Backyard Tourist: SeaWorld 08

One of the perks of living in Mount Dora is that we're only 25 miles away from the top tourism destination in the world! Orlando has much to offer ... theme parks, attractions, adventure & fun. And the fairly new road 429 makes it a quick and easy drive. I feel like we've practically got our own private back entrance to Disney from the 429.

We often have friends, family and guests at the Inns come for a visit and take a day trip to the parks. My cousin and his wife came down this week from North Carolina and SeaWorld was on there to-do list. I haven't been there in awhile so I was as excited as a little kid about going.

SeaWorld has some thrill rides, but it is mostly about the animals, shows and FREE beer! We rode Kraken, which I've heard rumors that it's the tallest & fastest roller coaster in Orlando. After cranking to the top of the first drop, getting a view of all of Orlando, and then zooming through more hair-pin turns than I can count ... I would fully believe that rumor. A little quick research helped me find that it is indeed 15 stories high and travels up to 65 miles an hour ... with nothing but but your feet dangling beneath you. That's enough trill for me for a day!

My favorite show for the day had to be the Dolphin show which incorporated circus-style acrobatics with the animal stunts. Very entertaining. Of course ... I'm a sucker for animals.

Did you know on average, people walk anywhere from 8 to 12 miles when visiting a theme park? No WONDER I'm so tired and achy. I earned that big dessert at the end of the day. Be sure to check the Top 10 Theme Park Survival Essentials for your next day trip to the parks. And after being all good and tired from trekking through SeaWorld all day I was elated to come home to the peace and quiet of Mount Dora! Some R & R is in store ...

--Rachelle