Festival of Flowers

In 1513 Ponce de Leon was living in Puerto Rico where he had recently served as Governor.  He had explored, colonized and governed lands in the name of Spain and King Ferdinand for years and when rumors of the existence of unexplored islands to the northwest reached Spain, de Leon was asked to explore them.

On March 4th 1513, Ponce de Leon and 200 men sailed from Puerto Rico with three ships, the Santiago, the San Cristobal and the Santa Maria de la Consolacion (sounds vaguely familiar doesn't it). On April 2nd they sighted land and thought it was one of the rumored islands.  Easter season in Spain is called Pascua Florida (Festival of Flowers) and Ponce de Leon named the land La Florida.

         The Historical Inebriant:  Florida Punch
     http://www.esquire.com/drinks/florida-punch-drink-recipe


Ingredients:

• 1 1/2oz  Dark Rum
• 3/4 oz Cognac
• 1 1/2 Grapefruit Juice
• 1 1/2 Orange Juice

Shake well with cracked ice, then strain into a Collins glass filled with cracked ice. Garnish with a plastic flamingo or palm tree.

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On this day in 1990 Nirvana recorded a demo at Smart Studios in Madison, WI.   They would use the demo which included the songs “Lithium”, “In Bloom” and “Polly” to try to land their first major label deal. Their album Nevermind was released the following year by DCG Records.