April 2015

Viva is done for another year and I have to say that of all my 4 years going this year was the best..ever. I don’t know why because the bands, the vibe and the weather were just as awesome but something just clicked and made this weekend truly a showstopper for me. Now I’m a bit sad it’s over but I have 2016 to look forward to as I have my room already booked. Woo hoo!

(Note: Check out my posts on Thursday & Friday & Saturday & Sunday)

And on that note, lets check out what I did on the Wednesday the day before the event officially started.

on the plane to VLV 18 — On the Plane! Sorry an Iphone photo pic.

I have found that coming into Vegas the day before Viva is the best way to go because it allows you to have at least one day to do some sightseeing, sleep, veg out by the pool etc. For us it allows us to go to Frankie’s Tiki Room and then do Kitschy but fun Fremont St. This has become a tradition that I absolutely love and this year was no exception.

Up first..room check in! I had a friend who is not really into the world of Rockabilly and Vintage attending with me this year and her comment as we walked into the lobby and she saw everyone hanging around there all dressed up was..”Wow this is overwhelming”. I turned to her and said “dear, you have seen nothing yet!”.

Viva las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend 18 New Orleans Hotel-Vintage Style / Rockabilly Style. — My Friend Liisa and I in the front lobby at Check in (My Vintage Dress is from Cabaret Vintage in Toronto)

Unpacked, vegged out and now it’s time to hit up Frankie’s Tiki Room. I had brought a Tiki Dress but I honestly was just not feeling it so I went with my vintage Mexican skirt (purchased from Cabaret Vintage) and white top from Collectif (purchased in Toronto at Loveless boutique).

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Collectif are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

Frankie's Tiki Room Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend 18-Sign — The Big Question.

Just like last year a good group of friends made the trek by cab (the worst cab driver though lol) to Frankie’s. I was so excited because I could not wait for a yummy Tiki Drink or 2!

Frankie's Tiki Room Las Vegas VLV 18-Tiki Drinks and Tiki Style — The lovely Kassandra Love and I enjoying whatever we were drinking.

Frankie's Tiki Room Las Vegas VLV 18 -Tiki Drinks, Tiki Style and Rockabilly Style — Some of the VIVA Gang. I love my new camera and I love that I’m holding 2 drinks!

While I was at Frankie’s I was excited to have the fantastic “Miss Victory Violet” and her really nice husband Matt join us at our table. I have been following her blog for some time as she has the most amazing wardrobe and so it was wonderful to finally meet her in person. They are from New Zealand and are currently doing a whirlwind tour all over various countries.

Frankie's Tiki Room with Miss Victory Violet -Tiki Bar / Tiki Style / Pinup Style — The Vintage Inn meets Miss Victory Violet

One last Frankie Photo…

Frankie's Tiki Room VLV 18 2015-Tiki Style, Tiki Statue, Pinup Style. — Tiki gods are the best.

Then we jumped in a cab and ventured off to Fremont St. to see what adventures we could get into. Of course the first thing we had to do was get our picture taken at Binions with the Million Dollars (note Binions took a blurry shot of us, not my fault).

Binions las vegas million dollars picture. — So close but yet so far

Then we met some Canadian Viva attendees while wandering. My husband joined their Black Shirt Gang 🙂

VLV 18 2015 Fremont St. group of attendees. — Canadian’s only wear black shirts. True Story.

Zoltar! My friend Liisa needed to get her fortune told by this ancient and supposedly wise man.

Zoltar Fremont St. Las Vegas — What is that you say Zoltar?

VLV 18 2015 Fremont St. Viva las Vegas rockabilly weekender — What does the ancient card say?

I think her fortune told her that she would find the strangest but yet pretty darn good chips seen below.

VLV 18 2015 Fremont St. — Herri’s brand can do no wrong.

Fremont is so bright and pretty and a bit gawdy but I like it that way.

Anyone for $0.99 Deep Fried Twinkie? Or Oreo?

VLV 18 2015 Fremont St. Glitter Gulch famous sign.

Let the Lightshow Begin! This is always cool and I never get bored of seeing it.

One of the things I really like about Fremont St. is how there are lots of cool vintage neon signs all over the strip. Here are some of them.

VLV 18 2015 Fremont St. Vintage Signs. Giant Martini Glass

VLV 18 2015 Fremont St. East District signs.

Can’t stand this beer, but I LOVE the sign (The Beer of Rockabilly weekenders everywhere).

VLV 18 2015 Fremont St. Pabst blue ribbon neon sign.

VLV 18 2015 Fremont St. giant palm tree with dice neon sign. — Kassandra and the Giant Palm Tree coming to a theatre near you

VLV 18 2015 Fremont St. giant flamingo neon sign. — I Love Flamingos!

And then the night was done with one final picture.

VLV 18 2015 Fremont St. Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly weekender group of attendees.

Have you ever been to Vegas, Fremont St. or Frankie’s? Or maybe all of them. If so tell me your favorite parts!

Further Reading:

Liz 🙂

“Yes, we’re gonna have a subway in Toronto; we’ve got to get the working man home pronto…”

“Canada’s First Subway” was completed in Toronto in 1954, after 4 long years of construction. The cost for that groundbreaking transit system was around $60 million (source).

1954 Opening of the toronto subway — Source: Toronto Archives

It was an immediate hit with the people; 250,000 rode it on the first day. Its opening established it as an icon for the booming economy that lay ahead for post-war Toronto (source).

TTC 1950s Canada's First Subway — Source: Toronto Savvy

Now if you have been following my blog for some time you know that I have a thing for fun history and sometimes history that is a bit kitschy and there is nothing more kitschy then a song written about the making of the Toronto Subway.

**Originally recorded in 1950, the Toronto Subway Song was written by Mel Hamill. Betty Carr and Charles Baldour performed the vocals, backed by the Ozzie Williams Band (Source).

**When the Toronto Subway Song‘s singers mention “bearing the noise” and the inconvenience caused by construction, they weren’t exaggerating. As crews were excavating one downtown section, for instance, they ran into solid rock that stretched from Front Street to Queen Street. This meant that for much of the excavation period, workers had to use dynamite twice each day — at noon and at 4:30 p.m. — which caused quite a noise disturbance for the city (Source).

Can’t hear the song? Here are the words:

Now have you heard what’s going on in Toronto?
They’re digging deeper, deeper, deeper every day.
Though proprietors are raving while they’re tearing up the paving,
The racket is nerve-wracking, so they say.
And though the noise may be distressing, so construction is progressing,
And we can’t afford a further delay
So with the help of you and me and the blessed T.T.C.
We’ll soon have a real subway.

CHORUS:
Yes, we’re gonna have a subway in Toronto.
We gotta get the working man home pronto.
So bear the noise with a smile and in a little while
We’ll be riding in a new subway.

Now it’s generally conceded that a subway here is needed
For the people have to get to work each day.
We have men in Deseronto, girls who live in North Toronto
And to all of them we have just this to say:
Modern history’s in the making with this hallowed undertaking
And Rome wasn’t built in a day.
You may find it’s aggravating, but be sure it’s worth the waiting
For we’ll soon have a real subway.

Now with modern engineering dear old Yonge Street’s disappearing
By the truckload they are hauling it away (INTERJECTION: Stay away!)
Excavation so extensive will doubtless be expensive
But who cares about expenses anyway? (INTERJECTION: anyway)
Though we may have open Sundays there are plenty of blue Mondays
When the pile drivers start every day
The workmen do the swearing while the public do the staring
And we’ll soon have a real subway. (INTERJECTION: Yes, sir!)

Repeat CHORUS, then:
Don’t take the streetcar,
Riding in a new subway!

To end this post I will leave you with a poem which was written about the bystanders who watched this historic subway being built.

Do you have a Kitschy song about your city?

FURTHER READING:

Vintage Toronto Blog Posts Archive

Liz 🙂

Month: April 2015

Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend 18-Wednesday (Pre Viva day)

The “Kitschy” 1950s Toronto Subway Song