Strawberries and Mermaids

I like vintage. What can I say? There's just something about a faux pearl necklace or an old metal typewriter that sets my heart aflutter. They fascinate me. I wonder who owned them and what sorts of lives they've lived. Was the hand-painted china used only for special family occasions, and who painted it? What was the serious-looking lady in the portrait really like? Who was that gaudy quilt made for and why? Yes, walking into an antique or thrift store is a treasure hunt and I never know which item will catch my eye and spark my imagination.

Where is all this going, you may ask? Well, my husband is decidedly NOT a vintage enthusiast. Don't get me wrong, he's as curious as I am and would give his eye teeth for a time machine to witness certain aspects of history, but his interests and mine don't always align. A few years ago we drove past Weeki Wachee Springs, a local attraction that that opened in the 1940's. I had never heard of it but the mermaid statues lining the driveway definitely told me that I needed to do some research. I was delighted to find that this park features shows with live mermaids! Did you hear that?! LIVE MERMAIDS! I immediately vowed that I would visit this place myself. Since my husband doesn't share my excitement in this case, he was more than happy when I announced that I would be taking our younger two to this vintage attraction while he was away for work this week.

Real women in bathing suits used to line the road by Weeki Wachee Springs to attract visitors when the park first opened. Now statues have taken their place.

Even though Weeki Wachee Springs is a tourist destination, the roads leading to it are still beautiful and lack the strip malls you'll find on the main thoroughfares. Here are a few sights you may see along the way. Oh how I wish I could have gotten closer to that white house! It was definitely from another era.

Weeki Wachi Springs has a park area next to it where you can have a picnic before going in. If you don't want to bring your own food though, have no fear! There's a restaurant inside. We enjoyed our fried chicken and made our way to the entrance where we paid a very reasonable fee to get in. The park is small and clean. The main attraction is the mermaid show, which features young ladies (athletes really), who perform entire shows underwater without coming up for air. Instead, they use air hoses and can even do things like eat a banana, or drink soda (that's "pop" for you midwesterners) all underwater! We learned that they train for months before they're able to perform for crowds. One mermaid we spoke to told us that she had been training since November, and will probably continue to train three times a day until she's ready to join the show. She was really excited! After all, once a mermaid always a mermaid! It's a pretty big deal.

They performed all kinds of amazing feats and ended the show with a patriotic underwater ballet to show their support for our veterans. It was very moving.

Weeki Wachee Springs also offers a free boat ride on the river where the guide will tell you about the local history and wildlife. We learned that the Seminole People gave Weeki Wachee it's name which means Little Spring or Winding River. It's actually the deepest, naturally formed, underwater caverns in the U.S. and the bottom has never been found! The area was once populated by ginormous trees that disappeared when the logging industry moved into the area. The guide described how saw grass grows nearby and you don't want to touch it because it's so sharp it can cut you to the bone. Sadly, we missed the manatees because they're in the Gulf of Mexico right now but we did see state tree of Florida and many different kinds of fish in the clear water. If you like kayaking, you can also rent a kayak and float down the river yourself!

The Florida State Tree is the Sabal Palmetto

We enjoyed it and it was nice to be able to relax and take everything in without feeling rushed. If you are in the area and would like to experience something that's uniquely Florida, this is the place! The park also has playgrounds for the kids and plenty of places to sit if you have trouble walking. They have a water park called "Bucaneer Bay" but it was undergoing renovations while we were there. I may or may not have had fun taking pictures at all the picture spots.... My kids call it cheesy, I call it fun! ;-)

Buccaneer Bay

The mermaids perform under this section of the spring.

You may also see the peacocks wandering around. It was a fun day.

Last week when our cousins were in town, we visited the local farmers market. If you've been following along, then you know we love farmers markets! It ended up being much smaller than we had hoped but I was still able to get some fantastic strawberries and tomatoes. The strawberries were perfectly ripe when we got them but we ended up buying more than we needed so the rest went into the refrigerator. This morning I decided they were more suited for either making jam or strawberry bread. Since we can't be hauling jam up the Eastern Seaboard when we leave at the end of the month (I mean more jam than I already have... ;-)), we made bread! I got this recipe from an online newsletter around 2000 (Thanks Chef at WW Recipes!) and have been making it ever since. It has a subtle sweetness and is a wonderful way to use up your fresh strawberries. Once it's baked, the loaf freezes well too. Oh! And did I mention it's a vintage recipe.....?

Fresh Strawberry Bread

- 2 cups (500ml) Fresh Strawberries, washed and hulled
- 1 3/4 (430ml) All Purpose or Bread Flour
- 1 tsp (5ml) Baking Soda
- 1 tsp (5ml) Salt
- 1/4 tsp (1ml) Baking Powder
- 3/4 cup (180ml) Sugar
- 1/3 cup (80ml) Butter or other shortening
- 2 Eggs
- 1/3 cup (80ml) Water

Optional:
- 1/2 cup (125ml) Chopped Walnuts
- Cream Cheese, softened
- Ground Cinnamon

Directions:
Crush enough of the strawberries to fill 1 cup (250ml). Pour into a small saucepan and heat over medium flame. Bring to a boil and cook for one minute, stirring constantly. Then remove from the heat and allow to cool. Slice the remaining strawberries and chill.

In a medium bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. In a large mixing bowl beat the butter and sugar together and then add the eggs and water, mixing until light and fluffy. Add the flour mixture to the batter mixture, mixing well to blend. Stir in the crushed strawberries and if you choose to use them, the walnuts.

Spoon the mixture into a greased 8x4x4 inch (approx. 20x10x10cm) loaf pan. Bake in a preheated 350f  (180c) oven for one hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean after inserting it in the center. When the loaf has cooled for about 10 minutes, turn the loaf out on a rack to cool. Cut into slices and spread with softened cream cheese if you are using it. Then add a light dusting of cinnamon and top with the reserved strawberry slices.

(I never get this far. I don't use the walnuts and I slice it and eat it straight from the pan while it's still warm. Mmmmmmmm)

Makes 1 loaf

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

- Jen

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Old Florida

This week we've been spending time with our cousins. As much as I like posting the blog on time, we rarely get to see this branch of the family, so the blog was placed on the back burner. They have kids who are similar in age to our own and it's been fun watching them interact and get to know each other. My favorite part, other than just enjoying each others company, was hearing stories we've never heard before about people who are no longer with us.

If you watched Downton Abbey and saw the last episode, there's a scene where two sisters, Mary and Edith, are making peace with each other and Edith says “Because in the end, you’re my sister. And one day, only we will remember Sybil. Or Mama, or Papa, or Matthew, or Michael, or Granny, or Carson, or any of the others who have peopled our youth. Until at last, our shared memories will mean more than our mutual dislike.” I found that to ring so true. Fortunately my husband has never had any bad blood with his family but often in life we don't appreciate the people who share a common history with us until it's too late. Having this opportunity to reconnect and make new memories with them has been a treasure.

Speaking of treasures, we all visited Indian Rocks Beach together and had fun beachcombing! I'm embarrassed to say that it's the first beach we've actually visited since we arrived in Florida (yes, even after the Keys), but it was a lot of fun! Here are some pictures to give you an idea of how beautiful the white beach was. The weather was perfect and we found a lot of shells. The kids really enjoyed the water, which was warmer than what we're used to on the west coast.

Here are some of the shells we found.

They were everywhere!

When we started visiting Florida a few years ago, we wanted to learn about the area and see many of the popular tourist destinations. Many times we planned day trips and carefully plotted the most efficient routes. On several such trips we were disappointed, though, to see strip malls on all sides of us almost the entire time. It appeared to be never-ending. Like Florida had been swallowed up by concrete, stores, and restaurant chains. While that can be convenient if you're only here for a week, it really doesn't allow you the opportunity to see the nuances that make Florida beautiful and unique.

We started making an effort to get off the main roadways and seek out "the real Florida" when we explored. You know, places where people actually live and raise their families. Where libraries and museums are located and people are invested in their communities. Places where small businesses thrive and people have roots. Fortunately, it turns out that we didn't have to go very far at all!  Because of some great advice from people along the way, we found hidden gems like the one we visited last weekend, Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, near Orlando.

Historically this lake was one of the most polluted in the country, but in recent years has been the focus of major restoration efforts. Through these efforts the area has become home to animals and birds of all kinds and has returned to something closer to what "Old Florida" looked like before being built up. White one-way roads have been added over an 11 mile area, so you can view the wildlife in their natural habitat from the comfort of your car. This area is opened to the public on the weekends and best of all, it's free! You can find alligators, bobcats, bears, turtles and much more! Because of the lack of fences, you should obviously exercise caution, but here's a sample of what we saw....

This preserve is also home to hundreds of species of birds and a wide variety of plant life. In fact, if you visit next January you can go to Birdapalooza! I was amazed at how close we were to many of these beautiful creatures. We noticed that many bird species have long necks and long legs. I supposed that's common in tropical areas?

 This is what one of the varieties of Palm trees looks like when it hasn't been pruned. Spikey!

This eagle was standing on a nearby field.

Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive is my new favorite place to visit here in central Florida, hands down! If you're ever in this area on a weekend and you're interested in wildlife, conservation, or seeing "Old Florida", I highly recommend it!

- Jen