Beach Time and Seafood in Placida

Visiting Grandparents in Florida, Part 1

It feels like forever ago that I sat on the screened porch of 406 in the Placida Harbor Club, dining on fresh papaya, strawberries, and melon with my grandparents, Mommom and Babo. Now as I sit in my own room looking out at the brown and snow landscape, I realize how luck I've been to spend time with family down in Florida. I've been just a little bit busy since then, but during my five days at Placida, I had the chance to relax. When I'm near the water, I often get the same feeling that I do on a golf course: wonder and tranquility. There's something about a beach stretching into infinity and the soothing crash of waves that stirs up a certain kind of happiness that's hard to find anywhere else. And being with family in a place like this doesn't get any better. 

I arrived on Valentine's Day night in a downpour, and the weather grew better from there. It was cold the next morning, but not cold enough to stop us from venturing out to the Waterside Grill for some lunch or taking the trip out to Boca Grande to pick up a new bathing suit for myself. I wrote about the next day's golfing experience in a previous post, but we can all agree the weather, at least on the back nine, was far from ideal.

With Babo on Boca Grande's famous Banyan Street. 

I felt the best part began when my cousins, Ellie, Carter, and Rachel, my Uncle Matt and Aunt Jess, and my sister Miranda rolled in on Sunday morning. Placida Harbor Club has two sets of houses--the two dozen or so on the mainland looking out on the bay, and the five beachside establishments out on the island. A ferry makes the short trip every half an hour; only boats can access the island. The day the Storeys and Miranda arrive was cold, and the night was even colder. After shivering my way through two ferry rides on Sunday, I decided the next morning it would be a good idea to break out my puffy winter coat. I rode comfortably from then on, and by Monday and Tuesday, we were back to the gorgeous Florida weather that we all expect. I loved those early morning ferry rides, not only because the cool breeze reminded me of my bike rides to school in Germany, but also because there was always a good chance of seeing a manatee or a dolphin along the way.

The boat docks, dwarfed by the community's signature tree

The two best parts about spending time with family in Florida were the hours on the beach and seafood every night. First the beach: Placida Island is small, secluded, and covered in seashells--perfect for walks, runs, or swims. The girls found some incredible shells, but it was Carter and I who set off in search of shark teeth. And boy did we find them. Well, Carter found most of them. I would pick up one or two, and by the time I stood up Carter would be holding out a handful of eight or ten. I'm sure we found upwards of 800 teeth, and I wouldn't be surprised if Carter brought home a full jar.

It was beach time (and pool time) during the days, but in the evenings when the sun set over the harbor, it was seafood time. I'm sure I've mentioned Mommom's cooking here before, but having the chance to enjoy it for five days in a row was a treat, especially because fresh seafood was available everywhere we went. I love seafood, and it tastes even better in Florida. We had everything from shrimp cocktail to pan-crusted grouper to mahi-mahi on the grill.

I've traveled a lot this year and wouldn't give any of it up for the world. Still, my days in Placida (and the ones in Dunedin with my Mimi and Papa, my dad's parents, which I will write about next) felt like the vacations I remember from my early childhood. I took three trips to North Captiva Island as a youngster, but those were more than half my life ago. Coming back to Florida after all these years reminded me of those memories while I created new ones in the company of my grandparents, my sister, and the Storeys. Thank you to Mommom and Babo for having me stay with them, and I can't wait to see you guys when you get home at the end of the month!