A Trip Down Alligator Alley and a Visit to Steinbrenner Field ~ March 12, 2017

March 12, 2017

We set an alarm for 7 a.m. and struggled to get up given the first day of daylight savings time was upon us!  But off we went for the final leg of our journey to Tampa.  We took Route 75 all the way from Miramar to Tampa.  Known as "Alligator Alley," the road is pretty much a straight line from Fort Lauderdale to Naples and then skews north to get to Tampa.  Somewhere along the road I began noticing a tremendous number of herons -- snowy whites, blues, and a couple of others that I did not recognize.  Eventually we came upon a rest area where we pulled off and were mesmerized by the river and marshland that was teeming with wildlife.  Difficult to capture the beauty with my iPhone camera, but I tried:





I loved the reflections captured in all of the above pictures of the white herons!

 


Look closely, and you will see an alligator in both the top and bottom pictures!


We were so enamored of this stop that we ended up being late to the ball park.  We missed the first inning where the Atlanta Braves scored 6 runs -- most due to several errors by the Yankee third baseman, a kid named Ronald Torreyes.  I don't think Headley needs to worry about his spot on the roster.

It was still fun to be at the game.  We saw Greg Bird and Aaron Hicks each hit home runs.

           
Greg Bird leaves after touching home plate.   Aaron Hicks at the plate just before hitting a homer!




And the grounds crew still does the YMCA - even at spring training!

Even through we got "killed" by the Braves, it was still a fun afternoon.  We made our way to a local Winn Dixie for some groceries and found our "home" for the week - a little bungalow on the Hillsborough River.  We managed to grill some pork chops which I fixed with some roasted potatoes and onions along with a green salad.  A glass of red wine (or two) capped off our evening.  A beautiful full moon rose and played peek-a-boo with the clouds making for some fun pictures.

 

 


Who else gets to travel with her own personal pianist?  Jeff entertains me several times a day with his jazz piano stylings.


Jeff, in our living room for the week.

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