Sunshine Slate

[Tampa, FL] The first-ever Gasparilla Music Festival (GMF) – held March 10 in downtown Tampa’s Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park and Kiley Gardens – featured both national and local acts. So let’s re-cap: 20 amazing bands on 3 stages and great food from some of the bay area’s finest restaurants and food vendors. Sounds like fun? [...]

[Pensacola, FL] “It’s just another party,” said local Paul Damico. “You dress up a little, do what you want and let your hair down.” Sound like some crazy kid out for a blast? Damico is 71 years old. That’s what Mardi Gras does to people. Pensacola isn’t New Orleans, but then again, NOLA doesn’t have [...]

  [Tallahassee, FL] Gov. Rick Scott wasn’t going to forget about Florida’s sizable Jewish population, especially since he just got back from Israel. “Beginning at sundown tonight, Jewish Floridians will begin celebrating the eight days of Chanukah,” said Scott in his official holiday announcement, which came out yesterday. “I hope that this year’s celebration is [...]

Protesting In The Picturesque And Historic Town Of Pensacola Pictures by: Alyssa Ollivierre for Sunshine Slate. Words by: Mark Christopher/Sunshine Slate [Pensacola, FL] The battle rages on for Occupy Pensacola protestors who day in and day out raise awareness of the financial inequalities that plague American society behind the slogan “We are the 99%.” The [...]

Editor’s note: Orlando-area photographer Lance Turner has been documenting the Occupy Orlando movement and offered this series to the readers of Sunshine Slate. [Orlando, FL] These photos are from three Occupy Orlando marches on Oct. 15, Oct. 22 and Nov. 5 of this year, all taking place in downtown Orlando. Camera: Nikon D 300. Nikon [...]

[Orlando, FL] Photographer Jim Bourhill submitted these shots of Orlando enjoying the free festivities as supplied by Hard Rock in celebration of their 40th anniversary. The themed restaurant and entertainment company is headquartered in Orlando. There were four stages, bunches of people and a walk-through mini-tour of the Hard Rock’s famous collection of rock & [...]

Destin Is A Picturesque Place In Which To Live And To Play Pictures by: Roman Lungu [Destin, FL] Destin is downright beautiful. Known as Florida’s Emerald Coast, Destin is famous for its white beaches and emerald green waters. It is the crown jewel of the Fort Walton Beach-Crestview-Destin metropolitan area. Located in Okaloosa County, Destin was [...]

On This Glorious Night, Orlando’s Upstart USL Pro Team Slayed A Premier League Giant   Pictures & Video by: Chris McEniry, Words by: Mark Christopher   [Orlando, FL] The Saturday, July 23rd game began in the most American-like fashion: with an epic, sweeping movie-music introduction interspersed with tough-guy sayings from the home team’s players. Necessary, [...]

Orlando’s Newest Pro Team Takes The Pitch Against A Most Legendary Side   Pictures by: Chris McEniry, Words by: Mark Christopher   [Orlando, FL] For the nearly seven thousand fans in attendance, Sunday night’s friendly match-up between the hometown squad and a real live English Premier League powerhouse was a little slice of soccer heaven. [...]

Every Year A Small Town Invites All To Share The Place That Florida Forgot   Words and pictures by: Thad Macnamara   [Lake Placid, FL] No, it is not that Lake Placid. No Olympics have ever been held here. But to the locals who do live here – and to the die-hard out-of-towners who visit [...]

When Men Were Men And Merritt Island Was The Center Of The Universe   Compiled by: Mark Christopher   [Tallahassee, FL] From the State Archives comes a series of classic photos from the golden age of Cape Canaveral. This was a time when the entire world was focused on the activities of the Cape, legends [...]