That’s one small step….

Thursday was our last day in Florida, but we had plenty of time as we had an afternoon flight.   We got up reasonably early, finished packing the bags and then had breakfast. 

Today we were off to see the Kennedy Space Complex and read all about the work of NASA. It was about an hour from Melbourne further up the coast. On arrival we found you had to pay $10 just to park the car, that  was before the entrance fees, which were not cheap, especially as the pound is weak against the dollar. However, we decided to have a look around.

Linda was excited about seeing all the space rockets and went slightly crazy with her camera, you can see some photos here. There were all types located around the complex. We then took a tour bus  and had  a drive-by view of a launch pad. The bus dropped us off at the Apollo Centre and we experienced the historic Apollo 8 launch  and saw the  massive 363 foot long Saturn V rocket. You could even touch a piece of the moon surface they had bought back. There were other exhibits to look at including machines they used to drive on the moon.  On the way back to the main centre Linda was very excited, the driver showed her some baby Alligators. You could not get out of the bus to take pictures as there some big hungry ones watching!

We were there over three hours. Linda described the place as awesome. The queues for the cafe were long and so we ended up leaving, thinking we would stop somewhere on our way back to Orlando, but it was another straight road, with no coffee stops. I knew a Starbucks in Orlando so we went there and sat outside drinking out coffee, its warm today, but not hot like it had been in Miami. We had about an hour till it was time to book in so Linda wanted to go to Walmart again. She managed to find some other things she had not bought on her previous visits. About 3.30pm we dropped the car off, changed into our clean clothes, checked in, queued for security and then waited for our plane. It left about 1825 and landed at 0730 this morning, it was cold and raining in Gatwick, welcome home!

Miami Vice

Miami here we come. On Sunday I was up early and ran the loop from our accommodation bloc, across the lake, through Downtown and back the other side, just a couple of miles, to keep my hand in. It was porridge for breakfast, pack the car and then off we set.  We stopped at St Cloud 1st Baptist Church for the morning service, it was the contemporary services (as opposed to the traditional at 0930). We didn’t know many of the songs, although the service was still quite traditional Baptist in its order of service.  The minster Vince Manna preached on Matthew 22:34-40 about the issues of the heart.  The service lasted about an hour, but coffee is obviously before it starts and not after. However, it was an enjoyable time of worship.

We were back on the road again. We had about an hour and half journey to   Lake Okeechobee and the road was through the country, it was slightly boring, very straight and no other traffic. It was cattle country as there were no houses here, only ranches. We reached  the Hamilton Inn where we were staying by mid afternoon. There had not been one Starbucks on route, this is really third world country.  We then went for a wander around town, which didn’t take long. There was nowhere to get coffee so we ended up back in the room. There was a washing machine here so we did some washing and then relaxed in our room. 

The  next morning we were up early, had breakfast and on the road by 9am. We stopped to have a look at the lake and a short walk, before continuing the drive into the Everglades and Alligator country. It was an interesting drive, over two hours on very straight roads using cruise control. We arrived at Shark Valley visitors centre around lunchtime. We had a walk around and saw several Alligators, funny how Linda was not too keen to stroke them! There were plenty of birds around for her to take photo’s of. It then started to rain and rain, so we went to get lunch. This was Indian territory (Cowboys not curry) so we stopped at the restaurant, Linda had a burger, while I had alligator nuggets, very nice. After this it was the drive to Miami which was about an hour away.

In Miami we found the North Beach  Best Western and booked in, we have a room with a balcony. It was warm and the sun was out, so we went for a walk and found a coffee shop. There was a free tram ride part of the way back, so we took advantage of that. In the evening Linda went for a swim and I did a workout in the gym. 

On Tuesday I was up bright and early, Linda was still fast asleep so I went for a 6.5 mile run, including a mile along the beach. It was warm with the sun rising. I came back and couldn’t get in the door so Linda woke up. We then had breakfast around 9am, wrong time, it was crowded with people pushing and getting in the way. Today was a non driving day and we took the bus to South Beach Miami, about 30 minutes journey. It had started to rain by the time we had reached the Lincoln Mall so we sheltered inside Starbucks. After this we wandered around the shops and stopped for lunch at a Cuban restaurant. The service was terrible, we waited an hour for a sandwich, which was very nice when it came, but too long in arriving,  I had a Cuban coffee which was rather sweet. The good news was it had stopped raining by now and so we could have a walk along the beach and through the art deco district. Linda liked the walk and took loads of photos, you can see some here. 

It was now sunny and warm, mid 70’s and we had a paddle in the sea, but were careful not to get swept away and kept an eye out for any sharks. We got the bus back to the hotel and then relaxed for a while. We went to the restaurant in the evening and Linda had a cheese sandwich with chips, I could not resist the Dolphin salad, flipper was very nice. We had walked 9.5 miles during the day, so I was tired, but Linda went for a swim. She couldn’t get back, as she now had the fault key, so instead of waking me she had to go to reception, explain who she was and get a new electronic key. 

On Wednesday we had an early breakfast, much better as less crowded and were on the road by 9am. We reached the Sawgrass Mills, Sunrise about 10am, just as the shops opened. Linda found a few tops in Tommy Hilfiger and I visited Nike. We were there a couple of hours and then it was back to road  I95 and the 150 miles to Melbourne. It took a couple of hours to get there and find our hotel a Holiday Inn Express. After booking in, we visited a craft shop Linda wanted to see and then a spot of dinner, before returning to the hotel. It is slightly cooler up here, so we went to the fitness centre in the evening while the washing was in the machine.

Run Disney 1/2 Marathon

Florida here we come. We left home about 2pm on Tuesday.  We had a Travelodge at Gatwick booked and so we headed there, dropped our bags off and headed for Brighton. We hadn't been there for years and Linda wanted to see how it had changed. it was about an hour from the airport due to heavy traffic. We found somewhere to park and then wandered around the shops. Linda managed to find some boots she liked in M&S, so used up her Christmas vouchers. Following this we walked along Prom, it was windy, dark and cold, so a very brisk walk. Linda was hungry by now and so we went to Harry Ramsden’s for tea, I had a nice salmon salad while Linda had old fashioned fish and chips. After this we drove back to the hotel.

The next morning we were up at 7am, dropped the car off and were at the airport for 9. It was through security and then to a lounge to relax until it was time to board the plane, just after 11. We finally left at midday and it was a 9 1/2 hour flight so we arrived in Orlando around 4.30 in the afternoon. During the flight I watched films, read my books and researched the book of Exodus, the next series for Church.

 Orlando has automatic passport machines, so you queue for them, then you get a ticket and then queue again to see the immigration official, who checks your receipt and passport. Linda managed to fail the machine test, she didn't do her fingerprints right and ended up in another line. She was then selected for a special check and her suitcases were examined.
Eventually, they decided to let her in.

 After this we went and collected the car, it is a  Hyundai Tucson. We had booked a hotel near the airport for the first night, it was a Staybridge hotel part of the IHG network. We had a suite and they were doing free  evening meals, which was a  burger and salad. It was ok and couldn't complaIn as it was free! Having been sat down for so long I needed some exercise  so took Linda for a run, well a slow trot in reality. We had a look around the area and found a Starbuck, so I tried the chai latte. Then it was back to hotel and bed, we had lasted till 8pm (3am UK time).

The next day we were up  early, as we were not tired and had  breakfast. After this to Walmart to get some supplies, before returning to the hotel to collect our luggage. We headed for Disney World and the  ESPN  site for the RunDisney Expo and to collect my  race packet, number and shirt. It was slightly cold and there was a very bitter wind.  We wandered around and I bought some running gear, things I didn't have, Linda says that running is not a very cheap hobby where I am concerned. 

After this we went to Downtown Disney and had a wander around, we checked out Starbucks the Fit2Run shop (but I didn't actually buy anything!). For lunch we visited Planet Hollywood as I had a voucher,  Linda had pasta and I had a nice salad.

It was now about 4pm so we went to our hotel resort within the Disney World complex, and booked in to the Saratoga Springs. Our room is on the 3rd floor, had a nice bed, a big lounger and a balcony. We got a magic wristband which you have to wear all the time and it opens the door and other things. We unpacked and I suggested to Linda the best way to see the resort would be to run around it. We found the fitness centre and had a 30 minute workout, before jogging back and doing some reading.

On Friday I was awake early, so at 0530 went for a gentle run, just a mile and half to test conditions, it was slightly cold and dark. I then came back and sat on the balcony and listened to music. Linda was still asleep. As we have a mini kitchen in our suite we had porridge for breakfast and some fruits. Yesterday was my choice and it had been the running expo, today was Linda's choice and it was shopping. 

We started out at the Premium Outlets and she found some new crocs and then a coat. It is very cold today, so we need jumpers and coats, evidently it is 10 degrees lower than normal for this time of year. We then visited a few more shops and centres across Orlando and Linda picked up a new top. I visited Nike and bought a new top to run the race in, a colour I didn't have. I am not meant to mention that I can now get into a size smaller than my wife, but I will! The good news is she can borrow some of my older running kit to go for a run in!  We got back to the room late afternoon, Linda went  for a swim while I laid my kit out for the morning. We had bread and meat followed by fruit for our evening meal, then it was to bed early.

0230 the alarm went off. Linda was thinking why am I getting up at this time on holiday.  However, we had our porridge and a drink and then  it was time to go to the hotel reception to catch the coach. It is cold! The coach dropped us at Epcot and we had to walk to the race location. We were there by 4am and ended up huddled in a tent with a lot of other people trying to keep warm, it was about 3 degrees (Sunday's marathon was 13 degrees at this time.) It was even colder when I stripped down to my running gear. About 5am I left Linda and made my way to the start line. I was in corral C, which is near the front (there are 15 corrals, the slowest near the back). The fireworks started and I was soon on my way.

The route is up World Drive towards the Magic Kingdom Park. Upon entering the Magic Kingdom Park, we ran  through Tomorrowland  and Cinderella Castle.  We then ran the opposite way down World Drive to back to Epcot, through Future World on the way to  the finish. It does not seem far writing it, but it was 13.1 miles. It was dark and quite strange to see the parks all lit up. It was cold, but once I got going I soon warmed up. I was just behind the pacer for 1:50 and kept him in sight, until mile 7 when I overtook him. I initially was going to take it easy, take some photos on the way round, but when I was halfway round I realised I was running fast and would get a good time, so I focused on the run and not the scenery.  Although my 5k and 10k times were slower than normal I achieved a personal best of 1:47:37 and came 828 out of 22081 finishers. Interestingly there were over 12000 women runners and 9000 men. Many ran in fancy dress, not my style.

Linda had her camera and could go from Epcot to the Magic Kingdom on the monorail. She was very happy taking lots of photo’s, you can see some here.  She didn’t expect me to finish so fast, so she was not at the finish line. I ended up waiting 30 minutes for her to come back, shivering in the cold as she had all my clothes. When she finally appeared, I could change and put some warm clothing on and then we had to find the bus back to our hotel. Linda thought she knew the way and a short cut, it turned out to be neither, so I ended up walking another mile and then back to where we started. We found the bus and got back to the hotel, it was only about 9am.

We had a snack and changed before going out for a walk around the resort. We got a boat to Downtown Disney and had another wander around. We stopped for lunch, Linda has a nice chicken dish and I had steak salad. Neither of us have deserts these days. We then walked back to the hotel and went out for a drive, Linda found a Walmart so she had a look around. In the evening Linda had a swim and I rested. We were tired so it was early to bed.