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Celebration: A Haven in the Storm

Conveniently located 10 miles southeast of Walt Disney World, Celebration, Florida is a marvel of modern urban planning. The community was designed by some of the country´s top architects, and awakens the spirit of small town neighborhoods where all the people are friends, the children play together, and barbecues are the chief meeting place. Celebration contains its own school system, hospital, shopping areas, health club, golf course, and entertainment spots. Owners have many different types of homes (with different price ranges) to choose from. Most of them have big front porches that add to the "community" feeling. Celebration is a perfect jumping off point for exploring the Orlando area.

Orlando: Home of Fun and Fantasy!

Orlando, Florida, the world´s biggest playground, was named in honor of Orlando Reeves, an army sentry killed during the first Seminole War. What began in the 1830´s as an army outpost grew into an agricultural supply line with the expansion of The South Florida Railroad. Orlando became a center for cattle, cotton, and citrus plantations.

Very secretly, beginning in the early 60´s, an anonymous investor bought thousands of acres of what was then farmland, orange groves, and swamp marshes. News of this activity reached the press, and he was forced to divulge his plan to build a one hundred million dollar resort and theme park. He envisioned an oasis where travelers could take their families and live out the kind of fantasies he had as a child. Walt Disney´s secret was out, and the hysteria surrounding the possibility of a tourism center in Central Florida caused civic leaders to grant special zoning laws to help bring his dream to fruition. In 1971 Disney World opened its doors, and Orlando has never been the same.

Today, at Disney World, Epcot, and rival theme parks such as Sea World and Universal Studios, it is possible to swim with sharks, battle pirates, be chased by a T-Rex, fight villains with Spiderman, journey to the moon, and even watch the filming of a major motion picture. Walt´s dreams draw more than forty million visitors a year.

Golf is also a favorite retreat for visitors to the Orlando area. With over 80 courses catering to every skill level, duffers and low handicappers can play loops designed by famous golf architects like Tom Fazio, Robert Trent Jones, and Jack Nicklaus. The gem of the bunch is Arnold Palmer´s Bay Hill Country Club, a private course that is home of the Bay Hill Invitational PGA event each year.

For those who thrive in the great outdoors, Orlando, Florida is home to some of the best bass fishing in the entire United States. Additionally, lakes like the 1700 acre Lake Conway offer boating, water-skiing, diving, wind surfing and parasailing.

If you want a bit of nationalism during your vacation, take a day and head east, approximately fifty miles, to Cape Canaveral, home of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the John F. Kennedy Space Center. Follow a history of how the space program began and its successes and failures that brought it to its current status as one of the most advanced research centers in the world. Talk to an active astronaut and find out what it´s like to leave the security of Earth and frolic in outer space.

Florida may be known as "The Sunshine State", but for people seeking an active vacation with a little bit of adventure, Orlando, "The City Beautiful", just may be the brightest spot.