A Visit to My "Happy Place"...... 6/12 Update: Day 3(Discovery Cove) PICS ADDED About This Page:

[mac]

Who:

Me age 27

DH age 30

DSIL age 29

DBIL age 34(?)



When:

May 13-21



Where:

Pop Century (60s)



Day One

May 13th: Massachusetts to Florida......



We set the alarm for 2 am (yuck!), and managed to get out the door at 3 am. We were leaving this early to attempt to beat any traffic in the NYC area, and we were very successful!





George Washington Bridge 6:30 am



Here's a pic for any "Sopranos" fans out there:





The ride was long and rather boring as usual, and I couldn't help but think we could have gotten there in 3 hrs had we flown ! We knew we were getting closer when we started seeing South of the Border bill boards.







We arrived in Florida around 9:30 pm, and stopped in Jacksonville for the night at Wingate Inn. We stayed here the last time we drove, and really liked it.





Our plan was to stop here for the night, and be on our way to WDW around 8 am. I was starting to feel a little ill during the last half of our lllooonnnggg drive, but I chalked it up to excitement/car sickness. I was hoping to feel better after a good nights sleep . We were lucky to have had a very unevenful drive with almost no traffic. We made quick bathroom/gas stops, and ate sandwiches/snacks that we had packed in our cooler. We did stop in North Carolina for a 1hr nap around 2pm. We left home with a full tank of gas, and filled up twice along the way.



Up next: Arriving in WDW

[luvnwdwgal]

Glad to see the start of your report and pictures! Sorry to read that you weren't feeling well though on your way there. Looking forward to your next installment!

[DrDolphin]

Sounds like a basically uneventful drive on the way south - Good to hear the Wingate is a nice place to stay and I hope a good nights sleep helped in making you feel better.

[ilovelilo]

I just got caught up with your report! I'm sorry you all got sick but I hope you had some fun in WDW too! Looking forward to reading about your arrival in the World!

[Colexis Mom]

Glad to hear that you made it so far without much traffic Looking forward to more

[Grammy Grumpy]

Yep, the drive is the worst part (except for having to go home after the trip!) of a disney vacation. I have no desire to do anything but get there quickly. Other trips we plan side trips to local points of interest, but for Disney it's "Get out of my way, I need to see the Mouse!!"

Enjoying your report, waiting for more.

[buckysmom]

Thanks for the road pics! They almost made me miss those annoying SOTB signs...naw...
Hope you felt better quickly!

[mac]

I'm having a horrible time with my pictures, so rather than hold things up I'll add them in at a later date!







Who:

Me age 27 (Michelle)

DH age 30 (Jay)

DSIL age 29 (Heather)

DBIL age 34(?)(Steve)



When:

May 13-21



Where:

Pop Century (60s)



Day Two

Friday May 14th:



Our plan was to be on the road by 8:00, but that didn't happen . After sleeping in a bit, and grabbing a bagel from the continental breakfast, we were on the road around 9:45. There wasn't much traffic, and we were driving through the gates around 12:45ish. This 3 hour drive felt like nothing after yesterday's 17 hours! We had already talked to Heather and Steve who had checked in late Thursday night. They had informed us that we had a room around the back facing hourglass lake. Check in was pretty quick, and the lobby was a lot like ASMo, except the counter area was on the opposite side. I had heard a lot of complaints about parking at this resort, and I have to agree that it's not the best set up. We ended up parking in the check in area for most of our trip as it was closer than the 60s parking lot. I had originally requested a king size bed, and when Heather and Steve decided to join us I asked for connecting rooms. I was surprised to find that we got both . I also realized it was a handicapped accesible room, and we had a refrigerator(very small). We quickly settled in, and headed to the pool to figure out what we wanted to do. Heather and Steve had originally said that they would not be visiting any parks this trip, but now they were thinking about visiting EPCOT. Woohoo let's go ! We got there around 2:30 (I think), and headed straight for Test Track to grab a fast pass. It was pretty hot, so we decided to go to Spaceship Earth to relax and cool off. I don't know if it was us, but Jay and I both thought it was pretty warm in there. Oh well, it was still relaxing. Next we went to Innoventions where I sent a electronic postcard to the girls at work (how fun!). We then moved on to the Living Seas, which I haven't done for several years. Out front we had a good time watching a "coral reef" come to life and shock some kids. This pavilion is not one of my favorites, but it was fun, and we got some fun pictures (which I'm having lots of trouble posting ). I then realized that I had not eaten since this morning, which is not like me at all . We stopped in the Land to grab some food. Jay got chicken strips, I had a kids PB&J , Steve had a vegetable lasagna, and Heather had chocolate cake (very nutritious ). We had a few minutes before or fast pass return time so we rode Imagination, and browsed around for awhile. The had some really cool crystal blocks with holograms inside them. You could have your head put in them. Luckily they were a bit on the expensive side so I will not have Jay's head on our coffee table ! It was time for Test Track, and we were on the wrong side of the park. Oh well, what's a little more walking ? We were a little concerned because Heather and Steve are not big ride people. They loved Test Track ! On to the World Showcase were we rode El Rio de Tiempo, and Maelstrom. We browsed through the countries, spending a little extra time in Italy (DH's favorite ). We stopped in France to watch a street performer make balloon animals. He was really funny , and kids loved him. By now our feet were getting tired, and people were getting settled in for Illuminations. We grabbed a spot in the UK, and sat on the ground to rest our feet before the show began. There was a family in front of us who were letting their little girl climb over the fence towards the lake. A cast member had to come over and tell them not to do that. What are people thinking ? Anyway, Illuminations was great . We followed the herd to the parking lot, and were quickly back to our resort to settle in for the night . We had a great time at EPCOT, and were glad that Heather and Steve had decided to join us. Tomorrow we would be going to Discovery Cove, which I had been a bit leery of paying so much to swim . Boy, was I in for a pleasant surprise!







Up Next: Dolphins and stingrays and fish oh my!! (...and hopefully pictures!)

[luvnwdwgal]

Great update Michelle!! Looking forward to your next installment and hopefully some pictures!!

[buckysmom]

What a great day! So glad to hear that you in laws decided to play
Can't wait to hear about Discovery Cove!

[DrDolphin]

Great installment - I hope pictures work soon!

[Colexis Mom]

Great update Michelle Can't wait to hear all about Discovery Cove

[mac]

I should be getting new photo software tonight, so hopefully I'll be able to staighten out this picture catastrophe, and get going with my TR!!

[mac]

Day three
Saturday May 15th:

We woke up around 8:30, with plans to leave for Discovery Cove around 9:15. There was no sense in making ourselves pretty, as we would be in the water all day. I took a stroll to the food court to grab us some breakfast. I had a children's breakfast platter, and Jay had some fruit. On a side note the kids breakfast platter is great. It has just the right amount of food, and for $3.00 you can't beat it . So we were ready to go at 9:30, not bad only 15 minutes late! We arrived at Discovery Cove around 9:45ish. It was beautiful already, and we were just in the parking lot!! I will admit that I had been less than excited about DC . To me it seemed like an awful lot of money for a non Disney day. Heather (DSIL) really wanted to go so we went along with it for her. Let me tell you it was worth every penny! We did not do the Dolphin swim for financial reasons (extra $100 per person), but had I known we would end up sick later in the week (hence not using half the money we brought) I would have signed up for it in a heart beat. So anyway, we lined up for check-in, which was much like checking in at a hotel. We received ID tags with our pictures on them that we had to wear around our necks all day. We were instructed to walk down a path to a covered bridge to meet our guide. Our guide gave us each a bag with our snorkeling equipment, towel, and sunscreen. He then gave us a quick overview of the "park", and explained all the rules. Next we had to go to a hut to be fitted for a wet suit/vest. All four of us chose vests, it was way too hot for a whole suit! All zipped into our vests, and feeling a bit like sausages , we stored our stuff away in lockers.

We headed over to the "beach" to set up camp. This place is so authentic that you absolutely feel like you're on an island in the middle of the Carribean . There was even pieces of sea grass in the sand! After getting our snorkeling gear ready we headed to the pool to try it out. The water was heavenly! Calling it a pool just doesn't seem right, again I felt like I was in a lagoon somewhere in the Carribean. I have never snorkeled before, so it took a bit of getting used to for me to breath under water. After a little practice we were on our way to to the coral reef. The water was much cooler , but we got used to it quick. Again, it took a bit for me to get used to all the fish swimming around with me ( I'm used to viewing them through an aquarium ). At one point Jay wanted to take a picture of me (underwater camera), but just as he went to snap the picture I took off like a crazy woman because I saw something swimmimg towards me . Once I calmed down I loved every minute of this experience. After the reef we spent time in the "pool", and layed on the beach for awhile. There is also a lazy river at DC. It was not what we expected. There were no tubes to float in, and parts of the river were pretty deep (8 ft I think). Our first go around was anything but lazy. I was trying to keep myself afloat, and it took way too much energy . Then we saw people using "noodles". They were a lot like the typical pool noodle except they were grey and they were kind of hard. This was wonderful!! Using the noodle and letting your legs hang down as if you were standing felt like being weightless. Now I understood why it was deep. After all this floating we were hungry, so we made our way to Laguna Grill.

Oh my goodness!!! There was so much food. The food is included in your admission fee, and let me tell you the food alone made it worth every penny! They had everything from burgers to salmon to fajitas. There were side dishes and salads and deserts oh my! We tried to take a picture of the food, but Heather's camera did not want to cooperate. *On a side note, I am stilling having a terrible time with my pictures which is a shame because I got some great underwater pics that I would love to share. Hopefully I get things worked out so I can add them later.* With full tummies we went back to the beach for a snooze .

Continued in next post.....

[mac]

Day three continued...

About an hour into our little nap, it started to rain. We were under beach umbrellas, and we aren't made of sugar so it was no big deal. The rain let up after about 15-20 minutes, and we were ready to do some more exploring. The guys were still feeling lazy, so Heather and I went over to watch some of the Dolphin interactions. Dolphins are such gentle intelligent creatures, and the people swimming with them seemed to be having a great time. We took some pictures, and strolled around admiring the beautiful scenery. We went and gathered up the guys and went to the bird aviary. Now, I am not a big fan of birds , but I was willing to give it a try. Jay, Heather, and Steve all took the little cups full of food for the birds, but not me . Within seconds they all had birds sitting on their shoulders. Heather had one that she could not get rid of, and he was actually using her shoulder as a napkin to wipe away extra food . It was very pretty, but it reminded me of an Alfred Hitchcock movie . I managed to escape the bird aviary unscathed, and next up was the sting ray lagoon. I forgot my snorkel, but it wasn't a big deal because you have to have your feet touching bottom at all times. There were tons of rays, and then would all come just within my reach and then turn away . Oh well! At this point we started to get tired, and decided to call it a day. We collected our souvenir pictures, and headed back to the hotel.

Back at Pop Century we browsed the store, and the guys headed to the arcade. Heather and I went for a swim (you'de think we'de be water logged by now ), and headed up to our rooms to snack on some munchies. We showered and changed, and took a drive down 192 in search of Dunkin D's. We stopped at a few stores (nothing memorable), and scarfed down some donuts. I was feeling a bit cranky (too much sun maybe) and was glad when we were back at the hotel. At this point, or actually maybe earlier when he showered, Jay discovered that his skin pretty much fried in the sun today . It looked painful ! I was telling him all day to put on some sunscreen, but he kept saying his Italian skin didn't burn . I guess he was wrong!! We hopped into bed after turning down the A/C (brrrr), and fell fast asleep.

Next up: A day at Sea World