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Old 21 Sep 13, 02:33 PM  
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WileyCoyote
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Surprise Second Helpings August 2013 Day 5 Part 2 : Bradenton and Baseball

Part 1 , Busch Gardens , is HERE

We set off on our quest for food, convinced that there will be something suitable nearby as we had seen so many signs but in our uncanny way we somehow manage to take a turning which will see us soon on the way to Bradenton.

Not a single suitable eaterie in sight and the petrol was running low so we have to make a quick re-fuel stop. And this is where we have quite possibly the most surreal moment of the entire holiday.

We pull up to the pumps but it’s a bit of a squeeze so whilst I had intended to get out and get something from the boot, I am a bit wedged in.

Never mind.

The culprit is a big flatbed truck next to us and the young guy filling it up is chatting away on his mobile, all the while putting the gas in – odd, didn’t think you were supposed to do that

Anyway , Andy has to get back in the car to find his wallet and as he does so the passenger in the truck opens her door and just leaves it open while she has a blazing row with the guy – she looks completely mashed and doesn’t give a hoot that we are stuck – Andy now cant get back out, he cant move the car backwards or forwards so we are well and truly stuck.

Then the Mum gets out, snatches the phone off the guy and starts ranting while he LIGHTS A CIGARETTE while still filling up

OMG – we are trapped in our car while all this is going on – we are either going to die in a fireball or, if Andy winds down the window to ask them close the door, we think they will probably bring out a shotgun.

It’s just bedlam with them all yelling and then suddenly, calm as you like, they all get back in , drop the cig on the floor and drive away.

I looked high and low for the candid camera/you’ve been framed crew but couldn’t spot them.

Was that just for real > Yup, it surely was. Only in America

Grateful to have not been incinerated , we move on in our quest for food.

By now the boys have resorted to licking the car windows in the hope of nutritional revivement.

We just happened to see the sign for the Ellenton Outlets and convinced there will be food aplenty – our fate is sealed so off we go, over the Sunshine Skyway and into Bradenton.





Naturally we then pass numerous places like Applebees, MacDs, etc etc on route but convince ourselves the outlets will be the best choice.

I can’t say we were all that chirpy when we arrived but the outlets look really nice – big, and seemingly very quiet.




The manatees in clothing were a bit creepy though




Just not right !




A power walk to the food court




which reveals it is under construction so choice is rather limited but eventually Connor settles on pizza ($9)while the rest of us have a Chinese of some description ($22 for 3 of us)


It was all really very tasty and under $40 for the lot of us including our drinks.



I know, Andy had mash with his Chinese, don’t ask , he was hungry

We have a wander around, its nicely laid out. Some purchases are made in Lacoste (bags for me) and we time our exit about 5 minutes too late as around 4pm the heavens open



So we sit it out until 4.30 and then when it eases off , dash to the car.

We make our way back to St Petes, circuit free this time and getting straight to the Hilton Bayfront which looks very nice





We have a high room which looks fine







And overlooks this cool water feature across the way



That’s the hotel’s pool which was to the left of the room on an angle


Edited at 03:29 PM.
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Old 21 Sep 13, 02:33 PM  
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WileyCoyote
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We have a super chatty receptionist who feels free to tell us her life history including her time in Dublin –which of course we must know well, living as we do in Northamptonshire !

She kindly gives us free wifi but don’t tell the boys as we made them leave the ipads in the villa as we couldn’t be bothered to pay for wifi here , sigh.

We sign up for the free shuttle bus at 6.20 and have an hour or so in the room to all shower and chill out for a bit.

Quite a few guests are waiting for the shuttle but we get there fine and it’s a great atmosphere. We pick up the tickets from will call no problem and soak up some atmosphere in the stadium – I don’t know the pics are so blurry , sorry !





We get some cow bells before taking our seats and watch them setting it all up ready for the game





The boys were unimpressed with Mum’s cowbell ringing technique



ps - these are now very handy at home for summoning to the dinner table !


We had been directed to these seats but were apparently in the wrong block ( 207 instead of 205) so about 30 minutes later had to move – the plus side was our new seats in 205 were at the end of a row and were PADDED – nice. The downside- the TV crew ended up where we had originally been sat and gave everyone in that row some freebies



The game was great , took me ages to work it all out but great fun

The crowd was apparently 24,000, a lot of whom were holidaying Brits if the seats around us were anything to go by





Alex Rodriguez (ARod) was booed mercilessly every time he set out and had a nightmare game for the Yankees.



The first time the Rays hit a home run, the stadium went wild, it was incredible , such a great atmosphere and the games/activities in all the commercial breaks were fun too especially the mascot races and Dance Cam and the people in the stadium doing their best to be seen on TV.

During the game there was an old guy a few rows in front of us who kept standing up and shouting “left,right, left right” everytime a Yankees player had to walk off the pitch .He was really funny.

Another guy was big on exercising his constitutional rights having been apparently told that his T Shirt

RedSox
And
Yankees
Suck

Was not family friendly and he had to turn it inside out – well, a few beers and several innings later and he wasn’t having any of that , no sir, he was exercising his right to free speech and wanting to know where on the ticket it excluded him from wearing his T Shirt .

Of course, out of 24,000 spectators, he would be just two rows down from us wouldn’t he


We had some hotdogs, nachos , sodas and Andy had a few beers – I think all that lot cost us the best part of $100 so by no means cheap but a wonderful atmosphere – we were really sad when at the end of 11 innings it was time to leave



We had genuinely expected to leave after a few innings but we were totally hooked – what a great evening’s entertainment

Outside there were large queues for the hotel shuttle and taxis so ,having been told earlier to just “follow the crowd” we decided to walk.

You know what's coming right ?

The “crowd” soon seemed to disperse from around us – we were staying on 1st Street.

As we passed under 7th Street it was becoming clear we had gone the wrong way and as we reached 9th Street , we had a full on row ( well , it was more of a hissing contest so as not to draw too much attention to ourselves) as to whose fault it was with Andy suggesting I go up to the chaps in the petrol station to ask the way – ahem, I don’t think so, we don’t stand out much as it is do we – pitch black, hardly anyone around , just us 4 tourists.

Memories of our trip to Tenderloin in SF flooded back so it was a quick turnaround and speedmarch and before we knew it we were back at the stadium.

Feeling rather irritated by the needless 30 minutes walking and not fancying another 30 minutes we managed to flag down a cab - the driver was super chatty but unfortunately for Andy as an ex smoker, he was also chainsmoking the whole way so we spluttered out of the cab about 15 minutes later. Under different circumstances we wouldn’t have got in but we were grateful to just be transported back to the hotel.

It was around 1045 now so really quite late given we had spent the morning yomping round Busch so we were all really tired.

We jumped into beds to discover they were supersoft – like trampolines so when one person moved or rolled over, the other person was catapulted skywards.

Of course Connor and Jamie couldn’t wait to make tedious use of this to wind each other up :angry: and Andy , being a somewhat larger chap didn’t intentionally do it but it was like the silent night advert , that one with the one with the duck and the hippo ?

The mattress moved around so much it was like being on a waterbed, it made me feel queasy.

So what with that and the return of the super snorer ( nothing to do with Bud lites at all) it would be fair to say a “mixed” night was had by all………

Edited at 02:44 PM.
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Old 21 Sep 13, 03:06 PM  
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mossyflossy
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Oh my word, I would have been sh@@@@@g myself in that car at the petrol station! And sorry, but I've just been laughing at the thought of the bed trampolining and snoring antics, so will give that Hilton a very wide berth! Ray's game sounds fab.

Good to see that all the outlets now seem to think that you're now an OAP at 50, keep teasing DH about this and saying next year we will have to go on a Tuesday to get his OAP discount, mwhahaha.
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Old 21 Sep 13, 03:55 PM  
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Fantastic second part to the day. We got engrossed in the Rays game when we went too - expecting to leave before the end but staying into extra innings to see the end of the game. Must have been a day or two after you were there.
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Old 21 Sep 13, 06:18 PM  
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I've never been to a Rays game myself, but DH tends to have a boys night with one of our friends, while us girls have a cocktail or two instead. Perhaps I should go next time.

Don't like the sound of the walking back to the hotel though - it sounded very scary. Don't blame you for putting up with the chain smoker if it meant you got home safely.
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Old 21 Sep 13, 06:30 PM  
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Loved seeing the second half of your day! I'm really so sad the we couldn't go to the rays this year. We just loved the whole evening - and I'm really not a fan of sports at all usually.
The hotel looks lovely, what a shame about the crazy beds. I bet Andy wasn't feeling too great in the cab!
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Old 21 Sep 13, 06:46 PM  
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I would of been terrified in the petrol station but food looks fab at the outlets mash potatoes ? Lol sound a like a fab day by the end
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Old 21 Sep 13, 08:26 PM  
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Eventful day Amanda
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Old 22 Sep 13, 05:22 AM  
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We have seen minor league games and will have to go to a rays game now! Love that you are using the cow bell to call the family to meals, great use for it!

How's the wedding planning doing?
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Old 22 Sep 13, 07:46 AM  
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Originally Posted by mossyflossy View Post
Oh my word, I would have been sh@@@@@g myself in that car at the petrol station! And sorry, but I've just been laughing at the thought of the bed trampolining and snoring antics, so will give that Hilton a very wide berth! Ray's game sounds fab.

Good to see that all the outlets now seem to think that you're now an OAP at 50, keep teasing DH about this and saying next year we will have to go on a Tuesday to get his OAP discount, mwhahaha.

Hi Ruth, yes the beds were too soft for us. It was a lovely room but thank goodness just the one night. The Rays experience was outstanding, I can see why it's such a big family game now. Lol, yes the 50 plus offers could be quite appealing for us sooner than we know it too and the garage experience, just totally surreal .

Originally Posted by PlutoFan View Post
Fantastic second part to the day. We got engrossed in the Rays game when we went too - expecting to leave before the end but staying into extra innings to see the end of the game. Must have been a day or two after you were there.
Hi Anne, it is easy to get sucked in isn't it. Andy went to get drinks half way through and the boys were really upset as they thought we were leaving !

Originally Posted by jocat View Post
I've never been to a Rays game myself, but DH tends to have a boys night with one of our friends, while us girls have a cocktail or two instead. Perhaps I should go next time.

Don't like the sound of the walking back to the hotel though - it sounded very scary. Don't blame you for putting up with the chain smoker if it meant you got home safely.
The walk back was scary, we very quickly became alone and totally stood out as lost tourists. We had the navigational inquest the next morning



Originally Posted by offtoseemickey View Post
Loved seeing the second half of your day! I'm really so sad the we couldn't go to the rays this year. We just loved the whole evening - and I'm really not a fan of sports at all usually.
The hotel looks lovely, what a shame about the crazy beds. I bet Andy wasn't feeling too great in the cab!
Hi Michala, not long for you now. We would definitely try and fit in a game now wherever we may go. Poor Andy , he is one of those reformed ex smokers so he really did have a horrible time. Personally I thought it was divine retribution for the walking fiasco just before hand, but then as we recall from last year. , I AM Ming the Merciless

Originally Posted by Alfie2013 View Post
I would of been terrified in the petrol station but food looks fab at the outlets mash potatoes ? Lol sound a like a fab day by the end
We were both terrified and stunned as it played out inches from us . The food was nice, even the mash and it was a good day, just a few weird bits in between

Originally Posted by Milner View Post
Eventful day Amanda
wasn't it just Carole

Originally Posted by Nesbits View Post
We have seen minor league games and will have to go to a rays game now! Love that you are using the cow bell to call the family to meals, great use for it!

How's the wedding planning doing?
The cow bells are so neat. I read about them on someone else's trippy. Jamie loved it, Connor was having nothing to do with it, not "cool" at all.

The wedding, ahem, yes ,tricky that one. The planning is slow , or should that be not happening. Too many people chipping in their views ... I think we should just wear the rings and leave the rest seriously we do need to make some decisions as once we get the rings, we both know we will be itching to wear them so we need a plan!
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