Things To Do In SW Florida

By Ben Finley, Associated Press

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — Memorial Day is supposed to be about mourning the nation’s fallen service members, but it’s come to anchor the unofficial start of summer and a long weekend of discounts on anything from mattresses to lawn mowers.

But for people such as Manuel Castañeda Jr., the day is very personal. He lost his father, a U.S. Marine who served in Vietnam, in an accident in 1966 in California while his father was training other Marines.

“It isn’t just the specials. It isn’t just the barbecue,” Castañeda told The Associated Press in a discussion about Memorial Day last year.

Castañeda also served in the Marines and Army National Guard, from which he knew men who died in combat. But he tries not to judge others who spend the holiday differently: “How can I expect them to understand the depth of what I feel when they haven’t experienced anything like that?”

1. WHY IS MEMORIAL DAY CELEBRATED?

It’s a day of reflection and remembrance of those who died while serving in the U.S. military, according to the Congressional Research Service. The holiday is observed in part by the National Moment of Remembrance, which encourages all Americans to pause at 3 p.m. for a moment of silence. read more

The cruise dining experience often takes advantage of the ship being at sea, with vast windows or al fresco seating overlooking the ocean beyond.

A recent trend, though, has seen cruise lines investing in designs meant to transport the diner away from the vessel.

One of the newest ventures is sticking them on a train. Royal Railway – Utopia Station is a featured restaurant coming on board Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas when it debuts this summer in Port Canaveral.

Cruisers will climb aboard a simulated train to experience what traveling on a dining car is like, complete with passing different countryside scenes projected on digital screens.

The first sailings will be limited to an adventure themed to the America’s Wild West for a 90-minute trip that mimics the sights, sounds and feel of a moving train car. Other themes in the works are based on the Silk Route trains that traveled through Asia and 30-minute offerings.

Diners start with pre-dinner drinks on a station platform, and when the train whistle sounds, board the dining car where a cast of performers play out an interactive storyline involving outlaws attempting a train robbery. Royal Caribbean put on a sample version of the experience at its Miami headquarters on Thursday. read more

ATLANTA (AP) — A record was broken ahead of the Memorial Day weekend for the number of airline travelers screened at U.S. airports, the Transportation Security Administration said Saturday.

More than 2.9 million travelers were screened at U.S. airports on Friday, surpassing a previous record set last year on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, according to the transportation security agency.

“Officers have set a new record for most travelers screened in a single day!” the TSA tweeted. “We recommend arriving early.”

The third busiest day on record was set on Thursday when just under 2.9 million travelers were screened at U.S. airports.

In Atlanta, the world’s busiest airport had its busiest day ever. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport broke a traffic record on Thursday when 111,000 passengers, airlines crew and airport employees were screened at security checkpoints. The second busiest day followed on Friday when 109,960 people were screened, according to the TSA.

With 104.6 million passengers, the Atlanta airport was the busiest in the world last year, according to Airports Council International. read more

By Josh Garber | NerdWallet

Pride month is approaching in the U.S., typically celebrated in June. But Pride events aren’t confined to a single 30-day period. Because these events are often tied to a region’s history of LGBTQ+ equal rights movements, they happen at different times in locations around the globe.

If you want to branch out from attending Pride locally (or celebrate beyond June), consider booking a trip to visit one of these six LGBTQ+ events around the world.

1. MemDay Weekend Women’s Festival in Provincetown, Massachusetts (May 23-27)

Commercial Street is Provincetown’s main drag, dotted with shops, bars and performance venues. (Photo courtesy of Getty Images)

A historic artist colony and top LGBTQ+ destination, the picturesque Provincetown, Massachusetts is known for celebrating individuality and free expression. Ptown, as it’s called locally, hosts several LGBTQ+ events throughout the year, including MemDay Weekend Women’s Festival, celebrating LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary and transgender individuals.

MemDay happens at the end of May, just before the start of Pride Month. It’s put on by LesbianNightLife, which calls MemDay the largest lesbian takeover in the country. read more

Kevin Hardy | Stateline.org (TNS)

Just days before workers at a Mercedes-Benz plant in Alabama began voting last week on whether to unionize, Republican Gov. Kay Ivey signed a new law that would claw back state incentives from companies that voluntarily recognize labor unions.

Alabama’s move follows similar efforts in Georgia and Tennessee, where GOP leaders also have passed laws pushing against a reinvigorated labor movement.

The laws require that unions be formed only by secret ballots rather than the so-called card check process, in which employers can voluntarily recognize a union without a protracted election process. And under the laws, companies that voluntarily recognize unions risk losing state incentives, which amount to billions of dollars invested by governments to bring automakers to the region.

These new laws speak to the growing push of labor unions into Southern states — and the fierce opposition of pro-business GOP leaders there. For decades, the region has attracted investments from foreign automakers with lucrative tax breaks, low-cost labor and a lack of labor unions. Labor leaders hope that is changing now that workers at Volkswagen’s plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, overwhelmingly endorsed a union in April, becoming the first foreign auto plant in the South ever organized by the United Auto Workers. read more