American Latino Heritage Fund Roadtrip- Recap

Babushka was asked to write a recap on her part of the American Latino Heritage Fund Roadtrip. Estan ready?  Day by day countdown (with links to the posts) and a fav moment/memory/fact of the place will be listed. Get your dancing shoes on My Beautifuls- a bailar rapido!!

Day 1- Tallahassee  De Soto Winter Encampment 

and the Museum of Florida History

This being my first interview/video, I didn't know who was more ill at ease- Dr. Daniel Seinfeld or BB. Still, along with embarrassed laughs we managed to get some facts in.

The second part of the day was spent at the Museum of Florida History examining 

"La Florida: Forever Changed". 

One of BB's fav paintings- by Xavier Cortada

And let's not forget the exclusive behind the scenes look at the lab with Conservator Catherine Sincich.

 This was too cool- BB felt like a combo Dexter and Indiana Jones. 

She had me at "chocolate"; check out my youtube channel to see what I mean.

Day 2- Tallahassee   Mission San Luis and TWAM

The beauty, history, and activities at Mission San Luis son digno of a full day visit- at the minimum!  Where Spaniards and the Apalachees learned to live together as two separate people, to then join together as a new breed.  Multi- cultural- ESO!!!

  

And of course it's always great to be amongst friends. 

TWAM -  Theater With A Mission

                       

                                   BB & Costume Mistress Gabrielle Reed

  

Ben Gunter, TWAM Director & BB

and for those who missed the mini intro on TWAM, here's the original 10 min. version.

Day 3- Bradenton   De Soto National Memorial

Such a vast, picturesque site on the waters of Bradenton, the De Soto National Memorial

has many things to be proud of.  The Rangers, the grounds, but what struck me the most of this place was its dedication to community- especially the youth.  If you'd like your children to learn/live history and the beauty of nature, this is definitely the place to go to.  They do not take their Jr. Ranger program lightly and one of BB's highpoints of this trip was being given an honorary Jr. Ranger Badge.  Thank you Ranger Jorge Acevedo for the badge and all the information that was bestowed along with it.

Mine and I'm not sharing.

Year round activities http://www.nps.gov/deso/planyourvisit/events.htm 

Feibu Fabuloso https://www.facebook.com/pages/De-Soto-National-Memorial/140942332612993

Day 4 - St. Augustine   Castillo de San Marcos 

Started in 1672 the fort of St. Augustine, the Castillo de San Marcos is still going strong and open to the public everyday except Christmas.  Plan at least 3 hours to visit, you don't want to be rushed during your travel back to time.  With the self-guided tours, the rangers talks and the re enactments it's very easy to find yourself in another era in this well maintained and proper example of Spanish colonization and construction.

  

Day 5- St. Augustine Beach    Fort Matanzas

Babushka could truly spend a whole day here at Fort Matanzas National Monument .  

Besides the beauty of the place, 

I could listen to this Ranger for hours!

My Beautifuls, gone are the days of the boring Park Rangers.  Today's Rangers are animated, make jokes, ask questions- they do the schtick to make it stick!!  A wonderful philosophy that I embrace wholeheartedly and I commend the National Park Service for training and encouraging this sort of storytelling to the people.

Day 6 -  Tampa      Ybor City Historical District

Ybor City, what can I say about it except- I wanna go back!!! 

 It's a town of contradiction, a town of extremes- perfecto for BB.  The power of determination and the styles of a simpler time, both are still evident in Ybor City.  The history of a time when cigars were king in Ybor and the community its' faithful and dedicated servants.  A time when honor was everything and management and labor respected their places and each other; together to be the best.

The Don Vicente de Ybor Historic Inn

BB relaxing on the porch of a worker's "casita"

And the Latino contribution of Ybor City? 

 Dr. Wallace Reyes does the honors:

Day 7 - Miami     Freedom Tower

400,000 Cubans went through these doors;

 the city of Miami- and the US

would never be the same. 

And so ends BB's recap.  Almost.  

Having made so many videos (unbelievable) I will now do my version of an acceptance/thank you speech.

To the Hispanicize team and Maria de los Angeles for believing in this vieja viajera,

to my fellow bloggers Alex de Carvalho, Cristy Clavijo-Kish, Eva Smith, Lance Rios and Roberto Rios III  for being so generous with their help and encouragement.

 to the sponsors- the American Latino Heritage Fund, GM Diversity and Verizon Wireless for their marvelous contributions, 

to the wonderful people BB interviewed who took time out of their lives to share their vast knowledge and experience,

to the Park Rangers who were terrific and oh so entertaining, 

and to you My Beautifuls for following my adventures and for bailando con migo.  

To all of you I say Mil Gracias and I can't wait to do it again for VivaFlorida 500!

; )

Nos vemos prontos.

Babushka Besos a todos.  Cuidensen.

P.S.  Por supuesto there are more people and organizations (Visit Florida,Florida's Historic Coast,Visit Bradenton)   I need to thank and highlight in future posts, and I will- I promise.  Just let me get a chance to buy some new dancing shoes; I kinda wore these out.

P.P.S.  There will be a recap Tweety Fiesta next week- I'll keep you posted. 

American Latino Heritage Fund Roadtrip- Ybor City

Day 6 of the American Latino Heritage Fund Roadtrip and Babushka's visiting Ybor City.  Now part of modern day Tampa Florida, Ybor City has so many fascinating stories that a 2 hour walking tour just started my curiosity. I never imagined the importance this quaint locale had in our nations history.  Imaginate, I could have kept asking  questions even though the sol was already out- so you know BB was captivated!

  And here's the man in the know- 

Dr. Wallace Reyes, Historian and Master Cigar Maker

Now let's start listening to some of his know- Introduction into Ybor City's History.

 

The main industry in Ybor city was the cigar.  Here the four nationalities came together to produce first class quality that was world renowned, but it was not just the quality of the cigar that was exemplary. The business practices and social organizations in Ybor City were ahead of their time in the US and the pride of being here was handed down to each generation. Dr. Reyes illustrates this point in this video where he explains a typical workday for a cigar artisan.

In a city where Spaniards, Cubans, Italian and Germans all resided together you know there had to be good food.  Queee?? You thought I'd go to a Cuban town and not talk about food?  JU SO FONII!! As a matter of fact, on my youtube channel you'll see Dr. Reyes explain the history of the Ferlita Bakery -current housing of the museum. Naturally this brings to BB's mind the current debate about the real Cuban Sandwich.  Sorry Miami, the ORIGINAL sandwich was called "The Brick" and then renamed "Cuban" sandwich because it became the main lunch item for Cuban cigar artisans.

Home of the ORIGINAL Cuban Sandwich

 As a matter of fact, thanks to the Italian influence in Ybor City, there were Italian meatcuts in the sandwich. A sandwich invented because the factory owners noticed that artisans would be slower after a typical Cuban lunch.  In that, time has not changed.  Heje  Siesta- a tradition BB is proud to continue.  

 ; ) 

And yes, another part of tradition I continue, loving my Latino roots, however I have never visited Cuba- until now. When I said Ybor City was a Cuban town I was not kidding. The Jose Marti Park located in Ybor City is governed by the same laws as embassies; it is still owned by the Cuban government and currently protected by the United States of America.

 

Check out the full story on BB's Feibu Video page  

http://www.facebook.com/BBabushka/videos

and while you're there check out the many pics I posted on Ybor

BBP (Babushka Bullet Points) of Ybor City

* Thanks to the foresight of Vicente Martinez-Ybor and Eduardo Manrara, an industrial and cultural powerhouse arose out of the Florida swamps.  

*Ybor city revolutionized the Southeast United States, was second only to New York City in the artistic and theatrical events of the day, and brought together four distinct cultures in creating a community dedicated to cigars and their distribution.  '

*The collaboration resulted in a world wide reputation for superior cigars- so much so that each of the major cigarmaking houses were the exclusive suppliers for different royals throughout Europe.

* Was the home to advanced thinkers in the area of industrialization and business practices

* At the peak year, 1929, half a million cigars were rolled in Ybor City

*DEFINITELY take the Ybor City Historic Walking Tour. Make reservations con tiempo and a recorder- sooo wish I had done the latter. http://yborwalkingtours.com/

Will I be going back to visit Ybor City? 

Let's see... Dr. Reyes just skimmed the surface of the city's history.

I didn't get to try the Ybor City/Tampa Cuban Sandwich in the famous, open since 1905, 

oldest US restaurant, the Colombia  Restaurant

And as if that wasn't enough, there's a memory that will always be haunting and calling me...

Nicahabanacigar.com
Continuing the tradition-
the duo of decadence

Ybor City-have the bread & the cafecito hot,  que pa'ya voy!

Babushka Besos a todos.  Cuidensen.

P.S.  Thanks to Dr. Wallace Reyes, a man of much knowledge and many talents.  

His cigar company: http://cigarsoftampa.com/  

His world record breaking cigar: http://worldslongestcigar.com/
See his thoughts on the Latino Heritage in Ybor City and its' effects on the nation- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNnqX-hvtTg

P.P.S. The National Park Service has an interesting lesson plan about Ybor City- captures the history and feel of the place nicely.http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/51ybor/51Ybor.htm

P.P.P.S.  Thanks again to the sponsors of this roadtrip- without them there would have been no trip and I couldn't have expressed myself.  Now, de verdad, how boring would that have been?? Gracias.

American Latino Heritage Fund- De Soto National Memorial Bradenton, Fl.

Day 3 of  the American Latino Heritage Fund Roadtrip in Florida and BB's in Bradenton visiting the De Soto National Memorial. Queee?? Ok si, Babushka passed Bradenton enroute to Tallahassee, and it would have made more sense logistically to stop there first pero the interview I had wasn't until Friday  and I'm sure you'll agree once you see the videos, it was worth the wait.  Also, by Friday  Babushka is more familiar with the video camera and with interviewing sooo... If a picture can say a thousand words, imaginate how many words are in a video!

Babushka will leave this post in the very capable hands of Park Ranger Jorge Acevedo, Chief of Interpretation of the De Soto National Memorial in Bradenton Florida.

Esta bien, ok si,  BB did have a brief cameo.  

You didn't really think I wouldn't say anything did you?

JU SO FONII!!!

As you could probably tell by the video, this was just a taste of the tales Ranger Acevedo was to share. The full length first intro is on my youtube page and has lovely paisajes as well as interesting facts.

And now the second video showcasing the De Soto Memorial Museum/Theater, because it's interesting, expertly decorated, and last but definitely not least- air conditioned!  Oh yeah.

Nice right?  At this point BB had rehydrated and we were ready to continue visiting the rest of the site. Thankfully the rains were keeping away and Ranger Acevedo had commandeered a golf cart to visit the vast territory. On Babushka's Feibu page you'll see the fotos of this visit- worth the peek.

And now the De Soto National Memorial- for the young and young at heart:

The BBP (Babushka Bullet Points) on the De Soto Memorial:

* Commemorates the years of Conquistador Hernando De Soto's expedition for riches in La Florida. 1539 - 1543

* Through records of the expedition we are able to learn about the natives of this land.

* Houses a tasteful and very well structured museum and theater.

* Is very active in the Jr. Ranger program and in serving the youths of the area.

* Has year round activities http://www.nps.gov/deso/planyourvisit/events.htm 

* Feibu Fabuloso https://www.facebook.com/pages/De-Soto-National-Memorial/140942332612993

Maravilloso Memorial verdad?  What's also the verdad is that although BB was more familiar with the operation of the camera, the editing options are still out of my grasp.  Lucky for us though, knowledgeable guides have been on hand and their talks have been interesting enough to compensate for my film making follies.  Besides, the bloopers are so BB!

; )

Babushka Besos a todos.  Cuidensen.

P.S. I was bestowed the title of Jr. Park Ranger- oh yes I was!!  Please look at the video showing the nombramento; I'm so honored.  https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=278469602253719

P.P.S. I'd like to express Mil Gracias to Park Superintendent Scott Pardue for graciously letting me monopolize Ranger Acevedo during my visit, and to the other rangers who were always ready to help.  Por supuesto this couldn't have been done without Ranger Acevedo whose dedication to the De Soto Memorial is evident and very appreciated by this Vieja Viajera.  Nos vemos in Tally for VivaFlorida 500!