Day 1 (January 7, 2025): Off to our second FMEA Annual Conference!

Two years ago, in January 2023, we traveled to Tampa for the Florida Music Educators' Association (FMEA) annual music education conference.  Pam had found about it via her friend, Karen, who had attended in the past and was attending the 2023 edition.  It turned out to be an amazing opportunity to see a variety of music groups performing at a very high level.  Pam returned to Nova Scotia inspired and excited to try new ideas.  We were, however, deeply saddened when we compared the current state of music education in Nova Scotia - where the complete emphasis is on equity, with concern for excellence having been largely abandoned - with that of Florida, where both equity and excellence are upheld as the standard.

All that as a backdrop to say, in the fall of 2024, we again started talking about the possibility of Pam applying for approval to attend the 2025 FMEA conference.  Teachers in Nova Scotia can apply for three days of leave and a financial contribution towards travel and registration costs every two years. Pam submitted her application and was approved.  As in 2023, when I tagged along and attended some of the top-notch performances, I decided to attend again in 2025.

Porter Airlines' new nonstop service from Halifax to Tampa, with a late afternoon departure, made things quite easy.  Pam taught today and, at the end of her teaching day, we whisked off to the airport for the flight.  Scheduled for 4:35PM, it ended up pushing back at 5:18PM, followed by de-icing.  It all meant an arrival in Tampa at 8:45PM, compared to the 8PM scheduled arrival.  Apart from a howling dog two rows behind us, a toddler slamming the tray table behind my seat up and down incessantly, and a crying baby across the aisle, it was an okay flight.  Upon arrival, we caught an Uber from Tampa International Airport to the Tampa Marriott Water Street hotel, grabbed a late night snack at the hotel, and called it a day.

Unfortunately, south Florida's usually warm January temperatures were absent upon our arrival and will be for most of the week, as a cold blast from the north has settled over the state.  But hey, at least it's not snowing!

Excited to be headed off on this little Floridian adventure! From the US Departures Lounge at Halifax Stanfield International Airport. 

In November, Porter Airlines started three-times-a-week nonstop service from Halifax to Tampa using its Embraer jets.  The flight pushed back 43 minutes late.

For $12.99, Porter serves some very healthy and tasty entrées on it’s longer flights, such as the one from Halifax to Tampa. This chicken and rice dish with vegetables was quite delicious.

The Halifax to Tampa flightpath follows the eastern seaboard of the USA, right down to

Florida.  (YHZ = Halifax;  TPA = Tampa.)  Oh, we love nonstop flights!

This giant flamingo by artist Matthew Mazzotta is a 21-foot floor to ceiling sculpture and has been a  popular stop for guests arriving and departing Tampa International Airport. After a 2022 competition that saw more than 65,000 entries and 37,000 votes from around the world, the flamingo was finally given a name: Phoebe.

A great map at the airport, showing the Tampa-St. Petersburg area. Note the three bridges that cross Tampa Bay. We had a great view of them from the air as we descended into Tampa International Airport.  Our hotel is in downtown Tampa, just south of the airplane icon on the map.

The Tampa Convention Center at night, as seen from the 24th story Concierge Lounge at the Tampa Marriott Water Street, where we are staying. This will be the focal point for the FMEA Conference while we are here.  For a better sense of the scale of the building, here is a daytime photo from the following morning:

The Amelie Arena, home of the Tampa Bay Lightning, as seen from the 24th story Concierge Lounge. For a better sense of the scale of the building, here is a daytime photo from the following morning: