March 17th: LaBelle > Ft. Lauderdale > Phoenix AZ

Today was my last day with my parents, before setting off on the second part of my vacation. It wasn't going to be a short day, but I was ready for it.

The day started off foggy, which was unexpected, and made for a pretty morning at the campground. I say campground, but this place was a bit strange.

There were quite a few RV's like my parents, fifth-wheels, trailers etc, but more than a few had been modified into something that was far more permanent. Even trailers that are supposed to move around from place to place seem to have sprouted permanent roofs. 

And then there are the "park model" trailers that are never going to move again, with porches, carports and concrete driveways. When I say they'll never move again, there is one way they'll go someplace: the moment a hurricane swipes through. Which leads to the next strange thing:

If you look closely at this "house", you'll notice that it has a Florida license plate hanging just below the window. I assume this is for insurance purposes, since mobile homes in south Florida are highly regulated, if they're licensed with the state as a portable vehicle, they can dodge all the requirements and get insurance at a cheaper rate. It's hard to feel pity for people who do such stupid things.

And then there's this sign that was posted on the shower house door. I...don't even know what to say. Yes, this was a strange place indeed.

We loaded up the truck and headed south shortly after breakfast.

I've always wanted to drive down Tamiami Trail, which is further south than I-75 / Alligator Alley.

I don't know what I expected to see or find down that way, bug the Big Cypress Natural Preserve was an interesting place for sure. I wish I had been able to spend more time poking about, but sadly I had a plane to catch. 

Alligators, of course.

Lots of alligators. Sunning themselves in the warmth, and not really doing much else.

There really wasn't much else to see as we moved eastward into the Florida Everglades, just mile after mile of flat swampland and blue skies. Eventually we reached the far western edges of Miami, and the urban sprawl set in.

After slogging through early-afternoon Miami traffic, I made it to the Ft. Lauderdale airport and said goodbye to my folks and the red truck.

For this leg of the trip, I was flying on US Air. It was a fairly unremarkable flight.

Nice view of Fort Lauderdale coastline.

Flying above the clouds somehow felt magical, as it always does.

Fantastic sunset, flying over what I believe was Mexico.

Hello, Phoenix! My first view of the city since 1996, and then I was only passing through.

I finally arrived, and made it to the rental car counter. I was early by a few hours, but I figured they'd surely have a car for me. Oh, how wrong I was! I had to kill almost 3 hours, so my friend Steph's friend in Phoenix came to pick me up, and we all went out for Ethiopian food. That beer, whatever it was, was one of the best tasting drinks I've ever had.

The jet lag, combined with the warm Phoenix air and the fantastic food made me supremely tired, but I still had to return back to the airport to pick up my rental car.

Not tired enough to accept a ratty 2013 Hyundai with 47,000 miles on it.

Of course the Chevy was an "upgrade" for some weird reason, but it only had 17k on the odometer and was a hatchback, far more preferable than the sedan. So I splurged, and set off to find my Airbnb that I was staying at with Steph. A short while later I was showered and in bed, thankful to finally be resting.

March 16th: LaBelle > Ft. Myers > LaBelle

Today started off just like yesterday, however the intention was to have an earlier start. I was in dire need of a haircut, so I ventured to downtown LaBelle.

Having spent almost six years in Florida for grad school, I have a soft spot for the deep-southern parts of Florida. LaBelle was exactly that. 

With the large shaded streets, it made me miss living here.

LaBelle is situated on the Caloosahatchee River, and it has a tiny marina, and a draw bridge to allow for pleasure craft to transit the river. It connects the Gulf of Mexico to Lake Okechobee, and amazingly enough it is a tidal river!

I ended up very lucky - the barber shop was right next door to a coffee shop. After my trim, I sat down for an hour or so for some unsweet ice tea and a little time to myself. 

One of the reviews for the coffee shop said it was reminiscent of those that you would find in the Northeast, and I would have to agree. 

I have to admit it does feel a lot better. Especially in the heat. Today we were headed to the Edison-Ford Winter Estates in Ft. Myers, someplace that I've driven past many times, but never had the opportunity to visit. 

While walking to the main entrance, I happened to spot this:

Anyone familiar with Rhode Island will know instantly why this is so peculiar. No one from RI ever seems to leave the state, so finding one 1500 miles away was quite a shock! 

The Edison-Ford Winter Estates were exactly that - retreats for Thomas Edison and later Henry Ford. A far cry from the harsh winters that they would experience in the North, Edison was first to winter here, and later on when Henry and Thomas became close, he purchased the properly directly next to Edison. It seems like the houses (at least Fords) were seldom used.

Ford's house was simple, relatively small and had the design on the inside that suits my tastes perfectly. 

Edison was big on botanical science, so the vegetation around the estates was impressive and varied. There were several huge fig trees, with roots that jutted 4 feet into the air.

A nice palm-lined pathway from the Ford house right down to the bay.

Edison's house was furnished just as simply, but it didn't quite have that craftsman-bungalow style that I favor. 

It did boast however one of the most impressive porches that I've ever seen, a porch that I wish I could just sit and relax on.

The wisteria was also beautiful.

This is Edison's Moonlight Garden behind his study. I can picture it at night, and I bet it's just serene and beautiful. 

After the Ford-Edison Winter Estates, I was determined to find some real gulf seafood. Since I was driving, I just headed south, knowing that I would eventually find a place situated along the water. Regardless of how tacky it was, they were going to have fresh seafood. And lucky enough, I found exactly that, and had some amazing grilled grouper, one of my favorite fishes.

After sitting in traffic for what felt like forever (but wasn't really all that bad), we stopped at another deep south stalwart, Publix.

Dinner, food, two beers and a glass of wine later, it was time for bed. Tomorrow was going to be another long day, especially since I was flying out to Phoenix for part two of my trip.

March 15th: LaBelle Florida > Lake Okeechobee > LaBelle

My first full day in Florida was meant to be a restful day, and I was forcing myself to not worry about the next day, or the day after that, or returning to work in just over a week's time. So what better way than to sit outside and not do a damn thing?

The plan, as it was for the day was to drive over to (and circumnavigate) Lake Okeechobee. Staying in a RV campground like this, however, isn't conducive to motivation. 

Family friends were also staying in the same campground, so we sat around and chatting with them until just after lunch. 

This part of Florida is what I really wanted to see, the rural "inside" of the state, where the tourists are scarce and the landscape surreal. We headed towards Clewiston, Florida on the south west corner of the lake. After passing through Clewiston, we found ourselves on the lake...except we weren't. A 20-30 foot high dyke had been constructed around the entire lake.  Constructed in the late 1920's - early 1930's, The Herbert Hoover Dyke is an expansive Army Corp of Engineers project to control the lake from natural events and keep the land from flooding. It also had the unhappy consequence of making the lake almost completely inaccessible and unviewable. 

Even though we couldn't see the lake, we stumbled across something I would have never thought from South Florida: Sugar Cane.

Apparently 70,000 acres of land in Palm Beach and Hendry Counties produce over 350,000 tons of raw sugar annually. We sat along side a road and watched the sugar cane being harvested with great interest. Partially because it was fascinating, and partially because there was little else to see.

Pahokee, Florida is situated on the eastern shore of the lake, and is a picturesque (if run-down) little town.

A city park also afforded us our first view of the lake itself. This marina was apparently little used, but in decent shape and gave us the opportunity to walk out and get a better view of the lake itself.

It is a tremendously huge lake, so big you can't even see the opposite shore.

Someone needs a haircut.

There as also a nice campground along the lake side of the dyke, and you could actually drive along top of it for a little bit, which was interesting. 

There are several canals that stretch out like spokes of a wheel from the lake. This was a lock/dam combination that headed off towards the Atlantic ocean. I imagine that this system of locks was envisioned to help transport carbo between the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico without having to go all the way around the Keys, but in terms of modern shipping it would be inadequate to handle ships of any significant size..

It is a pleasant lake to look at, but it was also curiously absent of any pleasure craft.

By this time, we had been driving around the lake for several hours. We were hungry and tired, so a quick late lunch at Applebees in the town of Okeechobee, gas and a ice-cream treat were all that we wanted and needed. That and a nap.

Driving back to Labelle was more flatlands, dyke and cows! Apparently Okeechobee (the town) is a large cow town in Florida. Again, when you think of south Florida, people don't necessarily think of cows. It was rather odd to see cattle grazing among palm trees. 

By this the time we made it back to the campground, we were all worn out and ready to do nothing but relax. Which is what we did, with another early night. 

March 14th: Providence > Boston > Ft. Myers > LaBelle FL

After the weather that the Northeast has been having so far in 2015, it felt only natural to feel to warmer geographies. Of course, this would make me a snow-bird, but if I only go for a week it's not so bad, right? Florida, Arizona and New Mexico, here I come!

What better way to start my trip off that breakfast at Seaplane diner, with Jim from Old Dead Volvos? I can't think of one. Okay, actually I can, but this will have to do for now.

While the weather the last week hadn't been all that bad, the day of departure reminded me just why I wanted to flee. Drizzly and cold (low 40's) I was only wearing a winter jacket on my trek from the car park to the bus to the terminal, and needless to say I was chilly. Spirit Airlines isn't my favorite carrier by far, but considering they almost game me two roundtrip tickets anywhere they flew (HELLO PERU!??) I can't dislike them all that much. 

Of course anytime I see an old car it's going to catch my eye, so at the Ft. Myers airport when I spied a cutout of Edison next to a Cadillac (what looks to be a late-oughts model) I couldn't resist taking a picture. I didn't dawdle however, as I wanted to get out of the airport and out into the heat. 

I am a man of habits, as everyone that knows me can attest, and it should come as no surprised that the first place my parents took me was a place that I had actually let slip into the dusty recesses of my mind: Sonny's BBQ. 

Crinkle-cut fries, BBQ baked beans and pulled pork on texas toast? Yes, please.

My parents might have been glad to see me, I'm not sure. 

The ongoing debate for this portion of my trip would be who would sit in the sideways facing jump seat in the back of the truck. This time, my mom "won". Or lost. 

Of course it wouldn't be South Florida without a 4pm rain shower. 

Ah, that's more like it. Something so soothing about the heavy, but brief downpour that makes me feel at home. It's moments like this that I actually do miss living in Florida.

Finally, made it to the campground in LaBelle FL, and to Hugo, our home-away-from home. 

Time for everyone to have a little refreshments. Beer for me, and a little glass of wine for Mom and Dad. Ah, this is the life.

As the evening wound down, the bugs came out. Before that, however, was a spectacular sunset. 

The rest of the short night involved a small dinner, and then to bed. It had been a long day, and while tomorrow wasn't going to be jam packed, an early night felt right. Camping, even in a rolling home on wheels seems to align your body more to the sunrise/sunset cycles than you'd think.

And now for something completely different...

Thus far Fernweh Again has been a blog about my trips, as I take them. I know that it might seem narcissistic to assume that anyone would actually want to look at the photos of all the interesting and exciting places I've been, but is it really more vain than having photo albums that we share? Or even slide-shows...how I wish that my great aunt Elizabeth were still around, with her epic adventures and her slide shows at the cottage on Kueka Lake.

So what could be even more vain than posting my trips? Why, writing about travel of course! Perhaps a little more focused on where I want to go next, rather than just travel in general.

So what's next?

As many of you may (or may not recall), I received $500 in travel vouchers from Delta for giving up my seat on my return flight from San Francisco. Like the proverbial money in a pocket, those travel vouchers have been burning a hole in my pocket.

Couple those vouchers with the fact that in the last twelve months I've travelled more in my life than I have ever before (Internationally to Canada/Ottawa twice, Vietnam, Hong Kong, and a few hours in the Bejing Airport, and Domestically California/Nevada twice, Madison WI twice, and Michigan, with a few other local side trips) and I want to keep that streak alive, going at least someplace else new that I haven't been before. Twenty fifteen looks like it might be a slow year for travel, or not, considering The French is getting married in July and a trip is in the offing...

So that leaves me with $500 and that epic fernweh. So where should I go?

First up in my mind was Santiago, Chile. Of course at around $1500 that's out of question. Wait, how about Lima, Peru? Yes, that's doable! Of course when I ask my co-worker who is from Chile about going to Lima, I found out why it was so cheap, so that's out of the question. Also, for a long weekend it would mean a day and a half flying. South America starts to sound a lot more difficult in general.

Then Puerto Rico popped into my head. Around $300 for a round trip ticket from Boston would do two things: take me someplace I've never been, and leave me with some vouchers left for another trip, or at least a portion of a trip!

Once I was thinking about islands, Bermuda came to mind. Out in the middle of the Atlantic, it's only little over a two hour flight from Boston, but sadly in the winter the weather is typically only in the 60's. Nice, but if I am on a tiny island, I want it to be tropical.

Puerto Rico seems like it might be winning this one so far...