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| Source |
We know Las Vegas, Macau, Hong Kong, Beijing, or many other
world class cities that have the gambling business culture. What usually comes
with gambling is entertainment. Dancing, alcohol, and musics are inherent
with gambling industry. Some of us usually see these things first on TV shows,
particularly Hollywood movies. I recall movies like Casino, and Jacky Chan’s,
Rush Hour, he fights in a casino. This gives us a virtual experience about the casino industry that we typically heard conservative, and religious people would
not want them in their backyard. However, seeing this kind of environment gives
us a different perspective. It tells us another way of life of other people in
another hemisphere. Some folks may put themselves incompatible to such a culture, but all we need to do in the US, and it is
applicable elsewhere, is just abide rules,
respect people, and do not forget to respect yourself. That’s all we can do for
our self-preservation while out.
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| A Mixed Beachfront Features Photograph |
I have not gone to any of the aforementioned places, but I
did see the same thing that casino cities value in Atlantic City. Located in
the east coast of the US, New Jersey, Atlantic City is full of beach goers. Nearly
everyone you see at the beach is likely a tourist. But it is hard to notice
their purpose of coming there whether they come for gambling or for the beach.
Regardless of this, the beach and casinos are complementarily attracting people
to come. These two variables: place and activity determine one’s culture that stimulate outsiders' curiosity to see. No matter who come for what, but I came there to see
whatever I encounter along the way. I had some pre-existing knowledge over the
city’s image before going, but, what I found was beyond my expectation. The
city is full of prostitutes. So, go back to think about the flip side of the casino
industry, it shows that prostitution is halal
in the casino world. “Welcome sir.” said by a student-rate hostel front desk
guy, whom (an Indian) I fought with over the room’s cost because I felt like he
charged me more than what the room deserves. Believe me, if you are ever being
a student traveling in a high living cost city with few resources, your marketing
skill would come out automatically. I don’t know what to call a skill needed to
bid a price of something to level your willingness to pay, but you name it. I
mean that kind of skill is honed through this impromptu way.
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| Source |
Atlantic City’s sky is penetrated by lights at that night.
Casino, hotel, and apartment buildings are calling visitors with their brands.
As the bus approached the city, this was vivid to me. But, they were too
expensive. Instead, I was looking for a-two-night home that could lend me a bed
for some hours with very minimum service. Such this accommodation is not vivid,
it does not stand out, and it is hiding. Something inexpensive usually requires
more efforts to get. It requires us to disembark from a plane, get a bus, walk a
little bit, and ask a right question a right person to get. Got into a bus to a
hostel I found in Internet, I hopped out at the bus station. I saw storey and
old buildings lined up in the same street corridor where one of them I would
stay at. While I was walking, the breeze of the Atlantic coast made me feel
like “I was home, Dili.”
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| Casinos and Hotels |
I started to look around to see if I could find another good
deal option. Walking from block after block, I encountered pimps. “Hey man, do
you need a gal?” a couple of men asked me. Hearing all my sorry responses, they
would not talk to me anymore. They were good guys, by the way. I was imagining
like “if I stay in such a hostel, I will sleep in prostitute nest. That feeling
freaked me out in so many ways. I then decided to go back to adopt my original
plan, heading to a hostel which I had virtual knowledge over it. The face of hostel
building looked equivalent to my budget.
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| The Hostel |
I was welcomed by that Indian guy at the front desk. He could see my style that I came to a right place.
He told me the price which I thought was higher than what I saw on Internet. I
teased him by saying to move to the next hostel, but he was so smart to make me
felt like “the next door hostel is expensive, and that would hurt my budget.”
We fought for the deal over 5 minutes. That transaction was ridiculous to me
because as far as I know, the majority of hostels in the US use fixed
prices. Prices can up and down depending on whether weekdays or weekends, but a reception staff can not make it up at will. It won't happen because of the computerized management system they use. But, seeing the hostel uses the manual payment method (writing on a receipt) as well as that
person’s x factor, I felt it was appropriate.
While I was finishing the payment process, a girl sneaked in from the reception door.
The guy noticed and shooed her saying “sshhhh, go out ..go..out.” The girl desperately asked him to
let her get into a room where her fiends stayed. But that tough guy would not
let her in. This indicated to me that I was in a prostitute-free hostel. When I
was going out to get some food for my dinner, I saw the prostitution activity was suspiciously going. This happened around
the blocks of casino buildings, and hotels. I perceived it as part of the gambling industry. It may or may not legal in this place, but the fact is that prostitution and gambling are symbiotic economically, and that it is a economic base for cities to rake dollars.
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| From the Beachfront Restaurant View |
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| The Beachfront Elevated Public Space |
Morning arrived; the warmth of summer from the beach kicked in and was felt
from the hostel's doorsteps outside. My passion to see new things pushed me to hurry up to go out;
to go out to socialize with strangers, to communicate with them through silence and respect, and to communicate with the place's hardware features through appreciation of the modern human civilization.
It was completely a different atmosphere when I got into the beach area. That night's negative impressions had gone, and vanished from my mind once I walked out from the sight blocking buildings, I looked at the Atlantic ocean horizon. It was so relieving.
The beachfront was truly designed for people. Swimmers, walkers, cyclists, shoppers, have their own space to roam and stay. The wooden elevated walking space is impressive. It is a typical US coastal city designed for beach goers who just finished their hibernation during the winter to just seek hot summer. It does not need to have trees, but adequate facility, more shopping options, and skillful entertainment attractions that the place has to offer. This is the balance for casino and prostitution activities at night.
It was completely a different atmosphere when I got into the beach area. That night's negative impressions had gone, and vanished from my mind once I walked out from the sight blocking buildings, I looked at the Atlantic ocean horizon. It was so relieving.
The beachfront was truly designed for people. Swimmers, walkers, cyclists, shoppers, have their own space to roam and stay. The wooden elevated walking space is impressive. It is a typical US coastal city designed for beach goers who just finished their hibernation during the winter to just seek hot summer. It does not need to have trees, but adequate facility, more shopping options, and skillful entertainment attractions that the place has to offer. This is the balance for casino and prostitution activities at night.
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| The Pier |
**Hope this gives you an inspiration.
