The Great One, however, had other ideas. He wanted to visit Tampa and drive by where he once lived and went to school.
The compromise gave me about five hours at Universal. H got to drive by his school in Tampa, but he wasn't sure if his former home was still there...things have changed a lot in 35+ years.
So we drove on, stopping at the Pier in St. Petersburg for a quick look at their shops and the aquarium there.
Down the interstate we went, finally stopping at a motel near Naples. Nary a glimpse of a beach on all the drive.
Sigh.
Off across the Everglades the next day where we stopped along the way and saw tens of alligators in the bayous along the highway.
We hit Miami Sunday afternoon, driving through the "little Havana" section and on toward Miami Beach. I really really wanted to see some beach and was willing to pay premium for it!
However, it was not to be...not in Miami Beach. The traffic was so horrendous I convinced Carl to make tracks back to the interstate and away from the madness as quickly as possible.
Not too far North, at Pompano Beach, we did find an oceanside hotel and I had my time on the beach. Gathering shells and coral, splashing in the surf, strolling along the beach in the early morning...my idea of a great time!
The next day we made the boring drive through central Florida back to Orlando where we made gluttons of ourselves at a seafood buffet then turned in early so we would be ready for our flight home the next day.
