"Drive Bye Shootings" Anna Maria Island to Lake Park, GA

As we left our cozy motel room on Anna Maria Island, we stopped at the Public Park/Beach.  We decided this would be a great place to return sometime and spend maybe a couple of hours on this massive beach.

I-275 between Palmetto & St. Petersburg, FL

You might want to check out this link to a picture from the water found on Panoramio

Most bridges have the support on each side of the bridge.  

The support was in the middle of this bridge.

  Going from St. Petersburg to St. Pete Beach on HWY 679-682, you'll find the Don Cesar Resort hotel in the corner turn as you go on the island. I took a picture because it reminded me of a grand white hotel my family stayed in on my first trip ever to Florida when I was in high school.  However, in trying to find the history of this hotel, apparently as long as it's been a hotel, it's always been pink because that was Don Cesar's dream.

   Wikipedia tells an interesting history of this hotel which opened in 1928.  During WW2 it was a VA hospital.  In 1967 the VA moved out and had plans to raze the building, but locals came to the rescue.  Sounds like it would have been a waste to have torn down this building, because Mr. Cesar had a special contractor to pay attention to building this grand structure on sand. Contractor Carlton "Beard devised a floating concrete pad and pyramid footings. To this day there is no sign of evident settling of the hotel."

      While all beach strips seem to be one in the same, every once in a while you come upon something different.

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      Not a lot of shooting happened after we got off of St. Pete. On the west coast of FL no road travels close to the coast. We traveled Alt 19 and drove roads as close to the coast as possible, but still couldn't see the coast.  Had a nice lunch in a cove watching boats going in and out and birds begging for our food.  We stayed off of HWY 19 as much as possible to avoid all the stop lights.  It was quick traveling after we got past North Weeki Wachee.  At Chiefland we took highways headed straight North.

              I think it was north of I-10 close to the Georgia border, we started seeing yellow flowers EVERYWHERE!  I didn't get a close look, but they looked like Brown Eyed Susans which we won't see here for another 2 months. 

          The hotel was a much welcomed rest, so much in fact, you may have noticed I didn't take the time to blog.  We snacked on apples, & peanut butter sandwiches and hit the bed.  When I look back at the map and saw how far we traveled, I know why we were so tired.  Especially poor Mr. G who did all the driving.

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