The joy of traveling as a family
As a kid I could always remember looking forward to going somewhere for a week or weekend for summer vacation. Overhearing my parents coordinate with other family members on travel plans. Fast forward to today, Vanna and I are those parents setting those plans. Vanna planned out the trip and attractions. My job is to get us to all of those places safely while keeping track of all party members.
We were originally set for a trip to the US Virgin Islands this year but those plans
changed when the government shut down due to budget issues. So we pivoted to St. Petersburg Florida. Vanna found this quiet little house a few blocks off the main roads though the city.
House Tour
This house had enough space for 4 cars and slept 8 people. When you pull up to the house you see the screened in front porch. This is a plus due to those heat seeking, blood sucking mosquitoes. When that sun goes down they come out to party. Entering into the house is an open living room and sunken den area. The first hallway off to the right leads to the two bedrooms. The bedroom on the right would easily qualify as a master bedroom due to the size of it. The room on the left felt more like a traditional guest bedroom in size. Both rooms have plenty of space for 2 people each.
Moving back into the kitchen area, it features stainless steel appliances. The cabinets were full of usable cutlery and plates. There were also some left over spices, oils, and ingredients from prior guests. We found out the hard way that Maxwell House coffee does not keep well. We should have just got local coffee that morning. The kitchen leads to the laundry room with a full front load washer and dryer set. We found many helpful items on the shelves in the laundry room, like a sun shade for the car. (You are gonna need it with the hot sun!) We love places that have a washer and dryer so we can pack less and take only what we need to move through airports.
Heading back into the dining room, it featured a nice picture of waves crashing into the beach. A nice sturdy dark cherry stained wood table with 8 chairs. The dining room leads into the master bedroom/loft area. Off the dining room was a door leading to the covered hot tub,
French doors leading to the pool, and the door to the loft. The back yard featured an astro turf side yard with patio furniture, a propane grill, and screened in pool. The pool featured a waterheater that was not needed at all.The pool went down to about 8 feet deep.
The loft area featured a seating area, a desk with a lamp to work from, a huge walk in bathroom, stand up shower with jets in the wall (side note – they did not work), a huge linen closet, a door to the pool, his and hers mirrors, and a big walk in closet. If you had a small child and could not pack a booster seat or high chair, there was one in the closet.
This house made it easy to relax. It is tucked just off the main roads, it’s quiet at night (respect the quiet hours),and plenty of space. With the full kitchen we saved a lot of money by not having to eat out. We were about a half a mile away from a Publix which we didn’t visit the first night, and a Sprouts.
Local Travel
St. Petersburg Florida is located in the western side of the bay and is about 15-30 minutes away from a beach front depending on where you live in the city. There is still a lot of traffic and people in the area but not as busy as Tampa. It is a vast mix of large chain stores and local stores. If you wanted a big box version of something you could easily find it in the area. If you wanted local, you could find it as well without having to travel outside of a 15 mile radius…… .that is if you are willing to sit in traffic. What should be a 20 minute trip one way turns into a 45 minute trip. Don’t let that discourage you. Just plan your travel accordingly and be prepared for slow drivers in all three lanes of traffic.
This caused us to find more places closer to the house. This led us to shopping at Sprouts………which feels like a more expensive version of Fresh Thyme. Their set up and branding feels very similar. You want to know what isn’t similar…..the prices! Everything in there seemed to be priced $7.99 and above. Am I exaggerating a little bit…….slightly. Local Floridians talked about the prices there but were willing to pay the prices for the selection. The store overall was not bad. The staff was helpful and in good spirits. We caught the Deli/Meat counter clerk singing his heart out to the in store music. We spent around $78 there the first time as we were stocking up on breakfast items and trying out new products.
Sand Dollar Island Dolphin Tour
Our first activity was supposed to be a peaceful and relaxing adventure. Getting to Suncoast WaterSports was a simple drive down to St. Pete Beach to catch the pontoon boat. I was totally unprepared for the sun and took one for the team. I gave up my shades to Gremlin #2 who did not pack any, but he did have a hat. I decided not to bring the camera as salt water and electronics don’t get along too well. I did capture some decent shots with Vanna’s phone. The tour started in the bay and started off in the first 5 minutes with a couple of dolphins being spotted.
We paused for about 10 minutes to give the kids on the boat a chance to catch the group surfacing periodically. We head south towards a pair of bridges in the distance. Our crew and guides were Bailey and Riley who would share information on points of interest and why we had to move along certain paths. The bay has a few deep channels where boats can travel, but there are a few spots that get very shallow. We troll around the bird sanctuary island which houses birds with wing spans of six feet or more. In the sky far away they looked like any other bird flying in the sky. These birds were much higher in the sky but looked like a normal sized bird.
We made it to the halfway point of our journey which was a stop at a beach to get sand dollars. We ended up on a beach that had a bunch of cool seashells. We collected about half a kid’s bucket worth of shells to take back. We ended up leaving 4 conch shells on the ledge of the screened in porch. We all took the time to apply sunscreen to not burn in the sun. Well almost all of us did. Vanna forgot to apply it to her chest and wow did it get sun burned! This led to a fun experience with a can of high pressure sunburn relief. We head out of the bay and enter the gulf side of that area. We zip back towards the waterway to get back in time for the crew to end their day. The tour was a fun experience if you go with a group of people. Suncoast also does parasailing but the winds were too great to do it safely.
The Sunburn
Having a sunburn on a trip can make your vacation miserable due to being in pain. So to make sure Vanna has a good vacation we go on the hunt to find some sunburn relief cream or spray. We find a Walgreens close to the house and head off that way. We get in and are greeted by both cashiers as we head off to the skin care section. We arrived there and the options were slim to none. Six choices, three store brands, and a couple of types. For ease of use Vanna sprung for the aloe vera spray. This spray was supposed to be a mist. We check out and head back to the house so Vanna can apply the spray. Vanna heads into the bathroom and about two minutes later she is screaming and yelling. I come running to find Vanna covered in a questionable looking substance and her laughing uncontrollably at herself. She tells me to try the spray……Holy $h!t does this thing have some power. It looked more like wasp spray than sunburn care. We left it at the house for the next person to use and to find out how fun it is.
Epperson Lagoon
Enough about an expensive grocery store. You want to hear about the activities. So we had a few things planned for the family to do so we weren’t stuck in the house all day. Our first big adventure was to Epperson Lagoon. I’ll let vacation Clutch and Vanna take it from here.
The upgrade to the VIP section with chairs and umbrellas was worth the little bit extra. Being a dad on vacation and wanted to make sure the family has a good time, I suggested we get there when they open. Turned out to be the best choice of the day. The rain drenched us as we stood in line to get in. Gremlin #2 made the perfect observation, people were trying their best to hide under canopies and awnings to avoid the rain at a waterpark. Yep people in full on bathing suits and swimming attire, dodging the rain. I can see not wanting to get your hair wet, but your clothes…….we are in Florida, they will be dry in about 15 minutes in that sun.
Epperson Lagoon is a man-made “lagoon” style water park. It features a large water /pool area that contains an obstacle course, water slides, a wading area, bumper boats, paddle boarding, and kayaking. The water can get to a depth of 10 feet deep in the main part of the pool. If you are doing the obstacle course or boating activities you have to wear a life jacket. Is it a hassle yes, because they are one style of the most generic sorts. Do they work, yes. I encourage people to wear them if they are not strong swimmers or have not swam in a long time. People tend to forget how cold or cooler water jacks up your breathing if you are not ready. Gremlin #2 and I decided to go kayaking as we wanted to get practice for our upcoming lighted clear bottom adventure. Around the edge of the lagoon and back is about a mile and a quarter. Gremlin #1 and Vanna wanted to try paddle boarding but that didn’t work out too well for them, so they switched to kayaking. If you are expecting top of the line stuff, just remember what I said about the life jackets. Lifetime kayaks………and well used paddles. They work.
After walking back to our chairs we decided to order lunch at the food truck…..here is where we made a huge mistake and time waster. We never scanned the QR code on the table to order food and drinks…..VIP includes table service. They….Come….To……YOU. It did give Vanna and I a chance to duck off into the smokers section to catch a flight. Not a big fan of cigarette smoke. Cigars, yes. They have a more robust smell profile in the air. After we toughed it out with the smokers, we headed back to wait on our food. It is still hot but the sun is tucked behind a big wall of clouds. Midwesterner here…… .Tall hammerhead like clouds mean rain, lightning, and some strong storm somewhere down the line. We were standing under the covered locker area with a group of women on our left when the sun decided to quit hiding in the clouds. That sun came back full force and no mercy. We all took a step back even though we were already under the shade.
Now the wings and fries we ordered were worth the wait. Five sauced and tossed wings, plus a nice basket of fries for about sixteen dollars was not bad. Figuring you could not bring in outside food or drink. The drinks were about two dollars and fifty cents a soda. While we were waiting I kept track of the line outside getting longer and longer to get into the lagoon. After eating, I planned on taking the kids on the obstacle course before we left. On our way over there we overheard a lifeguard telling a group of kids that they would be closing down the water areas because lightning was under 8 miles away. Yep, time to pack our stuff up and head back to the house. We were not going to wait out the storm, race to be in line for the obstacle course with all the additional people coming in the lagoon. It is a decent place, just one of those places in a nice new subdivision to cater to people who don’t want to go to the beach. I would much rather go to the beach and at least have decent parking. People at the lagoon parked wherever they wanted.
Escape the Room
Keeping with the trend of not being stuck in the house all day while on vacation, we looked for something to do with the family. We found a cool looking escape room in downtown Tampa. It wasn’t too hard to find the place as it was on one of the main streets running through Tampa. It is hard finding parking close to where you will be. Every spot was taken in a 3 block radius. This was on a Sunday!…………Sunday! I would hate to see what traffic is like during the week and Saturday around noon. I find a spot 3 blocks away and run back to the place. This “The Great Escape Room” location consisted of 5 different scenarios.
We selected “Mountain Top Murders” which had us trying to figure out what happened to Grandmother before the killer returned to Granny’s house. Gremlin #1 was in her element!. Right away she is solving clues and finding more clues. I brought my camera but was too engrossed in trying to help the family solve the puzzles that taking pictures was secondary. If you have done an escape room before, you are aware of the format. Backstory; Time restriction; Rescuer/Self Rescue; Win/Fail state. It was a two room puzzle that involved some back tracking to get all the clues. We ended up failing by about fifteen minutes. We had four puzzles to complete before we were able to call the Rangers for assistance.
Everything Coconut
We needed something to pick up our spirits after failing to complete our first escape room in a long while. We passed by a little store that advertised coconut ice cream on our way to the escape room. We walked down to Cococello109 which only did coconut ice cream and non dairy drink items. The kids and I went with coconut ice cream with two toppings each. I picked the salted egg yolk and mango. Let us start with the smooth and creamy coconut ice cream. It is not overly sweet like the store brand alternatives. It is light in texture, almost sherbet like. The salted egg yolk added a savory kick to the mix while the mango added just the right amount of sweetness. Vanna picked a double mocha drink that came cold with oatmilk.
Dan the Man
Whenever we travel somewhere warm or tropical we try to look for a kayak or water tour at night. This trip we were lucky enough to find Chadillac Adventures. They have two locations and we used the one in Clearwater Beach. Amazing views coming into the Clearwater area from the south. We got a chance to talk to Chad who gave a quick run down of the use of paddles and a few jokes for free. Dan, our guide for the night, met us down at the gate to the dock. Earlier the two were setting up the kayaks into the water. Kayak is a loose term, but they work for what you are doing. It has a metal frame that keeps the shape of the shell. They are clear all the way around. If you do the night tour like us then they come equipped with four sets of LED lights facing down in the water. These are not high performance pieces of equipment. Think more like going hiking with a backpack that is a little too heavy. It is a workout and a tour all in one.
Vanna took Gremlin #2 and I took Gremlin #1. We were not going to have them mad at each other because they are miserable together. We get loaded into boats no problem and float out into the bay to wait for the group. Since this is a tour we decided to stay close to the guide so we can hear about the area we are traveling through. First I have to say I am proud of my family for keeping up with Dan, our guide. We had to slow down and wait for the group to catch back up. I think there were quite a few people ill aware of how much work it would take to do the tour.
As we make our way out to the first bridge Dan explains that we are going to be going out into the bay and that we would be hitting wakes. He explained how to position yourself to ride out the wake. He did fail to mention to the group how long of a tour it was going to be. We end up paddling down the length of the bay and around another bird sanctuary and back. Along the way Dan would make sure the group was ok and doing well. My battery pack went out and Dan was quick to change it out to get back in action.
Both Vanna and I got one hell of a workout pushing around two tired kids. Both crapped out on the second leg of the trip. Gremlin #1 got sea sick and Gremlin #2 was physically tired. It is well worth the price of the activity. If you can, try and book a group as the view and atmosphere is even better with friends and family.
Closed on Monday and Tuesday!?
Monday we decided to go looking for souvenirs and other small shopping. We also wanted to visit the Replay Museum in Tarpon Springs because it featured over 100 arcade and pinball machines. We were all excited to go there after our breakfast stop. Plug the address into google and it tells us the business could be closed. I said cool maybe it is because it was before 11 am. We travel to Tarpon Springs and find free public parking downtown. Walk up to the Museum and it is dark……..Closed Monday AND Tuesday. Walking down the strip we find out most of the stores are that way.
Sponges as far as the eyes can see
So we decided to take a trip down to the boardwalk area of Tarpon Springs on Dodecanese Boulevard. Gremlin #2 was dead set on finding something to buy on his trip to Florida. So this area seems perfect. We noticed they were big on sponges there, I mean like sponge boat tours. Most stores had some sponge related item. We make our way in and out through the various shops that have the tourist trap vibe to it. Some had mass produced stuff that they passed off as local or had some connection to being local. Other than being sold there, it was made in China, Vietnam, or the Philippines. Not a bad thing, you have to make money in those spots as location is scarce. We made our way down to Le Macaron where the kids picked out a set of gluten free macarons.
On to the next store down the strip. We check out a few candy stores and end up making our way to The Spice & Tea Exchange. As soon as you walk in, you are enveloped in a cloud of fresh dried spices and teas. Teas from various parts of the world. It is a change from the outside humid air. Yes The Spice & Tea Exchange store is a chain store for spices and teas, that’s not what made this visit fun. The two women working in the store were a joy to talk to. We exchanged stories of our travels, where we are living, and where we want to move to. The women were at their end stages of traveling and settled in Florida for the long haul. Turns out they both had connections to the Midwest, goes to show the world is a lot smaller than people think.
A failed hotel is now a university
Our last stop as a family to burn up some time before our flight leaves in the afternoon. We had to find something historical. Last time was African American based. This time we wanted to find something that focused on the region. We found the Henry B Plant Museum located on the campus of the University of Tampa. This museum is an old hotel that cost three million dollars to build in the late 1800s. Plant had a vision to make his hotel that he built out in the middle of nowhere to be the travel and logistics hub for the southern part of Florida. Plant had ties to the Shriners and Mason throughout the hotel’s run. Famous individuals such as soon to be presidents, New York Times editors, and other political figures have stayed at the hotel. Today a small segment of the museum is left as a memory of the hotel’s past. It has a self guided walking tour which is $12 per person. It takes about forty minutes in total to go through the tour. The rest of the building is being used as part of the University of Tampa’s classrooms and administrative offices.
When traveling to different places, it is always nice to sample the local life and learn about the area you are visiting. This trip provided an opportunity to do both while having fun. For the next adventure Clutch and Vanna will be heading back to Vegas for a few new experiences!
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