Everyone Has a Beach

     I have this theory that everyone has their own beach-- they're very own place where there family goes on a semi-regular basis that feels like it belongs to just them, even though tons of other tourists visit the same place. It doesn't even have to be a beach really, it could be a ski resort or a cabin in the woods or a spot in the city. But everyone has that one place that feels like a second home kind of. That you have memories of from different ages in your life. That you think of during the mundane days of life and wish you could be there. That you sometimes even forget about almost completely, and then when you go there it feels like you never left and you can't fathom how you forgot about the place. For me that's Chincoteague Virginia. I've been to many beaches and beach towns-- Ocean City, Rehoboth Beach, Siesta Key Beach, Cape May, Fishing Creek. All of them have had their virtues. Ocean City has endless shops blaring loud and amazing dance music. Siesta Key has the softest sand in the whole world. Cape May is so fancy and classy and adorable. But Chincoteague, for me, just has something else. Something more. I can't put my finger on it exactly. Maybe just all the memories I've had there, or the lazy feel of it, or the fact that it's probably the most hipster island I've ever been to. There's just so much to love about it. Everything in Chincoteague is colorful, there's so much nature, it's tiny, it's like a little microcosm of the world because on one street, there are shops and restaurants and the next street over there are houses filled with people who were born and raised there. It makes you feel like you're not just a tourist, but a member of the town. Like you yourself have lived there your whole life. Here's a list of specific things I love about Chincoteague (and the campground where we stay when we vacation there):

There's a restaurant called Famous Pizza that has the best pizza you'll probably ever taste in your life (with the exclusion of Rocky's because I have to stay loyal LOL).

Fifty percent of the houses are painted some crazy bright color-- hot pink, sunshine yellow, cobalt blue, lavender purple.

There are tons of little coffee shops and thrift shops and antique stores.

Mr. Whippy's ice cream is the only 97% fat free ice cream I've ever loved. It's better than the handmade ice cream down the street!

There are so many people to see-- it's a people watcher's dream come true.

The Dollar General in Chincoteague is somehow ten million times more interesting than any DG back home.

Pony Tails is the greatest gift shop on the planet-- the entire second floor is clearance, and all the stuff is cute.

The pier at the campground is like where my soul finally feels at peace. I could sit on a bench overlooking the water for hours. It's so calm and beautiful. And the jelly fish that occasionally ooze by are so cute. And the abandoned boats are friendly. And the marsh looks so soft. And you can see for miles. Siggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

The campers and houses at the campground are like people, all different shapes and sizes. It's so fun to just drive around and look at them all, and see how different people decided to convert their mobile home into a permanent home. SE would poo her pants at some of the adorable throwback campers. And MF would poo her pants at some of the vintage bikes I've seen people cruising around on. 

I've never met an unfriendly person in Chincoteague.

THE FOOD! Everywhere. The food everywhere is amazing.


     Well, I'm sure there are a thousand more things to love about Chincoteague and the Trails End campground, but those are all the things that came to my mind right away. Maybe right now you're thinking about your own beach, and wishing you were there, and if so, I hope you get a chance to go there soon and just rest and enjoy all the wonderful things.


Song Rec (I'm really sucking at remembering to actually include songs in my posts):

"Insecure" by Shane

This song was recommended to me by GC and I really like it! There's something about it that just makes you want to listen to it over and over again. And I love the first half of the music video.

-VaughnDL