Slot machine in McCarran International Airport
Never in my life that I imagined myself going here for business purposes or work lol! Since I was on board at my first ever employer, of course this was my first ever business trip abroad too. I was so privileged to be part of the 3-man crew sent for this trip as I did not know there was such a thing in the company (or I forgot there was). I don't even have any idea what to expect but I effort-ly prepared for it. I practiced speaking in English for like two straight months even at our own house for this HAHA! Not to discount the research I needed to do in order to cover a scope that was not originally part of my main project focus. Consciously thinking of what may happen there whether good or the not-so-good ones.. It was a mix emotions of nervousness, uncertainty and excitement building up as the date of the trip goes nearer and nearer. It'll not be my first time going to Vegas since we recently visited the place a few years back before this but going there for business purposes is a totally different ball game.Curious on what are we going to do there? Try to take a few guesses with your mind before reading on.. It will be difficult to hit but trying won't do you any harm.
And so we flew thousand of miles to get there with the company of the airplane's entertainment system.. Man, I cannot describe how tiring it is to experience several darkness (morning darkness and night darkness) in a single flight but it was, really. We arrived 8:00 PM there and the sun is still up like it is 10 in the morning, so cool haha!
We even had time to take this picture initiated by our manager (haha!) while waiting for our hotel key..
Ze crew (Glen, Carlo and a photobomber lol)
Yes, we stayed at Excalibur hotel as per it is the most efficient location with our main goal which is to try to take the sword from king Arthur. Too bad Merlin had other plans.. (kidding aside)
We were given a spacious room that had an awesome view. There were bibles in our drawers! I just don't know if every drawer has it or someone just left it there intentionally but it was great to see some there. We were digging all the perks really!
We are happy, our faces just doesn't express well haha!
A view from our hotel room
Okay, are you ready with your guesses with our task there? If you guessed that we will be gambling there, well.. its not that you are wrong since we admittedly tried to grow each of our $20 (Carlo and I) on the casino below Excalibur.. But we were there to man the company's booth who were manufacturing portable power supplies especially made for photographers who shoot outdoors. Well its not limited to that purpose but it basically allows you to bring power on location. For more information you may visit www.innovatronix.com directly for further queries regarding their product line.
Tronix Explorer 500 Lithium
It was personally interesting for me to meet some of our clients in the flesh who I exchange emails with the past days to even months for some. Its like having an "eye ball" meeting or having the same concept of "blind date" but for dealing and transaction purposes haha! An experience to learn from really.
Our main exhibit is to happen at the grand conference center of the MGM Grand but we had two side exhibits before that which are on the following photos:
Professional School Photographers Association International &Sports Photographers Association of America Annual Conferences
The Renaissance
Pre-launch of the main exhibit which is the Wedding Portrait and Photography International
Studio Room of MGM Grand
So after those twin days of warm-ups, we directly headed to battle for another 3 straight days for the main exhibit at the MGM Grand Conference Center.
Day 1
The conference center is humongous. We have to walk it off everyday from our hotel room.. Our routine was to wake up early, walk outside the freezing street of Vegas, eat breakfast at McDonalds inside the center (where I discovered that iced coffee tastes great lol) and be ready for basically the whole day at the booth.
Day 2
Some of my favorite parts were doing the demo for the guests and discovering how cool our clients were! Not that I am belittling Asian English but American and European accents are just way easier to understand and refreshing to hear haha! In the first place they must since its their mother tongue. They are more confident using it that is why its louder too I guess..
We always have a different dinner each night and we very much look forward to it since we only eat twice a day as per our available schedule. We always are eager of it that we don't have a single group photo eating aside from the last day. Funny!
Day 3
Ending the exhibit still with full smiles and happy clients of course! And behind those faces are excited men because its free day tomorrow!! Man, the feeling of relief is unexplainable. We were actually successful on hitting the on-site targets that were set during the trip and some of the tasks that was given by sir Glen were accomplished too that was important to be done before the exhibit ends.
One last thing that we needed to do was to egress from the site as to we can skip that part and now tackle the must see areas in the Las Vegas strip.
Arc de Triomphe replica
So Basically the Las Vegas strip is popularly known / locally called "The Strip" because it is a single line where all the main attractions and famous sites are. If you are looking for more affordable products to shop at, go outside the strip. But if you want the Vegas experience - walk the strip first from end to end, you'll be pretty surprised how long you'll go here as you'll forget you're tired while sight-seeing on all the things the area can give you.Aside from the world famous tourist spot replicas you can find here, some of the must-see attractions FOR ME are the following: (Selected a few)
-In no particular order-
1. Belagio's water fountain show - free
2. Mirage's erupting volcano show and its secret garden - free
3. Miracle Mile shops at Planet Hollywood - free(Find your way to the 24/7 night area)
4. Ride the roller-coaster around the New York New York hotel
5. Bungee Jump at the Stratosphere Tower
Tsinelas tayo syimpre! Haha!
We journeyed a part of the strip and visited a few local shops in the morning all together before eating at a Filipino fast food restaurant there for lunch. They said that there were many Filipinos in the area that is why they are doing great there. So cool to see some of the foreigners in there too eating our own delicacies.. In here I saw the most expensive Filipino junk foods (or "sitsirya") that cost a dollar to a dollar and a half for a single pack which normally only cost around $0.25 (dollar converted) when in our country. They explained that delivery and taxes are already included in there which explains the price.
Kapit Bahay Filipino Fast Food
After this, we agreed to just meet up at a certain place and time when we're done doing our personal shopping. Sir Glen temporarily parted from us while we (with Carlo) did our thing together. Not very long that we all saw each other again at Belagio (I think - since a water show was going on) and walked through the strip again for the second time since its near night time.
Do make sure to experience both walking the strip on a morning and a night as they are a totally different experience.
Night at Las Vegas
This city is one of the most unique cities I have ever seen so far (both the good and the bad). The streets are full of talents, things to do, thrilling sights to see, etc. but on the other hand.. gambling, prostitution, and alcohol comes with it. They are just everywhere and is literally a grab away if you want. Thinking that the whole place is in the middle of a dessert is just mind blowing.
What happened in Vegas stays in Vegas? Well, I already broke this statement just by writing this post lol. Want to hear an even better news though? After a year, I had my second out of the country exhibit experience.. and it is in the Big Apple, the city that never sleeps: New York City! Stay tuned for that post as I discover if the city really do not sleep! Going on that trip costed me something, well not monetary but it is for you to find out. Hope to see you when it gets published. See you and I hope you liked this Vegas post!
