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Forget public transportation. It sucks, is useless and a time waster.

While it may be easier to rent a car at the airport, plan to rent one off-property. There is a 14% surcharge tax for rental cars from the airport. Instead get one located on Jetport Drive. They have shuttles to the airport, without the extra daily 14% tax. I'd suggest emailing to get times/availability for shuttles and hours. Yes, it's not as convenient as the airport, but the price difference could be a couple hundred bucks depending on what car/SUV/truck/van you rent. Just plan to return an hour or two earlier than you would have to plan for the shuttle.

E-Z Rent-A-Car Inc
www.e-zrentacar.com - 1777 McCoy Road, Orlando - (407) 850-0607

AAA Car Rental
www.orlandocarsforrent.com - 1700 McCoy Road, Orlando - (407) 888-2050

USA Car Rental
www.usacarrental.com - 1777 McCoy Rd, Orlando - (407) 240-2323

Dollar Rent A Car
www.dollar.com - 2510 Jetport Drive, Orlando - (407) 583-8000

Carl's Van Rentals
www.carlsvanrentals.com - 3011 McCoy Road, Orlando - (407) 856-8866

American Car Rental Inc
www.americancarrental.net - 3255 McCoy Road, Orlando - (407) 857-1575

Action Car Rental LLC
www.actionrac.com - 3333 McCoy Road, Orlando - (407) 240-2700

Miami is a four hour drive EACH WAY from Orlando. It's a trip. The fastest way there is the Florida turnpike which runs just outside Orlando and goes through the center of the state, but it is a toll road. It will cost you about $16 each way and is about 3 hours 45 minutes. If you take I-95, it is four hours flat, but doesn't have tolls.

Coming to Florida in October is good, It is considered the low season, so hotels are cheaper. If you want to see the Miami that's on every TV show, then you want to go to South Beach. While you can get away with shorts and a t-shirt in Orlando, that will not happen in Miami. There they dress for everything. A collared shirt and chinos is OK for most, but I'd pack a button-up shirt and belt for nighttime.

Nightlife in South Beach should include Lush, a nice cheap place for good drinks and good folks. Lost Weekend is another place the locals hang. Abbey Brewing is another nice spot. But really, they brew beer. How bad can the place be.

For real Miami, go to Hoy Como Ayer in Little Havana. Great dancing the whole night. If you want to see the beautiful people, then go people watch at LIV in the Fontainebleau Hotel. The lines are what you see on television. The cover is $200. The clothes are Armani or Pucci, the watches are Baume & Mercier and the shoes are black label Testonis. But if you want to see and be seen with the beautiful people, this is the place.

Please keep in mind how big Florida is. This drive is like driving from London to York. (I was stationed in Europe and spent lots of time traveling.) It's not just a quick ride up the road. If you want to rent a car in one place and drop it off in another, there is a fairly steep upcharge of about $100-$150. Keep in mind Orlando is the busiest rental car place in the world. The rental car companies want their cars here.

Orlando has a downtown, but there isn't much there I'd take a drive to go see. EDIT: Actually, there isn't anything I'd drive to go see now that I've thought about it.

The thing I hear regularly from folks visiting the states for the first time is how big everything is. Our vehicles, roads, people, stores, everything is on a much grander scale here than in the UK. We have an incredible amount of land here and build to fill it. If you notice, not a single person posting said something was 10 miles away. No, we measure by how long it takes because our roads/traffic are a bit of a mess.

Cell phones... Check with your carrier about international roaming. It is extremely expensive here in the states.

I don't know what cell service you have, but I'd suggest taking a look at this site for prepaid minutes on a SIM card. I've used them for international travel in Europe, South America and Western Africa and never had issues. If this doesn't float your boat, you can get a prepaid cheap cell phone (won't be a smart phone) with 100 minutes for $25 at convenience stores, drug stores, Walmart, Target, etc..

Remember to get an adapter for your plugs for your laptop, shaver, phone or whatever else you plug in.
http://www.amazon.com/All-One-Travel-Power-Adapter/dp/B000YN01X4

Hope this helps

That's awesome that you're getting into birding! Some great resources are Merlin Bird ID, eBird, and Audubon's Bird app. A goood paper resource is Sibley's. Good luck and patience is a virtue!

I enjoy Hiassen's non-fiction too, such as Team Rodent.

I just read Swamplandia, and really enjoyed it.

One of my favorite books about north Florida is Cross Creek, which is a sort of diary/memoir by author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, who wrote The Yearling. Rawlings lived in the back country out in a orange grove with few modern conveniences. She turned her wood closet into a bar, and made the best of it.

One of my favorite movies about Florida is John Sayles' Sunshine State.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00NT0GV6U/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1466594650&sr=8-1&keywords=african+tea+tree+soap&pi=SY200_QL40. Soaps with tea tree oil are natural antifungal.

REI has lots of breathable, light weight shirts and pants. I live in AZ and love these clothes. Of course they are casual and may not be appropriate for the office. https://www.rei.com/product/862927/rei-sahara-tech-long-sleeve-shirt-mens

love jonny dicks! tons of great memories there. if anyone likes that state park and florida history/folklore they should read Life and Death on the Loxahatchee. its all about trapper nelson and the early days of florida when it was wild.

https://www.amazon.com/Death-Loxahatchee-Story-Trapper-Nelson-ebook/dp/B00CHQIKIE

A little different vein but I really enjoyed Gainseville Punk by Matt Walker.

Really opened up a world I knew little about. Well written.

great video, that's something I would like to try one day!
I read this book recently, called "Pirate Hunters", blew my mind. It's a real account of a duo of treasure hunter scuba divers searching for lost pirate ships, check it out:

https://www.amazon.com/Pirate-Hunters-Treasure-Obsession-Legendary/dp/0812973690

I picked Redneck Riviera up at a whim at the library. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's about a son who came to Florida to check out some land that his father had purchased only to find it had been taken over by the infamous Hunt Club. It's a true story he's retelling.

It’s a basic Rosewill (Newegg’s brand) mechanical with brown switches and a key cap set I got on wasdkeyboards.com.

I originally wanted to buy WASD’s version of this keyboard (plain 104 key mechanical with no LEDs or frills) but it was pricier, and I leave it at the office at all times so I decided to try the cheaper brand just got the key caps I wanted and swapped em out. I’ve been happy with it! Had it for 3 years or so with no issues.

You say it moves from room to room and is audible outside the home? Is it the same source sound? In other words.. I heard it signalling a code.. is that in synch with what you hear outside? That's where I'd start to narrow it down. That type of high pitch sound is hard for us humans to discern the source of.. and it's bouncing off everything. If you are serious about finding it you might consider getting something like this that can measure the db of the sound and help you pinpoint it.

I dunno how well dryer sheets actually work, but something like this is actually made for the job.

It's non-fiction so it's about Florida and it's a witty read.

Dream State by Diane Roberts

Roberts is a heckuva accomplished woman who's descended from many, many generations of notable Floridians.

Also try Susan Orlean's "The Orchid Thief."

Interesting article. I started on this book: The Water Will Come: Rising Seas, Sinking Cities, and the Remaking of the Civilized World https://www.amazon.com/dp/0316260207/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_WlrCDb1BDCKKQ

WaterBOB Bathtub Emergency Water Storage Container

Looks like it would be a big hastle to clean and dry from use to use ?

SOKOO 22W 5V 2-Port USB Portable Foldable Solar Charger with High Efficiency Solar Panel, Reinforced and Water Resistant, for Cell Phone, iPhone, Back

Get a sun shade. I recommend this star wars one.

Thank me later.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00FZFLU8G/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I went with a Veckle Mini 0906 for the duel front + back cam coverage and a 64gb microSD, so about 8 hours of recording time. The original quality is actually better, but I had to mess around with converting it until Reddit would accept the upload, which lowered the quality.

There's a reason why Alas Babylon was one of my favorite books going to high school in this state.

Check out solar camp showers. They come in a wide variety of styles and sizes. I have this one it takes a fairly long time during the day for the water to get warm and it will never be as hot as it would coming out of a water heater, but if you just want something for warmer water for soaking dishes or bathing, most of them will do just fine. btw- with the coleman one, the hose and "showerhead" are absolutely awful. Make sure you look at reviews.

Aside from that a camping stove or rigging up coffee cans or something over a fire.

If you can't buy water you can buy a Water BOB and fill your tub before the storm.