Bok Tower - Winter Dog Day January 19 2013

Fancy taking your dog for a walk in some fabulous surroundings?  If your dog is well behaved and friendly, and leashed take them to Bok Tower at Lake Wales for a walk on January 19 2013.
$5 per dog plus normal admission rates.  50% of proceeds going to The Humane Dog Society of Polk County.  Check it out here.

Velvet Sessions at The Hard Rock Hotel

Every month there are Velvet Sessions held on the last Thursday of the month at The Velvet Bar and Lobby Lounge at The Hard Rock Hotel, excluding November and February when Festive Celebrations are underway.  Creative cocktails combine with fabulous live music for form a rock ' n ' roll cocktail party showcasing a different type of beverage accompanied by some great rock and roll music.

Ages 21+, admission is $25 online, or $30 on the door.

Check out who's playing and when here.

CSN on tour - Jacksonville May 2013

Crosby, Stills and Nash on tour in Florida May 2013

Friday May 13 2013  Florida Theater Jacksonville - tickets on sale January 18 2013 from 10.00 am.

Side trip to Deerfield Beach

When we were out in Florida in January staying at our villa we decided we would have a break from the usual homeowners holiday and get away from it all for a few days and take a ‘real’ vacation.  So when we booked tickets to see Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band at Sunrise, and then thought about driving up and down for about a nano second, we then decided to have a mini-break and stay somewhere on the Atlantic Coast.

Sometime ago while staying in Miami we had ventured up the A1A and after looking round Palm Beach and deciding it was perhaps not the place to experience lunch with a couple of teenagers, we ended up in Deerfield Beach.  We stopped off at a beachside restaurant where luckily it was Happy Hour.  Not so happy for the driver, but the remaining adults enjoyed a couple of cocktails with either a very late lunch or an early supper.  Whichever we decided it was, it was delicious.  Great shrimps in beer batter, a friendly waitress and great company.  This was in February so we had left cold weather behind in London, and were in our tee shirts and cropped trousers or shorts and sitting on the beach eating our food overlooking the sea.  Isn't life great sometimes?

So when it came to thinking about where to head for, we thought of Deerfield Beach, and managed to get a deal at the Wyndham Resort for 3 nights.  We drove down the Turnpike - tedious but necessary as it is far faster than the A1A Coastal Road which is how we travelled back to Orlando.   

Our room overlooked the Ocean.  The pictures really say it all.

Sunset at Deerfield Beach, January 2012

Sunbathers on Deerfield Beach, FL.  January 2012

The Pier at Deerfield Beach FL undergoing a face lift.

Deerfield Beach Florida

The start of sunrise at Deerfield Beach

Sunrise at Deerfield Beach

As you can see we had the most fantastic views overlooking the sandy beach and the shimmering waters of the Atlantic Ocean.  The sunsets and sunrises were just fabulous; with those wonderful colours that can only be a Florida horizon.

 

There’s loads to see and do in the surrounding area, you can attend concerts at the Sunrise Center (home of the Florida Panthers - which explains why the Center was so cold - take a jumper or wrap). This is just next door to the Sawgrass Mill Shopping Plaza which seems to go on forever, and is North America's largest outlet.  The old part is fairly dated nowadays, but there is a VERY upmarket part called The Colonnade with top-end shops (with prices to match) and great eateries.  So if you are looking for something from high-end outlets such as Prada, Burberry or Salvatore Ferragamo this is the place to visit.

The day we went we had lunch at the Grand Lux Cafe at The Colonnade at Sawgrass which was very pleasant.  A spacious restaurant with attentive staff and good food, can't ask more than that.  There are plenty more restaurants to choose from so no-one needs go hungry!

Away from the world of outlet shopping the children will love Butterfly World which is in Coconut Creek.  If you want a bit of culture head for Boca Raton  and check out their Museum of Art at Mizner Park.    You can see some marvellous paintings, photographs, prints and sculpture including an Andy Warhol print.   For the more active there are plenty of golf courses, tennis courts, or the more adventurous can try para-sailing, Jet Ski-ing or snorkelling  You can go deep-sea fishing selecting from a number of boats based at harbour at Fort Lauderdale.   

Or you might just want to sit or lie on the beach and either sunbathe or relax.  Even in January the temperature was up in the high 80s during the day, much warmer than what we had left behind in the UK.  When we returned home within a week we had very cold weather and eventually snow, so the memory of those lovely warm January days seem in the distant past rather than just a few weeks ago.

We thoroughly enjoyed the concert, beautiful ballads that we remembered from the 1970s and 80s, along with a number of songs that had obviously been hits in the US but not in the UK, but we had a great evening.  

We had a wonderful 3 night break and felt we had re-charged the batteries and could hop back on the treadmill again.  We headed back up to Orlando but decided to take the A1A Coastal Road knowing it would take us a great deal longer than going up the Turnpike, but we felt we would see parts of Florida we wouldn't otherwise see.  But that will be another posting ...

Holiday Home Tour at Pinewood, Bok Tower

Don't miss the Crown Jewel of the Christmas celebrations at Bok Tower Gardens holiday home tour.  Capture the holiday spirit during a tour of the 20 room Mediterranean-style mansion all decked out for the holidays.  See what’s new and different when Central Florida designers transform the 1930s winter retreat into a glittering holiday showcase with this year’s theme, “Picture Perfect.”

December 17 2012

Students from the George Jenkins High School Golden Harmony Show Choir will sing Christmas carols and other holiday music from 1:30 – 3:00 p.m. and 3:30 – 4:00 p.m. Capture the holiday spirit in a festive setting outside Pinewood Estate while enjoying music of the holiday season!

Christmas Poinsettia Display
A beautiful display of everyone's favorite Christmas plant will be featured in the River of Stone and at Pinewood Estate throughout the holiday season.

Seasonal Carillon Music
Enjoy concerts at 1 and 3 pm everyday featuring recordings of your favorite holiday tunes being played on the famous 60-bell carillon through December 30.

And if you know someone who loves cars then take them along to the Gardens to see Model A vehicles every Tuesday at Pinewood Estate through December 27.

Star Wars Weekends @ Hollywood Studios 2012

Disney have confirmed dates to share today for next year’s Star Wars Weekends at Hollywood Studios theme park in Florida.

The galactic fun begins on May 18 and will run through June 10.  The centrepiece of the experience will be the 3-D Star Tours – The Adventures Continue attraction that debuted this summer.

2012 Star Wars Weekend Dates

May 18-20
May 25-27
June 1-3
June 8-10

Star Wars Weekends is an annual event that celebrates the Star Wars film saga and the hit animated TV series Star Wars: The Clone Wars.  During the celebration, Disney host special shows, presentations and offer memorabilia.   Special shows are hosted along with presentations.  We'll keep you posted on the FlyawaytoFlorida Blog over the coming months for more details about this annual celebration of all-things-Star Wars.

Persistence of Memory Memoir Writing Workshop

Thursday, December 8, 10:00 am – 12 noon

Margo Hammond, former book editor of the St. Petersburg Times and founder of the Creative Late Bloomers blog, will conduct a workshop using specific Dalí paintings and writings as catalysts for memoir writing. After studying the paintings in class, participants will be encouraged to mine their own pasts, particularly their childhoods, refine those memories and artistically transform them into a story that reflects their personal experiences – just as Dalí did both on the canvas and on paper.

$65; $55 Dalí Members. Workshop in the Dalí Museum Education Classroom. Lite refreshments and coffee included. Lunch from Cafe Gala can be purchased day of for $10 per-person. Click here to register and purchase tickets for the workshop.

Bob Seger @ Sunrise, FL Jan 12

Tickets for Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band at BankAtlantic Center, Sunrise, FL now on sale.

Forthcoming Concerts Summer 2011 South Florida

Jun 4  Primus 

The Fillmore Miami Beach at The Jackie Gleason Theater

Jun 5 The Monkees 

Pompano Beach Amphitheater

Jun 11 Diego Torres 

The Fillmore Miami Beach at The Jackie Gleason Theater

Jun 15 Def Leppard with very special guest Heart

Cruzan Amphitheatre

Jun 17 Borgore 

The Fillmore Miami Beach at The Jackie Gleason Theater

Jun 25 Martin Lawrence 

James L. Knight Center

Jun 29 U2 360 Tour 

Sun Life Stadium (formerly Land Shark Stadium)

Jul 1 Dirty South 

Revolution Live

Jul 3 Feed Me 

Revolution Live

Jul 8 Nero 

Revolution Live

Jul 14 Rihanna: Loud Tour with special guests Cee Lo Green and J. Cole 

BankAtlantic Center

Jul 16 Jason Aldean 

Cruzan Amphitheatre

Jul 16 Sade with very special guest John Legend 

AmericanAirlines Arena

Jul 28 Selena Gomez

Mizner Park Amphitheater

Jul 30 Vans Warped Tour 2011

Cruzan Amphitheatre

Jul 30 100 Monkeys 

Revolution Live

Aug 3 Kings of Leon 

Cruzan Amphitheatre

Aug 5 Goo Goo Dolls 

Pompano Beach Amphitheater

Aug 5 Hot Tuna 

Revolution Live

Aug 6 Reel Big Fish 

Revolution Live

Aug 7 Ke$ha presents The Get $leazy Tour 

Klipsch Amphitheater at Bayfront Park

Aug 14 Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival 

Cruzan Amphitheatre

Aug 17 The Summer Slaughter Tour with The Black Dahlia Murder & Whitechapel..

Revolution Live

Aug 21  Brian Regan 

Barbara B Mann Performing Arts Hall

Aug 21 Guster & Jack's Mannequin 

Pompano Beach Amphitheater

Aug 25 Matisyahu 

The Fillmore Miami Beach at The Jackie Gleason Theater

Aug 30 Maroon 5 and Train 

Cruzan Amphitheatre

Sep 10 Return to Forever IV 

Mizner Park Amphitheater

Sep 16 Marc Anthony 

AmericanAirlines Arena

Sep 18 Journey with special guests Foreigner and Night Ranger 

Cruzan Amphitheatre

Marc Anthony at The Amway Center, Sep 18 2011

Marc Anthony is appearing at The Amway Center on Sunday, September 18 2011.

Tickets available from Friday May 20 May 2011.