Mini Me meets an Iguana & Armadillo

Largest can of beer 1.25 UK pints!

Over the past three weeks mini me has had a succession of house guests from England, hubby's relatives to help him celebrate a big X0 birthday! An armadillo is one of the highlights, but more on that later.

First came hubby's brother and wife -- we went to the Dali Museum in St Petersburg, ate at The Hangar situated inside the regional airport (and yes the food makes it a destination!) and saw a few animals at Fort De Soto before it was time to pack up ...

Found a live starfish, and yes put him back (22 Jan Fort De Soto)

A raccoon family at Fort De Soto

Of course we saw pelicans (brown and the over-wintering white pelicans) - my brother-in-law's picture just too good not to share - and harder to spot/photograph some leaping dolphins who were playing 'toss the fish' bouncing it like a ball in the water - a great sight on 20 January!

Cheeky trying to steal a fish!

Crossing the Pirate's (rope) Bridge

Hubby's sister and partner arrive and we all board Vision of the Seas sailing from Tampa under the iconic (but ironic as you don't see sun in the picture) Sunshine Skyway Bridge.  Sadly Mini Me felt a little sea sick, but with a Scopoderm patch, she recovered the next morning and was fine by the time we reached Roatan Honduras. Roatan in the rain, but we had fun seeing the local wildlife.

Iridescent butterflies

Airboat on New River

Next stop Belize City, getting ashore by tender and then a wild air boat style ride up the New River past swimming Iguanas and on to a Mayan settlement, Lamanai.

Jagar Temple

Shaving Brush Flower

 Back on board, we had a bit of fun watching the crew in a lifeboat drill - which cleared the pool of guests in a hurry.  Mini Me was a bit concerned she wouldn't have the leverage to right the raft.

Aptly named Shopping Trolley

Next morning we docked in Costa Maya, Mexico; a town built for cruise ships, so no surprise we were 'parked' next to the ship our European captain referred to as 'the shopping trolley' (aka the Caribbean Princess).

Local Life Guard!

And then it is time to cruise overnight for more fun in Cozumel, Mexico.

And a last day at sea to relax and sail back to Tampa.  Then time to say goodbye to brother-in-law who is touring south Florida and welcome sister-in-law to our home.

With sister-in-law and brother 'not-in-law', we went to The Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium in Sarasota and enjoyed the animals.

Sea Cucumber

Sea Horses - Mini Me sized!

Later, we saw a Roseate swishing its spoonbill sifting the water for food.

Shelley the Loggerhead Turtle

And a different type of fish on the streets of Sarasota.

Pair of Osprey & Nest

Next day it was off North through Clearwater to Honeymoon Island State Park and more local critters.  It's nesting time for The Ospreys and the Bald Eagle.

Then just as we were returning to the car what should cross our path, but an Armadillo! He looks cute but keep your distance as he is a disease carrier.

All too soon our guests left for Britain and shortly thereafter our temperature dropped.  Out the window, we saw this couple, dressed in starboard green and port red, reminding us of our recent cruise!



Military aircraft that have rotating propellers to convert to helicopter-style take-off are flying past - almost a year in Mad Beach and still never a dull day!