Daytona 500, Alligators and Swimming with Manatees

Our time in Florida has gone fast. It's amazing how quickly these nice warm days melt into one another. During our time here, we've had a few more adventures.

On Sunday, Feb. 26, we boarded a bus with 20 other people to go to the Daytona 500 race. Since we had never gone to a race, we figured it would be easier to let someone else do the driving and parking. We arrived about an hour before race time.

Fans at the Racetrack

The tall structure tells you the order of the top 15 racers during the race

Selfie at the Race

It was a bright, sunny day.  We knew it was going to be loud (we brought along ear plugs) but were surprised that if you went into the concessions area, it was even louder. They did have big TV screens outside but it was hard to see the race on those screens. There were several crashes that day, but none near where we were sitting. It was nearly 10:00 p.m. by the time we got back so we were glad someone else was doing the driving. 

When you think of Florida, you think of alligators. Since there were several places advertising air boat rides to see alligators, we decided to go on a tour. It was a cooler and windy day, so we didn't see as many alligators as we had hoped to. They hide in the grass so it is hard to spot them. At the end of the ride we had a good close-up view of one that appeared to be watching us. After a while, he moved to another spot so we got the chance to see one walking. 

Before we boarded the boat, Andy got the chance to hold a baby alligator (about 4 months old) 

Unfortunately, none of our pics got a good shot of the alligators. This was the first time we'd been on an air boat; they are very noisy. (They supply earphones to protect your ears.)

Last week we went on an excursion to swim with the manatees. We drove about an hour north to the village of Homossasa Springs to get to our destination. Our company http://snorkelwithmanatees.com/ supplied us with wet suits and snorkel gear as well as the boat and captain to get to the area where the manatees reside. We were in about 4-5 feet of warm river water. We had been instructed to just "float" along side the manatees and to let them come to us. Manatees sleep on the bottom and then come to the surface to breathe about every 20 minutes-still asleep! The first time one comes by you is unnerving, since they are big, 5-7 feet in length. However, they are very docile and quite friendly. One kept coming back to me to get petted again. I was lucky to see one that turned over on it's back so I could see it's belly. Manatees are actually related to elephants. 

Manatees by the boat

Andy & I in our wetsuits

More manatees just under the surface of the water

Monkey Island (6 monkeys live there) 

That was one of the most fun things we've done. We didn't even realize that it should be added to our bucket list until we got to Florida! 

And a parting shot, which can be titled, "Only In Florida". We/ve been amazed at the number of golf carts in FL, however did not expect to see this at the drive through lanes at the bank. 

In case you can't read it, it says Golf Cart Only