I'm really not much of a gambler. Unless of course you count ordering Chinese take-out in Bako. So I couldn't really tell you why I ended up in Bakersfield's only casino. Actually, I could, but it's hardly worth the effort.
Calling it a "casino" is a bit of a stretch. Everything here is a bit of a stretch. Since they lack any Indian co-conspirators, they can't offer slots. So it's basically just a card room. A double-wide card room.
It's in a bad part of town, all things being relative. That assumes there's a good part of town, and that's not an assumption I'm prepared to make. Like everything else here, it backs up on oil fields and train tracks. It's in what I'm guessing is Bako's "red light" district, judging by the number of "No Tell Motels" lining the street. The one across the street offers "convenient trailer parking".
The vibe was low-rent "Sopranos" and the crowd somewhat freakish - it made a Fellini cast look like the Osmonds.
I was too creeped out to stay long.
And I passed on doing any gambling.
I figured I'd already lost too much in this town.
