Sarasota, Florida

Sarasota, Florida...the place where for the first time Bobby and I got to spend a whole week together...just us! It was absolutely amazing and we had a wonderful time. It was so nice to just be together and relax after all the planning and craziness of the wedding! Especially since Bobby had been living up in Richmond throughout our relationship, meaning we only got to see each other on weekends...spending an entire week just the two of us was a dream come true!

A good friend of my dads has a condo down in Sarasota that he so graciously let us use for a whole week! It was an amazing blessing and the condo was perfect! We were on the top floor, and had our own kitchen and a screened in porch that looked out directly over the Gulf of Mexico. We were right on the beach and we couldn't have asked for a better place to stay!


We had a great time just relaxing on the beach and spending time together.

One night we went to Ybor City, which is near Tampa, and ate at the Columbia Restaurant. It's a yummy cuban restaurant that is HUGE! Tons of cool old rooms, flamenco dancers, good food, and delicious sangria!

We also got to go to Busch Gardens Africa in Tampa. It was really cool and lots of fun. There are tons of animals there so it was more like a zoo than an amusement park. I think we had more fun seeing all the animals than riding the rides. We both get really sick and dizzy after a just a few rides(sad I know...) so it was nice to just walk around and see all the cool animals and things. We took a train ride through the "Serengeti" and saw giraffes, rhinos, zebras, water buffalo, and lots more!

We also went on a boat ride around Sarasota Bay. It was so relaxing and we got to see a lot of gorgeous houses and learn about the Bay. We docked at this one little island and got out to look for shells and other cool stuff. We didn't find anything that wasn't still alive so we couldn't bring anything back. Oh well. After we left the island, as we were heading back to the aquarium, the girl that was taking us on the tour threw a net out and caught a whole bunch of sea things. We saw a puffer fish, seahorses, a chocolate chip sea cucumber, a cow fish, and lots of other things I don't remember the names for.



On the 4th of July, we went out for a steak dinner at a place that was highly recommended to us, Tommy Bahamas. Apparently they are supposed to have the best steak around. We were not disappointed! The food was incredible! I got the steak and Bobby got the most amazing ribs either of us have ever tasted! They were so good, we went back again just for the ribs! The sangria was delicious too! Oh man, if you're ever in Sarasota, got to Tommy Bahamas and get the ribs! Mmmmmmm boy!

For breakfast one morning, we wandered over to Siesta Key to eat at the legendary Broken Egg. Ok, so maybe its not really legendary, but in my family, anything food related is HUGE! So, according to Amy & Brian, The Broken Egg is a must for anyone! Again, it was totally amazing. We sat at a little table outside, and although it was a little warm out, there was a breeze which made it nice. The food was delicious! And sitting right next to us, at "his table" was Dick Vitale! Apparently, he lives down in Sarasota and goes to The Broken Egg once a week for breakfast, sits at "his table," and meanders with the tourists. It was actually really funny, because they announced over the loudspeaker that he was on the deck if anyone wanted autographs! We didn't get his autograph, but it was so fun to watch all these people come up and talk to him. Poor Bobby had his back to it all, so he could just hear what was going on, but I got to see everything. Very funny!
All in all, it was a wonderful trip! It was so great just to spend time together, just the two of us. God really blessed us in keeping us both well, and feeling good the entire time. We left feeling relaxed and not wanting to enter the "real world" yet. But, you have to enter the real world at some point, and it's been wonderful. Sarasota is definitely a place everyone needs to visit and we hope to go back again some day!