As mentioned previously, I was very excited to revisit the site of our family holiday back in August 1991 when we had the pleasure and good fortune of staying in a penthouse condo suite, right on the ocean. Did I find the condo?!
You betcha! As I crested the bridge leading onto Marco Island, I could see our condo building off in the distance, that’s how quickly I recognized it. I drove directly to the condo:
yes! we were on the TOP FLOOR! i remember the ocean side has floor-to-ceiling windows...
i remember we took photos, sitting on the wall at the entrance to the driveway - if i find them at home, i'll post them!
I had forgotten the name of the complex, but not the little wall at the front, there.
with my back to the condo, looking down the long driveway to collier blvd...
the front lobby/entrance...
view from a couple blocks away
I had such a good few minutes just wandering about a little, snapping photos (the place was absolutely dead quiet, except for a couple of maintenance crew). I remembered some of the highlights of our 10-day holiday:
- lounging by the pool listening to The Eurythmics on my bright yellow walkman
- an evening mini-golf contest
- all six of us piling into and out of a rental mini-van for our excursions
- trying to play tennis
- going on a beach walk with my Dad one afternoon – we got so thirsty that we stopped at a hotel poolside bar and scammed glasses of water, pretending to be guests
- taking a sightseeing boat excursion and having MR TOM CRUISE’S MANSION pointed out!! I believe I took 17 photos of it from every angle
- enjoying the best rootbeer and pizza fest of my life the first night we arrived
…and I could go on. One last memory:
dad and i ran ONE morning while we were here! i remember we took this road; the court turns into a private road - i remember being very hot!...
I parked my Black Stealth Machine in a strip mall lot this a.m. (and prayed it would be there upon my return! – hey – there were no signs saying NOT to park!) and ogled condo towers along the beach strip. I’m not sure if I had drool or sweat on my chin!
the lush grounds of Marriott! no one ever outdoes Marriott, i truly believe...
i couldn't resist another marriott shot - certainly makes a statement upon your arrival!
I found a sidewalk leading to Beach Access:
i had forgotten how W I D E the beach is, and how white the sand!
let's call this millionaire CONDO row, shall we?!
Marco Island is absolutely immaculate. Granted, it’s off-season – at times today the scene reminded me of a posh Ghost Town, but honestly, the condos and resorts are maintained to perfection. But when you pay top dollar, you expect perfection, I suppose, and settle for nothing less.
FUN PHOTO OF THE DAY!…for all my dog-owning friends!…
no placing fifi's doodoo in a regular ol' garbage can now!
That dog poo recepticle was on the grounds of this condo compound:
"the madeira" - wonder what the condo fees are per month?!
I can never tire of looking at fabulous condos – I so thoroughly enjoyed myself this morning:
you can tell it's the off-season - look at all the units with the weather-guard shades in place...
love the roofline and all the windows - unusual for the non-ocean view!
After I had satisfied my condo fixation, I drove over to Tigertail Beach. Marco Island only has two public beaches; this is one of them. We had never visited this beach on our 1991 holiday because, obviously, we had our own private beach area! 
I had thought I would spend the afternoon today at Tigertail…however, there was an $8 entry fee to the beach. I think I got spoiled by free access in Sarasota, and just didn’t feel like shelling out $8 for an hour or two…Since Tigertail held no special significance for me, I decided to return to Naples earlier than planned, and visit the beach near my Ramada.
Before leaving Marco Island, I did more of a home tour/sightseeing excursion (let’s just say today made up for last eve’s disappointment!).
i think i photographed this same house in 1991! i remember being enthralled with pastel houses, even then
pastels and palms - can't be beat for loveliness
pleasing to my eye...
the backyard dock, boat, and florida room is as common as the frontyard driveway
only on marco could you pull off this mailbox style!
Once again, I had debated whether I should stay the night on Marco Island, or daytrip-it from Naples. I decided on the latter option, and once again, am super happy with that decision. One, it would have cost me well over $250 for a night’s accomodation on the island (even on my anniversary I have trouble trying to justify that expenditure!), and secondly, there really as not enough to do to fill a full day on my own (without going fishing – haha!). Naples is only about 20 minutes away, so it was a perfect out-and-back sightseeing tour down memory-lane.
At the end of Banyon Drive, (remember the names of streets in Sarasota that were all citrus fruits? In my neighbourhood, here, there are tree names: Yucca Rd, Pine Ct etc) a two minute drive from my Ramada, there’s a Public Beach, so I decided to make use of that for this afternoon.
...or you can go to the public beach at the downtown pier
While the beach is free, you have to pay for parking. Once again, these Floridian parking systems flummoxed me! I lost $1.00 in quarters before I figured out how to activate the payment method!
would you believe it's $0.25 for 10 minutes?! But I still came out ahead over the $8 for Tigertail Beach!
park-like grounds, too - nice for the kiddies!
note the chickees on the right hand side! (the pier beach is definitely busier)
Would you believe the shelling here was better than Sanibel Island? To be honest, I had really hoped to find a shell on Sanibel to bring home with me as a memento of my trip. In keeping with a Life Lesson I’ve experienced already this vacation, when you’re not looking, you’ll find what you’re searching for…
see the shell on the right?
I picked this one up and am taking it home as “my shell.” At first I was like, no – it’s not perfect, part of its shell is missing (see the top). Then I thought – no, this is the one. I tend to be a perfectionist (no secret there!) and this shell will remind me that it’s OK to not be perfect all the time. Another trip a-ha moment!
Tonight is my last evening in Naples, so I am going downtown to watch and eavesdrop on the botoxed and fake-tanned Beautiful People of 5th Avenue.
kiki steps out
Tomorrow…hahahaha! I have not had yet enough of shopping!!! I will hit the HUGENORMOUS mall one block from here (I can’t leave Florida without scouting out Macy’s, Dillards, JC Penney – that just wouldn’t be right!). Then I drive north for my night’s accomodation…I’ll return to a city I’ve been to, but I have a reservation at a different hotel!
…and I’ll leave you with a little local humour…
...made me laugh, anyway!
