I went on an utterly amazing canoe trip down Juniper Creek up closer to Ocala. I checked out about 4 of the springs around that area and they were pretty great, although somewhat overly commercialized. One of the springs had river otters cavorting about. The water is 72°F year round and completely clear.
The Juniper Creek canoe trip is rated as a top 100 canoe trip in the USA. It’s a mellow half day paddle down a meandering creak through the forest. It’s largely shaded so you don’t get sunburnt. I saw tons of turtles. You can arrange to be picked up at the end of the trip so you don’t have to paddle back. I really recommend it if you like that sort of thing.
I am not sure about what kind of bars you’re looking for. If you didn’t care for downtown Orlando or Citywalk, that is about all we have in regards to clubs.
There is a good music scene around in the smaller bars and pubs. http://orlando.metromix.com/facets/music/date.relative.thisweekend to see what is going on any particular weekend.
If you like theatre, the Orlando Shakespeare Theatre is always a nice night out.
There are things to do for locals if you look for them. It gets better every year.
I’m going to the Monster Jam at the Citrus Bowl on the 24th… No, I don’t like monster trucks. No, I’m not a redneck. However, I do like attending monster truck rallies and 'rasslin shows. It lets me get in touch with my inner redneck.
You guys are cracking me up. I grew up in Mt. Dora (noted in a post above), and spent my teen and college years having fun in Orlando. When I married, we moved to Raleigh, NC, about 14 years ago.
It’s freaking HILARIOUS to hear people complaining about a lack of things to do in Central Florida. Spend some time up here for a while if you really want to have nothing to do. The sidwalks are officially rolled up at 5pm every day, no matter where you are. Yeah, okay, there are a few spots downtown that are open for business at night, but it’s NOTHING like the scene that I enjoyed for years in O’do. I’d move back in a flipping second if I had a job set up down there… and I didn’t have a family entrenched here.
There are things to do in Orlando, but I’ll admit they are hard to find. I’ve been here since September, and it’s been hell meeting people in my age range (20 to 30). I have been using www.meetup.com, and that has been working much better than going to local bars (no shit sherlock), but other than that I’m pretty much resigned to the fact that my best bet in terms of moving on with my life is to move out of my house and out of Orlando.
Anyway, now that my whiny rant is over with, let’s talk Dopefest!
I’m jampacked busy this weekend, so let’s do something next weekend. Anywhere is fine by me, but how about Cafe Tu Tu Tango on I-Drive. It’s like a bohemian tapas place… pretty cool!
Strangely enough, I’m not working next Saturday, so I will be available unless something major comes up. Decide where we’re going, and I’ll make sure that Acid Lamp and I can get there.
Update: As of tonight I officially live in Orlando. I stopped for a beer after work and ran into one of the few people around here I know (friend of a friend). Shortly after that I went into a book store and ran into my cousin and his wife. Ice cream ensued. I suppose I have to follow my rule of " if I run into people I know, i must actually live in said town".
