I had a lovely experience at Casa de Suenos Bed and Breakfast in St. Augustine, Florida! I loved the city, the architecture, the history of it all, and I loved the Bed and Breakfast I stayed at in the historic district. It was the perfect location! Casa de Suenos is an easy walk to the fabulous Old Town Trolley Tours as well as many of the sights and shopping areas. Perfect!
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One of the most exciting events to look forward to on the Great Barrier Reef in July are Dwarf Minke Whales! As the name says, for a baleen whale they are rather small, growing to a maximum of 8 meters, or 24 ft, and on the endangered list, thank you Japan for slaughtering Minkes illegally every year. The ones I saw this year, off of the Spirit of Freedom, were not that large, but it was a thrill to see them. Sadly, I only had a few seconds to enjoy a close, eye to eye encounter. A few times we “snorkeled” (we were hanging onto a rope) in order to see them, and on the day whales came close, an event on board shut the encounter down.
A woman onboard who was also on the rope, had breathing issues. I’m still not sure what happened, whether she had a panic attack or a seizure, but she had a health incident and the crew got us all out of the water. I was the last person on the rope, so I was lucky enough to have a short encounter with two whales, a mum and a calf, but it did not last long enough. I was face to face with them, no more than 6 feet away, but I had to get out of the water so the boat could take off for Lizard Island so she could be airlifted to Cairns. The story had a happy ending, she was stable by the time we got to Lizard Island, thank goodness. But the whale story certainly was cut short! The crew was very professional and dealt with the emergency quickly and well.
After the airlift, the boat headed for famous Cod Hole. The dive site is famous for large (and I mean LARGE) Potato Cods who will come close to divers. The dive master feeds them to get them to hang around. Sadly, I only saw one Potato Cod, but it was a very cool experience being face to face with that big boy (or girl!). All of us thoroughly enjoyed the spectacle!
Florida is home to about 20 million people, it has world-famous theme parks and a number of the craziest food festivals on Earth! If you are looking for creative gourmet food, you will find it in the small villages of the state.
Williston, Florida is a small town in central Florida, and has 3,000 inhabitants. What it lacks in size, Williston makes up for with original ideas. The proof: the “Central Florida Peanut Festival” . On October 1, 2016, everything revolves back to the peanut. Whether boiled, baked, roasted or fried – every first Saturday in October, each peanut Gourmet here his personal Mecca. In addition, numerous rides and live music make for the right atmosphere. Not crazy enough? Every year the “Little Peanut Royal Family” is chosen as a highlight, including Queen and King Peanut and of course Little Peanut Baby.
Fellsmere, about 130 kilometers southeast of Orlando, is only slightly larger than Williston. There is the annual “Fellsmere Frog Leg Festival”. And if you don’t like frog legs, you can try the alternative, fried alligator. Over 80,000 visitors are expected from 19 to 22 January 2017. The event is in the Guinness Book of Records – for the largest number of frog legs consumed in a day. Rounding out the event there are numerous competitions such as frog-hopping betting and numerous live bands.
“The Best Stinkin ‘Party in South Florida” – otherwise known as “South Florida Garlic Fest” is in Delray Beach. It takes place Feb 10 – 12, 2017. Even garlic connoisseurs will find many useful tips and tricks for using the “stinking rose”. Garlic ice cream, garlic barbecue, garlic cake, you can have whatever your taste buds desire. The event is organized by volunteers, the proceeds of approximately $ 500,000 goes to educational and arts organizations for young people.
You cannot forget the “Florida Strawberry Festival” which lasts a total of eleven days from 2 to 12 March 2017. The festival dates back to 1930’s. Of course, there are strawberries in every way: raw, pie, wrapped in chocolate, in a salad or as an earring. But beyond that numerous competitions take place. There is a Strawberry Queen, and a fastest pig race.
After so much food is a visit to the “Miami Rum Renaissance Festival” seems just right. Rum producers and experts arrive from 22 to 23 April 2017 from all corners of the earth to sample the rum festival and to talk shop. As a highlight, the RumXP International Rum Expert Panel will award prizes in several categories. Pur, “on the rocks” or as a cocktail – Cheers!
Written by VisitFlorida. For further information VISITFLORIDA.org and on the blog SunshineMatters.org or via the social media channels: Facebook and Twitter @FloridaTourism.
I hope you all had a lovely Labor Day Weekend readers in the U S of A!
Today, I continue my journey on the Spirit of Freedom on the Great Barrier Reef! Our dive spots were the Ribbon Reefs at the far northern edge of the Great Barrier Reef, stretching for 50 miles along the continental shelf! These are famous dive sites for any level diver. The best time to dive this area is during the dry season, May to November. October through May is known as “the wet”. Water temps were around 78 degrees Farenheit, very comfortable yet still refreshing. During June/July you may see Dwarf Minke Whales! But that is for another post! For now, enjoy these awesome creatures from the Ribbon Reefs.
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After a couple of days resting at the Shangri-La in Cairns, I was ready for another dive adventure. I booked myself on the Spirit of Freedom, a 124 foot live aboard dive vessel. After the Arenui, I was ready for a let down, but in truth, I enjoyed the Spirit of Freedom very much. The Spirit of Freedom is the only dive liveaboard on the Great Barrier Reef where every cabin has its own bathroom! We each had our own little “cubby” for our dive equipment, and ample room for cameras and gear. Not luxurious, but it was a great boat. The crew of the Spirit of Freedom were awesome, especially the Cruise Director, Ren! Unlike the Arenui in Indonesia, the divers on the Spirit of Freedom had the choice of whether or not to go with a Dive Master. Each buddy group could go on their own if they so desired. As a solo diver, I went with the Dive Master, and so had a small dive group of four, which I like best anyway…unless I am in a spot well known to me. Dive Masters know where all the cool animals and creatures are, so I usually prefer to head off with them.
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All of these photos are from my very first dive on the Great Barrier Reef! Til next post!
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In June and July of 2016, I took an epic trip to Sydney, Australia, Bali and Komodo National Park in Indonesia, then I finished with a fantastic voyage on the Spirit of Freedom, a great dive boat experience in the Great Barrier Reef! But…I had to get from Komodo to the Great Barrier Reef….
Taking up where I left off, I had a most wonderful trip to Komodo National Park, and if you missed those blogs and photographs, I highly recommend you take a look at them! After disembarking in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia, most of the dive group and I made our way to the airport to catch a flight to Bali on the airline Garuda. Garuda Airlines is named after the great, mythical bird who served as the mount for the Hindu deity Vishnu. The airline was much nicer than I expected it to be. In fact, at the airport we were ushered into the VIP lounge and served coffee and delicacies. The china was particularly beautiful with its gold markings. (It was British…yes, I looked!)
The flight was calm and uneventful, and at the Bali airport I walked from the domestic terminal to the international to catch my Malaysia Airlines flight to Kuala Lumpur to connect to another Malaysia Airlines flight to Sydney to catch a Qantas flight to Cairns. Yes, a very long trip in a very large area of the planet. And to top it off, I thought my flight to Cairns was on the same day as my flight to Sydney. No such luck. It was for the next day. I’d already been traveling for 24 hours, and I needed to find a hotel near the airport.
Don’t ask me why, I have no earthly idea why, but I booked a cheapie hotel close to the airport. Why I didn’t return to the wonderful Stamford Sydney Airport is beyond me. I thought, oh save some money and stay at a smaller hotel. It was smaller, all right!
It looked okay on the internet. I can only say: do not stay at the Airport Hotel Sydney. It looked a lot better in photos than it did in person. The area was a bit sketchy, it seemed like, and the hotel even more so. There is a single door leading into a lobby which does not deserve to be called a lobby since it is so small and dingy. The guy who checked me in informed me that an American immigration officer told him “Americans are jerks” and he proceeded to tell me not to complain. I wasn’t complaining, just expressing a concern about my luggage because there was no lift in the hotel. He put me on the ground floor, and the first room he gave me was already occupied. Awkward! Seriously, not a good place. I went to bed, and got up hours and hours before my flight so I could go to the Qantas Business Class Lounge to shower and dress. Ah, Qantas has lovely lounges!
I relaxed in the lounge until time to head to Cairns which is in Queensland. My dive boat to the Ribbon Reefs, Spirit of Freedom, would leave from there. I checked into the fabulous Shangri-La Hotel at the Marina in Cairns. Ahhh. Luxury! Find the best deal, compare prices, and read what other travelers have to say at TripAdvisor
The Shangri La was beautiful, and between the marina and the esplanade. It was heaven to sink into the comfy bed and flip on CNN! (I’m a diehard CNN fan, especially Anderson Cooper 360 and Wolf Blitzer’s Situation Room and Erin Burnett Out Front…you get the idea!) I got out my computer and put a status on my Facebook page, that I was in Cairns, finally! The next thing I know, I receive a message from my good friend Fin! Fin Out of Water is also a blogger, check out her Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/finoutofwater/?fref=ts. I met Fin on a Ray of Hope Expedition last year in the Yucatan. She is from New Zealand, a dive instructor and marine biologist.) So Fin, from Auckland, NZ, says she too is in Cairns! We were both so excited and made plans for dinner the next night! Talk about a funny thing…what are the odds that Tam from Dallas, Texas and Fin from NZ would be in Cairns, Australia at the same time?? Oh, how wonderful it was to see her! She is just one of the most wonderful people on the planet. So awesome to see you, Fin! It’s just funny…and serendipitous! Don’t you think so?
