Tag Archives: Florida

SpaceX Falcon 9 Es’hail-2 Mission – Launched 15:46 EST 15th November 2018

15 Thursday Nov 2018

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SpaceX successfully launched their Falcon 9 rocket, carrying the Es’hail-2 satellite, from the Kennedy Space Centre Florida today (Thursday November 15th 2018).

I watched the launch from Max Brewer Bridge and Parrish Park, Titusville. I recorded a video on my phone – the video isn’t that good as I wanted to actually watch the rocket and not on my screen. You may also be disappointed at how far the rocket is away from my viewpoint, despite this being the best location outside the space centre.

I used this site to discover places where I could view https://eu.floridatoday.com/story/tech/science/space/2017/03/29/10-great-places-watch-rocket-launch/99730718/

The Falcon 9 rocket is re-usable – in December 2015, Falcon 9 became the first rocket to land propulsively after delivering a payload to orbit. Today, 16th November 2018, following stage separation, the first stage of the Falcon 9 landed perfectly on the ‘Of Course I Still Love You’ droneship, stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.

Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center, Florida

Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center has a long and storied history dating back to the early 1960s. Originally built to support the Apollo program, LC-39A supported the first Saturn V launch (Apollo 4), and many subsequent Apollo missions, including Apollo 11 in July 1969. Beginning in the late 1970s, LC-39A was modified to support Space Shuttle launches, hosting the first and last shuttle missions to orbit in 1981 and 2011 respectively.

In 2014, SpaceX signed a 20-year lease with NASA for the use of historic LC-39A. Since then, the company has made significant upgrades to modernize the pad’s structures and ground systems, while also preserving its important heritage. Extensive modifications to LC-39A have been made to support launches of both commercial and crew missions on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles.

Webcast

Here is a replay of the launch webcast.

Here is the official mission patch:

Splitsville Bowling, Walt Disney Word, Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA

19 Tuesday Jul 2016

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Splitsville is a large bowling alley that is part of Disney Springs (formerly Downtown Disney), part of Walt Disney World in Florida. Disney Springs is a large shopping and entertainment district that is currently free to enter and free to park.

Splitsville is a relative newcomer to Disney Springs – there wasn’t any bowling available in Downtown Disney. Like many of the places there, it isn’t a Disney operation, more a concession operating on the Disney property. I can see that Splitsville has seven other US locations, including Miami and Tampa.

Disney Springs is always busy and so I decided to try and book our bowling – after all how difficult could that be? The Splitsville website has a button for booking a lane. My local bowling alley in Europe has an online system, where you can choose a lane, time and duration – with availability shown. So I was disappointed to see this message:

Splitsville 01.jpg

Followed by an online reservation form. Some time later I received an email:

Thank you for your interest in Splitsville! Our Walk-In and Priority Bowling Rates are outlined below. Due to the large amount of reservations we have for this specific evening we cannot book a lane at 7 p.m. as all our lanes have already been purchased. We are more then willing to accomodate you before 4 p.m. on Tuesday the 15th or any other day this week:

WALK-IN RATES:

(Only valid on a first come first served basis.) Bowling time allotted is based upon number in bowling party, 4 people receive an hour and 15 minutes on the lane.

MONDAY-FRIDAY (Pricing includes shoe rental.)
OPEN-4PM: $15 per person
4PM-CLOSE: $20 per person

SATURDAY-SUNDAY (Pricing includes shoe rental.)
OPEN-CLOSE: $20 per person
EARLY BIRD BOWLING (Walk-in only):

EVERY DAY Open-12:30PM:
$12 for Adults/$8 for 9 & Under (Pricing includes shoe rental)

PRIORITY BOWLING:

*Priority bowling must be set up a minimum of 24 hours in advance.
Additional $10 per person, based on walk in rates and times shown above.

A couple of emails later and I realised that the only way to book was to accept the Priority Bowling rate for an additional $10 per person – making $30 per person. Well what a complete rip off that is! I would probably pay $10 to reserve a lane, but not per person. I’m also still amazed that what purports to be a modern bowling alley doesn’t have a modern reservation system to match.

We decided to just turn up early one evening and see what happened. As it was there wasn’t much of a line and we were allocated Lane 1 pretty quickly.

The seating area was pretty comfortable and our server arrived quickly and took our drink orders. We didn’t order food although there was a full menu service that looked good quality and the area at our lane was suitable for eating. I’m sure Splitsville would like it if you simultaneously bowl and dine – but really why would you do that when you are paying $20 per person for lane time and could easily eat before or after?

A coke was $5.25 with free refills. I can’t remember how much a beer was.

There was an odd sign to remind bowlers not to overdo their ‘victory dance’. I guess they have to protect any kids from inappropriate gestures, but I’m not sure why pregnant women were included in the list:

Splitsville 03

There were plenty of balls available, all highly greased – so much so that they tended to slide, rather than roll, down the lane. The floor was also slippery from the grease and I nearly fell over on my first bowl. The pins reset really quickly which meant we could have more games.

Splitsville 02

Lane 1 is probably the worst lane if you don’t like spectators as it’s right by the window. There was usually a few random people watching our play.

Our hour and 15 minutes was almost up and we still had a few frames left. We were given an extra 10 minutes to finish our game which was great. That meant that our party of four played three full games.

So this was a pretty mixed experience. I’m not saying I’d never go again, but I wouldn’t rush back.

Splitsville Luxury Lanes
AT DISNEY SPRINGS™ WEST SIDE
1494 East Buena Vista DriveLake Buena Vista, Florida 32830

http://www.splitsvillelanes.com/location/orlando/

407.938.PINS (7467)

Miller’s Ale House, Kissimmee, Florida, USA

18 Monday Jul 2016

Posted by in Restaurants and Bars

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Miller’s Ale House is a bar/restaurant chain. The first Miller’s Ale House opened in 1988 in Jupiter, FL and since expanded throughout Florida and beyond. There are now 72 restaurants in over ten states.

The one we visited had a large sports bar area, several pool tables and plenty of restaurant seating. I’m guessing they are all the same.

The place is pretty popular and when we arrived we were looking at a wait of maybe one hour. US restaurants tend not to encourage advance booking and maximise their table utilisation by expecting patrons to wait with electronic pagers.

The good news was that there were pool tables available and so we were able to play (without charge) until the pager called us. We were also able to order drinks, although weren’t able to transfer that cheque to our table.

Miller's Ale House Pool Table

A 20oz Guinness 20oz was US$5.95 and a bottle of Corona US$4.99.

Like most US chain restaurants, the place was busy and noisy.

The pager called us to our table. The food was pretty good. The aircon was a bit fierce.

An 8 oz Filet Mignon was US$19.99 plus 95c for a loaded baked potato and 95c for a side Caesar salad. A full rack of ribs US$17.99.

This isn’t a fine-dining experience but isn’t a bad place to visit as a group – but be prepared to drink a few beers and play a few games of pool before you eat.

http://www.millersalehouse.com/

8123 W Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway, Kissimmee, FL 34747

407-238-4499

Gatorland, Orlando, Florida

09 Saturday Jul 2016

Posted by in Insects/Bugs, Travel News & Tips

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I’ve been a regular visitor to Florida since the 80s. This year in March was the first time I’ve been to Gatorland. I guess I had an image of a cheesy, run-down sort of place, struggling to compete with the Disney, Universal and Sea World parks.

The standard Adult entry ticket is US$23.99 + 1.56 tax = 25.55. That ticket doesn’t entitle you to ride the train, zip line, eat/drink, feed the gators nor participate in the gator wrestling show. I found an offer on www.travelzoo.com that was US$49 for two people, with train, lunch voucher, gator chow voucher and wrestling voucher all included. That was the bargain that finally got me to Gatorland – and although things got off to a shaky start it was better than I expected.

Parking was free and only a short walk to the park entrance – contrast that with the US$20 parking fee that is charged by Universal. We’d arrived around lunchtime and so we took our two $10 lunch vouchers and looked for a place to eat. There was only one place called Pearl’s Smokehouse serving fast food from just three outdoor windows. The lines weren’t that long but people were hardly moving. We waited 30 minutes before arriving at the window and discovering the issue – each server was also responsible for preparing the food. The food was okay – nothing special. If you don’t have an all-inclusive deal like ours then I’d strongly recommend you eat before you go. Here’s a picture of Pearl’s Smokehouse:

Gator 01

Having spent almost 45 minutes surrounded by other visitors and their kids, we decided to head for the swamp walk – a quiet boarded walk through a typical Florida swamp and similar to some of our walks through the Everglades. It was pretty good and we started to calm down and enjoy Gatorland.

Here are some pictures:

Then we continued to wander around the main lake. There were hundreds of aligators, plus various types of bird and nests.

Here are some pictures:

Walking along the boardwalk there were some huge bugs flying around. Here’s a video:

Here’s some more video, this time of alligators:

We took the train ride around the park and it was worth doing as we saw parts of the park that are inaccessible on foot.

We walked past the alligator wrestling. It wasn’t a great show and seemed to consist of people sitting on a muzzle-bound, tail-less alligator while photos were taken.

We then picked up our free cup of gator chow – which was actually cut up pieces of hot-dog sausage. The gators weren’t so interested, but there was a giant bird that couldn’t get enough of them:

Gator 25

We didn’t pay extra for the zip line.

I’m guessing we visited for at least three hours and we enjoyed our visit – well apart from the wait for the food.

I probably wouldn’t rush back but I’m glad we went. If you plan to visit, look out for deals on Travelzoo, Groupon or maybe a leaflet in your hotel.

Gatorland
14501 S. Orange Blossom Trail
Orlando, FL 32837

Phone: (407) 855-5496 or (800) 393-5297

customerservice@gatorland.com

Leu Gardens, Orlando, Florida, USA

02 Saturday Jul 2016

Posted by in Insects/Bugs, Sightseeing

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Harry P. Leu Gardens and the historical home were donated to the City of Orlando in 1961 by Mr. Harry P. Leu and his wife, Mary Jane.

The gardens are beautiful and immaculately presented. On our visit, there was an exhibition of giant bug sculptures, by artist David Rogers. Even though the exhibition has finished, I’d still recommend a visit if you find yourself in the Orlando area.

I’ll leave the pictures, which I’ve deliberately left full-size and not set to slideshow,  to describe these great gardens.

Leu Gardens is open 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. every day, closed December 25. Last admission is at 4:30 p.m.

Admission is only US$10 but I’d recommend that you purchase a membership for $40 (individual) or $50 (Household) as that gives you entry to American Horticultural Society partners including over 280 gardens, arboreta and conservatories nationwide (full list available at www.ahs.org/rap)

www.leugardens.org/

Harry P. Leu Gardens | 1920 North Forest Avenue | Orlando, FL | 407.246.2620

The Cheesecake Factory, Orlando, Florida, USA

14 Saturday May 2016

Posted by in Restaurants and Bars

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Our visit to the Cheesecake Factory was prompted by the restaurant featuring in the Big Bang Theory TV series. Unsurprisingly, the real thing is nothing like the one on the show – the good news is that it’s much better.

The bad news was that we didn’t make a reservation and there was a 40 minute wait. Like plenty of other places, they gave me a pager and we took a walk around the mall while we waited.

The restaurant was huge and busy. We had a booth for four. Here’s a sample of the prices:

  • Guinness can US$ 6.50
  • Chocolate shake US$ 7.50
  • Steak Diane and salmon combo US$ 21.50
  • Classic Margarita US$ 10.25
  • Cheesecake US$ 7.95
  • Burger and fries US$ 13.95

The food was delicious and the portions were huge. Service was good.

As the place was so different from the Big Bang theory, even the uniforms were different, we wondered if there was actually any real connection or even paid product placement. Google revealed that the Cheesecake Factory has never paid for advertising, nor did they pay to be featured in the Big Bang Theory. Apparently they rely on word of mouth (and these days I imagine, Trip Advisor!) to bring people in.

I’d certainly visit this or another branch on my next visit to the US.

The Cheesecake Factory
The Mall at Millenia
4200 Conroy Road
Orlando, FL 32839

http://locations.thecheesecakefactory.com/fl/orlando-56.html

407-226-0333

MON – THU
11:00AM – 11:00PM
FRI – SAT
11:00AM – 12:30AM
SUN (BRUNCH SERVED 10:00AM – 2:00PM)
10:00AM – 11:00PM

Cheesecake Factory 01Cheesecake Factory 03Cheesecake Factory 02Cheesecake Factory 06Cheesecake Factory 05 Cheesecake Factory 04

Disney’s Boardwalk, Disneyworld Resort, Florida, USA

11 Wednesday May 2016

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We visited Disney’s Boardwalk (part of the Disneyworld Resort in Florida) in March this year. Disney’s Boardwalk isn’t promoted much by Disney, but is a really good place to visit, with hotels and restaurants, themed in a Florida style, surrounding a lake.

If you aren’t staying in one of the Disney Hotels that surround the lake, you can still park for free. The car park has a manned barrier and they will often tell you that parking is full and only $20 valet available – just say “That’s fine” and then drive in and you’ll find most likely find a space.

It’s a really pleasant walk around the lake with plenty of venues to choose from. There are also free boats that take you to Hollywood Studios and EPCOT. But you can easily walk to EPCOT. One benefit of being so close to EPCOT is that you watch the evening fireworks from just outside the entrance without having to purchase admission.

There were a few mosquitos around, I guess because of the lake, but not so many that it affected our evening.

Disney's Boardwalk 01 Disney's Boardwalk 02 Disney's Boardwalk 03

Disneys Boardwalk 04

We stopped for a snack at ‘Tratorria al Forno’ which has a number of outside tables (no view of fireworks). A Mai Tai cocktail was $10 and a Cured meat plate (suitable for sharing) $16. The food and service were good and I’d be happy to return there for a full meal.

Disney's Boardwalk Cured meat plate Disney's Boardwalk Mai Tai

There is also a nightclub, with free admission, that opens at 9pm. We had a look inside around 9:30 and it was pretty empty. I’m not sure if it picks up later.

Be aware of Disney’s strict alcohol ID policy – the nightclub won’t admit anyone who can’t produce sufficient ID.

In case my pictures weren’t enough, I found a video on YouTube that is an accurate representation of the Boardwalk area.

Raglan Road Irish Pub, Disney Springs, Disney World, Florida

22 Friday Apr 2016

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‘Disney Springs’ is the new name for ‘Downtown Disney’, which years ago was called ‘Pleasure Island’. The area is located within the 40-odd square miles of the Disney World property.

Disney Springs now has a multi-story car park instead of the open parking lot. Currently there isn’t a charge for parking. New attractions have been added to the existing, probably the biggest being the Splitsville bowling alley. The Irish Pub, ‘Raglan Road’ isn’t new but is still one of the best places in Disney Springs.

You can book online, but you have to leave a late/no show deposit by credit card. If you arrive without a booking, there are two lines; one for outside, one for inside. Outside seems less popular, although it’s usually pretty good with live music on what is normally a warm evening. You’ll need to wait in line for an outside table. For inside, you’ll be given a pager that lets you know when your table is ready.

There are two types of table; high and booth. If you don’t like sitting on higher chairs, make sure you ask for a booth. Some table have views of the central stage, with Irish dancing – it can be a bit noisy there so unless you need to see that, ask for a table in one of the side rooms.

On our first visit (just two of us) we sat outside in the evening (15 minute wait) and had good food and Guinness while listening to an Irish singer.

On our second visit, there were five of us and I booked with my card. I was disappointed to be handed a pager on arrival and we had to stand at the bar having a drink for almost 30 minutes – I returned to the desk and reminded them that I’d pre-booked and if I’d been late they would have charged my card.

But we were happy to be seated and everyone enjoyed their food.

Despite the annoying wait, I’d probably go back. Remember that if you look under 30, you’ll be asked for ID. And if you are a foreign visitor that means driving licence and passport.

Here were the prices in USD:

  • Guinness 8
  • Fish and chips 20
  • NY Strip 35
  • Coke 3.50
  • Miller lite 6.50
  • Bud 6
  • Lamb shank 29

 

Everglades National Park, Florida

17 Monday Mar 2014

Posted by in Sightseeing

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The Everglades National Park covers 1.5 million acres of South Florida and spans three counties. There are three ways to access the park by car. The main entrance located in Homestead, Florida, connects visitors to the Royal Palm Area and the Flamingo Area. The Shark Valley entrance is located in Miami, Florida and the Gulf Coast Entrance is located in Everglades City.

We stayed at the Hampton Inn, Homestead so we could be close to the park entrance. The drive from the hotel to the Ernest Coe Visitor Center entrance took around 15 minutes. The visitor center has a car park, some exhibits and some helpful rangers, but you can’t buy tickets there – you need to continue driving into the park and pay at the entrance booth. So you can probably skip the visitor center and head straight for the real entrance. The entry fee was only $10 (per vehicle not per person) and that ticket is good for the following seven days. I think that price is a bargain, considering the many paved walkways and other facilities that are available – despite this, there weren’t many vehicles on the roads and the trails weren’t busy. I’d sprayed myself with DEET before our visit and had also been taking vitamin B tablets, but I didn’t see any mosquitoes or other bugs on any of the trails. This was end of February and perhaps things liven up as temperatures increase or after rain.

First stop was the Royal Palm parking area (with restrooms). There are two trails here; Anhinga and Gumbo Limbo. The parking area has signs that say something like ‘cover your vehicle with tarps to avoid vulture damage’ there was also a large bin containing ‘tarps’ – which turned out to be what is called tarpaulin in Europe. By the time we figured out what to do, all the ‘tarps’ had been used – so we decided that Mr. Hertz would have to take his chances with the vultures.

'Tarps'

Tarpaulin covers are provided – although only at Royal Palm.

The Anhinga trail was a nice open air mostly-boarded trail over the swamps. This was the only trail where we saw alligators – there were plenty to see, although none were crossing the path as I’d seen in some tourist photos. The birds were really friendly – I thought they were the Anhinga birds that gave their name to the trail – but they weren’t! The Gumbo Limbo trail was a winding paved trail through the woods – it was nice enough but not much too see and only worth walking as we were there already. Both trail walking time estimates were about 1.5 times longer than they actually took – it seemed the same for all the trails.

Anhinga Trail Bird

Not an Anhinga bird but on the Anhinga Trail

Back to the car and no sign of vulture damage. Next stop was the Pa-hay-okee Overlook. The parking lot was smaller, almost empty and no ‘tarps’ boxes. The walk was boarded and the overlook was like looking out over the African savannah. A really worthwhile stop.

Pa-hay-okee Overlook

Pa-hay-okee Overlook

Next stop was Mahogany Hammock trail. Again a small parking lot and no ‘tarps. The walk was boarded and went through an interesting wood with one particularly huge tree. Another worthwhile stop.

Boardwalk

Plenty of boarded trails

Still no sign of vulture damage and next stop West Lake trail. Small parking and no ‘tarps’. The walk was boarded and took us through a fascinating mangrove swamp. We were really enjoying our visit but were looking forward to sitting down for some food.

Next stop was the Flamingo Visitor Center. This is huge, large parking area, a marina and was busiest part of the park so far. There is an open-air burger restaurant, called the Buttonwood café, that immediately won the bugadvisor award for having bug screens all around. So it was good to sit back and watch the lake without any bugs (not that there were many) bothering us. Cost was $25 for two burgers and two beers.

Buttonwood café

Buttonwood café

We were almost on the West coast of Florida, but it didn’t feel like we’d driven so far. Getting back to our hotel took less than an hour and the car was still vulture-damage free. I’d recommend this trip to everyone – even those who are worried about bugs and/or alligators.

http://www.nps.gov/ever/index.htm

Hampton Inn – Homestead, Florida

14 Friday Mar 2014

Posted by in Hotels

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I chose this hotel for several reasons:

  • It was close the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center located at the Main Entrance of Everglades National Park
  • Hampton Inn is part of the Hilton group and as a Hilton Gold card holder I earn points and hoped for some extra benefits such as free wi-fi
  • It had a heated pool
  • They advertised free breakfast
  • It was less expensive than hotels in Miami.

Check in was smooth and I was offered a choice of Hilton points or two bottles of water – I took the water. There didn’t seem to be any other Hilton Gold benefits apart from free Wi-Fi – but I was happy with the Wi-Fi.

The room was fine (apart from one glaring omission) – I wasn’t expecting a luxury hotel. The air con unit was attached to the external wall and was a little noisy during the night. The worst thing by far was the lack of in-room safe. I spent quite a while searching for the safe as I couldn’t believe there wouldn’t be one. Instead, I had to deposit all my valuables in one of the safe deposit boxes behind the reception desk. The ladies on reception were very nice and helpful and didn’t complain when I was in and out of the safe several times each day. But I really hated all the messing about and sadly won’t ever stay at another Hampton Inn, just for that aspect.

Hampton Inn seem to be obsessed with telling people how they wash their bedding. Maybe I don’t stay in enough budget hotels, but I would expect the bedding to laundered after each occupation. There were adverts in the elevators showing people enjoying their clean sheets. There was even a post it note on the headboard of our bed (see pic).

The pool was clean and really warm, almost too warm. The hotel also provide free pool towels. There isn’t a bar or restaurant in the hotel, so the only drinks you can have are from the vending machines. There is a Publix supermarket just across the dual-lane highway opposite the hotel.

The free breakfast was truly terrible; paper plates, plastic cutlery, watery orange juice, a weird yellow omelette thing with cheese inside. There was a make-your-own waffle machine and so I learned how to make a waffle. The coffee was okay and there was also some fresh fruit and yoghurt. So you could eat something healthy.

A selection of chain restaurants, Red Lobster, Olive garden etc. were a very short drive away  – you could almost walk there.

If you are looking for good-value accommodation in the Homestead area and can live without an in-room safe, then this is a reasonable option.

2855 NE 9th Street, Homestead Florida 33033
Phone. 305.257.7000
 Fax. 305.257.7200

http://homesteadhamptoninn.com/

Hampton Inn - Clean Sheets

Hampton Inn – Clean Sheets