ATLANTIC CITY JUNKET
Notwithstanding our geographical dispersion, my sons and I try to get together at least once a year for a brief guys-only vacation. This year, in late March, Erik, Tom and I revisited Atlantic City, NJ – a convenient outpost for earlier trips. Here’s the view of the beach and ocean from our room at Caesar’s.
The views north and south, also taken from our room.
When we arrived the day was bright. . . .
. . . . but later turned quite foggy . . . .
. . . . until the next day, when it was brighter than ever.
Each morning we took a stroll on the deserted beach. The weather was crisp, often windy, but quite refreshing.
The sole signs of life on the beach were this little vehicle and the tire tracks it leaves.
I like the way our lengthened shadows intersect the tire tracks.
Here are two views of the building famed as the former home of the
Miss America pageant for many years.
A few of the hotels located along the beach.
Here are my boys, Erik (l) and Tom(r).
This café sat alongside our hotel.
According to Erik, the slabs were intended to be the floors of small outdoor balconies. The building was never finished, and rumor has it that a fear of suicidal leaps by disgruntled gamblers nixed completion of the balconies.
Some final views of the Atlantic, with a single gull on the beach . . . .
. . . . and a pair on their stilts
The guys pose for their dad in front of some hotel paraphernalia.
Speaking of hotel paraphernalia, how about these relics of days past . . . .
The adjacent down escalator leads you to the casino, which is the main reason we go to Atlantic City (since it’s closer than Las Vegas). We did pretty well this time, almost breaking even. I don’t take photos in the casino, but I couldn’t resist this shot of Erik and me seated at our new favorite craps machine with two large dice bouncing around for flavor.
Here’s the scene outside the casino – lots of coins in the fountain to trigger lots of good luck.
When we visited A.C. back in 2014, we took the top photo at our favorite hat store in the Tropicana Hotel. As you can see below, we revisited the store on this latest trip.
We had some wonderful meals – here, a big dinner at Nobu (I’m sipping sake from a masu cup) . . . .
. . . . and at superb steak and Italian restaurants . . . .
. . . plus hearty breakfasts and delicious snacks.
We held a few impromptu jam sessions in our room – Tom on guitar, Erik on bongos, and me on harmonica. (See the April 2023 music entry to my blog for some idea of what this sounded like.)
Now we’re getting ready to leave town – but first the need to adorn this statue with our “ndy” (“not done yet”) caps.
What’s this Roman guy holding in his right hand?
Oh, that’s what . . . .
The ending of a great (albeit brief) holiday.
One final ride in our favorite stretch limo.
Hey, boys, I’ll see you guys again on a 2024 trip.