Travelog post for: Sissi

Today we go visit the Sponge Docks, which is the popular tourist destination in Tarpon Springs.



We walk along Dodecanese Avenue (named after the Dodecanese Islands of Greece).  There are a lot of Greek restaurants and shops selling sponges and Greek souvenirs.



This is how a sponge boat looks like.  While a 1894 newspaper article reported that Tarpon Springs did over a million dollars of business a year in the sponge industry, today there is hardly any sponge harvesting done here, due to costs and other factors.



This statue is a memorial to the divers. 



Look at all the sponges!  Most of them are imported from where costs are lower.





We find this friendly sea turtle.



Oh Mommy!  Help!



What a scare!! Now we need some food!



Gyros is a Greek specialty.  You can see the stacks of pita bread and the roasting meat.


 
Yum!  It's so delicious.  The bread is soft and warm, and the tzaziki sauce creamy.



We also have a Spanakopita, spinach pie, which is very flaky.



Dessert time!  We go a few doors down to a bakery.



Look at all the baklava, flans, cookies and more!  My mouth is watering!



Our host gets some of her favorite, the diples.  It's a thin waffle rolled up like a tube, with honey drizzled over it. 



What a fun trip but sadly it's time to go home. 



We pass the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.  The Travel TV Channel rated the Sunshine Skyway #3 in its special on the "Top 10 Bridges" in the World.