06-30-2025
The Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida
Visiting the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art was amazing. Their collection of artwork left me speechless. I was unable to see everything due to my legs giving out on me before I could make it to the last section, but I really enjoyed admiring each piece I did see and reading about its history. The Garden of Ancient Statues in the middle of the museum was breathtaking as well. However, I wish we had visited during one of the cooler months, because the gnats were really bad outside.
The self-guided tour through the Ca'd'Zan was enjoyable. Apparently, July is in the off-season to visit, so there was quite a bit of construction in front of the home as well as inside of it. There was still a lot of hurricane damage, so we were unable to see the upstairs of the estate. The first floor was beautiful, though. You can tell they took their time decorating every inch of it in amazing detail. We ended up going through a second time to admire it all again. We were unable to get the audio for the tour to work on our phones. the link to it was very glitchy; I hope they fix that.
When you are exiting the home, off to the left is Mable's "secret" garden, where John, Mable, and John's sister are buried on the property. I think it's super sweet that the garden club Mable founded recently restored her favorite garden in remembrance to her.
The Circus Museum was surprisingly a lot of fun to walk through. I didn't expect to enjoy it quite so much; admittedly, I assumed it would be mostly for the children. They go very in depth on the history of the Ringling Brothers and their love for the circus. They have a massive, detailed miniature display of what the Ringling circus looked like back then; it's very impressive. I spent so much time slowly making my way around the display looking through each section. In other areas of the museum, they have an assortment of interactive displays that educate you on different types of performers and what they did (okay, this was totally for the kids, but I 100% played with them! I now know for a fact that I am too clumsy for the highwire). I really enjoyed getting to see all of the costumes of not only the performers but the animals they used during the shows as well on display.
They have a nice gift shop back at the front entrance, where I purchased an old circus photo of a woman on the highwire as well as a Christmas ornament (a tradition of ours) and postcards to send to everyone. The museums, gardens, and home are all a must see! However, if you are short on time or don't want to purchase the full experience, I recommend visiting one of the museums at least. You won't regret it!
