Another update.....

Right now we are in Cocoa Beach, Fl. Going to the Kennedy Space Center today and heading out tomorrow. Spent 4 days on Key West without an online connection (because the pricey hotel we stayed at charged an additional daily fee for access, so we said forget it). Speaking of Key West, whoa! Party time central and not very laid back. Between the controlled frenzy and the intense heat, we were exhausted. I have hundreds of photos to go through, so when I've done that, I'll post them. Will be back soon.

A quick update....

We spent three days in Naples, Florida. Very upscale and swank. We were there in the off season so the hotel prices were good. Eating out however was another story. Very $$$. We are now on the Keys, spent the night at a resort on Islamorada. We're about 80 miles from Key West, where we are heading. Gotta go check out of this place. We'll be back with more stuff and photos, and I promise to answer all of you who so kindly emailed me for my birthday. Thanks!

Manatees and a SNOOK (!) at Homosassa Springs State Wildlife Park

We visited this Florida state park with Ed's sister Nancy and her husband Mike. The manatees pictured cannot be released into the wild due to injury or because they have been born in captivity. In the first shot the manatee is munching on a carrot. In the next pic he appears to be sharing his snack with a passing fish. The fifth shot is of a fish called a snook. Yes, a snook. It looks like a snook too. Finally, Ed poses as a manatee. What a ham!

PS: Thanks to all for your birthday wishes

This trip is officially a year old today

And we're only in Florida with still a way to go...uh oh... I'll have to rename this blog. It's hard to believe that a year has gone by (actually, 366 days if my calculations are right). We're estimating arrival time back in NY in late July. Until then, for those of you still watching, keep tuning in!

When we first got to Spring Hill, we did some snooping on our own and found some wildlife...

We went to a few beaches on this day, but we saw all these animals at a beach called Jenkins Creek Park, which is not far from the house. The first is a great blue heron, next is a loon (I think), and the third is a couple of turkey vultures (spooky!). The fourth shot is of a lizard showing off his pouch, and the next photo is of a couple who are either courting or fighting. In any event, it looks as if the bird on the right is attempting to snap off the other one's beak. The last 2 shots are of a manatee and her pup! Not very good photos, but the best I could do under the circumstances. We couldn't believe we actually were seeing manatees in the wild! In the fifth shot mom is sticking her snout above water and baby is below her and to the right. The last shot is of mom poking her head up again.
Will be back with more pix of the four of us (humans) at Homosassa Springs Park.

We're visiting with Ed's sister, Nancy, and her husband, Mike, in Spring Hill, FL

And they very generously gave us the use of their beautiful second home here. A whole house! I find myself getting lost sometimes. The only thing that's not cooperating is the weather, with threatening thunderstorms on a continuous basis. We had a good downpour last night (which is very much needed), but mostly it's just dark, rumbling clouds. Will be back soon with pix and thanks again Nancy and Mike!
P.S. Heard you're having some killer weather back in New York!

We are now in Miramar Beach, Florida

Miramar Beach is on a spit of land in the Florida panhandle, surrounded by the Choctawhatchee Bay to the north and the Gulf to the south. We have a really nice bayfront condo at a gigantic resort that's as big as a city. Everything you could possibly want is here; all types of housing, restaurants, shops, pools, and the beach of course. Actually, we sort of stumbled onto the place, it's not the sort of thing that we would actively seek out. But the price was very reasonable, so we went for it. There's an artificiality to all of this, sort of like Disneyworld, only people live here. The beaches are beautiful, white sand and clear blue-green water. They call it the Emerald Coast and it's easy to see why.

Now for the photos: the first shot was taken from our balcony, next is a spectacular sunset. The third pic is what is called Baytowne Wharf, it contains a huge hotel, along with many shops, restaurants, and bars. This place is only the tip of the iceberg though, as I said the complex is enormous (it's called Sandestin). The next shot is of Ed holding up the martini sign in the restaurant/bar area of Baytowne Wharf. Next up are some fancy planes that were flying overhead while we were there. After that is a shot of the crowded (but pretty) beach. Finally, my favorite, a shot of some pastel-colored houses that we spotted as we were driving to the nearby town of Seaside. That town was developed as the first "planned community" and it's where the movie The Truman Show was filmed. The place was packed (maybe they were robots?).

Biloxi, Mississippi 3 Years After Katrina

Biloxi and the whole Gulf coast of Mississippi were really hit hard by Katrina and are still in the process of rebuilding almost 3 years later. We stayed in one of the rebuilt hotel/casinos on the Gulf (we had an excellent 10th floor corner room overlooking the water). Our hotel had water up to the 3rd floor after the storm and it was one of the lucky ones. The pictures above are rather depressing, but that's what happened to the little guys (no big money behind them). The 3rd pic is of a rescue station that's still standing and still operational (I think). The 4th photo was taken from our balcony, that's the new bridge built since Katrina on the right, the remains of the old one on the left. The last photo is a close-up of that ruined bridge. Those are huge slabs of concrete just broken in half - uubelievable. The whole area is in various states of renovation: lots of new buildings, some in the process, and others just abandoned. The local people we spoke to seem to have a positive attitude and don't expect another storm of that magnitude. The people who were able to rebuild are intent on staying there.

The French Quarter in New Orleans

We only spent an afternoon in New Orleans, the French Quarter specifically. Ed wanted me to clarify that in the first photo he was looking at the mule, not the passing girl's butt (that was on Decatur St.). The next two shots were taken on Bourbon St. The scary skeleton was on Decatur St. and the next pic is of an area resident's mode of transportation. Note all the Mardi Gras beads on the bike. We noticed them everywhere. Finally, a shot of some interesting party masks.

All in all, a very partying city. We were there during the day, and the drinking had already started big time. Yahoo!!!! Oh, I almost forgot, we left with our very own souvenir from the city of New Orleans: a parking ticket. First one of the entire trip. Apparently you can drink on the streets of the city, but you can't park there.