Well I have always felt if there is a place that can survive even in the worst of times, it would be Vegas.  With that being said, I just know how they are holding up given the grim economic times.  44 and Goldie are on their way out there today so it will be interesting to hear what they have to say about the state of Vegas, but that will come in another post.

I have to assume that things are tightening up because I got an offer the other day from Planet Hollywood that was just amazing.  The offer was for free nights over New Year’s  or right after for 4 nights, with gaming credits, spa, and reduced entry to their “extravaganza”.  Unreal.  I have never been offered anything over what has to be the busiest time for Vegas.  On top of that, I almost never play at PH, so who knows what they are offering their actual regulars.

Stay tuned for 44’s post and we will see if anything is actually happening in Vegas to stay there.

The first time Lori and I ever went to Vegas was for a New Year’s.  That was an eye opening experience to say the least.  From that trip until today we have been to Vegas a lot and have learned a lot.  All of the different theories and practices that we talk about now were born from that trip.  Hedge Economics, Money Management, and Day Structuring were some of those theories, but here are some things that we found out for ourselves when we were in Vegas for New Year’s for the first time.

How long should you stay?  We stayed for 6 days and this was too long.  I say this because we did not understand the Vegas effect on time and were up for about 16 to 18 hours a day.  This was brutal on the body.  In fact Lori got bronchitis and cough so much during the trip she cracked a rib.  Course we found this out when we got home and booze wore off.  Crazy.

How much money should you bring? Well, I thought that a good $500.00 a day would be about right.  Thank God Lori brought money too because I had not learned about money management at this point.  I also had not developed the theory of hedge economics and basically went broke at the Black Jack tables.  Lori on the other hand won quite a bit and kept the team a float all the while coughing and cracking ribs because of the bronchitis.  Did I mention she was great?

How many people should you go with?  We went with a small army.  There were 12 people in our group which things way more complicated had it been 4 -6 in the group.  No subset within the group were independent so all events were coordinated with everyone.  Total Nightmare. 

Where should we stay?  We stayed at Harrah’s on the strip which was a nice location.  At the time the north side of the strip didn’t have the Wynn and Palazzo, but there were so many people in Vegas at that time it really wouldn’t have mattered.  The key is to just be on the strip because they close down the street and all the casinos on the strip shoot off amazing fireworks.

All in all it is a great time but be prepared for a lot of people, long lines, crazy wind at night and your extra helping the normal Vegas debauchery. 

I have often talked about the “Vegas Effect” as being basically sleep deprived as you party too long and are not able to get good consistent rest.  But this also applies to food and hunger as well.  Here is a great sandwich that can hold you over between those magical Blackjack runs.

The Italian sandwich @ JJ Boulangerie in Paris is just amazing.  It’s a hard French baguette roll with some tasty Italian meats, artichokes, red onion, some provolone, tomatoes and a light pesto spread.  Yummy.

You get a little potato salad with the sandwich which really sets off the meal.  I personally am not a huge artichoke fan, but somehow it all works well together.  These pictures do not do it justice, but believe me @ about $9.50 it’s a bargain!

When we want to make a light meal of it, Lori and I will get this and a chef salad that they have already made and go to town.  Something that is nice with the Caesar’s properties is that if you give them your player’s card they will swipe it and see if you have any “quick rewards”.  So if you have done any playing before hand you will have accumulated some points that translate into dollars.  This means an instant discount and anything that the casino gives you need to take.

So if you are looking for a good bite to eat that won’t kill your bankroll, then head over to Paris and get yourself one of these bad boys.