« Book Review: Presidential Sex | Main | World Leaders or Boys Club? »
Florida Trip March 2009
Several years ago, when it became apparent to me that we would be traveling a lot, I bought a notebook and wrote down what we were doing during our trips so we would all remember later on. Then we entered the computer age and I started blogging about trips. At least I think I did...I have had a couple of blogs, so who knows where that information is. Sometimes, the problem with the computer is your stuff ends up in odd places or you forget about it and it gets lost during a computer crash. I can still walk into my bedroom and lay my hands on the two notebooks I have filled with information about our travels...
Oh well, that's another post;)
So last Thursday, I was up at 4 am (after not having slept well the night before because I was worried about oversleeping and missing the flight). The kids were up and we were on the road by 4:30 am. We had a fine flight from Lynchburg to Atlanta. We arrived, had breakfast and met Daniel who had flown to Atlanta from Bloomington. We toured the Crown Club Room and then caught our flight to Orlando. A bit bumpy due to the rain storms, but otherwise fine. I was a bit worried about how Jack would do since the last time we flew in 2004, he wasn't really crazy about it. But he did well. Once in Orlando, we spent 45 minutes getting from the gate to the luggage pickup to Hertz. Then we were on our way. We had a bite of lunch and arrived at Tess' house around 3 pm.
Within 30 minutes we had unveiled one of our main reasons for the visit. A laptop computer. The laptop was a surprise gift for Tess and Johnny. We have been talking about getting them a computer for awhile because we wanted to be able to send them emails, videos, and photos. They seemed very tickled with the gift. We spent time each day giving Tess her first lessons on the computer. We also got her some books and videos to help her when we weren't there.
We spent the rest of Thursday visiting. Tess and I took the children to the pool for awhile. We enjoyed a yummy spaghetti dinner and Tess, Jack, Katrina and I played Kings in a Corner.
Friday, after a yummy breakfast (did I mention Tess is a good cook?), we headed on a trip to Pine Island. There was a restaurant there that Tess and Johnny wanted to introduce us to and they wanted to take us for a visit by the Shell Factory. The children and I are fascinated by seashells so we were very excited to see that. Our lunch was good, the Shell Factory was amazing! When we walked in there was a huge collection of shells from around the world. Katrina bought a pair of pretty shell earrings. There were several other shops there and Jack purchased an authentic Constantinople coin. He was very pleased with that.
We visited the pool again on Friday evening and played some more cards.
Saturday morning, we had breakfast and packed up. We visited with Tess and Johnny and then we went to a lunch they were having in the park where Tess and Johnny live. It was fun meeting some of their friends and even more fun looking at the crafts different ones had made. It was a 'show and tell' day and there were paintings, quilts, homemade instruments, cannons, stained glass and more. We really enjoyed seeing all of the beautiful things that people in the park had made.
Then we headed back to Orlando. We were sorry our trip was so short. We would have loved to spend more time with them, but it wasn't possible this time.
We arrived at the Renaissance near Sea World and checked in. We visited the pool for a bit, then enjoyed ordering food that was delivered to the room. We watched the movie Bedtime Stories, then headed to bed to get rested up for our Sunday at SeaWorld.
Sunday morning, we enjoyed a magnificent buffet breakfast (the fresh fruit was amazing...and Jack had all the strawberries he could eat). Then we headed across the street to SeaWorld...in the rain. Yep, we had five days in Florida and the one day we wanted good weather, it rained... So we picked up some SeaWorld ponchos at the gate and prepared for fun.
SeaWorld was nice, but it seemed like everything could have been just a bit better. Makes me wonder if I have been to too many zoos and aquariums. I thought there would be more aquarium type exhibits than there were. We loved seeing the Killer Whale show, Believe. And it was cool eating in the Underwater Grill, while sharks swam around us. I loved touching the manta rays and wish I could have touched a dolphin too, but that didn't work out.
We rode the Sky Tower and had a lovely view of the park and nearby Orlando. The Journey to Atlantis Ride was one of the highlights of the day. It was a cross between a roller coaster, a fun house and a water ride. The Clyde and Seamore show (sea lions and otters) was also fun, though the mime that was hanging out before the show was the best part. He was hilarious. He was making fun of people that were coming in and had the crowd cracking up. About 5 pm, Daniel's feet screamed they had had enough. Katrina wanted to ride a few of the 'kid' rides, so we stayed and didn't leave the park until they announced closing time was upon us. Boy were we tired then!
Monday morning, up at 5 to get ready to leave, eat and get to the plane. We flew from Orlando to Atlanta and parted ways there since Daniel was returning to Bloomington. The flights on Monday were much smoother because the weather was better.
One thing that really touched me was that at the beginning of the Killer Whale show (Believe) and on the plane when we landed in Lynchburg, people from the armed services were recognized. At Believe, they asked all the veterans and current people in the armed services to stand up and be recognized and everyone clapped long and hard for them. When we landed in Lynchburg, the flight attendant recognized a lieutenant that was on our flight, we all applauded him and he got to get off of the plane first. I was just a wee chap during Vietnam. I am so glad to see people honoring the men and women in the armed forces today instead of treating them the way they did back then. No matter which side of the fence you sit on regarding the war, these people deserve our respect and support.
So, there in a nutshell is our five day trip. Next trip will be to Myrtle Beach the end of June. And today Daniel purchased our tickets for flying around Australia while we are there...slowly, but surely that trip is coming together. The kids and I have both received our passports. Next we have to get our VISAS to enter Australia and New Zealand.
