I escaped the Seattle ice storm in the nick of time: I had plans to meet family in Florida and nearly didn’t make it. But luck was on my side. We rendezvoused in Fort Lauderdale. Our first excursion was visiting the Everglades. We went to Shark Valley. Unlike the images of mangroves and vines and murky rivers, Shark Valley looks like a flat, grassy plain. Of course it’s a marsh, and beneath the grass is a 2.5 million-acre water filter that happens to be swarming with alligators.
I ran into this guy, about 8 feet long, on an elevated hiking trail. Needless to say, I turned around. Never interrupt a sunbathing gator. I later learned never to crouch down near a gator either. They don’t really attack people because we have a height advantage. It’s good to be tall in the swamp.
I promise to tell you more about the amazing turtles, gators, and birds in the Everglades. There’s also an interesting fashion twist on how the egret was saved. I’ll write about that later. One clue: They have the flapper girls of the 1920s to thank.
Just because I’m experiencing nature doesn’t mean I can forget about style.
Top: Trina Turk via thrifted
Shorts: Lulu’s
Shoes: Timberland
Necklace: Miss Michelle’s Family Jewels
Earrings: Shirazi
Purse: Crystalyn Kae
jeanofalltrades 
I’m so glad you made it!
Me too! It was close. Flights that morning were cancelled and flights the next day were too! I had a small window to flee and it worked!
So glad to see this. We went last year or the year before. I have very similar pictures of alligators – although I’m sure you realized they were real, unlike me. The black vultures @ Anhinga Trail were my favorites (okay, and the anhingas). I wish we went there again this year. *sigh*
Isn’t it fantastic? I joked that the alligators were probably just statues to impress tourists – they were so still. But I did see some move. One even tried to grab a heron! Lucky for the heron, the gator missed!
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I still love coming back to this post and seeing your courageous angle of Mr. Alligator! GREAT outfit too. Looking good, Jean of All Trades!
Thanks! I didn’t want to get lost in a sea of green so I wore red and yellow!
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