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Old 6 Nov 13, 11:10 PM  
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SarahJayne
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The July/Aug 2013 American Pye Trip Report - Day 9 - Monday 29th July – Clearwater

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Day 8 here


Day 9 – Monday 29th July – Clearwater

In 2011 we had a day way from the parks and went to Kennedy Space Centre. Adam and Jack (especially Adam ) are fascinated and really knowledgeable when it comes to anything to do with space. I probably know as much as the average person so while I was happy to go I wasn’t actually that fussed but it ended up being one of the best days of the holiday. Partly because it was so interesting and incredibly inspiring but also because it was lovely to have a day out of Orlando and see a bit of ‘real’ Florida. On the way out of the Space Centre we asked at the tourist information desk if they could recommend a restaurant and we ended up at Paul’s Smokehouse Seafood Restaurant in Titusville. It was a real local place - right on the water that over looked the bay. You could see the Space Centre across the water and it was just perfect. I love seafood and we had the most amazing meal in there.

Anyway back to 2013! When we were planning the itinerary for this trip we both knew that we wanted another day away from Orlando but didn’t feel like enough had changed at KSC to warrant another trip there so soon, so we decided to head to Clearwater for the day.

The only aims for the day were to spend some time on the beach and hopefully get a boat trip so we could spot some dolphins.
After reading on the Dibb that it was much better to leave after 9am to miss the morning traffic we did just that after packing swimsuits and a picnic we left the villa at 9:10am. 5mins into the journey, Anna needed a wee (rooky parenting mistake I know! She hadn’t been before we left!) so a quick stop in Publix around the corner and we were on our way.

The drive there was really easy and it was good to drive past Tampa and see the city. I’m the biggest tourist going when we are away but I also love getting off the beaten track a bit and seeing the ‘real’ part of the country – I can daydream then, when we're in the car driving along the highways, that we really live there Seeing Tampa also made me realise how close it is to Orlando and whilst we’ve never done it before I don’t think I’d have a problem flying indirect to there and then driving especially now the kids are older.

Here’s a couple of pics I took on the drive in






We pulled up into the car park right on the beach at 11am ($16 for the day – more than Disney! ) it was a lot busier than I thought but very beautiful, very sunny and very hot! We’d heard on the weather report that there was a chance of rain later in the afternoon (that never arrived!) so we decided that we’d get the boat tour done first and then head to the beach for the afternoon.
We found the tourist information centre who gave us great directions to the harbour and we found it really easily after a little bit of a walk.
We’d done a bit of research before we left home and were looking to go on either Little Toot or the Seascreamer and decided that whichever left first would be the one we chose!
Seascreamer was going out for the next trip in 10mins so Seascreamer it was. They took a picture of the four of us infront of the boat (so I knew we’d be accosted on the way ouy!) and we got on and found some seats. It wasn’t even half full but there was no shade at all to sit in other than seats under the small canopy where the Captain sits and we were baking in it. I’ve honestly never felt heat like it on that boat waiting for it to move! The seats were plastic too so you could hardly sit on them! It was the first time since arriving that the kids had complained about the heat and I have to admit, even I was struggling in it. As the boat finally got going the ‘skipper’ (who was a really lovely bloke!) came over to chat and mentioned that Anna was starting to look pink already (her skin goes pink all over whenever she’s hot so I’m constantly plastering her in suncream, paranoid that she’s burning!) We we’re still chugging out of the harbour but he said that he would ask the Captain once we got out to sea if she could sit in the couple of seats under the canopy out of the sun. He said it was no problem and Adam moved up front with her.



Here’s a pic I took of Jack while we were waiting to move –
you can actually see the sweat dripping on his forehead!



Jack and I stayed in the sun knowing that once we got out to sea and the boat started going faster it would be fine and it was! In fact it was glorious speeding along on that boat with the wind and the sun. As we were going the Captain was told over the radio where some dolphins had been spotted so we knew there were some about. There was a bit of a search for them but once we found them, there were loads! The boat got really close to two groups and the Captain announced that we could all stand at the back of the boat but to hold on as he would speed up to see if he could get them to jump through the wake. And this is what we saw….









It was amazing! I couldn’t believe how many there were and what beautiful and graceful animals. It was wonderful seeing them in the wild like that and so magical for the kids.

On the way back to the harbour I took a couple of pics.


And these houses are where we will be living when we win the lottery





As predicted when we got back there was the picture and keyring waiting for us and suckers that we are we bought it it was only $10 for both. But I haven’t scanned it in so can’t upload it here – sorry!

By then it was about 1:15pm and we were all starving! I’d packed a picnic for lunch so Adam went back to the car for it and our swim stuff and I grabbed a couple of chairs and one of those half tent things so the kids could eat in the shade. ($20 for half a day)



More suncream was applied – it case I haven’t emphasised enough in this day's report – it was soooooo hot! But it is important to point out here that in my stress to make sure that the kids were covered from head to toe there was something that I forgot to do – put suncream on my own face! Doh! I know, I know, let’s just say that my nose was a rather unattractive shade of pink that night! (No pics available )

So we got changed and ate quickly as Adam and the kids were desperate to go into the sea. Adam doesn’t cope well with extreme heat and we both said that day how much you take the air-conditioned shops and rides for granted in the parks. It’s much easier to cope with the heat in Disney because you’re in and out of buildings and on and off rides that all have air-con so you can manage but this heat he just can’t deal with so he practically ran down to the sea!

And it was lovely. The warmest, nicest sea I’ve ever been in and just the right temp to cool you down. The waves are pretty big but the bay isn’t too deep and we had loads of fun bobbing around and splashing about. We spent the whole afternoon in the water and really enjoyed ourselves. The kids thought it was fab and even though I’m not a fan of the water (see Water Park report days for details ) I loved it too.

We spent about 4 hours in the water (on and off with drink and snack breaks) and had a great time. Anna loved sitting in the shallow waves collecting shells and lying down while the water splashed over us. So Adam and I took it in turns to stay with her or go futher in with Jack, who just wanted to go deeper and deeper in the big waves!
At one point we were all sitting in a row letting the waves break over us and I leaned back on my elbows and looked up at the perfect blue sky, soaked the late afternoon sun in and said to Adam that this was the very moment I was going to remember when we are back home and it’s the middle of a dark, miserable January day. That was the moment that was going to get me through the British winter!

By about 5ish everyone was getting hungry again so we got out, used the outdoor showers for a quick rinse off and got dressed. The original plan has been to find one of the restaurants along the bay to eat in but I felt so grimy and grotty (sand really does get everywhere!) and the kids needed food NOW! So we went to MacDonald’s! We probably eat in MacDonald’s about once a year at home (I really don’t like the food – it’s so unhealthy and blurgh!) so the kids were beside themselves and it’s fine for a one off! We ate and left Clearwater about 6ish but the traffic was much worse on the way home so we didn’t get back until 8pm. The kids were absolutely shattered. Lots of sun and water really wears them out so we showered them quickly and put them straight to bed.

Clearwater is beautiful and we had a wonderful day (the dolphins were the definite highlight) I’m really glad that we’d had our day away from Orlando but I don’t think that I would want to stay there for more than a day. We love the beach for a few hours but that afternoon on it was more than enough! We’ve never done beach holidays (we’re just no good at them!) If we were staying there and there was enough to see and do for a few days then fine but I couldn’t spend days on end just sitting on the beach. It’s why we don’t go to Spain on all inclusive hols – I know some people love them but it’s just not for us. It's theme parks or city breaks and sightseeing all the way for us!

Day 10 – Magic Kingdom/Be Our Guest/Wishes!
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Edited at 01:23 PM.
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Old 7 Nov 13, 01:30 AM  
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florida smiles
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Great day and a great trip report. I totally relate with the beach holiday thing, a couple of hours at the beach is enough, I hate the sand too.
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Old 7 Nov 13, 02:26 PM  
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Great day
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Old 10 Nov 13, 09:19 PM  
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SarahJayne
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Originally Posted by florida smiles View Post
Great day and a great trip report. I totally relate with the beach holiday thing, a couple of hours at the beach is enough, I hate the sand too.
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Haha! Most people think we're mad when we say that we hate holidays that mean you sit by the pool or on the beach all day but it just gets so boring for us and such a waste not to explore all of the different places. It was lovely having an afternoon in the sea more an afternoon was more than enough!

Originally Posted by mick View Post
Great day
Mick and Joan - you are there right now! I hope you're having an wonderful time
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Old 10 Nov 13, 10:01 PM  
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Mick and Joan - you are there right now! I hope you're having an wonderful time [/QUOTE]

We certainly are weather lovely warm and sunny in the low 80's will popping out soon for a meal at Red Lobster
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Old 14 Nov 13, 12:24 AM  
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Just caught up with your great report. Sounds like you had a fantastic time.

Couldn't agree with you more about beach holidays, in fact your one afternoon would have been too much for us.
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Old 15 Nov 13, 06:06 PM  
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Wow - what a lovely day - you can feel the heat just looking at the pics!

Love the dolphin pics - gorgeous.

Thanks for the info re KSC too - never been, so it might make it on the list for next visit.
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Old 16 Nov 13, 11:58 AM  
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Aww sounds like a lovely day the photos of the dolphins are great! was the trip expensive?
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Old 25 Nov 13, 10:03 PM  
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Another fabulous couple of days Mrs P xxxx
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Old 29 Mar 14, 01:02 PM  
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We are planning on a day trip to Clearwater this August with our two little girls! Hope we see the dolphins as well what an amazing experience x
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