Dan and I flew to Jacksonville, Florida, bright and early Saturday morning and by noon were having lunch downtown Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, about a half hour north of the Jacksonville airport. We had a lazy afternoon walking in and out of the cute shops, settling into our B&B (Addison on Amelia, which is right downtown and within walking distance of the shops and restaurants), and getting organized for cocktails and h’ordeuvres at 5:00. It’s island time, so when they say it’s five o’clock somewhere they are not just talkin about Key West. From cocktails, we headed to dinner at Le Clos, a tiny French restaurant in a small renovated house. We had been warned that the food is great but the acoustics awful and, sure enough, by the time the place filled to capacity at 7:00, we thought we were at the World Cup and were leaning across the table to talk. Small price to pay for the to-die-for grouper. Plus, let’s just put it out there, Dan and I can pretty much finish each other’s sentences, so we didn’t need to hear anyway.

Today was another lazy day. Other than a stroll downtown to buy same-day tickets for a ferry that was not running today (go figure, it’s Easter), a 3-mile round trip bike ride to and from the beach, and the hour and a half stroll on the sand, we pretty much just whiled away the day. The B&B has granny bikes at our disposal. The kind with plump seats, jumbo tires, high handle bars, pedal breaks, and …thank heaven for the flat terrain… no gears. We grabbed snacks in the dining room in lieu of lunch since we had a big breakfast and knew more free wine and h’ordeuvres were coming at 5:00. Dinner was at 29 South, a stones throw from our accommodations. The fried green tomatoes had a layer, miraculously, of goat cheese on top of the tomato; the duck spring rolls were divine; and our entrees were wonderful. The concept for the restaurant is locally sourced ingredients and veggies and herbs from the backyard garden. Northern Virginia prices for locally sourced ingredients right here in Northen Florida.