Reece's Pieces: What I Did on my Summer Vacation – Day 9

Day 9 was our last day in Orlando and it was dedicated to resting up, packing up and saving up. After a week of boosting the Orlando economy, Friday was dedicated to taking advantage of the free guest activities provided by Marriott’s Harbor Lake resort where we were staying.

Though swimming, swimming & more swimming was high on the list of activities favored by the kids, at noon the folks from Gatorland dropped by to put on an educational show. And they brought a few Gatorland inhabitants with them.

“Who knows what an invasive species is? asked the Gatorland rep. After several guesses, the rep answered his own question. “It’s when someone brings something into the U.S. that’s not natural to this country. Like Justin Bieber!”

If you are from Missouri, you are probably familiar with invasive species. At this very moment, the Japanese Beetles are busy digesting every bloom on my wife’s rose bushes. When I was a kid, finding a ladybug was supposed to be good luck. Now we have Asian Lady Beetles, lady bug look-alikes that bite, stink and stain, and are definitely not harbingers of good luck.

The back row holds some allure for
Reptile-phobes at the Gatorland Show

Florida invasive species are a little more threatening. Instead of eating your roses, the Burmese Python, which can grow up to 20 feet long, might try to eat you. Many of those in Florida were released into the wild by people that got them as a pet and set them free when they got too big to safely care for.

“So, boys & girls, before you get a pet, you need to get the answers to 3 questions” continued the Gatorland rep.

1. What does it eat?

2. How big will it get? And,

3. How long will it live?

Not totally unlike questions you ladies might want answered before you say “I do”.

“Who wants to help me up here?” asked the rep to the peanut gallery surrounding him. A dozen hands shot up. After a kid was chosen, the rep told him to close his eyes and hold out his hand, which he did. Then the rep opened a box behind the kid and removed a tarantula.

The crowd expressed a collective shocked gasp, which sent the kid scurrying back into the audience. “I don’t want to help anymore!” he shouted from the back of the room.

After the tarantula, the rep brought out some type of giant lizard, a boa constrictor and an alligator for the kids to touch and, if they wanted, get a selfie with a gator.

It was a good show. And all free, with a pitch to check out Gatorland in person. If you want to take your family to Gatorland in Orlando there is a charge, but nothing close to the theme parks. It has been in operation since 1949, only one year less than I have been in operation.

And you won’t need to write down where you parked.