Travelsmartplanet

Looking for something different?  If you love blues harp, this show is for definitely for you. Harmonica players from throughout the state will battle at the 11th Annual Florida Harmonica Championships. Every October the Florida Harmonica Championships combines performances from more than 20 great harp players with internationally known guest stars. Each year, music lovers from all over the country travel to beautiful New Smyrna Beach to witness what has become a signature Florida music happening.

This combination of raw new talent, a show oriented format, great backing band and internationally renowned guest stars has made the Florida Harmonica Championships and New Smyrna a music destination for fans from Florida, the US and the world. Anyone can compete.

Other activities include a master class, a harmonica repair clinic and a “harmonica orchestra” performance open to all spectators with a harmonica.

Location: Beachside Tavern, 690 E. 3rd. Ave, New Smyrna Beach, FL 32169
Date: Sun Oct 16, 2016
Time: Noon – 9PM
Tel: 386-314-5718
floridaharmonicachampionships.com
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: nsbfla.com

Tags: activity, annual, band, battle, beach, beachside, blues, championship, class, clinic, compete, country, destination, drivei95, fans, Florida, Florida Harmonica Championships, food, format, guest, harmonica, harp, i95, international, interstate95, local, lover, master, music, New Smyrna Beach, October, orchestra, oriented, performance, player, repair, roadtrip, show, signature, spectator, star, state, talent, tavern, tourism, travel, travelblogger, USA, witness, world, year

You’ll find lions and tigers at the Catty Shack Ranch Wildlife Sanctuary. This amazing  non-profit facility is dedicated to the rescue and care of  endangered big cats, providing them a safe, loving, forever home.

Run completely by volunteers, this sanctuary allows you to get an up close and personal with the rescued big cats: lions, tigers, leopards, cougars and bobcats. Learn about their habitat, their personalities and the stories behind why they have found refuge at the sanctuary.

Since their inhabitants are mostly nocturnal (big cats can sleep up to 20 hours a day), you will most likely appreciate the nighttime tour the most.  The resident cats wake up after dark and this is when they are fed.  At 7:30 PM, you will get to watch over 600 pounds of meat distributed throughout the sanctuary. During these tours, be prepared to hear the big cats roar “loudly” – lions can be heard up to five miles away.

Daytime tours and nighttime feeding tours of Catty Shack Ranch are available but only on select days, so you’ll need to check the website for the most recent schedule. These tours are the primary source of raising funds with 100% of proceeds going to their residents.

Treat your family to a very unique, informative, exciting experience. Animal lover’s will appreciate how well these residents are loved and cared for at this very special retirement home.

Location: The Catty Shack Ranch, 1860 Starratt Rd, Jacksonville, Florida 32226 USA
Dates: open only on select days, please check website
Hours: Daytime Tours 1 – 4 pm, Night Feeding Tours 6 – 8 pm
Tel: 904- 757-3606
cattyshack.org
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions:
visitjacksonville.com

Tags: achedule, animal, bobcat, cat, Catty Shack Ranch, cougar, dark, daytime, drivei95, facility, family, feeding, Florida, fund, habitat, home, i95, iamtb, inhabitant, Jacksonville, leopard, lion, lover, meat, nighttime, nocturnal, non-profit, primary, ranch, rescue, resident, retirement, roadtrip, roar, source, tiger, tour, travel, travelblogger, USA, volunteer, wildlife.sanctuary

This is the statue of Bel Vizcaya, who was not actually a real person. He was dreamed up by James Deering, who designed Vizcaya in the early 1900’s, and he stands at the entrance to the grounds.

Tags: architecture, bel vizcaya, compound, design, dream, drivei95, entrance, Florida, garden, ground, i95, interstate95 usa, james Deering, Miami, Museum, person, roadtrip, stand, statue, structure, travel, travelblogger, vizcaya, vizcaya museum and gardens

Parrots enjoying themselves at Jungle Island near Miami. There are about 1,800 birds here, in addition to the tigers, vultures, flamingos, kangaroos, lemurs, hippos and a kookaburra. You can get very close to the animals, and you may even wind up with a parrot on your shoulder.

Tags: animal, bird, drivei95, flamingo, Florida, hippo, i95, interstate95 usa, Island, jungle, jungle island, kangaroo, kookaburra, lemur, Miami, parrot, roadtrip, shoulder, tiger, travel, travelblogger, vulture, wind

How many of you know that Henry Flagler of Standard Oil, who was a pioneer of tourism in Florida, appears on some US five dollar bills? His Flagler mansion, which was known as the Whitehall Hotel, appears on the back.

Tags: bill, dollar, drivei95, flagler, flagler museum, Florida, henry morrison, hotel, i95, interstate95 usa, mansion, Museum, oil, palm beach, pioneer, roadtrip, standard, tourism, travel, travelblogger, whitehall

Ceiling detail in the entry hall of the Flagler Museum in Palm Beach. The carving was intricate, and the gold was real gold.

Tags: architecture, carving, ceiling, design, detail, drivei95, flagler, flagler museum, Florida, gold, henry morrison, i95, interstate95 usa, intricate, Museum, ornate, palm beach, roadtrip, structure, travel, travelblogger

Here is the magnificent ballroom of the Flagler mansion, in its heyday and today. You can see carved moldings, electric chandeliers, arched doorways and windows and polished wooden floors.

Tags: arch, architecture, ballroom, carved, chandelier, design, doorway, drivei95, electric, flagler, flagler museum, floor, Florida, henry morrison, i95, interstate95 usa, molding, Museum, palm beach, polish, roadtrip, structure, travel, travelblogger, window, wooden

Here is the magnificent ballroom of the Flagler mansion, in its heyday and today. You can see carved moldings, electric chandeliers, arched doorways and windows and polished wooden floors.

Tags: arch, architecture, ballroom, carved, chandelier, design, doorway, drivei95, electric, flagler, flagler museum, floor, Florida, henry morrison, i95, interstate95 usa, molding, Museum, palm beach, polish, roadtrip, structure, travel, travelblogger, window, wooden

Here is Sandra riding one of the many strange cars we find along the road. This one was in Fort Lauderdale, FL at the Outdoor World shop.

Tags: automobile, car, cruise, cute, drive, Drivei-95, Florida, fort lauderdale, little, outdoor, Outdoor World, ride, road, roadtrip, shop, strange, travel, travelblogger, USA, world

It’s really hard to beat Shaq O’Neal at his own game, especially since he’s so tall (7 ft, 1 in). I tried this at the Sports Memorabilia Museum in Boca.

Tags: ball, basket, basketball, Boca Raton, challenge, dunk, Florida, game, height, jump, legend, memorabilia, Museum, Shaq O'Neal, sport, Sports Memorabilia Museum, star, tall, USA