This past weekend was a whirlwind of water fun!
Saturday I spent the day at Splish Splash, Long Island’s premier water park. We started off with a simple ride – Two long yellow water slides and I took the one to the left, since apparently that was the “easier” of the two. It wasn’t bad, but I closed my eyes the whole time. Instead of it being a free fall, there were two major curves that I went over super fast, and definitely made me scream.
The next ride was not scary at all, called Lazy River, in which you relax on a water tube and go through the length of it at your own pace. There are certain spots that have cold water spraying at you, which was refreshing and enjoyable.
After that we tried the Jurassic Park themed dinosaur ride, which I was a little apprehensive about going on, but agreed to do it after my friend said she’d do it with me in the double inner tube. It turned out to be much fun, and then we went to the Surf City area where there was a pool with simulated waves. That was pretty chill and enjoyed being in the waves, bopping to the loud music.
The next ride we did had a super long ride and looked a bit scary- It was inside a tunnel and complete darkness, but wasn’t so bad.
We took a break for lunch, and have to say was very upset that the Grill and ice cream truck were both there just for show. We shared Johnny Rocket’s burger and fries meal, as well as our own mixed chocolate and vanilla shake.
After that was another scary looking ride that was quite high up and quite windy; I was most worried about the midsection, where we would be spun around. When I got up there I almost chickened out, but watched others go before me and it didn’t look so bad, so I did it. It turned out to be all good fun.
The park was close to closing at this point, but we managed to fit in two more rides. One of them was a little scary when I looked at it, but turned out to be not a problem an the last one, “Shotgun Falls,” was simply high powered short water slides that propel you into 10 feet deep water. That was all right, but since the lady didn’t have me take my flip flops off, one of the straps broke.
After we finally got out of the Splish Splash parking lot, we headed to a Japanese restaurant, Sakura something… It was tucked away in the corner of a strip mall, so we weren’t sure about the quality of it, but was actually quite nice. We decided to get Hibachi grill, so the chefs gave us a show and cooked in front of us.
I had ordered the combination of chicken and salmon. The meal came with soup, salad, fried rice, vegetables, shrimp and the meat. Everything smelled great, looked delicious and was very filling- large poritons. The chicken, however, was a bit too chewy and had a weird texture but the salmon with sauce was simply wonderful.
Sunday it was Parasailing and Beach Day in Ocean City, NJ with my friend and a bunch of new friends. I got picked up at home, which was really nice especially since we had to leave early in the morning.
We got to the Parasailing place right on time and rode a boat to the middle of the ocean and prepared to take off from the back of the boat. We got attached (two of us at a time) to a large yellow parachute and the boat took off, allowing us to be carried up high into the air (500 feet).
It was amazing feeling- I loved being up so high and being able to see that beautiful view. I just didn’t like it when the wind made us turn a bit, but overall was a very gentle, relaxing ride. I liked when we were being lowered, and loved being dipped into the water. Such an exhilarating time! Except that I went twice because there was an odd number in our group, and during the last half of the second time, I got a little queasy but the first time was so great.
After Parasailing, we headed to a nearby seafood restaurant. Since my stomach was still a little weak, I got the chicken fingers- They allowed me to order from the children’s menu so it came with fries and applesauce. I was able to eat maybe half of it, and one of the guys actually paid for it for me to make me feel better. That was such a thoughtful gesture!
We then headed to nearby Ocean City Beach for the remainder of the afternoon, and I spent the entire time in the ocean- Swimming in the waves, splashing around in the water. It was wonderful and loved the feeling of the cool spray.
Then, started our journey back to Queens, and ended our day at A Taste of Shanghai restaurant in Flushing. It was definitely good to go with people who know what to order. We started with crab meat soup dumplings (or Xiao Lon Bao) and pan fried pork buns. The soup dumplings were just okay- They weren’t really juicy enough for me, and the meat didn’t taste like crab. Also, I’ve been spoiled by real soup dumplings in Shanghai, China. The pork buns were very tasty though.
We then shared several dishes. First came the soup with fish, pickled vegetable and see through glass noodles, which was quite good with plenty of fish. We also had a couple of side dishes: Potato slices were okay, but really plain and bok choy with tofu was decent- Very fresh.
The main dishes were better: Pork Shoulder and whole fish. The pork shoulder was a huge piece of meat, with the skin on the outside. Delicious meat bathed in a delightful sauce was tender and flavorful. The whole crispy fish was mouthwatering — In sweet and sour sauce, and had a topping of shrimp, peas, carrots and pine nuts. Fresh and perfectly crisped, the fish meat was light and yummy.
And since we shared everything, our meal was quite affordable. What a wonderful end to a wonderful & full weekend!
Address: 39-07 Prince St, #1 in Flushing, Queens
Dress, Dine & Sparkle 