Jamman54

Post Cruise (May 12th) - All fixed, so our last day in Orlando! We were up at 7am to yet another beautiful day here in Orlando. We are on pins and needles waiting for the call from the repair shop. At 7:30am the call came. I had broken the left front axle. Oh boy, how long will it take, and how much would this cost us? He told me that the parts were already ordered, and that the car would be ready this morning! He told me that with my 10% AAA discount the total would come to $471 with tax. BIG, BIG sigh of relief. I was thinking that I had done a grand in damage at the least! So here is our plan. I will stay and wait for the call that the car is ready, and will call an Uber to take me over there. Patti is going to purchase a one day I-Trolley pass for $5. These trolleys, actually buses, run the length of International Drive, and you can hop off and hop on at any one of 38 stops. We decide to walk over to Denny’s for breakfast…… I order a western omelet and Patti orders pancakes and eggs. While we were eating, I get the call that the car is ready. Sweet! After we are done eating, I call for an Uber to pick me up here at Denny’s. Patti is going to begin her journey down International Drive. We’ll get back to her momentarily. The Uber is there within five minutes, and ten minutes later I am at the repair shop. The guys at the desk told me that a ten inch piece of the axle was missing. I guess that was the big clunk that I had heard before I finally pulled over. They told me that we were lucky that when the piece broke off, that it didn’t do any additional damage. I thanked them profusely for getting the car fixed so quickly, as we were driving back to New Jersey tomorrow morning. They assured me that there wouldn’t be any problems, and that I also had a 12 month warranty on the repair. So I want to give a huge shout out to Riker’s Automotive & Tire. If you are visiting in the area, and you need your car serviced, I highly recommend them! Riker's Automotive & Tires After I left Riker’s Automotive and Tire, I took the car for a test drive, and it was running perfectly. I stopped to fill up with gas for tomorrow’s trip, then went back to the hotel to hang out at the pool and work on pictures for the review. Now, let’s get back to Patti. Her first stop was going to be Icon Park, which is only a few blocks walk from Denny’s. She walks past Pirate’s Cove Adventure Golf, which we played the other day…… She has arrived at Icon Park….. To be continued……

Thanks for the update. I'm sure we'll need to do this for our New England / Canada cruise on the Legend in September.

Yep, it's mini golf, not a pitch and putt. Putters only. You can check it out when you're there later this summer. 😊

The funny thing is I knew it was there, I just wasn't paying attention. 😖 Anyone want to venture a guess as to what the diagnosis is and how much it will cost to fix it? 😎

Yep, there she is!

Free lobster is served on cruises 6 days or longer.

Patti has met me at the Grill & Brew and orders a tall refreshing drink….. We order some snacks. We shared a bar pretzel and a flatbread pizza….. We had planned on staying longer, but we really needed to get the car checked out. While I was waiting for Patti, I found a location that I could take the car to and find out what was wrong. Here we are leaving CityWalk and walking back to the car….. We are in the car, and we are still hearing the clunking sound. Here we are leaving Universal Orlando…… We got on I-4 heading westbound, and just as I had gotten the car up to speed, we heard a huge clunk, and the car immediately started losing speed. I pulled over onto the shoulder and called AAA. The system told me that we would have over a two hour wait, but within minutes, the tow driver called me and told me he would be there in like twenty minutes. He got us hooked up and towed us to an AAA approved location called Riker’s Automotive & Tire. It was located just off of International Drive, out by Sea World. The people there were so nice. It was late so they wouldn’t get to it today, but they would get on it first thing in the morning. We called an Uber to take us back to the hotel. The first thing we did when we got back was to add another couple of days to our stay, since I didn’t believe that the car would be fixed by tomorrow. We didn’t want to take the chance that we would have to change hotels. We walked across the street and had dinner at Miller’s Ale House, and then we went back to the hotel for the night. Tomorrow is going to be a big day! To be continued…..

Patti’s picture walk continues…… To be continued……

Back on dry land, Patti continues her picture tour….. To be continued…..

Here are some more views of the grounds at the Portofino Bay Hotel….. Patti hops on a water taxi back to CityWalk….. To be continued…..

The water taxi heads over to the Portofino Bay Hotel….. Here are some views of the grounds at the Portofino Bay Hotel….. To be continued……

Patti is going to hop on a water taxi over to the Portofino Bay Hotel….. Here are some views from the water taxi dock….. Patti takes this shot of the Lone Palm Airport Bar where I am currently sitting….. This is the Grill & Brew where she will meet me later….. To be continued…….

Post Cruise (May 11th) - Universal’s CityWalk & Trouble in Paradise! We were up at 7am to another beautiful sunny day in central Florida. Today our plan is to head over to Universal’s CityWalk for the day. Once again we had breakfast at the Plaza Garden Restaurant before heading over. On the way out of the hotel parking lot, I hit a speed bump pretty hard. Everything seemed okay until I got near Universal, when we began to hear a clunking sound from underneath the car. I told Patti that we will park, and then check it out to see if we could see anything. Here we are pulling into Universal Orlando….. Here are the parking rates. Those with handicap placards, like us, still have to pay, but have a dedicated parking area close to the entrance…… Once parked, we checked as best we could under the car, and really couldn’t see anything. Nothing was leaking, and none of the idiot lights came on the dashboard. We’ll plan on getting it checked out later in the day. It’s a good idea to write down or take a picture of where you parked, just in case you forget later…… Here we are entering CityWalk….. Patti is ready to start her picture tour, and doesn’t need me slowing her down. Normally, I’ll hang out at the Grill & Brew, but it’s not open yet. The Lone Palm Airport Bar is open, so I’ll start the day there, and head over to the Grill & Brew later……. The Lone Palm Airport Bar is right across from Margaritaville, and any food ordered comes from there…… Patti begins her picture tour at VooDoo Doughnuts….. To be continued…..

You mean like this!

Thank you so much! Would love to share some beers with you. Enjoy your return to the Mardi Gras!

We love playing mini golf. Can't wait to play the course at the Dockyard in Bermuda. That course is awesome!

We continue to play on…… We have finished the first 18 holes, so it’s time for a potty break…. We are now playing Blackbeard’s Challenge….. After 36 holes we are both under par, but Patti has beaten me by one stroke. Way to go Patti! Afterwards, we head back to the hotel for the night. To be continued…..

We continue to play on……. Here are a couple views of the Wheel at Icon Park, which is right next door….. To be continued…….

After dinner, we decided to head over to the nearby Pirate’s Cove Adventure Golf….. Here I am checking in. We will be playing all 36 holes. Patti and I are very competitive when it comes to mini golf….. Here are a few Pirate’s Cove views….. I’m teeing off on the first hole of the Captain’s Course….. Here are some more Pirate’s Cove views….. To be continued……..

Here are a few views of Hooters on International Drive….. The first round of drinks has arrived….. Patti had the tenders / boneless wings combo….. I had buffalo shrimp and boneless chicken….. We both shared an order of waffle fries….. To be continued……

Here is some hotel information….. As Patti was making her way back to our room, she took these shots of our pool from the third floor of Building “B”….. There is a laundry room in every building….. Here is a view of the Wheel at Icon Park. The tower on the left is a drop ride that is now closed because of a tragedy which occurred a few months ago where a young man lost his life….. Around 11am, Patti heads out to the Orlando Premium Outlets. I’m staying at the hotel to continue working on pictures and have some pool time….. Patti didn’t take any pictures out there, but did note that if you need a covid test….. Patti got back to the hotel around 3pm, and we hung out for a couple of hours, then we decided to go to Hooters on International Drive for dinner….. To be continued……

Patti moves on to Buildings “E”, “F”, & “G” and Pool # 3…… Patti walks around the perimeter of the Rosen Inn Pointe Orlando….. To be continued…..

Patti moves over to Buildings “C” & “D” and Pool # 2…… This is where you will find the Fitness Center…… To be continued…..

Post Cruise (May 10th) - Outlets, Hooters, & Mini Golf. We were up at 7am to another beautiful sunny day. It’s going to be in the low 80’s later. We went to the Plaza Garden Restaurant for their buffet breakfast again today. Afterwards, Patti was going to take a tour of the property with her camera. I was going to go back to the room and work on the review. To begin, Patti catches me by our room on the third floor of Building “A”……. This is Pool # 1 which services Buildings “A” & “B”……. There is outdoor seating by Lite Bite…… This is the children’s playground….. This is the Game Room / Video Arcade….. To be continued…..

Yes, back in 1990, 2019, & last October. Links to the reviews of the last two are in my signature. 😎