Dothan, AL, is home to spectacular murals including this one showing a little girl dressed in white and holding a floral bouquet.

About a year ago, I planned a trip to Biloxi, MS, and en route home to Florida, I motored off I-75 for a brief visit to Dothan, AL, in the heart of Peanut Country. What an eye-opening experience?! If you head anywhere through this part of southeastern Alabama, don’t miss the wonderful downtown murals on Dothan’s building facades.

From scenes of southern life to portraits of native Americans, European explorers, and American heroes (including the Tuskegee Airmen), Dothan’s mural deliver a sense of history. Visitors will also peruse murals depicting the peanut industry, cotton fields, the railroad era, and major local events.  It’s, frankly, the best street art I’ve ever seen. The colors are vibrant, the scenes compelling.

It’s cold in Florida and that’s good news for residents and tourists who want to see manatees in the wild. Those lovable, lumbering marine mammals typically head for the warmest water they can find in winter. Often, that’s an electric company warm water discharge canal. So about two weeks ahead when the weather turned a bit nippy here in central Florida, I headed out to the Big Bend Power Station Manatee Viewing Area in Apollo Beach, FL.  Visiting this seasonal attraction is fun and free! Watching the 1,000-pound manatees surface – their snouts poking out of the water as they breathe or their flippers turning in the water — is a great family activity. You might check out my original story about the manatee viewing experience on SouthernTravelNews.com.  When you go to the power plant site, however, you’ll be viewing manatees as they surface. You won’t have underwater views.  If you want to see the full animals in their underwater world, head for the Lowry Park Zoo, which has a wonderful underwater manatee viewing area. The zoo charges admission, though, so if you’re seeking a free eco-activity, head for Big Bend. It’s just off I-75 at the Apollo Beach exit. I always take out-of-town visitors here for a brief visit, and they love it.  While the manatees are the stars, you’ll also likely see birds and fish. I spotted Snook and a Great Blue Heron on my recent trip. The site also has a small museum and a nature walk experience. If you enjoy nature, this is a great spot for a 30-to-90 minute  eco-experience. 

Lately, we’ve all heard a lot about StayCations, those trips close to home that allow us to re-charge our batteries but don’t eat up our wallet at the same time. Often it’s the simple things in life that have the most kick, years later when reminiscing about “the good ole days.” I recall trips to Cambra, PA, to my Aunt Avis’ house to “burn leaves” — yes, a chore for the family — but fun for me and my cuz Pam who enjoyed romping and basically destroying the mountains of leaves as much as raking them. So it is with vacations. Many times, you remember the romp in the surf with your siblings, the stop along the road for viewing wildlife or a trip to the airport to watch planes take off. Travel isn’t always about pricey trips to exotic locales. It isn’t simply about planned vacations with every detail arranged. It’s about spontaneity, being with people you love, and enjoying the simpler — and often surprising – things in life that are fun and fanciful. It’s about learning, exploring, and going beyond yourself. It’s about seeing new sights and meeting new people. And about getting out of your comfort zone to feel a part of something bigger in the world. So this week head for the beach, the mall, the local state park, the museum with a free evening entry, or a fun festival. Eat more ice cream. See more sights. Dream more dreams. And smile at the wonders of life, often simple things that don’t have a price.

I recently flew US Airways home from Dover, England to the U.S. after a cruise. So with great interest, I read an editorial by Scott McCarthy in the Wall Street Journal on July 22 about how US Airways has turned its worst place on-time performance into the best. The transformation has been quite amazing, actually. It just goes to show what improvements in airline performance CAN be accomplished when someone at an airline in a high position actually decides something is worth tackling. Of course, I have no illusions that the changes weren’t designed to help the company’s bottom line, but certainly they went a long way to assure that customers get to where they’re going on time. I formerly worked as director of PR-marketing for US Airways in management the early 90s (dating myself I know!) and the world of the airline industry has changed 100 times over since that era. Today, as a reporter I tend to get reader complaints or discouraging statistics when it comes to airline news. These are simply a fact of life in the airline industry. So, today I took a breath and enjoyed the Journal’s business “take” – showcasing a feel-good,  go-get-um attitude at the airline — detailing about how a team of people with high-level management commitment went after a goal and accomplished it. The editorial is both interesting and well-written. Getting back to my recent US Airways flight home from my cruise, however, I must say that I was in US Airways’ Envoy class not in the back of the bus, for sure. So I can’t vouch for service in coach. But up front the service was quite good. The flight attendants were friendly, competent and, most importantly, really seemed to care what guests thought of the new dining menu. Other factors, though, needed similar attention. The uniforms were dated and, worse, frumpy for the level of professionalism the flight crew was projecting. The Envoy class seat was awful – basically what I recall in business class from the 90s….or at least it seemed the same to me. Mine was also skewed (bent) at the bottom so it needed maintenance. In otherwords, the seating was not comfortable and really not in the same league as what I experienced on Delta going to Europe on this same trip. But overall the good US Airways service was what I remember the most, a plus for the airline. Delta too had very good business class service; its flight attendants were very professional, well-trained and the “leader” in a red outfit gave a sense of the old airline aura of a purser onboard. She greeted guests by name. The Delta seats were much better. The Delta amenity kit was also better, while the US Airways one for business customers equated to what coach customers used to receive on transcontinental flights… The food on both airlines was — incredibly in my opinion – quite tasty and well-presented. Anyway, for a point in time, given the good service on both flights, it “seemed like old times” in the airline industry – at least for a moment. Perhaps that’s precisely how the airlines need to get back to basics, just taking it one moment by moment. EditorLady (www.southerncruising.com and www.southerntravelnews.com)

The last time I drove through Micanopy, FL, earlier this year, the tiny town looked just about the same as it had the time before…and the time before that. The appeal of Micanopy is its historic landscape and laid-back feel. It never seems to change. Peruse the antique shops, stroll by historic buildings, and definitely take a gander at the stately Herlong Mansion B&B. The town center is just a five-minute drive off I-75, so if you’re headed south of Gainesville to the Tampa area, look for the sign to Micanopy. Park downtown and walk the three or so blocks that comprise the downtown core. It’s great for an hour’s diversion.

Also, if you’re into eco-fun, head for nearby Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park. It’s a cooler spot. The enticing park boasts hiking trails, a watch tower for great views of the grasslands and forests, a small exhibit building, and a host of wildlife including bison, re-introduced as a species (they were native at one point). If you go, keep your eyes peeled. We spotted deer right along the trail in front of us. But when you visit, keep moving. Don’t stand still. I had a less-than-welcome encounter with a recluse spider that took a chunk out of my leg. He or she (not sure which) crawled up my leg while I was standing on the trail waiting for a friend to come back down from the watch tower observation deck. But hey, we tend to forget, this is Florida. It’s still a jungle in many ways. I ended up in the hospital ER and needed antibiotics to combat the spider’s poison, which caused an infection. Still, I go back to the preserve, a place of natural beauty, whenever I get in the area.

A nearby attraction also not to be missed is the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Homestead (her grave site is about 10 miles away as well). Interested in the world of Cross Creek? Then check out our original story by freelance travel writer Diane Daniels at http://www.southerntravelnews.com/NewsRelease.aspx?NewsId=687. Definitely take an hour or an afternoon to explore the sites of quaint Micanopy. It’s one of my favorites if you’re seeking to find the real Florida of old – away from skyscrapers, amusement parks and crowds. Susan (www.southerntravelnews.com)

Lately, the television anchors in local markets drone on and on about StayCations. Yes, these close-to-home choices for vacations are a great idea. Yes, we’ve even promoted them on our own sites — talking about fun travel close to home. In the melt-down (or melt-up as it might be more correctly phrased) of gasoline prices, people are desperate to take their vacation, but are now seeking travel that’s more around the corner than across the state, across the nation and across the world.

But hey, this isn’t a new concept. I used to call it the “We don’t ever look at what’s in our own backyard until we get company from out of town” syndrome. Years ago when I lived in Crystal City, VA, I’d never visited the Vietnam Memorial in Washington D.C., despite living just across the Potomac. It took a visit from my parents from Pennsylvania and their friends from Wisconsin to get me to venture across the bridge and take in the memorial.

Why is it that we never really explore what’s right down the street? We miss so much. Today, I’m here in Tampa and I’ve never done the Taste of Pinellas (as in county, just across Tampa Bay), never been to the Tampa Museum of Art and never gone to the big Gasparilla pirate invasion festival. It always seems that there’s something else to be done at home.

Planning a BIG trip is what I think of for vacation. But these days, even a brief mental break — for just a day or a weekend — can be refreshing. So, last weekend, I headed out to the Ybor City Farmer’s Market on a Saturday morning. It was just for fun but I told myself that getting fresh veggies was the real reason. Yes, the tolls cost me nearly $4 to get there, the gas a similar amount, but we did buy fresh veggies (at good prices I might add), listened to the music, strolled along vendor booths and then drove around the historic neighborhood a bit. It wasn’t an earthshaking experience but it was fun. I noticed the Hilton Garden Inn just a block up from the market locale; that would have been a great option for a Saturday night stay. Then we could have combined our market visit with evening entertainment, dining and perhaps a movie at Ybor.

Getting in the Staycation concept isn’t that easy I find. Personally, I tend to plan and plan and over-plan and then travel in a big way. At times, a simple visit to a local attraction seems a come-down. Where is the grand vacation? Where’s the wow? That said, I wonder when  “close to home” equated to ”not as good” in my mindset?  That said, throughout this past week, we talked fondly about our visit to the market. So, the brief getaway had staying power at least as a discussion point among family and friends. 

Hey, I think I could get into this concept! It’s been a long time since I’ve been to Fantasy of Flight in Lakeland, FL. I’d like to get over to see the Florida Air Museum near there as well. We even have friends in the area. It’s only an hour’s drive. Perhaps in the next two or three weeks…let’s see how it goes. Cheers! Susan www.southerntravelnews.com