Las Vegas, Nevada.
Warning: This is part 2 of a several part post. Here is a link to part 1.
http://royvegas.blogspot.com/2012/02/las-vegas-vs-atlantic-city-part-1.html
And now...
Las Vegas vs Atlantic City (part 2)
So the 4 1/2 hour bus trip is followed by 5 hours of being essentially on foot without a room. There's no room, it's a day trip.
The Showboat, which was indeed my dropoff casino was located at one end of the Atlantic City strip of casinos. After walking many casinos away, the rest of the afternoon was a constant consciousness of how knowing what time it was, and relating that to how far I had to walk to get back to the other end of the casino strip, and with it, the majestic Showboat bus terminal.
On one side of the casino strip is a boardwalk and the ocean; on the other side is a decaying neighborhood. Tourists stay between the boardwalk and the neighborhood.
Funnel cakes. Apparently funnel cakes are a big thing there. So is salt water taffy, but funnel cakes are funny.
A lot of birds on the boardwalk. When food remainders such as a funnel cake fragment or a freshly mowed corn on the cob hit the boardwalk, the birds dive.
The boardwalk is the main way to get to the other casinos. Rickshaw taxis are available for hire on the boardwalk. I don't remember how much it was, but I do remember that it seemed way too much.
Something creepy anyway, about using a rickshaw in New Jersey by a rickshaw pilot who looked sort of recovering. From something. Major.
Hot women in in bikinis or spandex would get the Atlantic City rickshaw business moving.
It would get something moving anyway.
On the escalator to the buffet, (I think it was the Virginia City Buffet) I was accosted by an old woman who was selling coupons to the buffet which she collected from local papers. Buy one, get one coupons, that she would sell for 2 dollars.
The buffet was good in the sense that I was hungry. But all the food was salty, and I wondered if it was a way of deterring people from eating too much.
The slots were not particularly good, although I did drop a single quarter in one machine, and immediately won $50 (fifty dollars). All the other machines, however, were stingy.
I was not impressed in a good way by the cleanliness of many casino floors, nor was I impressed overall with the bearing and attitude and helpfulness of casino employees.
Not everyone was bad. But too few were excellent.
Let me look at my watch and see how much longer until I have to get back on the bus at The Showboat.
...To be continued.
