I was once again awake fairly early this morning. I got ready for the day and headed downstairs for breakfast. By Hampton Inn standards, this breakfast was pretty disappointing. I was able to make it work, but, it was pretty unimpressive.
Breakfast consumed, I finished getting ready for the day and then got on the road a little before 9, after programming 3 different destinations into Google Maps. Have I ever mentioned how much I love that feature?!
My first 2 destinations were not stops, per se. They were tree tunnels that were close enough to my route to detour and cruise through them. Because we only have tree tunnels when the trees are overloaded with snow or ice and they certainly aren’t banyan trees. So, I went through the Hobe Sound Tunnel of Trees and the tree tunnel in Stuart, FL. The one in Stuart was more impressive.
Once I’d seen the trees, I hopped on the highway and finished my drive to my true destination, McKee Botanical Garden. I got there shortly after it opened at 10.
So why was I, the queen of allergies, at a botanical garden? Well, this winter and spring they had a special Florigami exhibit…basically metal origami style sculptures throughout the botanical garden. So I was here mostly to check that out and maybe see a tropical plant or two.
The Florigami exhibit was well worth the visit. The garden was really a lot of trees…but they were mostly palm trees, so I certainly enjoyed that. This garden is MUCH smaller than Fairchild Gardens down in the Miami area, where we went last spring, but I enjoyed my visit. I’m not sure I’d make it a point to come here without a special event or exhibit happening, though.
So why was I, the queen of allergies, at a botanical garden? Well, this winter and spring they had a special Florigami exhibit…basically metal origami style sculptures throughout the botanical garden. So I was here mostly to check that out and maybe see a tropical plant or two.
The Florigami exhibit was well worth the visit. The garden was really a lot of trees…but they were mostly palm trees, so I certainly enjoyed that. This garden is MUCH smaller than Fairchild Gardens down in the Miami area, where we went last spring, but I enjoyed my visit. I’m not sure I’d make it a point to come here without a special event or exhibit happening, though.
Garden explored, I debated what I should do about lunch and decided on the Earl of Sandwich at the travel plaza partway down the Florida Turnpike. So I worked my way back to the highway and made the stop there. Of course, as soon as I walked in, Disney was teasing me. But, I had a great Earl of Sandwich ham and cheese sandwich, browsed the brochures for upcoming trip ideas, and then continued the drive back to Juno Beach.
Once back in the Jupiter/Juno Beach area, I made a quick stop at one of my Florida favorites from my years of visiting The Villages, Bealls. This one wasn’t as impressive as the one I used to go to in The Villages, so I walked out empty handed, but always interesting to look around.
From here, I headed back to my hotel to recharge for a bit and figure out where I wanted to go to dinner.
A little before 5, I headed for the car and drove to Captain Charlie’s Reef Grill. I was a little alarmed when I pulled in the parking lot and saw a lengthy line down the sidewalk in front of the restaurant, waiting for it to open. I joined the line and hoped for the best. Thankfully this little place is bigger than it looked. When I entered, I was greeted with “booth, table, or counter?”. I said whatever is most convenient for you. The older guy that was seating me led me to the counter, to a very specific seat, telling me that this was the same seat he’d sat in his first time eating here as a customer in the 90s.
My seat at the counter provided a perfect view of the kitchen action, so it was a great place to sit. I had the “fresh fish sandwich”, which tonight was made with mahi. Service was excellent and the food was even better. Eat at Captain Charlie’s Reef Grill if you’re ever in the area. It’s worth the wait.
When I finished dinner, I headed out to the car, and headed to my final destination for the night: ice cream! I mean, is it a vacation without ice cream?! Crispy Cones was a couple minutes down the road, in another plaza. Here I got a cookie a la mode ice cream in a golden oreo pastry cone. This involved cookie butter both inside the cone and on top of the ice cream. The whole concept was fantastic. Messy to eat because of the oreo crumbs on the cone, but delicious. This place was not a mistake.
After ice cream, I headed back to the hotel, where I social media’d and eventually got ready for bed. It had been another good vacation day!
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