Collage of Memories

One more mix of memories from vacation before we return to our regularly scheduled programming.

Gulf Oil Spill drives Southerners to the Jersey Shore

It may have been inevitable as BP and the Federal Government have fiddled while the Gulf of Mexico has been fouled by the oil spill. Southern tourists who would normally vacation along the afflicted shores of the Gulf are seeking other destinations. And many are headed for the Jersey Shore. This is good news for New Jersey tourism, but may be extra-bad news for Gulf towns whose only real economy is serving tourists.

Local tourism officials can't provide hard numbers, but cars from Texas, Mississippi, Tennessee, and other states below the Mason-Dixon Line appear to be in greater supply at the Shore this summer.

"I'm hearing a lot more southern accents this year," said Susan Martin, a reservations manager at the Golden Inn in Avalon. "And I just love the sound of it."

There has been an increase in the number of Southerners booking rooms, Martin said. They don't say why they are coming, she said, but many have identified themselves as first-timers.

The newcomers are finding their way largely on their own, say those in the tourism industry. New Jersey this year eliminated its national multimillion-dollar Shore promotional campaign, leaving resort towns complaining even before the gulf disaster about their inability to compete with rivals such as Ocean City, Md.

Wildwood voted "Top NJ Heritage Destination"

CRChair and I have made no secret of our unabashed love for all things Wildwood. So it was with considerable excitement that I saw the non-profit group "Heritage New Jersey" held a contest and the Wildwoods were voted Top NJ Heritage Destination. It certainly has been important to my personal heritage.

"The Wildwoods by-the-Sea are the best heritage tourism destination in New Jersey because visiting takes you back to a time when America was at its optimistic best,'' he said. "When the Garden State Parkway was completed in the 1950's hundreds of motels were built. They are fanciful motels designed to appeal to the passing motorist. They have exotic names like Shalimar, Royal Hawaiian, Pink Champagne, and Caribbean. Each one was designed to appeal to any type of visitor, to forget where he or she came from and transport them to a tropical location within a short drive from home.

"When I'm in Wildwood, I am taken back to my own childhood,'' Hirsch said. "I ride my bike on the three-mile boardwalk – only in the morning – I sit on the largest, safest, free beach in New Jersey, I eat locally made ice cream, and play miniature golf. Who gets to go back to their own childhood for the weekend? I do. When I was child the water tower read, ‘Wildwood Welcomes the World.' It's still true.''

This is great news for the tourism trade of the Jersey Shore. Here is hoping many new people discover the joys of the Wildwoods. If you are interested in learning more yourself, this is a good place to start (warning, music plays when you open the site).

Friday Night Fireworks

One of the new traditions in Wildwood is a fireworks show every Friday at 10:30 PM. Here is a little clip of that fireworks show from last night. The only disappointment is that they did not play "Wildwood Days this year.

Wildwood Daze

It is amazing the sights you can see at Wildwood when you are out and about.

Nomad wins a jackpot

Nomad wins a jackpot
Originally uploaded by nomad7674.

Nomad gets the sign of the beast

Nomad was playing a game on the boardwalk in Wildwood, New Jersey and got an interesting score.