Whenever I travel to Florida I marvel that alligators roam freely. One year at a conference my friend Myron paused during our morning walk around a golf course to scoop a ball from a brush covered water hazard. I hurriedly reminded him that getting anywhere near low visibility water in Florida was not advisable. Imagine my surprise that while walking in downtown Orlando, I snapped the above photo which promotes a mini-golf establishment featuring live alligators! Even the Gaylord Palms convention center features live alligators in their atrium. Click through for the pictures.

A few times a day you can watch people come feed the gators. Fortunately these are babies and don’t seem to be a huge threat. The guy who feeds them walks right into the middle of their “pen”. There is a plexiglass enclosure that protects guest from gator.

Housed in the enclosure were what appeared to be 10 to 15 small to medium sized alligators. They were fed chicken on a pretty regular schedule and attracted quite a crowd for their feedings. Welcome to Florida!