I'll Drink to That

I love it when kids’ meals include a beverage in the price. I know that doesn’t seem like a big deal, but when some restaurants charge almost $3 for a child’s drink, even a reasonably priced kids’ meal quickly starts pushing $10.

Priced at just $5.95, the kids’ meals at Columbia come with a beverage. And not just some kind of soda—kids can also opt for milk and several types of juices.

That’s just one reason why Columbia is a great place to take kids. But it’s also a restaurant where young diners can try lots of different kinds of foods and learn about a piece of Florida’s history.

Though there are now several Columbia locations throughout the Sunshine State, the original restaurant opened in 1905 in Tampa’s Ybor City area. It was started by a Cuban immigrant and soon became a popular spot with the multiethnic workforce at the city’s nearby cigar factories. That original location still draws lots of diners today, who come to soak in its Old World charm and enjoy its much-lauded menu of Spanish cuisine (much of it offered in tapas-sized portions).

A trip to the original Columbia can be combined with other kid-friendly activities, like a ride aboard Tampa’s TECO Line Streetcar System and a visit to the Ybor City Museum State Park, which is housed in a former bakery and details the neighborhood’s history.

 

Or visit the location on Sarasota’s St. Armands Circle, a great spot for people-watching and a post-meal stroll. There are a slew of ice-cream shops and other dessert places on the circle for little ones in search of sweets, along with a handful of retailers (Fresh Produce, Crazy Shirts, Little Bo-tique) that carry kid-sized clothing and other items. Read more about my experience dining at Sarasota’s Columbia location with a kiddo in tow in the Whine and Dine column of the January/February 2014 issue of Mommy Magazine.

 

 

 

Animal Action

At a newly minted seven years old, Lindsay kind of finds herself in a bit of a no-man’s land when it comes to Busch Gardens Tampa. She’s outgrown many of the rides at the Sesame Street Safari of Fun area, both in terms of interest level (she pointed out the lack of excitement on the Big Bird’s Whirly Birdie Ferris wheel–style ride) and size (she’s taller than the height limit on some of them). But she’s nowhere near brave enough for many of the park’s thrill rides, even if she’s got the height to ride them.

So during our most recent visit to Busch Gardens, we wound up exploring areas that we’ve often overlooked or quickly passed through during Lindsay’s younger days. One of our new favorite sections is the Jungala area, home to all kinds of cool animals and a couple of rides just right for our first grader.

 

The Wild Surge has become a Lindsay must-do. We strapped ourselves in four times on this ride, which shoots up four stories out of a rocky outcropping and plunges back down several times over. Think of it as a slightly less intense version of the Tower of Terror at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

Another newfound fave is the Jungle Flyers. Lindsay was disappointed that it wasn’t operating during our recent visit; it was a highlight from our time at Busch Gardens last spring. The zipline-style ride soars fifty feet above the Jungala area, offering riders a bird’s-eye view of the animals below. I admittedly experienced a few moments of panic as I stood below and watched Lindsay take off, but seeing the smile on her face as she flew overhead quickly calmed me down.

Opportunities for interesting animal encounters abound in the Jungala section. I’m usually not a fan of the often-crazy, playground-style climbing structures at theme parks. (We can go to a playground for free, I always tell Lindsay.) But the one here has some nooks and crannies kids can scramble into for out-of-the-ordinary views of animals like gibbons and flying foxes.

In another portion of Jungala, a trail leads visitors to all of the different viewing areas for observing the park’s Bengal tigers, including a very cool “pop up” spot where folks can get an incredibly close look at the fierce creatures. “I could see the tiger breathing!” Lindsay exclaimed after emerging from the enclosure.

Maybe it’s because I’m not a thrill-seeker myself, but I’m happy that Lindsay’s in-between age has afforded us the chance to explore things at Busch Gardens Tampa we might miss otherwise. After all, it’ll only be a matter of time before she’s ditching mom and dad and running off for the twists and turns of a heart-stopping roller-coaster. So I’ll take these more sedate kinds of experiences while I can get them.

Streetcar Simplicity

My daughter knows what a tweet is. She can navigate an iPad with the best of them. So during a recent visit to Tampa, it was heartening to see that she got just as much of a thrill from an old-fashioned form of transportation as from a spirited session of Angry Birds.

We were cruising around the city on the TECO Line Streetcar System, which travels between Tampa’s Ybor City neighborhood and the southern edge of its downtown area. In car-centric Florida, we don’t get many chances to try out different modes of public transportation. So Lindsay excitedly climbed aboard the bright yellow, vintage-looking electric streetcar that pulled up to our stop in Ybor City.

We were the first passengers to board, so we had our pick of the car’s polished wood seats. Soon we began to make our way to the Channel District. My husband and I were happy to let someone else do the driving; Lindsay enjoyed watching the driver as he maneuvered the streetcar down the tracks, tooting its horn now and then to alert cars and pedestrians to its movements.

Thanks to this throwback to the early twentieth century, we were able to cover a lot of ground during our day in Tampa, without having to traverse unfamiliar city streets or search for parking spaces. And Lindsay got a taste of what life was like before everyone just punched coordinates into their own GPS devices.

Want to read more about our day riding the TECO Line Streetcar System? Check out my story in the July/August 2012 issue of RSW Living (free registration required).  

Riding (Not So) High

I do not have a brave child. Which shouldn’t come as a huge surprise, since I’m not the most courageous person myself. She’s definitely inherited her sense of caution and her trepidation concerning new experiences from me. So as my five-year-old daughter’s friends whoop it up on age-appropriate roller coasters and other theme-park rides where the thrill levels have been amped up a bit, she’s content to take things slow and get her kicks on merry-go-rounds, flying elephants, and other kiddie fare.

That’s why she’s always up for a trip to Busch Gardens Tampa, which offers plenty of ride options for kids whose tastes skew more mild than wild. She may have outgrown Elmo and Grover, but she still has a ball at the park’s Sesame Street Safari of Fun. There she takes in the view from an egg-shaped car on Big Bird’s Whirly Birdie Ferris wheel and gleefully giggles as she splashes down the speed bump–sized hill on the Zoe-patra & the Hippos of the Nile flume ride.

In the park’s Timbuktu area, she hops astride a (usually pink or purple) motorcycle, picks out the most bedazzled horse on the carousel, and flies through the sky in a kiddie-controlled biplane. Maybe one day she’ll want to tackle rides with big hills and high speeds. But for right now, she’s in no rush to grow up, and I’m just fine with that.

After all, once she does grow up a bit more, she’ll no longer be eligible for the SeaWorld and Busch Gardens Preschool Pass, one of the greatest perks the parks offer to Florida residents. Children five and under can get free, unlimited admission to both SeaWorld Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa during 2012. Just register your kiddos by May 31, and they can enjoy the parks for the rest of the year at no cost. And mom and dad can enjoy this rare instance when they don’t have to shell out cash at a theme park.