Gen Xers in the eye of the storm

- Discovery Cove. It is SO expensive, ridiculously so. I have conflicting feelings about the parents who treated their children to this theme park. However, I was enraptured by the park itself, and I highly recommend it to anyone who can afford it. Swimming with stingrays, hugging dolphins, and feeding birds off my finger... okay, I'll say it... it was magical.

- Winter Park. I didn't get to spend much time here, but the farmer's market was fantastic, and there were quite a few cute shops along the main drag. Lovely area, great slice of "real" Orlando, far from the tourists.

Quick Tips:

Orlando is in the heart of Florida, so it's probably not the best summer destination. It will be hot without the relief of the beach and full of kids going to Disney. Summer comes with discounts on certain activities, like golf, but packages for Discovery Cove jump to or up. Fall features excellent weather (mind the hurricanes) and reasonable prices.

You can search Orbitz or Travelocity for the best deals, but in general, American and Delta have the best prices for Orlando. Tickets go for as low as , but like any other Floridian city, prices go up on holidays and around spring break time.

The Orlando Convention and Visitor's Bureau website has great information. I was actually being led around by guide from the CVB, so you could easily call for more information; they are knowledgable and friendly.

Best Way To Get Around:

In general, it seems to be best to rent a car. Orlando is a sprawling city, so unless you plan to spend all of your time downtown, you will need transportation to reach golf courses, Downtown Disney, and the like. Rentals start at about /week.

I was struck by the opulence upon entering the lobby. I usually travel pretty cheap, so the Art Deco chairs, dark luxurious wood, and velvet-lined elevator in the lobby took me by surprise. Seriously, this elevator featured glittery walls, dim lights, mirrors, and padded velvet... like a tiny moving club.

The room itself was gorgeous, with a welcome tray of Voss water and a chocolate model of the hotel's signature piano on the large desk, great for business travelers. The hotel has trademarked their bed as the "Heavenly Bed." My cynicism toward superlative names melted away when I saw it—all-white, J. Lo-style with fluffy, huge pillows everywhere, pillow-top mattress and a padded 6-foot headboard... it was truly amazing. The spacious room also featured a lovely small velvet sofa and a view of the pool below.

The shower was pretty unbelievable as well—dual head, fully adjustable... I felt all the stresses of my New York life washing out the minute I stepped in. After each amazing shower I cuddled up in the luxurious provided bathrobe.

There's cable TV (I was very pleased to get the Cartoon Network), and a Wall Street Journal outside the door every morning. The restaurant Boheme was great as well, detailed in a separate entry. The Klimpt bar/lounge was very cute, featuring a rare piano (only two in the world) utilized by various jazz acts nightly.

Now, the (slightly) bad things:

The pool on the sixth floor, while lovely, was about 4-feet high throughout. They actually had signs posted saying "no diving." Who is actually trying to brain themselves diving in the short pool? I honestly thought that the "real pool" had to be on a different floor. The whirlpool had a weird smell. And because of the placement, the deck was fully shaded by 3:30pm.

Room service provided a minor quibble as well. The foods provided did not match the menu. The first night I arrived late, so the kind hotel manager comped room service for me. I ordered a chicken sandwich, which in addition to being quite dry, used sun-dried tomatoes instead of roasted tomatoes and regular mayonnaise instead of pesto. Another night I was feeling munchy and ordered the appetizer of spicy fries and onion rings. What I received were simply regular fries and no rings. I was also charged a lower price, but it was confusing.

Anyway, these aren't horrible things, and the accommodations are really beautiful. If it's in your price range ($175 to $250), I'd definitely consider it. The Grand Bohemian has 250 guest rooms, including 36 suites, and also features a contemporary art gallery.

I only had breakfast at the hotel's restaurant, but each experience was wonderful. The service was impeccably polite and accommodating, and the food was delicious and fresh.

The Boheme does not have a buffet option, but if you're in a hurry, they do have continental breakfast, as well as a few quicker, cheaper options like cereal or scrambled eggs.

Menus for all meals are listed here, but the prices were a bit higher when I was there. For breakfast I definitely recommend the Cinnamon Grand Marnier french toast or an omelette with fresh crab meat—both are mouthwatering. I was actually shocked that something so stuffed with crabmeat could be the same price as a simpler choice of ham and cheese ($12), but I wasn't complaining! My dining companions raved about the Belgian Waffle ($8) as well.

The wonderful servers kept the fresh-squeezed OJ coming regularly as well—just having THAT in unlimited quantities was wonderful. It costs $4, but it's so tasty. And with the refills and the perfect service, it's definitely worthwhile.

The restaurant is on the pricey side by my standards, but I'm a hardcore budget traveler. But if you're in the downtown area and want something tasty and simple with wonderfully fresh ingredients, it's a great breakfast option. And for guests of the hotel who want to roll out of bed and eat, the gracious service in this beautifully-designed restaurant does not make you feel pressured to dress up.

We arrived in Downtown Disney after an exhaustingly fun day at Discovery Cove. I tried to prepare myself for the "cheese" factor, but it was overwhelming. Gloria Estefan's restaurant! A huge Virgin Megastore! Giant, splashy murals! Tourists, tourists, tourists! A theatre that charges $13 for movies? What, seriously, in Florida? For ONE movie?

Wolfgang Puck's Grand Café had a facade in keeping with the rest of Downtown Disney—competing colors, each brighter than the next; a huge sign; and lots of lights. The inside fared no better—it made me think of an upscale Cheesecake Factory, but dimmer to appear classy. It was sprawling and loud. We were seated upstairs, and the place was really quite large.

The menu was a mixture of styles, common in corporate restaurants, like the chef is trying to please all possible customers. The only thing really tying it together was the seafood—yum! With the seafood, the place surpassed my expectations.

First of all, there was the price—it's always a shock to eat at theme parks, and Downtown Disney restaurants are like a large-scale version of the $4 hotdogs at Sea World. Everyone's entrée was in the $25 to $35 range, but I was also taken aback by the selection. Everything sounded amazing, much better than I would have thought.

The bread basket that comes with the meal featured yummy parmesan crispbreads and freshly-baked focaccia. Deliciously decadent appetizers included macadamia-encrusted scallops and crab-stuffed, bacon-wrapped jumbo shrimp. I ordered grouper, which I love—one of my favorite things about Florida. It had a sweet mango relish and was served over sugar snap peas. It was perfectly done, flaky, and delicious. The wines chosen by the Disney PR reps were fantastic as well. We unfortunately didn't have time for dessert—running late for Cirque du Soleil!—so I can't comment on that. But if desserts were made with the care and the fresh ingredients of the rest of the food, I'm sure they would have been amazing. The staff was highly efficient, gracious, and patient with our many requests.

All in all, it was an exquisite meal and lovely dining experience. If you can get past the exterior of the restaurant and any misgivings about the Wolfgang Puck name, definitely give it a try.

The restaurant itself was beautiful and the menu mouthwatering. It isn't cheap—the average dinner entree is $28—but the service is extremely attentive, the setting relaxing, and the martini selection is top-notch.

I ordered the mahimahi and a lobster bisque. Neither was bad, but neither was particularly good, either. The mahimahi was on the dry side, and the bisque was far too thick (although chock-full of lobster). However, one of my dining companions ordered the filet mignon and proclaimed it the best steak he'd ever eaten.

I still had a nice experience at Hue and recommend you go and just choose wisely! Maybe fish is not their specialty, although in Florida, that's a real shame. It's still a great excuse to explore the Thornton Park neighborhood and knock back a lychee-orange martini. Also open for lunch.

Our tour guide, Michelle, from the CVB, was very resourceful and accommodating. I wish she could have come up with something other than indoor rock climbing, but she had to work with serious constraints. While we were in Seminole County, she asked the rock-climbing folks about other parks in the area. They reported that EVERYTHING was closed due to the recent storms.

It was a Thursday morning, so we had the place to ourselves. Aiguille was pretty impressive. It was huge to me, but I've never seen an indoor rock climbing facility before. It looked very new, and I think it was only a few years old. Our instructor, Scott, gave us a lesson in knotting and belaying. It was a little weird to feel like my life was in a stranger's hands, but it was climbing time!

It was MUCH easier going up than going down. Going down I felt like I had to push against the person holding me the whole time, in addition to not being able to see the "rocks" at my feet. Scary. After the one beginner wall we tried, my partner and I moved onto a straighter, taller wall-and almost immediately gave up. Time for a smoke!

There was also a bouldering option, which was fun and quite satisfying. I don't know if this is something I'd ever be interested in real life, but it was pretty cool to get to the top of the boulder.

Jason, the owner of the place, was very nice and informative. While we ate lunch, he told us all kinds of climbing stories, including the details of "Touching the Void." He told us that indoor rock climbing in Orlando has become a really popular weekend-night option among young people. You always climb with a partner, but it's easy to show up alone and get paired up. It sounded like a great alternative to bars for active types, and I got really excited for Jason that his dream was coming true.

All in all, it was a fun daytime activity, but I still would have much preferred canoeing.

If you've seen any Cirque du Soleil productions, live or on TV, you will know in advance if this is your thing. I can sort of see how some people might not get into it—it's a lot of crazy fantasy themes, weird music, and eccentric artistic types for a fairly high price. But the eye-popping talents and gorgeous costumes completely transport me every time. I've seen this show one other time in Vegas and a couple times on TV, and it's always pretty damn amazing.

La Nouba is Disney's resident show. One of only four resident shows in existence (the other three are in Vegas), La Nouba was truly built from the ground up. After the contract was signed between Cirque du Soleil and Disney, the theatre was designed to match the concept of the show. Two towers flank the stage and provide entrance/exit points for trapeze artists, tightrope walkers, and other performers. Tumblers use the specially-designed retractable power tracks on the floor. All performers enter and exit the main stage through a large elevator built directly into the main floor. This made for some pretty amazing staging.

We entered the show stealthily. Our tour guide Michelle had forgotten the tickets, but luckily, we were still with the rep from La Nouba. She led us in through the back entrance, which was exciting for some reason. The theatre was grand and gorgeous, naturally featuring stadium seating so no one would miss a moment.

There are some common acts in Cirque du Soleil shows, although each show does it in a special way. "Ballet in silk" is a popular act, with men and women tumbling along wide strands of colorful fabric hung from the ceiling. The German wheel, an amazing feat of strength featuring men spread-eagled like the spokes is an act I've seen before as well. There is almost always a dance act featuring small Chinese performers. But it's always done differently, and always amazing.

La Nouba's particular "ballet in silk" featured a beautiful muscular man flying out at the audience, appearing to only be casually holding onto the silk. It was exhilirating to watch, and definitely the highlight of the show for me!

Performances are held Tuesday through Saturday at 6:00 and 9:00. We went to the 9:00, which allowed for a leisurely dinner and, of course, fewer kids. You can buy tickets up to six months in advance, but check the website for the schedule--there are some dates when the show is dark. Book online or call Disney booking at 407/939-7600.

La Nouba is pricey, but worth it. Don't miss it if you are in the Orlando area.

The show I saw was the Thursday-night "Duel of Fools," basically an improv sports night: two teams, competing in various improv games. I generally enjoy this type of stucture, and the comedians were quite good at their jobs. I don't know if I would agree it's worth $13, but at $5, it's a pretty good night out.

One caveat: I am under the impression that this is a Christian group of performers. There's nothing wrong with that, but those who prefer a little more raunch to their comedy won't find it here.

I am not a golfer. I know nothing about golfing, and it's actually slightly distasteful to me. But Director of Instruction Kenny Nairn's presentation about the Golf Academy and the tour of the greens was impressive enough that at the very least, I can see why this course would appeal to people without my reservations.

Celebration Golf Club's Golf Academy has won the National Golf Course Owners Association's "Player Development Award." Why? Because it's truly dedicated to improving your game. The Golf 101 group classes are categorized as New Golfer, Breaking 100, and Breaking 90. Packages include 6 hours of instruction, 10 sessions of playing with a pro, supervised practice time, discounts on extra rounds, and more.

Of course, there are private lessons available as well, the most interesting aspect of which is the Interactive Academy. For an extra fee, students can watch and analyze a video of their swing and even compare it to professional golfers who have been filmed during tournaments at Celebration. It was really pretty cool to watch the demo.

We took a little time to play on the driving range as well. I was truly awful, yet competitive enough to force a couple of good shots in. That's relative, of course... my best was passing the 75-feet mark, while Kenny was able to hit across the lake. Oh, yeah—the driving range is on a lake. Apparently there are gators in the water! The golf balls float and eventually wash up on the sides, so you can swing away without worrying about cleanup.

The course is beautiful, although I don't have much to compare it to. I believe golf enthusiasts would really love it.

Discovery Cove is basically a luxury SeaWorld, where instead of watching the animals do tricks, you splash around in their habitats. Limited to 1,000 guests per day, Discovery Cove is not overrun with crowds, with plenty of staff to oversee everyone. With the all-inclusive package ($259 high-season price), we were given unlimited access to all parts of the park, snorkel gear, lockers, lunch, and passes to Busch Gardens or SeaWorld.

We were scheduled for a 4pm dolphin swim, so we killed some time exploring the park. There is a beach area where parents chilled out. I was cynical at first about the fake coral reef, but as soon as I dove in, all disbelief melted away. Imported or not, the fish were real, and I had never had the opportunity to snorkel alongside rays before. I felt myself floating in wonder (unfortunately, you have to wear life vests at Discovery Cove) at the gorgeous fish that swam next to me without fear. Next to the Coral Reef is a shallow Ray Lagoon, which allows closer interaction with the rays.

On land, we explored the Aviary. The birds are plentiful, exotic, and beautiful. The variety is random—there are owls, cuckoos, toucans, and parrots. Staff members pass out small cups of fruit and seeds to feed the birds. They have no fear and cling to your fingers while they eat. Don't be surprised if a whole flock alights on your head and arms!

Finally, it was time for the main event: the dolphin swim, which transported our group of late-20-somethings back to babbling childhood. We were certainly the oldest people in the park who weren't parents. That didn't dampen the thrill at all. The trainers showed us various hand signals that the dolphins would respond to. We stroked the dolphins named Akai and Capricorn and rubbed their bellies. Then we held onto their fins while they took us each for a little swim, which was so fun and way too brief! They let us request tricks, which we'd all seen before but never from up close, like walking on water and flips. The funniest moment was 40-year-old Capricorn's "shark impression"—apparently he had been in Jaws 3. We stood in a circle and linked arms while he sped around us with his dorsal fin showing. Much screaming and laughing ensued.

Discovery Cove was an unforgettable experience, and if money is no object, it’s really worthwhile. One caveat: the food, which the tour guide said three times was restaurant-quality and freshly prepared, was just theme-park food. It sounded good—all gourmet sandwiches and burgers, plus salad and dessert—but it was doled out cafeteria-style and really pretty bad. It’s filling enough—just don’t expect much.

Winter Park has a few large chain stores (i.e. The Gap) cleverly disguised by the pretty architecture, but there are some great local finds as well. One such store was Tuni. Here I found really fun, funky jewelry, although on the pricey side... I fell in love with a large ring that cost $74. Luckily, I reined myself in. Very cute, trendy clothes, fabulous shoes... it was a little slice of New York in Orlando.

The best part of Winter Park was the farmer's market. I loved seeing the different types of produce! I don't think I saw a single apple; instead, the stalls were packed with lemons, limes, oranges, grapes, and avocados. For $1, you can get delicious fresh-squeezed lemonade. The tropical plants were gorgeous, cheap, and HUGE... definitely not meant for apartment-dwellers. I was amazed at the size of the plants that went for just $6.50.

My favorite part, however, was meeting the Pesto Diva. Originally from Staten Island, she was sick of Orlando and daydreamed about moving back to New York. I could see this wasn't in Michelle's Orlando-boosting script, but I enjoyed discussing the remote possibility of her selling her pesto at the Union Square market in New York—I was pretty sure I hadn't seen homemade pesto for sale there yet. I had trouble deciding between the equally amazing Pistachio Parmesan and Artichoke Cashew, but she helped my decision by telling me that artichoke might not survive the long journey back to New York. View the rest of her delicious creations on her website.

Winter Park was a relaxing way to wrap up the hurried afternoon—I was running out of town early to escape the oncoming hurricane! I would have loved to shop more, eat at one of the cute restaurants, or take that boat ride... but maybe another IgoUgo member will explore the area and give me the info!

Orlando has made great strides in refurbishing neighborhoods into the kinds of areas that the younger generation prefers, but at this point, all the change has only made it a more enjoyable place for Gen Xers to live. It would take a serious shakeup for it to become a place that people with no interest in the theme parks would go out of their way to visit.

One major problem is the cost. Generally, all Floridian cities will go on flight sales at the same time, so if your choices are Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Orlando, for similar prices, guess what's at the bottom of the list? Then, after you arrive, the price tags continue to shock. Movies for $13? Dinner for $50? Part of the time my disbelief came out of the thought, "But this is Orlando. No one "cool" wants to come here. How can they charge so much?" But on second thought, of course, I realize that the theme-park nature of the city adds to the cost.

In Orlando, everything's a theme park. There is only so much you can do to get away from that. As much as I loved Discovery Cove, I understand that it's just an upscale theme park, totally out of my price range if it weren't for the circumstances of my trip. The trendy neighborhoods of Orlando feature the theme of urban renewal, turn-of-the-century style. It's inescapable.

I still enjoyed my Orlando trip, but until I have children, I don't expect to return. It's getting there, but it needs more work.