

The sand was sugary and easy to walk on, so I headed up towards the Ocean resort and enjoyed the sights along the way. I felt a lump on my throat as I stepped onto the beach, wishing my long ago classmate was still alive (gone too soon) so I could have shared my adventures. Jitneys were already traversing the boardwalk, ferrying people here and there. The weather was fine, the breeze was just a little salty, and the lurking laughing gulls were ready for whatever the visitors happened to drop. After trying my luck at Caesar's (I'm a player with them in LV), I ventured onto the fabled boardwalk. I took an early (7:30) bus from Port Authority Bus Terminal and found myself in Atlantic City by 10:00 am. The NJ Transit bus offered a relatively quick (compared to the train) option, and the 50% senior discount was great, a whole trip for about $35. Visiting Atlantic City had been on my to do list for years so on this long awaited return to NYC, I decided to venture to the shore for a day. She was from a beach town named Ship Bottom, but always talked about AC. Long before I became a Springsteen fan, a classmate told me about the Jersey Shore. So overall not perfect, but not horrible and still a nice get away. Long waits for food, long waits for outdoor seating, and of course the food here is expensive anyway. This creates quite the challenge for eating. Really the only big hassle with visiting right now is no dining inside. Oh, for the beach it pretty much looked like people practiced social distancing.

For those that tried to get away with it they were told to pull it up or they would need to leave. Inside casinos everyone is required to wear masks and 99% did. However MOST people outdoors were either wearing their masks, had them just under their nose or at least used them when they should have. Once the heat wave broke it was pretty darn crowded. The first couple of days it was pretty quiet because I believe it was just too hot for people to be out and about. Yes there were some people who asked for money but a strong NO and kept walking was all it took. After reading reviews I was worried about the Boardwalk being dumpy and overrun by homeless people.
