I was my own Willy Wonka... for a day!
I didn't need to own an estate of candy-filled fields of Twizzlers, with chocolate rivers, or even sugar valleys… I just went and took a visit to Dylan's Candy Bar (the one on 3rd Ave. between 60th and 61st street).
I had stepped into the store, curious and alert, ready to unwrap my heart's desire. Walking on, just past a giant Easter Bunny, I caught a whiff of crisp air; it's as if this air I had inhaled were itself sugar-coated.
It literally took me back to childhood days. You know how you saved all your quarters from the week just to go buy that special candy you liked, and when you bought it and unwrapped it - that scent… it was a flavour burst that aroused your sweet tooth. That's what walking through Dylan's Candy Bar feels like.
But before I get into literally AALLLL of the candy, take a moment to look at these very cute superstars doing their thing in these photographs.
So… about wonderland - or more like my personal rush down candy lane.
Remember Now and Laters? And Tootsie Rolls? Like there wasn't a birthday party I had gone to as a kid where I did not get Tootsie Rolls in the party bag! It was the candy bag staple. But even more so, I remember trying to get that gooey stuff out my teeth after chewing on it, because yes - I chewed on it. But in any case…
I remember days of heading to my neighborhood corner store as a little girl growing up in Saint Lucia, and for sure, I was guaranteed to ask, "Can I have a green Now and Later please?" They were tiny packages of 3 Now and Later's of the same flavour. And boy oh boy, it was not too long before the candy was in my hand, and I had eaten the whole thing - none for later!
Man! It seemed like the candies were packaged into just the right "bite-size" amount that kept you wanting another, and another. I looked forward to every chewy, gushy, flavourful, soury, gooey delight of whatever was in my neighborhood corner shop - that's how it was for me, a then 9-year-old girl on my way home from school. Does anyone remember Smarties? They were supposed to make us "smart," lol.
Anywho, venturing into Dylan's Candy Bar caught me stumbling on all kinds of things, including Smarties, Now and Laters and Tootsie Rolls. Don't worry, here's a peek at the adventure.
