And there was I… quietly taking in the beauty of the water… appreciating the rocks in the water when Her Highness rudely interrupted my peace …

“Did you see these?”

“The rocks?” I asked

“These are not rocks. These are manatees!”

And that is how I came up close and personal with rocks that apparently move… and are called manatees!!

Jokes apart, there were three of them. We had no food to give them. But they hung round and were sweet.

One unfortunate part of those creatures in their natural habitats co-existing with us human beings… you can see the propellor marks o one of them… somehow it got too close to a motor of a boat.

Reminder to all boat riders… be on the lookout… especially in shallow waters… keep as close to idling as you can before you are in deeper waters.

Buggy cart in the pier…

What I really want to do is to see if I can get a boat and get a closer view of the small airplanes landing there..

For the frequent fliers… this is SPG … not PIE.

… as my Bengali friends would no doubt say… “বিনয়ের অবতার”

This time with Sharmila. First drink of the evening at the packed Rooftop Bar of Birchwood Canopy. Great views of the Tampa Bay right next to us!

This was not part of the plan. At least she had never warned me about it.

We landed up visiting just about every gallery in downtown St. Pete so that she could check out this area as an art market. Then, in the evening, we landed up doing the St. Pete Art Walk. Which is basically visiting about 30 galleries – each within a spitting distance of at least three breweries each – a mile off downtown St. Pete.

Over 15,000 steps later, I have to admit that there were a few pieces I would have liked to buy. I am really really getting afraid that this culture thing is getting to me. I better get back on my motorbike moment I get back home.

[This picture is from Five Deuces Gallery]

Every time I step into this near 100-year old hotel, I am immediately reminded of my good friends from Lexington – Mark and Jen. I think it was Mark who had first pointed me to this great property (Vinoy). They still have the hundred year old stone tiles on the floors and the original beams and joists. The entire decor inside will remind you of traditional classy hotels from India.

Mark, my friend, you might remember the glass of wine we had at the Verandah long time back. Sharmila and I had one last evening too!