Avoiding clichéd Vegas quote here....

I could say something about "leaving Las Vegas," or about things that stay in Vegas, or the usual standby, "Vegas, baby!" but I'll spare you. Instead just the details.

We went there for the food.

And honest to god, I mean that. I'm not trying to "cover" for any shenanigans that went on in our group. No crazy all night gambling or strip clubs. Not even a stealthy trip to see Celine Dion (Is she still even performing there?) or other big Vegas performer.

We went for Bobby Flay, among others.

I think my dad was a little disappointed in me. "You should go back and see a show," he says, and recounts his story of going to see Don Rickles in the old strip days.

But we didn't see a show.

We fought AT&T's crappy service. We (okay, maybe just I) complained about the smokiness of the casinos. We beat the crowds to the pool bright and early only to be wedged like sardines in the rows of deck chairs. We wandered through malls full of stores we couldn't afford to shop at. And I even took the enjoyment up a notch and had an allergic reaction to a horse and came down with an eye infection worthy of antibiotics.

Good times.

It was a sociologist's fantasy land, that's for certain. A study on the demographics of consumption. Whether it was spoiled rich, laden-with-'tude twenty-somethings wearing "shiney shirts" and lots of hair product(the boys) or wearing almost nothing (the girls) going out for a night of hard partying and hooking up, to the older folks clearly from a different socio-economic bracket (though still with lots of hair product, often) looking dazed sitting at the penny slots for hours slowly putting a small dent into a pension, maybe? Vegas truly is an alternate universe from the one I know.

I think I was prepared for it and not prepared for it at the same time. I mean, you can't not know what it's going to be like, but I think I under-estimated how annoyed I would get by it.

Having said that, we had some excellent meals. My favorite food experiences included another trip to In-n-Out Burger (of course), Border Grill (in the Mandalay Bay complex), and Bobby Flay's fabulous Mesa Grill. And I also was pleasantly surprised to learn about Sake at Shibuya.

I think I would consider going back. Actually - I kind of have to since Dave and his friends go every few years and I'm not going to be the wet blanket on that tradition. Next time, I'll just have to budget a little more discretionary spending for a more secluded and maybe relaxing spot at the pool, a spa treatment or two, and maybe a trip to see the Hoover Dam. And I'll take my dad's advice and go to a show.

California - Napa and San Fran, before I forget them completely

When I started this blog, it was back in my days of work travel. Usually when I traveled for work, I had a lot of time on my hands. I would have hours of downtime to plot my next entry, and I was usually in the same place for several weeks - not just a few days here and there. I also usually had easy access to the internet and a computer.

I don't travel as much since I left the world of international health. That often makes me sad because I really love to travel. I guess I just need to try harder.

I've had two good trips during the last few months. I went to Napa Valley and San Francisco back in July/August for a week and then I went to Las Vegas for a few days just a few weekends ago. Really, my first trips to both places.

I'll try to re-cap Napa and SF first.

Dave and I arrived in San Francisco and immediately got in a car headed to Napa. It was a Tuesday afternoon, and our first stop in this culinary land of plenty was In-n-Out Burger, something of a legend I had heard about from Dave and his friends. It may not have resembled the rest of the meals we had that week, but it was darn tasty.

From this point on, I think the easiest thing to do is to list the specifics of the food and wine, which, after all, is why one goes to Napa. I'll do food first.

Dinner at Brix: The website boasts "a renewed focus on farm-to-table dining." Um, yeah, and that "farm" is about 15 yards away behind the restaurant, where we are pretty sure a head of lettuce had been whacked off just moments before being served as an appetizer on Dave's salad plate. No joke. The one mistake I made here was that I had filled up on cheese earlier in the day at the Oxbow Public Market in downtown Napa. But the food at Brix was very good. It wasn't anything fancy, but it isn't meant to be. Truly just good, honest, high-quality food in a beautiful location.

Another dinner at Terra: This place earned a Michelin star in 2008 and did not disappoint. The restaurant itself (as I recall) was down to earth and the food was amazing. Even better was the wine recommendation, and one that I have even found in DC wine shops! (A Belle Glos Meomi Pinot Noir, for anyone who is keeping track)

As for wine, we hit a good cross-section of wineries over the course of basically a day and a few hours. In no particular order, we visited:

- Artesa
- Silver Oak (awesome - and expensive - cab sauv)
- Domaine Chandon (Bubbly stuff. we did the "sensory" wine tasting, which was a lot of fun)
- Rutherford Hill (great picnic area that came highly recommended. They also have a yummy Port)
- Cliff Lede (has a sauv blanc that seriously has a guava taste. In a good way!)
- Reynold's Family
- Domaine Carneros (more bubbly)

We stayed at the super-quaint and really comfy Candlelight Inn.

Back in San Francisco, the culinary and wine tour continued through the course of several days time, despite the fact that it was a work trip. We did get the burritos that Dave day-dreams about at Taqueria Can-Cun in the Mission District. We also had breakfast in The Haight at the Pork Store Cafe, which, seriously...how could a place called the Pork Store Cafe be bad?

Dave also introduced me to a fantastic tasting room/wine bar concept called The Press Club, which is this great "bar" representing 8 California vineyards. You can order by the glass, but you can also do tastings for a small fee at each table. Those small fees have a way of building up though - you swipe a card each time you drink and at the end of the night you pay at the front desk. That part is kind of painful! But worth it.

Without Dave (sniff), I also went to the Samovar Tea Room in the Castro, Zare at Fly Trap (awesome Mediterranean with a very friendly chef) in SOMA, and The Slanted Door, tasty Vietnamese food in the Embarcadero Ferry Building.

So, yeah, we got around. It's exciting to feel like I actually know something about California wines now. And I really like SF a lot. It's just got a good feel to it. Despite being a city girl, sometimes there's a lot to dislike about them. But not SF.

Anyway, will try to continue with Las Vegas in the next few days and try to get back on track. And I think I need to buy a travel laptop and plan a few more big trips so I can have more to write about!