A Surprise or How we (non-gamblers) ended up in Atlantic City . . .

I have always avoided cities where the main entertainment is gambling, where most visitors remain sequestered in dark, chilled rooms, working their machines with the blinking lights and carnival sounds. But the exception--a wedding shower for my son and his fiancée was to be held in Atlantic City.

My daughter and I were invited but not expected, given that we live “out of town,” in Florida and France. But my daughter started thinking. What if we made a surprise visit? We told no one of our plans except the mother and sister of the bride-to-be. We arrived for an informal brunch, disguised in floppy hats and big sunglasses. It was a surprise.

We had some surprises with the city itself. We had expected loud music on the boardwalk and waves of tourists. We didn’t expect hustlers (always with a proposition), exorbitant fees of ATM machines and lack of grocery stores . . . combined to wear us down. But we found respite in quiet evenings at Bungalow’s, a Mediterranean restaurant with a large outdoor terrace and tango music in the background and in beaches at the south end of the boardwalk.

Our last day in Atlantic City should have been with family and friends at the wedding shower. But a series of thunderstorms with high winds (known as a derecho) charged through the Mid-Atlantic states early Saturday morning, leaving much of the area (with the exception of the casinos) without electricity. Needless to say, the wedding shower had to be postponed, and many people are still without electricity. If you go-- - Atlantic Club Casino Hotel – nice rooms and good rates (if you use Hotels.com or Expedia) at the south end of the boardwalk. Easy parking. Best to go during a weekday. - Bungalow’s restaurant—corner of the boardwalk and California Avenue. Also numerous fast-food and high-end restaurants (in casino hotels) line the boardwalk. - Jitney transportation (along Pacific Avenue, to casino hotels, marina and Tanger Outlet mall). $2.50 - A nature reprieve – wetlands and marshes near Cape May in the south and the Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge just north. - Other – Going south—Margate has luxury beach homes and Lucy the Elephant. Wildwood, a beachside resort with boardwalk has the amusement park rides, fast-food and souvenir stores as well as restaurants, Wawa grocery stores, liquor/wine stores, and ATM machines. - Travel –Direct flights from Orlando and other cities (some cities have direct flights only in the summer). Philadelphia International Airport is an easy drive (about an hour).