Rolling in the Upside Downs - 12th July - Day 9, Seaworld, Publix and Aventura Dinner

[Rescuer]

Rolling in the Upside Downs - 12th July - Day 9 - Stunning Sunset

Index is here

Plan
Seaworld✅
Fresh & co ❌
Publix✅
Aventura Bar 17 ✅

Upside downs 4 on Manta

Total - 56 upside downs.


Steps 13k

Weather - started cooler but melting later.

From first thing I knew our plans would have to change. I’d been up quite a lot through the night not feeling well with tummy pain. I felt horrendous first thing.

Ds and Dh were reluctant to disturb me but after a bit more sleep and some pain killers I was ready to face the day and suggested we still head out.

It was about 11 by the time we left the room. Ds and Dh wanted to go to the foodcourt. I just wanted a coffee. I think I was longer in the Starbucks line than they were at the foodcourt.

Dh had a bacon, egg and cheddar croissant with fruit cup and Ds had the cinnamon bun again. It’s there hiding under the mountain of icing.

I opted to have my coffee and some nuts outside as I was freezing with being tired and the air conditioning.

By the time I was done I was happy to head to Seaworld for a few hours but was very upfront that I’d not be riding Manta today regardless of how quiet it was. No way was I fancying lying on my tummy.

We ordered an Uber and again it was fairly quick and $10, I did check Lyft but it wasn’t any cheaper. It was just before 12 when we got there so expected it to be busy inside but the lines to get in weren’t too bad thankfully. I wasn’t finding it quite as hot so far today.

Manta was showing 65 minutes for the 2 of them thought they might go for it and it was saying 25 minutes on the app.

I had a lovely wee wander around the aquarium and found myself a shaded seat where I could take pictures of the ride but it closed and they ended up not getting to ride anyway.

We begun our usual hunt to refill the mug and we were all a bit roasting by now. The ones by Manta were out of order and we must have passed another 2 stands that were closed.

By now I was feeling a bit better and Mako was showing a 10 minute wait so I thought why not. I do love that ride. The other 2 wanted to go straight back on but I gave it a miss and wandered around the wee shops. They were 30 minutes this time.

Ds had taken a liking to the puffy shark but wasn’t prepared to part with $25 of his own money for it though so he couldn’t have liked it that much. 😂

We managed to refill the mug in pretzel kitchen and bought a pretzel dog while we were in also as it would have been rude not to.

Sure this was about $12.

We walked through Sesame Street and Dh was disappointed to see that cookie drop was still closed - due to weather apparently, nothing else was shut!

Passed Ice breaker which was showing 35 minutes. And we filled the mug in that area again before walking across the bridge to head towards the exit.

Manta was now showing 10 minutes on the app so they decided to go for it and I found a shaded seat. It was roasting now and I was done.

They loved it and it took about 15 minutes so not bad at all. They liked the line and the ride.

I assumed we were leaving but no we had to go and see the sting rays. You can imagine my mood at this point.

A quick look and we headed for the exit finding a refill machine in the sweet shop on the way out.

We went for a new interesting lunch strategy. While I’d been waiting on them I marked all the places on the Itrolley map that I had researched as good for the low carb diet and listed them as red,green, North or south routes. We decided to just get the first Itrolley that came and that would decide our lunch. Green South came first so Bonefish Grill it was.

Just 2 stops from Seaworld on the Itrolley. There were loads of things I could have had on the menu and probably panicked a bit with too much choice and went for a safe bet.

Sirloin and shrimp with broccoli and asparagus all perfect.

Dh the same but with fries.

Ds had the scallop and shrimp skewer with the rice and fries and a pan Asian sauce on the side.

Everyone enjoyed their food, I’d like to ho back and stick to fish next time.

Ds and Dh shared the warm white chocolate and cranberry cookies. These smelled divine and they both said they were amazing and just enough of a sweet treat to keep them going.

For all we were a bit tired we needed to replenish our food for the hotel do we thought we’d go to Publix. A first for us.

We requested an Uber to the one at plaza Venizia. You guessed it $10. We had the loveliest Uber driver, he was Italian and lived in Rome, he used to work for Johnny Walker and had worked all over the world including Scotland and South America. He was so chatty, he suggested the there was a newer publix pretty much across the street and it was bigger so offered to drop us there instead.

It was pretty huge but calm and very nice. What a great selection of products especially the fresh stuff.

We should really have picked up stuff for dinner. They had a great selection of low carb stuff, if everything really. Things were a bit pricey. I had to buy some hygiene products, how do Americans afford to pay for this stuff. We got a fab selection of things.

Never having been to Publix before. I was impressed but it was on the pricey side. All stocked up though with a range of goodies.

We ended up getting a Lyft back but had to wait 15 minutes. It was that rush hour time. It was $9.

On our way to the room there was a luggage cart at the lift so we just borrowed it to transport the shopping. Ds did the heavy pushing.

I was keen to go to Aventura for dinner this evening. You can’t reserve tables at Bar17 so we thought if it was busy we’d just go to the food court over there, no big deal.

As we were passing the food court in cabana bay I glanced in and saw they had a tiny amount of refillable cups so I bought one there and then. There were people complaining in the resort the following day that there were none again.I did notice later in the week the seemed to have a consistent supply.

We just crossed out front of Cabana to Aventura, the only reason I can think of that they took the lights crossing away was to discourage people from using the boats at Sapphire rather than the walking path.

Bar 17 wasn’t busy so we got a table no bother and it was just coming up for sunset so we were guaranteed lovely views.

Corona light for me, blue moon for Dh and a Diet Coke for Ds.

Ds had the Korean chicken wings - loved them.

Dh had the burger, he enjoyed it.

I had salmon and broccoli very nice.

Might also have had a glass of wine.

I think this is my overall favourite universal resort place to go in terms of location, view, atmosphere, price and food. Dh would disagree with me though I think. Sals at Portofino would be my second favourite followed by the patio at Strongwater when it’s not too hot.

The sunset was beautiful and it was a lovely relaxing evening.

We headed back across to Cabana Bay about 9.45pm and nobody could be bothered doing anything else.

Positives for Cabana Bay today because I know I was quite negative in yesterdays update.
The beds were comfy
It has a bit better storage than Dockside
It’s close to my favourite resort place to eat and drink.

You couldn’t hear any noise from the car park but you could hear the volcano bay entry announcements. 🤷

[mick]

Glad you felt better as day wore on, and also able to enjoy your evening meal

Joan

[Rescuer]

Originally Posted by mick

Glad you felt better as day wore on, and also able to enjoy your evening meal

Joan

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That’s often the case if you feel a bit rubbish, I was really pleased it didn’t spoil the day.

[Goldia]

A shame you had a rough night. I'm not sure I would have fancied the seaworld coasters if I was feeling a bit off so well done for giving it a go. Lucky to grab a refillable mug today. What a beautiful sunset, the view is fantastic. I can see why you love it.

[Rescuer]

Originally Posted by Goldia

A shame you had a rough night. I'm not sure I would have fancied the seaworld coasters if I was feeling a bit off so well done for giving it a go. Lucky to grab a refillable mug today. What a beautiful sunset, the view is fantastic. I can see why you love it.

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Florida sunsets from a great vantage point are always amazing and combine that with nice drinks and good food and it’s a winner for me. Is universal in your plans next year?

[Goldia]

Originally Posted by Rescuer

Florida sunsets from a great vantage point are always amazing and combine that with nice drinks and good food and it’s a winner for me. Is universal in your plans next year?

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Universal is up in the air at the mo for next year. My brother doesn't want to go...in fairness I doubt his kids would ride many of the rides. They're a bit wary of the coasters at wdw and the eldest got scared on a cable car on their recent trip. So, they're not here for the rides. They do like Harry Potter, but the ticket prices are extortionate if all they want to do is see the HP lands. I'm in two minds whether to talk them into it or not. Our first 2 trips were WDW solely and we loved them. Plus, my brother is viewing this a first trip, not a once in a lifetime trip.

[Rescuer]

Originally Posted by Goldia

Universal is up in the air at the mo for next year. My brother doesn't want to go...in fairness I doubt his kids would ride many of the rides. They're a bit wary of the coasters at wdw and the eldest got scared on a cable car on their recent trip. So, they're not here for the rides. They do like Harry Potter, but the ticket prices are extortionate if all they want to do is see the HP lands. I'm in two minds whether to talk them into it or not. Our first 2 trips were WDW solely and we loved them. Plus, my brother is viewing this a first trip, not a once in a lifetime trip.

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It is pricey if not doing everything or already paying for Disney tickets. I’m sure you guys will be back at Universal at some point. There’s more than enough to keep you all busy at Disney. x

[OB1LukeLucas]

Pleased you felt a bit better not sure I would have braved Seaworld when I was feeling rough. Publix shop looked good.
The rooftop looks great we tried to get over there one year but I think we were too early and it wasn’t open as the lifts wouldn’t even let us go up! So gutted that we never got to stay in Aventura in 2020 so it remains on our list, I wonder if we will ever do it now.

[Rescuer]

Originally Posted by OB1LukeLucas

Pleased you felt a bit better not sure I would have braved Seaworld when I was feeling rough. Publix shop looked good.
The rooftop looks great we tried to get over there one year but I think we were too early and it wasn’t open as the lifts wouldn’t even let us go up! So gutted that we never got to stay in Aventura in 2020 so it remains on our list, I wonder if we will ever do it now.

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You never know. Yes the first time we stayed there we missed the rooftop bar not realising it didn’t open till later.

Was thinking we can still go there from Dockside for dinner. Bus to Citywalk then just swap to the stop opposite for Aventura. It should be really quick and easy.

[Fuellady]

You did well heading out to SeaWorld after a rough night - I'm glad you felt better as the day progressed. Publix is amazing for fresh food, and a much nicer experience than Walmart too. Definitely a bit more expensive though, but sometimes worth it for the quality and calmer atmosphere.

Bar 17 looks fab, great views and lovely food. I love the pic of the Corona with the sunset