ROADTRIP of the day:

Today we’re traveling south to the city of Tampa located on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Although once inhabited by various indigenous populations, and then visited by Spanish explorers in the 1500’s, no settlement was permanently established until 1824 when the US Army established a frontier outpost called Fort Brooke. The arrival of the Spaniards and later the European settlers brought disease to the native peoples killing off large populations or driving them farther inland and southward. In modern times, the greater Tampa Bay metropolitan area has approximately 4 million residents and in 2008 it was named by Forbes as the 5th best outdoor city. In the early 20th century cigars were a major industry, but the arrival of the military establishment in the 50’s-60’s in the form of what is now MacDill AFB created a population explosion that built an infrastructure for finance, insurance, shipping by air and sea, national defense, professional sports, and tourism. Notably, Tampa also boasts a giant bowling pin rising 30 feet in the air in front of the Splitsville Luxury Lanes and Dinner Lounge, a 12-lane bowling alley that also boasts upscale dining (and a dress code!).