48 Hours

How can the weekend have gone by so quickly? Chris was with us for a little less than 48 hours -- I think the first vacation with the three of us alone in about 10 years, since our trip to New York City in 2004.

Land's End on a Windy Day

As always, the pool and hot tub were major activities. The weather was very warm yesterday, so we swam early, but today was windy and we didn't hit the water until about noon.

A couple of new restaurants with Chris: lunch at The Toasted Monkey, which John had wanted to visit, and dinner at The Oyster Shucker, not far from The Sloppy Pelican where we've had a couple of meals in the last few weeks.

The chips and salsa at TTM were fantastic, but we were disappointed not to be seated at the beach bar. You had to park on the opposite site of Gulf Boulevard to get a spot on the beach, and I wasn't prepared to brave my way across traffic on this busy Saturday.

We really enjoyed the Oyster Shucker, where Chris' crab legs were great. Bob and I shared sesame seed encrusted tuna, which I confess I heartily disliked. Bob ordered it "medium", and I had the feeling I was eating raw fish, so found it difficult to enjoy. The drinks were cheap and good. Service was fast and efficient.

Chris and Bob on the beach

Yesterday we couldn't find a parking space on the beach so we went back to Pass-a-Grille today and had lunch -- once again -- at Sea Critters. Had clam chowder, the best I've had on the beach so far, but I think I'm tiring of the famous margaritas made with fresh squeezed lime juice. After lunch, we did some people watching as the surf crashed on the beach.

We dropped Chris off at TPA and it's hard to believe it's back to just two of us, for another couple of days.