to the now famous Stadium Swim.  There would be no swimming in their future today, but they could at least take a look at the venue.

They played, with no luck at all for a while,  and then headed down towards the looming Circa.  It was the first hot day they’d had, and since Kodi’s fatigue was in charge, they moved at a pace that had others overtaking, shuffling behind them and groaning before passing with moans  and glares.  It was what it was.

As they entered the doors of the Circa, it was worth a chuckle when they both had to show I.D. Not sure how long that will last.  They wandered around on the main floor and checked out Vegas Vickie…

 

eyeballed the locations of the restrooms and played a few keno and silly slot machines.  They walked around the property, locating and scoping out restaurants , as they planned to eat before returning to the D.

They decided to peek at Stadium Swim and see what the hype was about.  It was upstairs, really upstairs…

The directions were good, the  line up to pay was short.  There were 4 young ladies ahead of them who paid their $40 each, to get a wristband.  Tom and Kodi got theirs by  showing their room keys.  Most people entering had swimwear on, and they were in street clothes.   It was SO hot out there that stripping seemed appealing.  They took a few photos of what seems to be the typical pool scene today. 

People standing in water up to their waists, chatting and drinking.  No actual swimming was observed. The sun blasted down and they wondered how long anyone would be able to endure it, with little shade available.  Did everyone feel like they were getting their $40 worth of fun? .   It wasn’t very busy , but most likely would be on the weekend.  The view was great, the screens impressive, but it wouldn’t be some place that they would be returning to most likely.

It was time to head back down, and cool off!  They both had a pit stop and then decided it was time to eat. They had chosen the Oriental restaurant, ‘8 East @Circa.’..and we’re going to split a couple of appetizers.

They decided on Pork Belly, Kodi loved them if done right..and Chicken Skins.  Their shared plate would be the “Vital Vegas” a beautiful brisket kissed rice dish.  It was not listed by that name on the menu, but when they ordered it , the gal just grinned and added it to the other items.  Scott Roben, as I mentioned in the past , is a Man about Town,  also known for his Vital Vegas blog,  and additional items in the brisket rice were his special request each time he ate there.

It was all lovely, and although the Vital Vegas was enormous, they ended up licking the bowl.  They didn’t even attempt to use the chopsticks 🥢 and drank about a gallon of water each.    Consensus is that they would not order the tiny dry chicken skins again, and since they both were stuffed, would just go for the Vital Vegas the next time.

They decided to just stay in the lovely new casino and play, as the same player’s card as the D was used there.and wandered  from machine to machine for a few hours, as they broke even and if they didn’t, they searched for somewhere else  to deposit their next $20..  They each kept a few dollars for play back ‘home’  but liked the less crowded, quieter atmosphere in Circa. When they arrived back at the D , they did their little ‘look about’ from the lookout. And noticed that the Friday night crowds were starting to fill the street below.

After another couple of hours of unsuccessful play, they headed to bed looking out the window, as they thought about their breakfast date the next morning.