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Published: April 29th 2023
Dave, Merry Jo and Me
Kennedy Space Centre, FloridaDear All
Yay! This day on my Floridian travel adventures was a very special day. After having been in touch for several years, reading each others’ travel blogs, exchanging travel ideas and developing our friendship, I got to meet up with Merry Jo and Dave, finally in person. It actually felt as though we had also known each other in person for all these years, and we slipped right in to enjoying the day together past any formalities of “getting to know each other”. They picked me up at my hotel in Orlando, and we drove to the amazing Kennedy Space Centre on Florida’s east coast, spending the whole day there from its opening at 9am to nigh-on its closing at 6pm. In addition to meeting my great friends, it was also an amazing travelling day, which was very educational and inspiring in terms of what space travel can achieve and the horizons it opens.
During our time there, we did four mini space flight simulators with 4D special effects including little blasts of air and things like that. We also took part in an amazing launch simulation, which I’ve no idea how but it gave you some of
Alligator
Blue Cypress Conservation Area the g-force experiences associated with take-off. We also saw numerous actual launch rockets from the past, as well as the amazing actual Atlantis space shuttle. Highlights of the day were a special tour MJ and Dave booked which went right up close to the VAB (Vehicle Assembly Building), a Crawler-Transporter used to move rockets along the Crawlerway to their launchpads, and several rocket launchpads, including the one which will be launching Artemis to the moon in 2024 (the year 2024 was a big date and year on our guide’s mind which he repeatedly referred to, for understandable reasons – 2024!). I actually got to meet a real astronaut, Jack Lousma, and asked him to sign my Lonely Planet Florida book! The man, well into his 80s, exuded some kind of regal aura about him which I couldn’t quite put my finger on, and I felt honoured to meet him and shake his hand. The photo on here looks like he’s angry at me for touching his shoulder, but in actual fact this was my response to him saying to me “I don’t want to cramp your style” just after I had a photo taken with him – my hand was
Osprey Eating Fish
Blue Cypress Conservation Area saying “no, not at all, it’s a real honour to meet you sir!”
What particularly struck me about the place was the (quite justifiable) pride the Americans have in their space programmes, and the respect they have for their space heroes. There was a common narrative throughout aimed at encouraging the younger visitors to take an interest in space, presumably in recruiting budding astronauts and astro-physicists of the future. I also really loved the playing of the US national anthem when the centre opened at 9am, and all the Americans in the queue turning to their flag with their hands on their hearts – this was very patriotic and very touching.
After our visit, we headed for dinner at a wonderful little “Old Florida” restaurant right on the ocean’s edge on the east side of the Floridian peninsula, which was a world apart from the theme parks and concrete strips of my time in Orlando. I could tell my trip was entering into a new chapter, and I was excited.
Finally we headed to MJ and Dave’s “Bungalow” on the peaceful North Hutchinson Island, which was in reality a gorgeous, spacious apartment overlooking a huge swathe of
the Atlantic Ocean and East Florida coastline, based on a stretch of the east coast’s sand-barrier island which pretty much runs down the Atlantic length of the peninsula. If I have half-as-decent-a-place to retire to when I reach the end of my career, then I will be a happy man. I went to bed that evening with the crashing of the waves outside, and really quite strong winds to lull me to sleep – quite a fitting end to what had been a really amazing and wonderful day.
The next morning began my first full day with Merry Jo and Dave. After a wonderful breakfast of bacon and eggs, we drove to nearby Captain Bob’s Airboat Tours in the nearby Blue Cypress Conservation Area. Since I was a child, my image of Florida had always been of these airboats, and I planned to do one if I ever visited the state. This day was thus a childhood dream come true, and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it, as I believe Merry and Dave did too. We had Captain Bob’s son-in-law, Captain John, as our guide, and he was just brilliant – he managed to tell us about the
unique geography and biology of the area, while being at the same time hugely funny – I laughed at his humour several times. We saw around eight alligators which was impressive – apparently they were out in number on that day as it was windy. We also saw several osprey nests with parents and chicks, including a couple of them eating newly-caught fish on tree branches – they were particularly photogenic! We also saw several other birds. It was additionally the thrill of going fast on a Florida airboat which was just so atmospheric in the Floridian wetlands.
Afterwards we had lunch of pastrami sandwiches at a local deli called “The Twisted Pickle”, and then headed to visit the fascinating McLarty Treasure Museum on North Hutchinson Island. This place told the intriguing story of 11 Spanish vessels which sank off this coast of Florida during a great hurricane in 1715. The fleet was carrying all the treasure of the Spanish New World that the Spanish could get hold of, to fund themselves during the War of the Spanish Succession (1701 – 1715). The disaster took the lives of around 1000 poor souls, while around 1500 managed to survive, shipwrecked
National Anthem
Kennedy Space Centre, Florida in the brutal Floridian sub-tropical conditions, until rescue came. The loss of so much treasure, earning the area the nickname “Treasure Coast”, meant not only the end of the Spanish Empire in the Americas, but also apparently the beginnings of the pirating lifestyle which came to dominate the Caribbean in the 18
th century, as many English men in particular left their naval posts to become pirates in search of this sunken treasure. Much of the treasure has apparently since been recovered, especially in recent years with more modern recovery techniques, but they say there may be even more of the treasure out there still waiting to be discovered! I guess this is where our images of Pirates of the Caribbean searching for sunken treasure must have come from.
The rest of the day was chill-time, including enjoying the pool at MJ and Dave’s condo, having a delicious dinner prepared by them, and watching the excellent film “Apollo 13” to complement our visit to the Kennedy Space Centre the day before. We recognised some of the places in the film from our visit, and even saw the portrayal of the astronaut I met, Jack Lousma – he is apparently the
Rockets
Kennedy Space Centre, Florida man who first replied to the mission’s very famous distress call “Houston, we have a problem”. That evening was another one drifting off to sleep with the sound of the ocean.
My final dull day with Merry Jo and Dave was relaxing, and well-needed at my halfway point in this amazing Floridian adventure. After breakfast, and a morning trip to nearby Fort Pierce to buy some stamps for my postcards, we spent the afternoon on the beach and in the pool of MJ and Dave’s condo. Their apartment block has its own private walkway to the public beach straight in front, but since it is quite far from busy beach spots, particularly on South Hutchinson Island, it remains consistently quiet. It was a lovely relaxing afternoon, interspersed with dips in the sea and crashing waves, a deliciously strong (9%!) beer, and pastrami and houmous sandwich. After dinner, MJ and Dave surprised me with a wonderful evening out of live music, performed by a tribute band who played lots of great songs from the 70s and 80s, including those of Cher, Celine Dion, Billy Joel, and even Sheffield’s own Joe Cocker! It was great fun, and we all left with
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Kennedy Space Centre, Florida beaming smiles.
Alas, the sad time had come when my time with wonderful Merry Jo and Dave came to an end. They were so warm and welcoming, and I felt I would really miss them. Still, time waits for no man, and my trip was ongoing and continuing. The next morning, they very kindly drove me to Fort Lauderdale Airport where I was to pick up a rental car for the next few days of my Floridian adventure, heading to the southern parts of the state. I was sad to say goodbye, yet excited at exploring more on this amazing American adventure.
I will write more on the next part of this trip in my next one, but for this one, I would like to end with a very heartfelt thank you to the lovely Merry Jo and Dave, who were not only wonderful people, they also made me feel so very welcome and gave me amazing adventures and experiences in this lovely part of Florida, along with their fantastic company and friendship. Friends forever!
Thanks for reading! All the best for now, until the next time.
Alex
PS And I finally got to meet
Crawler-Transporter
Kennedy Space Centre, Florida Brutus! I learned that there was not just one of them, but two!
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Happy!
Alex, so happy to read about your adventures and time spent with Merry Jo and Dave! While the sights and scenery in Florida are wonderful, it is warming to hear and read about how travel ultimately is also about the real connections built during our travels. You experienced all of it!