Well, it's been WAY too long since I've played the game for me to give any helpful advice about it. So, I looked up the matter on GameFAQS.
According to this FAQ I read, you should go to the first area, where there are slot machines with 2 bombs, 2 enemies, 1 flame, and 1 snowflake. (the red switch in the area should be left on.) get a bomb from the slot machine, and shake it to stop the counter. You must head to the Metal block at the top of the red block stairs, and destroy it by setting the bomb to reactivate it, or by throwing the bomb at the metal block. There should be a large money bag behind the metal block. Shake it to get it out of the way, then earthshake punch where it was.
Does that help your predicament?