For those of you who don’t know, since December last year I have been living in Gainesville, Florida, a college town in north central Florida. Gainesville FL is famous for its large university and the University of Florida Gators College Football team. It also has a strong musical heritage and boasts Bo Diddley, Tom Petty and Stephen Stills as its creative offspring. The strange but interesting Phoenix family also reside here.
Gainesville Politics and culture
Gainesville is a liberal oasis in a redneck sea. If you enjoy eating in trendy little ethnic café restaurants and being served by vegetarian lesbian gothic wannabe rockstars, then this is the place for you. In British terms, it is not a million miles away from places like Headingley in Leeds, or Brighton on the south coast. (Don’t get me wrong, I do actually like the vibrancy and open-mindedness that young people can bring to a place. If you ever put me in a redneck backwater or bible belt town, I would probably shrivel up and die.)
Things to do in Gainesville Florida
If you ever tire of eating in the trendy little ethnic café restaurants, you can watch the bats emerging from their bat houses at dusk beside Lake Alice in the grounds of the University of Florida (there used to be only one bat house, but that became so overcrowded that all the crap from the excessive bat population ate through the floor - so now there are two rather splendid bat buildings, one with a refurbished floor and the other wholly brand new).
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| Bat Houses |
Or you can drink margaritas and eat tapas at Emiliano’s Restaurant.
Or maybe you would prefer to look for alligators at Lake Alice (I saw ten of them one morning, including a particularly impressive 12 footer!).
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| Alligator on the move at Lake Alice |
Or chill out and enjoy the freshwater springs at Rum Island
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| Rum Island |
Or if you want to experience some culture (haha!) you could try attending one of David Maas’ poetry events at the Laboratory Bar.
Plus, you might also want to pay a visit to the Harn Museum of Art.
Plus, you might also want to pay a visit to the Harn Museum of Art.
One thing that I have not done, but would like to experience, is to attend a Florida Gators football game.
The Weather in Gainesville FL
The weather in Gainesville varies from being very hot to being extremely hot, depending on the time of year. There were rumors of a snow flurry last Christmas, but I never saw anything and I am still waiting to see the photographic evidence. Hurricanes are rare in this part of Florida, but now and then there are dramatic tropical storms that knock the power out for several hours and bring down trees.
Animal life in Gainesville
Animal life is varied and includes alligators, snakes, vultures, raccoons, armadillos, and yappy little dogs owned by ladies with oversized posteriors.
Summary
Well, that’s about it, as far as my introduction to Gainesville Florida goes. I would recommend the place to anyone. Especially, if you buy me a beer.
