Tuesday, Oct 21st
Hi Everyone,
We are back from our day at Islands of Adventure. We had lunch at Mythos. The weather today was wonderful. We got extremely wet on some of the rides, but the sun helped dry us off.
I'm sitting poolside writing this update and uploading photos from our day at the park.
Our day started down at the Hard Rock lounge. We enjoyed breakfast. The lounge was not very crowded this morning at 9:00AM. There was no need for us to rush since we knew the park would not be very crowded plus we have express line access.
For the fun of it we took the boat from the Hard Rock to City Walk to see how long it would take. We would have normally walked, but it sounded like something different to try.
While waiting for the boat I snapped a picture of the back of the Hard Rock Hotel.
Anna was able to get behind the wheel of the boat this morning. She even got to push the button which causes the horn to blow.
We arrived at Islands of Adventure around 10:15 and the park was not too crowded. Here's a shot of one of the icons at Islands of Adventure; the lighthouse at the front entrance which signifies an adventure is ahead.
For those of you who know the layout of Islands of Adventure you can go right or left off of the Port of Entry. We chose to go left and hit Marvel Super Hero Island first. We did Storm Force accelerator and Spiderman. The Hulk roller coaster was broken down for a while today. It would eventually open up later.
Here's a photo of the front of the Spiderman attraction. I consider this attraction the best attraction I've ever experienced. It's hard to explain. I'll just say it's a 360 degree simulator that moves you through space. If and when you experience this attraction you won't believe what you are seeing. It's as close as you'll ever come to being immersed in a comic book story.
The three of us got soaked with water at Toon Lagoon. Anna and I rode Rispsaw Falls twice. The wait time was 20 minutes; however, there was no wait with our express pass. Here is a photo of the walkway inside Toon Lagoon.
Each island inside the park is themed very well. Even the musical transitions between islands is done very well. We walked through Jurassic Park where I snapped this photo of one of the boats from the River Adventure coming down the hill and getting a little wet.
As we left Jurassic Park we ran into the area where the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter island is being constructed.
I snapped a few photos of signs and construction progress. They have the construction area pretty well walled-off. The Flying Unicorn attraction is not operating due to the construction.
Here are the photos from the Harry Potter area
Soon-to-be Hogwarts Castle. Big, BIg, BIG!
Harry Potter signs
One note about what I saw. The large building in the photos will be Hogwarts Castle when it is finished. The building is absolutely huge. I don't know what they are going to put in there, but it is going to be one ginormous castle.
at 1:15 we decided to head to the Lost Continent and check into Mythos for our 1:30PM lunch reservation. I should mention we had high expectations of Mythos going to our reservation. I read it was the number one theme park restaurant in the world according to Theme Park Insider magazine. What's funny is they even have a sign out front of the restaurant saying it as well.
Theme Park Insider sign
We waited 5 minutes after we checked in until we were seated. The decor of the restaurant is very unique. Most of the infrastructure is carved brown cement with a giant, oval shaped glass window facing the lagoon. The view outside the window is wonderful. It faces Marvel Super Hero Island and provides a great view of the Hulk roller coaster.
Here are a couple shots of the decor in the restaurant
Spitting fish
The large window with a view of the Hulk roller coaster
Mythos's hours change daily based on the hours of the theme park. Today the restaurant was only open until 3:30 and IOA was open until 6:00. If you book a reservation here you may not be able to book anything for dinner. Our menu today was more lunch oriented with sandwiches, wraps, and pasta. The menu provides a decent amount of choices for lunch.
I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich and kim ordered the Mythos burger. Anna had chicken nuggets with fries. The kids menu has 5 choices for lunch.
Here's a photo of my grilled chicken sandwich with fries
We all thought our food was delicious and very well done. I know it's only lunch sandwiches, but there was something flavorful on our sandwiches I can't put my finger on. It was some sort of spice or sweet pepper taste to my sandwich. Kim's hamburger had some sort of dill spice on it, but it wasn't the pickles.
Since our food tasted so good we decided to go all out and order dessert. Kim and I ordered the Ooie Gooey banana cake. Anna ordered a kid's banana split. The banana cake is a signature dessert for the restaurant. It is bananas, chocolate cake, a scoop of peanut butter ice cream, with caramel sauce on top. There is also a dried banana peel on top you can eat. I thought this was one of the best desserts I've ever had. It was a bit rich, but still very yummy.
Here's a photo of the banana cake
Our server was very good as well. She took care of our needs and was quick with everything. Our food came out hot and fresh and our glasses were always refilled. She was kind and friendly.
Our total bill came to $50 which included the tip and a 10% discount with the preferred Annaual Pass discount. A very reasonable price for lunch, non-alcoholic drinks, and dessert. I'd highly recommend this place if you want casual, but delicious theme park dining. Is it the best theme park restaurant in the world? Heck! I don't know, I haven't tried them all....
But it is very good. We really enjoyed it.
After lunch we continued our tour around the Islands and stopped at Suess Landing. A neat fact about this island. There are no 90 degree angles anywhere. EVerything you see has some sort of curve to it. it gives the area a very whimsical appearence.
We did run into the Grinch who was very curious about Anna's behavior...
Also, a somewhat new attraction has opened in Suess Landing. It rides high above Suess Landing. I believe it opened in the Summer of 2007.
We left the park around 4:00PM and headed back to the Hard Rock Hotel. We stopped in the lounge and grabbed some snacks and sodas for the room. Kim headed for the Portifino Bay Hotel. She has an appointment at the Mandara Spa. Anna and I headed for the pool. We changed and are now out at the pool.
We don't have much planned for tonight. Once we leave the pool we will head up for evening finger food at the club lounge. I'll probably head down to the Velvet Bar for a few drinks. We may also head back over to the Portifino to do some shopping.
I'll have another update later or first thing tomorrow morning. Thanks for following along.
Next Up:
Universal Studios
Character dinner at The Kitchen
Photos from around the Hard Rock Hotel
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, but really....Lucky her! :laughing 
