Just over two miles east of Disney World on Highway 192, in the center of a small strip mall, is the new King O Falafel restaurant. They feature excellent Mediterranean cuisine, all of it made fresh from scratch.
The owner, Jamal Blen, is from Palestine. He was friendly and gregarious. Most importantly, he was very open to feedback–Both the good and the bad. And there was not much bad! He was assisted by his kitchen helper Ali, who was from Morocco and who was jokingly referred to as the “Chef-Boy-Ar-Dee.” Also behind the counter was a friend from Syria who was helping for a short time, making it a true melting pot of Mediterranean influences.
When I asked Jamal if I could blog about his restaurant, he asked me if I was going to write good things or bad. I told him that I would not say until I either had or didn’t have his permission. He said he would be happy to have me blog, even if the review was bad, because listening to bad feedback can only help him make improvements. Boy, do I like and agree with that kind of attitude.
Mrs. LanceAround had the falafel sandwich and I had a falafel sandwich with potatoes. We had an appetizer of hummus and a spinach pie. Jamal went to great lengths to explain why his hummus tastes so good. He uses a special tahini that costs a little more, but is not blended with other oils.
For dessert, we had ordered some rice pudding and kinafa. In addition, we were presented with something that Jamal’s friend from Syria identified as “The King Special”. He could not come up with an English word or description for it, unless, he said, it was something like “aarias,” a type of pastry or cake, that appears to have some tradition revolving around women attempting to become brides. He had trouble explaining what that meant and we just enjoyed the ambiguity and sincerity he expressed while trying to translate it for us.
Well, if this dessert does create new brides, it would have worked for me as it was also delicious. Another great feature of the restaurant were the reasonable prices for such exceptional food. The falafel sandwich, for example, was under four dollars! The desserts were mostly less than two dollars.
King O Falafel is located at 5045 W. Irlo Bronson Hwy, Kissimmee, FL 34746. 407.979.4940.
Today’s blog post was again guest written by our Dream Homes Office Manager, Anne, who was given a free trip to Discovery Cove by our Sea World Rep in the hopes that we would sell more tickets to this attraction, and a half day off from me in the hopes she would write about it. Discovery Cove is a small, half day, attraction that is owned and located right beside Sea World. There are no rides or slides–It is like spending a day on a tropical island beach. You see the influence of Anne’s early childhood in Britain from the way she expresses herself in her writing. However, we removed all the extraneous “u”s from her spelling so Spellchecker was happy. Enjoy!-LanceAround
Discovery Cove
You don’t have to love the water to enjoy a day at Discovery Cove!
The whole park is a lush and tropical oasis where you can swim, snorkel, interact with the dolphins or just relax on a sun lounger or, if you are lucky, one of the hammocks.
After you arrive, You enter a reception area where they check you in and take your picture for your guest pass. There you also receive specially formulated sunscreen that is safe for all the sea critters, so don’t waste your time pre-applying sunscreen. (This is all covered in a letter they send you when you book your Discovery Cove experience.) Then there is a complimentary photograph taken and you are escorted through the park. Your guide shows you all the areas you will need–The restaurant, guest services, wet suit and snorkel area and locker/changing area.
You have a choice of wet suit or vest. My friend Bonnie and I chose the vest and we got our locker keys, changed, and picked up our snorkeling gear.
Our first stop was the stingray lagoon. The water was cool but comfortable once you were in. All the rays have had their barbs removed so you are completely safe. Feeding times are posted and are a great time to be in the stingray lagoon. The marine handler, for want of a better word, was explaining about rays and pointing out the one male in the lagoon for the 30 something females – one of which was pregnant.
Swimming with the fish
The next lagoon was tropical fish and included an underwater tank you could not enter but had windows that allowed you to see barracudas and a very large shark-looking fish. The underwater tank was shaped to look like a sunken ship and you can swim all the way around it. This lagoon is great for snorkeling. There were some huge black spotted rays which kept mainly to the bottom and a large assortment of colorful fish swimming all around us.
The lazy river is not so much lazy! The current flows one way, so make sure you go the right way! There are also some noodles for flotation which would have been greatly beneficial had my friend and I known to use them. We swam around and felt like we had gone miles by the time we got back to the beginning. The sun loungers were then a very wonderful sight.
The food is incredible! There were many choices from meat and potatoes to salads, desert and drink. All the food and drinks are complimentary (including beer–After all, this is an Anheuser-Busch park) and there are also huts in the park offering complimentary drinks and ice cream.
You can swim with the Dolphins for an additional fee on the regular ticket. We did not do this, although anyone is welcome to go over and watch others interacting with them. As of 2008, the price for a day at Discovery Cove is $169 to $189 plus tax (depending on time of year) or $269 to $289 plus tax if you want to add a Dolphin Swim. There is also a “Trainer For The Day” Option for $468 to $488 plus tax.
Other people swimming with the dolphins
On the whole, this is a very well organized and guest friendly park. There is limited entry and this makes a welcome change from the usual packed theme parks.
Discovery Cove is a must see.
Anne
LanceAround Notes Ever since Anne came back to work from her day at Discovery Cove she has been happier and has worked harder. So I recommend you show this blog post to your boss and tell him or her that your company should send you on an all expense paid trip to Discovery Cove that is sure to increase your productivity so much, it will more than pay for itself!
Here’s a little known tip that both the young and old alike can enjoy when you are visiting Disney World.
Ride with the pilot
The next time you ride the monorail, ask one of the skycaps to let your party sit in the front. They may tell you that there is already someone else in line. That’s okay, tell them you’ll wait. The monorails run every couple of minutes and it’s worth the extra time.
Only four people are allowed in the front. If you have more than that in your party, pick the four who want it the most and the rest of you can ride with the herd in the regular compartments and take a turn on a later monorail ride. The front is where the monorail “pilot” sits to drive the monorail. (Yes, they are referred to as pilots.) In front of the pilot are bench seats that converge right to the front nosecone of the monorail. The windows give you a 180 degree view.
Riding from the Ticket and Transportation Center to Magic Kingdom has the advantage of going straight through the Contemporary Hotel. Riding from the Ticket and Transportation Center to Epcot is a much longer ride and has the advantage of doing the circle through the middle of Future World in Epcot. If you time it exactly right, you can enjoy the fireworks display on your way to Magic Kingdom or Illuminations on your way to Epcot. The pilot might even give you a certificate or a pin. Maybe.
Regardless of the time of day, it’s a fun treat for everyone to ride in the front of the monorail.
Want more info on monorails? There’s plenty at the website of The Monorail Society!
During my graduate studies in Newton, MA, I would often go with my good friends Dave and Jay on many wonderful adventures. We drove to New Hampshire to visit America’s Stonehenge, then to Vermont to see The Old Man Of The Mountain before it collapsed in 2003. We designed a Live Action Role Playing game before LARPs had even been invented and we played it around the Bear Hill Tower on the Middlesex Fells Reservation just north of Boston. Dave even got married in the old Hammond Castle on the shores of Gloucester, MA right next to the famous Motif #1 of Rockport, MA.
At the time, we did not know anything about the Coral Castle, except for its name and that it was in Florida, somewhere. We had visions of a large, multi storied, medieval style edifice with sharp coral edges at every turn and lots of dark hallways and dank dungeons. It was one of the few adventures of which we dreamed but never had the opportunity to act upon. Last year, however, I finally got to visit the Coral Castle located just south of Miami in the Redland area. It was nothing like I expected yet everything I’ve ever hoped for in an adventure.
First, a little history. Edward Leedskalnin was born in Latvia 1887. At the age of 26 he was engaged to 16 year old Agnes Scuffs. He used to call her his “sweet sixteen.” She jilted him just one day before their wedding. Ed decided to create a monument to the only love of his life.
Without any outside assistance or large machinery, Ed built Rock Gate Park, which later came to be renamed Coral Castle. Ed never did anything the easy or normal way. He immigrated to Canada, then later moved to California and Texas before a bout of tuberculosis made him finally move to the subtropical climate of Florida City in 1918. He stayed there, creating his stone sculptures, until someone planned a subdivision right beside his property in 1936. Being a private person, over the next three years Ed moved his coral rocks 10 miles to a 10 acre plot of land he purchased in Homestead, FL. He would load his the large rocks, each weighing several tons, on an old truck chassis and a friend with a trailer would drive them the 10 miles. Ed himself never owned a car and would ride a bike 3.5 miles into town for food and supplies. He was just over five feet tall and weighed around 100 pounds.
Although many people saw the large carvings being moved along the Old Dixie Hwy., no one ever saw Ed load or unload the rocks. He did most of his work at night, by lantern light. The numerous lookouts on his walls attests to Ed’s desire for privacy. When asked how he was able to move such heavy structures, he would only reply that he understood the laws of weights and leverage well.
I am a skeptical person by nature. I believe that if it sounds too good to be true, or too fantastical, it probably is a hoax. I also have a strong inquisitive streak. Like the mythical Sherlock Holmes, when presented with a mystery I explore all possible avenues and try to solve it.
For the life of me, I can’t figure out how Ed created the Coral Castle.
Yes, there are crazy stories of Ed using magnetism, kids who claim they saw Ed hovering over the rocks and doing a mysterious chant as well as other tall tales of the supernatural. I just dismiss those out of hand. But how did Ed cut, carve, lift, place and stabilize all the walls and sculptures of his Rock Garden that is now known as the Coral Castle.
Large Coral Door
Coral weighs approx. 125 pounds per cubic foot. Each section of his wall is 8 feet tall, 4 feet wide and 3 feet thick. That’s 6 tons per section. After visiting the Coral Castle and examining the walls, carvings, castle and educational material in the gift shop, my Sherlock Holmes is completely befuddled. How did he do it? Holmes himself used to say that when you have eliminated the impossible, that which remains, however improbable, must be the answer. Occam’s Razor also admonishes that, all things being equal, the simplest solution is the best. In this case, I believe that it simply means what Ed says is true–He so fully understood the laws of weights and leverage that he was able to devise ropes, pulleys and tripods in such a way that he could literally move mountains. The ancient Egyptians and the creators of Stonehenge had nothing on Ed!
And what a garden he created! No, there were no large edifices, dank dungeons nor twisty passages. There is one two story structure approximately 10 feet square with turrets on top. This was Ed’s workshop and a place to sleep in inclement weather. In addition to the wall that surrounded the garden, the remaining items within the garden were sculptures and furniture all carved from coral and each with a unique story that only Ed could write.
Testing out the furniture
There is a table shaped liked the state of Florida complete with a carved out section filled with water representing Lake Okeechobee and stone chairs surrounding the table. Here, Ed said, the politicians of Florida could sit around the table of Florida figuring out how to raise your taxes. There are large, crescent moon shaped monoliths, holes aligned to give views of stars and planets, bathtubs made of coral rock, chairs, sofas, kids areas and much more all carved out of coral. There is a rock gate that weighs several tons but is so perfectly balanced that even a child can spin it. Although it is interesting to look at the photos of this place, they do not do it justice. You really have to experience the Coral Castle.
Ed used to give tours of his masterpiece, but in a his typically eccentric way. There was a bell with instructions on how to ring it for a tour. Ring it correctly, and if Ed was around he would take your dime or quarter and give you a tour. Ring it incorrectly and you would get no answer, even if Ed was around.
One day, in 1951 at the age of 64, Ed was feeling sickly and hung a sign on the rock garden gate, “gone to hospital.” He took a bus trip to the nearest hospital and died in his sleep three days later.
But his monument to the love of his “sweet sixteen” remains and is a must see. Indeed, it was this Rock Garden masterpiece that inspired Billy Idol to pen the song “Sweet Sixteen”. If you watch this video carefully, you’ll see it begins with a grainy image of Ed standing in his Rock Garden.
Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot to ask the question. The question is, “Why don’t I hear more people talking about taking a vacation to one of America’s National Parks?”
Did you know that at over 13 million acres, the Wrangll-St. Elias National Park and Preserve in Alaska is our nation’s largest National Park? At .02 acres our smallest National Park is the Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial in Pennsylvania? I grew up about 20 miles from this memorial and had never even heard of it until listening to an NPR special several months ago. I’ll let you follow the link to find out why we have a memorial to Thaddeous, a rare and remarkable person!
National Parks are truly one of the crown jewels of our nation. They provide a phenomenal, unique and educational experience for a modest cost. They are open and accessible to all and have something of interest for everyone of every age, physical ability or educational background. Their employees are knowledgeable and dedicated. Their facilities are top of the line. Their educational programs and displays rival the best museums and science centers of the world. So why don’t I hear more people talk about their trip to a national park?
Is the answer, “advertising?”
View of the Everglades
I don’t know about that, but I do know that the Florida Everglades National Park is a fantastic place for you to experience. Did you know that the Shark River Slough, that flows through the everglades, can be as wide as 20 miles? That the flat topography of Florida means that the river can flow as slowly as 1/4 mile in 24 hours? That it could take a drop of water over four years to go from the top of the Kissimmee chain of lakes to the southern tip of Florida?
The Everglades National Park is huge and has four different visitor centers. Mrs. LanceAround, Number One daughter and I visited the Ernest Coe and the Shark Valley visitor centers.
Observation Tower
At Shark Valley, the main attraction is a 15 minute round trip tour that goes deep into the vast Shark River Slough. Since the water is so slow moving, this area is often misnamed as a marsh or swamp. You can walk, ride a bike (they have them for rent) or take a guided tram tour seven and a half miles to a very futuristic looking tower that allows you as much as an 18 mile 360 degree panoramic view of the wilderness river slough. It is easy to take in this view and imagine what it must have been like for the first native settlers of this land to encounter such a harsh wilderness.
Even Number One daughter, who had resumed her teenage angst after the exhilarating time we had snorkeling the coral reefs that morning, perked up considerably as she leaned out of our tram to grab a photo of the seven foot alligator sitting with mouth agape just in front of our tram.
Alligator on the side of the road
Along the tour, you will see many alligators who use the macadam road to catch some additional heat, lots of bird species, and perhaps other wildlife such as a turtle or the elusive Florida bobcat. Yes, if you are on a bike you could even come face to face with a gator. You will discover that if you follow Florida law and do not feed or harass the gators and you stay at least 15 feet away, they are no trouble.
Forty miles away, The Ernest Coe visitor’s center is more like a museum. There is an excellent movie that teaches about the natural diversity of the Everglades but also gives a sobering picture of how man’s attempt to alter the Florida environment for the sake of development has almost destroyed this essential habitat and how we are now scrambling to save it. After the movie, you can take a short walk with an park ranger and view many of the diverse wildlife, including lots of gators and birds, while the ranger expertly teaches you about what you are seeing.
Mrs. LanceAround was not in the mood for the brief walk along the boardwalk pathway with the park ranger. She gamely went along anyway and by the end of the walk she and Number One daughter were excitedly snapping photos of the multiple alligators lying heaped upon one another in the wetlands below the boardwalk.
This blog tells only of our modest, car riding experiences within the park. For the more adventurous, there are multiple campsites, canoe or kayak routes, boat tours, walking paths and campfire programs.
National Parks don’t engage in flashy advertisements in an attempt to entice the almighty tourist dollar. But for the savvy traveller wanting a well rounded experience, they are worth putting on any travel itinerary.
Like many men, I don’t like to shop. I am blessed in that I married a wonderful woman, who also does not like to shop, providing one less opportunity for contention in our marriage. However, I have had two shopping experiences in my life that I have found astonishing.
Several years ago Mrs. LanceAround and I took a trip to London. I was dumb enough to order new shoes for the trip. When they were a wee bit too tight I was even dumber to believe that the leather would stretch. Walking around the Victoria & Albert Museum, however, my feet finally lost and the shoes won. We asked one of the guards where the nearest shoe store was. She told us that Harrods was just a few blocks down the road.
I painfully walked those few blocks, dreading the shopping more than the pain in my feet. I was not prepared for just how incredible a place Harrods was. We bought new shoes (actually walking sandals), browsed the bookstore, found the chocolate shop, marveled at the Egyptian department, ate at the cafe, bought souvenirs and even bumped into Mohamed Al Fayed and his bagpipe band in a back stairway.
Harrods was a remarkable place.
My second great shopping experience
Turn the clock ahead to this year and we find ourselves with another remarkable shopping experience. This time we are driving down a back road to Everglade’s National Park when we encounter a building with the words “Robert is Here Fruit Stand” in large letters across the top.
About ten times larger than your typical roadside fruit stand, Robert is Here features large square tables piled high with fresh oranges, watermelons, avocados, papayas and other assorted fruits and vegetables. There is also a section of packaged foods such as rum cakes, honey, jellies and a wide selection of Robert is Here branded sauces. There is an enclosed section with a counter that makes fresh milkshakes in such exotic flavors as passion fruit, guava and their local favorite, key lime. And, reminiscent of a scene from the movie Pulp Fiction, every milkshake was priced at five dollars.
Look at the pretty bird
Walk out back and the store becomes a mini tourist attraction. There are large Macaws and parrots, some of which greet you with a “hello.” There is a free petting area featuring donkeys, emus, various other farm animals and a couple of roosters who frequently crow. Beyond the farm animals are cultivated farmland that appears to provide much of what is sold.
I asked one of the employees how much of what they sell is actually grown there. He noted that it is important to keep the store stocked, even in the off season, so they do need to frequently import items from far away. He did say, however, that their mission was to buy as much local food as possible to support the local farmers and they also grow a small amount of what they sell themselves.
The literature at the store notes that Robert was six years old when, approximately 50 years ago, he set up a stand to sell food at this very corner. Business was not good the first day, so his father made a big sign that said “Robert is Here” the next day and, as they say, the rest is history.
I did not see Robert on either occasion that I visited his stand. But I did note that whoever is in charge of the fruit stand has an incredible entrepreneurial knack for advertising. There are large, brightly colored signs everywhere that do a great job of making customers feel welcome, hungry and wanting to try the various items. Even the birds and the farm animals have wood carved signs telling you who they are. There are several old farm vehicles strategically placed around the building to give it a nostalgic, homey feeling. One tractor can be used to sit on to pose for pictures beneath a sign proclaiming, “Still plays with tractors.”
Petting Zoo Goat
Mrs. LanceAround wondered if I was going to write a positive review of this place. I noted that I was and she was a little disappointed mainly because she felt as though the cage animals looked lonely and sad as they were put on display for the public. I agreed with her and said I would mention both that and the fact that this place may present an image of a small, local fruit stand, but the reality is that they are like most stores, stocking wares imported from all over the world.
Still, I found the place relaxing, entertaining, delicious and worthwhile. One thing I am certain of, however, is this:
This blog will be the only review in the entire world where a writer recommends two places for shopping and one is Harrods in London and the other is Robert is Here Fruit Stand just outside the Everglade’s National Park!
For a Christmas bonus, we gave our office manager, Anne, two tickets to take her daughter to Miami to watch her beloved New England Patriots take on the Miami Dolphins. Here is an account of her experience. Although Anne recently became a US citizen, it is enjoyable to note her UK background as she refers to the football game as a “match” and speaks of the differences between how fans in both countries enjoy their sports–LanceAround
Football fans in Florida are blessed in that we have three teams in the NFL–Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jacksonville Jaguars.
I am a New England Patriots fan so whenever they come to Florida I try to get to go to the game. This weekend my bosses gave me an early Christmas gift–Two tickets to the Miami vs. New England football game.
Dolphin Stadium is approximately 200 miles from Orlando. We started out around 8am and it is a straight drive on the Florida Turnpike. As we got close to the stadium, we noticed more local Dolphin fans. I think our car was outnumbered 50 to 1!
Parking was a breeze and after walking past all the tailgaters having their parties, we went into the stadium and found our seats. We were in the “nosebleed section” (the football term for the seats in the highest part of the stadium.) My daughter, who attended the game with me, even joked that she was getting vertigo.
Dolphin Stadium did not appear to have the same variety of food vendors that I have experienced at other stadiums, but there was enough choice to suit most football fans. The view, even from our high seats, was very good and you could easily see the entire field.
After the national anthem, prayer and four military helicopters flyover, the game was on. It was a good match going back and forth, score for score. The Miami fans are very loud (to be expected from the home crowd.) Luckily there were enough New England fans around us so we could make some noise of our own. There are some friendly exchanges between rival fans and, occasionally, a not so friendly exchange.
A Family Affair
Football here is very family oriented–All ages and members of the family join in the fun. This is not something that you would see in the United Kingdom. I know my mother was horrified when I first told her I go to the local Alehouse to watch the games wearing my Patriots team jersey. She really did think that I would be beaten up.
The Dolphin vs. Patriots game had four quarters, each 15 minutes long, and it was in the fourth quarter that we finally took the lead and kept it. Matt Cassel of the Patriots threw for over 415 yards and hooked up with Randy Moss for three touchdowns. Final score: New England 48 Miami 28. Yipee!
Ed Note: While Anne enjoys her professional football, the following post I wrote speaks of other great football in Florida. LanceAround
In addition to the NFL, Florida also boasts some of the best college football in the nation.
In January, the Florida Gators from Gainesville, FL will attempt to win their third national championship. The Miami Hurricanes from Miami, FL have won five national titles while the Florida State Seminoles from Tallahassee, FL have won two. Even the University of Central Florida Golden Knights (What is a “golden” knight anyway?) from Orlando, FL and the University of South Florida Bulls from Tampa, FL have achieved national attention in college football–And the Bulls did not even have a football team until 1997.
Let's Go Hokies
Last Saturday, the college football ACC (Atlantic Coast Conference) Championship Game was held in Tampa. I took Mrs. LanceAround and Number One teenage daughter to Raymond James Stadium–Only an hour away from Disney and home of the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers and college football’s USF Bulls–To watch the ACC championship game. Even though both Florida State and Miami are in the ACC, the organizers of the ACC and the management of Raymond James Stadium were disappointed to discover that the contest would feature two teams from outside Florida: The Virginia Tech Hokies (Speaking of weird nicknames, do you even know what a Hokie is? I do!) and the Boston College Eagles. The Hokies, from Blacksburg, VA are a 12 hour drive from Tampa and the Eagles, from Boston, MA are a 22 hour drive. Attendance at the game was going to be low!
We did not have tickets to the game, so we had to beg outside the stadium. We wound up with three $125 tickets in the club section exactly on the 50 yard line in the lower portion of the stadium. We paid a total of $50 for all three tickets! (Drop me a comment and I’ll tell you how I do that.)
What a game! The 17th ranked Eagles fell victim to the relentless, yet unranked, Hokies. The game was sealed in the fourth quarter when Jason Worilds of the Hokies knocked the ball out of the hands of Eagle quarterback Dominique Davis and a lucky bounce into the hands of Hokie Orion Martin resulted in a 17 yard touchdown runback for Virginia Tech.
After that touchdown, Mrs. LanceAround, Number One and I walked down to the front row of the stadium, just behind the Hokies’ sideline to join the team in celebrating their victory. We watched as Jason Worilds painfully took off his shoulder pads, revealing his heavily taped and injured shoulder. We cheered with the team as various fans threw oranges onto the field in recognition that the Hokies had won the right to play in the BCS Orange Bowl on January 1st.
Jason Worilds even picked up the battered, rusty lunchpail with the word “win” inscribed on the side (a symbol of the Hokies’ hard, “working class” approach to their playing) and came over to shake the hand of Number One daughter and thank her for coming to watch the game.
It was time for some father-daughter bonding as I attempt to maintain a positive relationship with number one teenage daughter. Mrs. LanceAround and number one daughter were nice enough to indulge me as they accompanied me to watch one of my favorite teams who was playing a game in south Florida. So I decided to do something nice for both of them in return.
After the game, I drove them down to Key Largo, the first of the extensive Florida Keys that go from just south of Miami to “mile 0” at Key West, more than 100 miles from Key Largo.
For Mrs. LanceAround, I purchased one night in a nice hotel. Even though it was the off season and I informed the hotel that I worked in the hospitality industry, I could not get a room in the keys for less than $135. Although the outside of the hotel looked more the worse for wear, Mrs. LanceAround loved her room. It featured a thick, firm mattress on the king bed, a pull out sofabed for number one daughter, tiled floors, heavy granite end tables and desks, an upgraded shower with exquisite bathroom fixtures and a large, flat screen TV. At 8:00am the next morning, number one daughter and I snuck out for our morning adventure while Mrs. LanceAround got to enjoy the plush hotel room for a quiet morning respite. She was happy! (And she got some great ideas for the homes we manage for our business.)
For number one, I had planned a snorkeling trip to the large coral reef off the east coast of southern Florida. The trip sailed out of the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. The park was only a half mile up the road from our hotel. We paid $3.00 a person entrance fee to the park and proceeded to the gift and snack shop to purchase our snorkeling tickets. There was also a nice sized visitor’s center that, alas, we did not have time to explore.
Our ship at port
The park features rental boats as well as the group snorkeling trips, scuba trips and trips on a glass bottom boat. The staff in the park were very friendly and helpful. Number one daughter was in a frolicy mood as she played along with her father’s usual, feeble attempts at humor. When the person at the counter said that the waves were two feet high and we had to be good swimmers I looked at daughter and expressed concern that she had only a few minutes to learn how to swim. Daughter responded by appearing surprised that swimming would be a requirement for a snorkeling trip. The shocked expression on the counter-woman’s face was quickly replaced with a mirthful laugh as she caught on that she was just witnessing a father-daughter moment of bonding. And when she charged us the $72 for the trip for both of us including snorkel (that you get to keep) fins and mask rentals, everyone behind us in line had a chuckle as I gave my credit card to the woman and instructed number one to remember this moment the next time she is tempted to accuse her father of not loving her!
After picking up fins and masks at the outdoor rental counter, we immersed ourselves in sunscreen and embarked on The Encounter with about 20 other passengers, one of whom was wearing a tee shirt advertising the maiden voyage of the Titanic. I wondered aloud whether anyone on board had seen the movie, Open Water. Only one other passenger and Captain Barry laughed, indicating that most had not!
Who are those handsome people?
After a five minute, very bumpy boat ride where passengers could enjoy standing on the top level or at the bow of the boat, we arrived at the coral reefs. The crew was pleasant, efficient and knowledgeable as they immediately gave clear instructions, got the seasoned swimmers into the water and provided a mini snorkeling lesson for the newbies. Number one daughter and I soon donned our snorkel, fins, mask and emergency inflatable vest and jumped off one of the two back ladders that were dropped into the ocean. A crew member was kind enough to snap a photo of us using the immersible camera number one daughter had purchased in the gift shop.
The water was a balmy 77 degrees and felt fantastic. Number one daughter impressed me with her agility in the water and we were soon swimming above the shallow coral reefs. In some places it was so shallow your knees could scrape the coral. In other places, it was deep enough that it was difficult to dive to the bottom.
Although we encountered some luminescent jellyfish, a couple of barracudas and a few schools of fish, I would have to say that the marine life was not very abundant. One of the other passengers later told us that she had seen a harmless shark, but no one else made such a claim. The reef itself was wonderful to look at. I have seen other reefs that had more color and more abundant sea life but my daughter was clearly having the time of her life as she would excitedly spot things and point them out to me. She took some excellent pictures.
Number One Mermaid
After an hour or so of snorkeling, we were feeling tired so we headed back to the boat which was never more than a few yards away. The crew gave us some books to help identify the fish and coral we had spotted and the 20 minute trip back to the dock was smoother than the bumpy, wavy trip out to the reef.
After turning in our masks and fins, we drove back to the hotel for a quick shower before the noon check out time. Mrs. LanceAround had made the most of her morning, enjoying the quiet elegance of the hotel room as number one daughter and I regaled her with tales of our trip as we each took turns getting a quick shower.
As we traveled to Robert is Here Fruit Stand and the Everglades National Park that afternoon, number one daughter resumed her more typical teenage angst as she sat in the backseat of the van moodily reading her favorite novel, Twilight, and momentarily forgetting just how much her father loves her.
But for one glorious morning father and daughter had a memorable experience that transcended the ordinary–Far Off-the-Beaten-Path and much, much “more than a mouse!™”
The trail is located in South Florida, about a four hour drive south of the Orlando area. In my next few posts, I will share my experiences in this area that most visitors to Central Florida don’t have the time to visit. Pity. There is some good stuff there.
Despite the fact that I do my best to research every blog and provide as much factual information as I can in as entertaining a way as possible, I was unable to locate very much information about the trail. I did find that there is some dispute as to whether it is proper to refer to the area between Miami and the Keys in south Florida as the Redland or the Redlands. It also appears that the Redland Tropical Trail was some kind of marketing scheme created by nine businesses around two years ago. Not knowing for sure, I will give you my best guess based on what I observed.
It appears that a small group of agribusiness tourist destinations got together to solve a problem. None of these places seem large enough to pull in vast amounts of tourists by themselves. Perhaps, however, if they band together for promotion and advertising purposes, they could attract some crowds. Mrs. LanceAround, our number one daughter and I accidentally stumbled upon the trail last January. We found it interesting enough to visit again this past month.
The Coral Castle is one of the most fascinating places I have ever experienced and I will feature it in it’s own post. The same with Robert is Here Fruit Stand. I won’t blog about The Capri Restaurant but I can tell you it was an oasis in the southern Florida landscape and we enjoyed an elegant Italian meal there. A definite thumbs up!
Coral Castle
Each of the three places we visited had an intricately carved wooden signpost (like the one above from the Robert is Here Fruit Stand)–Designed like an old fashioned roadside sign that has labeled arrows pointing to various destinations with the mileage to get there–Clearly designed by the Redland Tropical Trail. The signpost listed the names of the nine mini-attractions. In addition, at each location there was more advertising with the names of all the other members of the trail.
As we traveled from place to place between the trail, the Keys and the Everglades, we encountered a very interesting roadside of South Florida. There were many farms and orchards with rows and rows of fresh growth. There were fruit stands, ice cream shops, depressed areas of boarded up homes and areas of obvious wealth. There was a house that was built to resemble a castle with round turrets and it was up for sale. (No, it was not the Coral Castle, I will blog about that later.) There were canals, obviously man made, with intricate drainage dams. Several businesses featured back swamp alligator air boat tours. There was even a large, presumably Indian, casino. In other words, there were plenty of interesting places to stop and explore.
It would be nice if the Redland Trail website provided more information about their history, members and goals. For now, it is little more than a couple photos of each location with a link to their websites. Some of those individual websites, like the Coral Castle, appear to be in a perpetual “under construction” state for over a year. Even the main trail website was advertising an event from last February as I write this blog nine months later.
So only time will tell if this coalition provides enough of a boost to these businesses to keep up the effort of maintaining the Historic Redland Tropical Trail. But for today, it got my family to visit a few places that we found highly recommendable. So for now all I can say is that it worked for us. I hope you enjoy it as well.
Do you know who Edward Bok was? I never did. At least, not until Visit Florida–The tourism agency for the state of Florida–invited me to visit the Historic Bok Tower Gardens on behalf of the Polk County tourist industry. It was a good idea–I walked away very impressed!
As an entrepreneur, I have read a lot of management books. But very few have had such a positive impact on me as the book, The Americanization of Edward Bok. Funny thing is, it is not even a business nor management book. No, it is the Pulitzer prize winning autobiography of Edward Bok. A man who immigrated to this country from the Netherlands in 1870 at the young age of six and had a profound impact on this country. I had never heard of him, or this book, until I toured the Bok Tower and purchased the book from the gift shop. I’m glad I did.
Bok Tower
Before he left the Netherlands, his grandmother admonished him to “make you the world a bit better or more beautiful because you have lived in it.” Edward took these words to heart and although he was a very successful businessman, he never failed to live up to his grandmother’s ideals.
As a youngster, Edward would read an encyclopedia, then write letters to the famous people mentioned in the book asking them about the information he learned. He received numerous responses and even met several of the people he wrote to–Including a couple of presidents! Such initiative served Edward well as he grew and engaged in several entrepreneurial activities. Most notably, he became editor of the Ladies Home Journal, headquartered in Philadelphia. Under his tutelage, the LHJ became the first magazine in the world with a circulation of over one million.
During his lifetime, Edward, recalling the words of his grandmother, did his best to make the world a better and more beautiful place. In his autobiography, he talks about how dismayed he was over the vulgar way that homes were springing up around the nation. He commissioned several famous architects to create blueprints for beautiful homes that could be built inexpensively. The LHJ provided these blueprints and thousands of beautiful homes across the country can thank Edward Bok for their existence.
Perhaps his most notable public service was to offer a $100,000 “American Peace Award” for the person who could come up with the most practical plan to ensure peace and get the congress to act on it. I would love to share with you the details of this plan and dozen of other interesting stories from Bok’s book, but I am consciously working on keeping my blog posts shorter and more to the point. My goal is to whet your whistle enough for you to explore further.
Bok Tower Gardens
Upon retiring, Edward built a carillon on the tallest point in the Florida Peninsula in Lake Wales, Florida. This bell tower is the centerpiece of the Bok Tower Gardens. Every day at 1pm and 3pm the bells are played. Edward died in January 1930 less than a year after President Coolidge dedicated the tower and surrounding gardens. He is interred at the base of the tower.
The Bok tower garden is definitely off-the-beaten-path and much, much “more than a mouse.”™ You won’t find tacky, tourist stuff, rides, or cartoon characters here. But you will find beautiful gardens, peaceful tranquility, a splendid carillon and a perfect place for meditation and quiet contemplation.
Lance Around Orlando 