Wedged in the middle of the State of Florida between Gainesville and Orlando hot in the summers…read morewith snakes and spiders and cold winters but no polar bears. This is one of the most multi-task cities in Florida with a high end westside and a fun lower end eastside. The Westside is growing super fast with old farm lands being bought up and restructured for world class equestrian entertainment, golf and hotel purposes. The World Equestrian Center and the Golden Ocala Golf Resort are proof of that. A few miles east (very old and scary) is basically the mom and pop society with scattered restaurants and gas stations until you hit the historic downtown Ocala area. Plenty of cafes, quirky retail shops and breweries line the streets providing a fun family environment.

Nice, small town vibe. Not a lot to do on a Sunday morning into early afternoon. Clean! Lots of…read morefree parking in the several municipal lots located near the town square. Several restaurants open, serving breakfast and lunch. One place had live music on their balcony.

I had an intriguing time exploring Micanopy. The history here is so rich. It was founded in 1821…read more It is named after Seminole Chief Micanopy. Also, it is recognized as the Florida states oldest Inlet settlement. There are so many antique shops here with so many fun things to look at. It was a unique experience. I suggest whoever is in the area to stop by and feel the history here in this place.

Any fans of the movie Doc Hollywood (1991)? Well if you are then visiting this small historic town…read moreis a fun way to spend the afternoon. This charming community was founded in 1821 and is believed to be the oldest inland town in the state of Florida. The town was named for Chief Micanopy of the Seminole Nation. It's been recognized as one of America's top historic small towns. Population is 669 and the town itself is only 1.03 miles. Way too small for me but it definitely is quaint. Lots of antique shops, and other small businesses here along with some cafes featuring outdoor dining. We enjoyed walking around and visiting all the Doc Hollywood movie and historical sites. We enjoyed a delicious lunch at a place now called Pearl Country Store and BBQ. There are many Spanish oak trees lining the streets which makes you feel so comfortable while exploring. If you happen to be in the area, I recommend a stop here. It is a town that will have you step back in time when life was simple.

Dunnellon was once a great place to live but all good things come to an end…read more The push for over development. The faulty electrical grids. The push for water restrictions while still adding unlimited new houses by developers... The growing abundance of traffic and overcrowded roads. The Rainbow Springs park suffocating under overcrowding, rude people, trash and an overworked aquafilter from suntan oils alcohol and diapers. The lack of retail stores for these new people to shop.. All the above have basically begun the strangulation of a once great community. But the same greed that is driving voted in politicians in the Marion County Government is affecting all the smaller communities also.

If you've ever driven down a crappy old lime rock back road in The Sunshine State, you can show of…read moreyour appreciation or irritation to Dunnellon. Lime rock is a waste product of phosphate mining, and phosphate mining is the third largest industry in Florida and until recently Dunnellon was the self-proclaimed "Phosphate Center of the World" the industry makes money by having its waste mixed into asphalt as a paving material and used in many parts of Florida still today. It's principal used was as a fertilizer, the crown of the phosphate industry now resides in Mulberry a few hours south, driving through town it seems it's lost much more than its crown. I can't speak much of Dunnellon since my time here was brief, it lies west of Ocala and north of Homosassa. This town is located on the Rainbow and Withlacoochee rivers hence the reason I am here and probably the reason many of the town's visitors flock here, camping, kayaking and tubing on these beautiful rivers seem to be the draw.

They are located right behind the Days Inn. Had I known this, I may have booked a trip with them…read more (Instead, I booked with River Ventures and had a good time.) Still, I went there because I needed to refill my scuba tanks. They charge $4.50 and the turn around time was under 30 min. Very reasonable on both counts.

Florida Manatee Tours is awesome. I recommend taking a tour with them because the price is great…read more(includes all your gear), the groups are small (5 people in our group), the captain swims with you and takes photos (which are available to you for free via facebook) and because the entire company has a lot of reverence for the manatees and conducts its tours with respect for the wildlife and the environment. We stayed at the Day's Inn (with a discounted tour rate) and walked the couple hundred feet to the dock for the early morning tour. We were provided with wetsuits, snorkels, and flippers and watched a video on how to interact with manatees. One of the things I liked most about the company was how much respect they have for the manatees. Especially after seeing other groups out in the water with noodles, splashing about, and disturbing everyone - humans and manatees! I felt proud to be with the Florida Manatee Tours group. On our boat ride out we saw countless birds, wild pigs (even one swimming!), dolphins, and manatees. Captain Adrian is experienced, smart, and very kind. We were lucky because it was an uncharacteristically cold December morning so the manatees flocked to the warm springs. Captain Adrian swam with us the entire time and while we snorkeled around dozens and dozens of manatees, he took pictures of us. All the photos were posted to Facebook! It was a nice treat to have photos of the experience without an additional charge. The day was truly magical. We lost count of how many manatees we saw because there were so many! On the boat ride back we were given hot chocolate. I think we all felt really lucky. When you're making your plans, remember to do your best to create a successful situation. I can't help but feel some of the bad reviews folks give on yelp are a little unfair. (I'm looking at you- guy who bought his own wetsuits and then was grumpy about it.) There can be very few manatees in the summer, so when you go is important. (You may have to adjust your expectations based on the time of year.) If you have questions: call- everyone is really nice. We called to ask which tour time offered the greater chance of seeing more wildlife, confirmed we did not need any additional gear, and I asked about wetsuit sizes. (I was nervous they wouldn't have larger women's sizes- but they did!) It was a perfect day. I plan to visit again!

I had the privilege to eat at Papa Joe's today with a large family group. They accommodated our…read moregroup reservation of almost 20 easily and efficiently. We had two servers taking care of us, and they did a great job! The food was delicious with very healthy portions. Warning- if you order the papazone, plan to share! It is very large! I had the tri colored tortellini with white vegetables and white sauce. It was quite tasty, but it did have a rather soupy portion of the sauce. We shared some slices of peanut butter pie - yummy! If you find yourself near Brooksville, stop for a meal at Papa Joe's. You will be glad you did!

Well. There's a lot to unpack. I'm on the fence about talking about this, only because Papa Joe is…read moreno longer the owner. The new owner is Fong. I am going to sit with this for a minute and then come back and lay it out. Not great, not terrible but slightly lower than mediocre. Sorry Papa, Fong is not upholding whatever you hopefully had going on? Not sure. The food was 25% okay. But from beginning to end... meh. So here, are the "viable complaints" the management wanted to hear about. We were seated and the server didn't come over to greet us for at least eight minutes. She was brusque and busy. She couldn't really tell us anything about the menu despite the questions we asked. We ordered the bruschetta. It was a catastrophe on a plate. It seemed like a base for puttanesca not anything fresh and light as you would expect from bruschetta. Silverware rolled into logs concealed dirty old food nubbins. For dinner we ordered a variety of entrees and several were not great. The orange roughy was soggy. The cod was overcooked and fishy, the server offered a remedy of bringing a lemon butter sauce. This was 50% canola oil and absolutely terrible and failed to improve the dish. Nothing was hot, not even the stuffed shells. Another dinner was basically pasta with sauce and some chicken thrown on top. Nothing pretty or green as a garnish, no basil as embellishment, no grated parmesan. The pasta called shrimp jeanie was actually good, though the shrimp was undercooked. At delivery of the meal, our server auctioned the food off. This is the same server who took the order and delivered it, but couldn't recall where the food went. This is not the guests job to remind of who ordered what. They don't have seat numbers? We told her that the fish was subpar and the sauce meant as a Band-Aid didn't cut it. She let us known she would have ask the manager about it. We learned later that she was the manager for the night. So she had to ask herself did she want to comp a terrible fish dinner off our check? Well did she? She did. Hooooo ray. Anyway, not great. There were dirty plates and empty glasses from different courses left all over, even after desert arrived. Not a notable or delicious experience and the dining room doesn't have a "Disney" vibe. We wish them well and wish we had been in when Joe was the owner, but we won't be coming back. This is our gift to them. Vaya con dios.

A lot of great vendors and we had perfect weather today. We managed to get a good parking spot -…read morebest reason for going early. The craft fair (Fiesta in the Park) at Lake Eola has lower prices. One vendor even admitted they raise their prices for mount Dora. But there were a lot of vendors with lots of great crafts Best kettle corn I e had in years

Will NEVER spend another dollar in this town again! We took our Therapy Dog to the Craft Fair with…read moreus for having a Certified Therapy Dog, training is never over and felt this would be perfect environment to have him around a lot of people and distractions for Therapy Dogs need to be able to ignore distractions. Therapy Dogs are Not Service dogs, so they have to special access that a service dog has, in fact a Therapy Dog is used to provide emotional support to OTHERS not it's owner. The police told us to leave for dogs are not welcome in Mt Dora. Rude ass police officer that didn't have an ounce of tact in his veins. He suggested that it could be dangerous if someone stepped on our dog. Are you kidding me? We've had our dog all around downtown Orlando and Winter Park, which are both dog friendly. He's been in airports, city buses, hospitals, retirement homes and many many other "more dangerous" environments than Mt Dora. This town is NOT a dog friendly town and I wouldn't spend another dollar in this town or any business in this town again. The officer said it's posted on their site: no dogs. Well if you didn't look up their site to decide if you wanted to drive 50 miles to attend their craft show, I guess you just drove 100 miles round trip for no reason!

Had a really great time visiting Bo Diddley Plaza in Gainesville, Florida. This is a lively and…read morehistoric outdoor space that really captures the spirit of the city's music and culture scene. It is a great spot for events, live performances, and community gatherings, and you can tell it is a central hub for downtown activity. The open layout makes it easy to enjoy concerts or festivals, and the atmosphere feels energetic but still laid back. There is plenty of space to stand or sit and take in whatever is going on, and it is especially fun when there is live music happening. The plaza is well known for its connection to music history and it adds a nice cultural touch to the downtown area. The only downside is that it is mostly event driven, so when nothing is happening it can feel a bit quiet or open. Overall, it is a great public space that really shines during events. Easy 4 stars and definitely worth checking out if something is going on.

This large lawn-style amphitheater is located adjacent to the Alachua County Administration…read morebuilding in downtown Gainesville. It's usually used for music festivals or perhaps a farmers market but it was vacant on this Saturday evening with the street market located a few blocks away today. It was renamed in 2008 for Bo Diddley who was born here in Alachua County and is laid to rest not too far away. Diddley was known for his rectangular guitar and energetic performances, blinding blues, rock, and funk, creating a sound that was uniquely his own and influencing Buddy Holly, the Rolling Stones and the Clash. It looks like a fabulous space, surrounded by hotels, bars, restaurants and the vibe of a downtown college city. Go Gators. [Review 360 of 2025 - 2012 in Florida - 23922 overall]

Gainesville is home and so hard to rate. It's changed so much over the years, and sometimes…read moreunrecognizable. Graduation and the annual Nutcracker performance at the Phillips Center, plays at the Hippodrome, UF cheer and basketball camps at the O'Connell Center, proms held at the Women's Club, walking in the Gator parade, and UF homecoming being a local, public school holiday-- because #GatorNation. The Harn Museum of Art and Reitz Union after-school visits while waiting for my mom to get off work. It's a small, hipster, college town that's so full of art and culture. Now, I can liken it to having a tiny "keep Austin weird" -ish vibe. All in all-- Ode to Gainesville-- the backdrop of my childhood, and the occasional nostalgia-filled stomping grounds of my adulthood! Fave spots: The Top Sidecar/V Pizza Baby J's Dragonfly Mojo's Public & General Satchels Pizza Cheers!

Forever setting lights up in this town needs to go back to school this is pathetic I've never seen…read moresuch a mess made of traffic lights you have traffic stopped in places that makes absolutely no sense you won't set two lights to go green in a row everything about the way you set up lights is designed to inhibit traffic movement that's why you have so many stupid accidents. Why don't you go to Leon county Tallahassee you know the capital and borrow their traffic algorithm I know it works good they know how to move traffic in that town

With Daytona Beach looking very dated and worn, this segmental bridge was a beautiful treat when we…read morewent to head home. I love the tile mosaics of aquatic and Florida wildlife throughout the bridge. I read that this bridge had a makeover and I highly approve. We only passed through Daytona Beach, but this bridge was the highlight of the area. I wish I could have taken pictures as we were driving by!!! This bridge was originally built in 1948 and replaced in 2001 and crosses the span of the Halifax River. There are 36 tile mosaic designs throughout the bridge and the Broadway Bridge has won awards from the American Council of Engineering Companies. Very cool!

A bridge with…read moreart The Broadway Bridge was dedicated in 2001 and is the third bridge to grace this area. It's over 3,000 feet long and crosses over the Halifax River and the Intra Coastal Waterway. A very useful bridge to be sure and allows traffic to flow from the center of Daytona to the great beaches without too much trouble. A graceful structure that just seems to fit without being intrusive. So many large bridges are closed to pedestrian traffic but this fine bridge has pleasant side walks on both sides. Allows for some fantastic views of the water, boats, buildings and even the ocean in the distance. But what really makes this bridge cool is all the mosaics of local marine life that are placed at various intervals along the structure. Some great works of art that turns this bridge into a lot more than just a way of getting over the river. If you go under the bridge you will find even more mosaics on the supports that hold up the huge roadway. Some bridges are just places for cars to go over. This wonderful bridge allows you to see great views in all directions and even some great mosaics of dolphins, manatees, sharks and sea horses. A unique and wonderful example of how to combine art with function