Plant Hall at the University of Tampa

The domes and minarets of Plant Hall are the iconic architectural symbol of Tampa.  The building was completed in 1891 as The Tampa Bay Hotel.   I've only gotten glimpses of the place when driving by, and wanted to visit. 

The hotel was built by railroad tycoon Henry Plant when there wasn't much else in Tampa.  It was at the terminus of the western Florida railroad line.  There weren't many passable roads through the swamps of Florida in the 1880's.  The railroads would have been the first Dixie Highway in Florida.

The Victorian facade and portico are awe inspiring.  The Tampa Bay Hotel was open seasonally from December - April.  Famous people such as Sandra Berhardt, Clara Barton, Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders, and Babe Ruth visited the hotel.  It was the beginning of Florida's tourism industry.

The railroads created not only new winter retreats for the rich, but also created opportunities for the orange farmers to reach new markets.  The Port of Tampa grew from the connection of steamship to rail transport.  Local businesses flourished.

This fountain inscribed with the name Henry Bradley Plant is across the street from the main entrance facade.  You can see downtown Tampa in the background.

Henry Plant made his fortune in the North when as a railroad employee he saw an opportunity for express parcel service, which was nonexistent at the time.  He worked his way up to becoming a high profile executive.  After the Civil War he purchased bankrupt Southern railroads that were devastated by the war.  The restored railroad lines went to major cities of the South and connected them to the Northeast.  Florida was still a new frontier.

Fletcher Lounge is a large space used today by the University of Tampa as an auditorium.

Here's a detail of the dome inside Fletcher Lounge.

 

The large Victorian windows of Fletcher Lounge.

I climbed a narrow spiral staircase to explore the area above Fletcher Lounge and felt a little like Alice in Wonderland.   I wasn't sure what I might find around the corner.  This curved hallway on the second floor runs along a rooftop.  It connects the offices near Fletcher Lounge to the classrooms of the Science Department.

Grandiose staircases can be found throughout the building.

There's a lot to see here, including the Henry B. Plant Museum on the first floor, and a park along the Hillsborough River. Parking is a challenge, as it is on most college campuses.  If you visit give a little extra time to find parking.  It's a great place to photograph.

More photos of Plant Hall in Tampa

Florida Aquarium in Tampa

I was looking for a distraction this weekend and decided to go to the Florida Aquarium.


Jellyfish video:


The lights change colors as the jellyfish swim by.


Leafy Green Seadragon video:


The seadragons move so gracefully. They are seahorses with leafy camouflage that blends in with seaweed.


Here's the stingray tank. You can put your hand in to touch them.


Rays like to brush up against each other as they swim by. I like to learn about the creatures we swim with at the beach.


These shore birds are black-necked stilts.


A roseate spoonbill watches the people go by from the mangrove marsh habitat.


A brown duck in the cypress marsh habitat.


There's a new exhibit upstairs about home aquariums.


Goliath Grouper video:


These behemoths like to hang around coral reefs and under bridges.

Clearwater Marine Aquarium

We picked up some visitors from the St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport, had lunch at Clearwater beach, and went to Clearwater Marine Aquarium (CMA). The animals here have been found injured, are rescued, and then rehabilitated to be released back to their natural habitat. CMA's specialty is with dolphins, sea turtles, and sea otters, to name a few species. Those that can't be released become permanent residents here. What makes this place different from other zoos or aquariums is that each of these animals has a name and a story.


We walked downstairs to look in the windows of the big dolphin tank. This dolphin is one of four permanent residents. His name is Nicholas. The white marks on his back are scars from sunburn. He was stranded as a calf with his mother Noelle on Christmas Eve 2002. His mother did not survive. Nicholas was too young to have learned how to hunt on his own, and has since been a resident here.

Nicholas and a trainer during the dolphin show.

Nicholas looking through the window at Winter. She was very chatty. They say that she is the most vocal dolphin here.

Winter is the most famous resident at CMA. She was found wrapped in a crab trap when she was 3 months old. She lost her tail as a result of her injuries. Winter learned how to swim side to side like sharks do. She has been an inspiration to handicapped people around the world.

A prosthetic tail was developed for her. The new technology developed for the tail has helped improve human prosthetics.

A sea turtle diving. A sign with the name and story for each animal was by their tank.

We enjoyed seeing the animals and seashell displays. Our guests from Ohio had never seen dolphins up close. It's fun introducing people to new experiences.

Admission Fees
Adults $11.00
Children (age 3-12) $7.50
Seniors (age 60+) $9.00

Parking is free.

Clearwater Marine Aquarium also offers boat tours, behind the scenes tours, and dolphin photo ops.

Florida Whelks and Hermit Crabs

I never get tired of going to the beach. Every season is different. We went to Fort DeSoto Park's North Beach today and found a lot of large mollusks and hermit crabs. I usually don't see these larger specimens so close to shore during warm weather months.

(Click on photos for larger images.)

Here's a large whelk out for a stroll near the shore. The water was too cold for me to want to walk in. A lady vacationing from the state of Washington waded into the water to get it.


It took the whelk a few minutes to totally retract into its shell. Cold blooded animals move slower when they're cold. We all took pictures and then put it back in the water.


We found a lot of large hermit crabs near the shore. This one has a horse conch shell for a home.


Here's one at home in a whelk shell. This is the biggest hermit crab I've ever seen. It looked like a small lobster.



We stayed to watch the sunset and then went home.

More Photos of Fort DeSoto Park in Winter

Winter at Fort DeSoto Park

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The water was a beautiful clear blue-green. The winter had cleansed the ocean from the cloudiness of the fall season. The weather is changeable in winter, as if Mother Nature can't decide what shoes to wear. It can be cold and windy at the beach. We lucked out today and had calm, sunny weather. I carried my flip flops and walked in the cool water.


There are less people around in the winter and you can see more wild life. There are many different species of birds that hang around together. If you approach them slowly they'll accept your presence as that of another big goofy bird.


Here's a turnstone sandpiper. It was turning over stones and shells to find munchies.


Wade into the water for a closer look. It's much easier to get a good look at the pelicans when people aren't swimming in the water.


The sea washes up different types of creatures and seashells seasonally. We found a lot of dead sea urchins scattered around the shore. Here's a sea urchin in the water.

It was a nice day for walking on the beach.

More pictures of Fort DeSoto Park in Winter

Bok Tower Gardens

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It was a beautiful sunny day in December when we visited Bok Tower Gardens. Christmas carols rang from the carillon in the Tower and the sweet fragrance of camelias drifted through the air.


At first I mistook the camelia blooms for roses, because their smell and appearance are similar.


The intricate details and colors of the Tower are amazing. The exterior is made of colored marble. Scenes of trees, flowers, and wildlife are depicted on colored ceramic tiles. Adam and Eve are in the tile scene at the balcony.


Marble eagles stand like sentinels around the crown of Bok Tower.


There are many places to sit and enjoy the setting.

The hill that Bok Tower stands on is at the highest point of elevation in Florida. You can see the ordered lines of orange groves for miles.

Bok Tower bears the name of Edward Bok. He was a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer, and editor of "Ladies Home Journal" magazine during the late 1800's. Nearby Pinewood Estates was the Bok family's winter residence.

Bok became enamored by the natural setting around the hilltop and wanted to preserve it. Bok Tower was dedicated by President Calvin Coolidge after its completion in 1929. The estates were donated to the American people after Bok's death in 1930 as a sign of gratitute for the opportunities they had given him.


We had lunch at the cafe by the Visitors Center and then set out on a path towards the Pinewood Estates' manor house.


The mansion was decorated for Christmas.


A grand old oak tree shades the back of the house. I was impressed with how much of the architecture and decor was Spanish, considering Bok was from the Netherlands and owned a business headquarted in the Northeastern U.S. I asked one of the docents about the Spanish influence and she said that Bok traveled to South America often and admired Spanish styles.


A fountain on a patio near the entrance covered with painted tiles reminded me of the painted tiles at The Columbia restaurant in Ybor City.


I felt a little like Alice in Wonderland walking through a grove of tangerine trees cut into identical topiary shapes as we left Pinewood Estates. I thought about the words of Edward Bok over the entrance to the grounds as we departed, "Make you the world a bit better or more beautiful because you have lived in it."

Location
Lake Wales, Florida is about an hour's drive east from Tampa on Route 60.

Admission Fees
Parking is free. Admission to the grounds is $10 per person. Admission to the Pinewood Estates manor house is $8 per person.

More photos of our visit to Bok Tower Gardens and Pinewood Estates.

Wildlife at Tampa Electric's Manatee Viewing Center

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Tampa Electric's Big Bend power plant releases warm water into the bay as part of its production process. Manatees and other wildlife are attracted to this area in the winter. You'll see manatees here in large numbers when the Gulf water temperature dips below 65° Fahrenheit (18° Celsius).

Here's one of the viewing platforms with the power plant in the background.


There are all kinds of interesting contraptions around the power plant.


You don't have to walk far to see the wildlife. There are several viewing areas to explore.


You can find the manatees where ever there is a disturbance in the water.


Manatees are large air breathing mammals. You can see them surfacing often to breathe.


Here is a needlenose fish and a sting ray.


A pelican enjoys a spot in the sun to preen. The Manatee Viewing Center is part of the Great Florida Birding Trail.

Admission is free. The Manatee Viewing Center is open to the public from 10am and 5pm between November 1st and April 15th.

Guavaween 2008 in Ybor City

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We had a blast at the Guavaween celebration in Ybor City.


There were several sound stages.


Beads were thrown from parade floats and balconies. I love the wrought iron balconies. This is in the historic district of Ybor City in Tampa, Florida.


There were some amazing costumes. I can't figure out how this guy was able fit in the cart. Then he had to drive it backwards.


Our friend had a creative spider costume.


A ghoul on stilts walks through the crowd passing an elaborate wrought iron gate.


See more photos from Guavaween 2008
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