It's hard to get more "Tampa" than a mouth watering delicious cuban sandwich. There are likely only three places in the country that feature authentic cuban sandwiches...Tampa, Miami and Key West. In other places you can buy something called a cuban sandwich but it's not authentic. You can walk into a Publix and get a cuban sandwich...but it's not really a cuban sandwich...Why you might ask...
Cuban bread...
They are not made with cuban bread. Very few places actually bake authentic cuban bread. Tampa is one of the few cities where you can buy cuban bread. Cuban bread was first baked in Tampa in the late 1800's. Traditional cuban bread is about three feet long. The moist palm frond is baked into the crust and produces a shallow opening in the bread.
La Segunda Bakery on 15th street in Ybor City makes some of Tampa's finest cuban bread
You could say cuban sandwiches are a big deal in Tampa
A Tampa cuban sandwich has...yellow mustard and then layers of..roast pork..glazed ham..swiss cheese..dill pickles and unique to Tampa sandwiches...Genoa salami. You will not find salami on cuban sandwiches in Miami. Salami was added to the mix in Tampa back in the early days of Ybor when Italian and Cuban immigrants lived and worked side by side in Ybor City
West Tampa Sandwich Shop...one of the best places in town to get a cuban sandwich
When in Tampa...treat yourself...have a cuban sandwich and I recommend a nice cold beverage to go with it
Tampa International Airport is one of the finest airports in the world. In 2008 TIA was recognized as the second best airport in the world. In 2011 TIA was on the list of the world's top ten airports...the only airport from the USA on the list.
But Tampa's airport history goes back to a time before this modern facility...back to the days of Drew Field
This is the origin of Tampa's airport history. In the late 1920's there was a land boom in Florida and city officials decided the city needed an airfield to keep up with the fast moving times. The land was acquired from a man named John H. Drew.
In the early days the field was little more than some hangars and dirt runways used mostly for mail delivery. Work on improving the field began in 1933 when three 7000 foot asphalt runways with lights were built.
Drew Field had a much bigger responsibility in 1939 as the buildup to World War II began. In 1940 the Army leased Drew Field from the city and soon the United States Army Air Force would take over Drew Field for the duration of the war. The Third Air Force used the field as a training center for combat air crews.
A B-17 crew at Drew Field
My father used to tell me about seeing the B-17's fly over when he was young
After the war Drew Field was given back to the city. The field had been greatly expanded and improved.
In 1950 Drew Field was renamed Tampa International Airport and in 1952 a beautiful new terminal was built
That is the history of Tampa International Airport and Drew Field
The beautiful Tampa International Airport of today sits where a piece of Tampa's past once stood...Drew Field
This week's blog continues with local sports teams. This week another one of my favorites..the Tampa Bay Rowdies. The Rowdies played in the North American Soccer League from 1975 until the league folded in 1984. You may say...SOCCER ??? I never watched much soccer before or after the Rowdies but watching that team was great fun.
The North American Soccer League had 20 teams located in all the big cities..the New York Cosmos, the Boston Minutemen, the Miami Toros, the Chicago Sting, the Dallas Tornado, and the Los Angeles Aztecs to name a few.
In the first Soccer Bowl the Rowdies defeated the Portland Timbers 2-0 to win the championship
There was a parade in the streets
John Boyle celebrating the win
The Rowdies had many great players and characters...this guy was both..the great Rodney Marsh
Rodney was a fan favorite
Some other Rowdie greats were
Mije Connell against the Cosmos in the 1978 Soccer Bowl...notice the crowd size
Derek Smethurst
Steve Wegerle
Farrukh Quarishi
T Shirts like this were seen all over town. The Rowdies would return to the Soccer Bowl in 1978 and 1979 losing to New York and Vancouver.
The Rowdies routinely drew crowds of over 20,000 and had a home attendance record crowd in 1980 of 56,389. The NASL tweaked the offsides rule so scoring goals was somewhat easier and the crowds loved the games.
The Tampa Bay Rowdies...they really were....A Kick in the Grass
This week's blog is on one of my all time favorite teams...the Tampa Bay Bandits
The Bandits played in the United States Football League. This was a great league that played it's games in the spring when the NFL was in it's off season. Although it only lasted three seasons it provided some great fun.
The Bandits played a wide open brand of football that we weren't used to around here in those days. The Bucs were struggling and the Bandits developed a large fan base.
Wide open offense led by the Ole Ball Coach in his first head coaching job and John Reaves who could really throw the ball.
The Bandit himself was one of the owners of the team.
The Bandits led the league in attendance all three years and out sold the NFL's Buccaneers in memorabilia.
The USFL was a great league and signed many players who would go on to be stars in the NFL..players like Doug Flutie, Reggie White, Steve Young, Jim Kelly...and this guy who was pretty good too
Herschel Walker...in my opinion the best player in the history of college football
The USFL folded after the 1985 season after foolishly attempting to abandon their successful spring season and try and go head to head with the NFL.
During those three seasons there was nothing better than Bandit Ball...I do miss those days...
Thanks to MK for the idea
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