There’s a strong perception among Tampa residents that to go to the beach, you have to haul yourself down the highway to St. Pete, or across the sprawl of Clearwater.  After all, the body of water closes to Tampa itself is the industrialized Port of Tampa, fit for nothing but deep-keeled shipping vessels and hungry pelicans.  Right?

Not quite.  There are a handful of amazing beaches much closer to Tampa proper, out past the metallic clang of the port, and right at the doorstep of South Tampa residents.

Caption: Cypress Point Park. Credit: Vic Wagner, Flickr.

Cypress Point is a small park with a mix of beaches and hiking trails.  The beaches don’t quite match Fort DeSoto, but combine them with beautiful, forested paths and you’ve got something pretty special.

Davis Islands Seaplane Park. Credit: Path to Enlightenment, Flickr

Maybe the most unusual beach in South Tampa is at the Davis Islands Seaplane Basin Park.  It’s located next to the Yacht Club, so if you’re into watching the tall ships come in, this one’s for you.  It’s also one of the better off-leash dog parks in town, so if you love both seafaring and canines, you’re truly blessed.

Picnic Island Beach. Credit: the_blue_lotus, Flickr

But the best treat in store for Tampa beach bums might be Picnic Island Beach, perched right at the lip of the Port of Tampa.  You might catch a glimpse of a freighter or two, but you’re likely to be more occupied by the white sand beaches and crystal-clear waters – pretty much what you’d get if you trekked all the way to Passe-a-Grille, and it’s right in your South Tampa backyard.

Locations:

Cypress Point Park is located at 5620 W. Cypress St., Tampa, FL 33607.

Davis Islands Seaplane Basin Park is located at 864 Severn Ave
Tampa, FL 33606.

Picnic Island Beach is located at 7409 Picnic Island Blvd.
Tampa, FL 33616

American life is pretty well known to change at a ferocious pace.  It’s strange to think about how different things were fifty years ago – most people still lived close to where they were born, social equality for women and minorities were much farther off, and families still sat down to the dining room table together every night.

Well, some things change for the better, and some things . . . just change.  While some of us work hard to hang on to the old dining room tradition, the vast majority of families on the go have settled into different rhythms than their parents or grandparents’ generation.  And naturally, they want a home that reflects those changes.  That’s why now, instead of a separate dining room, many architects, developers, and remodelers are opting for what’s known as a Great Room – a single space that flows between a kitchen, a dining area, and a living room or lounge area.

The Great Room concept is a response to a lot of social trends – some of them great, some maybe not so much.  The Great Room accommodates the hectic flow of modern family life, as dads, daughters, and Cousin Joe zoom around on their own missions, snatching snacks from the fridge and counter willy-nilly.  That might not please those who see the ideal family interaction as five people sitting down for an hour over a meal.  The Great Room is also a monument to contemporary informality – it makes just as much sense to carry a plate of food to the couch in front of the T.V. as to the kitchen table.

But the Great Room also strengthens families, since the open, flowing space makes it easier for us to connect. Mom is no longer sequestered away while the rest of the brood eagerly await the fruits of her labor – instead, the kitchen in a Great Room becomes a social space, with the kids hanging out and watching the magic. And for today’s sometimes larger families, which are more and more likely to include three generations under one roof, the spaciousness of a Great Room can be a very practical amenity.

When family isn’t the order of the day, a Great Room’s flow can make for a great football Sunday or wine bash, giving people different areas to congregate in.  And this sort of layout is truly at its best when our family lives mesh with our social lives – during the holidays. The cooks and gourmets can hang out in the kitchen, the social butterflies can chit-chat in the dining area, and the jocks can watch football – each doing their own thing, but staying connected by space, and freely mingling.  Certainly an improvement over the old days, when a family would be divided up between totally separate rooms.

So, if you’re in the market for a home, consider how your life works – and how you’d like your home to work with it.  Maybe a Great Room would fit your flow.

Tampa is a city of immigrants – travel the byways of Temple Terrace or Clearwater and you can find almost any variety of ethnic grocery store, and South Tampa gets to taste the benefits in the form of an array of fantastic global restaurants.  But one of the most public, friendly, and authentic ways to get a glimpse of Tampa’s immigrant life has to be a Sunday-morning visit to Wat Mongkolratanaram.

Wat What?

Indeed.

Wat Mongkolratanaram (http://wattampainenglish.com/) (mercifully a.k.a. Wat Tampa) is a Thai Buddhist Temple serving Tampa’s Thai community.  It sits on the banks of the Hillsborough River just east of South Tampa, and every Sunday its parishioners hold an open Sunday Market, where they cook and sell a variety of authentic Thai home cooking.  The temple’s story (http://wattampainenglish.com/temple-history.html) is pretty amazing – it was founded in 1981, and its members have spent three decades expanding it to what you see today – including a glittering artwork of a central temple, where on Sundays you can catch both Buddhist services and a friendly cultural introduction for outsiders.

The temple has expanded in large part with proceeds from the Sunday Market, which began with two tables in 1993.  Now, it sprawls across the length and breadth of the place, including not just dozens of kinds of food, but fresh herbs and a variety of potted plants, as well.  Not surprisingly, you can get a really good deal here on herbs that are important to Thai cooking, like lemongrass and galang.

The experience of visiting this cultural landmark during the Sunday morning market is one of Tampa’s truly unique pleasures.  Look around and you’ll see all types of people coming together in a friendly, peaceful environment, spreading out on the dozens of red picnic tables, and strolling a few short paths – but most of all, enjoying rich Thai food cooked by the Temple’s members.

The food is homey and basic, including a variety of soups, noodles, and pastries (some are spicy, so be sure to ask).  I was surprised to find that these Buddhists are definitely not vegetarians, as most of the plates come piled with beef or chicken.  Be prepared to wait on line, especially for the fresh soups – but it’s worth it.  On a Zagat scale, the food might not compete with plates from South Tampa’s array of polished Thai experiences, such as Lemongrass (http://www.lemongrassbestthai.biz/).  But take your dish and settle into the park-like atmosphere, say hello to a neighbor, and enjoy one of the most relaxing Sundays I can imagine.  (That said the deep-fried plantains are worth the trip on their own – sweet, crusty, crunchy balls of batter that, I’m sure, have a banana in there somewhere.)

Directions:

To get to Wat Tampa, take I-4 east from downtown,  take the North 50^th street exit heading south, then head east on Palm River Road until you hit the slow-moving column of cars waiting for a spot in the Temple’s crowded parking lot. Don’t’ worry, though – the small army of parking attendants find a way to squeeze everyone in, and after that, the bustle is part of the charm.