Holiday Stuff http://blog.cattells.net What we are doing on holiday posterous.com Thu, 29 Dec 2011 05:39:14 -0800 Last full day today http://blog.cattells.net/last-full-day-today http://blog.cattells.net/last-full-day-today

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Today is the last full day for us in Florida as we fly home tomorrow.
We have all had a great time, and the weather has been great (although it's been a bit cooler this past couple of days).

Cases are getting packed and we will be dropping into one of the outlet malls for the last time to see if there is any last minute bargains to be had!
I'll try and post a few more pics later today if I have time.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Tue, 27 Dec 2011 07:45:00 -0800 A few more pictures from Christmas Day, and Boxing Day http://blog.cattells.net/a-few-more-pictures-from-christmas-day-and-bo http://blog.cattells.net/a-few-more-pictures-from-christmas-day-and-bo

I managed to upload some pics from my phone while we were at Blizzard Beach as there was free WiFi there, but these are some of the photos from the other camera that we took.

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On Boxing Day, we (like the rest of the world it seems) headed off for some retail therapy. The Florida Mall was busy, but nothing like the videos we have seen of the carnage in Oxford Street! At lunch time, we once again sought out the local Panera Bread store, as we really enjoy thier rolls, paninis and soup. (http://www.panerabread.com)

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Sun, 25 Dec 2011 08:58:49 -0800 Christmas day in the sunshine http://blog.cattells.net/christmas-day-in-the-sunshine http://blog.cattells.net/christmas-day-in-the-sunshine

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Today we are at Blizzard Beach, and enjoying the Florida sunshine. After a busy morning on water slides etc. we had a break for a snack and a drink.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Fri, 23 Dec 2011 17:43:00 -0800 Shop til you drop (Part 2) http://blog.cattells.net/shop-til-you-drop-part-2 http://blog.cattells.net/shop-til-you-drop-part-2

Mainly pictures from the Mall at Millenia.... 

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It was a general concensus that Panera Bread is a great shop ... they do lovely Panini's, soups, sandwiches and cakes ... well worth a visit (I just wish they were in the UK too).

 

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Fri, 23 Dec 2011 12:52:31 -0800 Shop til you Drop and other adventures http://blog.cattells.net/shop-til-you-drop-and-other-adventures http://blog.cattells.net/shop-til-you-drop-and-other-adventures

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The past couple of days have been dominated with relaxing by the pool and shopping. We have been to the Mall at Millennia, The Loop and today we are at Orlando Premium Outlet Mall (previously known as Belz). The shops are pretty busy, but not chaotic, so it's no problem popping from shop to shop.
Favourite shops for this trip so far are (I think) ... A&F, Hollister, PacSun, WetSeal, Aeropostale and Forever 21.

Lucy and I have been making a concerted effort to get any free samples from the various food stalls ... favourite so far was Orange chicken from one of the Chinese food outlets, but Cinamon pretzels were nice as was Teriaki Chicken and Pomegranite Frozen yoghurt.
I think this has been the hottest day do far as the temperature display in the car says its 87 deg.

Yesterday Maureen was mightily impressed that one if the new features of the iPhone 4 was that you can smell perfumes over the Internet, but was a little disappointed that she couldn't smell the sample I downloaded for her ..... and she couldn't understand why everyone else in the room was laughing hysterically !!

Shazam is proving a valuable app when trying to identify the music playing in some of the shops we are visiting.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Wed, 21 Dec 2011 16:15:00 -0800 Disney Animal Kingdom and Holiday Wishes fireworks etc. (Tues 20th) http://blog.cattells.net/disney-animal-kingdom-and-holiday-wishes-fire http://blog.cattells.net/disney-animal-kingdom-and-holiday-wishes-fire

Yesturday was a long and busy day, with a very early morning start at Animal Kingdom, and then a late afternoon move to Magic Kingdom to catch the Main Street Electrical Parade as well as the wonderful Holiday Wishes Fireworks.

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It was a lovely day with sunshine all the way... and, as an added bonus, we managed to get on Expedition Everest 4 times, and went on the Safari twice.

Today (Wed 21st) is a relaxing day, with a bit of splashing in the pool and a lot of lounging around.

 

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Wed, 21 Dec 2011 08:54:10 -0800 The Princess Song http://blog.cattells.net/the-princess-song http://blog.cattells.net/the-princess-song

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One of the things that makes Disney so special .... this is a song, made up on the spot, about Lucy and Emma .... A great day :)

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Mon, 19 Dec 2011 18:50:08 -0800 Disney Quest http://blog.cattells.net/disney-quest http://blog.cattells.net/disney-quest

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Today, after a lazy morning, Me, Lucy and Emma headed off to Disney Quest with the rest of the crew going shopping. It is a 5-story building full of interactive games and adventures. Quite an enjoyable experience, but some of the things seem a bit long in the tooth now (they were cutting edge 5 or so years ago, but are now showing their age). I think the favourite thing is Buzz Lightyears AstroBlaster .... Think bumper cars with a soft ball firing canon on the front and you have the right idea.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Sun, 18 Dec 2011 12:43:18 -0800 Norman decided his head was cold http://blog.cattells.net/norman-decided-his-head-was-cold http://blog.cattells.net/norman-decided-his-head-was-cold

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Sun, 18 Dec 2011 10:34:29 -0800 Serious shopping going on http://blog.cattells.net/serious-shopping-going-on http://blog.cattells.net/serious-shopping-going-on

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There is a sale on!

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Sat, 17 Dec 2011 07:32:00 -0800 Day 5 - Friday - Magic Kingdom and EPCOT (Part 2) http://blog.cattells.net/day-5-friday-magic-kingdom-and-epcot-part-2 http://blog.cattells.net/day-5-friday-magic-kingdom-and-epcot-part-2

As we have had a busy couple of days with theme park visits on both days, this post is a bit of a catch up to fill you in on the past couple of days.

On Thursday we went to Disney's EPCOT, and had a great (if very tiring) day. By the judicious use of an early start and fastpasses, we managed to get onto everything we wanted to (with the girls going on Test Track 6 times).

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We all had a great day but decided that we would come back another day to see the fireworks

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On Friday, we headed off to the Magic Kingdom ... again the weathert was lovely and warm (but a bit overcast). The girls were very brave and faced the 50 foot drop on Splash Mountain, as well as the risk of getting wet!!

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Further rides on Big Thunder Mountain, The Haunted Mansion, and all the other attractions at the Magic Kingdom followed.

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After several pit stops for muffins, cookies, pizza etc, towards the end of the day, we went back to EPCOT to see their spectacular fireworks, and left the parks happy but tired.

Today (Saturday) is a chill out day... ready for some more busy days soon.

 

 

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Sat, 17 Dec 2011 06:29:43 -0800 Day 5 - Friday - Magic Kingdom http://blog.cattells.net/day-5-friday-magic-kingdom http://blog.cattells.net/day-5-friday-magic-kingdom

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There will be a load of pictures later (once I have transferred them all onto the Mac from my camera, but for now, a couple of videos off my phone .... Big Thunder Mountain :)

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Thu, 15 Dec 2011 17:54:10 -0800 Day 4 - Thursday 15 - EPCOT http://blog.cattells.net/day-4-thursday-15-epcot http://blog.cattells.net/day-4-thursday-15-epcot

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After a lazy day yesterday, that consisted mainly of relaxing with a smattering of shopping, today we have spent the day at EPCOT.
The weather has been great, and the park was actually quite quiet, allowing us to go on Soarin' several times and Test Track 6 times!

Tomorrow we are off to Magic Kingdom so hopefully have some good photos from there.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Wed, 14 Dec 2011 15:34:00 -0800 Day 2 - Disney Hollywood Studios http://blog.cattells.net/day-2-disney-hollywood-studios http://blog.cattells.net/day-2-disney-hollywood-studios

Yesturday was the first visit to a theme park for this holiday, and we went to Disney Hollywood Studios.

It was a realy nice day, as the sun was out for most of the time, and it was nice and warm (a marked difference to last year when it was soooo cooooold). 

We managed to get in a complete day, and got onto all the rides we wanted to (including a couple of rides on the new Star Tours and several goes on the Toy Story Mania ride).

We finished off the day at Fantasmic (with our rain ponchos on as we had a breif shower while we were waiting for the show to begin), and then went to see the Osbourne Christmas Lights.... and Lucy had a great time dancing in the street with one of the Disney cast members :) ...

 

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I may be encouraged to post a video of that if we get enough requests ;)

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Today is going to be a quiet day, to give ourselves time to relax and maybe float about in the pool etc.

 

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Wed, 14 Dec 2011 08:30:34 -0800 Osborne Family Lights http://blog.cattells.net/osborne-family-lights http://blog.cattells.net/osborne-family-lights

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Last night at Disney Hollywood Studios

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Mon, 12 Dec 2011 04:42:49 -0800 We arrived .... http://blog.cattells.net/we-arrived http://blog.cattells.net/we-arrived

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It was touch and go at some points, but after a quick sprint between terminals, and messing around will all the security shenanigans, we made it to the second flight with 3 minutes to spare!
Just got up, and ready for our first full day in Florida :)

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Sat, 10 Dec 2011 23:48:46 -0800 On our way ..... http://blog.cattells.net/on-our-way http://blog.cattells.net/on-our-way

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All checked in and ready to go, but slight delay on the incoming flight, so we will be about an hour late leaving B'Ham airport.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Fri, 31 Dec 2010 09:16:56 -0800 Some typically understated Christmas Decorations at a nearby Villa http://blog.cattells.net/some-typically-understated-christmas-decorati http://blog.cattells.net/some-typically-understated-christmas-decorati

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This is a villa a few hundred metres from our villa ... I think they like flashing lights :)

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Tue, 28 Dec 2010 11:01:07 -0800 Characters in the Sky Balloon ride at Downtown Disney http://blog.cattells.net/characters-in-the-sky-balloon-ride-at-downtow http://blog.cattells.net/characters-in-the-sky-balloon-ride-at-downtow

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell Tue, 28 Dec 2010 10:05:01 -0800 Look ma, it's the dustbin man http://blog.cattells.net/look-ma-its-the-dustbin-man http://blog.cattells.net/look-ma-its-the-dustbin-man

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I was impressed by the efficiency of the dustbin collection here .... all done by one man

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/80569/prof_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/eIKojUoH6h Peter Cattell budgieuk Peter Cattell