Candid Florida

Tucked into an urban Tallahassee strip backing up on FSU, Pitaria is a grill shop serving up souvlaki, pita, dolmades, and other Greek standards in veg and non-veg versions (make mine lamb!). Around for nearly 20 years, it’s obvious it’s an FSU tradition as the back-to-college crowd files in. Falafel, hummus, and fava beans accent [...]

Growing up in the Space Age, it’s always been a joy to stop in Titusville and admire the view across the Indian River Lagoon of the hustle and bustle of Kennedy Space Center.
It saddens me that the wind-down of the Space Shuttle program will have a ripple effect on local businesses, such as the Clarion [...]

In honor of Father’s Day – and to encourage Floridians and visitors to hit the beaches – Governor Charlie Crist has proclaimed this weekend – June 19-20, Father’s Day weekend – as a “free saltwater fishing weekend” for all. No licenses required, but state fishing regulations still apply.
Learn more about fishing for free in Florida [...]

There’s always been a certain magic about crossing the Florida state line. It’s not that the terrain or tall pines look any different than South Georgia. This magic is tourism-wrought for the weary traveler, and it comes in the form of the Florida Welcome Center.
When I was a kid on our annual road trip down [...]

Sour cream and onion flavored crickets. Soda that comes with a warning that you’ll poop blue after drinking it. Stacks and stacks of exotic beers and ciders floor to ceiling. And all of it jam-packed into a historic wrapper, a general store in downtown Fort Pierce. It’s weird, wild, wonderful and whimsically unexpected. Don’t miss [...]