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Thrillin',Chillin',Feet are Killin' Day 3:Bargain Buys, Loaded Fries, Seaworld Highs
Day 3: Friday 21 August
The day before is here My notes say this is Day 2 – because I don’t really count travel day – and I think this messes with my head at the end of the holiday as only had 12 days on the ground in Orlando and I seemed to be counting down to hometime way too early in the hols ! In my tired state last night I didn’t finish my notes – it was only the following day I remembered the really key advice for Buffalo Wild Wings The Wings are Wild As in Hot As in if you have the teensiest bit still on your hands and you rub your eyes they WILL water :cry: http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psdgeuaboh.jpg So just thank heavens you rubbed your eyes and hadn’t made a bathroom break instead :omg::omg: http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psxvnfavqp.jpg Yes folks, you have been warned . Poor Andy had bit of a sore eye for a little while. But soon recovered. Anyhow, on to the day in hand ( see the appendage link there, nice) I woke at 4.30 , feeling ok after about 8 hours straight sleep. By 5 am Andy was also awake and we had given up any notion of getting back to sleep so it was coffe and honeybuns in bed with good old Wesh If only every morning was like this. Kevin and Perry surface from their pits at 0800. We are out the door at 0820. And that’s when we realise its like commuting. There is traffic everywhere What the ….. You are on holiday, have a lie in you crazy people.:zzz: Oh, yeah, its Orlando, maybe not then. In fairness , even though there was a lot of traffic and jeez how many sets of lights are there on the 192 ? , we did move at a fair pace with a bit of lane DODGE – ing ( see how I did that) and we are pulling up at Seaworld at 0840. http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pscbnerjb5.jpg Once we have paid our parking ( which I think is $17) Andy drops me off to sort the tix while he goes to park and of course we get the very end of the row about as far from the park entrance as possible – but its not really that busy. I discover the paper tix don’t need to be exchanged so I just wait at the turnstiles for them to arrive and we are all through by 0850. The boys go on ahead to be near the front at rope drop and will head straight on to Manta. We have agreed to meet up with them at 1130. Whilst waiting we sit and do some people watching. It is insanely hot already So the family in jeans, leggings and dark tops are going to be very hot. :( Red faced Angry Dad is going to spontaneously combust if he carries on and he hasn’t even really set foot in the park yet. And the lady in the oh-so-glam-but –utterly-impractical high heeled sandals – your feet are gonna be killin ya later babe. :nonono: But hey who am I to talk with the digit cripplers I have been wearing .. Happily I am back in the comfy shoes today which is good , as its now 9 and we are off. At a slow mooch towards the dolphins Via the stingrays http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pstybx5slz.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pseoftb2hx.jpg I cant do that whole touching them business They freak me out Well Nature generally freaks me out I am like Melman – that nature, its all over me , get it off. I like to SEE it, I don’t need to TOUCH it But its cool here and the rays are very happy to flap their way past everyone and its nice as hardly anyone is here this early in the day. On then to the dolphins They are cute And playful But as I said to Andy, maybe they are just the ultimate show offs - I wonder what the other fish make of all that leaping and frolicking malarkey http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psokjtjn9d.jpg He laughed out loud when I said that and said I am just becoming a grumpy old woman Whatever can he mean http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pstnx0rdtn.jpg Back to the Dolphins It is quiet here ( feeding time hasn’t started yet) so we spend some time here listening to the lady talking about the dolphins and she is encouraging people to put their hands out to touch the Dolphins as they pass – but ideally not hanging your child over the water :erm: It is lovely standing here in the blazing sunshine http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pspiqz7wt6.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps2n8h7um6.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psevpnd7vz.jpg We take a stroll uptowards Atlantis , pondering whether the boys are on this yet. http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psevqoddlm.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pskgxh1owb.jpg Its lovely in this area http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psjfg1o42j.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psr2tlcqfh.jpg We take a walk over to the Penguin ride http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps6by5piyb.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psy6wemht4.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pskxb83juf.jpg Look who we found in the queue http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pslkiftapi.jpg They had been on the second load of Manta and had come over here as Kraken doesn’t open till 10 and they didn’t fancy getting wet on Atlantis. When we split into the Wild and mild lines they got called ahead of us as a party of 2 so they didn’t have any further parental embarrassment to endure. It was nice to see them laughing though We opted for the Wild ride too – it was actually more spinny than I realised and the guy loading the cars was very very witty making lots of snow and cold related jokes ( its snow joke out there folks etc) http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psqdtkhqst.jpg It was good fun, better than I think we recalled from last time. And then you come out into the real penguin area. Man they do hum :omg: And its cold http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps6iu8yaz7.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psdgrrigeh.jpg Penguins everywhere and not a bleddy chocolate bar in sight http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psbwy2axut.jpg |
As soon as we exit my glasses steam up and I am temporarily unable to move forward as I literally cannot see a blinking thing and narrowly avoid tripping up on my ample butt.
http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps2pdqdstk.jpg No hazard warning about that is there! And who let Howard from Take That in the queue behind me? Once suitably de-fogged its now a walk over to the sharks. http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psldyd4iwf.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psvril4rib.jpg Ok – I know- these are not sharks Even with my dodgy bins I can see that They are coming up next http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pslmj4mcgh.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psme4eibo4.jpg Aristotle meets SeaWorld. Now there is a pairing to ponder. http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps0tut2q03.jpg SHARK ! http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pswrgx61et.jpg Damn, it’s a fake http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps3jrfjci8.jpg These were definitely the real deal We love this tunnel And spent ages in here Even though you are not supposed to We did We kept walking backwards on the travellator As we were pretty much the only people in here But damn, these sharks don’t stay still – I mean how are you supposed to take their picture ! http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps45hohsha.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psv2zbnrnb.jpg Andy found a new friend http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psmk55pt8u.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pssxqqvnf2.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psodugnqie.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pspwwnter7.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psr6ceijbs.jpg They are just so damn scary ! http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pstesvfpzg.jpg SeaWorld is rammed http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps4qeivmps.jpg Not This is the only way to tour parks ! Sun beating down and absolutely not another person in sight – this is just wonderful. We had the most relaxing time bimbling around between the parts of the park. Bliss . It was one of those moments that you wish you could bottle – the warmth, the feelgood factor, the peace and just being there http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps5gl8pwbb.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psbwoq47nh.jpg I need this sign in my life http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psy5oryxo6.jpg From the sharks Andy ( he who doesn’t do heights) wanted to go the skytower. It’s a 20 minute wait and thankfully we are soon in the shade Look across at the car park – its about 1030 now and its really empty http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psaehb9ppp.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psz8a75ibu.jpg I know , who takes pics of car parks on their holiday ..:confused2 http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psq2entgdh.jpg Real whale http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psgwahhezn.jpg Fake whale http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pslidmg4rm.jpg Oh no, Andy’s been parking his boat again http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psdopxgna6.jpg Its 1045 now and off to see the Manatees. http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pscz19m8uh.jpg I think I might like to be a Manatee in another life … At 1100 we make our way back towards Atlantis and bump into the boys. By now we are all a bit peckish. I quite fancy a go on Atlantis – I have vowed to try a new ride in every park and my suggestion of Manta here was met with hoots of derision so I thought Atlantis might do instead. But the queue was 25 minutes – I guess people wanting to cool off on a hot day. Then the queue for the lockers looked about another 10 minutes so we decided to give it a miss. We are all agreed on leaving for some lunch – its been a really lovely couple of hours and we vow to come back to take in some more shows . |
A quick trip up I Drive to Friendlys
It was quiet and very welcoming. I had a delicious strawberry milkshake which for some odd reason is called a Fribble. I do not know why ! The boys had the chicken Honey BBQ melt sandwich with loaded fries. The lack of description that the loaded fries were topped with sour cream caused some initial consternation but once it had been forensically removed by me, they happily tucked in. And they declared this overall best lunch of the holiday :D Portion sizes are not for the faint hearted :omg: http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psjrsiwobs.jpg I had the Honey BBQ burger with plain waffle fries. Nom nom. And of course I had the sour cream to dip my fries into because they just were not enough calories on my plate already http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pswwojlwjw.jpg You will note the photobombing fork that appears intermittently in the food photos. Andy's food envy meant he was keen to sample everyone's food in order to determine which leftovers would be suitable for later minesweeping ! Andy had fish and chips. Which he said was nice but not quite as good as our last visit. http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psj2tgbuit.jpg We were totally stuffed and failed dismally on the sundae front :( We had a sign up voucher for 25% off which took $13 off the bill and made it $42. We left $50 and rolled out in a carb loaded coma. http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pshpuzblqn.jpg Its around 1230 now and the boys opt to go home and chill out for a bit while we do some shopping. We drop them off – lord knows what all those mountain dews will do to them while we are gone :omg:– and turnaround for the Vineland outlets. By now its 1.45 and busy but with some judicious shopper stalking we manage to bag a prime spot in the shade – result ! We have a good few hours here – its busy but not too bad and our impression is that its actually much cleaner and tidier than our last visit – especially the loos which are being kept incredibly tip top. Unfortunately we just didn’t quite have our shopping heads on and Andy was really disappointed with Lacoste this time. The prices are still very cheap compared to the UK but there weren’t the stand out bargains that we have seen on other trips. Do not panic This situation is rectified Purchases were made http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psuw4gfjnv.jpg http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psdfx3e8fp.jpg I splash out an enormous $10 on 6 pairs of Adidas trainer socks – as Connor then leaves a pair at Aquatica a few days later , I wish I had got more http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psblpvtcoe.jpg Andy then spots some absolute bargain sweaters in Armani Exchange $12.99 for Cashmere Crew Necks ! So he bought one in each colour – Rose, Navy,Maroon and ivory That’s just ridiculous prices http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psrsifb0wz.jpg $55 for 4 cashmere sweaters – RRP $129 EACH ! Next stop the Disney store Disappointing Like a jumble sale I only purchased this hat for $19.99 http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psjfpqdbdx.jpg We were gasping by now so I bought a tropical slushie from the Sundial refreshment station for $8 It was very nice but I was stopped in my tracks By the most excruciating brain freeze.:cry: Yup, ice direct to the brain at speed and in quantity I almost cried It gave me a searing pain in my head and eyes and I may have gone slightly crazy lady styley How can a drink hurt so much ? http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psosudrcvm.jpg Once I got over myself we carried on – next time I will get a diet coke from the vending machine - it will be safer It was very nice though and very welcome in the baking heat. On our way back to the Condo we stop again at the Kissimmee clearance centre and I nab myself a couple of bargain tops http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps3xrh3hot.jpg $12.99 for the jumper and $14.99 for the polo shirt – less than £10 each ! Andy got some funky socks for around $4 a pair http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psjciwvam1.jpg And some lovely shorts for $25 http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psh3manxbz.jpg And I picked up this total bargain navy rain coat RRP $119 with 70% off , a snip at $36 http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...psgluf37yd.jpg And its been well used in the last week ! We nipped next door to DollarTree – this is a great place to purchase small packs of washing powder ( or bottle of liquid in this case) and a small washing up liquid. Both sizes perfect for our 12 day stay – the washing liquid lasted for 8 washes , perfect , all for $1. We pitch up at the condo around 5pm. Everyone is still stuffed from the whopping lunch at Friendlies so we just graze on the Walmart supplies. I always feel slightly aggrieved at missing a feeding opportunity but we truly were too full to contemplate another meal out. Andy sorted the wine bottle situation using Bear Grylls-esque improvisation skills He found a hammer and a loose screw So he turned the screw into the cork and then used the claw to pull the whole thing out – genius Necessity the mother of invention and all that Just as well , or the hammer would have been connecting with the bottle if I had my way ….:pgig: It looked as if a storm might be brewing , it got unbearably hot and sticky as sat out on the balcony entertaining ourselves with cards and a few drinks. http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...pswkw7zk6c.jpg The storm didn’t really materialise but we had a lovely quiet evening just relaxing and it was nice chill out and chat. Not the most exciting of evenings but to have some downtime was one of our “ must dos” on this holiday and we were keen not to keep packing things in . Pretty early night for us all – we are off shopping again tomorrow and the boys are enjoying lots of ipad time – it seems as soon as we came away there is some big Eurpoean gaming fest on and they are keen to keep up with the their mates back at home – typical ! Spends today $17 SeaWorld Parking $50 Friendlys $10 Adidas $56 Armani Exchange jumpers $19 Disney hat $124 Tommy Hilfiger – tops, coat, shorts and assorted socks ** additionall pics courtesy of Google images ;) The next day is here |
Am loving reading your reports, seaworld is one of my favourite parks, those portions look huge and wow what a bargain with your jumpers
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Hi there
In all the years we have been going to Florida don't think we have ever come across the Kissimmee outlets :(. Can you let me know where abouts these are please? We also like the lake buena vista outlets as these are usually a lot quiter, but next year I'm putting the Kissimmee one on our list ;) |
Ouch there's no pain like a brain freeze pain:cry:. How very inventive of Andy with the improvised corkscrew:grin:
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Loving your trip report 😊
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wow seaworld looks quiet. Can't beat Friendly's and a decent coupon too :)
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Ooooo I never like to miss a meal either if I can help it!
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Lovely, quiet morning at SeaWorld. I would love to go there but none of my lot are keen :(
Good shopping day! Glad you finally managed to find some bargains at Vineland. That Kissimmee Outlet looks so run down, but there really are great bargains to be had. We found it by accident on our last trip, not sure I could find it again! Ah, a family after my own heart! We often play cards together on holiday, we always have a good laugh together and it's a good way to actually spend some time with the kids instead of them sloping off to their rooms all the time :confused2 Nice, relaxing evening, glad you got the wine open, well done Andy :grin: |
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