Celebration and Shingle Creek

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Always a favourite place to go - Celebration.  It's one of those places I don't get tired of.  There is always something to see or do.

 Even weeds can be beautiful, or at least attractive to various insects.

Main street from across the lake.  There are some lovely shops and good restaurants in that two block area.  The cafe at the corner makes great malted milkshakes - a throwback to another era, and oh so good.

One of the condo complexes in Celebration.  Such a difference from what Florida looked like before urbanization (see the swamp picture below).  

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Shingle Creek Regional Park is just a few minutes' drive up the road from our condo.  It's a good place to see what central Florida looked like before urban development and theme parks.  The creek itself is popular for kayaking, canoeing, and fishing.  We didn't do anything of those things.  Instead, we opted for walking and photography.

 Kayakers in the creek. There are plenty of live oaks and Spanish moss, lending the scene an almost movie-like quality.

This is the old caretaker's cottage.  Shingle Creek Regional Park has several sections. We were at the Steffen Homestead section.  Some of the original buildings, including this cottage dating from the early 1900s, still stand.  I like this photo better in black and white than in colour.

Every time I look at the ferns and the reflection in the water, I think of jaws - waiting to snap shut on an unsuspecting animal.

 Swamp!  Imagine being the first European and being faced with this!  If it weren't for the paths and boardwalks, we could get lost in the this in minutes.  Even though in some places, we could hear the US192, a major road, it is incredibly easy to get disoriented.  Not to mention that the swamp is home to turtles, snakes and alligators.