Orlando Highland Games

Wow - what a great event just outside of Orlando. I spent a full Saturday at a Scottish Highland Games and had an absolutely incredible time. I was amazed by how many people were there and had to park quite far away! This was a great day's event for only $15.

If you love bagpipes and drums, this is the place to be! There were many different competitions and exhibitions throughout the day. I just love the sound of bagpipes and they give me goosebumps every time I hear them.

The highlight for me however was to watch the actual strength events such as tossing the caber. It was quite entertaining watching these athletes give it their all in these friendly competitions. The comradery was great as they cheered each other on to greater feats.

Maybe next year I will compete?????

This was one of the most fun and most economical days that I have had throughout my adventures in Florida and I would highly recommend this event to everyone in the future!

Til next time!

Citywalk at Universal Studios Orlando

On a recent Friday night, my girlfriend and I went to Citywalk at Universal Studios in Orlando. There are definitely perks to living in Orlando! We had decided that we wanted a night out so off to Citywalk we went.

First stop, we went to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. I had an incredible bacon cheeseburger there. I must be getting old because I found it a little too loud especially to have a good conversation. There is much memorabilia to see and we had the honor of sitting under the Godfather of Soul, James Brown!

One word of advice - the orange margarita tastes nothing like an orange and is even the wrong color. Maybe the bartender had one too many!!

We then spent the evening people watching and walking throughout the entire Citywalk complex. We ended up going to the Red Coconut to chill out. It was a good club but the key is to go upstairs. We were the only people upstairs for a long time before everyone else figured it out. We enjoyed a couple of drinks on the balcony and doing some more peoplewatching.

Citywalk offers so many different things that almost anyone can find something that they enjoy. There are numerous restaurants and clubs outside of the main attractions, Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. I feel that these are the best attractions in Orlando and I never get tired of visiting them.

Til next time...

Magic in the Magic Kingdom at Disney

I had an opportunity to go to the Mickey's Christmas Party at Disney right before Christmas. I had never heard of this event before but this was the way to go for the Magic Kingdom. I parked at the Swan and Dolphin and caught a bus over to the Magic Kingdom. The bus was standing room only as everyone, it seemed, wanted to get to Disney.

The great thing about Mickey's Christmas Party is that they essentially have everyone leave the Magic Kingdom who doesn't have a special wristband. The wristband entitles you to stay in the park with minimal crowds. It was still crowded for the parades and for some of the shows but most of the attraction lines were next to nothing.

The longest we had to wait for any ride was the Pirates of the Caribbean (about 5-10 minutes). My girlfriend and I took advantage of the short lines and rode Space Mountain and the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad over and over again. One word of advice on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad - if you are a big guy and you date a petite girl, this might not be the ride for you.

My poor girlfriend was getting bounced all over the place because the lapbar couldn't come down all the way for her because of me. At least she got many laughs to go along with her bruises.

I would recommend people to go to events like Mickey's Christmas Party because you are able to enjoy the park without quite so many people and since it is at night, the temperature is not unbearable.

Also be prepared for incredible fireworks to light up the sky!!!

Travel the world in less than a day at Epcot

Hard to believe there was a book called "Around the World in 80 Days" and I made it around the world in only a day. My girlfriend and I spent the day touring throughout Epcot in Orlando and had quite a good time there. There were some letdowns but we still were able to spend much time enjoying ourselves

There is so much to see and do there that it is hard to decide where to start. We decided to begin with the World Showcase. We were hungry and stopped at the FranceBakery for a quick snack. This was a disappointment as the food wasn't good, was overpriced, and the people were rude. Wait this is actually quite authentic to Paris! Ahhh the memories!

Epcot is great for walking just try not to go on a very hot day! We spent the rest of the day wandering the park and checking out everything. Eventually we got hungry and decided that we wanted German food.

One thing to keep in mind is that you need to get a reservation for dinner or you might be turned away with a empty belly. We were able to get a late reservation and enjoyed a hearty meal there. The pastries and setting were my favorite parts of the meal.

Now for the best part of our visit to Epcot....
A little suspense....
We wandered in to a store in Japan and my girlfriend screamed. Her favorite childhood toy - the Monchichi - was for sale there. I was able to make her day and win some brownie points by buying her a new Monchichi!

This made her day which of course then made my day!

Thank you Epcot!