24 January 2009

Florida Trip - Disney's Hollywood Studios

This is one of the best places to be. There's a lot of joy to be had at all the parks we've already reviewed but this one has a LOT of neat stuff in it to look at and do. Lot!

Star Tours - did this four times, in part because Kara got mad when it ended and we had to vacate the ship. The easiest way to make her happy was to go again. Simulator ride that moves with the events on the video screen. The queuing area first takes you past the slightly damaged looking ship you'll be riding, with R2-D2 already installed as navigator. From a nearby platform, C3P0 tries to verbally straighten him out as always. Further in, more droids are on display and in for repair. After queuing and watching a brief and funny travel video (the same generic sort of thing you'd see for an airline but with Star Wars characters involved), you enter the seating area of the ship and strap yourselves in. The droid captain (a physical prop) opens the shutter between us and the cockpit and we can see out the forward screen (a video screen) just like him. Another side monitor provides us with other information during the flight... the flight that is our pilot's first flight! Upon launch, he almost immediately takes a wrong turn down a maintenance shaft, dodging vehicles and armatures until he finds a porthole and gets us out of the starbase. 'I meant to do that,' the pilot insists, 'a little shortcut.' He engages hyperspace and we're on our way to the moon of Endor...until the pilot flies right past it and into a shower of comets! Carefully (?) he tries to fly through a massive icy comet and manages to do so with minimal damage to the ship (hopefully). Now we can get back to our trip, except we're caught in the tractor beam of a star destroyer! We manage to break free from that, only to be caught in a space battle between Tie Fighters and X Wings! We regroup with the X Wings in order to take on the Death Star! As we drop behind an X Wing to do the trench run, the pilot confesses 'I always wanted to do this!' We watch as the ship before us deposits bombs in the correct vent and escape the distruction of the Death Star. We hyperspace back to the starbase and the pilot manages to not kill us as we land. But it's close. Fun time.

MuppetVision 3-D - movie. Saw it three times (not enough!). The queuing area is FILLED with fun Muppet posters and references and jokes. The main queuing area has more of this as well as screens playing a 'pre-show' video involving Sam the American Eagle trying to prepare us for the show. Gonzo and Scooter (Richard Hunt in what I think was his last appearance as Scooter) try to help but aren't much. Sam is proud to announce that Mickey Mouse is here but is gobsmacked when Rizzo the Rat appears in mouse ears pretending to be Mickey. When questioned, Rizzo goes 'They're tourists. Whadda they know?' (which would get laughs from the crowd each time.) The theatre looks like an auditorium redecorated to look like the Muppet Theatre. It's not quite...red enough to look like the place on the show, but it works. As you get comfortable and put your 3-D glasses on, the curtain on the balcony near Stage Left opens to reveal Statler and Waldorf (this is where they should be according to the show and they are animatronics). They put on their glasses and start joking. The movie starts with Gonzo and a cheap 3D effect which Kermit (last Jim Henson as Kermit) promises is the last of those (he's wrong). This is to be a good show and he promises a little musical number from Miss Piggy (who interrupts, displeased at his use of the word 'little') as well as Sam, who promises a Salute to all Nations, but mostly America. The Swedish Chef is also introduced as the projectionist (turn around, he's there as an animatronic!). Kermit takes us to Muppet Labs where Bunsen and Beaker create the world's first 3-D effect, a computer generated character. He goes a bit rogue and they try to vacuum him up, but only remove Muppet Labs instead (fans in the theatre add to the effect of the vacuum, we'll also get water squirting and bubbles from the ceiling). Kermit takes us to Piggy's number. As it starts, Statler and Waldorf put in their two cents. Piggy tries to sing but keeps getting distracted by Bean Bunny's (a character from the late 80's Jim Henson Hour that never really caught on) attempts to add 3-D action disrupt. Finally she calls off the song, much to Bean's dismay, as this means he won't have any use for his last prop. As Piggy takes it from him, he reveals it was attached to a water skiboat and she is dragged away. Saddened by his failure, Bean interacts with the CGI effect, Waldo (I think), and decides to run away. Gonzo manages to catch him leaving but doesn't understand in time that Bean doesn't plan to return. The hunt for Bean begins! Sweetums is amongst those searching (at one point he hits a paddle ball out into the crowd ala House of Wax) and walks from one side of the screen to the other...and then out into the crowd! Bean, as it happens, is in the balcony box across the way from Statler and Waldorf. Discovered, he expresses his desire to help and is put in charge of the fireworks for Sam's finale. Is Sam ready? Yes, he notes, his 3 hour extravagantza is ready to go. 'You've got a minute and a half,' Kermit notes. Eep! Wooden soldiers dressed in the uniforms of different countries dance and march. Some play musical instruments and get caught up in them. It tries to end with Piggy as the Statue of Liberty, but Waldo zips off the Statue part of her costume, leaving her upset again. The fireworks go wrong and the penguin orchestra (animatronics in a pit before the stage) takes fire. They fire their cannon at the Chef and the film snaps! The Chef returns fire with his blunderbuss, but at Waldo, who plays innocent (despite it really being his fault overall). He mocks the Chef's inaccurate fire but panics when the Chef reveals he also has a cannon! Waldo is blown up with the theatre. The film restarts with Kermit on the back of a fire truck ladder (which extends into the audience with the 3-D). Luckily no one got hurt and the theatre only took minor damage. Waldo reveals his disguise, as Mickey Mouse!, but is caught in the vacuum and captured. Come back soon! As you leave, Statler and Waldorf continue to snipe. 'Dya think we've got time to go to the bathroom before the next show?' 'No you old fool; we're bolted to the seats!' Exiting the theatre, there are five Muppet related posters and the nearby area is filled with Muppet jokes and art and a water fountain as you approach the theatre. The gift shop doesn't have enough Muppet stuff for sale but this is so great. I promised there would be tears when I first saw it and all I can say is at least I didn't bawl like a child. Walked around with a lump in my throat for about an hour after. So awesome.

Homey, I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure - playground where everything is oversized as if you shrunk. Lots of padding. Fun.

Toy Story Midway Mania! - best of the 'shooter' rides we went on. Queue area is all old toys and board game designs. You've got a pull string type gun on your car you use to shoot with. The targets are video screens as opposed to the physical targets the other games provide. This allows for an easier aim because the screens animate your weapon fire, whether it be cream pies or baseballs or darts or what have you, each screen was different in that regard. Each area is active for a brief period of time. Luckily, if the ride has to pause, the screens remain active for target practice but no points can be accumulated (so there's no cheating). Fun. Worth the wait.

Walt Disney: One Man's Dream - Moppy and I walked through this sorta fast. Lots of interesting information about Walt and his projects that I didn't have time to fully digest. Costumes from shows, models of the worlds within the theme parks, the set-up of an animation camera, lots of interesting things to see here.

The Magic of Disney Animation - short movie followed by some cute games and characters taking pictures and the setup of an animator's studio, with a live animator working in it! After that are Walt's Oscars and a gift shop selling mostly art. Artists sit and draw and you can buy their work. Isn't cheap obviously but a lot of it is on display and is fun, well drawn art.

The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror - aka the ride that took my hat. It was a $5 Brewers hat that I can easily replace so it was no big deal. You walk through a hotel that appears to be from the 40s and probably not cleaned since then. Once you make it to the library, the old tv springs to life and there's the opening to the original Twilight Zone tv show! And Rod Serling! He tells us a story of people that rode in the elevator of this very building. When weird weather hit the building, a lightning strike did something odd to the people and they disappeared. We exit into the basement and cue up to ride that very elevator, if we dare! Once you reach the front of the line, we take seats in the elevator car and strap in tight. It's going to be a bumpy ride! The elevator rises and the doors open onto what would be a normal floor for this hotel. Lightning crackles and the people from the story appear in the hallway! Lightning crackles to the car and the doors close. We travel up another floor and when the doors open, the elevator car moves into the hallway. This is no hotel floor but a set of weird designs and panels. At the end of the hallway, lights twinkle, form into a straight line, and then disappear. We have entered the Twilight Zone! The elevator car shoots up and down, out of control. At the first hop, I raised off my seat, panicked, and grabbed for the hand holds that I had yet to locate. I came up with a handful of Moppy and Amy leg instead. This is also where my hat dislodged. Most of the rides have a canvas bag you can tuck things into but I couldn't find that either. I ended up sitting on my hat but hadn't expected to get that much air. At the first rise, it slid from under my leg to the floor. I couldn't locate it to step on it and the movement of the car meant that my focus was not on my hat. Oh, did I mention that when they fire the car up, they open the elevator doors to the outside so you can see how high up you are? Screaming comes naturally. I found the hand holds under the lip of the seat in time for the big raise at the end where they don't stop you suddenly but let you coast up, as if control has been completely lost. You float up a bit before dropping. At this point I saw my hat fly up and away, out the elevator doors. We crash to a (safe) halt on the ground floor and can stagger out to the gift shop. Great ride, scary as all hell. I passed on another round in order to see Muppets for a third time. I did have an interest in riding it again but wanted to see Muppets more.

Whew!

23 January 2009

Florida Trip - Disney's EPCOT

We didn't expect to spend a lot of time in EPCOT but we discovered more than we expected to enjoy here and had to return. There's an argument to be made that the same could apply to the Animal Kingdom if we tried. Perhaps next time.

Spaceship Earth - aka the big golf ball. We did this twice. Recently refurbushed, it's a people mover ride that takes you through history to show how technology has affected human advancement and how it might continue to impact us. Animatronics (there is one video screen to start with) play out dioramas as a speaker in the car explains the context of the scenes we are seeing. Much more interesting than I expected as it hit the same buttons that make me enjoy the museum. The kicker is the almost end. After traveling through the digital age (a tunnel filled with glowing green zeros and ones that looked like the Matrix), you reach what feels like the centre of the ball. A star field opens up and there, hanging in space, is the Earth. It may be a well lit picture but it was jaw-droppingly beautiful. A video screen in the ride car entertains you as you decend backwards to the start of the ride. The picture that the ride takes of you in the beginning is added to a goofy but fun animation that plays out the view of the future 'that you create'. Very enjoyable indeed!

The Seas with Nemo and Friends - you ride in a clam through 'the sea' watching well hidden video screens searching for Nemo. There are some physical effects as well. The ride is well made and is capped by circling around to an actual aquarium that the characters are projected into somehow! Impressive. Best yet, the ride doesn't directly let you out in the gift shop like almost every other ride in existance but it drops you off in a 'sea base'. The aquarium is in here and is designed so that you can 'walk in it'. Fascinating!

Soarin' - had read about it but had low expectations. You sit on a 'glider' that gets raised in the air so that all you can see is the large IMAX type screen ahead of you (and maybe some feet if you're in the back rows like we were). The footage makes you feel like you're hang gliding over different areas of the country. The occasional scent adds to the illusion. Very excellent! The host for the pre-ride video is Patrick Warburton, which added to the awesome for me.

We walked through the World Showcase which features 'slices' of different countries. Most of the buildings are functional and contain a gift shop or restaurant or what have you. Had we been without the children, I think we would have spent even more time here. In the UK I visited the Rose and Crown pub for a beer. It was like the pubs I've seen on tv but much nicer. British people were even working in it! The other time we went through I visited the Yorkshire fish shop that's attached to the pub to get a fish n chips with another pint. Marvelous.

I'm not seeing it on the map but there was also a Coca Cola shop that had samples from some of the different beverages they bottle from other parts of the world. Your tastes may vary but it's a fun stop. Sticky floor though.

The end of day IllumiNations: Reflections of the Earth fireworks are very impressive. If you're spending multiple days at Disney it's worth seeing. If just one day, see the Magic Kingdom fireworks. Seriously.

More on that tomorrow.

22 January 2009

Florida Trip - Disney's Animal Kingdom

We only spent a morning at this park so this should be a shorter entry than the others. We only planned for a half day here as there 'isn't that much to do'. Obviously as its a park there are many things to do but not as much that would probably interest us in a full or multiple day sort of visit. Your mileage may vary and all that.

Man I'm glad I kept these maps.

Kilimanjaro Safaris - you ride a 'bus' through a wildlife park while keeping an eye out for poachers. The line was long but it was worth it. The cast-member that acted as tour-guide was fun, engaging, and educational; pretty much everything you'd want. He drove us around this zoo with no cages and paused occasionally to point out animals. Having a giraffe a couple yards from you is a neat experience indeed. The poachers storyline is a bit weird and seems to be there just to add a little Disney to the experience. There's a poachers camp and a baby elephant animatronic right at the end. Apart from that, it's all actual wildlife hanging out. Very nice.

Expedition Everest - Legend of the Forbidden Mountain - roller coaster that I rode twice. Probably not unlike the Matterhorn after discussing that ride with my Dad. The waiting area is all like guide posts and mountaining climbing gear shops. There's also some 'museum' stuff about the Yeti. Hopping into the roller coaster, you take a couple fun zippy turns before starting to climb the mountain. The view of the park from this climb is quite remarkable and I was shocked that my ... concern over heights didn't kick in either time. You ride through the mountain a bit on your 'train ride' until it suddenly stops. The tracks are out, damaged, ripped up? The ride pauses long enough so that you might feel that this is not part of the ride and then the car zips backwards for longer than you'd think, through a few dark twists and turns, before pausing in a cave. Above you, in the distance, is the Yeti, ripping up more tracks! Down you go, zipping through the mountain, in and out, until you reach the last dark cave where a flickering light barely illuminates the giant Yeti! And he's reaching out for you! But he doesn't get you and you return to the station safe and sound. Hopefully.

Attraction wise that was all we did there. We did meet some characters there like Stitch (who seemed to like the spaceships on my Doctor Who shirt), Pooh (who was sad that I didn't walk up wanting to hug him like Moppy did but then I hugged him and all was well), Eeyore, and Tigger.

Told you today would be shorter. We're going to EPCOT tomorrow, which is good because that is the land of tomorrow, today! Or something. I think I just made that up.

21 January 2009

Florida Trip - Islands of Adventure

Another note about Universal Studios before we get too far into today's topic, I really liked the streets they had set up near the Mummy ride. There were these sets (I guess) that felt like a street in Chicago from the 1930s or so. It's where the Bluesmobile would show up. There were alleys and streets so it wasn't just a big building with designs on the outside but it felt like a couple of city blocks. I enjoyed wandering through that.

Regarding the Universal parks in general, entering them is a pain in the tuckus. These were relatively slow January days and it took ten to fifteen minutes to enter either park. The process is damaged and needs attention. I'm afraid to think how long those lines must get in the summer.

Now, let's talk about some of the stuff I did at the Islands of Adventure park.

The Cat in the Hat - a ride where you have the book read to you as you 'live' through it. Very simple, very basic, but very fun. The displays look like the illustrations in the book (as I remember them) and the car moves at a pace that felt very Seussian. Very enjoyable.

Caro-Seuss-el - it's a carousel with Seuss styled animals to ride. Not much more to say really. I've filled up my carousel needs for awhile I guess.

The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride! - basically a train ride in the air with a story about Sneeches (?) being told. Also more fun that it should have been. You go through the one restaurant early on and it's fun waving at people that are eating. Like Cat in the Hat, worth riding once.

Jurassic Park Discovery Center - as seen in X2. Not a ride or a show but a pretend museum with a restaurant in it. Really good fries in the restaurant. It was okay, a good place to let the kids run around in but not really that much to see here. Use your Meal Deal to get a hamburger, look around a little while you let it digest, and move on.

Jurassic Park River Adventure - boat ride. You peacefully motor down a river in Jurassic Park, watching dinosaurs frolic in the water and trying not to get too wet. The doors and fences and such are straight out of the movie and add to everything nicely. Then the boat takes a wrong turn, into an area where the more violent dinosaurs have taken over. Raptors fight over a shirt that must have belonged to a person at one point. The cries on the intercom become frantic and you realize the boat it's calling for to help you is the one flipped over and destroyed. The grass around you moves ominously. Dinosaurs cry at you as you enter the ravaged Research Center. The boat starts to climb as raptors and such dart at the boat, working to get towards you through the fences. The boat dips a bit as you crest a hill before climbing again and there, bellowing at you, apparently trapped in the wall you're heading right for is the T-Rex! Once you get over that concern, you realize there's a mighty drop ahead (right when the 'oh crap!' panic hits is when they take the picture)! You splash down into safe waters. You will get wet! Good time, even with the drop. Would have probably ridden this again but it got colder during the week and the idea of being wet like that lost it's appeal.

Camp Jurassic - playground. Rope netting to run around in, caves to explore, good fun until the kids run you ragged. I think they were trying to kill me. We went on the River Adventure after about 45 minutes in here in order to cool off.

The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man - 3D adventure simulator that moves. We rode this three times. The queueing area is the Daily Bugle and a cartoon (animated in the style of the 90's cartoon) sets up the story: the Sinister Six (here Dr. Octopus, Electro, Hobgoblin, Hydro-Man, Shriek, and ... hmm, maybe it's not Six on the ride) are attacking New York with Dr. Ock's new anti-gravity gun. The Statue of Liberty is being held for ransom. You are to get into the new SCOOP vehicle (the ride car) and get that story! As you head into the city scape (the ride car does move and the displays are a combination of physical items as well as animated screens), a shadow swings through the city. Then the Spider-Signal displays on the buildings. With a thump, Spider-Man lands on the SCOOP, warning you that this could be our most dangerous night ever! After dodging a vehicle or two, we come across the Sinister group and our presence is not appreciated. Doc Ock tries to hit us with the anti-gravity gun and we dodge parts of the Statue of Liberty as we make our escape. Hydro-Man attacks, dripping water on us. Electro hops on the SCOOP and fries the controls, sending us spinning. Spidey uses Hydro-Man to short out Electro and both are dealt with for now. Hobgoblin tries to throw pumpkin bombs at us but Spidey manages to knock them away. Dr. Octopus tags us with the anti-gravity gun and up we go! Spidey tries to slow us down but we crash into the Goblin glider, thus helping Spidey catch him. Doc Ock hits us with a reverse ray and we crash to the top of the skyscraper all are fighting on. The SCOOP is knocked off and falls to the street below! Spidey swings down and creates a web net to catch the SCOOP safely (great gag, in the centre of the screen with the web net is a man hole cover that reads 'Not an Exit'). The villians are all webbed up and Spidey thanks us for our 'help', even taking our picture. As we exit the ride, the anti-gravity gun is active, pointing at the office of J. Jonah Jameson (editor of the Daily Bugle if you're not familiar, he doesn't care much for our Webbed Hero), where Jonah is helplessly bouncing against the ceiling. Spidey ponders getting him down (the note attached to the gun says something to the effect of 'Dear Jonah, here's that raise you asked for, your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man'), eventually. Loved it!

Storm Force Accelatron - we rode this 3 times when George and Moppy rode the Hulk. It's a spinny ride, sorta like the Mad Tea Cup ride or a Tilt a Whirl. Basic fun. There was no line so we rode it, got off, and ran back on. It was worth it for what it was.

In the Seuss area there were costumed characters, the Grinch was particularly good. In the Marvel area there were a number of super-heroes and I got my picture taken with all but the X-Ladies (Storm and Rogue) as they seemed the least like their characters. I did get Wolverine, Cyclops, Captain America, and, later, Spider-Man. I didn't shave that week and, when I walked up, he said I had a Sabertooth vibe going, so he had me pose that I was hitting him! I figured that it was the fight Marvel heroes tend to have when they first meet and all was probably well right after that. When Spidey found out we were from Wisconsin, he expressed his love for Culvers. Gotta get me some Culvers!

The completely costumed individuals don't talk. When we met the Simpsons in Universal Studios (Homer, Marge, Bart, and Lisa), they just waved. That said, Jason gets autographs from the characters and Lisa stayed in character by signing his book and adding 'Go veg'! Homer almost tripped me when he pulled me into the picture. It was an accident; he's got big shoes!

Doc Brown was by the DeLorean in Universal Studios but he sounded British, which was odd. The Blues Brothers put on a little song show by the car but I missed getting a picture with them. Just got the car. The kids got pictures with Spongebob, Jimmy Neutron, and Dora that I didn't need to be in.

I think that's about it. There's a ton of gift shops. I was a bit surprised by them really as, for the most part, the prices were more reasonable than I expected. I only freaked out a little in the Marvel area when I realized I was standing on the corner of Stan Lee Blvd and Yancy St.

Tomorrow we can start reflecting on Disney.

20 January 2009

Florida Trip - Universal Studios

The Universal parks are made up of Universal Studios and the Islands of Adventure. You can easily walk from one to the other, unlike Disney, so this makes park hopping very easy. If it had not rained on us Tuesday we would easily have park hopped every day as, while there is a lot to take in, it feels like there's less to do than at the average Disney park. That said, these are much cheaper to get into and there's still a lot of fun to be had.

First item of business, if you're planning to be at the parks all day, get the Meal Deal. It allows you to eat in designated restaurants 'for free' all day: one entree and one dessert per visit. There is no limit on your visits. The Deal started at $21 and adding the park hopper option for $5 doubled the amount of restaurants. You can add beverages for another, oh what was it, $7 I think. Considering the price of theme park food, you can pay off the Meal Deal in about three trips (they say please no sharing but, c'mon who's not gonna share at least a little, especially with kids that don't eat much anyway). The beverage containers aren't coded in any way and we used them on multiple days, whether we were supposed to or not. *cough* The food ranged from 'tolerable' to 'pretty good' so it felt like it was worth it. The options are limited but not so much that the average individual couldn't find something to eat.

One thing I didn't like about the Universal parks in general was the carnival games that would pop up now and then. It gave the place a very 'State Fair' feel and cheapened the place rather than adding to the atmosphere. The Universal parks felt more like theme parks as opposed to Disney's 'in another world' feel.

Just going through the map to see the things I did:

Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast - Rode it twice. Fun simulator trip through the Nicktoons universe that I'm familiar with thanks to the kids I was with. Some water spraying, bobbing up and down, but nothing too action packed. There was also a staging room before the ride with a video that set-up the ride. Use of the chicken dance made me feel like I was at home. It's a large room with a larger video screen to trick the brain while the car you sit in moves a bit. Amusing and fun for what it was. Enjoyable but probably wouldn't be so if you're a childless adult that doesn't watch these shows.

Twister...Ride It Out - As it rained off and on Tuesday we went into Twister... where they simulate worse weather than we were experiencing. Duh for us. It warns that you will get wet. Two video staging rooms seemed like overkill to me as one would have been enough. The simulator area involves the crowd standing in what are essentially bleachers, watching as a tornado is simulated in the patch of ground before you. Lightning strikes, rain whips, signs are torn away, gas leaks and starts on fire. The roof nearly comes off the bleachers you stand on. More fun than I expected but I couldn't see doing it twice in one trip. If memory serves, the film playing on the drive-in screen wasn't the ones on the marquee, it was 'The People Under the Stairs'. Thumbs up. If you freak out in bad weather, this is probably not for you (this means Katy).

Revenge of the Mummy - Rode this three times and went from 'I don't know that I liked this' to 'woo-hoo!'. Long waiting area movie apparently explains how there was a 'real' curse on the making of the Mummy movies. Luckily (?) the lines were never long enough for me to see much of the film. The tomb you walk through to get to the coaster is well done and there are some things to play with to amuse you while you wait. Upon getting in the car, you ride into the tomb and are warned again that the curse is real. The bad guy offers you riches to join him or warriors and fire (warm real fire!) if you oppose him, which we do. I dunno, he never seemed to wait for a response. Ducking under a closing tomb door, it gets dark. There's another video screen as you stop and then you shoot backwards and down a bit. The car is rotated 180 degrees as we're told that the Magi can't save us now. Dark coaster! Black lights! Mist! Spook show stuff! Yelling encouraged! It stops at the 'end of the ride' but the glass on the office shatters, showing another mummy. The ceiling burns and we're off again! And then it stops. The second coaster sequence seems short compared to the rest of the ride. Recommended. Good scary.

Disaster! - Long show with some simulator involved. They are filming a disaster film and you're in it! They needed a kid and our Niko got picked. A number of actors get picked from the crowd in one room, then you go into another room so that the director (a projection played by Christopher Walken!) can explain some things to you. In another room, the actors do their CGI inserts and some crowd shots are filmed. Then you enter another room with a set of subway cars. Riding in the subway cars, you enter the simulation area and are given direction on the video screens in the car. Fires start, the street above collapses, water floods the area, stuff goes crazy. As the car recides, the trailer for the film, featuring the inserts just filmed, plays back. The star of the film that 'saved' Niko in the trailer? Dwayne Johnson aka the Rock. It was a lot of fun and the gal that was the head showrunner for it was outstanding. Recommended but due to the length of the ride I again can't see doing it more that once a trip.

Men in Black Alien Attack - One of a few 'shooter' games we played during the trip. You sit in a car and ride through a well made environment firing a gun at moving alien targets. This is the only such game that Niko beat me at and that's because he got the final bonus and I didn't. Fun but not outstanding to me.

The Simpsons Ride - rode it 3 times, once from each level of the structure. Krusty is debuting a new ride at Krustyland and you're in line for it! In the first queueing area, classic theme park related footage of the show is mixed with new footage of Krusty explaining the general situation. Inside the second queueing area, video screens with other characters (Apu, Patty and Selma, Hans Moleman, Snake, Groundkeeper Willy) entertain you until the story monitor starts up. Krusty explains you may be almost to the ride and informs you that Sideshow Bob is in the vicinity, hunting the Simpsons. Bob does get in the park, disgused as Scratchy, and becomes responsible for the Simpsons getting on the ride first. When Krusty notes that there's room for another group, Bart points to you and goes 'How bout those guys?' Krusty notes that you look clean enough and directs you to wait til someone tells you to do something. This leads to a smaller waiting room and another video sequence where we find out that a nuclear reactor powers the ride, Grandpa can't ride because of his heart conditions, Sideshow Bob makes us ride the ride at gunpoint, and Maggie slips away from a sleeping Grandpa to be mutated by the reactor. Ut oh. The next room holds the ride car we see in the cartoon. It rises up so that all you can see is a large video screen. It simulates lots of crashing and falling and leaning and such. Water is sprayed. Scents are released. Characters are spotted. Classic moments are had (a favorite as you tumble to the centre of the earth is Professor Frink saving your ride car with the expression 'Never fear; a nerd is here!'). Giant Maggie terrorizes Springfield and uses your ride car as a pacifier. In the end, all is well. There's a lot of movement and it jumbled my tummy a lot. It was too much for Amy. She didn't get sick but got to a 'I can't go on that again' place. It's like watching an episode of Simpsons and being in the third act. Excellent for fans of the series and a wild ride. I loved it, even with the jumbled tummy.

Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse coaster - Kids coaster with a few sharp turns. Nice for what it was.

E.T. Adventure - rode 3 times? 4 times? Wait outside to start by some international poster art. Then in first queue video from Steven Spielberg explains that we need to help E.T. get home to save his planet. In the next area you get your 'passport', a laminated card with a bar code that gets associated with your first name. The next queueing area (which we never had to wait in, just walked through) is a forest, very well done, has the communicator from the movie and stuff to see. The ride has you sitting on a bicycle (attached to a big car, no worries there). E.T. is in the front and flies you through the woods, over police and such until he hits the afterburners and you soar over the city (I kept looking for Godzilla to step on the city) and into space. From there you are on the Green Planet, which E.T. saves and everyone celebrates. In the final area, E.T. says thank you to everyone on the ride by name (the reason for the passport). It's a lot more fun than I expected, especially since it was for a movie I haven't seen since I was 8 and no longer have any interest it.

Universal Horror Make-Up Show - the displays in the entrance are worth walking in to see on their own, even if you don't do the show. Lots of tributes to monsters from the silent era (Lon Chaney!) til today. The show itself is funny but won't really teach you anything if you know the bare minimum about effects. Worth the time.

Terminator 2: 3D - You queue in Cyberdyne systems before entering another waiting room and watch a video for the company which gets interrupted by Sarah and John Conner, the ones from the movie, not the show. The Cyberdyne rep (she was also awesome) says to ignore them and come in for the display. 3D glasses are applied and the show goes from stage production with video screens to a movie on the video screen and back. Actors pop from the movie to the stage. We sat in the back row of the section and I had actors running past me, adding to the illusion. The 3D is excellent and the stage acting was well done. It's an excellent package and very entertaining. Thumbs up.

Lucy - A Tribute - not a ride or a show but a little museum dedicated to Lucille Ball. Lots of pictures, information, diorama of the sets for 'I Love Lucy', stereo-optic home pictures from the 50s of her family, video clips, costumes, scripts. Very impressive indeed. A fine way to end a day.

For those about to ask, Jaws was closed for refurbishment. I had no one to propose to anyway. ;)

And that's just one park! And not everything in it, just what I did! More to come obviously.

19 January 2009

Florida Trip 3 (written in Florida)

While I seek a few moments to reflect on a busy week, to align the experiences I've had into some sort of pattern to structure, certain stories already occur to me.

Upon getting to EPCOT, we headed right for Spaceship Earth aka the ride in the big golf ball. Apparently few of us had experienced it and even fewer recently. I was interested in seeing it and even more so once I realized you ride in a 'time machine'. It's a people mover ride that quickly tries to show you how technology has advanced human society and the role you can play in continuing it. My buddy Niko, who is almost ten, sat next to me as I excitedly identified Gutenberg as the inventor of the printing press and Samuel Morse as the inventor of the telegraph before the ride could do so. Finally he shot me a look and asked "How do you know all this stuff?"

I couldn't resist giving a specific answer. "I read a lot," I answered before adding,"and I remember a lot that I read." That satisfied him and I noted that Edison invented the motion picture.

18 January 2009

I must say some goodbyes

The gag is that bad things always come in threes. If two things happen then someone is always looking for the final item. I got the two pieces of bad news while in Florida and the third upon returning. That was quick.

Ricardo Montalban. A Khan for the ages. Perhaps the original Latino gentleman actor that stole women's hearts wherever he went. The man styled and profiled. He was always class to me.

Patrick McGoohan - As I look up over my monitor, a poster of him hangs on my wall. A reminder to believe in yourself and what is right. Reportedly refused the role of James Bond as the character conflicted with his moral beliefs about weaponry and relationships. Still not a number.

John Mortimer - I was recently in a bookstore, reflecting on how many books of his I've yet to get and was wondering how he was doing. Now I know. My introduction to him was via PBS' Mystery programme with their broadcasts of the adaptions of his 'Rumpole of the Bailey' stories. Good stuff.

Thank you gentlemen.

Ric Flair was right...

...Space Mountain may be the oldest ride in the park, but it still has the longest line. Woooo!

Home safe. Tired after 20 hour car ride. Have an entry I wrote while in Florida that I couldn't post due to wifi issues. Will fix that later. First there's going to be some napping in front of football.