Grandma Week

Lisa and I had some visitors last week - the Grandma's (technically, Mom, you are a Grandma)! Around Christmas my Mom decided that her, Grandma Jackie, and Grandma Adeline would be coming for Spring Break. And Lisa and I welcomed them with open arms and a crazy schedule of activities that were guaranteed to leave them exhausted at the end of the week. And we accomplished our goal. The three of them got here Monday and right off the bat, their adventure began. We got them tickets to Kennedy Space Center, Gatorland, SeaWorld, and they went on the famed Winter Park Boat Tour.

On Friday, Lisa and I took the day off and with them to SeaWorld. One of the nice benefits of being a Florida/Orlando resident is the discounted rate residents get. As well as the benefit of getting annual passes. In the case of SeaWorld, an annual pass is the same price as normal single-day entry into the park.

Let's admit it - why does anyone come to SeaWorld? Two Words - Shamu, Shamu!

They don't call the first ten rows the "Splash Zone" for nothing.

This picture was taken inside the Penguin house. None of my penguin photos turned out - not enough light.

Manatee aka "Sea cow." Here's more info on the life of a Manatee.

Before the big Whale and Dolphin show.

The Whale and Dolphin show. I hate to say this, but I think I liked it better than the Shamu show.

On Saturday, we dropped Lisa of at the airport (she was going back to Tanzania) and then headed north to St. Augustine. St. Augustine is the oldest city in the US and was founded by Spanish explorers in 1565. There is so much to see there, and no way to see it all in one day. In fact we really only saw one thing - Flagler College. Other sites to see include the Fountain of Youth, Fort Matanzas, St. Augustine Lighthouse, and the St. Augustine Cathedral. Lisa and I will definitely be heading back.

Flagler College is located in what used to be the Ponce De Leon Hotel. The Ponce De Leon Hotel was luxury hotel built in the late-1800's, by Henry Flagler. Dude spared no expense when he built this thing. Between the custom Tiffany windows and chairs in the dining area (yes, that Tiffany, and yes, they are still there), and the original Thomas Edison clocks, this was the hotel to stay at in the early part of the 20th century.

There are lions everywhere - get it, Ponce De Leon.

The fountain represents a sword driven into the ground.

This is the dining hall and cafeteria for Flagler College - what was the dining room for the Hotel. The ceiling was hand painted with Tiffany glass windows.

An original Thomas Edison clock. Notice the number 4 on the clock - a unique element of every Edison clock.

Flagler's third wife.

We had a lot of fun with the Grandma's. It's probably the most time I have spent with either of them since we lived with my Grandma Adeline after moving back to Seattle, in the 7th grade. These are some pretty amazing women, and it was great to spend time with them. I hope they didn't mind the fact that we walked them into the ground all over Orlando.