4th of July Weekend, Part 1
My 4th of July weekend started on Thursday (hey, we have a lot of stuff to fit in).
My mom, dad, and I took my aunt and cousin (up from Florida for a week's vacation in the north) down to Ocean City, NJ so mom and Aunt Jenny could see the house they summered in when they were kids and to walk the boards on the boardwalk.
When I was growing up our "home" beach was always Duck, NC. There, a "boardwalk" is just a simple plank walk that goes through the dunes so you can get to the beach without disturbing the ecosystem. Not so down the shore, apparently.
The boardwalk stretches out parallel to the beach with one side having access to the beach itself and the other being lined with all manner of candy shops, food stands, amusement parks, mini golf and t-shirt shops. It smells like a carnival, mostly because it is. A permanent carnival on the beach.
The first thing we did was get a slice of pizza from Mack & Manco, who have apparently been there since mom and Jenny were going down the shore as kids.
Then we went to see them actually make the saltwater taffy. It looks just like it does if you catch it on Unwrapped on the Food Network. :D
Apparently they did at $15 million beach reclamation project that finished up this year, which was actually really cool and really nice -- there was SO MUCH BEACH out there that the crowded, tiny Jersey Shore beaches that I always saw on TV as a kid seemed to be a thing of the past. At least for the next 30-odd years. :D
This hotel was one of the first on the beach and it had a world-class, 5-star reputation. It also used to have a huge saltwater pool right up along the boardwalk. The pool is gone but the hotel is still quite pretty and very nice looking.
These strange black-headed seagulls were everywhere. They definitely took handouts from people but they did not divebomb people for their food as I had been lead to believe they might. They are, however, quite brazen and not at all bothered by people.
They perched on every available sign and letter, hoping for someone to drop something. I also saw a girl tossing bits of pizza crust up in the air and the gulls swooping in and catching it at the apex. Crafty winged rats...
Half of the Wonderland amusement park was inside -- the carousel, the mixer, rides like that -- so you can enjoy a spin in the shade. Outside were two small coasters, a flume ride and a Ferris wheel -- all in a footprint the size of ... eh, maybe a grocery store? It's amazing how they cram stuff in along to boardwalk.
Aaaaaaand this just because the dragon is cute. :D
It was a clear, beautiful day, about 82 degrees but with a NICE breeze coming down the boardwalk so you didn't feel like you were baking in the heat. We didn't go in the water because we weren't about to put down $5 each for a one-day beach tag (what a racket that is...) but I didn't much mind. It was nice just to get out and see something new.
Yesterday I very excitedly sped up to Scranton to see Jerad and Charlie, old college friends who I love dearly but who up and moved to the west coast a few years back and whom I haven't seen since. I met them at La Tratorria in Scranton and after an amazing lunch we needed to kill some time before Sean and/or Chrissy would be able to get off work to meet us so we went up to Nay Aug park to check it out and grab some shade and just chat. Which is exactly what we did. :D
Here are two views down the gorge from the treehouse (which is REALLY cool).
And then Jerad pointed out some wild nightshade:
And I pointed out the Japanese beetles, which apparently do not exist in Olympia, so we took some pictures of those, too.
Jerad took pictures up through the trees.
Charlie humored me while I took his picture.
And then I took a picture laying on my back under the oak tree.
And then my camera battery died. :p
Basically after that we ran around a lot like crazy, had excellent Chinese/Japanese/Thai buffet food, then I took off with Sean to do errand which culminated in stuffing menus down at the Banshee before heading back to Sean & Chrissy's to drink, talk about old times and generally just hang out and be ridiculous, just like the good old days.
So, SO happy I got to see Jerad and Charlie. Hopefully soon I can make it out west to visit them.
On today's/tomorrow's list: Family BBQ, neighborhood BBQ, Philly Union game at Iron Abbey, ZOMG sleep, then back to Scranton for pool party and other 4th of July shenanigans. Then FINALLY home to finish unpacking. I hope. Talk about the most enjoyable week from hell EVAR. ;p
My mom, dad, and I took my aunt and cousin (up from Florida for a week's vacation in the north) down to Ocean City, NJ so mom and Aunt Jenny could see the house they summered in when they were kids and to walk the boards on the boardwalk.
When I was growing up our "home" beach was always Duck, NC. There, a "boardwalk" is just a simple plank walk that goes through the dunes so you can get to the beach without disturbing the ecosystem. Not so down the shore, apparently.
The boardwalk stretches out parallel to the beach with one side having access to the beach itself and the other being lined with all manner of candy shops, food stands, amusement parks, mini golf and t-shirt shops. It smells like a carnival, mostly because it is. A permanent carnival on the beach.
The first thing we did was get a slice of pizza from Mack & Manco, who have apparently been there since mom and Jenny were going down the shore as kids.
Then we went to see them actually make the saltwater taffy. It looks just like it does if you catch it on Unwrapped on the Food Network. :D
Apparently they did at $15 million beach reclamation project that finished up this year, which was actually really cool and really nice -- there was SO MUCH BEACH out there that the crowded, tiny Jersey Shore beaches that I always saw on TV as a kid seemed to be a thing of the past. At least for the next 30-odd years. :D
This hotel was one of the first on the beach and it had a world-class, 5-star reputation. It also used to have a huge saltwater pool right up along the boardwalk. The pool is gone but the hotel is still quite pretty and very nice looking.
These strange black-headed seagulls were everywhere. They definitely took handouts from people but they did not divebomb people for their food as I had been lead to believe they might. They are, however, quite brazen and not at all bothered by people.
They perched on every available sign and letter, hoping for someone to drop something. I also saw a girl tossing bits of pizza crust up in the air and the gulls swooping in and catching it at the apex. Crafty winged rats...
Half of the Wonderland amusement park was inside -- the carousel, the mixer, rides like that -- so you can enjoy a spin in the shade. Outside were two small coasters, a flume ride and a Ferris wheel -- all in a footprint the size of ... eh, maybe a grocery store? It's amazing how they cram stuff in along to boardwalk.
Aaaaaaand this just because the dragon is cute. :D
It was a clear, beautiful day, about 82 degrees but with a NICE breeze coming down the boardwalk so you didn't feel like you were baking in the heat. We didn't go in the water because we weren't about to put down $5 each for a one-day beach tag (what a racket that is...) but I didn't much mind. It was nice just to get out and see something new.
Yesterday I very excitedly sped up to Scranton to see Jerad and Charlie, old college friends who I love dearly but who up and moved to the west coast a few years back and whom I haven't seen since. I met them at La Tratorria in Scranton and after an amazing lunch we needed to kill some time before Sean and/or Chrissy would be able to get off work to meet us so we went up to Nay Aug park to check it out and grab some shade and just chat. Which is exactly what we did. :D
Here are two views down the gorge from the treehouse (which is REALLY cool).
And then Jerad pointed out some wild nightshade:
And I pointed out the Japanese beetles, which apparently do not exist in Olympia, so we took some pictures of those, too.
Jerad took pictures up through the trees.
Charlie humored me while I took his picture.
And then I took a picture laying on my back under the oak tree.
And then my camera battery died. :p
Basically after that we ran around a lot like crazy, had excellent Chinese/Japanese/Thai buffet food, then I took off with Sean to do errand which culminated in stuffing menus down at the Banshee before heading back to Sean & Chrissy's to drink, talk about old times and generally just hang out and be ridiculous, just like the good old days.
So, SO happy I got to see Jerad and Charlie. Hopefully soon I can make it out west to visit them.
On today's/tomorrow's list: Family BBQ, neighborhood BBQ, Philly Union game at Iron Abbey, ZOMG sleep, then back to Scranton for pool party and other 4th of July shenanigans. Then FINALLY home to finish unpacking. I hope. Talk about the most enjoyable week from hell EVAR. ;p