the boat & a welcomed change. Putted around all day. Ordered another part for the failed $1200 toilet. Worked on the computer and enjoyed looking like a slob! And, of course, we had pizza for dinner. April 4th No rain - the UPS man arrived with the new part - good sign. After several more calls and finally speaking to a real person who repairs these blasted things for a living, (bet he’s busy) the toilet is finally fixed! On our way out, Wayne heard the water pump running so he shut it down before we departed. Now what’s wrong! We’ll deal with it on our return. To town with, you guessed it, Molly. I didn’t realize that Tampa General was on Davis Islands. We took the 
waterside route & got a grand tour of the backside workings of the hospital. It appears they spared the original building & built around it. Brought back memories because it looked amazingly like the old Frankford Hospital where I trained. Long walk to town. Some people told us there were shops along the waterfront & near the aquarium. They lied. Yes, they did construct a place for shops a year ago called Channel side, but, with the exception of 3-4 restaurants & a few dance clubs, it is virtually empty. Some say half of the owners pulled out after 9/11. The Carnival Cruise line port & the aquarium are next to this site. The entire Channel side area is undergoing a renaissance. Tearing down with
construction everywhere. Humongous hotels on the water, a convention center probably as large as Orlando’s. Everything is HUGE. They’re even adding a trolley on tracks with power from cables above just like the old days. When completed, it will definitely
waterside route & got a grand tour of the backside workings of the hospital. It appears they spared the original building & built around it. Brought back memories because it looked amazingly like the old Frankford Hospital where I trained. Long walk to town. Some people told us there were shops along the waterfront & near the aquarium. They lied. Yes, they did construct a place for shops a year ago called Channel side, but, with the exception of 3-4 restaurants & a few dance clubs, it is virtually empty. Some say half of the owners pulled out after 9/11. The Carnival Cruise line port & the aquarium are next to this site. The entire Channel side area is undergoing a renaissance. Tearing down with
construction everywhere. Humongous hotels on the water, a convention center probably as large as Orlando’s. Everything is HUGE. They’re even adding a trolley on tracks with power from cables above just like the old days. When completed, it will definitely
Tampa University
be a plus for the area as it will take you to Ybor City as well as many other interesting locations throughout the city. Initially, we were anxious to visit Ybor City, however, it appears they destroyed the ambiance & created a ritzy glitzy, razzle-dazzle tourist spot. Not interested now. The big draw to the area is sports related. The Ice Palace for the Tampa Bay Lightening hockey team is located .
here. They were having a home game at 7pm - place was packed early. We wandered past the Palace and had to stop to check out the activities outside the arena. Set up was a basketball, football, golf, hockey and bungee jumping “booths” set up and blown up by an air compressor. (Don’t know how else to describe them) Bungee jumping was a horizontal event, not vertical. Mostly for the kids but I played too. Other booths including food, Air Force, credit card sign up most with free give-a-ways. Nice to see family oriented events & free stuff. Stopped by Newk’s Lighthouse Cafe for happy hour, wings & chicken. Now for the water pump: Making a terrible noise. Filled the tanks, as they were almost empty. He hauled out every conceivable item he might need since he feared the worst case scenario & emptied the engine room of all storage containers. UGH what a job! It was only a loose thing-a-ma-jig (I knew that) - he fixed it, at least for now. Another “hell of a day at sea”. So, isn’t what this is all about? Friday, April 5th Sunny & hot but air cool. Another lazy morning & late start -1200. Off to the museums. Toured the Tampa Bay History Museum, however, there was a ‘traveling exhibit’ instead of the normal Tampa history. The other portion was all about World War II. Continued up Franklin St. through an ‘Esplanade' next to the Hyatt. Very comforting & restful block of little shops, brick paved pedestrian street, shade trees & places to rest the weary bones. Got a frozen Yogurt, 
my first - refreshing - I loved the chocolate. Next stop, the Tampa Police Museum. Supposedly, they focus on investigations and solving crimes. That drew my interest. We arrived at 3pm & they closed at 3pm. (we sure have bad timing don't we?) Continued up Franklin & discovered Tampa’s
Historic Theater. You guessed it... closed. Peeked in the front doors &, from what I could see, would have been a fabulous tour. It was so beautiful with intricate architecture, tile work and vibrant colors.
My camera couldn’t capture what the eye saw. The only picture of the inside were on the humorous signs that resembled little marquis. Magnificent structure. Glad to see some towns are smart enough to not tear everything down “to put up a highway”.
Historic Theater. You guessed it... closed. Peeked in the front doors &, from what I could see, would have been a fabulous tour. It was so beautiful with intricate architecture, tile work and vibrant colors.
My camera couldn’t capture what the eye saw. The only picture of the inside were on the humorous signs that resembled little marquis. Magnificent structure. Glad to see some towns are smart enough to not tear everything down “to put up a highway”.
We walked a few blocks west to the Art Museum, which is directly across the river from Tampa University. Very peaceful. Stopped to meditate. Long walk home arrived about 5pm. Wanted to call Paul for his birthday but had a message from KWCC. Mom was declining rapidly. Could I get a flight & be in time to be with her? No chance, no flights. Frantically, I left a message for Frank hoping he was just getting out of work & would stop to be with her. Perfect timing. He held her hand & talked with her just as I would have. I was deciding if I should rent a car just as Frank called. She died minutes later. I’m happy that she had a year of freedom and some happiness, but now she got her wish for peace and, thankfully, without suffering. I Called my cousins, Butz and Chick to tell them about mom. Saturday, April 6th Didn’t get up until almost 9:00. I was groggy as I had taken a Tylenol PM last night. Still didn’t help - restless night & lots of dreams. It was a Chamber of Commerce day. Sunny, warm but slight coolness in the air. Good day to haul out the bikes 7 see Davis Islands. I needed to be out & moving. Toured most of the island of magnificent homes. Felt like a real family community- shush-a secret. Back to “town” for drinks appetizers & good Latin music at Pipo’s. Just going through the motions I guess & frustrated & angry because I couldn't be there to hold her hand. Sunday, April 7th The weather has been so perfect with 80’s in daytime, 60’s for sleeping. Day Light Savings started today - changed all clocks. We thought we got an early start but with Day Light Savings, we lost an hour and got a late start anyway. Oh well, we are on vacation after all. Anchor up at 12:30, winds 10 - 20 S-SE, whitecaps through Tampa Bay to Anna Maria Island to the ICW. A huge tanker followed up then crossed our path. 
Thoughts of anchoring at Longboat Key were cast aside as we made better time than we thought and the anchorage was full. Cruised another hour & put the anchor down in Sarasota Bay just outside the Ringling Museum. Fish dinner and Dominos - I won!
Another perfect day.
Thoughts of anchoring at Longboat Key were cast aside as we made better time than we thought and the anchorage was full. Cruised another hour & put the anchor down in Sarasota Bay just outside the Ringling Museum. Fish dinner and Dominos - I won! Another perfect day.
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