This post is some pictures that didn’t make it to the daily blog for one reason or another but I still thought were worth pointing out.

Alonso and Massa’s Ferraris

The above picture is of two Ford F150s and the caption will mean nothing to you unless you follow Formula 1 very closely. Earlier this year Ferrari announced that they were going to call their cars this year F150s to celebrate 150 years of the unification of Italy. Unfortunately Ford had other ideas and sued Ferrari stating that it was their brand name and customers might get confused…

No guns thanks!

I was somewhat surprised to see the above notice on the doors to Wonderworks. It was the only time I saw such a message anywhere in Florida and was interested to note that they felt it was necessary to make that point. That said, of course, the implication could be that guns were welcome everwhere else and Micky Mouse in Disney was packing a weapon under his costume.

Please look after your children, or else

This is how the coffee shop at the Lake Buena Vista outlet deals with children of inattentive parents and having see the owners I am sure that they would carry out the threat.

Val Doonican’s idea of a wet dream

Cracker Barrel is a chain of family restaurants with a remarkable side line in rocking chairs. Outside each restaurant, or at least outside the three I have been to, is a veranda stocked with rocking chairs of differing shapes and sizes. I think that this is supposed to be in keeping with the “home style” cooking that they offer.

Bistro Gourmet McDonalds

And finally, Bistro Gourmet McDonalds. Yes such a place really does exist. It’s interior is in the style of a French cafe but this is the Disney, dreamy, stylised view of a French cafe rather than the dark, smoke filled places I have been to.

In addition to the regular McDonalds fare it also offers “Exceptional chef prepared recipes”. I have to admit that I couldn’t really tell any great difference.

So that’s it for my slice of Americana this time.

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So it’s our last day and we were determined to make the most of it and pack as much in before the flight as possible.

We had chosen to go back to Universal Studios and it turned out to be an inspired move as nobody else seemed to have thought of going there.

I know I have gone on about how quieter it has been this holiday but this was just ridiculous – we got onto every ride that we wanted to within five minutes with no lines. Check out the picture, see? No lines! Unless you are the CEO of Universal Studios it was perfect.

So we did the Simpsons Ride a couple of times, Jaws and Men in Black again. The boys did Shrek 3D again while Helen and I risked the Starbucks ride! We also went into the BeetleJuice show for the first time which was a good laugh. We have avoided it in the past but given that we had all seen the film just a week ago it was more relevant.

On the way to the airport we stopped off at Perkins for what I suspect will be my last Tremendous Twelve for a while (my stomach and heart both breath a sigh of relief!)

I am glad to say that the delay this year was a much more manageable 15 minutes rather than the six plus hours two years ago and the flight itself went pretty quickly. I even managed to snatch a few hours sleep.

So that’s it for our Floridian adventures. We have said that this is our last time and we won’t be going back but then we have said that before…

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Another action packed day as we attempted squeeze every last drop of enjoyment out of the holiday.

Today we returned back to Disney Hollywood Studios, what must be the family’s favourite park. This time we went on the things we hadn’t had time for last time: Indiana Jones, Lights, Motors, Action and, in Alex’s case, Rock and Roller Coaster. The latter both Helen and I went on but I refused. I might have done it if it was Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Val Doonican rather than Aerosmith. Mind you that rocking chair could get some motion going!

Following that we returned to Downtown Disney for a final trip to Ghirardelli and some waist busting ice creams and shakes.

In the evening we had booked to go to the Outta Control Magic Comedy Dinner Show. After having spent the day on our feet at the parks and then having to stand in the line waiting to go in for over 30 minutes people started to get tired and tetchy (not me this time I should add). However, once we had entered, sat down and the show had started everyone was settled.

The show itself is a one man affair. Tony Brent does a number of magic tricks and comedy skits while the audience wolfs down “unlimited” pizza. He was very good and had the Thompsons in hysterics – I particularly like the part where he go a member of the audience to tie his had together and then, behind a curtain, put his hands in and out of the rope at ease, very cool. If you are ever passing Orlando I would certainly recommend the show.

So the packing is done and all that remains now is to make our way home… almost.

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Today actually turned out to be more of a rest day than we had at first envisaged. Helen woke up early with a dodgy stomach and needed to spend much of the day nearby some porcelain which wiped out the plans we had.

This was not the glittering end to the holiday that we had planned. All we could hope for was a quick recovery so that we could get back on track tomorrow.

After the three men had gone out for dinner without Helen and got back home Mat started to complain of stomach pains too. This now leaves Alex as the only member of our party to have not suffered something similar. Hopefully he will avoid it.

So as I write this, with a day and a half to go, it is very much up in the air what we will be able to do. It will be a great shame if the last few days of our last trip to Orlando (until the grandchildren arrive!) are spoilt by a spate of dodgy tummies.

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Having done all the Disney and Universal parks last week, this week was always going to be about going back to visit favourites.

The Thompsons being a democracy means that there has been plenty of debate over the last couple of days about what we would be exactly doing in the second week. Helen and I are project managers by trade and while we didn’t produce a Gantt chart we did get pretty close!

More of a surprise was a suggestion put forward by an 18 year old who normally, given the option, wouldn’t surface from bed until the sun was setting. In order to reach the parks while it was quiet it was suggested that we get to Magic Kingdom at opening time – 8 am. In order to do that we would have to get up at 7 am. Let me just repeat that: An eighteen year old boy was suggesting that we get up at 7am in order to reach the park by 8am. And do you know what? He even managed it!

For some reason the magic that runs Disney seemed to be in short supply today when it came to transportation. When we arrived at Magic Kingdom the monorail wasn’t working and so we had to be bused in and on the way out the boat wasn’t running. To be honest I cannot remember a time in the previous five visits that this has been the case so to have both out on the same day was very bad luck.

Arriving early did enable us to pack loads in: 2x Space Mountain, 2x Thunder Mountain, 1x Buzz Lightyear and 1x People mover. However, the highlight of the day, at least for Alex, was trouncing the rest of us on the Buzz Lightyear ride. His score of 702,000 was the highest I can ever remember any of us ever getting.

After Magic Kingdom we paid our first visit this year to a Disney water park. It was decided by the organising committee that we would grace Blizzard Beach with our presence, a fact that must have got out as there we plenty of people there to greet us…

We took a lot of photos but they were taken with a waterproof film camera (remember them?) and so I cannot post them until I have them developed. Does anyone still do that? It must be a dying art surely?

By this point it was the hottest part of the day so we didn’t spend too long for fear of being burnt to a crisp but it was good fun and if I’m honest I think the boys would have stayed longer.

After such a packed day, tomorrow is a “rest day”!

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The boys, being lightweights, decided to have another morning in bed while Helen and I went for an airboat ride on Lake Tohopekaliga with Boggy Creek. We have been a couple of times before and, in our experience, you either get to see loads of wildlife or none. Today, regrettably, was a “none” day unless you consider a cow to be wildlife. Actually, that’s a bit unfair as we did see an aligator scampering away from our boat and a bald headed eagle sitting in a tree – although that was a bit like playing Where’s Wally.

Back with the boys we decided to do some crazy golf , although this being the US it was nothing like the crazy golf set up in one of the tennis courts in Knaresborough, this was ADVENTURE golf. We are talking mountains, waterfalls, boats and planes and all on a massive scale. And, unlike Knaresborough, it was hot, very hot. Great fun too even if the men were beaten the lone female!

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We spent over five hours in Disney’s EPCOT park today, the longest that we have spent in any park this holiday. As predicted the number of people seemed to be more than last week but still not as crowded as it has been in the past – I wonder if the global recession has hit Disney? Nevertheless the fast-passes went quickly enough and by lunchtime they were booking for six hours ahead on the Soarin’ ride!

EPCOT is another wonderful example of the amazing set dressing at the parks. The boys aren’t that keen on it but I love the World Showcase where there are twelve countries represented in a very stylised way. The UK, for example, has what looks to be a cut down version of Hampton Court Palace and some very twee cottages along side a pub and a fish and chip shop! It also sells British chocolate at extortionate prices, i.e. about £2.25 for a bar that would cost well under a pound at home. Every other country has similarly themed buildings and overpriced regional items. I don’t care I still love it!

In the main part of the park is also one of my favorite rides, Test Track, which you can relive in its entirety by watching the first video below if you have the time or the inclination. Alex had decided that when the official photo was taken we would all point towards the camera. What was great about this was that we also managed to convince the other two occupants of the car that they should do the same – which is great feat when you are negotiating this at speed!

In the afternoon we went to Downtown Disney again and dumped the boys in the cinema while Helen and I walked round the shops before hitting Ghirardelli’s for an ice cream and a drink.

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Bok Tower Gardens are the chalk to the parks cheese. In fact so much so that they really seem out of place being in Florida at all. While the parks are all high energy and fast paced Bok Tower Gardens are the complete opposite: quite, relaxed and slow paced. It is not surprising, therefore, that this was a trip taken by only two members of our party, the boys electing to stay at home in bed. To be fair Mat has been unwell since hurting his back racing Helen in the pool yesterday and was looking distinctly off colour this morning. The last thing on his mind was a stroll around a garden – no matter how beautiful it might be. So Helen and I set off alone.

It was clear that, unsurprisingly, this sort of place attracts a certain type of clientele and Helen and I were doing our bit by bringing down the average age of the visitors. Something else that Bok Tower Gardens attracts seems to be biting insects who took a great shine to our large amounts of exposed flesh. I suspect that we will be itching and scratching for the rest of our holiday.

We got back to the villa in time for lunch and to wake the boys!

Alex discovered one of the downsides of the US today when we went out for a meal to TGI Fridays and discovered that they were serving imported cider but, unlike, the UK you cannot drink until you are 21, even with a meal in a restaurant.

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Today was what will probably be our one and only trip to Magic Kingdom.

Getting to Magic Kingdom is a bit tortuous as you have to drive to the car park, followed by a train ride to the transportation centre and then finally take a monorail or boat ride to the entrance. Only then are you able to enter though the park gates and see the iconic castle at the end of “Main Street”.

A lot of the park seems to be dedicated to small children, something that we no longer have, nevertheless there was still plenty for us to do. As ever organisation is the key, something at which Helen and I excel!

First off was the Buzz Lightyear ride, a shoot ‘em up game which is a humiliating experience for anyone other than the sharp shooter Mat. Then we all went on Thunder Mountain, a roller coaster for those who like to have their heads remain above their feet (see the video below for the whole three minute ride). We then split into two with Helen and Alex going for the Space Mountain ride (think Thunder Mountain in the dark) and Mat and I going back to Buzz Lightyear and the Carousel of Progress. Before meeting up and going on Thunder Mountain again.

And that was us done – probably the last time that we will visit Magic Kingdom – unless we take the grand kids…!

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Back to Universal again today but this time to the sister park to Islands of Adventure and boy if that was busy due to Harry Potter, Universal Studios was so quiet. Not that I am complaining at all as we had the pick of the rides with next to no wait time whatsoever. So we were able to get straight on to The Simpsons Ride, Men in Black, Jaws and Shrek 3D without having the bore of the queues.

As much as I like the rides in Universal I cannot help shake the feeling that it is very much a poor mans Disney. Walt’s parks are just so slick in a way that Universal has yet to match. You notice it the moment you arrive in the very utilitarian car park which is a dark and dingy affair compared to the open, ground level lots in Disney.

With the exception of Harry Potter, which is exceptional, the set dressing in the rest of the Universal parks is pretty much non-existent. In Disney you would often be hard pressed to even know there was a ride hiding inside a mountain or behind some trees but in Universal it is all very much in your face – something that is very off putting if you are a ride scaredy-cat such as myself!

The people in Universal, while steeped in that service culture that seems to be in-bred in Americans, are not as slick. When one ride was having issues today the staff took to shouting to each other over the top of the guests, sharing a joke while waiting for the ride to start again. This is something that I have never seen in a Disney park and I suspect that if I ever did the staff would be taken to one side and dismissed.

None of the above detracts from the rides which are all good but it is just not as complete an experience as visiting Walt Disney World.

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