Mike Jones
<font color=993300>....nothing clever to say... ju
- Joined
- Jun 23, 2003
- Messages
- 1,372
The Cast:
Mike, 39, chief organiser, driver and brew maker
Heather, 40, wife and mum
Bethany, 11 (going on 20!), coaster addict, hates getting wet.
Adam, 9, (going on 8!), hates coasters (except BTMRR), LOVES getting wet!
DAY 14 NEW YEARS EVE WEDNESDAY 31ST DECEMBER 2003
Today: Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, Sugar n Spice Amish Restaurant, Midnight on the Beach.
Awoke at 600am and had coffee by the pool for a change! ;-) Its mild and clear again today and I decide that the family should watch the sun come up together! To much applause and appreciation, I drag them all out of their pits, refuse to let them shower or eat, and whip them across the road to the beach by 710am. (In case you spotted any omissions, I did let them dress first!)
We walk south (must be south-east, actually, as the sun rises in front of us) for about a mile, looking out for shells and sand dollars (queer, flat, exo-skeletons of deceased, urchin-type creatures that range from 20mm or so in diameter up to beyond 100mm) as we go. A fair number of other folk are up and about this early; many jogging or power-walking their way to breakfast! We turn round and wander back to the apartment for breakfast and showers.
(In case you think I was cruel, bullying the troops up like that, everyone is happy and hungry. I do this at home occasionally, on fine mornings, and usually get at least Heathers thanks later! Every family needs a motivator, just as long as it doesnt get silly!)
We want to do the Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota today (http://www.selby.org/) as weve read good things about it before the trip and while here. We are also aware that the week is rapidly diminishing and if were not careful all well have to tell people about is the texture of the sand on the local beach and the choice of alcoholic drinks at the Daiquiri Deck! LOL!
We leave the apartment at 930, stopping just past the Village for gas as were running a bit low. $20 to nearly fill the van!! (mine costs £55/$90 at home!) It only takes about 10 minutes to get to Marie Selby, which lies just south of the city centre, on the harbour side. Our timings perfect, as we park and walk to the gates spot on 10:00am, the posted opening time. Entry fees are $12 for adults and $6 for kids.
This is a little gem of an attraction we loved it, with only a lay-persons interest and knowledge of plants I can imagine a real plant fanatic visiting in summer really wetting their pants over it! We walked through verdant greenhouses stocked with exotic plants and flowers and out into the gardens proper. There is a tour of sorts, with numbers indicating a recommended way to progress, although the complex is not big enough to get lost in or worry that you will miss much if you deviate. The gardens are set on a small peninsular that projects into Sarasota bay and the first part leads you past a lovely pond, through towering bamboo over 30 feet high, alongside primeval looking banyan trees (where coarse, aerial roots dangle to the ground, and when they make contact they thicken up into new trunks supporting the horizontal branches, almost like petrified creatures!) until you arrive at an opening overlooking a sheltered part of the harbour with a host of expensive looking boats. There is only a hint of the equally expensive houses that own the moorings, hidden behind thick groves of trees on the waterside.
The view over the gardens opens up now, and as you carry on around the perimeter path, you can see an attractive gazebo and a sweeping lawn, at the end of which is an imposing pavilion, used for wedding ceremonies. We head for this, but are sidetracked by the stunning views out across the main part of the bay. We sit on a bench facing the bay and watch (& video) several large storks/herons (must get a bird book next time!) waiting for their breakfast in the shallow, still water. Its hot again (yes I know, OKWTink[wdisneyw], cool by your standards, LOL!) and we enjoy the view, and the peace& quiet for a while, until the brats start kicking off! We have a closer look at the wedding pavilion before continuing along the path, which then leads into a mangrove swamp! All the different types of mangrove are labelled. (I didnt know there were different types!). The path winds its way on towards the main building complex the kids are in front, with Heather and I following some short distance behind, when I start to worry that Im hallucinating in the heat can it be? is it possible? THE CHILDREN ARE HOLDING HANDS! Yes, thats right, IN PUBLIC! The video footage will be worth a fortune when we get home!!!
We have a wander through a beautifully decorated (Holiday décor) house at the end of the pathways, before going through the inevitable gift shop (dragged Heather out by her legs, as these gifts are high quality and incredibly expensive to a man of my limited means) and leaving the gardens at about 1130.
Had we been without kids, we would undoubtedly have spent a couple of hours more here. The atmosphere is sublime and the scenery outstanding ah, well, cest la vie. If this place was in the UK it would be celebrated beyond measure, yet here, although advertised, it seems to have a discreet, almost apologetic profile which is hard to understand. Go see it if you can!
Two-part mission now we need another suitcase (!) and lunch! We head out to the suburbs and arrive at Wal-Mart on Cattleman Road by 1145. Cheap (£13!!) suitcase located and purchased we retreat back up the road ¼ mile to our lunch destination Sugar n Spice. (http://www.sugarandspicerestaurant.com/) Weve been looking forward to this restaurant following advice on the boards and local guides. Its an Amish-style, family place concentrating on simple, home-cooked dishes done well. Its busy (a good sign) and we are given a pager with a predicted wait of 10 minutes. We sit outside on gliding/rocking benches to be called in 9 minutes!! (Adam timed them!). The interior is bright, with a traditional, homely feel. We are shown to a large, side, dining room, furnished in a comfortable, country style, with oak panelling, cornices and tables, floral wallpaper and a prominent, Amish farm scene mural on one wall. We are served by Marty (I know very little about the Amish/Mennonite traditions outside of Witness [Harrison Ford] but it seems probable that most of the employees are from those backgrounds) who brings tall glasses of iced water and takes our drinks order coffee for me, OJ for Heather, and chocolate milk for both children. I was torn between Liver & Onions and Meatloaf Meatloaf won, with mashed potatoes, green beans, & onion rings. Heather ordered Chicken Pot Pie (todays special), Bethany Joyburger and fries, Adam hot dog & fries.
The atmosphere in the restaurant is restrained yet comfortable, with none of the Disney clamour from last week. Its a nice change! Many of the diners are well past retirement age, with only a few families present. We dont care the foods lovely! This is to be our big meal today, and given the Sugar n Spice reputation for pie we fully intend to have dessert! The only problem is which one! Between us we order two rhubarb, one apple and one cherry pie. Yumm!
An excellent meal were all stuffed..and the check? - $43 + Tip!! Probably the best meal weve had since Boma, at less than half the price!
We head back to the apartment, arriving at 2:00ish. Heather wants to do some clothes washing. I call into the office and have a chat with (sorry, forgot to get her name not seen this one before) the lady holding the fort we chatted about how lovely it is here. I ask about property values, and my jaw hits the floor as she informs me that a single, beachside building plot across the road has just sold for $3million! Apparently, an attractive, boarded, beach house I like nearby, on a modest site, with no pool or large garden, is probably worth $5-6million! I re-think my master plan about becoming a Siesta property tycoon (are you sure theres nothing a bit cheaper, say around $15,000?)
Adam and I are keen to do the beach this afternoon, but the girls are otherwise occupied, Heather with her domestic chores and Bethany has about 2 hours of Emerill to digest (how can she watch this stuff after the lunch weve just put away?). We (un) dress for the occasion and walk over the road. Its warm, and we are soon tempted into the water ok, its not that warm but we soon adjust! The waves are fun, especially when a boat has gone by. We stay until about 440, when I persuade the reluctant amphibian to come out! Showers etc, and then I call back at the office to get a leaflet on the Myakka State Park (especially the airboat tour), which we are thinking of doing tomorrow.
My strange kids are now hooked into a depressing film about a poor, southern-states family whose kids are taken into care after suspected abuse by the father! They protest when we insist that they turn off at 545, and we propel them, still grumbling, across the road and onto the beach to witness the incredible, coral-pink afterglow from the sunset. Wow! (and Ive left the camera behind!). We walk into the village for a light meal subs from Subway -$20 for 4 plus the cookies and sodas. While we are eating, a large group of young men and teenage girls come in, dressed in work trousers, plain shirts & knitted hats (boys) and traditional gowns & nightcaps (girls). They speak quietly and politely both to the server and between themselves. I have no doubt that they are from the Amish community, but Adam is puzzled. In a stage whisper, he enquires: Do you think they are actors, making a film here? I try not to choke on my drink, while discreetly sharing my theory with him.
After eating, we take a look in the shops adjacent to Subway. The best one sells a variety of reasonable quality tourist souvenirs, amongst which we discover shark tooth necklaces! Boy, these are bigger and better than those feeble excuses for teeth we found on the beach! We buy most of the stock, and Adam and I exit with a swagger, trying to look dangerous and street-wise in our new fish dentures! (Must find a leather hat from somewhere .)
Its 7:00pm now, or New Years Day in the UK, so we spend the next 20 minutes or so trying to get through to our family and friends back home. We struggle, due to busy lines, but manage to send some texts and finally get friend Scott at about 7:25 (00:25).. we are by this time strolling back along the beach, so we let him listen to the surf! Apparently its a blizzard in Bolton, about -2° C, and he thinks we are rubbing it in! After telling him not to use language like that in front of the kids, we say goodbye and continue back to the apartment. I am really going to miss this walk home next week!
Back at base, Bethany appears much inspired by her day of culture at the Selby Gardens shes started to draw the design for a tropical garden at home in England! I dont like to tell her about palm trees and frost! The kids are ready for bed at about 8:30. Heather and I mix some Black Velvets (Guinness and Champagne), which we take to our favourite spot under the gazebo, next to the pool. Its comfortably warm and very peaceful, with only occasional cars passing along the road 100 feet away. We decide it is unlikely that we will still be awake at midnight, so we give up at 945 and go to bed. I set the alarm for 1145, though, as I am expecting some sort of celebration on the beach for New Year .
.. what the .??!! oh yeah, I remember now! Alarm deactivated, I shake Heather awake and then enter the kids room to rouse Adam. I dont even try to stir Bethany, as she has made it very clear earlier that she does NOT wish to go to the beach! We dress quickly and wander across the road onto the sand. Sure enough, there are people scattered around, and one or two lunatics are setting fireworks off by holding them in their hands! Heather steers us well clear of these and we count down to midnight. There IS a reaction, with more fireworks and rockets in the distance, both further along the beach and beyond, but on the whole its a bit understated - there will be around 5 or 6 hours of pyrotechnics back home. The explanation is apparently connected to the virtual ban on most types of fireworks, especially rockets and bangers, enforced by the Sarasota sheriffs. Pah, Humbug!
Still- its warm, were in shorts on a beach at the turn of the New Year, 3500 miles from home, so on the whole, were pretty content. We return to the accommodation and our still sleeping daughter (weve only been a few hundred feet away, guys, come on!) and fall into bed. Happy New Year everyone.
Tomorrow: New Years Day : Myakka State Park
Mike
Mike, 39, chief organiser, driver and brew maker
Heather, 40, wife and mum
Bethany, 11 (going on 20!), coaster addict, hates getting wet.
Adam, 9, (going on 8!), hates coasters (except BTMRR), LOVES getting wet!
DAY 14 NEW YEARS EVE WEDNESDAY 31ST DECEMBER 2003
Today: Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, Sugar n Spice Amish Restaurant, Midnight on the Beach.
Awoke at 600am and had coffee by the pool for a change! ;-) Its mild and clear again today and I decide that the family should watch the sun come up together! To much applause and appreciation, I drag them all out of their pits, refuse to let them shower or eat, and whip them across the road to the beach by 710am. (In case you spotted any omissions, I did let them dress first!)
We walk south (must be south-east, actually, as the sun rises in front of us) for about a mile, looking out for shells and sand dollars (queer, flat, exo-skeletons of deceased, urchin-type creatures that range from 20mm or so in diameter up to beyond 100mm) as we go. A fair number of other folk are up and about this early; many jogging or power-walking their way to breakfast! We turn round and wander back to the apartment for breakfast and showers.
(In case you think I was cruel, bullying the troops up like that, everyone is happy and hungry. I do this at home occasionally, on fine mornings, and usually get at least Heathers thanks later! Every family needs a motivator, just as long as it doesnt get silly!)
We want to do the Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota today (http://www.selby.org/) as weve read good things about it before the trip and while here. We are also aware that the week is rapidly diminishing and if were not careful all well have to tell people about is the texture of the sand on the local beach and the choice of alcoholic drinks at the Daiquiri Deck! LOL!
We leave the apartment at 930, stopping just past the Village for gas as were running a bit low. $20 to nearly fill the van!! (mine costs £55/$90 at home!) It only takes about 10 minutes to get to Marie Selby, which lies just south of the city centre, on the harbour side. Our timings perfect, as we park and walk to the gates spot on 10:00am, the posted opening time. Entry fees are $12 for adults and $6 for kids.
This is a little gem of an attraction we loved it, with only a lay-persons interest and knowledge of plants I can imagine a real plant fanatic visiting in summer really wetting their pants over it! We walked through verdant greenhouses stocked with exotic plants and flowers and out into the gardens proper. There is a tour of sorts, with numbers indicating a recommended way to progress, although the complex is not big enough to get lost in or worry that you will miss much if you deviate. The gardens are set on a small peninsular that projects into Sarasota bay and the first part leads you past a lovely pond, through towering bamboo over 30 feet high, alongside primeval looking banyan trees (where coarse, aerial roots dangle to the ground, and when they make contact they thicken up into new trunks supporting the horizontal branches, almost like petrified creatures!) until you arrive at an opening overlooking a sheltered part of the harbour with a host of expensive looking boats. There is only a hint of the equally expensive houses that own the moorings, hidden behind thick groves of trees on the waterside.
The view over the gardens opens up now, and as you carry on around the perimeter path, you can see an attractive gazebo and a sweeping lawn, at the end of which is an imposing pavilion, used for wedding ceremonies. We head for this, but are sidetracked by the stunning views out across the main part of the bay. We sit on a bench facing the bay and watch (& video) several large storks/herons (must get a bird book next time!) waiting for their breakfast in the shallow, still water. Its hot again (yes I know, OKWTink[wdisneyw], cool by your standards, LOL!) and we enjoy the view, and the peace& quiet for a while, until the brats start kicking off! We have a closer look at the wedding pavilion before continuing along the path, which then leads into a mangrove swamp! All the different types of mangrove are labelled. (I didnt know there were different types!). The path winds its way on towards the main building complex the kids are in front, with Heather and I following some short distance behind, when I start to worry that Im hallucinating in the heat can it be? is it possible? THE CHILDREN ARE HOLDING HANDS! Yes, thats right, IN PUBLIC! The video footage will be worth a fortune when we get home!!!
We have a wander through a beautifully decorated (Holiday décor) house at the end of the pathways, before going through the inevitable gift shop (dragged Heather out by her legs, as these gifts are high quality and incredibly expensive to a man of my limited means) and leaving the gardens at about 1130.
Had we been without kids, we would undoubtedly have spent a couple of hours more here. The atmosphere is sublime and the scenery outstanding ah, well, cest la vie. If this place was in the UK it would be celebrated beyond measure, yet here, although advertised, it seems to have a discreet, almost apologetic profile which is hard to understand. Go see it if you can!
Two-part mission now we need another suitcase (!) and lunch! We head out to the suburbs and arrive at Wal-Mart on Cattleman Road by 1145. Cheap (£13!!) suitcase located and purchased we retreat back up the road ¼ mile to our lunch destination Sugar n Spice. (http://www.sugarandspicerestaurant.com/) Weve been looking forward to this restaurant following advice on the boards and local guides. Its an Amish-style, family place concentrating on simple, home-cooked dishes done well. Its busy (a good sign) and we are given a pager with a predicted wait of 10 minutes. We sit outside on gliding/rocking benches to be called in 9 minutes!! (Adam timed them!). The interior is bright, with a traditional, homely feel. We are shown to a large, side, dining room, furnished in a comfortable, country style, with oak panelling, cornices and tables, floral wallpaper and a prominent, Amish farm scene mural on one wall. We are served by Marty (I know very little about the Amish/Mennonite traditions outside of Witness [Harrison Ford] but it seems probable that most of the employees are from those backgrounds) who brings tall glasses of iced water and takes our drinks order coffee for me, OJ for Heather, and chocolate milk for both children. I was torn between Liver & Onions and Meatloaf Meatloaf won, with mashed potatoes, green beans, & onion rings. Heather ordered Chicken Pot Pie (todays special), Bethany Joyburger and fries, Adam hot dog & fries.
The atmosphere in the restaurant is restrained yet comfortable, with none of the Disney clamour from last week. Its a nice change! Many of the diners are well past retirement age, with only a few families present. We dont care the foods lovely! This is to be our big meal today, and given the Sugar n Spice reputation for pie we fully intend to have dessert! The only problem is which one! Between us we order two rhubarb, one apple and one cherry pie. Yumm!
An excellent meal were all stuffed..and the check? - $43 + Tip!! Probably the best meal weve had since Boma, at less than half the price!
We head back to the apartment, arriving at 2:00ish. Heather wants to do some clothes washing. I call into the office and have a chat with (sorry, forgot to get her name not seen this one before) the lady holding the fort we chatted about how lovely it is here. I ask about property values, and my jaw hits the floor as she informs me that a single, beachside building plot across the road has just sold for $3million! Apparently, an attractive, boarded, beach house I like nearby, on a modest site, with no pool or large garden, is probably worth $5-6million! I re-think my master plan about becoming a Siesta property tycoon (are you sure theres nothing a bit cheaper, say around $15,000?)
Adam and I are keen to do the beach this afternoon, but the girls are otherwise occupied, Heather with her domestic chores and Bethany has about 2 hours of Emerill to digest (how can she watch this stuff after the lunch weve just put away?). We (un) dress for the occasion and walk over the road. Its warm, and we are soon tempted into the water ok, its not that warm but we soon adjust! The waves are fun, especially when a boat has gone by. We stay until about 440, when I persuade the reluctant amphibian to come out! Showers etc, and then I call back at the office to get a leaflet on the Myakka State Park (especially the airboat tour), which we are thinking of doing tomorrow.
My strange kids are now hooked into a depressing film about a poor, southern-states family whose kids are taken into care after suspected abuse by the father! They protest when we insist that they turn off at 545, and we propel them, still grumbling, across the road and onto the beach to witness the incredible, coral-pink afterglow from the sunset. Wow! (and Ive left the camera behind!). We walk into the village for a light meal subs from Subway -$20 for 4 plus the cookies and sodas. While we are eating, a large group of young men and teenage girls come in, dressed in work trousers, plain shirts & knitted hats (boys) and traditional gowns & nightcaps (girls). They speak quietly and politely both to the server and between themselves. I have no doubt that they are from the Amish community, but Adam is puzzled. In a stage whisper, he enquires: Do you think they are actors, making a film here? I try not to choke on my drink, while discreetly sharing my theory with him.
After eating, we take a look in the shops adjacent to Subway. The best one sells a variety of reasonable quality tourist souvenirs, amongst which we discover shark tooth necklaces! Boy, these are bigger and better than those feeble excuses for teeth we found on the beach! We buy most of the stock, and Adam and I exit with a swagger, trying to look dangerous and street-wise in our new fish dentures! (Must find a leather hat from somewhere .)
Its 7:00pm now, or New Years Day in the UK, so we spend the next 20 minutes or so trying to get through to our family and friends back home. We struggle, due to busy lines, but manage to send some texts and finally get friend Scott at about 7:25 (00:25).. we are by this time strolling back along the beach, so we let him listen to the surf! Apparently its a blizzard in Bolton, about -2° C, and he thinks we are rubbing it in! After telling him not to use language like that in front of the kids, we say goodbye and continue back to the apartment. I am really going to miss this walk home next week!
Back at base, Bethany appears much inspired by her day of culture at the Selby Gardens shes started to draw the design for a tropical garden at home in England! I dont like to tell her about palm trees and frost! The kids are ready for bed at about 8:30. Heather and I mix some Black Velvets (Guinness and Champagne), which we take to our favourite spot under the gazebo, next to the pool. Its comfortably warm and very peaceful, with only occasional cars passing along the road 100 feet away. We decide it is unlikely that we will still be awake at midnight, so we give up at 945 and go to bed. I set the alarm for 1145, though, as I am expecting some sort of celebration on the beach for New Year .
.. what the .??!! oh yeah, I remember now! Alarm deactivated, I shake Heather awake and then enter the kids room to rouse Adam. I dont even try to stir Bethany, as she has made it very clear earlier that she does NOT wish to go to the beach! We dress quickly and wander across the road onto the sand. Sure enough, there are people scattered around, and one or two lunatics are setting fireworks off by holding them in their hands! Heather steers us well clear of these and we count down to midnight. There IS a reaction, with more fireworks and rockets in the distance, both further along the beach and beyond, but on the whole its a bit understated - there will be around 5 or 6 hours of pyrotechnics back home. The explanation is apparently connected to the virtual ban on most types of fireworks, especially rockets and bangers, enforced by the Sarasota sheriffs. Pah, Humbug!
Still- its warm, were in shorts on a beach at the turn of the New Year, 3500 miles from home, so on the whole, were pretty content. We return to the accommodation and our still sleeping daughter (weve only been a few hundred feet away, guys, come on!) and fall into bed. Happy New Year everyone.
Tomorrow: New Years Day : Myakka State Park
Mike
