I’ve heard many great things about Tampa from Americans I’ve met during my travels. I never had the chance to go until now. Before coming here I went on a cruise out of Port Canaveral which is around an hour away. Knowing that I was going on a cruise, I made sure to fit time to come here.

So far on the trip I ticked off a few firsts. My first cruise, my first time driving in the States and the first time I drove a big vehicle in the form of a minivan. One that was far more technologically advanced than my 2003 Ford Fiesta.

I have never seen so many buttons in a vehicle, I took my time getting use to it and playing around with the car and the buttons while hoping I wouldn’t break anything. It far more advanced than my 2003 Ford Fiesta!

One thing you should bare in mind if you have never driven here, if you stick to the speed limit you are going to be the slowest driver on the road. For the people residing in England remember the slowest lane to fast lane on the motorway (highway if you’re on the other side of the pond) in America is right lane to left lane. I can’t for the life of me think why it took me a while to realise this.

Once I navigated my way through the busy streets of Tampa to drop off the car rental, I walked to Sparkman Wharf, a waterfront space with street food stands. It has a green space with a giant TV screen, views of the waterfront and a really nice open beer garden. Sparkman Wharf opened in November 2018 and is situated along the Garrison Channel.

What I loved about Sparkman Wharf is the quirky vibe. There’s a lot of colour to the place, the food from the stands smelt really good making it hard to pick something to eat, and the bar in the middle is well placed.

There were a lot of hockey fans around for a game. For those who didn’t get tickets to watch at the nearby Amalie Arena, they stayed around and watched the game on the big screen and in the open bar. There were fans from both teams drinking, having a laugh and interacting with one another. It was refreshing to see, I wish fans of all sports and rivalries could be like this with each other.

I thought about going along the Riverwalk but I was really feeling it after a long day of disembarking from a cruise shop and a lot of driving. I stayed at bar with a few ciders and watched the hockey game. I got to experience the Tampa trolley on the way back which runs from downtown Tampa to Ybor City (pronounced Eebore).

An $890,000 yearly grant from the Florida Department of Transportation allows the public to use the trolley for free. What an amazing gesture and by this point I was already warming to Tampa a few hours after arriving.

Up early and well rested, the first place of call was to the famous Clearwater Beach. Named by Trip Advisor as the USA’s number 1 beach in 2018, Clearwater Beach is known for its clear white sandy beach which stretches for around two and half miles.

Before going to the beach, I went for breakfast at Frenchy’s. I timed it well and got there when it opened so there was no need to wait in a queue. While on the cruise I met a few people who either lived in Tampa or were from Tampa, and each one of them recommended Frenchy’s. By the sounds of it going to Frenchy’s is part of the Clearwater Beach experience.

Frenchy’s is known for their grilled grouper sandwiches. As dumb as it may sound I didn’t know grouper was a fish. Seeing as I had never hear of them before it seemed as good a time as any to try something new, even if I wasn’t use to seafood for breakfast.

What I liked about the grouper sandwich is that it wasn’t too heavy as some seafood dishes can be. Personally I prefer something light when it comes to breakfast. I’ve always been a big fan of seafood, and I wouldn’t have a problem eating it every day for the rest of my life if it was the only food left on earth.

Those few hours recharging the batteries at the beach were much needed. For someone who is really active, it isn’t easy finding that balance between doing a million things at a hundred miles an hour and learning when to rest and switch off. It’s amazing what a few hours on a beach under the sun can do for you.

It was spring break so the beach was packed. I picked a good spot that barely had anyone nearby.  For some reason a group of guys who I assumed were on spring break from College/University decided to play a game of throw the tennis ball without dropping it around me. In fact I was bang in the middle of their game.

I don’t get why they didn’t move a bit further back where there was more space to play their game. I guess maybe they wanted to be close to sea. To be fair to them they were mindful and did well to avoid hitting me with the ball (as tempting as it could have been for them!). Even when I offered to move so I wasn’t in the way of their game, they were insistent that I stay because I was there before them.

They bought along a docking station and played some good music to go with chill time on the beach so on first impression they weren’t that bad.

As you can tell, they were sound. They ended up moving to continue their ball game when a woman politely asked them to out of fear that one strong throw of the ball gone wrong would end up hitting her.

I guess the reason for saying this is a reminder to myself that 10 years ago, or even 5 years ago I probably would have got impatient with a group like that and snapped at them. Who knows what can happen when you get confrontational. Having a different mindset and dealing with something that can be a irritation in a different way can make the difference between a good day and a bad day for yourself and those you affect.

It was time to go when the clouds started getting in the way of the sun. Everything time wise seem to be working out, I left before rush hour traffic. Seeing the queue for Frenchy’s on the way out, it was a good choice to go when it opened. The waiting time for getting a table at this point must have been around 45 minutes.

After freshening up, it was off to the historic part of Tampa, Ybor City. Famous for its cigars, Ybor City was known as the cigar capital of the world in the 20^th century. You will find vintage shops, old cafes and places serving Latin America and Cuban food.

Before checking out the bars in the famous Ybor night life, I went for dinner at the well known Columbia Restaurant, which serves Cuban and Spanish food.

As with Frenchy’s, Columbia was another place that was consistently recommended. The first thing you notice inside is how old school the décor is. It was something to appreciate. You don’t often you find places with old school, retro type of interior.

It was here where I would try a Cuban sandwich for the very first time. The filling you get in a Cuban sandwich seems to depend on location. In Tampa, the filling consists of ham, roast pork, salami, Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard on a crispy Cuban bread. In the south of Florida, they don’t have salami in the sandwich.

If you know me you’ll know how much I detest pickles with a passion. So of course I opted for no pickles and mustard. I know I’ll have people telling me that pickles and mustard is what makes the Cuban sandwich so to speak, but no words can express my hatred towards pickles. I may relent on the mustard another time.

All the pickle hating aside, I can’t believe it took me this long to discover the wonders of the Cuban sandwich. Apart from how good it tastes, if you’re someone who does not have the biggest appetite this is perfect. It’s not too big that you can’t finish, and it’s not too small that you fill like you are being short changed with the portions.

I went along the main strip of Ybor City. You can appreciate the history walking up and down Ybor, past the vintage shops, cafes and cigar shops. I found a bar with a nice garden, stayed for a few hours with a few ciders and socialised with people from all over the world, from Egypt, Cuba and Columbia, to even meeting a fellow Lebanese. I witnessed a first, the first time I would see someone order a round of cocktails, pay for them and then leave them at the bar unattended! An hour must have past and all the drinks were still there! I’m not sure how drunk you have to be to forget a round of drinks at the bar.

I like the vibe of Ybor City, locals will tell you that anywhere outside the main part is dodgy. As with any place you visit for the first time, be careful, vigilant, don’t be a flashy arrogant arsehole and you’ll be just fine. I didn’t get the chance to visit during the day time, but that only serves to give me another excuse to come back to Tampa to explore Ybor’s 7th Avenue. This is the main road in Ybor and was recognized as one of the “10 Great Streets in America”.

I did some more exploring around Ybor and came across one of the most talented artists. This guy was drawing a girl’s face with charcoal. She was drunk and seemed like she decided to have a portrait done on a spur of the moment. Now I guess you may feel inclined to point out that we’ve all seen many artists in the streets working away here and there but this guy was really talented.

While watching the artist at work and chatting to him, the drunk girl and her Sister, the drunk girl out of nowhere asked me if I “fancied being tasered?”

I was puzzled and thought it was either the drink talking or she was confused. Then all of the sudden she gets out this electric taser for what I’m assuming was for use in self defence situations. Unsurprisingly I began to shit myself!

Let’s take into account this was in the middle of the street where there are people walking past. The drunk girl then offers to taser people at random as they walk past. All this is happening while she is being drawn by the artist who kindly, and probably hesitantly out of fear of being tasered asked her several times to stay still so he can finish.

At one point there was a couple who were too afraid to walk past. She started showing off by setting the taser off. The artist’s little Chihuahua got scared by the noise of the taser each time it was set off. The artist started getting pissed off. You couldn’t blame him. He must have thought the money he would make from this wasn’t worth the hassle.

The Sister began to get pissed off. She tried several times to get the taser off the drunk girl and was waiting for her Boyfriend to show up to help her out with the situation. There was no way I was going to offer to help to get the electric taster from the drunk girl to her Sister!

The artist was just finishing up and having seen  electric tasergate unfold, I decided it was a good time as any to call it a night. Why I didn’t do so earlier? I’m still figuring that out!

In a way I get why someone would carry an electric taser for fear of being attacked. The only thing to remember and I don’t say this lightly, especially when there are people out enjoying themselves that could potentially be harmed, don’t show off or misuse it like a dickhead. I can’t believe I’m actually having to write this!

Having been to Clearwater Beach, I went and checked out St Pete Beach. If you ask people for beach recommendations in Tampa, they will more than likely recommend one or both of those beaches.

Before going on the beach, I went to Caddy’s, a beachfront café for a much needed breakfast sandwich to soak up the ciders from the previous night in Ybor City. Caddy’s looks like a smaller version of Frenchy’s with a similar layout.

The beach itself is really nice and wasn’t busy. It was a nice surprise as it was spring break on a Saturday. I spent more time at St Pete than I did at Clearwater. There are nice big old school houses on the beach, the sort you would want to live in once you retire. You could see the appeal living in St Pete, it feels like you are in a secluded area.

I thought St Pete beach was better than Clearwater. It is cleaner, less crowded, doesn’t have many tourist if at all and peaceful. It’s the ideal beach if you don’t want to be surrounded by people, and need a break from the routine of life.

A trip back to freshen up and a quick bite later at the popular Irish bar MacDintons, it was on to the Tampa Riverwalk for the evening. Even though the Riverwalk has been around since the mid 1970s, it wasn’t until the last 2 decades that it has developed it into what it is today.

The Riverwalk path stretches to over 2.5 miles. It’s from the Channelside area to Tampa Heights along the east side of the Hillsborough River. There’s everything you can imagine along the way. From restaurants and bars to parks, art and museums. Walking along here reminded me a bit of walking along Brighton seafront.

This is one of the most scenic walks I’ve been on, especially getting to see the sunset. On one part of the Riverwalk there was a festival going on. From what I gather there’s usually a festival of some sort around the area or another part of Tampa at least once a month.

One thing I learnt about Tampa as I ventured along the Riverwalk, each part of the city has its own unique vibe and characteristics whether you go to places like Ybor City, Sparkman Wharf or the Riverwalk.

There are posts with distance markers to show where you are and how much of the Riverwalk you have covered. This is good if you want to know how far you from certain places of interest.  If the prospect of walking, jogging or cycling the Riverwalk sounds daunting, you can always explore on a water taxi or rent a water bike (bikes mounted on kayaks).

Once I reached the end of the Riverwalk, I stopped by Watervue Grille for a bite. I was invited by Kyro, an Egyptian guy I met at a bar in Ybor. One thing to understand, when it comes to people with Middle Eastern/Arab heritage, socialising is not a problem no matter where or how you meet. I don’t think you can truly appreciate how easy it seems to be for Arabic speakers to interact with one another in random scenarios.

Kyro works at Watervue Grille and basically hyped it up. Usually I take any form of hype with a pinch of salt (pun intended!). There are no excuses needed to go, try some food and decide for yourself. On first impression walking in, it looks like the sort of place you would go if you were on a date or for a special gathering.

Rather than order a main dish, I had a jumbo crab cake starter and a 3 cheese macaroni side dish because I eat not long before going on the Riverwalk. Credit to Kyro, the food was good, especially the crab cake. It was more than enough because a starter and a side by American standards are bigger portions than what we are use to back in England.

Kyro was just finishing his shift as I was preparing to leave. He invited me to join him and his friend Matt for a drink at James Joyce Irish Pub in Ybor. It’s their favourite hangout spot, they know the staff, and insisted on taking me there for the “James Joyce Irish Pub experience”. It wasn’t on the main strip of Ybor City which in a way is part of the appeal, because it gives people an option to go somewhere that isn’t too crowded.

It’s a good spot and a chilled place. I didn’t stay too long because I had to catch an early bus to Miami in the morning. Knowing me the chances of missing the bus if I continued drinking would have been highly likely. Not forgetting that I needed to pack as well.

I really like Tampa and would happily come back. it’s underrated because it’s in the same state as Orlando and Miami. From the looks of it, there is more investment being poured into Tampa’s infrastructure, entertainment, dining and nightlife. Tampa has so much potential and it looks like there’s a lot of effort to maximise that potential as much as possible.

Over the next 5 – 10 years I can see Tampa’s popularity increasing. You can’t really compare Tampa to Miami or Orlando because they are all unique places in their own right. It boils down to what you prefer in a trip or what you’re in the mood for. If you plan to spend a couple of weeks in Orlando and/or a few days in Miami, spare a few days for Tampa. Some will include a day trip to Busch Gardens, a theme park in Tampa as part of a trip to Orlando. There’s more to see in Tampa apart from the theme park. You can thank me later on.

Finally to finish off, I would like to give a shout out to Yari, who I met at the World Travel Market in London last year. Yari is a travel and beauty blogger and a Tampa native. She gave me all sorts of good tips and was really helpful in answering my questions. You can check out the aptly named beauty back packer blog by visting www.thebeautybackpacker.co.uk

Thank you Yari!