SportsCenter Live from Tampa

Here are some pictures from ESPN's stage here in Tampa. They did a SportsCenter special and then NFL Live.

Warrick Dunn appeared on the program "Rome is Burning". Dunn is a veteran NFL tailback who plays for the Buccaneers. He is very popular among fans and has rushed for over 10,000 yards in his career and is also known for his work in charity through his Warrick Dunn foundation and was the NFL's Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2004.


Here is the host and namesake of the show, Jim Rome.

NFL Analyst Chris Mortensen prepares to go on stage during a SportsCenter special.

Here is another picture of Mike Golic of NFL Live and NFL Radio's show Mike and Mike in the Morning with Tampa Bucs' linebacker Derrick Brooks. Brooks is an 11-time Pro Bowl selection, Super Bowl champion and was the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year in 2002. In his career he has recorded over 1,600 tackles and has been the leader of the Bucs' defense for most of his playing career.

I hope to get more pictures from events around the Super Bowl today. The teams have arrived and today is "Media Day" where players and coaches are required to field questions at the stadium. Enjoy..

Super Bowl Coverage Begins...

As we entered what is known to the NFL as "Super Week" ESPN set up its' main stage right here in Tampa's Cotanchobee park along the Garrison Channel. On Monday afternoon NFL Live was from here. This first picture is of the three hosts, from left to right, Trey Wingo, Mark Schlereth and Mike Golic.


Wingo and Schlereth as they interview Buccaneers linebacker Derrick Brooks.

The NFL Live crew with Derrick Brooks.


After the show Wingo and Schlereth stopped to sign autographs for some fans.
When they left I stopped them to see if they would let me take a picture mentioned I was a big Broncos fan and Schlereth is 3-time Super Bowl winner and Broncos great. The below picture is of me with Mark Schlereth. The picture was taken by SportsCenter anchor Wingo who jokingly pretended to steal my camera. Both were very friendly and it was a great first day of the Super Bowl media here in Tampa.

History Center Grand Opening...

This past Saturday Tampa opened its new history center. This history center is next to the Channelside Plaza complex and will be a great new attraction along the channel.



Things started off with a Native American flute player then several people key in the construction of the center spoke.
Mayor Pam Iorio gave a great speech with hopes that the center will attract many visitors and help people appreciate Tampa's unique history.After about 45 minutes of speeches, thanks and music the ribbon was cut at around 11:45am.


To learn more about the history center check out their website:

http://www.tampabayhistorycenter.org/

Enjoy!

Art in the Streets of Tampa...

Here are a few photos I took of artwork downtown in Tampa. Enjoy...

Tampa Market

The City of Tampa has a market every Friday from 10am to 2pm. Erin and I decided to head downtown to check it out this past week. Here are some pictures from that.


The block next to the market. It was chilly, but sunny.


A vendor of Italian goods: olive oil, olive products, balsamic vinegar and more.
I heed the warning here and avoided the spicy olive dips.


Erin and I spoke with the man selling honey for awhile. The honeys were local and by the season. We bought a pound each of Fall and Winter.


All that walking and looking at food we decided to grab lunch. Erin enjoyed a sausage roll while relaxing on a bench next to the market. I have some more pictures from downtown Tampa to be added soon. Enjoy!

Series for A Sunday....

I thought I would make my next post a series of three images that all go well with today, a Sunday. I wish that I had pictures from the NFL because of course today is Championship Sunday and one of the last football weekends of the year.

This first image is of St. Peter & Pauls cathedral in Krakow, Poland. This was taken on Easter '08. Pope John Paul the II was a priest here long before he was Pope and the posters that can be seen on the front fence are in honor of him.

Sunday is also a good day for leisurely activities. This photo shows a quote written on a window and the clouds behind. Whether you choose to sit outside and look up at the sky or if you are brave enough to tackle Joyce's "Finnegan's Wake" Sunday is always a good day to slow down and take some time to relax.


This final image is of the Oscar Wilde statue in Dublin. The statue shows Wilde lounging on a rock and faces out of the corner of a park and he is looking towards his home.

Enjoy these photos and I will be posting more soon!

Fiesole to Settignano, Final Leg

We continued on down the road from the castle and followed our directions into some more off-roading. We walked past a few more farmhouses and also encounter some boars (cinghiale) in a group of olive trees. At first we were frightened by them, but they turned out to be much more frightened off us. They ran off before we could get any pictures or have any other interaction, which in retrospect is probably a good thing. We found that we had to descend some from the hills in to Settignano. The town was quiet because it was a Saturday. Most of the shops and restaurants were closed when we got there. We picked up a bottle of wine from a local vineyard and then stumbled around the village for awhile before find our bus stop near the church in the main square.

The bus back into Florence was a nice trip back down the hills and into the city. After all our walking it was nice to ride for awhile. The trip certainly was full of interesting sights and sounds. It is always nice to get out and walk and really absorb the feeling of place at the speed which nature intended us to move, but after a long day of hiking it is nice to head back to "civiliazation" take a shower, have a warm meal and get out of the rain that started as we were headed in for the day.

I hope to add some more pictures soon of the more "photo" variety. I have a few from here in Tampa that I'd like to put up and I've also been going through more pictures from different trips from '08...