Universal Studios Orlando

Today started with breakfast at the conference and a supplier expo. Each supplier had their own booth, and many had a special twist to it. Holland America had a ping pong table with pickleball paddles to showcase the fact that some of their ships have pickleball. Royal Caribbean had a tiki bar that was a nod to their new bar on Utopia of the Seas. Travel Insured had a mini medical setup to show how they help in medical emergencies. It was a fun way to spice up the expo.

The expo had lots of little things that they gave away. I collected my favorites to give to clients on future trips. It was too much to carry to the parks, so I made the trek back to my hotel room. As a reached my room, my phone exploded with messages. Nearly everyone I knew who was at the conference sent me a message. It turns out I was a big winner! They had a raffle after I left, and I was one of the winners! I’ve been extremely fortunate with winning prizes at conferences. A Princess Cruise is likely in our future!

Universal Studios

I hurried back to the conference to collect my prize, but I was too late. Luckily, I didn’t need to be present and should receive an email soon with the details of my prize. We had a quick boxed lunch and then loaded into buses to our next destination.

We all went to Universal Studios Orlando! We meandered through the park and ended up riding Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon, Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts, and the Caro-Seuss-el™. It was nice to spend time in the parks with friends.

Jaleo by Jose Andres

We finished the evening back at Disney Springs at Jaleo by Jose Andres. This is a new-to-me restaurant that I was excited to try it. It’s a Spanish restaurant and dishes are tapas. The restaurant has four open kitchens, so the food comes out at different times and it’s a steady stream of snacking. I really enjoyed it. We started with a cheese platter with a collection of three cheeses with well-chosen pairings. Manchego was one of the cheeses which made me happy. I ate Manchego almost every day when I lived in Spain. A platter of bread with tomatoes on it, Spanish ham, endives with fruit and goat cheese were also brought to our table. The food was all delicious! The only thing I didn’t like was that the four open kitchens made the restaurant very loud.

I took the boat back to Saratoga Springs and ended the evening with exploring the resort. This resort is huge and still parts of it I haven’t seen. It was early enough that many of the amenities were still open. I had a chance to explore the community hall which is a family-friendly space with lots of activities.