Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Florida CAN get below freezing. And despite all of the news stories that we saw days before we left DC, Perk and I still didn't believe it...so we didn't bring coats. Mistake. It was definitely around 40 degrees with 30 mph for at least 80% of the trip. Who knew? But don't let the weather fool you...we still had a great time. Santa greeted us at the airport!! He didn't meet you at the airport, so dont hate.
We stayed at the Plaza Ocean Club (on North Atlantic Blvd.), right on the beach overlooking the ocean. Check the view:
I don't have any pics of the room or hotel because, well, it wasn't really worth taking a picture of it. I dont want to go into too much detail, but I'll put it like this...unless you plan to sleep for 2 or 3 hours...don't choose this hotel. Try the Hilton intsead and then stop by the Plaza to meet Walt, the bartender. We'll talk about him offline.
If you want to get around in Daytona for any place that's not on the boardwalk, you need to ask for Nick, who works for American Taxi. Nick is crazy. He offered to take us to the nail shop where all the "top dollar" strippers go to get their nails done. Nick told us alot about the area and he mentioned that Daytona has been hit very hard by the economy and hasn't been able to bounce back, especially since the last round of hurricanes in 2009. The area has so much potential, too. You can actually see how bad things have gotten in certain areas, even on the boardwalk. But, I got some good shots any way:
Ok...so lets talk food...
Well, there was the boardwalk footlong, philly cheese steak, and funnel cake fries, and jello shots(not pictured)...
...made me feel like a fat kid. But it was good...so it's okay right? We also eat at Bubba Gump's Shrimp restuarant. You know, "fried shrimp, boiled shrimp, baked shrimp, shrimp scampi, coconut shrimp, shrimp etouffee.." etc. I dont have pics of it, but Perk does and she'll post later. If you ever go to Bubba Gump's, try the Blueberry Lemonade "drink." Love. It. We also ate at Sapporo Japanese Steakhouse (not too bad) and had pizza from the little Italian shop (stick to the pizza) on the corner of North Atlantic and Seabreeze Ave. The absolute highlight of our edible adventures was dining at the Hyde Park Steakhouse at the Hilton. Hyde Park has other locations throughout Florida and Ohio, but if you ever make you way to one, be prepared to spend your money. Great food and great service. I ordered the lamb chops, which came with onion straws and a side of potatoes au gratin. Perk had the 30-something ounce PORTERHOUSE STEAK, (pure delicious-osity) with maple whipped sweet potaoes and asparagus. By the way, asparagus stinks. Check the pics again:
Looking for a new moscato? Try Saint Supery Moscato. Very peachy with hints of apricots and citrus. Thank me later.
Christmas day was great. The temperature hit about 70 degrees and people came out of hibernation to frolic in the 40 degree water! It was a beautiful day, especially so, considering that majority of the East Coast was covered in snow. Here are the best pictures:
My christmas vacay was great. Good times with a good friend and ample time to relax. Well 1 down, 24 more to go. Next stop, Baltimore!
Besos!
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