Seeing as though Astroland in Coney Island is about to close it's doors for good, I strolled down to grab a few pics of the sights I'll never see again.  I walked out of that park with so much more.


I know, I know, people that know me know that I give that place a hard time every time and honestly I didn't care that they were planning to tear it down and build a "Disney inspired, new and improved theme park" in the years to come.  Change is good, right?  New jobs, better opportunities for the local residents, right?  The rides are old and dangerous, they need to tear them down anyway, right?  I don't care. I won't be around to see it go down, right?  Yeah, that was all fine and true until I took a trip down memory lane today and passed through Astroland for the first time in like forever.  Everything came back to me like it was yesterday.  My great grandmother used to take me to Astroland damn near everyday, religiously in the summertime.  This woman was a trooper, she rode every ride, played every game and ate every hot dog and french fry combo (from one of the little side joints, not Nathans, too expensive) with me until I couldn't stand anymore.  And you know what's funny, I still got that same feeling as I walked through the park today. 




It actually sucks that (if the suit and ties have it their way) my kids won't get to see a major part of my childhood.  It sounds cheesy but I breathe that park.  The rides criss cross through my veins like blood and keep my heart pumping.  There's nothing like that first day of summer, seeing the park open for business, giving everyone permission to get lost in the laughter, screams & music.  Not seeing that big ass boat defy gravity and cruise through the sky on a daily basis is sacrilegious. Not hearing the DJ screaming over disco music at the Himalaya (Do you wanna go backwards?????) does not sit well with me AT ALL.  I'm so use to seeing the rides, the lights and hearing the sounds and it's going to be just plain odd for this park not to be around anymore.  We're not just talking about some Carnival that rolls into town breaks down at night and moves on, this is a staple in Brooklyn the USA.  I've traveled quite a bit and no matter where I am when the question comes up about where people are from, my answer always gets the conversations going.  When you can travel across state lines, countries, oceans and time zones and meet people who know about your area, that's big.



Well no matter how I feel, the park will probably shut down for good.  I suggest you take a long ass train ride down to Astroland one last time.




Motherfuck Gentrification!