Here we are at Disney’s Epcot the next day. 
May12
Category Archives: travel
May12
Universal Studios
Sean and me posing at Universal near the Jaws ride.
May12
Orlando trip continued
So on to Monday. We were ready to leave by 10 am and found a McDonald’s for breakfast. I mailed off my postcards at the hotel and put my questionnaire in with the speedy check-out card.
We headed down to see the Titanic exhibit. I have seen one down in Atlantic City about 6 yrs ago. The Philadelphia Art Museum had a exhibit going on for a few months and we missed it.
A nice young lady dressed in a 1912 outfit greeted us and lead part of the tour. She had handed out cards with 3 passengers names on them and we were asked to check out the names later in the exhibit. The cards pretty much matched us-my lady was 38, Sean’s young man was 21 and Brian’s was around 50. All 3 of our passengers perished. Not thrilled with that since we were about to get on the plane. I would say that all the cards they give out didn’t have the people survive to make the exhibit more meaningful.
The replica of the Grand staircase was beautiful. There was a ‘hunk’ of iceberg in one room which was really cold. We also went through a door and it was like standing on the deck with all the stars in the sky and very cold similar to the night it happened. It wasn’t in the 30s (I can tell from where we live), but it was chilly.
I loved seeing the items from the ’97 movie. The costumes that both Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio worn and the diamond ring that Kate worn.
Even though those poor people died like that, they are still being remembered by so many people.
We drove around this area a little and Sean went into his favorite store ‘Old Navy’. We didn’t buy anything as our suitcases were jammed packed. We headed to Hertz about 1:30 or so. We just drove into a lane and got out and that was it! The bus took us to the airport quickly too. Everything was running smoothly until a teen in the line in front of us suddenly fell forward-I think he fainted. The metal pole holding the rope made a terrible noise, but his mom screaming scared the crap out of me! He was alert, but they did call an ambulance. Last we heard was that he did something to his hip-maybe it was out of the socket. Poor kid.
We had lunch and then picked out some magazines before heading through security. It wasn’t as involved as it was in Philly. Sean had a mini Cranium game, so he and I played that until we were called to get on the plane. The flight was fine except for one boy who was about 2 fussed the entire 2 hours.
We were the first people to get our baggage and we called the parking lot bus to come get us. It took us about 2 hours to get home (we stopped for a quick roast beef sandwich at Arbys also).
Cosmo was glad to see us. He still had a lot of food left. I figured he slept a lot. He’s been watching me like a hawk for two days. He must have been off and on my lap about 15 times yesterday.
We did have a great get-away. We really needed to see something different. I am planning another trip up to Martha’s Vineyard someday so I can stay in Hugh Taylor’s place (James Taylor’s brother). I’d like to see Maine and New Hampshire too. Then the west coast and some states in between. Nothing is as good as home though.
May11
Hard Rock Hotel Orlando
The 500 plus room Hard Rock Hotel.
May11
The globe
The famous Universal globe. Down to the right is the largest Hard Rock Cafe, the NBA restaurant and Island of Adventure. Down to the left is City Walk.
May11
Sean at the hotel
Sean happy to be in Orlando, posing near the 2.600 square foot pool.
May10
Happy, tired and crazy
We got home last night from Orlando. The trip went way too quickly. Here’s a recap of the last few days:
Friday morning:
Sad-leaving my kitty down the basement-he had three beds, two litterboxes, two big bowls of water and we left the radio on.
Queasy-I was dressed for Florida weather, but it was like 40 or lower here. We found the off airport parking well, but being so cold gave me a coughing attack. The bus driver went about 80 to the airport and I had to sit down when we went through the doors there as I felt close to hurling.
Funny-Seeing Brian and Sean being frisked at security. They had to take off their shoes, etc. I wish I had a video camera that day! Also saw local interest reporter Don Polec from ABC-6 at the Orlando airport and said hello. He was wearing a safari hat with a tag hanging off the back. BTW, Brian did great on the plane after not flying for 16 yrs. Sean felt a bit funny going down.
Awesome-the Orlando airport is beautiful-like a mall with air service. We got right on the bus to Hertz (after we found it) and got a ’05 white Monte Carlo with a sun roof. We had to have help with directions but found the Hard Rock Hotel in no time. Check in took a while, but it was a cool place with one of the biggest pools I have ever seen. We saw outfits belonging to several musicians including Elvis and Jimmi Hendrix.
Stinky-obviously a dog had been in our room-we had a definite pee odor near the bed and one of the chairs. This is a 4 star hotel! We never changed rooms, but we complained about it on the questionnaire form. We were so tired and had already unpacked, so I used some strong perfume to try and mask the smell.
Fun-we walked to the City Walk free part of Universal after dinner at the hotel. Sean wasn’t feeling too great. We took the ferry back and continued to use it the rest of our stay.
Saturday-
Coolness-We went to a breakfast buffet at the same in house restaurant where we ate dinner the night before and it was yummy! It was also cool to see Hulk Hogan and his family eating there too. He was doing something in the park.
Cattle herding-so it began-we already had paid for the tickets, but had to wait in line to get the tickets for about 45 minutes. I think they do this so they can get more money out of you to go to the other park ‘Island Adventure’.
The best for first-we read that Men in Black was a must (and I was told this too). We put our stuff in a locker that was activated by a finger scan. We had an express pass because we were staying within Universal, so we could go in a shorter line. What a blast this ride was. I ‘zapped’ up to 74,000! Bri and Sean only had half that. At the locker, Brian couldn’t get his finger to scan and someone at the park had to open it for us. Other rides we did: Back to the Future (not good for my tummy), Jaws, Twister and Shrek 4D. Missed a few here, but we got really tired before we headed to ‘Island of Adventure’. This was not the best move to make. It was crowded with teens and most of the rides were closed down for the day or something. So we missed Jurassic Park, Spiderman and a few others.
Cute-Sean bought me a ‘Puss n’ Boots’ from Shrek for a Mom’s day gift. : )
We went to a restaurant called NBA Restaurant and had an appetizer and huge salads.
Sunday-Mother’s Day.
The guys got me a muffin for breakfast and we decided to head to Epcot as we all had slept well. We had gorgeous weather the entire trip. We got to Epcot in no time, but had to wait again in line. Sean wanted to see the different countries rather than the other part. We happen to catch a flower show there and saw some gorgeous landscaping and florals.
We stopped in the Canada exhibit first and saw a presentation on a surround screen. Also saw a couple who couldn’t keep their hands off each other. Geez.
We ate Japanese food for lunch which was fine inside a beautiful pagoda. We headed to ‘The America Adventure’ which is a neat show with audio animatronics (thx W) of Ben Franklin and Mark Twain among others. That was a must see on Sean’s map. Also a must see was Norway and we went on a Viking ship ride there. The last thing we did was go up into the Epcot sphere ride. We were hustling to get to dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe and Sean was paying for mine. I had NY strip steak which was great. The waitress liked us and took us up to see memorabilia from the late John Lennon’s apartment in NY including his white piano. Each piano key was signed by different musicians. We saw a white suit of John’s plus some drawing he had done. They use this room for special parties. We also went up stairs to see the stage. Dummy here went up to a higher seat section and tripped coming down and I hurt my ankle a little.
That night was a nightmare. I was so tired and achy and stuffed up I couldn’t go to sleep all night. I ended up crying around 5 am and Brian finally rubbed my sore legs. I sure felt like I had the flu.
Monday tomorrow.
May3
Historic Route One
I travel down Rt 1 everytime I go see my mom. A lot has changed in the 18 plus years that we have lived 20 miles down the road. For one thing, it sure feels like more than 23 miles now. There are more traffic lights, more shopping centers, etc. It use to take about 30-35 minutes when Sean was little. Now it takes 45 min to 1 hour.
It is a historic area. The first very old town I pass through is Kennett Square. My maternal great grandfather lived here in the late 1800s for a year. Even though his stay was brief, he always talked about how much he liked it around here. Great gf did buy some land in Delaware at one time in his life that included a farmhouse and a short drive to the beaches down there.
Then I go past Longwood Gardens, founded by Pierre DuPont. The gardens are one of the most beautiful in this area. A few miles down, I drive through Chadds Ford where ‘The Village’ was just filmed a year and a half ago. Stop at the Chadds Ford Winery for a wine tasting. I go over the Brandywine River where the Brandywine River Museum is (I have the calendar shown on this webpage). A little ways down is the Brandywine Battlefield. We went there when I was little and my brother and I got yelled at for floating styrofoam coffee cups down a stream there. Sean’s been there for a school trip plus all the other neat museums nearby like Winterthur, Hagley and the Delaware Museum of Natural History. (I’ve never been to Winterthur myself).
If you are ever near this area, definitely the above places are worth a visit. Even down the road in Delaware County more (we live in Chester County) you will see the Wawa diary building across the street from the Franklin Mint. A little before this is the Newlin Grist Mill. In the nearby park, my brother and his wife had their wedding photos taken.
For your amusement check out Banjo the fence sitting horse and the beautiful Brandywine Valley countryside.
A little Brandywine Valley trivia:
The origin of the name Brandywine is unclear. Some say it comes from a story recounting the wreck of a Dutch ship at the mouth of the stream carrying “brandywine” – a potent Dutch spirit. Most historians, however, believe it comes from an early settler, Andreas Brainwende (or Brantwyn), who established one of the first grain mills on the lower river.
Apr29
Seems like I’m blogging alot, I know…
Actually I’m getting it out of my system as I probably won’t be near a computer for 4 days from the 6th-9th because of our Florida trip. We can’t wait! Brian is a bit anxious as he hasn’t been on a plane since 1989. I am praying my sinuses will be clear and I won’t have to use the bathroom too much on the plane. And damn that ‘Lost’ show! Funny how you worry about dumb things. Hey John Travolta, come get us! (he’s a pilot too). I was just suffering so much with my nose and throat today. My nose feels like it’s closing up and it’s burning. Flonase is helping, but I bet I’ll have to take a dose of Sudafed tomorrow. Crossing fingers.
Watched one of the best contestants get the boot tonight on ‘Survivor’. Here she’s a local girl from Glenolden, PA. Brian just happen to work in the same town for 13 yrs. Bet she knows the company he worked for too! She’s a ‘Prendy’ girl, went to the burb Catholic girl’s high school. I know other grads from that school (one was in my wedding party). Pretty neat. I usually pick up a local accent, but she didn’t seem as ‘Philly’ as Paul from Extreme Makeover:Home Edition.
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I didn’t plant outside, too windy. I got hung up repotting indoor plants. I did about 10 plants from Prayer Plants to Christmas cacti before I ran out of potting soil. I have another bag outside though. I’d like to combine the leftover cacti into one big pretty pot. They are one of my favorite plants. I also have a windowsill full of African violets. I do have a green thumb, don’t I? Wish me well with my sinuses. : )
Aug29
More on the trip…
We got on our way Wednesday about 11 am to stop off in Ocean City, NJ and maybe a nearby mall. The luggage situation was driving me nuts as I tried to rearrange things this way and that. Mom and I ended up being squeezed in like sardines in the backseat. While we were waiting for the guys to get the car, I gave her a lecture about taking too many clothes and when you go with someone to honor their wishes. I also said later that she needed to think ahead about the consequences to her actions. She got in a huff, oh poor me. When the guys pulled up, my son the new driver was behind the wheel in the crazy driving city that AC is. He did ok in the general AC area, but screwed up bad on the AC Expressway-like almost stopping dead in the middle of 65 mph traffic because he almost missed the exit. He had trouble getting on a bypass too and had cars honking at him from behind. I felt bad for him as he doesn’t know the rules of driving in those kinds of situations, but I don’t want to see my life passing before my eyes again.
Ocean City is a nice beach town, a little boring and the same old thing. It cost $10 to park-the parking cost us an arm and a leg everywhere. We hit a bookstore that I usually love, but this one was small and didn’t have much. I mainly sat on a bench the whole big hour we were there. Mom wanted to stroll up and down the boards with Sean. What a change! The best part was going in a candy store and picking out goodies to enjoy later.
Collages & Creative Goodness 