All Good Things Must Come to an End

Sadly, time marches on despite our wishes.

Thus the day arrived when we must say goodbye to Panama City Beach.

Finding myself too keyed up and not wanting to miss one more minute of our vacation, I decided to venture up onto the Sunrise Deck of the Condo building.

After all, the last family non-Masonic Lodge related vacation occurred 13 years ago and who knows when we will be able to experience something like this again?

Ironically, our last 'true' vacation found us on another seashore, that time in Nags Head, North Carolina, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

The Foodie Daughter and I bravely ventured up to the 15th floor Sunrise Deck of the condo building.

Did I mention that it was windy and chilly?

The West Bay can be seen in the distance to the north.

I'm going to miss this view.

Say goodbye to our view from the balcony of our unit.

We headed east to Panama City before finding our way north.

I love these palm trees.

Ooh, looky!

Cypress trees!

Yeah, I know, I'm a rube Yankee.

I just love seeing all the Spanish moss hanging from the trees.

Spanish moss is not a moss at all, but is rather a member of the pineapple family.

Of course you knew that pineapples are bromeliads, right?

Spanish moss is an epiphyte, meaning that it just uses the tree as a support and does not harm the tree in any way.

It is a separate living organism that does not attack the tree.

Looks like we found our fall color again.

Water wheel below a dam near I-65.

Since it's daylight, I would assume this is Alabama.

Of the 14 hour trip home, nearly half that time was spent in Alabama.

Birmingham, Alabama skyline.

Nashville, Tennessee in the evening.

Have I mentioned how difficult it is to get a good night picture from a moving vehicle?

Finally, after all day on the road, we arrived home, safe, sound and tired.

Unfortunately, it started raining while I was driving in northern Alabama.

We drove through rain for the rest of the trip.

*

In the end, we had traveled 1,592.3 miles on this trip.

The trip home was 770 miles.

*

Still, I would gladly make this trip again.

Saturday in Panama City Beach

Sadly, our time on the gulf is winding down and we decided to leave the car parked and just enjoy the condo and the beach, despite the chillier than normal weather.

Hey, it still beats the 20 degree wind chills we had at home.

One of the ways we decided to save money was to eat breakfast in.

Yes, this is a frozen breakfast croissant.

And yes, it certainly lacks in the flavor and texture department, no matter what that smiling sun on the commercials will tell you, but when you have this kind of a view while eating this?

Priceless.

The entire time we were down here the Beach Warning Flags were at Medium Hazard, which means there are moderate surf and/or currents.

As in many things, yellow means caution.



The seagulls seem rather used to the human invaders.




Saturday saw cloudier, windier weather and one could clearly see currents in the gulf.

It's that time again, folks.

Time to head down to the beach to await the sunset.

Click on the photograph to see the sightseeing helicopter better.

Apparently sunset means good fishing because the pelicans were busy getting their dinners.

We just had to laugh at their landings.

Yes, I know that they do that in order to get their food, but it's very funny to watch.

The surf was up just a bit today.

And now I will let you enjoy the show.

They say a picture's worth a thousand words.

I don't think a thousand and one words could sufficiently convey just how beautiful this experience was.

Truly this evening's sunset was better than the past two evenings combined.






After sunset, we decided to return to Sharky's Beach Club & Restaurant that was just across the street.

After all, the Foodie Daughter did have homework and studying to do still.

Once again we ordered the Caribbean Fritters as an appetizer.

Then we started on our entrees.

My dinner started out with the house salad.

I ordered the Raspberry-Poppy seed Dressing for my salad.

My husband ordered the Grouper Martinique

which was described as being "A flaky fillet of Grouper stuffed with our own special crab meat stuffing (redundant much?), broiled to perfection & topped with a Garlic Lemon Butter sauce."

Gotta love that random Capitalization.

The husband did enjoy his meal very much.

The Foodie Daughter ordered a basket of fried shrimp.

She once again enjoyed the freedom to be able to eat shrimp without having to worry about endangering her boyfriend's health.

And I?

Well, I decided to be adventurous, but I also wanted to hedge my bets as it were, in case I really hated this new food.

After reading Rosie Hawthorne's many loving tributes to the lowly oyster, I was determined to try this homely little critter.

Thus, I ordered the Island Trio which the menu decreed: "Fried or broiled Gulf shrimp, bay scallops & oysters make this a local favorite."

Obviously I chose to have these fried as I was really worried about those oysters.

The verdict?

Well, I quickly learned that oysters are not something that one takes a bite out of and then looks at.

Just. Don't. Do. It.

Some things are better left unknown.

However, the oysters ended up being my favorite thing on the platter and the Gulf shrimp were my least favorite.

In the end, there was just too much food here.

I really wasn't expecting enough food to feed all the people on my floor of the condo.

Really.

There must have been over a dozen shrimp, a couple dozen bay scallops and over a dozen oysters.

Who could possibly eat this much in one sitting?

Sadly, not this girl, and as this was our last night down here, I couldn't take any with me for later.

And that was a shame, my friends.

The restaurant has an aquarium with some friendly fish.

See what I mean?

Playing Around in Panama City Beach, Part 2

This is continued as I was unable to upload any more pictures to this post for whatever reason.

Enjoy.

Now, there is nothing stranger to a Northerner than seeing palm trees and Christmas decorations in the same scene.



Have you ever tried to take pictures at night from a moving vehicle?

Still, I like the effect.




Well, I found the beach.

And I have no idea why my camera insists upon turning this picture 90 degrees.

We even got the dear husband (who's idea this whole trip was to begin with) down to the beach once.

The family enjoys the sunset.

Another thing we Yanks just have trouble wrapping our minds around is the idea of being able to wade in the surf in late November.

And why does my camera turn the pictures sideways?

Is it senile?

Is it a control issue?

The family in the surf.

The waves wash on shore.

Look for photo opportunities everywhere.

Decorative grass blows in the breeze.

Lovely views from our private balcony.

At home this sign would show a bicycle.

We saw this abandoned hotel that had obviously been hit by a storm surge during a recent hurricane.

Statistically speaking, this area can expect a direct hit from a hurricane every 12.55 years and is affected, either directly or indirectly every 3.54 years.*

*Source: hurricanecity.com

The Foodie Daughter and I ventured down to the Fourth Floor pool area.

The pool has what is called a "zero edge."

Interesting.

Seagulls on the beach.

I found a pretty shell on the beach, only to find that it had an occupant.

I decided to let him be.

I also found an interesting insect on the beach.

Definitely don't find these up north.

A seagull stands on a shoal at lower tide.

Seagulls in flight.

While waiting for the sunset, the Foodie Daughter decided to bury my feet.

Such a nice, thoughtful daughter.

Did I mention that the sand was chilly?

The Boatyard Restaurant as seen across Grand Lagoon.

Their web site gives directions on how to reach them, either by land or water.

We plan on going here later.

See, I told you so.

The restaurant is essentially an open-air affair, with a roof and removable plastic walls for cooler weather.

We were seated next to the dock.

My husband ordered the "Pan Roast of Fish & Shellfish."

This was described as having "Fresh Local Fish and Jumbo Shrimp sauteed in Pan Butter Sauce with Andouille Sausage and Mushrooms, served over Smoked Gouda Cheese Grits.

Savory, hearty and full of flavor."

He agreed with their assessment and enjoyed his meal.

The Foodie Daughter ordered "The Fried Shrimp You Can't Live Without."

The menu promised that she would have "Large butter-flied (why did they hyphenate that?) Shrimp, hand-battered and fried to a crisp golden brown. Served with spicy Cocktail Sauce."

She chose sweet potato fries to go along with her dish.

These were good, but as she couldn't eat all of this, she took the rest back to the condo and reheated it for lunch the next day.

She has enjoyed being able to eat shrimp as the boyfriend was at home and she didn't have to worry about his allergy to shrimp.

I ordered the "Key Lime Garlic Shrimp."

This tempting dish was described as being "Colossal Pink Shrimp broiled in Garlic Butter and fine herbs, topped with a Garlic and Cilantro sauce and served with Black Beans, Yellow rice and Sweet Plantains."

Now, if you look at the photograph, it is obvious that those are not black beans and yellow rice.

I opted to switch those out for the Smoked Gouda Cheese Grits.

You see, grits are just not a dish that one typically finds up north and I really wanted to try some.

What can I say?

This dish was inspired and I loved it.

The shrimp were cooked perfectly and the grits were divine.

The plantain (another food I had never had before) were tart, starchy but irresistible.

I'm hooked.

Too bad I hadn't left any food to take back to the condo for the next day!

A lighthouse sits near the restaurant.

And now, enjoy the sound of the surf in the early morning.

6 am to be exact.

The sea changes, yet the sea remains the same.

The surf at sunset.

I think Panama City Beach has stolen my heart.