This morning we left Bellingham a little before noon and wanted to find a place to eat brunch, before heading on the road to our next destination – Verona, New York. We drove for at LEAST five miles and didn’t see one restaurant, until we finally saw a little place called “Judy’s Place – Breakfast and Lunch.” We walked in and the waitress said, “Sorry, we’re closing.” We thought we were on Candid Camera or something (I guess I’m dating myself with that reference). Then she said, “We close at noon on Sundays.” We couldn’t believe it. What kind of town IS this? Anyway, we then found a place called “Coffee Sensations,” which must be a chain, because we noticed one in Cape Cod, too. We had delicious wraps and got some desserts to go. You don’t realize until you leave New York how lucky we are that there is a restaurant on every corner. There’s just so much variety in the city and there’s slim pickin’s outside the city, unless you go to a real tourist town – like Woodstock or Cape Cod.
We got on the road to Verona after brunch, and arrived at around 5:30pm. We are staying at The Villages at Turning Stone RV Park, an enterprise of the Oneida Indian Nation. It’s right down the road from the Turning Stone Resort and Casino. The place is very fancy and all the sites are paved, with lawns around them. I think it’s much nicer than dirt roads, although the woods and ponds in other campsites are picturesque. The truth is, I’m just NOT a nature girl – never will be! I used to say that my idea of "roughing it" was a motel, instead of a hotel. Well, I've been roughing it since we left Whitestone, because our Chinook is not the height of luxury, but it's cozy and romantic, and camping has been fun and totally different than anything I've ever done before.
We left the casino $10 up!
There’s a free shuttle that picks you up right at your campsite and brings you to the casino – 24 hours a day – 7 days a week! The last time Eric and I were at a casino together was 23 years ago – September 27, 1984 – the day my niece, Keri, was born. My in-laws asked us to join them on a trip to Atlantic City. We discovered VERY quickly that we are NOT gamblers. We’re sore losers. It was exactly the same tonight. We started with $100. We played some of the slot machines, but they’re no fun, because you don’t even pull the one-armed bandit anymore. You just push a button. We also played roulette, but our favorite was the Money Wheel. We played that for about an hour and left with $110. We were so happy we were up $10. I’m sure Turning Point will soon be inviting us for a free weekend, since we’re such high rollers!!!!!
We’ll be heading to Niagara Falls tomorrow. My parents honeymooned there 56 years ago, so I’m really looking forward to seeing it for myself!