For 32 years the Ringling Bros. circus troupe wintered near Sarasota, Florida. They chose this location for its sunny, warm winters and because it was close to a rail line. The circus performers — including the elephants — traveled by train to Florida every winter.

Although the circus has moved on, its essence is here every day, with acrobatic shows and historical remnants. Sarasota has streets, buildings, theaters, museums, parks, and events named after the Ringling Brothers Circus.

Saturday, April 15^th was World Circus Day. What better place to celebrate this day than in Sarasota, which calls itself the circus capital of the world.  To celebrate the day, Sarasota planned a full week of events including the National Circus Model Builder’s Convention. Showfolks of Sarasota (more on that later) hosted the convention. We happened to stumble across this unusual convention because we drive by the Showfolks of Sarasota building every day.  The sign piqued our curiosity and we ventured inside to find a quirky, hidden leftover allowing us to feel that we had discovered something new.

The convention was free and open to the public. Inside were rooms filled with small-scale model circuses, including tents, trains, animals, trainers, hired hands, and anything associated with the circus.

Marc was fascinated with the models and the model builders. We asked the modelers, most were senior citizens and model builders for 20-30 years, why they started making models. Almost all fell in love with circuses after their parents took them to one. As children, they played with circus toys and later started building models.

The modelers traveled to Sarasota from all over the United States. A few, like Mary Fritsch an 87-year-old Sarasota resident, moved here after retirement. She builds N-scale circus replicas, the smallest model grade. The level of detail is incredible and unlike the other modelers, she started only four years ago to pass time during the pandemic. She creates models with her daughter Lynn from New Jersey. These models are so small they use magnifying lenses and tweezers. In fact, Mary and Lynn are known as “The Tweezer Sisters.” She told us sometimes she finds her tiny model people between her toes when they fall from her fingers.

Richard Horton makes models of carnivals because he thinks of himself as a carney at heart more than a circus lover. He created “The Horton Show Miniature Midway” as a child using tinker toys and erector sets. As he got older, he transitioned to trash and other throw-away items. Items he uses include soda caps, cat toys, dipping sauce containers, paper clips, thumbtacks, coat hangers, film canisters, milk caps, and old fishing gear.

Even looking very closely at his models, the trash is not obvious and he had to point out some of the discarded items he uses.

It was obvious to us that these model builders know and respect each other. This is not a competition nor a market to sell their wares. It is a convention for people who love to build circus models to come together and share their talents and stories.

Showfolks of Sarasota

Not only were we curious about the convention, but we were also curious about Showfolks of Sarasota. We did not know what this building was nor what’s all about. Google told us that it is a social organization for anyone who has worked in a circus or is a circus enthusiast. It is unique and is the only similar organization in the world.

When we walked in, it seemed like a traditional social organization like the Elks, VFW, or the American Legion. There is a bar and a small kitchen for monthly dinners for members. There are banquet rooms that housed the convention.

We spoke to several members who were sharing stories near the bar and kitchen. One of the middle-aged female cooks came out of the kitchen and told us that she is a Hand Walker Acrobat who walks, climbs stairs, and balances on her hands. She has her own touring circus with a staff of circus performers and she still performs around the area.

We also met Rene Joannides, a fifth-generation circus performer who traveled around the world as a child juggling while riding a unicycle. His sister juggled plates and teacups while riding a unicycle. We’re not sure exactly what that is but we were fascinated by his stories. He dropped out of school after the third grade and traveled around the world with his family. He talked about the day-to-day grind of performing 3-5 times per day and traveling. At the age of seventy, he looked beaten down and worn. But he still had the circus spirit in him.

As we talked to some of the members and toured the convention, it felt like we discovered a new world. So close to our house here in Sarasota but yet full of unusual stories. We are glad we had the opportunity to peek into this quirky world.

What’s Next for Us?

As some of you know, we had some setbacks earlier this year. Our original plan was to hit the road again starting where we left off in Argentina. But instead of traveling from country to country, we would return every couple of months to the U.S. to reconnect with our family and friends. Although we love to travel and adventure, we also love spending time with our family and grandson. Hopefully, this will be a good compromise. We hope to be traveling again soon.

Our tentative plans (or our desires) are to travel to Cuba. It has always been a place we wanted to go but up until recently, we felt like it would just be too difficult to plan as solo travelers.

We are also considering Guatemala. This may be the alternate destination instead of Cuba. This fall we are planning to hike the Camino de Santiago in Spain. We have spent time mapping out the trail we want to follow (there are many trails some longer and more difficult than others).

We have booked a large house for February of 2024 and invited our sons and their families to join us in Puerta Vallarta. Although we have been to PV before, this time we will have our entire family with us for whatever amount of time they can share with us.

In the meantime, we are exploring and sharing our adventures here in Florida. Florida is a very eccentric state with lots to experience. We may only be here for another 3-6 months, so we want to make the most of it. Last weekend we traveled 2 hours north of Sarasota to swim with the Manatees. We also biked on a 46-mile “rails to trails” bike trail.

Hopefully, we will continue to discover some more of the things Florida has to offer. So, stay tuned.