May 16 Sponge Docks, Florida

This little old lady, or Yia Yia, was just inside one of the shops at the Sponge Docks in Tarpon Springs. We couldn't resist getting a picture of Dan with her. This community was settled by the Greek sponge harvesters.

Bags of sponges waiting to be sorted by size and quality.

Here are two people at work grading the sponge harvest. It is quite a process getting them to this point.

Views of the docks and quaint little town.

The storm was moving in toward us.

We visited the sponge factory's museum and when we were ready to leave for lunch the dark clouds were above us and it was pouring rain. Luckily there is a restaurant just a few step away from the factory. We ducked into the restaurant and ordered lunch. The storm really let loose while we were eating.

This is shot from the front of the restaurant. The Greek lunch we had was delicious, and of course we had food left to take back to Lee's. He will have plenty of left overs after we leave. He won't have to cook for several days.

May 15, Visit to Caladesi Island

Lee took us to Caladesi Island where there is a beautiful sandy beach. Here Dan has just purchased our tickets for the boat ride to the island.

One of Lee's neighbors is the boat captain for our ride.

Cormorants perched atop the posts.

Lee combing the beach for shells.

The shells were thickly laid along the surf line.

Dan was relaxing while Lee and Linda walked along the surf line looking for interesting shells.

The seagull of the central Florida shore. This is call a Laughing Gull since the call sounds like a laugh. These gulls weren't as aggressive as the Pacific Gulls around the picnic bags of the beach.

Heading back to the dock for the return to the mainland.

The Red Mangroves that grow in this area.

This car was parked in front of Lee's car. The Love Bugs made an interesting pattern. The little flying insects were everywhere. We all had a nice nap when we returned to Lee's place. We had dinner at a great Mexican restaurant.

May14, to Duneden and Lee's place

The road from Falling Waters State Park to Duneden was like this the entire way, and we encounterd a large number of bugs. We later found out that these were "Love Bugs" and are very prolific this time of year.

Lee's Place in Duneden. A cute little abode with a nice floor plan.

Lee Welcoming us to his home.

The Love Bug mess on the front of the van, and this is after we had cleaned them off once after a rest stop between Falling Waters State Parke and Duneden. A woman at the rest stop told us that these bugs must be cleaned off as soon as possible because they and damage the paint, ant that they come out twice a year.

May 13, Mississippi, Alabama & Florida

Approaching the bridge over the Mississippi River.

Grounds of the Welcome Center.

The Mississippi Welcome Center is built like a Southern manor home, this staircase is an example of that style. The ladies in the welcome center were cheerful, wished all of the mothers a Happy Mothers' Day and hand out a card & little gift. They were also serving hot coffee and lemonade. What an enjoyable stop this was.

Another state, Alabama, on the way to Florida.

Mobile Skyline.

Leaving Mobile, Alabama.

And now Florida.

This is a display at the Florida Welcome Center.

Our campsite at Falling Waters State Park, FL. The birds were singing making this a very pleasant site.

The little lake in the Park. There was also a sign shortly after this lake warning of the presence of alligators.

The sink hole which is the location of the Falling Waters.

Looking into the sink hole from the path. The water fall was just a trickle this day, but it was still a pretty sight. We had a nice hike getting to and from here to our campsite.