While staying at MacDill FamCamp in Tampa, Florida this winter, we were able to explore some of the local area. A very interesting and popular part of Tampa is Ybor City, named after the cigar manufacturer, Vincente Martinez Ybor. Most of the Ybor City Cigar factories are closed now except for the J.C. Newman factory and museum.
We stopped in here to see some workers rolling cigars and learned a little bit about the history of Ybor City.
Just around the corner from the J.C. Newman museum is La Segunda Bakery. They serve Cuban coffee, pastries, bread and sandwiches. A very old and popular local bakery, La Segunda provided some much needed caffeine for our walk around Ybor City.
Another historic establishment located in this area is the Columbia Restaurant. The Columbia occupies a full city block and is well known for its food and ambiance. We made reservations for lunch and enjoyed the food, the atmosphere and the condiments. Our waitress informed us that the Columbia was the first restaurant in Florida with an air conditioned dining room.
After lunch, Mark browsed in several cigar stores, we took a ride on the TECO trolley and observed some free ranging roosters along the way.
The trolley system is a great (free) way to see the area. Ybor City has a lot to offer as a day trip destination. Next post will be about some of the local wildlife near Tampa.
My daughter attended and graduated from the University of Tampa. It’s the buildings with the minaret looking towers; a mod to the Spanish heritage.