New York VII

The next day we went to eat bagels at Ess-a-Bagel (831 3rd Avenue). I strongly recommend the whole wheat bagel with baked (not smoked!) salmon, it's just delicious. However, expect long lines at lunchtime. Then we boarded a Greyhound Bus to Atlantic City in the state New Jersey. The city is famous for casino gambling, shopping malls and sandy beaches. As we stayed over night, we booked a room in the Trump Plaza, which is a hotel with a huge gambling hall in the heart of the building. Funny enough, we all slept in the same room that had two beds for the five of us. As the name Atlantic City already indicates, it lies directly at the sea. So it was just rational to eat at Phillips Seafood. But don't expect much, it's pretty touristy and there are heaps of people eating there. The main dish, Ahi Tuna, was delicious but the starter, a shrimp cocktail, was nothing special. After dinner we took a taxi to the newest and most glorious casino in Atlantic City, The Borgata. It was build for $1.1 billion in 2003 and indeed, it's grand and carries the glory of Las Vegas. And here the impression comes true, money does attract beautiful women. There was a dance club in the Borgata and as we glimpsed inside, we had the feeling of taking part in a movie, all the tall tanned girls were dressed in very short skirts and high-heels that could not be higher, gorgeous. You can imagine the contrast we felt when we returned to our room with the two beds for five people.

The next day we returned to New York. We purchased a combined ticket for the Rockefeller Center, so we could go up to the top both on daytime and at night. The building with a height of 259m is only the ninth tallest in New York. However it offers spectacular views on Manhattan with the Empire State Building, Downtown, the Hudson River and Central Park. The $30 entrance fee is a lot, but I guess it's worth it. That evening we went to eat at the second-best Steakhouse in New York, the Wolfgang's. However, to the pleasure of my friends, I ordered a grilled tuna and the Wolfgang Salad as starter. Actually I preferred the Wolfgang's, but more because of the location and the interior because I couldn't compare the steaks.