Auburndale, FL
Florida Southern College - Home to 13 Frank Lloyd Wright Designs
STOP #2
On our winter journey was in Auburndale, Florida which lies about 40 minutes southwest of Orlando and Disney World (which we chose NOT to visit once we realized it was going to cost us nearly $400 for two one-day tickets. EEK!).
Obviously, one of our goals for this trip was to experience the snowbird life by escaping Kansas City’s cold winter! To be fair, we were able to do that once we hit Florida, but we’d be lying if we didn’t admit, the weather wasn’t even close to what we were hoping for. There is something less than satisfying about sitting at the Tiki Bar drinking a frozen pina colada while wearing a hoodie, sweatpants, stocking hat and gloves!! While we were much warmer than KC, temps in the 30’s and winds in the 20mph range drive you back into your trailer pretty quickly. Add in the fact that it was dark by 5:30, and we were spending a good part of our day in the rig.
One thing we have learned is that not all stops are created equal. Some places offer a plethora of things to do while others focus more on the opportunity for rest and relaxation. This stop was one of the latter. That isn’t to say we had nothing to do. It’s just that our options were a bit more limited than usual.
We stayed at the Margaritaville RV Resort which is a very nice campground. As you might expect, the entire place is pretty much a tribute to Jimmy Buffet. His music is on frequent rotation at the Tiki Hut Bar (the social center of the resort) and most of the on-site amenities are named in a Buffet-esque theme (i.e. Bark-a-ritaville for their dog park!). They had multiple restaurants, pools, and sports courts (where we brushed up on our very limited Pickleball skills) as well as a small fitness center that we tried to use about everyday. They were also big on activities, even if they had no clue how to organize and run them! For example, we showed up for a “Maj Jong for beginners” class only to discover that none of the resort staff had any idea how to play! Fortunately, one of the other guests that was there did know how to play and quickly became our instructor. Thanks, Michelle! The staff did a much better job with Boozy Bingo, but it turned out to be a lot less fun than its name would imply. One of the highlights was that we did get to see Todd and Sheila, old friends from KC, that went full time in their RV about five years ago. It was great to see them and catch up.
For those of you who have vacationed in Mexico or some of the Caribbean Islands, you most likely discovered that once you went off the resort property where you were staying, you got a very different experience. This campground was a lot like that!! While our list of choices wasn’t great, we made the most of them. .
Frank Lloyd Wright
William D. Danforth Chapel
If you have read many of our other posts, you might have noticed we tend to seek out his works if they happen to be in the area. On this stop, we visited a nearby college that he master-planned. They still have over a dozen of his buildings that make up the heart of the campus.
Donuts anyone?
Parlor Doughnuts
Donuts….love them or hate them: Donuts are one of those foods that when we smell them, we think “I have to have that”, but after we eat them, we think “why did I do that?” In Lakeland, Fl, we found an amazing donut shop that offered what you could only call “gourmet” donuts in an impressive variety of both sweet and savory. These donuts were as good as they looked and smell, without the gut bomb after effect. For the record, French toast donuts are their #1 seller…and Christina gave them 5 stars.
Tarpon Springs
Hellas Restaurant
Sponges, sponges everywhere! Tarpon Springs, Fl has a long history in the sponge diving industry, and it is very evident when you visit the Sponge Dock. This is a small waterfront area that plays heavily on this history including a sponge diving museum and the Spongeorama Sponge Factory (which is just fun to say). The area also has a heavy Greek presence due to the fact that many of the original sponge divers emigrated there from Greece. There are numerous Greek restaurants and bakeries which gave us the chance to try out their Baklava which was really good (but not better than Stellas!). Warning this is a touristy for us but their downtown and Fred Howard Park is worth a visit. The park is a 155 acres located on the gulf where you can enjoy the beach or have a nice picnic and watch the sun set.
