Orlando: The Journey Begins

OMGoodness...where do I begin?!?!?!?

So much has happened...so much I've seen since I last blogged (aka been in Chicago).

Okay, let's see if I can catch you up "briefly".

It was a fun 18hr drive down here. We left at 2pm on Wednesday afternoon...did pretty good time...no traffic anywhere to be found. *high five*

Got the munchies at around 10pm so we stopped at a Cracker Barrel...actually, we saw like a million Waffle Houses along the way, so we thought it'd be fun to stop there. However, when we did, it scared the bejeebees out of us (aka shady place) so that's how we ended up at Cracker Barrel.

10am was my appointment time with the apartment leasing people...we pulled into the parking lot at exactly 9:50am (eastern daylight) on Thursday...OH YEAH!!! How awesome are we?!?!?! *does a victory dance * Okay, I must be honest...we definitely did NOT have this amount of energy when we met with the leasing agent. All we could think of was ...pleeeeeez give us the keys so we can go to sleep!

Anyways, when I walked in...I swear I thought I had walked into heaven. Yes, one can assume no swamp here. *giggles*. This place was immaculate (i'm too scared to touch anything). It's also so honk'n huge for a little person like me. My apartment isn't super close to Disney but close enough that you get that Disney aura feel (with purple street lights and purple public buses, and of course the tourists). I LOVE IT!!! However, everything I packed, I didn't need (because the place already had it)...and everything I didn't packed, I needed! Oh well, isn't that how it always goes? Thanks to Target Superstore though...I'm all ready to go.

The rest of Thursday: Home Depot, Publix (grocery store...but not the cheapest option), and post office.

Friday: Orientation at Notter....this was a meet and greet with your fellow classmates (aka your family for the next 6 months). Unfortunately, I was 5 minutes late. *sigh* However, my first impression of my classmates is that they seem pretty cool...I think we're going to be a fun bunch! :o)

I then had lunch at Izziban Sushi...which I heard was very yummmeeeee....and it definitely was.

We ordered four different sushi rolls: Sand Lake roll, Tiger roll, Diablo roll, and OF COURSE...Beauty and The Beast roll. I can't wait to try everything else...it all looked so delicious!

We then checked out a couple of the malls around Orlando. Mall at Millenia is too rich for my blood. I felt most at home at The Loop.

Today: I woke up and stepped out onto the balcony and to my surprise....there were COWS in my backyard. Okay, so they weren't really in my backyard, but they were in the field behind my apartment complex.

I felt like I was staying in the Wilderness Lodge Resort of Disney. It was sooooooo cool...like I was watching the Discovery channel LIVE (you definitely don't see this in Chicago). There's so much wildlife here...I'm so tickled by it all :o)

Then, I finally got my cable and internet set up. It was supposed to be set up on Friday but of course we had issues with the cable company...don't we always? *laughs*

We then decided to stock my kitchen up with more food, but this time from 1st Oriental Supermarket. I heard it was supposed to be really big...so I was pretty excited.

Unfortunately, it wasn't as big as I imagined it to be, but they had a ton of variety of everything. They didn't fail me, I got everything I wanted...and then some. *checks wallet to see if there is any money left*

I can't say I've been to all the asian groceries in the US, but my favorite is still Uwajimaya in Seattle...now THAT'S what I call BIG! *cheeky grin*

Anyways, on our agenda for tomorrow is to visit the Thai temple for the Thai New Years celebration. Quick funny story: before heading out to Orlando, I had already planned on checking out the temple, however, I didn't research its location.

However, on Friday evening, I wanted to check out what my neighborhood was like (to expand on my running route). We drove along this quiet street that turned into a semi-alley road and out comes an armadillo. What the heck is that? I have NEVER seen that before!! Good thing I always travel with a camera though...I'll never forget what it looks like now. *chuckles* Continuing along the semi-alley road, at the end of the block was....THE THAI TEMPLE....haha. I thought that was weird. We had plans to go there on Sunday, but who would've thought that it would be less than a block from where I live. YAY!! I can meet some fellow Thai friends here.

So, what's my thought of Orlando outside of Disney? Hmmm...have to be very careful out there on the road...some slow drivers, lots of 3 lane changers, unusual inlets for u-turns (can't determine which way I'm supposed to look), no one seems to be in a hurry to go anywhere or do anything, TONS of fast food chains, and DEFINITELY nice weather.

Well, that's all I can remember for now. It's getting late and I have to get up early (and I'm sure your eyeballs are falling out of its sockets).... but if I can remember anything else fun, exciting or weird that I've encountered, I'll definitely let you know!

Time to call Orlando home for the next 6 months. :o)