Category: Orlando

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Orlando November 2010 – Day 12

Well here it is, my final posting of this trip. I don’t know about you folks but its gone well quick for us with this final week flying by.

We’re all checked in and bags dropped off at the Downtown Disney check-in service and now back at the villa for the final couple of hours tidying round (and saying our goodbyes to it :-(). We’ve packed all 3 cases (incl. the broken one) and each weighed in heavy but under our upper class allowance thankfully. Just hope now we don’t get stopped by UK customs as we have a lot of luggage – must be all those prezzies we’ve bought y’all 😉

So yesterday, we went out quite late after doing some work stuff (trying to get back into it :-() and headed to Wall Mart. We’ve not been to one this trip and needed to stock up on cheap pills! We went to the one up the 27 and got our pills, some Xmas cards and some cool Xmas signs for the house back home. After self serve check out we decided to go next door to Chili’s for lunch. Since this would be our food for the day we needed a decent meal to help us get around Disney at our pace! There was an offer on for 20 bucks to share a starter and get a main dish each so we opted for that starting with the tortilla chips and salsa dip (I’m sure these used to be brought to the table free before) followed by chicken fajita’s. The food was good and was just what we needed to fill us up.

We left Chili’s and made our way to the Stein Mart store. It was not what either of us expected. Full of old folks and old fashioned like a 1970’s C&A! It did have good brands at cheap prices though. It was not a huge store so we left fairly quickly and got on the road to Disney. Whilst Mickey’s very merry Christmas party officially starts at 7pm guests can get in as early as 4pm and we’d decided about 6pm was good for us. We’d looked at the sample plan in Chili’s and there was an offer to watch the fireworks from the Tomorrow Land terrace with a buffet included. It said go to the restaurant for reservations but we thought we’d call and see. We did so but it was all fully booked; still, something for us to try and get for next time.

It was a cold evening so as we parked at Disney (seemingly way back) we added all our layers. The courtesy tram to the ticketing and transportation centre was freezing and we hoped that the park with all its people would be warmer. We decided to get the monorail to the park entrance….Por favor mantenganse alejado de las puertas.

There is also a ‘Tronorail’ running at the mo – a Tron painted monorail train but it was running on the other line.

We got into the park just before 6pm (timed to perfection by us as always). Since the Carousel of Progress is always closed during these evening special events but we were still officially in the daytime hours, we thought we’d go and see if it was running. It was and I was delighted. I adore this ride! It needs a little updating in places now but I merrily sang along as always.

After this we made our way to the TTA Peoplemover. The train ride that goes around Tomorrow Land and through shops and rides such as Buzz Lightyear’s Space Rangers and Space Mountain. Space Mountain was closed for re-furb this time last year but its now re-opened with jazzy music added. We saw the cars flying round in the dark and heard the screams of the riders.

After this we went over to Fantasy Land and stopped in one of the café’s for our complimentary cocoa and cookies. We needed a warm up after the train ride. As we went in there was a Mickey Mouse outline on the floor done in water – not just the round head and ears symbol either, a proper Mickey with detail. We reckon the cast members must have a stencil or something. When we finished our cocoa it had all but dried up.

We then went into Small World where the queuing system has changed and the exit is now the entry! And then to Philharmagic; Paul’s all time fave ride. We walked straight into a loading show with no wait at all. The smell of the cherry pie was good and this show still amazes new audiences as well as entertaining old hands like us over and over.

As we then walked through the Park we saw the 7 dwarfs at a photo spot and got a quick pic ourselves. We saw Hook and Smee later too.

Paul also loves the Haunted Mansion ride but ever since the guy touched me in the dark room at the start I’ve hated it and refused to ride. This time Paul persuaded me with a promise to protect me in the first room. I also had my lighy-up Tinkerbell on so had my own light source around me to help too. The complete darkness was not for long and my Tink certainly helped me see. The actual ride itself is really clever with some great special effects.

When we came out the parade so was in full swing so getting about the park is difficult. We found a quiet bridge where we could stand and watch (video posted for you to enjoy too). The park was fairly busy with what seemed like an inordinate amount of mobility scooters and pushchairs.

As the parade ended we made our way through the crowds over to Pirates of the Caribbean. Again there was no queue and we got straight on (despite folks struggling with the boarding system big time!) After we exited we figured we’d get one more Philharmagic show in before the 9:30pm fireworks so headed on over. We were in the waiting area at 5 to 9 as the cast member announced there was a technical fault. About half those waiting opted to leave but we said we’d give it 10 mins. Literally, within a couple of minutes the doors opened so we were ok. Paul always likes to do this show twice!

We exited at about 9:15 – perfect timing to go and get out spot for the fireworks.

As soon as the fireworks ended we left the park. We managed to get straight on a tram and into the monorail station without too many crowds. We had just missed a monorail train so waited a couple of mins for the next but got on ok….Por favor mantenganse alejado de las puertas.

We were back in the car by 10pm. It was getting quite cold now but we’d been ok in the park; in and out of rides.

We did a bit of packing when we got in and emptied the owners’ closet (in case we get charged for disposal of items by the new owners). With all 3 cases we should have no problems getting stuff home.

Well, that’s about it…oh yeah, I forgot to post that we managed to get an old 1912 Penny in our change one day. It’s worth about $1.65 as it’s really battered but mint it could be worth 100’s! Either way, it’s nearly 100 years old and is rare because of some Titanic association that we can’t quite work out. We’ll deffo keep it as a collectors piece.

So, this really is it. We leave the villa in about an hour. Drop the car off and head for the lounge hoping for a smooth flight with no delays. In the words of Mickey himself…see ya real soon!

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Orlando November 2010 – Day 11

It’s Thursday lunchtime and it’s a cool one here (though nothing compared to good ole blighty right now). It’s our penultimate day and we don’t want to come home – we’ve had a great time. Today we are off for some lunch and then onto Stein Mart, a store that’s been advertised a lot on TV so we thought we’d check it out. We only want something quick and easy to do this afternoon as at about 6pm we are off to Magic Kingdom for Mickey’s Christmas Party – yippppeeeeee!!

I think I left you at the end of Tuesday after a really tiring but fab day at Universal so you need to hear about yesterday. We were up and out by about 1pm and got to Altemonte quite quickly down I4 though the Altemonte area itself was heaving with traffic. The mall car park was pretty full too but we managed to park outside Dillards. We headed straight to the food court as we’d not had brekky. Paul opted for Mandarin Express, the chinese and I had a good old-fashioned big mac meal.

After this we made our way into Dillards on the upper floor, which was menswear. Nothing was on offer much anymore and we don’t pay full prices 😉 so we moved on. We did look at the suitcases in there as there was a sale on. The assistant told us that all were discounted so we looked at a $300 dollar spinner that was coming in at just $150. We thought about it and said we would come back.

This mall is quite small but we looked in the Apple store, a few shoe shops and got the remainder of our crimbo prezzies, which was the objective. I also got a really nifty limited edition Coach make up case with cosmetics included that was on offer at Estee Lauder.

We made our way around ending up back in Dillards. I looked at a DKNY watch but it was plastic and not real ceramic so I passed. We decided we would get the case so went and bought that. As it happens we’ve been emailed this morning that we have $175 form Virgin so at least it’s covered but it show there is no way we would have got the $300 Samsonite paid for. It’s appalling customer service.

We left Altemonte and decided to go to the Florida Mall as Paul needed to get a new pre-paid Visa card (he needs this to buy from US I-tunes). We started by looking in Saks and Nordstrom at the ceramic watches. In Nordstrom they had the perfect DKNY one that came in cheaper than some of the other brands so Paul bought it for me as my crimble prezzie. That means I can’t wear it yet as it has to go off to Santa 😉

Paul then got his credit card – after a good 15 minute wait as the folks in front were trying to get tickets via Ticketmaster and we all know rubbish they are. We then went to Starbucks and sat upstairs watching the world go by.

Paul still needed some work shirts. He’s been unable to find them discounted in Dillards so was wondering where to go. He looked at H&M and Old Navy but I had the bright idea of going to JC Penny. We made our way round and they had just what he needed. Long armed cotton work shirts at 20 bucks each – perfick! He got a few in white and blue and we looked at some other fab clothing items…you’ll see a particularly fetching white linen jacket below 🙂 This is Paul’s Miami Vice look and at just 60 bucks was a bargain don’t you think ?

We left the mall at about 7pm and wanted to go to the Polynesian resort hotel to see the Wishes fireworks as we had not done this all holiday. It was a chilly night and we’d not come prepared for this so were not sure if we’d freeze to death. I had ¾ sleeves and sandals on!! When we got out of the car it felt cold, especially when the wind blew. Then Paul had a bright idea – we’d wear his new work shirts. For him this was ok, he had a white shirt on with jeans that looked good but for me…can you imagine? I looked like some kind of mad scientist in an oversized lab coat!! Still, it actually did the trick as I wrapped up in it. We got a hot choc from the café to hold and sip and made our way out at 5 to 8. We got a beach bed to sit on and kept ourselves back in a secluded place so the wind didn’t really get to us. It was a clear night so the show was great and we could hear the accompanying music too.

Paul 'Don Johnson'
Paul 'Don Johnson'

We came home after a quick stop at Wallgreens for some Hawaiian sweet rolls for tea!! We were not overly hungry so munched on these and crisps. We watched more Family Guy, including a special that Paul had downloaded, which was particularly funny (it was the Quantum Leap, parallel universe one) and then the Apprentice. We were both happy to see Laura leave and Lord Shugs made the right decision.

There you are then, all up to date again… only one more posting to go probably 🙁

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Orlando November 2010 – Day 8

So yesterday was another shopping day and this was certainly Paul’s shopping day. He spent his birthday money from my mum on an entire new wardrobe seemingly; he did get some bargains it has to be said.

We began at TJ Maxx and despite trying on, nothing was purchased. We then stopped off at Nine West, Calvin Klein and Izod. I found the perfect pair of boots in NW but sadly they did not have my size. In CK Paul found the jeans he likes so bought a couple of pairs and I managed to get a jumper. Everything was still discounted in the After Thanks giving sales. CK gave us some vouchers at the till, one of which was for Izod so when Paul found a polo shirt in there we got double discount bringing a $45 shirt down to $9!!

We then headed to the top end of I-drive to Neiman Marcus Last Call and Juicy Couture. This now seems to have been re-branded from Prime Outlets to Premium. It looks very much like the Premium at the bottom end and has some pretty decent shops. Last Call had no decent branded bags and only a few pairs of high end branded shoes. I tried on some Louboutins and some Blahniks but both were too high even for me (I must be getting old!) so we left empty handed.

We made our way to Juicy after a quick stop at a watch store. I am after the white ceramic Juicy watch but they didn’t have it. The Juicy store had nothing that made me buy either so we decided to head down to the original Premium. After being followed by a car all the way to our parking space (the car park was heaving with cars abandoned everywhere) we were very tempted to cross the road to the bus stop for a laugh but we didn’t!

We parked in the multi story at Premium, which had plenty of spaces. We tried to get the voucher book from the information booth as Paul had access on iPad but it needed to be printed and they said they had no way of doing that for us. We could pay for internet access and printing but that would have cost more then we would probably save. Not very green in our opinion.

Paul again got some good purchases; 4 Tops in Marc Ecko that were buy one get on 50% off. He also got 2 polo shirts in Nautica that were buy one and get one free! So, he ended the day with a total of 7 new tops and 2 pairs of jeans – a really successful shopping trip.

I couldn’t find much that I wanted (what does the girl who has everything possibly buy these days ;-)) but have pondered for some time over a pair of real Ugg boots. The latest style has really nice buttons up the side showing the sheepskin really nicely so I figured I’d try some on. The first store I tried did not have my size but helpfully pointed me to another store that stocked them. The shop was piled high with Ugg boxes in every aisle so was clearly planning to sell shed loads! I tried them on and they are so comfy inside – real soft sheepskin on your feet and legs. Paul hates them but undeterred I went for it, purchasing a protector spray nicely up-sold by the assistant!

We left Premium at about 6pm. It was getting dark and we were hungry so thought we’d grab dinner on the way home.

We couldn’t decide what we wanted and opted for Longhorn in the end. There was no queue at all, in fact from heaving shops and car parks it appeared that everyone had gone. We hope that they have all gone home after their Thanks giving weekend and we will get a quieter week now. We opted for the usual 7oz fillets and again they were cooked to perfection.

We came home and settled in with the X-Factor results.

Today it is overcast again, though still warm. We have had bagels and crisps and have decided to go to the cinema at Universal. We are going to see “The next 3 days” about a guy called John Brennan!! There is a trailer here for you…and of course we’ll give you our ‘Barry Norman’ when we post next time.

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Orlando November 2010 – Day 7

I left you on Friday evening as we were headed off to the California Grill. We left the villa about 8:15 and after popping some papers into IPG we got to Disney’s Contemporary Resort hotel at about 8:45 – perfect timing! The air was cool but still a seemingly very pleasant evening. We checked into the restaurant at the 1st floor check in desk then got into the elevator to the 15th floor where the restaurant is. It was pretty full and given the prices surprisingly with a lot of families. Mind you, it is included in the Disney dining package. We had been given a lighty-up thing to tell us when our table was ready so sat on bar stool perusing the menu. We were called bang on 9 so didn’t have to wait at all really. We were shown to a pretty good table. Not quite at the window but next row back and with a clear view of the castle and Magic Kingdom. Fireworks would be at 10pm so we would get a good view although there is an outside observation deck too.

There were 3 choices of starters: flatbreads, sushi or usual appetizers. The prices were high and the food was a little pretentious for our taste. We elected to share a starter of hearts of romaine lettuce with garlic sauce, Parmesan and croutons (or to the rest of the non pretentious world a caesar salad). We got them to hold the anchovies and olives though! We had soft drinks and water and got a basket of bread too. For main course we both elected to have the fillet of beef. This came with dauphinoise potatoes, ginger carrots and barbeque sauce (yep barbeque sauce). The piece of beef that arrived was huge – had to be 10oz easily. The rest of the portion was small as posh cuisine is. It was very nice steak it has to be said and it did melt in the mouth but the rest of the dish was nothing special and certainly not worth the prices in our opinion. We were served this course quite quickly as the waiter was timing us to be between courses for the fireworks bless him.

By now it was 9:50 so we decided to head out to the observation deck to watch “wishes”. It was very breezy out there which made it decidedly chilly. The music is played on the deck and in the restaurant so you can enjoy the show properly. Of course the perspective is a little wrong as the fireworks are meant to be viewed from in front of the castle and this is more side on. As the fireworks started it soon became apparent that there was very low thick cloud – almost like a mist or fog and as the fireworks went into it you couldn’t actually see them go off!! What a huge disappointment; all you could see was a coloured glow in the cloud! Paul took some video footage of it that can be found below.

We made our way back to our table and I decided to have the coconut and mango Panna Cotta for dessert. Paul elected to have a coffee. The dessert was really nice (despite my mango salsa on the plate being described as looking like sick by Paul). All in all we finished up by about half 10. We’re glad we did it as had not done so before but won’t rush to do it again – and when the bill came to more than I spent in Tiffany’s it’s a poor show 😉

We came home and pretty much went straight to bed with a cuppa and some TV viewing.

OK so some news updates: Pool heating still not fixed, we’ve found Delilah on another station and the Shuttle launch planned for the early hours of Tuesday has been postponed to 17th Dec. We’re quite gutted as there are only ever to be 2 more so we’ll never get to see it. As a result we can adjust our itinerary though and make the most of the weather.

Saturday was somewhat dull and overcast. We had a lie in and mooched around by the pool for most of the day. It was nice to simply relax and although the weather wasn’t hot it was nice enough to sit out – in some respects better than being too hot. We watched a lot of English TV on the laptop (Harry Hill, John Culshaw’s impressions show and a Corrie episode!). We’d got bread, bagels, crisps etc in the house so had enough for lunch.

We’d decided to go to Kobe for dinner after it being closed on Thanks giving. We wanted to eat earlier again so went out about 5:45. We must have got to Kobe about 6:15 and it was heaving – a 45 minute wait is what we were told. We sat with a drink at the bar as they called table after table and after at least 45 mins we eventually got called. Paul was just on his feet to check with them as they said it was our turn. We were seated around the corner of the table between a couple and a family of 4 young adults and 2 kids. No one really attempted to converse with the others at first and the family were local so clearly knew all the staff. The family then did talk to the couple next to us about baseball teams and it was then that we noticed we were the only white people in the whole bunch. Neither Paul nor I are racist at all, but these folk certainly proved to us that they were. Not one of them acknowledged we were even there all night. The family also ordered single meals to share amongst not only the kids but also the adults and as the chef knew them gave them extra portions too – bang out of order in our opinion.

The staff in Kobe seem to have changed a lot. The blonde is no longer on the front desk and there are way more western staff. We had a drinks server called Mitchell who had clearly had a bad day and was gonna let us know about it. Our chef was Takashi and was slow! The order of food has changed too. The portions have reduced (which is no bad thing as you got way too much before) but now the rice was served in bowls before the meat not at the very end like before. Since I hold onto my noodles until my beef arrives I had to wait through 1 veggie course, 2 lots of shrimp and the rice being cooked and served before my meat was even started. We presumed since one person was having a vegetarian meal they do this so as all her food is served before the meat goes anywhere near the grill. Sadly it meant my noodles were stone cold by the time my steak arrived. I’d opted for the fillet and it was a really nice cut. Very tender and tasty – just about worth the wait. Paul had opted to shrimp and steak so had finished his noodles and shrimp and then had steak with the rice. The food was as good as ever but the service was poor so we ensured this was reflected in our 2 dollar tip, which we hoped was more insulting that leaving nothing.

We came out of Kobe at half 8 and headed down the 192. We were off to Heritage Park in Osceola as it has a drive-thru lights display. It was only 15 mins away and despite trying to enter through the exit at first we made our way in. It was 10 bucks flat rate entry fee. It was pretty good. They had the 12 days of Christmas all in lights (which amused us trying to work out what each set of lights was representing), Santa playing basketball, reindeer hiding behind trees, Merry Christmas signs and the usual baubles, candy canes etc etc. It only took 10 to 15 mins to drive through (even at walking pace) but was good and something we’d not seen or done before. There is a promo video embedded here for you to watch (this is not our footage mind)

We came home and watched X-Factor on ITV-player with the obligatory cuppa.

It is now Sunday mid morning (well it was when I started this, it could well be lunchtime by now). It’s another hot and sunny day so we’ve caught some rays out by the pool. Paul looks like a foreigner as ever with his skin that goes brown at even the thought of the sun and the good news is his cold is on the way out today.

We are going to head out to Premium and Prime Outlets on I drive today as they are outside and we want to make the most of the weather. The forecast looked bleaker next week with dull days and rain tomorrow and Wednesday. We have a park day planned for Tuesday right now, as this still looks to be fine.

So, off to spend more cash…..

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Orlando November 2010 – Day 5

So, you wanna know what bargains we got in the black Friday sales huh? Well all in good time my friends, as firstly we need to catch up as I am posting later than usual.

I think I left you on Thanks Giving morning as we contemplated a drive out to Daytona. Since little would be open we thought this would fill the day and we set off on I4. After only 20 mins though Paul had a bright idea to go to Downtown Disney instead (after Sunday’s boycott for those of you really paying attention) so we got off I4. We knew it would be busy and we did struggle to park to begin with but once you went way back there were spaces – it just meant more of a walk, which we know the Americans hate 🙂

We started off at Marketplace and firstly checked out the new chicken restaurant on the old McD’s site to see if it was any good for future use. It was kind of KFC like with a Mexican twist. We weren’t ready to eat at that point but may well try it at some point in the future. We made our way past the Lego shop and into the World of Disney store. The little princess boutique was now taking place in the window and there were plenty of little girls wandering around with the obligatory scraped back and glittered hair with blue eye shadow. There were a few new Tink items but nothing that really inspired. A lot of the items are for kids and are too brightly coloured. Paul has been contemplating buying the re-mastered Beauty and the Beast BluRay but as yet keeps putting it back. We left empty-handed and went into the Glass store. I sooooo wish I’d bought the Swarovski Tinkerbell when she was out as she’s now retired and can’t be bought anywhere. There were Disney glass Tinks and some high priced jewelled ones but again nothing inspired.

We wandered through sports and apparel stores and into Mickey’s Pantry where there is a new section dedicated to spices and teas. After this we headed on though the Christmas shop and out to design-a-tee and the Art of Disney store.

It was scorching hot so we bought some drinks and sat by the lagoon for a while. Paul managed to break his ipad somehow (fear not he fixed it later) that he carries around constantly as well as an iphone and some other gadgetry device!

We decided to get the boat over to Westside to check out what’s new over there and meander back. Gone is the Diana Exhibit as is the Memorabilia shop. The restaurants are all there and there is a new “build a car” store in the old Virgin Megastore (that had been the Diana exhibit). The idea is that you build a toy remote control car from various bits – a little like build a bear for boys (and tom boys). The idea was good and whilst we would have no doubt had fun building the end result was very much a child’s toy and the components soon added up in cost too so we didn’t partake!

The magic shop is still there as is Disney Quest, the sweet shop and a trinkety shop called Hoi Polloi. Then the old memorabilia shop is now a Disney store. On the way past eagle eyed Paul spotted a Chanel logo charm on the floor. It looked real so like a magpie I picked it up with the intent of making my own Chanel keying!!

The Disney shop here was full of the Vinylmation. These are plastic Mickey Mouse figurines that come decorated. The idea is that you don’t know what you get as the boxes are unmarked and kids (and adults) collect and trade them. There are several ranges like Parks 1 thru’ 5, Toy Story, Muppets, sports etc etc. Some recent ones are available to buy as seen ie you do know what you get. The standard size is about 3 to 4 inches but there is a large 6-inch version and a 1 to 2 inch key chain version too. There are also plain ones that you can customise by drawing on them and sticking things on them. I was going to buy one with some glitter in an attempt to create a bling Vinylmation but decided I am not creative so didn’t! Instead I bought a key chain. They were all ok bar a vile green and black one so I didn’t mind which of the other 17 I got. As I paid the server asked if I wanted to open it there and then. A little girl had just opened her normal size one and was ecstatic so at risk of an anti-climax I declined and opted to keep the suspense until later.

We wandered back past the balloon (which had very little queue after our 1 hour wait last year!) and though Pleasure Island back to Marketplace. The T Rex restaurant was heaving and seemingly has build-a-dino now too.

We walked back to the car and I decided to open by key chain……………. You know what’s coming don’t you? Yep, the bloody green and black one. Paul reckons he could have put money on it. I want to know why I deserve bad karma.

We left Downtown Disney and came home. We’d skipped lunch again so it was to be an early tea once more. Paul wanted his beloved Kobe so we set out about 6pm. As we approached we had a minor spider incident in the car – it crawled up the windscreen and out of site. Being dark I did not relish the journey home sharing with Mr spider and as I stressed out Paul got even stressier as he found Kobe to be closed! I know it’s Thanks Giving but surely these guys aren’t really American 😉

As we left Kobe Mr spider decided to show himself and Paul managed to squish him. As long as Mrs spider doesn’t come looking for him we’re ok.

We headed back down the 192 and decided on TGI’s. It was busy but we got seated easily enough. Paul had the chicken and prawn pasta again and I had the Jack Daniels’ chicken. The food was good but we seemed to be rushed through by our server.

We came home and decided to watch The Office DVD we had bought. It was unseen footage in small scenes. It started ok but after a while the DVD player began to play up to such an extent we had to give up. Being region coded we couldn’t watch it on the laptop before you ask and yes we do have a US player at home to watch it on thanks!

We needed to get an early night so went to bed setting our alarm for 7am!

When it went off at 7 this morning we were remarkably awake so leapt out to get ready. We got a drive thru’ brekky from Ronald as ever and arrived at the Florida Mall just after 8:30.

It was really busy at the Mall – seemingly more so than we remembered last year. We managed to find a parking space by the hotel. The cars were streaming out (there was a bigger queue to exit than to get in!) and people were walking out with tons of shopping – they’d taken suitcases and holdalls to fill!

So if you’re still with me we’re at the purchases bit (I often wonder if by this point you really are enthralled or bored witless but I get good feedback (honest) so I continue to drivel on). First stop was Nine West and I tried on some black wedge heeled ankle boots and a pair of black work shoes (heels and buckles on the front). The work shoes were 50% off the already discounted price coming in at $25 so were a must. The boots still worked out at 80 bucks so I decided were a no go.

After this we headed down to the Apple store. All Mac Air notebooks had $101 off so I got well excited as I want to get the 11inch. But guess what? It was all EXCEPT the 11 inch (bad karma again – not happy). Given it was still full price at 1000 bucks there was no reason to buy today so I’ll decide at the end of the holiday. There was money off ipods too for anyone who wanted one.

Then it was Sephora (a make-up store). I wanted some Dior eye shadow, which I did get but sadly at full price. After this we went into Macy’s but could see no door busters or deals. A few shops have gone from the Mall including my beloved Steve Madden (a shoe shop). A stop at Trade Secret next to get my nail stuff and then into Dillard’s. I invested in some Spanx (body control undies as it happens to us all ;-)) and also found a fab Ugg handbag. Being Ugg it was also full price as they don’t discount (if you ever see discounted Uggs I guarantee you they are fake (or knock off!)). We also got a few crimbo prezzies and I got a Blackberry case. Paul has a cold so was not really in the mood for shopping so got nothing at all!

So, all in all a few purchases but other then my Nine West shoes no real black Friday bargains.

We left the Mall at half 11 and headed to Subway for some lunch. We have 9pm reservations at the California Grill tonight so wanted a light lunch to see us through. We went to the old Goodings plaza and sat outside to eat.

After this we had to go to the IPG office to deal with the house short sale paperwork. We met with Craig who’d gone way too far with the teeth whitening and sun-bed in my opinion but seemed ok. A bit of a wide boy brit but insists this is our best option. We signed our paperwork and came home to write our hardship letter and fill in our finances table. And that’s where we are now. Out by the pool emailing, blogging and filling in the necessary. We’ve had a downpour but it’s cleared up now and the temperature is really pleasant. We have a couple of hours before we need to head out so are chillaxing!

We have not been to California Grill before so hope it is good. It is in Disney’s Contemporary Resort hotel and has a view of the ‘Wishes’ fireworks at Magic Kingdom. You’ll get the review soon enough readers so for now I’ll sign off.

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Orlando November 2010 – Day 4

Happy Thanks Giving Everybody

Yep, it’s the 3rd Thursday in November which for US citizens means turkey and trimmings at home with the family. It also means that tomorrow is black Friday…..THE best shopping day of the year. Some stores are advertising opening times of 4am this year – that’s just ridiculous. We won’t be there at that time and we certainly won’t be queuing all night, whatever the bargains. We will try to get up early though and head in for around 8am. We’ve found before that this is a good time as it’s after the real early birds and before the normal morning shoppers. So today we will chill out – it’s really hot out here by the pool again and maybe take a ride out to Daytona later. Bad news though folks – the pool heater is not working so no swimming 🙁

Anyway, back to yesterday. We left the villa at 11:15 as we had to be at the Forever Florida ranch for 1pm. The sat nav had indicated about an hour’s journey so we allowed contingency, which turned out to be just well as we got there at 20 to 1! It was 42 miles down the 192 then 7 miles along the 441 so a dead easy route.

We arrived and ‘checked in’ and only had a 10 min wait or so before our tour started. It began with a 30 min slide show (clearly not updated since the early 1990’s) about the family who owned the ranch. The first 15 mins were dedicated to their son Allen who had died in his late 20’s and the final 15 mins about how the project was about conservation and our eco system. It was a tad self indulgent on their part and could definitely use a re-vamp.

After this we made our way onto our truck for our Florida eco safari. We were seated at the very front – seats are high up on the back of a flat bed truck. We set off and the warm breeze felt like it would definitely burn my arms – oh well! As we went along the side of a swamp we saw loads of alligators. Some pretty small and some even babies. We saw 2 lots of babies and each time there was a big gator nearby. This had to be mum as gators do protect their young and if it were dad then the babies would be no more as males eat their own young! There’s a pic of one of the mums below. We also saw a few turtles in the water and one on the bank.

Alligator
Alligator

We learned that the sex of an alligator is determined by the heat of the nest. Over 92 degrees and they will be male, less than 86 degrees and they will be female. Somewhere between the 2 and you will get a mixed litter! A female will lay around 60 eggs but only about 12 will ever make it to adulthood.

After the swamp we were into more open land. The slide show had taught us how the land has to be burned in different seasons to allow the eco system to flourish. It thins back the plants that grow too strong and allows the sun to hit the land and let new plants grow. We saw areas that had been burned in May and the re-growth was amazing. We learned that if animals get stuck during a burn they would concentrate only on survival so a snake will not eat a rabbit if trapped together. When they escape they each go their separate ways (never to speak of the incident again!)

We saw lots of birds: kestrels, buzzards and a woodpecker. We also learned that Spanish moss that hangs on the trees is not good. It will harm the tree by taking the light and nutrients. It is also filled with mites and yet apparently the first model T Ford had it used as stuffing in the seats – YUK!

We also saw a few deer bounding around but sadly never got to see the rare Florida Panther. Apparently, only a few have spotted it. It is orangey brown in colour and not black like most believe all panthers are. A black big cat we were told is a mutated leopard with merged spots!!

The ranch also catches and pens Hogs. Apparently these are bad as they destroy the land; 2 hogs can destroy 1 acre of land in just 1 night. We saw where this had happened and it was a hollow with nothing growing. The hogs dig for bloodroot (a food source akin with chocolate to me) with their tusks and the bacteria and acid from them is what ruins the land and prevents any re-growth of foliage.

We got off the truck at one point for a walk around a boardwalk (an area where Allen (pay attention from earlier) loved to visit). As we walked across Paul spotted the mother of all spider’s webs – I did NOT want to meet it’s owner and could only imagine the size of what had spun something that size. It made me shudder. After a few mins Paul then thought something had dropped on his head. At that point I decided nature was not for me and much prefer the Florida mall 🙂

We boarded the truck after about 10 mins and headed back to the ranch. The trip had been about an hour and a half and definitely worth it. The air is about the freshest in Florida in were told due to the open ecological land so we felt it had done us the world of good too.

So, as you can see (well, read) I paid attention and took a lot in for you all to enjoy 😉

After the safari we took a brief moment to feed the fat pony at the petting zoo. Thankfully a sink was provided, as he was a messy eater!

We left Forever Florida at about half 3 and headed home. We came home a different route following the sat nav but it took no less time. We got home about 4:45 after a quick stop for gas.

We were both starving as we had only had breakfast so decided we would head out for dinner early and go to Longhorn. Before we went Paul wanted to download The Apprentice for us to watch when we got back. We called ahead to Longhorn but were told there was no wait so when we arrived we were seated straight away. We had timed it well though as within minutes there were queues of people and the place was full. We both had the 7oz fillet and Paul explained meticulously how he wanted it cooked. Michael, our waiter, was keen to get it right and apparently had 2 Managers go and cook it! Paul gave it the thumbs up to everyone’s relief 🙂

The food there is always good and we really enjoyed it (clearing our plates) and we washed it down with root beer.

When we got home Apprentice had downloaded so we settled in with a brew. We both want to kill Stuart and felt the losing team were way better than both him and Laura (who is a whingy selfish mare) – those 2 HAVE to go soon.

That’s about it then…enjoy your Thanks Giving and be back here the same time tomorrow 😉

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Orlando November 2010 – Day 3

I write this on Tuesday evening as tomorrow we are off to Forever Florida and have to be there for the 1pm trail so I may not have enough time in the morning since it’s a good hours drive away. It’s 9pm and the kettle is on! We’ve just got back from dinner at Applebees. We were both tired and not overly hungry so it was the easy choice. I had chicken Caesar salad and Paul had French onion soup followed by a spicy prawn wrap. We’ve been there twice now but still not met the dog that can drive 🙂 Oh yeah, the other disappointment is that Delilah is not on Magic 107.7 anymore :-(. We checked her website which still lists this channel as playing her but it was deffo not on.

We left the villa at midday again and drove to boardwalk. We park here as it is free as opposed to the 15 bucks charged at the Swan and Dolphin. Plus we get to look around boardwalk and get the boat over which is all part of the fun. There was a boat just loading as we got there so we jumped straight on and round to the Swan and Dolphin hotel. It was absolutely scorching as we wandered around the beach to the Cabana restaurant. In fact, it has been on the news that it is record breakingly hot for this time of year.

Lunch was good; I had chicken BLT and Paul had the beef hotdog. Afterwards we got the boat back to Boardwalk and in a quick stop in the Disney store I picked up a nifty tinkerbell iphone case. When we got back to the car we need to change into jeans ready for the cold temperatures of ICE, there was no one around so we did a quick change and drove to the Gaylord Palms where was had to pay 12 bucks to park – what a rip off!!!

We went into the ICE exhibition entrance to get our Parka’s which took several attempts as I clearly look huge having been given a large to start with and Paul clearly looks skinny having to size up 3 times!! The exhibits were different to last time we went – more colourful and if I’m honest not as impressive. We took pics though so check them out below. It was sure cold in there too! We went through really quick and came out at 10 past 3. I know this as the Snow exhibition was letting groups in every hour on the hour so this could not have been worse timing. Mind you we sat outside for a while so got some more of the good weather.

Snow was very disappointing. It was a few fairground games, like hoop the bottle, knock off the bottles with a ball etc etc. In each game with a ball we used snowballs. The games were very easy; designed to be won most times by anyone (unlike the fairground). Winning got you a raffle ticket. We won about half a dozen or so on various games and were told that at the end of the 45 min session there was a raffle but after 20 mins we’d had enough so left. We were very good and donated our tickets to a small child (though if I had spotted that child later with one of the big stuffed polar bears on offer in the raffle I would have snatched it back :-)). There was also a snowball fighting area in there (full of noisy kids) and a small ice hill where kids could get in a rubber ring and slide down. It was all very children orientated hence our sharp exit!

Our entry price entitled us to a free hot cocoa so we made our way to the atrium for this. There was a show about to start, well I say show, it was 4 very pitchy singers singing old-fashioned Christmas songs. We watched for a short while and then decided to do the “hunt the polar bear”. There were 10 hidden polar bears (12” stuffed ones I hasten to add – there’s a couple of pics of these included) around the atrium area that we had clues to find. They were fairly easy and we found all 10 in about 30 mins or so.

We’d pretty much done all there was to do so left and came home. It was about 6pm so we chilled for an hour so before heading to Applebees. And so you’re all up to date for now. Like I said tomorrow we are off to Forever Florida which is a trail through the top area of the Everglades where we should see some wildlife.

Night y’all!

Ooh, almost forgot to say. The Pool maintenance man has been and fixed the pool heater so tomorrow we may get to swim…….watch this space.

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Orlando November 2010 – Day 2

It’s another great day – really hot out here by the pool (are you all very jealous?)
Today we are going to have lunch at the Swan and Dolphin then head over to the ICE exhibition at the Gaylord Palms later.  But first what happened at Disney yesterday I hear you ask.

We left the villa about midday and drove to Hollywood Studios (formerly MGM for those still struggling with change).  It was really hot as we went into the Park but also really busy.  We headed down Hollywood Blvd through the shops towards the sorcerers hat and the Little Mermaid ride.  Sadly, the standby entrance for Mermaid was full for the 1:20 show so we had to leave it.  Instead we headed to the great movie ride.  Being busy they had both carts running so with a little barrier hopping we got ourselves into the queue for the first cart.  Why did we do this?  Because for years they’ve run only 1 cart and it goes through the Gangster interactive routine but those seasoned Great movie riders amongst you will recall that there is also a Cowboy interactive routine.  Since we had not experienced this in years we wanted to! We got seats at the very front of the cart, although the Cowboy does not pick on the riders the way the Gangster does.  There are no changes to the ride.  We spotted the hidden Mickey and enjoyed the ride as ever.

After this we decided to go through “One Man’s Dream”; a kind of exhibition telling the story of Walt and the theme parks.  It has recently been re-furb’d and has many very old and valuable artefacts like original cartoon cameras to show perspective and many old toys and models.  There are models of most of the theme park castles that were to scale and used by the Imagineers and builders to create the real thing.  There is a short movie in this attraction but we didn’t watch it.

We still did not mange to ride Toy Story Mania as the standby wait time was 120 minutes.  This attraction is about 18 months old now yet still pulls in the crowds and we are still yet to experience it.  Instead we headed on over to the Backlot Tour (an old fave).  We were right at the front of the entrance when they closed the previous tour so we had a little wait time but were then at the front.  We reminisced about the time when Paul starred in the Pearl Harbour scene and I stitched him up the with engine room part where he got dumped on by 1000 gallons of water.  I don’t think we ever posted those pics – but they were fab.  We got good seats on the tram for catastrophe canyon and the props boneyard etc (there are some pics posted of this as well as various others including me in silly hats and one for you Mark – I almost bought you a T shirt but at Disney prices you just get a pic).

We then looked in the Christmas shop and even had to give the Muppets 3D a miss as it had a long wait.  So before going over to Epcot we had one final thing to do – The American Idol Experience. We made our way to the holding area where the pre-amble was taking place (some guy chivvying up the crowd and a cameraman filming).  We eventually went in and managed to get good seats in the centre of the row and with small folks in front so had a very clear view of the stage.  The 3 contestants were Jamie (a youth Pastor), Lauren (a newly wed) and Daniel (a 17 year old who looked about 25!!!).  The first 2 were OK but Daniel stole the show.  A standing ovation from about half the audience and even the Simon Cowell-a-like judge had to say good things.  The guy was pretty awesome and stands a real chance of getting into next seasons Idol.  Of course there is no Simon Cowell as a judge next season as he is set to launch X-Factor in the US.

We came out of Idol at about 4:30 and left the park straight away.  We really wanted to stay and see the Osborne family spectacle of lights but having only 3 days left on our passes we need to hop and make the most of them so, after a pit stop at McD’s for some scran (we really do need to start eating better this trip) we went into Epcot.  By this time it was starting to get dark and we headed straight onto Spaceship Earth.  There was even a queue for this but it moved quickly and we were on in minutes.  We are not as keen on Dame Judy as we were Jeremy Irons (narration for non Disney fan readers) but the interactive video building bit at the end is definitely a good addition.  Paul had the idea to select Japanese as our language so that our answers would be truly random and we would get a different video (as we seem to end up with the same ones) but in the end we opted for English.  The vid is posted here on the blog for your entertainment!

When we got off Spaceship Earth we went over to the one thing we HAD to do at Epcot – Captain EO!  After 15 years it is back.   MJ at his best in glorious 3D.  I for one was gutted when this ride got replaced by ‘Honey I Shrunk the Audience’ so had to visit.  No one knows how long Disney will keep it this time around. It had not been digitally remastered but they had added the hydraulic seat movement and other “4D” effects such as air blasting from vents, which definitely made it better.  I’m not sure all of the audience appreciated it as some were laughing (loudly I might add) at the 80’s fashion and styling.  Paul and I though, loved it.  Captain EO is king!

Being after 7pm by now a few rides were sadly shut, like the Land and Ellen’s Universe of Energy.  Soarin’ had its usual long wait but the Sea’s was open so we wandered past the animated seagulls and rode Nemo.  Not much to say about this ride.  It’s designed for kids but is very well put together.  Very impressive is the way the Nemo characters are projected into a real aquarium as other real fish and dolphins swim around.

We came out and wanted to watch the fireworks but it was 8pm and they were not until 9 and we were both pretty shattered so decided to leave it.  We exited the park and came straight home.  After watching some TV (Family Guy – v funny) we went to bed about 10pm.  Still not managing to stay up very late – we need to change that ahead of our all nighter to go and see the Shuttle launch!

Well, I must go and get ready now, need to pack warm clothes for the ICE exhibition.

Click Here to see our Video Postcard from the future


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Orlando November 2010 – Day 1

Well hello Orlando, I’ve missed you!

I sit here again on a lovely November morning.  It is very tranquil as the waterfall gently cascades into the pool and the sunshine is making me squint! Seriously, I am not complaining at all as the weather is fabulous.

So lets go back a few hours…

We left home at 8:30am on Saturday and after a quick McDonalds breakfast stop we headed up the M6.  All was well for half an hour or so and then we hit traffic.  There was a large slow moving load that was causing chaos – a whole 9 miles of chaos according to the sat nav!  There seemed to be no quicker alternative routes so we sat it out reaching the airport at about 11am.

Check in was easy with no queue at the Upper Class desk and the fast track security line was similarly empty.  We both got searched though for some reason.
A quick stop at WDF for aftershave and lip gloss and then off to the lounge.  It’s a shared lounge at Manchester and quite poor – a million miles away from the Virgin Heathrow lounge. (Metaphorically speaking for anyone who wants to be smart).

Everything was on time and we boarded at 12:30. We weren’t in our usual seats of 6A and K but were a row back in 7.  The Upper Class cabin was full, all but one seat however the Premium Economy was totally empty!

The flight time was well quick at 8.5 hours; we were really pleased.  The flight itself had various bumpy spots, not really bad but the Captain was a little over zealous with the seat belt sign so we were belted in a fair amount.  The food was ok.  Paul had garlic chicken with mushroom risotto and I had cheese and biscuits.  We both then had sticky toffee pudding with vanilla sauce.

Paul watched some movies; ‘Salt’ (described as superb), ‘The Sorcerers Apprentice’ (described as OK) and ‘Dinner for Schmucks’ (described as crap).  I read mags and did endless puzzles.  The only real notable part of the flight was the nutter woman!  She looked normal but her behaviour indicated she was definitely a few sandwiches short of a picnic.  She had a throw away camera and took LOADS of pics throughout the flight – many of which were out of the window, with flash!!  At 40 thousand feet over the Atlantic even without the flash reflection what was she hoping to get?  At some points she took pics of the cabin and even took one of Paul!!  She also laughed hysterically and loudly at whatever film she was watching.  She spent loads of time out of her seat too and yet whenever you looked around the cabin she was no-where to be seen.  When it came to landing the seat belt sign had been on for ages and it was almost at the “crew take your seats” prompt that she finally arrived back to her seat.

We landed at 5:30 local time to a slowly setting sun.  Debarkation was quick but sadly being on the late flight meant the immigration hall was packed.  We queued for half an hour but at least our bags were waiting for us on the carousel once we were through.  Customs was quick and as we headed up the escalator to the train we thought we were home free.  Trouble was we noticed we had yet another broken case.  We decided to go and get the car and then deal with the luggage desk afterwards.  Paul had booked and pre-registered the car to allow him to use the Alamo kiosk.  This would be great as there was a massive queue at Alamo.  Trouble was, yep, you guessed it, the kiosk didn’t work.  So Paul got in the queue and I waited (patiently I might add :-)).

We then headed to the Virgin baggage desk which was on the other side of the airport.  We filled in all the forms and were given a number to call.  The desk could authorise only $100 so we need to call to get authorisation to spend more after we have priced up a replacement case.

We finally left the airport 1.5 hours after landing (we have got through in 30 mins before) so were perhaps a little fractious!

We have a small Kia Rio – it’s a bit naff but was cheap and does the job!  The evening traffic was fine as we headed to Publix and Applebees.  We got the usual essential shopping and then got a carry out from Applebees as we were both tired.

We had a minor panic when we got to the house as there was a weird lock box hanging on the door and Paul couldn’t get the key to work.  We thought for one awful moment the locks had been changed but it was only user error and we soon got in ok.
We ate, unpacked and hit the sack, it was 10pm local time so all in all had been a very long day.

We were up bright and early on Sunday morning (body clocks still not adjusted) and had our usual itinerary item for day 1 planned – breakfast at McDonalds in downtown Disney.  Being early we parked ok and the weather was really nice.  It was warm and pleasant enough for shorts and T-shirts.  As we walked past the Lego shop we both suddenly realised that McDonalds was gone!  The building was there but had been turned into a new chicken restaurant.  Being creatures of habit we didn’t like our plans being changed!  We got back in the car (the rest of Downtown Disney being boycotted for now!) and headed to Crossroads, the nearest McDonalds.  Paul tried to order off menu bit it didn’t work at all.  Anyway, we did eventually eat our breakfast.

After brekkie, we went over to Millennia.  We were early so went the long way via I-Drive.  We got there at around 10 to 11 so decided to go to Super Target and Off Broadway shoes first.   We bought loads of sweets and some coat hangers but surprisingly NO shoes.  We both tried some on but nothing that spurred a purchase.

We then went over to Millennia, parking up by Niemman Marcus.  I did hand over some dollars here with purchases of L’Occitane handcream, some Yankee candles and a silver necklace from Tiffany’s.  The shop assistant tried to get Paul to buy me the diamond version.  I was with him but it was not to be!  Jimmy Choo was very disappointing with no sale items at all so my spending was reasonably curbed it has to be said.  I did fall in love with a handbag in Juicy Couture but left it behind……(for now ?)

As we exited Milennia it was raining!  It was very fine rain and the temperature was still warm and as we drove back to the Davenport area it soon brightened up.

We decided to have food early (kind of lunch and dinner combined) so went to TGI’s.  We had some really nice Jack Daniels chicken and then I had caesar salad and Paul had Pasta with chicken and prawn.  It was really nice, accompanied by a big glass of root beer.  The only slight issue was that I was a bar and it was Sunday so there was a lot of noise from those watching the football.

We came home and watched X-Factor and the results out by the pool with a nice cup of tea!

So, here we are this morning.  We’ve had bagals, juice and tea and a visit from George and the pool man.  Sadly, the pool heater is broken and it’s a call out job so no swimming for us (unless we are very brave!).  No idea how long it will take as we’ve left it with George.

We’re off to Disney now, Hollywood Studios and Epcot.  Until next time……

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Orlando Dec 2009 – Day 9 and final post this trip

Well this will be my final post from Florida as tonight we fly home.  Today the weather is still very wet.  We had storms again overnight with very high winds.  The severe weather is due to pass over about midday then clear up by tomorrow but obviously we’ll be long gone by then.

Yesterday we headed out to Mall at Millenia just after lunch.  It was raining and  much cooler though not as cold as when we got here last week (and definitely not as cold as in the uk that’s for sure!)  We first went into the Off Broadway shoe store opposite  Millenia where Paul picked up some work shoes and some trainers.  I saw a few pairs I liked but nothing that I just had to buy.  We then drove over to Millenia itself.  The car park looked quite full but the Mall itself seemed quiet.  Neimen Marcus had its designer shoe sale on but there were very limited items in my size and nothing really worth buying.  After this we headed upstairs and out past Cartier and Chanel.  Chanel had the ceramic watch that I love but its over $4000 so not really gonna be purchased!  I may get a good fake online!  We then went into sony and looked at the Vaio laptops.  They have some good deals on with a web book at $500 and a notebook at $1200 so we decide we would compare them to the MacBooks later at the Apple store.  We then went into Jimmy Choo.  They did have some styles in the sale but again not many.  They had some fab bags too but the bags are very pricey.  I left empty handed!  Can you believe I have only bought 2 pairs of shoes this trip?  And that’s exactly the same number as Paul has bought!!! We then wandered over to Tiffany’s.  Sales must be low in there as the sales staff have become way too pushy.  Each time you look in a cabinet you are pounced on and asked if you want to see or try anything.  If I happened to speak to Paul about an item or point at an item, to them that meant they should get it out and push it on me.  Questions like ‘are you shopping for yourself or for a gift for someone?’, ‘did you have anything in mind?’, ‘what are you looking for?’ were constant.  In the end I had to tell them quite sternly that I did not want their help at all right then but would be sure to tell them as soon as I did.   I was umming and erring over a couple of pieces as their charms don’t all come with clasps to fasten them to anything so I left with  nothing (fear not though readers, it did not stay that way and I did go back :-)).  We wanted to look at a few things on line and get prices – we were loathed to ask the staff for prices as they had been so damn pushy it made you feel uncomfortable.  We walked downstairs and into the ground level of Bloomingdales next  to get my clinique bonus.  I asked for the 2 products I wanted to be told my eyeshadow was out of stock.  The lady then spent about 10 mins going through all the individual colours to get me a close match.  We eventually settled on one and guess what?  That too was out of stock!!  You’d think with a bonus time on they’d make sure they were stocked up on items.  I was considering leaving and getting the products eleswhere and skipping the bonus when she came along with some other eyeshadow alternatives.  She had a cream based one (rather than powder) that was a really good match colourwise so I opted for that.  It was in stock thankfully so we paid and got our bonus.

We took a look in the Swarovsky and L’occitane shops but did not buy anything as we wandered along to the Apple store.  There was a comfy sofa outside so we sat and used their wifi.  Paul looked up the sony laptops for prices and reviews.  Both laptop options are exactly the same price at home so we decided it was not worth buying one here and carrying it home so I will make my final decision at home and get one there.  We also looked up the Tiffany’s jewellery and found some really good fake stuff that matched the ring I got earlier in the week at the flea market.  We settled on what I would get from the store here and headed on back up there.  On the way I spotted the Juicy Couture store which had 25% off.  I got a grey bag with pink embroidery which is fab!  We went back into Tiffany’s and managed to get served by a nice lady who Paul had spoken to the first time.  She was not one of the pushy ones at all but had been serving some lads, one of whom had been looking for a gift for his girlfriend we assume.  His mate had suggested that something hand made like a carved bird house would be a nice present and had asked the server.  Apparently she was very polite but as soon as they had gone told Paul she would choose the shiny bling over the carved bird house any day!!!  I bought a silver snowflake charm and also a bolt ring clasp for it so I can attach it to anything.  They sell the bolt rings for $15.

We left the mall to find torrential rain outside so ran to the car.  We found another shoe store like the Off Broadway one called DSW (Designer shoe warehouse) so took a look in there.  We didn’t buy anyting though so my shoe statement from earlier still stands.

It was about 5:30 so I4 had heavy traffic and the rain didn’t help.  We crawled along for a while eventually getting off at I Drive.  We had decided to go to Bahama Breeze for dinner.  It was really busy in there but we got a table ok.  Paul had the BBQ chicken kebobs and I had a grilled chicken flatbread with a Caesar salad.  The food was good.  We left there and came straight home – feeling very sorry for the evening’s Disney guests going to the Christmas party as it was gong to  be a really wet one!  We came home and watched X-factor on the itv-player online – both last weeks show and the results.  We will try and watch this weeks show before we head to the airport so that we are all up to date when we get home.

It wasn’t a late night – though I was up in the early hours with my cold and am still having to take lots of pills to feel ok.  Today is rainy and cold as I say.  We may venture out to get some final bits, such as cash for my brother for Christmas, but will spend most of the day around the house and of course packing.  Like I said we will watch X-factor too then head to the airport.  We plan to eat at the airport as Paul struggles with the Upper class food.  We are on the late flight so probably won’t be home until lunchtime Sunday.

Well, this is farewell from me.  Hope you’ve enjoyed it.  Until next time……