Reno in the good ol' days

I love the photo on this old postcard. Ah, Reno in the good ol' days. I lived in Sacramento, Calif., for many years -- between the '70s and early '90s. Reno is across the Sierra about two hours away from Reno over Donner Pass. In college, my buddies and I would drive there to cruise South Virginia Street which is pictured in the postcard. A city with gambling seemed exciting then.

Driving down Virginia Street was a visual delight -- neon lights everywhere -- in your face big time. The wide front entrances of casinos never closed. On cold days you could feel the heat pouring out. On hot summer days you'd feel the air conditioning before you ever stepped into the buildings, right before you got a whiff of the casino itself -- cigarette smoke and grease from the slot machines. I've heard it said that the doors on Nevada casinos don't have locks because casinos operate 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

When Indian casinos came along in California and elsewhere, you didn't need to drive to Reno to play a slot machine. Las Vegas, far to the south, was much bigger than Reno by then and just piled on the attractions making it a destination with a whole lot more than just gambling. It thrived despite the competition from the Indians. But Reno began a slow decline. Virginia Street today is still glittery, but the excitement is gone. There are bigger and better casinos on the outskirts of town, but none of those come close to the grandeur of the casinos in Las Vegas.

Reno really was a "big little city" 30 years or so ago. I'd say that now it's a "little big city" with freeways, shopping malls, suburbs, and casinos are that are not very remarkable anymore.