Ok so when I found out we'd be stopping at JFK airport on our route today, I hastily logged onto Kayak.com to look at cheap flights to Denmark. Oh how I wish I could just get up and go!!!!! But alas, my dreams became reality and I left the suitcase under the bed for a more planned out vacation :)
Today was one of those shitty day: cloudy, rainy, chilly, basically FUGLY. So it would be a good day to be undergroud, however the stops we would be covering we all outdoor stations, ha, the irony!
So we hopped the train at 10:30am, a half hour earlier than our usual 11am call time due to the length of time it was gonna take to reach our first stop which was the Aqueduct/N. Conduit. Along the way, we came across some bongo players in the train to entertain and wake our asses up. They were a highlight of the gloomy commute and I even got to make a debut drumming along with them.
We finally made it to Aqueduct/N. Conduit. This stop was named for the horseracing track that was seen from a distance. This station was pretty basic. Outdoor platform, then you walk inside, through the turnstile, past the attendant. What was unique to me as we exited the station was that instead of walking out onto a street, there was a freeway. I realized we were way out there.
Next was JFK Airport/Howard Beach. Of course, I have been here before. Very nice, sleek design, Escalators to the air train, lots of travelers going to and fro with there baggage in tow. I was jealous as I have been craving a trip for too long. We didn't stay long as if we had, we might have caught the next flight outta here! We looked outside the glass windows and noticed marshy lands and houses barely standing admist the tracks. Who would want to live in the middle of an airport, let alone a subway track. Rent has to be cheap for those inadequacies and to endure the constant noise.
We noticed we were a bit behind schedule, so lingering was not a thing to do if we wanted to get done on time.
We got back on the train to the next stop: Broad Channel. It took a bit to get here as we had to cross the waterways. Although, it was a crappy day out, the views of the water were so serene and beautiful. It's like all your worries we washed away. We finally reached Broad Channel. As we stepped out side the train, I noticed the platforms we extremely close to one another, meaning that the Manhattan bound platform across the track was not that far from reach. I did not like this.
By this time it was getting colder and misty. We got on the train and headed to the next stop. Gaston, Beach 67...I realized the rest of the stops would be labeled Beach Stops. Beach 60 - Straiton gave me the first signs of beachyness. The smell of salt and sand, even the wind had picked up reminding us the beach was within proximity. We had ocean views, but it was creepy to me as the beach was of course desolate. I tried to look for sand, but saw a lot of growth wondering if this was a beach that was frequently occupied. Of course, my sight was only that through a camera lens and I could only focus so far, so I'm sure this place looks much different in the summer. Right now, it was reminding me of scenes outta Cape Fear.
I started to get really cold realizing I hadn't dressed for the weather. My mentality was reminding me it was April and scarves and gloves were obsolete. I should have second guessed because I was freezing and the trains were taking forever, or so it seemed. The next four stops were all pretty much models of each other except for the last stop: Mott Avenue, which thankfully in my case of the beginning stages of hypothermia, provided us with a train already set for take off. We reached the last stop and hopped the Manhattan bound train across the platform ready to head back into civilization. On our way back we stopped off at JFK and grabbed some slices at a local pizza joint. The pizza was yummy, but not as good as the slices we had out in Queens a few weeks back, but $5 for 2 slices, a coffee, and a soda, I can't complain. We had another great adventure, and even though the weather was a bit of a set-back, it didn't keep us from completing our route. We discovered new places, maybe a potential beach to travel in the summer, JFK of course, and a racetrack. Another Monday full of great wonders and discoveries that seem to be neverending in the great New York wild. till next ride..over n out..-Linzz
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