anyways, I wanted to type out the weeks activities, both to remember, and to layout the pictures later.
Monday: Fly into Orlando International in the late PM and drive to Mystic Dunes Golf Resort. We rented a 2 bedroom time share for 3 nights for $99 per night.
Tuesday: pickup tickets for various attractions, then drive to Clint's parents place. Go golfing with Clint's dad, have dinner afterwards. Clint's parents are great people, super nice, they have a very nice home on some nice secluded property, and his mom is one hell of a cook. How they raised a clown like Clint still baffles me
Beating on the rental car down the dirt road was hilarious. Getting back to the room and picking the locks wasn't a highlight of the day though!
Wednesday: Gator Land! This was a Gator park, and we really enjoyed it. Gators, gators, and more gators everywhere. We then went to Clermont and did a winery tour/tasting. We took a brief afternoon nap, then went to the Arabian Nights horse/dinner show. Food wasn't so great, but the show was excellent.
Thursday: Kennedy Space Center. This place was so damn cool, I can't even explain. We walked through 'Rocket Park', they had all of the old rockets on display that brought the USA into space, the Mercury, Skylab, and Gemini missions. There was a Saturn I rocket on display as well, and I thought it was huge....until we took the bus tour, and went into the Saturn V complex. The Saturn V rocket is 363 feet long, and is laid on it's side (suspended 20 feet over the floor) in the Saturn V complex. The size and complexity of this thing is totally unbelievable, it blew me away. It remains the largest and most powerful launch vehicle ever brought to operational status from a height, weight and payload standpoint. We also saw the Shuttle displays, Mars Rovers, and did the Shuttle Launch Experience. We also got to go out to launch pad 39 and see the Shuttle that is currently on the pad which is going to launch this week. After leaving KSC, we drove down through Miami to the Homestead/Florida City area, and checked into our next hotel.
Friday: Everglades National Park. umm, yea, we saw someones dog get eaten, as well as a ton of gators and cool wild birds. We walked around quite a bit, got sunburned, and drove to the furthest southern point in the continental US that isn't a key (look up Flamingo, FL). Cool place, but lacks the wow factor of the National Parks out west (not surprisingly). Still very cool see. We ate dinner on the waterfront and listened to a really good 80s/90s rock cover band outside under the stars.
Saturday: This was going to be our relaxation/do nothing day...and didn't really end up that way, but that's ok. We went to the Miami Seaquarium in the morning, and saw all of the dolphin, sea lion, and killer whale shows. Was pretty impressive seeing a 20 foot, 7000 pound whale jump out of the water and soak everyone with a tidal wave of water. We then decided to drive to Miami Beach/South Beach for the afternoon...and an hour and a half later, we made it. The traffic out onto the island was horrible, but it was cool once we made it down there. Sam and I laid on the beach for a few hours, and Clint and Susan wandered around drinking and looking at ripped black dudes doing tricks on the beach ;) South Beach was pretty cool, but I bet it's a total chaotic madhouse during spring break. It took us another hour in traffic to leave.
Sunday: fly home. Minnesota is currently getting dumped on with snow again, along with 30 mph winds making a nice blizzard. We weren't even sure we were going to make it in with all the flight cancellations. Sam and I took a different flight home from Clint and Susan, luckily. Clint and Susan took off at 730, and we left at 740. Well, upon takeoff, Clint and Susan's plane blew an engine (I read it was a 737 so it was twin engine). I don't know all the specifics, but the Sheriff found engine parts all over the freeway, and they had to make an emergency landing. We all eventually made it home this afternoon just ahead of the storm. Sam and I flew Southwest both ways, and I can't recommend them enough. Professional, yet not robot like. On time, no fussing around service. Highly recommended (and affordable)
Things to remember (please add)
Chunky Bear gonna steal all your money
exploding plane engines
how horrible we all golfed
Bear the Dog
Clint talking to the wrong car at the gas station
the ripped black dude on the beach that could grab a flag pole, turn himself sideways, and then do crunches
Wet Willy's icee drinks
my phone going off during the presentation at the winery in a room full of blue hairs and white caps
Google Maps saying our hotel was a bush on the side of the road
no pets
yea brah
