Let The Memories Begin! – Day 7
After a hearty breakfast at Drury, we set off to Kissimmee, off Orlando. We have a reservation for an airboat ride with Spirit Of The Swamp at 11.30am. We are so glad that we could rest our worn out feet. We have chosen Spirit Of The Swamp as they offer private tours and have good ratings.
Relying on our most important purchase of our trip, our Garmin GPS, we found the dock to meet without problem. When we arrived, the airboat and the captain were waiting for us. The airboat looks really cool, like the one I’ve seen on CSI Miami. Debbie, the assistant helped Ashley put on a life jacket and Captain Harold briefed us on some safety procedures. It was really funny when they asked where we wanted to sit, Ashley pointed at the Captain’s seat. The airboat comfortably seats six passengers on deeply upholstered seats and are elevated for the best views and there are no bars on the side of the boat to obstruct our view. It was decided that Ashley and I would take the front row while Jarod and ZA at the back. Once seated, we put on our headsets. These high tech headsets with microphone enable us to communicate during our ride. They were surprisingly clear and Jarod said the same ones were used for F1 and the airboat engine is the same as that of V8 Corvette. We were all set and the ride began.
We moved off slowly along the canal. We felt like we were gliding on water as the wind blew across the water. Captain Harold then accelerated and we entered the peaceful, beautiful swamp. The area we toured was about 20,000 acres and the headwaters of the Florida Everglades. Ashley was grinning from ear to ear and as the wave of excitement rushes over to her. Captain Harold kept us entertained and enthralled with informative and humorous stories of the critters that make this swampy paradise their home. He also used his local knowledge to search the swamps – through tall reeds, nooks and crannies, to find secret gator hideaways. Emphasising that unlike Disney or Universal, nothing is staged and all the animals we’ll see on our tours are living in the wild, as nature intended. Once we entered the wilderness, it was like we have discovered a whole new world. Soon, we spotted a baby alligator and were ecstatic. We continued gliding through a beautiful natural paradise of swamps, marshes and incredible wildlife. There were many birds which Captain Harold called them swamp chickens were running and then diving into the water as the airboat approached them. We spotted at least 5 more alligators all large ones. We had many photo opportunities of the breathtaking Florida outdoors, stunning scenery, amazing wildlife.
Captain Harold received a call that another airboat broke down and we went on an adventure to look for them. We finally found the airboat which drifted away with 6 passengers onboard. They were glad we found them as they had been waiting for an hour. We took one of them in our boat back and Captain Harold would come back and get the rest.
The airboat ride ended and it was the highlight of our vacation. It was really like something we could only see on TV and truly an experience of our lifetime.
We headed over to The Catfish Place at St Cloud for lunch. This restaurant is very popular with locals and were offering 2 main at USD 15.99 from Mondays to Wednesdays. Ashley ordered Hot Dog bread with milk from the kids’ menu. We ordered Frog Legs for appetiser and Catfish And Shrimp for our main. The mains also came with 2 sides and ZA liked his sweet potato. The portions were huge as always and food finger licking good. The catfish was not fishy at all and the shrimp succulent. Ashley liked the hot dog bread too. We could not finish our food but they were so good we are thinking of dining there again.
Next, we drove back to Kissimmee to find Abracadabra Ice Cream Factory. This unique ice cream place uses liquid nitrogen to freeze our very own ice cream creation within seconds. With temperatures reaching -328 degrees below zero, we saw them flash freeze the ice cream right before our eyes. We were clueless what to order so we ordered from Abracadabra’s suggestion – Chocolate Delight (Chocolate Ice Cream with chocolate chips, fudge and brownie) and Rise N Shine (Coffee flavoured ice cream with caramel and fudge) to share. The small cup at USD 3.50 is definitely not small. The ice cream texture is very good and I preferred the Rise N Shine which has aromatic coffee flavour. How I miss our local coffee! The benches at the shop overlooks a playground. Ashley couldn’t wait to play. It is truly a good idea to integrate an ice cream place with playground where adults can relax and children have fun.
Our next stop is Toys R Us. This will be our last shopping day as the rest of our trip will be at Walt Disney World. Ashley had been eyeing this Aurora Carriage since day 1 and we finally bought it for her. We headed over to Orlando Premium Outlet at International Drive next. We stopped by several outlets and bought a pink Kate Spade bag (Jeralyn) for Ashley too. She loves the bag and since it was only USD 34, we relented. Jarod also found a wallet which is much needed. His old wallet was giving way. We met some fellow Singaporeans too. They are easily spotted with our unique accent.
Ashley found noodles at the food court and had that for dinner. Our dinner was take-out from Five Guys Burger and Fries. I shared a cheeseburger with ZA while Jarod had the Bacon Cheeseburger. Both the burgers and fries were good. Tomorrow is our last day at Drury and Ashley is beginning to miss it already.
