Florida
A change of climate (Carly): 28 January 2007
Hi guys!
It was snowing when we left Chicago and dragging our bags through the snow was not much fun! Before we knew it though we were in sunny Florida where a friendly face picked us up. It was lovely to see Uncle Dev as it'd been a couple of years since we last saw him but most of all it was wonderful to be collected from an airport! As we drove back to Devin and Liz's house we watched the sun setting over Tampa Bay - a truly beautiful sight. The house was lovely and Liz had made a yummy dinner which we ate by the pool admiring Rosie (their yacht). We disappointed Liz as neither of us like peanuts and so could not sample her homemade peanut butter bars, but we think Devin was quite pleased with this!
We had an amazing two weeks, watching for dolphins in the back garden, kayaking and even swimming in the pool. It was a little cold and apparently we are the first people to have swam in it in January. Adam made a big fuss about getting in as he was worried it would be too cold. In fact he didn't get in until I went to get the camera and take a picture of him dripping his big toe in! Although it was a touch on the chilly side it was very refreshing.
One of the best things about staying with Devin and Liz has to be the food. We had been stuck eating out for what seemed like forever and we were so pleased to be eating vegetables again! Adam found that he is a fan of beans - an unexpected discovery based on Liz's favourite cook book the Daily Bean. It turns out you can put beans in everything - even pumpkin muffins and pancakes and trust me they are delicious!
Getting into the kayaks from the dock was a tricky business as the water was a lot lower. But we could not be defeated especially as we'd already been told that Liz's Mum had managed it! We saw lots of pelicans, crabs, a hawk and even a stork - which i thought was a model until he turn his head to look at me. The geckos swimming around in the water were really cute too and we got some great photos of them. One even boarded Adam's kayak, I tired to get a picture but Adam was worried it would climb in with him and flicked it back into the water. Getting out of the kayaks was another adventure but somehow we managed it without mishap! Our second trip was much more amusing as Adam thought he could climb around the dingy which was tied onto the back of Rosie and he fell in the sea!!! As we had now got more of the hang of it we were able tot fight the current and make it to the small island nearby as well as checking out most of the other houses in the neighbourhood!
One night Devin and Liz took us out to a laid back bar in St John's Pass. We had some dinner, walked up the boardwalk and went to some bars with live music. St Petersburg and the surrounding area has a very relaxing atmosphere and we even found a shop with a talking parrot!
Although much of our time was spent relaxing we did pick up the place enough for two fun-filled days at Busch Gardens. We saw a huge variety of animals and went on lots of crazy rides. We both love rollercoasters and so we spent lots of time on Gwazi Tiger and Sheikra. On the first trip we went on all of the water rides and got absolutely drenched! First we did the Congo Rapids, Adam managed to stay dry until the very end when we both got soaked! It was good in some ways as once we were wet we went on all of the water rides! I really liked Tidal Wave, nothing much happens until the end when a huge wave bounces off of glass walls and drowns you! I bet the rides are get in the summer when everyone is too hot. It wasn't quite hot enough to dry off but that was ok because we went prepared with a change of clothes also it meant that it wasn't too busy and the queues were all very short!! The second time we went it was raining and Adam wouldn't let me go on the water rides again - probably a sensible choice and I wasn't too upset as we'd done them well the first time!
Liz does not work Fridays so the three of us had some day trips - both times the weather was fantastic. The first time we went to the St Pete beach where we had a long walk along the white sand and saw the pretty pink Don Ce Sar hotel. We sneaked inside and admired the old black and white photos of the hotel. On the second time we went to Fort De Soto another national park where the guns were hidden behind the fort walls and pointed upwards to make it over. Liz explained to us how they had to have a scout telling the shooter what angle and in what direction to fire the guns in order to hit the ships. It must have been very difficult especially with moving targets!
Undoubtedly the best part of our two weeks was the two sailing trips that we had on Rosie. The first time we sailed up to Egmont Key where we piled into the dingy for the wet ride to the shore. Sailing in Florida is a lot more relaxing than I had imagined it! It was another sunny day, a little chilling because of the wind, but then you don't get very far in a sail boat without wind! The shoreline of Egmont Key was overgrown but before long we came to a red brick road which was built when the island had a fort for defensive purposes. All that remained of the barracks were a few bricks and stilts that the buildings were sat on. The Fort was still in one piece though, if a little overgrown! Back on Rosie I took the helm for two hours, passing back to Devin as we reached our destination (Manatee river) and the water started to get a bit too shallow! As Adam and Liz correctly guessed the number of other boats in the bay him and Liz sat in the comfortable chairs. Devin and I made up for this with Margaritas! I slept very snugly in the V-shaped cabin. The next morning we went over to De Soto state park. Inside we watched an historic film on De Soto's expedition through La Florida in search of treasure. In 4 years most of his men and all of his horses were killed in swampy Florida and even worse he found no gold.
One thing that we learnt in our two weeks in Tampa was how lucky we are to have such kind relatives living in such a beautiful place! We were only disappointed that the time went so quickly.
Thank you Devin and Liz!!!
Love Carly xxx
Love Carly xxx