Okay, so once again I’m behind in posting here. It was a couple of weeks ago that my company, VMware, sent me on a business trip to VMworld, our annual software convention. This year it took place in Las Vegas.

Most people would jump at the chance to be sent to Vegas on their company’s ticket. I imagine I’m in the minority when I say I’ve never enjoyed gambling or casinos. Aside from the convention itself, I didn’t really have a good time. Not only because I found the whole lights / noise / crowds / artificial tourism atmosphere distracting and oppressive, but because of several other things that also happened.

The flight out was okay until we were about to land. But when we got there we were in the middle of a heavy rainstorm and we were put into a holding pattern that, had we stayed in the air, would have exhausted our fuel supply. So we got diverted to Phoenix where we refueled then flew back to Vegas again (this time we were able to land). There was then a 20 minute line-up for a taxi until a bus came to take us all to the hotel. Then, another 20 minute line-up at the hotel to register. On top of that, several of their rooms were leaking and most of my party had to be sent to another hotel for the night and next day. (Luckily I wasn’t one of those and was able to stay at the Luxor.)

I’d taken my dress shoes to the convention. I hadn’t worn them in years – although, in the past, I had no problem with them. The first night I got back from the convention I was in quite a fair amount of pain – I had broken, bloody blisters on both feet. The next day I wore my running shoes again, even though they weren’t really appropriate. But, even with those, I could only hobble around and I really didn’t feel like walking anywhere at all.

The rain from our first night continued. In fact, the local news reported flooding and road closures. It kept up until the second last day, and I didn’t actually see the sun properly until the morning of the last day. Even if I had been properly mobile, I didn’t have all that much incentive to go for a walk down the strip.

I locked my key in my room at one point. This wasn’t as serious a problem for me as it was for a colleague of mine who’d done the same thing but who had, also, locked his ID in his room. It took him a long time to get access again, and he ended up missing an important meeting with some big clients because of it. This story of his just seemed to fit into the whole “ill fated trip” theme. I ended up getting a spare key – I kept one in my pocket and one in my wallet to be safe. (I’d originally left the one key on my dresser, while I’d taken my wallet and everything else with me.)

Food costs a lot more than it used to at casinos – I understand that it used to be a lot cheaper. A typical breakfast ran me about $18 with tax and tip. I ordered room service one night – a grilled chicken caesar and two bottles of Heineken – and it came to $30. (Room service is only $2.50 more, so it wasn’t the simple fact that it was room service that made it so expensive.)

On leaving, I got into a cab that took me to the airport. Upon trying to pay with my credit card I was informed by the driver that he only took cash. He indicated that none of the taxis in Vegas take anything but cash. I ran into the airport to find that their ATM was broken. I had to have him take me to a bank, where I could get cash, and then pay him for the extra time. I ended up paying him about 4 times as much as I would have had I realized ahead of time and got cash out of the ATM at the hotel. (I never use cash when I travel.) A fair bit of the extra money I paid came from a substantial tip I gave him for the inconvenience.

All of that aside, while it was probably the least enjoyable trip I’ve ever had (on top of everything else I missed Michelle), I have to say that it was an interesting experience – if only because the whole Las Vegas setting is so different from anything else I’ve ever experienced. It’s all like one big shopping mall. If you’re into that sort of thing, I can see it being really worthwhile. So, in a way, I’m glad I had the chance to experience it.