APAT - Vegas Vengeance : Saturday, 12th November 2011
“It’s Better To Travel Well, Than Arrive”With all due respect to the Buddha, it’s obvious he’d never been to Vegas. Getting there is a grind and once you’re there it’s like coming home...well, at least it is for me.
I’d overnighted at the Crowne Plaza at Gatwick and received a nice, complimentary, upgrade to a Club room. I supped down a few Fosters and a decent sandwich before getting a decent night’s sleep.
I shuttled to the airport around 9.30 and barely had time to scarf down a Wetherspoon’s breakfast and a pint before the flight was boarding. It seemed that the seat I had switched my booking to hadn’t made it through their system but it was fine, I was still in PE but upstairs rather than down.
The in flight entertainment system was the older model but it didn’t really bother me...I’d seen most of their offerings anyway, plus I had my Kindle.
I can’t say that the hours sped by but I did manage to doze for, maybe, a hour and just contented myself with polishing off two or three books.
The flight was a little bumpy with light turbulence on more than a couple of occasions but otherwise it was uneventful and we landed bang on time.
Passport control and customs was a breeze and I caught a cab with no hassle. The driver seemed keen to take the tunnel to the Orleans even though it’s the long way but I insisted on using the surface streets rather than the freeway. The driver was so keen that he offered to knock off $10 from the fare if we went his way so he could get back. This seemed like a deal and I upped his tip and the whole cab ride cost me just under what I would have expected anyway. I’ll call that my first win.
Check-in at the Orleans was a breeze and I was into my rather large room in no time. I unpacked, abluted and got the IT rig set up.
I had a minor problem with the US sim I had bought as my phone didn’t seem to want to recognise it...until I realised I’d put it in upside-down!
After fixing this schoolboy error I was still having problems but a quick glance showed me that the phone hadn’t auto-selected the APN and after referring to the information I’d got from the people who sold me the sim I had this set up and I was off and rocking....almost.
I tried to access the APAT site on my phone only to find that a net-nanny was set and after calling T-Mobile Customer Service found it couldn't be removed without a US Social Security Number (to validate my age). Apparently the only way I can get this taken off is to visit a physical store. I’m not sure I’ll bother as I have access to all my social media sites and apps and I don’t really see any overwhelming need to access APAT while on the move on this trip.
Once I’d gotten all those issues resolved I was feeling somewhat peckish...and in need of a large drink...so I headed out and down to TGI Fridays.
No it’s not like the UK versions...at least not much. I esconced myself at the bar and settled on a pint of Stella rather than the somewhat weaker US offerings.
The first disappeared rather quickly and the second was consumed while I tucked into a very decent 10oz steak. One more did the trick and it was time to pay off the $40 bill (including tip) and get stuck into some poker.
I had to wait a while before a seat opened up at the 4-8 Omaha Hi/lo tables but eventually I settled in and bought in for a couple of hundred.
Nothing eventful to report, my stack bounced around a little...getting down to just under $100 after couple of sick river suckouts but overall the play was pretty easy to read.
Regardless, I wasn’t making huge inroads but just grinding away. Around 11.30 pm and a mere $50 up I’d been up for going on 24 hours and was starting to feeling it.
That would do...I’d covered ‘lunch’, the rake, tips and such...time to call it a night.
