Ocean City Observations

I just got back from a week long vacation in Ocean City, Maryland. Here are some observations I have made along the way.

Cars, Cars, Cars

The biggest problem facing tourists here, by far, is parking. Come to think of it, this problem is not limited to Ocean City. More on that later. Ocean City is a very long very narrow peninsula. Ten or twelve miles long, and only three streets wide at its widest. Upwards of 400,000 people come here each weekend. And parking is the worst problem. Of course, everyone drives here from wherever they live. There are no trains, no airports, and very limited public transportation. Don’t get me wrong, I am not faulting those modes of travel, nor am I faulting people for wanting to travel places by car. I prefer to travel by car myself. But it’s clear to me that parking is a major problem here.

Just about every available inch of space that is not beach or boardwalk or hotel or shop is set aside for parking. Two spots here, three spots there, one spot here. Signs everywhere saying when you can and cannot park, who can and cannot park here, where you will be towed, and so on. Oh, I don’t have a solution here, I am just noticing the problem.

Setting aside a large parking area and shuttling people in and out, that won’t work either. Because most of the time, people want the freedom of their own cars, myself included. To enjoy the boardwalk, the first thing one wants to do is not wait in a line to board buses. For those tourists who stay in condos or hotels on or near the boardwalk, they must be able to park nearby, and that simply is not possible in this town.

Like I said, I have no solution. It’s a shame we’ve evolved into a society that relies on personal vehicles so much, and that doesn’t even begin to get into the problems of fuel, pollution, and traffic.

Glasnost

Very early in our stay here we realized that just about all of the low-paying service staff were foreigners, mostly Russian! Waiters, waitresses, take-out window help, fast food help, boardwalk shop employees, almost all of them were Russian! This got the better of my curiosity and I had to ask. It turns out that they are all foreign exchange students spending a summer in the US earning some extra cash and enjoying the ocean atmosphere while doing it. They all come over in a group, and apparently this is a very organized operation. There is even an international student “association” located in town, which appears to handle all of it.

I find this a very interesting concept. For one, the kids get to travel where they normally would not have. The local people here are bound to rub elbows with them, and if they’re anything like me, they’ll come away with an appreciation for people they may not have had the chance to get to know otherwise.

I do not think this situation is 100% good for all involved, though. I am sure the local merchants get cheap help. But I have known of summer tourist spots “recruiting” at colleges and such for summer help, room and board included. And the conditions are often deplorable. Six people to a room that would normally sleep two. Six day weeks with eleven hour days. And a severe penalty if you miss work OR do not finish your tour of duty through the summer. Leave a week early, and you miss a significant bonus. Without that bonus, your hourly wages average less than minimum wage.

I’d love to learn more about the whole thing, to see if they bring in students from other locales, for example. Do some kids come back more than one summer? Do any ever defect and choose to stay, I wonder? That must be a touchy topic. What are the requirements and legal restrictions, background checks? Do they regret the decision by the end of the summer?

Here's a link: Click Me

The End of an Era

I finally got around to seeing Star Wars Episode III tonight. It took me a long time but I vowed to see it in a theater, and not wait till it came on DVD. I almost lost the chance, waiting this long.

Good or bad, well or poorly made, one thing hit me like a ton of bricks when the credits started rolling at the end: this is truly the end. There's no more to anticipate. It's all over. The final chapter is closed and there aren't going to be any more. And that's a very hard thing to swallow.

No, I don't worship the ground Lucas walks on, but you have to give him some credit for a few things over the years. Not the least of which is grabbing the imaginations and hearts of millions of guys like me who simply drank up his movies like sweet, sweet wine.

It was hard not to be caught up in the whole Star Wars frenzy. I was the ripe age of six when I saw the original Star Wars. In an actual theater, no less. Yes, first run. The imagery, story, and imagination had me by the throat for these past 28 years. Oh, I was never a "geek" about it, I never went to a convention nor did I become so involved that I learned how to speak Wookie. But still, I was thrilled when each new movie came out, and I found it hard to bash Lucas even when others did.

So tonight when the house lights came up, I actually shed a tear. In a way this signals the end of my childhood. The story that began when I was six has now completed. I can't tap into that feeling anymore, in anticipation of the next movie. There are none to anticipate.

Time to grow up.

I think it's hard for all the younger folks in the audience to feel what I am feeling tonight. There were a few other moviegoers, several of them teens or people in their early twenties. Not having seen all six, in theaters, first run ... I think they miss out on something. I can recall my father telling me when he saw The Wizard of Oz in the theater, and when Dorothy walked out of the house after it landed in Oz, the literal blast of color on the screen was dazzling. That was a distinct "you gotta be there" experience, and I think that I have one of those now, one that just cannot be put into words.

Notice I didn't say how good the movie was. Or whether it was accurate, or well acted. And I don't think I will. It doesn't matter anyway. I won't change anyone's opinion on the matter. And besides, it truly doesn't even matter to me. It's like an elegant meal with six courses well chosen to go with each other. Consider them as a whole, not as seperate parts. There are strong and weak points, but as a whole, they stand proud.

And now that the dessert has been savored, it is time to bid adieu to the restaurant, thank the chef, tip the waiter, and move on. As I push back from the table that was the Star Wars universe ... I am satisfied.