Today we woke up and found the weather damp and cloudy, not what we had ordered and paid for at all. As the morning went on, the rain actually started to fall harder.
A quick revision to our plans meant we decided to drive to Premium Outlets for some retail therapy. We arrived just after opening time and headed first of all to the official Disney Outlet Shop. This is where they sell off cheaply all the merchandise from their Parks and Hotels from around the world. As usual the shop was heaving even though the rest of the outlets were deserted. There was loads of stuff from Wilderness Lodge but nothing that took our fancy. Other people were having baskets full of last years Mickey & Donald kids toys and all sorts of clothing.
We then wandered round to find the Skechers outlet but again nothing took our fancy.
Karen & I then headed to the Columbia store. We both like their clothes especially when on holiday as they are very light to pack and deal with the heat very well as well a easy to wash (open to sponsorship offers!). We had both picked up a couple of items when another shopper offered us a $20 dollar voucher she couldn’t use. It was only valid if you spent $100. We weren’t sure with the various discounts if we had so we queued up to find out. It turned out we hadn’t but we worked out if we got another item the overall bill would reduce. So I added a pair of new swimming shorts. Bizarrely our overall total went down and was still less than $100. So I kept adding things and the still bill wasn’t going up. I’m not sure what was happening but I ended up with an enormous bag full of things extra. The manager ended up getting involved, couldn’t work it out either but packed everything all up so I could pay and wished me an ‘amazing’ day!
So we went and met Neil who was waiting at Starbucks for us. We sat under an umbrella in the rain. It was still lovely and warm though. The weather was however getting brighter and the rain was easing off. We moved the car to the other part of the outlets and popped into the Old Navy and North Face outlets before driving back to the Villa for lunch.
In the afternoon we drove to Oak Trails Golf Course where I had booked through Groupon a round of FootGolf for myself and Neil. The golf course is next to the Grand Floridian Hotel which meant we had to drive through the Magic Kingdom entrance which is always exciting. There are however loads of roadworks around the entrance which did take some of the magic away.
This was a totally new experience for us and we were not sure what to expect. It was very well organised with the 18 holes winding around and between the 9 hole Golf course. Essentially you just kick the ball as hard as you can towards each hole which range between 95 and 200 yards. Each hole was between a Par 3 & 5. These were surprisingly accurate and we soon got the hang of it. The first few holes we completed in par or thereabouts. Not sure if we started to tire quickly but we then started to make a few mistakes particularly with our ‘short’ game around the greens. By the 9th hole, I started to feel the strain in my calves just from kicking the ball so hard each time. We also hit a few bunkers on the back nine, although they were easy to get out of.
The course was very picturesque. The result was quite close at the end, although Neil claimed victory. Neil is the most competitive person I have ever known. I blame the parents and his upbringing. I think I would call the round a honourable draw, as it is the taking part that counts and not the final score!
Afterwards both my calves were quite stiff and sore. It is many years since I have kicked a ball in anger. Not surprisingly Neil who still plays each week barely broke sweat.
In the evening we popped into Dollar Tree before having a really good meal at Olive Garden. Neil had the Giant Meatball, which amusingly was nearly the size of his head!
Our server Jon was so enthusiastic and keen with the food, life and everything else that he easily earned the biggest tip of the holiday but also left us totally exhausted.
