Coney Island!
Drew and I are members of the New York Wildlife Conservation Society.The Society maintains five properties within the City of New York --the Bronx Zoo, the Central Park Zoo, the Prospect Park Zoo, the Queens Zoo, and the New York Aquarium, located on the Boardwalk in Coney Island.
We had planned to visit the Aquarium last summer, but were turned away because of the crowds, and wound up at the Queens Zoo instead.
We finally got to the aquarium on Saturday.
I thought it would be a perfect day to play with my camera. And it was. That is, until the memory card got damaged and I lost almost all of the photos I took. All I've got are a few pictures I took with my phone. Color me disappointed.
As I said, the aquarium is on the Boardwalk. It's a small aquarium, can probably be seen in 2-3 hours.
The main building contains numerous tanks of exotic and colorful fish. We learned about how shipwrecks become reefs, and how coral grows.
You can see the Boardwalk and the ocean from the outdoor deck on the second floor of the main building. It's still a bit chilly outdoors, so there weren't a lot of people on the boardwalk or beach.
Once outside, you can take in a show at the amphitheater (right now they're doing shows with seals and sea lions, I believe), or you can visit the outdoor exhibits -- seals and sea lions, otters and penguins. One of the sea lions was lying on a rock, sunning himself, while the others swam around in the pool. The penguins were all hanging out on the rocks, not doing much of anything. A pair of otters were swimming in their pool, rolling over and over and over....
But the main attraction, as far as Drew and I were concerned, was the shark exhibit. Not only do you get to see a variety of sharks and sting rays and fish...but there are "tunnels" under the tanks, so that when you look up you can see the underbelly of a shark as it swims above you. Very impressive.
And just before we left, we paid a visit to the loggerhead turtles. Outdoor tank, lots of sun glare...but this one was looking right at us.
Outside of the park, and requiring a separate admission, there is a 4D movie theater showing a short film about sharks. It's a very educational film, but the 4D effects make it fun.
The aquarium is right next door to Luna Park, home of the Cyclone.
(The dinosaur you see in the foreground is there to promote the Dinosaur Safari at the Bronx Zoo.)
The Cyclone is a wooden roller coaster, built in the 1920's. It is considered a NYC landmark.
Riding the Cyclone was on Drew's bucket list. Riding the Cyclone was a definite "no" from me. So I waited on the sidewalk while Drew let his inner 10 year old enjoy.
Just down the Boardwalk is another NYC landmark, the Wonder Wheel.
This is no ordinary Ferris wheel, as you can see from the video:
Yes, some of the cars swing ...
No, we didn't ride. but seeing the wheel reminded me of a family story...
Back in the 1950's, my father, a Brooklyn boy, took my mother (a native of the Bronx) on a date to Coney Island once. He took her on the Wonder Wheel, promising that they'd ride in a car that did not swing out...and she freaked out when the car started to swing. Years later, he took me and my sister on the Wonder wheel (my mother refused to ride), and we got a swinging car...to this day, more than 50 years later, my sister won't ride a Ferris Wheel. Roller coasters don't bother her, but Ferris wheels....
We hit a lot of traffic on the Belt Parkway going home...which meant I was bored....and took yet another photo of a plane taking off from JFK...
We had planned to visit the Aquarium last summer, but were turned away because of the crowds, and wound up at the Queens Zoo instead.
We finally got to the aquarium on Saturday.
I thought it would be a perfect day to play with my camera. And it was. That is, until the memory card got damaged and I lost almost all of the photos I took. All I've got are a few pictures I took with my phone. Color me disappointed.
As I said, the aquarium is on the Boardwalk. It's a small aquarium, can probably be seen in 2-3 hours.
The main building contains numerous tanks of exotic and colorful fish. We learned about how shipwrecks become reefs, and how coral grows.
You can see the Boardwalk and the ocean from the outdoor deck on the second floor of the main building. It's still a bit chilly outdoors, so there weren't a lot of people on the boardwalk or beach.
Once outside, you can take in a show at the amphitheater (right now they're doing shows with seals and sea lions, I believe), or you can visit the outdoor exhibits -- seals and sea lions, otters and penguins. One of the sea lions was lying on a rock, sunning himself, while the others swam around in the pool. The penguins were all hanging out on the rocks, not doing much of anything. A pair of otters were swimming in their pool, rolling over and over and over....
But the main attraction, as far as Drew and I were concerned, was the shark exhibit. Not only do you get to see a variety of sharks and sting rays and fish...but there are "tunnels" under the tanks, so that when you look up you can see the underbelly of a shark as it swims above you. Very impressive.
And just before we left, we paid a visit to the loggerhead turtles. Outdoor tank, lots of sun glare...but this one was looking right at us.
The aquarium is right next door to Luna Park, home of the Cyclone.
(The dinosaur you see in the foreground is there to promote the Dinosaur Safari at the Bronx Zoo.)
The Cyclone is a wooden roller coaster, built in the 1920's. It is considered a NYC landmark.
Riding the Cyclone was on Drew's bucket list. Riding the Cyclone was a definite "no" from me. So I waited on the sidewalk while Drew let his inner 10 year old enjoy.
Just down the Boardwalk is another NYC landmark, the Wonder Wheel.
This is no ordinary Ferris wheel, as you can see from the video:
Yes, some of the cars swing ...
No, we didn't ride. but seeing the wheel reminded me of a family story...
Back in the 1950's, my father, a Brooklyn boy, took my mother (a native of the Bronx) on a date to Coney Island once. He took her on the Wonder Wheel, promising that they'd ride in a car that did not swing out...and she freaked out when the car started to swing. Years later, he took me and my sister on the Wonder wheel (my mother refused to ride), and we got a swinging car...to this day, more than 50 years later, my sister won't ride a Ferris Wheel. Roller coasters don't bother her, but Ferris wheels....
We hit a lot of traffic on the Belt Parkway going home...which meant I was bored....and took yet another photo of a plane taking off from JFK...
Swinging cars? Nope. I've never been in a Ferris wheel, and I think a swinging car would freak me out. I don't blame your mother.
ReplyDeleteI would have done more than freak out in that swinging car. The cleaning crew may have had to have been called out - enough said. Anyway, I was at Coney Island on Christmas Eve - I am glad to see a view from May. Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com
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