BEGINNING AND PLANNING
“It’s going to be a trip for us, as
much as it’s going to be to celebrate your birthday.” That’s what I was
told, and since Molly had been there a few times before, it made sense for her
to plan our week-long trip to Myrtle
Beach (we’d be there from the 8th to the 14th).
She had some brochures and such, and set out a plan of things she thought
would be good to do. I gave my input based on the information available
as to what I wanted, but as she knew the area (and was content to do most of
the planning), I let her make most of the arrangements. A couple of the
things I saw looked interesting to me, and some of the others were “either or.”
To me it didn’t matter if we went to Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede or the
Alabama Theatre, let her choose the one she wants, as long as I got to go to
Medieval Times. Compromise is key.
We got an early start from Glens Falls , but it was
still about a two day drive down. In order to make the best time as
possible, we bypassed the NYC by cutting across the Catskills to Interstate 81,
and then skirted around the Washington ,
DC Richmond , VA South Carolina border. At that point
we’d grab Route 501, which would take us southeast to our destination.
Molly had gotten this squishy
plastic cactus (complete with cowboy hat, sunglasses, and smiling face) which
was made to fit over the antenna of her Neon. It was about six to eight
inches high, and it’s rubber-like consistently kept it in place (so it wouldn’t
start sliding up the antenna when driving). The thing was a bitch to get
on, but it was a fun little accessory (and would help us pick out the car
easier in large parking lots). As we drove down the road, I could see its
little green arms flutter in the wind. Not necessarily important to the
trip, but an interesting little tidbit (and I’ll come back to it later).
Additionally, at one location we’d
stopped to get grub, there were some small shops she wanted to check out along
the way. Sure it was a way to get some circulation back in the legs.
I still thought driving through with as little stops as possible would be
nice, but sometimes it was interesting to make a short exploration to see what
an area has (besides the required bathroom). One place had a record
store, and I happened to see the newest album by Manowar was out (called
“Louder Than Hell”), so I got it as a birthday gift to myself.
We’d had a
bunch of CDs already with us, and Molly thought it would be nice to hear some
fresh music (even though this was a band she’d never gotten into). I like
the band because they have quite the range of blazing metal with forceful
lyrics and shredding guitars to piano-driven ballads of hymn-like qualities.
The first track was far louder (and filled with screaming verses) than
any of their previous work had been, and not the best music to drive to.
Listening to remainder of the album at a later time showed it got much
better after the first track.
In the afternoon of the second day
of travel, we reached the high-rise resort where’d we be staying. The
building was designed with a parking garage (a couple levels high) next to it,
and the spot we got we could look out at the tan beach beyond. The
weather was comfortable, and a slight breeze removed the humidity of the air.
Our room was on the 8th floor, and we and an unobstructed view
of the ocean. There were many resorts up and down the coast here, and I
really don’t think there was much difference between them. I’m sure
ultimately the final choice of where to stay boiled down to cost, and what was
available. Apparently Myrtle
Beach was a popular vacation spot for New Yorkers.
If that’s true, then I never noticed it before.
PLAYING ON THE BEACH
Because the weather was calm, the
water was a blue sheet stretching eastward as far as we could see. All
the resorts set back a little bit, so the beach area was pretty deep. After getting dinner, the sun had dropped
below the horizon, and the area was in shadow.
We couldn’t really hear the traffic sounds of the busy streets behind
us, but the sounds of the waves gently crashing against the sand made some nice
backdrop noise. It was very enjoyable to sit out on the patio and listen
to them. Molly commented that resort employees go out early in the
morning and comb the beach to pick up seaweed and the other stuff which gets
washed in overnight, so the guests get to see pristine sand in the morning.
That scene of “combing the desert” from Spaceballs came to mind.
She added if I wanted to look for shells and things, we’d need to get up
earlier than the resort combers. It was my 27th birthday today,
but I see no reason to be up before dawn the following day.
The next morning after a birthday
breakfast, we planned to spend some time frolicking on the beach to enjoy it.
Since it was early, there weren’t too many people there yet, and the sand
wouldn’t be hot. The sun shining across the water was beautiful. Looking down from our balcony, most people
that had come out had come to the pool. You’re
staying in a resort which is on an ocean beach, and you decide to hang out by
the pool? I didn’t understand that, but it meant more room on the sand.
Before we went down, I had to take
a fun picture of my feet stick through the balcony overlooking the pool.
When I could, I’ve always liked to take pictures of my feet over water.
I don’t know when that started, but it was something fun to do. The
shot turned out to be perfect with the way my feet were placed. When I
got the film back and first glanced at the picture, I thought there had been a giant
laying next to the pool. I could take a marker and draw in some shadow
underneath my feet, and really make it look more like that.
The water was cool, but I found it
refreshing. In addition to catching some rays, we also built some sand castles
with some buckets which were stored at the resort. Okay, I’m sure those
were meant for actual kids, not adults acting as kids, but it was fun.
After spending some time enjoying the sun, we decided to take a short
walk before getting cleaned up. Along the beach is a path known as the
Boardwalk. It’s a nice leisurely stroll, and designed to walk along the
beach without actually being on the beach. It keeps sand out of your
shoes if you don’t want it there.
We followed the path down a few
city blocks to a pier which jutted out to the ocean. The pier was about
as long as a city block, and there were people who fished off the edges.
Looking further southward, we could see what appeared to be an amusement
park area on the beach. This was called Family Kingdom
For current information on the places visited:
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