The Collins Family Adventures: August 2007

This year for our annual Red Sox baseball game we headed back to Tampa’s Tropicana Field.

Kevin and I got up early this morning and headed out of Kendall before traffic got bad. Today was the first day of school for Dade and Broward Counties so traffic was going to be more insane than normal. By the time we got to Weston we were both craving some food and this was the last stop before driving across Alligator Alley. Thank goodness I remembered doing Nick Tickle at an elementary nearby so finding the local Starbucks was not hard to find at all.

We sat outside eating our muffins and drinking our coffee. It was such a beautiful day but the heat would start cranking in a bit. Today was the first day Kevin and I have actually been able to just sit and enjoy each others company since we went on vacation in July. As tempting as it was to sit there all day, we gathered ourselves up and headed towards Tampa. We decided to go the rest of the way with the top up so we didn’t end up sunburned and able to talk to each other. (** the sound is really my only complaint to the S2000).

Along the way I made the mistake of telling Kevin about how every time we drive down this road for tour I’ve never seen an Alligator. So what does Kevin start doing? Looking for them… I pointed out the birds, the sawgrass, and signs of the fires that have been taking place because of the drought. An amazing site to see but sort of boring to drive down. Thank goodness for the XM Radio.

Anyway we finally get to Tampa and it’s time for Lunch. I get this great idea that this will be a great time to introduce Kevin to Ybor City (an area outside of downtown Tampa). One of the hardest parts about being on tour is only telling Kevin about the places we go… so its nice to actually be able to show him some of them too. After every Tampa Theatre performance the cast always head to Ybor for lunch. The only problem was that once we found Ybor I couldn’t find the restaurant. We walked up and down the streets and I just could not figure out where it was. I realized that after those shows I must be tired and just follow the crowd. Anyway…. We finally find it…. the Columbian House. Lunch was really good. Our waiter started asking us if we were here for the game tonight… we said yes… he ended up being a Yankee Fan… we decided not to hold that against him. After lunch I take Kevin around to the Cigar shop that I always visit when I am here and he picks up a few cigars to celebrate the Red Sox win.

Then we decided to go check in at the Hard Rock Casino. We have wanted to stay at the one in Hollywood since we first visited but never found the time. The hotel room was amazing. The bed was HUGE and fluffy! This was defiantly making our little trip away a nice one. One really cool thing we got during check in was a CD of music. After we got settled in it was time to meet up with Jeff (Kevin’s partner in crime at Outback). So out the door we go… trying hard to keep Kevin focused on going out the door and not heading to the poker tables... :) Thank goodness there were other Red Sox fans there to remind him why we were there.

We meet up with Jeff at Leroy Selmons a really good southern BBQ restaurant that was on the Outback comp list... The food here is down home food that makes my heart (& stomach) ache to be back in the Carolina's. I ended up getting this HUGE drink (a Tampa Tea) that I can only describe as a concoction Dr. Jekyll would make.

After dinner we headed to the game.

Soon after arriving I started to wonder if we were still in Florida. There were so many Red Sox fans. We had such a great time. I sat on Kevin's right (after learning at a previous game I will be ignored if on the left side- when sitting on the third base line).

First Pitch for our team! Go Red Sox!