Enjoying Ocala

We let Doug pick what we did today as he was the one who had worked all week.  He suggested the Ocala's Famers Market and lunch downtown afterward.  I was glad to hear that as I loved spending time in downtown Ocala, and we hadn't taken my parents there this visit.  I also realized that it would give us a chance to go to Grandpa Joe's candy store as well.  

We arrived around 10:30 this morning and were surprised to see that there was nowhere to park.  We had been several times before and had never had a problem parking close to the market.  We finally found a spot downtown and decided to walk the several blocks to our destination.  That was when we figured out why there were extra visitors to the area.  There was a Bluegrass Festival in Citizen's Circle Park.  It hadn't started yet, but the bands practicing sounded great.  Doug said that he would like to attend it next year.

The market was filled with a lot more booths than we had seen in the past and each aisle was packed with shoppers.  Doug picked out some okra and eggplant at the vegetable stand while I looked through the other vendors' stores.  While shopping, I was surprised to find a Kokedama, which was a Japanese form of gardening that I had learned about from a Master Gardener at a CCW meeting last spring.  Doug and I found out how to care for them from the same Master Gardener and picked out one to bring home with us.

After the market, we walked downtown to look for a spot for lunch.  Grandpa decided on Brick City Kitchen.  We didn't complain as it was our favorite restaurant in Ocala.  I had salmon while everyone else got sandwiches.  The food was absolutely delicious.  We then stopped at Grandpa Joe's for dessert.  

Once we got back to our car, I suggested The Appleton Art Museum which was a few miles away toward Silver Springs.  It was the first Saturday of the month, so admission was free for all.  We didn't know what to expect but really enjoyed it.  Doug even found some Nigerian statues that looked like the ones that his father brought back from his time in the Peace Corps.  Our day out in Ocala ended there as we headed home after the museum.  It had been a wonderful day, and I was glad that we got to share some of our new hometown with my parents.