I’m celebrating an anniversary of sorts. Three years ago this month I walked away from corporate life to pursue my lifelong passions of travel, writing and photography. Although it’s not an easy path, I feel alive for the first time in my life. The serious perspective that dogged my every thought and action for years has magically vanished. The difference between then and now was driven home recently during when I experienced Walt Disney World with uninhibited, childlike joy.

Here’s to many more years of joy!

The sound of Bok Tower’s carillon bells was so mesmerizing that I did not notice the snake. I stood at the far end of the tower’s reflecting pond, enjoying the ethereal music, until suffocating midday heat drove me to the shaded concrete benches at the edge of the semi-circular clearing. Suddenly, a movement. A black snake lying beneath the bench retreated a few inches as I approached. I stopped dead. Head up, the snake wove back and forth in the air for a few seconds before retreating into the bushes. Did I dare sit? He slithered back out of the bushes and curled around the base of a trash can. Waiting.

Friendly or not, I wasn't about to sit next to this black water snake

What if I had unknowingly sat on that bench? A simple black water snake, harmless, and yet…I don’t like to be startled by them. I am actually quite fascinated by snakes. But oh my God! To be sitting there and have it slither across my feet or wrap around my ankles; I shivered at the thought. His tongue flicked repeatedly from his snout. Brazenly, he inched his sleek black body closer. In the middle of the chipped-wood path he stopped, basking in the sunshine. Perspiration poured down my face and back. I needed to rest in the shade and dry my sweat-soaked pants and T-shirt, but the two-foot long snake barred my way. Again his tongue darted out, testing. Tentatively, I moved a step closer. He bolted into the dense foliage at the edge of the pond. Had he gone into the water? Crouching down, I peered into the vegetation and finally spotted the tip of his pointy tail protruding from the shrubbery. Had I not seen him go in, I would never have known he was there.

Bok Tower reflects into pond in the late afternoon setting sun

All the animals I encountered at Bok Tower Gardens seemed fearless. Rather than running away, squirrels chuckled and scolded. Mockingbirds serenaded from low branches. Gigantic weaver spiders tensed in the center of enormous webs, patiently awaiting prey. Even the resident swans swam right up, hoping to steal fish food pellets meant for giant carp thrashing about in the pond. Somehow, the animals know they are protected here.

Billed as, “A remarkable experience that will elevate your mind and spirit,” these exquisite gardens exist due to the efforts of Edward W. Bok a Dutch immigrant and humanitarian who came to the U.S. at the age of six. In 1889, Bok became the editor of the Ladies Home Journal, a position he would hold for the next 30 years. During visits to his Florida winter home in the 1920′s, Bok witnessed the beauty and dramatic sunsets of Iron Mountain, the highest point in peninsular Florida. Awed by the tranquility of the area, he purchased the land and commissioned renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead Jr. to create a stunning garden that would become a haven for native birds, plants and wildlife. Bok worked closely with Olmstead through the design process and after giving his final stamp of approval, left to tour Europe. Read the rest of this entry »

Update 09/23/2009: Sadly, the reopening of Cypress Gardens was short lived. It unceremoniously closed its doors once again today. An article in the St. Petersburg Times states: “Unidentified buyers are negotiating to purchase the property. But state and county governments control most of the lake front and the original gardens, while investors have long coveted the developable parts of the 120-acre park.”

Cypress Gardens' world famous water ski show

Closed since November 2008, Florida’s first ever theme park reopened last week following extensive renovations. No longer Cypress Gardens Adventure Park, the attraction has been rebranded into two separate entities, Cypress Gardens and Splash Island Water Park. Animals from the attraction’s former zoo have been transferred to new homes and park owners are in the process of removing the carnival and adventure rides installed in 2004. The new Cypress Gardens will focus on the botanical gardens along with Splash Island.

The famous ski shows and the electric boat tours for which Cypress Gardens is best known have resumed operations and concerts and special events, including flower festivals, will return as part of the regular entertainment package. The first water ski show at Cypress Gardens was performed in 1941 by accident. The park Read the rest of this entry »

Day three of my Walt Disney World discovery tour was devoted to Downtown Disney because this is where my niece and her choral group would be performing at various times throughout the day. I’d previously had a poor experience at the Magic Kingdom and a great experience at Epcot, so it seemed that Downtown Disney was destined to be the tie breaker.

Downtown Disney is divided into three sections: ”West Side, Marketplace, and Pleasure Island – all of which form one long shopping center that fronts a large man-made lake. West Side contains restaurants, a 24-screen movie theater, a Virgin Mega Store, the Cirque du Soleil La Nouba live entertainment show, and the DisneyQuest Indoor Interactive Theme Park.

Pleasure Island at Downtown Disney is sad and deserted

Pleasure island used to be home to numerous nightclubs, but all of them were closed in September of 2008, and the area is now undergoing a transformation – into what I’m not quite sure because the website instructs that more information regarding these changes can be found at the Pleasure Island FAQ page, but no link to that page is provided. Read the rest of this entry »

After a disappointing day at the Magic Kingdom that included an amusing run-in with a phony Prince Charming, I was prepared not to like Epcot. To my delight, I loved absolutely everything about it.

Topiaries of Cinderella and her court stand in front of Epcot's famous silver globe during the International Flower and Garden Festival

Although I wholeheartedly recommend a visit to Epcot any time of year, I was fortunate to be there during the annual International Flower and Garden Festival, which runs through May 31, 2009. This year the Festival features more topiaries than ever before. They are scattered around the park, beginning with Cinderella’s grand coronation and her court, which creates a unique foreground for “Spaceship Earth,” Epcot‘s iconic silver globe.

Beauty and the Beast topiary

Roadrunner topiaries

Everywhere, huge swaths of blooming flowers border lush grasses and stunning floral arrangements float peacefully in the center of lakes. A fragrance garden explores the sensual fragrances of Guerlain and the Lush Xeriscapes display provides instruction for creating beautiful gardens while minimizing water use. The art of tea blending is explored at the English Tea Garden and a lovely bonsai plant collection is showcased at the Japan Pavilion. At the China Pavilion, a topiary dragon wades among lily pads in front of the Temple of Heaven. Read the rest of this entry »

I met Prince Charming during my recent not-so-magic visit to Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. No, not the man of my dreams. I met the Prince Charming who appears at the side of Cinderella in every Disney parade. Or so he claimed.

The tunnel beneath Cinderella's Castle leads to the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique and Cinderella's Royal Table, but not to any special tours of the inside of the castle

After a few hours of walking around the park, taking rides, and visiting attractions, my sister, Linda, and I sat down to rest, along with several of the other adults that were chaperoning my niece’s choral group. We began discussing where to eat, checking the park map to see if any of the restaurants offered vegetarian fare.

“You can eat seafood, right?” Linda asked. “We went by a place that smelled like it had great fish and chips, but I don’t remember where it was.”

When I confirmed that, in a pinch, I could get by with seafood, the young man sitting next to me on the bench piped up.

“Go to Columbia Harbour House. They have great fish. I know all the best places to eat because I work here.”

“Really? What do you do?” I asked.

“I’m Prince Charming.”

I gave him the once-over. He certainly looked the part – tall and slim, with sandy blond hair and piercing blue eyes. He was definitely an attractive young man and he knew it.

“How did you get that job?” my sister asked. Read the rest of this entry »

Remember the TV ads that featured Olympic Gold Medalists, Super Bowl stars, and World Series MVP’s responding to the question “What Now?” Their answer was always  “I’m going to Disney World!” Those ads made such an impression on me that I added Walt Disney World to my list of places to see before I die. When my niece’s choral group was chosen to perform at Disney last week, I decided the time was right to make good on my promise and began making arrangements.

The process was unbelievably frustrating. I Googled Walt Disney World and clicked on the site that indicated it was the “Official Site for all things Disney.” From the top navigation bar I chose “Parks” which took me to a second page where I had to choose “Walt Disney World” from the left nav bar, bringing me to yet another page that featured exploding fireworks, music, and a window titled “Price Your Dream Vacation.” I filled out the necessary information for ticket purchases and clicked on “Get Prices.” Then I waited. And waited some more. Nothing. The page just hung.

Back to Google to try one of the other links. But nothing I tried worked. When I finally resorted to calling the toll fee number for Disney World, I was directed to a web site that actually worked, but even then the multitude of ticket choices was confusing and poorly presented and the person on the phone could not adequately explain to me how the various passes worked. In fact, I NEVER got the correct information until I actually arrived at the park. I eventually opted for a two-day pass, hoping that it would be flexible enough to work with my niece’s performances, which had not yet been firmly nailed down as to time and location.

Cinderella's Castle at the Magic Kingdom

Next I needed directions to the park. When I finally found a page on the site that provided driving instructions from Tampa (it took at least half an hour to find this page and as of this writing I cannot find it again) it said something like “Drive east on I-4 until you get to the signs for Walt Disney World.” Big, big help. I know the park is in the Orlando area, but where in the Orlando area? Lake Buena Vista? Orlando proper? Kissimmee? I am trying to figure out what time I must leave Sarasota in order to meet my family at a prearranged hour. I resorted to mapquest. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t work with just the name Walt Disney World and the parks are not shown on their maps. Back to the Disney site to look for a specific address with a city name. Can you guess what’s coming? There is no address for Walt Disney World shown anywhere on the website. Are they purposely trying to make this the most frustrating process I have ever been through?

The next morning I did as directed – headed east on I-4. A few miles west of Orlando the signs for Walt Disney World began appearing; each of five exits indicated it was the correct one for Walt Disney World. By the time I had passed the final Disney World exit on the way to my hotel, I finally got it – Walt Disney World refers to the whole complex of parks – the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom, Blizzard Beach, Typhoon Lagoon, etc. I always thought the term Walt Disney World referred to the place with Cinderella’s castle where all the Disney characters hung out. In my opinion, this is a classic case of marketers who are too close to their product. They assume that people know these things. Frankly, I think the entire site should be redesigned to provide basic information on the front page, the navigation should be made consistent and simple, and the plethora of domain names should all redirect to one website. Why in heaven’s name aren’t they using the domain name Disney.com? They obviously own the domain name, because if you type it into your browser, it redirects to disney.go.com. But I digress… Read the rest of this entry »

Every cloud has a silver lining. In the case of our current economic woes, the silver lining is travel. With reservations down, absolutely awesome travel deals are being offered to anyone with the time and resources to take advantage of them. Two of the most popular destinations in the country, Las Vegas and Orlando, are pulling out all the stops to attract visitors, but wading through all the hype and companies advertising discounts and packages can be frustrating, if not downright exhausting.

Recently I learned about a web-based company that simplifies the process of booking attraction tickets for Las Vegas and Orlando. Entertainment Benefits Group, headquartered in Hollywood/Fort Lauderdale with offices in Orlando, is one of the largest privately held travel and entertainment providers in the United States. The company was founded in 2001 by former management executives from Disney and Universal Studios. As an officially contracted wholesaler for Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, and Sea World, they work directly with Disney and other theme parks to provide tickets through their website OrlandoFunTickets.com.

OrlandoFunTickets.com

Initially, I was skeptical. Why would anyone buy tickets to Disney World or other Orlando attractions from OrlandoFunTickets.com when they could go to the official website of an attraction and buy tickets directly? So I tested it. I went to the official website for Walt Disney World and checked the ticket prices. Not only were direct tickets through Disney slightly more expensive, their web site was extremely confusing. Once I got to the pricing page, I was asked to select which add-on options I wanted to include (Park Hopper option, Water Park Fun & More option, and No Expiration option). Unfortunately, there was no explanation for Read the rest of this entry »