Part 1 ~ The Arrival

[Slowhand]

In our minds, this was to be our first "real" vacation this year in view of the personal problems we had on our earlier visit a few months ago when everything seemed a blur and we couldn`t get back soon enough.
Rather than boring everyone with a blow by blow account of what we did on this trip, my reports concentrate on the main events...if only to save me the time in posting!

Wednesday Sept.16th

Thanks to our FC miles we were able to get UC seats to and from Orlando which was good news especially as we would be able to sleep in a bed on the return journey and also we had an increased baggage allowance than with PE which is our normal option.
Check in at Manchester was a breeze and the Fastlane through security resulted in us settling into the Escape Lounge before our flight in super fast time.

Unlike most of our other flights to Orlando where after crossing the Atlantic we followed the Eastern seaboard to Orlando, this time we flew straight across the ocean, entering the US directly over Cape Canaveral where we had a good view of KSC.
The flight arrived on time and we were among the first off the plane avoiding too much of a queue at Immigration.
As we were waiting by the baggage carousel I saw a guy who I vaguely recognised but I couldn`t put a name to the face. My DW knew straight away who he was but she kept me guessing.
I approached him and asked “Excuse me but do I know you?”, to which he replied “ I guess that I have one of those faces!”
He seemed in a rather talkative mood so we had quite a long conversation as we waited for our bags to appear. We talked about Orlando [he owns a house on US27 not far from where our villa is located], the fact that he has a dual nationality allowing him to come and go to the US whenever he fancies, the British weather and countryside etc. etc. before moving on to football. One of his friends used to play for Port Vale, my local team who are currently mid way down the bottom table in the Football league.
He came across as a really down to Earth guy and it was only towards the end of our chat that the penny dropped and I was able to put that name to the face.
It was Paul Burrell…Lady Diana`s ex butler! I refrained from bringing this subject up with him though to avoid any possible embarrassment.
Now I don`t condone what he did in writing his book about his time with Princess Diana…and I don`t want this to spark a heated debate concerning his actions, however in the immortal words “Speak as you find”. He hadn`t done me any harm, so live and let live eh? What was surprising though was that he flew out on our plane in Economy, despite his obvious wealth [if only from the sales of his book!].

After bidding my new “friend” goodbye and collecting our car [Dodge Charger, my preferred choice], we headed off to our villa along I-4 and noticed how quiet everywhere seemed. There was very little traffic on the free-way and we arrived at our villa near to Exit # 58 in double quick time.
Following a quick visit to Publix at Champions Gate for a few essentials, after unpacking our bags and “freshening up”, we went to Key W Kools on US192 for dinner.
Visiting this restaurant on our first night in Florida has now become almost a ritual and it was great when the girl at the podium recognised us and introduced us to our server who also greeted us warmly.
This restaurant is currently undergoing remodelling so it`s probably best to delay dining there until the works are completed, however the steaks there are among the best I`ve sampled in the Orlando area, and at a reasonable price too.

Suitably fed and watered, we headed back to the villa for a good nights sleep.

[daveann]

wow a great start havent heard of key w kools before will have a look for it

[Slowhand]

wow a great start havent heard of key w kools before will have a look for it

Thanks for those kind words.
A sample menu can be found here.
It is located on the westbound US192 near mile marker 5.

[daveann]

i tried to get on there website but it seems not to work for me............i think we might give this a try in a couple of weeks have saved the menu to show dave thanks we love our steaks

[uscwest]

Sounds like a great start to your trip Terry.

[Slowhand]

we love our steaks

The filet is highly recommended. [My mouth is now watering thinking about it! ]

[Tink]

Wow! That was some conversation! I have heard of the man, of course but would never have recognized him. Nice that you could treat him like any other person and have a simple conversation that didn't include the book, what he wrote, or the late Princess.

You know, we had dinner at Key W Cools a couple of times and were really disappointed. Maybe we'll give it another go. It has been years. I know you always speak favorably of it, so it's worth another chance, eh?

Dual citizenship? Is that something you and Mrs. S would be interested in? Would it benefit you, or would it end up taking some rights that you currently have, away? I know so little about that sort of thing.

Looking forward to more of your adventures this stay!

[catrancher]

Great start, Terry!

Of course, any start with a great steak is a good one!

Tom (... who'd like to be tasting a great steak about now...)

[Slowhand]

You know, we had dinner at Key W Cools a couple of times and were really disappointed. Maybe we'll give it another go. It has been years. I know you always speak favorably of it, so it's worth another chance, eh?

I`m keeping my fingers crossed at the moment Tink!
The remodelling of Key W Kools will apparently turn it into more of a sports bar type restaurant with tv screens all around. The owner has a similar restaurant in Orlando etc. and feels that they need to do something to draw in the locals rather than rely on the holiday patronage.
I really hope that we will still enjoy it there after the works are completed, only time will tell.

Dual citizenship? Is that something you and Mrs. S would be interested in? Would it benefit you, or would it end up taking some rights that you currently have, away? I know so little about that sort of thing.

It would come in handy Tink, although I doubt if we would stand a chance. As things stand, UK residents can only spend 6 months in the US in any 12 month period, and getting the paperwork sorted to get un restricted access is a nightmare.
Our property managers, despite having lived there for 3 years or so and have a business in the US employing several US citizens had a heck of a job getting their visas. It got to the stage when they did not dare leave the US because they would not be allowed back in!
This was very traumatic for them when one of their children back home became ill and they couldn`t fly over to visit.
Fortunately all is fine with them now though.

[Tink]

Oh gosh, that must have been dreadful for them. Herself's sister in law is Brazilian and could not return home when her Father lay dying for much the same reason. She's still bitter about it.

A sports bar? Hmmmm, that's not the best idea from my perspective. Our local pub (which would be just perfect if they'd GET A REAL COOK) just skirts the line with their big screen TVs. It's a nice place for a visit, a drink and a talk right now, but if they bring the sports feature into it too much more, it will end up like a noisy bar and that is not what we are after.

Sure hope they don't spoil the place for you. You'll have to drive further south on 27 to Manny's if they do!