Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina
Life is short. Live it well.
- Joined
- Sep 12, 2008
- Messages
- 13,825
On our way back to Jurassic Park, we passed through Toon Lagoon and I captured some photos. In general, this area is not my cup of tea…..well done, yes, and nicely themed…..just not my “type” of theming so to speak. I’ve never been a much into the retro cartoon thing. I’m also not a big fan of rides that soak me to the gills….I guess there must be a certain amount of vanity lurking in my subconscious because there’s no way in heck that I’m walking around the park in wet clothes and sopping hair.
Arriving in Jurassic Park, we headed straight to the Raptor Encounter and joined the line that was being monitored by a TM.
The line wasn’t hugely long, but there were still multiple families in front of us. We guessed perhaps that there’d be about a 20 minute wait, and opted to stay put as the queue would only grow longer as the day progressed. Not long after we got in line, they took the raptor back for “a feeding” and promised that she would return within a few minutes. A few families jumped ship at that point, irritated at the delay, so we moved up quite a bit as a result. True to their promise, “Kilo” emerged a few moments later, roaring and rearing her head to the delight of the small crowd.
The TM working this attraction was downright fantastic. He was so “in character” and made the whole experience very realistic. He would nervously tell parents to keep their children in front to ensure they’re protected, and urged everyone to move slowly with no sudden movements.
When it was our turn to approach the roaring beast, she immediately went for Steve’s hat, much to his delight. The handler tells us she was “challenging him for dominance”
.
Eventually, she settled down and we were posed for photos. Kilo continued to give my big Steve all the attention, breathing in his ear and nuzzling his hat. I don't think he expected that he would be the subject of her adoration
.
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It was such a fun little encounter, and we both agreed this was a fabulous addition to this section of the park. Definitely a must-do for fans of the movie, and absolutely worth the short wait in line. We wished Jake had been there to experience it with us….he would have LOVED it! We both agreed we couldn’t wait to show him the photos when we arrived back at the resort.
Steve wasn’t feeling a ride on Jurassic Park River Adventure just then, so we just strolled around for a bit and soaked up the atmosphere. We love the themed music, the lush surroundings, the whole “vibe” of this section of IOA
.
Having satisfied our inner dino’s, we decided to make our way back toward the Marvel area of the park…one of Steve’s beloved “Islands”. Somehow, I knew a little “mayhem” might soon ensue
.
Arriving in Jurassic Park, we headed straight to the Raptor Encounter and joined the line that was being monitored by a TM.
The line wasn’t hugely long, but there were still multiple families in front of us. We guessed perhaps that there’d be about a 20 minute wait, and opted to stay put as the queue would only grow longer as the day progressed. Not long after we got in line, they took the raptor back for “a feeding” and promised that she would return within a few minutes. A few families jumped ship at that point, irritated at the delay, so we moved up quite a bit as a result. True to their promise, “Kilo” emerged a few moments later, roaring and rearing her head to the delight of the small crowd.
The TM working this attraction was downright fantastic. He was so “in character” and made the whole experience very realistic. He would nervously tell parents to keep their children in front to ensure they’re protected, and urged everyone to move slowly with no sudden movements.
When it was our turn to approach the roaring beast, she immediately went for Steve’s hat, much to his delight. The handler tells us she was “challenging him for dominance”
.
Eventually, she settled down and we were posed for photos. Kilo continued to give my big Steve all the attention, breathing in his ear and nuzzling his hat. I don't think he expected that he would be the subject of her adoration
.
[/URL
It was such a fun little encounter, and we both agreed this was a fabulous addition to this section of the park. Definitely a must-do for fans of the movie, and absolutely worth the short wait in line. We wished Jake had been there to experience it with us….he would have LOVED it! We both agreed we couldn’t wait to show him the photos when we arrived back at the resort.
Steve wasn’t feeling a ride on Jurassic Park River Adventure just then, so we just strolled around for a bit and soaked up the atmosphere. We love the themed music, the lush surroundings, the whole “vibe” of this section of IOA
. 
Having satisfied our inner dino’s, we decided to make our way back toward the Marvel area of the park…one of Steve’s beloved “Islands”. Somehow, I knew a little “mayhem” might soon ensue
.
. So, its been back to the gym for us in an effort to atone for our dietary sins. I packed up a whole bag of the Halloween candy and sent it to work with Steve. And now we try to "be good" for the next 50 days until we embark on our Christmas trip.....but oh, its soooo hard!!
.
…..I get the feeling she wasn’t needing to get up from her chair much that morning…..and she asked which prize he wanted to select. Now, there was also a second minion that was superbly and awesomely special….a Kevin minion dressed as the banana from the recent minions movie….so while the pirate minion was a clear choice under the circumstances, I was sorely wishing he’d play twice 
. That said, we weren’t dragging two of these fellows around the park so one pirate minion it would be.
I love your pics. We haven't travelled yet in October looks like a great time to go to get your spook on 
.
. We had a perfectly nice lunch, but we didn’t find it any more spectacular than Confiscos or Finnegans (and in fact, we agreed that Mythos would rank third behind the two aforementioned establishments in our overall preference for table service in the Universal parks).
I think everyone else's food was ok. The waitress was fine but not friendly or cheerful. It was too crowded and we kind of had a crummy table (I like where you guys sat!).
. I always wonder, too much detail? Too many pics? I tend to talk a lot, which means I also tend to type a lot if I allow my thoughts to be spit out on the computer screen like they are rolling around in my brain. I have a hard time keeping anything concise.
Where's my train whistle?
.
as compared to the morning….the line for the Raptor Encounter was more than double what it had been that morning) and into Hogsmeade. We boarded the train (stowing the minions on the top shelf….thank God for that storage space!) and arrived back in Diagon Alley (which had also grown much more densely crowded since the early morning). We convinced ourselves that all of our walking had earned us another Butterbeer to share, so we made a brief stoppage at the Hopping Pot for a beverage to-go ($4.52 with the Premier AP).
