Second Wind on the Great Loop and Beyond

Thursday through Saturday, December 10 - 12, 2009
During our Great Loop adventure a couple of years ago, we rarely stopped in one area for very long. Our schedule was usually driven by the need to meet people or to attend various events. Weather delays were the only reason we stayed in any town or city for more than a day or two. That is not the case during our current Keys Adventure.

As we work our way down Florida's west coast, we are taking the time to explore as we go. St. Petersburg has been an excellent stopover. I mentioned earlier our experience with the Dali Museum. On Thursday we learned some highlights of the history of St. Petersburg as reflected in the history of the fabulous Renaissance Vinoy Hotel, which overlooks the waterfront. This magnificent resort hotel, which had once fallen into a state of disrepair (vagrants, graffitti, volleyball city tournaments in the ballroom), has been restored to a new level of comfort and luxury. We took the Vinoy History Tour, which included a delicious lunch. A peek at the new gorgeous ballroom chandelier by Dale Chahuli, the famous blown-glass artist, was a wonder in itself. The chandelier is eight feet in length -- fabulous.

Afterwords we toured the St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Art. Again we got to see a comprehensive collection of art, everything from Greek and Roman antiquities, to Pre-Columbian art to works by Monet and O'Keefe. A traveling exhibition by Leslie Dill reminded us very much of our own Anne's installation art. Too bad cameras were outlawed. Our senses were in overload.

I now understand why people want to live in this area. While I was expecting a bunch of condos and old people, what I discovered is a vibrant, friendly city that feels like a community. Beautiful waterfront scenery, galleries, excellent restaurants, specialty shops, trolleys, parks. We love St. Pete!

P.S. We enjoyed a fabulous dinner Friday night at Cerviche, a casual gourmet tapas restaurant in downtown St. Pete. Today (Saturday, December 12) we left the boat to head towards home for the holidays. We are now in Tallahassee, planning to drive home on Monday the 14th with our talented, fun daughter-in-law Anne. It's always fun to drop in on Scott and Anne's lives - think busy on steroids. We'll be back on the boat after the first of the year. Happy Holidays!