Marvelous

Marvelous to have a husband who is an excellent gardener AND

flower arranger!

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

I took several pictures as we walked through Corkscrew Swamp,

but I just don’t feel like any of them really capture the beauty and magic

that I saw through my eyes…..some things just don’t transfer onto film….

Perhaps, it’s because you are walking on a wooden bridge and the

swamp is on every side of you….very mysterious, this swamp.

Air plants blooming on the sides of trees….

Cypress knees poking up out of the swampy water….

Huge balding swamp cypress with their trunks being hugged by strangler figs…

 

We were there in the heat of the day…around 2pm, so we didn’t

see much wildlife out and about, but I did manage to find a hawk…

 

 

Kenny found the only alligator that we saw on our entire trip….

I will say, thank heavens for videographers….I found this video on

the swamp website….it captures the beauty of the swamp….

It’s best when it’s enlarged….

 

Here’s another video as well….

If you ever get near Naples, Florida, I would say, this is a MUST SEE!

I’d love to go back and visit again in the mornings and I’m just sure I’d

see so much more than I did going at 2pm….I think all the animals were

tucked in for their daily naps!

South Beach

We hit Miami, FL around 5:30pm….lanes and lanes of traffic…

Ferrari’s were passing us….how awesome!

We had no reservations, so after walking up and down South Beach,

we ended up at the Ritz-Carlton for our 18th wedding anniversary.

The bathroom alone was huge….

with a great view of the city….

 

The pool was beautiful as well….

The famous “Ocean Drive”….

We spent time walking around the South Beach Art Deco district….

We talked to a girl from Pittsburgh who was

traveling alone and having a mango daiquiri….

The drink had a test tube of rum tucked into the side of it….

we asked her about this….she didn’t know what it was for,

so we asked the waitress…..

the drink had rum in it, but she says it sinks to the bottom and once

you drink it and the ice starts to melt, then you pour the rest

of it in. Now THAT is well thought out!

 

The beach was wide and the sand was powdery…..

The water was a beautiful shade of turquoise….

Look at the clouds in all of the pictures….really spectacular!

We had decided that since we were in South Beach, we had to try Cuban

food…We ended up here at “Havana 1957”. We had drinks and

appetizers….yum!

I had absolutely the best Mojito of my life there, complete with sugar cane!!!

Then we strolled down Lincoln Road and ran across this

fabulous storefront display…..all vintage sewing machines!

Home of All Saints clothing….the inside was just as inspiring!

Next stop, the SWAMP!

Naples Botanical Garden

Our second day in Florida, we left Patti’s house and headed

towards Miami Beach…..but of course, living with a

gardening fanatic, we had to stop in Naples and check out their

Botanical Garden.

It was well worth the trip! Soooooo many tropical plants

that we definitely don’t have here in Missouri!

The sad part was….we were only there about 20-30 minutes

before big dark clouds started rolling in…….

They came after us in a golf cart and told us we would have to

come inside because there was lightning in the area….

What a bummer….it never really did even rain, well, maybe for about

5-10 minutes….that seems to be quite common in Florida.

Of course I had to include the picture below……

Next stop…..Miami Beach!