A Red Taxi? Wow...I LOVE America! A June 2016 TR

Sorry for the radio silence. I've been plenty busy with my upcoming move to NYC and now I finally have the time to sit and write out this TR. Thanks for your patience.

Tuesday, June 14th

Suhad and I woke up bright and early. We couldn't contain our excitement! So we woke up the boys, got dressed, grabbed our lanyards, trading pins, backpack, and walked towards the car. The boys ate muffins and we pulled into to see this:



As soon as we made our way to the TTP, my gas light came on. I had a mini panic attack that on the way out, I'd get stuck with an empty tank in gridlock traffic. Then I saw the gas station and made a mental note to make sure I stopped there on the way out as soon as I could! By 8:30am, we were parked in the Simba lot (in about row 16 or so). We hopped on the tram towards the transportation. At this point we realized Omar had left his pins in the car. Oh well... we were in no mood to turn back so only Qais participated in the trading.

Unfortunately, the monorail wasn't up and running by then so we ended up taking the ferry . We were the very first in the row to board the next ferry and the very first group on/off the ferry.



And once boarded, this was our view:

The whole process seemed to actually take an hour so we ended up missing rope drop but were in the park by 9:30am!

The very first area we had planned to visit was Tomorrowland. We went straight to Buzz and we all enjoyed the healthy competition.



Then it was onwards to Space Mountain. The line was moving quickly but we did get to play a bit in the queue and we liked the blaster game. Qais, the child that has never been on a coaster in his life, insisted on the front seat. The four of us loaded up and absolutely HAD. A. BLAST. Once we stepped foot off Space Mountain, Suhad was in total awe, Qais was overjoyed and feeling very brave, and Omar was astounded. I mean, it really was the perfect reaction. I think this was everyone's favorite ride at the Magic Kingdom. I just wish we had a picture of us on it. But oh well, the memories are most certainly there!

After being on a ride-high, we walked towards the Tomorrowland Speedway. The posted time said 20 minutes but it was a total walk-on - score! Qais got to drive and loved it!

I thought it was a snoozefest. The ride is aimed for younger kids clearly and if a driver ahead of you is driving slowly, you are stuck behind them the whole time and instructed not to bump them. Also, they're very hard to control but also go super slow - what gives? This is something I think people with older kids can definitely skip. Especially if they've ever done go-karts or even bumper cars. Qais, having never experienced anything like it, did enjoy himself, though.

I figured we'd try to squeeze in one more ride before our first FP+ (for 7DMT) so we headed towards Fantasyland. We saw the line for Small World was only 10 minutes so we hopped on. We got front row seats and Suhad in particular loved taking pictures and spotting the different countries. I haven't been on this ride in about 20 years but I was glad to see that it was still cute.




When we saw the goodbye signs in all the languages, we tried to quickly look for the Arabic one... it took us a few seconds to realize that it was all phonetic and not in Arabic script! It made total sense of course and we're glad we caught the ma'a salama


We then decided it was the perfect time to use our Mine Train FP+. Our window was between 10:20 - 11:20am and I believe we got in the line around 11:00 and the wait wasn't too in FP+. I must say though, I was so impressed with the technology on this ride! The dwarves looked incredibly realistic and life-like. We all were big fans of this ride

We had gotten so much done in such a short period of time that we decided that a little break was in order.

Up next: Tom Sawyer island....

macraven said:

This info is too late now for you but to have the balloon peeps come to your table you tell your server
They would have directed them to your table

That is how we have always done it at there

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Oh well. Now I know!

I'm late getting here, but wanted to let you now I've finally migrated over and reading along. It's a great start so far.....your pictures are great, the write ups are awesome, and your love for your friend and her boys is so evident in your posts . What an incredible experience for them, and I'm so sorry (especially for Suhad) that the anticipation and excitement en route was marred by the tragic Orlando.

You are an incredible friend to help make this happen for Suhad and her family. I can't wait to read about the rest of your vacation.

Best of luck on the upcoming move! I hope your transition from DC to NYC is a smooth one .

Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina said:

I'm late getting here, but wanted to let you now I've finally migrated over and reading along. It's a great start so far.....your pictures are great, the write ups are awesome, and your love for your friend and her boys is so evident in your posts . What an incredible experience for them, and I'm so sorry (especially for Suhad) that the anticipation and excitement en route was marred by the tragic Orlando.

You are an incredible friend to help make this happen for Suhad and her family. I can't wait to read about the rest of your vacation.

Best of luck on the upcoming move! I hope your transition from DC to NYC is a smooth one .

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So glad to have you joining in, Gina! And thanks for the kind words

Nice update!!

You must be so busy with all your plans........we're still here reading though.........

Your pictures are lovely as always........Qais looks to really be enjoying driving there.........

Subbed! You gotta love that Pixie Dust!

schumigirl said:

Nice update!!

You must be so busy with all your plans........we're still here reading though.........

Your pictures are lovely as always........Qais looks to really be enjoying driving there.........

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Thank you! Yes, moving is pretty overwhelming. I should be back to normal next week

johnaalexis said:

Subbed! You gotta love that Pixie Dust!

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So great having you reading along!

Hi everyone! I apologize for abandoning this report back in July. I had just moved to NYC, started a new program and had a TON of work for it. Gone are the days of me checking the Dis religiously

But the other day I was thinking about my trip and that I never did come here to finish it. Heck, I never even got to the part about Universal! So I figured I'd jump back in here now that winter break is coming up.

Tuesday, June 14th (continued)

We headed over to Tom Sawyer Island and the boys explored a bit. I have to say though, we weren't overly impressed. It seemed like parts of it were closed and there wasn't much to do. Suhad and I enjoyed a little break at the picnic tables though. There were families eating picnic lunches nearby who were feeding the squirrels which meant they were very comfortable coming up to us to beg for food

At some point, Qais wanted an ice cream. It melted and was a total mess but the child was happy.



The boys grew tired of Tom Sawyer island so we made our way over to our Splash Mountain FP for 11:35 - 12:35. We were surprised as Qais wanted to sit up front again. We all LOVED it. It was as good as I had remembered it. It was here that we learned that Qais was a huge fan of water rides.



Right after we did our FP for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and we enjoyed that too but it seemed that everyone preferred Space Mountain.

Afterwards we had some lunch. We went to the nearby Golden Outpost for chicken nuggets and waffle fries. We all enjoyed the meal and the fries were extra crispy - it was like it was coated in cornmeal or something.



While at lunch, I opened up my phone and made our 4th fast pass of the day for Pirates. We had an hour or so before the window opened so we decided to head over to Haunted Mansion. As many told us, the line was a lot of fun (but it was a long, hot wait with a wide queue, making it kind of inefficient to shuffle people in). Omar and I were impressed with the ride (it felt similar to one I've done at Busch Gardens, I think) while Qais was legitimately afraid. Poor kid!

Then off to pirates! We enjoyed it some - it wasn't as great as I remembered it being as a kid. Oh well. We did enjoy the gift store though and Qais liked posing (sorry for the rotated picture).



Once we got off the ride I immediately made a FP for Mickey's Philharmagic. I figured we'd get out of the heat. In the mean time we all got snacks. I got a dole whip and the boys got some sort of slushies. It was around here that we saw the spitting camel that Qais totally loved. Boy is this kid a fish!



Then onto Philharmagic. We LOVED it. I was not expecting it to be anything special (I was thinking boring Fantasia (sorry for anyone who likes it)) but it was terrific! There was a little girl behind us who shrieked, shouted and aah'ed and her reactions made the show that much better. Qais recognized all the characters so it was a win for him, too!

We were able to make a FP immediately for Peter Pan nearby and we did that. I can't remember if Qais even knew the story but it was still cute. Then I was able to make another immediate FP (our 7th of the day) for the Laugh Floor. OMG it was so good! Another unexpected one that we absolutely loved! It was truly hilarious. Qais however didn't understand much of any of it and was petrified the entire time thinking they would call on him and he wouldn't understand. We weren't in a row that gets called on so he was in the clear but poor guy.

Afterwards we wandered around Tomorrowland and we were all pretty tired. We were genuinely ready to go home (we did almost everything we wanted to do) but parking and getting to the car would be a huge pain and a big waste of money for us so we decided to stick it out. Qais wanted to ride Astro Orbiters so we did that while Omar sat it out. When we met back up with Omar, he was having a blast at the Incredibles dance party. He saw some other teenage boys joining in on the fun and it helped build up his confidence to dance a bit.

Qais and Suhad heading back to re-do the Speedway while Omar and I sat it out. Qais got to drive a car solo!

After the ride, everyone was getting a bit cranky. Omar had developed a rash from the walking in the heat and Qais wanted every single thing he saw. Suhad's patience was wearing thin as Qais was experiencing serious sensory overload. Even the little, silliest toys were a want for him - while I realize this happens with kids, Qais has never seen these types of toys before. Toys out of his age category were of interest to him. It was almost as if he was regressing into a 5 year old.

To prevent distraction, we headed over for one last ride on Splash Mountain. The posted wait said 40 minutes but we definitely waited about an hour. Omar sat this one out again. Exiting out of Splash, we winded up near Pecos Bill where we planned to watch the Electrical parade. Then we realized that this was the section for the end of the parade and we didn't feel like waiting so we hurried over to Main Street to catch it instead.

This is where things really went downhill. Qais wanted the light up toys so badly. Suhad told him no repeatedly and the look on Qais' face when he saw toddlers with those toys was so sad. She got frustrated with Qais and his wanting everything. So we just decided to eat something and head out. Casey's for hotdogs as it was right there. I think Suhad was so exhausted that she didn't even want anything. I had a chili cheese dog which took forever so I was given a free mickey straw. I enjoyed the hotdog thoroughly and we decided it was time to go. No fireworks for us.



While leaving, Suhad felt horrible for Qais and bought him a balloon and light saber. Probably not the best souvenirs in terms of what would last and what fits in a suitcase, Suhad. But Qais was as happy as a clam.

We got into the car, pulled into Disney's gas station (I don't remember the price being too bad) and headed home. Qais fell asleep in the car. We put the boys to bed and Suhad and I had a chat. She felt both guilty and sad for Qais. She recognized that his lack of exposure to anything outside of his country was directly her fault. Qais wanted everything he saw because every single thing was new and exciting to him. Suhad resolved to make the next 2 days easier for him to manage by allowing him to buy a small gift each day. We knew that at universal, we didn't need to rush and we could take our time because we had Unlimited Express passes.

Up next... the best day ever at Islands of Adventure!

Yay
Glad you're back to finish your trippie.

Glad you came back to us!

tink1957 said:

Yay
Glad you're back to finish your trippie.

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macraven said:

Glad you came back to us!

Click to expand...

Glad to have you both reading along again!

Wednesday, June 15th

Today we woke up and took the ferry to IOA. There was a line but we eventually got there. We headed immediately to Forbidden Journey to get in line. At first, we thought the line was moving nicely, but many ride breakdowns later, it took quite a while. Wow! The theming in here was great once you got into the castle. We did feel like we needed to rush through though as the line moves quickly at the best parts. What is with that phenomenon? I do wish there was a TM helping guide people so that we actually got to queue in the castle and not just outside. Anyway. Back to the ride. WE LOVED IT. It was incredible! Easily one of my favorite rides of all time. I shrieked and screamed the whole time having no idea what to expect next. Truly fantastic!



Afterwards we headed to Dragon Challenge. I had done this one before it became a HP ride so I knew what to expect. We rode the blue dragon. Everyone thought it was fun but Qais was not expecting the loops at all. He said he liked it but didn't want to try it again.

At this point we were able to take it really slow and just do things as we saw them. Gotta love Universal for that! We decided to make our way towards Jurassic World.



We headed to Jurassic Park and did that ride (we all got wet but not too soaked). We all loved it although the dinosaur wasn't nearly as scary as it used to be years ago. They must've changed something. I tried to get the boys to enjoy the jurassic playground but after Tom Sawyer, they weren't even interested. It was a shame though because I think they would've liked it much better.

The best part of the entire trip was when we did Ripsaw Falls. This was Qais' favorite ride of them all. As you all know, you always get soaked and Qais spent the entire time laughing his head off as we all got drenched. After we did the rapids ride which we all enjoyed.

Lunch time! The boys were ravenous as they didn't really have breakfast. I tried to convince everyone to go back to Hogsmeade for lunch but they were too hungry to keep walking. So those 3 ate at Thunder Falls Terrace - Qais got a hotdog, Omar and Suhad got burgers. I was hellbent on eating at Three Broomsticks so off I went. I got the fish & chips and walked back with them to Thunder Falls. I did eat a lot of my food as I was walking.



Once we were all together, we were still soaked and we headed towards Spider Man and took some pictures along the way. As for Spider Man, we all loved it. It was just as good as I had remembered it last! Then Omar wanted to try out Dr. Doom so we all went and Qais sat out. I really didn't like this ride. The shoot off was fine but the descent made me a bit nauseous as it was jerky.



Poor Suhad. It's funny 'cause it's true...


At this point it was around 1:45pm and we decided to take a break at the hotel. Qais and Omar swam while Suhad and I had pina coladas (yum!). We joined the boys in the pool shortly after. Qais (who really cannot swim but just stands and jumps) really wanted to teach his mom to swim. Suhad was pretty awful at it and we were all in hysterics. I was so glad we picked RPR because the pool was the perfect amount of shallow for our non swimmers.



As the sun was winding down, Qais and Omar wanted to hang back at the resort. Qais wanted to swim all day and Omar's rash from the day before was still hurting him and he didn't want to keep walking. So just me and Suhad headed back to IOA.

Wow we got so much done without the kiddos and we had such a blast!

We started with another go on Spider Man. So fun! Afterwards we waited in line for Kong. This was still soft opening time so the line was all over the place and very long. We took pictures in the queue to keep ourselves busy. I guess we were having a lot of fun because I ended up losing my sunglasses. Anyway, we did think the ride was well done.



We headed to Hogsmeade where Suhad was dying for Forbidden Journey round 2. But first I grabbed a cold butterbeer (which I surprisingly liked) and a pumpkin juice. We got in the single rider line and rode twice in a row right as the park was closing. We quickly popped into Olivander's to see the wand show and a 13 year old boy was selected. Olivander's acting was pretty convincing but the animatronics felt a bit off.



We were going to do dinner downtown but Suhad wanted to check in on the kids first. They were doing fine and watching movies and playing games. Omar had even made them a few sandwiches so they were fed. Suhad and I walked around the resort trying to find a place to eat but the kitchen closed practically everywhere we wanted to eat. I thought it was so odd. Is 10pm really that late when on vacation? I didn't think so. We ended up at Jake's which was the only place open. I ordered a Chinese chicken salad (which I believe came from a different restaurant but they still said they could accommodate that). Turns out my "salad" was a plate of cabbage with no chicken. I wasn't super pleased and the server apologized and gave me the salad free of charge. We thought that was a nice of him.



Phew! A long day ended.

Up next.... the next day at Universal Studios

Thursday, June 16th

Today was our last day. I checked us out while the boys ate some cereal cups in the lobby (classy, I know). Oh! And here's that light saber from Disney.



We left our things with the bell hop so as to not have our belongings in the boiling sun all day. We took the ferry today to Universal Studios. There was no early entry and we were there by 9:30am.



We walked towards Diagon Alley. We had trouble finding it! That's a really great sign, I thought! Wow! They did an amazing job with the theming here. It felt so intimate and realistic. We went straight to Gringotts where the line wasn't too bad compared to FJ yesterday. While we enjoyed Gringotts (we were in the first car, first row), we thought FJ was better!

We didn't spend more time in DA, which I really regretted but oh well, there's always next time! We went to Men In Black which I remember loving but I thought it was just ok. I'm probably bitter because my gun was malfunctioning.

Then we went on Mummy. WOW! This is easily our favorite ride here at Universal Studios. The fire, the animations, all so fun!

Afterwards it was onto Transformers. It started to rain a bit - the first time since we'd been here! As such, the line was pretty lone even with EP. Suhad loved Transformers. The rest of us thought it was a crappier version of Spider Man. Anyone else feel this way?

We were debating what to do next and Suhad was itching for another ride on Mummy so off we went. Qais said he wasn't sure if we wanted to go again (we think the mummy's scared him a bit) but he came on anyway. We were equally as thrilled with our second ride.

The boys were hungry again which of course meant we had to stop to feed them so we went to Monster's Cafe as it was close. I knew the food wouldn't be great here so I passed on real food and instead got a mac n' cheese. The boys ate burgers with no complaints. I would skip this mac n cheese - it was flavorless.



Next we went on Shrek, which we all enjoyed and then Minions, which was adorable. We even got to meet one afterwards but Omar thought he was too cool to join in on the picture.



Then we tried Riptide Rocket. I think after dueling dragons, Qais was having none of the looping coasters so he sat this one out. Omar almost lost his lanyard on this ride (and his glasses) and we all left feeling a bit off. I was surprised because I usually handle coasters like a pro but this one wasn't a blast for me.

We went to the Spongebob store where Qais was happy to take some photo-ops. (Sorry for the blurry ones!)



Then Suhad and Qais went off to explore Fievel's playground. I wish we had brought swim gear for him because he ended up soaked. But nothing a little Flordia summer heat can't dry. Omar checked his phone and I had a churro while we waited for them. Next it was onto ET. What a letdown! It's so outdated and apparently I was the only one to have ever seen the movie. My childhood memories of ET saying my name were quickly crushed when every single name he said sounded like a jumbled up mess. Oh well, at least I still have those memories as a kid.

We headed over to Springfield where Qais and Omar had donuts and ice-cream and I had the korean beef tacos from the Bumble Bee truck. Suhad got popcorn. We were all satisfied. I wouldn't get the tacos again though.



After we ate, we went on the Simpsons ride. I was't impressed. I felt horrifically nauseous but it seemed the others were okay. Qais wanted to take his "under arrest" picture here in Springfield.



At the end of this action-packed day, we all agreed we were DONE and ready to head to the beach to relax. We took a few more pictures as we headed out.




We went back to RPR, got our things, loaded up the car and were off to Clearwater by 2pm.

A note about US and IOA. Qais was WORLD's BETTER here behavior wise and with wanting things. We very much think it's because these parks are designed for older kids and there were nearly as many gimmicky things being sold at every single turn. It was such a relief.

Up next.... onto Clearwater!

Nice qais enjoyed the parks fine

Sorry you didn't enjoy the rides

I like them all except for RRR




Now onto the next portion of your vacation at Clearwater!

macraven said:

Nice qais enjoyed the parks fine

Sorry you didn't enjoy the rides

I like them all except for RRR




Now onto the next portion of your vacation at Clearwater!

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I actually enjoyed most of them! ET just wasn't as good as I remembered and RRR, Dr. Doom and Simpsons made me unusually queasy. But Mummy, Spiderman and Forbidden Journey are some of my all-time favorites I've ever been on.

Thursday, June 16th - Monday, June 20th

After a tiring day at the park, we got in the car around 3:00 and headed to Clearwater. The boys slept a bit and the drive was easy peasy!
More pixie dust was thrust upon us when we got to the hotel room...

We had an ocean view! Qais freaked out with sheer joy seeing how close we were to the water! He also loved the room and the armchair in there and declared himself king of the hotel


The boys were still tired so we left them in the room with Omar in charge and wifi on the phone so he could call us if he needed anything. We set out to run some errands and grab them dinner. After spending so much in Orlando, Suhad wanted to cut back a bit on spending so we made a stop to Target where we bought some instant mac n cheese cups, cereal and sandwich fixings. We also threw in some beach toys for Qais

We picked up Mellow Mushroom pizza for the boys and they were thoroughly happy with it. We went back out just the two of us to grab something else. We settled on Buffalo Wild Wings. I hadn't been in such a long time and I knew Suhad would go crazy for their super spicy wings. Turns out Thursday was Boneless wing Thursday so we basically only paid 1/2 price. This was more luck than it was pixi dust but the kitchen in the back goofed up a bit and we got an entire extra order of wings for free! Suhad LOVED the wings and the vibe here and I assured her we'd come back on her next trip to the US!

FRIDAY

We woke up and Suhad and I had some breakfast (the boys slept in a bit) and we got dressed for the beach. We sat out there for just a bit and then it POURED So we walked back to our hotel (drenched) and chilled at the pool instead. It's an outdoor pool right next to the parking garage (so nothing glamorous to see there) but Qais was in love. Did I mention he's a fish? The sun came out and Suhad's husband's cousins who live in Tampa came by to say hi. It was nice to see some familiar faces. The sun was strong again and I got a nice tan today which I was super happy about.

After a day of just swimming and relaxing, the boys had dinner in the room and Suhad and I went out to eat. We were going to bring them along but they were both totally content with hanging in the room.

We ate at Freddy's and Suhad had popcorn shrimp and I had the Cajun grouper sandwich. We shared an order of hush puppies (I think they had jalapeño mmmm). I highly recommend if you're in Clearwater! Plus, you can never go wrong with grouper!


After our dinner we came back to the hotel to see Qais and Omar back in the pool. Qais was in heaven , Omar had to be dragged out there with the promise of hanging out without his kid brother afterwards

Omar and I walked by the pier and saw a cool act - The Dallas and Nick show. Omar and I really enjoyed it! They're a father-son duo who tell hilarious jokes and do cool tricks. To my surprise, Omar got most of the jokes - including the ones intended for adults . We tipped the guys for putting on such a good show for the massive crowd and then went for ice cream at Kilwins. It was really very good ice cream and afterwards we walked home.

SATURDAY

Seems like that's the last of my pictures and notes so I'll have to go off of memories now

We spent the day at the beach and the cousins joined us. Everyone was in good spirits because hellooooo you're at the beach how can you not! Then the cousins invited us to dinner where we had a real Middle Eastern feast. The boys enjoyed some comfort food! After a nice long dinner, we went back to the hotel to pack up for our departure the next day.

SUNDAY

On Sunday we were on the road nice and early heading towards Florence, SC. It was a bit drizzly the whole way and pretty windy. The good news was that Qais had a better understanding of how far we'd need to drive to get back home so there were minimal "Are We There Yets". The bad news was that while driving, Qais threw up in my car. I don't know for sure, as I don't have kids and I haven't thrown up in a while, but can't you feel it when you're queasy? Don't you know when you're about to barf? Shouldn't one ask for a bag? Anyway, he puked on poor Omar's backpack and all over himself and the smell was unbelievably horrid. I pulled over to the side and Suhad dealt with the clean-up while standing in a light drizzle. We quickly went to a gas station and Suhad chucked the entire backpack and its contents in the trash. Thankfully we had only another hour or 2 to Florence .

Just to clarify, I wasn't really annoyed by Qais for throwing up - he's a child and it happens. I just thought he would warn us as we told him hundreds of times to. I was more annoyed at Suhad who didn't give Qais the drammamine I predicted he'd need. She didn't think he'd need it because he hadn't thrown up on any rides at all and figured the car would be fine.

So first thing we did was check into the hotel, drop off the kids and high tail it to Target. Suhad bought foaming car cleaner, rags and spray. The car smelled so much better.Then we went to Chipotle for a quick dinner before crashing in our beds.

MONDAY

The next morning we woke up and hit the road . The car still stank when we got in but it was worlds better. Our drive was fairly uneventful - we stopped at Sonic for a quick lunch and arrived back in DC by 3:00pm-ish. I took my car in for a professional deep cleaning and all was good as new

MY FINAL THOUGHTS

This was a trip of a lifetime for the boys and I was so glad I was able to help plan this for their family! We all had a great time (apart from the vomit incident) sprinkled with a bit of pixie dust and blessed with great weather!

However in hindsight, I don't think I would've done this trip exactly the same way. I quickly learned that Qais was addicted to the water - all he wanted to do was swim (a total luxury for him as he never gets to at home). While he enjoyed himself immensely on the rides, his little heart was constantly drawn back to the pool. I had almost wished I had planned a waterpark-focused trip because I think he would've been in true heaven. So if Im being truly honest, I think a trip to Busch Gardens Williamsburg/Water Country USA (2 hour drive from us) would have been more financially responsible but just as equally appreciated and enjoyed by the crew. Orlando parks proved to be a bit more overwhelming for the kids than anyone could have anticipated - for Qais and overstimulation inside the parks, and for Omar and all the walking involved (he was very rashy/was chaffing on the trip, poor guy).

While Busch Gardens may have been a better fit for the kids, Suhad and I genuinely had a blast. I do think Orlando's parks have some of the absolute best rides around and the 2 of us enjoyed them fully. I'm so glad I was able to experience it all with them and at the end of the day, we had a crazy fun time and it was so worth it.

What happened after?...

Well a few days after our trip, we went to NYC! Some highlights and photos:

Visiting the Top of the Rock


Qais sweaty after running around Central Park


Suhad and I had drinks with a view


Suhad takes on Times Square


Omar and I try to escape the room and we fail (mostly because it was just the 2 of us in a room designed for 8 people)



Next up, Suhad's eldest son is coming to the US to start his undergrad degree. Suhad will be joining him this summer to help get him settled! Thinking up another fun trip for the 3 of us to take. Who knows, we may make it back to Orlando after all

To everyone who followed me here and on my PTR, THANK YOU! And an especially big thanks to those of you who shared your wisdom and gave advice!
I know I've lost a ton of my followers when this report dried up, but you guys were the reason I came back to finish this report. You guys are a great community! I'm sure I'll be back when I'm planning my next Orlando trip (possibly with some baby cousins). Wishing everyone a happy and healthy 2017!

Thanks for coming back to finish up your report and for sharing your trip with us.

Love the view from your room in Clearwater.