I don't know how I've gone so long without going to the ocean. As a girl, a vacation meant we were going to the ocean.Coney Island, Florida, Trinidad, Barbados....ocean. Period. I need it. I need to be in water. I need to hear waves. I need to dissolve in ocean water.
This weekend I went to Coney Island after not having visited since I was a little girl. As a Brooklyn native, Coney Island was a ritual we attended every summer. but it got really bad in the 80s, ruined by overcrowding, litter,drug and crime. Plus which, after going to oceans in the Caribbean I was spoiled forever by warm, crystal clear water and couldn't even imagine how any New York Beach could compare. Longbeach is not bad though. A friend took me there a a year our so ago and enjoyed it very much once I got over the shock of having to pay to get in. That took me a minute. Coney Island is still free and it's amazing! I was totally thrilled looking at at the rides you see as soon as you come across the street from Coney Island station. It's just so classic! And on the boardwalk the dancers were out and the music was vibrating under my feet and everyone was just having such a great time! I totally got sucked into watching the dancers for a bit before walking further down and then onto the beach which was not at all crowded. I got there pretty late in the afternoon(after 4:00)on purpose. It's amazing, the moment the pulsing music on the boardwalk fades out and the soft sound of the ocean surf takes over. It's a sound I could listen to just all day, all week.
The water was cold but perfect because it was pretty hot but not humid and with a wonderful breeze and the sound of seagulls. I walked along the beach for bit with my feet in the water watching kids and people bathing and laughing and crying. I always want to walk out on the wooden peg dividers but I didn't because I know it's dangerous. Everything about the ocean draws me in and hypnotizes me into forgetting about safety. I have to be careful of that. That and learn how to swim. LOL!!
