On the first weekend in February, several dozen Global Travelers gathered in Florida for fellowship, service, and a Super Bowl watch party. Hosts Robyn Ragsdale and Colin Beach organized a fun weekend exploring some off-the-beaten path sights in the Tampa area.
The group spent Friday in the historic city of Ybor. Their day featured a visit to the last remaining cigar factory in the U.S., lunch at a famous Greek restaurant, a guided walking tour of the old city, a visit to the Cuban park which is officially part of Cuba, and dinner and a flamenco show at the Columbia Restaurant.
Saturday was our day of service in Tampa. We spent the day at ARC Tampa, which supports community members with developmental and intellectual disabilities. We rolled up our sleeves and went to work on their outdoor recreation area. We power-washed equipment, painted equipment, built new planters, and moved them into place. We also presented their directory with a $500 donation from our club.
We celebrated our long, rewarding day of service with dinner at a local Italian restaurant.
Some of us began Sunday morning with an amazing “snorkeling with the manatees” experience. Then we all convened at Robyn and Colin’s for Super Bowl festivities. We played a rousing game of Rotary trivia (created by Colin) and impressed each other with how much we did (and didn’t) know about Rotary. We placed some low stakes bets on the game with a nice chunk of the winnings going to our Global Travelers Grants and Service Fund. Some of us actually watched the game, and we all enjoyed lots of great food.
After our service and social time in Tampa, about a dozen of us embarked on a short Caribbean cruise. We sailed from Tampa aboard Royal Caribbean’s Enchantment of the Seas. We explored several interesting ports together and dined together in style. On the ship, we enjoyed playing cards together, singing karaoke, and watching members Mark and Corrine Lewis demonstrate their ballroom dancing skills. We all came home sun-kissed and happy.