Bradenton was the Best.....

Melissa and I visited Bradenton, Fla. to see my sister Marcia and my brother-in-law, John.  We stayed in Cortez, Fla. which is just across the causeway bridge to the many island keys off the western Florida coast.  The first order of business was to meet John and Marcia for dinner at Moore's on Longboat Key.  The restaurant is located right on the water and the seafood was excellent.  Melissa told me it was the best seafood she had every tasted.  We returned there for our last night to enjoy the food.  We also were told that peacocks roamed the key in that area, so we took some pictures of them the next day.

 

Marcia is my older sister, but she has stayed in shape and has a lot of energy.  She had a whole week of activities planned for our visit.  However, we soon got tired and she graciously allowed me to take naps in the afternoon so I could keep up. 

The island keys were tropical paradises.  The first island we saw was Anna Marie Key.  It had beautiful blue-green water, tropical plants, white sand and that special Jimmy Buffet-type atmosphere.  We walked along the city pier and then relaxed at the local watering hole, the Sandbar, to enjoy the beach and pina' coladas.



The 776-foot pier was built in 1911 to accomodate visitors to the island arriving by steamship.





This picture does not do this beach justice.  The water
was spectacular.

 

We ate at Marcia's condo that night and dined on steak and fish.  We sat around their firepit in the back yard by the tennis courts until late in the evening.  I managed to take a picture of "George" the egret that walks around their place.



"George" the Egret

The next day the weather was cloudy and it looked like rain, but that didn't stop Marcia and John..  They took us on a dinner cruise aboard the Marina Jack II.  We cruised around Sarasota Bay and Bird Key while dining on prime rib and salmon.  We saw Jerry Springer's house on Bird Key (the one dysfunction built) and watched the dolphins jump alongside the boat.



Marina Jack II

John's 60-foot boat, "Big Daddy",was in the shop for an upgrade to the twin outboard motors, so he opted for his other yacht - the Marina Jack.  ha ha  We did get to see it on Longboat Key.

Big Daddy

On Monday, we got an early start and visited the Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus museum in Sarasota.   It took us five hours to see the museum and the Ringling palatial estate called CA'D'ZAN or House of John.  It was wonderful.

 

 

Sarasota was the winter quarters of the massive circus.  They stayed in Sarasota five months of the years practicing their acts and building up the circus.  It was the Disneyland of the 30's and 40's that attracted visitors from all over the world.  It was a combination circus, zoo, sideshow and train yard.   The circus employed over 1500 people and feeding, housing and transporting them and the animals was a major feat.  The U.S. Army took note of the efficiency of the circus and studied their logistics and methods for moving such a large contingent of people and equipment.  Sarasota has four generations of circus families living in their area.  Many are still performing in the circus.  There is also a circus university that teaches circus performers.  We found this part of the local history very fascinating.

One of the exhibits was a miniature display of the whole circus as it looked like at its' peak.  It covered several acres and included many tents.  Here is what it looked like.

The John and Mabel Ringling estate includes a Venetian Gothic palace completed in the 1920's surrounded by lovely gardens and embellished with Italian statuary.  It sits on Sarasota Bay and has all the original furnishings.  Here are some pictures:

 

 

 

 



 The rose garden planted by Mabel Ringling was in full bloom.  Mable was one of the founders of the Sarasota Garden Club and served as its first president.  Here are some pictures of the flowers and some of my photography tricks.

The afternoon ended with a frozen fruit drink in the Starbucks onsite.  We came back tired, but happy.   More on Sarasota in the next blog.

Destin is my destiny....

The next stop in our Spring RV vacation was Destin, Fla.  We stayed at a beautiful RV park in Miramar Beach just across the road from white sand and blue-green waters.  The RV spots were surrounded with palm trees, hybiscus bushes and other lush plants.  The roads were paved with ornamental stones and the pool was heated.  Ahhhh  Life is Good.

The weather was a perfect 70's in the daytime and a cool high 50's at night.  We slept with the windows open and enjoyed the cool ocean breeze.  Days were spent going to the beach, eating out, shopping and touring the area.   Here are some pictures to enjoy:

 

Have a seat and watch the waves roll in.



   

Our cats got into the vacation mode by lounging around in the RV.  One of their favorite spots was laying in the sunshine on the wide dashboard.



Monsarat



   

Nawlins






We visited the Harbor Walk in downtown Destin and took pictures, too.

On the last day of our visit to Destin, we took a drive over to Eden Gardens.  This is a 100-year-old mansion on 10.5 acres.  It was beautiful. 

The furnishings in the house were magnificent.  A lot of very expensive antiques provided by a publisher who never married and bought the house in 1963.  She renamed the place Eden and lived there until 1983.  Here is her picture.

 

  

Another little known fact about Eden Gardens, was that it was the site of a classic B horror movie called "The Frogs."  The movie starred Ray Milland, Sam Elliot (in his first starring role) and Joan Van Ark.

We originally watched this movie in the 1980's while on vacation in Panama City, Fla. We rented a condo with a black lagoon behind it. The frogs were so loud they kept us awake all night. Our neigh...bors had a pig roast and after quite a few beers, decided to nail the pig's head to a board and float it in the lagoon. They wanted the turtles to pick the skull clean so they could have it for a souvenir.

I made up a story about the Ghost of the Pig Roast and told it to Joanna and her friend who were very young and impressionable. I told them if they walked to the end of the pier and looked deep into the black waters and chanted "Ghost of the Pig Roast," it would appear. Of course, I described the pig's skull as having only one dangling eye and a half-eaten face. They wanted to go out to the pier that night, but were too afraid. I think we stayed up all night.

The next day we read that the movie was filmed nearby and drove over to see it. By the time we got there it was closed. So we thought we would try again 20+ years later. It was a very nice tour. Melissa did see a ghost leaving the upstairs room as we entered. I'll let her tell you about that.  Here is a look at the movie.  It is available on Amazon.com.

So the week of sunsets and beautiful beaches finally came to an end.  Next stop is Bradenton, Fla.  Stay tuned for the next blog.  BYE