remember that super self-congratulatory post i wrote the other week about my first colour walk, and how in colourful company has changed my life a little bit? well, get ready for round two, because here it comes: a few weekends ago - after the wash out on brighton beach, in fact, jasmin and i jumped back on a train headed to another seaside town; this time, margate. the last time i was in margate was almost exactly two years ago - to the day - and i was so looking forward to getting back down there to see how much it had changed in that time.
and in honesty: the town hasn't changed much. what has changed more than much, is dreamland. what i remembered of the retro theme park was just that: its retro quirks. and sadly, most of those quirks have now been over shadowed by big business, and the obvious need to make money. and, i guess that it wasn't for a bit. which is a shame, because it had a really innocent quality about it that i've only ever really seen at the likes of the disney parks or, like, my childhood. it now more or less resembles the sort of park you'd find at the end of a seaside pier - just on a muuuuch bigger scale! oh, and a lotttttttttttttt more colourful, which is where we get to the point: it's the perfect place for an in colourful company meet up!
dreamland has definitely changed since i was there last. the fact is: it's a business that needs to make money, and now it clearly is. with the addition of the friendliest food court on earth, the re imagination of the forecourt space to include live music events like the likes of the gorillaz et al, and the faaaaaaantastic use of space in the back lot with the world's biggest bouncy castle (whaaaat!), there's definitely money being made. the real shame is that dreamland had a really unique selling point (i mean, it still does, it's just not to my personal taste)(and that's probably why they had to change their business plan, no?) - with their neon signs, retro booths, rides that were older (but still safe) than time, it had a real niche market. now i guess everyone's happy. and, the roller disco is still there, so that's something.
thankfully, those pieces i loved back then are still there - if you know where to look. which is usually: up. the old signs and booths have sort of been recycled and used in other ways - as backdrops to the roller coaster, as decorations and design around the park, and i suppose: for the like of me. those who loved the old dreamland are just as welcome as ever, so they just want to make everyone happy i guess. and, it worked a treat. it worked when i went on the roller coaster - twice. it worked when i devoured a crunch cheese toastie. it worked when i bounced my heart out with a bunch of seven year olds on the bouncy castle. it worked when i jumped in a sack and sped down the tallest, most colourful rainbow slide ever. i mean, it still all totally worked. it was just different, you know?
as always though, half the fun i have is thanks to the company i keep. the colourful company, and this time was no different. this time, leona of luckydipclub was our fearless host, and man oh man did she really knock this event out of the park. pun: intended. not only did she (and the gang who'd travelled down the night before because, man, sheffield is far from margate) get up early and dress our special vip area with the most colourful decorations i've ever seen, but also they made sure we had tickets to ride, tickets to bounce, access to all kinds of food, shelter to get respite from the baking sun, and all sorts of other tricks to keep us all very happy, and very, very grateful. and we are; i swear.
