Julie "staycationing" A.'s Profile

Ugh.. Sorry. I wanted to like this place more....

First of all, the good stuff: The Peppermint latte is delicious rich and creamy, similar to seattles best coffee. 5 stars. I was going to get a decaf for my son, but they ran out of decaf roasted coffee.

Another plus, I love the relaxed atmosphere and that there was plenty of room to sit.

Now for the rest of it: We had just arrived in town after a long and tiring 6 hours drive. We were HUNGRY. The Black Cow was closed, so we couldn't wait. Saw this place and ordered some food. I got an Italian Mufaletta sandwich with a pasta salad. The bread was a bit dry and the cheese was bright orange and reminded me of microwave food or McDonalds cheeseburger's cheese... 2.5 stars. The pasta salad was drowning in vinegar. Bleh. 2 stars. We didn't eat much. I was hungry again shortly after.

The bottom line: come in and enjoy a cup of coffee and relax. Just don't get the food.

Adventure Landing is like a mini theme park for Jacksonville. They have the seasonal events and activities like Happy Noon Year and Winter Fest, as well as other holiday events throughout the year.

Just came here yesterday for Happy Noon Year. They divided the kids into 4 and under, ages 5-8, and ages 9-12. My poor son had to stand in the sun for 40 minutes because the balloon drop for the oldest group of kids didn't happen till 40 minutes after the hour. =(  When the balloons drop, the kids are limited to 2 balloons per child and in each balloon is an Adventure Landing coupon for a prize.

Until tomorrow (January 2, 2012), they have winter fest as well as a sale on tokens: $15 gets you 100 tokens, $20 for 120 & $40 for 300. If you get any food from the outside vendor, you MUST try their chili. It's $4 and they make it right there, so it's hot and fresh. Really goooodd!

The ice skating rink at winter fest is pretty small, but it's a cute little addition to winter activities in Jacksonville. If you want a bigger rink, either drive down to St. Augustine for another outdoor rink or go to Jacksonville's indoor ice skating at Jacksonville Ice.

The ice skating shoes are pretty comfy but my son was complaining of knee cramps just 15 minutes afterward, unlike at Jacksonville Ice where he was able to keep on skating for a few hours without any complaints.

On a regular day, you can play in the arcade, play a game of mini-golf, ride go-carts, play laser tag in Area 51, go swimming in the waterpark during summer months, etc.

In the arcade, they have the obligatory skee-ball (called "ice ball" here), racing games, shooter games, air hockey table, basketball game, DDR, etc. I was pleasantly surprised to see a karaoke station where you can record yourself singing. However, my favorite game is the trivia one which wins us a lot of tickets everytime we play.

Getting the tickets counted usually goes smoothly, but the ticket counting machine jammed on us a few times. One time it didn't even print out the receipt. =/  However, the staff was always helpful and understanding.

We easily spend 4 or more hours in here (as well as a small fortune). Clear up your schedule (and prepare your wallet) if you decide to take your kids here. Time really flies in here.

They sell hypoallergenic bracelets and necklaces! That's a really big deal for someone who doesn't want to spend a fortune on jewelry but wants to wear jewelry that won't rash up the skin. =/ Great job, Rite Aid!

The store is a bit pricey, but the tour is worth it!

It's a small factory, so don't expect rows and rows of chocolate on machines like you see on shows like Unwrapped on Food Network. Instead, it's an intimate little place where the machines are a lot smaller and there is only one person putting the chocolate candies on each machine. Still it's pretty mesmerizing to watch the chocolate turning in the mixer.

They recommend reservations, but don't take this lightly. We were lucky to get a tour close to our desired time only because they added extra tours since it was a busy week.

The tour itself is very informative and our tour guide definitely did his research on chocolate! He knew all about the health benefits and chemicals found in chocolate, the different varieties of chocolate around the world, the breakdown process of turning cocoa pods into the cocoa butter and cocoa powder, the ingredients used to make edible chcoolate, and the machines and processes on creating the candies.

Throughout the tour we were all given free samples of chocolate. OMG so flavorful and fresh! My son's favorite was the mint chocolate Aviles chocolate they handed out from the factory. Sooo delicious and creamy! My favorites were the mint chocolate as well as the darkest chocolate.

We watched a short snippet from I Love Lucy during the tour and there was a special surprise at the end for I Love Lucy fans.

All in all, a great tour. Definitely worth the price, and you could grab a treat at the store afterwards for $2 off. We had already stuffed ourselves with chocolate before the tour, so I got my son a pumpkin pie gelato. Creamy and smooth.

Tip: This place is a short walk from the San Sebastian Winery.

Definitely a great place to stay. We paid for a 1 bed room while they were doing a promo for about $55 a night. When we got there, the lady was really cool and offered to upgrade it to a suite for no extra charge at all. Score!

The suite was actually 2 rooms which were "converted" to one. A door was placed in the wall in the middle and both rooms had a door that opened to the outside. In the main room with the bed, there was the usual TV, bathroom and shower, bed, desk, etc. The extra room had another TV, a table, a couch that converted into a bed, a refrigerator and microwave, and ironing board.

Service was always peppy and friendly and helpful. I had a few questions about places to eat and the lady at the front desk was very informative and knew some great places.

There were no roaches or bugs, and the sheets were very clean. The room itself wasn't picture perfect clean. The walls showed the wear and tear of an old-ish building and they were what some might consider a bit dingy. However, it was clean enough so that we didn't get nasty sticky feet from the hotel carpet.

The hotel is in a prime location next door to a great breakfast spot Ruth Ann's Restaurant, and within walking distance to the hopping downtown area of Columbus. A must-stay for people visiting the area.

This is the cutest area of Jacksonville next to 5 points and San Marco. I love the local feel of it and how close and walkable everything is. We came to the King Street District to visit Soups On, then discovered a few cute places like Cool Moose Cafe and the Universe of Super Heroes. Kickbacks is also located here. I'd visit King Street District more often if it was closer.

They have a dragon bouncy house which is higher and faster than the ones at Pump It Up. The party rooms seem bigger, and their pizza comes from Jet Pizza next door. More parking, yes, larger party rooms, and an adult only area with sports TV's, couches, beer, and a pool table as well as FREE high speed wi-fi. Those are the pluses.

I got to the party late, but it didn't matter. So did the people operating the place. So, my friends were irritated by the fact that they paid money but the party couldn't start on time.

There were only 2 people working so for the volume of kids and the fact that there were 2 entire rooms open for play, I felt it was somewhat understaffed. It wasn't as organized as it was at Pump It Up.

Also, the vending machine dislikes coins, so make sure you use only dollar bills or you can say goodbye to your money. The staff will replace your money if asked, but it's still a hassle.  

Big Air has great ideas, but needs some work on the execution.

We've come here for a few sneak previews mostly around mid July this year. Some sneak preview films are ridiculously strict and you can't even bring a cel phone in there. Don't worry, this doesn't apply to regular movies, just for the previews. I've seen Smurfs, Zookeeper, and Friends with Benefits here.

On the way to the Friends with Benefits preview, I send a friend a text message to invite him to see it.

Me: Hey, Friends with Benefits tonight at 7pm.
Friend: Sure!
Me: Um.. it's a movie.
Friend: Oh....

LMAO. (Btw, no, there are no benefits between us.)

The sneak preview thing went pretty well. It's more organized here than it was at the sneak preview for Transformers 3 at AMC Regency Theatre.

If you get cold easily make sure you bring a jacket cause it can get cold.

The food is hella expensive, so make sure you grab a sub from Jimmy Johns or somewhere nearby before coming here. You don't want to buy any food here. It's like eating at Disneyworld. Everything is suddenly 3 times more expensive!

$3.75 Cookies in a cup, $3.75 pretzel M&Ms, $8.50 combo 3 (med drink, 24oz icee)

This place is overpriced and overrated. The food is a hit or miss. We ordered ziti when we ate here in late June. Sorry, I get a better baked ziti when I head to Sbarros. Yeah. My son asked for spicy and it was too spicy and dry.

Also, I was pleased with the Penne Sanremo but not the price ($18.95). It was good, but not that good. Probably 3 or 4 notches above Michelinas microwave food.

On a good note,  I LOVEEE their Bistro Waldorf Salad.

The best attraction is the Pope room, which a friend of mine introduced me to. 360 degrees all around you are pics of the pope and in the center of the table is a creepy Pope bust that turns all the way around to stare at whoever has the unfortunate seat in front of it. Haha.

There are a lot of nude art, so be aware of that. The kids were making a fuss over it.

Crazy decor, but foodwise, save your money folks. There are better eats at La Fontana near Parental Home Rd. or La Cena in Downtown.

There are Gamestops all over this town. They gobbled up EB Games and it was game over (har har) for their main competitor, so they pretty much have a monopoly.

There are 2 in the St Johns Town Center and only a few miles away they have this one. You could say Gamestop is the Mickey D's of video game stores.

Fortunately, despite being a chain, they managed to keep the staff friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. Each of the stores are small enough that they feel like a locally owned kind of place. The inventory of used games and accessories changes, but they usually have the newest stuff in stock too.

Like I said earlier, friendly and knowledgeable staff, but I really wish someone would have told me that we can't play "You're in the Movies" for Xbox360 using our Kinect. =/ In late September, we got a used copy for $3.99, as well as a used Tony Hawk Underground PS2 for $2.99. The Super Street Fighter IV we bought was a new game at $19.99.

If you sign up for the free version of their rewards program, you can earn points everytime you purchase something which you can use towards things like GameStop or iTunes gift cards, restaurant and movie rewards, online subscriptions to Playstation's or XBOX's network. The paid version of this rewards program comes with a subscription to Game Informer and a discount on used games, as well as other stuff.

I usually wake up at some un-Godly hour to get the specials here on Black Friday. The joys of parenting. Lol. It's all worth it to see my son's big smile when he opens his presents. =)