so after Barbara had her run, we headed out on the 45 mile journey east. We thought we would have breakfast along the way, but our stop at Burger King was less than nourishing, so we continued east. Before we got to the space centre we went through a little town and decided that would be a great place to stop after our tour for dinner.We arrived at the Kennedy Space Centre just after 10:30, and after being checked through security, we boarded a bus for a tour.
The first stop was the LC-39 Observation Gantry. Here we got a fairly close-up view of the crawler that transports the shuttle at 1 MPH to the launch site. 
It is quite a remarkable machine – huge in size,
it takes two drivers. We had a film on the development of the space program and got to climb up the observation tower to get a better look at the launch site. We also enjoyed the birds that gathered with the hopes of getting a morsel or two of food.
Then we were back on the bus, headed for the Apollo/Saturn V Centre. Here we first attended a brief show on the moon journey including this look at Command Central,
and then got to see the actual Apollo space ship (on its side), 
then attended a 15 minute video on the Lunar mission and landing. 
We also got to touch an actual moon rock brought back by the Astronauts. 
and then got to see the actual Apollo space ship (on its side), 
then attended a 15 minute video on the Lunar mission and landing. 
We also got to touch an actual moon rock brought back by the Astronauts. 
By now it was close to 2 PM, so we boarded the bus back to the main centre.
At the Centre we attended the IMAX presentation on the Space Station – this 45 minute presentation in 3-D was very well done and very interesting. From there we walked out to get a first hand view of the space shuttle,
and managed to take this picture of the Canada Arm in the storage compartment of the shuttle. 
We then went over to the Shuttle take-off Simulator. This was quite an experience, we were tilted to close to 90 degrees, and shaken and accosted by very loud sounds which we were informed were very close to the actual experience of the Astronauts. It was to say the least – interesting. 
We completed our day with another 3-D IMAX presentation on the Hubble Telescope. What a magnificent show – very humbling, and thought provoking. We have no way to comprehend the great expanse of our universe and we thought how lucky we were to be able to see this instrument of exploration.
The day brought back memories of the news that has occurred in our lifetime – the high points and the low points of humanity’s attempt to explore worlds beyond our own.
Speaking of exploring – remember those great restaurants we decided to stop at on our way back? Well, following our GPS we set it to return to our hotel, confident that we would pass through the same small town and be able to stop at one of the nice restaurants along the way – WRONG! We found ourselves on the toll highway, and soon were taking the exit to our hotel, so had a great dinner at the Sonesta – thanks to Gloria and a delightful young woman (the restaurant manager) who was born in Quebec – with whom we a great conversation. A fabulous way to end our stay in Orlando.
Tomorrow we head down to Ft. Lauderdale.
At the Centre we attended the IMAX presentation on the Space Station – this 45 minute presentation in 3-D was very well done and very interesting. From there we walked out to get a first hand view of the space shuttle,
and managed to take this picture of the Canada Arm in the storage compartment of the shuttle. 
We then went over to the Shuttle take-off Simulator. This was quite an experience, we were tilted to close to 90 degrees, and shaken and accosted by very loud sounds which we were informed were very close to the actual experience of the Astronauts. It was to say the least – interesting. 
We completed our day with another 3-D IMAX presentation on the Hubble Telescope. What a magnificent show – very humbling, and thought provoking. We have no way to comprehend the great expanse of our universe and we thought how lucky we were to be able to see this instrument of exploration.
The day brought back memories of the news that has occurred in our lifetime – the high points and the low points of humanity’s attempt to explore worlds beyond our own.Speaking of exploring – remember those great restaurants we decided to stop at on our way back? Well, following our GPS we set it to return to our hotel, confident that we would pass through the same small town and be able to stop at one of the nice restaurants along the way – WRONG! We found ourselves on the toll highway, and soon were taking the exit to our hotel, so had a great dinner at the Sonesta – thanks to Gloria and a delightful young woman (the restaurant manager) who was born in Quebec – with whom we a great conversation. A fabulous way to end our stay in Orlando.
Tomorrow we head down to Ft. Lauderdale.
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