Florida facts on state subjects including Florida state bird, flower, stone, animal, mammal

BRITISH	AMERICAN	BRITISH	AMERICAN
Car Bonnet	Hood	Hand Brake	Parking Break
Car Boot	Trunk	Give Way	Yield
Gear Lever	Stick Shift	Torch	Flashlight
Windscreen	Windshield	Road surface	Pavement
Petrol	Gas	Pavement	Sidewalk
Motorway	Freeway	Central Reservation	Median
Car Park	Parking Lot

BRITISH	AMERICAN
Lightly cooked eggs on both sides	Eggs over easy
Normal fried eggs	Eggs sunny side up
Eggs well cooked in both sides	Eggs over hard
Plain scone (no fruit)	Biscuit
Biscuit	Cookie
Whole grain bread	Rye
Chips	French Fries
Crisps	Chips
Jam	Jelly
Tomato sauce	Ketchup
Brown sauce	Steak sauce

As with most major cities around the world, including Great Britain, it is worth following a few simple common sense rules on safety. When in areas frequented by both tourists and residents such as shopping malls and supermarkets don't carry video cameras etc.. lock them safely in the boot of the car. Always stay within the tourist areas at night and return home when the shops close. Avoid wearing expensive jewellery and bum bags stuffed full of Travellers Cheques. If you walk around looking like you are worth mugging, someone may be tempted. As a golden rule, if you wouldn't do it in London, don't do it in Orlando. The Orlando police are very helpful and much more visible than in the U.K.
THE EMERGENCY NUMBER FOR POLICE, FIRE AND AMBULANCE IS

911

BRITISH CONSULATE
Should you lose your passport during your holiday, the British Consulate is at Sun Bank Tower, Suite 2110, South Orange Avenue, Orlando. Telephone (407) 426 7855

CLIMATE & DRESS
The following is a guide to the type of temperatures you can expect on your holiday.

SPRING: March - May.
High temperatures in the upper 80's, possible lows 50's. Wear shorts and light clothing for daytime. Light sweater for cooler evenings.

SUMMER: June - September.
Daily high temperatures in upper 90's with evening temperatures averaging 70's. Thunderstorms and showers likely in afternoons usually lasting about one hour. Wear shorts and light clothing. Sun protection is a MUST.

AUTUMN: October - Mid December.
Daily temperatures around 89's with evenings in the 60's. Light clothing should be worn in the daytime with sweater or jacket for evenings.

WINTER: Mid December - February.
Daily high temperatures in the 60's to 70's with lows in the 40's. Shorts and light clothing may be worn in the daytime with jacket or light coat for evening wear.

SHOPPING

DINING OUT.
There is a huge variety of restaurants in Florida, enough to suit every taste from traditional American food to Indian, Italian, Mexican and Chinese. Most restaurants will expect you to dress in shirt and shoes at all times. It is customary to dress for dinner in many restaurants. Of course most people think of fast food outlets when they think of America and of course there is no shortage of them.

DO WE SPEAK THE SAME LANGUAGE?
When it come to eating, there are a number of languages differences, here are a few of the most common.

DRINKING.
Most bars are within restaurants although a number of novelty, bars resembling English Pubs have sprung up all over Kissimmee. Many bars have "Happy Hour" with half price drinks. The legal drinking age in Florida is 21. You must have a picture I.D. if you want to be served in a bar or supermarket. If you intend going out for the evening make sure that you get a taxi or that one of your party is not drinking. Drink drive laws are very strict and you could face imprisonment.

Tipping is customary in bars and restaurants even for only one drink. A cover charge or drink minimum may be applicable to enter some clubs.

CLOTHES
Clothing and footwear are much cheaper in Florida than in the U.K. especially if you visit one of the shopping malls such as Beltz Factory Outlet Mall at the end of International Drive. Don't forget that American sizes are different to both English and European sizes. Whilst men's clothing is the same, women's clothing is different. A US size 12 is the equivalent to an English size 14 or a European 42. Men's shoes are normally one size larger and women's shoes one and a half sizes larger.

VIDEO & DVD CASSETTES
Don't be tempted by the availability of top feature films on DVD. These will not play on our system due to the difference in sound and vision frequencies. A number of the attractions do sell souvenir videos which are clearly marked "PAL" these tapes will play back home. If you hire a Video Camera make sure it is "PAL" format. You will also have a problem purchasing mains electrical goods as the US voltage is only 110.

BANKS, CREDIT CARDS & LOCAL SALES TAX
Banks are normally open between 09:00 and 16:00 Monday to Friday and close on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays. Larger branches operate a "drive thru" service on Saturdays. Sun Trust Bank has branches at The Magic Kingdom, EPCOT and Sea World.

Most Banks will accept credit cards for cash advances or Travellers Cheques. Cash advances can be obtained from the ATM machines if you have your PIN number.

Travellers Cheques are accepted in all shops although you should avoid high denominations.

FLORIDA SALES TAX
is not included in prices in the shops and will be added on at the checkout. At present, 6% tax is added to all purchases in Orange County and 7% in Osceola County.

POSTAGE STAMPS:
Stamps are available from vending machines located within almost every shop and supermarket. These machines do not issue stamps at face value. Guests staying at Poinciana may purchase postage stamps at face value from the Post Office at the Doverplum Centre.