themepark
Wanted: Your trip reports!<br><font color=00cc22>I
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2003
- Messages
- 1,469
Cast of Characters:
Big Daddy (won't allow me to tell his age) Nickname given last year on his birthday when we were snowed in at a cabin in the East TN mountains. I only mention that because this holiday was so much different than last year's in terms of weather.
The Grinch...ME! I love the Grinch. I am nicer though and not as green.
The Spongebobs...DD age 9, DS age 7. Spongebob fanatics with matching Spongebob shirts.
Our travels actually began on Thurs, Jan 15 but all we did was drive at high rates of speed down I-75 arriving in Orlando in 9 hours even after sitting in Atlanta rush hour traffic and stopping for dinner. (This is supposed to be a 10 1/2 hour trip) We checked into the Fairfield Inn on Jamaican Court at around 10:30pm. I reserved this room on Priceline for $25. Not bad.
Awoke on Friday morning, ate the hotel's free continental breakfast, packed up and headed for the RPR. We arrived there at 9:00am and checked in with Valeria. Rooms were available and the place seemed pretty deserted. We didn't have much luggage and tried in vain to tell the bellmen we could handle our luggage ourselves but we finally gave in and let them take our bags. I requested an upgrade which we could have received for Fri night but not Sat. since the hotel was booked Sat. I declined since moving would have been a hassle. I then requested a room in Tower 1. Valeria asked if we would like a theme park view and I said that would be great thank you. We were assigned room 1617. I was pumped! Well...our room faced the front of the hotel and our view was of the bridge entering the hotel and Tower 2. Technically I suppose we did have a theme park view because if you looked to the far left very carefully over the top of Citywalk you could see the entrance to Universal Studios. We decided to keep the room and found the view actually quite relaxing. This room was the last one before the split in the hallway and it was a tad bigger than the standard room we had in August. It was angled (hard to describe) but definitely a bit larger.
We got to Universal Studios at 10:00am. I immediately spotted some Grinch gloves and caps for sale and oohed and ahhed and wished it were MY birthday so I could get them. The Spongebobs got autographs and pictures of Eliza Thornberry, Donnie, Tommy, and Chuckie. We walked right on Jimmy Neutron. Then the Spongebobs met Spongebob and we shopped a little in the store. Big Daddy disappeared for awhile and came back with Grinch gloves and a cap for me! Isn't he sweet? Uh oh. He just bought me a gift on his birthday and I don't have anything for him. Ooops. Oh wait. We are on a trip to Florida that I arranged and paid for so that's his gift. Ok, he really paid since he makes the real money in the family. Technicalities, technicalities.
We went to the 11:15 Nick Lab show. The Spongebobs were sitting on the front row and were very eager to get picked to participate. The boy sitting beside DD was picked to be slimed. Then the boy beside DS was picked to play one of the games. Oh well maybe next time. After this it was still early but everyone was hungry so we decided to have Big Daddy's birthday lunch at The Hard Rock Cafe. We exited thru the Hard Rock exit and walked straight into the cafe. Our server made Big Daddy stand up in front of the restaurant with his free sundae and she announced it was his 21st birthday (evidently she was hard of hearing or the music was too loud when I told her how old he really is..HA!) Then everyone in the restaurant had to wish him Happy Birthday. It was a fun time and the food was tasty.
We reentered the park and hit Jimmy Neutron again, then Shrek, then we saw Scooby and Shaggy so had to stop to see them. DD and I had our pic made with them. Scooby was making slurping noises on the top of my head the whole time. We then saw Crash Bandicoot and Angelica. Oh I forgot to say that Big Daddy had bought boy Spongebob an autograph shirt since he left his autograph book at home. Crash made a big deal about signing his shirt. Angelica wrote "Angelica rules" on it. Boy Spongebob was not that thrilled she took up so much space because he wanted to save room for the Superheroes at IOA. We then rode MIB where our scores were so dismal they will not be mentioned here.
Boy Spongebob was anxious to get to IOA to see the Super Heroes so we departed US for the day. When we arrived in IOA, we immediately saw Spiderman in Port of Entry. We walked over to the Spiderman ride and were told the ride was down so we got in line to see the X-Men. Just then they opened up the ride so we abandoned the X-Men and headed for the Express line. Spiderman was awesome as usual. We got front row this time which was great! On to Toon Lagoon where we saw Woody, Betty Boop, Popeye, Bluto, and Olive Oyl. We decided to bypass the water rides for now and headed into Jurassic Park. We were disappointed that Pterandon Flyers were closed but the Spongebobs enjoyed playing in Camp Jurassic. We stayed in JP for a long time playing the interactive games. There was NO ONE in there so it was nice to explore and see everything there. We strolled over to Lost Continent where the Spongebobs rode the Flying Unicorn 6 times. Girl Spongebob and I rode Fire once. Big Daddy wasn't feeling well (bad back) so he waited at the Unicorn. We strolled into Seuss Landing, shopped a little (so much Grinch merchandise, so little money!), and rode the Cat in the Hat a couple of times. It was then closing time so we headed for the exit stopping to shop a little along the way. Big Daddy got a t-shirt. I paid for it, ok I charged it to the room, then gave it to him and wished him a happy birthday!
We wandered around Citywalk for awhile then decided to try the Motown Cafe. We were seated immediately. The host talked it up with the kids about their shirts (DD was wearing Spongebob, DS had on Spiderman) and he made fun of Big Daddy's free Delta shirt he got at the Peach Bowl. Our meal was DELICIOUS. Big Daddy ordered a steak cooked to perfection and topped with the most mouth watering, scrumptious portobello mushrooms. I declared I would get the portobello mushroom sandwich on a future return visit. Big Daddy received a free birthday brownie topped with ice cream. No songs this time or big to-do. We enjoyed the atmosphere at the Motown Cafe and will definitely return.
We rode the water taxi back to RPR. Our Loews gift of beer (3 Heinekens) and nuts were waiting for us. Big Daddy was thrilled. I told him we were getting the milk and cookies which he was not at all interested in, but secretly I had ordered this for a little surprise. Hehehe! Happy Birthday! Ok I know it was free and I'm starting to look cheap here with his birthday gifts aren't I? We were all asleep by 10:30pm.
It was a fantastic and relaxing day. We spent alot of time just soaking in the atmosphere and exploring the shops. Crowds were low plus with FOTL there is no need to rush around. Gee this is long. I hope I haven't put you to sleep. There's more to come!
Big Daddy (won't allow me to tell his age) Nickname given last year on his birthday when we were snowed in at a cabin in the East TN mountains. I only mention that because this holiday was so much different than last year's in terms of weather.
The Grinch...ME! I love the Grinch. I am nicer though and not as green.
The Spongebobs...DD age 9, DS age 7. Spongebob fanatics with matching Spongebob shirts.
Our travels actually began on Thurs, Jan 15 but all we did was drive at high rates of speed down I-75 arriving in Orlando in 9 hours even after sitting in Atlanta rush hour traffic and stopping for dinner. (This is supposed to be a 10 1/2 hour trip) We checked into the Fairfield Inn on Jamaican Court at around 10:30pm. I reserved this room on Priceline for $25. Not bad.
Awoke on Friday morning, ate the hotel's free continental breakfast, packed up and headed for the RPR. We arrived there at 9:00am and checked in with Valeria. Rooms were available and the place seemed pretty deserted. We didn't have much luggage and tried in vain to tell the bellmen we could handle our luggage ourselves but we finally gave in and let them take our bags. I requested an upgrade which we could have received for Fri night but not Sat. since the hotel was booked Sat. I declined since moving would have been a hassle. I then requested a room in Tower 1. Valeria asked if we would like a theme park view and I said that would be great thank you. We were assigned room 1617. I was pumped! Well...our room faced the front of the hotel and our view was of the bridge entering the hotel and Tower 2. Technically I suppose we did have a theme park view because if you looked to the far left very carefully over the top of Citywalk you could see the entrance to Universal Studios. We decided to keep the room and found the view actually quite relaxing. This room was the last one before the split in the hallway and it was a tad bigger than the standard room we had in August. It was angled (hard to describe) but definitely a bit larger.
We got to Universal Studios at 10:00am. I immediately spotted some Grinch gloves and caps for sale and oohed and ahhed and wished it were MY birthday so I could get them. The Spongebobs got autographs and pictures of Eliza Thornberry, Donnie, Tommy, and Chuckie. We walked right on Jimmy Neutron. Then the Spongebobs met Spongebob and we shopped a little in the store. Big Daddy disappeared for awhile and came back with Grinch gloves and a cap for me! Isn't he sweet? Uh oh. He just bought me a gift on his birthday and I don't have anything for him. Ooops. Oh wait. We are on a trip to Florida that I arranged and paid for so that's his gift. Ok, he really paid since he makes the real money in the family. Technicalities, technicalities.
We went to the 11:15 Nick Lab show. The Spongebobs were sitting on the front row and were very eager to get picked to participate. The boy sitting beside DD was picked to be slimed. Then the boy beside DS was picked to play one of the games. Oh well maybe next time. After this it was still early but everyone was hungry so we decided to have Big Daddy's birthday lunch at The Hard Rock Cafe. We exited thru the Hard Rock exit and walked straight into the cafe. Our server made Big Daddy stand up in front of the restaurant with his free sundae and she announced it was his 21st birthday (evidently she was hard of hearing or the music was too loud when I told her how old he really is..HA!) Then everyone in the restaurant had to wish him Happy Birthday. It was a fun time and the food was tasty.
We reentered the park and hit Jimmy Neutron again, then Shrek, then we saw Scooby and Shaggy so had to stop to see them. DD and I had our pic made with them. Scooby was making slurping noises on the top of my head the whole time. We then saw Crash Bandicoot and Angelica. Oh I forgot to say that Big Daddy had bought boy Spongebob an autograph shirt since he left his autograph book at home. Crash made a big deal about signing his shirt. Angelica wrote "Angelica rules" on it. Boy Spongebob was not that thrilled she took up so much space because he wanted to save room for the Superheroes at IOA. We then rode MIB where our scores were so dismal they will not be mentioned here.
Boy Spongebob was anxious to get to IOA to see the Super Heroes so we departed US for the day. When we arrived in IOA, we immediately saw Spiderman in Port of Entry. We walked over to the Spiderman ride and were told the ride was down so we got in line to see the X-Men. Just then they opened up the ride so we abandoned the X-Men and headed for the Express line. Spiderman was awesome as usual. We got front row this time which was great! On to Toon Lagoon where we saw Woody, Betty Boop, Popeye, Bluto, and Olive Oyl. We decided to bypass the water rides for now and headed into Jurassic Park. We were disappointed that Pterandon Flyers were closed but the Spongebobs enjoyed playing in Camp Jurassic. We stayed in JP for a long time playing the interactive games. There was NO ONE in there so it was nice to explore and see everything there. We strolled over to Lost Continent where the Spongebobs rode the Flying Unicorn 6 times. Girl Spongebob and I rode Fire once. Big Daddy wasn't feeling well (bad back) so he waited at the Unicorn. We strolled into Seuss Landing, shopped a little (so much Grinch merchandise, so little money!), and rode the Cat in the Hat a couple of times. It was then closing time so we headed for the exit stopping to shop a little along the way. Big Daddy got a t-shirt. I paid for it, ok I charged it to the room, then gave it to him and wished him a happy birthday!
We wandered around Citywalk for awhile then decided to try the Motown Cafe. We were seated immediately. The host talked it up with the kids about their shirts (DD was wearing Spongebob, DS had on Spiderman) and he made fun of Big Daddy's free Delta shirt he got at the Peach Bowl. Our meal was DELICIOUS. Big Daddy ordered a steak cooked to perfection and topped with the most mouth watering, scrumptious portobello mushrooms. I declared I would get the portobello mushroom sandwich on a future return visit. Big Daddy received a free birthday brownie topped with ice cream. No songs this time or big to-do. We enjoyed the atmosphere at the Motown Cafe and will definitely return.
We rode the water taxi back to RPR. Our Loews gift of beer (3 Heinekens) and nuts were waiting for us. Big Daddy was thrilled. I told him we were getting the milk and cookies which he was not at all interested in, but secretly I had ordered this for a little surprise. Hehehe! Happy Birthday! Ok I know it was free and I'm starting to look cheap here with his birthday gifts aren't I? We were all asleep by 10:30pm.
It was a fantastic and relaxing day. We spent alot of time just soaking in the atmosphere and exploring the shops. Crowds were low plus with FOTL there is no need to rush around. Gee this is long. I hope I haven't put you to sleep. There's more to come!
- I was a little surprised that no one carded me at the bars!
