Follow that Dream! - Day 4 August 4th 2016 - Thundercrack and a whole lot of rain.

[walt4it]

Welcome back and thanks for your continued reading.

to understand how today began , you are possibly best to read the very end of yesterdays action

Day 3 is here

The overall index is here in case you want to read everything that has gone before.

Welcome to another day on Treasure Island


Thursday 4th August 2016


As I was saying yesterday, the most incredible storm broke, the thunder so loud and lightning so bright you had to open your eyes and ears to – unless your name was Joe!
He slept through the whole thing, Josh ,however, was awake though probably because he saw the planned golf day disappearing before his eyes and his ears!

It went on for hours and just when you thought it had stopped the rain continued to hammer it down- just the three inches overnight !

We were tired and there was no point to seeing the sunrise today – it was too cloudy , there was also a washing on the balcony that needed rescuing. It would wait!

The boys were awake yet enjoying chilling watching “ Are you being served” on the ipads.

Now this does need to be explained – why on earth are your kids watching ‘Are you being served’? - I hear you cry!

Easy, the lift in the apartments we are staying as you enter on the ground floor opens with…

“Going up…..”

to which the response of anyone who has ever seen the programme would bring der der der der der….

Having never seen it before, we explained to the boys our own giggles every time we got into the lift, they were now recognising the gag that we had in our minds




Anyway Mrs Slocombes pussy may prove a bit of difficult explanation – Give it a couple of days and I’m going to ask them if they are free and will await the reaction!

We simply sought a few minutes more in bed, having had such little sleep.

All plans were off today and channel 9 and klystom 9 was called into play.

Their doomsday scenario was rain coming and going and then the same again as it came back for the evening.

Weather channel app – says it will clear by 4/5 pm we knew that the rain was here for a while.

So what do you do ?

A. Sit and play board games?
B. Go for a walk in the warm rain?
C. Go for a drive and stay in the car?
OR
D.Go for a drive to a mall and spend some money as it is raining and you never have enough opportunities to spend money whilst in the US ( this was written in summer 2016 when we were getting a rather decent exchange rate!)

Well option D was in play by the time we even put Ellenton Mall in the sat nav –

We had been there before and it has grown on us for a collective bargain over time – the type of bargain never seen in Orlando and today did not disappoint.

A breakfast stop in Starbucks was needed to begin.

Healthy breakfast

The whole thing was started by my visit to Skechers for two pairs of shoes for $107 – I don’t do shoe buying at home and yet here I was sorting out my work and winter shoes in the space of 5 minutes. Fab pair of work shoes that felt like a pair a slippers on first wearing! Plus a pair of boots. EASY!

Cosmetics company next to stock up on Clinique stuff, only thing is they did not have any of the things we wanted so we left empty handed.

We then found the Oakley shop – having been in the airport store just days before, now I have previously spent money on sunglasses that have proved to be a heap of kaka! I even took back a pair from Debenhams , that has cost £30 in the sale as the mirrored part of the polarized lens had simply rubbed off on holiday ( chocolate fireguard spings to mind, I did get a full refund though.)

I had in mind to buy some Oakleys on my way home last year but held off. I didn’t hold off today! As will be evidenced in every photo that will appear in the rest of the trip!

A pair of sunglasses later with a bargain second pair of youths glasses for ‘Just’ $25. Youngest son has a pair of proper shades too! You will see them in all upcoming photos too!

You always know that rain means that the shopping takes a hammering - today was no exception!

Three shops two spends!

It never stopped all day to be honest( rain and spending!) but the bargains in Nike for Alison (2 tops for just $18 ) then Adidas, which we often never buy, as the prices are too high. Not today !
I found golf shirts for Josh and I, at a price that would be difficult to leave the shop without. I even asked the assistant and he took the P out of me for trying to clarify that you took 50% off the price on the ticket - $14 would have been a bargain for the golf top I saw – not today! Just the $7 you simply could not leave it.

4 Polo shirts
Josh Shorts
Josh Jacket
$70
Bargain at Adidas – a rarity for us but some fab shopping.

Not seen in Orlando either , so well worth the trip if you are reading this (although, this was written before the pound went belly up against the dollar)

Josh got some a Tommy polo and Joe one in the kids shop.
An Izod shop for Alison and Josh and we were about done.
Never has a shopping trip been so effortless and bargainous too.
Hersheys Ice Cream – plus a fat free strawberry frozen yogurt option that was delicious.

We then went back to the car as we needed to break the roll!

We stopped at Walmart to see if the pharmacist could recommend anything for the huge bite that was in the back of Alison‘s calf. Sore painful and his view was anitbiotics! We walked and still saw an incredible amount of ECV users once again.

We took the cream and declined the doctor option – this was not the worst she had ever had, she just seems to be prone to bites and this was once again no different.

Within hours there was an improvement!

As we returned to Treasure Island, the sun was out and the huge amount of water evident next to the condo sent us heading for the mozzie spray!

The boys swam in the pool as I made an effort to begin to type some of this into some form of memory.

Tropicana Field - we were highly tempted to go back again tonight!


Instead...


We went to the most fantastic Italians for dinner with pizza to die for and then a bill to die about! 18% automatically added – shame really as it left a sour taste and the waitress and the quality of food was close to even more. But if you add it on automatically it really does raise my blood pressure and since the restaurant was not that busy and there was just 4 of us I thought it took the proverbial- DW who does the trip advisor part of the show has stated that it needs a sharing.

Thankfully the starter plater was still on the table by the time we remembered to take a photo.

The quality of the place was fab and we just thought it took the gloss off the meal.

I had the most magnificent Calzone.

We paid the 18% service charge and actually felt that had we not been 'told' what to pay the tip would have edged beyond 22%.

A lovely walk back to the apartments.

We returned home to a chillout and me typing up the first days of this whole thing once again and I did so listening to a live bootleg of Bruce Springsteen in Leeds in 2013 – Oh how I wish I was there , and should have been! If you read back to the travel day in 2013 you may pick up my sense of injustice as we sat beside someone who had been there!

Golf in the morning - looking a possibility

BRUCE song of the day- there can be only one!



Day 5 is here

[mick]

Shopping is always best when it rains

Shame about the tip at your evening meal unusual when it's only four of you

Joan

[Floridaagogo]

Don't like tip being added automatically for 4 of you.what a fab location for the pool!

[flo-tinka]

Lol to 'Are u being served' quotes... Well done for educating the kids though!

[Loopylooloo]

Nice to see you are continuing your report, have been following a few that have simply dropped off the dibb half way through!

Shopping looks fab, and the perfect answer to the rain of course! You did well.

My DH loves a calzone, am going to show him the photo of your dinner, shame about the auto tip. I wonder how much locals tip and how they handle auto tipping?

Looking forward to the next instalment!

[annedawso]

Love your trip reports. Although not going for as long as you we are going twice this year. 16 days Easter and 18 days August, so can't complain. Though the bank account will.
As a fellow Evertonian we drove down the Dock Road today past Bramley Moore Dock where it seems Everton's new ground may be. Not much actual land available so we reckon they will have to build over the actual water Dock.
My husband thinks it will be great, but I have mixed feelings re leaving Goodison.
Looking forward to more of your trip report.

[Excitedx4]

Some fab bargains you got in the malls today.

[jemima2]

Love the ice cream pic , such handsome lovely boys. Good shopping day ! And the pizza...😍

[waiting4disney]

Good way to spend a rainy day.

[walt4it]

Originally Posted by mick

Shopping is always best when it rains

Shame about the tip at your evening meal unusual when it's only four of you

Joan

See more...

Glad you caught the fun of shopping and my ire when we got 'done' with just the four of us. As posted above they probably would have got more as the food was so good. As it stands I will not give them a name check in a trip report as I felt it was so poorly done.