Day 42 - I Love Lucy!

By the time we woke up this morning it seemed like most of the people at the campsite had upped and left.  With July 4th over it was the end of their long weekend - but luckily not for us!

We soon followed suit though and began our 3 hour drive towards Atlantic City.  On the way we briefly passed through the state of Delaware, catching glimpses of the suburbs along the drive, including a big flashy diner.  Not too long after we made it to the state of New Jersey!

Arriving in Atlantic City it was a lot bigger than I thought it would be - I imagined the boardwalk with just a few shops and not much else.  There were massive hotels and casinos along the front, including a Caesar's Palace, a Trump hotel and a Tropicana hotel, also situated on the Las Vegas strip.

Look at me sitting on her foot!

Before heading towards the main boardwalk we took a little detour about 10 minutes down the road as we'd read about a roadside attraction just off the beach.  We were on the lookout for a giant elephant - it shouldn't be too hard to spot, and there it was - bigger and brighter than I had imagined!

Me inside Lucy's belly!

The elephant, or Lucy as she's called, dates from 1881.  A property developer had wanted a gimmick to attract people to live in Margate, just south of Atlantic City.  It worked for a short while, but then after a year he sold it.  During its time it became a tavern and a private home - the elephant is hollow with staircases, one main floor and a viewing platform right on top of the elephant's back!

The view from Lucy's eye!

It was seven dollars each to have a tour inside Lucy, you enter via Lucy's left hind leg, and the steep narrow spiral staircase takes you up into her belly.  There are windows and a few small steps take you to her head, and you can actually look out of her eyes to the view of the beach - strange but fun!  They played a short film with old footage of Lucy, explaining her history.

Oli on top of Lucy

After years of neglect she was about to be demolished to make way for condominiums, but through community fundraising she was saved and then restored to her former glory.  She is now the oldest purpose-built roadside attraction in the US, and the largest elephant in the world, at 90 tons and 65 feet high!  Go Lucy!

It was early evening by now and we hadn't booked a campsite to stay at but we wanted to have a quick stroll on the boardwalk.  The first thing that struck me when we got out of the RV was the beautiful smell of the sea and fresh air.  As we got closer to the boardwalk I could smell the sweet smell of sugary doughnuts.  My stomach gave a little lurch and I realised it was time for dinner!  We grabbed a seat and a slice of pizza each and sat watching "Jersey Shore" types strutting past us!  It had a real laid-back vibe and I'm looking forward to going back there tomorrow and spending some proper time on and off the boardwalk.

We found a campsite about 10 miles away which we've settled down for the night in.  We're thinking that we may stay tomorrow night as well so we can have a full day and two nights in Atlantic City, but we'll see what way the wind takes us tomorrow!

J&O