By Caron Schwartz
My cousin Rachel lives in Japan, so we don’t see each other much. She likes to visit in the summer so she can loll on the beach. I prefer the conditioned air of the great indoors. So, we compromised on a fantastic adventure. Off to Dunedin, named one of America’s best small towns.
Our first stop was the Visitor Center, where a lovely local gave us a city map and a brewery walking tour map. “Ooh, a Beatles museum!” Rachel exclaimed, noticing Penny Lane. The tiny museum houses artifacts from the interesting (signed guitars, original posters, John Lennon’s glasses) to the weird (branded insect repellent, gumball machine, genuine hair strands – ick).
On Main Street, we wandered into boutiques including the Celtic Shop, Nancy’s Fancy, the Patent Bow Boutique and other delights featuring gifts, antiques, beachy clothes and home décor in between coffeehouses and restaurants (Casa Tina, The Living Room, The Black Pearl). The next stop was a true rarity: an independent bookstore appropriately named Back in the Day Books. We happily browsed the collection of new and used titles, then stopped in at the Dunedin Coffee Company & Bakery, debating on pastry but deciding on amazing Greek Frappes.
Dunedin’s History Museum was impressive. Housed in the former train depot, it chronicles the city from the time of the Tocobaga Indians through today. We also discovered that orange juice concentrate was invented here in the 1930s. Dunedin is also a super bike-friendly town; the old railroad tracks were transformed into the Pinellas Trail in the 1990s. Adjacent to the trail is one of the city’s artistic bike racks: a small-scale steam locomotive.
Dunedin Fine Art Center is a cultural and educational treasure. We admired student and faculty multimedia artwork in the gallery/art school and played in the interactive Children’s Museum. Across the street, the Dunedin Community Center housed a gym and a tiny Friends Branch Library.
Hungry, we couldn’t decide between seafood Dunedin Fish Market & Olde Bay Café or Thai Town. Revived with pad Thai and Thai iced coffee, I suggested we take the brewery tour (Dunedin, Woodwright Brewing, HOB) or visit award-winning Honeymoon Island. Too tired for more fun, we decided to continue our Dunedin adventure another day.
