Saying goodbye to Naples

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Goodbye to Naples



Time to leave Naples after. relaxing few days of shopping, beaching, exploring and adventure.

Our favourite breakfast place closed Sundays so, in need of caffeine headed to the on-site coffee shop, found it packed with a 25 minute wait for a table so got tea and coffee to go and headed back to the room for a last sit on the balcony overlooking the boats.

Checked out and hit the road for the trip back across to Miami. Had booked a hotel in Miami near the airport as we had to drop the car back tomorrow before the cruise, couldn't check in until 3pm so took a leisurely drive back on the 41 through the Everglades with a picnic lunch.

Still eager to spot and photograph as many alligators and other wildlife as possible, Alex insisted we made some unscheduled stops en route, first stop on a wildlife train with a 2km boardwalk promising, different species of birds, snakes, reptiles and of course alligators.

Of course I was in no way dressed for a 2km walk, with flip flops and a flimsy vest top but off we went anyway, deeper into the everglades, trees getting higher and thicker, screeching birds and other highly disturbing noises and the humidity levels increasing with every step.



Spotted our first gator, a little chap sunning himself on a broken palm branch, a black whip snake to keep him company. A little further along a small turtle lazed on a log and at the end of the boardwalk a bigger gator lay partly submerged but with his beady eyes knowingly watching out for intruders (particularly those wearing flip flops and less ability to run fast!)

Alex took plenty of wildlife photos and we headed back to the car encountering the biggest cricket I have ever seen, this thing was the size of a small cat!



Stopped at a lunch spot and was recommended by a fellow picnicker to drive along a nearby track where there were endless alligators in the barrow canals either side.

It goes without saying, Alex insisted we took the short diversion and true enough, there were gators of all shapes and sizes every few metres.



Back on the road and back to Miami, found the hotel, showered and changed and headed to famous sports bar 'Hooters' , the name speaks for itself. Scantily clad, well endowed pretty young things who clearly don't eat any of the food they serve, in fact probably don't actually eat anything, serving tasty meals at great prices with loud music and endless flat screen TVs showing simultaneous sporting events with the emphasis on American football.

Enjoyed a delicious meal, a couple of cold beers and bought myself a Hooters T shirt to recreate the atmosphere on our return home ! (ok maybe not).



Back to the hotel, early start for an exciting day ahead!

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