Fanboats and Airplanes

Once we realized we just needed to get the hell out of Gainesville, it was a simple matter of trying to trying to figure out to go. Tay and I both wanted to try out some fanboats on the swamps, so Tay found us  a tour near the everglades in an preserve, where we would stand a better chance of seeing some wildlife. The kicker was, it was out past Orlando, so its about two and a half hours away.

We were a bit concerned about the weather, but when we arrived, we were seeing bands of clouds and sun. On a stretch of raised freeway, we took a small exit and pulled into a small parking lot with the swamps stretching on either side. We were more concerned about the two huge tour busses. We'd made reservations, but we were about an hour and a half early. They bumped us up 30 minutes, so we had less time to kill comparing gator heads, talking to the birds, and petting the pig. The pig in question was a massive, sleepy, white-bristled pig which was so fat, I never did see its eyes. It was napping, and when we got close, it would emit a drawn out quiet squeal. And would when I touched it, it would squeal some more. This was a very vocal pig. And huge.

Fan boats are essentially flat bottom boats with big, powerful, fans mounted on the back for propulsion. Because they don't have rotors which stick in the water, they don't get bogged down in the aquatic plants, and they can skim over 6" of water. The boats we took sat four across, and four deep, plus the pilot. I got the front seat. We were provided with sound isolating headphones and microphones which blocked the noise of the fan yet still allowed us to talk to each other and to the pilot. I wasn't prepared for how fast these things could go. We took off down the channel, and it was like we were flying just above the surface of the water, water spraying off to the side, wind in our faces, with ducks and great blue heron taking off to get out of the way of the boat.

It was amazingly fun. The fan boat can ride over pretty much any part of the swamp, and with the storm fronts moving in and out, we were flying through a landscape of water, plants, land, and sky.

The pilot took us into a quiet glad and turned off the fan so we could appreciate the silence and peace of the place. It was the heart of a dense salt cypress mangrove swamp, with the trees rising out of the water and towering above us. Green and gray with the ghosts of white cranes quietly stepping through the trees in the depths. It was an amazing place.

The ride back was miserable. The rain picked up, and flying along, the rain stung my face like a thousand needles. My jeans were quickly soaked, and I couldn't see anything out of my glasses, but at least they were keeping the rain out of my eyes. All in all, well worth the first half.

Tay urbanspooned us a new place to try, a fast foody kind of place well known for its seafood. I got a basket of fried scallops which were delicious, although Tay's Ipswich clams were not my favorite.

I drove the three hours back home, we played some cards, packed.

The following morning, we breakfasted, and mom dropped us off at the Gainesville airport, which had all of four gates. When Tay and I refused the milimeter scanners and asked for a pat down, it was the most exciting event of the day. They actually used us to train other TSA officers with a senior TSA guy supervising.

Hour flight to Miami on a flight so small it was three seats across. Four hour layover in Miami international. What a difference from Orlando and northern Florida. From what I saw, the areas we were in had little endemic culture. Downtown Orlando, at least when viewed from the freeway, looked like a sterile combination of postmodern and postmodern inspired towers. Other than that, my experience of Orlando is theme parks, freeways, and outlet malls. Slick, international, anonymous.

Beyond Orlando, the state seems to be an apathetic contest between the midwest and the south- the sleepy towns and southern lifestyle of Georgia, and the the suburbs, strip malls, and fern bars of the midwest. They war to contain the encroaching lush landscape of palm trees and pines.

Miami international airport, as sterile as it was architecturally, seemed to be a lot more culturally vibrant than the north. There was a sense of rootedness to place, the Hispanic community was engaged, and we actually had some pretty good Cuban food at a restaurant in the airport surrounded by Hispanic patrons. I think the next time I come to Florida, I'm going to need to spend some time in Miami.

Our flight to London was full, except for the seat beside mine, which was pretty cool, since I was able to lay down and get a few hours of uncomfortable sleep. Overall, the flight was quick, only about seven hours, and at this point, I've mastered the art of stretching time out to the point I can get half an hour of entertainment out of the emergency landing procedures card.

Dad picked us up when we landed at Heathrow. Crowds better than expected, and the weather was much more mild than I was anticipating. I think St.Louis and Bloomington are probably the coldest places we'll see this winter. So far we've been taking it easy, doing a little grocery shopping, watching some TV, just relaxing as we all are fighting jet lag. Flying east is a bitch.