Atlantic City Stopover & Delaware Bay Ferry Crossing
Spent the whole of Monday in Brooklyn and Staten Island, checking out the latest in Coney Island, Brighton Beach and South Beach. Nothing much different - Chili dogs at Nathan's Famous still taste just as good and Coney Island remains as wacky as ever. Brighton Beach seemed a bit more multi-cultual than before - lots more Eastern European languages and accents.
Monday evening, I left behind the Big Apple and set out on what promises to be a fun summer roadtrip, even if it's a bit more frugal than in years past. Raced past many small NJ towns - all very beautiful and plenty of beaches, but nothing which had neon blinkers and said 'Summer Fun.' The small town scenario came to an abrupt end when I hit Atlantic City.
It was almost 6.30 pm and I'd still miss the last Cape May-Lewes ferry for the day even if I made it to Cape May, so I decided to spend the night in Atlantic City. My first test and taste of frugal living was to check into one of the Atlantic City motels. I'd seen more than a few dumps on Route 66 a few months ago, but I didn't want to do any more of those experiments, so I just checked into a Motel 6 - Better to face a known evil than take on unknown hazards.
Had an early dinner and then spent most of my downtime in AC in a bar on the beach. I was tired, and in no mood for making like a tourist and walking along the boardwalk. You seen it once, it gets kindof annoying after that - unlike New York, where things keep changing so fast, it's like a whole new place, everytime you go there.
Tuesday morning, I lit out of AC like the Roadrunner with Wile E Coyote after me. It was the first official full day of the trip, and I was eager to cover as much ground as possible. Swept past Ocean City, Avalon and Wildwood and screeched to a halt at the Cape May-Lewes Ferry crossing. The ferry's quite large, but you need to call ahead if you have a vehicle, since they have limited space for cars.
The 17 mile, 70 minute trip was as good as it's made out to be - very scenic views of the shores on both sides, and especially the Lewes Lighthouse, which kinda looks like a submarine about to go under. Once on dry land again, I grabbed a quick bite to eat at the Lewes Food Court - breakfast muffins and coffee. Already feeling the fresh air and now with a full tummy, I headed straight for Rehoboth Beach, which is my base for an exploration of the Delaware beaches.
Rehoboth Beach is supposed to be the summer fun capital of the NorthEast, if not the US, so it was a major point on my map. I'd be exploring the City later in the evening, but for now, I just wanted to get a feel of the oceanfront. The mile long boardwalk seemed promising enough and while it's not Miami or even Myrtle Beach, Rehoboth Beach is pretty good a place to be - if you're in Delaware. The whole of Tuesday and half of Wednesday is set aside for the Delaware, after which I'll be moving on to the Carolinas.
