We've spent more than enough time inside — it's time to step outside for a reason other than to drag broken branches to the curb. This weekend, head to Tarpon Springs to get your fill of all types of fun — they have everything from bellydancing to wine walks, inside (for those of you who are done with the heat) and out (for those of you who want to hold on to summer's last gasp, because it'll be in the high eighties soon enough, which is damn near Arctic for some of us). So get to it!
1. Go play pinball. Or Dig Dug.
Replay Amusement Museum offers 16-bit fun. They have over 100 pinball machines and classic arcade games — and you get unlimited all-day play for $13. So, go ahead, unload some of the tension from the past few weeks on Pac-Man.
2. Grab a pizza at BackDraughts Pizza.
It's right next door to Replay, which doesn't serve food or drinks, so sustain yourself with their wood-fired pizzas. Not a pizza person? Try their homemade chips with bleu cheese.
3. Take a bellydance class Saturday morning.
For $15, see if belly dancing is as hard as you think it is — or if it's something you want to pursue. Hey, life's about new experiences, so give this Tribal Fusion drop-in class (designed for all levels) a try.
4. Soak in some history Saturday afternoon.
The Tarpon Springs Historical Society — inside the old train depot — is also the city welcome center, and they're open 12-3 p.m. on Saturday. Pop your head in, take a look around, learn why the city's called Tarpon Springs, then check off the box marked "get more culture" on your to-do list.
5. Take your wine for a walk.
What, you think your wine doesn't want to stretch its legs from time to time? Saturday night's Tarpon Springs Wine Walk covers the downtown and the sponge docks (don't worry, you don't have to walk from the docks to downtown — they have a shuttle for that — only around the downtown and around the sponge docks). For $20 ($25 at the event), you get appetizers, your own wine glass and, of course, wine.
6. Vaccinate Fido and Fluffy on the cheap.
Dog Lovers of Tarpon hosts Sunday afternoon's vaccination clinic (2-4 p.m.). You can get your cat's annual shots for $53; pups run a bit higher — $72 — but still, if you don't have a vet you love or you don't have the money for a full office visit, this is the best way to safeguard your BFF. You can find more detailed prices here.
7. Try a saison at Saint Somewhere.
My favorite? Pays du Soleil, but you do you. They're all cozy in their new location, so pop in and say "Hey! Creative Loafing says hi!"
8. Restock your liquor cabinet, beer cooler and wine rack at B-21.
Hey, we were all without power for a while and you probably worried all that beer would go bad, and then the wine looked lonely without the beer and then OHMYGODIWOULDKILLFORSOMEAIRCONDITIONINGGIVEMETHATRUM. We feel your pain — but so long as you're up Tarpon way, pop into B-21 and restock. Never been? You'll love it.
9. Mosey on over to the Leepa Rattner Museum of Art.
They have three exhibits now — Postcards From the Edge, Rattner's Comtemporaries in Paris, Paradise Found: The Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art Celebrates 15 Years and Artists of Hillsborough County. Surely one of them will tickle your fancy — and some of them close Sept. 24, so this is sorta your last chance to see. While you're there, check out the interactive "Guernica."
10. And, of course, indulge in a bit o' sponge docks tourism.
Buy something made with olive oil. Try the saganaki. Buy black licorice. Basically, absorb the Greek-village-meets-tourist in this fun downtown. Whatever you do, have fun. After all, it is the weekend!
See you again in a week — where shall we go next? Email us your ideas!
This article appears in Sep 21-28, 2017.