Florida Interlude

Sunday April 13

Miriam and I spent the day visiting with Joe and Sarah and meeting their son and his family for lunch.  The weather remained pleasantly warm and breezy.  Returning to the hotel in the evening we checked our bags for weight and called it a night.

Monday, April 14, 2014

This morning we had an early breakfast at the hotel and drove to the Nashville Airport where the check-in process and security lines were painless.  We arrived way too early, so spent some time in the Admirals Club, making use of our lifetime British Airways Gold Card.  The flight departed early, arriving early in Charlotte, which was good since our next gate was at the opposite end of the airport.  That flight was also on-time and we arrived without incident in Fort Lauderdale ahead of schedule.  By the time we collected our checked luggage and picked up the rental car it was nearly 5 PM.  However, traffic was not heavy and we arrived at Gary & Suzanne Patton’s it was early 8 PM.  We joined Gary and Suzanne for a late supper by their pool, enjoying the warm evening.

April 15, 2014.

Patton Residence at Burnt Store Marina

After a morning workout, with Gary and Patrick walking briskly for over 5 miles around the Burnt Store marina complex where Patton’s live, with Miriam and Suzanne taking a more relaxed walk and golf cart ride we had a light breakfast before the day’s travels.

Our first stop was “Beall’s”, where we shopped for some additional warm weather clothes, taking advantage of the Tuesday senior citizen discounts.  A driving tour of Fort Myers followed, including a stop at the “Shell Factory”, a local attraction that seems to have been transported from the 1950’s, with an incredible collection of stuffed game and the most extensive collection of tacky tourist souvenirs we have seen in a long time.  We followed that with a stop at Total Wine for some beverages for the upcoming cruise and then back to the house for “Cuban” sandwiches.

After lunch we headed for Punta Gorda and the Visual Arts Center where Suzanne sells some of her handmade jewelry and also volunteers.

While Miriam and Suzanne spent time there, Gary and Patrick were a few blocks away at Fisherman’s Village and Harpoon Harry’s before we all toured Punta Gorda by car.  We ended up at a local Irish Pu, “Celtic Ray” for a pint of Guiness and some chips (fries) before heading south to Matlacha and Michelis restaurant.  The restaurant is located along one of the canals and we had Bada Bing shrimp and some raw oysters while seated outside, listening to a local perfomer unsuccessfully trying to emulate Jimmy Buffet.  After dinner it was back to the house for home videos.

Gary & Suzanne at CelticRays

Guiness and Cider at Celtic Rays

April 16, 2014

Today we woke up to cool cloudy skies with a brisk NE wind as we headed to Punta Gorda and boarded a tour boat for a day long tour south across Charlotte Harbor to Cabbage Key.  Our route took us past the entrance to the Gulf of Mexico at Boca Grande Pass where we entered the Intra Coastal Waterway and headed south to Cabbage Key where we stopped for lunch.  We were glad we had packed lightweight jackets for the trip as it was cool for Florida.  As we approached Cabbage Key the sun finally appeared and the temperatures soared.  The Cabbage Key restaurant was unusual in having the walls and ceilings totally covered in dollar bills that guests have taped up with their names in marking pens on the bills.  All the food, including the mahi-mahi burgers, was good.  After lunch we had an hour or so to wander over the trails on the island before boarding the boat for the 2 ½ hour trip back to Punta Gorda.  The dolphins were scarce on the trip; we only saw a few and those from a distance.  The shallow waters of Charlotte Harbor were a real surprise for us, being used to depths far greater than the 8-12 foot depths over most of the trip.

Waiting for the boat to Cabbage Key

Windy Day on Charlotte Harbor for the Patton's

We needed jackets all morning in Florida!

Some of the "wallpaper" at Cabbage Key Restaurant

Shower anyone?

After docking at Fisherman’s Village we stopped at Monty’s Pizza and picked up two large deluxe pizzas loaded up with all kinds of toppings to reheat later at Patton’s house.  By the time we returned to the house the skies had fully cleared so we sat by the pool and later in the pool where Gary and Patrick ate their pizza.

April 17, 2014

After breakfast Gary and Patrick loaded up the kayaks and went for a 2 ½ hour paddle though the mangroves near Matlacha.  Without a GPS to lead one back, they would have been hopelessly lost, since one channel looks so much like another.  Suzanne and Miriam made a short shopping trip for last minute cruise essentials before we all met up for lunch at Patton’s and a relaxing afternoon smoking pork ribs for dinner.

Pool Pizza Party - Life is Good!