We were kind of sad to come home. It's hard to leave a fun vacation like that one, but we WERE tired, so kind of ready to leave. Saturday morning we had to check out by 10 am, so we got up when we woke up, got cleaned up and packed up and fed up (meaning we ate the last of our sausage and eggs and toast and OJ and milk) and checked out . . . b u t our flight didn't leave until close to 5, which meant we could probably keep our car until close to 3 pm before heading to our gate. So we did.
We drove to the Orlando temple and took some photos of it from outside of the grounds since the grounds are not open. A nice mad stopped us at the gate and told us where to drive to get a decent shot.
Pretty area. We also drove through a neighborhood near our hotel, just to see some housing areas. We were in kind of a new area. Nice homes. It's so green here! But I'm guessing it's pretty buggy since nearly every large newer home had a screened in back YARD. It was crazy. Someone invented a nice product and has a big market here!
Then we got on a road and drove to Cocoa Beach. Just for fun. When we first rented our car, they offered to take care of all the tolls for us for a mere $50 extra. We declined. Ugh. Had we been driving around for much more, I would have really been regretting that decision. However, I finally figured out how to encourage Google Maps to find the routes with NO tolls. Overall we spent far less than $20 I'm sure. But it was still very frustrating to panic (well, almost) at every stop, wondering what it would be, if we had the right amount of cash, would they give change, etc. Once, it said we couldn't get back on, yet said we had to pay. Or at least that is how we interpreted it. Ugh. Not so. Should have stayed on the toll road, but we got off and got lost. Kind of but not really. Mostly Mike needed a bathroom, so all was well. We got to see more neighborhoods! We enjoyed the trees and ponds and lakes and . . .
MIKE ACTUALLY SPOTTED AN ALLIGATOR!!
He was thrilled. I missed it. Could have been a log. But he was insistent that what he saw, driving 60 mph down a road and glimpsing off to the side through a fence was really and truly an alligator in the wild. It made him happy.
We made it to Cocoa Beach. There were a LOT of closed businesses so I'm guessing this tourist spot was hit pretty hard by COVID last year. We just wanted to have a quick lunch, see the beach and leave. So we did.
And it was just a pretty day, with families walking to the beach. We were really lucky to find a parking spot. Hotels are right on the beach, and their parking is not open to the public.
We were so blessed with such good weather this whole vacation. Our shortest day in a park was the absolute hottest, but we had seen everything we needed/wanted to see and were done. Our longest day was the cloudy and overcast day on Thursday at Animal Kingdom. The rainy day was the one we had no park reservation and could stay inside and rest and nap. When our company came, the pool was opened back up just in time. When we drove places, we got there (eventually) without incident. Our hotel food came out exactly even--no leftovers that we felt bad about leaving behind. We only ate out once the whole time we were gone, and enjoyed the groceries we got on day one. We got good food at nearly all our Disney Park reservations and if we didn't, it was my fault. Who chooses to eat at an English dining establishment, anyway? Well, I figured their fish and chips would be super. They were "meh" but the waiter was far and above all expectations and took such good care of us and we ate overlooking the water at Epcot and had birds and breezes for company. We adored the hotel room/suite we had. It was so comfortable and luxurious (kind of like our new house. ha). We didn't have ANY major aches or pains for being as old and out of shape as we are. That felt like a miracle in and of itself. And we just really had a lot of fun together. Mike loves visiting with people and got to sit most of the time and not walk everywhere and I am fairly comfortable standing and walking. We both like most of the same rides except his tummy was giving out on the spinning ones. Darn, we had to skip Teacups and Dumbo, but we didn't have time anyway.
"Navigating with Linda." Yeah. Even with a phone with maps and a GPS, we can still get lost. And we do. Frequently. Well, not really lost, but just kind of unsure exactly where we are supposed to be going. We were confused by some signage. And sometimes I accidentally try to close my phone and end up with a screen shot! Like this:
I was going to delete that photo from my phone, but decided to leave it here to prove that I really did use google maps.
So much water in Florida! I wish we could have brought some home with us.
When we returned our car at the rental place at the airport, boy was it busy! There was no personal anything. Just park where they direct you, leave the keys in, take your stuff and walk away. Really? It seems a bit unsettling, but OK. That's what we did. And we walked into the airport on that floor and saw the SAME LONG LINE as when we were originally there a week ago. Crazy. You'd think they'd learn. I'm pretty sure it wasn't the same people. But it was still too long. Hours and hours long.
There's Mike n his red shirt hiking back to the end to snap some photos. We have words to say with the original car rental place and are demanding our (non-refundable) money back. Wish us luck.
The flight was non-stop to Las Vegas. Totally full. Mike sat in the front and I was in the back. I was busy at Disney's Animal Kingdom at Southwest's Check in time, so we were (again) the last ones on. And that doesn't bother me. I just snoozed through the flight. Mike had tummy troubles all flight long, unfortunately. I never left from my window seat and enjoyed the views between naps.
We were home by Midnight-ish. Now I need a week to recover. But Church starts at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday morning, so off we go!
And I have some busy weeks/months ahead of me . . .
helping with a conference presentation (have to practice with the group first. . . and it's all virtual)
hosting another session of the ULA conference for another different group
hiring a replacement person or two in Circulation as we shift things up around there
partying with my co-workers May 27 to celebrate my retirement (a couple of months early since July 15 is a bit inconvenient for many faculty who don't like to hang around in the summer and a LOT of folks are on vacation)
meeting our newest granddaughter!!
attending a memorial service for one of our friends from St. George who died of Covid-19
we are also attending a 70th birthday party in June for one of Mike's best friends. Huh? 70? How is it that we are getting that old??? !!!
Oh, and Medicare stuff to figure out for me. . .Insurance . . .retirement
a basement window to cut out of a 6 inch concrete and install
a back yard to landscape
deck stairs to install . . .
it's a long list. Getting longer. Oh, and another trip out of Las Vegas Airport in a mere two weeks to go to celebrate Lexi's High School Graduation in San Antonio.
Who has time to work??? Hurry up, retirement!! 61 days from today, May 16. :-)
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