A day on Sanibel Island

My idea of a vacation is to see everything worth seeing in a 50 mile radius of where I touch down. If there is a battlefield, a winery, a museum, an amusement park, or something completely weird and random like a park composed entirely of 18 foot tall busts of American Presidents (get your mind out of the gutter), I’m there and then some. So much so that when I get back from vacation, I’m usually more tired than when I left.

Not that I’m knocking it– it’s a system that works well for me. But this particular family trip to Sanibel Island was different. Maybe it was the smothering heat and choking humidity that Florida can still serve up in September, or maybe it was my growing list of “Things Gone Wrong in 2013”, but I decided a vacation of doing absolutely nothing was just the ticket.

By nothing, I don’t mean that I wasn’t up at the crack of dawn every day taking long walks on the beach, because I was. Or that I didn’t haul my camera bag absolutely everywhere with me– 2,000 pictures and counting, lucky you. But instead of driving to the Everglades, sailing to Key West, or touring the Ford/Edison winter estates in Fort Myers (does “winter estate” sound pretentious to anyone else, or is that just my upbringing?) I stayed on Sanibel Island and fell into a routine; one that I already miss, and that will be the tiny smoldering ember warming my heart during the coldest, bleakest, crappiest, why-oh-why-do-I-live-here, month in Pennsylvania, otherwise known as February.

So here’s a run down of a perfect, do-nothing day, on Sanibel Island.

Get up early and pick up some Tribbles, I mean, shells.
Sanibel Island is uniquely positioned in the Gulf of Mexico and is known for it’s multitude and variety of seashells that wash up on the beach. You think you know, but you don’t. Day one, you’re blown away and spend the day hunched over, filling nylon bags with shells, shells, and more shells. By day two, you have a kink in your neck from shambling about the beach like a zombie looking down for the perfect shells and the spoiled air of a 13 year old girl receiving wide-leg jeans for Christmas when they asked for bootcut. Agh! This Banded Tulip shell has a chip out of the bottom– it’s like, God hates me!

Bike Ride to Breakfast
Trust me, all of the major roads are lined with bike paths which gives you an opportunity to slow down and see the island up close and also makes you feel entitled to eat whatever you want for breakfast and if that includes a 16oz Mimosa, then cheers!

Lay About the Beach in a Listless Manner and Read Nonsense.
This is actually harder than it seems because of the aforementioned smothering heat, the yet to be mentioned sand fleas that bothered no one but me, and the Gulf of Mexico looking all innocent and enticing with it’s next-to-nothing waves and extended sand bars. Sharks, sting-rays, and jelly-fish be damned! I am jumping in that ocean!

Watch a thunderstorm roll in.
This is Florida after all, and what is a day in Florida without a thunderstorm or a sudden of deluge of rain to throw a hiccup in your plans? We had the last laugh though; as it turns out, rain doesn’t really interfere with floating in a hot tub while drinking a Margarita. Did I say cheers already? Oh, what the hell– Cheers!

Enjoy a fresh seafood dinner and take in the show.
My personal favorite. The only thing I love more than seafood, is seafood with a view of the beach. Our first night on Sanibel, my family proposed the idea of dining at an Italian restaurant while on the island. I’m sorry, but if I wanted meatballs, I would go to my grandmother’s; furthermore, I did not fly to Florida to eat Manicotti. Swordfish, crab cakes, BBQ shrimp, and fried scallops on the other hand... And what is the perfect desert other than a beautiful sunset served at your feet with a cold beer in hand?

So over all, not a bad day, am I right? Repeat for five consecutive days and you will start to feel like a human being who doesn’t need a smart phone other than to send “Na-nana-naa-nah!” pictures to all of your relatives and friends back home. Now as for next year.... I don’t know, “Winter Estate” and “Airboat Tour” is starting to grow on me.

I am not a Wino, but...

I kinda dig it. Lately, I have been pestering my friends and loved ones to go to wineries with me. And it’s not because I have a sharp pallet or that I know anything about wine. For years, I was intimidated by the whole culture of wine and turned off by all of the pretentious wine snobs on TV like Frasier. But thinking about it, I have narrowed down my top five reasons why I love to go wine tasting:

1. My wine addled compatriots
From my chosen company to the winery pet to the guy who is well on his way to finishing the bottle on Sangria on the patio out back, a glass of good wine is complimented all the more by good company.

2. A long rambling walk
A visit to the vineyard is not complete without a long stroll on the grounds. And if that stroll happens to be on hillsides that overlook a beautiful lake, lavender fields, or bucolic farmland, who am I to complain?

3. Happiness in the bottle
If you had a housewarming, bridal shower, or birthday recently, you probably got a bottle of wine from me. Usually, I am traveling when I go wine tasting and bringing back a bottle of wine for a friend is like sharing a part of my experience and my travels with them. And something more, this quote sums it up better than I can...
    
4. Sideways: I like to think about the life of wine. How it's a living thing. I like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing; how the sun was shining; if it rained. I like to think about all the people who tended and picked the grapes. And if it's an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. I like how wine continues to evolve, like if I opened a bottle of wine today it would taste different than if I'd opened it on any other day, because a bottle of wine is actually alive. And it's constantly evolving and gaining complexity.

5. Swirl what?
I have finally found a hobby that I don’t care if I’m really good at it, which is such a relief, because I will drive myself insane with my constant quest for perfection. I always thought you had to be on the know to really enjoy wine, but wine tasting isn’t about knowing it all. I don’t have a sharp pallet nor aspirations of building a sophisticated wine collection. Don’t ask me about complexity, concentration, balance and harmony, or the length of the finish, because I have no idea. Wine tasting is about enjoying the experience and of course, drinking some wine.

6. Poems for the inebriated
One of the best jobs/tasks in the world must be naming and writing the descriptions for wine, second only to naming the Meerkats on Meerkat Manor on the animal planet (Squeak, Bubble, Hannibal, Flower, Einstein, Mozart, Pancake, need I go on?)

Honestly, the descriptions always make me giggle and read them aloud to the great annoyance of everyone. Full of imagery, importance, texture, and sometimes whimsy, the descriptions are enlightening and entertaining reads in-between pours.

Some of my favorite descriptions:
Sweet Walter Chardonnay This sassy Chardonnay has lush overtones of Butterscotch and tropical fruit, with a rich and creamy finish.
Niagara Spring White Like a stroll through the vineyards at harvest time, this Niagara is floral with a sweet, soft finish.
2011 Baco Noir Reserve This captivating wine has a deep color and vibrant acidity, dark fruit aromas are met with a hint of smoke & leather.