Florida Culture for the Week of Sept 16 by Josh Garrick

Sept 19 – The ‘Timeline’ Photography of Jay Mark Johnson at Jai Gallery

I am a big Disney fan and have many favorite rides in all four parks, including downtown Disney and the two water parks.

The chilly breeze rose and fell on the warm summer day. Clouds drifted aimlessly far above even the highest mountain peaks, and a forested valley fell below them. The only sounds were the chirping birds and the faint rush of a nearby waterfall.

What do you picture when you think of the beaches in Olympic Peninsula in Washington? Fog? Sand burrs? While those do exist, there's a lot more to do there than you would think.

Nobis Project, an educational non-profit organization, has launched Nobis World, a new professional development program for K-12 teachers which offers the exciting opportunity for teachers to travel domestically or abroad to experience cultures different from their own.

It is April 13th, 2011. As I stand in the bone-chilling air, I take in my surroundings. There are many people lingering about, some in groups and some alone. I turn my attention to the ticket booth where hundreds of concert-goers are waiting impatiently in line. Many of them look weary from the cold weather, while others happily await their turn.

It was sitting in a European airport cafe, sipping on a strange brew of coffee, that I realized there was a difference between myself and the perfidiously bouncy siblings around me.

For me, travel is like a quest.

Millions of people across the globe, including my mother, have been inspired by the book, and now movie, Eat, Pray, Love. When we arrived in Italy, my mother insisted we find the pizza place where Julia Roberts declared her love for the best pizza in the world. Hey, I had no complaints. I was all for finding great pizza in Italy. So off to Naples we went. 

The dark blue waves with their ribbons of turquoise flew through each other. The sky, so clear, enveloped the water. The potato farmers and their sheep stared at us tourists; the breeze blew, while the sun pushed at my back.