Disney Day 2: Universal Studios & Ohana's!

On our second full day of Disney we ventured into Universal Studios (which obviously isn't Disney as such, but we'll just roll with it!). Unfortunately the full morning was very dull and drizzly, so we tried our best to stay undercover. We did get caught in a few down pours though, but you haven't experienced true Orlando if this doesn't happen to you at least once!

As soon as we entered the park we saw that The Minions ride was displaying a 20 minute wait. We'd never had the chance to experience this attraction in previous visits because the wait times had always been ridiculously long, so as soon as we saw 20 minutes, we of course made a beeline for it.

Similar to the Disney parks, because we had visited Universal several times in the past few years, we weren't in such a hurry to cram everything in this time. Instead we slowed down the pace and managed to fit any 'extras' in that we hadn't experienced before. We also ventured into the nooks and crannies that we had missed in previous years due to being in a rush! I find these days the best because they're so much more laid back and you tend to appreciate your surroundings more because you have more time and opportunity to immerse yourself in the environment.

I'm not sure if it was because of the weather, or time of year, but the wait times for most rides were 20-30 minutes, which was perfect. Some were as small as 5 minutes, so I was loving it! We rode all of the obligatory rides, ET, MIB, The Simpsons, Revenge of the Mummy, etc. We also indulged in our first EVER American churro, but unfortunately it wasn't the best! (I swear they're not meant to be that hard!).

I noticed that Toothsome Chocolate Emporium had only just recently opened, so we ventured there and gawped at all the weird but definitely wonderful contraptions they had going on in the shop of their restaurant. If money grew on trees....

I took lots of retro/vintage themed photos of buildings and the famous pink and white Cadillac's sat outside Mel's Drive-In Diner (yep, that same car that I take a photo of almost every year!). We also ventured into Ben & Jerry's café where I tried a hazelnut and coffee ice-cream. Yum!

After this we headed back to the hotel to get ready for our dining reservation at Ohana's, which was in Disney's Polynesian Resort. Such great fun! We were given flower lei's whilst we watched a live Hawaiian lady sing, followed by a coconut race for the kids. The food was immense! Battered King Prawns, steak, chicken and pork continued to come to our table on skewers, fresh from the kitchen. You could have as much as you wanted, perfect for meat lovers! I really enjoyed it here and can't recommend it enough!

The Lobby at The Polynesian Resory

Have you read what I got up to on day 1 of my Disney trip?

 

MY TOP 5 TRAVEL BUCKET LIST DESTINATIONS

We've all got a bucket list of some sort, so when I booked this year's holiday today, it got me thinking of the other destinations that I'd like to visit. Then I realised I'd never shared them with you!

Japan

Shibuya Crossing [source]

I've seen a few vlogs on Youtube over the years of people visiting Japan and its a country that I'd really like to visit, moreso for their culture. I've never been to a country where I've really felt like I've been in a completely different culture. I want to walk down the streets and around markets and think 'Wow, now that's different!'. Although I've been to many countries in my life, they've all been very touristy, and English. I want to have fun over language barriers, order off a menu where there isn't any English food present, and really feel like I'm in a different country, and I think Japan would be one of them.

I'd want to stay in a traditional Japanese hotel, complete with a proper Japanese bath. I'd love to see if some form of Geisha performance, as well as indulge in some crazy-ass shopping that they have over there, and of course cross the famous Shibuya crossing! This reminds me of Times Square, but on a much larger scale. I love Times Square so I think I'd like this too!

I love the fact that Japan has a mixture of both vibrant city life and the most beautiful scenery one ever did see.

Thailand

[source]

I know this has become overly populated with tourists in the last 5-10 years, and its on most back-packers itinerary, but I'd try and go to the less touristy hotspots, and find my own remote hideaway! Thailand offers the most beautiful beaches (Ko Phangan I'm looking at you!). This is the place to be for the full moon party, and although that looks a little too wild for me, I'd be happy to people watch from afar!

Santorini

[source]

Now I've been to Greece a few times (and I'm heading back there soon!) but there's something about Santorini that catches my eye every time. Those endless infinity pools against the crystal waters of the Aegean sea.. I could jump in every one. I love the white washed hotels/apartments, how they look so clean and bright, all nestled amongst one another on different heights. I love the effect it creates at night, the lamps glowing against the night sky. This would definitely be more of a relaxing holiday for us, something that we don't do very often.

Vancouver, Canada

[source]

Every time I used to think about Canada, I immediately thought 'Niagra Falls'. That was definitely a bucket list of mine, but up until a few months ago, I'd never really looked much further into Canada and what it has to offer. It wasn't until I had a conversation with a colleague who did some travelling a few years ago, and they commented on how beautiful Canada was, in particular Vancouver. I remember them setting the scene and I had a very clear image in my head, and knew I had to google this once I got home. I did this and the image in my head matched what I saw on the screen and they were right, it was beautiful. It was at that moment that I knew I had to visit. And this was that image...

San Francisco, USA

[source]

I've been to USA numerous times, and I've dabbled in a few areas across the states, but I always seem to return to the same places, in particular Florida. San Francisco really appeals to me for a few reasons, first and foremost, Alcatraz. For those that don't know, Alcatraz is a derelict prison in the middle of the sea that closed in 1963. I love anything crime related, and although airy, I can imagine this experience to be really insightful and thought provoking. Secondly, The Golden Gate Bridge. It's iconic and one that I'd love to walk across at night, all lit up. Finally, I'd love to see Lombard Street - purely for photo opportunities of course! Would you dare drive down that crooked street?!

Which destinations are on your bucket list? I'd love to know!

Disney Day 1: Our First Character Dining Experience & Frozen Ever After!

Our first full day in Disney saw us heading to Epcot for our first ever character dining experience. Me and Mike, with no kids, both not great conversationalists, I was a little worried, but really wanted to do it because.. well, it's Disney, need I say more?!

We arrived at Garden Grill which is a slow rotating restaurant. The food was A-mazing! A gorgeous warm tear-away cinammon bun arrived, with fresh bowls of tropical fruit, then a pan full of bacon, sausages, potato croquettes and mickey waffles followed. SO good! Pluto decided to throw salt sachets all over our table, and we also posed for photos with Mickey and Chip & Dale. Big kids, I know.

These singers sung Christmas carols and they were amazing!

We made our way around The World Showcase, and sampled the Frozen Ever After ride in the process (a fast pass is definitely need for this!). Although I'm not a huge Frozen fan, the design of this ride gave me goosebumps, but I wont spoil it for those that are due to go! It was so nice having a casual stroll through all the 'countries' at a leisurely pace instead of rushing round trying to cram everything in like we had done previous years. I suppose that's one of the advantages of going a few times, the visits get more and more laid back the more times you go. It enabled us to go into little nooks and crannies that I didn't realise existed before.

We had a quick service meal at Lotus Blossom Café in the China pavilion, this is always a good call. Their honey glazed chicken is perfection. We made use of our memory maker and took lots of photos next to all the huge Christmas trees, lit up in the dark. Everywhere looked magical

Tired from our first full day, combined with jet lag, we left Epcot around 8pm and headed back to the hotel for a chilled night.

Stay tuned for day 2!

Goodbye NYC, Hello Orlando!

Hopefully you're all up to date with my NYC adventures! For those that aren't regular followers on either my twitter or instagram may not know that my trip to America was divided into 3 parts, and the second leg of the journey saw us visiting one of my most favourite places, Florida.

 

Sunday 4th December we packed up our suitcases and was out the hotel by 8am. We jumped on our arranged coach transfer and headed back to JFK. We grabbed some breakfast in a swish restaurant that required us to order our food from an ipad (small things...) and then took the 2.5hr flight down to Orlando. 

Temperatures were a lot hotter in Orlando than NYC, so off came the jumpers and coats, and on went the shorts! We grabbed our hire car and drove the short distance to our Disney hotel, Coronado Springs. Upon arrival I was completely blown away by the hotel and the decor. Everything looked so pretty and festive! Gorgeous Christmas garlands adorned the entrance, whilst a huge twinkling Christmas tree greeted us in reception. We checked in and was given our much-awaited magic bands! We then went on to check into our room which was lovely. The best bit? Everytime you turned the TV on you were presented with Cinderellas castle, complete with Disney music. Ahhhh... take me back. 

Coronado Springs Entrance

We then had a wander round the hotel grounds, admired the huge lake and how it glistened in the sun and discovered that we had our own pool near to our room, on top of the main one across the lake. 

Later that evening we headed to Animal Kingdom Lodge ready for our evening meal at Sanaa. We were quite early so we walked out to the savannah and sat around a fire pit on wooden rocking chairs. We were provided with night-vision binoculars which enabled us to see into the dark savannah to see if we could spot any animals. I spied a few zebra and giraffe! We then wandered round AKL and admired their decor - this is definitely a hotel for animal lovers. Lots of wooden interior, tribal-esque fabrics, people playing the bongos - lots of African vibes going on. 

 

Animal Kingdom Lodge Lobby

We then ate at Sanaa and ordered the famous bread that everyone and their dog talks about. That came with 9 different dips and completely covered our table. Shortly after, our mains arrived. I didn't know where to look - food overload! We must have looked like pigs to onlookers! The meat was so soft and just fell apart in your mouth, its definitely up there with some of the best meat I've ever tasted. After admitting defeat and landing in a food coma, we drove back to our hotel for an early night, ready for a first action-packed day! 

 

Bread starters at Sanaa

 

New York Day 4 - Times Square, Chelsea Market & Black Tap

Our last full day in NYC before jetting off to warmer climates!

We got up early and headed straight to Times Square and took some photos on the red stairs (that were previously so busy we didn't even bother trying).

 

I then wanted to go and check Chelsea Market out after doing some instagram stalking and falling in love with their decorations. Unfortunately the decorations had since changed, and although still pretty, wasn't half as impressive as the photos I saw. Still, I loved the markets atmosphere and its quirky features, wooden flooring and unique independent stalls. There were tonnes of international food stalls here and I really wanted to sample some food but we'd planned on going to Black Tap afterwards for lunch, so I didn't want to spoil my dinner!

The previous day we had trekked up and down Tribeca/China Town (much to Mike's annoyance) to find this famous Black Tap restaurant (where I saw photos of the most awesome milkshakes), however we didn't have any luck, so this day I was determined to track down the one remaining restaurant we were still yet to find (there are 2 Black Taps in NYC). Luckily we found it, however had to queue. Mike wasn't happy that he was queuing for food, but I managed to persuade him to stick with it! Unfortunately, I felt like this restaurant is somewhat over-rated... the milkshakes were brilliant to look at, but the food was pretty average. I'm glad I gave it a shot though.

After this we took a slow walk back to Macy's and I may have made my first ever Macy's purchase.

We then had some chill-out time in the hotel before headed to Carraghers bar (Mike is a Liverpool fan *rollseyes*). We chatted over cocktails (which mine very quickly turned into a lemonade... #toostrong) and reflected over our time in NY.

That's it for my NY diaries! Stay tuned where on Day 5 we move across to Florida for some Disney fun!

Have you read Day's 1-3 of my NY trip?
Day 1 - Lady Lib, Lashing Rain & Lights
Day 2 - Top of the Rock, Grand Central & Ice Skating in Central Park
Day 3 - Central Park, Ghostbusters & Saks 3D Light Show

New York Day 3 - Central Park, Ghostbusters & Saks 3D Light Show

Our third day in NY we explored what was soon to become my favourite place in NY - Central Park. This place is bigger than any park you could ever imagine. I only wish we had more time to spend there, but unfortunately we had other places that we needed to see.

It really is so strange - you're in a park, which has been plonked in the middle of the busiest city in the world, and yet it really feels like you're a million miles away. We learnt on one of our bus tours that most people who live in NYC don't have gardens, therefore they use Central Park as their garden as a way to chill and get away from the chaos of the city. There are so many nooks and crannies to be explored here. Cute little bridges over streams of water, lakes to view, rocks to climb, tourist spots (i.e. John Lennon's Imagine, Alice in Wonderland etc). I'd love to visit here in the summer and take a picnic along.

In the afternoon we headed to Soho, a place where a lot of celebrities reside. We were advised to keep our eyes peeled! We did a little shopping (and I made my very first Victoria Secrets purchase!). After wandering around trying to hunt down a certain restaurant, we gave up, and headed to Tribeca instead, which is home to Ghostbusters Fire Station. Unfortunately it was full of scaffolding, which obviously didn't make great photos for Mike! We (very briefly) explored China Town before making our way back to Midtown.

We finally saw the Rockefeller Christmas Tree at night, lit up in all its glory. Wow, it was impressive! Below we watched people ice-skating, and in the background the famous Home Alone theme tune was playing. It finally felt like Christmas in NY! We headed round the corner to see the most amazing 3D light show on the front of Saks. It was so pretty! This played every 10 minutes so you definitely wouldn't miss it if visiting near Christmas!

We headed back to Times Square and I finally managed to experience my first ever meal at Bubba Gumps! The wait was so worth it!

Stay tuned for our last full day in NYC!!

Have you read what we got up to on day 1 and day 2 ?

December Round - Up - NYC, Walt Disney World & Christmas!

Can I start by saying how gutted I am that I missed my November round-up. I had kept this going all year, however I was in NYC at the back-end of November into December, and my holiday continued from there, so I really didn't get chance. I guess I could do it now, but that would just feel wrong! Safe to say, the majority of it was quiet in the run-up to my USA stint, then it became manic with packing and last minute errands to do before we jetted away!

However today we're here to round up December.. WOW, what a month that was! As November turned into December I was in NYC (hopefully you're keeping up with the posts?!). On 4th December we left NY and jetted off to Florida for 12 nights in Disney. I had the time of my life, but that's self-explanatory really isn't it? Then, after 12 nights we jumped in the car and headed to Clearwater, which is just passed Tampa. We stayed in the most luxurious hotel right on the beach, and we had the perfect ocean view. After 2.5 weeks of chaotic but fun action, this was our down time, a time to recharge our batteries. We had slow days which mainly consisted of eating, sleeping, enjoying the beach with its gorgeous powder white sand (it really does feel like powder over there!), and not forgetting the shopping.

NYC at Christmas!



Universal Studios, Orlando



Room with a view, Clearwater

A few days before Christmas we landed back in the UK, and I finished off the remainder of my Christmas shopping. Our Christmas was really quiet, we spent it at my mums then just slobbed out infront of the TV, just me and Mike cosied up by the fire with food surrounding us. We really needed a quiet one this year after the 3 weeks we had just spent away!
After having a month (yes, one month!) off work, I came crashing back down with a thud when I went in on the in-between days of Christmas & New Year. Luckily it was so quiet and really laid back with only me in the office, so it was a nice way to ease myself back in!

Again, NYE was very quiet, but I'm old now, and I've grown out of all that partying business. Me & Mike drove to another town for an Indian meal, which was so good. We then got back home at 11, saw the New Year in, then I was taxi service for my mum and her partner who went to a NYE ball - Yes, a daughter picking her mum up from a NYE party. How does that work?! I think I need to reassess my life.

Keep your eyes peeled for blog posts that will walk you through my recent holiday to America! NY posts have already begun!

New York Day 2 - Top of The Rock, Grand Central & Ice Skating in Central Park!

After a rainy first day, a new day brought sunny clear skies which enabled us to do plenty more sightseeing!
We headed down to see the Rockefeller Christmas Tree which had been turned on the night before. It was huge, although admittedly didn't look as pretty in the day. We watched people ice-skating before making our way up Rockefeller Center to see the famous skyline. You could see for miles (and miles!) and viewing this famous scene that I've seen on so many photos and films really didn't seem real. We went as high as we could and took lots of photos, obviously! Such perfect weather for viewing too! Next time I'd love to see this at night.

We then headed to the NY Public Library. This was mainly for Mike as he's a Ghostbusters fan, and it's where a few shots were filmed. Honestly, this place is beautiful. The architecture was so grand and the ceilings were works of Art. The whole place was just full of history. I'd love it to be my local library! It was strange seeing people actually studying in there (I didn't actually realise it was still a working library, even though the clue is in the name!).

Entrance to NY public library

 

Library ceilings

After this we walked round the corner and checked out Grand Central Station. Again, it was like I was in the movies because I'd seen this place so many times in so many movies. There's a huge concourse of cafes and little shops on the ground level so we grabbed some lunch there and sampled the famous Magnolia Bakery!

After lunch we headed back to the hotel to rest our weary feet for a few hours. In the evening we jumped on the bus and headed to Central Park and did some ice-skating at The Woolman Ice Rink. Mike was really worried about ice-skating because he hadn't done it in about 20 years, however he loved it (gutted I didn't get the falls on camera though!). Keep your eyes peeled for some ice-skating footage that will be coming soon!

That brings us to the end of Day 2! Stay tuned for more glorious NY sights in day 3!