ZB in NYC pt. 2: Mermaid Parade = Indescribable Freak Show

So, I'll pick up where I left off. Saturday, we headed off to Coney Island, and words can not describe what we witnessed there that first Saturday of summer. The day started off being pretty normal. It took about an hour to get there by train, and once we arrived, we walked around a little bit and decided to ride the Cyclone - a super old, wooden, rickety roller coaster. WARNING: do NOT ride this roller coaster unless you like the feeling of whiplash, spine compression, and/or all around agony. Okay... I guess it wasn't that bad, but if given the choice, I would not ride it again.

Only $8 a ride with a complimentary sore neck

After riding the Cyclone, we waited in line to get Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs. They were delicious, but before we had much time to digest, we lined up along the road for the Mermaid Parade. I must say, some of the sights of the parade had the ability to bring those hot dogs right back up.

The line at Nathan's Famous

Just to back it up a little bit, before we went to Coney Island, we knew that the Mermaid Parade was to be held that day. We realized when we got there that the park and surrounding area was absolutely packed with tourists and locals and mermaids and freaks. We saw signs like the one below and tables selling Mermaid Parade t-shirts. We started to get the sense that this thing is kind of a big deal, but we had no idea what we were in for until we saw the actual spectacle, the people that the Mermaid Parade draws to Surf Avenue.


Among many other things, we saw: men in mermaid drag, mer-dogs, topless mermaids (pasties optional), and mermaid families with baby mermaids in tow. It was quite the experience. These pictures do not do the Mermaid Parade justice. My words don't come close to shining a light on what we saw that day. It's something that can only be experienced in person, and believe it or not, I would recommend that you do!

Overall theme of the parade: BP sucks

Zach had a theory, perhaps because of all of the merMEN dressed as merMAIDS (like the one below), that the Mermaid Parade had its roots in gay culture. This was something that I was not convinced of and in fact thought was downright incorrect. So, we made a little bet; whoever was wrong had to buy pizza at Grimaldi's that night. Who won? Well... Zach bought the pizza.

This guy was SO funny