My Second Week at Elite

 

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This week's stay was eagerly anticipated because of the presence of some of my fellow Hudson Islanders. In an earlier blog, I've linked my past visits here in Clermont. There are quite a few who either already live here or rent a site for a couple of months to escape the winter months up north. This week, there's: Vicki/George, Kathy/Ray, Fran/Walter Doreen/Tony, Noreen/Jack, Roberta and me. Quite a crowd, no? Well, the daily temperatures down here this month have not been conducive for doing any outdoor get-togethers. It's the coldest January any resident can remember. When I leave on Monday, the nighttime temperature will have gone down to 29 degrees. It definitely put a damper on things. Since arriving in Florida January 9th, there hasn't been an overnight where I haven't had my little space heater busy keeping Winnie a toasty warm 72 degrees. 

Here at Elite, it's customary on Mondays to sign up for "Boys Night Out" or, once in awhile, "Date Night"; a different restaurant each week. This week Walter drove Tony and me to Yeoman's Cask and Lion in Margaritaville. The sister restaurant is in Tampa. It's a British style pub serving an extensive array of comfort food. Check out the menu. You health conscious folks may want to pass on this one.

20 tap beer service

 Fourteen fellas from the resort, none of whom I knew, enjoyed
their food and separate checks.

 Some tough decisions for me. I went with the Fish & Chips
(thinking of the portions I'm used to back home).
Yes, that's a piece of cod. A third of it came with me for tomorrow's lunch.
"Freshly Prepared North Atlantic Cod, Deep-Fried with Our Signature Beer Batter,
Served with Chips (Fries), American Coleslaw, Lemon, and Tartar Sauce."

Yes, I'm reading your minds but fish is a low-fat high quality protein. Fish is filled with omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins such as D and B2 (riboflavin). Fish is rich in calcium and phosphorus and a great source of minerals, such as iron, zinc, iodine, magnesium, and potassium. And, know what else? It was delicious. So there!!

As I looked around the table, this thought ran through my mind
and quickly left when I realized I was probably the oldest.
Oh, those hard truths are so hard to accept.

Jose Ferrer Family

Even with the threat of another drizzly day, Five Star Detailing FL stopped by Wednesday to give Winnie a long awaited and well deserved washing and waxing. Thanks to George, I was able to reserve a date at a busy time. George, Tony and Jack have all used his service as have many residents here at Elite.

  

In Croton 10/2021

Abi and Jose finishing the waxing phase

Looking down onto awning from roof.

Like brand new.

Thank you, Jose and Abimanuel (Abi).
I'll see you again next year.

One afternoon at wine o'clock, friends stopped by for a glass of wine;
well, at least for Tony and me.

Thursday night I joined Noreen and Jack for dinner at Mickey Finn's, an Irish pub down the road a bit. For a Thursday, the placed was packed; featuring musical bingo with DJs. The music was loud, food was good and the crowd was happy. Beer does that, you know.

As we approached the restaurant, we could tell 
this was a pub!

And the King of them all.

Friday, Tony installed my valve extenders and my tire pressure monitoring system. 

For rear dual tires, valve extenders allow easier access to the tire valve stems
should air be needed.

The TPMS (tire pressure monitoring system) replaces the tire's valve caps with small

transmitters that send signals to the device on my dash to indicate real time measurements of both temperature and pressure in all six tires.

Thanks and appreciation are never enough when you have an individual who can fix almost anything with tools, knowledge and experience that come into play for every unknown problem we encounter. To complete the valve replacement job, one rear tire of the RV had to be removed to access the valve on the inside of the outer tire. Any idea what's involved doing that? On top of all that, Tony loves doing for others and balks at attempts to 'set things right' for his efforts and time spent. Friday night, after that labor intensive afternoon, we enjoyed Pizza Night.

For Florida? Delicious! And you know, I never met a pizza I didn't like.

On the walk back to my site, my lot was lit nicely.

A young Peregrine falcon came to visit atop the roof next door.

Saturday night was another trip back to Disney's Boardwalk and an 8:00 pm reservation at Trattoria al Forno. You'll never guess what I enjoyed...again....so no photos or description are necessary; sorry if you missed my last blog post.

Meanwhile, back home, the big news this week of course is the weather.
For all of Florida it's cold. Sunday night, 1/30th, it's expected to be 29 degrees.

"For southern Westchester County, which is the part of our region predicted to bear the brunt of the storm, the NWS predicts total snow accumulations of 6 to 9 inches and winds gusting as high as 45 mph. Near blizzard conditions are possible for a period. Wind chill values below zero during the day on Saturday." Perhaps some readers from wherever will add a comment below to indicate what their weather was like. Sign in with "Anonymous" if you don't want to sign in with your Google account. My cousin, John, in Medfield, MA was expecting 24+".

As predicted...still very strange for Central Florida

Sunday, a visit off property to Ray and Kathy's. With appetizer contributions from all, the night was a huge success. Highlighting the food list was Kathy's split pea soup AND her beef barley vegetable soup. Outstanding. For me, my 'last supper,' it was a great night. The crowd consisted of Fran/Walter, Noreen/Jack, Vicki/George, Doreen/Tony, Roberta, me and hosts Kathy and Ray.

Their huge Class A (Charlie the Unicorn)

To wind up this week's adventure and blog, I'd like to share the good news for the winter of 2023. I got out of Dodge just in time this year and next year, who knows? But I was able to lock in a two-month stay at Site 120 right across the street from where I'm staying now. Owners, Sherri and Russ Caldwell, have agreed and the details will be worked out at a later date. They are full timers who live and work from their huge Class A here at Elite. My tentative plans include leaving New York in early January and hopscotching down the east coast, visiting friends and then proceeding to Central Florida by February 1st.

The Caldwells left today for their extended trip leaving their expansive site 120 empty.
This is where I'll be situated next February and March. My little 25' Winnie will
surely be lost way in the back.

Sherri is a blogger (on a higher, more sophisticated level than yours truly) so be sure to check out HER WEBSITE HERE. She was kind enough to forward an AERIAL VIEW OF SITE 120. that hubby, Russ, made to wish all a "Merry Covid Christmas". Good stuff.

Looks pretty far south, no?
1,783 miles from the equator?
Nice and warm? We shall see.

And with temps in the 40s off I go south to Ochopee, FL and Trail Lakes Campground in the Everglades. Vicki and George will be making the same trip but staying at a different campground. I wonder if I'll get some great shots of wildlife like pythons and alligators (which don't come out of the water this time of the year) or Iguanas falling from trees. More important will be spending a weekend with granddaughter, Sara, in her environment. See you there. Oh, and bring a coat.

 

My Week at Fort Wilderness - Disney - Friday 1/22/2022

 

Looking over Crescent Lake toward the quarter mile promenade of Disney's Boardwalk. The Vacation Club Villa in the center. Shops of every kind line the wooden walkway reminiscent of Atlantic City's Boardwalk and Coney Island. Epcot and Hollywood Studios are easily accessible.

As it turned out we had no plans for Thursday and it was just as well. It was a rainy/drizzly day that would be a family's worst nightmare after spending all that money and securing vacation time and being stuck "having fun" on such a dreary day. 

One doesn't need a Park Pass to enter the Boardwalk but reservations at restaurants, entertainment venues and attractions are a must. Tony drove us to the front of the Villas to drop us off and then went heaven knows where to park. We walked through the beautiful lobby, out the back, down the stairs to the Boardwalk in no time.

Our reservations for for dinner were for 5:30 pm today and is the only topic of my last blog fro my stay at Fort Wilderness. Trattoria al Forno, an Italian restaurant that recently opened and serves breakfast and dinner. 

I purposely did not add captions to the expansive view of the very busy kitchen. CLICK HERE to see the difference when the photographers for Disney's Food Blog takes it to the next level. 

Though the menu has changed since 2014, the presentation reflects opening night. You will get the full impact of the opulence that surrounds this trattoria; the quality and level of service that can only please the visitor. Read also the backstory as to how the restaurant replaced a popular Greek restaurant, Kouzzina and grew from a family owned Italian restaurant. Very impressive. And the food?

When Roberta made these reservations long ago and included me as a guest, I immediately went on line to check out the menu. I immediately chose my dish: Truffle Gnocchi! 

We were first served freshly made and still warm ciabatta bread with
an olive tapenade and olive oil plate for dipping. A small loaf for each of us.
(photo from the Disneyfoodblog)

Tony and I both had the Truffle Gnocchi. 
Gnocchi are dumplings made of flour, semolina, or potatoes, boiled
or baked and served with grated cheese or a sauce. Our servings
were topped with "Frico" and a garnish.

Frico is a crispy, thin fried wafer of cheese; in our case, parmesan, that can be
formed into various shapes for different culinary uses. Moving it aside exposes
the delicious morsels of gnocchi bathed in a Parmesan, Fontina and Pecorino Cream
sauce. It was not listed as one of the ingredients on the menu but
pesto played an important role in providing one of the most divine dishes I've ever had.

Yes, I passed on the dessert of tiramisu. Repeat: I passed on the dessert
of tiramisu. (They did allow me to sample four teaspoons just to try).
The dark and white chocolate sticks delicately resting atop the tiramisu
was a nice touch.

That, for me, was the perfect ending to my week at Fort Wilderness. A breakfast with cousins Norma, Cheri and David on nearby site 727, two days in the park itself, a campfire get together on a cold night  and my meal of the week. Saturday was spent trying to catch up on all I wanted to add and share in my blog which I'll enjoy in the future when looking back on my travels.

I left Sunday morning and headed back the twenty miles to Elite Resorts in Citrus Valley for my next week (and blog entry) before heading down into the Everglades. Hope you enjoyed the experience and, as usual, look forward to any comments. If you do comment, remember to check the blog again in a day or two where you'll read my replies, if any.

Take care, stay warm.