You get flashbacks , moments that connect to scenes you’ve seen before ……remember the shrimp in ‘The Hangover ‘and the ensuing illness ….yeah that sticks in my mind .
This was the 2nd time I’ve been to Las Vegas and I still think it’s a must visit to any Aussie that visits the US . This time I walked away not quite as enamoured with the shiny jewel of the desert . The place is an eye opener , an intoxicating mix of neon lights, shiny buildings , life size replicas and tacky cheap fakes . 
You hit this place with 3 Aussie mates with high expectations and they were met early with the most outrageous pool party at the MGM Grand with Calvin Harris DJing and a crowd you’d expect in Ibiza 
, but still this joint lives up to its other moniker … Lost Wages . We stayed at New York New York 
, like all these Hotels you are lured into eating and gambling within their confines , as an array of restaurants and shops surround the gaming area you could conceivably stay within your hotel and do everything you intended to do in Vegas . That’s the trap . We start that way and quickly realise that average food ,cheesy waiters vying for a maximum tip and $14 for a Heineken isn’t gonna cut it , or is withdrawing money from their ATMs with an added $8 tax added , plus sitting on a poker machine expecting free alcohol when the waitress appears no more than once an hour and then returns 20 minutes later with your beverage expecting a tip , by that time you’ve well and truly burned your cash as the machines that require only cheap bets are always sat on . That aside , there are ways around it , like getting out on the strip and drinking from the outside bars or buying alcohol from CVS ( pharmacy ) at a fraction of the cost and just drinking on the street whilst people watching . Yep ,drinking in the street is perfectly accepted . I sound like an alcoholic but it’s what you do in Vegas , you get loose .
We decide to get dinner before getting a taxi to Fremont street . We hit Bubba Gumps … yes I know ,dirty old Bubbas , but it’s an American institution and the boys just wanted to say that they went . I had the shrimp poboy , when it comes out I see these tiny crumbed shrimps the size of my fingernail in a roll ….. my mind immediately flicks back to ‘The Hangover ‘ , this is the stuff they got sick on … surely not Howie ,this is only a movie .
Fremont Street …. it was awesome at night , crazy busy , shoulder to shoulder people and totally buzzing . The overhead flying fox with hundreds queuing up was an option but not on the wait time. The Heart Attack Grill, no.
The band ‘Sugar Ray ‘ played on one corner and another just down the street . This joint was rocking .
That night it all felt good , I lay in bed and slowly sunk away until Tim informed me that our toilet was blocked . Almost on cue I feel an odd twist deep in my gut ….hmmm . Within minutes the Tom toms are playing a game of volleyball in my bowels . Fuck , I think somethings wrong , it’s nearly midnight and I’m concerned I might throw up or even shit myself , and I don’t want to ring to get someone up to unblock a shit filled toilet . It’ll be ok , I think ….. no , I’m dressed , riding the lift 22 floors down to the lobby , in the restroom and riding that bowl like a jockey on a thoroughbred . I’ve got diarrhoea , over the next 90 minutes I visit the two public restrooms into the wee hours , completely emptying out . Eventually I’m in bed by 2am ,scared to fart , all in readiness for an 8 hour drive to Monterey , you beauty ., looks like I’m on a diet . The moral of this story , The Hangover is a true guide to Vegas , don’t eat the shrimp .
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