We started our stay in Kissimmee on October 1, 2020 and will be at the Tropical Palms Resort until April 1, 2021. We have stayed here many times and it a nice resort. Our stay started, however, when we pulled into our first site. Immediately our front driver’s wheel sunk into the ground. Apparently there has been a lot of rain before we arrived and the ground was very wet. The maintenance crew came over to check it out. One of the crew members asked Mike, “What happened?” After Mike rolled his eyes, he replied, “My wheels sunk into the dirt.” DUH! Anyhow, they had to find another site for us which required Mike to back out of the site we were in and cross the road behind him into the new site. Of course, that meant more ground being torn up. In the end, we are now in a great site with our wheels on the macadam instead of being on dirt.
The interesting change in this park this year is how empty it is. Remember that this is time when everyone head’s south for warmer weather. Usually, there is not a site open during the snowbirding months (Nov-Mar) but this year, only half of the sites are full. This is because the Canadians cannot or will not cross the borders to come to Florida.
Even though the park is half empty, we still have had some “weekend warriors” who think they don’t have to worry about other people. Twice we have had to deal with blaring music at 2:00 a.m. We called security who had to call the Sheriff. We are amazed at people who think they own the world/air around them and don’t have any consideration.
Other than the WW, most people stay to themselves so it is quiet here. Lorraine tries to walk every morning through the park with Dublyn which usually means about a 3.5 mile walk.
We still need things to do and went out to Kissimmee to look at murals. We were interested in knowing what the origin of murals were and according to Crybayarea, “the earliest known murals existed in the Paleolithic era, and were discovered in caves in southern France, circa 30,000 BC.” You might want to read more about it at the link about. It discusses the evolution of murals. This was interesting to find out and we really appreciate the ones we continue to find.
Everyone probably knows about Orlando and of course Disney but Kissimmee is just down the road. It actually is the largest city of Osceoloa County and is part of the Orlando-Kissimmee-Stanford statistical area. (By the way, Orlando is in Orange County). Ranching was an important part of the local economy until Disney arrived when it took over the open range cattle lands, cattle ranches. Now tourism is the main economy driver of course.
Before we start the murals, we found the Monument of States. “The Monument of States was conceived as a symbol of American unity after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and is located at 300 E. Monument Avenue in Kissimmee, Florida. It was built by volunteers, with donations of stone that came from around the world, including a rock from President Franklin D. Roosevelt. It was the brainchild of Charles W. Bressler-Pettis, who also hoped it would become a unique tourist attraction for the city.” “When the United States came under attack from the Empire of Japan on December 7, 1941, Charles W. Bressler-Pettis was a retired physician living in Florida, and was president of the Kissimmee All-States Tourist club that catered to senior citizens. He had served in both the Royal Army Medical Corps and the United States Army during World War I. Pettis devised an idea to erect a unique monument in Kissimmee that he hoped would inspire American solidarity in response to the attack. As a promoter of local tourism, Pettis was also looking to draw visitors to Kissimmee with a unique attraction.”
We could not find Texas but was able to find Pennsylvania.
And the one from President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
On to the murals
BROADWAY PIZZA BAR
10′ X 30’
KISSIMMEE, FL 2020
Check out the YouTube video on this mural: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiwmlVYtGEo
Created by German Lemus
(This is spray painted)
Check out the video of this being painted: (You will need to log into Facebook to see this): https://www.facebook.com/CStanleyCreative/videos/308896733368655
Artist: Nicole Holderbaum
Address: 106 Broadway
Artist: Steven Teller
Address: 120 Broadway
We found this on E. Darlington. It is obviously faded but the whole block are the painted store fronts.
Artist: Ric.One
Address: 12 E. Darlington
That wraps up our drive through Kissimmee. Great murals along with street art and the Tower of States. More to see than Disney. Have a great new year.
