At-home Tourist

This summer is the first chunk of time I’ve had off with no obligations in years. Perhaps even a decade.

However long, it’s been a long time….

I turned down a summer teaching job, since I saved up enough to get me through summer. So what is this teacher who is off for the summer doing?

Exploring.

I love to travel, as you know from many of my past posts. This summer, my travel is local. With the expenses from the move, I can’t really afford to go somewhere more exotic, so why not see what my new ‘hood has to offer.

Today I explored historic Roser Park and Greenwood Cemetery. Roser Park is one of the oldest neighborhoods in St. Pete. It abuts Booker Creek, and the historic park has descriptive markers that follow the creek and some of the side streets. I went on a photo shoot through the park.

It’s nice to find so much beauty among the urban setting of St. Pete. Certainly there’s the Bay, but it’s nice to know these hidden gems are scattered through the town as well.

I learned the 9th Street bridge is the oldest in St. Pete.

The bridge also exhibited interesting artwork.

The view from the top of the 9th Street bridge was pretty cool too. So many cars were driving by, probably not even realizing this little gem is down here.

After finishing my tour along Booker Creek, I walked down to Greenwood Cemetary on 11th Avenue South. This cemetery houses some of St. Pete’s pioneers, as well as Civil War, WWI, and WWII veterans. I thought it would be interesting to go look for cool looking and old graves.

I will say I was a bit disappointed. After going to Pere Lachaise in Paris, American cemeteries are quite bland. Boxy headstones with little character. But there is art hidden in those headstones. And there is beauty in Mother Nature reclaiming some of those headstones.

While the more statuesque headstones are cool, in this cemetery I found myself more drawn to the ones that have fallen into disrepair.

There was evidence of visitors too. Someone had come over Memorial Day to pay their respects.

It was fun to explore more of my new town. Even this small trip, and the others I’ve started taking, took me out of my comfort zone. I had to consult my map a few times to make sure I was heading the right way to get my bike. I got to bike to a new place. I got to see new things.

Living daringly doesn’t have to be jumping out of planes. (Something I’ve never done, by the way.) Sometimes it is just taking a few hour biking/walking tour of a new place in your town.