Sorry for the delay getting to part 3. Life has been very busy the last month and I just have not had the energy to write part 3. Finally, here it is.
On the second day of my Vegas trip we decided to go down to Fremont Street which is home of the original Las Vegas.
Since we had a concert to go to later that night, we ended up going to Fremont Street during the day rather than at night. It is way more interesting at night as they have a great light show on the roof, lots of live music, street artists, and many wandering performers (Elvis impersonators, show girls, cartoon characters, etc) that will pose for pictures for a small donation. During the day there it is still interesting but less so. To get there we caught a bus from outside our hotel and it only took about 30 minutes to get to Fremont Street. The bus ride was pretty uneventful as it was mostly empty when we got on the bus and so we could easily find seats.
Once at Fremont Street we mostly just wandered around. We had a quick lunch at a Mexican food place that was part of a casino. It mostly just served tacos but we could sit outside and do people watching while we ate. After we ate, I stopped at a restroom where I chatted with another woman as we waited in line as the restroom was being cleaned. From there we walked down to a shopping area made from old shipping containers that were stacked on top of one another. There were some interesting shops there that we stopped at. The one we spent most of our time in was a reptile shop that had all sorts of snakes and lizards. The salesperson there was as interesting as the reptiles as she had numerous tattoos and piercings. She fit right into the shop.
After a few hours at Fremont Street, it was time to return our hotel and get ready for the rock concert that was the whole reason for our visit. Unlike the trip down to Fremont Street, the bus going back was packed from the moment we boarded and so we had to stand the entire trip back to the strip. There were some older folks that had strong Southern accents standing next to us and I had some concern about how they might react to me. Fortunately, they were friendly and we chatted on and off during the trip back. I did not pick up any unusual vibes from them in any way. The trip was long but it went well.
Once back at our hotel we rested for a couple of hours and then got dressed for the show. I changed from my tunic and leggings into a black top, camo skirt, and black tights. It seemed like a suitable rock concert look. Once dressed we caught the elevator down the casino floor, sharing it with maybe 8 to 10 other people. We were the last to get in and so it was mostly full. People were friendly and welcomed us in although it made it a little tight. Another complete nonevent!!
We walked around looking for someplace to eat. There are lots of them in the Venetian mall but I thought there was an Indian place that looked interesting and so we walked and walked looking for it but could not find it. We ended up at a seafood place where my friend and I were greeted with “good evening ladies” and lead to our table. The food came soon after and we quickly ate as we had spent too much time looking for my imaginary Indian Restaurant.
From dinner we went to the waiting line to enter the show area at the Venetian. We stood in a long line that moved slowly as we needed to use an elevator to get to our seats. The concert was fun as it was one of the “legendary” 60-70’s groups. I have been to lots of their concerts over the years, mostly in girl mode. In fact it was a concert of theirs in Reno that was my very first “girl mode” concert that I attended all by myself. I had a great time then and at this concert. I hope to keep going to their concerts as long as they tour.
After the concert we walked down the strip to the “Dancing Lights” show at the Bellagio. My friend had never seen them and so we spent some time there. Eventually we made it back to our room and collapsed into bed. It had been a long day and we were to return home the next day. Unlike the trip down, I found I had no concerns about going through TSA security at the airport and so simply did not worry about it.
The next morning we sort of slept in as our flight was not until about 2pm. Eventually we got dressed, packed our suitcases, and headed down to breakfast. We ate at the same place we had the day before and took our time as we nothing really to do before we headed to the airport. Eventually we headed back up to our room to get our stuff and then back down the elevator to the taxi area. A cab came and took us to the airport. We arrived there, printed off our boarding passes, and headed off to security.
This time there was a woman officer at the Pre-check inspection desk. I handed her my boarding pass and male Id. I smiled at her and waited. She smiled back and said “I can see its you”, wrote on my boarding pass, and said to have a nice flight. From there I put my stuff on the Xray machine and walked through the metal detector. The agent on the other side waved me through and I picked up my stuff on the belt. Like so much of the trip, it was completely uneventful.
We had gotten there about 2 1/2 hours before our flight and so we had lots of time to kill. We both had books to read and people to watch and so the time passed quickly. I did some jewelry shopping at a little shop and got a drink at some fast food place. It was on the way back that I encountered the only odd reaction I had during the entire 3 days.
A young girl, maybe 6 or 7 was walking with her mother as I was standing at the jewelry place. She looked right at me but continued walking. As they continued past me, I saw her turn around and look right at me again. She turned back forward and then looked back again.
The old saying about “out of the mouths of babes” came to mind.
In the grand scale of things, that was a pretty minor event.
Eventually it was time to board our flight and we got in line. This time the agent took my ticket without any reaction and so it went smoother than the flight down. The trip back to SFO was uneventful. After we landed, wecaught a bus to the long term parking lot and retrieved my car. From there I dropped my friend off at her house and headed home.
Overall it was a great trip. We had a good time and enjoyed spending time together. From a TG perspective, it was entirely uneventful. I was treated respectfully by the staff at all the various places we visited and by all the other visitors we encountered.
If anything it was almost too “normal” for all concerned. For three days I lived in girl mode among strangers and did so without a second thought and without getting any unusual reactions. I was just me for that time and it seemed completely natural. My friend commented after the trip that she thought I would have gotten more of a reaction from people we encountered and was surprised that she did not observe any. Everyone treated me as just another woman.
In the end it was all vaguely anti-climactic and I suppose that is just the way it is supposed to be when you can be yourself.
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