No two beaches are alike even though they both be sandy. ~Quote by Dor
Having coped with the traffic to the west coast of Florida, we decided to try the other side of the peninsula. Cocoa Beach was only an hour away via a civilized toll road (hardly plagued by heavy traffic and easy to navigate with the help of Lola-the-GPS-lady).
This time we packed a picnic and our bathing suits and towels and planned to settle in on the sands of the Atlantic. We even had destinations marked for changing rooms and other necessaries.
The closer we got, the more the memories of my childhood came flooding in. I remembered there used to be a deluge of shell shops for souvenirs, orange blossom cologne, salt water taffy, pecan rolls, coconut patties, shell covered boxes, and carved coconut heads. How I yearned for the scents in those little bottles of cologne. “We have to stop at one of those shell shops,” I told Bill en route.
And there we were at the Cocoa Beach Pier! It was $10 a day to park but we thought there were changing rooms. Nope – Just slightly cramped, less than pristine lavatories. We walked to the end of the pier and made a new friend, Pete, who invited me to take his picture.
Looking down at the beach we could see crowds – lots of crowds – and lots of surfers. Uh Oh. Forgot about Spring Break again.
The beach we visited at Cocoa was mobbed. I could almost see the ocean between the clusters of college students standing in circles or browning lithe bodies in front of us. Bill did not seem in a hurry to leave. Wonder why.
The sun was shining bright so we baked for about two hours and left with semi-sunburns.
Shell shops? None to be seen.
At this point I became obsessed with finding a bottle of that orange blossom cologne.
I nagged Bill to stop at the first gift shop (never mind a “shell shop”). We did, and the people there never heard of orange blossom cologne and could not even pronounce it. “Do you suppose those Florida souvenir shops have all gone out of business? What a shame.”
Wait! There’s one! I see the Shell Shop Sign! Pull in here!
Empty and closed.
I was so disappointed.
However, oh the last day of our journey we stopped at an orange domed gift shop where the lady immediately pulled out a tiny bottle of orange blossom cologne for $5.99! And I bought that bottle and will keep it until I die.
We also got a big bag of oranges and two pecan rolls and a box of coconut patties there. I revisit my childhood every time I look at the big bag of oranges and the candies. And if I really want to go back down memory lane, I just need to take one whiff of the orange blossom cologne. O.k. – so it doesn’t smell like orange blossoms anymore. It’s the idea that counts and it’s in an orange colored bottle after all!
Had enough of all this excitement?
Stay tuned for one last episode………
I am so happy you found a bottle of Orange Blossom Cologne! Sad how things change though.
LikeLike
Delightful recounting – memories have such a strong pull. I’m so glad you finally found your cologne, although it seems that the journey was the reward.
LikeLike
Ha ha…no doubt Bill wanted to linger a little while. 🙂 I’m so sorry the Shell Shop was closed, Dor. I’m happy you got your orange blossom cologne and some treats though.
LikeLike
Except for the kids, it still sounds wonderful. You were warm for a week. It’s flurrying here. Expecting a dusting of snow today. Buggers!
LikeLike
Change is inevitable but memories linger and that little bottle of Orange Blossom will keep me going for quite a while. 🙂
LikeLike
Having a mission is sometimes a good thing. The orange blossom cologne helped us to focus on our surroundings. 🙂
LikeLike
Yes, it didn’t dawn on my why he was so willing to linger. Bill normally hates to stay at a beach more than an hour. 🙂 LOL!
LikeLike
🙂
LikeLike
We’re home again now and my book club meeting was cancelled due to a snow storm! Imagine that.
LikeLike
You did make it to Cocoa Beach, the home of my alma mater (high school)! I saw no mention of Ron Jon’s. Now maybe Bill would enjoy Ron-Jon Surf shop when you go back.
LikeLike
Oh yes, I believe there were lots of signs promoting a Surf Shop. Since we are beyond surfing, we didn’t pay much attention. What were we missing? What are your memories of Ron Jon’s?
LikeLike
Cocoa Beach was and is the home of the World Small Wave championships. My younger brother had a job there in downtown Cocoa Beach at a very small shop called Ron Jon’s. Imagine our surprise when we moved to Houston and we spotted t-shirts for this surf shop mecca. When I returned for my Xth hs reunion, I couldn’t believe the enormous shop it had grown into, not to mention the locations along the Eastern Coast and Cozumel!
LikeLike
Some memories of our childhood are more difficult to recreate than others….!
LikeLike
Fortunately there are always the memories even if we can never recreate them. 🙂
LikeLike
Isn’t it amazing how change happens and the old places are gone or new ones emerge? And when we go back “home”, everything is the same but nothing is the same. How surprised you must have been to see Ron Jon’s T’s in Houston and the huge shop it had become in Cocoa Beach and elsewhere. Me, I’m always looking for a Royal Castle. Did they have Royal Castles in Cocoa?
LikeLike
Well, at least you got some yummy items — the oranges, pecan rolls, and coconut patties. No matter what we do when we go to the Jersey or Maryland shore, one of the things I insist we make time for is visiting one of those souvenir shops on the boardwalk to buy salt water taffy. It’s the tradition of it, I think. 😉
LikeLike
Yup – it’s tradition to buy all that junk stuff to clutter up our arteries. BTW, thanks for all your very sweet comments Cindy. 🙂
LikeLike
Oh my how funny, sometimes our minds takes us to places that reality just can’t match – at least you could touch the sand, see a speck of ocean, lots of happy enjoying their sunbathing moment and best of all that little orange bottle. Another memory of warm sun and seashells. Don’t you love vacations?
LikeLike
Yup – toes in the sand, baking on the beach, the sound of the surf, children playing, and the little orange bottle. My memories are complete and I feel slightly smug to have escaped the cold for even a short time. You have nailed it Mary – the essence of my vacation. 🙂
LikeLike