We’ve made the very best of our time away from home in sunny, hot Florida. It’s been a near perfect vacation.

The picture show…

We made good use of our $10.00 off Mother’s Day gift by revisiting Bonefish. But it wasn’t as good as the first time.

The wine was excellent, a California Cab.  But the dinner… I asked for the Wolf Fish (this fish apparently eats Lobster and takes on that sweet flavor that lobster offers).  The waiter thought I asked for the swordfish and delivered that to the table with Ted’s meal.  Now I DO eat swordfish but NOT when it’s topped with bacon. So take it back and get it right.    The correct entre’ was delivered but the sauce was too buttery for me.  It really sat heavy and uncomfortable in my stomach.  Oh well.  Maybe that’s why I don’t like to revisit restaurants (unless in Utica where they are tried and true).

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We did hit the gym on a couple of occasions.  Being the “gym rats” we are, there was no way to resist the state of the art TechnoGym equipment. It was SO COOL!

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After a good 2 hour workout, we were hungry.  We had a few snacks left in our room then made our way to Jane’s on 3rd Street, natural and organic. Ted had an American Omelet with ham and I enjoyed the Mediterranean omelet with Egg whites, spinach, and feta cheese, topped with hot sauce and served with dry rye and a double bowl of fresh fruit.

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Who could resist the art galleries? There were SO many.

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We worked off our breakfast with a bike ride to Naples Pier.  We enjoyed people watching as well as trying to cuddle up close to some very focused bird. This guy was anxiously watching a gal clean her fresh catch on the fish gutting table lining the pier.

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Joanne had to play the “monkey” and try to climb a really cool looking tree. It had an Elephant branch that was just ITCHING to be climbed!

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We cycled to 5th street to do some shopping. But the Frozen yogurt called our name so we stopped into Spin.  This place is TOPS! You can sample all the different fro-yos then make up your own bowl. Once you’re done choosing your yogurt, you have over 30 toppings to choose from.  It was so good!

Ted:  Low fat red velvet cake, No fat pistachio, and Chocolate.

Joanne:  No fat vanilla bean, No fat pistachio, Chocolate, No fat blueberry with Acai, and Original tart.  I topped it with some chocolate pieces, butterscotch pieces, and  honey granola.

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We walked 5th for a while. It was hot.  I didn’t find anything I really liked except for a nice pair of shoes. Ted found some great Merrell’s but the store didn’t have his size. Bummer.

After some successful and not so successful shopping, it was time to return the bikes. That put us at 1:30pm and just about time to eat again.

Joe’s Crab Shack. Joe’s is across 41 from our resort. We were curious.  It was SUCH A FIND!

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Although they offered some pretty darned tempting hot pots of crab, lobster, clams, shrimp, mussels, potatoes, and corn, we opted for the crab dip nachos.

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With full bellies once again, we set off to the beach. THIS TIME it was to swim. 

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The beach was sunny and hot. The water was warm but refreshing.  I bounced in the waves while Ted tried his best to swim in the open water.  A silly black (actually more brown in color) bird landed on our bag and was pecking at the plastic bag containing the water bottles.  That bird was a thief.  There was no food in the bag.  He just wanted to steal something because when I ran to scare him away, he left behind a little treasure from his last heist.  It was a red plastic tie.  It was a bit shiny so maybe this bird was after something bright ….like my CAMERA?!!! Well, he got nothing and we didn’t give him a second chance.  Thirty minutes of beach time is all these New Yorkers can take. 

Our last night in Naples:

Dinner and a show of course.  Dinner at Vergina on 5th.  Gourmet all the way. From delicious chardonnay to wonderful meals of fresh pasta and seafood.

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Chopped Salad-Mixed lettuces and vegetables with tomatoes and crumbled gorgonzola dolce tossed in balsamic vinaigrette

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The entree’s

Papardelle di Crostacei:  Fresh pasta (a double wide fettuccine) with a hint of rosemary tossed with lobster meat, blue crab meat & white shrimp in a brandy grape tomato sauce.

Penne Rustica:  Italian sausage, rosemary grilled chicken breast with broccolini & spinach topped with parmesan, garlic & extra virgin olive oil.

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That meal was so good, I wanted to stay another week just to taste the rest of the food on the menu. 

The Show:

We bought tickets for the local players theater.  The Naples Players presentation of Neil Simon “Rumors”.

A typical farce: locked and slamming doors, mistaken or switched identities, a confused policeman.  Great one liners as well as tummy tickling dialogue. It was one of the best plays Ted and I have seen.

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Vacations are wonderful. When you have so much fun, it’s hard to leave. But we do miss our little fur face (Shane by any other name) and, since it can’t be avoided, will look forward to getting back into our old routine.  It’s not so bad. Besides, the weather in New York HAS to get better….right?!!! (fingers crossed). 

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