DECEMBER 12, 2011
Day 7, Part 7 In Which I Just Can't Get Flynn Rider's Name Right
After our terrifically Triassic dining experience at T-Rex, we went straight to the bus stop. It was time for EMH in Hollywood, baby! AAAaAAAaAWW YEAH.
If I remember correctly, we took a bus to Port Orleans and transferred from there. I wish we could have stayed and explored a bit (we've never been there before and I REALLY want to stay there), but we had Hollywood to conquer, and it was dark out anyway.
As we walked into the park, a CM said to me "Hello, Beauty!"
Well HELLO!
It was such a surprising and lovely thing to be called. God, I love Disney! He then said, "YOU get some Mickey stickers!" and ripped off a couple from the roll he had.
It was very reminiscent of Oprah's famous "YOU get a car! and YOU get a car!"
But obviously better, because they were Mickey stickers.
STICKERS OF MICKEY MOUSE > CARS.
I repeat: AAAAAAAAAAAWWWWW YEAH! EMH was off to a fantastic start!
We headed straight down Sunset for our legendary tradition of marathoning Tower of Terror and Rock n Roller Coaster
No one does this quite better than us. We run back and forth with vigor, laughing maniacally and singing Aerosmith songs.
We started this the first time we rode both of these, when I was 10 years old. That was really the trip that Disney became about more than just having fun and seeing Mickey for me. It was my third time there, I was a little bit mature for my age, and I really started to appreciate all the incredible details. I did a ton of research, I was just more aware of everything, and I have such fond memories of that trip.
One of them was the fact that we waited on line for Rock n Roller Coaster twice before I actually did it. The first time we waited like 45 minutes and by the time we got to the loading area my mom and I freaked watching it take off, so we went out the Chicken Exit. The second time, I actually got sick right before we were about to go on, and again we went out the Chicken Exit and I headed straight for the bathroom. THAT was fun.
However, I did not let these mishaps deter me. I was ready to finally combine my very intense love of Aerosmith with my probably not as intense but also very exciting love of rollercoasters. And when we finally did it, we became addicts.
I was really scared for ToT as well, but in a different way. I was scared the way you are when you watch a horror movie, not the way you are before riding something. The atmosphere and all-out show that Tower of Terror puts on for you before you even enter the elevator is extremely effective. I've written about this at length before, so I won't elaborate, but if you've read this TR and my last one, you know how obsessed I am with this ride. So yes, this trip where I rode Rock N Rollercoaster and finally the Tower of Terror was quite life changing.
The first night we marathoned them back in 2000, there were no lines! Which had to be a miracle because we went in August that year. I guess it was near closing and so we got lucky. Or maybe it was just destiny!
We went back and forth, over and over. ToT, RnR, ToT, RnR, on and on and on. I don't remember how many times it ended up being, probably like 8 in all, but it is definitely one of my favorite Disney memories ever.
I posted on Twitter (prepare for a lot of tweets. I was VERY Twitter happy this evening!):
There's nothing better than looking up at the tower, seeing it glow, and hearing the screams...
AH YES. I remember that moment of walking through the RnR line, seeing the Tower from that angle, watching people drop, hearing them scream. It feels very much like a 1940's horror movie scene. AHH I LOVE IT.
Oh look, Aerosmith's recording studio! And what do you know... AEROSMITH!
Well, it's not every day you stumble upon them. Unless you're friends with a lot of legendary rockstars like I am, in which you probably see them at least weekly.
I posted on Twitter:
The best part of any Disney pre-show is when Illeana Douglas says "I hate all of you" to Aerosmith.
and again:
Is there anything better in LIFE than screaming Aerosmith songs while on the best rollercoaster in the world? JUST GIMME A KISS.
Ahh, I love Twitter. Brings back the memories and feelings of those moments so clearly! I remember being on RnR and hearing the Aerosmith tunes blasting in my ear, feeling the incredible sensation of being on the coaster, loving life. It is rare that I am as happy as in those moments!
Seriously, that's one of my biggest experiences of bliss in life, is being on that ride. Ahhhhhhhhhhh I LOVE IT SO MUCH. I CAN'T BELIEVE I WILL BE THERE IN LESS THAN A MONTH. OMG.
Two more tweets...
I never have enough time to check out the library at the Hollywood Tower Hotel before the lights go out. #obsesseddisneyfangirlproblems
The Tower of Terror is basically the best thing that has ever happened to me.
Ah, my favorite hotel. I'm home.
I honestly don't remember how many times we went on each ride. I want to say it was about six rides all together but who knows? When you are so forcefully pulled in so many different directions over and over, your brain isn't exactly at it's best place for counting.
The park was going to close soon, so started rushing over to my latest addiction: Toy Story Midway Mania. On the way, we passed Mulch, Sweat, and Shears playing on the main stage.
I posted on Twitter:
I just got such a girl boner listening to the lead singer of shears belt it out. They rock. #rockandroll
Um... YEAH. The lead singer of that band rocks. He was growling in that perfect way that rockers do and I stopped dead in my tracks.
I have this thing for musicians. And by "thing", I mean an all-consuming devotion to every man who can play an instrument. Music is just magic. So I was pretty lost in rock and roll Heaven there for a hot minute. Usually, if a band is playing at Disney I don't pay too much attention b/c... you know... it's Disney World, there are other things going on. But Shears is so good! However, we couldn't stay long because I was itching for the MANIA and the park was about to close!!!
I started shaking as we approached. It's like crack. CRACK I TELL YOU!!! Or better... meth. And the only reason I say that meth is better is because it is, yo.
I don't know this from experience. But Jesse Pinkman does.
Congratulations Aaron Paul on your second Emmy win. I love you, and I love how much you love reading this trip report, so I wanted to make sure I mentioned that.
But my Trip Report can't be all about you, so let's move on. Call me later!
My mom didn't go on Toy Story Mania. I KNOW, IT'S CRAZY. She was tired or something? So I soloed that one, and as usual, I was the Queen of my ride vehicle. Bow to me.
(I just like that waving smiley.)
As we made our way out of the park, there was a lot of delirium going on. As usual. Duh.
So we get in line for the bus, and something odd happened.
I instantly posted about it on Twitter:
Oh my God, I just heard a person say "too long didn't read lol" in real life.
IT WAS SO WEIRD. It's always off putting when you hear someone say an internet thing in real life. I was cracking up. I tried to explain it to my mom but she wasn't really getting it.
We were back in one of our common states of extreme fatigue and so we started acting crazy again. I don't know if you are a fan of the Real Housewives, but oh boy, my mom and I are. My favorite is New York City (Ramooootional), and I actually only really watch that and New Jersey since it's filmed a few towns over from me, but I am very familiar with an Atlanta housewife named NeNe.
She does this thing where she calls basically everyone haters. She then talks about all the money she makes. And then calls them haters again.
It's wonderful.
Like I said at the beginning of this Trip Report... if you don't like TV references interrupting TRs... good luck with this thread. Haters!
I posted on Twitter:
My mom and I are so delirious that we are now talking like NeNe and calling everyone haters.
I... don't even know. I just remember standing there waiting for the bus being oh so tired and saying "HAAAATERS!" while looking around. Oh, us.
I posted on Twitter:
One potato, two potato, three potato, four. Five potato, six potato, YOURE GONNA SCORE! #stuckinmyheadfortherestofmylife
YES. It's really quite a problem how much I sing that song. TRUST ME, I'M A HOT POTATO!
Eventually, we stopped calling everyone haters, got back to Pop, and crashed. But not before, you guessed it I posted one last tweet:
I hope I find my Eugene Fitzpatrick one day. <3 #hellostranger
Um... FitzPATRICK?!? Yeah, THAT's how tired I was that I would get my flawless prince's name wrong. It's Eugene FITZHERBERT. Duh Lia. Come on.
Up next: Crazy moment at Animal Kingdom. CRAZY.