City, Sand, and Savanna - Link to new trip report

[glennbo123]

Glad to hear that your pizza wasn't bad!! It looks pretty good to me (and I get very picky about pizza! )

It hit the spot….I’m not sure if it was that good, or if we were just really hungry, but we really liked it.

The beach looks really nice (if a bit seaweed-y)!

Yes, not a bad beach, but the seaweed was, how shall I put it? Less than optimal. Like I said in the chapter, I don’t think that was the norm.

Ok - now I have read the update as well! Sounds like a successful arrival day, but the skies look dangerous. Also, I am not so sure what I think about all the seaweed on the beach. There is only one way in which I like my seaweed and that is wrapped around some rice...

It was a very successful arrival day! I think the fact that our room was ready really helped.

The seaweed was not good. There was just as much in the water, and the ladies in my traveling party in particular, did not like it touching their legs and ankles and such.

How strange that the gate by the pizza place was only for getting into Vero - not very convenient...

Later in the week I went out through that gate, so I have no idea why it gave me a problem that day. You’d think that if my key wasn’t working yet, I wouldn’t have been able to get in, but that worked just fine. Weird.

Thank you very much for the update, Glenn! Just the right thing after a weekend business trip with a o lot of translating. I think I will dream of the beach, the sea and pizza tonight!

You’re welcome Katharina! I’m glad you enjoyed it. And I hope the pizza in your dreams didn’t get soggy or sandy…you have to be careful, mixing those things.

Oh that's funny! They do deliver you know..... Still, a fun way to pass the time. We liked the pizza but I don't recall being overwhelmed by it.

I know that now…the guy made a point of telling us. I’m sure they get a lot of business from the resort.

You probably have better local pizza places than we do!

WOW! The difference between that and our photos is a bit mind boggling. What a drag.

I’m really interested to see your pictures now. There had just been some storms, not much you can do.

Very impressive, much better parent than we were, who gave NO such instructions.

Aw well. Next time. I’m sure you kept an eye on them though.

Evan ranked the Vero slide up there on his list...I think it may have come in 3rd, or tied with OKW. I need to ask him again at some point. Eerily similar to our first night grocery run, we left Kendall in charge of the boys at the pool. We did however go to the "other" Publix...which was fine. It also had a liquor store nearby. Simply b/c it was closer but I would have liked to check out Fresh Market.

That’s reassuring then, that you left your kids at the pool too. It wouldn’t have been any fun for them to go on a tour of “the grocery stores of Vero Beach”.

Where we went really seemed like a hike, and then when we ended up going to 2 different grocery stores, it took longer than we thought it should. So, you need to have a good list and make sure you get everything the first time!

I'd agree with the community hall assessment.

It had a fair amount of room for holding activities, but not anything that they could do on their own, like the game tables and video games at Kidani.

I agree on the hanging thing especially. We did ok on the changing somehow but the shortage of hooks seemed really silly to me, there is plenty of space to add more hooks! A 2 bedroom would have been nicer to be sure.

You sound just like Judy….”why can’t they put some more hooks in this place?”

 

[glennbo123]

Oh - and on the topic of pool slides: I think the Clown slide at the Boardwalk is actually pretty spectacular for a regular resort pool slide! I can very much recommend it (and as DVCers you can even legally pool hop to it if it is not a black out period).

I’ve never been to that pool. I’m not even really sure where it is in relation to the Boardwalk. That poor pool takes a lot of grief over that creepy clown, but I’d like to stay there sometime.

It was really good that you had the rip current discussion with your kids. I'm amazed at how often the news down here goes over it. I know that whenever we went down the shore (usually Cape May) my Mom would have the rip current discussion, it was drilled into me.

With the bad weather and the red flag flying, I thought it was a good idea. And actually, my kids haven’t been to the beach much except when they were tykes, so it was new info. for them.

Geoff and I were talking about it after a recent death and he didn't believe me when I was saying "you let it take you out, don't fight it. Then swim parallel to shore until someone notices you." Then they showed it on the news and he believed me...

You have so many stories like that, when is he going to realize that he needs to hang on your every word? I’m sure he knows he’s got a good thing.

Anyway, I'm curious...does Vero Beach have any sit-down restaurants? I saw the Hilton Head DVC doesn't and it makes me curious about Vero. If it does, I'm wondering if it's worth a visit.

Yes, but we didn’t try them out….sorry! Sonya’s is the “fine dining” restaurant and Shutters is more casual, from what I can tell. My sister-in-law (has appeared in a couple of my trip reports) said that Sonya’s is one of her daughter’s favorite restaurants. Cynthia, eandesmom, has a trip report going also and is getting near the Vero Beach portion. I think they tried one or more of the restaurants.

Before I forget...Dead Poet's Society is one of my all time favorite movies.

Have you ever had a movie that you tried to see, but it just didn’t work out? That’s the Dead Poet’s Society for Judy. We went to the theater when it came out and a few minutes in, she started not feeling well. She didn’t want me to miss it, so she went home and then came back to get me after the movie. And now I can’t remember if she stayed up to watch it with the kids…I don’t think so, she can’t stay up late. But I remember that she and Lauren were surprised to see one of the doctors from the tv show “House” as one of the students in the movie.

That pizza looks good! Now I'm hungry.

I wish I had a nickel for every time you posted that after one of my chapters!

The one thing I don't like about big resorts is that they are so big and spread out. They should rent golf carts...

A moped would be great! But Vero isn’t really that big, other DVC resorts are much bigger.

As a little side not...I know I'm a fuddy duddy but it's nice to see your girls in swimsuits that actually have more material than string and a few triangles. I'm always amazed at how little some teenage girls are allowed to go out in..

Thanks Cherie. Fortunately, they’re pretty modest and it’s not a battle for us.

As a kid I always finished exhibitions and museums a lot faster than the rest of the family. Of course they thought I skipped "important" stuff, so they tested me and usually I could answer all their questions But usually I'm too late to read the update. But well, otherwise it would be boring for the other players

I bet I know who quizzed you the most! It has prepared you well for important activities such as this!

Well, even on a Sunday with full picture viewing capabilities, I can't count Judy's fast enough. And - I would have to get my magnifying glass out to count three of those judy's.

Pretty amazing, isn’t it? I thought the Judy’s at the pool would take a while to find.

I liked the Orchid Pizza place when we stayed there. I think we may have ordered take out from there more than once.

Spoiler alert – so did we!

I think you went all "Cynthia" on me with that map of the resort and the multi-colored arrows. Isn't it weird how everything looks far away on the map, when in reality everything is pretty close. We stayed at the south end of the resort.

I was having fun playing with Google Earth. Yes, the resort is not that big…unless you’re looking to refill your drink mug, in which case it’s too far!

I agree that all the grocery stores seem so far away, but I like that they gave us a paper with suggestions.

That was nice, but I didn’t look at it before our grocery run. I had the address written down, ready for the GPS.

I can see where 5 people sharing 1 BR could get a bit difficult.

Great update!

Thanks!

Thanks for sharing your Vero experience with us !! It is very interesting. The 1 BR units remind of Old Key West. The lay out looks the same. Looking forward to reading more !!

Susan

I haven’t stayed at OKW, but a few people have said that.

I think Vero Beach is a great option for DVC members who might be looking for something other than the parks.

Another great update Glenn! Extremely detailed as usual that pizza does look nice, and I don't even like pizza (pause for gasps of surprise)

What? Who doesn’t like pizza???

I can't help but see that your next chapter is a not so subtle reference to previous TR's too.

Sharp eye there, Squidge. It was either a reference to previous TRs, or I’m just not very creative and couldn’t come up with a new name!

That beach looks inviting to me, not to mention the scenery. Where I live beaches mean hypothermia and hypodermic needles...

That’s not good. We used to hear about hypodermic needles washing up on beaches further north, like New Jersey, but I haven’t heard any reports of that for a long time.

But we do share the seaweed problem!

So you’ve got that going for you.

That movie perk sounds really valuable, especially with kids to entertain, I know my parents were glad of a rented movie when I was younger on trips!

Gotta keep the kids entertained!

The shortage of hanging space is a common problem among hotels everywhere it seems. Strange, considering that most places have pools if not beaches. Overall, really interesting, and well worth the wait

The lack of hooks really stood out. Being a beach place, people always have suits and towels and things to hang up, and you’d think the resort wouldn’t want them hanging on the balcony’s where they’re an eyesore.

ETA: I was major impressed that you gave the rip tide demonstration too. Always good to see people respecting nature!

I just didn’t want a bad end to the vacation. And it’s been a while since my kids were at the beach, and when they were, they were at an age where they spent most of their time making sand castles. They needed this info. now that they were going in further.

Marv has no intention to put in any more answers for the contest so you don't have to worry about that. You guys can have all the "fun."

Thank you! But I hope you'll play again another time

Yes…what Katharina said!

 

[glennbo123]

I find this hard to believe. You plan everything!

I don't know what happened. But it's a good lesson to show you the dangers of not planning well.

Wow, couldn't get much closer unless it was right there in your room!

Hey, they should do that -- bring it right to your room!

Love the Family Circus reference!

I felt like Billy, exploring the neighborhood.

Poor guy. Kind of gives you an impression of how that ticket taker at Universal Studios feels when somebody tries to use theie Magic Your Way ticket to get in.

Fortunately, I think he still thought it was a credit card so at least I didn't look like a complete idiot. Only you and I and all these DISers know the truth.

Cool! I'm glad it did have that Disney feel to it. I've always wondered how the Disney touch actually translated over to their non theme park resorts.

Not quite as much as being at WDW, but still a vibe.

Via Napoli.

Delivery from the World Showcase, that'd be good!

The glennbo family...destroying the ozone layer one pizza at a time.

We try to do our part.

That's...weird.

It worked later in the week, so I'm not sure what happened this time. Probably a case of "Operator Error".

Boy, the sense of entitlement these DVC owners have...

You've gotta watch out for 'em.

I can't comment on this. It would be a classic case of pot v. kettle.

Except calling each other "white".

There might be a picture of me on the beach in a future chapter, so keep a welder's mask handy.

I've had to do that a couple of times. That's a lot of work just to get back to shore!

I'm glad to see that you made it back onto dry ground.

Good to know. I should try Kidani's sometime.

Maybe your wife will surprise you and tell you that she's just driving around Delaware and all of a sudden you pass under the WDW "welcome" sign.

Carpe diem!

Dang, I should've worked that into the chapter somewhere. But that's your superpower.

Good to know! I'd love to try these places out sometime.

I hope you do.

 

[MissLiz]

We really enjoyed the pizza at Orchid Island. We also got salad from there because my husband always feels the need to have salad with pizza.

I wanted to drive there when we were going to go there to pick up our pizza, but I was voted down. It's not a terrible walk...even with a three-year-old.

We just got back from the Gulf Coast and we all decided that, while the sand at the beach was softer, the beach/condo on the whole were not as enjoyable as Vero Beach.

 

[onelilspark]

You have so many stories like that, when is he going to realize that he needs to hang on your every word? I’m sure he knows he’s got a good thing.

You'd think he'd learn by now! Thank goodness for Google

Yes, but we didn’t try them out….sorry! Sonya’s is the “fine dining” restaurant and Shutters is more casual, from what I can tell. My sister-in-law (has appeared in a couple of my trip reports) said that Sonya’s is one of her daughter’s favorite restaurants. Cynthia, eandesmom, has a trip report going also and is getting near the Vero Beach portion. I think they tried one or more of the restaurants.

Thanks! I'll check it out!

 

[glennbo123]

We really enjoyed the pizza at Orchid Island. We also got salad from there because my husband always feels the need to have salad with pizza.

Hey, it makes more sense than how all of the pizza places are selling chicken wings now. I don't get that.

I wanted to drive there when we were going to go there to pick up our pizza, but I was voted down. It's not a terrible walk...even with a three-year-old.

No, the walk is fine...I just didn't know my way around yet. And I certainly had no idea where it was when the GPS said 500 feet, other than it was close.

We just got back from the Gulf Coast and we all decided that, while the sand at the beach was softer, the beach/condo on the whole were not as enjoyable as Vero Beach.

That's great. So, you'll be going back sometime? Maybe Vero should import some sand.

You'd think he'd learn by now! Thank goodness for Google

One of these days, I'm confident in him.

Thanks! I'll check it out!

That's so cool that you're close enough to just go try out their restaurants.

 

[natebenma]

Not a bad arrival day!

The pizza looked good enough to hit the spot. Good job with the picture of Orchid Pizza, getting the phone number into your photo for the benefit of future travelers.

Exactly how long did it take to cook the pizza that you had all that time for a Family Circus drive/hike?

Sorry it wasn't much of a beach day when you visited. Good for you for getting into the water, though. The pool and the slide both look really nice, so I'm glad your family could take advantage of that.

Looking forward to reading about more of your beach trip.

 

[KatMark]

I can't comment on individual stuff like I usually try to do as we're in the car driving to the Shell Factory. LOVE your suite, but love your view even more!!!!!!!!

Glad you got some beach time your first day; that is air of seaweed.

 

[scottny]

All caught up.

The first day seemed like a good one. I would like to stay at Vero beach one time.

 

[MissLiz]

Hey, it makes more sense than how all of the pizza places are selling chicken wings now. I don't get that.



That's great. So, you'll be going back sometime? Maybe Vero should import some sand.

Yeah, I don't get the wing thing, either.

We will defintely be going back. We are just trying to find the time. I'm not sure about next year, but we'll see.

 

[glennbo123]

Not a bad arrival day!

It was pretty good -- definitely can't complain.

The pizza looked good enough to hit the spot. Good job with the picture of Orchid Pizza, getting the phone number into your photo for the benefit of future travelers.

It was good! Yep, a great picture for DISers. If someone had done that for me, I might've been able to avoid the Family Circus drive/hike!

Exactly how long did it take to cook the pizza that you had all that time for a Family Circus drive/hike?

I'm not sure, but it was probably only about 20 minutes. It may look like a lot of territory in that satellite picture, but it's really not that far. Plus, I like my pizza to cool just a little bit so that the cheese can set, so I'd almost prefer not to get it right out of the oven.

Sorry it wasn't much of a beach day when you visited. Good for you for getting into the water, though. The pool and the slide both look really nice, so I'm glad your family could take advantage of that.

We were only there for a few days, so had to take advantage of the opportunity.

Looking forward to reading about more of your beach trip.

Great! Thanks.

I can't comment on individual stuff like I usually try to do as we're in the car driving to the Shell Factory. LOVE your suite, but love your view even more!!!!!!!!

Thanks for checking in Kathy. Have a great time with Nicki and Todd.

Glad you got some beach time your first day; that is air of seaweed.

I've been giving Vero the benefit of the doubt and saying that this was an unusual amount of seaweed. Cynthia said there's a big difference with her pictures, so it'll be interesting to see what she reports.

All caught up.

The first day seemed like a good one. I would like to stay at Vero beach one time.

I hope you do Scott. It's worth checking out, for sure.

Yeah, I don't get the wing thing, either.

We will defintely be going back. We are just trying to find the time. I'm not sure about next year, but we'll see.

That's great! I'm not sure when we'll get back. It's convenient because Judy's sister is close-by, but in 2013 we need to let our points catch back up after our borrowing in 2012 , and then we're planning on Aulani in 2014. So it'll be a while, but maybe in a few years.

 

[MissLiz]

We are hoping to get to Aulani next year. I am celebrating an unpleasant milestone birthday and that is the plan. We are waiting to see what the school schedule looks like before we really decide.

We are going to have quite a few points left over for this year that we'll be banking, so we should be able to get a nice long trip...hopefully.

 

[glennbo123]

We are hoping to get to Aulani next year. I am celebrating an unpleasant milestone birthday and that is the plan. We are waiting to see what the school schedule looks like before we really decide.

We are going to have quite a few points left over for this year that we'll be banking, so we should be able to get a nice long trip...hopefully.

A that ends with a 0? I'm in between a couple, and unfortunately leaning toward the higher one.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

We are hoping to get to Aulani next year. I am celebrating an unpleasant milestone birthday and that is the plan. We are waiting to see what the school schedule looks like before we really decide.

We are going to have quite a few points left over for this year that we'll be banking, so we should be able to get a nice long trip...hopefully.

What time of year are you going? I know someone who is planning a Hawaii trip for next year, too.

 

[vamassey1]

I was a little behind.

The pizza did look good! Good thing it was so close.

I'm glad you got some beach and pool time in. We've been to beach when the seaweed is bad too. Yuck! Hate the feel of it, even worse is trying to get it out of the suits.

Looking forward to more.

 

[RGirl]

Enjoyed the update! The beach time looked fun despite the vegetation invasion.

I cannot believe the ground you covered while waiting for that pizza!!

Looking forward to more Vero updates!

 

[MissLiz]

A that ends with a 0? I'm in between a couple, and unfortunately leaning toward the higher one.

Unfortunately, it ends with a 0 and starts with a 4. UGH!!!

I'd be fine with it if my husband wasn't 5 years younger than me and loved to bring that up a lot...and I mean A LOT.

 

[MissLiz]

What time of year are you going? I know someone who is planning a Hawaii trip for next year, too.

Hmm....wonder who that might be? lol

Our two options are late July and late September. If we get the school calendar that we want, it will be the last week in September/first week in October. If we get the school calendar that I believe we will get (with no fall break), we are probably going to go the last week of July.

The good thing about July is that we can go for longer.

So, when is this certain someone thinking of going?

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Hmm....wonder who that might be? lol

Our two options are late July and late September. If we get the school calendar that we want, it will be the last week in September/first week in October. If we get the school calendar that I believe we will get (with no fall break), we are probably going to go the last week of July.

The good thing about July is that we can go for longer.

So, when is this certain someone thinking of going?

Late June. That's when our--I mean, his--15th anniversary is. Already booked the flights so we could use our frequent flier miles!

Currently trying to sucker some DVC owner into renting points for Aulani, but I haven't gotten anyone to take the bait yet.

 

[MissLiz]

Late June. That's when our--I mean, his--15th anniversary is. Already booked the flights so we could use our frequent flier miles!

Currently trying to sucker some DVC owner into renting points for Aulani, but I haven't gotten anyone to take the bait yet.

Nice!!!

I wish we had more points to offer you, I mean, him. Other than the whole 40th birthday thing, I'm really looking forward to it. I wish we had enough miles to get all four of us there.

Congrats on the anniversary, by the way! (I mean, tell your friend....)