I just landed in Newark a couple hours ago. It’s Monday evening, June 13th. About 38 hours ago, the largest mass shooting in America happened 0.8 mile from my house. You’ll probably read this on Thursday, almost a week since the more than 100 innocent people were shot. I’ll be in a different spot emotionally on Thursday, so I thought I’d capture my “Thursday Personal Post” right now.
As I look at the skyline of Manhattan, I wonder how people around the world are viewing Orlando since the attack early Sunday morning. Following the 9/11 attacks, New York was embraced by the world. That makes sense - everyone knows New York. Even if you haven’t been to New York, you’ve been to New York. You know it. Most of you have been to Central Florida, but maybe not Orlando, the City Beautiful.
The vast difference in magnitude of the two attacks is not being lost on me – what happened on Sundaymorning in Orlando was not 9/11 … please don’t think I’m comparing the two. I’m just curious how the world is picturing Orlando right now. Are they thinking about Mickey Mouse and the outlet malls, or are they thinking about the charm of Park Avenue or Thornton Park? Do they have visions of Sea World and convention centers, or do they know about the cleanest and most beautiful downtown I’ve seen (and I’ve seen them all)?
I’ve had hundreds of conversations with my friends around the world about Orlando. I usually suggest that they get away from the theme parks for just a day and come to Downtown Orlando. It’s rare that they do, and I get it – Disney is 30 minutes away and how much energy does one have after a day at the Magic Kingdom? Most of the time, we’ll just head down there to have dinner with our friends.
So, while we’re on your mind with your much appreciated and needed thoughts and prayers, I thought I’d share the top 10 things I love about Orlando…
- The neighborhoods near the downtown area. Our community was not really set up for the growth it’s had in the last 50 years. We were a small city expecting to stay a small city, and then bam – Walt Disney developed the greatest theme park in the world. Depending on the numbers you look at, today we’re about the 18th to 20th largest metro area in the U.S. However, we have houses that were built 75 – 100 years ago lining brick streets surrounded by large oak trees all around Downtown Orlando. I walk to Orlando Magic games, but if you stepped outside my front door, you’d think I live in a suburb 25 miles away.
- Disney. Yep, I said it. I’m a local and I love Disney.
- I have friends visiting every week. For some of you, that might sound annoying. No way. My wife and I are very busy at work so we always have an excuse if needed, but most of the time we love catching up with friends we wouldn’t see if we lived in another city.
- The weather. Yes, even the summer. Look, everything is air conditioned. Even the portapotties have window units.
- The downtown area mentioned above. I’m serious – it’s absolutely gorgeous.
- Most of the people here were raised somewhere else. Sometimes this can be a drag because we don’t have the history of Boston or Chicago, but it’s a lot of fun to be in a melting pot within the melting pot.
- The food. Because of the Disney influence (I assume), I’d put our restaurants up against practically any city. We’re not New York, San Francisco, or New Orleans, but we do get some great young chefs to the area and they don’t want to leave. The result is a plethora of excellent restaurants that could fill your Thursday to Saturday for a year without eating at the same place twice.
- The culture. No, the museums and performing arts don’t come screaming at you like they do in other major cities, but they’re here. I’ve had several discussions with people that moved here from Philadelphia, Houston, Toronto, and other larger communities with well-known scenes for culture. They all say the exact same thing: “We were surprised how much there is to do in Orlando. We just had to look for it. Once we found it, there is plenty of culture.”
- The changes. This city is always changing and growing, and that’s exciting. We don’t have a long of a history yet, which means we’re part of establishing one – that’s pretty cool.
- The beach is less than an hour away. Since we’re in the middle of the state, people assume we don’t have easy access to the beach. When I lived in Tampa about 20 years ago, it took me almost an hour to get to the beach, even though I was less than 10 miles away. A drive from Orlando to the beaches is all interstate or toll road.
I’m not worried about our tourism – you’ll still come to the parks and we’ll always appreciate you. However, then next time you come, plan to drive up I-4 about 30 minutes and check out one of the cooler cities you’ll find in North America. I’ve been to all of them, and I choose Orlando as my home.
