Florida Spring Training Trip - Day 18

We decided to drive up to Tarpon Springs today and look around.  The town is about 9 miles north of Dunedin along the coast and is the major location on the Florida coast for sponge harvesting,  The town has a long history of sponge diving, mostly by Greek fisherman  and divers.  That influence has continued and the town is still a center of Greek American culture and heritage.  Although sponge harvesting is still being accomplished as an economic activity, the locals have taken the theme and turned it into a potentially more lucrative business model - tourism.

The "sponge docks" area along the waterfront is a cluster of shopping, restaurant, and boat cruise establishments.  There are a variety of souvenir shops, shell stores, clothing boutiques, Greek restaurants and bakeries and even a small aquarium.  You can buy sea shells, sponges in all types, sizes, and varieties, "Cuban" cigars, T-shirts and hats, and Greek pastries and coffee from street-front businesses.  Picture a mixture of Pier 39 and Fisherman's Wharf kind of activity with a local flavor.  The area was also very busy - lots of older people, most likely snow birds and tourists as well as families, and younger couples.  There were also a lot of Greek-looking merchants although I don't recall seeing any of them wearing a Greek fisherman's cap.

Despite the feel of a tourist-trap type of environment, the Greek food we had for lunch at one of the many restaurants in the area was excellent. It certainly was authentic and was as good as any we have had elsewhere.  After lunch we walked around town and had desert and coffee  at an outstanding Greek bakery. They were out of Turkish coffee, but the Greek coffee was very good.  We also took a 40 minute boat tour where they talked about sponges and the history of sponge diving in the area.  There was also a sponge harvesting demonstration by a diver, complete with a diving suit and an external air supply.  He even brought back a real sponge after about 5 minutes in the water.  Funny how he just happened to find one that quickly.
Nevertheless, we had a good time touring the area and enjoyed the authentic Greek Food. There is also a downtown historical district that appears to have a number of tourist-oriented businesses and activities. It was getting late so we decided to skip that.  Maybe another time.

After arriving back at the resort we shared a Pina Colada at the Tiki Bar before returning to the condo.  We ate dinner in tonight and relaxed before going to bed.  We are going to go to the beach tomorrow.  The weather forecast  looks good and maybe even a little warmer than today, although it was just about perfect - clear skies low 70's and little wind.

Here are some pictures of Tarpon Springs:

Day 18 Pictures