Tuesday, August 2, 2016

Sea World for the Seventh


Well she went and did it LOL Despite me begging her to turn three, she decided to turn seven.  Great now next year she’ll want to be eight, and I only have 363 days to plan something to top this birthday LOL   The trip went great.  She loved Orlando.  We had sunshine galore, and the heat to match.  Thankfully my A/C in the car worked well.  We found our AirBnB condo very easily, and bonus it was ready a little bit early.  It was super cute, and located on a resort.  It seems that most places down there are turning from apartments and condos into resort areas to draw tourists.  Quite a lucrative business if can get a condo to rent out.  So walked into condo, and Staci had a surprise already, the owner had left her treats and a Happy Birthday sign.  Staci had biggest smile and felt special.   
We freshened up a bit then went to Congo River Golf where Staci got to pan for gemstones.  She found a haul LOL in addition to lots of small gemstones, shark teeth, fossils, she found a piece of amethyst as large as her hand.  She was bouncing up and down, she was so happy.  Since amethyst is purple it, of course, is her favorite stone right now.  To finish off the first day we went swimming in a perfect temperature pool.  Day was a total success.  I will say Orlando has cheap gas prices, mainly to counter the horrible traffic issues everywhere.  That and the local Walmart was as busy as a Black Friday sale. 

         
Next morning, we got up and Staci immediately started bouncing.  We were off to Sea World!!!  We got there just as the park was opening, we even got to park right next to main entrance.  Literally right next to it LOL This serendipity was very appreciated at end of day.  That wasn’t first boon of the day.  We get in and everybody is rushing to the rides, while we meandered.  Guess who comes out? Shamu the Whale for photo ops.  Before they were even set up they had snagged Staci to be first for pictures.  She was so excited LOL we set a leisurely pace as we looked at everything.  We saw a flock of pink flamingoes being herded down the pathway to their enclosure LOL that was a funny sight. 
Next up was the sting rays; they were so sleek.  They glided through the water, popping up to give high fives to all the people wanting to pet them.  Staci was a bit nervous, but she bravely put her hand in and one gave her a fin.  After that the highlight of the day, DOLPHINS!!!!  The lady trainer was talking about these beautiful creatures, making sure all was safe for them and the people watching, when one swam up in front of us and stopped.  The trainer said that was the dolphin’s way of choosing us to pet her.  Oh my goodness I got to pet a dolphin LOL it was amazing.  Staci’s smile lit up her whole face.  I wish I had better pictures, but that was against rules, if dolphin was there, cameras had to be put away for safety.  We stayed with dolphins for quite a while.  After that we went and saw sea turtles. 
Belle

Stitch
They made me want to cry.  These were the ones who had been rescued from the ocean.  One named Belle had a huge chunk out of her shell and her back flippers were paralyzed from being hit by a boat.  Another was Stitch who had a flipper missing after meeting up with a shark.  They have nice lives now, but they had endured a great deal. SeaWorld does an amazing job at helping sea creatures.  OK after that we froze *brrrrrrrr* we went to see the Empire of the Penguins.  Only place in Florida where you need a heavy winter coat.  We couldn’t really enjoy the penguins because it was about 30 something degrees inside and we were in shorts and tank tops.  The only bad part of the day was the Wild Artic helicopter simulator.  It was so bumpy that I almost lost my lunch. In the end it was worth it because we got to see walruses, a beluga whale, and seals.  When we went out there was a place where you could pet a shark.  Guess what I did LOL  I have galeophobia (excessive fear of sharks) yet I actually pet a shark. No picture proof, but I really did it!!!  We didn’t go on many rides. Or see shows, we just enjoyed looking at the animals and the shops.  By the end of the day we were spent and sunburned.  The pool felt wonderful that night. We did a lot more, but that is for the next post…

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