Month: September 2018

Stars at the Frankfurt, Germany, Christmas Market, Dec. 2015

The Best Way to Experience Germany’s Christmas Markets

Psst. Want to know a secret to the best way to experience Germany’s Christmas markets? I’ll tell ya. It’s a cruise with Viking River Cruises.

Florida Fun

FOWA: A Place for Florida Outdoor Communicators

FOWA: A place for outdoor communicators. Is that you?

Earlier this year I spent some time in Berlin, Germany. One morning I joined Thomas Dornbusch, a professional dog walker, for a walk through Grunewald Forest with 15 canines, 14 were his four-legged clients. This was an Airbnb Experience where locals of an area share their profession and/or passion with visitors so they have an authentic experience.

Mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, Weeki Wachee, Fla., Sept. 2018

Featured Florida Fun Nature Travel

Florida Travel: Spending Time with Weeki Wachee’s Mermaids

Are mermaids only found in fantasies or do they exist? About an hour’s drive north of Tampa is the city of Weeki Wachee and home to Weeki Wachee Springs where mermaids gracefully perform and delight visitors. The city was incorporated in 1966 and as of the 2010 census, the population is 12 residents. Robyn Anderson, the Weeki Wachee’s mayor, is a former mermaid and the municipality calls itself “the only city of live mermaids.”

Wild Buck Whiskey, Mermaid Rum, and Ryes and Shine Moonshine Distilled by NJoy Spirit's Distillery in Brooksville, Fla.

Culinary Travel Florida Fun

Brooksville’s Distillery in the Wilds of Florida

I gasped as I watched Natalie Joy Goff of NJoy Spirit’s Distillery pour a small amount of Wild Buck Whiskey on the palm of her hand and with both hands, she rubbed it into her skin, almost as if she was trying to moisturize them with lotion. It wasn’t necessarily the act of her pouring it into her hands that shocked me, because it’s the first time I’ve seen someone do this, it’s because a bottle is $60 and in my world that’s a lot of money.

Hand-Feeding a Giraffe During the Busch Gardens Tampa Bay’s Serengeti Safari® Tour, Dec. 2016

Featured Florida Fun

CityPASS Helped Me Do Something Special with Someone Special at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay

If you’re like me, you enjoy helping others. Almost two years ago, CityPASS helped me do something special with someone special at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. For more than nine years I have blogged as Solo Travel Girl, encouraging others to travel alone, not lonely. I have also lived life single for well over a decade and while I have enjoyed my solo life, it is time to find the perfect partner to share in what is left of my journey on this planet. Sure, for the last two years I have had my trusty canine to share on several road trips but I am hoping to find my soulmate to share in life’s adventures and importantly, fill the duty of Instagram boyfriend.

Featured Florida Fun

Places in Florida to Embrace Your Inner Pirate

Ahoy, me hearties! Ever since learning September 19 is International Talk Like a Pirate Day, a silly holiday invented in 1995 by two guys from Oregon, I always think of September as “Pirate Month.” In celebration, I’ve compiled some of the fun places in Florida to embrace your inner pirate.

Alexander Hamilton, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and the first Secretary of the Treasury

Featured Florida Fun Solo Travel

Are Punta Gorda, Florida and Hamilton, Ohio Twin Cities?

There’s no doubt much of Southwest Florida has its roots in the Midwest. Look around during the winter, heck, even year-round, and you’ll see plenty of license plates from states as Ohio, Wisconsin, and Indiana. Toledo Blade which runs through North Port into Charlotte County is named after The Blade, or the Toledo Blade, the daily newspaper of Toledo, Ohio.

Glass Bottom Boat Tour at Silver Springs State Park, Ocala, Fla., Aug. 2017

Featured Florida Fun Travels with Dog

Florida Travel: Dog-Friendly Ocala

“Radcliff. We’re going to Silver Springs State Park and monkeys are going to hop on your back and ride you like a horse! Are you excited?” I said to my dog while driving to Ocala, Fla. I cannot speak for all single female dog owners but there are a few of us who speak to our canines as if they are our soulmates. His response was similar to that of the previous men in my life, a blank stare with his chocolate-brown eyes and silence.