LAS VEGAS: not just a holiday fling

After my mini-cyber-hiatus I’m checking back in.

Turns out, wordpress detox took on a life of it’s own when it suddenly became apparent that well, real life can get very Jackie Collins very quickly. And you know me, I’m not one to under-share so here I am. Post-holiday blues after sin-city, serial sun-worshipping and a sudden taste for gin and tonic.

So much yes to Las Vegas!

posing at Encore Beach Club

In between bikini changes and big nights out, I just about found time to see Vegas in day-light (through very rosé-tinted Chloé sunglasses OBVS!)

Vegas and I go way back…

We hooked up in the summer of 2004 and shared the most intense holiday romance… I fell madly in love with his striking good looks and desperately tasty vodka jelly. He enjoyed my stamina and appreciation for a champagne buffet. Together, we created the stuff of magic {most of which can be found on Facebook if you dig deep enough}.

And I can’t kick the habit.

Vodka jellies, VIP concierge, very attractive men… Vegas shaped the tastebuds of my twenties. On paper – and as it transpires in reality – it was a page turner of a rom-com to be re-visited over and over again. Maybe we’re not perfect {who is?}. Maybe I missed the ‘too much of a good thing memo’ and we should’ve stayed friends {not that I have time for more friends}. Or maybe, just maybe… I’ll return in six months and it’ll be fireworks as always.

It’s been four days since our last fling.

Meet the squad… Gotta show a guy how popular and fabulous you are non?

Miss. Fashion Kiera Liberati, Mr. Creative Arron Dunworth, Mr. Crazy Jarel Unique and The Body Busola Peters. Good gene pool non?

How-to-do-Vegas hacks:

We hooked up with a private concierge company to arrange our parties and pool treats – they smashed it! And they saved us SO much effort and queue dodging… more time for voguing by the pool {we used Tony Pierzchalski – he’s 24/7 and knows everybody}.

Day clubs:

Encore Beach Club at the Encore… for the aesthetes. Drai’s Beach Club at The Cromwell… for the fashionistas. *Wet Republic at MGM Grand… for well, wall-to-wall hot people.

*MGM Grand I swear hire hot boys to loiter in the lobby, litter you with compliments and prevent you from leaving the building IT’S A TRAP! STAY SAFE

Nightclubs:

Drais after hours… a red lit, boudoir kind of vibe but oh so very chill. Marquee at The Cosmopolitan… expect spectacular and ex-public school boys shaking their dollars in the air. Omnia… the one we never made it to but also the one everyone talks about – going back especially!

Food/drinks:

Tao at The Venetian… {asian} for wall-to-wall velvet, photogenic sushi and and instant free entry to the club if you dine late (we ate at 11pm most nights). Mon Ami Gabi at Paris… {french} for steak the size of your head and the best alfresco view of the Bellagio fountains. Sushi Samba at The Palazzo… {fusion} we skipped the food and allowed the server to force-feed us frozen cocktails – for research purposes!! fyi the Moqueca Mista seafood platter looked like a piece of art.

The Palazzo Hotel

Last day of the trip I was solo while the squad hopped on a greyhound to LA. I skipped passed the pool party and settled into a shady spot at the Palazzo hotel… with the ‘normal’ people. As normal as it gets for Vegas; my bed neighbour was a cattle hauler from Kentucky who insisted on calling me Louise.

Rocking my fave bikini of the trip… A tasty little two-piece from Pretty Little Thing which I ‘ve renamed Princess.

Suit-able?

Next stop Cyprus with Miss Rakhit, who’s coming?

L x