Historic Cocoa Village is a fantastic place to spend a wonderful day and evening for everyone in…read morethe entire family. At Cocoa Village they have several places to shop and also several places enjoy a nice meal. They have a lovely park, collectors shops, and antique shops, coffee shops and ice cream parlors. At times they have live music playing at Cocoa Village, and you can even enjoy a nice rooftop dinner with a view of the water here at Ryan's Village Pizza & Pub.

If you're visiting the cape, this area is a must. They have a lot of quaint antique shops, a…read morebeautiful park on the water, tons of mom and pop restaurants. We spent the day bar hoping on foot and even got tattoos. Such a nice/safe area for a day date.

Continuing on with the mural tour is another favorite, Slice of Happiness. It is the newest mural…read moreto downtown and it was commissioned by the Lake Wales Main Street, Inc. and sponsored by Florida Natural's Growers and its Members, and The Ellis Family. The mural is 25 feet x 97 feet. It is the work of native Lakeland artist Gillian Fazio. Fazio received her Bachelors' Degree in Fine Art from the University of Florida in the Spring of 2017. About the mural Fazio has said "the butterflies reference a re-birth and new life. The mural is a nice indicator of what is happening in downtown Lake Wales. Kudos to Lake Wales Main Street and the community leaders for investing in downtown. The mural is an indicator that there are awesome things coming to Lake Wales." Slice of Happiness features Florida oranges and Fazio's signature butterflies. The mural fits in with Lake Wales theme, a city in a garden. I love the subject and bright colors. It makes the perfect backdrop for photos.

Beautiful mural that you can't miss if you're visiting Lake Wales. It really captures the Florida…read morevibes and makes for a great Insta shot. We had bookmarked it and were in the process of looking around for it, when we just walked right by. It's hard to miss if you just wander around the small downtown area for a bit. I love seeing public art like this all over Florida!

Definitely sign up and do the turtle walk with them select days in the summer. We had a great time…read morelearning about turtles and walked the beach and watch a mom turtle lay eggs and go crawl back in the ocean! The volunteers and those that put everything on were kind and did a great job

Barrier Island Sanctuary is located inside the Archie Carr National Refuge which was established by…read moreCongress in 1989 to protect sea turtles that are threatened with extinction throughout the world. Archie Carr was a graduate professor of ecology and an award winning author of natural history books and articles. In 1959 Dr. Carr founded the nonprofit Caribbean Conservation Corporation to study and protect sea turtles and their habitats. In honor of his contributions to the study of sea turtles, this refuge was named in his honor. The refuge includes 20.5 miles of beach that is home to the most important sea turtle nesting habitat in the United States. More loggerheads nest within the Carr Refuge than anywhere else in the Western Hemisphere. There has also been a significant increase in green turtle and leatherback nesting. The protection that this beach provides is essential to the survival and recovery of these three species. Barrier Island Sanctuary is 34 acres of the Archie Carr National Refuge. In April of 2005 it was renamed Doc Ehrhart Sanctuary in honor of Dr. LLewellyn "Doc" Ehrhart. Doc Ehrhart and his team were instrumental in collecting sea turtle nesting data for the designation of nesting beaches in the Archie Carr Refuge. One if the highlights for visitors to Barrier Island Sanctuary is the Barrier Island Center which is the primary visitor and education center for the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge. The center has interactive exhibits, an auditorium, gift shop, classroom, and observation deck. Some of the programs held here include summer camps, turtle walks, and special events. Barrier Island Sanctuary also has a nature trail and beach access. This park is a stop on the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail, a network of more than 500 premier wildlife viewing sites across the state. The coolest thing happened as I was leaving. A bobcat ran out from this park and crossed the street before disappearing into the undergrowth. A boardwalk connects Barrier Island Sanctuary to Bonsteel Park. Even if the gate to the parking at Barrier Island Sanctuary is closed you can still walk over from Bonsteel Park and see the outdoor exhibits as I did or possibly even catch sight of a sea turtle.

Ok, it is very small. I'd say about 10 booths total. There were 2 food /bev trucks. Parking is free…read moreand i felt it was worth the trip to check it out. There was live music there that was nice. If you like kitschy retro stuff, you will enjoy this. They had damn good avocado toast for $4... boba horchata drink was $5 ( I'd say it was 32oz. Huge). Outside the booths were nicely priced. There is a bldg next door that sold cute retro old stuff ... pricy af. But the fair had a unite a friendly cheerful group of vendors. Someone selling cute art stationary, Honey booth , The Darling Market sold some attractive clothing (new/modern) . A gentleman there sold lovely wooden kitchen spoons. The retro booths had the best nicest retro clothes . Such colors and styles. Very cool. Also sold retro basket handbags, retro sugar/flower containers, precious little vases that made me giddy. (Pardon me!) generally speaking there wasn't much for guys here except some grub & bevs & music. 35 minutes well spent.

With Daytona Beach looking very dated and worn, this segmental bridge was a beautiful treat when we…read morewent to head home. I love the tile mosaics of aquatic and Florida wildlife throughout the bridge. I read that this bridge had a makeover and I highly approve. We only passed through Daytona Beach, but this bridge was the highlight of the area. I wish I could have taken pictures as we were driving by!!! This bridge was originally built in 1948 and replaced in 2001 and crosses the span of the Halifax River. There are 36 tile mosaic designs throughout the bridge and the Broadway Bridge has won awards from the American Council of Engineering Companies. Very cool!

A bridge with…read moreart The Broadway Bridge was dedicated in 2001 and is the third bridge to grace this area. It's over 3,000 feet long and crosses over the Halifax River and the Intra Coastal Waterway. A very useful bridge to be sure and allows traffic to flow from the center of Daytona to the great beaches without too much trouble. A graceful structure that just seems to fit without being intrusive. So many large bridges are closed to pedestrian traffic but this fine bridge has pleasant side walks on both sides. Allows for some fantastic views of the water, boats, buildings and even the ocean in the distance. But what really makes this bridge cool is all the mosaics of local marine life that are placed at various intervals along the structure. Some great works of art that turns this bridge into a lot more than just a way of getting over the river. If you go under the bridge you will find even more mosaics on the supports that hold up the huge roadway. Some bridges are just places for cars to go over. This wonderful bridge allows you to see great views in all directions and even some great mosaics of dolphins, manatees, sharks and sea horses. A unique and wonderful example of how to combine art with function

So many cool choices of bars, restaurants, and local shops here in the Milk District! Lots of local…read moreflavors to indulge in and there is something for everyone. Divey bars to upscale cocktail restaurants. Otto's has a great happy hour, as does Milk House! Black Magic pizza is one of the best pizzas I've ever had. Need to try the Pho place next!! Classic Orlando neighborhood named after the TG Lee milk plant off bumby and Robinson! Come on over to the Milk District!

Today I had the pleasure of browsing around the milk mart for their holiday soirée, they have these…read moreevery now and again I did it go to one already around the Halloween time called their spooky soirée. So what the milk mart Consists of is a bunch of vendors and a bunch of local handmade gifts and what not. There were a couple ones that I recognized like fat ash bakes and there is a local girl that does magnets for the mills district she was there as well. However I think my favorite shop of the whole afternoon was a little booth called the shop of many things most of their art was either spooky or Christmasy they also had a whole collection of DND snails which I thought were absolutely adorable. They did have stickers for three dollars and he told me if I bought three stickers that the fourth one would be free so I thought that was really neat. I had a really great time today at the milk bar and saw all the vendors I only stayed for a couple of hours; but if you do you want to attend one of these in the future I definitely recommend coming at least an hour and a half early so you can find a spot to park- I had to park all the way over by colonial plaza near sprouts so it was about three blocks out. 10/10 Recommend the Milk District

Thirsty? Well you've come to the right place where it will not only leave you feeling hydrated but…read moreyou'll be glowing too! So this is one of those things that the citizens fought to be saved back when the government decided to put the clean water act in and for good reason they did fight as this water is the most delicious sulfur rotten eggs tasting and smelling thing you could ever hope to drink! So I did take a sip and it really is that taste amplified I instantly spit it out it was just sooo bad but in the end I'm glad I tried it because it's not everyday you get to have a sip from The Fountain Of Youth! Overall something that most people would overlook but let's just say it was fun to visit and not so much to drink especially with the spider that came out in my cup! Stay hydrated my friends!

Youth? Radioactivity? If that sounds like something your interested in, definitely gotta stop by!…read moreThis place is very interesting. I always love a random little find during my adventures. As for the actual water it smells like rotten eggs and sulfur. I don't know if those are the keys to youth but give it a try if you're brave enough!

The Whispering Giant Calostimucu is an art piece carved from a 20 foot Enterolobium Cyclocarpum…read moretree known as the elephant ear or monkey pod tree. The tree is said to be similar to mahogany. The piece was commissioned in 1974 by Fred Babcock who owned the Holiday Inn. He discovered the tree damaged by lightning on his land in 1973 and he had seen Hungarian artist Peter Wolf Toth's work in Georgia. Toth had experienced repression in his native country and was shuttled among various refuge camps. When he immigrated to Ohio he became interested in Native American culture because he saw a parallel in the way they were treated and what he experienced. Toth traveled the country over 20 years and donated at least one work in each state and two in Canada. His first carving was a stone Native American head in a cliff in La Jolla California in 1972. After that he switched from stone to wood. His last carving was number 58 in May of 1988 in Haleiwa, Hawaii. The collection of large works is called the Trail of Whispering Giants. According to Toth "The statue is not just to honor Native Americans; it's to represent all people who have suffered injustices." The carving took three months to make and it sits in front of the historic A.C. Freeman House. It originally resided in front of the Best Western, previously the Holiday Inn until Hurricane Charley in 2004 damaged much of the hotel. The carving includes the emerging dream of a dying bison on it's back coming out of the top and eagle with a broken wing meant to represent the prejudice and injustice Native people have faced. The sculpture also features the faces of a Native American man and woman. It was Toth's tenth piece and the only one to feature two faces. The artwork was first dedicated in 1974. It was rededicated on January 20, 2006 and a time capsule was buried at the base.

This piece of public art for display is really cool! Directions tell you to pull into the parking…read morelot behind the Italian restaurant and if you can't find it the artwork is on the corner by the road in front of the yellow house behind the restaurant.

Say it without saying it is a mural by artist Chad Mize that is a part of the creative infusion…read moreDisney Springs Art Walk. The pieces area spread through the popular Disney springs outlet shopping and entertainment district. This particular piece features several cartoon like figures and drawings and uses a variety of great colors to make It pop. Overall a really good piece that is part of a cool art initiative in an area that will attract a lot of viewers.