Hello out there, Orlando.
Has it really been a year already? It's Best of Orlando time again, but we never could have imagined that we'd be unveiling this issue during a time like this. A lot of things have changed – oh yeah, we won't be hosting a Best Of party this year – and so much of it seems for the worse (though there are some amazing glimmers of hope).
But y'all came through and voted in force and let us know about the things and people and places and events that you think are the true essence of what makes Orlando the City Beautiful. So we crawled out from under our beds and did our best to showcase your choices ... plus a few of our own.
This year's issue is themed around building a better Orlando: watching the city endure, come together and help one another despite a global pandemic, economic uncertainty, isolation and a really big (ahem) election.
Think about it like Legos, for instance, where smaller, individual pieces fit together to form something bigger and cohesive and, most of the time, genuinely kick-ass. Rebuild, remake, remodel.
In the pages of this issue, we're watching you all build a better Orlando, and we're rooting for you.
— Matthew Moyer, Jessica Bryce Young, Daniel Rodriguez, Dave Plotkin, Faiyaz Kara, Seth Kubersky, Holly Kapherr, Janessa Gursky, Ida Eskamani, Kyle Eagle, Christopher Belt, Collin Modeste, Hollie Mahadeo, Jeff Kruse, Dan Winkler, Jerrica Schwartz, Rachel Gold and Graham Jarrett.
Meet the dynamic duo of artists behind Lego Explore Orlando, which made finding fun in our city look like a snap with their Lego creations.