πŸš™ Gasparilla Island, Florida 🏝️ Road Trip With The Mothership πŸ›Έ

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My mom recently took me on a trip to Gasparilla Island, a beautiful place on the southwest Gulf Coast of Florida, complete with a lighthouse.

It's Over There 🌊

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Β  Β  Β The destination for this trip was not far from my mom's home. Looking at the water in the above pic, there is a bridge on the horizon, and that bridge leads to Gasparilla Island and the Gulf of Mexico. I got in the car with my mom and it took us roughly 15 minutes to reach the bridge.

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Β  Β  Β Along the way I noticed lots of damage from Hurricane Ian, which made landfall around 9 months ago. Roof tiles missing, downed trees, and lots of broken windows were common sites. Things haven't been repaired because it's the USA, insurance, bureaucracy, etc.

Troll Bridge 🧌

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Β  Β  Β As we reached the bridge you saw in the first photo we were stopped by a toll booth, paid the fee and continued onward to the island. My mom was piloting a red Jeep whose hood can be seen in some of the shots from this trip. As we reached the middle of the bridge we were crossing from Placida Harbor into the Gulf of Mexico, and the water's clarity changed immediately.

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Β  Β  Β The weather was nice and I think it was a weekend, although I'm not 100% sure. Either way even during the weekdays there are plenty of recreational boaters to be seen.

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Β  Β  Β As we reached the other side things immediately felt more tropical-er and tourist-ier, and white sand was everywhere, even along the road's edge.

Gasparilla Island 🏝️

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Β  Β  Β This island is very small, and being located directly on the Gulf of Mexico, real estate here is sky-high. My mom said even the most simple and basic homes here go for $2 to $3 million USD.

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Β  Β  Β Every home has a private drive and electric gate, many with their own security guard booth. Some places that look like entire resort complexes are just single family homes, really hard to believe.

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Β  Β  Β There were some normal looking homes, like the one in the above pic, but because of location, this home is probably worth at least $3 million USD. Lots of famous celebrities have homes here, but I don't know who or where, so sorry for not being able to point out anything spectacular.

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Β  Β  Β Many of the homes here have private drives and properties which occupy entire city blocks, but of course these city blocks are on the Gulf of Mexico, and one side of the property is a white sand beach.

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Β  Β  Β The wealth here is astonishing, but I must admit it pales in comparison to displays of wealth by the Chinese in Cambodia. Things are of course much cleaner here, and the landscaping better, the public schools better, ect., but there isn't an abundance of Rolls Royce and Bentley cars like you might see in wealthy parts of Cambodia.

Tropical Library πŸ“š

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Β  Β  Β The Johann Fust Community Library was established in 1832 by a pirate named Captain Blackbeard, a feared sailor who used his stolen treasures to educate and empower local communities. Just kidding, I have no information about the history of this library, you can google that if you're truly curious, I ain't no tour guide yo'.

It's Private πŸ”’

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Β  Β  Β Some properties have very tempting walkways to take you directly from the sidewalk to the beach, but if you look carefully there is always a NO TRESPASSING or PRIVATE DRIVE sign.

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Β  Β  Β Occasionally there would be a public access road going all the way to the beach with smaller private homes lining the roadside. I wanted a peek at the ocean so we began looking for a suitable road with some parking spots left.

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Β  Β  Β The style of homes ranged from Victorian to Spanish, and old to new, but everything here is immaculate no matter the age.

Banyan Trees 🌳

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Β  Β  Β There are many more near my mom's home, but in this part of Florida banyan trees are common, perhaps even more common than in Cambodia, and I found that to be very strange.

Let's Bail ✌️

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Β  Β  Β After realizing how crowded it was we decided to head back because I didn't even come with swimming trunks or a towel. I did make a plan to return and go swimming at Boca Grande before I left Florida though.

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Β  Β  Β After deciding to head back I took a few more shots of the luxurious homes there. It is impressive, but I was still getting used to American time and my sleep cycle was out of sync.

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Β  Β  Β While trying not to fall asleep in the car, we turned around to head back over the bridge. One last thing I wanted to see was the lighthouse, so I had my mom pull over so I could ask if there was admission fee.

Lighthouse β›―

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Β  Β  Β Well, after finding out it was $15 to venture to the top of this bad boy, I decided only to offer you this photo. It's a lighthouse, it's old and original, and not used anymore, but other than that I can offer nothing. Google Gasparilla Island lighthouse and you'll find everything you need to know if you're curious. For me, the $15 fee and the sleepies attacking me was enough to take a raincheck on this adventure. To be continued...

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20 comments
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Hi morning @justinparke such a wonderful tour. This is the first time I've seen this island. The library is the first place I would visit..

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There is a lot of history there, but I didn't have much time to learn a lot about the area.

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Hello, @justinparke

Those skies are so blue! A fact, I love to take picture of toll bridge with beautiful skies too.

House building there looks fancy. Is there exclusive place?

I enjoy your trip through your post and Greetings to your mom.


Hai, @justinparke
Langit-langit itu terlihat sangat biru! Sebuah fakta, aku juga sangat menyukai mengambil gambar di jembatan toll dengan langit yang indah.

Aku menikmati perjalananmu melalui postinganmu. Salam untuk ibumu.

Greetings from Indonesia.

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It is beautiful there, but also a bit sad because it is very wealthy and nobody is outside like in SE Asia. I love the tropical weather and climate, but in the USA too many people hide behind doors, air-conditioning, and rarely make roadside business. The beach was quite nice though, there were many people there.

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Is there people there too or are you just not taking pictures of them? Beautiful or not ( a matter of taste ) it felt kind of dead to me.

I wonder how it must feel to live in a place like this...

kind of reminds me of a book I am reading, titled: Confessions of a Jewel Thief.
I think that guy ( writer ) would have scouted areas like these ;<)

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Outside some restaurants and near the sea there are sometimes clusters of humans, but otherwise it's very dead. I think this is normal to people there, but coming from Cambodia I am used to the overwhelming amount of social stimuli outside the home. Most areas in Florida are full of the older generation because those folks mostly have the wealth, but Miami is a bit different, there any many cultures, languages, nationalities there, and a lot of working class young people.

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I had such a good time with Justin! Great article!!

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Thank you for stopping by, nice to see you're getting more comfortable with Hive. I've been busy lately, but soon I'll be back to writing more often. You make a great tour guide by the way.

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What a very beautiful Gasparilla Island. How I love to visit there my friend. The place is so relaxing and I wonder what is on the private area, for that side is also picturesque. I see that you are having a great time. Enjoy Florida and have safe travels my dear friend.
!PIZZA

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There are many private areas there, it's very wealthy. But the beach is almost always accessible no matter where, even though you may find difficulty passing through private property to get to it. Thanks for stopping by my friend.

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The style of homes ranged from Victorian to Spanish, and old to new, but everything here is immaculate no matter the age.

Maybe they're required because of home owners' association and looking at those estates and buildings it's suffice to say that the owners can afford to keep it up.

Thanks for taking us with you on your trip to Florida. Makes me see a bit of the USA.

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Yes, the HOA's in these parts of the USA have some of the complex and (for me) irritating rules anywhere in the USA. I understand it's all about property value there, but little consideration is given to quality of life and giving a soul to a community. I don't like bedroom communities much. Suriname has many bedroom communities, but at least there is usually a winkel within walking distance.

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Sounds like you're having fun :)

to take you directly from the sidewalk to the beach, but if you look carefully there is always a NO TRESPASSING or PRIVATE DRIVE sign.

I don't get it, if they want to keep it private why does it lead to the sidewalk at all? Shouldn't it go up to the house instead?

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It is bizarre. I understand if the the path leads to the house, in those circumstances it's quite clear that it's a private situation, but when a sandy path goes from the main road all the way to the beach, it's so tempting. In all likelihood though I am probably the only person with any trespassing thoughts πŸ˜†.

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