We were in Bradenton and Bushnell (my aunt has a ranch there), then Deland.
Surviving the Glades in winter would be a piece of cake. Surviving in summer. . .better find out whatever the Seminoles used to keep the mosquitoes and flies away pre-DEET if you don't want to be drained. I once on a clear day in August in the Glades was assaulted by what I thought initially was a strange lone black cloud in a blue sky (in all seriousness).
I was talking with a biologist about the sightings of "black panthers" in Florida- since there are no melanistic pumas what people are probably seeing are jaguarundis, which were introduced a while back by some nut and are apparently doing OK. Hope they can deal with the damned pythons.
“You can lead a horticulture but you can’t make her think.” Dorothy Parker
Yes we have some of the best winter/spring/fall weather anywhere IMO, summers are hotter then Thailand with the humidity levels.. In my youth I camped in the everglades once and the sound of the mossies flying around was deafening and thought they'd carry me away at any moment, very hard to get sleep, at least they're big enough to get a good swat at them unlike the stealth mossies in Thailand that seem to disappear right in front of you.Originally Posted by robuzo
^Summer is fine here, at least on the coast- better than being in NY or Tokyo in August- especially for diving and fishing.
Where's here? You're in Florida now? This thread is making me homesick and I'm in Florida now, I'm sooooo glad to be back.. I needed this wake up call, things have been rough lately but it's reminded me of my toughest day here being better then many of my best days elsewhere..
Yes, we are in Delray Beach. Shit hit the fan in Bangers while we were back for a visit and we stayed. I'm pretty sure I am missing Thailand more than my kid does, and I am only missing the food, not having to take out a HELOC to go to the dentist, my mates and one other thing.
All the pics were great. Thanks for sharing. If you have ever been in a hurricane, you will know why many people don't want to live in Florida.
I like the weather here in Thailand...warm and hot. Wished I had moved here 30 years ago. I was born in Norfolk, Virginia... a great place to visit too. Plenty of beaches and golf courses if you are into either...
Heres some of the wildlife from last year.
Osprey with lunch
Some type of Heron?
Clearwater beach
I aint superstitious, but I know when somethings wrong
I`ve been dragging my heels with a bitch called hope
Let the undercurrent drag me along.
2014 Songkran at Wat Mongkolratanaram, Tampa, Florida
Today we traveled over to the Tampa Wat to celebrate Songkran. They had a nice show of people.
We have attended Songkran in Tampa and previously at the Wat in Miami and it seems the Wat in Tampa draws a much larger crowd which (I think) makes for a better festival.
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If you're ever in the South Florida area when the Miami Heat are playing I would suggest seeing them, especially if you're with your Thai spouse. Last Friday evening was the first time the girlfriend attended a professional basketball game. She was thrilled with the game and enjoyed the enthusiasm of the crowd. I think the Heat gained a new fan.
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I’ve seen/felt more than I care to mention growing up in South Florida. Betsy and Andrew were the worst, during my time here. I moved my family to the Miami office (much stronger building); from our home on the water here in Miami (I was concerned about the water surge), during Andrew. Andrew was bad at the office and at my home but not as bad as it was in the southern portion of Dade County where it made landfall. Two close friends lost their homes when Andrew hit, while they were in it, with their kids.
One friend ended up with his wife and two young daughters in a hallway of his home. That hallway was the only part of the structure with roof after the storm blew by. Another friend ended up in his company truck with his family, under the concrete carport after the storm took his entire home (took the roof and blew out the windows) . Both men told me that their children used to shake when they heard a thunder storm approaching years after the storm.
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Math/Science must not have been one of your best subjects. Hitting the Florida lottery (pick 6) 1 in 22.9 million chance and getting hit by a tropical storm or hurricane in Florida 1 in 10 chance.
170 years of hurricanes
Florida does have beautiful weather (and why I have been promoting it for vacationers here at TD) and it’s why I come back every year (besides family/friends/taxes/business) but I don’t think you own property along the coast where; I believe, most TD members when thinking about Florida would prefer to be/live and the reason why I stated it’s good idea to vacation and not live. I don’t believe most TD members understand the high cost of living along the Florida coast and the future hazard property owners along the coast might be faced with.
I do hope there are still a handful of wealthy developers/investors in the future as ignorant as you because I do have some absolutely beautiful pieces of property in South Florida to unload when the time is right.
Tornadoes do touch down in Florida and are destructive. Used to have 12 bald eagles (girlfriend says 13?) and after a tornado made a short pass (one of three that year) over a piece of property (in time oceanfront property), it left it with only 9.
Future Florida shoreline?
Like I said, Florida is a wonderful place to vacation, but not to live [especially in the backward god awful Central Florida region (except for a few counties)].
I suggest you request modifying your user name; here at TD, so that people understand more about you and your posts. Drop the "born" and add "h".
suits you
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Some great pictures and I hope you were using a telephoto lens with the shot above.
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
Yes indeed. I was a good few feet away and using the wife as cover.
I havent a clue what kind of snake it is, or whether it poisonous or not. Perhaps you could shed some light?
I will and hope it helps others as well. If you see snake like the one you took a picture of, please move away from it. It is a cottonmouth or what some will call a water moccasin.
Behavior:
While cottonmouths are not necessarily aggressive, they are venomous and should be avoided when encountered.
Ouch. I`ve heard of those. I believe it can be quite nasty if bitten by one.
Florida has over 1,260 miles (2,027 km) of coastline with some wonderful beaches and diving spots.
During this trip to Florida we were able to find some time to enjoy the water just off of Miami’s coast and inside the waterways.
There are some wonderful dive shops (that will supply you with all you need if you don’t want to travel with your equipment/gear) and boats that service the area.
Brickell Key and Miami
Last edited by S Landreth; 07-06-2015 at 02:52 PM.
Great shots. We`ll be there again next month. This time, I`ll get a chance to try out my Xiaomi Yi under water.
Blow up doll?Originally Posted by astasinim
nice photos as always S Landreth
This old bugger I know recently retired out of Atsugi, Japan to Miami after 52 years serving the Department of the Navy ... 30 years in the Navy followed by 22 years of federal civil service. He posted the address where he lived so I googled it and found out he paid I think it was just under $300K for a super nice looking 6 bedroom house.
I’ve seen underwater shots taken with a GoPro and some have been great. I wonder what a Xiaomi Yi will do? It looks nice. I hope you’ll consider posting some pictures after your trip to Florida.
Thank you Rick. I had the calm water working with me (not much of a current so it was clear) and a Nikon CoolPix AW130 that made all the difference.
Another nice thing about Florida is that it is close to the Caribbean Basin.
I’ve visited the Caymans and Jamaica when I was younger and never thought about visiting the Bahamas or Cuba until recently.
I have always associated the Bahamas with gambling and since I don’t gamble, why go? But they seemed to have made some places a little more kid/family friendly. At least the place where we were staying.
We spent most of our time in the water and I made a short video of our adventure (sharks/turtles/barracuda/wrecks).
Some pictures,…….
If you are thinking about visiting; with your Thai spouse, do not use the only Bahamian Embassy in Asia (Beijing, China) for their Visa services. Use the Bahamian Embassy in Miami, Florida. It will take your Thai spouse at least two months (and an unsurmountable amount of paper work) to get a Visa from the office in Beijing. At the Miami office it shouldn’t take any longer than two to three days with proof of an American Visa (multiple entry), flight plan (to and from the Bahamas), accommodations (while in the Bahamas) and three recent photos.
Cuba
Our first time visiting the island I have heard so much about growing up in South Florida. It was just a (long) weekend visit, but we’ll be returning. Our accommodations in Havana were wonderful.
some pictures,.....
National Capitol Building Havana
Fulgencio Batista private rail car
Revolution Square/José Martí Memorial
Morro Castle/Fortress
Monserrate Street
Getting your Thai spouse a Visa to visit Cuba isn’t difficult. All they’ll need is a simple tourist card.
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