I thought I would share with you my trip that I took in February of 2019. My friend Ann and I took a cruise on Royal Carribean. 

We started out on the Mexican Gulf side of Florida, entering from Georgia. We drove down through Tampa and St Petersburg and our first stop was Sarasota. There is a interesting Amish community there. We stopped and visited their bookstore, as well as their restaurant and farmer's market. It was very funny to watch them, on the one hand, riding around on their bicycles (instead of cars) in their traditional dress but then to see that they used electricity for their stores and restaurant. We picked up some delicious treats from their market and then we headed to their restaurant, which we enjoyed very much. Check out the pictures in the link above. 

Then we headed on down to Ft Myers, where we stayed for two nights. We stayed at a very nice Best Western Plus. And just down from the hotel was a WONDERFUL restaurant called "Two Meatballs in the Kitchen". We had a wonderful lunch there. Check out the pictures in the link.

Ann is from Estero, Fl, which is just down from Ft Myers. So we headed down there and she showed me around. while there, we went to a Hockey game at the Arena there. We visited with her family as well as two or three of her friends. She took me and showed me where she used to live and work. Check out the links above. 

While we were in the Estero area, we went over to visit her brother.who lived in an area called Ava Maria. The neighborhood was centered around a beautiful cathedral. And the cathedral was surrounded by stores on all sides with it being in the center. It was very pretty. Here are some pictures.

After Estero, we went down to Naples, which is almost at the southern most tip of Florida. What what a nice time we had in this beautiful city. We rode around the downtown area and then headed to one of their shopping districts where I was taken aback by the prices. But the beauty of spectacular. Then we drove around the EXPENSIVE home and finally headed to the beach which was gorgeous. Here are some great pictures. 

After our enjoyable time in the area, it was time to head on towards our cruise. So we left Naples and went across what they call "Alligator Alley", to Miami. WOW!! What a city, Miami is. It seemed BIGGER than Atlanta, which surprised me. Ann took me by and showed me where she lived while she was in college. Then we headed up Highway A1 to Miami Beach, then on to Ft Lauderdale and finally ending in Cocoa Beach where we were to embark on the ship. Here are some pictures.

Finally, we reached Cocoa Beach. I think this was my favorite area of all. We ate at several restaurants, went to the beach, shopped in the stores and just had a great time. We stayed at a second Best Western Plus, which was very nice. Early on the morning of our cruise, we got up early and were able to see our ship in the distance, from our hotel room, which was on the beach. Check out these pictures. 

We arrived on Sunday morning to board. It felt like we were in an airport terminal. We had to go through roped lines and be prodded and scanned. Then we were sent upstairs where we had to register; another long line. Finally we were sent down a hall and across a ramp and ALL OF A SUDDEN, we were on the ship. We entered on the fifth floor of the ship and immediately as we entered, it seemed like we were in a very upscale mall. So beautiful! We could see the floor above us and there were stores and shops of all kinds. Here are some pictures of the cruise.

After the cruise, which lasted a week, we disembarked and headed to St Augustine, the oldest city in the country. We stayed at a third Best Western which we thought was very quaint. While in St Augustine, we went into the city and toured the oldest cathedral in America dating back to the 16th century. We then toured Flagler college which was originally a luxury hotel. We had a great time in this city. Here are some pictures.

And then, we headed home. What a GREAT time we had on this trip.