St. Augustine has interactive history. Go ahead and drink the water! Hope springs eternal and this is after all the Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park in St. Augustine. I’m sipping water from a spring found by Spanish explorer Ponce de…
Take a Walk in a Park Today
Saturday, March 30, 2019 is National Take a Walk in a Park day. Do your duty! I did mine a bit early at De Soto National Memorial Park in Bradenton – a small park on the south shore of the…
Bradenton Brims with History, Fun and Food
Bradenton brims with history, fun, food – a family friendly place, easy to navigate and enjoy
St. Augustine Walks & Talks History Daily
After a long hard day of tacking into the wind, where do sailors go? Often they navigate to the nearest wine bar. So too in St. Augustine after a hard day of enduring long lines for visiting the Castillo de…
Visit Tallahassee Florida’s Capitol City
Visit Tallahassee, Florida where the past, present and future merge together. A little known slice of history: state officials took turns traveling between two cities, every other year, in the early 1820’s. Travel then was not fun or fast. In…
A Taste of Cuba in Historic Ybor City
“History is a fragile thing,” says Max Herman, our guide with Ybor City Historic Walking Tours – a family-owned business started by his dad Lonnie Herman. Take Ybor City as an example – a place that came to be because…
Myakka River State Park has a Airboat Tour – all aboard!
Don’t let a little mystery keep you from going to Myakka River State Park and taking a Myakka Wildlife Airboat Tour aboard one of the world’s largest covered airboats. The mystery? Prior to the 1850’s English maps called the river…
Jack Kerouac Slept & Wrote in College Park, Florida
Jack Kerouac slept here. Believe it! For a short while, during a piece of 1957-58 Jack Kerouac and his mother lived in a two-room apartment at the back of a bungalow in College Park, a laidback neighborhood in northwest Orlando.…
Making mosaics in Barcelona, Spain
Making mosaics is easy and fun in Barcelona, Spain. Come with me and I’ll show you how. Today I’m taking a two-hour mosaic class at Livia Garreta’s studio. My plan: make a mosaic I can bring home in my suitcase.…
Emerson Point Preserve & Waterfront Doings in Palmetto
All that walking at Emerson Point Preserve worked up an appetite for lunch and I found myself at the Riverside Café, watching cloud shows and devouring the Dieters Delight. “How do you like it?” the waitress asked. This is my…
Florida Lighthouses Welcome Visitors
Florida Lighthouses – When it comes to climbing St. Augustine Lighthouse, remember this number – 219. It will become important to you. Getting to the top of St. Augustine Lighthouse means going up, up, up, yes, you got it, 219…
Old Cedar Key Walking Tour and More Adventures
The Old Cedar Key walking tour is on my list of things to do but first we need to check in. At the Faraway Inn their Office sign is turned to Open. Obi and I step inside. The manager looks…
Go Greek for a day (or two) in Tarpon Springs
“Once a week, go Greek.” Look for this motto on shirts worn by the wait staff at Mr. Souvlaki’s restaurant on Pinellas Avenue in Tarpon Springs. Be quick to take a peek because the waiters are moving pretty fast, threading…
Florida Art Museums are Cool – Let’s Visit
September in Florida can be cruel. An early morning breeze caresses our cheeks like a lover’s touch and then bam! An hour later the thrill of fall is gone, replaced by yet another hot day and humid night – enough…
Mount Up – Horseback Riding in Florida
In his seminal book A Land Remembered published in 1984 author Patrick Smith traced three generations of a family homesteading in Florida. Life was tough. Mosquitoes were relentless in their pursuit of human blood and bad guys burned down their…
Seafood Sizzles in Cortez
Flying near the old net camp in the water off Cortez a brown pelican suddenly folds its wings and does a deep dive plunging out of the sky straight down into the bay. Hitting the water beak first this kamikaze…
Antiques Fair Well in Arcadia
“You really must go to Arcadia the fourth Saturday of the month,” she said, her husband nodding assent as they stood at my table during a book signing. I perked up. “Why the fourth Saturday?” I asked. “Oh, because all…
You are Invited Inside Florida’s Historic Homes
History happened here and there and everywhere in Florida. When uncovering the past consider exploring the still standing historical houses. These homes are often saved from wrecking balls by volunteers – dedicated souls who value the tenor of time. They…
Water Tours Offer Unique View of Florida
“That house on the right sold for seven million last year,” says Harold Bubil, Real Estate Editor of the Sarasota Herald Tribune. All eyes swivel starboard. We look at the elevated waterfront home with patio, pool and a dock. Impressive.…
Flower Power Blooms in Florida
Wait for it. Coming. Coming. Zing! The calendar page turns and voila, March arrives today – yeah! Flower power in Florida starts in January and goes through April, This is much different than “up North” but then Florida is tropical.…
Florida History Makes a Great Walk in DeLand
The year was 1876. Henry Addison DeLand took a vacation from his baking soda business in New York to visit his sister and brother-in-law, O.P Terry. They lived in South Carolina. Perhaps it happened over several glasses of wine before…
Aviation History soars in Florida
Tucked away in a folder called “Places in Florida I haven’t been yet (but want to go)” are scraps of paper with scribbled notes, flyers, cards and brochures. The DeLand Naval Air Station sits in that folder. Think about it. …
Tarpon Springs Gives a Taste of Greek Life
I’m smiling and it is not even time for lunch. But I know lunch will be at Mama Maria’s, a family run Greek restaurant with marvelous food. Oh yes. First I find my way to Dodecanese Boulevard, home of the…
Warm Mineral Springs closes – then opens again
She squints at my driver’s license, leaning in to read the address. Sarasota County residents get $5 off admission to Warm Mineral Springs, a national treasure located in North Port, which just happens to be part of Sarasota County. Yep.…
Bed & Breakfasts Keep Florida History
I’m always surprised at how quickly things can change with just one turn. For me it was a right-hand turn off busy Highway 17/92 in Orange City near DeLand. That turn put me onto French Avenue. The frantic traffic, carried…