🌱 Champa Ballet Today + Gasparilla Pirate Fest Sailing Ahead + Sa Ri One Deli

Rise and shine, Tampa! Let's get this Saturday started. Here's everything worth knowing around Tampa today.

First, today's weather:

Partly sunny and pleasant. High: 79 Low: 63.

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Here are the top five stories in Tampa today:

1. The biggest ballet competition in the world for aspiring youth, Youth America Grand Prix, is coming to the Straz Center in downtown Tampa today. Philip Neal of the Straz shared, "We have Champa Bay, I want Champa ballet." (Fox 13 Tampa)

2. Organizers say this year's Gasparilla Pirate Fest is "absolutely a go" after pandemic cancellations in years prior. The Gasparilla Children's Parade is scheduled for Saturday, January 22nd while the main parade is set for Saturday, January 29th. (WFLA)

3. Some residents are waiting more than four days to receive COVID-19 testing results in Hillsborough County as demand surges. The main issue is stemming from the Plant City Community Resource Center COVID-19 testing site. The county outsourced with a company called Statlab Mobile and is coordinating to get results to those tested. (WTSP)

4. Two Malayan tigers at ZooTampa have tested positive for COVID-19. The tigers were vaccinated and the zoo is unsure how they were infected. The tigers will remain away from public viewing and in their night quarters until further notice. (Tampa Patch)

5. The Sa Ri One Deli is a new concept near the University of South Florida at 11840 Bruce B. Downs Boulevard. The Korean deli opened last summer and is building a cult following. The shop offers kimbap, bibimbap, and lunch boxes to-go. (That's So Tampa)

Today in Tampa:

• Ybor City Saturday Market. (9:00 AM)
• Family Story Time At Jan Kaminis Platt Regional Library. (10:15 AM)
• Minecraft Mania At MOSI. (11:00 AM)
• Second Saturday At Big Easy Ybor City (1:00 PM)
• University of Tampa Men's Basketball At Florida Tech. (4:00 PM)

From my notebook:

• Bon Jovi is coming to Amalie Arena in Tampa on Friday, April 15th. Tickets go on sale Thursday, January 13th. (Q105)
• There are 8,548 people hospitalized with COVID-19 in Florida — a 356.6% increase over 14 days and 90.6% increase in 7 days. (Twitter)
• Miranda Lambert and Little Big Town are coming to Tampa's MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre in May. (Creative Loafing Tampa)
• The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have placed K Jose Borregales on the reserve/COVID-19 list. (Facebook)
• Tampa General Hospital is kicking off the new year by acquiring 100% ownership of Tower Radiology, the region’s largest physician-owned and operated radiology practice. (Facebook)

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Now you're in the loop and ready to head out the door on this Saturday! I'll see you back in your inbox tomorrow morning with your next update.

— Carlos Hernandez

About me: Hello my name is Carlos Hernandez and I am a food writer with over 10 years of experience in the industry. I write the food blog Carlos Eats (http://www.carloseats.com) and also contribute to several newspapers and magazines with food-related blogs and articles.