sunnuntai 27. maaliskuuta 2011

2011 Florida: Florida - the sunshine state

Amsterdam! It was so beautiful, truly want to visit there some day.
This is the condo where our appartment is. Fancy, but very boring and full of retired people.
On a morning walk in Lantana Beach. I had a jet lag and woke up every morning about 6 o clock. Good time to do a morning walk - there's no one else on the beach!
First day - leaving for a fishing trip in Lantana.
Our condo - Half Moon Bay seen from inlet.
Even I felt so sick, I got the most fishes, maybe 10 triggers! Too bad I didn't attend the fishing competition, I would have won.
Douple trouble - 2 in 1! I was really lucky but felt so sick that I couldn't stand. It was quite stormy and the boat was shaking badly.

Funny looking bird in our yard.
Our beach, where no one never swam.
We went to a Swap Shop (market place) in Lake Worth and I found some cool stuff. There wasn't many white people besides us. It was quite cold morning, only about 20 degrees, the weather man asked as to wear warm clothes (in Finland this would have been a nicely warm day).
Yam yam! I love corns.
Butterfly World
One of the few bars in Lantana. Unfortunately I'm still underaged in USA, so I could just watch. Very nice place!

The same bar at night. After 2 years I will be sitting there.
One morning I went to morning walk in a nearby forest which was full of lizards. Where ever I stepped, at least 10 lizards darted around me.

We made a trip to the 10 000 Islands in the Everglades National Park. Truly impressive, but I would rather recommend a walk in the Big Cypress, there's more to see. In 10 000 islands there was just some birds, dolphins and a possibility to see a manatee. I didn't. Kayaking would be a fun thing to do, and even stay overnight in one of the 10 000 islands. Also, if I was to buy an appartment in Florida, it would be in Everglades City rather than in Palm Beach area, I prefer that kind of life close to nature.
A nesting osprey
This was the big moment - a dolphin!

When you drive along the Alligator Alley or Tamiami road you will see hundreads of alligators lying in ditches.
A huge gator sun bathing and the Big Cypress behind it.
The forest was so full of life! I saw many kind of lizards, gators, birds, raccoons and so on. This is the place where I could spend whole day!


After spending the day in the Everglades we arrived in Gulf of Mexico where the sand is snow white.
On our way back from the west we drove through the country side and sugar beet fields. Life is cool there.
There was a sandy and very hot area close to our condo. I tried to take a walk but couldn't, the sun was burning me. Turtles live here.
We drove along the beach from West Palm Beach to Fort Lauderdale. It was covered with beaches, fancy villas and hotels.
West Palm Beach - very fancy and expensive place, I could afford an ice cream. Beautiful to watch, though!
Downtown West Palm Beach.
In St. Patrick's day I dressed of course in green!
The night was spend in Irish Pub, and no one asked my ID. I hit this man with my flag so he wanted to make a picture with me! Funny man.
Awesome band playing in the pub!
Florida trip is not completed without a 18 holes round in a golf course. The beginning was horrible because I haven't played for a long, long time, but after Amon gave me some tips it went quite well!
Horrible Fort Lauderdale. The canals are pretty but this crazyness is so not my style.
Our appartment. The sofa is horrible American style but we'll find new one later!
I've arrived from Florida! The bad news are that I didn't have time to visit South Carolina (as I think now, I should have made time, I regret that I didn't go). The good news are that the trip was otherwise very succesfull.

And there's more to come - just a week ago I got an e-mail that I was accepted to international volunteer workcamp in Slovenia, commencing 24th of July! My tasks will be helping in an art festival in city of Kamnik, close to Ljubljana. There will be 8 international volunteers and it will last for 2 weeks. After that I'm planning to do some more traveling, possibly in Croatia! No news for reunion 2011.