An ocean view, wizards and Jupiter
Friday, July 22 – We got off to a late start for once, not leaving the house until 5:18. Our gear barely fit in the Crosstour. We stopped for breakfast at a McDonald’s in Berea, Kentucky. Lynne texted her sister with our progress and she replied that she hated us all. After that, we decided it was imperative we continue to send her reports. 25E was finished and four lanes all the way from Corbin to Morristown. It was very hot so we opted to stop a little early for lunch, at the rest area near Asheville, to take advantage of the mountains. It was 89 degrees there. According to the car, it was 97 degrees when we went past the South Carolina welcome center, our usual stop. In Columbia the thermometer was reporting 104 degrees. I-26 traffic was not bad at all and we had nothing more than a few sprinkles, so we made good time. Our hotel was the Comfort Suites in Richmond Hill, Georgia. We ate dinner at the Country Pride restaurant at the TravelCenters truck stop there. Michelle said her dinner was the greasiest thing she’d ever seen, and our was not much different. We turned in early, determined not to hit the road until 8:00 the next morning so we wouldn’t end up in New Smyrna before we could check in. Lynne noted that she had not set the air conditioning so cold that the rest of us froze.
Saturday, July 23 – Lynne woke up with an upset stomach and skipped breakfast. We managed to leave right around 8:00. Georgia had finished construction on I-95 and expanded it to three lanes from border to border. Combined with light traffic, we sailed easily to Florida. In Jacksonville we took 9A around the east side of the city, past the cruise ship port and over the Napoleon Bonaparte Broward Bridge, a towering cable-stayed structure crossing the St. Johns River. 44 in New Smyrna was bumper-to-bumper with all the weekenders heading to the beach. After lunch at Denny’s we headed to the Hacienda Del Sol II where we were the first to arrive. Our room wasn’t ready so we waited in the cabana by the pool. Cliff’s family arrived next, followed by Carolyn’s. Cliff’s room was the first to become available but by 3:00 we were all settled in, mostly unpacked, and ready for the grocery store. Lynne passed on Manny’s because of her stomach troubles. We found out Bill had a terrible ear ache so not a great start. Michelle hit the ocean with the Lawrences and Diersings in the afternoon. Our room had keyless entry so there were no dilemmas about divvying up keys. We were in 513, an oceanfront room with a balcony right above the beach. The Diersings were in 415 and the Lawrences in 507. Mom had planned on coming down but Dave Seim’s declining health forced them to cancel their reservation.
Sunday, July 24 – Jim ran into Jessie, Zach and Carolyn on the beach at sunrise. She said that would probably be the last time those two would be up so early. Low tide in the morning. Jim went out but Lynne (stomach) and Michelle (headache) passed. Bethune Park has new erosion safeguards so it’s no longer possible to go right by the water to see the manatees. There are a lot of pelicans this year. Very few boats on the water. Our unit (513) is oceanfront and has a terrific view from the balcony. The Diersings are just below and to the side of us in 415, and the Lawrences have a view of the beach and lagoon from unit 507.
Monday, July 25 – Not much of a sunrise and an overcast morning. Scott and Julia sent a message about 8:30 that they were at the airport in Lexington and their flight is on time. Lynne had a rough night and stayed indoors all day. Bill ended up at the doctor and was given antibiotics for an ear infection. Laura’s flight had mechanical problems and was delayed four hours. Scott and Julia had no problems with their flight and were in the condo before three. They promptly headed off to see the manatees and do some grocery shopping. Since Laura and Jaden were late arriving, and Bill and Lynne were under the weather, we postponed our usual night for dining out.
Tuesday, July 26 – Heavy overcast early in the morning. Lynne woke up feeling a bit better. We saw lots of dolphins swimming south around 7:30. The ocean was on the cold side with little sun so more time at the pool. Jim took Michelle, Scott and Julia to J. B.’s for lunch. Afterwards they stopped at Bethune Park to see the manatees and were treated to a couple of dolphins repeatedly charging into the cove after fish. Scott fixed spaghetti for dinner back at the Hacienda del Sol.
Wednesday, July 27 – Overcast and fairly dismal. Zach went golfing with Cliff, and Bill went fishing. Everyone else ended up at the pool. Jim and Lynne went to the Little Drug Store for lunch. Rain poured briefly in the afternoon. We ate at PJ’s Sea Shack where once again, we were the last to arrive and ended up eating at a separate table from the Diersings and Lawrences. Jaden was not feeling well and cried through a good portion of the evening.
Thursday, July 28 – Blue skies and a golden sunrise to start the day. Lynne finally got to the beach. We ate dinner at Pappa’s for Jim’s birthday, followed by Key Lime pie in lieu of birthday cake at the condo.
Friday, July 29 – The plan was for a group outing to Islands of Adventure, but Julia was not feeling well and had to pass. Jim took Michelle, Zach and Jessie. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter was the big draw and was so packed with people, even the stores had queues. After some morning rides and lunch at the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade, the Forbidden Journey ride proved to be too much as both Jessie and Michelle started feeling very sick, so we headed back to New Smyrna. Scott, Julia and Michelle headed up to the Hidden Treasure restaurant on Rose Bay for dinner. Jim was wiped out and stayed at the condo with Lynne.
Saturday, July 30 – Lynne and Carolyn started their day off with a spa visit at the Riverview. The rest of the crew, minus the Lawrence children (still wiped out from Friday) hung at the beach and pool. We could see the beach north of us where driving is allowed, and it was as packed with people as we’d ever seen. Dinner was at Mi Mexico.
Sunday, July 31 – Scott and Julia went to Islands of Adventure and fared better than Jim’s group on Thursday, hitting everything in the park in the first four hours they were there. Jim and Lynne went to the Beacon for breakfast, then drove down Riverside Drive to see the Old Stone Wharf. Beach and pool in the morning. Lazy afternoon capped with a spaghetti dinner at the condo.
Monday, August 1 – Beach and pool. Bill and Carolyn took Laura, Michelle, Scott and Julia to Chase’s for lunch, minus kids. Jim and Lynne went to the International Deli for excellent German food. It stormed in the afternoon. Lynne’s back was hurting and she passed on dinner at Down the Hatch. The rest of the crew made it there but the threatening weather scrubbed our plans for miniature golf.
Tuesday, August 2 – Beach and pool, something of a routine. The younger crowd made an impressive sand sculpture of a sea turtle. Laura and Jaden said their goodbyes and left around lunch time for the Daytona airport. Scott and Julia rented a kayak at J.B.’s and paddled to Bethune Park where the water was high and the manatees were very active, until a sightseeing pontoon boat motored in and they retreated. Very hazy and humid. We ate at Norwood’s. Scott and Julia did some souvenir shopping but their last swim was cut short by lightning.
Wednesday, August 3 – Scott and Julia left for the Orlando airport at 4:30. They had a severe thunderstorm and turbulence when they got to Lexington but made it down safely and had picked up Luna the pug from the kennel by 1:00. There were a few jellyfish on the beach in the morning so we all headed to the pool. After lunch, we drove up to Ponce Inlet to see the Marine Science Center and stop by the lighthouse to look in the gift shop. The Marine Science Center exists primarily as a rehabilitation facility for sea turtles and birds and was nursing a couple of injured turtles and several hatchlings. On the way back we stopped at Banana Split Republic for ice cream. Ate Mexican back at the Hacienda for dinner. Bill and Zach came over for Shark Week (New Smyrna showed up as number one!) and in Bill’s case, Spaten. Carolyn took Jessie up to Daytona to meet one of her friends for mini golf, or, as Carolyn called it, “Putt-putt from hell”.
Thursday, August 4 – Lynne had another spa appointment, this time for her back. Since she didn’t want to swim first, she ran out to Hidden Lakes and picked up a golf glove for her mother before going to the spa at Riverview. On her way back, Lynne bought her souvenir wind chimes and goodies for work. Michelle wasn’t feeling well and stayed in. Jim hit the beach and pool. Cliff’s family decided to go to Touch of Italy but we went to Blackbeard’s with the Lawrences. On the way back, we saw two bald eagles on the north causeway.
Friday, August 5 – Packing day. Lynne joined us on the beach in the morning to watch an Atlas V launch for the Juno space probe, destined for Jupiter. The launch was delayed for nearly an hour so we all got a little more sun than we bargained for, except for Michelle who retreated to the condo and watched from the shaded balcony. We heard and felt the vibration from the rocket. Jim went to J.B.’s with Bill and Zach for a farewell beer and final stop at Bethune for the manatees. The cove was full of stand-up paddlers but the manatees didn’t seem to care. For dinner the Lawrences came over and we had pizza from Manny’s.
Saturday, August 6 – We loaded the car and left at 5:45, stopping for breakfast at a McDonald’s in St. Augustine. Traffic was light in Florida and Georgia but became intolerable in South Carolina. We exited onto US 21 and took it to Orangeburg, got onto I-26 for about two miles, and exited to catch US 176, rejoining I-26 just outside Columbia. We were staying in touch with the Lawrences who were a couple of miles ahead of us when we exited, and ended up ten miles behind us when we finished our detour. Lunch was a Burger King outside Columbia. Traffic was a little better past Columbia but ground to a halt outside Asheville because of construction. We stayed at a Comfort Suites on Strawberry Plains Road just east of Knoxville, and the Lawrences got the room across the hall. We all went to Cracker Barrel for dinner.
Sunday, August 7 – Lynne realized she’d left her rings in the hotel room right after we checked out so we were a little delayed leaving. No problems as we took the beltway around Knoxville to I-75. We had off and on rain in Tennessee and skies remained gray through Kentucky. We saw an orange van pulling a trailer with a car that was made from two front ends joined together, so we got our strange site for the trip out of the way at last. I-75 construction in northern Kentucky had traffic coming to a halt but we were able to exit at Alexandria Pike and rejoin the expressway in Covington just before the bridge, and made it home before noon, with the obligatory stop for Skyline.
Milestones on this trip: Watched the Juno mission launch.
States and provinces we visited: Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida.
Capital cities we saw: Columbia.
