I stop off at a location in the park where they run boat tours and have an alligator farm. We head out into the national park by air boat and tour around discussing some of the flora and fauna in the area managing even to see a couple of alligators along the way much to the surprise of the tour guide who commented being the middle of a hot summers day they are usually all hiding out of the weather.
Once the boat tour finished we had the chance to look around the alligator park and do the usual tourist thing of watching a feeding show and holding a baby alligator.
It was then time start the 5 hour journey from Miami up to Orlando where theme parks awaited. The drive was fairly easy and I was surprised how easily I'm adjusting to the timezone given I only hopped off the plane a day and a half ago.
The drive consisted of two things, long open roads...
and toll booths...
I stopped halfway in a place called Fort Pierce for a rest and lunch. While driving around looking for supermarket for some snacks to keep me going for the second half I managed to take quite the scenic route around the local area (thanks GPS) and saw a bit of how the other half live. After giving up on the supermarket with the GPS directing me to a long abandoned 'local store' I continued on to Orlando.
Before leaving Melbourne I met up with a friend who had recently been to Las Vegas and rented a car. He commented on several things about driving which have rung true. Driving on the right is fine, the accelerator is on the same side, reaching for the gear stick is a little weird but driving an auto that's not a problem. The main thing is keeping the car centred in your lane! I put it down to a sub-conscious thing naturally knowing your position in the car and lining up the road so when you swap sides your brain is telling you keep veering left to get the car in the middle of the lane, which isn't something you usually think about so don't get a chance to overlay those 'other side of the road' thoughts. I compare this to the ease of driving on the right; picking a lane or turning a corner is more a conscious thing so you get a chance to overlay that 'remember to go to the right' thought process.
Other than the nuances of swapping sides of the road and the thought that it would be really nice if we all just picked the same side when cars were invented and that its now impossible to change. About the driving over here. Everyone speeds! It seems to be on average, take the limit, add 10% and drive to perfection.
The highways are easy to navigate with numbered exits as well so you know exactly which one to take.
I arrive in the theme park/resort/holiday area on the outskirts of Orlando after 5pm and head to the hotel to unwind. Later in the evening I head out to one of the shopping outlets (DFO equivalent on a bigger scale) for some retail therapy. Now I can't stand shopping but I had a ball, the best part being the prices of clothes over here. My plan of only taking a couple of days of clothes with me and buying a wardrobe over here works perfectly although my credit card would disagree.
That's enough excitement for one day, tomorrow is theme park time and I need to get some rest!
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