How to fill time in retirement

On Saturday, July 29, I took a short trip south to Vero Beach for the Pirate Fest. It is held at Riverside Park in Vero Beach, a place I had never been before. Located on the Indian River Lagoon, but on the East (Ocean) side of the river. It is a beautiful park with lots of parking. As I walked up to the part of the park where the festival was being held, I took this photo of the beautiful trees and greenery. I think the green sign was written in some Pirate font, it says Entrance . From their web page:   July 24th, 1715 - A fleet of Spanish ships laden with treasure sailed up Florida's east coast right into the path of a fierce hurricane. By the morning of July 31st, the fleet and treasure was lost to the sea. Each year, on the anniversary of that fateful voyage, Pirates, Privateers and Treasure Hunters of all ages gather to commemorate the loss of the 1715 Treasure Fleet in a family friendly celebration of piracy, better known as the Vero Beach Pirate Festival.   ...

One of my favorite places to go to have some quick food and a cold beer is at Squid Lips, located right on the Indian River next to the Eau Gallie Causeway.  The first Squid Lips Overwater Grill opened on a small pier in Sebastian, back in 2004. It is still a popular place to go, just north of another favorite place, Captain Hirams. They first opened in Melbourne on The Eau Gallie Causeway Road, but out toward I-95. The building still is standing. The Melbourne place has a inside dining room amongst three large room, one on a porch. They have two inside bars and a bar on the deck called the Shark Bar. They have table service at the bar and also on the beach.  Here are a few views of the Indian River taken from deck of the Shark Bar... This past Sunday, I went for another time to have a beer and listen to a band out on the deck. It was so crowded at 4 PM that I had to stand outside of the bar on the ramp to the beach. I caught this picture of the crowd from that vantage p...

Well, I started the second half of the year one day early. My plan was to visit 13 new restaurants by June 30 and then I would visit the other 13 after July 1. But on June 30, I went to a new restaurant in Indiatlantic, my 14th for the year, called Pico Alto PHC. The restaurant is named after a famous big wave in the surfing town Punta Hermosa. Pico Alto is Spanish for High Peak. PHC is short for Punta Hermosa Corazon which translates to the Heart of Punta Hermosa. I mean, the owner is a surfer dude from Peru who now owns a restaurant on Wave Crest Avenue in Indiatlantic, a popular place for surfers. It can be found on the North end of the boardwalk, next to Bizzaro's Pizza. Here is a wide angle of the place with A1A on the right. I did not know when I parked using a meter spot, that they do have parking where the meters are covered for users of the restaurant. Upon entering, the place was pretty big with lots of different seating options. I choose a table because the place ...