Florida, Day 4

    Every vacation has its fun, exciting days; days that are filled with excitement and memories. Every vacation also has days that arent so... exciting. Today was the latter. Don't read this as "we didn't have a good time today." We just didn't do much. Here's what happened.
    Our day started great. Woke up, had our morning coffee and toast, and went out in service. Had a really nice return visit, too! Then we stopped at FirstWatch for delicious breakfast. Really delicious breakfast. My belgian waffle was so light and fluffy, and crispy on the outside. The syrup was even delicious. Meg got a Chickachonga. It was like a delicious breakfast burrito with chicken and chorizo. And the homefries... We had a great morning.

    While at breakfast, Meg and I decided to go see manatees today. It's supposed to be really cool. You rent kayaks or canoes and paddle around where the manatees naturally like to be. They're supposed to come right up to the boat for you to see. It sounds awesome, so we decided to go for it. It wasd about an hour's drive and Meg and I went off alone to do this. That was our mistake.

    We were supposed to drive up to Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge. Instead, we drove to Crystal Springs National Wildlife Refuge, about 25 min further North. Now, this didn't have to be the end of the day, if only we hadn't gotten there after 3:00. We wanted to go to a rental place that we knew closed at 5:30. But that was at the other location. Where we were, it closed at 4:30. By the time we would get into the water, it would almost be time to get back to the rental place. Option two was to get back to the car, and drive to the correct location. By the time we'd get there, we felt we'd be in almost the same time crunch.

    We asked the locals what else there was to do, and they seriously told us that there are a few shops nearby and a Denny's. Hot Dog! So we checked out the shops. There was nothing worth looking at or stopping for. We ended up on the side of the road, scanning Google Maps to find something... anything. Keeley and Jeff are back at the house, at this point, searching for a way to see manatees or something in the area for us to do. Suddenly, Jeff pulls through with a way for us to see a manatee: the Homosassa Wildlife Park.

    But there was a catch, they close at 5:30 and we'd be getting there around 4:40. It would be another close call. When we got there, it seemed closed. The gift shop woman said that we were late, and, if we take the shuttle to the main park, we won't be able to do a tour. We only wanted to see a manatee, so that was fine with me. 

    So we take the shuttle, hoping for this last chance to see a manatee to prove fruitful.

    It wasn't

    The ticket booth was closed. It closes at 5:00, while the park closes at 5:30. I'm glad that nobody told us that. So this day wasn't as hoped, but we were not giving up yet. We were hungry and we wanted Thai. So we drove an hour towards home and we went to Thai Bistro. We made the most out of this day. 

    At the end of the day, Meg and I got to spend another day together on vacation in Florida. We enjoyed the drive and got to soak up some more Florida warmth. What more can I ask for. See you tomorrow!