On Friday the 30th we went to Mt. Dora, a town north of Clermont. It was our first visit to this interesting town full of quaint shops. We caught a scenic train ride that went slowly from Mt. Dora to Tavares and back. This area is lake country and the train traveled around a lake. In Tavares we were able to get off the train and walked about a very pretty park. After returning to Mt. Dora we had lunch in a restaurant with an outside balcony which made interesting watching. Groups of Segway riders were touring the city with a guide.
Saturday we went west to Dade City for the annual Kumquat Festival and what a crowd of people. Buddy Redman went along with us as his wife was off on an excursion with her daughter and granddaughter. The streets were lined with vendors on both sides and stuffed with lookers between. A car show was taking place on one of the large parking lots which Tom and Buddy took a gander at. Kumquat pies, made in the fashion of Key Lime pies, were being sold for $20.00 a pie, pricey I thought. Some vendors had sprigs of Kumquats as decoration on their stands but we didn't see any place selling kumquats. On our return we did stop at a barbeque place for lunch rather than eating at the festival while walking around.
Sunday was spent quietly in the campground.
Monday, Disney Village was our destination. Surprise the Village is undergoing some changes mainly with the parking areas. Huge parking garages are being built and parking next to the Village is gone. There is parking across the main street from the Village, also. There is a distance to walk either place of parking. We parked in the garage and had to walk through Pleasure Island to get to the Village. Lego had some new to us Lego sculptures outside. Some of the stores have been made over but otherwise much the same. There were some real heavy clouds and as we made our way toward the parking garage to leave the skies opened up. As the first drops hit us we headed for the first store we came to, to get out of the rain, which was a sunglass store in Pleasure Island. In no time the place was packed with folks seeking refuge. After several minutes of heavy downpouring the rain let up and we made our way to the car. Don Pablo's, a Mexican restaurant, was our next stop for lunch. This restaurant is on International Drive and has been a favorite of ours in this area.
Tuesday we went to a nearby Wendy's for lunch and then to the movies. "Black or White" was the movie that we saw for $6.00 a person, a special Tuesday price. We noticed today that gas prices are jumping up. No longer are the prices below $2.00 as the jump is 10 to 15 cents more per gallon. We knew it wouldn't last.
Wednesday, February 4th, a special day for Tom and I as we celebrated 48 years of marriage. We started the day by going to Bob Evans for breakfast. For dinner we went to a favorite Disney restaurant, Boma, at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. We had a little mix up getting to the restaurant as a second lodge is now in that area and the roads have been reconfigured. We did finally get where we wanted to be and had a very nice dinner.
Thursday we spent in the campground. We did receive our medicines that were wrongly routed to our home address, then to Todd and Beth's who had to forward them down here. And Tom finally, we hope, has got my account with OptumRX straightened out so it can be activated with the computer. He has dealt with many techs on their end for the best part of a month. It would appear that the problem was solved but the next time logging in would not allow us to get in and we'd start over with a new tech (reaching the same tech was impossible and apparently, they were not in the same area as they did not know one another). But yesterday, a tech Cindy, made a call to us and finally got the problem solved.
Today, Friday, we are meeting an old friend, George Callender, for lunch. George and his wife, Pat, were camping friends of ours from our days of Newmar Kountry Klub and the Maryland Newmar Club. Sadly, Pat, died a couple years ago after they had moved to Florida. George continues to live down here and we try to see him when in the area.
Cape Cod Canal
4 hours ago
