A Week in Florida
Florida is one of the best places to travel as a family. For me, traveling as a family doesn’t happen as often as I would hope for. However, this changed during the summer of 2022 when my family decided to take a Disney World trip. This was our first family trip since I was 10. I was excited mainly because I got to go without my parents. At the time, this would be the longest I’ve stayed somewhere else without them. My cousins and I drove 10 hours from Virginia to Florida. It was super fun because I got to play with the twins, who were almost 2 at the time, for the majority of the car ride. I have a very special bond with them because I used to babysit most weekends. We arrived at the Air BnB around dinner time and my other cousins and aunt decided to cook for us. It was amazing to spend some quality time with them since we don’t get to see each other as often anymore. The next morning I went to Universal Studious with two of my older cousins, while the others went to Disneyworld. I was excited since I hadn’t been since I was 5 years old. Unfortunately, most of the rides were closed that day, but we still had a lot of fun. These two cousins specifically are special because they treat me like I’m one of their children. We met up with the others for dinner at a Mexican restaurant near the house. It was refreshing to hear about how the kids enjoyed Disney and what new things they saw or what rides they rode. Moreover, the next couple of days were the most memorable of the trip.
My next two days were spent at two Disney World parks, Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. These days were the most memorable for me on the trip because I got to experience my first time at Disney with my family by my side. The majority of my cousins love rollercoasters, so I got to ride almost everything. On this day, we wore our family shirts that were costume-made. I think it was special because on each trip my cousins make family shirts. Even today, I still wear the shirt as a memory. All the cousins were able to go on rides, even the little ones. It was touching to see how much the children loved meeting some of their favorite Disney characters. Seeing the kid’s faces light up and their huge smiles made the trip even more memorable. Even the nights after the long days in the sun were just as exciting.
Luckily, the house we rented for the week had an outdoor fenced pool. It was great to have another place to spend quality time with my family. Most of the time, if we were relaxing at the house, we’d be outside in the pool. Specifically, one of my cousins and I would go late-night swimming every night of the trip. This allowed her and I to catch up and have mature girl talks. We also shared our favorite parts of the day and just enjoyed the night before heading to bed. Overall, the trip showed me how important quality time is with family. During the duration of the trip, I was able to spend quality time with almost everyone individually. It was very special because I don’t get to see them as often as I’d like anymore, simply because we don’t have family dinners now. I’m very blessed and grateful to know a week on vacation brought me closer to my family.
