Overdue: Mandarin Oriental Gala Pictorial

I think I was stricken last week with a bug going around called CityCenteritis, the fatigue that is setting in surrounding that little collection of buildings that's been in all the papers lately.

Still, the Mandarin Oriental gala opening on Dec. 4 was a great deal of fun. Another popular Vegas blogger who accompanied me shot a gazillion images that can be found here, but I prefer to use photos here to tell a story.

For instance, it was evidently wild couture night. Models were all over the place and here are some of the looks:

This party was spread across the 23rd floor Skylobby and the 3rd floor convention space, both of which are splendid. Yet while it was expected that the lobby would be lovely, we were particularly jazzed by how beautiful the convention hall is:


There was plenty of food and drink, as usual. A lot of the images below are, for some reason, of chocolate-related items. There was this whole chocolate-journey room with the Johnny Depp version of "Willie Wonka" playing. Yes, the creepy remake, not the happy one. But OK.


Nice of them to form the bread in the shape of an S for me.

We were welcomed to go to the 9th floor to have a tour of a typical room for which the rack rate is supposed to be, uh, $600. Yeah. Anyhow, they're very sleek and modern as all rooms tend to be nowadays:


There was one innovation I found kinda fun, the "valet closet." Basically, there's this closet that opens to the outside of the room and the inside. So the valet can drop off your dry-cleaning or a package and then a light comes on in the unit and you go to your side and get the items left. That wood panel to the right of the room number below is it from the hallway:


Small things. Anyhow, the lady who was showing us the room started to freak out when we wanted to bounce on the beds and take pictures of all sorts of minutae like valet closets, so she urged us to go to the 3rd floor where the "program" was about to start.

That "program" was Vanessa-Mae, the rock-n-roll violinist:


I would've stayed a little longer, but that other blogger was easily bored and wanted badly to go see the spa. We were put on an elevator and got off at the spa level expecting to be greeted by minders whose patience we would surely try. Instead, we found ourselves literally alone opening doors, wandering all over the facility and feeling like we were trespassing when, in fact, it seemed they wanted us to do this.

Here's the yoga/aerobics room:




Dunno what those metal thingies are, but that may explain why I had to rent a tux instead of wearing the one I got married in three years ago. I tried to shape up a little while we were there...

All sorts of wacky treatment rooms abound and the pick-your-shower thing looked fun:


My blogger pal was especially excited to check out the relaxation pools that he said were the only ones anywhere in Vegas or the US or the Milky Way (can't remember) that have windows and views.


Sadly, one of those precious views was of...

a neon McD's!

Next thing I know, I find my friend laying on one of these bed-like things. He's like, "Dude, try this," and I'm like, "Dude, do something else with that bottle, k?"


THEN I tried it out.


OK, OK. That photo didn't take itself. By this point in our maurauding, we came across a lovely guide who said it was great that we'd seen what we'd wanted to but did we have any questions. My bottle-fondling spa nerd friend sure did have some. I don't remember any of them being interesting, though.


That may be because I was causing trouble, as usual, by shooting stuff like this:


My friend and I decided to walk over to Crystals which is around the time, lucky for us all, both my iPhone and my proper digicam died. But not before I got this nice shot of the Veer Towers.


Oh, and this directional at the Crystals amused me...


in this sorta way:


The End. Or...the beginning? Hahaha! Yes, CityCenteritis makes you a little punchy. And that's just the start of The Week Aria Opens!