Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Orlando--the City Beautiful


O.K. Now for my take on things.
I lived in Orlando for maybe a week. I met this guy who was originally from there so I since I was set on visiting the Sunshine State, I visited Orlando first.
I'm from Indiana so it reminded me of Indianapolis in that, it too is situated in the middle of the state. The huge difference is that Coco Beach is not far away and neither is the Gulf.
The people who lived there were very friendly and honest. I was pleasantly surprised. I could have stayed there forever but I just had to get to the costs of South Florida. Anyway, Universal Studios was the best--I was too old to go to Disneyland by myself. Everyone goes to U.S.--everyone. There is something there for everyone. (can you tell I'm still excited about it?)
Orlando is huge but it's easy to navigate and people will help with directions. I was able to find a place to get my brows and nails done just the way I liked them. I wanted for nothing while I was there. I regret not staying and getting a job so that I could have put down roots. Just about everyone lives in a gated community with a screened patio--seriously. Even the so-called O-Town part was so tame and clean. The residents seemed so happy.
Beautiful Orlando sunshine all year 'round--just imagine the golf courses. The public course are nice. Boy did I sleep on Orlando.
Once you find a niche to settle into, it's easy to want to never leave. Orlando is a vibrant city with a variety of cultures living there. It's a very clean city as well. The Disney clean attitude is contagious!
Now, there are a whole host of facts that you can find on the Web but for first hand experiences please see me.
Now for some facts (Why search the Web?)

1.According to Carlson Wagonlit's 2006 Travel Trends Survey, Orlando is the second most popular domestic travel destination in the country (Las Vegas placed first).

2.Out of the estimated 50 million tourists who visit Orlando each year, over 2 million are international visitors, with the majority of foreign tourists coming from the United Kingdom.

3.There are now 20,000 to 25,000 rental properties in Central Florida, mostly located near the theme parks.

4.The official nickname of the city of Orlando is “The City Beautiful,” although it is also known as “O-Town.”

5.Ever wonder why there are so many Olive Gardens and Red Lobsters in town? Orlando is the corporate headquarters of Darden Restaurants, which also runs the Bahama Breeze, Smokey Bones, and Seasons 52 restaurants.

6.Even though few people outside of Florida knew where Orlando was before Walt Disney World opened in 1971, the city of Orlando had been around for more than century before that; it was incorporated in 1875.

7.Orlando is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, although the vast citrus groves for which the county was named no longer exist.

8.Before there was Disney, there was also a considerable amount of cattle ranching in Central Florida; you can still see cattle grazing along certain stretches of the 417 GreeneWay Expressway.

9.Although many of Orlando’s citizens (especially the most famous ones) are originally from somewhere else, there are a few celebrities who were born and raised in Orlando, including Wayne Brady and Delta Burke.

10.Beat generation icon Jack Kerouac lived in the College Park neighborhood of Orlando during the time his novel On the Road was published in 1957.

1 comment:

Leslie Ann said...

Hi! You have made a nice post, and I hope you get paid for it by Creamaid. This is the third time they have not paid me for posts they have approved and added to the conversation widget. I didn't get paid for this post, nor a single cent at all. I don't know why sometimes they pay and yet they have missed to pay 3 out of 6 posts I have written for them which have been syndicated already.