Weekend in Mount Dora

My birthday was last Tuesday.  Last week Wayne suggested we celebrate my birthday on the upcoming weekend.  He had asked me what I would like to do to celebrate, and I couldn't really think of anything in particular that I would like to do.  On Friday night Wayne mentioned that maybe we should take a trip to Mount Dora.  A couple friends have been there and spoke highly of it, being quaint, like a New England location.  My early thoughts questioned a "mount" in Florida!  At first I was hesitant, complaining about spending so much time in the car (I thought it was 3 hours away) for a day trip.  Wayne said that if we wanted, we could find a place up there to stay overnight.  When I woke on Saturday morning, I agreed that it would be nice to go there as a change of pace.  And Wayne said that in living in Florida for 26 years, he has yet to visit the downtown.  After a quick stop at Dunkin Donuts, we were on our way!

We arrived in Mt. Dora just after 11:00 AM.  It was about a 2 hour drive, and mostly all highway.  We were taken with how quaint and hilly (relatively speaking!) the area is.  There are lots of shops, cafes, restaurants and all free parking!  Lots of antique shops too.   Except for the palm trees, it's a pocket of some place else besides Florida.  We enjoyed exploring the town at a leisurely pace, stopping for smoothies and wandering the downtown streets and shops.

Found a nice Lucy collection in one of the shops.  Also hit the cupcake shop:  root beer and chocolate mousse.  YUM!

We took a longer walk over to this antique mall to check it out.  Lots of stuff, but not all that appealing. As we headed back and arrived in the downtown area again, Wayne commented that he could go for cookies and milk.  I would be happy just to get something cool and refreshing to drink, sitting in the shade!  As we passed one bakery, I mentioned that they had cookies there.  Wayne seemed to ignore that comment.  He said he normally doesn't drink milk, but was wishing for some.  He said he'd like to get off his feet for a while, so suggested we get in the car and explore the area beyond the downtown.  We drove back to the highway where we came in.  I asked where he was headed, and he joked that he was tired and wanted to head back to St. Pete.  As we drove by this side road, Lake Ola Drive, he said he had wanted to turn there.  So, we did a u-ey and turned down Ola drive.  I figured maybe he wanted to see that lake.  We drove for a minute or two, then he turned around and started heading back out.  Then he stopped and turned around again.  He saw a bed and breakfast with a for sale sign, so I assumed he wanted to check it out just for fun.  When we pulled up and parked, he said to bring my things.  He surprised me with reservations at the Cinnamon Inn!  So nice!  We were greeted by Kathy and Carole (Mom).  Both had worked for phone companies in the past, so there were plenty of phone motif objects around!  They are super nice, and when we were brought up to our room, Kathy brought a carafe of milk to go with the dish of freshly baked cookies on the dresser!  So now I know why Wayne could go for cookies and milk!  She also brought up a bottle of wine for my birthday celebration!  I was completely surprised!

There are four rooms in the Inn, named after Carole and her three sisters.  We had Hilda's room, which is the only one with a jacuzzi!

After relaxing for a while and polishing off our milk and cookies, oh, and then the wine, we headed back to downtown Mount Dora for dinner at the Palm Tree Grille.  Italian, what else!  We both had the Chicken and Shrimp Vesuvio.  After dinner we walked around the downtown area again. We were surprised to see all these people milling around various shops and cafes, chatting away with a wine glass in their hand and nibbling on various snacks.  We went into one of the kitchen goods shops to check it out.  It appears that several times a month, they have these wine tastings.  For $15 you get unlimited wine and snacks at several locations.  The sleepy little town came alive!  There was music coming from different restaurants and cafes.  And, on the lake front in front of the Lakeside Inn, there was a jazz concert going on, with pieces from the 20s and 30s.

We had a wonderful breakfast at the Cinnamon Inn on Sunday morning:  fresh baked cinnamon bun, OJ, coffee, baked quiche, fresh fruit and biscuits!  That was enough for the day!  After bidding adieu to Kathy and Mom, we headed back to downtown.  We strolled around again, remarking how sleepy the town is; hardly see anyone out around their homes.  As the morning became afternoon, we saw more people on the streets.

As soon as the Operation Deep Freeze shop opened, we headed in for the frozen custard flavor of the day, chocolate malted milk.  Heaven!  On our way out, we stopped at Renningers Antique Market and Farmers Market     Nice thing was that it was inside and air conditioned!  The antiques part was amazing . . . mostly all top notch stuff.  And there was an antique auto show going on and at one point they were driving around the outside of the building, so everyone had to stop and watch!  We then checked out the farmers and flea market area.  Much of that was outside, with trailers and small buildings arranged on shaded lanes.  It was a bit hot to do too much of that!  Plus, a lot of the stuff was not appealing to either of us!  I mean, would you buy meat and fish at a place like that?  Just sayin'.

It was a beautiful weekend and lots of fun to visit Mount Dora.  It's a nice place to go for a change of pace or escape.  Not sure it would be a regular visit though.  If you like quaint and quiet, this is the place.  Hmmm?  Quiet or sleepy?