But my parents go there now in the winter, and I needed a break from work stress, so I booked a ticket. It was a nice visit with them and their housemates, but apparently I went during their one cold snap of the winter. It's been such a mild winter here that the temps between the two areas were almost the same! Weird.
So my outfit photos aren't that different from any other weekend outfit shot. Except for the background. :)
My mom joined me for one outfit shot...which my dad weirdly shot at a downward angle. Need to give that man some blogging-outfit-photo lessons! :)
Dad and I took a self-portrait shot on Sunday, on a pier on Sanibel Island.
It finally warmed up to the 60s on Monday so we checked out the whole island and made a few stops at some of the beaches. I got some nice shots.
Lots of bridges in Fort Myers/Cape Coral area.
We also went to a fisherman's village tourist area in Punta Gorda. I love marinas.
Who knew manatees would be an issue for boaters? Not me!
Yep, shuffleboard. These were some of the few children I saw for four days, and they were playing shuffleboard.
A baby alligator! Or is it a crocodile... whichever, I saw one at the nature preserve!
I kept joking to my parents and their friends that this was the quintessential shot of Florida: beautiful sky, nice day, fun umbrella, people relaxing...around an oxygen tank. LOL. Florida skews very, very old. I never realized how much before! It was pretty weird; I am not a kid person, but I am so used to seeing them in all the restaurants or seeing tons of kids-focused stores at the malls etc, it was unsettling to realize their absence. It's different than Vegas, which also does not have a lot of kid stuff but still caters to young adults. I am sure Orlando and the whole Disney area is kid-focused, and truthfully I'm not too interested in visiting there. I kind of liked being the youngest in the crowd. ;-D
I leave you with one last shot of the canal behind my parents' rental house. Too bad the house didn't have a boat too; those canals were definitely worth exploring!
Have you ever been to Florida? Like or dislike?
I am booked for a trip to Ft. Myer the end of March...it is a week off from school and I can't wait! Thanks for sharing the pictures....makes me want my time off now.....
ReplyDeleteWooh, enjoy!
DeleteI've been to Florida twice: once for a conference for work (Ft. Lauderdale, and we were basically in a resort the whole time) and once last December (2010) for a trip to see the Miami Dolphins play. I loved the warmth, although the tropical downpour in December was not fun.
ReplyDeleteIt's such a long trip for us (being up north of Seattle) - I can't see us going there for a holiday again.
On an aside, I used to work for a company that had a ton of stores down in FL - I was the Lease Admin for the whole shebang, so I know every town you named!
Ha! Glad you recognized them. I love when that happens.
DeleteI'm from Florida! But not the retirees living on canals playing shuffleboard kind of Florida you visited. ;) We are actually a much more dynamic state, ha.
ReplyDelete:) I know, Florida is pretty big and diverse. I think I was surprised that the whole area where I was so senior-centric; I have spent a lot of time in Tucson which is also popular with the snowbirds, but the city itself is still diverse. I think I was expecting that, so it was a surprise.
DeleteIf you're looking for a more diverse picture of Florida, check out cities like Tampa, Gainesville, Orlando, St Augustine, West Palm Beach, Miami. Those cities are all a lot more than just retirees.
DeleteOutside of our larger cities though, Florida is really pretty rural. Lots of big forests where people hunt, lots of traditional Southern food (black eyed peas, boiled peanuts, etc). While some of these smaller cities are a little too red-neck for me, a lot of them are really quaint and charming. Most of my family is originally from Madison, FL and Arcadia, FL which are both two beautiful rural areas of in the state.
Oh, the oxygen tank photo is funny. I've never ever been to FL. Being on the West Coast, I just visit California or Vegas when I want sun.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like you had fun though and it makes me long for a vacation. And sun.
I like Tucson or Vegas, for a warm weather spot myself. But this was a nice visit too!
DeleteI like in Florida too.
ReplyDeleteLike Brooke said it is a very diverse state.
Certain areas are going to be geared towards retirees.
But the state is very dynamic.
Abby, like I just replied to Brooke, I think I was surprised that the area was senior-centric. Tucson has a mix of young and old, and it is popular with snowbirds too. I guess it was the...segregration, for lack of a better word, that I was not expecting. But I definitely can see that the state overall is diverse.
DeleteMy grandparents had a home on Sanibel. So jealous! And we love Florida!! Not to live...only to visit.
ReplyDeleteSanibel was very pretty!
DeleteMy uncle lives in Punta Gorda...and no, I've never been to Florida. That is embarrassing - we need to go there. Loved the pics, and the beach/oxygen tank is priceless.
ReplyDeletePunta Gorda was pretty. All of the beach areas were!
DeleteI've been to Florida, and I love it! I went to Disney a few times as a kid, and when my high school best friend moved to Fort Meyers during our sophomore year, naturally I went to visit her on summer vacations.
ReplyDeleteWhat an awesome escape from the Midwest (mild winter or not), and it sounds like a fun weekend with your parents.
Thanks it was fun. And I do like seeing new parts of the country! I was enamored of all the orange groves.
DeleteThe oxygen tank is just perfect.
ReplyDeleteLotus Notes used to have a conference in Orlando in late January and we piggybacked a couple of trips in on that plus some visits to Boca to see relatives. Driving from Orlando to Boca Raton is dull.
Like you we found that it wasn't always as warm as you'd think it should be. It was always better than the weather at home. When I came home I could tell I had a sunshine buzzz.
OMG the drive up that one highway is terrible, but so is the one in Ohio and Pennsylvania. :)
DeleteI was so so sad there was no sun until almost my last day. I felt like I was missing the Florida experience.
Moved from Toronto to Atlanta 30 years ago and LOVED the winter. Thirty years later I run to Florida for long weekends to escape the cold. I guess it's all relative!
ReplyDeleteAlligators, shuffleboard, beaches and suburbs - looks like you've caught most of essential Florida. Now you just need a few pictures of bad drivers and palmettos :)
ReplyDeleteI've lived here my whole life, so I really don't know anything different. Native Floridians tend to have a love/hate relationship with our homestate, but I think that's true for most people.
My niece (and now my great niece!) live in Fort Myers and her mom and grandmother live in Punta Gorda. I see Shelley says she's got family down there too. I'm thinking we need to all go down at the same time next year - family visits and blogger meetup!! (Sorry the cold followed you though.)
ReplyDeleteWe love the panhandle of Florida, especially 30A. I know what you mean about the absence of kids in the area you visited though. We went to Naples in March a couple of years ago and I felt like a toddler! No kids anywhere. I did not care for that. I prefer multi-generational vacations!
ReplyDeleteThe sunlight is enchanting... I've been to Florida, Miami airport a trillion times, does that count ? Haha, I ama kidding. I've been to FL mostly for work meetings and once to Orlando to Island of Adventure, I did not make it to Disney :(
ReplyDelete