allie5
<font color=blue>WARNING! DHL men should be cautio
- Joined
- Apr 12, 2002
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Part 16: Sea World
Main Players
Allie
Neil
Jessamy (4)
Daniel Noah (2)
Nanny Sylvie
Wednesday December 22nd 2004
Just think, if we had only gone for 2 weeks, this trip report would be finishing today! Curse the infernal thinking that 3 weeks was a good idea Im not sure Im going to make the distance
!
This morning the wee ones didnt stir until 8am. Yesterdays busy day at the Magic Kingdom worked better than a pint of Might Make You Drowsy kids Tylenol at keeping them in the land of nod for an extra hour
.
Today then, we will repeat the experiment and head to Sea World for an all out onslaught on all things aquatic. Every one of those pesky tourists that arrived yesterday will still be busy at WDW, so Im anticipating a quiet, genteel day amongst the inhabitants of the Nautical World.
Its a good thing my day job isnt as a Clairvoyant; else I would be chucked out due to my shoddy prediction techniques. As we leave the I-4 at the helpfully named Sea World exit, we encounter a traffic jam. This traffic jam is actually the queue to enter Sea World. Please enter some fruity expletives HERE to judge my mood at this time
.
It takes a full 30 minutes to reach a parking booth .as usual we are behind the city sized camper van (er, I mean Recreational Vehicle) with Ontario plates and it seems, most of the population of Ontario within. All of which require their own little chat with the parking attendant.
I accidentally
lean on the horn and they get the hint and move off after what seems like forever.
Decide to cough up an extra $2 for preferred parking as with the amount of cars already parked, it looked like we would need the I-Trolley (Belz Stop) to get to the park entrance
.
This worked like a charm and we are actually parked right opposite the entrance. This may seem lazy, but I HATE that walk at the end of the day back to the car with two grumpy kids and a very tetchy Nanny Sylvie in tow. I know at the end of the day, the extra $2 will be worth every cent.
Its actually VERY WARM today, and we strip off our now customary jumpers to reveal barely seen T shirts. Kids are in shorts and it feels like the Florida we know and love again
!
We dont have tickets yet, so I get in line to do that whilst everyone else poses for pictures by the lighthouse.
It costs $220 for tickets, but they are doing the Second Day Free promotion as usual, so I guess thats not TOO bad. Nanny Sylvie, I note, has only got her English money purse handy at this point, so it looks like this is my shout!
It takes an eternity to actually get into the park people everywhere. A bunch of Japanese tourists seem mysteriously thrilled with the free park maps that are handed out and we see several of them with about 20 copies each???
Our first stop is the Dolphin Nursery which is always a favourite. As usual there is a very informative CM (or the Sea World equivalent of a CM) on hand to tell you a bit about the ickle dolphins in the pool.
Jessie loves it here and could happily spend the day stood there. Daniel is less impressed. Fishy pooey he announces glumly. I must admit, I do get a tad nauseous with the fishy smells here quick note to add that I loathe and detest most things nautical (with the possible exception of the Disney Wonder or Magic) so I may not give Sea World the most glowing of reports. It appears my son shares my disdain for the slimy, whiffy creatures that inhabit the water and we slope off to the shops .
The new Waterfront area of Sea World is rather nice. This is probably as there are no yucky creatures around to spoil it and its just shops and restaurants much more my thing!
Rest of the family appear, deducing correctly that they would indeed find me in a retail environment. The decision is made to head over to the Wild Arctic as there is a Shamu show starting in about an hour and we want to be closer to the stadium.
No strollers allowed in the arctic, so we free Daniel and set off to explore the snowy wastes on foot
.
I quite like it in here. The cold must diffuse the pongy fumes that seem to be prevalent in the outside enclosures and its much more enjoyable. Daniel agrees and is captivated by the Polar bears and the Beluga whale.
Both of them love the underwater viewing areas, and we stay for ages watching the Beluga whale swim by. She seems drawn to the children standing by the glass and slows down as she reaches them.
Manage to extract them from here and head off to find seats in the stadium for the Shamu show.
We have done this loads of times, but today was by far the most crowded we have EVER seen it. We manage to get reasonable seats (well out of the Splash Zone I might add!) and settle down ready for the show.
Once again, Jessie is enthralled with antics of the whales and their trainers (Thats what IM going to be when I grow up, Mummy) but Daniel isnt keen and makes a nuisance of himself. Even with world class entertainment on offer, Daniel is more amused by the orange hat worn by the lady in front of us. He proceeds to spend the whole time concocting new, and ever more ingenious ways to remove it from her head.
The lady thought he was cute the first time, but her patience, I could tell was wearing thin after attempt number twelve .
Decide to leave a few minutes before the end to give the poor woman some peace.
Kids eyes are out on stalks when they see the giant play area that is behind the Shamu Stadium. Daniel perks up considerably, and has a go scaling some impossibly large structure. Daddy is gamely sent up in pursuit, whilst Nanny Sylvie and I sun ourselves in the pleasant warmth of the day
.
Neil returns, minus any children, red faced and wheezy. I note the small, distinctive red speck of our Daniels T shirt about 30 stories up and helpfully point Neil in the right direction.
Luckily, Neil retrieves both of them this time and they are despatched to the safer confines of the trampolines and slides.
After all this excitement, we are a bit peckish and consult the park map for possible luncheon options.
Unlike WDW, Im not that familiar with the eateries at Sea World. Ive heard that the Sharks Grill is meant to be good, so we head there first.
Rather predictably, there was a 2 hour wait for a table here, so we decide to pass. Try another place, which I cant remember what it was called, but the only kids meal on offer was a PB&J sandwich. There is no way our two will eat this, so have to move on.
Overall, I am very disappointed with whats on offer. A lot of the restaurants only offer the PB&J as the kids option which I think is poor for a top class theme park.
We eventually land in the new Pizza place at the Waterfront. Nanny Sylvie is sent with the kids to stake a table and Neil and I go and get the food.
Its utter CHAOS in here. Not only is it packed to the rafters, the food set up is very odd indeed. The desserts are out first, then an assortment of hot meals, then they appear to be cooking individual pizzas to order hence the line was totally gridlocked.
Most people were waiting for their pizza, so we bypassed them by ordering chicken (that was ready to go) for the adults and hot dogs for the kids. Total cost $52 and it was horrid.
None of us ate much at all. Kids loved their plastic Shamu lunch boxes which their meals came in, but apart from that, it was a disaster. Would never eat here again.
When we exit the restaurant, the park is HEAVING. I can barely push the buggy through the crowds. Neil wanted to ride Kraken (and, knowing there was no chance of it happening with this many people here) I tell him how much I was looking forward to that as well. He has been pestering me to ride this for years and I keep him quiet with optimistically sounding I mights when what I really mean is There is no chance in hell of me EVER riding that.
Heard through the murmurings of the crowd that the line for Kraken was up to 2 hours, so Im saved again (last time we were here I was pregnant not sure what excuse I will have next year answers on a postcard please ). On the basis of this we dont even bother to walk round to the ride, instead we take the kids into see the penguins.
Jessie is well impressed that it is snowing in the penguins enclosure and we are also lucky enough to be there at feeding time. Daniel isnt keen, so I take him back outside and Neil stays with Jess and the penguins for a bit longer.
I wheel Daniel round to the manatees, explaining that as much as we both may hate the majority of the smelly creatures that live in this park, he will LOVE the manatees. Mummy loves them and I know my little lad will as well.
I am proved right and he loves them almost too much, trying to dive in, much to the horror of the CM on duty. Im given one of those Please control your child looks and promptly hand Daniel to daddy who is stronger and more likely to thwart another attempt at a swan dive into the pool
.
Jessie is once again, fascinated at the manatees and all the other creatures that are occupying their enclosure. She confidently begins grilling the Sea World CM about everything going on in there. She is most impressed by the Alligator Carp (a fish, that looks just like an alligator Mother Nature can be mighty cunning when she puts her mind to it ).
We move onto the dolphin underwater viewing area, where, in the recurring theme of the day, daughter is entranced by it all and son is bored rigid.
I would have thought the sight of playful dolphins would amuse him for at least a little while, but it wasnt to be. I wonder if the dolphins playing in the pool would be more entertaining for him and wander outside.
Amazingly, he actually LOVES the outside viewing area and the dolphins seem strangely drawn to him. He thinks this is a terrific wheeze and is happy dangling over the side of the pool, kissing every dolphin that comes close. So much for me thinking I had an ally in hating all slippery, scaly things that swim. Daniel looks like he will be a mini Jacques Cousteau given half the chance.
Naturally, he is soaked after this, but he is having a whale (or should that be dolphin) of a time, I dont really mind
. Its hot enough to dry out his cotton shorts and T shirt quickly anyway.
I am handed several photo tickets of Daniel playing with the dolphins and Im anxious to get these as I can use the camera as well as keep a tight grip on Daniels legs!
Next up we pass the Stingray tank possibly the most pungent area of the park, so dont stop long.
Jessie wants to look at the turtles who are sunbathing on their beach. They arent exactly the most action packed exhibit, so we move on to the flamingos and get a few photos.
We have made our way back to the exit now, and decide to call it a day. We have our Second day free to use, so will leave other shows like Clyde & Seamore till then.
Do the final obligatory walk round the shop Jessie wants some sunglasses as its so bright. I know perfectly well the second they are rung up on the register; the sun will slip behind a cloud and not reappear till Dec 30th (the day we leave). Even so, I part with my $10 and try to ignore the clouds I can see already lurking on the horizon.
I head over to the photo collect to get the pictures of Daniel with the dolphins. I am gutted to find though, that these can only be collected from a booth near the dolphin pool. Cant believe this isnt made clear on the ticket and Im a bit miffed. No-one fancies trekking back to the Key West area again, so we miss out. I was really looking forward to seeing these, so remember, collect your dolphin encounter photos BEFORE you leave the area .
Everyone is eternally grateful that I spent that extra $2 on the preferred parking as we literally only have to cross the road to get to the Jeep. This is definitely worth it if you are travelling with either small children, OAPs or lazy adults. Being a party consisting of all three, we find it money well spent.
Even though we feel we spent a full day at Sea World, its actually only just 4pm, so we drive up to Belz for a little shopping.
Nothing like a spot of retail therapy to warm the soul and I am tickled pink to find that Gap have a pre Christmas sale on. Buy Jessie a big thick parka for school and some trousers for Daniel.
We all decide that we fancy Race Rock for tea. After our rather yukky meal at Sea World, we are all famished.
Its still early and we are seated immediately. Order the Onion Explosion for us all to share to start. This goes down a storm and even Daniel eats some of it.
Kids have chicken and fries for a change, Neil has chicken and ribs, Nanny Sylvie sticks to her pot pie and I have marsala tips. All very tasty and welcome after a poor lunch
.
Back to the villa by 7pm. Decide to stay in tonight and chill.
Tomorrow: Celebration, Epcot, Candlelight Processional
Main Players
Allie
Neil
Jessamy (4)
Daniel Noah (2)
Nanny Sylvie
Wednesday December 22nd 2004
Just think, if we had only gone for 2 weeks, this trip report would be finishing today! Curse the infernal thinking that 3 weeks was a good idea Im not sure Im going to make the distance
!This morning the wee ones didnt stir until 8am. Yesterdays busy day at the Magic Kingdom worked better than a pint of Might Make You Drowsy kids Tylenol at keeping them in the land of nod for an extra hour
.Today then, we will repeat the experiment and head to Sea World for an all out onslaught on all things aquatic. Every one of those pesky tourists that arrived yesterday will still be busy at WDW, so Im anticipating a quiet, genteel day amongst the inhabitants of the Nautical World.
Its a good thing my day job isnt as a Clairvoyant; else I would be chucked out due to my shoddy prediction techniques. As we leave the I-4 at the helpfully named Sea World exit, we encounter a traffic jam. This traffic jam is actually the queue to enter Sea World. Please enter some fruity expletives HERE to judge my mood at this time
.It takes a full 30 minutes to reach a parking booth .as usual we are behind the city sized camper van (er, I mean Recreational Vehicle) with Ontario plates and it seems, most of the population of Ontario within. All of which require their own little chat with the parking attendant.
I accidentally
lean on the horn and they get the hint and move off after what seems like forever. Decide to cough up an extra $2 for preferred parking as with the amount of cars already parked, it looked like we would need the I-Trolley (Belz Stop) to get to the park entrance
.This worked like a charm and we are actually parked right opposite the entrance. This may seem lazy, but I HATE that walk at the end of the day back to the car with two grumpy kids and a very tetchy Nanny Sylvie in tow. I know at the end of the day, the extra $2 will be worth every cent.
Its actually VERY WARM today, and we strip off our now customary jumpers to reveal barely seen T shirts. Kids are in shorts and it feels like the Florida we know and love again
!We dont have tickets yet, so I get in line to do that whilst everyone else poses for pictures by the lighthouse.
It costs $220 for tickets, but they are doing the Second Day Free promotion as usual, so I guess thats not TOO bad. Nanny Sylvie, I note, has only got her English money purse handy at this point, so it looks like this is my shout!
It takes an eternity to actually get into the park people everywhere. A bunch of Japanese tourists seem mysteriously thrilled with the free park maps that are handed out and we see several of them with about 20 copies each???
Our first stop is the Dolphin Nursery which is always a favourite. As usual there is a very informative CM (or the Sea World equivalent of a CM) on hand to tell you a bit about the ickle dolphins in the pool.
Jessie loves it here and could happily spend the day stood there. Daniel is less impressed. Fishy pooey he announces glumly. I must admit, I do get a tad nauseous with the fishy smells here quick note to add that I loathe and detest most things nautical (with the possible exception of the Disney Wonder or Magic) so I may not give Sea World the most glowing of reports. It appears my son shares my disdain for the slimy, whiffy creatures that inhabit the water and we slope off to the shops
.The new Waterfront area of Sea World is rather nice. This is probably as there are no yucky creatures around to spoil it and its just shops and restaurants much more my thing!
Rest of the family appear, deducing correctly that they would indeed find me in a retail environment. The decision is made to head over to the Wild Arctic as there is a Shamu show starting in about an hour and we want to be closer to the stadium.
No strollers allowed in the arctic, so we free Daniel and set off to explore the snowy wastes on foot
.I quite like it in here. The cold must diffuse the pongy fumes that seem to be prevalent in the outside enclosures and its much more enjoyable. Daniel agrees and is captivated by the Polar bears and the Beluga whale.
Both of them love the underwater viewing areas, and we stay for ages watching the Beluga whale swim by. She seems drawn to the children standing by the glass and slows down as she reaches them.
Manage to extract them from here and head off to find seats in the stadium for the Shamu show.
We have done this loads of times, but today was by far the most crowded we have EVER seen it. We manage to get reasonable seats (well out of the Splash Zone I might add!) and settle down ready for the show.
Once again, Jessie is enthralled with antics of the whales and their trainers (Thats what IM going to be when I grow up, Mummy) but Daniel isnt keen and makes a nuisance of himself. Even with world class entertainment on offer, Daniel is more amused by the orange hat worn by the lady in front of us. He proceeds to spend the whole time concocting new, and ever more ingenious ways to remove it from her head.
The lady thought he was cute the first time, but her patience, I could tell was wearing thin after attempt number twelve
. Decide to leave a few minutes before the end to give the poor woman some peace.
Kids eyes are out on stalks when they see the giant play area that is behind the Shamu Stadium. Daniel perks up considerably, and has a go scaling some impossibly large structure. Daddy is gamely sent up in pursuit, whilst Nanny Sylvie and I sun ourselves in the pleasant warmth of the day
.Neil returns, minus any children, red faced and wheezy. I note the small, distinctive red speck of our Daniels T shirt about 30 stories up and helpfully point Neil in the right direction.
Luckily, Neil retrieves both of them this time and they are despatched to the safer confines of the trampolines and slides.
After all this excitement, we are a bit peckish and consult the park map for possible luncheon options.
Unlike WDW, Im not that familiar with the eateries at Sea World. Ive heard that the Sharks Grill is meant to be good, so we head there first.
Rather predictably, there was a 2 hour wait for a table here, so we decide to pass. Try another place, which I cant remember what it was called, but the only kids meal on offer was a PB&J sandwich. There is no way our two will eat this, so have to move on.
Overall, I am very disappointed with whats on offer. A lot of the restaurants only offer the PB&J as the kids option which I think is poor for a top class theme park.
We eventually land in the new Pizza place at the Waterfront. Nanny Sylvie is sent with the kids to stake a table and Neil and I go and get the food.
Its utter CHAOS in here. Not only is it packed to the rafters, the food set up is very odd indeed. The desserts are out first, then an assortment of hot meals, then they appear to be cooking individual pizzas to order hence the line was totally gridlocked.
Most people were waiting for their pizza, so we bypassed them by ordering chicken (that was ready to go) for the adults and hot dogs for the kids. Total cost $52 and it was horrid.
None of us ate much at all. Kids loved their plastic Shamu lunch boxes which their meals came in, but apart from that, it was a disaster. Would never eat here again.
When we exit the restaurant, the park is HEAVING. I can barely push the buggy through the crowds. Neil wanted to ride Kraken (and, knowing there was no chance of it happening with this many people here) I tell him how much I was looking forward to that as well. He has been pestering me to ride this for years and I keep him quiet with optimistically sounding I mights when what I really mean is There is no chance in hell of me EVER riding that.
Heard through the murmurings of the crowd that the line for Kraken was up to 2 hours, so Im saved again (last time we were here I was pregnant not sure what excuse I will have next year answers on a postcard please
). On the basis of this we dont even bother to walk round to the ride, instead we take the kids into see the penguins.Jessie is well impressed that it is snowing in the penguins enclosure and we are also lucky enough to be there at feeding time. Daniel isnt keen, so I take him back outside and Neil stays with Jess and the penguins for a bit longer.
I wheel Daniel round to the manatees, explaining that as much as we both may hate the majority of the smelly creatures that live in this park, he will LOVE the manatees. Mummy loves them and I know my little lad will as well.
I am proved right and he loves them almost too much, trying to dive in, much to the horror of the CM on duty. Im given one of those Please control your child looks and promptly hand Daniel to daddy who is stronger and more likely to thwart another attempt at a swan dive into the pool
.Jessie is once again, fascinated at the manatees and all the other creatures that are occupying their enclosure. She confidently begins grilling the Sea World CM about everything going on in there. She is most impressed by the Alligator Carp (a fish, that looks just like an alligator Mother Nature can be mighty cunning when she puts her mind to it
).We move onto the dolphin underwater viewing area, where, in the recurring theme of the day, daughter is entranced by it all and son is bored rigid.
I would have thought the sight of playful dolphins would amuse him for at least a little while, but it wasnt to be. I wonder if the dolphins playing in the pool would be more entertaining for him and wander outside.
Amazingly, he actually LOVES the outside viewing area and the dolphins seem strangely drawn to him. He thinks this is a terrific wheeze and is happy dangling over the side of the pool, kissing every dolphin that comes close. So much for me thinking I had an ally in hating all slippery, scaly things that swim. Daniel looks like he will be a mini Jacques Cousteau given half the chance.
Naturally, he is soaked after this, but he is having a whale (or should that be dolphin) of a time, I dont really mind
. Its hot enough to dry out his cotton shorts and T shirt quickly anyway.I am handed several photo tickets of Daniel playing with the dolphins and Im anxious to get these as I can use the camera as well as keep a tight grip on Daniels legs!
Next up we pass the Stingray tank possibly the most pungent area of the park, so dont stop long.
Jessie wants to look at the turtles who are sunbathing on their beach. They arent exactly the most action packed exhibit, so we move on to the flamingos and get a few photos.
We have made our way back to the exit now, and decide to call it a day. We have our Second day free to use, so will leave other shows like Clyde & Seamore till then.
Do the final obligatory walk round the shop Jessie wants some sunglasses as its so bright. I know perfectly well the second they are rung up on the register; the sun will slip behind a cloud and not reappear till Dec 30th (the day we leave). Even so, I part with my $10 and try to ignore the clouds I can see already lurking on the horizon.
I head over to the photo collect to get the pictures of Daniel with the dolphins. I am gutted to find though, that these can only be collected from a booth near the dolphin pool. Cant believe this isnt made clear on the ticket and Im a bit miffed. No-one fancies trekking back to the Key West area again, so we miss out. I was really looking forward to seeing these, so remember, collect your dolphin encounter photos BEFORE you leave the area
.Everyone is eternally grateful that I spent that extra $2 on the preferred parking as we literally only have to cross the road to get to the Jeep. This is definitely worth it if you are travelling with either small children, OAPs or lazy adults. Being a party consisting of all three, we find it money well spent.
Even though we feel we spent a full day at Sea World, its actually only just 4pm, so we drive up to Belz for a little shopping.
Nothing like a spot of retail therapy to warm the soul and I am tickled pink to find that Gap have a pre Christmas sale on. Buy Jessie a big thick parka for school and some trousers for Daniel.
We all decide that we fancy Race Rock for tea. After our rather yukky meal at Sea World, we are all famished.
Its still early and we are seated immediately. Order the Onion Explosion for us all to share to start. This goes down a storm and even Daniel eats some of it.
Kids have chicken and fries for a change, Neil has chicken and ribs, Nanny Sylvie sticks to her pot pie and I have marsala tips. All very tasty and welcome after a poor lunch
.Back to the villa by 7pm. Decide to stay in tonight and chill.
Tomorrow: Celebration, Epcot, Candlelight Processional
