Places Visited:

Florida: Sarasota

Friday, February 28, 2003
We onlymoved a short way from Myakka River State Park to Sun-N-Fun RV-Resort
in Sarasota Sun-N-Fun RV-Resort Sarasota. $38.05 per-night weekly
rate with a discount because the man taking our money thought Joyce
was cute or something. Full hookup 30-amps with every amenity
imaginable available to park residents.

In addition to moving day this was laundry and recuperation day. At
least we recuperated until the sun went down then we headed to the
park restaurant for dinner then stayed to dance to the entertainment
that lasted until 10pm. Until tonight I thought that the $38
per-night cost was totally excessive. I have revaluated that opinion
after spending a day in the park. These people are paying for a
tremendous amount of amenities that each are using to the fullest. The
Olympic size heated pool and hot tubs are full of people until
mid-night. Gym and exercise equipment are in constant use.
Individuals are playing all manner of outdoor games. The woodworking
shop is busy day and night. Activities these individuals are engaged
in are too numerous to list. That is why I have decided that the
residents are getting entertainment and amenities for their dollar not
just a parking spot.

Joyce and I are tumbleweeds, not yet ready to settle down for a few
months in one park. Other RV'ers are completely happy to spend three
months escaping the frozen north in one place. Now I can see what
attracts over 1,700 RV'ers to this park every winter.

Did I mention that it was hot here today? The temperature was in the
80s and humid. We ran the air conditioner from 11am until dark.

Saturday, March 1, 2003
Sun-N-Fun RV-Resort Sarasota. $38.05 per-night. Full hookup 30-amps
with every amenity imaginable.

Our son Jeff called today to see if his Dad knew the difference
between circumference and diameter. It seems that when I wrote about
the oak tree last week I said it had a 36' diameter instead of 36'
circumference. With a mistake like that I need a fulltime editor.

Most of us have been blessed with seeing the Royal Lipizzan Stallions
of Austria perform at one time or another. The training farm for
these beautiful animals is located just east of the RV-Park here in
Sarasota. Daily training sessions are open to the public. We
attended the 10:am training session along with several hundred others.
In order to simulate arenas the horses will be performing in while on
tour the training area has bleacher seating on both sides. Training
is done with the music, loudspeaker and announcer that will accompany
performances when they are on the road. We had a great time. After
the training session we walked through the stable viewing each of the
stallions then out to the area holding a mare with a young colt.

When General Patton and the Third Army rolled through Europe during WW
II they rescued the Lipizzaner Stallions. Colonel Herrmann (the
family patriarch) and his family assisted in the remarkable rescue
made famous by Disney's movie, "Miracle of the White Stallions."
Patton was so moved by the performance of these stallions that he
suggested to Colonel Herrmann that he should create a show routine and
tour the U. S. with them. That was the inspiration for putting
together the show and moving the stallions to this country. Colonel
Herrmann is the head trainer and announcer. Riders and other trainers
are also Herrmann's. The show is truly a family affair.

From the Lipizzaner Stallion show we headed to Mote Marine Aquarium
on
Lido Key. As it turned out the Mote Aquarium complex is on the order
and magnitude of the Aquarium of the America's in New Orleans. We
spent the whole afternoon viewing exhibits. Mote is a nonprofit
marine science research and education center. With a staff of 50 plus
scientist most of whom hold either MAs or PhDs, it blankets the field
of marine research. It is one of the largest if not the largest
marine research organization in the world. At any one time they are
conducting dozens of research projects. One of the projects they were
working on was biomedical development of skate embryos. Skates are
stingray looking fish that resemble sharks in that they have cartilage
not bones. Skates and shark are remarkable in that cancers do not
grow on them. That is what the skate research is about. Some
scientists are engaged in growing them while others are studying them
for cancer research.

We viewed magnificent shell collections depicting the complete life
cycle of many conks and whelks. In addition to the myriad individual
aquariums Motes operates a marine mammal rescue facility for sea
turtles, whales, manatees and dolphins that is open for tours and
viewing also.

Mote has one of only 3 giant squid on display anywhere in the world
(one of the others is in the Smithsonian Museum of natural history in
Washington D.C.). The 30' squid is displayed in a long clear display
case filled with alcohol.

Joyce and I were interested in Mote Marine because our son Jeff tagged
hundreds of fish for Mote Marine research when he was a teenager. Some
of Jeff's tagged fish are still swimming in the Gulf of Mexico waiting
to be recaptured. When one is recaptured Mote still sends us
information. We looked but did not see any display concerning
research involved with tagging fish.

Sunday, March 2, 2003
Sun-N-Fun RV-Resort Sarasota. $38.05 per-night. Full hookup 30-amps
with every amenity imaginable.

We attended an interdenominational church service in the Fun-N-Sun
auditorium this morning. They were having a 20th Anniversary
celebration. Ten individuals were recognized as original organizers
of the church back in 1983. Over 350 individuals were in attendance
today and 450 last week. Songs being sung were old standbys like
"Sweet Hour of Prayer" that must be common among a wide variety of
Christian faiths. This church congregation consists of
representatives from almost every state east of the Mississippi plus
all the eastern providences of Canada.

I have not mentioned it yet but there are so many automobiles in the
park with Ontario tags that the park flies the Canadian flag on a pole
next to the American Flag.

Lunch/brunch in the park restaurant included live music. As if that
was not enough the pool area featured a Jimmy Buffet wanna-be that
entertained all afternoon. There is so much going on in the park it
is impossible to partake in even a small fraction of it.

Monday, March 3, 2003
Sun-N-Fun RV-Resort Sarasota. $38.05 per-night. Full hookup 30-amps
with every amenity imaginable.

Joyce had several attractions on our schedule today but we only made
the Ringling Museum of Art. We both thought we were going to stroll
through an art museum then take off on another adventure. That is not
the way it turned out. First there is an Art Museum then a truly
magnificent Mansion and finally the Ringling Circus Museum. Each are
spectacular stand-alone attractions in themselves. Overlooking the
beautiful waters of Sarasota Bay, the 66-acre estate is the legacy of
John Ringling (1866-1936), one of the greatest business tycoons and
culture barons of his day.

A partner in the famous Ringling Bros. And Barnum & Bailey Circus, he
bequeathed his art collection, Museum of Art, Venetian-style mansion,
gardens, and grounds to the state of Florida. That preserved for
generations to come the exuberant lifestyle of America's spectacular
"Roaring Twenties". Ringling died broke with creditors at his door.
By passing the estate to the state of Florida it kept the art
collection in tack and away from creditors that would have sold it
off.

Internationally recognized, the Ringling Museum of Art features
significant holdings in European and American art, with masterpieces
from the 17th-century Baroque period. The art in the museum is
certainly impressive. The building housing the art is equally if not
more impressive. As a full-fledged redneck even I could tell we were
looking at some truly impressive pieces of art. However, it was the
building and grounds that totally captivated me.

Ca d Zan, (all Mansions have to have an impressive cognomen) is
Ringlings' magnificent, 32-room Venetian-Gothic mansion. Over time it
had fallen into despicable disrepair but was reopened in 2002 after a
15-million-dollar restoration. John and Mable Ringling completed the
mansion in 1928 just before the stock market crash. The Mansion is
constructed mostly of stone. To give you an idea of how ostentatious
the mansion and interior appointments are; a giant chandelier in the
entertaining room came from the Waldorf Astoria, when it was being
demolished, to make way for the Empire State Building. John and Mable
toured Europe extensively looking for circus acts. They both fell in
love with Venetian style buildings. That is how they came to
selecting the motif of this magnificent structure on the shores of
Sarasota Bay.

Mable died in 1929 at the age of 54. She hardly had time to enjoy
the mansion.

The Circus Museum, displayed memorabilia and artifacts from the long
and eventful history of the Ringling Bros. Circus. Did you know that
it took a crew of 150 just to keep the circus crew & performers fed?

It was nearly 5pm when we could stand no longer and started looking
for a place to eat.

Back at Fun-N-Sun Karaoke was on schedule from 7 to 10pm. We did not
arrive until a little after 7 and the place was packed (over 300) to
overflowing with park residents. A nice couple saw our plight (no
seat) and invited us to sit with them. Others arriving after us had
to stand. No one was leaving. The talent level was awesome. One
62-year old performer had been the lead singer in several bands,
toured with Elvis and Barbara Mandrel and several other great
entertainers. He nailed several "Righteous Brother's" songs bringing
the house down. It was obvious that the performers we were enjoying
didn't just belt down a couple of beers and grab the microphone. They
had obviously practiced the songs and were performing them with
perfection. Many performers were so good with the audience they
exhorted everyone to dance which they did.

Tuesday, March 4, 2003
Sun-N-Fun RV-Resort Sarasota. $38.05 per-night. Full hookup 30-amps
with every amenity imaginable.

Joyce chose Marie Selby Botanical Gardens for our outing today.
Actually it is a mini-mansion and 13-acre peninsula on Sarasota Bay
turned into a botanical garden. The peninsula was originally the
winter estate of two oil barons (Selby & Payne). Selby Oil merged with
the Texas Company to become Texaco. Payne was a VP with Standard Oil
of New Jersey. Sarasota was the place to be in the "Roaring
Twenties".

When Marie Selby died in 1971 she left the property to the community
as a botanical garden "for the enjoyment of the general public." The
appointed board of directors decided that the garden should specialize
in epiphytic (a plant that derives its moisture and nutrients from the
air and rain and grows usually on another plant) plants thus making it
unique among the more than 200 botanical gardens in the country. The
Tropical Display House contained a concentrated collection of
bromeliads, orchids, and other epiphytic plants plus one of the most
diverse collections of other tropical plants in the United States.

The botanical garden walk featured giant banyan trees, eucalyptus
trees from Australia, tropical ferns and palms, giant bamboo and
elegant hibiscus. For us it was a chance to see the differences
between white, red and black mangrove up close. I think both of us
can tell the differences now.

While in Sarasota we have been dining at different Amish restaurants
each day. Sarasota is home to a large Amish & Mennonite community.
Locals tell me the community swells during the winter and withers away
during the summer. When people around here talk they speak of Amish
Restaurants and the Mennonite community. At the restaurant today I
got our waitress to help me understand what the difference was. It
seems that they are essentially the same except Amish are more strict
(wear plain clothes, women wear long solid color dresses while men
have beards and wide brim hats, no electricity or telephones, they
also do not drive automobiles the emphasis is on a simple life) than
the Mennonites. Amish restaurants play Christian hymns as background
music. The Mennonite community drive automobiles and does not have
nearly so strict clothing requirements. In Sarasota the Amish
community is clustered in an area where residents can reach common
facilities via walking and bicycles. Mennonites on the other-hand
live all over the city since they have automobiles. Amish that find
they cannot adhere to the strict rules usually find themselves
associating with the Mennonites.

All of the Amish restaurants are great. I would be hesitant to
recommend one over the other.

Now I have a question. You knew it was coming. How do the Amish get
from the frozen northland and return home every year if they shun
automobiles?

Wednesday, March 5, 2003
Sun-N-Fun RV-Resort Sarasota. $38.05 per-night. Full hookup 30-amps
with every amenity imaginable.

Joyce had us scheduled to do some "sightseeing" plus a visit to
"Pelican Man's Bird Refuge" on Lido Key. Our sightseeing consisted of
cruising up and down the barrier islands (Lido Key, Longboat Key and
Anna Maria Island) just west of Sarasota. Manicured tropical yards,
waterfront lots with magnificent views, and grandiose homes are norm
for bayside. The Gulf side generally consists of bodacious high-rise
condominiums. High-end luxury living is par for these winter residents
no matter which side of the highway they choose. The lush tropical
foliage in each yard and common area requires an army of gardeners and
landscapers.

Pelican Man's Bird Refuge consist of several acres of birds
predominantly pelicans and other large wading birds that have been
injured and cannot survive in the wild. The sanctuary has constructed
LARGE cages for permanently injured birds where they can spend the
remainder of their lives safe and secure. An army of over 300
volunteers operates the facility. I heard one docent say it is the
largest rehabilitation center in the country. Their rescue program is
so successful that injured birds are actually breeding in captivity.
The young of these permanently injured birds are released into the
wild. Wild pelicans and herons nest on the property almost in a tame
state. In addition to wading birds they also had raptor cages with
permanently injured hawks, owls, eagles ospreys and vultures.

Mike & Joyce Hendrix