Leisure … more than a word, it's a lifestyle

Legoland Florida is moving along in preparation for it’s 15th October 2011 opening date and the first Lego brick models featuring the sites and monuments of Washington D.C. have now been installed in the Miniland USA area of the park.

Miniland USA, is a very popular feature at the heart of every LEGOLAND Park and the Florida location will be home to seven specially themed areas – Washington, D.C., New York City, Las Vegas, Kennedy Space Center, Daytona, Florida and a pirate themed section.

* Florida encompasses the entire state from Mallory Square in Key West to Bok Tower in Central Florida and antebellum mansions in the Panhandle. Miniland Florida also includes an expanded area for Kennedy Space Center and an interactive Daytona racing experience where guests can race LEGO brick cars.

* Las Vegas features the world-famous Strip including the Luxor Las Vegas, New York, New York Hotel and Casino, Excalibur, Mirage, Treasure Island, Tropicana, MGM Grand, Venetian, Stratosphere tower and two iconic structures of Paris Las Vegas: the balloon sign and Eiffel Tower. “The Strip” at LEGOLAND also features a miniature wedding chapel, monorails and real life sounds recorded in Las Vegas. The architectural landmark is built out of more than two million bricks and represents more than sixteen-thousand hours of creative artistry.

* Washington, D.C. sports faithful recreations of the White House, Capitol Building, Smithsonian, Washington and Jefferson monuments and parts of Georgetown. An animated marching band parades in front of the Capitol and tiny cherry trees blossom every spring.

* New York City features the Freedom Tower years before its completion in the Big Apple. Tiny jets of water shoot up from the fountain in Rockefeller Plaza, while an army of animated yellow taxicabs prowl the streets of Times Square. The Statue of Liberty, a cutaway view of Grand Central Station, The Empire State Building, The Guggenheim Museum and the Bronx Zoo are just a few of the recognizable landmarks.

* A Pirate themed section hosts a full-on swashbuckling pirate adventure as two opposing pirate ships and their “mates” battle it out upon the high seas.

Here’s a video from earlier in the year showing some of the progress:

The grand opening of Fun Spot USA Kissimmee’s new attraction, Power Trip Roller Coaster, will be marked with a 10 am ribbon cutting ceremony on Saturday, July 2.  Free roller coaster rides will be offered from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., along with free samples of Power Trip Energy Drinks. They’ll also be celebrating at their Orlando Park on International Drive with free ferris wheel rides during those same hours. Fun Spot USA is located in Kissimmee, off U.S. 192, next to Old Town. The Power Trip Roller Coaster is a spinning coaster, similar to Primeval Whirl at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The coaster was last in operation at Cypress Gardens where it was known as Galaxy Spin.

Devorn Jorsling continued his hot streak, scoring two goals in the first 26 minutes to lead Orlando City to their second straight win over Antigua Barracuda FC in three days. The 2-1 victory gives the Lions a 10 point lead in the USL PRO’s American Division and the win also makes Orlando City the first to reach 10 wins this season in USL PRO.

The match opened with the Barracudas on the attack. Seeking revenge from Friday’s defeat, Antigua came out guns blazing in the first five minutes. Orlando keeper Sean Kelley, seeing his first action of the regular season, was pressed into service twice in the early minutes from an Antigua a free kick and then a Ranja Christian breakaway.

After a tense opening ten minutes, the Lions took control of the match. Devorn Jorsling got the scoring going for Orlando when a long pass was knocked into the air inside the 18-yard box. Several Barracuda defenders attempted to clear, but the ball fell to Jorsling’s feet. The Trinidadian international slammed the ball home for his second goal of the regular season.

Jorsling’s goal took the air out of the Antiguan attack. City’s control over the match strengthened as they pushed forward again and again in attack, coming close several times. Charlie Campbell’s darting run in between several Barracuda defenders seemed destined for a goal, but Keita De Castro just managed to push Campbell’s shot over the bar for a corner kick.

The Lions doubled their lead in the 26th minute. Kevin Molino broke free of his defender on the right wing, and made a deep run with the ball. Just before reaching the touchline, Molino fired a low cross in front of goal. The initial pass did not find a target, but in the ensuing chaos in front of the net, the ball found Devorn Jorsling. Jorsling punched it home for his second of the match. The Lions continued their domination until the halftime whistle, heading into the locker rooms with a 2-0 lead.

The Barracudas opened the second half in much the same way they opened the first. Their renewed energy was rewarded in the 51st minute. After shutting down an Orlando City attack, the Barracudas countered quickly. A long through ball from behind the midfield stripe found Ranja Christian. Christian took Sean Kelley one-on-one, and put his shot low just inside the near post to bring the Barracudas within a goal.

The rest of the second half was a defensive battle. As time melted off the clock, the Barracudas pushed more and more players forward into an all-or-nothing attack. Orlando continued to stand firm, clearing attack after attack with relative ease. The Lions did manage to counter a few times late in the match. Max Griffin nearly put the Lions up by two goals in the 85th minute, but his low shot to the far post sailed just wide of the net.

Next up for the Lions is the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday as City travel to Frisco, Texas, to clash with Major League Soccer’s FC Dallas. Kickoff is set for 8:00 pm Central, 9:00 pm Eastern and the match will be broadcast on www.fcdallas.com.

Scoring Summary
12th Minute – Orlando: Devorn Jorsling
26th Minute – Orlando: Devorn Jorsling
51st Minute – Antigua: Ranja Christian

Orlando City Line-up
GK: Sean Kelley
D: Mechack Jerome, Kieron Bernard, Rob Valentino, Jack Traynor
M: Kevin Molino (87’ – Lewis Neal), Lawerence Olum, Luke Boden (70’ – Justin Fojo), Eric Ustruck
F: Devorn Jorsling (58’ – Max Griffin), Charlie Campbell

How’s this year been for you? If it’s anything like mine, your year will have flown by. I looked at my calendar this morning and shook my head in disbelief that we are about to enter the seventh month of the year…July! We’re officially over the half way mark of the year in a weeks time and I never even noticed that Summer was upon us…help!

Worse still, with two daughters graduating and the vacation rental business booming, I haven’t even thought of taking a vacation myself. It seems I’ve come down with a new disease I’m going to call V.P. … Vacation Procrastination.

So what to do to overcome this?… It’s going to require some resourcefulness and creativity me thinks. It’s also going to call for some relaxation time and that’s something I’ve forgotten how to do! So if you’re like me, let’s recap on why we all need a vacation or a few days break from the normal routine…

First, and in order to cure V.P., you simply have to get out of the house and change your scenery. We all become bogged down with our routines and simply focusing on surviving in this type of economy. It’s easy to become jaded, tired and simply worn out.

Second, being a workaholic does nothing for your productivity and it simply makes you stale and unable to see other things going on around you. Important stuff, like family and friends.

Third, both one and two, bring an inordinate amount of stress on  our bones and physiology. The body and mind needs to relax and do nothing from time to time just to feel alive again.

So, here’s a couple of suggestions. If you’re able to book a week or more away then go and do it…right now. Ask yourself why not and if you don’t get a decent answer…go do it! You’ll feel better immediately and have something to look forward to…which is refreshing in itself.

If you’re unable to take a week away for whatever reason then I’m worried about you… but here’s the solution… go and book a weekend away… and make it a long weekend, not just Saturday and Sunday.  Mini vacations are great and they also help you recharge your batteries.

Remember, vacations are important for the following reasons:

1. Recharge your energy.

2. Lower your stress levels.

3. Allows the mind to think.

4. New scenery and new places = new ideas and thoughts.

5. A chance to spend time with loved ones.

Taking a vacation means that all of a sudden the world doesn’t look so bad. Some fun in the sun with tropical breezes and a fresh suntan does so much for your mind, body and soul. So beat the vacation procrastination blues and book that break now! It’s not too late to score that great Orlando vacation rental and to enjoy a few days at the theme parks or on the beach.

Do you have any friends or family members suffering from vacation procrastination? Do them a favor and send them this article now!

Tonight sees the US take on Mexico in the final of the Gold Cup. This will be the third time in a row that the CONCACAF giants played in the final and the Americans will surely be looking to avenge their 5-0 thrashing from 2009.

The U.S. has slowly improved their game throughout the tournament and some have out this down to Bob Bradley’s continued presence on the sideline. Bradley will most likely go with a 4-2-3-1 formation while Mexico will favor a 4-4-1-1 line up.  The possible absence of Andres Guardado means that Aldo de Negris will come in as the second striker, while Giovanni Dos Santos will move to the left wing. On the US team you can almost certainly expect Landon Donovan to start in favor of a disappointing Kljestan performance against Panama.

The U.S. has had the majority of possession in its last few games but that is likely to change as Mexico, with their more technically sound midfielders, will attempt to control the game by playing a higher tempo style of play.  The biggest worries for Bob Bradley are his central defenders and missing striker. Goodson has really not played at a high enough level to deal with someone who has the pace of Hernandez or his skill while Cherundolo and Goodson both have had trouble watching runners coming off their backs as we saw against Jamaica.

With injury ruling Jozy Altidore out of the final,  Juan Agudelo will almost certainly start at the front but arguably the biggest issue with the U.S.’s lack of a goal scorer, aside from Dempsey or Donovan, is that they throw large numbers forward when on the offense and that means they become very susceptible to quick breaks. This is something of a worry as the Mexican’s will undoubtedly look to exploit this weakness with their much quicker wingers and forwards.

Something else to look out for will also be the battle in the midfield where the U.S. has their most talent. So far Bob Bradley has had his wide players come into the middle and have let the fullbacks (generally Cherundolo and Lichaj) overlap on the wings. This has resulted in increased possession for the Americans in the middle with Bradley and Jones bringing up the rear when the United States is going forward. El Tri play with two holding midfielders similarly to the U.S. but they act as part of a fluid defense rather than a component of the offense and the end result is that this leaves Mexico nearly always with an extra man at the back when they lose the ball.

Overall it may seem as if the United State are inferior in most aspects of the game but this isn’t entirely true. Their strong discipline will be necessary though and they should look to really come alive in the second half as their fitness starts to tell. It’s going to be an interesting game and it starts at 9pm this evening on Fox Soccer Channel. Let’s see if the US can avenge their last appearance in the final.

Feel free to let us know your thoughts and to share this article with your friends and family.

St. George Parish, Antigua – Orlando City avenged their only home loss of the season with a dominating 3-1 road victory over American Division rivals Antigua Barracuda FC Friday night in St. George Parish, Antigua. The win moves the Lions to 9-2-4 on the season, keeping City at the top of the league.

Orlando City began the match quickly and in dominating fashion. After a wide shot in the opening 30 seconds, City pressed hard in the attack. Erik Ustruck hit the crossbar in 5th minute for the first real scoring chance of the night for the Lions, but the rebound was corralled by the Antigua keeper. City continued to press in attack, completely controlling the flow of the game.

Orlando’s efforts were rewarded in the 17th minute. Lewis Neal took a short corner, and then placed a secondary cross into the mixer. Several headers kept the ball alive in the box until 6’3” Rob Valentino rose above the crowd to finally knock the ball into the net. Valentino also scored the game winner on Tuesday night in US Open Cup play in Charleston. Knowing one goal would not be enough, the Lions pushed on and just five minutes later, City doubled their lead. Kevin Molino placed a cross low and across the goal, to find Max Griffin for his league-leading ninth goal of the season.

Antigua struck back quickly, when Orlando Mitchum broke away on a loose ball and put it past Gallardo. City regained control of the match, allowing the game to settle 2-1 at the halfway mark. Orlando came out blazing in the second half, with attack after attack. The Barracudas could not maintain possession, due in part to the strong play of Lawrence Olum and Eric Ustruck in the central midfield.

The Lions closed the match out in the 61st minute on corner kick. Lewis Neal expertly placed the ball at the back post, finding Luke Boden for his first goal of the season. Neal’s service had such a curve that it nearly went in the net untouched. The Lions closed out the game by maintaining possession as they had all game.

In the closing minutes, Orlando’s Demar Stewart was shown red for dissent. He will miss the next match as a result and after weathering a late surge of kitchen sink attacks by the Barracudas, the Lions emerged with a 3-1 victory. Next up for the Lions the second game of the two match set with Antigua. Kickoff is set for 5:00 pm at Sticky Wicket Stadium. The match will be broadcast on USLLive.com, the official online video channel of USL PRO.

For more information, visit www.orlandocitysoccer.com.

After the finishing business in Antigua, the Lions will travel to Frisco, Texas, to face Major League Soccer’s FC Dallas in the third round of the U.S. Open Cup. The match will be broadcast on FCDallas.com.

Scoring Summary:

17th Minute – Orlando: Rob Valentino

22nd Minute – Orlando: Max Griffin (Kevin Molino)

25th Minute – Antigua: Orlando Mitchum

61st Minute – Orlando: Luke Boden (Lewis Neal)

Orlando City Line-up GK: Miguel Gallardo D: Mechack Jerome, Demar Stewart, Rob Valentino, Jack Traynor M: Kevin Molino (59’ – Charlie Campbell), Lawerence Olum, Erik Ustruck, Luke Boden (89’ – Justin Fojo) F: Lewis Neal (71’ – Devorn Jorsling (89’ – Kieron Bernard), Max Griffin (85’ – Dennis Chin)

Orlando is experiencing record heat this June and one of the best ways to cool down while you’re here is to visit one of the great water parks in the area. Wet n Wild Orlando has been voted one of America’s best water parks  and it  offers more rides than any other water park in Orlando, with the best variety of multi-passenger thrill rides with loads of special effects.

It is conveniently located on 25 acres on Orlando’s International Drive area just 20 to 25 minutes from Florida Leisure’s vacation homes. Wet n Wild is open year round and the pools are heated in the cooler months if you happen to be visiting then.

The rides at Wet n Wild are simply awesome and the water park features rides such as the Black Hole. The Black Hole is a chance for guests to experience new pulsating lights and  dynamic effects which propels riders through 600 feet of twisting, turning, watery darkness. There’s plenty of other great rides as well and among them is Disco H2O that delivers a groovy musical raft ride through the ’70s.

Other rides include several family style raft rides such as Brain Wash, the Flyer and Bubba Tub as well as several single rider experiences like The Storm, Bomb Bay, Der Stuka and Mach 5. Youngster will be entertained at the Kids’ Park which features a gigantic bucket that periodically fills with water and then splashes down soaking all who are in the pool below. There’s also several supervised gentle slides and a kids lazy river so Mom and Dad needn’t worry about their young ones safety. Life vests are also provided free of charge and guests can also rent lockers and towels for a small extra fee.

A day in the sun can often be exhausting and there are several places to dine and enjoy other refreshments. One particularly nice feature are the private cabanas and they are located in a quieter area of the water park away from all the hustle and bustle.

The wake zone is also a very popular area and it’s here you can Knee Ski, Wakeboard or ride the Wild One. Wakeboarding is one of the fastest growing water sports and anyone from beginners to experts can show off their techniques on the WakeZone cableway. The Wild One is a chance for guests to be towed around the large lake at Wet n Wild on big bouncy tubes for one heck of a wild ride! (Note: The Wild One is only open from May through September)

Wet n Wild is a great place to visit when in Orlando and it has something fun for all the family. Make sure you visit when you’re in Central Florida. More photo’s appear here and if you found this blog post interesting please feel free to send it to your friends and family by clicking the “send” button.

Harry Potter author  J K Rowling has launched the Pottermore online reading experience, which will invite fans online, and will sell DRM-free ebooks of the series for the first time. The project involves bringing the Harry Potter books online and telling the story through a web site not to mention the small matter of  selling the ebook and audiobook versions in multiple languages.

What makes Pottermore so interesting is that the ebooks will not feature digital restrictions management (DRM), copyright protection which is designed to prevent media content from being illegally distributed on filesharing networks.This means that the ebooks can be used on any device, from Amazon’s popular Kindle to Apple’s Ipad, both of which lock their own ebooks to their respective platforms. This open approach will be welcomed by many who find DRM technology invasive and obstructive, and it might set a precedent for other authors and publishers considering entering the digital world.

To cope with the possibility of  ‘piracy’ the ebooks will now feature a digital watermark that will identify who purchased the book. This will allow authorities to track down who shared an ebook with the rest of the world, and those users could then face lawsuits for copyright infringement.

The Pottermore web site will be launched in October, with registrations being accepted from 31 July, the birthday of Harry. A lucky number of applicants will also gain early access and you can visit www.Pottermore.com and register your interest right now.

So what does this all mean for the Orlando area?

In short, we’ll have to wait and see, but my best guess is that it will increase the awareness of the Harry Potter brand and that will mean more visitors to add to the 51 million who came into the area last year…many of whom came to see The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando’s Islands of Adventure.

Pottermore is an interesting and timely move as the eighth and final movie in the series is less than a month away from its release. “It All Ends” is the slogan adopted by  “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2,” and Daniel Radcliffe is making the same pledge about his role as the boy wizard.

Radcliffe, it seems,  is looking toward a future in a world without magic. Asked recently if he would have any desire to return if another film was planned he answered “Not particularly… I think that would be a bit odd. I’d be very skeptical about that. First of all, I don’t think that J.K. Rowling will write another Potter installment and second of all, oh, I don’t know, the idea of going back to something after 10 or 20 years? At that point, I will have worked 20 years to establish a career outside of it, and at that point to go back to it would feel a little self-defeating.”

So, as the series comes to an end it will be interesting to see how Universal Orlando tries to keep the brand fresh. Over the next year you can be sure that the new movie will spark some interest before Pottermore takes over and that essentially means more people coming to Orlando to get the Potter  experience.  It’s good news in the short term… but we’ll have to wait and see how the long term pans out for the boy wizard.

Feel free to leave your comments about the future of Harry Potter and if you enjoyed this blog please “send” it to your friends and family.

Walt Disney World Resort will pixie dust the night skies July 4 with special pyrotechnic shows, including a patriotic display at Magic Kingdom, a rock’n’roll spectacular at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and a classic sky show at Epcot infused with an Independence Day finale. Here’s what’s in store:

* Magic Kingdom will present “Disney’s Celebrate America! A Fourth of July Concert in the Sky.” This patriotic fireworks spectacular, paying homage to the hopes and dreams of America’s forefathers, will light the skies at 9 p.m. July 4 – and for guests who would like to begin the Independence Day celebration early, the show also will be presented July 3 at 9 p.m.

* At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, traditional Fourth of July fireworks take on a different spin when Mulch, Sweat, and Shears perform for the all-new “Rockin’ 4th of July Celebration”! These resident landscapers – with serious rock and roll ambitions – take Disney guests on a musical road trip across America that will highlight each region’s contribution to rock and roll. Fireworks, lighting and special effects – backed by the driving live rock and roll of Mulch, Sweat, and Shears – combine to bring a new twist to celebrating Independence Day. Showtime July 4 is 9:45 p.m. Before or after the show, Disney’s Hollywood Studios guests can thrill to Disney’s Fantasmic!, performing July 4 at 9 and 10:30 p.m.

* At Epcot, sky-watchers can check out “IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth” bursting high above World Showcase Lagoon. IllumiNations is a 14-minute spectacular during which pyrotechnics, lasers, water and music are all used to tell a story about the past, present and future of our planet. On the Fourth of July, the show will be enhanced with “The Heartbeat of Freedom,” an overture of traditional Americana themes displayed in a pyrotechnic and laser light event. The show is at 10 p.m.

In addition, Epcot guests may lend their ears to “Voices of Liberty 4th of July Concert” and participate in meet-and-greets with Benjamin Franklin, Betsy Ross and Disney characters adorned in patriotic dress at American Adventure.

Theme park hours on July 4 (subject to change without notice): Magic Kingdom, 9 a.m.-11 p.m.; Epcot, 9 a.m.-10 p.m.; Disney’s Hollywood Studios, 9 a.m.-10 p.m.; and Disney’s Animal Kingdom, 9 a.m.-8 p.m.

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Hot on the heels of Rory McIlroy’s fabulous win at the US Open came the chance to visit Grand Cypress Golf Resort in Orlando. Previously Grand Cypress was a private members club but that’s all changed now and the 45 holes of Jack Nicklaus Signature golf are now open for guests of Florida Leisure Vacation Homes to play.

The resort truly has a diverse selection of Orlando golf with its 27-hole North/South/East Course providing the ultimate test of accuracy while the 18-hole New Course provides a Scottish links masterpiece. Within the 27 holes, the Jack Nicklaus Signature-designed North, South, and East Nines provide three distinctly unique 18-hole masterpieces. For the full round of 18, courses can be combined as the North-South, South-East, or East-North Course. Each combination provides a distinctive playing experience, which will challenge even the best of golfers.

Grand Cypress Golf Club is proud to host the LPGA for a tour event every year and this is your chance to play the same course that the top professional ladies play. The whole facility is both elegant and oozes class in every aspect. From the moment you walk through the club house door to the time you walk off the 18th green you’ll thoroughly enjoy an unforgettable Orlando golf experience.

If you’re looking to hone you game then there’s no better than the Grand Cypress Academy of Golf. It features a variety of golf school programs offering one to five days of unparalleled instruction and the most advanced teaching methods to improve your performance. The Grand Cypress Academy of Golf, has won countless awards for it’s high level of instruction and all of the instructors are among the best in Florida.

Grand Cypress is located just 15 to 20 minutes from Florida Leisure’s vacation homes and our staff would be delighted to book your tee time when you’re next in the Central Florida area.

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