[Lance]

A couple weeks ago work had me in Florida, and I rented a car and visited the Tampa Bay area, somewhere I'd never been. My first stop down there was Sarasota. Downtown was small, but the city isn't terribly large. The Ringling Estate (seen later in this thread) was amazing, and had a fantastic circus museum. On the way up to St. Petersburg I stopped in Bradenton, at the southern end of the Sunshine Skyway. Bradenton is even smaller than Sarasota, but the South Florida Museum and Manatee Center was worth the visit. Anyways, here's the pics!

Downtown Sarasota, a bit of a sleepy place
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8159/7139844179_856e85bd18.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7097/7139844321_ccf73cf1fa.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7125/7139844449_c443ddf866.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7105/6993758198_340d07a5ef.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7216/7139844633_316e41215a.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7061/6993758474_b700b15799.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7054/7139845155_3af7fcfa03.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7124/7139845279_4d163e29fa.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/7139845625_e731a6d847.jpg

The Ringling Estate
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7047/6993764524_69caa5a438.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7100/7139851137_24b94c0f20.jpg

Downtown Brandenton
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7077/7139851363_668b6db9a8.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7107/6993765058_7b1ca257f1.jpg
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8141/7139851607_fb11d9c810.jpg

Hope you enjoyed, when I get some time I'll put together threads on St. Petersburg and Tampa as well.

[mello]

Good stuff, any shots of the beach or any neighborhoods that are more vibrant?

[ColDayMan]

Thanks!

[xzmattzx]

It's good to see some of the mid-sized places in Florida.

[gothamite]

thanks for the pics. I love Sarasota. I used to visit relatives there all the time. Although it's a lot livelier than some of these shots suggest. I don't know when you actually took these, Lance, but I believe a few weeks ago--as every spring for the last couple of decades--the Sarasota Film Festival must have been in full swing. Though it's obviously not in a league with those of Venice or Toronto, it's in sort of a middle ground in size, attracting thousands of people to dozens of screenings around town and at least a handful of celebrities (though maybe not all primarily from the "A" list! lol).
Also the downtown has a large Farmers Market on certain days in the morning hours. I hope you also maybe have more photos from the Ringling complex. John Ringling did a great deal to put Sarasota on the cultural map.

[fern]

Two UK tourists were murdered in Sarasota last year but judging by your photos it doesn't look bad at all.

[brickell]

Sarasota is on my top 5 list for retirement. Lots of culture for it's size and wonderful setting. Nice seeing some pics.

[brickell]

Two UK tourists were murdered in Sarasota last year but judging by your photos it doesn't look bad at all.

My understanding is that they were killed in the Newton neighborhood, which is literally the other side of the tracks. How they got there is anybody's guess. But this is still the South we're talking about. Sketchy areas and bad neighborhoods are just a way of life.

[Private Dick]

Good stuff, any shots of the beach or any neighborhoods that are more vibrant?

The beaches in the Sarasota area are gorgeous. Longboat Key, Siesta Key, Lido Key, Anna Maria Island, and more are all some of the nicest beaches you will find anywhere.

St. Armand's Key/Circle area has a more vibrant street scene... nice place. The circular island below. Restaurants, bars, shops, park, etc. Ringling started developing St. Armand's business district in the 1920s.

http://www.starmandscirclerealestate.com/wp-content/themes/thesis_16/custom-sample/rotator/StArmandsCircle.jpg

http://www.sarasotarealestate.com/images/st._armands_aerial_500_01.jpg

[Gresto]

Ah, it's almost like a third home to me. We've been vacationing on Siesta Key (Cresent Beach, to be exact) since I was a toddler back in the late-'70s. Because of illness in the family, our visits were very sporadic in the late-'90s and '00s, but we hope to start going back regularly again. Sarasota is nothing special, but Siesta Key is great, especially Crescent Beach. St. Armand's Circle is a neat little place.

[Lance]

Thanks for the comments. I really only spent half an hour in downtown Sarasota, waiting to drive to the Ringling Museum for when it opened, so I realize my shots of Sarasota are not all-encompassing. I did have a few more shots of the Ringling estate as well as the beach, I stayed in St. Petersburg Beach for most of my trip. Anyways, here's some of those pics.

The Ringling Circus Museum
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5345/7153692769_3061080f92.jpg

A very large miniature model of the circus in its golden era
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5151/7153692931_4299f273ab.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7193/7153693095_cfef50bdc8.jpg
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5457/7153693373_0001244c0f.jpg

An literal bandwagon
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7268/7153693447_1d0acbb57c.jpg

Ringling's home
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5152/7153693595_4c51b4a429.jpg

The courtyard in the Ringling Art Museum
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7188/7153693891_98dbde105a.jpg

The sunsent in St. Petersburg Beach the evening I arrived
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8158/7007572724_e084a926f2.jpg

Looking north along the beach, some high-rises but nothing huge
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7120/7153694349_c943452475.jpg

Looking south
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7195/7153695075_a1eac3cddb.jpg

Gentle waves
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8024/7153695461_1f4876d444.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7064/7153695599_837a5c39c8.jpg
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5331/7153730849_d4bf2dfaf4.jpg

South of where I stayed was this beautiful 1920s hotel, one of the originals
from St. Pete Beach's start as a resort
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7190/7153730955_7fb9b5a3e7.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7046/7153731129_ffcaca6162.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7110/7007609578_ba92868d62.jpg

[Private Dick]

^ A favorite hotel of F. Scott Fitzgerald and Jazz Age revelry.