A Primary Target
Comment via blog
Check Granny's letters of the day
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Day 8: November 1, 2023 A Primary Target Comment via blog Check Granny's letters of the day |
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I didn't have to go very far or even leave my route for
breakfast. Darrell's Diner was less than half a mile
from the Shamrock Cove Inn and a good place to eat.
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This is a very popular route in these parts. All the area's US Highways
hang out here and so do a lot of people. It passes right by "the
largest retirement community in the world", The Villages. I know
several Villages' residents including a cousin whom I have hopes of
connecting with. The first plans fell victim to errant email and a second
faces schedule issues so it may not happen. Time will tell.
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I have driven by the Florida Citrus Tower in the past but never had the
time nor urge to stop. Today I had some time and that led to a little
urge. Opening in 1956 (much closer to Granddad's drive than mine), it was
one of Florida's first manmade tourist attractions. Despite its apparent
height, it is really just a two-story building. Fortunately, there is
something to read on the elevator walls as traveling between the two
floors does take a little time. There's more to read on the second floor
including a newspaper from two days before the
grand opening.
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The vast orange groves that once surrounded the tower (and which Granny
noted, "Came thro some large ornge groves.") are pretty much
gone. I took a picture of where I'd come from then one of where I was
going. Then I took pictures of Cape Kennedy
and Disney World although I saw neither. I also took a picture of
The Presidents Hall of Fame which I'd driven by in
reaching the tower. Jefferson looks merely wistful
from ground level but looks downright sad
from up here. After finding my car
from an airborne DC-3 a month
ago, finding it from a stationary 226 foot tower
was a piece of cake.
One of the most interesting things I encountered during my visit was the young lady sitting on one of the second floor stools with a laptop on the counter in front of her. I mistakenly took her as an employee and asked if she was there to keep people from opening the windows and smoking dope. No, she explained, she was just another visitor but a frequent one. She worked as a photographer and came to the tower two or three times a week to edit photographs. "I think of this as my office," she said. If there is status in a corner office, how about one with four corners and a view of eight counties? An annual pass, incidentally, is $125. |
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This id the Hotel
Jacaranda where I will be staying a couple of days. It is in Avon Park
which could be the farthest south that Granny traveled on this trip. Frank
made several outings to Sebring but the letters abruptly end with Granny
still in Avon Park. The hotel opened in 1926 with construction starting in
1923. Granddad did some plastering on new construction while they were in
Avon Park and, until proven wrong, I'm going to believe he did the walls
in my room
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Dinner at Jacaranda is seasonal and won't be available until December 8.
Steve, who can be seen manning the front desk in the previous panel,
recommended Eighteen East and he could not have done better. It's
directly across the street with a great staff and menu. Anyone who knows
that my favorite fish is halibut and that I have a real weakness for
salads with berries and nuts might have an idea of just how much I enjoyed
this meal.
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