We’ve arrived at The Villages in Florida! We’ll be here for four weeks. This is my fourth visit and Alice’s fourth visit. She has stayed for much longer visits; I had never visited for more than a week.
This place is so huge that it spans three counties (Sumpter, Marion, and Lake County) and has a population of nearly 80,000.
I think it’s an extraordinary and undoubtedly unique place. People travel around in golf carts. There are golf cart trails for miles.
The target demographic is active senior citizens. The weekly Recreation and Parks newsletter is 60 pages long! There are tennis courts, golf courses, and swimming pools throughout the Villages. The other outdoor sports include bocce, horseshoes, archery, pickleball, shuffleboard, quoits, etc.
Every indoor activity is available, including billiards, mahjong, darts, backgammon, and bingo. There is also lots of dancing: samba, ballroom, cha cha, tap, ballet, and stomp. There are also lots of exercise groups, including tai chi, Zumba, bone builders, and yoga.
The Villages are organized around “town squares,” with live music every evening and many restaurants. There are Broadway-quality plays.
In other words, if you can’t find something to do here, you’re not trying!
In addition to renting a golf cart, I also rented a bicycle. It’s a nice bike (24-gears, disc brakes, etc.) but is not electric. Here in Florida, there are no hills, so there is no need for an e-bike.
Mostly, I just roam the roads and trails with no destination in mind. I did ride to the post office since it’s outside The Villages and therefore not reachable by golf cart.
I enjoy looking at the houses. Every house here is a single-family, single-floor. No apartment buildings; no condos. They range from small, simple dwellings to elaborate estates. Almost everyone has a carport. Some have a garage. A few have a small garage designed to fit their golf cart. They’re cute!
Just outside The Villages, in any direction, are doctor’s offices and medical facilities. I guess that’s what happens when you have thousands of senior citizens.
We frequently spend an hour or two at the local pool. It’s a “salt water” pool. That is, it doesn’t have chlorine. They have a hot tub there, too. My tan from last summer is gone so I’m trying to build up a base tan before we get to Tahiti.
It’s a great place to relax and read a book. Someone always has music playing. Of course, it’s oldies but goodies!