It’s here! The season of fun, flip flops and fruity umbrella drinks is upon us! In other parts of the country, spring transitions to summer subtly with fewer rainy days, longer daylight hours and the smell of wild honeysuckle hanging in the still air. In northeast Florida, summer enters with floats and fanfare. Since 1946,…
Tag: Jacksonville Florida Tourism
St. Johns Harbor Pilots: The Pride of Our Port
Although I live in a coastal city, I have little knowledge of marine life and what goes on in and around Jacksonville’s major waterways, the St. Johns River and the Atlantic Ocean. Sure, I stop to watch fishermen cast their rods off bridges and piers sometimes, and I marvel at large vessels in the ocean…
Jacksonville’s Southbank Riverwalk
I don’t know if every city has a color, but Jacksonville certainly does. In conducting my day to day business, I don’t notice it much. But when I stroll down the Southbank’s Riverwalk, it hits me like a Sporty Smurf knuckleball. Jacksonville is BLUE. The Riverwalk is one of my favorite places to go when…
An Artistic Approach
Sunny Saturday mornings are perfect in Northeast Florida. I wake up at 9, stretch luxuriously and take a few moments to appreciate the Cheshire Cat-like grin on my face. Once I do get out of bed, my favorite Saturday morning ritual is driving down to Riverside to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables from local farmers….
Fort Matanzas: Worth a Look
Two forts with a single mission—to defend the Spanish colonial settlement of St. Augustine—still stand for visitors to explore and reflect on daily life behind the coquina-filled walls in 18th century Florida. Most locals are familiar with the Castillo de San Marcos in the heart of the old city, but the lesser known Fort Matanzas, 15…
Color My World
For someone who has never painted before, staring at a blank canvas can be pretty intimidating. I found a brochure for “Yes You Canvas” at Visit Jacksonville earlier this month and told the girls at work about it. Since the website said you can take wine and appetizers, we decided to turn it into a…
Riding High
Your heart has to skip a beat every once in a while, or you wouldn’t know you’re alive. It was this theory, or something like it, that prompted my niece, Liz, and I to strap ourselves into a harness and fly 700 feet above the ocean. I learned about Smile High Parasail when I was…
Wine and Bounty
There’s always something new to discover in St. Augustine. Just 25 minutes from my front door, I can journey down on a Friday night for Happy Hour or on Saturday morning for a day excursion. Either way, when I walk through those 300-year-old city gates, I’m instantly on vacation. I discovered two gems on my…
Fernandina Fun
Shrimp is king in this quaint little seaside village! As I learned on a recent trip to Fernandina Beach, there’s good reason for that. The modern commercial shrimping industry was born right there in the early 1900s. Located on Amelia Island, Fernandina is a great daytrip, but one could easily spend a week exploring the…
Florida Faces and Places 