Marilyn and Dorothy showed us the best of Venice, Florida

We really enjoyed catching up with Dorothy and my mom's sister, Marilyn!; when not wintering in Florida, they live in one of the best beach towns in America, Rehoboth Beach, Delaware

Unlike beaches elsewhere that are made up mostly of pulverized coral, Siesta Beach's sand is 99% quartz, most of which comes from the southernmost tip of the Appalachian Mountains

My parents flew down and we stayed at the Hard Rock Casino; we found the machines to be very tight and weren't even tempted to try the video poker machines in the high stakes room that cost $100 per hand

Lady Gaga wore this custom, colorful, one shoulder dress backstage during her 2014 world tour; the first show of that tour was in Sunrise near the Seminole Hard Rock Casino

This is the newest part of the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and not the section we stayed in; the rooms on the side with the balconies would have been cool

This great blue heron is the largest heron in North America; at the Audubon Rookery there is an island used by the birds that is relatively free from mammalian predators thanks to the alligators in the lake

Little blue heron joins two snowy egrets; the Venice Audubon Rookery is crucial habitat for these birds with so much of Florida being demolished for new residential construction

The windshield on this 1957 Ford Thunderbird is blocking the Elvis mannequin; the cars were for sale but no prices were posted so we knew they were expensive

Ideal Classic Cars (free admission) in Venice offers the full array of high quality investment-grade restorations as well as driver-quality collectible cars from the 1920's to the 1970's

The ruddy turnstone (lifespan 8-10 yrs) is one of the most widespread shorebirds in the world; while foraging, these birds often explore the tide line or piles of debris, flipping and turning shells, stones, and driftwood to seek out prey

Siesta Beach is not only long, but also super wide; the beach is so wide the city installed walking mats to help beachgoers get to the shore, where they can then walk on firmer wet sand

Casperson Beach is known as the best place to find prehistoric sharks' teeth; we did not have good beach weather with chilly temps and gusty winds

The common moorhen is a familiar bird throughout Florida, sometimes referred to as a marsh hen; moorhens are excellent swimmers in spite of having no webbing on their toes

The Venice Audubon Rookery, internationally known to bird photographers, is free to all visitors from dawn to dusk every day of the year