Excursion: South Florida

Hi everyone, happy 2012! I hope the year is off to fantastic start for you. In December, my husband gave me the best gift possible--he took me back to my hometown so I could spend my birthday and the New Year with my family and friends. I have to admit that after spending our days in sunny South Florida zipping around turquoise waters, meeting up with great friends and enjoying my mom's healthy and delicious home cooking, it's been really hard for me to get back into the swing of things back here in the 'north.'

Here are some pictures from our outings, the weather was absolutely sensational during our visit--high 70s and low 80s during the day, then into the 60s at night. The day we left though, temps dipped into the 30s and 40s, so you can never really be sure what a Florida Winter will bring!

*you can click all images to enlarge

On New Year's Day, we went to the beach where I spent countless hours as a little person, as a teenager and as a 20-something to re-create this picture I saw on Pinterest.

We were lucky enough to have a super close encounter with a huge manatee and her baby. They swam right up to the back of our boat.

For Christmas, we adopted a manatee named Lilly for my nature-loving brother. He used to swim with them in our canal when we were growing up. You can adopt one of these gentle creatures too.

Mama's tail is all scarred up from boat props

We spotted this beautiful osprey in his nest

and a segull flying by one of the many little islands you can find in Martin and Palm Beach counties

And of course, a trip home for me wouldn't be complete without a stop by The Breakers. Here's a view of the gorgeous Royal Palms lining Breakers Row. We had a lovely lunch at the Seafood Bar.

the Christmas tree on Worth Avenue

the legendary Ta-boo

the beautiful bougainvillea, Mediterranean architecture and whimsical bronze statues in Via Flora off of Worth Avenue

enjoying the eye candy in the window displays

We checked out some of my favorite Palm Beach haunts, including Bice and the Brazilian Court, and also stopped by a couple of new spots--Cha Cha's and Buccan, both were fantastic.

Palm Beach County is also home to one of the best malls I've ever been to (and that's saying a lot, trust me), The Gardens Mall. My mom and I had a wonderful day of shopping here, as usual! We also had a lovely meal at Seasons 52 in Palm Beach Gardens, everything we ordered was so fresh and so delicious. A popular stop for us, whether coming by boat or car, is Guanabanas in Jupiter. The incredible tropical landscaping and tiki huts really enhance the laid-back, peaceful vibe. My husband and I also had a great meal at The Dive Bar, we ordered off of the sushi menu and it was all really outstanding. After that, it was over to the The Square Grouper for drinks on the water followed by a stop by Palm Beach Ice Cream. I have countless other dining recommendations for this area, I really need to put together another page!

Sunset on New Year's Day as seen from the beach in my hometown

It is so utterly relaxing and wonderful to be home; there's just something about going back to where you're from that feeds the soul. We're already planning our next trip back.

Where are you from? If you want to share, please feel free to leave a comment about what you love most about your hometown.