It’s hard to imagine that there are other things to do in Orlando besides a Disney or Universal Studio attraction. That was the goal for our weekend jaunt. We had tickets to see Andrew McMahon at the House of Blues. The question was what should we do the next day before our 2 ½ hour drive back to the beaches? We all agreed, “No Disney!”
House of Blues is located in Disney Springs, which is in the Walt Disney World Resort, so technically, we did not escape Disney entirely. It is a very nice venue for concerts. Be aware. There are not a lot of seats. So, if you must sit, I recommend paying for the reserved seating. The line to get in is typically extremely long. Apparently, you can move to the head of the line if you eat at House of Blues Restaurant. We did not know that. We ate at Raglan Road Irish Pub and Restaurant, which has really good food and Irish entertainment. Next time. Another thing to be aware of. We planned to meet some friends after the concert. I was surprised. The only thing open after 10:00pm is Splitsville. This is an interesting place to bowl, but not so good for conversation. I’m sure there is something better outside of Disney Springs. Oh well, lots of lessons learned here.
We kicked off the next morning with a ride on the Coca-Cola Orlando Eye, which is a 400-foot-tall giant Ferris wheel. It doesn’t really feel like a Ferris wheel. It is a very smooth ride with nice views of Orlando. Bonus: Free Coca-Cola and $5 off for Florida residents.
Next, we were off through Orlando traffic (always congested) to Winter Park. Winter Park has an inexpensive scenic boat tour through the chain of lakes. Starting on Lake Osceola, it is a one-hour tour to three lakes and through two narrow canals. It is quite beautiful and the winding canals are awesome.
From the boat launch, it is a quick walk into Winter Park. This is an amazing cute town. The main street has interesting shops and good restaurants. We settled on Bosphorous Turkish Cuisine. The restaurant has very attractive décor with beautiful Turkish lamps. I am not that familiar with Turkish food, so I went for one of the specials, a stewed lamb. I found it to be quite tasty. The most interesting though was their hollow bread—Lavas–which we tried along with some Hummus and a very unusual Tabbuli. Also, I tried the Turkish Wine flight, which I highly recommend.
Our last stop before heading home was the Morse Museum of American Art. This museum boasts that they have the most comprehensive collection of works by Tiffany. There is an extensive collection of beautiful Tiffany lamps, jewelry and architectural objects. Even if you aren’t an art aficionado, I think you would appreciate seeing this work. Plus, for $6 you can spend as much time as you want. That’s a good deal.
I really liked the Winter Park area. I made a note to see if we could find a house to rent on one of the canals or a boutique hotel off Winter Park’s main street area. This would make for an easy romantic get-away.
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