Down The East Coast and Back Again. Featuring: The Simpson‘s, The Mouse and Fay

[shadowryter]

We just came home from our “Birthday Trip” on August 28th and I’m still suffering from a cold. There were many good times and some bad times, but I’m getting ahead of myself. First I’d like to introduce my little family.

Linda…(myself) 50ish celebrating a birthday. (Actual B-day 8/20)
Dan…My DH…40ish and just wanting to get away with his family after working 6 months straight even through the holidays.
Heather…Sweet DD…celebrating her 18th birthday. (Actual B-day 9/4...which I was reminded of constantly.)

Trip plan dates: Leaving August 16th ~ Returning August 28th

Where are we going?: Hanover, MD ~ Myrtle Beach, SC ~ St. Augustine, FL ~ Universal Orlando ~ Disney and back again ~ Last stop Fredericksburg, VA before returning home.

Now originally this was suppose to be a short Universal trip (I know. Boo’s and hisses from Disney fans) but I really love Disney too. So one day I saw a Disney special and saw the castle all decked out in sparkling “Winter Lights” and wanted to see it for myself. I pleaded with DH to add at least one day, maybe two to visit the World. So I added three days at Disney in order to see the castle and a try to see if we could do the parks in three days for our Disney three day parks, four day cruise next year. It was a great plan or so I thought. The word “Winter” should have given me a clue, right? So that’s why I booked all my plans for the last two weeks in August. Oh well, they’ll hopefully return next year.

Making this a birthday trip was my idea as I never knew you could celebrate and make it really special at Disney until I found this forum. It would be a lot of fun for DD and me and next year it would be DH’s turn not to mention our 20th anniversary. (Yeah, right. Like he’ll wear a celebration button) Thanks to all of you who helped, suggested and gave me the courage to plan. And plan I did, for eight months in advance, I had everything figured out except maybe Fay (and the Winter Lights.)

We knew this would be a driving experience as I will not fly …not until they have a giant parachute to keep the plane from falling out of the sky. (DH prefers to board the plane and pray until we land) I had us all packed by the beginning of the week, even bringing a bag of shoes, just in case. We had 3 over nites down the coast with 3 days at Universal’s Portofino Bay, followed by 3 days at Disney’s Swan and back North also with 3 over nites. Twelve days. Eight Hotels. (Sounds exhausting now that I think of it.)We left early in the morning as planned and our adventure began.

 

[Pinkpony]

Can't wait to hear more! We're driving this year too....20 hrs.!

 

[shadowryter]

Saturday ~ Aug 16th

We were on the road by 7am. DD and I switched drivers every two hours and rotated the passenger side with DD so she didn’t have to see the whole trip from the backseat. We stopped for a quick break to switch drivers and to gas up the SUV at the Molly Pitcher Service Area along the Jersey Turnpike and later stopped for lunch at the Maryland House SE where we filled our own tanks with pecan Cinnabon’s and some kind of gooey, frozen, coffee concoction. After a total of some 380 miles, we arrived in Hanover, Maryland our traditional first stop.


The Hampton Inn & Suites Arundel Mills can be a bit pricey depending on the time of year but a great stopover. After checking in, we hit the local Golden Corral, a first for us. DH and DD loved it but I was too full from an earlier stop at Cinnabon’s. After dinner, we parked the car at the hotel and walked to the mall across the street. Huge mall, lot’s of great stores and a Medieval Times at one end, a must do if you are ever in the area.


We must have spent at least an hour or more at the Outdoor World. DH likes to fish and I just had fun taking some pic’s of the extensive displays they had. The next morning after a plentiful breakfast and coffee at the hotel I saw a news report that Hurricane Fay was headed for Miami but is was now downgraded to a tropical storm. My brother lives there so I was worried. We’re headed to Orlando and the last hurricane I can remember that hit Central Massachusetts was Gloria, though I’m sure there were others.


Comfy beds

Fish in the large indoor aquarium

One of the many displays at Bass Pro Shop

DD's catch of the day

Great breakfast assortment

 

[shadowryter]

Sunday ~ Aug 17th

On the road again and we were being hit with sporadic storms. The rain was so heavy at times with a dark overcast and then it lightened up, only to get dark again. It was just strange. To the left of us were blackening skies with forks of lightening while to the right the sky was blue and the sun was shining. At one point I remember DH saying, “Here she comes.” (TS Fay) You could see the cars and trucks on the other side of the road with water rushing off their vehicles and when you drove into it, it was like a line drawn in the sand. The clouds were so heavy you could actually see the rain pouring down in the distance. It was like this most of the drive to Myrtle Beach SC and by the time we checked into the Seaside Hotel, around 3pm (and added 475 miles) the waves were swelling and it was raining with thunder and fork lightning. After a while, the thunder and lightning cleared and we got a chance to walk on the beach. This was a treat for my DD since she hadn’t seen the ocean since she was four.

Here Comes Fay

We enjoyed our time in the surf and laughed when my DD’s flip flops drifted away to shore and a nice woman retrieved them for her.

At least they float

Dad & daughter time

After we dried off, we looked for a place to eat and was pleased to find Joe’s Crab Shack just down US-17. We had a great meal of shrimp and crab and a DH and I had a fantastic Bahama Mama. Then it was back to hotel for some much needed sleep but not before a restful soak in the Jacuzzi for my DH. This oceanfront hotel was wonderful and I’m thinking about returning for our East Coast drive to world before our cruise next year. Only one negative note here. Parking can be tricky. You park under the hotel and its really tight. We have a mid size SUV and had to stop and back up to continue around the corner. I really felt bad for the guy in his big pickup.

Our comfortable room

Nice equipped kitchen

TV & Dining room

Living room

View from 5th floor balcony

No sweetie. It’s for soaking not sleeping.

Seaside from the beach

Next stop…Saint Augustine, FL

 

[shadowryter]

Monday ~ Aug 18th

The next morning we checked out around 8am and looked for the first McDonald’s. The hotel offered a free continental breakfast but we just wanted to get back on the road,. We had 385 miles ahead of us along with Fay. I got my large coffee which is all I needed to keep me going until North Carolina, while DH and DD got breakfast for the road. Next stop Saint Augustine, FL. Another first. The rains were still coming down and the eighteen wheelers in front of us didn’t make the going any easier. Now I don’t mean to sound ignorant, but in all my trips down the coast, I’ve never noticed one of these:

Sign says it all

Give me a break. I’m from the North. ( though I was floored by the Run-Away truck signs in PA last year with a road going up into nowhere.)

By the time we pulled into Saint Augustine we were lost. I don’t know how, but the street we were suppose to turn onto wasn’t there. So we circled the block about five times. DH was getting red in the face and we ended out in a tiny back street behind two cars who were behind of all things a delivery truck and he’s off-loading and isn’t about to go anywhere until he’s done. Another car pulled in behind us and we just sat there until the car started to back up and the rest of us followed. Mine you we were backing up a one way street!

So we found the hotel, The Bayfront, just to find out that it wasn’t our hotel so around the block we go again until my DD shouted, “There!” My DH stopped in the street and backed up to the “Hilton Historic Bayfront.” He was really upset but the valet calmed him down. Valet? Where? The tiny lot was big enough for about eight cars. But the Hilton was smart and parking was underground. Either way it made my DH happy, especially since our room was ready. Our room was beautiful and comfortable and even though we were late getting there we still had enough time to visit the Castillo de San Marcos Fort before it closed at 5:30, a must for my history buff DH. When we left the fort we saw a bulletin posted at the entrance. Castillo de San Marcos will be closed August 20th due to TA Fay. On my birthday no less.

Our elegant room

View from our window

The Castillo de San Marcos Fort

Lots of cannons

Upon returning to the hotel, we were hungry but didn’t want to wonder too far. The Aviles Restaurant on property turned out to be one of the best meals I have experienced on the road in quite a while. Everything was cooked to perfection, from the bison filet DH chose to the shrimp and lobster DD and I ordered. Dessert was spectacular. We ordered the Moon Sampler. It let you choose four of their top offerings, I thought it would be just a bite of each but it was huge and really too much. During dinner, we noticed there were carriage rides across the street. We were short on cash but wouldn’t you know some of the drivers took plastic. We took a ride with Pete and his horse Rusty. He told us a good old ghost story as we drove through the streets of St. Augustine. It was quite memorable but when it was over we realized there is much more to see in this little historic section of town and hope to return for a longer stay.

Aviles Restaurant

Pete and Rusty

Disney and the Swan right around the corner!

 

[shadowryter]

Friday ~ August 22nd Our 1st Day at Disney

For all you die hard Disney fans I have opted to skip our three days at Universal though you can catch up on it on my other TR. The link is in my siggie.

Our original plans were to check into Disney’s Swan and walk to Epcot where we would see what we could do before our ADR at the Coral Reef for 1pm. I figured about 41/2 hrs of Future World before lunch. Great idea, right? Well, it didn’t quite go that way. The weather radar showed Fay in all her glory. She was hammering Orlando and flooding other areas, so we didn’t arrive until around 10:30 and I wasn’t that concerned about our late start.

We found our way easily to the Swan after one wrong turn landed us at the Hess service station. A least we’d know where to gas up on our departure. We checked in a little before 11:00 to find our room wasn’t ready. So we got our tickets and headed to Epcot via Friendship boat. At this point there was a delicate balance of dark clouds or rain. More rain. Our first stop was Soarin’ where we picked up a Fast Pass and then headed to Spaceship Earth. In hindsight, we should have waited for this one, but it was only a 25 minute wait. I loved the interactive part at the end. But what was with the big stick looking thingy poking out of my head?
WDW Swan fountain

From Friendship boat

View of Dolphin

Spaceship Earth

After Spaceship Earth, we ( meaning I ) sought out Guest Relations so I could get a birthday button for DD and myself. To which DD responds, “It’s not my birthday.” Regardless, she wore the button and we were on our way to our ADR at Coral Reef.
We checked in at the podium about 20 minutes early and if you have the personalized menu’s, you can see the CM discreetly reach into a little file and retrieve them. We followed the CM inside and to our surprise we were led past the back row , past the middle and right to the front by the tank. At this point, I thought yeah now how am I going to get DD to sit on the inside so I can get pics of her and the diver? DD insisted on sitting on the outside and I didn’t want to spoil the surprise.

Me and DD opened our personalized birthday menu and she smiled but I knew inside she was saying, “It’s not my birthday.” We ordered drinks, DH and I of the alcohol variety. We all ordered the Lobster soup and I started snapping food pics but by the time I got to the rolls DD already snatched a piece. Do you know (and I know some of you do), how hard it is to say, “Don’t touch that until I take a picture?”

Blue Glowtini

Coral Rita

Rolls - 1

Lobster Soup

Personalized Menu

So as we were enjoying our soup, I spied a diver in the tank, swimming over the reef and heading our way. He stopped in front of our table and held up a sign wishing DD a happy birthday. He really got into it, grabbing a handfuls of shells and tossing them over his head like confetti. It was a fun experience.

Coral Reef Diver

DD was floored and I don’t remember hearing that dreaded phrase again. Everyone applauded at seeing the diver and shortly after our entrees arrived. DH and I had the NY Strip while DD tried Mahi-Mahi for the first time. All of our entrees were fabulous and we sampled a bit of each others. The Strips were cooked to perfection and the fish was tender and moist. After our CM cleared the table she returned with my next surprise, a 6 inch chocolate cake with chocolate butter crème. It was moist and yummy and was decorated with big, fresh juicy strawberries and some Happy Birthday banners. This was more than enough for three and we left half of it behind, sorry to say.

NY Strip

Mahi-Mahi

Birthday Cake

To be continued…..
Dinner at Chefs...more of Fay and Pearls