TRIVIA - FLORIDIAN

1. Legend has it, St. Augustine became America’s first European settlement because conquistador Juan Ponce de Leon was in search of this magical spring, a quest that seemingly continues today. 2. Since strength is in numbers, myriad indigenous Florida tribes assembled this seminal tribe, which nonetheless lost a few namesake battles but perfected the crafts of palmetto dolls, gator wrestling, and getting obscenely rich off casinos. 3. According to that tribe, birds of the Tytonidae family were associated with spirits of the dead, but in today’s Florida they’re associated with this revealing restaurant franchise based in the Tampa Bay area. 4. Speaking of Florida animals, I don’t know how well this endangered one does in ice rinks, but it is the official state animal. 5. This is the official dessert of Florida, and is made of a fruit from the southernmost part of Florida. 7. The palmetto tree is the official state tree of Florida, but of course this tasty, unrhymed plant is the official state flower, even though it’s actually a tree. 8. The Miami Beach Architectural District is one of several instate historic districts devoted to protecting this style of building which over the last century has become emblematic of South Florida. Courtesy of The Democratic Republic of Trivia