Day 3 - Tampa - Clearwater Marine Aquarium

The top attraction on Samantha’s list was the Clearwater Marine Aquarium.  This was our destination today.  We got a later start to the day and grabbed lunch to eat on the two hour drive.



Note Chi-Chi at the top of the sign



The aquarium was smaller than I expected but I think that made it better.  We were able to get close to the rescued dolphins and sea turtles.  The highlight was Winter, the dolphin without a tail.  The movie “Dolphin Tale” was based on Winter’s story and was filmed at this aquarium.  Samantha has seen the movie and read books about Winter.  I was able to watch the movie on the long flight from Dubai.  There were three other rescued dolphins who all had their own interesting story of how they came to be there.  The volunteers were a nice compliment to the aquarium.  Very informative with a personal touch. 

Sam holding one of the prosthetic tails Winter has outgrown

Winter



Hope
(Hope's Story from the Clearwater Marime Aquarium website at seewinter.com)

On December 11, 2010, Hubbs Sea World Research Institute received a call that a dolphin calf was found in the Indian River Lagoon on the East Coast of Florida. Staff from Hubbs located the calf, where she was found attempting to nurse from her mother who had passed away. The dolphin was evaluated on-site, and in coordination with National Marine Fisheries Service, it was determined that she would be transported to Clearwater Marine Aquarium for rehabilitation. This little dolphin was found very near the area where Winter had been found, exactly five years and one day later! Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute arranged the transportation and transfer to CMA and she arrived during the wrap party for Winter's movie, Dolphin Tale.

Hope, as she was named, was 2 to 3 months of age at the time of her rescue and weighed only 58 pounds. Hope was given 24 hour care by staff and volunteers and was fed every two hours. She is given a formula that consists of fish, powdered milk substitute and water blended together to create a tasty fish milkshake! Today she is about 11 months old, weighs over 150 pounds and is growing steadily. Since little Hope was still nursing when she was found and humans are not able to teach a baby dolphin how to hunt or recognize predators, she is not a candidate for release. Instead, she has found a home with CMA who promises to take special care of her.



Nicholas
You can see the scars from his sunburn on his head.
(Nicholas' Story from the Clearwater Marime Aquarium website at seewinter.com)Christmas Eve, 2002, a mother and her calf stranded and were named "Noelle" and "Nicholas" in honor of their holiday arrival. Noelle was unfortunately very sick and passed away within a few days. Our team then focused all their efforts on the six-month-old infant, Nicholas, who had received third-degree sunburns from his melon to his dorsal fin covering more than thirty percent of his body.

On

His condition was critical with severe burns leaving him prone to infection, compounded by the loss of his mother, his natural source of nutrition. The stranding team provided around-the-clock care for several months. He recovered even faster than we had hoped and his burn completely healed within nine months of daily treatment. He was also weaned off of formula and onto fish, a diet which would have been taught to him by his mother over the course of the next few years in the wild.

Nicholas will remain at CMA due to his dependent status at the time of his stranding and the lack of important life skills that develop through the mother-calf relationship.

Bailey is a very curious Green Sea Turtle.  He swam right up to the glass to get a closer look at Samantha's fingers.

Bailey
His head is lower left with his tail up in the air.
(Bailey's Story from the Clearwater Marime Aquarium website at seewinter.com)

Bailey is paralyzed in the rear flippers and suffers from a buoyancy disorder due to spinal cord damage. It is believed that Bailey was dropped from a net onto a fishing boat, thereby paralyzing him and making him unreleasable. Commercial fishing nets have posed problems for sea turtles for many years. They become entangled in the nets and often drown. As of 1987, all U.S. commercial trawling nets must use a T.E.D. or turtle excluder device to help protect sea turtles. The T.E.D. is made up of a grid of bars and an additional opening in the net. When a larger animal, such as a sea turtle, is captured in the net, they are unable to pass through the bars and can escape through the opening.

Sam in front of the houseboat used in the movie Dolphin Tale.

This is where Sam chose to buy her souvenirs.  She chose a small tailless stuffed animal, a keychain and a patch.  I told her I would buy her a fleece to sew the patch onto.

My supervisor in Afghanistan had taken his R&R last tour to Florida.  He recommended a market that served fabulous strawberry shortcake that was not far from our route back to Orlando.  4pm was too early for dinner but just the right time to ruin our dinner.  And ruin it we did.

When we got back to the house the water was warm enough for the kids to use the pool.  They liked having their own pool!

Day 2 - Orlando - Epcot

We were up early and managed to arrive at Epcot just after it opened at 9am.  Mike had been to Epcot once when he was 14 years old but I never had.  I was excited.  I had heard so many people say how much they love Disney but after today, I doubt I will ever be one of them.

The front part of Epcot is “Future World”.  We didn’t know much about any of the rides but saw that Test Track already had a decent line so we grabbed a Fast Pass and then went to find a ride with a shorter line.  (Only a few rides have the fast pass option.  We enter our admission ticket into the machine and a pass for that ride spits out with a one-hour window of time when we can return and go right to the front of the line.  We can only have one fast pass at a time.)  Mission Space only had a 10 minute wait time so we went there next.

When we got line for Mission Space, we were asked “less intense or more intense”.  Sam and I picked less and Mike and J of course picked more.  We were strapped in a four person simulator and took a trip to Mars.  Less intense was just fine for Sam and me.  The more intense ride spun creating 2.4G effect.  The boys were also happy with their choice (crazy boys).  This was Jason’s favorite ride of the day.

When that ride ended we were within our fast past window for the Test Track so we rode that ride next.  Grouped in individual cars, the GM sponsored ride takes us through a simulation of what the different types of car tests are (ascend steep terrain that's 3 stories high, then let loose downhill, blasting across a bumpy road and roaring through 50-degree banked curves and hair-pin turns that test suspension and brakes at speeds up to 60 miles per hour!)  The kids liked the ride but Mike liked the elaborate waiting area that the lines zig zag through.  He was impressed at all the high dollar tools being used as mere props.

We wandered from that ride through Innoventions.  This indoor area is a hands-on area so we turned the kids loose and Mike and I sat on the parent waiting benches planning our next move.    After a while Sam was ready to go we sent her to find J.  He was bummed because he had been in line for a design-your-own roller coaster.  I wasn’t sure what he meant but told him we would try to come back for it.

Jason gets his laid back and carefree attitude from Mike but his outgoingness is all his own.  While in line he struck up a conversation with a woman who told him that she recommended getting a fast pass to “Soarin”.  So that is what we did.  Unlike Test Track that gave us a fast pass window not too far away, the fast pass window for Soarin wasn’t until later in the afternoon so we decided to go eat.

The back half of Epcot is called World Showcase.  Disney’s media describes World Showcase as “a collective of Pavilions that wrap around the World Showcase Lagoon. Inside the Pavilions, find shops, attractions and restaurants that represent the culture and cuisine of 11 countries.”  What that meant to us was that we paid a heck of a lot of money for admission to a themed shopping area.

We hadn’t realized that yet when we headed to Mexico for lunch.  A rude counter staff handed us nachos for both kids, two tacos with tortilla chips for Mike and an empanada with tortilla chips for me.  We had bottled water in our backpack.  The food was good, but not $50 good.  We knew it would be expensive to eat at Disney, but that was ridiculous.

After lunch we went into the Aztec Temple.  What I expected was a museum-ish environment.  When we walked in and saw a sit down restaurant and ample shopping, that is when it hit me.  This environment was not for us.  Fortunately before we arrived, the kids each picked the theme park they wanted to get a souvenir from so there wasn’t any question about the chance of us buying anything.  Also, Sam has a stuffed Chihuahua that is homework for the trip.  She is to write about Chi-Chi’s adventures in a journal.  We brought the dog in our backpack and Sam had a great deal of fun staging Chi-Chi for photos which was also a nice distraction from all the cool stuff we could buy.

Luckily Jason’s keen observation saved World Showcase from being a total wash.  Jason asked me what the cell phone looking thing with the box was.  He said he saw a kid with one.  I asked him to show me and he did.  I didn’t have any idea what it was so I told him to go ask.  Because Jason is who he is, he did.  He walked right over, started up a conversation and we learned about the Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure.

We made our way to the Kim Possible booth where the kids picked up a “Kimmunicator”, a Verizon cell phone.  The adventure lasts about 20 minutes and is only in one country at a time.  The kids were told to go to France and were given directions to a particular location.  Each time they found the location they would be given another destination within the country.  Sometimes cool things happened when they pushed a particular button standing in the correct spot.  Disney missed a great learning opportunity by just making the adventure a cartoon game but the kids had fun.  Disney gets credit for dragging the parents from shop to shop.  After the kids “won” they could do it again in another country.  As long as they were having fun, we were fine with it.

Most of the countries were uneventful but we did happen to be in China at the right time to see a good street show of Chinese acrobats.  Sam was also able to get a photo of Chi-Chi in most of the countries.

In Mexico

In Morocco

In China

In the United States

In Italy

In Germany

In China

We left World Showcase and headed back to use our fast pass for Soarin’.  This was Mike’s and my favorite ride of the day.  This ride simulates a peaceful hang-gliding flight over California.  We sat in a dangling seat in front of an IMAX projection screen.

Next we went next door and boarded the boat of the “Living with the Land” ride.  It was an interesting float by experimental greenhouses where produce is grown for Epcot restaurants.

Finally we made our way back to the design-your-own rollercoaster “Sum of All Thrills”.  Raytheon sponsored this ride and it was incredible.  This was Sam’s favorite of the day.  Mike and I were going to sit this one out but I was concerned Sam might need help so I jumped back in line.  The parents right behind us gave us an quick explanation.  Using the easy software on the touch screen table the kids literally create the commands for the simulator.  They would have to test their creation to make sure they had enough velocity to complete the coaster.  I was so impressed I asked if Mike could come look and the attendant let him in too.  Both kids were able to design on their own then I sat in the second seat of Sam’s robotic arm as it executed her design which included going upside down twice.  I was really glad Jason discovered this ride and that we went back.

It was dinner time when we left so we had dinner at home again.  Having found the perfect easy dinner, we again stopped at Wal-mart for another rotisserie chicken.

Day 1 - Orlando - Gatorland

When I hear Orlando, the first thing that comes to mind is Disney.  When I was 8 my Dad took me to Florida and we did spend a day at Disney.  However, it isn’t Disney that I remember but Gatorland.  That is how we began our trip.

We spent the morning just hanging out at the house.  Mike and I talked over coffee while the kids practiced for the big tournament.  At 1000 we headed into the gameroom where I won the air hockey portion and Mike took the basketball shooting thing.  Luckily the kids have all week to prepare for a rematch.

After showers, Sam and I took off for Best Buy to buy a new camera to replace the one I washed, then we grabbed the boys and headed to Gatorland.  It was a fabulous afternoon.  The park was well taken care of and we all enjoyed looking at the alligators. 



One perk of mom being away... a closer bond between Samantha and Mike.



Samantha’s favorite was the white one.  Mike asked Sam “wouldn’t that make a great pair of boots?”  Her reply… “Dad, why would you want to wear crocodile skin on your feet?”

Jason’s favorite alligator was the one that got irritated with another and snapped.  The splashing got our attention and watching the one alligator remind the other who was dominant was amusing.

I knew I definitely wanted the kids to hold the baby alligator and take a photo like I did when I was 8 in 1984.  Sam wasn’t so sure.  When the lady told her to hold out her hand, Sam did.  The lady said “No sweetie, you’re real hand”.  What Sam had held out was her hand, but her sweatshirt sleeve covered it down to her finger tips.



Me when I was 8 years old at Gatorland.


We also chose to feed the parakeets which was a blast.  Luckily Jason had the benefit of his sweatshirt hood.  Sam walked around with her arm over her head.  When we first walked in the birds knew exactly what was to come and we were swarmed by birds.  Mike wasn’t planning to come in with us but when he saw Sam completely covered, and not happy about it, he rushed in to help her out.  After a while she got used to it.  It was a unique experience.

On the way back to the house, the kids fell asleep in the car.  We wore them out after just half a day at Gatorland.  They are going to need to build up their stamina for the days ahead.

There is a super Wal-Mart just outside our neighborhood so we stooped there to pick up dinner.  Mike ran in and grabbed a rotisserie chicken and vegetables which was a perfect dinner.  I didn’t make it too much longer after that before I again felt the effect of the 9.5 hour time difference and we all headed to bed early.

Spa Day

I found an Aveda spa online that was running a $99 special for a manicure, pedicure, facial and massage.  I made an appointment for the package as well as a haircut before I left Afghanistan.  This was how I spent my day before picking up Mike and the kids at the airport in the afternoon.  It felt so good to finally be together again.  As much as I wanted to stay up, the time difference was still taking its toll so I was in bed early again.

Rental House

The flight from Dubai to Atlanta is 16 hours.  That is a long and painful flight.  After making my way through customs I had just enough time to run to the gate for my flight to Orlando. 

I arrived mid morning into Orlando, picked up the rental car and headed to the house we would call home for the next ten days.  Having found such a perfect apartment in Rome via vrbo.com, I decided to try it again.  For $85/night (no tax), we rented a four bedroom, two bath house with a pool.  The garage was converted into a game room.  We couldn’t have stayed at a nice hotel for that price and we had more than just a room with beds.  We are definitely on to something.  On the way to the house I stopped at Wal-mart to pick-up some groceries and remind myself how wonderful shopping is.  I was able to keep myself awake until 6pm when I finally lost the jet lag battle.



VRBO Property 352262






R&R Start in Dubai

I can tell I need a break.  Before I went on my last R&R I didn’t realize how badly I needed a break.  This time, I could definitely tell.

Getting ready for R&R is stressful.  I had so much work to do that I wasn’t in my room packing until well past midnight.  We aren’t supposed to do laundry after 10pm but I really needed to so I did it anyway.  It is a blanket rule for all laundry rooms on the compound but my laundry room is outside and the sound doesn’t echo like it does in some of the other buildings so I was relatively confident that I wouldn’t disturb anyone.  I washed my wallet and my camera.  See, this is why I don’t usually break rules…karma.

I met my friend Bimi last Sept at the deployment processing center.  She and I work together here.  There is a special bond with the people that deploy in the same group.  Bimi had done two tours in Kabul but this was her first time in Kandahar.  Born in India, she moved to the US in her 20’s so she is well traveled.  We hit it off right away so it was a pleasant surprise that we were going on R&R at exactly the same time.

Bimi and I arranged to have a private tour guide and driver meet us at the airport for our six hour layover in Dubai.  Bimi’s son and new daughter-in-law were having a wedding reception while she was home and she wanted a traditional Indian outfit for the event.  Because Dubai is an International hub, the shopping is amazing.  We wandered the streets of shops and while Bimi shopped, our tour guide filled my head with so much wonderful information about Dubai and the Unites Arab Emirates.  The guide is from Mexico and she moved to Dubai when her husband accepted a pilot job with Emirates Airline.  She has two middle school age children so it was fascinating to hear about her life and how her children felt about living in Dubai.  After Bimi found a dress, we went sightseeing.  I really like Dubai.



Bimi and I in front of the Dubai Skyline



One of the many streets we walked along while shopping



In front of Jumeirah Mosque



Bimi and I in front of the Burj Al Arab hotel.  It is often referred to as "the world's only seven-star hotel."