If you book it, they will come! August 2015 - Day 4 - Clearwater and Shopping in Tampa

[JoJo88]

If you book it, they will come - Team Jamerica Reunited - August 2015

INDEX

Day 4 – Clearwater Beach / International Plaza Mall, Tampa

Saturday 8th August 2015

I went to sleep last night in hot, humid Florida, but somehow during the night I found myself in deepest darkest Siberia, during a cold snap, with the fiercest biting wind threatening to inflict frostbite on my extremities. At least that’s what it felt like.

Regaining a little bit of consciousness, I soon realised I was, in fact, in the direct firing line of the air conditioning unit, cranked to the max. It was that cold I couldn’t even bring myself to crawl from under the tiny smidgeon of duvet that Adam, my bed mate had afforded me, to try and switch it off. Now there’s a predicament!

However, in my semi-conscious state I was eventually able to solve the problem by grabbing the arm chair next to me and turning it so that the back of the chair deflected the blast of air away from me and towards the balcony door instead. I was half expecting icicles by the time morning broke.

Back tracking a little, yes, you read correctly, Adam was my bed mate. In an ideal world the two boys would have been sharing one bed, and Simon and I would’ve been in the other. After 20 plus years of practise, Simon & I are pretty good at sharing a bed, and have discovered what works. He allows me to assume my star position in the middle of the mattress and then fits himself into the spaces. Works for me! However, there was absolutely no way in this world the boys were going to share a bed, it’s a struggle to get them to share oxygen at times, so the risk of them actually touching each other, even when asleep was far too great and it soon became clear that any bribes, no matter how substantial, were just not going to work.

I may have drawn the short straw with the location of my bunk, but poor Simon definitely drew the short straw with his sleeping partner. Adam might be a duvet-hogger, but Daniel is a fidget. And he sleep talks. And he sleep kick-boxes. Poor Simon was punched and kicked several times throughout the night, and at one point Daniel had managed to wriggle himself round 180 degrees so that they were virtually topping and tailing and subsequently booted Simon in the face!

Anyway, I’m getting a little ahead of myself here. So, inclement weather sorted, I managed to get back off to sleep and by some way of a miracle, there was no silly o’clock wake up for me this morning. I did stir at 3.30, then 4.30, but it wasn’t until 6.30 that I was properly awake. And the reason for being awake was the little whispers and footsteps I could hear as Daniel prepared himself for his run!

As I mentioned in yesterday’s report, it was on Daniel’s holiday ‘to do’ list to have an early morning run on the beach. I hadn’t reeeeeeally thought he would do it, but had got his clothes together the night before just in case. What I hadn’t prepared for though, was Adam joining him! I knew it would have been unreasonable for me to ask them to wait for me, I'm completely selfless like that, otherwise of COURSE I would’ve joined them

So the three of them trotted off for a short burst of exercise.

Meanwhile I tried to have a bit of a tidy up.

I’m always amazed at how much we can trash a room in such a short space of time! However, the tidying up was short lived when I realised I’d much rather spend time on the balcony enjoying the view!

The boys got back at about 7.45 and we got them creamed up and ready for the sea.

Grandma and Grandad popped their heads round the door to tell us they were going over the road for breakfast and would we like to join them, but we declined and snacked on some of the bits we’d bought from Publix the day before instead.

Once we were ready we made our way down to the beach, and the boys were back in the sea – wait for it – faster than a greyhound out of trap three at Hackney Wick (every single trip report, without fail )

Grandma & Grandad joined us after their breakfast, which they had really enjoyed and we made a note to visit one morning. It was so lovely bobbing around in the warm waters, the boys trying to catch the waves on their boogie boards, and Simon trying to catch the boys so he could have a go. He had declined the opportunity to buy one for himself the night before thinking he could take it in turns with the boys. Ha! Nice try! They were onto him as they knew exactly what would happen, and it brings to mind a story about Simon’s Dad which proves that the apple really doesn't fall far from the tree!

Back when Simon was a teenager his Dad used to take him and his cousin, Justin, off to play snooker every now and then. Simon & Justin would usually have something to eat there, more often than not a burger, and “Grampy” would always decline, saying he wasn’t hungry. However, what would then happen, would be that he would ask for a bite of Simon’s, which would equate to half a burger, ask for a bite of Justin's, again, half a burger, so ultimately he who declined would end up with an entire snack, and the other two would feel extremely short changed! The boys were wise that this was the sort of scenario that would play out with Simon!

Anyway, back to Clearwater and the warm waters of the Gulf coast…… Grandma was the only one who didn’t full submerge as she’s not keen on water being a non-swimmer, so she watched from afar enjoying the shallows.

It was a gloriously warm morning, and after a couple of hours we decided to move ourselves to the pool in search of a bit of shade. At least some of us did…..

Some of us preferred to do more of this:

There was a nice atmosphere around the pool. It was busy, but not too busy, we were able to get sunbeds easily enough, and there were enough people around for some serious ‘people watching’!

After an hour or so, those of us who skipped a proper breakfast were beginning to feel the effects and so the four of us dried off and went for a wander leaving the sun-worshipping Grandparents alone for a while to soak up some rays.

Over the road from the hotel was a Subway, and once the boys had clapped eyes on it there was no persuading them to walk any further to see what else we might find.

Feeling at home in the familiar sandwich shop they boys ordered themselves a sub each whereas Simon & I went for a salad instead. For some reason I don’t have the receipt, but I remember thinking exactly the same as I do when we visit Subway at home, it’s bloomin’ expensive for a sandwich!

The boys tucked in to their usual chicken and salad footlongs, grabbing a drink and some crisps to make it a meal deal while Simon and I enjoyed our salads. I’d been talked into adding banana peppers to mine without knowing what they were, the server assuring me I’d love them. He was wrong. I recognised the taste, and eventually realised that, despite their yellow disguise, banana peppers are gherkins. Bleurgh! What I hate even more than the taste of gherkins is that when you remove them from your McD burger, you’re then left with Eau de Fast Food on your fingers no matter how much you wash them!

Once fed and watered we made our way outside, stopping off to have a look in the nearby taffy shop. Wow, what a place! 102 different flavours of taffy – I'd be surprised if one of them wasn't banana pepper!

Daniel already had himself an empty bag ready to fill, but we told him we’d come back later as there were several offers on, so we might as well wait for Grandma and combine our choices. He then asked if he could have a snow cone but I managed to persuade him to wait until later as he’d just had a big drink.

The wind seemed to be picking up, and as we got back to the pool Grandma & Grandad were packing up so we grabbed our things and made our way upstairs.

Not long after that the heavens opened and it absolutely poured down. So strange for it to happen so suddenly!

Being the weather experts that we are (haha!) we stuck a licked thumb in the air and predicted the rain was here to stay which left us with one option. Food! However, having just eaten lunch, we soon came up with a contingency plan, and one that wasn’t met with the expected moans and groans from the short people, shopping!

Naturally we planned our shopping destination around where we’d like to eat that evening, and after a quick look online we tracked down an Applebees near the International Plaza Mall in Tampa, which seemed like an obvious choice.

We piled into the car and made the decision to stop off at Budget on the way to return the redundant Sat Nav and demand a refund.

We located a branch in Clearwater and set the non-redundant Sat Nav to find it. I don’t know why, but for some reason we were taken all round the houses trying to find Budget, perhaps there’s something programmed into the system to do that in a last ditch attempt to persuade you to keep the extra bit of kit! Anyway, we eventually found the tiny little office, and Simon & my Dad went in to sort things out. I wanted to go with them as I thought it was going to go one of two ways without me. They would either walk out with their tails between their legs and the Sat Nav still in their possession, or I’d hear yelling and shouting as they tried to gently persuade Budget to take it back.

However, I was trapped in the very back of the car and so had to trust they would know how to handle the situation. And they did. Less than five minutes later they reappeared with the promise of a refund onto the credit card, and a thousand apologies for any inconvenience. I need to have more faith in the menfolk of the family!

So, slight detour over with, we carried on towards Tampa with the rain providing more of a soundtrack than our usual holiday CD. In fact, even though we listened to the CD occasionally during this trip, it didn’t quite have the same effect as the previous year and so the songs still only really remind me of our 2014 holiday. Funny that!

We eventually arrived at the shopping Mall and decided that we would split from my Mum & Dad. My Dad was after some jeans and Mum was happy just browsing. The Mall had all the usual shops and Simon soon found Abercrombie and Fitch which meant we lost him for about half an hour.

Me and the boys waited outside, occasionally checking out nearby retailers, one of which was Teavana next door, think Whittards.

There were several urns of tea available for tasting so we thought it would be fun to try and pick a favourite, not that we had any intention of buying any. What we hadn’t banked on was the single most persistent sales assistant following us around the store and giving us the low down every time we tried something. He really should have realised that we were simply killing time, but he just wouldn’t leave us alone. I guess that’s what you get for partaking in the freebies (or gizits as we sometimes call them!), and actually we found it highly amusing and it soon became a challenge to try and take a drink without him noticing!

Simon soon reappeared from the cave that is A&F with bags in hand. Despite it being pitch black in there he’d managed to pick out a few things as well as stocking up on Fierce Aftershave. He also managed to get himself something in Hollister as did I before meeting up with G&G.

It was then my turn to keep Simon waiting as Mum & I made a beeline for Bath & BodyWorks. I’d heard loads of good things about this shop, and when we eventually found it I could see why!

Trouble is, there is sooooooo much to choose from, and about a trillion different fragrances, that I just didn’t know where to start! However, I eventually settled on some hand sanitizers and foaming handwash in several flavours, but my favourite was, and still is the black cherry. Here’s a little photo of some of my haul, taken when we were home:

Grandma also stocked up, and we eventually joined the others, who had thankfully managed to find a pew (we were gone a while!) The boys had found a gadget shop nearby and spent a bit of time in there. Adam had enjoyed a go on a foot massager and really wanted me to have a go too, so he took me off to have a look. However, somebody else was having a go AND WITH BARE FEET so I decided to pass!

Adam had his eye on an electronic writing board – he loves little gadgets, but decided to wait for another shopping trip in case he saw something else, which surprised me as his dollars usually burn a hole in his pocket.

We left the mall a bit earlier than we’d planned and so instead of going to the nearby Applebee’s, we decided to head back to Clearwater and go to one on the way back whilst we built up our appetites!

We were seated in a very quiet restaurant and began the arduous task of deciding what to have – there’s so many good choices on the menu that we could probably eat there for a week and still have a different meal each time.

Saying that, I still ended up going for the same thing I usually have, along with Grandma, the chicken tenders. Grandad had the chicken & shrimp, Simon fiesta lime chicken, Adam a burger and Daniel the most expensive thing on our bill, a sirloin steak. We also had some mozzarella sticks to start.

It was a lovely meal as always, nothing fancy just tasty, inexpensive food.

We finished with a couple of dessert shooters, perfection in a pudding for me, and along with a couple of beers and soft drinks, the bill came to a very reasonable $107.

We waddled back to the car

Assuming our usual positions

And the boys decided to amuse themselves with the camera on the way home

There’s Adam matching his shades to his tshirt 

The plan had been to get back to Clearwater in time for the sunset, but it was pretty obvious on the journey home that there wasn’t going to be one to witness.

On arriving back in Clearwater, Daniel asked if he could have the snow cone from earlier – he’d probably been reciting ‘snow cone later, snow cone later, snow cone later’ in his head all day long so that he didn’t forget!

We parked up and popped over the road to the pick him up his icy snack. Watermelon flavour. I asked him to make sure he was happy with his decision, having not tried that particular flavour before, but he was certain he would love it.

You can guess what happened next can’t you? Three seconds after this photo was taken Daniel declared he didn’t like it, and it ended up in the nearby bin

Making our way back to the Hilton, Simon checked his phone and started laughing. Some friends had Whatsapped us to say that they had been to where we live today for a picnic. We live in quite a touristy place, somewhere people do visit, so that in itself wasn’t unusual. However, it was only when I saw the accompanying photo that I realised how literal they had been….

Yup, that’s the front of our house!

We dropped our shopping off in the room

And after a quick turn around we were back down on the beach so the boys could try and catch some waves.

Adam managed it, Daniel had another attempt.

Success!

One particularly vicious wave caught Adam and when he emerged from the foamy water he was without his goggles. We tried in vain to find them, waiting for each wave that washed up on shore to retreat so we can see if it had delivered the goggles back to us, but they were long gone. Adam didn’t want to stay in the sea after that as the salty water was hurting his eyes so we moved to the pool instead, a decision everyone was happy with.

We had some vouchers for free drinks from the pool bar and so had a wander round to see what was on offer. Predictably the choice was very limited but Mum & I had a cocktail, Simon & Grandad had a beer, and I asked the barman if they had any special drinks for children. I was thinking virgin cocktails. The barman shrugged his shoulders and mumbled something about just having soda and stuff. I relayed this message to the boys when the barman piped up with ‘I can make anything, what do you want? Give me something to work with here’. If you’re now picturing Tom Cruise in Cocktail, you couldn’t be further from the truth. He was soooooo miserable! I told him something with strawberries would be nice so he conjured up a couple of virgin strawberry daiquiris, which we ended up paying $6.50 each for as we only had 4 drinks vouchers!

I half expected these drinks to go the same way as the watermelon slushie from earlier, but the boys surprised me and polished them off.

After a dip in the pool (just the boys) we decided to have a wander down to Pier 60. We got halfway there when Daniel realised he didn’t have his flip flops on. How he got halfway without noticing I’ll never know, but I made him come back with me to try and find them, which we did, by the sun loungers we’d just been sat on.
We caught up with the others and carried on to the Pier.

Shamefully I have no photos for the rest of the evening, but we had a little browse of the craft stalls and bought a few bits and pieces – fridge magnet, a ‘Clearwater Beach’ canvas sign, I’m pretty sure Adam will have bought something that lights up in the dark!

Daniel had wanted to have another go on the bungee trampoline that he had enjoyed last year but it wasn’t open so he was disappointed about that.

We took a stroll to the nearby surf shop to replace Adam’s goggles and then decided to call it a night.

Showers all round, and it was after mine that I noticed a bite on my arm This sent me into a bit of a panic as I’d really suffered with bites the previous year, they had become quite nasty and angry and made me feel poorly. However, I had supplies with me this time and applied some after bite and thankfully nothing more came of it!

With no early morning jogs planned, we all got into bed hopeful for a restful, (and in my case warm, in Simon’s case injury-free) night’s slumber

[Dixie Dot]

Great read and about time! I've been waiting for this! Love reading your reports xx

[Redrach1903]

You are one nice Mum! I would have made them sleep on the floor! Haha!

Is it sad that I recognized the décor in Subway before I even read it? #LOSER

Ooof loving the look of that taffy shop!

I’m defo gonna have to check out bath and body works this year! Loving the sound of the black cherry! Yum!

You can’t beat Applebees for a good feed can you?! Always tasty and pretty cheap too!

LOL – how indeed can one walk for so long without noticing their shoes are missing?! That’s hilarious!

Great read my dear, but don’t take so long with the next one xxxx

[Deggs]

I used to hate gherkins and as a meat eating child we used to take them out of Maccy Ds... but I quite like them now!

Was Daniel walking barefoot? And did you not notice lol.

Great read as always, see you next month 😉 X

Deggs x

[Sparksy72]

I'm pleased it's not just me who gets a bit carried away in Bath and Body Works 😁 What a great day!

[ely3857]

Totally understand why it's easier to have one grown up to one kiddo in the bed. My youngest wakes sooooo early I think my eldest would end up suffocating her given half a chance!

[pretty71]

Great day and excellent use of the rain to go shopping 😉 I am glad you have mentioned the "bites" as I have been waiting to see how things went. We are spending two weeks in Rotunda this summer and after reading your report from last year I was starting yo worry about being eaten alive too. We will take supplies too but I am glad it was OK for you. Look forward to reading more 😀

[Zomax25]

What a lovely day. Thanks!

[KittyBlackDog]

Ya! The greyhound has been delivered ! 😂👍🏻🐶🐶🐶🐶

OH MY 😱 All that Taffy! What a choice of flavours 😳
I managed BABW for the first time last trip too, I had to double visit as I got completely overwhelmed by all the fragrances...I'm such a lightweight! I've just got our California citrus and sunshine hand soap out today 😬😂

Glad the bites didn't get as bad as last year.

How rude of the aircon to freeze you in your sleep (read as my pet hate in hotels!)

Sounds like a lovely relaxing day. TFS

[yellowrose78]

Great day, I must try bath and body works, what a fab haul you got from there