Apparently, I was a bit tired because I slept all the way until the alarm went off at 7:30. I packed up my stuff, took a shower, and then got to the car. Check out was very easy. I clicked on a couple of buttons in the app, and I could keep the keycard. Programmed the GPS to the Kennedy Space Center and took off! Traffic wasn’t that bad, but I still missed my adaptive cruise control. I stopped at a Walmart on the way to get a battery for my selfie stick. When I went to Key West in 2022, I had the same issue.
Paid for parking and found a spot close to the entrance. My bag got flagged, again, but otherwise the entrance was smooth. I took a lap a the rocket garden, but soon it was time for the KSC Explore Tour. I think that it was a wise choice to get a jump start on what it was all about.
Our guide, George, seemed to know what he was talking about and told us the history of the space program, how the launch sites were used earlier and today. SpaceX and Blue Origin, for example, are “newcomers”. One fact I thought was especially funny, the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) is the world’s largest one-story building.
I left the complex at about 15:30 and drove back to Orlando.
My new hotel is about 25 minutes from my previous one, Universal Endless Summer Resort – Dockside Inn and Suites. I managed to go to its sibling across the street first 🙂 The check-in was smooth, and I found parking just outside an entrance to “my” tower. I have the room 1-11-77, close to a special phone number in Sweden (117 17). It’s a nice, spacious room on the 11th floor.
I realized that the safety box didn’t work, so I called reception and told them that the battery probably needed to be replaced. Within ten minutes, a guy shows up with a handheld device and a cable. He was surprised to see it was open; apparently, my message hadn’t been properly received because he thought I couldn’t get it open. Batteries weren’t his thing, so he should call some engineering guy. Another ten minutes go by, and the same guy comes back. He couldn’t reach anyone but thought, How hard can it be to change batteries. And frankly, I have a Phillips screwdriver on my keychain, and I actually have four AA batteries in my bag, so I could have done it. Anyway, he got it done, and now I can lock up my passport; that feels good.
Another fun fact is that there was a blank card in the card reader at the door (that controls the power in the room) when I entered. Usually, you are supposed to use the key card, and try to use some other card I have with me, but now they have circumvented their own system! I won’t complain.
After I’d spent a couple of hours writing two blog posts, I went down to the hotel restaurant, Pier 8 Market, and got myself some pesto pasta and brought it back to the room. As at the Disney Resort, the dining hall wasn’t that comfy. Managed to tweak my VPN so I could watch the Packers @ Giants from earlier today on my phone. I do have a valid subscription to Dazn, but they don’t have the rights to the NFL in the USA, and they had identified the Swedish IP range (I guess) for the VPN provider and blocked it. If I switched to Denmark, it worked; hopefully, it will work throughout the trip.
I’ve gone through the attractions of the different parks to see what I want to do and where. I can spend four days in three parks, so I have time. They don’t open as early either, that is nice 🙂
Oh, btw, here is the view from my windows on the 11th floor Katta!
