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| For my first ever trip to Fremont Street in Las Vegas (after 13 stays only on the main strip), these three provided me with tons of valuable Fremont info. Up top is fellow Canadian Mark Anderson while below is El Paso, Texas couple Hog and 2cent. These were my trusty guides! |
So here's the thing. My friends, my family, my co-workers, random weirdos on the internet all believe I'm obsessed with Las Vegas. They're convinced that I'm fixated on it.
Are they correct? Well, yes and no. Yes, I am drawn to Sin City in much the same manner that wayward sailors are lulled in breathlessly, recklessly by the siren song of the mermaid.
But also no. The simple fact is when it comes to Vegas, I am but a babe in the woods compared to others I now know.
Allow me to explain. It all starts with Twitter. I follow a little more than 1,700 people on Twitter. Many are... I dunno, regular civilians (for lack of a better word) but also a hefty amount of breweries and brewery-related individuals. But there's sub-groups, as well. One we'll just call Beer Twitter because it's all women and men who love craft beer. But a secondary sub-group within that group I would call Brew Crew Twitter, where I'm tagging Brew Crew friends on beer photos, they're doing likewise - a bunch of us just sharing whatever beer we're enjoying at that exact moment. When technology allows you to connect with friends hundreds or even thousands of miles away, you take advantage of it.
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| Okay, allow me to introduce my two bartenders at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino during my stay there at the beginning of September. That would be Bryan on the left and Derrick on the right. This one lady at the bar that night was so baked... well, that's a story for another time. |
And then there is the American arm of the Brew Crew Twitter that regularly overlaps with that original Brew Crew and includes people from as far away as Hawaii. And some Germany players in that circle, as well. We're very international for a bunch of beer drinkers.
Okay, I started this with an actual note about this one NOT being about beer. And it's not. It's about a group of folks that I'll just call Vegas Twitter and how they helped me out on my last visit to Sin City.
You see, I'd been to Vegas a few times, you could say. At that point, for the sake of getting it on the record, 13 times - the first five with girlfriends, the remainder, me flying solo. It's fun with a partner and it's equally fun without. It's Vegas so really, either works. I just stay much, much longer (a week or so) when I'm on my own.
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| I was at the McDonald's at the base of The Plaza, centre of both pictures. The top photo, circa 1960, was on a wall so I took a picture. Then I went back out onto Fremont Street and took the bottom picture, comparing the two views and posted it on Twitter. The next thing I knew, the City of Las Vegas (@cityoflasvegas) had retweeted my post. I geeked the hell out. Las Vegas has retweeted me. I was totally floored by it! |
So here's the thing. I had spent every trip on the main Las Vegas strip. I have stayed at the Imperial Palace, Planet Hollywood, Excalibur and The LINQ, which, a few years back, replaced the Imperial Palace. I don't think I'll ever see a casino again as wild and fun as the Imperial Palace's. It had dealertainers (celebrity lookalike dealers who performed on this little common stage.) It was far less refined with loud music and, basically, it was just a wild shit-show. It was also the first place I stayed at, way back in July 2007 and as such, my introduction to Las Vegas. After the "IP," I never wanted to stop coming to Sin City. I now know many others who remember it just as fondly.
But I decided for Trip #14, it was time to discover a new part of Vegas. Well, new to me but old to all others. Fremont Street. The original Las Vegas. Where it started back in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Gangsters, the Mob, movie-music stars like Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, wise guys showing up dead in the surrounding desert... basically, more scandal that you could shake a stick at back in the old days.
That was then. This is now. Quite some time back, the hotel-casinos on Fremont St realized they were losing their lustre to the shiny baubles on the main strip - places like Caesar's Palace and Bellagio. Joints that get robbed for $150 million by the likes of George Clooney, Brad Pitt and *checks notes*... seriously, Matt Damon? You deserve to be robbed. Matt Damon. Pffft.
So anyway, the Fremont Street hotel-casinos banded together to create the Fremont Street Experience some time back. At least three full city blocks now open to only foot traffic with a killer canopy covering the length.
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| Okay, you do NOT see stuff like this on the main strip in Las Vegas so if you're the least bit prudish (although have you ever met a prude who actually realizes they're a prude?), then steer clear of Fremont Street. Me? I thought it was all awesome! The bands, the sounds, the close proximity of all the casinos. For someone used to tromping up and down the strip for miles daily, this was a slice of Heaven for my feet. |
But this was very new turf to me when I landed September 1st and I wasn't sure what to expect. Fortunately, I had some seasoned pros like London, Ontario's Mark Anderson (@Pennys4Vegas) and El Paso, Texas couple Hog and 2cent (@hogand2cent) to act as my online tourist guides. I started following their Vegas vlogs for a long while before I landed in Old Vegas and it gave me a sense for what was in store to a Fremont virgin.
Well, almost. Even with the thoroughness and colourful spectacle of their vlogs, well, you gotta see it to believe it. Music everywhere constantly, the canopy offers protection from the sun, the crazy-ass acts confined to entertainment circles on the concrete. THIS WAS VEGAS!!!!
Don't get me wrong. I love the strip. But for nine days straight, I was on Fremont, hunting out everything it had to offer. From my home base at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino, I combed every inch of every casino simply because I had the time. Hell, they're all just minutes apart! On foot!
But as I said, compared to Mark or Hog and 2cent, I'm basically a Vegas rookie. They've all been dozens and dozens of times and through them, I discovered even more vlogs from British pros such as Nick Furmage and Matt Bridger, who respectively have 2,000 and 9,000 subscribers on YouTube. I don't know how profitable that is - probably not very - but those are huge followings nonetheless.
And here's the thing. I don't really gamble. Maybe $20-$30 per trip. So I'm not getting comped by any hotel anytime soon.
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| Yet another free Fremont Street Experience concert saw Alter Ego kicking out the biggest hits of the 80s, 90s and 2000s with one of the tightest shows I've ever seen. And keep in mind, your admission to these shows? Hey, man, just show up and take it all in. The FSE has got you covered!! |
And music, oh man, does that street bring the tunes! The day I landed? That night's free show was "I Love The 90s" with - and, hey, some of these you might just remember - Vanilla Ice, Montell Jordan, All-4-One, Tone Loc and Coolio. Seriously. I was all, "This is for free? But how?" The casinos, hotels and management behind Fremont Street Experience is how. Unbelievable. This shit does not just happen on the strip, as much as I do love it.
As soon as I started posting pictures from Fremont St, other Vegas Twitter regulars were chiming in with "check this place out" advice, all very much appreciated by this novice. But even with the time I had there, there is more for me to see when I return November 13th to 20th. This time I'm staying at The D Hotel and Casino and already Mark is cuing up his "Donny loves The D" jokes. I suspect I'll hear many of those upon my return. I won't care. I'll be in Vegas.
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| This young lady, Raylene Heater, (can find her on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook under her name) had such energy and smiling enthusiasm, banging on her paint-barrel drum-kit that I actually ended up watching her for a half-hour. Well, okay, with an intermission because I needed another beer. But if you can hold my attention for 30 minutes? That's big. Suffice it to say, Mz Heater got a healthy tip from me. |
Ostensively, I'm going to see the Toronto Maple Leafs play the Golden Knights on November 19th. I mean, the Leafs have played in Vegas twice and I have been at both games - each team has a 6-3 win so this is the rubber match - but the simple fact is I could have booked a room on the strip far closer to the T-Mobile Arena. I usually stay at the Excalibur, which is literally across the street from the arena. But this time, I opted to lodge elsewhere.
Why? I want to go back to Fremont Street. The strip has seen plenty of me. On Fremont, I'm just getting a handle on where the washrooms are in each individual casino. To a big beer drinker like me, that's vital information.
Naturally, Hog and 2cent, as well as Mark, know the entire street inside-and-out. One night, I posted a picture of a guy wearing a "Shut up, liver, you're fine!" T-Shirt but admitted I wasn't certain which casino I was actually in. I mean, I just wander in and out at will, not really paying close attention. Within seconds, Hog came on Twitter and told me I was in the Golden Gate Casino. How did he know? I shit you not, from the carpet!! What the actual fack? I mean, every carpet in every casino in all of Vegas looks similar. Like the carpet in your rec room back in 1980. It's busy and ugly and hides stains. That's a Vegas carpet's sole function. Mask the evidence of spilled drinks!
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| I saw these three young ladies in the Golden Nugget, clearly getting ready for a big night on the town. I laughed out loud at their T-Shirts and asked if I could get a picture. Before I even had my phone up, they were already posing for the shot. I just hope they got over their shyness at some point. Also look behind them. THAT'S what casino carpet looks like. Busy, ugly. |
There was a number of firsts on my first excursion to Fremont Street. The biggest was probably the actual City of Vegas twitter site, interacting with me. Thirteen previous trips - though the first five from 2007 to 2012 being the pre-Twitter days for me - and I happily posted pictures on every trip. Granted, it wasn't until four or five trips ago that I thought to tag the city at @cityoflasvegas. But Trip #14, the first to Fremont, I felt like they were watching over me to make sure I was okay.
I was barely there when I came across Fremont St Cardinal Rule #1 - plastic cups only on Fremont. On the strip, you'll allowed cans but no glass.
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| This is Brittany at Banger Brewing on Fremont Street. I saw her twice. The first time, the place was hopping and she happily posed for pictures. The second time, it was just me and her in the place. She seemed a little bit blue but just a little. She passed on posing for a picture, which is cool. But as it was just the two of us, we talked. About home. Our lives. The state of the universe. By the time I got my second beer, she was not only happy to pose but look at that smile!! Turns out no one is prepared for Canadian kindness. Truth! |
Okay, the third time (jumping ahead here) the city got on my Twitter (I was like their favourite Canadian for a week), I had posted pictures of the new Circa Hotel and Casino being built across the street from me. The construction workers were about at the five-storey mark of the 40-storey hotel in early September. So I threw out some pictures of the construction online and the city responded that "You are finding all kinds of good photos for us, Don." Certainly my pleasure. When I'm having a blast, I've never been shy about sharing it. I'm like a Fun Outreach Program. You share that shit!
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| This is Grady. He has a shoeshine stand inside the Men's Washroom at the Golden Nugget casino. I said hello to Grady every day and always got a friendly nod back. Now I was wearing flip-flops all week because I forget to pack shoes so I could never avail myself to Grady's services but this is about as old-school cool as it gets. He did have his customers, though, so I was pretty happy for him. This - right here - is old Vegas. |
But it was the city's second contact with me that caught me off-guard. I was feeling the urge for a little McDonald's to pad my belly before a day of shenanigans. There's one to the edge of the foyer at The Plaza Hotel and Casino. While there, I saw a picture of The Plaza on the wall from 1960 or so. Long before the canopy, when it was a main street, cars and all, an area that the movie stars and high-rollers used to swarm. So I took a picture of the historical picture. And then I went back to Fremont Street and took that same picture from roughly the same spot... but now. So people could see the difference that 60 years makes. Just a funny little "My, don't times change?" post.
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| It's a Fremont Street rule and frankly, it's really a smart one. If you can't handle pouring your beer or mixed drink into the readily-available plastic cups, well, then that's a First World Problem in the grandest sense. Safety first... |
This was sometime in the late evening of my third day there. You know, sitting in front of a slot, slapping a few bucks in it, having a solid craft brew and a smoke, catching up on Twitter. The usual stuff. And off to bed, I went.
When I woke up, I dragged a brush through the tumbleweed I call hair and went downstairs for my morning cuppa Joe from Starbuck's. While standing in line, I got on my now fully-charged phone and... saw that the City of Las Vegas had retweeted me? I wasn't sure why, it was in my notifications so I put my phone back in my pocket and dutifully got my coffee, uncertain of what was going on. I mean, I need at least one coffee before I can even process a new day, much less a Tweet. I looked again. The city of Las Vegas had retweeted my post. I stared at it. And stared at it. And then stared at it some more. Then I tagged every single person I could think of onto the post.
As a Canadian boy, I had just one dream. To score the winning goal for the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final. As an adult, well, of course, I don't harbour silly little fantasies like that in my head anymore. I'm too old, too grown up. Well, folks, it turns out I did have one. To be retweeted by the City of Las Vegas. I didn't even know it. You may not understand it - I'm not even sure I do - but there's one group who absolutely does. I call them Vegas Twitter.
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