Tourists for a Day

Today we were tourists. Never having been to Ft. Walton Beach or Destin, we decided to drive over and take a look after a Waffle Hour breakfast. It was an hour and a half drive through very crowded towns full of spring breakers and fellow tourists.

We found a large public parking lot at the Crab Trap restaurant in Destin. This beach looks just like Gulf Shores, but the area is extremely crowded. All of the local high schools are on spring break this week and the kids were all hanging out on the beach.

Since the sun was shining, I was able to get into the water (shin deep at best). No red or purple flags on this beach. The Portuguese man-of-wars (type of jelly fish) have been coming ashore on the local beaches in Orange Beach and Gulf Shores. These are extremely dangerous, and very painful when the tentacles get on humans. Yet another reason to stay out of the freezing water.

We next drove through an RV park on the beach just east of Destin. The RVs were crammed in, some of them right on the beach. This is not for us. I love sand, but I don't want to eat it daily, or have to vacuum daily to get it out of the 5th wheel.

On the way back to Gulf Shores, we stopped at the famous Flora-Bama bar that straddles the Florida and Alabama border. This bar has been here forever, but we've never set foot inside. I remember Aunt Nell telling me about it, as she and Chet used to stop in for lunch occasionally. She said there were bras that certain patrons felt they no longer needed, hanging up, and sure enough, they still are. The hurricanes have not been kind to this establishment, but it was never anything to look at to begin with. It's a landmark, and anyone who's ever been in this area, has certainly heard of it.

We each had a drink and then headed back to our park.