[Beth] I live on the west coast of Florida, mid-way up the coast in a city named Tampa.  I was raised only 25 miles away – closer to the beaches of the Gulf Coast and was thrilled as a child to swim in the Gulf of Mexico weekly!  To this day I insist on living in a home that has a water view.  Now that I live in Tampa (which is not as close to the beaches as where I grew up) we found a home on a lake, and it provides me the serenity and connection with water that I thrive on.

Our city is diverse in the mix of people, cultures and languages.  Spanish is definitely the second most widely spoken language in our community.  The dialects vary because the Spanish speaking people hail from Puerto Rico, Cuba, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Spain.  I love that the Spanish I learned in Chile and continued using for more than 30 years is easily understood by the majority of Spanish-speaking people I interact with.

As one drives around my city of Tampa you witness food trucks featuring food from many Latin American countries, local markets selling food indigenous to these countries, and stores that sell clothing specific to their cultures.  I LOVE IT!  It’s like traveling to a far away place without the cost or hassle of travel.

It’s hot in Tampa.  It’s humid in Tampa.  I opt for the must-have air conditioning compared to the cold, the snow, and the dreary skies associated with many of our more northern states here in the U.S.

This is a photo of my family on the beaches about 10 years ago!

(oops, please wait… photo coming)

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