Creatures of Central Florida: An Introduction

Central Florida is one of the world's greatest examples of what happens when rapid development coexists with a wild, often hostile climate and ecosystem.  Massive tourist attractions and housing developments run into swamps, lakes, and the remnants of the area's agricultural roots.  Because of this combination of the wild and the man made, this area of the country now provides the opportunity to witness an amazing variety of animals in both their natural habitats and in captivity.

Florida is a place where an alligator in the backyard is not a reason for panic, but just a typical afternoon.  Birds of all shapes and sizes migrate here during the winter, and many that would seem exotic anywhere else are as common a sight as a mallard duck.  In the zoos and theme parks, the near endless summer climate allows for the keeping of a truly stunning menagerie of animals from across the planet.

I plan on highlighting some of the many creatures that can be found in Central Florida.  I will provide some pictures, basic information, and where these animals can be found.  The natural world often gets lost among all the animatronics and roller coasters, and the real gators are so much better than the robotic ones on The Jungle Cruise.

Review: Turtle Trek at SeaWorld Orlando

For the first time in years, the theme park wars are heating up in Orlando.  Universal's Wizarding World of Harry Potter is a huge hit, with an all but confirmed expansion starting construction soon.  Disney World's New Fantasyland quickly approaches partial completion, and Avatar Land at Animal Kingdom shows signs of initial planning and development.  In contrast to the roller coasters and thrill rides added steadily over the last 14 years, SeaWorld Orlando is bringing the focus back on attractions that educate and entertain.

Turtle Trek is the first addition, a 360 3D film experience that replaces the former manatee and sea turtle exhibits.  The attraction is enclosed in a nicely themed building evoking both waves and the flippers of the titular sea turtles.  The queue itself is nothing spectacular and slightly deceptive in length, but there is some nice landscaping and a good amount of shade.

30X2 or How the Best Laid Plans Go Awry

When I moved down to Orlando, I managed to achieve a childhood dream.  I was away from Indiana, living less than an hour away from the Happiest Place on Earth (copyright Disney, do not use without permission unless you want people in large costumes to break your legs).  I could see myself visiting constantly, and developed great ambitions about finally writing about one of my favorite subjects.

Nicole and I found a wonderful group of Disney devotees who met at the parks every week.  I planned to write about every attraction the group was scheduled to visit, cataloguing the entirety of Epcot in the process.  An ambitious plan at best, but a complete failure once life intruded.

First, remaining projects with work absorbed more and more of my time and creative energy.  Then, Nicole gained a steady client at work, unfortunately one that was scheduled at exactly the time our newfound Disney group met every week.  Finally, the family business for which I continued to work finally called it quits after more than a decade, requiring me to throw together many last minute projects to get by without a regular income.

Although things are far from stable yet, I decided it was time to start writing again.  My childhood dream was to live next to Disney World, my adult dream is to write about it.  It's time to make that dream come true.

Epcot 30x30: Club Cool

Club Cool, located in Future World in Epcot, seems like it should be a blight on the park, a completely random Coca Cola outpost.  Originally installed as Ice Station Cool, it seemed like a blatant example of a temporary advertising opportunity, featuring a small mountain of faux ice and even a frozen caveman clutching a bottle of Coca Cola.  After years of sticking out like a bizarre extension of Blizzard Beach in Epcot, the Ice Station closed to re-open as the exact same thing, just re-named to Club Cool with the frosty overlay removed.

75% of the supposed attraction is awful.  Half the space is devoted to a Coca Cola store featuring uninspired Coke branded merchandise.  There's a soda fountain selling overpriced Coke ICEEs.

Epcot 30x30: Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival

Spring has arrived in Florida.  At least, I'm told Spring has arrived.  As far as I can tell the only difference is that the temperature is now in the 80s rather than the 70s, and the sun takes even less time to char flesh.  One definite sign that it's here, however, is the 19th Annual Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival.

Even though it's technically older, the event is known by most people as the Festival that isn't the Food & Wine Festival, most likely because you can't get tipsy on flowers unless you're taking some heavy duty allergy medication.  It still manages to help fill the park between spurts of Spring Breakers while also showing off Disney's legendary gardening.  It lasts from March 2nd through May 15th, and attempts to get tourists excited about extra landscaping and excessive amounts of topiary.

Epcot 30x30: Test Track

Spaceship Earth from the Official Epcot Site.

 Starting this last weekend, a Facebook group known as Weekly Walt Disney World had its first meeting in honor of Epcot's upcoming 30^th anniversary. The goal is to experience all attractions and events the park features by the time of the anniversary, focusing on one a week. A noble goal, but I think my bar bill from World Showcase might send Nicole and I into poverty by the time the year's over.

There's also a foolhardy attempt to consume one of the world's worst beverages every week, the shockingly bitter Beverly. I have dedicated myself to this endeavor because I have some bizarre tolerance for torture. It's a Small World doesn't phase me, and some infamous Italian soda isn't going to either.

Hipstamatic Disney World

After an extra year of planning, a wedding, family emergencies of various stripes, and general chaos, my now wife Nicole and I finally moved to Florida.  After another agonizing month of waiting, we finally managed to get our annual passes to Disney World.  Over the last few weeks we have already gotten a lot of use out of those passes, and I've been using my favorite iPod app, Hipstamatic, to get some photos.

Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin was fun as usual, but Buzz Lightyear without a face is kind of horrifying.  The older you get, the more you realize just how creepy a lot of Disney has the potential to be with the slightest of changes.