Saturday 2nd January 2010
The ‘villa’ we rented was very comfortable with four spacious bedrooms (ours had an en suite), and was well situated with the patio and pool area facing south,
directly onto a small lake which attracted some very beautiful local wildlife. We got the impression that previous tenants, and perhaps some of the neighbours, fed these waterfowl as they showed no fear and came as close to us as our boundary would allow.We actually arrived early evening and our first full day was everything we had been hoping for, beautiful hot sunshine. The weather, however, turned on the following day, the day that Sarah, Paul and the children were due to arrive. The temperature started to plummet and the sun went into hiding. We had purchased two week tickets for Universal’s theme park and had already arranged with Sarah and Paul that we should go there on the Thursday, the day after they arrived, so that we could enjoy a relatively quite day; as apposed to ‘swarming’ as the American Kids finished for the Christmas break on the Friday.
There are some really good rides as well as some not so good rides but the longest we had to wait for most of them was about 15 minutes. The first ride was the new Simpsons ride. This turned out to be in a ‘simulator’ with surround sound and vision and felt just like a rollercoaster. Other rides used 3D technology with amazing effect. I would recommend the Shrek 3D and the Spiderman 3D but the children really loved the Jimmy Neutron ride. Paul (T), Sarah and I plucked up the courage to go on the Hulk, a very fast rollercoaster ride that shoots you out of the top and immediately turns you upside down.
It is very fast and not something I ever thought I would go on. Then we went on the Duelling Dragons, very similar to the Hulk only there are two roller coasters which look like they are going to crash into each other.
Finally Paul T and Sarah decided to go on the Rip Ride Rockit but I had to draw the line. The ride starts with a 90o turn, climbing skywards for 6 stories before plummeting back to earth and continuing on with several, stomach churning, false stops and restarts.
We went again on Monday 21st December and were presented with queues of 30 minutes and upwards, the longest queue we saw was approximated at 3 hours. If you ever want to go to any Florida theme park, make sure the American kids are in school. Finally Paul and I questioned our sanity when we went for the third time.
Entrance to Wet and Wild, a water park also owned by Universal, was included in our ticket but we only managed to go there once because we just haven’t had the weather to stay wet for too long and then we only managed to stay for a couple of hours. Taylor is very adventurous and has tried any of the exciting rides his height has allowed him to go on. Alicia, on the other hand, is very timid; the very first ride we went on at Universal where the movement was so realistic, even though we remained in a small room, that we think she was ‘put off’. Maybe she has inherited this from her dad as Paul S doesn’t like any ride that spins or goes too fast.
Other adventures included an airboat ride across swamp land. We got gli
mpses of some wildlife and even saw two small alligators; but at the end of the ride there is a photo session where we got to hold a small (maybe two foot) alligator and the more adventurous got to hold a much larger alligator. So with me holding its head and Alicia holding its body with Taylor on the tail we had a very expensive picture taken. Both of these alligators, by the way, had their snouts taped shut; not something I really approve of, but being a hypocrite, had to take the one and only chance to touch.The Science museum was fun, both for us and for the kids, with lots of buttons to push and things to experience. There was a ‘hurricane booth’ where the occupant can experience winds up to 80 mph.; various sound wave and earthquake demonstrations models; and we saw a ‘planetarium’ film about the skies above Orlando. They also have a model of the ‘land’ that makes up Florida showing why there are so many lakes and they have some ‘indigenous critters’ such as a millipede that I held and a small tank of fish with two small rays. As you probably know, rays are ‘bottom feeders’ but at ‘ray feeding time’ one of the staff comes along and educates the audience with some very interesting facts whilst dropping little bits of ‘feed’ down the side of the glass. The rays then eat as if the glass of the tank is the bottom.
On another day we all visited a State Park called Blue Springs where there is a
healthy population of Manatees. At Blue Springs there is a spring (surprise, surprise) where the water comes out of the ground at 720 so the manatees use this spring to keep warm when the water in the river is below that temperature. It was in this park that we saw our first vulture and, when taking a photo, was asked by a local ‘what do you want a picture of that for?’ Clearly not a loved creature! On the way home we visited Mount Dora, famous for its Christmas lights, and very pretty it was too!
Christmas Eve we all went to a suburb of Orlando called Celebration where they always have ‘snow’ on Christmas Eve. Well, the story is that some time ago, all the children in the town gathered in this one street and prayed and prayed for snow and, low and behold, their prayers were answered, it snowed!!!! So now they do it every year – using soap suds! Still, brings the punters and their money in!
And finally, on the 31st we went to the Epcot centre. Not a bargain at a staggering $79 per person PLUS $14 to park the car! The place was heaving and it was possibly the hottest day since Sarah and Paul had arrived. We did
manage to get on a few rides; Soarin, a flight over California and the Mission Space were excellent, Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Spaceship Earth and the Universe of Energy we OK - just, the Sea with Nemo and Friends and Living with the Land we could had done without and we never actually managed to get a go on Test Track because there was a 3 hour queue but we believe would have been excellent. Later that evening we walked ‘around the world’ stopping at the UK for fish and chips and a pint! We were intending going there on New Years Eve but we were told by a local that had stayed one New Years Eve for the spectacular fire work display at midnight that it then took her 3 hours to get out of the car park. As Sarah, Paul and the kids were flying home on the 1st and we too had to move on, we decided that it was not a good idea.
And so Paul and I are off to explore the rest of Florida, well some of it anyway. We had intended going North but the weather is due to get colder, a by product of the great Nor-eastern storm of 2009/10 as the American media are calling it; but we are going to see the Kennedy Space Centre and then we are going south, hunting some warmer weather and sunshine!
Christmas Eve we all went to a suburb of Orlando called Celebration where they always have ‘snow’ on Christmas Eve. Well, the story is that some time ago, all the children in the town gathered in this one street and prayed and prayed for snow and, low and behold, their prayers were answered, it snowed!!!! So now they do it every year – using soap suds! Still, brings the punters and their money in!And finally, on the 31st we went to the Epcot centre. Not a bargain at a staggering $79 per person PLUS $14 to park the car! The place was heaving and it was possibly the hottest day since Sarah and Paul had arrived. We did
manage to get on a few rides; Soarin, a flight over California and the Mission Space were excellent, Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Spaceship Earth and the Universe of Energy we OK - just, the Sea with Nemo and Friends and Living with the Land we could had done without and we never actually managed to get a go on Test Track because there was a 3 hour queue but we believe would have been excellent. Later that evening we walked ‘around the world’ stopping at the UK for fish and chips and a pint! We were intending going there on New Years Eve but we were told by a local that had stayed one New Years Eve for the spectacular fire work display at midnight that it then took her 3 hours to get out of the car park. As Sarah, Paul and the kids were flying home on the 1st and we too had to move on, we decided that it was not a good idea.And so Paul and I are off to explore the rest of Florida, well some of it anyway. We had intended going North but the weather is due to get colder, a by product of the great Nor-eastern storm of 2009/10 as the American media are calling it; but we are going to see the Kennedy Space Centre and then we are going south, hunting some warmer weather and sunshine!
To view all photo's I took in Orlando, Florida - Click Here
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