Tarpon Springs

                                          Captain Jeff!

      Darleen, from boat Bama Breeze and I, sitting on a nice Pontoon, docked at the marina.  It was fixed up for partying!   

Look at all of the sponges!

Arriving in Tarpon Springs.

  Hear the music!

                          The Greek Orthodox Church.

                                  On the Party pontoon.

                     Mythos - a Greek Beer - it’s good too!

      We took the trolley one day to Dunedin - a Scottish town. 

              Decorated dolphin for Christmas by the marina.

                              A mural on a building in TS.

            An old boat in TS - looks like a bird sanctuary now.

                                  All about the sponges.

   I forgot to post this; this is me sleeping on the Gulf crossing!

This is a mural - so Greek!   

     This a fountain with bronze statues in Dunedin and Jeff. 

   Kalispera!  That means “Good evening” in Greek. After crossing the Gulf, we arrived in Tarpon Springs (TS). TS is a small Greek community and of course, I tried to greet people with “Kalimera” or “Kalispera,” (good morning and good evening) the only few phrases I know in Greek.  I even greeted a couple of non-Greek people with my greeklish!

   A little history about TS - several years ago, people from Greece, “sponge divers,” came to the area because they heard there were a lot of sponges.  So, they came and settled in TS to harvest sponges. You can purchase sponges in almost any shop. There’s a few different types (some are better quality and more expensive - supposedly last longer) and they come in different sizes.  We bought a couple and they are nice!  They don’t smell at all and really soak things up.  We’re using them for dishes and also to wash the boat.  

   TS recently made national news.  About 20,000 people came to the small town to celebrate the Epiphany - the baptism of Jesus Christ. It’s the largest Greek Epiphany celebration in the Western Hemisphere and has been practiced for over a century.  They have a processional to Spring Bayou, where a cross is thrown into the water and local, teenage boys jump in to retrieve it. The finder is said to receive a year of blessings.  Although we missed the Epiphany, we were able to see Spring Bayou. It’s a beautiful bayou and there were manatees! We love watching them gracefully swim through the water and coming up to the surface to grab some air.  

   Some loopers who were in other areas close to us came to TS and we spent the day together. We went to a couple of breweries, shopped a bit and had lunch at Limini’s - a great place for delicious Greek food.  

  We also enjoyed dinner at Rusty Bellies - their shrimp was the best I’ve had - cooked in Coca-cola, and I’ve already discovered a recipe for it!  Oh man - and the bakeries - so much baklava and so delicious!

  The marina was fantastic, with showers and it was right downtown. I would highly recommend this gem! We could walk, right from boat and see so many stores, restaurants, bakeries, breweries, sights, etc. it was the best location, and a good price! If you ever go, you must buy a sponge too!  We both enjoyed TS and would return - one of those charming, quaint areas that I love!

  We appreciate your comments!  Efharisto - that means “thank you” in Greek!