About Town: Orlando

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You hear the word Orlando, and you think one of two things: Disney or golf. This week, you can enjoy both. The final official event of the 2009 PGA TOUR season, the Children's Miracle Network Classic, takes place at Disney's Magnolia GC and Palm GC, with the "happiest place on earth" as the backdrop.

Stroshane/Getty Images

Everyone loves Mickey!

HUNGRY?

Hue Restaurant
Amura
The Crab House
Bongo's Cuban Cafe

SOMETHING TO SNACK ON

As big a vacation destination, Orlando has no shortage on places to eat. Here's a few ideas.

• Hue Restaurant: An urban bistro in downtown Orlando, Hue serves up dishes like pan-seared maple leaf duck breast, Asian barbecue, stir-fried vegetable pearl pasta and pickled ginger. Sounds good.
• Amura: Sushi lover? Try Amura's self-described "high-definition" sushi. If you can dream up a roll, they probably already make it here.
• The Crab House: It's Florida; gotta have a little seafood. This place has a great atmosphere and awesome food. Dig in.
• Bongo's Cuban Café: Orlando's no Miami when it comes to Cuban food, but you can still get a good plate here. They also have great live music to chomp your jaw to as you chow down.

SOMETHING TO TELL YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT

Have you always wanted to attempt a skydive but never been able to overcome the fear? (Or maybe the expense?) Sky Venture, Orlando, offers the perfect solution for those of us who wish to feel gravity-free for a short spell without worrying about a miserable end or forking over more money than we want to feel a rush. I first tried this on vacation in Tennessee and had a blast. Get past the ridiculous jumpsuit, helmet and goggles you have to wear (you would anyway on a real skydive) and also how dorky you'll feel posing your body the way your instructor tells you to, and you'll love the experience. It's basically a tall wind tunnel that shoots a powerful stream of air up from underneath a net, allowing you to float almost weightlessly several feet in the air. And don't worry, you won't zoom skywards and then come crashing out of the air stream -- the instructor will always pull you back down a bit if he sees you creeping too high. Really give this a try; besides the drool than can result from having your mouth blown open, you've got nothing to expect but flight.

Watch out for those gators (Feldman/Getty Images)

More things to keep you busy
• Spin around blindfolded with a pointed finger, and you'll land on a theme park. But if you'd rather not use such an unpredictable -- and dizzying -- method of finding something to do, then put Walt Disney World Resort on your list. Fun for kids and the kid in all of us, this park could never really get old. After all, it's the happiest place on earth.
• For those of you who don't want to do Disney, or simply can't get enough of theme parks, check out Universal Orlando Resort, which actually comprises two parks in Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios. Islands will fill your wild-ride void and Universal will get you all the Shrek (and more) you could ever want.
• Enough with Disney and rollercoasters. It pains me to say this, but you have entered Gator country. You're not required to wear orange and blue (thankfully), but you should check out the mascot in real life at Gatorland. However, just remember that while you discover the wild world of alligators and marvel at how frighteningly cool they are, a Bulldog park would be so much cooler. Come on, don't you want to see goofy-looking, stocky bullies with big underbites running around playing all day long? It's brilliant.

A view of a shuttle launch (Special to PGATOUR.com)

STICKING AROUND?

Though you have plenty to keep you occupied in Orlando, consider taking a short road trip out of theme-park city to some of the surrounding Florida attractions.
• Kennedy Space Center: The world continues to be amazed, intrigued and enthralled by the NASA space program, and you can experience it firsthand at Cape Canaveral's space center about an hour from Orlando.
• Horse Country: Florida gained fame for many things -- sunny weather, Disney World, old people -- take your pick. But what a lot of people don't realize is that Ocala, just over an hour northwest of Orlando, is famous for being some of the most striking countryside in America and, of course, lots and lots of beautiful horses. Whether you like to ride or not, a trip to Ocala is well worthwhile to see another side of the Sunshine State.