Amazing food, summer sun, quaint gift shops and a lovely walk along the water are waiting for you at the Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks, a wonderful Greek village just outside Tampa, Florida. Tarpon Springs is a beautiful little fishing town, dedicated to three things: the best Greek food around, traditional sponge diving, and all the shopping any visitor could want! This wonderful area of waterfront is less than a mile long, but filled to the brim with shops selling everything from vegetable ivory carvings to coconut monkey head banks, from color changing t-shirts to imported Greek olive oil soap, and of course, sponges or every shape and size.

While the shopping is great, there is much more to do than that! The Sponge Docks have numerous boats docked right on the main walkway, where you can take a beautiful ride down the inlet towards the Gulf of Mexico, seeing graceful sea gulls, huge pelicans, and sometimes manatee, dolphins, and stingray – and always, a real sponge diver, in a traditional suit, practicing the old Greek tradition of sponge diving. You’ll get to ask the diver questions, see his amazing, old style suit, up close, and watch him bring a real sponge up from the sea floor.

The docks also house an aquarium that, while small, is packed with things to see. The aquarium has a giant grouper fish, larger than most dogs, and capable of swallowing a hammer head shark whole! They also have two tanks where you can hand feed sting rays, and pole feed small sharks – it is an amazing, interactive exhibit, worth the trip to Tarpon alone!

And now on to the real reason that we all go on vacation – the food! Tarpon Springs boasts the most amazing Greek food in Florida, possibly in the United States. No matter which restaurant you choose, the gyros and salad are amazing. Mamma’s restaurant has outdoor seating, overlooking a small side street of quaint shops. Hella’s, on the main strip, has fabulous Greek salad, and an amazing bakery, whose baked goods are sold throughout the town. Sprinkled throughout the town are many other tasty restaurants, all offering standard Greek fair, such as gyros, Greek salad, saganaki (flaming cheese), and baklava.

Whether you like to shop, eat, walk, or simply sit on a bench and watch the boats go by, the Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks are a must see stop for anyone coming to the Tampa Bay area!

Orlando, Fl.; Universal City, Ca.  (Dec. 20, 2006) - Beginning December 24, adults and children will find a healthier approach to eating at Universal's U.S. theme parks.  Healthy side dishes and trans-fat-free foods will be widely available throughout all the theme parks.

Universal’s theme parks will now offer healthy side choices for both adults and children at most of its food units.  Kid’s meals come with a choice of fruit or trans-fat-free fries and adults will be able to select from either a side salad or trans-fat-free fries.  Healthy beverage choices are also available at many locations throughout the parks.

Universal Orlando’s Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios theme parks and Universal Studios Hollywood will also begin cooking and frying with 100 percent trans-fat-free oil throughout most of their facilities. Universal will also work to make nutritional information about its foods available to guests, and is targeting the end of 2007 to be entirely trans-fat free for all its food offerings.

“Providing our guests healthier options and trans-fat-free cooking is the right thing to do,” said Universal Parks & Resorts executive chef Steven Jayson.  “We want our guests to feel good about the food they eat when they visit our theme parks.  And we know choice is important to them.  That’s why our program is about choices rather than absolutes.”

Universal has spent months searching for the right ingredients, testing foods and recipes and getting guest feedback on its new program. 

“We did not want to sacrifice taste or quality,” Jayson said.  “It’s important for our guests to know that healthy food can taste good.”

Information related to these healthy options can be found on park map guides and at the company websites.

Universal Parks & Resorts (Universal) (www.nbcuni.com) consists of four worldwide entertainment destinations with five dramatically distinct theme parks, including Universal Orlando Resort, Universal Studios Hollywood, Universal Studios Japan and PortAventura.  Universal is part of NBC Universal, which is 80% owned by General Electric. 

The Universal Orlando Resort (www.universalorlando.com) is home to the world class Universal Studios and Universal’s Islands of Adventure theme parks, as well as Universal CityWalk, a 30-acre dining, shopping, club and live-entertainment venue and three premier on-site Loews hotels.

Universal Studios Hollywood (www.universalstudioshollywood.com), “The Entertainment Capital of L.A.” is a full day, movie-based theme park and authentic working movie and television studio offering guests a uniquely immersive entertainment experience that employs the latest in state-of-the-art technologies.