Our fourth day on the island. Our final day on the island. I always feel a little melancholy on the last day of vacation because I know the end is near and I never want my vacations to end. Sunday was our fourth day and it started with a gentle sunrise and a cup of coffee on our dock at the Tarpon Treehouse, just as it had every other day. I would say drinking coffee while sitting in a rocking chair on a dock overlooking a quiet canal has to be one of the best ways of starting off any day. The hubs and I chatted about what our plans were for the day…… About what kind of day we wanted our last one to be. For me, that’s always more beach time! (Click the links for Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3 to read up on the first part of our Anna Maria vacation.)
Once we were well caffeinated, we threw our rented kayaks into the canal and set off for a morning paddle. Kayak rental on Anna Maria Island proved to be the simplest activity– you rent, they drop off, you paddle, they pick up. Ours were rented from Beach Bums who even took it upon themselves to not only deliver the kayaks but to also haul them to the backyard so they were a mere couple feet from the canal. Thumbs up, Beach Bums!
I wouldn’t necessarily classify myself as a “morning person”. Although I do typically wake up pretty early, I’m not the jump-out-of-bed-with-bells-on-type either. But what I do love about early mornings, which is one of the reasons I set that alarm clock so early, is that the stillness of the mornings before the rest of the world starts waking up is the most peaceful experience a person can have all day. When the world starts moving and getting to be its loud and noisy self, I think we can get a little lost in the hustle and bustle. This reason alone, is why we decided to head out on the water first thing.
The canal passageways behind our house and throughout the connecting Anna Maria neighborhoods lead out to Bimini Bay. We gently eased our way out into the bay and over to the Bird Preservation Island just out from the marina. Bird Preservation Island is a small piece of “land” that appears to be mostly mangrove trees (so don’t go expecting to get out of your kayak and take a walk around) that provides refuge for what I would say is likely, hundreds of birds. There were more pelicans than I was able to count but we enjoyed paddling up close and getting a bit of a birds-eye view (see what I did there?) of bird life on this island, albeit a stinky view, but a close up view nonetheless.
We continued our paddle adventure by finding our way out of Bimini Bay into the bay side waters of the island. I’ve never paddled in the ocean (not counting kayaking around a marina area once while in California) and was a little worried that the waters would be too rough, but again, the morning was calm and we were easily able to paddle just off the shore up to the, now vacant, building of the Anna Maria City Pier. We got to take in some more bird watching, as the closed-down pier walkway was lined with pelicans and different kinds of other birds of the island. The city pier used to lead out to the City Pier Restaurant via the boardwalk. The pier and restaurant are both closed now because Hurricane Irma did quite a bit of damage last year when she came through. Unfortunately, it looks like the city has to raise some money before getting funds from other agencies to help with rebuilding so it may be a while before the pier is back up and running. See their GoFundMe website here to donate.
After we tootled around the pier for a while, we finally headed back around the island and into the bay. After we were done checking in the sights and eventually called it a day, and headed back to our home. It was nearing noon and we were starving so we thought we better head off to find some food. I had read some reviews that recommended Sign of the Mermaid restaurant and we were hankering for something different to try, so we headed there for an early lunch.
Unfortunately, the Sign of the Mermaid is not located next to the beach, which is why we hadn’t made it a priority to go as of yet. We entered the restaurant through the back of the building and had to find our way to the front to get seated. The building itself seemed quite old, with having had very few updates through the years. There weren’t but just a handful of people dining, so we were able to be seated right away.
I’ve said this before and I will say it again but I am an atmosphere kind of gal when it comes to my dining experience. The Sign of the Mermaid had atmosphere, but I can’t say it’s the kind that anyone would want to pair with a meal. It was a little dark and drab, everything was old and old fashioned such as plastic tablecloths, old diner style chairs, old flooring, and their décor was a mix of Home Interiors 1980s and a hint of grandma-just-doesn’t-care-anymore (although according to their website it’s an “antique filled” building). The waitress we were assigned to had the personality of a wet mop and added no positive element to our experience, although that’s not directly the fault of the restaurant, they do keep that girl employed.
Now, all this being said, the food was delicious. It really was. I ordered the shrimp and crab sub that was served on homemade Cuban bread with fresh fruit on the side. I always miss fresh fruit when I’m on vacation and was so pleased that it came with my meal. The dish was more than I could eat but Robby and I both took in what we could; I didn’t want to waste good food! My hubs ordered the gulf mahi-mahi tacos (in true Robby form because he always gets fish tacos) and they were quite yummy as well. So, Sign of the Mermaid, I give you a thumbs up for flavor, variety, and deliciousness of the food, but I gotta give you a thumbs down for the setting.
While we were waiting for lunch, we continued out talk about how we wanted the rest of our last day to go down. I, of course, wanted more beach time and Robby wasn’t sure he could handle anymore sun baring down on his skin. So we cruised through the heart of town to do a little shopping. Now, when I’m on vacation, I am not one for wanting to spend my time shopping (oh who am I kidding, I never want to go shopping vacation or not) but I thought we could save my hubby’s skin if we did a little window shopping. After 10 minutes and 2 stores, we were done. There is really only a couple shops and the one was way too expensive and the other was an Olive Oil shop. Which is fine, because who wants to spend time shopping on vacation when you’re on a beautiful island with beautiful beaches?!?!?
We made a deal and I headed back to the beach, while Robby went home and did a little relaxing. So, I took my book and a couple drinks and off I went. I gotta say, relaxing with a book on the beach by yourself isn’t half bad. With nobody to talk to, you’re forced to truly just relax. Sunday on the beach was fairly busy as well but not as crowded as it was on Saturday. People were winding down their weekends and heading home to get ready for the coming week, I’m sure. And insert the melancholy feeling…. When the day is winding down and I know it’s the last time I’m going to be in a certain place (for vacation), I try to take it all in and really soak it up but inevitably, I tend to become a little sad and start missing it already.
The glorious part about Anna Maria (and honestly a lot of islands that I’ve been to) is the laid back vibes. I enjoy knowing that you can go out to dinner without getting all fixed up and there’s going to be others there that haven’t fixed themselves up yet either. So, after our beach time (Robby came later) we headed over to eat. Still wet. In our swimsuits/trunks. Which meant I did not have to go home and shower and change…. score for me! We had already been to The Sandbar a handful of times but eating dinner here meant walking a few feet there and sitting down. I ordered the crab cakes and even though we were not in Louisiana, Robby ordered the jambalaya, which he devoured and insisted I try because he loved it!
We hadn’t been to The Sandbar for dinner (only for lunch) so we were offered a different menu than we were used to seeing. The joint was packed full but we managed to find a table immediately. The food was fantastic, just like every other visit here, and the views of the gentle waves coming into shore as the day winds down, is no short of perfection as a way to end the day.
Once we dropped our bikes off at the treehouse, I coaxed Robby into taking another evening stroll along the bayside beach with me. I was hoping that we would find some more starfish and hermit crabs, like we did our first evening in Anna Maria and just wanted to get my feet wet one last time. As we were leaving our “neighborhood”, we met a very nice lady named Mary, whose home we had been admiring since the day we arrived. Mary and her husband accidentally vacationed on the island many years before, when they arrived in Tampa and couldn’t find any hotels. All this was back in the day before internet was available so they just kept driving until they found a vacant hotel, which just so happened to be on the island. They loved it so much, they bought two lots on the island and built a home years later. Mary was just as inviting and hospitable as every other local we had the pleasure of meeting. She was happy to be meeting tourists, which you think she would have tired of by now, and she asked where we were from and about our lives. She invited us back to come see her when we vacation to Anna Maria next, which we will hopefully be able to take her up on!
Our last beach stroll did not produce any starfish or hermit crabs or sand dollars like I was hoping but it did give me one last dip in the beautiful waters of Anna Maria.
Until next time Anna Maria! I miss you already!
