Monte Carlo: Casino - October 2006

We had a two day conference in Monte Carlo with speed dating would you believe. To save the costs for one overnight, we took the first morning flight to Nice and then the air taxi to Monte Carlo. If we had taken the coast road with a ground taxi we would had not arrived in time for the opening of the conference.
This was my first, and to date my only helicopter ride. It was not a very nice flight, quick yes - pleasant no - it was cramped as we had to share it with other business people. I had to cuddle my hand luggage on my lap, it didn’t fit under my seat or anybody else’s for that matter and to top it all off there was a penetrating sink of diesel.
I could hardly see anything out the window, due to other bodies in difference types of contortion blocking the view. I took a few pictures, but due to the heavy vibration of the craft they turned out ‘un-sharp’. We were only 20 minutes in the air. Was I glad to land, I couldn’t hold my breath a minute longer!

At least we were in time for the opening of the conference and able to grab the last of the coffee and cake before going in. The first day was long and mostly boring, there was going to be a dinner that evening in the Hotel de Paris. Our hotel (conference was in the same building) was not that far from the venue, just a little around the bay, and as the weather was quite warm for late October, we went on foot. Looking at the cars parked out front gave an idea of the clientele we’ll find inside..

The interior was impressive, so was the meal. Beforehand, at the hotel reception, we were given complementarily passes to enter the casino. So after the meal we went to have a look. On entering the casino my initial impression of the décor was typical for a historic place in past glory and the phase ‘past glory’ was apt, at a second glance the place looked a little frayed at the edges. I was a little disappointed, although I’m not sure why. Actually I didn’t know what I expected.
Maybe a brightly lit film set, something out of a Bond film. Actually the lighting was somewhat subdued. It could have been due to the place being mostly empty except for a fellow conference guests who had a pass and were meandering around in groups scared to approach a table on their own, in case the gambling bug took over.
After ones eyes had adjusted to the light one could see that the walls and ceiling were in the same style as the restaurant. The room/hall was very large with five or six roulette tables scattered around the middle. In the peripheral where numerous card tables mainly empty. Only one roulette table that had any life forms associated with it. It was a picture that could have come from a cheap B film (no, not B for Bond).
I thought I would stop and watch. I was not the only one.

The cast consisted of six. The script dictated three in the role of Casino staff, one croupier and two lackeys. In addition there were three in the role of guests, the player and two female accessories. I can only imagine that for this scene the director gave the cast the instructions to look as bored as possible, the rest was left to the actor’s own talents.
The croupier was sitting on a high chair at one end of the table, the guests directly opposite at the other end. The two assistant’s, one on each side of the table, were waiting in turn for any sporadic action from the other cast members.
The player was late middle aged, what I would call a slimy type. He was lying back in his chair, drinking champagne and concentrating on visually undressing his female companions, winning or losing on the table was of no concern to him.

After observing the scene for about ten minutes there appeared to be a pattern emerging. A ‘round’ consisted of a series of decent coughs at appropriate intervals from the croupier until he got the players attention. The player would then literary pull himself away from ‘molesting’ the girls and reluctantly focus on the table. If the table was empty that is he had lost the last round, he would delve into his jacket pocket and pull out a fist sized rolled up wad of 500€ notes, peel one off, hand it to one of the lackeys, receive back the equivalent in chips and with as little physical effort at possible, pile them on red.
At this point he would fall back into whispering, I take it French, innuendos into the feminine ears around him which would start a bout of giggling and cuddling in return. The croupier would normally be obligated to say ‘rien ne va plus’ before spinning the wheel - but as there was only ‘Slimy’ occupied elsewhere he didn’t bother. The wheel was spun and the ball added. After a period of unpredictable collisions the wheel and ball would come to rest. The croupier either pulled in the pile of chips or added winnings. If the player had won, the player with minimal effort would remove a couple of the chips from the pile and throw them in the direction of the croupier who would gather them up and sweep them into a black opening on the table directly in front of where he was sitting. This whole action was in silence and hardly, if any, acknowledgement from both sides of the table.
After a reserved dignified pause, the croupier would cough, the player would nod and they were off again! I must admit this was all a little weird. I couldn’t keep tags on how much money was being exchanged and thinking back now I’m glad I don’t know, but the whole thing looked so artificial. I ‘bet’ it wasn’t though; there was a regular routine going on here in its own little world totally oblivious to us, the onlookers. I could imagine the guy spending most of his evenings ‘entertaining’ himself in this way, poor chap.

Following the ‘show’, we wondered back to the hotel taking in a part of the F1 route, from the casino to the beginning of the tunnel Bd. Louis II. It was only a short section but you got the feeling of respect for the F1 drivers as they manoeuvre at high speed through such narrow streets and tight curves. I get out the PS3 every now and then and try the circuit, dam hard even in simulation, I have to stay in beginner mode otherwise it’s a continuous stream of crashes.