Tampa

Written by Mrs. Lovelady

Florida’s third largest city, with a population of over 330,000 residents, is Tampa. It is believed that this famous city was named by its original inhabitants, the Calusa Indians. Tampa means, “Sticks of Fire,” due to the frequent lightning storms the Calusa people encountered. This historical city once stationed Theodore Roosevelt and his Rough Riders, while they waited to ship out for the Spanish-American War in 1898. Later, Tampa made history in 1914, when the world’s first scheduled passenger flight flew from St. Pete to Tampa. I think you would agree, Tampa is one of the greatest Florida cities to visit because of its incredible sports teams, family-fun attractions, and interesting parks and museums.

To start off, Tampa is an incredible city to travel to because of its well-known sports teams. Raymond James stadium, also called “Ray-Jay’” is home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Guests are welcomed by Captain Fear who resides in the captain's quarters of the ship, and uses the crow's nest to keep watch over Tampa every night. This ship is 103 feet tall, and weighs an astonishing 43 tons. An animated parrot can be seen on the stern of the pirate ship. This parrot is even known to pick fans from the crowd and talks to those passing by. The Buccaneers’ head coach is Lovie Smith. Some of the Buccaneers’ players include: Jameis Winston, Vincent Jackson, and Doug Martin. The outdoor stadium has over 65,000 seats and is famous for hosting Super Bowl XXXV and Super Bowl XLIII. Some other local sports teams include the Tampa Bay Lightning hockey team and the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team.

Moving on, Tampa is a fun city to visit because of its well-known attractions and getaways. Lowry Park Zoo was voted as the #1 zoo in America by Parent Magazine and Child Magazine. It proudly boasts 1,000 animals stretched over 60 acres of land. Another great attraction is Adventure Island which is a 30 acre outdoor waterpark. It not only features 10 water rides, but also 5 large pool areas. Located directly across the street is Busch Gardens, which has 15 rides, 7 shows, and even offers guest a few up close and personal experiences with the zookeepers and animals. Let’s not leave out the Florida Aquarium. It is nestled in downtown Tampa, which features a wetland, bay and beach, and even a Madagascar area. One of my favorite parts is that you can even swim with the sharks. Yikes!!! Each year, “pirates” are known to invade Tampa during the Gasparilla Pirate Festival. Since Tampa Bay has one of Florida’s biggest ports, cruise ships leave the port daily. After that, Tampa is an awesome place to stay because of its scenic parks and museums. Ballast Point Park in located on the Tampa’s bay and offers spectacular views of downtown Tampa. It has a 600 foot long fishing pier where visitors can rent fishing gear and purchase bait. Some visitors take advantage of the grills, shelters, and the playground. Some fish that has been caught off of this pier are Jack Crevalles, Spotted Sea Trout, Redfish, Sheephead, and much more. MOSI, which stand for the Museum of Science and Industry, the largest U.S. children’s museum and features Florida’s only IMAX Dome Theatre with over 400 different exhibits spread across its 300,000 square feet. Some other fantastic parks and museums in Tampa include: Hillsborough County River, Glazer Children’s Museum, Henry B. Plant Museum and Lettuce Lake Park to name a few. As you can see, Tampa is one of the best cities to visit in Florida. Not only does it offer a wide variety of sports teams and attractions, but it is home to some of the best parks and museums in the entire United States. It’s no wonder why visitors, from all part of the world, flock to Tampa each year. So what are you waiting for? Hop in the car, buckle up, and take a short car ride over the Howard Franklin Bridge to explore the rich experiences flecked throughout Tampa.

Research Resources http://www.gardencommunitiesfl.com/Apartment-Rentals/Hillsborough-County- FL/Tampa/Tampa-Florida-Facts.aspx http://www.10-facts-about.com/Tampa/id/202 http://www.lowryparkzoo.org/docs/default-source/about/tlpz-2015-fact-sheet-with- history.pdf?status=Temp&sfvrsn=0.442731621209532 http://www.flaquarium.org/explore-the-aquarium/exhibits.aspx http://tampabay.rays.mlb.com/tb/ballpark/information/index.jsp?content=facts http://www.buccaneers.com/stadium/index.html http://www.tampagov.net/parks-and-recreation http://www.florida-fishing-insider.com/ballast_point_park.html http://tampa.about.com/od/artgalleriesmuseums/p/mosi.htm