We traveled ten hours to Homosassa Spring Florida to visit relatives.
We traveled to Florida in our new Camel Brown 1980, Chevrolet Malibu, which could seat six people comfortably.
My fifteen-year-old son rode upfront with my father-in-law(who smoked a pipe)and my husband (who smoked cigarettes).
Most of the time the front windows were rolled down, with some smoke going outside while the rest encircled our heads.
My mother-in-law, my two younger sons, my daughter, and I sat in the back.
My four-year-old daughter spent most of her time either on someone’s lap or sleeping in the back window.
What I remember about the trip was the way the car rode especially through Montgomery it felt like we were in a boat being tossed about by the waves.
Up and down, Up and down we went!
We were greeted with a warm welcome & teddy bear hugs from the Henson Family.
Mildred had prepared a large meal and we all sat down to eat.
After dinner, we sat around talking while the kids played outside.
When bedtime came my in-laws were given the extra bedroom and we
slept on quilts, blankets, and pillows to spread out on the living room floor.
Day 2: Thursday, July 2, 1981
The next day we walked the 14-acre archeological site in Crystal River Park that dates back to 500 BC.
We traveled back in time to the Yules Sugar Mill Ruins the pre-civil war sugar plantation.
The once-thriving sugar mill owned by David Levy Yulee is now a State Park.
The park contains a forty-foot limestone masonry chimney, iron gears, and a cane press.
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| Indian Camp in the Magic Kingdom |
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| It's a Small World in the Magic Kingdom |
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| Micky Jamming Parade Magic Kingdom |
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| Ferry Boat at the Magic Kingdom |
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| Group Picture at the Magic Kingdom |
Day 3: Friday, July 3, 1981
We spent all day Friday at the Magic Kingdom.
We rode on Hwy 44 over to I-75 to I-4 to Disney World.
At the Magic Kingdom, we stood alongside rails to watch the Magic Carpet I MAX ride which made my youngest son seasick.
We visited the 20,000 Leagues under the sea in Tomorrow Land.
We watched the colorful Macaws in the Enchanted Tiki Room singing, in “The Tiki, Tiki, Tika Room.”
We climbed the giant treehouse of the Swiss Family Robinson in Adventure Land.
We walked into the Haunted Mansion watched a show and took a ride-through tour in Omni moving vehicles called “Doom Buggies.”
We walked through a long corridor to take the Pirates of the Caribbean boat ride, which told a story about a band of pirates.
We took a Jungle Cruise boat in Adventure Land, which simulated a cruise down the Asia, Africa, and South American rivers.
We watched the Country Bears Jamboree Show, which is audio-animatronic, figures singing Country music.
In Liberty Square, we visited the Hall of Presidents.
We rode a boat in “It’s a Small World” where dolls sang and danced in different languages around the world.
We rode the Space Mountain Roller Coaster.
We rode the Ferryboat to the Magic Kingdom.
We purchased passport tickets that had holes punched in them with a large string attached.
The tickets were collected at the gate and retained by Disney’s Magic Kingdom
Disney was working on building EPOC, it opened in 1982.
Day 4: Saturday, July 4, 1981
We rode to Cape Kennedy/Cape Canaveral, where we took the KSC bus tour and visited the museum.
During the KSC bus tour, we got an up-close view of the space shuttle launch pad, we saw the 363-foot-long Saturn V moon rocket. I took pictures of the kids in front of the Space vehicle.
We walked through the Space Museum where we saw the US Astronaut’s Hall of Fame and Early Space Exploration. We walked through the Robot Scouts exhibit of unmanned planetary probes. Each of the kids climbed up and put their face inside one of the many spacesuits for a picture.
We also saw the rocket garden with early space flight rockets Mercury, Gemini and Apollo.
What a visit with the Henson Family, they showed us how to have fun at the Magic Kingdom and we learned the history of space travel at Cape Canaveral.
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| Cape Kennedy Space Center |
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| Cape Kennedy Space Center |
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| Cape Kennedy Space Center |
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| Cape Kennedy Space Center |
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| Lora at Cape Kennedy Space Center |
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| Cape Kennedy Space Center |
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| Mike, Ronald, Andy, Lora, and Little Bill at Cape Kennedy Space Center |
Day 5: Sunday, July 5, 1981
The travel home was long but not too eventful considering eight people were riding in a six-passenger car.
My four-year-old daughter rode most of the way home lying in the back window of our 1981 Malibu.
Life is an adventure and we definitely had an adventure.
