Tuesday, December 20th 
Our Tuesday plans were mostly evening-based: we had an ADR for dinner at Beaches and Cream, followed by a reservation for a much-anticipated new experience for all of us …. a private Illuminations cruise departing from the Yacht and Beach Club docks
. That left both our families with a little free time to fill until mid to late afternoon.
Since we’re not so great at sleeping in, we were up and moving far earlier than we would have liked to have been. Being early risers is a great attribute to have on days when a person wants to get to a park in time for rope drop, but not so awesome on a day that would have been ideal to indulge in some rejuvenating shut-eye. Rather than bail out of bed as soon as I was awake, I grabbed the laptop and took the opportunity to answer emails and messages from the comfort of that big king bed
. With our moving date rapidly approaching, there were several items from Steve’s company’s global relocation team that required a response before we left the villa, so I used that time to address their questions.
I also took a few moments to peruse Seaworld’s Photokey website, curious to check out our pictures from our Wild Arctic tour, dolphin interaction, and Christmas fun the day prior, and that’s when I noticed that Steve’s Bumble photo was missing
. We knew from past experience that it was quite likely that they could locate the picture manually and add it to our account, but that would necessitate a trip to the park before the end of the day as they don’t retain pictures beyond one day following the date they are taken (or at least, that’s what we are told). We weren’t exactly planning another Seaworld visit, but Steve was pretty bummed about his Bumble picture. Our annual passes still had a day or two left on them (thankfully!) and we did have time at our disposal…..so we figured, why not
. We’d head back to the park and take care of the missing photo after breakfast.
We were going to just grab something quick to eat at the villa, but Steve had been kind of sad that his beloved IHOP hadn’t found its way onto the official plans……so since we were headed out anyway, I asked him if he wanted to go out for breakfast instead of dining in. Let’s just say he didn’t need to be asked twice
.
There was a brand new IHOP right outside the entrance to the Grand Vista, so while we normally go to the location in Lake Buena Vista, this one seemed to make more sense (especially since we would be headed to Seaworld afterward). It was moderately busy when we arrived, but not so much so that we had any kind of wait.
Because it was Christmas time, most of the restaurants (both in and outside of the parks) had some sort of special, festive feature on their menu to mark the holiday season and IHOP was no exception. Eggnog and chocolate mint were the seasonal tastes they were highlighting, and while they sounded festive and fun, neither was appealing to either of our palettes. We did peruse the menu before deciding on our entrees, but we both ended up going with old favourites rather than a new taste. Old habits die hard…..and when you’ve already found breakfast perfection, well, it’s truly hard to deviate from that.
Steve, of course, had his beloved steak tips, shredded hashbrowns and eggs, with a side of the pancakes that made IHOP famous in the first place. He’s always impressed by the fact that the cooks get both his steak and his eggs cooked exactly right, and today was no exception. He literally ate every last crumb, and had a contented little smile on his face as he polished off the second cup of coffee and leaned back in the booth
. He had definitely started the morning off on the right foot.
Me? Well, I went with my favourite as well: the bananas foster brioche French toast. That sauce
. OMG, so unbelievably delicious
. This dish is so crazy good, I don’t even feel badly about the inches it adds to my middle-aged hips: it’s worth every single one
.
The food and service were equally as good here as at our usual Lake Buena Vista location, and the brand-new feel of the restaurant was super nice. It was definitely a place we would return to on future trips. We covered the check and tip and headed out into the sunshiny morning: our next stop was SeaWorld
.
While it was past park opening at this point, we managed to get a decent parking spot without too terrible of a walk to the entrance. As soon as we were inside the gates, we went straight to the Adventure Photo desk to explain our missing photo woes to the very sweet young fellow who was working that morning. He went straight to work on searching for the picture, and quickly located the missing photo: he was super thankful for our ability to narrow down a fairly specific time period, as that made his search much more effective. He added the picture to our account with his sincere apologies for having to make a special trip to the park to retrieve it, and we thanked him profusely for his efforts on our behalf. While the date on the photo would forever be wrong, we were just happy to have that memory preserved regardless.
With that task taken care of, we pondered what to do next….head back to the resort? Or stay and enjoy a little more time at SeaWorld? We opted for the latter….heck, we were here anyway……and decided to take in a show before heading back to the Grande Vista. Proceeding past the lighthouse and into the central area by guest services, we found this guy out greeting visitors ….. all decked out in his Christmas finery
.
Ah, Shamu
. I love this guy. I think we might have waited a whole 5 minutes, maybe even less, for our turn for pictures. The staff were keeping the line well managed and moving efficiently, and we were quickly on our way.
A quick check of the schedule noted that the Clyde & Seamore Show was soon to start, so that’s where we headed next. Despite arriving quite soon before the show commenced, we managed to find some good seats. We literally just sat down when the pre-show entertainment began…..perfect timing.
It wasn’t long before the stars of the show made their grand entrance: I believe this was Clyde that rolled in via a bright yellow car.
Apparently his trainer drives like me, though: not so good with a standard transmission
. She hit the brakes a bit too quickly and ….. whoops!
Clyde and Seamore both had a lot of work to do if they were going to graduate with the rest of their classmates, but the crowd was willing to cheer them on
.
The animals featured in this show are amazingly talented. The skills exhibited by this wee little otter just leave me speechless every single time. He is so incredibly smart, its nothing short of incredible
.
The sea lions, though, are the big stars of this entertaining production: in drama class, they demonstrated their skills impersonating their favourite movie (Jaws)
.
In science class, they highlighted their balance skills and astronomy knowledge.
There may have been a few shenanigans during lunch break
(better keep an eye on your lunch, or it may disappear before you can say “sea lion”)…….
…..and after an “injury”, a trip to the school nurse was in order to ensure there was nothing major afoot.
When it came time to take his temperature, though…….well, the nurse flipped a little
.
This show never disappoints: the animal behaviours are incredible, the crowd interaction is tons of fun, and it always seems to go by way too quickly! Before you know it, there’s a dramatic rescue……
…..a graduation celebration
, and to end it all off, a BIG finish:
Garfield
. I can’t believe we got to feed him just the day before!
Phew, all this performing can make a big guy tired, though
:
Three cheers for Sea Lion High!
As we oozed out of the show stadium with the other guests, we noticed that the park seemed pretty full
. We briefly considered staying a little longer, but decided it might be nice to have some time to explore the resort a little more before we had to meet Kerry and the boys later in the day. As we made our way back toward the park exit, we stopped for one more photo opportunity……the last on our annual Photokey before it would expire a few days later…..just outside Sea Lion and Otter Stadium.
We headed back to the car, and made the short trek back to the Grande Vista. It was time to see what our resort was all about
.
An exploratory tour of the Marriott Grande Vista grounds is next.
I'm blaming you when the credit card bill comes in
. 
.
. Of course, I've been a bit lax on planning for October to date.....so maybe I just need to refocus! 
.
.
. A little positive feedback would have been nice.....especially since I'm unlikely to achieve my quota on either of my two final shifts 
. Plus, the sooner its done, the sooner you can enjoy it: and heaven knows that the Canadian summer is way too short as it is 
. Steve has threatened to hide my laptop on more than one occasion 
