We left you in the gardens of the Ringling estate. We grabbed lunch from the food truck and ate it under the banyan trees. Then, we made our way to our last stop in the complex, the circus museum. Actually, before entering the circus galleries there in one last museum that curates glass creations. The … Continue reading The Ringling Circus Museum
Category: Florida
The Ringling Museums: House and Gardens
We are still on our first day visiting the Ringling Museums. We will now explore the gardens and the impressive Ca’ d’Zan; the mansion that John and Mable Ringling called home after settling in Sarasota. We strolled through the gardens towards the bay where the palatial mansion overlooks the water. The gardens were beautiful. Unfortunately, … Continue reading The Ringling Museums: House and Gardens
Ponce de Leon Park
Ponce de leon park is located on the outskirts of Punta Gorda in Florida. Our van was still at the dealership waiting to for a fix, so we had lots of time to investigate the area. On the edge of town, overlooking Charlotte Harbour, this park seems to be the sunset Mecca of Punta Gorda. … Continue reading Ponce de Leon Park
Peace River Botanical & Sculpture Garden
While waiting for the dealership to fix our van, we explored the Punta Gorda area. The Peace river Botanical & Sculpture Garden caught our eye. The Peace river Botanical & Sculpture Garden is a 30 acre oasis. The grounds integrate natural habitat and stunning contemporary interpretive art. The gardens were beautiful with informative signs around … Continue reading Peace River Botanical & Sculpture Garden
De Soto National Memorial
We were still in Florida, waiting for the dealership to fix our van. This forced vacation took us up and down the west coast of plenty. We explored some towns and barrier Island and it will take us some time to catch up and post about it all. This post takes us to Bradenton, "Florida's … Continue reading De Soto National Memorial
Our Heavenly Nightmare in Paradise is Over
We have the van back! It's fixed and everything seems to be working as it should be. Even better, the warranty kicked in and we didn't have to pay for the work that was done. Paying for 18 nights at Airbnbs and hotels was steep enough; it was nice to get some of a break. … Continue reading Our Heavenly Nightmare in Paradise is Over
The Calusa Nation in Pineland
Pine Island was home to the Calusa Nation; a nation now extinct. The Calusa was an organized society that, unlike other ancient societies, sustained mostly on fishing and not on agriculture. We were happy to find the Randell Research Centre's Heritage Trail on the island and went for a history hike. The heritage trail meanders … Continue reading The Calusa Nation in Pineland
When in Rome
When in Rome, or in Venice, Florida, do as the local do. What do they do, you may wonder. Read on and we will tell you all about it. By now, you probably know that we are beach bums. We didn't really know this about ourselves, or maybe we took it for granted, but you … Continue reading When in Rome
Con, Tiki, Taco, and Tikka
Stranded in Florida: Con, Tiki, Taco, and Tikka, our food explorations. Not having the van with us "allowed" us to eat out a lot more and we wanted to share a few of these places with you. Bokeelia Island We enjoyed sitting out on the Patio of Captain Con's seafood place on Bokeelia Island, watching … Continue reading Con, Tiki, Taco, and Tikka
Where the heck is Bokeelia?
Bokeelia is where we are, on the northern tip of Pine Island. There's a T-shirt to prove that this name exists and we should totally buy one of these shirts. We left off telling you that we are stuck in Florida as we wait for our van to be fixed. We'll share with you some … Continue reading Where the heck is Bokeelia?