Any Other Summer
If it was any other summer, my wife and I would have been on quite a few flights.
We’d be hopping around the country, or if we were lucky, overseas, checking out cities new to us, but this is 2020…We’ve had to settle for what is in our own backyard.
We spent this summer mostly taking road trips for the day. Heading to places like Upstate New York and Western New Jersey. But most of our journeys this summer were trips to the jersey shore and along the east end of Long Island. We even spent a few weekends in places like Asbury Park, Spring Lake, and Long Branch. We tried to make the best of a strange year and enjoy these micro getaways to places near, only because we had not felt comfortable going far.
As a life-long resident of the Garden State, the Jersey Shore was always a summer staple as I was growing up and admittedly, into early adulthood. I’ve spent more time drunkenly wandering up and down the boardwalk at Seaside Heights than I can remember. Like many Jersey folk, I have fond memories of the Shore and the mischievous summers spent there, but over the years, I’ve spent less and less time down there. Maybe it’s because I grew out of it or interests waned into heading to other places. It could be as simple as not wanting to deal with traffic on the Garden State Parkway. No matter the reason, I found myself heading down the Jersey Shore less and less each summer.
But this year, we had no choice. The pandemic has us, much like everyone else, to stay local. We experienced cabin fever like everyone else and needed reasons to get out. I know it’s a good problem to have despite the existential dread that has been 2020 and what many others have to endure.
Making the best of the situation, We’ve spent the summer appreciating what was around. This year taught me to slow down and enjoy simple things and simple places.
Whether it’s a walk around my neighborhood in Downtown Jersey City or slowly pacing along the boardwalk, my wife and I have tried to make the best of a less than desirable situation.
We capped off the very last days of summer with the anniversary of our first year of marriage. We had planned to head back to the city where we exchanged our vows…Charleston, South Carolina, a place that means to world to both of us. Since the locals there didn’t seem as worried about social distancing as we have been in the Tri-State area, we opted once again for something local.
We headed to Montauk, affectionately known as the end of the world by people in the New York area, for its location on the very eastern tip of Long Island.
It was the perfect local spot for Suzy and me to celebrate our first year of marriage. My only regret is that it took me so long to discover this beautiful place.
Despite becoming more and more of a Hamptons-esque hot spot with each passing summer season, Montauk remains virtually untouched. A raw coastal beauty due to most of the land on Montauk Point being protected state parkland.
The place feels less like New York and more like LA or Malibu… A SoCal vibe in its coastline, architecture, and crowd. There isn’t much to do in Montauk, especially after Labor Day, but that’s kind of the point. It’s a place to get away, grab some beautiful scenery, and enjoy doing nothing. A trip there is kind of like a spa retreat without all the holistic therapy. However, it can be found there.
We watched the surfers on a set of waves from atop the cliffs at Montauk Point and spent evenings by the fire pit at our oceanfront hotel. We were idle and forgetting about all the ills of this godforsaken year.
My wife is kind of a buff for boutique hotels, especially for those along the ocean. I’ve never really cared about my accommodations because I never spend much time in my room when I travel to another city. Our recent weekend in Montauk made me a convert.
We stayed on an oceanfront resort called Marram, named after the type of grass that grows in the sandy dunes there. The cost to stay at this place is astronomical during the high summer season between Memorial and Labor Days, but the prices plummet in September.
Marram is the type of place that enhances the natural beauty of the coastline that it sits on. The hotel is designed to unwind and get in touch with coastal nature. So minimalist that there aren’t even TVs in the room. Everything on the property is designed in a way that it doesn’t take away from the scenic setting.
The trip was a bright way to end a dark summer. This year will be hard to forget, but something as simple as exploring where the area in which I love has made it bearable.
Other Reads…
The 2019 52 Places Traveler for the New York Times Sebastian Modak went from traversing the globe last year to exploring his home state of New York. Here’s how he spent his summer exploring upstate by bike.
…Speaking of Upstate New York, it’s one of the best places to visit as fall sets in. Peep those vivid leaf colors from up high at the elevated Wild Walk, a High Line style walkway that’s suspended on top of the forests near Tupper Lake in the Adirondacks.
…And if you are really itching to get out of the country, consider getting a COVID passport. Newark Airport is launching a new pilot program that allows passengers to upload health data like COVID test results to a digital passport. Use it to head to Venice, Italy where they finally started using a protective flood gate to successfully stave off the Acqua Alta for the first time in 1,200 years. The program was delayed for decades due to bureaucracy.
Originally published at https://thirdperson.substack.com.
