Naples Pier--Ooh, La La!

Why the ooh-la-la? Because we heard a LOT of French on the pier today. That means the French Canadians are here, and time for Sparky to brush up on her French! I love listening to people speak French, it's such a beautiful language, but unfortunately, I remember very little of the seven years I took way back when...The more I listen, though, the more it comes back.

We took it easy today, did some errands, got my bike in tip top shape at the bike shop, swapped out my former seat for a new gel one..I plan on doing LOTS MORE bike riding...And Eldy is back on HIS bike, riding to town the last couple of days..no mean feat for him, it's 3.2 miles one way from our RV park into town. 'Course what he eats when he gets there is NOT Sparky's business...just teasin', honey...he either just rides in and out back home again, or gets himself a cup of coffee at Starbucks downtown....

Naples Beach -view from the pier

A little shelter from the sun at the pier

We found out that there are music/festival nights in downtown Naples on Thursdays. The second Thursday of each month is 5th Avenue's music fest..live entertainment up and down the streets--fun! We'll be going this Thursday evening. Then, we found out that 3rd Avenue has its music thing goin' on EVERY Thursday night. The fun starts at 6:00 PM. Third Avenue is a historical district...it's filled with very cool shops and VERY expensive ones at that.

Tile cobblestone walk in front of the pier

After driving around a little bit, we found the Naples Pier. The pier is down at the end of 12th Street or Avenue. I believe parts of it date back to the late 1880's. This side of Naples is such a beautiful part of town--huge palms lining the streets, lush foliage, beautiful flowering azaelas and other summer flowers.....You park your car about a block from the beach if you can't find parking any closer. It's metered parking, a quarter gets you only ten minutes of time! But the walk down the 1,000 foot pier is so pleasant and so are the views. And I'm not talking bikini views, either, Mr. Eldo! But I could be!  It depends on the weather and your luck, I guess. You can get a snack on the pier, fish from it, and even rent a set of fishing equipment for 33.00 and fish your heart out for the day! What you'll catch, I'm not sure! There's shade and benches to sit on if you just want to watch everybody else, which is what we like to do sometimes.

It's beautiful all over downtown Naples and on the outskirts as well....all the median parkways and curbsides are beautifully landscaped and well maintained, the palms are trimmed, flowering shrubs and bushes are carefully attended. Everything is mulched, it's just a gorgeous city! It's amazing!

(Photos today are all from Eldy's iphone 4S. It's got a great camera on it, and it shoots beautifully in low light even!)

Tomorrow, we're headed for a national park in Florida. I didn't know there was one! We'll tell you all about it soon......P.S. Karen, whom we met at Nick's Rally with the "twin" Phaeton...I have no way to email you. Can you please send me your email address? I tried to contact you thru your comment, and it didn't show an address for you. Thanks!