WAITING IN THE RENAISSANCE WASHINGTON HOTEL FOR MY BUS

It was my last day in Washington DC after having a great time visiting my family for Thanksgiving weekend .

My Flixbus back to New York City was leaving at 1:30pm and due to arrive at 5:45pm.

Because of the Winter Storm Advisory issued for New York City , I was going to try to get on an earlier bus, say like the 12:30pm one.

No such luck.

It was full and unlike my bus, it was stopping in Baltimore.

My bus was going non stop back to the city.

We ended up getting in at 6pm which wasn’t bad seeing that the weather was awful .

As it was raining cats and dogs while waiting for the bus, one of the valet parking people suggested that I do what other people were doing , waiting in the lobby of the Renaissance Washington DC Hotel, which is where the bus picks you up, 904 9th Street NW.

I had never stayed in this hotel, either in Washington DC or anywhere else.

But I knew that it was one of those fancy, smantzy hotels.

They’re so fancy that if you want to use the bathroom in the lobby, you have to go up to the Front Desk and get a room key , which you have to give back, of course .

As I couldn’t get on the earlier bus, I had some time to kill.

So I did what a few people who were either waiting for the bus or hotel guests did .

I went into Starbucks and got a Cheese Danish and one of my favorite coffees whenever I go to Starbucks , a small Vanilla Latte.

I went back to the entrance with the revolving door and listened to the music that was coming out of the loud speaker.

It wasn’t Christmas music , thank God , but something you wouldn’t expect from such a fancy place.

Try Alternative Rock.

By this time it was 1:15pm and I was ready to leave rainy Washington DC and take my bus to snow, sleet, and just gosh awful weather in New York City .

RIDING ON OUR BUS

That is the real name of the green and white bus that leaves from either 26th Street and Madison Avenue or Gate 23 or 25 from Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City like I did the day before Thanksgiving .

The bus going down to Washington DC was clean, or at least the one I was on was.

The fare was high, $40 one way, but thats because I waited until the last minute to buy my ticket .

(How last minute? Say about the day of at 10:30am and my bus left at 3pm)

It was my first time taking this bus and they even give you a free bottle of water with a label that has the company name on it.

You can’t beat that.

I will ride this bus again , but I’m going to get my ticket a lot earlier next time.

RIDING ON THE FLIXBUS

Whenever I go on one of my 30 Plus Teams Tour by bus, it’s usually either Megabus or Greyhound from New York City .

Coming back from this 30 Plus Teams Tour of Washington DC , I took a bus from a company that I had never heard of before, but according to a few of the passengers traveling on the bus also, Flixbus is a well known bus company in Europe .

The fare that I paid for returning back to New York City was, with the tax $6.99.

That’s right, I didn’t stutter , I said $6.99 with the tax and I had a whole seat to myself .

The bus, which is bright green, is really a motorcoach.

The seats are very comfortable, complete with seatbelts and a cup holder .

There’s no electrical outlets for you to charge your phone or other electrical doodads, or at least I didn’t see any.

So bring that portable charger with you and make sure that it’s charged up.

There is wifi on the bus though, and compared to the wifi on Greyhound , this is top notch .

Unlike the other bus companies that go to and from Washington DC , the Flixbus doesn’t go to Union Station .

You pick it up across the street from the Renaissance Washington on 9th Street NW, near New York Avenue.

Even when you arrive in New York , the Flixbus doesn’t go to Port Authority like Greyhound does or 27th Street and 7th Avenue the way Megabus does.

The bus drops you off at 31st and 8th Avenue at Penn Station , very convenient if you have that subway, New Jersey Transit train, or Long Island Railroad train to catch.

God willing , if available , I will be taking this bus again .

It was fast, clean, even the bathroom didn’t have that bathroom nasty smell that you find on other buses.

If you happen to be visiting the United States and Flixbus goes to the city that you want visit, if the price is right, by all means , take it.

You won’t be disappointed .

Or at least , I wasn’t .

FUN TIMES AND LOTS OF SILLINESS IN ATLANTIC CITY

The Sports Diva is on another 30 Plus Teams Tour.

This time I’m going to the original place to gamble, Atlantic City , New Jersey .

Shoutout to Ken Dowell from Off The Lease for correctly guessing where I was going,

I’m not going to a sporting event as there aren’t any professional sports teams in town but you can place a bet on sports teams in United States and Canada, and it’s all legal.

That’s not what I’m here for, though .

I’m here with family members for some rest and relaxation .

Some money might be won and a lot of money will be lost.

We’re even staying at the same hotel that we stayed at last year.

Of course, I’m bringing you along with me for all the Atlantic City craziness .

I’m here for three days, so who knows what kind of craziness is gonna hsppen.

Can’t wait, God willing.

Here’s to some fun times in Atlantic City .

HELLO CITY OF BROTHERLY LOVE

It’s July 4th and what would this day be without celebrating the birthday of the country in the place where the Declaration of Independence was written , Philadelphia , Pennsylvania .

I have been to Philadelphia many times but not in the past couple of years and especially not on July 4th.

I rode the 2:35pm Megabus ,which starts at 34th Street and 11th ave.

It’s supposed to be a 2hr ride depending on traffic , but with the way the driver was driving it might be shorter.

It seemed as though he either wanted to get home to eat some food , see the firecrackers or maybe he had a plane to catch because he went through the Lincoln Tunnel really fast.

When I and the other passengers finally settled in , the driver made several announcements .

One of which I really wasn’t in the mood to hear.

‘This bus will only be making ONE stop in Philadelphia today. Due to the July 4th parade , we will NOT be stopping at 6th and Market Street . ‘

Wouldn’t you know it?

That’s the stop that’s the closest to the hostel that I’m staying at .

It’s only 3-4 blocks away from 6th and Market.

I was going to have to do one of two things .

Take the SEPTA train from 30th street down to 2nd Street or walk 27 blocks to the Hostel.

As I’m only staying one night, I don’t have that many bags.

As the bus is getting closer and closer to Philly , I haven’t decided what I’m going to do yet.

No matter what I decide to do , all that matters is that I’m spending America’s 243rd birthday in America’s first capital , Philadelphia .

GETTING THAT WORLD PRIDE FEELING IN NEW YORK CITY

June 30th was the World Pride Day parade here in New York City .

I was never interested in attending this parade when it was the Gay Pride parade.

It wasn’t that I didn’t care about Gay Rights, but I’m not going to get political because that isn’t what 30 Plus Teams 30 Plus Dreams is all about.

I was a participating as a volunteer marcher.

Yes, I walked the length of the parade route from 33rd street all the way down to Christopher Street , past the Stonewall Bar, where 50 years ago, the Stonewall Riots took place.

Stonewall is now a historical landmark by the way.

Now if you know New York City , you know that when the streets no longer have numbers, but letters and names , it’s a long way.

But my friends and I had a great time marching and throwing out pucks that said, ‘Hockey Is For Everyone” and waving to the happy people who lined the streets of New York City , even though it was after 9pm.

Wait a minute here.

You say you’re surprised that the Sports Diva was involved in something that had to do with sports?

You either don’t know me very well or are a newbie to 30 Plus Teams 30 Plus Dreams .

If sports are somehow involved , I am there!

When the NHL asked for fans of the three area hockey teans, the Rangers , Devils and Islanders to march under the banner of “You Can Play” and “Hockey Is For Everyone “, it just wasn’t the New York area hockey fans that wanted to do this, but there were fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs , Washington Capitals and Philadelphia Flyers that were ready to tell the world that indeed , Hockey is for everyone.

By the number of high fives and a couple of “Let’s Go Devils, Rangers Suck” cheers , a lot of people along the parade route agreed.

Many of them weren’t only waving the rainbow colored flag, but they were waving the You Can Play and Hockey Is For Everyone flags.

Some of them even were waving flags with the NHL shield in rainbow colors .

It was a festive occasion and the weather was perfect even at night.

No high humidy which is rare for a summer night in New York City .

Next year, God willing , if the NHL asks for volunteers , I’m going to do it again .

SINGING THE PRAISES OF NO COVER NIGHTCLUBS

Let me first of all say, it might sound like it, but this isn’t a sponsored post.

I’m not being paid to say or write nice things about this company, which is based in Las Vegas , Nevada .

Even if they did pay me, I’m still going to tell you how I feel about this company and I’m going to keep it 100 because that’s just how the Sports Diva rolls .

As some of you know or may not know , I lived in Vegas for three years from 2007-2010 and I’ve visited the city more times than I can count since then.

One thing I never did was attend a nightclub or let alone go to a pool party while in town .

I don’t do nightclubs back home in New York City .

As for dayclubs, aka pool parties, the only places where we have those is in a neighbors backyard or some relative’s backyard filled with a lot of relatives that you might not even want to see .

The pool parties in New York are usually in the months of July or August , not March through October like in Las Vegas .

In case you weren’t aware , to get into some of these clubs are pretty expensive .

Now forget all the noise you’ve heard.

ANYBODY can go to these if you’re over 21.

Party like a rockstar in Vegas , if that’s your thing .

I’m 66 years old and I know that I look foward to going to a club to dance and get my drink on.

You can get into the club via a promoter, many which might or not be the real deal .

That’s where the Sports Diva comes in to tell you about the company that has NEVER let me down when it comes to acting the fool in Vegas.

While doing some research on Las Vegas , I came across a pop up from this company called No Cover Nightclubs .

I read what they had to offer and I was like, “ok what kind of bull crap is THIS?!”

Being born and raised in New York City , it’s in the DNA , WE TRUST NO ONE .

We know a con job when we see or hear one.

This stuff that they were claiming looked to good to be true, but let me try them anyway .

All I had to do was sign up or so they said and I was in like Flynn .

I signed up and immediately received a text and an email telling me to show up by 11am at the Rehab Pool in the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino , whuch unfortunately is now closed due to renovations.

WHAAAAT?!

Maybe this isn’t a scam.

That was 2018 and I’m here to say that this company is LEGIT !

I’ve told everyone that I know who either come to or live in Vegas about this company , just like I’m telling you, those who follow 30 Plus Teams 30 Plus Dreams .

If you’re looking for a club promoter in Las Vegas , go to No Cover Nightclubs .

You know what you’re going to get up front .

No BS.

If the text you receive from them tells you to be at a nightclub like Hakkassan inside the MGM Grand by 10:15pm, and what are the do’s and don’ts are to get inside , believe it .

It’s not fake, some clubs even give ladies complimentary drinks.

C’mon now, stop it.

FREE DRINKS, FAM!

You can’t show up at a dayclub like the Go Pool at the Flamingo Hotel or Encore Beach Club at the Encore Hotel and Casino wearing something that’s inappropriate even by Las Vegas standards.

If you’re on the No Cover Nightclubs guest list,you’ll KNOW what’s appropriate to wear and what you should save to wear for back home.

The email and the text that they sent you tells you everything .

The website, NoCoverNightClubs.com, even tells you the same thing as well as telling you what deejays are going to be performing and what events are going on.

(This past weekend , I was excited to see DJ Pauly D from Jersey Shore fame performing. I have yet to see two of my favorites , Calvin Harris and Steve Aoki perform,but God willing , it’s gonna happen . )

If it sounds as though I’m more than satisfied with this company , you bet your dancing shoes I am.

It’s been two years since I signed up with No Cover Nightclubs and I’m so glad that I did.

Thank you Michael Kelly and your staff at NoCoverNightClubs.com .

Youse guys rock!