Viva Las Vegas! Part 1: Art, Lights and More Lights!

As I said in my last post, my boyfriend and I went to Las Vegas and it was BEAUTIFUL!!  The lights!  The things to do!  The people-watching!  It was crazy!  I can't wait to go back.  I mean, we had such a LONG list of things to do and we didn't even do half of them!  Partly because he got really sick :( and partly because there was so much to do that we couldn't decided on what to do first.

Luckily, we got to enjoy the gorgeous views from Ghostbar at the Palms.  It was amazing!  They even had this piece of glass on the rooftop part where you could stand and look down 55 stories.  At first, I was like, "Pssh...that tiny piece of plexiglass?!  The whole patio should be plexiglass so we could constantly be walking over Las Vegas haha!"  But once I got near it and saw that it was directly above the "PALMS" marquee lights, I felt a little pang of fear of being that high.  I am horribly afraid of heights.  The bar is great, though, and the bartenders were wonderful!



Seeing two Jeff Koons pieces was a total surprise! We stumbled upon them on our way to the Ferrari showroom at the Wynn.  It was really hard to capture just how reflective these pieces actually were.  It was crazy!



We also checked out the Fabergé Revealed exhibit at the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art.  I couldn't take any photos but boy, did I want to!  The pieces were quite beautiful.  Check them out!

One of my personal favorite highlights was taking a ride on the High Roller.  Standing at 550 feet tall, it is the largest observation wheel in the world!  the views are phenomenal and I highly recommend going at night because, well, THE LIGHTS!!!  The Linq complex is really fun, too.  We didn't realize all those things were tucked away in that little area until we headed to the High Roller.  That's a return visit right there!


 

The Linq also has a mural project headed up by the ISI Group that seems to change constantly.  Check out some pieces I caught - including a lovely in-progress one (with the ladder)



Vegas was a blast! Everyone had the same joke: "Don't run off and get married in Vegas hahaha!" but there are SO MANY things to do, I totally forgot to take all the photos I wanted of all the wedding chapels!  I did snag a few while we were stuck at traffic lights but nothing major.  All in all, it was a great trip - except the sick part - but that just means we have to go back!  Maybe this next time, my West Coast bestie will join!

Here's a short little video of our trip


Viva Las Vegas! from Katzi Roman on Vimeo.


My new friend and I hope you're having an awesome week so far!

Adventures at The Old Tampa Bay Hotel

When the old man first suggested the Tampa / St. Pete area of Florida for our vacation, I was all, "Tampa?  What the heck is in Tampa?!"  Turns out, there's some pretty neat architecture, including the hidden gem of the Old Tampa Bay Hotel.  In the spirit of the Ponce de Leon Hotel-turned-into-Flager College in St. Augustine (where the old man and I visited in 2011), the Tampa Bay Hotel is now part of the University of Tampa.

I first saw this place featured on Southern Spirit Guide when I searched the Florida Ghosts tag for any interesting places to keep an eye out for.  I'm so glad I checked it out because this place blew us away!

We toured the museum, romped around the main student lobby and walked through most of the (accessible) first floor and imagined what it must've been like when it was a grand hotel.  I wasn't sure if I could take photos on the tour with my Nikon, so I kept it small and sweet with my iPhone.  I wanted to experiment with the Hongdae HipstaPak as my "Florida Pack".  I try to give each place I visit its own Hipstamatic lens/film combo when I take photos.  I don't know why but I think after we went to St. Augustine, I started designating lens/film combos to certain places to sort of give them the same "feel".

Anyways - this place is amazing!  We learned so much and got to see what kind of grand things outfitted the hotel.  It was such a wonderful experience with a fun, informative tour and there were so many beautiful things to see.  When I was younger, I wasn't really a fan of all that Victorian opulence but I love it now!  I think it's so interesting to see how much our tastes have changed and I'm amazed at how we evolve with each generation.

I'm hoping to upload my Nikon photos from the entire trip, so keep an eye out on my Flickr and this set for more to come!

Hope you're having a great week!



1-3: Exterior shots of the Old Tampa Bay Hotel
4: An inkwell and pen at one (of several) writing desks in the Writing and Reading Room
5-6: A couple of gorgeous mirrors in the hallway
7: A bust
8: I thought the spelling of "Porto Rican" was interesting for this book.  The book was published in 1898!  I wonder how old this copy is...
9-10: A room showcasing various womens' hobbies
11: A page from the hotel guest registry.  The different handwriting was beautiful!
12: An old projector piece
13: One of the restored bedrooms
14: The music room
15: One of many statues.  I liked the silhouette (and she also looks like she's all "Shawty, that's my jam!")
16. An old camera and photo

Florida Adventure!

Hello from sunny Florida!  The old man and I are taking a much-needed vacation to undo a lot of the stress we've encountered lately and so far, I think I need to try and relax a little harder...I may or may not have gotten wound up about the seagull in photo #4.  Why?  Because I thought: "Hey, why not stop at the ol' Whole Foods, get some lunch items and have a picnic on the beach?"  Okay, so far so good.  I got a delicious sandwich from the best Whole Foods since the one in Philly and we were on our merry way to the lovely Clearwater Beach.  Once there, we made camp and started our picnic when some uninvited friends came.  I would've fed them some of my bread but I know if I fed one, I'd have to feed them all.  I also ended up eating the entire sandwich instead of half, like I originally planned.  These seagulls would've totally pecked through our stuff to get to that sandwich!
I was able to calm down a little, though.  I guess I just need to remind myself that it's okay to relax!  :)

1.  Instax Mini from the GA/FL state line
2. This church is beautiful and I love the stained glass.  We have dubbed this church "Heavy Metal Church" and/or "Rock n' Roll Church" (but you have to sing it like an 80's Glam Metal singer when you say it!)
3. We found this former hermit crab home on the beach yesterday
4. This little seagull (and five more of his friends later on) was trying to get some of my sandwich!
5. The view from Pier 60 in Clearwater, FL
6. A boarded up house in St. Petersburg
7. I LOVE the "Greetings from" post cards and I'm so happy that I've been seeing that design as art around here!  Greetings from Pier 60!

Has your weekend started?  Do you have any fun plans?