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| Image found here |
After not being able to fly anywhere for a while due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I have been looking to pick up my travel, especially since I'm vaccinated and have my booster shot. So in true jet-setting fashion, my sister and I flew to Las Vegas for ONE day to see Gwen Stefani in concert over the Halloween weekend. Her residency only lasts a few more days, so we had to see her while we could!
I arrived early in the morning, but my sister wasn't getting in until later in the afternoon. So I went straight from the airport to the Tropicana to enjoy some treatments at their Glow spa (they had a Groupon). I had a very nice facial first, read my book in the relaxation room, and then had a pedicure. I felt completely pampered by the time I left.
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| This is the relaxation room. Image found here. |
Then I made my way down the Strip (there are no crosswalks at intersections, only elevated walkways from casino to casino; it was quite a maze to figure out where I was going). It was a beautiful day, sunny and in the 80's, so I enjoyed lunch outside at a Mexican restaurant where my piña colada was served in a boot:
After I was done eating, I walked the rest of the way to Planet Hollywood, which is where the concert was going to be and where we were staying. But check-in wasn't until 3:00; if I wanted to check in earlier, I had to pay a $30 fee. WTF?! So I asked if I could access to the pool, which I was granted. So I changed into my bikini and laid out in the sun for just about an hour. Glorious! And I finished my book, too!
After a long check-in process (even though their kiosks claim to be "express"), my sister arrived and we could go up to the room. We relaxed a bit and then headed down to the shops in the casino. We hit up Francesca's and H&M before settling in for dinner at P.F. Chang's (one of the few Chinese restaurants I know that doesn't use MSG, since I'm allergic).
Then it was time to get ready! Although Halloween wasn't technically until Sunday, it was a Saturday night in Vegas, so we were going to dress up! My sister already had a DÍa de los Muertos outfit, but her intricate make-up was fantastic! I had brought a bunch of random things with me, since I didn't know what I wanted to dress up as. In the end, I went with slutty dominatrix ballerina. Like this:
Once we were all dressed up, we headed downstairs to the slot machines. We actually won $12 at our first slot machine, but within about 45 minutes, bouncing from machine to machine, we ended up losing around $50. But it's all for fun! After that, we made our way to the Zappos Theater for the concert. Here are some photos from the show:
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| Photo credit: Taylor Arion |
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| Photo credit: Taylor Arion |
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| Gwen on a rose-covered rising platform. Photo credit: Taylor Arion |
I knew pretty much all of the songs she performed, both from her time with No Doubt and on her own. Here's a taste of what we heard:
Don't Speak (I think this must be everyone's favorite No Doubt song. SO GOOD!)
Hollaback Girl (with the backup dancers holding giant bananas, of course)
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| Bananas! Photo credit: Taylor Arion |
Cool (one of my favorite music videos of all time)
Ex-Girlfriend (She said she hates singing this song because it brings her back to the time when she wrote it; she said it makes her want to throw up! But she knows the fans love it.)
Wind It Up (I had totally forgotten about this song! So catchy!)
Just a Girl (She pointed out how this song is still so meaningful, especially in the wake of the #MeToo movement.)
Rich Girl (I had hoped someone would sing Eve's part!)
She even performed a few cover songs:
This show was so much fun! The sets were beautiful and the energy was great. Gwen invited fans onto the stage throughout the show to thank them for their support and take photos with them (while trying to be socially distanced. She was continuously putting on hand sanitizer!). For "Just a Girl" she brought up several young girls, who represent the future of women's rights. Go girl power!
By the time we got back to our room and took off our make-up and costumes, it was nearly 1:00 a.m. So we slept for about four hours before heading back to the airport to head home. What a whirlwind of a trip!
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