while i was in florida i did something i haven’t done in almost 20 years…i went to gatorland!
gatorland is one of central florida’s quintessential tourist destinations – it’s just so florida. nothing fancy, just a bunch of lazy gators and tons of birds lounging about in their habitat. there are a few shows where they feature up close encounters with the animals, but mainly you wander around the relatively small park and check out the gators. for a few bucks extra you get a fistful of hotdogs that you can feed to the gators. honestly, the gators didn’t seem that into the hotdogs, but the birds sure loved them…oddly enough!
the first (and last) time i was at gatorland i was probably 8 years old – and my dad and uncle took me and my sister. i still have the polaroid from that day, sitting on a bench with a boa constrictor wrapped around my neck and a baby alligator in my hands. how brave i was! so when the woman asked if we’d like to have our photo taken with a gator during the wrestlin’ show – i said of course! and signed john and i up…aside from getting close with the gators, we also admired the stunning flamingos, macaws, turtles, and even llamas and goats in the petting zoo! a perfectly wonderful way to spend a sunday afternoon…
check out our up close encounters!
no day at gatorland is complete without trying a sampler platter of fried gator + gator ribs!
blonde photo :: have more fun! 