Halloween in Florida

My Grand nephew and niece dressed up as a ninja turtle and a baby turtle. At 4 1/2, he has gotten the idea of Look Cute - Get Candy. She is only a bit over a year so so hasn't quite gotten the idea. On the other hand when offered a bowl of sweets, she was not shy about taking one or two or....

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Florida Journal - Home Again

Arrived home on Thursday, March 4, after stopping to see a friend and relatives on the way back. These a few miscellaneous photos I took along the way.

The view from the back yard of the home where we stayed in Palm Beach Gardens.

A cow near the Georgia/Florida border. 

A killdeer in Georgia waiting to fly north for the summer.

Along the road in the Carolinas.

Still a bit of snow on the ground as we entered Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania on Route 30.

Getting close to New Jersey.

It's fun to go but it's always nice to get home with my own little bed, my own little computer and my own little coffee pot.

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Florida Journal - Loxahatchee National Wildlife Preserve

I've come to my last night in Florida for this trip. The drive back to New York ought to be fun, what with the way the weather has been recently. As of this writing, because of the snow, I have no idea if we can even get the car into the drive-way once we get there.

We spent a day at Loxahachee in Boynton Beach. We were fortunate enough to see another Everglades Snail Hawk patrolling the the grassy waters looking for food. We also ran across a small (7 to 8 foot) alligator sunning itself on a grassy bank. It had it's eye on an egret but the egret also had it's eye on the 'gator. Also spotted a pair of Red-shouldered Hawks and the usual water birds. It's a great place to bird watch and fish.

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Florida Journal - Nassau, The Bahamas - Part II

Paradise Island is located just across a narrow channel of water from Nassau in The Bahamas. It has a great golf course, some beautiful homes and the Atlantis Hotel and Resort. The later, with it's aquarium, casino and beaches, has become as much a tourist and cruise ship passenger destination as Nassau's Straw Market.

However, as far as luxury accommodations go, there's now a new kid on the block: Ocean Place, a nine story building with beautiful condominium residences. It has it's own marina and is located just across the road from the Golf Club. 

The view from the pool.

The bedroom in one condo. This one had two balconies. 

Kitchen

The view from the balcony.

After the tour of Ocean Place, we boarded our cruise ship and sailed into the sunset. The Nassau harbour lighthouse pictured here is the oldest in The Bahamas, having been built in 1812.

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Florida Journal - Nassau, The Bahamas - Part I

We took a short cruise over to Nassau in The Bahamas. Above is a pinwheel sign which was prominent on a building in the downtown section. The sentiment sounded good to me.

The following photos were also taken in the same area which is just a few blocks from the cruise ship docks.

On the main shopping street, most of the buildings are painted pastel colors.

One of the local taxis; there were taxi cabs also if one preferred.

The police (also on the main shopping street).

We took a water taxi from the main dock area over to the Atlantis Hotel/Resort where we were to meet my cousin who lives in Nassau. 

 

Most of the mail arrives by boat.

The water taxi at the Paradise Island dock.

A Bahamian native who kindly posed for me.

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Florida Journal - A Day at the Track

We drove down to the Gulfstream Race Track in Hollywood, Florida for a few races today. It was a good day - we came away with more money than we had going in.

The bugler announcing the  pre-race parade.

My pick.

And they're off.

Alas, not my pick.

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Florida Journal - Grassy Waters Preserve

Tuesday was a bright sunny day, not too hot and not too cold. It was perfect for going to see the Grassy Waters Preserve on Northlake Blvd. in Palm Beach. It is a wonderful wetlands with a variety of birds, small mammals, deer and alligators.

Below are a few of the locals who kindly posed for me. I am not sure if the squirrel had eaten too much or a tummy ache.

A better photo of a Red-Shouldered hawk than I was able to get in the Orlando Wetlands. 

This is not the greatest photo I have ever taken but it IS a photo of a Snail Kite, a rare and endangered species which I have only seen once before this. Actually, there was a pair and the preserve rangers are hoping that they will nest there.

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Florida Journal - The Rainy Day Beader

While in Orlando, we had some rainy and/or cold days which kept me indoors where I did quite a bit of beading. Even thought the bangles are not finished yet, the earrings are done. This is what I have been up to and will be putting into my etsy shop, CabArray in March.

And just for a little extra, a view across the fields on an east coast Florida Highway, taken on our way to Palm Beach.

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Florida Journal - Orlando

The first evening in Orlando we went with our nephew David to a great little Irish pub in Winter Park called Fiddler's Green. While we ate (and the food was excellent) we played Trivia. We came in 3rd against the other tables and won a $20 gift certificate to use at our next meal.

Thursday and Friday the weather was cold (for Florida) and rainy so I stayed in and did some beading. Saturday was sunny but not too warm. We went out anyway, back up to Winter Park where we walked around the shops, listened to a little Bach being played in the park and had lunch. After lunch I spotted an ospray sitting in a tree and got a rather good picture of it.

Today we drove over to the Orlando Wetlands Park were we set out on what we thought was a loop trail about 2.5 miles long. Somehow we got going in the wrong direction, we think.... Anyway, we realized that we really didn't know where we were and it was getting toward sunset, so we turned around and went back the way we came. We agreed that, all in all, we probably walked about 3.5 miles, much longer thab I was prepared to walk for the first hike of the season. We saw all the usual birds, herons, egrats, coots, anhingas and vultures. We also saw a beautiful Red-shouldered hawk.

Below are pictures I took of a Great Blue Heron, a large turtle (the shell had to be at least 18 inches long) and did I mention the gators?

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Florida Journal - part 1 for today

Northern VA, along Route I-95.

Shot this through the car window just to let you see how much snow Northern VA had. The roads were fairly clear of snow so the driving was easy. There wasn't much traffic at this point but around Washington DC and Baltimore it was a nightmare. Tweet