Florida and a Greek style together

<P>Imagine a beautiful, classic Greek fishing village, right on the water, Greek music coming from all the seaside shops, the smells of Greek food wafting out on the sea breezes. Imagine whitewashed buildings with blue accents. You don’t have to go to Greece for this experience, just head to Tarpon Springs, Florida.</P>
<P>Tarpon Springs boasts the largest Greek population in the United States, as it makes up about 1/3 of the community. Its inhabitants are the descendants of Greek sponge divers who came to Florida from Greece around the turn of the century. This influence has become the backbone of Tarpon Springs and the art of Sponge Diving still exists today.</P>
<P>A wonderful way to start your romantic day in Tarpon Springs is at the Tarpon Springs Castle Winery, located at 320 E. Tarpon Avenue. You can usually see a sign in the front of the winery around 11:30 advertising Wine Tastings. As you enter the winery you are greeted by Diana, who will give you a history of the winery and how the wines are produced. Diana and her husband Joe make wines in the old world tradition. The entire process of wine making is done without preservatives, sugars or chemicals and is personally supervised by the family. This attention to detail and the care that is put into the making of these wines is clear when you taste them. Each of the nine wines you taste (a variety of reds, whites and dessert wines) are distinctly flavorful with a clean finish. You can experience the grapes as they were intended, not the fillers, sugars and chemicals which are components of many other wines. The tasting itself is a great bargain at $5.50 which includes a wine glass with the winery’s emblem on it to take home. If you want you can purchase a bottle of your favorite for later.</P>
<P>After the wine tasting, head down to the Sponge Docks, where all the action is. If you are feeling hungry, walk down Dodecanese Blvd and check out all the restaurants featuring Greek specialties. Many claim to have “The Most Authentic Greek Food” or the “Best Gyro in town, but if you want to eat at the restaurant where the Patriarch eats when he comes to town, try Mykonos. You will not be disappointed. The restaurant is family owned and has a wonderful ambiance. From the minute you walk through the doors, you feel like you are in Greece. The smells of wonderful food are overwhelming. If you listen to people talk in the restaurant you will hear a lot of Greek being spoken. Therefore the restaurant’s claim that they are “Florida’s Most Authentic Greek Cookery” seems right on the mark.</P>
<P>After lunch walk around the sponge docks and check out all the shops full of sponges, shells and Greek paraphernalia. If you are not into shopping you can take a boat tour to experience a live sponge dive in the traditional manner circa 1905. The sponge diver dresses in a huge orange diving suit, equipped with boots made of iron and a huge copper helmet then gets screwed onto his suit. He is then is draped with several weights. Between his suit and the weights, he gets over 170 pounds of extra weight in order to help him sink to the bottom of the bay where the sponges are. So he dives in the water and after watching him descend the depths, after a few minutes he will come up with a sponge. You will also learn about Sponge Diving, the many varieties of sponges and their uses.</P>
<P>After the sponge diving experience go to Hellas Bakery, the largest and best bakery in town, according to the locals. Hellas bakery has a huge variety of Greek and non-Greek pastries, as well as many varieties of coffee. Or try a Frappe, made with coffee, cream and sugar. It is frothy and delicious.</P>
<P>For a romantic end to your day, drive out to Fred Howard Park and Beach and enjoy a picnic while watching the sunset off the gulf coast – don’t forget that bottle of wine!</P>
<DIV>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD vAlign=top>
<DIV class=sig>
<P>Jenn DiPiazza is a freelance writer living in Florida. She has a degree in Anthropology and Native American studies. Her recent writing topics include Romantic Getaways, Northeast Travel, Florida Travel, Mediterranean Travel, Mediterranean Foods, Social Justice Issues and Anthropology. You can check out some of her latest work on her blog Jenn's Travel Closeup at: <A href="http://www.travelcloseup.com/" target=_new rel="nofollow">http://www.travelcloseup.com</A></P>
<P>Article Source: <A href=http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Jenn_DiPiazza rel="nofollow">http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jenn_DiPiazza</A></P></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></DIV>