It's the principality of the thing: One hour in Monaco

Sometimes when you're traveling, you just have to go a specific place, just so you can later say, "Been there, done that." And so it is with Monaco.

Both my sister and I had visited here, but Ken hadn't, so we go the few extra kilometers to get a quick look at this ultra upscale (and vertically upright) principality. 

We exit the train station via the new upper part, causing us Monaco veterans to become dazed and confused. We can see the palace over there, across the bay, but the famous Monte Carlo casino eludes us. After a few wrong turns, I ask directions in my best French and get the answers I need in even better English. 

We plan to catch the next train to Nice, but we have enough time to peek into the lobby (admission to the casino itself would have been 10 euros) and note the décor is much more sedate than the razzle-dazzle of Reno and Vegas casinos. Happily, we can save our gambling allowance for our next stop: Nice.