The motel seems like a truly underestimated type of
accommodation. In books or movies you always hear people talking about a sleazy
motel, a ramshackle motel, a creepy motel even, but a pleasant one rarely gets
mentioned. Do they not exist? Why of course they do! You just have to be brave enough to take a risk.
Unfortunately we can’t all be rolling in money
but if we were I’m sure we’d be travelling in style. And this means gloriously
luxurious hotels. Since a little daydreaming never harmed anyone, this is what
we’ll be focusing on today: crazy, over-the-top luxurious and, most of all, extremely
expensive hotels in America.
This award-winning hotel and spa is truly a
perfect place for decadent relaxation. If you’re a hands-on kind of person who
likes to do things for yourself, stay far far away because here you can get a butler
to run your bath for you with such skill that it will be the perfect bathing
temperature when you walk in from your day on the slopes. He’ll even cover the
foamy top with some rose petals.
A huge rooftop Jacuzzi/swimming pool
overlooking the Strip, a rotating bed and an elevator made entirely out of
glass. Ofcourse there’s also a bar, a fitness area and a sauna at your
disposal. If you want to vacation like the ultimate Playboy, this is most
definitely the place to be.
When staying in this luxurious suite, you can
enjoy a 360° view of Manhattan from 52 stories high. Champagne, caviar and a personal
chauffeur and butler are readily available to you 24 hours a day. You’ll
definitely sleep like a baby in the $65.000 bed covered in sheets that are
embroided with 24 karat gold threads.
Sounds good? The suite will set you back a
mere $45.000 a night.
Now that we have a clear vision of what places
we’ll be visiting in Florida, it’s time to move on to the next important issue:
accommodation. A good night’s sleep is vital to survive everyday life but on
holiday it’s extra important. Looking like a (sleep)drunk badger might not be
that much of a waste at work/school but when you’re on holiday you want to make
the most out of every minute.
In the previous post we mentioned the enchanting effect Miami
can have on people and that many have been inspired by this city. One of the most awesome and
well-known songs that have been made is –at least according to us- Will Smith’s ‘Miami’.
This song was a huge hit in the nineties and was one of the first singles that I
bought from the music store. So today, in the spirit of everything Fresh
Prince, we’re going to do a breakdown of this hit song to get you in the mood
to par-tey!
Here I am in the place where I come let go Miami the base and the sunset low Everyday like a mardi gras everybody party all day No work all play okay.
Remember Duval Street? Although I doubt Mr. Smith will be
spending his time there, the partying will probably be the hardest on Duval
Street.
So we sip a little something lay the rest the spill Me an Charlie at the bar running up a high bill Nothin less than ill when we dress to kill Everytime the ladies pass, they be like: Hi Will!
Dress to kill is most definitely the motto of Ocean Drive
and other places where the glamorous folks hang out in Miami.
Can y'all feel me, all ages and races Real sweet faces Every different nation, Spanish, Haitian, Indian, Jamaican Black, White, Cuban, and Asian.
You see? Even Will Smith assures you that this place is a
fabulous melting pot of all different cultures.
I only came for two days of playing But every time I come I always wind up staying This the type of town I could spend a few days in Miami the city that keeps the roof blazing
I doubt that we’ll be jumping to get away from this place.
And if a superstar like Will wants to stay here, who are we to think otherwise?
Party in the city where the heat is on All night on the beach till the break of dawn Welcome to Miami, bienvenido a Miami Bouncing in the club where the heat is on All night on the beach till the break of dawn I'm going to Miami Welcome to Miami
Truly a great recap of what Miami is all about. Cause a
party can be interpreted many ways so from a passionate Cuban dance party to a glamorous
night out in one of the hottest clubs, Miami has it all. Better practice those dance moves.
Yo I heard the rainstorms ain't nothin to mess with But I can't feel a drip on the strip, it's a trip.
Guess he didn’t visit during hurricane season…
Ladies half-dressed, fully equipped And they be screaming out: Will, we loved your last hit!
Beautiful bodies? Must be South beach. And Will did stack up
the hits in his days so the babes have a good point.
So I'm thinking I'm a scoot me something hot In this south-sea meringue melting pot Hottest club in the city and it's right on the beach
Again with the melting pot and the glamourous clubbing
spots. This man sure knows what he’s talking about.
Temperature get to ya it's about to reach Five-hundred degrees In the carribean seas, with the hot mommies Screamin: ay, papi!
It comes as a surprise to no one that it can get quite
sweaty and hot in Florida and Miami is no exception.
Every time I come to town, they be spotting me In the drop Bentley, ain't no stopping me So, cash in your dough And flow to this fashion show Pound for pound anywhere you go Yo ain't no city in the world like this An if you ask how I know I gots to plead the fifth
Good advice from mr. Smith himself. Get your beach body
ready and put on your best (fake) designer brands, guys! Party in the city where the heat is on All night on the beach till the break of dawn Welcome to Miami (bienvenido a miami) Bouncing in the club where the heat is on All night on the beach till the break of dawn I'm going to Miami Welcome to Miami Don't get me wrong, Chi-town got it going on And New York is the city that we know don't sleep And we all know that L.A. and Philly stay jiggy But on the sneak, Miami bringing heat for real.
It’s not a competition in any way but Miami sure is killing
it!
Y'all don't understand I never seen so many Dominican women with cinnamon tans Mira, this is the plan Take a walk on the beach draw a heart in the sand Gimmie your hand Damn you look sexy. Womanizer, womanizer, womanizer,…
Let's go to my yacht in the West Keys Ride my jet skis loungin in the palm trees Cause you gotta have cheese for the summerhouse piece on South Beach Water so clear you can see to the bottom Hundred thousand dollar cars, every body got em Ain't no surprise to see in the club to see Sly Stallone Miami my second home
The perfect summary of what we hope to see in Miami!
As if this analysis wasn’t exciting enough for you, we’ll
post the video of Will’s clip right here for you to enjoy. If that doesn’t get
you in the mood for vacation, I don’t know what will.
Here it is, the last part of our detailed look
into our route throughout Florida.
Last week, we ended up in the Everglades and Homestead. From there on out we’ll do some
island-hopping towards the insanity that is Key West
and we’ll end our vacation amongst the beautiful people in bubbling, glamorous Miami. Let’s get moving!
This last part of our trip will definitely be
the most unconventional. The Florida Keys are
known not only for their key lime pie but also for their ‘kitschy’ lifestyle. The
inhabitants of the Keys truly live life the way they want to and everyone’s
quirky side isout there, loud and proud. It’s the perfect place to separate yourself from
the rest of the USA
and just chillax. &Let’s be honest here, who doesn’t like the sound of
that?
Since childhood I’ve been a big fan of all things mud
and grime so diving into the Everglades should
take this old hobby of mine to a whole new dimension.
The Everglades are
basically flooded grasslands, thus forming what is called wetlands. Although is
seems very eerily quiet and still, the glades are constantly in motion because
at the base of this land lies not sand but water. Water flows from the centre
of Florida downwards through the Everglades,
ending in Florida Bay and eventually the Gulf of
Mexico. Don’t expect the water to be as crystal clear as it is at
the beaches though, because of the slow movement and vegetation, it’s more of a
murky type of water that alligators like to call home.
The Everglades
National Park is divided into three
main sections: Ernest Coe (entrance near Homestead
and Everglades city), Shark
Valley (central of the
Tamiami trail) and Gulf coast (on the northwest shore). Since we’re starting on
the west coast near Naples, we’ll follow the
Tamiami trail to the entrance of Shark
Valley. From there on out
we’ll head towards Homestead
and visit the Royal Palm Visitor Centre. But ofcourse the main question you’re
all asking yourselves is: what can we do over there? Hold your horses, cowboy,
we’ll get right into that!
As promised, today we bring you the second part of our route
in detail. Eventhough the second part consists of only two places, these places
couldn’t be more opposites of each other. On one side you have the beautiful pristine
beaches of Sanibel Island and on the other side there’s the slightly daunting mangroves
of the Everglades. Two very different sides of nature!
Mount your broomsticks everyone, because today we’re flying straight
into the magical place that is The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at
Universal’s Islands of Adventure. Accio
Firebolt!
Phew, what a bumpy ride. Let’s keep our feet firmly on the ground for
the time being while we explore our place of arrival. This place has a bit of a
medieval feel, doesn’t it? That’s probably because of the cobblestone roads and
artsy lanterns. Not to mention the ginormous castle right in front of you. Where
are we, you say? Hogsmeade ofcourse! Walk with us, while we leave muggle
territory far behind… .
We’re back with a more in dept view into our
journey across Florida.
During the next three weeks, we’ll give you a more detailed look into the
places that we’ll want to visit and the different attracties that we want to
check out when we’re there. On the menu today in part 1: Orlando, Crystal Rivers and the Tampa Bay area.
Let’s get cracking.
Our holiday will begin in Orlando, the home of a whole lot of amusement
parks. We’re not planning anything on our first day there so that we can take
our time so get settled in, scurry around the neighbourhood and enjoy the
fact that we safely made it over the ocean. The next two to three days will be
filled with excitement when we visit the two parks at Universal Orlando Resort.
There are a lot of things that I look forward to seeing in both these theme
parks but some of my favourites are The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Seuss Landing and the Jurassic Park River Adventure ride
(pure nostalgia, people).
For this week’s Thursday Tickle we’re continuing on with
the nautical theme with some more in depth info about what Florida has to offer under water. With its
tropical climate and crystal clear water, it’s no wonder that Florida is a great place for water
activities such as kayaking, snorkeling or simply splashing around in the
ocean. Therefore, today, we’ll be looking at some great places to get your
snorkel on!
Here we are again at long last. &We’ve brought with us
the long awaited post about our general route throughout Florida! Oh joy. Let’s
get started, shall we?
When we took out a map of Florida to start planning our
route, it quickly became obvious that it was going to be very difficult to tick
every box on our wishlist. So, unfortunately and much to my dismay, we had to
use the c-word. Compromise *shudders*.
Bonjorno! the plan was to have a general idea of where exactly in Florida we were going to roam around by now. Obviously, we've overestimated ourselves. We didn't take in to account the amount of time and effort this sort of planning requires. Again, no surprise there since this is the first time we're doing this sort of thing. Anyway, I just wanted to upload a quick post to let you know that we have'nt given up, nor have we died or fallen ill. We're still alive and procrastinating! So, basically, we won't be uploading anything in particular this week so that we can focus on getting our journey planned. Hopefully, we'll be able to give you guys a general idea of which places were going to visit whilst in Florida. We'll leave you with a little apology video..
Need I say more? I could fill up an entire blogpost
with just pictures of these majestic creatures. Basically a cross between a hippo and a sea lion, the
manatees are a definite must-see when in Florida.
As promised, this week’s post will be devoted completely to
the ESTA-application. Let’s start with the basics, shall we? What is this ESTA
you speak of? Where did it come from? And what in God’s name is it doing here? All
questions that we’ll try to answer for you today!
This week’s Thursday Tickle is all about roller coasters,
yaaay. It’s one of those things you really just can’t NOT do when you’re
visiting Florida. Orlando is absolutely jam-packed with themeparks, including
the famous Walt Disney World.
Now
that we’ve finally taken the first step it’s time to move along with our
planning. There is still a gigantic amount of ‘work’ to be done and normally
this is the exact moment when we quit –we hope we’re not alone with this.. .
That was one of the reasons why we actually started this blog: we knew this
moment was coming. ‘Aww, this is too much research, too much to take care of,
too much stress even’, we’ve been there and (not) done it. But since we really
want to go on our long awaited trip, and because it would be a little awkward
to suddenly quit our blog, we’re sticking with it! Onward and upward!
Since we did a rather bulky
post earlier this week, filled with facts and ‘serious’ info, it seemed like
fun to keep things on the lighter side today. And as they say: variety really
is the spice of life. Therefore we present to you: the Thursday Tickle!
What’s this Thursday Tickle
about, you say? Well, each week –on what other day than Thursday- we’ll post
something about a specific place or location we want to visit, a rollercoaster
we want to ride, events we want to attend, and so on. Basically everything we want
to see during our stay in Florida will be discussed here on Thursday. And
there’s no better time to start than the present, right?
Today we’re picking up where we left off: part 2 of
‘Things you should consider while deciding when to visit a holiday
destination’.
Last Thursday, in part 1, we covered (at least for us) the
most important factor in choosing a time for our vacation, namely the weather.
Today we’ll discuss two other factors that could be important in this
decision-making-process: the American students’ school holidays and
peakseasons.
Here it is, the time has come to officially start
planning our trip. Obviously the very first step in this process is deciding
where you want to travel to. I think it’s already quite clear that we want to
go to Florida, USA so we’ve decided not to devote an entire blogpost to the
matter of choosing locations for your holiday. It’s such a personal choice
anyway.
Well, look at us, we’ve barely started and we’re already skipping
steps. Maybe this is why we’re so bad at planning things..
Welcome to our little part of the interwebz.
Starting today you’ll be able to follow up on our opinions and experiences while we attempt to do something which is completely foreign to
us… plan a trip to Florida!
&Who knows, if all goes well we might undertake some similar adventures in
the future!