What do you do with out of town guests when they come to visit? The zoo?  A park? A historical attraction?  We all have the “tourist” locations in our own hometowns, usually it’s a place you never go to except when you have visitors.  When we lived in Washington, DC we became so tired of the museums on the mall that we completely stopped going, even with guests. Now that we’ve moved away I read my Smithsonian magazine each month and get excited about the temporary exhibits.  Surely they’re not that much more interesting now that I’ve moved away– I’m just not fatigued with my own back yard.

It’s the time of year when friends and family start to visit- where will you go to entertain them?  Here are some places and activities I’m looking forward to exploring in my own back yard.  What’s on your list?

Florida’s Everglades

I’ve been to Everglades National Park and I’ve done the touristy swamp boats, but I’d love to grab a map, a cooler and an air boat and spend the day exploring the wilderness on my own. The park encompasses only the southern 25 percent of the original marshlands.

Dry Tortugas National Park

This is probably one of the least visited National Parks in the country- it’s 70 miles west of Key West and the only transportation is via boat or sea plane. 46% of Dry Tortugas National Park is Research Natural Area. I’m fascinated that we have a national park on a remote island–sign me up for a camping trip!

Pick-Your-Own Oranges

I’m a big fan of pick-your-own anything. Now that we’re situated in Florida I’m hoping we can find a pick-your-own Orange orchard. Ideally it would look something like this vintage postcard… just with an alligator or two around the lake for you know, authenticity. I can just hear myself now- there’s orange marmalade, orange cake, orange cookies, orange juice, orange zest, orange chicken, orange fish…..

Photo Credit: Everglades- flickr user Blathazira, Dry Tortugas- flickr user dominic sherony, Vintage Orange Post Card- flickr user riptheskill via creative commons licensing.