I wish we had allowed ourselves more time as there were other things to do like canoeing and kayaking.  You can swim in the spring but be warned the water feels very, very cold! It’s a bit of a shock when you first get in. you can also go scuba diving and explore the cave itself.  I have to say it was a welcome change from the theme parks of Orlando and well worth a visit, it could easily be done in a day trip.

From there we moved on to St Augustine Beach where we had booked into a motel right on the beach. The Atlantic rollers were really fierce and we had a great time with the boogie boards. It was nice being right on the beach but if we went again we would stay in St Augustine itself. We took the trolley bus tour which we all really enjoyed, we find this is always a good way to familiarise yourself with a new town and see things you might miss if you did it yourself. It was lovely to wander round the town, it’s a quait, picturesque place with lots of history. We then visited the castle and had a really enjoyable tour. There was so much more to do and see but once again we ran out of time.  We will definitely visit St Augustine again.

Take a stroll down City Walk on a Friday Night at Universal, If you go after 6 o’clock you do not have to pay car parking in the big Multi-storey car park.

You reach the long escalator at the entrance and you are greeted with music to get you in the holiday atmosphere.

The new Restaurant Forrest Gump has not been opened very long and is to be highly recommend especially for its shrimp and if you have not had too many Margarita’s you may be able to answer some of the trivia questions about the film Forrest Gump that the waiters ask you, just to while away the minutes until your lovely food is served. Great Atmosphere!

A quick look at the Multiplex Cinema to see what films are on, and a look in the lovely shops, is just the start of an exciting night. Just around the corner is the sound of a great band. Orange Avenue. People of all ages are joining in, clapping, dancing, singing along including us at 52, we love them. What a nice bunch of lads they are too, they take the time and trouble to speak to all the fans at the concert and hand out free photos of the band that they sign for you. One member shook mine and my husband’s hand, what nice lads they are! So grateful for our praise.

My Daughter aged 21 and son 20 loves them and is now the proud owner’s photos on their wall. If you like rock music you will love them, not only can they really play  they can really sing and my daughter thinks they are all gorgeous! {me too!}

I hope someone like Simon Cowel discovers them, they deserve a break.

Keep walking around and you discover many good and exciting restaurants and a truly memorable night.

All the best Val and Steve Goymer

Golden Corral Buffets (US 192 Markers 4 & 5)

These restaurants are great for a low cost buffet with a great choice of food. They are ideal for a meal after being at the parks or even for a big breakfast to keep you going all day. Prices are very reasonable and include the whole buffet …. salads, chicken, steak, pizza & desert. Make sure to take your vouchers!

Appleby’s (Hwy 27  beside Publix)

Friendly & good value! Lots of villas on Hwy 27 have benefited from this new restaurant & bar. It’s well located and the staff are really friendly. Menu is varied and includes a section for the kids.

Beef O Brady’s (Hwy 27 at junction with Ronald Reagan Parkway)

Ideal for those looking for a meal in a friendly atmosphere. It’s a bit ‘burgers & fries’ but the quality is good and prices are reasonable. Plenty of TVs with sports on at all times will keep the kids entertained (and the dads!). You must try their buffalo wings with hot sauce …. Wow!

Cracker Barrel (Hwy 27  Off Junction 55 of I4)

This is a bit different and lives up to its advertisements of being an old fashioned Country Store! The breakfasts are really wholesome and well worth the visit. And for those from the UK, try the Chicken n’ Dumplins for a meal you won’t have had before.

Joe’s Crab Shack  (US 192  Markers 8 & 9)    

Don’t be put off trying this even though you have the kids in tow. This is a great dining experience and the staff will help you through if you haven’t tried crab legs before. The food is fantastic and the kids are well looked after with their own menu. The entertainment provided by the servers must be seen!

Chik-fil-A  (West of Marker 4)

OK, for those that can’t avoid the kids’ cries for the likes of McDonalds & Burger King try this restaurant. It’s the ‘healthier’ option and its superior to KFC! The chicken is tastier and the crinkle fries are my favourite.

I had been recommended to see a Realtor by a friend and so had arranged to meet him on the Monday morning after arriving in Orlando the Saturday evening.

I met him at his office where he engaged me about the area and general process of purchasing a home.  Everything was explained easily and no jargon was used so when I felt comfortable with the process ahead of me we then began to discuss property. 

I had previously been in contact from the UK where I had given a list of my requirements in a home, so that made for a good starting point.  Realtors in the UK not only have their own registered properties available for purchase but they can also access the MLS (multiple listing service) which is a listing of all properties for sale with all registered realtors.

He had prepared the information on half a dozen properties in different communities for us to view, some being on his books and some not.  We set off in his car to view for the remainder of the day with me reading and re-reading each property detail to try and prepare myself beforehand.

Some of the communities were gated and some were not.  He’d previously obtained all gate and property codes which allowed us access.  Properties are either entered via a coded entry pad on the front door or via a key box attached somewhere on the outside of the property also with a keypad to release the key, so gaining entry was never a problem. 

I was not prepared for how beautiful some of the properties were.  Some were lovely from the outside and some were nicer from the inside.  Some had overlooked pools and some had a view of a lake.  The overall size of some was unbelievable compared to the usual measurements in the UK. 

I took lots of photographs of those that had the attributes I was looking for.  However it was very difficult to weed-out those that were beautiful but not practical and I desperately tried to work with my head and not my heart.  My focus was a long-term project, one for retirement for myself and my partner, but in the short term had to be a good rental to “pay for itself” in the meantime.

I took this trip by myself because it was more practical than taking the whole family, apart from the cost, there was the time issue too.  The children would have wanted to visit the parks rather than view properties, and we felt that it would not be a focused week just concentrating on the job in hand. 

So in the evenings, my time was taken up by emailing the photographs of the properties that were under consideration to my partner back in the UK which subsequently followed with a long discussion on the telephone about our thoughts.

After three days of searching and occasionally returning to a few previously viewed properties, I finally came to a decision, so we put in an offer a fair way off the asking price, but it had been available for quite a while.  With a little bartering, we finally managed to reach an agreeable price which then instigated a meeting with a mortgage broker.  He was recommended by my realtor and provided me with all the information I needed in lay-mans terms regarding obtaining a mortgage.  It wasn’t important that my partner was not accompanying me at the time as any signatures required from him could be obtained on my return to the UK

A couple of short meetings over the next day or so with both the realtor and the mortgage broker pretty much wrapped it up for my purchase and it left me with some time to discover a little bit of  Orlando and the locale.

On returning home, during the subsequent weeks, we had occasional paperwork to complete and return to the US but with just a phone call, it was collected by courier.  The three of us kept in constant contact via email and occasional phone calls and I was updated on the situation every couple of days. 

Just getting into May and finally we became the proud new owners of a beautiful 4 bed/4 bath property in the West Haven community of Davenport.

The property was already a rental and we happily took over the whole situation from its current Management Company together with any bookings for the rest of the year.

So after months and months of just being able to remind myself with photographs of the beautiful house that I’d bought for myself and my family, we all took a trip out there just after Christmas 07.

I was a little nervous as we drove into the gated community, just wondering what my partner was going to think about seeing it “for real”.  But there was no need; he loved the entrance, the street and the property itself.  We spent 9 days visiting the parks, traveling around parts of Florida and best of all just living in our home.  We had intentions of buying a few items for it and spent the last couple of days putting in some finishing touches.  I took lots of lovely photos for memories and best of all to use on my new website.

So all in all it was a fabulous journey, relatively painless but thoroughly enjoyable especially on my part, at least I was the one who got to do the trip in the first place!  We have a successful rental business and a good relationship with the management company and between myself and them business is booming.

Wish I could do it all over again!!