clsteve
"It takes a very long time to become young..."
- Joined
- Jul 25, 2012
Wow.
Kinda hard to believe a year’s already passed, isn’t it? Seems like I just finished the last Trip Report. I know everybody always says time moves more quickly as you get older, but this is ridiculous!
Speaking of getting older…..
Yes, the boys are growing like weeds at now 9 and 11.5 years old, my wife is as pretty as ever, and I just got my first AARP membership right before the trip! No joke. And no matter what it’s done to my psyche, the discounts you get are excellent and worth every “You know you’re old when…” joke.
So here we are, back again for another Trip Report- our first “Trip Behind the Bricks…” as we’ve been calling this Darkside Redux. And you know what...? I had a blast writing last year’s and both boys really want another about this year (to be frank, I just think they love seeing themselves on-line). Plus, writing it really turned out to be a great cure for the post-trip blues. But honestly, the best parts about the whole TR experience were the interactions with you fellow Dis’ers! It was fun answering questions while (hopefully) passing along a little excitement and a few hints and observations. So, feel free to jump in with any questions and comments – but please no grammar, syntax, spelling corrections - nor questions and/or concerns about the writer’s character, sanity, or sobriety....
Much like the last TR, I’ll summarize the trip by day and be as objective as possible. I’ll also try to do a detailed review of each of the restaurants we visited, including Vivo, Antojito’s and Cowfish Sushi. This time, we even took more food pictures, as requested! We aim to please around here….
Food Teaser....
I likes Eels, but here's a more mainstream Teaser:
And surprise–surprise!, another camera incident! I’m really starting to think that her IPhone is one very jealous piece of technology. This is the second time it's shown absolutely no ability to share the spotlight with another camera. My guess, it must not have watched enough Barney and Friends when it was younger. But I did get 3 and a half days of pictures in before the hex hit….
Enough of the ramblings! Let’s get started.
After such a wonderful 4 night trip last year, we decided to do an even longer stay this time – 6 nights. Basically the same time of year, give or take a week. And, for those of you who read the previous TR – the kids won the “PBH or RPH” debate! Or, at least they think they did. We got a better deal at RPH. Just don’t tell them – they kinda enjoy the illusion that this family ‘s still a Democracy...
We also flipped the trip this year by visiting my MiL in Sarasota Springs first, then heading over to UOR. I’m so, so, so glad we did, since the this trip started out with one of those adventures that can get the blood pressure up into that "Dad needs to do those breathing exercises" zone.
The Trip
We live on the Outer Banks of North Carolina - or The OBX - as a lot of folks know it. Access to and from our little Island is only by ferry, or private boat, or swimming (not recommended).
Sunrise on the Ferry
Cormorants on the Pamlico Sound
Great morning to be on the Ferry and it really can be a relaxing way to start a vacation – once you know it’s actually going to leave and is not down for fog, weather or maintenance. And yes, we’ve experienced all of the above too many times – just part of the price of island living. Of course, that all sounds great until that last ferry home doesn't run and you have your car full of food and coolers with cold stuff after shopping off-island. It’s about a 2.5 hour ride and then a 3 hour drive to Raleigh Airport.
Got Paint…?
It seems a few of our ferries need a little TLC...
But this time, we try something different – New Bern! Our friends have been raving about how easy it is to fly to Fla. out of the tiny New Bern Airport. It’s only an hour and a half drive after the ferry and you can park right next to the terminal it’s so small. Plus the flights are often cheaper and they fly to Sarasota Springs after an easy connect in Charlotte (USAir) – no drive from Tampa.
It… All… Sounds… So… Great! (channeling my inner Capt Kirk)
We catch the 7am ferry, drive to New Bern, and get there at 12:15pm for our 4:30pm flight. Easy peasy! - until they cancel our flight for maintenance… not kidding. And here’s where the benefits of a small airport fall off the cliff. There aren’t any other flights that day- last one - nor flights on any other airline, meaning Delta. And since it’s a long weekend (MLK) - all flights for the next day are also booked! But they can get us out at 6:30am tomorrow morning --- FROM Raleigh!!!! With a long layover in Atlanta!!!!
Back come our bags and back into the car we go….. at 5:30pm…. for our 3 hr drive to Raleigh …. to spend the night…. to get to Fla …. a day late. Basically, if I’d just headed south in the car after getting off the ferry and skipped the whole flight thing, I could have made it to Sarasota Springs by 2am, same day. Instead, we arrived 5pm the next day after a full 34 hours of travel. If it had been a day at UOR we lost instead of a day at my MiL’s --- now don't get me wrong. I absolutely love my MiL. But I'll bet that those of you who have family in Fla and wrestle with the amount of family visit time versus time for killing aliens, riding 'coasters, seeing dragons, and drinking butterbeer understand exactly where I'm coming from......
Btw, I just have to ask you all something: is there some sort of natural law or unwritten rule that in-laws can only have guest room mattresses that were made on or before the year 1952…? Anyone else have this issue? Or this my own private purgatory…??
Good visit with my MiL, besides the moving to the couch at 2am in the morning part, and we always enjoy Sarasota Springs every time we go. There really are some great things to do in that area, and I just have to plug one of them before we move on to Universal Orlando:
The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens:
That's the boys all "hippied out" before ole Dad sprung a Sports Clips trip on them the next morning. We all fought the flu the 2 weeks prior to leaving - just like everybody else this year. So, had to get some maintenance in once we could finally get off-Island.
I could have sat by the Koi Pond for just about the whole vacation. Folks were sketching, meditating, having a picnic lunch on the lawns.... It was $19.00 for adults and $4.00 for kids to get in. Plus, they have yearly memberships. Shame on anybody in Sarasota who doesn't have one....
Do yourself a favor if you’re in the area – and go. It’s absolutely beautiful and such a relaxing way to spend an afternoon. The kids had a blast, as well. That’s Russell in the Cactus Garden, below. (He's DS11 – they've talked me into using their names this year)
It’s right on the water, and they also have a wonderful kids’ play and explore area - similar in ways to a smaller version of Camp Jurassic, but without dinosaurs.
For you AK fans (I'm one), they have several real Banyan Trees of different ages. Below, is just part of the canopy of the oldest one at 100 years. It's a stunning tree and the same one the gentlemen are sitting under and staring up at in one of the pictures, above.....
There are paths throughout the the property where you can just take in the landscaping - below, that's the backdrop for the Wedding Lawn, btw.
Their orchid collection is world class and I’ve never seen a such a quality selection of bromeliads and orchids for sale as in their gift shop. Kinda glad it’s so far away. I’d spend way too much money in there….
Apologies for the "Naturalist" sidetrack. But, getting dirty with some plants and amazing displays of landscaping are a sweet spot for me...
After 3 days in Sarasota Springs, we’re off to Universal! But before we go on to the next installment: A quick money saving, how to get a rental car upgrade tip, that works especially well at smaller airports - or those in town rental spots:
We rented from Enterprise on-line and had reserved a premium, midsized, car (Chrysler 300) for 4 days in Sarasota, dropping off in Orlando after our drive over from Sarasota. Got a great 4 day rate (thanks COSTCO..!!!) of $253.11. That included all taxes and fees. When we got to the airport counter, we told them we’d be more than happy to pay another $10-$15 per day if we could upgrade to a large class or SUV. They did it. So for another $10.99/day, we scored a big Suburban. The regular price for that upgrade was $69/per day. Works every time – has something to do with how they’re incented/bonused on up-sells at the counters. Plus, they gave us another discount on the full price (thanks AARP!!!) on top of the COSTCO one. So a big upgrade plus a double discount for only a $10.99/day upcharge just by dealing with the counter at a smaller airport. It pays to not fly into MCO sometimes….
Here’s another thing I learned from a Fla. friend in Sarasota who has done this little known (to me anyway) promotion numerous times: Enterprise often runs a special, in Fla-only, deal – especially around May, September, and right after the holidays. You can often rent a car for 15-20 bucks a day as long as you’re taking the car out of Fla and dropping it off 2 or more States away. Seems they get so many tourists dropping cars in Fla after Spring Break, the summer, the holidays, they need to move them out – out to anywhere. Haven’t done it myself, nor have I validated it, but am seriously contemplating a one way flight in and a drive back next trip with that amount of savings. Something I thought might be of interest to some of you.
Well, outta space, outta time…
Day One’s On Deck:
RPH, And The Kid’s are Alright….
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