Oktoberfest - Celebrating our German Heritage

There is a neighborhood in Jefferson City, Missouri that is called 'Old Munichburg' which celebrates it's German heritage.  Settlers from Germany arrived about 150 years ago and congregated in the area around Jefferson and Dunklin streets.  This was the center of the German community and their history is still celebrated every year with an Oktoberfest.

Lederhosen and Dirndl are not required to attend!

Lots of cars to see

This one day event includes vendor booths, a car show, games for the kids, food, music, dancing, beer, grape stomp and the highlight of the day is the dachshund derby (or wiener dog races).   Everyone loves to cheer on the dogs during the races and also spy your favorite costume during the dog costume parade before the races.

Dogs dressed as grapes and a stomping barrel!

Roxie gets ready too run

The Lions club holds a fundraiser grape stomp that has an open entry.  Different teams compete stomping grapes into juice and providing entertainment for the crowds.  All ages are welcome in this event and it is fun to watch the kids get dirty!

Getting their feet dirty at the grape stomp

There are 2 stages with bands, dancers and entertainment.   Areas are provided to sit and rest or imbibe in a cold beverage.  Oktoberfest beers are available (also a few regular kinds), wines from some local wineries and bratwurst too.

The kids area has many games, a bounce house, crafts and a hay maze.  The area has  a one time $3 fee to play all day.  The kids were having loads of fun here and the parents were very happy with the low cost.

Spin the wheel, answer the question, get a book!

Catapult a frog into the moat

Playing in the hay maze

This annual event is a popular one and a fun way to spend a day in Jefferson City.

Get an adrenalin rush at the Riviera Maya's newest park - Xplor!

While in Cancun this trip we decided to visit the park Xplor.   The park is operated by the same group that has Xcaret and Xel Ha - we have been to these parks multiple times and always enjoyed our time there.  Xplor is a very 'active' park.  There are no shows or relaxing activities (unless you take some time to enjoy the hammocks).  It is not a place for small children.  Be prepared for lots of walking, swimming and paddling...and also lots of fun!

All activity areas can be reached from the 'heart' of the park

We booked a private van from the hotel zone in Cancun to Xplor.  There were 6 of us in the group and the cost was $121 pp.  Gate entrance to Xplor at this time of the year is $99 pp.  If you have a car, or are staying in the Riviera Maya, you could save a few dollars and drive yourself or take a cab.  We don't like to do the 'public' tours as you waste hours picking up other passengers from different hotels, organizing the groups, waiting around and having to endure rest stops.  With a private van you pick the time you want to leave in the morning and return on your schedule.

When you get to Xplor you check in and get your helmet and locker key.  Everything is included at this park- equipment, locker, food and drinks.  There is a small gift shop and you can purchase photos if you want.  Be prepared to get wet and stay that way all day.  A bathing suit is a must and water shoes or sandals that strap on your feet are important.  Running shoes can be worn, but in areas that you have to swim they can be heavy.

Flowers lining the walkways - taken with our Kodak mini waterproof camera

Photos - your helmet has a chip which captures your photos.  They tell you not to switch helmets or pictures will be mixed up.  If you only want to purchase one set of photos - you might want to 'share' the helmet.  Not all the zip lines have photos so plan accordingly.  The other activities you can get couples or small groups in the photos.  There are a few places around the park that you can trigger the cameras with a button and take all the pictures you want.  Do this!  The picture packages are priced per helmet - no matter how many pictures are taken. If you buy the photos they are on a thumb drive (not actual photos, but files).  There are monitors around the park that you can hold your helmet up to and view what pictures have been taken.  We all bought the photos and got a better price for 6 helmets worth of photos.  We had our laptop in our condo and just downloaded them onto our drive, loaded copies onto one couple's SD card and gave the drive to the third couple.  They do allow waterproof cameras to be carried on the activities.  We used ours....but Dennis had our Kodak mini wash out of his pocket on a zip line (the pocket has a Velcro closure).  Luckily one of the workers had a snorkel and found our camera AND our room key!

Double lines, automatic brakes - very safe!

Water landing - or how we lost the camera!

There are some VERY long runs

There are 2 sets of zip lines (with about 7 or 8 zip lines each).  Once you are on the course you have to finish.  Use the bathroom and get a drink of water before you start.  It took us 2 hours to complete the courses and there were no real lines (at most 10 people ahead of us).  Make sure you look around when up on the lines.  The views are great!  You can see Cozumel, zip over cenotes, jungle, roads, through water and down into a cave!

Some of the zip line towers

Down into the cave

There is a lot of walking up on some of the towers

Water flows though the bottom of this ramp and into the caves

There is a water slide in the middle of the zip line course!

The 4 wheeler course is a great way to dry off a little.  You drive through the jungle and also through some caves.  Our vehicle didn't have much power up the hills....we barely moved along.  On one part another vehicle stalled in the water in a cave and we were stuck in a line waiting for them to get some help.

Crossing a bridge in the jungle

Going into the cave though the water

Driving inside the caves

The rafts in the cave are fun - just don't get close to those who don't know how to paddle.  You have a choice of single or double rafts and there are 2 different courses to paddle through. 

You paddle with your hands

The cave swimming was beautiful!  There are 2 different swim courses.  One long and one short.  The long swim has great cave formations to see and even a few bats!  We have been in many caves over the years and the caves here at Xplor have many formations to enjoy.

Photo taken with a 35mm waterproof camera

Coati looking for treats

The smoothie bar was a great place to take a break and get something to drink.  There are also cookies and fruit at this location.  If you just want juice or water it is self serve at this location.  Hammocks, chairs and a small swim area are close by if you want to relax.

Walking though the caves between activities

If you like to zip line, are ready for a bit of walking, climbing, swimming and rafting...this is the park for you! 

Off the beaten path (WAY off - but worth it!)

Friends of ours took us to this restaurant last year - now we love to go there with them every time we are in Cancun!  Coyote's is waaayyyy out of the hotel zone and downtown area in SM 233.  They don't get tourists here and no one speaks English.  Andy & Nancy Meyer (our friends that live in Cancun) found this place when they were taken here by one of their employees.  We thought you might enjoy seeing one of the local places that the residents of Cancun enjoy.

Our first visit for this trip

The dining area

Our second visit this trip!

Coyote's is small, but with a great seafood menu.  It can be crowded - especially at lunchtime and on Sunday when families are out dining together.  The prices are reasonable and the food keeps us coming back!

The prices are reasonable

Garlic shrimp and a crab tostada

Coconut shrimp

Many types of sauces

Who remembers the drive-in?

There is a drive-in theater at Bass Lake, Indiana which has been open since 1959.  The Melody Drive In is still family owned and a great way to spend an evening.  The prices are $7 for adults, kids 5-11 are $3 and under 5 are free.  This price is for TWO movies!   We enjoyed spending an evening watching movies while we were in the area in August.

The concession stand/washrooms/projection building has not changed in 50 years.  It is still an all grass parking area and many people sit out in their lawn chairs to enjoy the movies.  The only difference between when we were kids and now is that they have added a second screen and  you can tune in your car radio if you don't want to use the speakers. 

Setting up an area to watch screen 2 from the back of a truck

Stereo!

We watched 'Friends with Benefits' and 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes'.  They were actually playing on two different screens (Friends was billed with 'Change-Up' and the Apes was with 'Mr Popper's Penguins').  There is no fence between the different parking areas as there is only one concession/washroom building.  We watched the first movie on screen 2 and then turned the car around and watched the next on screen one!  It is a great way to spend an evening and not very expensive...especially if you bring your own snacks and drinks.  They are open every night in the summer and on weekends during the spring and fall.   There is also a Sunday morning drive-in church service.  If you don't feel like getting dressed for church you never have to leave the car!

Shark!!! (teeth anyway)

While exploring the beaches in Florida we decided to check out the self-proclaimed "Shark Tooth Capitol".  Caspersen beach is in the town of Venice - south of St Pete and north of Sanibel/Captiva.  We had spent a few hours in the morning on Sanibel and decided to head back to the mainland for some lunch (there is an Aurelio's Pizza in Ft Meyers) and then head further up the coast. 

There had been a few postings on Trip Advisor about hunting shark teeth in the area, so we stopped at a Wal-Mart to pick up a couple of supplies.  The locals use a long handled wire basket to dig in the breaking surf...we used a pasta colander and a kitty litter scoop.  We also had a small lingerie bag to place our finds in.  I would bring a pill container or bison tube next time as the shark teeth can be tiny.

The beach here is free - no toll bridge to pay and no parking meters!  (Sanibel is $6 for the bridge and $2 an hour to park IF you can find a parking space!)  There are picnic tables but we didn't see any concessions in the area we were.  There are a few more public beaches along this stretch of coast so maybe there were washrooms and food available somewhere else. 

The whole process is to scoop up the sand/shells/rocks/teeth along the shore break, seine the sand out and pick through what is left looking for the teeth.  The beach has dark colored sand here so you can dump your finds up on the beach and pick through them there if you would like.  We spent about 1 1/2 hrs here - would have liked to spend more time but there were storms rolling in.  Didn't want to stand in the water during lightning!

Sorting through the finds - nice shells here too!

Shark teeth we found

This was a free and fun way to spend some time while on the Gulf coast of Florida.  We will definitely return and plan to spend more time here.  We also located a dive operator who will take certified divers out looking for Megalodon teeth!  There is supposed to be a fossil bed located off shore where these items come from.

Okay....we had to do something Disney while in the area!

If you were to Disney world in the 1970's, you might remember Lake Buena Vista and the International Shopping Village.  The area is still there - even a couple places are recognizable (Captain Jacks restaurant and a few hotels - including the one we stayed at on our honeymoon!)....but oh how things have changed! 

This area is now known as Downtown Disney and is a nice way to spend a few hours or a whole day if you like.  It has to be the best value in Disney...free to look around and free to park!  There are 3 sections to this attraction:  West Side, Marketplace and Treasure Island.  All are connected and located along Lake Buena Vista.  The West Side includes restaurants like House of Blues and Wolfgang Puck Cafe', a 24 screen AMC theater, Circ du Soleil and shopping.

At the toy store with our box of potato parts

Lizz tries an outfit on a potato body

Lizz and Dennis fit lots of pieces into the box

The Marketplace area has lots of shopping - including the largest Disney character store in the world!  A couple of our favorite places are the toy shop where you can pick out pieces for Potato Head (including Disney ears, character parts and others only found here).  This is one of the best souvenir deals.  You can fill the box for $20.  Lizz was our expert packer and made sure we got LOTS of extra hands, eyes and other small items that always seem to get lost.  A tip:  you don't have to get the body.  Buy a basic set at Walmart or bring one from home for the kids to play with on vacation...then let them pick out some new 'outfits' for their potato head.  There are tables full of potato bodies and parts to play with in the store too.  You can also build your own light saber at this store for around $25.   The Lego store has lots of areas to play with the blocks and a track to build and race little cars.  Great way to keep kids busy!  There is an area to fill containers with your choice of Lego blocks.  The deli style containers start at around $14 and are a great way to get the pieces you need.  There are big displays outside around this area all made of Legos.  The best bargain in this area was a build your own Harry Potter wand of Legos.  There were many kids doing this for around $4.  Don't know what you would use it for....but the kids liked it!

Tiny Tim with the Lego 7 Dwarfs

The Rainforest Cafe and T-Rex Cafe were popular places for families.  We didn't eat there, but did take a quick peek inside.  T-Rex has a build a dinosaur store (like build a bear). 

Rainforest Cafe

 

T-Rex Cafe

T-Rex Cafe

The last area is Pleasure Island.  Lots of bars, pubs and shopping, including the Harley Davidson store.  Many places here have live music in the evenings.

If you are on the Disney Dining plan - your meals can be at many of the places in Downtown Disney.  All the restaurants we looked at have their menus outside to look at.  There is everything imaginable to buy with the mouse logo on it in this area.  Disney fans LOVE to shop here!    For the record - Universal Studios also has an area like this called the Universal Citywalk.  It includes shopping, restaurants and shows including the Blue Man group.  The only difference we noticed is that Universal charges to park.