Floridays15 - Second Leg

Cloudy skies greeted us this morning as we packed up the car to drive back down the I-4 towards Orlando and the craziness of theme parks. This is our 19th trip to Florida and we still visit every park at least once. This time we have booked 5 nights at the Universal Royal Pacific Resort Hotel as we prefer it to The Hard Rock which tends to get a lot of 'pretty people' staying over the weekend, taking over the poolside and behaving as though they have sole rights to everything.  The journey south was uneventful this year, no presidential cavalcade nor being pulled over by a Sherriff. Just a bog standard two hour drive down the highway with one fuel/wee stop. As we approached the Universal area we could see the top of the Rip Rockin' Rollercoaster and The Hulk. In years gone by, the boys would have been squeaking with excitement, not now, just a nod of acknowledgment as if they were old friends they hadn't seen for a while. That's how we feel once back here. It's all very familiar and comfortable. Is that a sign of old age? We pulled into the hotel, parked up, checked in and knew exactly which corner of the lobby the elevator to tower 2 was. The room was the same as every other room we have stayed in here and although the view was different - the best one we have had actually, it was almost like being home. I still had the OCD strop I get when they all dump bags everywhere and mess up the beds. I hate clutter and mess. They know this but still do it. I have to unpack, hang things up and have it all sorted before I go anywhere. Then I can relax and go out to do what ever it is. Today the whatever was a walk into Universal Studios. It was hot and humid, so we did a lizard count as we walked along the path towards the parks to take our minds off it.  Much to the embarrassment of my family, once again, for the fourth year, I caused a backlog at the entrance because the machine couldn't take my fingerprint. Happens every year, every time I try to get into the park. Jordan is convinced I scour my fingers before leaving home. The three of them cower and cringe, leaving me to try and explain 'it always happens to me' to the bewildered employee. Eventually they just let me in, probably because I don't look too dodgey or sneaky.

We spent a couple of hours on a few of the rides, checking out the new Harry Potter part which links the two parks by train and the two boys ate in Simpsons Springfield - Duff beer is a bit 'Duff' to be honest. We left them in the park and went off to eat at Bubba Gumps, for some reason the boys didn't want to come with us, so it was rather nice for the two of us to have some time together. 

While waiting to get our table we watched a few minutes of the film Forrest Gump - it's years since I last saw it and said to hubby we should watch it again sometime. Little did we know we would soon be tested on our Gump knowledge by Dustin, our server who had the enthusiasm of a young spaniel. The kind of guy you can't help but like but wouldn't want him living next door. He kept popping up at the table to take our order, check if we were ok or just to ask some Gump quiz questions, always with a smile and lots of gesticulation. Of course, he earned himself a good tip. All part of the universal service. Just as we got up to leave the thunder rumbled and heavens opened. Hoardes of people rushed out of the parks towards the car parking complex. Some in poncho's, some not. All soaked. We chuckled at them desperately trying to avoid the deluge...you're gonna get wet...just like you do on the Bilge Rat's Ride!  However, we were under the porch of a restaurant at that time, but eventually decided to just get out in it and he'd back to the hotel. It's only water after all. We plodged ankle deep in water, along the path to the hotel, arriving like two drowned rats in the air conditioned room - soaked to the skin, much to the amusement of the boys who had got back before the storm which decided to linger for a while, closing the pool area for the evening, and scuppering plans for a late swim. We read on the Disney forums that people are so disappointed at the weather this year. Apparently it's been wetter then usual and I expect people haven't gone home with the sun tan they expected from a holiday in Florida. Well we know now that if you come to Florida and theme parks, you aren't going to get a beach tan unless you spend all day at the poolside - which you aren't going to do if you've paid a small fortune for park tickets. It rains a lot in July/August here. We once had 5 days of constant rain when a tropical storm sat above Central Florida, it wasn't pleasant, mainly because you couldn't dry your clothes and a lot of the rides were closed meaning shops and indoor activities were busy. No point moaning about it though. Next time book for May or October, we would if we didn't have to stick to school rules. It's by far the best time to be in the 'Sunshine State'.