Tally-ho Tampa! (Tampa, FL)

If you live on the eastern end of the US, chances are this is what it looks like outside your door:

[caption id="attachment_421" align="alignnone" width="650"] the rain down in Charlotte NC[/caption]

In the South, our summers are filled with beautiful sunny mornings, and rainy, dark afternoons/evenings. Its just one of those things. Unfortunately, this often results in flight delays. Aint nobody got time for that!

About the only thing you can do when this happens is go run off somewhere sunny and precipitation-free. Dreary days lead to a bleak mood, and this is no bueno! It's summer! Time to have fun!

This week that delightful getaway happened to be Tampa, Florida.
The Florida flights are usually filled with vacation-hyper children, parents wrangling them, and old people. Lots and lots of old people.
This time around, pretty much everyone was asleep on our way down to the bay (which makes a flight attendant's job a breeze) and we made it to our hotel with plenty of leftover energy to get out and enjoy ourselves.

The first thing I did was check in to my hotel room. We stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn, which is a very comfortable hotel, and conveniently close to the airport.

[caption id="attachment_424" align="alignnone" width="698"] Image courtesy of Hilton Garden Inn[/caption]

My room sported a comfortable king sized bed, a flat-screen tv, a fridge, microwave and desk area. As all flight attendants who pack their own temperature sensitive food are aware—a room with a fridge and microwave is a huge blessing. Its a very kind consideration for these amenities to be provided by the hotel, so props to Hilton Tampa!

[caption id="attachment_415" align="alignnone" width="642"] My king sized bed[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_416" align="alignnone" width="642"] The room came with a microwave and mini-fridge—a very nice touch that not all value hotels offer[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_417" align="alignnone" width="642"] My nice comfy little desk and chair[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_413" align="alignnone" width="642"] my vanity area[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_414" align="alignnone" width="642"] The soap was conveniently labeled for the body part it was best suited for[/caption]

 

Within walking distance were some strip malls, including a Target, TJ Maxx, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Macy's. I decided to bypass the shopping and went straight for the nearest beach. Tampa's beaches have beautiful white sand and blue-green ocean. In this July heat, the water feels amazing to just soak and swim around in.  Remind yourself that you deserve this vacation, and life is too short not to abscond somewhere beautiful for awhile.

[caption id="attachment_428" align="alignnone" width="800"] Ahhhhh yesss[/caption]