One day we are on the Gulf side of Florida….and the next day we are on the Atlantic side.  And we drove off of Aligator Alley on a quiet, good highway. We are driving a 2009 Toyota Yaris. It is a well-worn car.  The paint is peeling off the trunk, and slip covers hide seats that have many miles on them. We rented it through a company called Turo for $125 a week. The way this works is that Turo is a “hub” and it rents cars owned by other people. The young man who owns this Yaris picked us up at the Orlando airport; he was a nice guy. He said the car runs well and he was right….it does.  Doesn’t look great, but what is most important is that it runs good.

We have had some stressful events happen in the couple of weeks that we have been traveling here in Florida. One event that made my heart beat fast was that I had used an outdoor bathroom at a gas station – left my mobile phone and wallet in the bathroom. We had not driven too far when I realized my phone and wallet were still there…..so we quickly sped back and the owner had found them. I was so relieved. Phil was sure they would be gone, but I had hope in the goodness of people. Then another day we were just driving down a narrow residential street; there was no traffic and not another car in sight.  Phil was driving down the middle. I didn’t think much of it as there were no other cars on the street. All of a sudden, the police lights were behind us. The officer gave Phil a warning and off we went again. Then I left my laptop charger cord in one of the last motels we stayed at. After some phone calls, the charger did not surface so we purchased another one. Now I am back in business and able to do this Blog.

The other night we went to an Italian restaurant called Gianni’s Ristorante. The fresh garlic smell was so strong we could smell it walking through the door. It hung heavy in the restaurant and the buns were overpowered with garlic.  Fortunately, there was another choice for bread with our salads and it was great! . I had Fettuccine Alfredo and Phil had Oso Bucco. I have no clue what it was, but he said it was some kind of veal shank.  He really liked it.  All I know is they gave him a tiny fork and it was to eat the marrow out of the bone. Today we went to Pomperdales’s New York Style Deli here in Fort Lauderdale. Phil says their corned beef is the best he has every eaten. I had navy bean soup and it was delicious, but  not the best I have ever eaten.

We are staying at a nice place….Pelican by the Sea. It is owned by Sam and he is an exceptionally nice man.  Checks with us every day to see if there is anything we need. The pool is kept at 86 degrees. Nice! We swam yesterday – Phil for 2 hours, me for 1+.

Driving on the road from Florida’s Gulf side to the Atlantic side, we were stopped on the road to let these funny looking vehicles cross the highway. They were empty and we have no idea what they would be hauling. Do you know?

 

Our route below took us directly East to Lake Okeechobee (the    arrows) versus driving on Alligator Alley (the squiggly line). So much more pleasant traveling.  As Phil always says….the freeway is expedient, but you don’t see anything.

 

Bye for this time. Be well.

Anne in Florida