Farkel Time

I didn't grow up in 1 town, attend schools with the same group of friends, continue to work in the same town or even part of the country.  So, to be fortunate enough to enjoy friendships that have lasted over 30 years is special.

A weekend together with the 'Farkels' puts us in a time warp where no time has passed, except that we got wiser and more particular about our bed pillows.


In between talking, laughing, eating (thanks to our personal chef Mark), showing pictures and more talking, we road tripped to Tarpon Springs, the nearby Greek town to learn all the details of sponge
fishing (which seemed to start with 2 Greek men in a boat for long periods of time), and to go on a sunset boat trip to Anclote Key.


We ate great Greek food throughout the day partially to get into air conditioned buildings but also to try out various Greek dishes. Between olive oil, lamb, hummus, gyros, stuffed peppers and flaming cheese we were able to taste a few things!

As you can see, the  sunset was stunning.  It needed to be because it was so HOT! 

Becky explores Anclote Key

Pam enjoys the boat

Joanne is really really hot and sweaty

            

Mango Man

Still in Homestead and checking out the flora.  The Turk realized that mangoes and other exotic fruits are everywhere down here.  We headed out to Robert Is Here,  a roadside produce market with eccentric Homestead genes.  Farm animals, exotic fruits, veggies, umpteen kinds of honey, and...fresh smoothies made from any of their fruits. YUM!!!!!

Then off to the Fruit and Spice park!   30 acres of trees with over 500 varieties of fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs, and nuts.  Because of the freezes this past winter, the fruits were lean and we were told NOT to pick any.  We had to say this many times to the Turk who 'looks' at fruits with his hands and mouth. 

We enjoyed a tram ride around the world of trees and flowers. And had a great time with bro Tim and Mick.

Odd Goings On At Coral Castle

The Turk and I traveled down to Ft. Lauderdale to visit brother Tim and Micki.  We decided to play tourist and ended up in Homestead (the initial target of Hurricane Andrew's devastation back in 1992).  Besides the air force base, Homestead is mostly farmland and a stopping off point for the Everglades.  After our visit, I decided it is also a stopping off point for eccentric people.

I came to this conclusion after visiting the Coral Castle. (Listen to Leonard Nimoy's description and the mystery that surrounds these structures).  The structures of the castle are solid coral rock - some weighing twice as much as the stones used in the Pyramids.  What's the mystery?  Ed Leedskalnin built this himself between 1920 to 1940.  Ed was a skinny, 5 ft tall guy from Latvia who came to the US after his fiance canceled their wedding. He was heartbroken and this project was his monument to his love.

There are some unique (weird) things about this site. The site was developed in alignment with true north so you can look through the tall rock (telescope) and see the North Star. There is also a magnetic impact to this alignment.  The guide had me stand in a spot, central to the site, and told the Turk to stand behind me.  I was told to just relax. When I did, I felt an even pressure throughout my body pushing me backwards, stronger as I began to fall back.  Mark caught me and we were all surprised!  Everyone around us tried this - with the same results.  We were all pulled/pushed in a direction.

 
There is a 9 ton swinging door that one can move. For 50 years, this door was movable by using 2 fingers.  The bearings started going bad, so an engineering firm used lasers, massive equipment and a crew of men to extract the coral door and replace the bearings. The new bearings have lasted 12 years and it now takes a strong push to move the 9 ton door.... and the modern bearings need replacing already! So, how did Ed do this with no lasers, no modern equipment and no help?

We were directed to one of many coral chairs. This was a lounge chair and quite comfortable. Supposedly it is a 'healing' chair. So we had to check it out.  There was a 5000 pound heart shaped table, another table the shape of Florida complete with Lake Okeechobee. Ed built his 'throne' and a side chair for his lost love.  There are carvings in the shape of a crescent moon, Saturn, and Mars. In October 2008, these were aligned exactly as they appear along the wall.  So this Ed guy had some interesting things going on!

Sunny SoCal

We had a great time visiting Tulin in Santa Monica/LA. Got to visit some places I'd always wanted to go to - Griffith Park Observatory, Venice along the canals, walk Venice and Santa Monica beaches. Tulin was a great tour guide and made sure the Turk and I saw lots of things and ate well. You can see the Monster Burrito below. 

I noticed a new trend in California that didnt yet exist when we left the state 3 years ago - tea menus.  I had a meeting in Palo Alto at a coffee shop, and I ordered green tea which I thought was specific enough. Not! I was presented a tea menu. MENU!!!  Listed like fine wines were pages of loose teas, complete with country of origin, ingredients and flavor descriptions including undertones and essences.  When the tea arrived, it came in a pot, with a cup, on a tray.     Then, when I ordered green tea in a small Santa Monica diner, I was shown a tea menu on the wall.  I was presented with a cute tea pot with loose tea leaves and my cup.  I just dont see that happening here in Dunedin...but ya never know.

Another food finding - in 'food cities' like NYC, SF, Santa Monica there are traveling food trucks - those silver trucks that have been popular at lunch time to construction workers, serving cheap eats. Well, now they serve gourmet foods in well healed neighborhoods.  The one we saw, Cool Haus, created customized ice cream sandwiches.  You pick the cookie flavor (oatmeal, ginger, chocolate chip, etc) and then the ice cream (cinnamon, lemon, strawberry, mint chip, etc). Now THIS i could see making it big in Dunedin!!

Bikers in San Francisco

A sunny, warm day in San Francisco...and its not even September!  The Turk and I wanted to take advantage of all of this, so we rented bikes and rode around the city staying close to the water.

Of course, the Turk finds fishermen where ever he goes these days, and San Francisco was no exception.  He learned that catching crab near Crissy Field will cost you $40 each.  Apparently, crabs spawn in the area so you have to wait for them to go out to sea to catch them.

We loved the changes to Crissy Field. Gone are the acres of cement and blacktop pavement (where Tulin learned to ride her bike many years ago). the old wooden barracks (which i remember they destroyed for a Nash Bridges episode), the rusting warehouses (that I used to skate by). Now there are dunes with local plants, small lakes, trails and wooden bridges, and lots of beach front. it was beautiful, and fun to ride around.

We decided to ride into the Presidio to say 'hi' to Yoda and check out the changes to the area. The buildings are being renovated, people are living in the homes, the grounds are groomed, and the old Officers Club is now the visitors center.

The night before, we met friends for dinner on Russian Hill. After a wonderful time, we walked outside to see a clear night sky with a full moon lighting up Coit Tower. It was stunning.  Mark and I jumped in the car and off to Coit Tower we went. We walked around the tower to see the sparkling lights of the city and bridges with the full moon shining down.  What a site!

Ferry Building on Saturday-YUM

I've been wanting to get to the Ferry Building on Saturdays since they opened the farmer's market there. Finally, we got to go! We walked into a bustling crowd of people who's focus was all about the food. We found brilliantly colored fruits and vegetables, aromatic herbs and cheeses, fresh baked breads and cookies, bundles of spring flowers, and the smells from dozens of restaurant booths where cooking was done along the sidewalk.
We tasted cheeses, local olive oils, chocolates and tasty cookies. Mark weeped over the heirloom tomatoes and I pondered the 'Tasty Salted Pig Parts' store. But not enough to taste any!!

Happy Day at Half Moon Bay

The Turk and I spent a cool, windy, sunny afternoon at Half Moon Bay on Friday just to compare Florida with northern California beaches. How do they compare?

We were bundled in layers - not in shorts and t-shirts, We viewed beautiful landscape of wild flowers and mountains - not sandy, flat terrain with lots of palms, scrub bushes and wild flowers, We ate cioppino - not grouper sandwiches at 1/5 the price, We saw an assortment of funky as well as high end items to buy - not piles of t-shirts and beer drinking hats (for spring break), We saw some attempts at fishing - not catching, We saw people dressed as sea lions (wet suits) - not bathing suited humans playing amongst dolphins and manatees with ospreys flying over head.

So - each beach town compares favorably with the other, depending on what you are looking for!!!
Diversity is good.