MEMORIES:
Sheindie remembers...The boardwalk had hawkers selling kewpie dolls on sticks, while you'd hear the Freak Show barker telling you of Jo ... More »
Posted on 01/19/07
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If Disneyland is the shiny America of our dreams, Coney Island is our slightly tarnished reality. Unlike the polished and pretty Disney, Coney Island (actually a peninsula off the southern tip of Brooklyn, NY) exposes the stickiness of the cotton candy, the saltiness of the sea, the freakishness of the freakshow, and the inner workings of the occasionally fallible rides.
Home to the world-famous Cyclone (believed by many aficionados to be the finest roller coaster in the world) and other rides such as the 150 ft. tall Wonder Wheel (with its swooping, swinging cars), Coney Island is in a state of perpetual self-renewal, having survived numerous disasters ranging from fires to gang violence (as immortalized in 1979’s The Warriors,) while always remaining a place where the youngest New Yorkers begged to go.
In addition to the rides, Coney Island features an iconic boardwalk (believed to be the world’s longest), Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs (and its equally famous hot-dog eating contest), the New York Aquarium (site of innumerable field trips), Keyspan park (opened in 2001, home to the minor league Brooklyn Cyclones), and the annual Mermaid Parade. And, of course, there is the beach—over 2 miles of slightly less than pristine sand, perfect for sunbathing, sandcastling, sightseeing and daydreaming.
Captured in a number of movies set in New York (including Annie Hall, which tucks Alvy Singer's childhood home right under the coasters), Coney Island has been cemented in American pop culture for over a hundred years.
