Spending Winter in Florida, Part 1-Live Oak, Orlando, Wauchula, Ft.Myers

We arrived at the Spirit of Suwannee Music Park at Live Oak, Florida in the afternoon of December 24.  For the very first time I saw beautiful live oaks with Spanish moss lavishly draped from all their branches. It is a wonder they the oaks have not died.

But we had to make our Christmas Eve dinner.The kitchen was so cramped, however.  We had to make so many dishes but   record the moments for posterity, too.Disaster struck as the camera (positioned beside the turkey platter), fell as Bill was trying to slice the roast to serve. The short lens was forever doomed.  But the dinner was great and the gift-giving memorable.

We had surely established a tradition…a Christmas Eve ritual on wheels! Another great tradition, the famous Spirit of Suwannee Christmas lights, was taken down the following day as we went to mass.The next night was a concert show, a Tribute to the Eagles. The campground is the site of Florida’s biggest music events. It has several music halls for indoor concerts and a large outdoor park for outdoor music events a la Woodstock. It was also beside the great Suwannee River. But, we were anxious to head south as it was feeling increasingly cold.

We were so happy to reach Florida because we thought we could finally get some warm days. It turned out that this year Florida was going to go through its LONGEST COLD SPELL in history. Days were in 50s and 60s (some  40s) instead of 60s and 70s. Some nights went down to as low as 30s! We consoled ourselves that at least it was warmer there than the rest of the country (although once it was warmer in Kent, Wa!)  

Orlando Thousand Trails will turn out to be one of our favorite parks. We returned to it twice while we were in Florida. It is only a few miles from Disney World and Universal Studios and all the city perks we have been missing for a few weeks now. But it was not only its location that was the draw. The facilities were also great…we had an exercise room, a billiards and table tennis, a spa, and a heated pool.We did not even get to use the mini-golf, shuffleboard and pickleball courts, etc. Members are always in long lines of wait to get in.

Our trip to Disney World took us to Epcot Center, the theme park for Generation Z!  It would have been such a thrill had it not been sooooo unusually cooooold! But, even then, we became children all over again as we took on all the rides we could on that day (the lines were also very long because it was holiday season). The night was capped by giant fireworks that enveloped the giant lighted Christmas tree.

Our first stay in the Resort took us to a New Year’s Eve Dinner and Dance Party to remember. Every couple that came in had their souvenir photo taken under an arch that said: Cruise to 2010! How appropriate for all of us, I thought! There must have been 100 couples there. But for a campground with 800 sites, most of which occupied, then that is not really a big number. But it was still a big party…with the hats, the horns, the finger foods, and the drinks. I wore the Mickey Mouse ears with blinking colored lights from Epcot Center!  Past Tense was the band that rocked the night away. Bill and I sweated it out doing the rock n roll, cha cha, reggae, rhumba, swing, twist, two-step, polka, etc. At the stroke of 12, 100 balloons dropped from the ceiling and many hugs and kisses and champagne toasts got passed around.

Our first holiday without family turned out to be not sad and lonely, but fun and merry, after all.

Our next stop was at Peace River in Wauchula, Florida. This was a more ‘woodsy’ campground with the Peace River wrapping around the campsites. The warnings about alligators were all over the hiking trail that ran alongside the river. I remember being scared, not knowing that this is of such common occurrence in Florida! But it rained and the place became so muddy that I mostly stayed inside Star. 

 Besides we were just excited about our visit to the home of Bill’s friends, Glen Russell and Debbie Baxter, in Ft. Myers, Florida.  She made a great turkey (real turkey) dinner so we could experience a real holiday feast at a lovely home during the holidays (or the extension of it). It was already January 6 but Debbie kept her Christmas décor up for us to see. What I admired most was an ornament tree atop her formal dining table.

That was exactly what I was looking for to put up our collection of Christmas ornaments from places we have been before we had the RV (now we are collecting magnets which we foolishly thought were so great because they would just be hung on the RV’s refrigerator doors not realizing quickly enough that they are made of lighter material, obviously…duh). Now I just have a 2 ft. green artificial tree. An ornament tree would be sturdier and would simply fold for storage after the Season!

But I also got excited because the oranges that were piled high on her fruit basket had come from an actual tree that was in their yard! So, guess what I had to do (since we do not have orange trees in the Philippines)? Before we left, knowing that even if Florida is full of orange orchards, I could not as readily get to them, I picked all the oranges I needed for a lifetime!

Next Stops: Florida Keys, Everglades National Park, Moore Haven, Orlando, Wildwood

Going Up the East Coast-Daytona Beach & St. Augustine, Florida

This post should be part of a future post titled 'Spending Winter in Florida' but it is now March 22 and, technically, the cold winter (yes, even in Florida this year) is officially over. I finally put back in the closets the heavy jackets we were forced to unearth and use. We can now bravely (I am from tropical Philippines and 70s is cool for me) begin our trek up the East Coast.

And, lo and behold! We found our Fountain of Youth in St. Augustine, Florida. It is a park dedicated to the memory of Ponce de Leon who, in 1513 discovered this land which he felt was his fountain of youth. Don’t you think Bill looks younger already? St. Augustine is the oldest city in the United States and a lot of history is there.

About a mile further is the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument which is the oldest fort in America.And nearby is the historical City Gate that now opens to the famous walking mall, St. George Street where many quaint shops and boutiques abound. Among them you will find the well-preserved the Oldest Schoolhouse in America.

We took a day trip down to Daytona Beach, about an hour away.  I did not want to miss seeing (even though I am not a NASCAR fan) how an international speedway looks and feels. Am I glad we passed through! I felt the wild energy that is stored in the multi-colored bleacher chairs and imagined the cars whirring through the famous tracks.

Then we went by the ‘Most Famous Beach in the World’, Daytona Beach.  Regrettably, we could not ride our little S’un (since we have bought a new rig, Star and Vino have been sold, right away according to Kurt in Lazy Days, and we have decided to call our new Mountain Aire, M’A, and our new Saturn, S’un, for M'A n S'un!) on the beach because the $5 fee was too much!

Next stops: Savannah, Ga and Beaufort, Hilton Head Island, Charleston, and Summerton, South Carolina!

Crossing the Gulf States

First stop back in the US was San Antonio. April, my youngest daughter, went with us to check out the lifestyle. We stayed at Medina Lake, a large Thousand Trails campground, where going to the bathhouse/pool/spa and the clubhouse/activity center were both quite a jaunt…1 mile each to the left and to the right of our site. But, in our first morning there, we were greeted by 25 or so deer that were waiting to be fed! April had the time of her life!

Bill was coughing a lot but we decided to head on out to San Antonio, about 45 minutes away. We had fun taking photos of the colorful Christmas décor and sights at the River Walk and the historic nooks and corners of the Alamo. I found out that April had not seen the movie The Alamo and so she found out about the story of those brave 300 men and the birth of the Texas Republic. At the end of the day, we chose an English Pub where the yuppie and I delighted on giant treat of appetizers while Bill feasted on shepherd’s pie, a traditional dish he had missed. But Bill was also feeling tired by the time we left.

The following day we chose to go straight on down to Houston where we were to meet the Mackies (Jack was a member of the DUs, Damned Unbearables, Bill’s high school gang). Jack immediately brought Bill to his doctor and that was where they diagnosed him with pneumonia. When they recommended an MRI because of a suspicious spot they found after an Xray of his lungs was taken. I cried at the agony of not knowing. It was a long one week later when we found out, after anxiously following up almost every day, that they were futile tears.

Then Joy made us a wonderful dinner of beef pasta, salad, and wine. We all decided to stay another night because Bill needed a lot of rest so Jack and I bought a Thai dinner of red curry, pad thai, and veggies with peanut sauce. We stayed another night to give Bill more rest (by the way, I do not drive and the reason is another story!) so I cooked chicken tinola with substitute veggies. The next morning, before our departure, Joy treated us to a wonderful new idea in breakfasts: harvest pancakes, sausage patties, and the ‘Joy’ scrambled eggs. The Mackies were very gracious hosts.

In no time we were in New Orleans, The Big Easy. And what delight we had when we found out that our RV Park was just right around the corner of The French Quarter! To top it all, it was only 5 years old and the amenities and facilities were top-class. Of course, the camping fees were also top dollar ($69 per night) but since we were CCUSA members we only paid half! It was all well worth it.

Katrina must have really taken a toll on New Orleans because I remember the French Quarter as a little cleaner, smelling better than this. But the revelry was the same and I actually got to know the place better. The last time I was there was for a conference and, aside from coffee at Café du monde and a private party at a pub, I had not really walked around. Now, with our cruising lifestyle, we had the time to visit the Cathedral, the alleys, Café du Monde, the French Market, the Creole Shop, Pat O’Brien’s and sample treats such as gumbo, hurricane, and pralines, etc. But we were sad to see April go at the end of this leg. She will be spending Christmas with sisters Trisha and Claudine in Seattle.

Our next stop was Styx River Resort in Robertsdale, Alabama. It had the best spa we ever had thus far. It was indoor, together with a heated pool, and it was small enough so we could put up our feet on the other side and truly relax. It was more of a family resort for the weekend. We could not use the spa the day we arrived because some teenagers were not careful the night before (we never found out what they really did).

But the best part of this stop was discovering Fair Hope, Alabama, a quaint little town where we found a Writers’ Cottage behind the public library where writers could take temporary refuge, had raw oysters for $3 a dozen at a pub on the waterfront (Mobile Bay), and tons of Christmas lights on all the trees that lined the streets.

There were also many quaint shops so Bill and I agreed to part and look for our stocking stuffers ($20 budget: for each other). I found a leather passport holder that they engraved in silver the letters, ‘William R. Colborn’ for free. Bill found a cute cheese slicer and a petite umbrella for me. We also shopped for the small Christmas Eve dinner we wanted to prepare for ourselves. We found a 3-pound turkey roast, cranberry jelly, stuffing, gravy, potatoes, candied yams, green beans for a casserole, and whipped cream for the bread pudding I was going to make.

And we headed on to Florida for the holidays and the long winter!

Cruising as a Lifestyle

Dictionary.com defines the verb cruise as being ‘akin to Tom’…just kidding. The following are some of the definitions of the word that I consider relevant to this blog: 1) to travel about without a particular purpose or destination, 2) to drive at a constant speed that permits maximum operating efficiency for sustained travel, and 3) to travel at a moderately fast, easily controllable speed: cruising along the highway enjoying the scenery.

It is true that sometimes we cruise along with just a general direction, waiting to be surprised by what new things, sights, foliage, wildlife, for example, that we may encounter down the road. It is also true that, after driving for hours, we would shift to cruise-control to relax our tired muscles on the freeways of America. And it is true that we deliberately slow down because the scenery that is unfolding is just spectacular, like when the glaciers started to appear across the horizon at Glacier Highway enroute to the twin towns of Steward, British Columbia and Hyder, Alaska.

But the definition that I would like to offer is this: aimless (meaning no big aims), effortless (meaning no big efforts), timeless (meaning no big dictates on time), deeply personal and enjoyable drive through life, usually with a loved one(s). I would like to compare and contrast this cruising lifestyle with the driven one because, for years, I had to endure the latter, bringing up my children alone.

Whereas the latter is usually accompanied by big goals (building a home, bringing up kids, getting an MBA), cruising is characterized by little ones (baking a pie, spotting a deer, or finishing a book). Whereas the driven lifestyle needs lots of energy to sustain, cruising works whatever the energy level one may have (that is why, it is not about age). Whereas the driven lifestyle means deadlines, cruisers often say: ‘When I woke up this morning, I had nothing to do; when I went to bed, I was only half done.’

This is why the RV industry has grown. But, before I go any further, let me just categorically make this disclaimer.There is another definition of cruising in dictionary.com: to travel about slowly, looking for customers or for something demanding attention, i.e. taxi drivers, policemen, and…prostitutes.This is the definition not relevant to this blog!

This year the RV industry celebrates its 100th anniversary. A century ago, the automobile, better roads, and the American love of the outdoors gave us the first recreational vehicles. The website of the Michigan Association of recreation Vehicles and Campgrounds says ‘Through war and peace, booms and busts, fuel lines, fads and the cyber revolution, the RV lifestyle has endured.’ Other interesting statistics in their report are:

* There are more than 12,000 RV-related businesses in the U.S. with combined annual revenues of more than $37.5 billion.

* Nationwide, there are more than 16,000 public and private campgrounds.

* 8.2 million American households now own an RV—a 16 percent increase since 2001 and a 64 percent gain since 1980.

* Recreation Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA)estimates there are as many as 30 million RV enthusiasts nationwide,including RV renters.

* RV parks and campgrounds across the country report reservations in 2009 to be 8 percent better than in 2008.

That the RV industry has grown is undeniable.Thus, my next post on this subject shall be a discussion of benefits and disadvantages of cruising as a lifestyle. Maybe, it is because the benefits outweigh the disadvantages.

Buying Our New Home

I know this is a common occurrence for RVers but, for us, it was a brand-new experience. And in just 8 months, we have already had 2 purchases! The first one was Star and Vino. Star was our white/beige 24-foot Class C motorhome, Telstar by Firan, and Vino, our electric blue Yamaha 125 scooter. Bill and I made the decision to run around North America visiting family (6 kids and 3 siblings) and friends. Back from the Philippines and Taiwan in the second week of June, we wanted to start in 2 weeks.

We decided on a small RV to save on gas, easily maneuver and park, and give us time for the major decision. We only compared 3 options: a 21-foot Class B+, a 22-foot Class C, and Star. There was no complex decision matrix. We liked Star the instant we saw it: there was enough storage space but the clincher was that the bedroom/bathroom could be closed off from the living/eating/driving area! Vino, on the other hand, has been so useful for going around town and campgrounds.

In 8 months we had taken Star and Vino through the Canadian Rockies, the Alaska Highway, around Alaska, the Top of the World Highway, up Dempster Highway to the Arctic Circle, down British Columbia, through Washington, Oregon, California, and into Mexico, then across the Gulf States, and into all of Florida, including the Keys and the Everglades. We had added 21,000 miles to Star, visiting 5 kids, 1 sibling, and 1 cousin and going to 2 reunions.

We loooooved it! So much that, by the time we were in Palm Springs luxuriating in a mineral spring spa, we decided to be full-timers, RVers who choose to make the RV their permanent home. We will still be going around North America, and possibly Europe and Australia later, but we would also now like to stay at places for longer periods of time, to finally do some nesting. Whereas our average stay at a place was 4-5 days, we will now move to an average stay of 2 weeks. And we needed a new home.

The decision loomed larger when my youngest daughter joined us for more than 2 weeks from Mazatlan to New Orleans. It became too cozy for comfort. So we started knocking on RV doors at campgrounds in mid-December in Alabama, only 6 months after beginning our journey, asking the owners to give us a quick look-see of their rigs. And, by the time we reached Florida, after our first 21-day stay in mid-February in Wildwood, we had formulated a good idea of what might want.

It was during our third stay in Orlando when we got to view a 27-foot fifth wheel at the RV show on the lot. That was the size we thought we could afford. The salesman surprised us with a quote of only a $10K addition for the rig plus the truck minus the trade-in of Star! Financed it would mean just $140 a month! Bill could not believe how affordable a bigger RV could be! So I looked at 2 other fifth wheels on the lot and fell in love with a 32-foot Outback-Sydney edition in a predominantly white theme inside.

But we were slated to go to Lazy Days the following day for a complimentary stay arranged by Kurt Beachler who was referred to us by a couple (Charles and Evelyn Kuchta) whom we met at the potluck dinner in Orlando. What was originally supposed to be a 4-day/3-night stay turned into an 11-day/10-night whirlwind. When we left, Bill was ‘nervously’ driving a 37-foot fully equipped motorhome, Mountain Aire by Newmar, towing a dinghy, a red Saturn SL1!

Lazy Days is the largest RV dealer in the country, selling more than 7,000 rigs in a year. The motto on the main building says, ‘Lazy Days. If you love RVing, this is home.’ Their unique business model is based on the premise that the only really profitable relationship in the industry is a long-term one, looking at supplying all the RVs one may need in his lifetime. The 500-acre grounds are always busy with hundreds of RVs coming and going.

There are 270+ service bays and an inventory of thousands of rigs. On the lot is a branch of Camping World, Cracker Barrel, Quality Inn, and Flying J. A card-carrying member is treated to day-long Starbucks coffee, meals at the Café, a site at the campground, newspapers at your steps in the morning, a heated pool and spa, tennis courts, and free seminars about RVing and RV maintenance. Each staff greets anyone he sees, ‘Welcome to Lazy Days.’

So it was a foregone conclusion: when one goes into Lazy Days, he would leave it with a new RV! Our overall requirements were: maneuverability, the drivability of the other vehicle, layout, airiness, and classiness. Our needs were: a big enough sink, ample kitchen counter space, refrigerator, microwave/oven/stove, a study desk/dresser, an entertainment center, bathroom suite, and a queen-size bed for the ‘queen’. We also wanted a dinette instead of a dining table and chairs, a sofa bed instead of a jackknife sofa, a washer/dryer combo, a light neutral color/trim, more flooring instead of carpet, and bedside tables/lamps, high definition TV/DVD with iPod connections, and HDTV antenna.

Only the items in script-format were not there! Since it was much longer than what we originally wanted, I was very nervous during the test drive. But, Bill said he and I will get used to it as others have. I dropped the dresser idea since I don’t put too much make-up anymore (doesn’t help much at this stage), we bought a washer/dryer combo and a Vizio LCD HDTV on sale and swapped our car radio which had iPod connections. Voila! The rig was made perfectly. But the clincher was, Bill couldn’t possibly see me driving a pick-up! He had better hopes for a small compact car dinghy.

We formulated a decision matrix for evaluating the following 5 options: a 27-ft Designer by Jayco, a 32-ft Outback Sydney edition, 34-ft Paradise Pointe, a 34-ft Coachmen Royale fifth wheels, and the 37-foot Mountain Aire motorhome by Newmar. It won hands down with a 2.6 score against 0.6, 2.4, 2.2, and 1.8, respectively! The combined score was obtained from a 60-40 mix of quality and financial scores. The quality score was a weighted combination of scores for overall requirements, needs, and wants while the financial score was a weighted combination of one-time and recurring expenses and salvage value.

And now we have a new matrix…of things to buy for the new home! And in a week, we had already entertained 2 couples on 2 separate occasions and invited a host of others from around the world. The lifestyle is on! Our RV is our new home!