Florida On My Own Terms

What do you like and dislike about Florida as a seasonal tourist destination?

Florida – It’s dreamers it’s builders, it’s mavericks, and it’s scoundrels. Sometimes all at once.” ( Beatriz Williams)

Many might think of Florida as a glamorous place reminiscent of my cover photo above. So why I have I rarely taken the opportunity as a long time South Florida resident to spend more than a day or two in one place throughout the state of Florida? Perhaps I can best explain such disregard for the “Sunshine State” as the old saying goes with “familiarity breeds contempt.” To illustrate my reasoning more clearly, consider I’m simply not feeling the urge these days to (1) sun- tan my body look on a sun-kissed beach, (2) engage in child play fantasy on a Disney or Universal Park ride ,3) cast my rod and reel patiently for hours in hopes of catching a whopper sized fish, or (4) watch the “oohs and awes” of spectators associated with alligator wrestling or other displays of wild animal tricks at a “tourist trap” facility.

Know then I’ve normally considered it a major accomplishment to release myself from my Florida doldrums by way of a speedy drive on I-10, I-75, or I-95. Such decisions I must say make good sense to me as I realize there’s not much reason to stop along these limited access highways anyway other than make an occasional Buc-ees” walkthrough or rest area pit stop. I instead prefer to just listen to my music as we hop around freely for long distances while measuring these cross country vacations in weeks or months at a time.

But reality sets in quickly when extenuating circumstances at home now dictate immediate changes to our upcoming travel plans. For in order to salvage this vacation, I need to shorten our trip length severely and eliminate out of state destination options given the uncertain personal predicament I now face. Obviously that also means figuring out ways to re- program myself then from such negative Florida conditioning. Thus my current research hopes to find “quality time” activities happening in the early spring no more than four or five hours from Fort Lauderdale.

So as a result of such anticipated change in travel outlook, I’m plunging in fully to enjoy Florida on my own terms. So take a glance in the captioned photos below with what I’ve come up with for our upcoming mini road trip adventure. This lineup of intended bookings includes two MLB baseball game matchups , four live music gatherings, a renowned historic landmark, a popular spring festival and a shopping artwork extravaganza. Stay tuned in as I re-connect with you about this experience down the road.