Having a Gamble
If you we to ask me where the next casino capital of the world was going to be, the last place I’d think of would probably be Bolivia.
And yet, an item on the BBC News website paints a somewhat different light on the subject.
It turns out to be down to Russian investors in the country, looking for somewhere to put their money once casinos in their own country become more restricted later this year.
So where do you build a casino in Bolivia and who is likely to visit it? Looking at the pictures on the news item, I could just about image such neon-lighted structures in Santa Cruz, but one casino operator is apparently due to open an outlet in El Alto!
Who is going to go to a casino in El Alto? It’s the poorest part of La Paz, where the airport is located. When I last visited we were even warned not go to there unaccompanied, especially on foot, because of the dangers of being attacked on the way to or from it!
So will there rich Bolivians from the around La Paz being taken in high-security limousines to well-guarded casinos on the outskirts of the city?