Florida Update #2

So since my last post, we've still been super busy in Florida so I thought I'd share some more pictures.

We went to Disney World which was so magical, even for a group of teenagers as you don't have to be really young to have a brilliant day. The guy on the entrance called me a princess so I knew I was in for a good day!

Aside from the touristy excitement, like seeing the Princess castle and the Walt Disney statue, we went on all the rides. The mine train and Space Mountain were obvious favourites but I liked all of the rides we went on. I think Disney World is a must-do for everyone at some point in their lives.

We left Disney World to go to Waffle House for tea and for a quick swim in the pool in our Villa to cool down but then we went back to watch the fireworks and night time parades.

My top is from Primark, my shorts are from Miss Selfridge two years ago and my bag is also from Primark. (Alex is wearing a Superdry Polo Shirt and shorts from Topman)

Then, this weekend we went on a road trip to Clearwater Beach and stayed at a hotel overnight to see a different side of Florida and also to have a rest from long days at theme parks.

It's pretty cool to think I've paddled in the Gulf on Mexico!

We also went on a dolphin spotting boat ride and saw lots of dolphins playing in the waves. This was so cool because although we saw how talented the dolphins were at Seaworld (post here), this is how they naturally behaved.

We got better videos of the dolphins, than photos but you get the idea!

And here's me jumping on the bed in our hotel room!

The beach we went to was completely idyllic. White, fine grained sand, green/clear water, palm trees- such a lovely setting. And then when dusk fell, the pier turned into a series of unusual market stalls selling artwork and carved wooden items and personalised bracelets. You could even get your name carved onto a grain of rice! Street performers accompanied this, as well as a glass blower and an outdoor cinema showing my favourite film- The Hunger Games.

On the way home from the beach, we stopped at Five Guys Burgers and Fries for lunch since my brother has been obsessed with this comedic song since we've arrived in America, and after that we went to the Orlando Premium Outlets to do some shopping. 

Yesterday, we went to Hollywood Studios- another Disney park but it shows you more about the magic of the movies. There are still plenty of rides and shows to do though, our highlight of yesterday was Aerosmith's Rock n Rollercoaster, even managing to convince my fearful mum of joining us on it! The ride pictured here however, is a 3D Toy Story zapper/shooting game which was fun but I really liked the car stunt show that they put on, especially with a special guest appearance from...

Lightning McQueen!!!!!!!!!

Today I'm having a chill day while the boys have visited the Kennedy Space Centre. There is actually a launch taking place there tomorrow night which we might try and go to. It would be amazing to be there when a real space shuttle goes into space!

Hope you've been having a nice week, not sure if I'll be able to post again before we come back but on Friday we're going to Discovery Cove to swim with real dolphins! Don't want it to end, although I am missing the dog!

Florida Update #1

It's been a week since I left for Florida and we've done so much already so I thought I'd fill you in on what I've been up to since I've got a spare minute from our hectic schedule- currently sat with PopTart, hell yeah America! Be warned, this could get long!

The plane journey was pretty long and boring but the sky looked pretty.

Here we are waiting at Washington airport for our second internal flight to Orlando, there was absolutely nothing to do here or any shops to look round so I watched youtube on my iPad- that's right the Best Song Ever music video.

On our first day in Florida we went to IHOP for breakfast, I had blueberry pancakes- they were sooo good but you get a whole stack there's no way I could have finished them. This was one of the things I really wanted to do while we were here and I think people approved of my recommendation because we're going to try and fit in another trip there before we leave!

After IHOP, we went to Walmart to food shop (check out the size of the water melons!)  but we managed to have a good look round too. Everyone bought a tonne of American sweets and I found my way quickly to the drugstore make up brands to pick a few things up.

Later on that day we went on a airboat ride which is like a hovercraft that goes across land and water and we did crocodile spotting in the swamps, pretty cool head gear!

This is the car/bus we're renting while we're here. We call it the "swagon", look how long it is! It can seat 15 people even though there's only 8 of us (my mum was taking the picture). Here, we have just arrived at Universal Studios very early in the morning ready for our first day of theme park fun.

Just inside the park

Just after the wettest river rapids I've ever been on

The best part of Universal was definitely the Harry Potter world, complete with Hogwarts castle, lots of shops in Hogs Mead like Olivanders and barrels of butter beer on sale, the experience of being there was just as good as the rides.

The next day, we went to Epcot which is a Disney theme park more about discovery than big rides and they have lots of different countries inside it so we naturally had to try on some sombreros in Mexico.

Right next door to Mexico was Norway and a but further along we found ourselves in sunny Italy!

Seaworld was next on the agenda and this has been the highlight of my trip so far- if you ever get the chance, you must go to Seaworld, the shows are amazing, look how high the dolphins jumped! There were lots of different shows all involving different animals from dogs to walruses to ducks to sealions, all of which left me in complete amazement!

The most famous of all the shows they do is the killer whale aka Shamu show.

They are the cutest, cleverest things I've ever seen! I'm so glad we have an opportunity to return here before it's time to go home, and as well as the shows (which we were pleased for since they were in the shade with fans cooling us down while we were sitting) there a a couple of pretty big rides which I also recommend, and of course lots of aquariums and cool fish to see!

We've also been to Animal Kingdom which is a Disney theme park based around animals. We went on a very realistic safari where we saw lots of African native animals- all happy in the surroundings, not cooped up at all, which I was pleased about as zoos make me feel a bit funny. But all the animals could and did roam around freely when they weren't napping in the shade.

There's also a load of rides in Animal Kingdom, suitable for a range of ages. There aren't any huge, upside down roller coasters but there is a cool time travelling car ride where we go back in time to see dinosaurs and narrowly avoid a meteor shower!

We finished our day in Animal Kingdom off in the Rainforest Cafe.

Complete with real robotic jungle creatures that move and make noises while you eat, not to mention the food portions are twice what you could even imagine and twice as delicious!

Aside from this, we've been to a couple of water parks and to the Florida Mall briefly to shop a bit- it must be said that I found my way into a MAC store ooh how American! We've still got just under 2 weeks here so lots more to pack in and expect a haul when I'm home!

Also, if you've got any recommendations of American products that I should get while I'm out here, let me know and we've been vlogging parts of out holiday too if anyone is interested in seeing that? It might go on youtube.

Hope you're all well and that the weather is still nice (?) back in the UK!

Em x

All photos were taken by either me or Alex using his Canon SX280HS camera.