"Have Faith In Your Dreams and Someday Your Rainbow Will Come Shining Through..."

Woop Woop!

DISNEY!!!
I finally made it to Disney World.  The last time I was there was around 1987.  I was about 3 1/2 years old and do I remember any of it? No.  It's something I rarely let my family forget.  Both of my sisters were able to return to Disney World in their 20s, and so it's only fitting that I do the same.
We drove from Sarasota on Sunday all the way to Epcot.  It was about a 2 hour drive (which, after having spent a full day in the car, didn't seem like more than a 30 minute drive).  As soon as I saw the first sign for Disney, I went ballistic.  My hands were flapping and I was grinning like a 6 year old about to go to...well...Disney.
We pulled up, parked, and I started to run to the tram to get into the park.  The weather was extremely humid, so I didn't last long running.  Once we got inside I felt ridiculously childish, clasping my hands together and getting that giddy feeling in my chest that I haven't felt in years!  We started off with Tomorrowland - only going on rides.  The rides were incredibly fun, and despite it being Disney - not too cheesy!  Ok, they were pretty cheesy, but super fun!  I didn't take my camera in, so all of these photos were taken on Brent's phone.  We explored the countries after going on a couple of rides.  We made it to Norway when the sky started to get dark.  Figuring that we'd ditch the incoming storm on a ride, we ran into Maelstrom - a terrible little rail-boat ride that jerked us around like crazy.  I wouldn't really recommend this ride at all, but we were really just trying to get out of the rain...turns out the rain didn't come while we were inside.  So, knowing that a downpour was inevitable, we grabbed some food instead.  Paying $27 for a pizza and getting an entire pitcher of Sangria was well worth avoiding what was to come...

Delicious Sangria

Trust me...rain like that is none to forgiving to a white cotton sun dress...I wasn't ready to give that kind of a show to the kids at Disney.  And besides, the Sangria was delicious!!!
We made it to Magic Kingdom much later at night and only got to go on Space Mountain: AWESOME!!!  It was a long wait in line, but worth it.  The next morning we got a VIP fastpass to the new Test Track ride (Brent's got an in with a higher up at Disney :p)  That was a pretty fun ride as well!  Then we went to the Hollywood Studios park and went on the Rockin' Rollercoaster (waiting in line while listening to Aerosmith was interesting - I can't stand the song "Don't wanna miss a thing" and they played it at least 5 times).  Then came the Tower of Terror!!!  As someone with a minor fear of heights, this was probably not the best ride for me.  I was shaking for about 15 minutes after we got off the ride, but it was SO good.  I think I left nail marks on Brent's shoulder from when I grabbed him out of fear.

Waiting in line for the Rockin' Rollercoaster

We went to Animal Kingdom next and rode the safari - it was ok.  I felt pretty awful for the animals stuck in there...It's a big space, but doesn't seem like enough...but it was interesting to see all of those animals.  Some were even listed as extinct in the wild, and now only exist in captivity.  We didn't get to stick around terribly long in Animal Kingdom as we found out that they only stay open until 5 (and we didn't get there until 4:30).  We went to Rainforest Cafe (to avoid the rain again - it rains a lot in the afternoons in Florida) and got some overpriced burgers and a drink that didn't seem to have much alcohol in it at all.  I did get a stuffed animal though! Yay!  (He's an elephant and I named him Wilbur - He is an excellent cuddler).
We ended the day in Magic Kingdom and saw the Hall of Presidents.  It was pretty awesome, even though when Obama's wax model started speaking there were a couple of people who yelled "Boooo!" really loud...I know everyone's entitled to their own opinions - believe me, I know I have mine - but you'd think that people would be a bit more respectful (especially during a show that isn't meant to be about politics, but our nation's history).  Ah well...
After the Hall of Presidents we went on the runaway train roller coaster!!! That was soooooo much fun!!  After that we decided to pack up and head out - the rest of Disney didn't seem to agree to that plan, however.  Usually there are fireworks at 9 pm, and then a parade at 10:30 - tonight they skipped the fireworks and went straight to the parade at 9:30.  It was impossible to get around people!  After fighting our way through the crowd we made it back to the monorail station and eventually our car.  It was time to move on to the next destination - Outer Banks, North Carolina. 
I think I'll be going back to Disney someday...There were too many rides that I missed!  And it was such a fun time...

After the sangria...

Our Last Day in Sarasota and the Best Tuna Ever!

So our last day in Sarasota was a very very sad day.  A very hot, wet, mosquito ridden sad day.  Actually it was a lot of fun, even though the consequences were very itchy.
We started the day by sleeping in (what a rough trip this has been).  Brent's sister wanted to try to take a trip to a state park whose name I cannot remember and would most likely butcher trying to attempt any spelling of it.  Brent was no help remembering the name.  Anywho, it decided to start storming around noon when we were planning to go.  We assumed that a marsh area probably wasn't the best place to be in a strong thunderstorm with pouring rain, and played Uno while we waited for the clouds to pass.  They didn't.  Around 3, the rain let up a bit and we dashed out the door to try and make it to the park before the storm started again!  It was gorgeous.  It was like walking through a jungle!!!  It was, however, awfully humid and extremely buggy.  I have never seen such mosquitoes.  They're gigantic dinosaur mosquitoes down here in Florida!!!  I don't know how people live with these things, I was out there for maybe 20 minutes walking and I ended up with nearly 15 mosquito bites on EACH thigh and quite a few on my shoulder.  I even got a mosquito bite on my thumb...MY THUMB!!!!  And I can't even count the ones on my toes, they've all swelled up into one giant bite.  So, yeah it's pretty but I really wish I'd had bug spray...especially when we came along this guy:

Meg, I'm really sorry.  It was all I could do to take this picture without throwing up.  Brent also thought it would be hilarious to touch my hair while I was taking this picture.  I almost threw my camera at him.

So as part of this trip, we climbed a couple of towers and walked along a bridge.  The highest tower was 76.1 feet tall (here's the proof).  And the view was awesome!!!  Then we found a bird watching area and walked along the ground bridge there.  This area was also "abundant" with alligators!!  So we were careful where we walked.  It was extremely scenic and I got a couple of pictures of Brent with his niece and nephew that were really cute.  I also was happy to get some really good wild-life shots (I included one of a deer here).
After exploring, we were all extremely sweaty and bitten up so we went back to Brent's sister's and showered.  We then went to this little place on Casey Key called - appropriately - Casey Key Fish House.  Once you walk in, you don't expect much from the place but HOLY CRAP! They have amazing food.  And it's not too pricey either!  The tuna was delicious!  Rare in the middle, seared on the outside to perfection!  It was served with wasabi and ginger noodles which had delicious little peppers mixed in with it.  I loved every bite, but I ate WAY too much.  They had really good mussels too.  If you're ever in Casey Key near Sarasota, you must go.  We ended the night with a quick game of Uno and passed out.  The next morning we set out for Disney!!!  But that is for the next post - which I will do separately...(It'll probably be posted in the next 5 minutes).
PS - After dinner, we ended with watching the sun set over the ocean (since there is a west coast there).  This was the ONE time - the ONLY time in Sarasota that I did not bring my camera with me, and I will NEVER forgive myself.  Ever.  The following was taken on Brent's phone (minor editing).

Seriously...I'll never ever let myself live it down that I didn't have my camera.  Still a wonderful picture though.
Next post: Disney!!!

Corrections for the previous blog, and my first experience with a Florida beach (unless you count when I was 4)

So, after reading my previous blog, Brent informed me that I had made some serious mistakes.  Awful, horrible, need-to-be-corrected-immediately mistakes.
First, on our stop in Virginia, we took a 3 hour nap and Brent woke up and started driving at 3:30, not 6:30.  I must still be tired to think that a 3 hour nap at from 12:30 would mean us waking up at 6:30 - unless Virginia has some sort of screwed up Bermuda triangle-like time zone...(to think of it, we were near Roanoke).
Also, apparently I took over driving at 9 am after Brent's Rock Star drink wore off.  I don't remember this, but I'm going to trust him.  Anywho, somehow we did make it (in one whole piece) to Florida.
Another thing I forgot to mention: Five Guys.
Five Guys, Five Guys, Five Guys.
I love Five Guys burgers and fries.  It is the east coast equivalent to In-'n-Out burger, and I will never be satisfied with any other burger (except the Mews in RI).  I don't really know what else to say about it other than that.  It was simply amazing. (Brent said that was probably the only amazing thing on our drive...I'm inclined to disagree, because I'm pretty sure my company was daaaaang amazing).
So today we got up and decided to go for a nice light walk around the neighborhood - and by neighborhood I mean the golf course that is his sister's backyard.  It was around 9:15 before we got out there, and I don't know if you know this, but at 9:15 in Florida in August IT'S HOT.  So hot.  And the humidity...don't get me started on the humidity. (I'm going to talk about it anyways, that was just a figure of speech).  We walked around part of the course, saw a bunch of awesome birds that I tried to name (but was most likely incredibly wrong).  After about 20 minutes I was pretty sure I was going to have a stroke or heart attack brought on by the heat.  Brent then informed me that in order to return to the house, we would have to retrace our steps.  I had been walking under the false assumption that we would be returning to the house in a circle, and quickly.  Those of you who have played golf are most likely laughing at me at this moment, and I can't say I blame you.  We turned around and dragged our butts back to the house.  Somehow we escaped the numerous man-eating birds, bugs and alligators.  There were two deer (a male and female) that tried to run us over, but we evaded them masterfully.
Upon returning to the house, we were just a bit overheated.  We pounded some Gatorade (I can't tell you how delicious that was, it tasted better than the water I drank after my first road race) and decided to take a dip in the pool.  Absolutely delightful.  The pool was a bit warm, but still very refreshing!  Did I mention there's a pool? Well there is.  It's glorious.  There's also a jacuzzi.  I'm thinking of just staying here forever, honestly.  Meg, you wouldn't miss me, would you?

After the pool, we made some tasty food stuffs, and decided to go to the beach.  We took a trip over to the Siesta Key to Siesta Beach.  I have never seen a beach like that before.  The sand was the consistency of flour, and not too too hot (like Rhode Island's gets sometimes.  The beach was incredibly long and wide, and didn't feel nearly as crowded as Narragansett's gets.  Everyone had space.  It was so incredibly bright with the white sand.  I couldn't stand not having my sunglasses on (which is probably a good thing for my eyes anyways).  I saw quite a few birds, one I think was a kiwi, but again I'm probably just pulling that out of my butt.  We ventured into the water within minutes because it was getting a bit too toasty for our comfort on the sand.  We took a few steps - warm water.  Well of course it would cool down if we went in further!  A few more feet, water up to our knees...still warm.  Perhaps if we got out just a TINY bit more...up to our chins - still warm.  It was like entering a hot tub.  The water had to have been just as warm as the air.  While normally I enjoy a good dip in a hot tub, this time I wanted nothing more than to escape the heat!  The water felt incredible, but I couldn't appreciate it fully.  It was beautiful though, nice and clear (even though it was a bit green - it's much more clear than the water at Narragansett).
We called it quits after about an hour and drove around some of the other keys.  Very scenic area, and I've decided that Florida drivers can keep their licenses (even though most of them are old and drive extremely large vehicles).  We headed back home and have been hanging out since.  It's extremely relaxing, and honestly I'm just happy to be inside with the AC.
Have fun 'til later!
(PS - we just found out we'll be able to go to Disney for TWO days!!!!!!! I totally squee'd when I found out)

We left Maine at 1 o'clock on Wednesday.  We had planned to leave earlier than that, but due to a little traffic (and getting just a tiny bit lost while trying to find post cards) we were off a bit later than anticipated.  Honestly, there isn't much to say about the drive other than Connecticut, Massachusetts, and especially New Jersey people should probably all have their licenses revoked and be taught to drive in another state which understands the rules of the road (for example: staying in your own lane while driving on a highway). 
The drive really wasn't as awful as I was expecting.  We made it from Maine, through New Hampshire, to Connecticut, then New York (avoiding the city as it was 5 pm and we most likely wouldn't enjoy that kind of traffic).  After New York came dreaded New Jersey.  I've heard that driving in New Jersey was bad, and in Rhode Island we have our share of people from New Jersey.  Now I'm not saying that all New Jersey drivers are bad - I know a few of them, and I don't want to make anyone mad, so let's just say that any New Jersey driver that I know personally, you're ok with me!  The rest of them...not so much.  I'm sure New Jersey has a few pretty parts...the picture in the upper left hand corner was taken in Trenton or Princeton (I don't know, it's all blurring together at this point).  However, it's difficult to really appreciate the scenery when you're trying to avoid a car rocketing at 90 mph.  I would just like to know where all of the police are in New Jersey!!!  I don't think we saw a single car pulled over on the way...but I digress...

I think I took over driving in the evening on Wednesday, and kept driving until 12:45.  Brent had tried to get some sleep before, and I was getting a bit too sleepy to drive, so I pulled into some parking lot in Virginia and we had a good 3 hour nap in the car.  Next thing I know, Brent woke up at 6:30 and I got in the passenger seat.  After that, I have no idea how, but we were in North Carolina.  My sense of geography has been so messed up by this trip, I have no idea which state came first, second, etc.  All I know is that we passed through a bunch and ended up in Florida.
Now I am a person who enjoys a good shower, just ask my sister Meg (she pays the water bill at the house). I never go a day without showering unless I'm ill or unable (having surgery did not keep me from washing my hair).  On Tuesday, I showered around 5 pm.  I was then in the car all day wednesday without a shower. By Thursday, I was near death.  I began to look forward not to the beaches or the sights in Florida, but the clean and warm shower that I would get as soon as we arrived.  And let me tell you...it was glorious.  I don't remember the last time I enjoyed a shower that much.  I almost posted it on facebook, but I was too busy taking it all in.
Brent's sister was so accommodating, she fed us, gave us some wine, and I got to sleep in Brent's niece's bedroom.  It was pink and warm and inviting and I slept SO well.  Until I got a random wrong number call at 4:30 in the morning from someone yelling "Grandma! Grandma you have to talk louder I can't hear you!!!"
Yes.  I got that call at 4:30 in the morning, and I immediately hung up.  I hope that guy's grandma is okay.

Florida so far is just amazing.  We haven't left Brent's sister's backyard, but I've already seen more wildlife than I usually see in a Zoo in upstate New York.  There was an alligator!!!  And the birds are amazing.  The cranes let you just walk right up to them.  And DEER!  The deer are huge and so pretty.  I love it here, except for the humidity.  While walking outside I can't tell if I'm sweating or if it's just so humid that the moisture in the air is just deciding to cling to me.  Either way, it's uncomfortable, but it's hard to really notice it when you have such amazing scenery.  I can't wait to get more pictures!

Shipping off to Boston...er...Wells, Maine.

 

A while ago we had decided to start our trip with a tour of Boston. However, after seeing a weather report for this monday, we decided to take our time getting on the road and head straight up to Maine. We'll just visit Boston when we get back!

The weather wasn't that big of a disturbance to driving, but it did take us a while to actually get past Warwick, RI! (I kept forgetting things...)

We finally did get on the road and went to Maine, passing through NH on the way. We found a delightful duty free liquor store in a barn (yes a barn, it was wonderful). We bought two bottles of wine and some liquor (the wines were Debauchery and Woop Woop - we only picked them for their names).

We finally arrived at our campsite at dusk to set up our tent in what light was left. Brent, being the confident person he is, decided it wasn't necessary to practice setting up an unfamiliar tent...so we tried our best to read directions in the dark. We set it up surprisingly fast, and then moved our attention to the campfire...

Not exactly the biggest success of our trip thus far. We gave up after we set about 50 newspapers on fire and the logs wouldn't catch. We decided to call it a night, chugged our Debauchery and went to sleep.

We woke up bright and early at 10 the next day. It was probably the best sleep I've had in a while. We explored northward for some breakfast and found ourselves at a wonderful place in Kennebunk called Perfecto Cafe. They put omelets inside of bagels...genius. We used Brent's phone aps to help us find places to visit. We ended up at Back cove in Portland, which would have been nice for a run, but besides that it wasn't terribly impressive. Then we drove around to find other places, ending up at a dead end, then in a park that first appeared to be quite charming. Upon closer investigation we realized that there was a group of people being spoken to by a few police officers, two sketchy people on a bench (the woman told me my camera was pretty) and lots of ducks and duck droppings. We didn't stay long. We found the Portland waterfront but decided we would much rather head to a beach. So we went back down to Wells (where our campsite was) and got suited up for the beach. We then found a nearby beach, but there were no waves and it was small and a bit crowded. We turned around and headed out to find another beach. We spent probably close to 45 minutes searching for free/low cost parking (as it would have been $15 to park for the public beach we found). Turns out, when we gave up and went back to pay to park at the lot, no one was watching the booth and we got in for free! Yay!

The beach was gorgeous, and the waves were huge. It was quite chilly though, so we didn't end up going in the water. There were plenty of sand castles and various sand creations though, so I got a few pictures. We went to dinner at Barnacle Billy's Etc. after that. Great food, a bit pricey but not too bad for the area. Very scenic! Service could have been friendlier, but it seems that a lot of people in Maine aren't all that friendly. No one smiles back at you when you smile at them, no one says excuse me or holds the door, and people just seem to be in a funk most of the time. I expressed this view to Brent and he said he completely agreed and thought it was just him! Ah well, there are a few friendly people up here, but they're few and far between!

After dinner we headed back to the campsite and had a couple drinks and attempted the campfire again...this time with lighter fluid. TA DA! Lighter fluid makes all the difference. Our fire caught on quickly and kept going for quite a while. We played cards and listened to music until my laptop died, then went to sleep.

About 3 am I woke up and heard something rustling in the woods. I wasn't quite sure what it was and I woke up Brent and said there was something outside. His guess was a raccoon. I said it was probably a Moose...I've wanted to see one so badly up here, but not that close. He laughed and said it wasn't a moose. I had to go to the bathroom so I ventured outside and made it all the way without being attacked by a marauding moose or a scary Frenchman. I got back and laid down. My head was facing downward on a slant, which isn't the best idea after stuffing yourself with greasy seafood and booze. Suffice to say I wasn't feeling my best after that, but eventually got back to sleep. I woke up again to a rustling right outside our tent. A MOOSE!!!

No I'm just kidding...I woke up Brent again and he said it was definitely a raccoon. The thing was practically climbing up the side of the tent to get to our garbage bag. I figured it was going for the leftover hotdog buns in the garbage, but I just wanted to sleep. So I figured I would just give the little guy our buns and he would thank us kindly and leave us alone to get more sleep. I unzipped the tent and the bugger ran off...his loss.

As far as I know, the raccoon didn't come back. And I still haven't seen my moose. But we're on our way now to Florida. It'll take us two days of driving, unless we're feeling zealous and drive through the night (which we just may do). The next two days will be a bit rough, but we'll get to see the whole East Coast! Weee!!!

And we still have that Woop Woop in our trunk (shh!)
Talk to you all soon!

Buckle in, get you suited up...It's time to fly...

We seem to be making a tradition...
ROAD TRIP!
I have been waiting (since the end of the road trip last year) to do this again. I am unable to think of a better way to spend the last two weeks of August, especially after the stress of school this past year.
I have also been wondering how to start this blog since I created it months ago...So here is my first post: The pre-road trip planning post!
Brent is on his way at this very moment, probably speeding through Connecticut (as there is no other way to drive in that state if you wish to survive I-84) to get to sunny Rhode Island. We'll be leaving Monday morning, as I have a very important event to be at tomorrow in Massachusetts. A very exciting and important event involving someone extremely awesome!
I intend to update this as soon as the trip starts, and at the end of each day (assuming we have Internet access). During the last road trip I kept a journal, and found that it was extremely difficult to write by hand while in a moving car (go figure). So typing on a laptop will have to do. I just hope I don't get carsick...
Well I'm off to go get packing. Talk to you all soon!