WSOP Day 27 - Jon Kalmar

Monday 29 Jun 2009

Today is the Ladbrokes Welcome party, the now legendary Voodoo party. For the last 3 years Ladbrokes have hired out the Voodoo Lounge on the 51st floor of the Rio Casino. With most of the club based outside of the building the views of Vegas are probably the best you will get.

Since I starting coming to Vegas back in 2005 the skyline has changed considerably in just that small amount of time. The Luxor is now obscured by the Panoramic Towers. The MGM City Centre takes up a huge stretch of the strip. The Palazzo towers over the Venetian. And the new Encore and Trump towers shine. These are all new additions to the Vegas skyline.

Everybody scrambles for an invite as much for the free bar as the view. With scantily dressed dancing girls I was forced to pose for photo’s. It’s a bind but hey! I gotta do my bit for the Ladbrokes cause. Kila knows I hate all that stuff really J.

After the free bar finished around 10pm I organised a whip round to book a large VIP section so the party could continue. And by 1am there were casualties. Amongst those abusing the free bar was Kila although she protested it was my fault for FORCING her to stay up till silly o’clock the previous night (Yeah, that will be it babe).

I put her in a taxi and returned to the party. When I got back to the entrance it was all closed up. I pushed the doors to see they were open. I was surprised to be able to get in the lift and return up the 51 floors to rejoin the party totally unchallenged. It would appear security is another thing Harrah’s have cut back on during the recession. Although happy to get back in it did feel a little worrying.

After closing around 2am, John Conroy and John Magill were keen for a craps syndicate. Unfortunately it didn’t go anywhere near as well as last years and we were soon regretting the decision. We continued to prop up the Rio bar till around 6.30am when we returned to Caesars. Another little spin of the craps that will probably be my last of the trip. Although it ended the same as the earlier one, it did enable us to have a few more drinks.

For the second time this week it would look like breakfast before bed. Now, after a long nights drinking it is amazing what you are prepared to eat. Indeed, a greasy lump of donor spinning around a spit seems tremendously appetising after a long night on the ale. Lets be honest it’s something you wouldn’t even consider sober, but when drunk you will eat anything. If your kids are refusing to eat their greens give them a few vodka red bulls, they will say “Blimey that cabbage looks tasty”.

Unfortunately Kebab houses are not as prominent as they are on your average British high street. (Surely this is a business opportunity missed by someone. Either that, or its illegal to claim donor is meat over here). I had to settle for a poor excuse for a fry up. Why is an American breakfast still bad when drunk? I know I have had a whine about this already but what are they thinking.