Florida Trip '09

[Kai Robinson]

Looks like i'll have to start this again from scratch!

In florida since the 17th of April, staying here until the 8th of May.

Booked into the Days Inn Motel on S. Ridgewood in Daytona Beach.

As ordered, pictures!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?ai...8&l=c5760decee

Thats a public link that y'all should be able to see.

[bot@xs]

nice, looks like goodtimes. vacation?
enjoy it

[Kai Robinson]

<kool aid man> Ohhhh yeah! </kool aid man>

I figured i deserved a holiday after spending months working on cars, houses etc and going a little stir crazy.

Going to see if i can arrange to get tickets to the Star Trek movie on the day i leave!

[gallag]

Man, You should get in touch with a newspaper or magazine, They love running story's about people that meet on-line and really hit it off, The fact that you guys actually meet playing a mmorpg only serves to make your story more unique. Have fun.

[ownage]

Cool pics, especially the NASA stuff.
Did you like the cars there? Or to much Plastic Fantastic?

[berk]

Great snaps,looks like your not gonna want to leave

[Kai Robinson]

Man, You should get in touch with a newspaper or magazine, They love running story's about people that meet on-line and really hit it off, The fact that you guys actually meet playing a mmorpg only serves to make your story more unique. Have fun.

You saw what happened to the last thread, pre-crash, don't even *think* of trying to be funny (which you're not). One more post like that from ANYONE, and this thread gets locked, spoiled by the juvenile few for a cheap 100% BS gag that was never funny, accurate or even remotely true.

Well done gallag, looks like you p***** me of for the rest of the afternoon.

[MikeB12]

chill out Kai, the only reason these guys rib you about WoW is because they know it gets under your skin... and in all honesty, that's what men do to each other when they're friends; they rib each other about their pet peeves/... you shouldn't let it get to you..

that being said, I think we all know from the last thread Kai is a little sensitive about the subject, even if it was just in good old fashion male jesting... so appease his sensitivity and respect it, and just leave it alone. deal... no reason to go walking around pissed off all day just because one of your forum buds tried to push your WoW buttons. turn the buttons off and then pushing them will produce no results, and it wont be so fun anymore for people..

[[XC] riptide]

You saw what happened to the last thread, pre-crash, don't even *think* of trying to be funny (which you're not). One more post like that from ANYONE, and this thread gets locked, spoiled by the juvenile few for a cheap 100% BS gag that was never funny, accurate or even remotely true.

Well done gallag, looks like you p***** me of for the rest of the afternoon.

Never mind them Kai. Gallag is just jealous.

[gallag]

Hey kai, It was in my mind just light hearted ribbing, Dont let me ruin your day bud. Passes peace bong your way. And riptide you are quite correct, I am jealous, After the last two weeks I have had, But that is for another thread.

[-n7-]

nice

[Riggs]

Hope your having fun!

[dengyong]

You saw what happened to the last thread, pre-crash, don't even *think* of trying to be funny (which you're not). One more post like that from ANYONE, and this thread gets locked, spoiled by the juvenile few for a cheap 100% BS gag that was never funny, accurate or even remotely true.

Well done gallag, looks like you p***** me of for the rest of the afternoon.

100x more thought it funny than not and that's the reason your thread had so many hits, way to alienate.

Have a nice life.

[[XC] Lead Head]

Looks like you're having a good time. What kind of car have you rented?

[Kai Robinson]

Not rented any car, i'm walking around, or taking the occasional taxi. Apparrently walking is considered a strange form of transportation here...

[Ashraf]

Great pictures! I like the NASA pictures. Thanks for sharing, Kai.

[[XC]thewildblue]

WoW, those are great pics Kai. Looks like a superb place to be, Im envious to be honest I would love a holiday and especially to go to the states.

[SNiiPE_DoGG]

Not rented any car, i'm walking around, or taking the occasional taxi. Apparrently walking is considered a strange form of transportation here...

yeah, its a bit different being in the US because it really has a different scale of sprawl between things: I prefer being in europe and walking more but I enjoy the US as well.
especially in florida its a very automobile centric layout and its a large state.

enjoy your trip mate, the weather looks fantastic if I do say so myself

[hollywood]

WoW, those are great pics Kai. Looks like a superb place to be, Im envious to be honest I would love a holiday and especially to go to the states.

It's not all it's cracked up to be. Too big and too clean for the most part. That and there are Americans EVERYWHERE here. That alone should ruin the trip for ya...

[Kai Robinson]

LOL - i mean, best buy was only an 8 mile walk....then i walked 2/3 miles from there to Dennys, after i came out THEN i ordered a Taxi to go home, but only because it was getting f*cking hot outside...

[[XC] riptide]

WoW you walked 8 miles? 9 miles. WTF? Get a car man. Even a Buick.

[Mr.Bones]

LOL walk? We Dont do that here

[YukonTrooper]

Seeing those pictures brings back memories of visiting Cape Canaveral as a kid. I remember seeing a gazillion armadillos and alligators on the bus tour.

[Kai Robinson]

Guess you missed the part where i said i didn't bring my drivers license with me

And yes, that was deliberate - too expensive to hire a car here, might as well either wait for friends to take me places for petrol money, or get a cab

And in case none of you are on my MySpace / FaceBook - heres my experiences so far, in word format;

28/04/2009 - 1:45am (local)

Well, i've been here for 10 days so far, and it's been....educational. I was told repeatedly that i'd get off the plane, and melt. Well, that hasn't happened, i've not melted. Granted, it's hot here, in the high 20's most days, and high-ish humidity, but i'm still standing! I'm tanning as well. Seriously, i look down at my forearms, and theyre browning off. I feel a bit like a christmas turkey. The heat is insidious though. You turn the Air Conditioning off when it starts to get icy, but 20 minutes later, you're sitting in the same spot, and sweating like a farm animal, regretting turning the dial on the damn thing to 'off'...

You really do go from air conditioned building to air conditioned building, in air conditioned cars. And trust me, everywhere around here, you need a car to get to anywhere. Now, i came over without my Drivers License, so a hire car is out of the question, which means i'm limited to either taking a cab, walking, or getting lifts off friends when they get off work. So far, i've been walking, and people around here look at me as though i'm some kind of alien, or some mental case. Well, maybe walking in Florida Sunshine isn't the most intelligent idea i've ever had, but still.

Case in point, On the 3rd day of my trip, my MasterCard packed up and was getting declined at the checkouts and cashpoints were denying me money, despite having over £1000 in the account. Reason was, as i eventually found out, i'd one over my weekly withdrawal limit, as i'd taken out about £200 in the UK for the 2 days i was there, and had taken out about $300 since i arrived in the US. I got Steve, who's looking after my house, to wire me about $250 via western union. The downside was, the nearest pickup point was an 'AMSCOT' office about 4 miles away. Not having any cash, meant no cabs. Which meant walking. I consulted Google Maps on the iPod and decided to walk down Orange Avenue, sounds nice enough, doesn't it? Well...it crosses somewhere called 'Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard' which as anyone in the US will tell you, is somewhere that white people DON'T go unless they want to get shot. About half a mile down, i felt a little uncomfortable as i bore witness to a guy shouting at his 'woman' and her shouting back. Now, i was on the other side of the street, although directly parallel, when the guy shouted out quite loudly 'you never suck mah no mo'! why don't you go suck the on that white bread honky mother over dere!' and proceeded to point at me. At that point, i picked up the pace, and headed for International Speedway Boulevard as soon as possible! However, once on ISB, where the traffic was pretty constant, people were staring at me, and one or two people asked me if i was lost, or needed a lift. "No thank you, i'm good, it's only a mile from here." i'd tell them. The looks i recieved were a mixture of confusion and fear.

Still, i got the money, walked another few miles down to the Best Buy, bought some new headphones, walked from there to Dennys (and yes, it's THAT good), and only then did i decide to get a cab back. Not cause i was tired of walking, merely because in this heat, you start to succumb to it pretty easily, going through monstrous amounts of fluid and feeling dizzy.

So what have i been doing since i got here? Well, i've been to the Kennedy Space Centre (pictures on my Facebook), and fulfilled a childhood dream, although, i didn't get to see the Vehicle Assembly Building, as that was another $40 on top of the $80 ticket for entry, and my card wouldn't take the battering that day. I've been to New Smyrna Beach, Orlando (for outlet mall shopping - i don't do theme parks), Port Orange and Ormond-by-the-Sea (sounds quaint, doesn't it?). I've not actually set foot on Daytona Beach yet, as everytime i've been that way, i've ended up in a Samoan themed bar called Mai Tai's, and got pished, rendering a walk on the beach harzardous at best, and downright unsafe at worst!

I've sampled the cuisine at many different restaurants, and i'll give you the lowdown. I think the favourite so far, is Dennys, the classic, 24 hour american diner, where the entire menu is available whenever you want. Let me tell you, Hash Browns in the UK, you know, those rigid triangles of potato, are NOT Hash Browns. Here, it's more like Rosti, and FAR tastier. It's not as fat filled as i was expecting. Obviously, the 'smothered cheese fries with bacon' are a little on the indulgent size, but the scrambled eggs are well done, the toast is crisp and wholesome - all in all, a pleasant surprise. And yes, i've been there at least 5 times so far!

Then theres Whistle Junction, a buffet type affair, where for $10 each, you get a drink (free refills) and a plate, and you can eat as much as you like. It was pretty good, although the range of food was a little samey, with a bit too much deep-fried stuff for my liking, although, technically, this is 'the south'.

The next buffet, New Chao Wangs, i think it is, is the same amount of money as Whistle Junction, but the range of chinese food is amazing. Not quite what we're used to in the UK, not much in the way of noodles, and the vegetable selection, while tasty, was pushed to one side to make way for the meat & rice overload that i think Americans are more expectant of.

As for Mexican, yep, how could i come to the US and go away without having eaten REAL mexican food? La Fiesta, while a fair drive away in Port Orange, is WORTH IT. The past three times i've been in there (yes, its that good), i've ordered pretty much the same main course of Beef Chimichanga's, which is basically really tender, shredded beef steak, inside a deep fried tortilla thats then covered with melted cheese, and served with a large pile of mexican rice & pico de gallo with sour cream & guacamole. I may have to eat there again before i go...and order takeout for the plane :p

Finally, aside from the actual restaurants, i went to Checkers, a drive through (how could i not?). The burgers were a little lacklustre, and not too different from standard McDonalds fare, but Oh. My. God. Whilst probably the least healthy place i've been to, they have the most AMAZING fries i've ever had.

Filling in during the day however, are sandwiches. I went to WalMart on the first night i arrived, and bought some loaves of bread, butter, cheese, ham, roast beef and some random nibbles. Tides me over quite nicely, and although a little pricey, its not as 'artificial' as i was expecting.

Aside from sampling the cuisine though, i've been taking it easy for the most part. Theres a small swimming pool here at the Motel, and granted, while it's not exactly spectacular, it does the job perfectly. I seem to have been the only person using it, although that may just be because i'm the only one here for a protracted period of time.
For a couple of afternoons now, i've thought to myself, i'm going to go and float for a bit. Along with the walking, its this that's probably caused the LOSS of weight. I've seriously lost 4.5lb's since arrival. Some of that could be attributed to water loss as well i guess, but i FEEL good. I FEEL relaxed. I no longer look in the mirror and hate what i see, i see a 'work in progress'. I'll never be thin, i like food and having a good time too much, but, i see no reason why now, i can't feel fitter and more active at the same time.

All in all, a pretty good trip so far!

[[XC]thewildblue]

WoW that all sounds like quite an adventure, I couldnt face the walking though, specially in the sun and heat. Deffo a hire car and then I can see more of the area.

You know what they say, only mads dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun....and yes we do !