A small step for a man, but a giant leap for mankind

After leaving Fort Lauderdale, we were warmly and kindly welcomed by our motel owner in Cocoa. She also immediately recommended visiting Cocoa Beach. We gratefully accepted the tip and spent a good time on the beach and swam in the Atlantic.

The next morning, we started early again because we had a lot to do. Today, the long-awaited trip to the Kennedy Space Center, the NASA visitor center, was finally on our plan. Since we started planning our vacation, we had been looking forward to this day.

At first, the park seems small. However, when you delve deeper into the attractions, you quickly realize that the 7-hour opening time is almost short if you want to see everything.

First, we took a bus a little further out to the NASA area around Cape Canaveral. On the way there, we were lucky to see another alligator swimming in the water. And we were also lucky with the bus driver. He explained very intensively and understandably what we were seeing, what was behind it, and how everything was connected. So we could understand almost everything in English. We saw some launch pads from which the rockets and shuttles start, a large facility where the vehicles are manufactured, and the path they take to be shot into space. The size and complexity are very impressive! Unfortunately, these attractions could only be seen from the bus, making it very difficult to take photos.

Throughout the day, we experienced the moon expedition, including the moon landings and various Apollo missions. We watched the Mars mission and experienced a shuttle launch as passengers in a simulation. All in all, the visitor center is lovingly and detailedly designed. The exhibitions are excitingly designed and usually start with a small video, so that you get to know the backgrounds of the missions and technology at all times. We are glad we planned for a whole day. And we are sure that the decision to visit the Kennedy Space Center instead of the Universal Studios and Disney World was the right one.

On the way back, which will end today in Daytona in a motel right next to the famous racetrack, we took a short detour. The friendly bus driver not only ensured peace on the bus this morning so that every guest could listen and learn. He also described the way to a place where you can see wild manatees with a little luck. Manatees are a type of sea cows and live in Florida in some rivers. There are only about 6,000 of these peaceful vegetarians left in Florida. When we arrived at the described place on Merritt Island, we remembered the words of the bus driver: 'Here you can see manatees, even if you don't believe you will ever see any in your life - with a little luck.' And luck was on our side! Around us along the shore, about 30 manatees enjoyed the evening sun, looked for food, and maintained their social contacts. In a small bay on the shore, many babies played and were guarded by their parents. The sight was overwhelming and beautiful, and not for the first time on this trip, we were very calm, paused, and loved the moment, nature, and everything around us. We are very grateful for this tip - we had such a perfect day.

Tomorrow, things will calm down a bit. We will continue to St. Augustine and plan to spend some time on the beach and visit the historic city.