Family Celebrations in Tampa and Naples Florida

May 20, 2021: Tampa, Florida

After spending 53 weeks at the New Hampshire condo because of the COVID pandemic, we embarked on our first travel adventures of 2021. We reunited with Debbie, Rob, and Rojo in Florida. Since everyone was fully vaccinated, we were able to truly relax and enjoy our first gathering in nearly 20 months. After landing, we had a picnic dinner at Ben T Davis Beach on the Route 60 Causeway and stayed to watch the sunset.

The following day at the house, Rojo silently observed the adults as we enjoyed wine and mojitos, danced, and made s'mores over the fire pit. Everyone had a great time except for Rojo, who preferred an early night.

We enjoyed dinner at a restaurant on the Tampa River followed by a sunset Tiki Hut River Cruise. It was perfect weather for cruising the river with drinks and music.

Soon, the sky turned orange, and the city lights took center stage.

In celebration of the Tampa Bay Lightning making the Stanley Cup playoffs, the Sykes building was lit up with the team's logo

A colorful display and a great evening.

On our last night out, we went to the Columbia Restaurant in Clearwater for a delicious Cuban dinner and then we walked along Clearwater Beach and the Pier.

June 8, 2021: Naples, Florida

After a challenging 16 months, we (Pam, Paula, Mom, Dave and I) celebrated the start of better times by gathering at Paula's home in Naples for a mini vacation.

Even though it was our first visit to her home, we had all traveled to Naples over the many years that Mom and Dad spent their winters in this paradise.

Here's the crew after a tour of the Winding Cypress development. Disclaimer: Mom was not driving the golf cart, this was just a photo op. 😉

A combination of humidity and 90° temperatures made the pool a welcome respite.

Despite the weather we both tried with limited success to stick to our run schedule.

With cooler evening temperatures, we took the opportunity to introduce Mom and Pam to pickleball. Not bad for a novice!

We had a wonderful dinner at the Deep Lagoon Restaurant on Marco Island.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of the trip was having lunch at Rum Runners with Uncle Ricky and Mary, who live in Cape Coral.

After lunch we went back to their house where Ricky entertained us for hours with his stories about growing up in Canada.

During our final full day, we spent several hours strolling through the Naples Botanical Gardens. Despite living here for many years, Mom had never visited the Garden.

The gardens were amazingly beautiful. Conservationists from Naples have formed partnerships with botanical gardens throughout Latin America and the Caribbean to share research, plant material, and contribute to global conservation efforts.

Florida was a great start to our 2021 travels.