Aged to Perfection in Old Winter Garden, Florida

I found this bill payment slot on the outside of an old building in Old Winter Garden, Florida and decided it would be the perfect picture for this week's photo challenge at   RAZMATAZ .  The challenge was to photograph something aged, with character, a history.  This little slot has the patina that many designers try to achieve when trying to age an item.  I could also picture the people of whichever era this bill slot served, diligently coming into town each week to pay their bills. Now many of us do it with the click of a mouse!

 I visited this pretty little town which is located about half an hour from downtown Orlando with my friend CG.  She is always up for adventures especially if it involves thrift or antique stores and a stop for a good lunch.  She hit the nail on the head by driving me to Winter Garden because there is a little bit of everything there. 

I had plenty of contenders for my challenge photo including this one:

I bet you can guess what I found this on.  I had no idea Ford made F-750s!  Look at what I found on the other side.

Now I know you know what this is.  It was parked in front of the renovated Winter Garden Railroad Station.  The tracks have been turned into a wonderful bike path that takes you through several small communities and countryside all the way to Sanford, Florida. A really good day trip for bike riders. 

Behind the firetruck, under the overhang we found this aged contraption.  It was used to apply pesticide to crops.

This is what the town of Winter Garden has done with the area where the passenger train tracks used to run through town up to this station. There is now a wide promenade that both bikers and walkers can use through the center of downtown.

A couple of blocks over we found another railroad station, this one services active train tracks for unloading cargo.

This quaint little town offers up plenty of thrift and antique shops as well as unique gift shops and a feed store that is right next to this railway depot pictured above.

And the town has more than it's fair share of chippy old buildings.

I've been to Winter Garden several times for browsing and lunch and this day CG introduced me to a new place that was as charming to look at as it's BBQ was delicious. 

Named after the two sister/owner's grandfathers, Harry and Larry's was serving up delicious traditional Southern Bar-B-Que and something else on their menu I had never had before.  "Q-Stew".  It was offered as a side dish and included tomatoes, corn, beans, okra, different meats and a really tasty broth.

Sitting inside this little shot-gun style space is a pleasure not just because of the delicious food, but there are things to look at all over the walls.

For those in the blogworld who love old signs, Harry and Larry's had quite a collection.



Although I'm not quite sure how or why overalls "wear like a pig's nose".  I'm guessing that's a good thing.  Anyone know?

The restrooms had wonderful vintage-style lighted signs:

And towards the back of the restaurant was this amazing old freezer/cold storage door.  I never knew they came in anything but metal.  I wanted to include the whole wall in my picture because they had replicated the look of the old freezer around the edges of the door.  Didn't want to disturb the people eating in that area.

Harry and Larry's is a definite two thumbs up for food and atmosphere - and friendly, fast service!

Next time you want to see the "real" Florida, take a side trip to Old Winter Garden, you will feel a sense of tranquility that is hard to achieve in these busy times.