Tricks and Treats

Halloween can be a scary holiday when you're a little kid, but it's even scarier when you are grown up and it also happens to be.....your 11th year anniversary. Yes, Frank and I have been together for 1/3 of my life.  We decided we were going to spend a couple days away, in a new place and get some much needed us time. We opted for St Petersburg as I had won a couple free hotel stays from my company's Christmas raffle last year and figured we should use them before they expire at the end of the year. We spent a couple of days at the DoubleTree Hilton on Redington Beach, catching some sun and enjoying the ocean.  My sister flew down from NY and joined us as well, which was a nice treat as I had missed her so :)  Upon arrival, we immediately jumped into the ocean as the aqua blue, crystal clear water was so inviting.  To our surprise, the Gulf turned out to be much colder than we had thought.  It didn't matter though as we still enjoyed swimming around with our masks on diving for seashells and watching the baby fish  swim around us.  Frank enjoyed relaxing, sleeping in, and watching TV, as our marathon bottom job really wiped him out (I'll write more about that in another post).  

We also spent some time in downtown St Petersburg, which was a short 20 mile drive from Redington beach.  We went to the Dali Museum, which had recently been moved into a new building.  We have gone to the old one and checked out his work a few years back, and since he's one of my favorite artists, we decided it was well worth the trip to take a look at the new location. The building is spectacular and the architectural design is an interesting mix of futuristic and organic details.  As described on the Dali museum website: "Designed by architect Yann Weymouth of HOK, the new building combines the rational with the fantastical: a simple rectangle with 18-inch thick hurricane-proof walls out of which erupts a large free-form geodesic glass bubble known as the "enigma." The "enigma," which is made up of 1062 triangular pieces of glass, stands 75 feet at its tallest point, a twenty-first century homage to the dome that adorns Dali's museum in Spain. Inside, the Dali houses another unique architectural feature - a helical staircase - recalling Dali's obsession with spirals and the double helical shape of the DNA molecule..." It houses one of the largest collections of his work, and it was wonderful to be able to soak in some art culture while in Florida.  

Frank's crazy panoramic photo

Being that it was Halloween, we of course dressed up and explored downtown.  We had a lovely dinner outside on the waterfront and watched a parade of people flow by with their crazy costumes. Ours were a little subdued, with me as Pocahantas, Frank as a Stud, and my sister as a creepy doll. All in all a very fun night and a great end to a relaxing respite.  

Downtown St Petersburg

The Stud

The Doll and Pocahantas

Goofing off