Friday night, we flew to Las Vegas and made our way to the cab line outside baggage claim to head to our favorite restaurant Raku for dinner. We were a bit early for our reservation so we hopped a few steps to the recently opened "Raku Sweets" shop to check it out. The place was packed with just a few seats, so I took a picture from the outside.
 |
| "sweets" shop with a wine rack? |
I have documented our many outings to Raku in prior posts but I just love to show off the food over and over! I also noticed that I like to wear the same hoodie to Raku as seen here in May 2011.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
We took Uber from Raku to the Signature. Uber had recently started up in Las Vegas. The ride was free as I used a referral credit from friends signing up with my link (thanks!), else it would have cost $15.55 total, still reasonable. Uber ended up having to pull service a week later due to court battles so we were lucky to have had the opportunity to use it when we were there.
Since we had stayed in a 1-bedroom condo at the Signature before, I didn't take any pictures.
On Saturday, Kaleb and I met up with the boys and girls respectively. The girls opted to do a spa treatment in the morning. The MGM Grand Spa was adequate but the facilities were not expansive like at the Canyon Ranch in Palazzo or Qua at Caesars Palace with multiple private pools and areas. The waiting lounge had snacks such as bananas/oranges/apples, granola bars, cucumber water and hot tea. The MGM spa did accept SpaFinder gift certificates so that was nice. (you can find deals like $100 certificates for $80 at places like Costco during Mother's Day, etc. or costco.com) I went with the "fall special" package of massage and exfoliation with Vichy shower rinse. (spa offers can be found here, or on the main MGM Grand page under "Special Offers" at the top) It was very relaxing; I love the feeling of warm water luxuriously running down my body.
|
|
Then we headed out for some lunch at Diablo's near the Monte Carlo hotel followed by ice cream at BLVD Creamery. Can you believe I got a double scoop in a waffle cone for $6.50 on the Strip? Good deal!
|
|
|
|
It was nice to see this part of the strip re-opened after what seemed like over a year of construction. We visited the new Hershey's Chocolate World, across the street from M and M's World. Stiff competition!
|
|
|
|
I returned to the condo after our outing to read and relax. There was no formal plan for dinner so everyone just hung out on their own, but eventually met up at the sports bar for some quick eats. The boys had spent the day drinking and gambling. Kaleb had good luck and was up $400 by the end of the night!
 |
| free pics from kiosks scattered around the MGM |
Sunday morning, Kaleb and I checked out (ie. left the keys in the condo) and met everyone for breakfast at America restaurant inside the New York New York hotel. It was hard to find as it was way in the back, nowhere near the street shops.
|
|
 |
| the gang |
Our flight was at night so after saying farewell to everyone else, Kaleb and I headed over to the Aria hotel to enjoy crepes and gelato from Jean Philippe and gambled $20. It was the first time I had ever played this kind of penny slot machine and I had no idea what was going on or how I was winning so much. But once I figured out what the symbols meant, then I lost it all of course! Since Kaleb won money, we were still in the positive.
|
|
We didn't feel like gambling or doing anything else, so we decided to head to the airport a few hours early to check out the new American Express Centurion Lounge that was recently opened in Concourse D. If you have an AMEX Platinum (or Centurion) Card, you and your family (or two guests) can enter for free. It's a great place to hang out before your flight, as long as you have time to ride the tram if your gate isn't in the D terminal. There was a buffet with entrees designed by Scott Conant and plenty of complimentary beverages. The seating arrangements were designed for privacy.
 |
| elegant entrance |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Next up...our honeymoon in Paris...stay tuned!
