Mini TR for another Boston Road Trip - updated Nov 22

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I think I just peed myself a little. That is SOOOOOOOOOOo cool!

.afternoon tea!!

I love Afternoon Tea!

but it wasn't the sort of relaxing afternoon tea that I had envisioned.

... but this doesn't sound very relaxing. :( I wish it had been a better experience for you.

After that, time for dinner!! I went with the smoked salmon with cucumber salad appetizer, and the lobster tail with pesto risotto as my main. Dessert was called "floating islands" and it was meringue on top of vanilla sauce with some caramel drizzle.

That sounds decadent!
 
I think I just peed myself a little. That is SOOOOOOOOOOo cool!

It was seriously cool. Unfortunately the beach was super crowded - way worse than it looks in that picture...and my friends were not happy to be on a crowded, noisy beach...I would have stayed a lot longer I think otherwise. The jet we saw was not nearly as big as the KLM beast in the pic, but the Delta one we saw was a reasonable size and it really did feel like it was gonna land on the beach right on top of us. Those pilots need to have some mad skillz.

That sounds decadent!

It really was, as was all the food on the cruise. I may have a hard time doing up my pants after a week of that gluttony.
 
It was seriously cool. Unfortunately the beach was super crowded - way worse than it looks in that picture...and my friends were not happy to be on a crowded, noisy beach...I would have stayed a lot longer I think otherwise. The jet we saw was not nearly as big as the KLM beast in the pic, but the Delta one we saw was a reasonable size and it really did feel like it was gonna land on the beach right on top of us. Those pilots need to have some mad skillz.

For sure... one wrong move...

It really was, as was all the food on the cruise. I may have a hard time doing up my pants after a week of that gluttony.
Understandable!
 
it was a bit of a lazy day! Well apart from the spin class in the morning.

:sad2: You and I have different ideas as to what constitutes "lazy".

I very seriously considered rolling over and not going,

This would be the preferred plan.

but decided I better because of all the eating I planned on doing!!

:laughing: Well I guess I can understand that.

The ship was moving a bit on this day...and although I wasn't bothered much by it, it was a really strange sensation on a bike at the front of the ship where the gym is.

:eek: I hadn't thought of that! eep!

But with the help of a Pina Colada was tolerable while reading some trashy magazines!!

:laughing:

afternoon tea!! Princess does this every day at 3pm.

:) Sounds nice, but...

The food was delicious and it was fun, although it was a very popular event and the staff seemed to really want to rush through it as they had all the food in front of you the minute you sat down.

... this is not my idea of a nice relaxing afternoon tea.

I don't think all the cruise lines have 2 formal nights on a 7 day cruise,

I have no idea of course. None at all.

They highlighted all the people who had spent 15, 100, 1000 and 2000 days at sea!! (seriously..some people have spent like 8 years on a ship lol)

Wow! That's some dedicated cruising right there.

lobster tail with pesto risotto as my main.

Yum!

Dessert was called "floating islands" and it was meringue on top of vanilla sauce with some caramel drizzle. It was pretty good.

OH!!! Ile flottante! That's my mom's favourite dessert! :)

Sadly today is the last day of my cruise :(

well... poop.

With this one, I really can say, I wouldn't mind staying just a few more days!!

:) That's a very good sign.

Today was a lazy day. And actually I think that is a nice way to end the trip...so I hopefully won't feel like I need a vacation at the end of it,

I like that idea too. Too many times I've come home from vacation needing a vacation.

Anyway...today I did not set my alarm and made no crazy plans to go to the gym or anything!

Now we're talkin'!

I got to meet the people that worked in the future cruise sales office and funny thing, they are actually from London, Ontario which is about a 2 hour drive from my home town of Toronto!!

Cool!

They have been working on cruise ships for about 10 years and now have managed to score this gig as a married couple working together on the Caribbean Princess.

Nice gig!

So of course we bonded over how much they love being away from Canada in winter and hope to never go back before April again lol.

I can relate. I really can.

We then headed to the theatre where they were having a Princess cruise lines version of The Voice called Voice of the Ocean.

That sounds like fun. :)

They had the turning chairs for the judges and everything. I guess they had been having the contest all week throughout the cruise and they were down to six finalists for the finale, and the audience got to vote to determine the winner.

Wow! Pretty thorough.

Ultimately a guy from Kentucky who sang Summer of 69 was the overall winner.

Did he win anything? Or just pride of place?
 


So if anyone is interested...and even if my three readers aren't...lol...I think I will just continue this TR for all my trips for the year like some others have...even though some have Disney parts and some don't! If you are bored by the Non-Disney TR parts...there's hope because I AM planning a trip to DLR and DCA for July 2019...it'll be a quickie with just two park days...but I need all the help I can get because I haven't been out to those parts since 2001. Also it will be shortly after Star Wars land opens there so yeah...it will be nuts. ANYWAY...I'll save that for later...

I last left you I was leaving the lovely cruise ship and heading home to the land of ice and snow. It was ridiculously cold when I got home, like the "it's so cold my face hurts" feeling when you leave your house to walk the dog. The only thing that kept me going was that I knew that in six short days...I would be....BACK IN FLORIDA!! Sadly not Disney...but to South Florida where my parents have had a place for many years...Sadly that place is now sold and will be closing in April, so this trip is kind of bittersweet. We will do a lot of packing in between beaching and other fun stuff.
My six days at home went by in a blur of work and appointments that I'd tried to cram in between trips and getting my DD organized for the trip as well. My son is currently going to school in the US but is flying over to FLL to hang with us for a few days as well so that will be fun. I'm glad that we will all get to be together as a family for one more trip here. So we are now back with my parents, two dogs and my DD and my son in a few days.

We did some lounging around today at my parents' place, and then the inspector had to come have a look at some things for the new buyers so we had to vacate the premises, so we went to the local mall and checked out some of the fun shopping destinations that we Canadians don't have such as Macy's and Bloomingdales. My daughter has a grade 8 grad party that she is looking for an outfit for, and she found some shoes on sale at Macy's. Of course they tried to talk us into a Macy's credit card to save 25%...and let me tell you, I've been on that rodeo before...it's such a royal PITA for us Canadians to have and pay for bills for a Macy's card. We can't do it online because of our dang Canadian postal codes in our addresses and you can't pay a credit card bill with another credit card...and sometimes our debit cards don't work, so you often have to actually go take out cash and then physically go to Macy's to pay your bill. Which is an ordeal...but...I tried explaining this to my mom...but to save 25% it seemed worth it right? Here we go. I grabbed a seat and settled in while the Macy's customer service person got Macy's credit on the phone and started asking my mom a million questions to apply for a Macy's card....25 mins later...we were the proud owners of some white sandals and a new Macy's card...which we then had to pay off immediately with one of our debit cards. Luckily my mom's worked because mine and my daughter's didn't. Long story...but that is to say...next time they ask me if I want a Macy's card to save a few bucks...NO just say NOOOOO

After the mall we came home and did a little more packing and lounging around. Then it was time to start thinking about dinner. There's this local place called Fran's Chicken Heaven that has gotten amazing reviews and a few local friends have recommended it that we decided to give it a shot. I'd say the decor is nothing much, but the food is definitely a huge cut above KFC and there is a much better selection. It was delish. Even my dad who can be on the snooty side when it comes to food said it was pretty good. If you are in the Boca Raton area, give it a shot.

Tomorrow we are going to go check out Everglades Holiday Park. We have been coming to this area for like 20 years but have never seen this place. Now that we won't be likely in the area again for a while...we have to make up for lost time! There are supposed to be some cool animal interactions and gator shows and stuff, as well as airboats. I'm not much for fast rides as anyone who has followed my TR's before will know, so I'm not too sure about the airboat idea...but I'm game for the rest of it!
 


If you are bored by the Non-Disney TR parts

Then you aren't reading my TRs either. :laughing:

I AM planning a trip to DLR and DCA for July 2019

Good for you!

It was ridiculously cold when I got home, like the "it's so cold my face hurts" feeling when you leave your house to walk the dog.

What's worse is "so cold the dog won't walk".

in six short days...I would be....BACK IN FLORIDA!! Sadly not Disney...but to South Florida where my parents have had a place for many years...Sadly that place is now sold and will be closing in April, so this trip is kind of bittersweet.

:hug:

so we went to the local mall and checked out some of the fun shopping destinations that we Canadians don't have such as Macy's and Bloomingdales.

Um... I'll sit that one out, okay?

Of course they tried to talk us into a Macy's credit card to save 25%

Of course. It's a rule.

it's such a royal PITA for us Canadians to have and pay for bills for a Macy's card. We can't do it online because of our dang Canadian postal codes in our addresses and you can't pay a credit card bill with another credit card...and sometimes our debit cards don't work, so you often have to actually go take out cash and then physically go to Macy's to pay your bill.

Wow. That is a PITA. :sad2:

Long story...but that is to say...next time they ask me if I want a Macy's card to save a few bucks...NO just say NOOOOO

Got it. N followed by 5 O's.

There's this local place called Fran's Chicken Heaven that has gotten amazing reviews and a few local friends have recommended it that we decided to give it a shot. I'd say the decor is nothing much, but the food is definitely a huge cut above KFC and there is a much better selection. It was delish. Even my dad who can be on the snooty side when it comes to food said it was pretty good. If you are in the Boca Raton area, give it a shot.

Thanks for the tip! Just might. :)

Tomorrow we are going to go check out Everglades Holiday Park. We have been coming to this area for like 20 years but have never seen this place. Now that we won't be likely in the area again for a while...we have to make up for lost time! There are supposed to be some cool animal interactions and gator shows and stuff, as well as airboats. I'm not much for fast rides as anyone who has followed my TR's before will know, so I'm not too sure about the airboat idea...but I'm game for the rest of it!

Sounds like fun. :)
I remember doing an airboat in Kissimmee... Yeah... could've gotten out and pushed it faster. Sooooo slooooow. Hoping your experience is a bit less... dull.
 
What's worse is "so cold the dog won't walk".

Yeah some days are like that too. The dog has to wear boots and coat and really has to be dragged out the door sometimes!

I remember doing an airboat in Kissimmee... Yeah... could've gotten out and pushed it faster. Sooooo slooooow. Hoping your experience is a bit less... dull.

Actually that sounds like my kind of airboat lol. This one says it's an exciting ride...I'd prefer it be slow lol..
 
Yeah some days are like that too. The dog has to wear boots and coat and really has to be dragged out the door sometimes!

"You're... <puff>… going... <huff>… to... <puff>… enjoy this... <huff>… or... <puff>… else!..."

Actually that sounds like my kind of airboat lol. This one says it's an exciting ride...I'd prefer it be slow lol..

:laughing:
 
In case anyone was wondering...I DID the airboat ride and survived!

Sunday March 10, 2019

As planned we got up early this morning. Well some of us did...and some of us forgot about the time change and...didn't. My dad decided not to join us so it was my mom, DD (age 13) and myself, set out around 9am this morning to head over to Everglades Holiday Park, which is about an hour or so from my parents' place in Deerfield Beach/Boca. I attempted to navigate using Waze while my mom drove. There were a few near misses with the exits from one freeway to the next but we made it! When we arrived I saw a huge line and feared we had missed rope drop...er...park opening! No one but you DIS folks understand the importance of this I don't think. It applies to pretty much any tourist attraction anywhere, and especially during prime spring break season. ANYWAY...we saw a line...

We went in the office where you buy the tickets. Even though the website said you could make reservations and buy tickets online, when we called the girl on the phone sounded pretty flaky and said it was not necessary. I was very skeptical, but since we weren't really sure what time we'd (I) would be able to drag everyone out of bed, we didn't really want to commit to a time in advance anyway. We asked at the office about the animal encounters and they said "perfect, you can go in 5 mins" uh ok, great!! So off we went.

We had our own little private animal show!! This was seriously cool! And it was not even crazy expensive - $25 each...I thought that was pretty reasonable for the chance to get up close with a few creatures and learn a few things. We got to hold and take photos with a big snake, a baby gator (with its mouth taped shut - which they assured us was not actually stuck to its snout, like a sock really) and a brown skunk!! We also got to see a tortoise and a possum. Not only did we get free prints of the photos, the digital downloads were only an extra $10 which I also thought compared to some places was very reasonable. The possum was my favourite - he was cross eyed and had the funniest expression! Unfortunately they wouldn't let us take pictures of that one...not sure why...maybe he was shy.

Next my mom twisted my arm to get tickets and just suck it up and do the airboat. I was pretty nervous but decided to give it a shot. When the driver first started to giv'er I was hanging on for dear life, and man those things are loud. But after I got used to the feeling it was actually pretty cool. Really smooth. He only gunned it for about a minute and then slowed down so we could look around and he pointed out plants and wildlife. Of course everyone was most interested in getting up close to gators so that's what he focussed on most. We saw two huge ones very close to the boat and the driver circled a few times so everyone could see them. We also saw some cool birds and really pretty trees and plants.

Soon we were back on dry land and it was time for the Gator Boys show. Basically one crazy guy who held a gator different ways...with his chin...with his hands...held him up and down and explained how most of the gators at this park were rescues because they were what Floridians apparently call "nuissance gators" whereby they had been found in actual residential neighbourhoods or eatings pets and stuff...and would otherwise be euthanized if they weren't trapped and brought to the Everglades for shows. Also apparently Gators if they have been fed by idiots (humans) they will roam back to wherever they were last fed even if they are driven miles and miles away...hence...they become a bigger nuissance. Anyway...the show was informative and pretty cool.

We really enjoyed this place. It was a low key activity for us and something I wish we would have discovered before what might be our last time in this area for a while. Oh well, better late than never! It was lunch time, so we decided since we were already fairly far South, we'd go check out another new to us place, Coral Gables in Miami. We had heard it was a cute little area with great restaurants and such. We headed for the centre of it and parked, and came across a little cafe called Threefold which ended up being really great. Although we were all pretty hangry by this point so any food would have been good I think!!

After getting caught in some Miami traffic we headed back North and are now hanging for a bit before trying to figure out dinner!!
 
Just letting you know I am all caught up and really enjoyed your latest couple of chapters. It's super late, even by PNW standards so must get to bed or be super sorry in the morning, but wanted to check in and let you know I am still here and still reading and enjoying!
 
wanted to check in and let you know I am still here and still reading and enjoying!

Thanks!! No worries!! I'm glad you are here and catching up when you can! I'm doing the same when I can as well on everyone else's PTR's and TR's...I am trying to be a more consistent Dis-er and not just hang around when I have a trip coming up because that's just not nice lol
 
In case anyone was wondering...I DID the airboat ride and survived!

Woot!

As planned we got up early this morning. Well some of us did...and some of us forgot about the time change and...didn't.

:rolleyes: whoops!

There were a few near misses with the exits from one freeway to the next but we made it!

Near misses? Gators crossing the highway? :rolleyes2

When we arrived I saw a huge line and feared we had missed rope drop...er...park opening!

:laughing:

We asked at the office about the animal encounters and they said "perfect, you can go in 5 mins" uh ok, great!! So off we went.

Whoa! So no reservations really needed.

We got to hold and take photos with a big snake, a baby gator (with its mouth taped shut - which they assured us was not actually stuck to its snout, like a sock really) and a brown skunk!!

Cool! Which one of you got sprayed by the skunk?

The possum was my favourite - he was cross eyed and had the funniest expression!

:laughing:

Unfortunately they wouldn't let us take pictures of that one...not sure why...maybe he was shy.

Huh. Wonder why not? odd. The possum sure wouldn't know.

He only gunned it for about a minute and then slowed down so we could look around and he pointed out plants and wildlife

:) Sounds nice.

Of course everyone was most interested in getting up close to gators so that's what he focussed on most. We saw two huge ones very close to the boat and the driver circled a few times so everyone could see them.

Cool!

Soon we were back on dry land and it was time for the Gator Boys show. Basically one crazy guy who held a gator different ways...with his chin...with his hands...held him up and down and explained how most of the gators at this park were rescues because they were what Floridians apparently call "nuissance gators" whereby they had been found in actual residential neighbourhoods or eatings pets and stuff...and would otherwise be euthanized if they weren't trapped and brought to the Everglades for shows. Also apparently Gators if they have been fed by idiots (humans) they will roam back to wherever they were last fed even if they are driven miles and miles away...hence...they become a bigger nuissance. Anyway...the show was informative and pretty cool.

That does sound like a fun show to watch. :)
 
Near misses? Gators crossing the highway? :rolleyes2

Ha luckily no not that, but almost missing exits. My mom and I did a long road trip back from FL last year and got pretty good at navigating with Waze, but when the exits and subsequent instructions are too close together we all get confused because it often doesn't speak up in time,...if that makes any sense.
 
Monday March 11

Yesterday was a pretty relaxing day, nice to have one of those on vacay every once in a while. I drove my DD down to Aventura where she had a friend vacationing, and then went back and hung out with my parents by the pool. Then last night, we went to Delray Beach for dinner. It's a really cute town with an adorable downtown area with all kinds of shops and restaurants. We went to a place called Cabana El Rey. It was Latin American food but not your standard tex mex fare. I had a shrimp appetizer with this amazing garlic toast. Then shared some empanadas with my DD. It was really good but as usual, too much food!

This morning my DD woke up with a cold...ugh. Stinks to have a cold on vacay...but I suppose better to have a cold in sunshine? Hope so! We have a snorkelling trip planned for tomorrow...but we'll have to decide today whether to go ahead with it or not if she isn't feeling up to it. I hope we don't have to cancel or if we do, I hope we can reschedule because we were all looking forward to trying another new thing!
 
Ha luckily no not that, but almost missing exits.

I know... but it was more fun to imagine you dodging gators.

My mom and I did a long road trip back from FL last year and got pretty good at navigating with Waze, but when the exits and subsequent instructions are too close together we all get confused because it often doesn't speak up in time,...if that makes any sense.

It does. This may come as a surprise, but I've done a little bit of driving/navigating myself recently.


:rolleyes1

Yesterday was a pretty relaxing day, nice to have one of those on vacay every once in a while.

:)

Then last night, we went to Delray Beach for dinner. It's a really cute town with an adorable downtown area with all kinds of shops and restaurants. We went to a place called Cabana El Rey. It was Latin American food but not your standard tex mex fare. I had a shrimp appetizer with this amazing garlic toast. Then shared some empanadas with my DD. It was really good but as usual, too much food!

Sounds good!

This morning my DD woke up with a cold...ugh. Stinks to have a cold on vacay...

:sad2: No. Not fun at all.

We have a snorkelling trip planned for tomorrow...but we'll have to decide today whether to go ahead with it or not if she isn't feeling up to it. I hope we don't have to cancel or if we do, I hope we can reschedule because we were all looking forward to trying another new thing!

Hope it works out. I'd love to hear about it. :)
 
I didn't know you were doing this report, but it sure was fun to read along and catch up to here!! :) I hope you'll have some luck posting some pictures at some point.

So glad you enjoyed your first runDisney event!!! I agree, the 5K felt like it was over SO fast! I definitely crossed the finish line from that race wanting more :)
 
I didn't know you were doing this report, but it sure was fun to read along and catch up to here!! :) I hope you'll have some luck posting some pictures at some point.

So glad you enjoyed your first runDisney event!!! I agree, the 5K felt like it was over SO fast! I definitely crossed the finish line from that race wanting more :)

Hey welcome!!! Yeah I would have liked to just stroll for another 5K and meet some more characters and just soak up the atmosphere a little longer! One day I'll try the 10K or the half!
 

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