22nd, 23rd and 24th February 2016

Monday 22nd February

In the morning I checked out the resort's superb fitness suite. I ran 3.1 miles (5km) on the state-of-the-art treadmill. I'd imagined I'd feel much cooler in the fitness suite than running outside, but although it was air-conditioned the blazing sun burned right through the floor-to-ceiling windows so I suspect there wasn't much in it, except that the fitness suite provides towels. There's a stair machine there too - I've wanted to try that for a while. Maybe next time, before I wear myself out with running.

Churros filled with chocolate and

dulce du leche

 In the afternoon Roderic, Hari and I went to Florida Mall, Hari's idea of paradise. Roderic and I rather enjoyed it too, mostly because of ThinkGeek and Boxlunch (sci-fi stuff) and Churromania. Hari did herself proud in all the designer shops too.

In the evening we tried out another fast food place. Checkers scores a firm 9/10. The burgers were superb, and the chips (smothered in cheese and bacon) were so good that Roderic commented that it makes you realise that other places aren't even trying. We paid about $40 (£30) for five of us, so it was good value too. It loses one point for having tired decor. It was trying to look like a sixties diner but just looked somewhat sad and dated. There was also a noisy and belligerent drunk in residence who wasn't shooed out, and made the few genuine customers feel somewhat uncomfortable, especially since there were several small children in the restaurant.

Star Trek garden gnomes. Me want.

Star Wars handbags. Me want more.

Tuesday 23rd February

Finally a tip for avoiding the crowds at theme parks that actually works - go on a day when the weather forecast is predicting thunderstorms! Hari, Ceri and I caught the (free) Westgate shuttle to Universal, and it was the quietest we'd ever seen it, with queues for most rides only five or ten minutes. We even walked straight onto a couple of them. It did rain for about ten minutes while we were eating our lunch, and there was a bit of drizzle later, but in Florida it's so warm it doesn't matter - you dry out just as quickly as you get wet.

Hari got chatted up again, this time by a superhero. Anyone know who this guy is meant to be?

Roderic and Grandma went to Seaworld and enjoyed the day looking at the animals and seeing the shows. Roderic pushed Grandma round in a rented wheelchair since all the walking had caused her foot ulcer to start playing up.

In the evening I decided to make the most of the outdoor jacuzzi and maybe also have a swim  under the stars, but loud thundering noises in the distance made me suspect that the predicted storm was on its way and a pool was not the best place to be. Once my clever husband deduced that the noise was actually just the Disney fireworks I was straight outside in my tankini. At 9pm it was still 24 degrees and there were four people in the jacuzzi and two in the pool - which was also very warm. I could get used to this life.

The owlery

Jurassic Park

Inside Gru's house (the queue for the Minions ride)

Wednesday 24th February

Another rest day. I spent the morning at the beautiful Orlando Florida Temple, then signed some of my books at the LDS bookstore down the road, and then we went to China Buffet for a delicious all-you-can-eat Chinese lunch. I always think that US Chinese food is better than UK Chinese food, and the spread was fantastic, with lots of dishes we can't get in the UK. I was also amused to discover that the fortune cookies were promoting Kung Fu Panda 3.

Hari and I then did the gift shops on International Drive where I found the perfect t-shirt for Hari, although unfortunately it was out of stock. Meanwhile Roderic, Grandma and Ceri had to call out Westgate henchmen to break us into our own apartment as the security bar had got stuck.