The temperature in Washington has fallen below 50'F, the skies are cloudy and grey and there is a light drizzle outside. So Alex and I are off to Florida for the weekend, in the hope that The Sunshine State lives up to its reputation. We're heading to a little resort named Amelia Island, a short drive from Jacksonville. I've been to Florida before, to Tampa and Miami, but this will be Alex's first taste of winter warmth - and I'm delighted to report that the forecast is sunny with temperatures in the high 80s.
Florida is famous for: DisneyWorld, Universal Studios, SeaWorld, St. Augustine (the oldest city in the US, founded in 1565), Florida Keys, Everglades, Cape Canaveral/Space Shuttles, Beaches, Alligators, Oranges, Key Lime Pie.
State capital: Tallahassee
Nickname: The Sunshine State
Population: 18,537,969
State flower: Orange blossom
State tree: Palmetto palm / Sabal palm
State reptile: Alligator
State mammal: Florida Panther
State bird: Mockingbird
State insect: Zebra longwing butterfly
State marine mammal: Manatee
State salt water mammal: Dolphin/porpoise
State freshwater fish: Largemouth bass
State saltwater fish: Sailfish
State shell: Horse conch
State stone: Agatized coral
State gem: Moonstone
State fossil: Eupatagus - an extinct type of sand dollar
State song: "Swanee River" ('Old Folks at Home')
State motto: "In God We Trust"
State beverage: Orange juice
Famous Floridians: John James Audubon, Fay Dunaway, Butterfly McQueen, Jim Morrison, Sidney Poitier, Thomas Edison, Harriet Beecher Stowe (a bit of a stretch but she wintered near Jacksonville for many years and wrote extensively about Florida), Ernest Hemingway (who seems to sneak in everywhere - Illinois and Idaho also claim him as a native), Dr. John Dorrie (the father of those two most important of American essentials: air conditioning and refrigeration).
Random fact 1: Florida is the only state that has 2 rivers both with the same name. There is a Withlacoochee in north central Florida (Madison County) and a Withlacoochee in central Florida. They have nothing in common except the name. And the fact they are rivers.
Random fact 2: Miami Beach pharmacist Benjamin Green invented the first suntan cream in 1944. He accomplished this development by cooking cocoa butter in a granite coffee pot on his wife's stove. (I bet she was furious).
Random fact 3: Venice is known as the Shark Tooth Capital of the World. Collecting prehistoric sharks teeth has been a favorite pastime of visitors and residents of the Venice area for years. It hosts an annual festival, the Shark's Tooth Festival, to celebrate the 'millions of shark's teeth that wash up on its sandy white beaches'.
(With acknowledgement to www.50states.com).
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