Nevada Dreaming: Viva Las Vegas




Welcome to Vegas

Our West Coast USA road trip on iconic California State Route 1 took us from San Francisco (A) to Monterey (B), through the Big Sur and on to Santa Barbara (C), a stop in Venice Beach (D), a quick hop across the state boundary in to Las Vegas (E), back to Los Angeles (F) and on to San Diego (G), before saying goodbye to California and flying home. Part five, Las Vegas, is below, click here for part one (San Francisco), here for part two (Monterey), part three (Big Sur and Santa Barbara) is here and part four (LA and Venice) is here.

 

Having been to Vegas for our first anniversary in 2010 (our Anni-Vegas-versary, for you Friends fans) we knew we wanted to stay at The Wynn. It’s just over-sized, techni-coloured, blinged-up brashness at its best! There’s nothing I love more than dressing up to the nines, drinking a well-made cocktail, heading out for a special dinner (or brunch) in a glamorous location… so Vegas is my happy place, and The Wynn is the epicentre of that. I love everything from the utterly bonkers Lake of Dreams (Google it!) to the mesmerizing upside-down parasols at Parasol Down, from the assorted pools to the ginormous sandwiches at the casino snack bar ZoozaCrackers, the Wonderland-style lobby to the blow-your-mind-expensive indoor shopping promenade. In a destination where the whole trip is about what's inside the hotels, not what's outside the hotels, being in love with your hotel is pretty important, so it's lucky that I am absolutely in love with The Wynn!

Checking in... to Wonderland?

The panoramic view from my pillows

The view from my sunlounger

Having been before, and stayed at The Wynn sister hotel The Encore, we didn’t bother with the Disneyland for Grown Ups tour again (if you’ve been, you know what I mean – themed hotels styled to the max, the smell of chlorinated water everywhere, XXL-sized drinks and food!) or any of the shows, but chose to chill out by the funky pools, drink Pomojitos (pomegranate mojitos) and soak up the desert sunshine!

Obsessed with Parasol Down

We returned to a bistro in Paris, Mon Ami Gabi, for a champagne brunch one day having enjoyed our brunch there last time and also had an A.Mazing all you can eat buffet and bellini brunch at Wicked Spoon at the Cosmopolitan (I am catergorically against all you can eat buffets, but this was somthing else entirely. Well worth a visit). We ate dinner in LAVO at The Venetian one night and on our last night we visited the sister restaurant to the place we went to on getting engaged in NYC way back in 2007, Aureole at the Mandalay Bay.
Unlike LA which invokes a pretty unanimous negative opinion in everyone I’ve spoken to, Las Vegas is like Marmite, you either love it or you hate it. I think I’m one of the latter.

Where else in the world can you have champagne breakfast in “Paris” whilst looking at a walking talking Las Vegas sign (complete with flashing lights and an Elvis entourage) chat up passers-by, have a gondola ride in “Venice” followed by some shopping in “Rome” and lunch in “Lake Como”, spend the afternoon wandering amongst a shark reef before dinner in “New York” and watching a volcano erupt and female pirates do battle and ending the day with a nightcap inside a giant chandelier? Nowhere! People may say that it’s brash, has no class, has no history or soul but I think different. It has a history… albeit a very recent one, but still a very sparkly, star-studded, glamorous one. And what could appeal to this little magpie more? Yes there are places with seedy undertones, but what city doesn’t have that? At least Las Vegas isn’t trying to hide it. But the first and foremost reason I love it there? The fact that it is totally unapologetic for what it is and takes a pride in what it offers. A bit like me! It’s all about the colour, the size, the theming (oh we know I love a theme) the fun, the labels, the people, the styling and the bling. Again, like me… that is why I’ll never be tired of Vegas!  



Breakfast in Paris



New York, New York. My fave city in my fave desert.

The Bellagio

The Venetian

The Grand Canal by night

Looking forward to trip number three. New Year 2012/2013 anyone?

Bit of a lack of photos as I went mad on the snapping back in 2010, but there are a few to peruse. More of San Diego though... eyes peeled!

The rules.

California Dreaming: LA and Venice Beach

Our West Coast USA road trip on iconic California State Route 1 took us from San Francisco (A) to Monterey (B), through the Big Sur and on to Santa Barbara (C), a stop in Venice Beach (D), a quick hop across the state boundary in to Las Vegas (E), back to Los Angeles (F) and on to San Diego (G), before saying goodbye to California and flying home. Part four, LA and Venice Beach, is below, click here for part one (San Francisco), here for part two (Monterey) and part three (Big Sur and Santa Barbara) is here.

We set off from Santa Barbara and picked up Route 1 again, heading for Venice Beach, through some famous beach towns including Malibu and Santa Monica.

We’d heard some, erm, questionable reports about Venice, with reviews suggesting it’s seedy, dangerous and ugly. In the same way I disagreed with other people’s thoughts on Athens, I found Venice Beach edgy, interesting and full of character. It reminded me of Brighton with a bigger sense of humour, customer service and better weather! Bigger, busier, full of colour and the craziest crazies you’ll ever see! Yes you get offered “legal marijuana” every ten minutes, yes the various street performers all blend in to a bit of a cacophony crazy after a while and yes, after dark I can imagine the human circus gets a bit intimidating, but I liked it a lot! Our super-funky hotel (the Hotel Erwin) had an achingly cool rooftop bar that was apparently incredibly popular with locals and tourists alike so we made sure to book ourselves in for our sundowners early in our stay… and tried our best to act appropriately cool… hmmm.

Hotel Erwin Rooftop Bar

Although we made Venice our base, we also made time to walk down to Santa Monica pier to see the famous ferris wheel, stand at the end of Route 66 and check out the neighbourhood… which couldn’t be more different from Venice. I loved how the elegant, understated glamour of the hotels and restaurants in Santa Monica was diametrically opposed to the grunge and edginess of Venice. Think white-painted wood, sparkling glass beachfront villas, mimosas served with brunch and high-end beach weddings with white-curtained pagodas and creamy rose domes on the beach, versus graffiti, burger joints, Muscle Beach and tattoo parlours about 500 metres away. Only in America!

We also spent some time in “mainstream” LA, including Hollywood, Bel Air, Beverly Hills and the surrounding areas, checking out the tourist sights like the Walk of Fame, the Chinese and Kodak theatres, the Hollywood(land) sign, Griffith Park (obvs!), one or two “celeb hotspots”, some lunch and cocktails on Rodeo Drive and, of course, a sneaky look at the “Reg Bev Wil”*.

I heart Mr G

I know that everyone will tell you that LA and Hollywood are a bit of a disappointment, so I wasn’t expecting much, and that’s why I think I quite enjoyed it. It was fun seeing all the tacky memorabilia lined up in the shops, the ubiquitous celebrity “lookalikes” hustling for the best spot and seeing the iconic sights we see so often on TV and in films with my own eyes. People told me it was soulless and boring but, like Vegas (review up next!), that IS its soul. It’s not trying to be historic Rome, elegant Paris, vibrant New York or diverse London, but it has no shame. It has its own history, its own elegance and its own vibrancy and diversity. I’m not going to say it’s my favourite city, nor in my top five, or even ten, favourite cities. But it’s a city I desperately wanted to visit, and a city I’m glad I spent some time in. A lot of people say they wish they hadn’t bothered, but I’m glad we made the time to explore.

Movie star homes!

Bubbly on Rodeo...

Pop back for Vegas, next!

*A quick aside about this, my Dad was once staying here and my mum called his PA to get in contact with him and his poor PA had a bit of a breakdown thinking that he was staying with a woman called Beverly Wilshire, i.e. having an affair, and how she would tell my mum where he was, without getting him in trouble.  Obviously wasn’t a Pretty Woman fan….

California Dreaming: The Big Sur and Santa Barbara

Our West Coast USA road trip on iconic California State Route 1 took us from San Francisco (A) to Monterey (B), through the Big Sur and on to Santa Barbara (C), a stop in Venice Beach (D), a quick hop across the state boundary in to Las Vegas (E), back to Los Angeles (F) and on to San Diego (G), before saying goodbye to California and flying home. Part three, The Big Sur and Santa Barbara, is below, click here for part one (San Francisco) and here for part two (Monterey).

The Big Sur and Santa Barbara

Now, I mention (a lot) that I’m a city girl and a little bit nature-averse, but I have to say that the Big Sur is some pretty impressive nature, filled with some pretty impressive flora and fauna.

Big Sur Scenery

Jaw-dropping coastal scenery, winding roads in lush, green forests, wild dolphins leaping from the white-crested waves and elephant seals basking in the Pacific coast sunshine. We took numerous breaks along the coastal road just to stop and take in the breath-taking vistas. You can drive the distance from Monterey to Santa Barbara in half the time using the 101 freeway, but you’d really be missing out.

Ready? Set? ROAD TRIP!

Big Sur Soundtrack

Our Mustang mean machine!

Road trip essentials

We also took a quick detour up to Hearst Castle. Although Mr G was eager to get on with the drive, I convinced him (with the help of two friends’ recommendations and two guidebooks) that we’d regret it if we missed it. And I was right. This man-made “scenery” was as jaw-dropping as the natural scenery. In fact, this over-sized homage to opulence, wealth and architecture was probably even more exciting for me. It was like a fairytale castle poured over a museum and whizzed up in a blender with an insanely beautiful film set and sprinkled with a crazy mish-mash of recent and ancient history. It wasn’t just the buildings, but the stuff that was inside: awesome (in the British sense, not the American sense) artefacts from around Europe, think a GINORMOUS French fireplace shipped over piece by piece or rows of Italian church pews installed around the dining hall or shelves and shelves of rare books, alongside architectural styles from throughout history and from around the world (think a Roman villa style pool alongside a home theatre filled with Egyptian style statues). The tour guide wasn’t just knowledgeable about his subject matter, but in love with his subject matter and I came away with feelings of deep affection for Mr Hearst, his fabled home and his political beliefs (well, those which I was told about)… not to mention a burning desire to re-read the Great Gatsby, dress up in a cloche, drink champagne from coupes… and buy a llama!

The best bit of Hearst Castle - in my opinion

Arriving in Santa Barbara was like getting off the plane in a Mediterranean coastal town. Spanish style buildings, a tree-lined central avenue, high-end boutiques (and the odd international store, [oh hello Apple store] disguised as a boutique) next to upmarket bars and restaurants filled with beautiful people (in Daisy Dukes, bikinis on top) makes for a rather lovely holiday town. What really made me fall in love with Santa Barbara though, were the thousands and thousands of white fairy lights that cover every solid surface after dark. It was just so beautiful to wander along the road in the warm evening amongst a galaxy of twinkling stars! Well, that and the amazing hospitality we encountered everywhere, and especially at our hotel, the Brisas del Mar. Who’s going to argue with bubbly on ice on arrival in our room, complimentary wine and cheese in reception from 4.30pm, replaced by milk and cookies at 6.30pm and then a breakfast buffet with trays that you can take back to your room for brekkie in bed until 10.30am every day?

Bubbly



Wine and cheese

Milk and cookies

I can see why Californians head to Santa Barbara for their vacations, or for that endless vacation we call “retirement”.


Feeling at home in Santa Barbara

Up next? Venice Beach! Yay!

California Dreaming: Monterey

Our West Coast USA road trip on iconic California State Route 1 took us from San Francisco (A) to Monterey (B), through the Big Sur and on to Santa Barbara (C), a stop in Venice Beach (D), a quick hop across the state boundary in to Las Vegas (E), back to Los Angeles (F) and on to San Diego (G), before saying goodbye to California and flying home. Part two, Monterey, is below, or click here to read about part one, San Francisco.

The route!

Monterey

On leaving San Francisco (see my post here) , we jumped in the drop top Mustang and drove south to Monterey along California State Route 1. Monterey is a cute little seaside town, on the sleepier side of lively, filled with charming little restaurants, bars and hotels.

A quick pitstop whilst wandering in Monterey

Keeping Monterey locals on time

Cute old school buildings...

... with some pretty new-school interiors!

We took a long walk on our one day there down in to the “town centre” which was basically a street lined with old industrial buildings (mainly fish canneries), converted in to a high end hotel or two, boutiques and a few bars, drank a few Victoria beers (of course) and then wandered back. Apparently in the time we were away, the town came alive and a few “MontereyOktoberfest” market stalls came out to play and street party was in full swing on the streets. We spent some time inhaling the sights and smells of locally produced food and then made our way back to our hotel, Casa Munras, for some sundowners and tapas on the terrace before getting ready for a relaxed dinner and an early night in preparation for our early start driving the Big Sur!

Sundowners at our hotel

Stay tuned for The Big Sur and Santa Barbara...

California Dreaming: San Francisco

Our West Coast USA road trip on iconic California State Route 1 took us from San Francisco (A) to Monterey (B), through the Big Sur and on to Santa Barbara (C), a stop in Venice Beach (D), a quick hop across the state boundary in to Las Vegas (E), back to Los Angeles (F) and on to San Diego (G), before saying goodbye to California and flying home. Part one, San Francisco, is below!

The route!

San Francisco

We stayed at The Clift, right by Union Square, which was a great base for us to spend our time wandering, exploring, eating, drinking and shopping.

Reception seating at The Clift Hotel

I’m a city girl by nature and I enjoy the frenetic pace of a busy, bustly city. San Francisco was a bit more laid back than that, less bustle, more chilled. So I found it a bit difficult to understand, when on a Sunday evening we made our way out for dinner at 8.00pm, but despite walking 20 minutes in every direction (in very high heels) and getting a cab to Pier 39 (a big tourist area, clearly only for daytime!) we finally ate at a bistro back under our hotel. The next day we went out earlier and found some cute back streets for laid back dinners in restaurants with a local (i.e. not touristy) feel. I was sad not to get my glitzy outfits out, but I saved them for later on! We did, however, stuff our faces with some great brunches (that’s what you go to the USA for, right?), especially at Sears Fine Foods, which we sought out on the guidebook’s recommendation, and it was worth the 30 minute queue.

First holiday brunch at Sears Fine Food

The iconic sights are pretty cool, and we spent some packed days checking them out and taking a bus tour of the city was a great way to spot locations for further exploration. Alcatraz (one of Mr G’s bucket list to do items) was amazing with probably the best self-guided audio tour I’ve ever done, the Golden Gate Bridge and its lesser-known sister the Bay Bridge were pretty awesome sights. It was fun watching the seals at Pier 39, though we were too stuffed from brunch to sample any clam chowder unfortunately. We popped in to Little Italy and China Town, but didn't stop for too long and we also drove over the Golden Gate Bridge (another activity from Mr G’s bucket list) to Sausalito to check out some of the most expensive real estate in the world.

Alcatraz

Golden Gate Bridge

We also spent some more relaxed time in some less touristy areas, drinking pink lemonade and eating sweet potato fries (my new fave snack) in alfresco cafes, perusing well-out-of-our-price-range boutiques in well-to-do neighbourhoods, and eating super-tasty chocolate in Ghiradelli Square. One thing we were advised not to bother with was a trolley ride. Well, we defied the critics, bought some tickets and jumped aboard. It was a great experience and, in my opinion, worth the queue to experience something so iconic to San Francisco!

A San Francisco trolley

Overall I loved the vibe of San Francisco, but I’m not sure my city girl-high heels-“I’ll have a white Cosmo” persona is 100% suited to the city! I think it was a little bit too boho and chillaxed for me!

The famous Tony Bennett heart on Union Square - inspired by his song "I left my heart in San Francisco"

Up next, Monterey...

Belated blog-iversary

I missed my blogging anniversary.

In fact I missed it by a whole month! Exactly 13 months ago today I set up Sugar Plum Slipper to blog about my life, and somehow my life got so busy I forgot I was supposed to blog about it. Whoopsie.

I think I have some good excuses though, and my instagram feed proves it! Check it out here and follow me - I'm vikihalo!

1)     We are homeless, I couldn’t find my laptop and even the simplest tasks, like showering before work, have to be planned with military precision. I’m just getting the hang of having to take a wash bag, two towels and a robe to the bathroom with me. For the first few days I had to screech from the top of the stairs for someone to bring me something to cover myself with so I could make it back to our temporary home (my parents’ study) without flashing everyone! I can safely say looking for my laptop wasn’t high on my list of priorities!

2)     We went on holiday the day after moving out. Yes, that’s right, I wasn’t just packing to move my entire life in to storage, I was also packing (aka outfit planning) to take appropriate clothing on holiday (which still ended up being wrong, due to freak weather), packing to ensure I had appropriate work clothes for when we returned (again, freak weather ruined all those plans) and packing/outfit planning for all the events we had to attend on our return (and, yes you guessed it, the weather – not “freak” this time – ruined those plans too!). Anyone that knows me and my outfit OCD, and has seen my wardrobe/shoe collection/accessories boxes will understand why that task was HUGE!

3)     Speaking of events, we came home from a very tiring, but amazing, holiday to have an equally tiring Jubilee week. Two weddings, a wedding after-party, a 30^th birthday, a Jubilee Party (that I catered and hosted - re-using my Royal Wedding bunting and flags) and one of my bestie's engagement party.

So, those are my excuses. I suppose all I can do is write about them to make up for a quiet month on the blog! So stay tuned for lots of posts this week to make up for it...