S
SpottyDog
Guest
Four Go Wild In Florida
Previous drivel
The Plan and The Flight
We get off the plane
Discovery Cove
"Walk this w..a...yyy!" MGM & Reflections
An unusually quiet day- Universal & Jungle Jims
Where's the Plan? !! (EPCOT)
The safe key incident
Four Go Wild in Florida
Part 7 1/2
Breakfast till tea time.
So, my only friend. Weve been through too much already for you to be a stranger, Ive even verbally abused you. Sorry, bout that. It was the stress of the moment you see. The boy losing the key and all that.
I quickly hobbled back to the room (me blisters have been made worse by the gel insoles I bought at Goodings the other day!) and told the family me change of plan and hurried them to the bus stop.
No time to savour the mood and music today, straight through the gates and me and the boy headed for R&RC. Told V to meet us at H&V 9.20 as we hurried away from her and shouted back , as an afterthought, maybe youd be better just standing there now, in case you get lost. Her abusive retort was wasted on us as we were by now far away.
Straight into the R&RC area, I was excited to be back on me rock tour and was busy telling Gaz how much he was going to love this.
DOWN ? Dont you just love it when a plan comes together! We spun on our heels (ouch,that hurt) and headed straight back up the hill for ToT. FPs were out of the question coz they were already beyond 9.10 so wouldnt have been any use before breakfast and even Im not foolish enough to tackle these two within hours of even smelling food! The line for Tower was only 20 minutes and we were soon in me favourite spooky hotel room. I love that room, (trying to do the music in prose, but it wont work) so atmospheric. We were quickly placed in the cage of death and fell , and fell, and f...e...l.l ! It was great.
Now R&RC is still confirmed as me favourite but this ride will never lose its appeal for me. The build up, the suspense (literally) then ..............
I know people are scared of it, and probably rightly, but it really is a must do just once. Its such an out of body experience - wrong words but those whove done it and love it will know what I mean.
Right, back to R&RC, just got time if its running. We wobbled down the hill and it was up! 25 minute line? Well just be late but Ive waited too long this morning to miss out now. Come on Son, youre going to love this!
We were soon into the garage and it seemed odd having to go all the way round before being allocated a car. I did think of suggesting we ride singles but he is still me little boy and was unusually quiet for someone Id been telling all day about how brilliant this ride was. No matter, hell enjoy it once his eardrums recover and were back the right way up! Our Gaz is in that I want to try it so I can brag to me mates back home but am scared witless in case I die place at the moment. When he came back from Alton Towers he was full of I rode Oblivion you know,Dad, bravado for weeks. So I naturally thought right, well have to do all the rides we qualify for on this trip - for the boy. Turns out hes not so brave without his mates, but it takes him a couple of days, yet ,before he tells me. Dads dont do body language!
We get round and round and r..o..u.nd and its as good as I remembered. The boys quiet - but we dont talk much (other than footy) - so Im none the wiser.
(Now I know youre all worried about the little soldier but hes all right. Its just it takes me a couple of days to discover hes a bit scared of these big coasters and we havent dangled our feet yet! Just remember its him that did Oblivion ,not me. Im scared too but do them coz I think he wants to ! Parent/child communications,eh? Its a language from outer space!)
So we rush to H&V and its just gone 9.20. V&J are there, so we assume theyve done nothing. Turns out they went all the way to Muppet 3D and back and didnt even have to ask any grown ups for help.
Soon, our names are called (Robinson party, not Test Track Dummies - name calling? Oh, never mind!) and were in. After the ice cream Social, I was looking forward to the event but not sure what to expect from the meal. The minute we walked into the diner I was impressed. 50s style -all chrome and booths- just right. Looking back it was a busy cafeteria but thats the Magic - I didnt see any of the hustle and bustle just the overall picture and feel of the place. Having only Ponderosa as our term of reference we were a little uneasy of what to do once seated. Unfortunately our lady CM server spoke so fast we were none the wiser so sat and waited for another family to move and just followed them! Julies eyes lit up when she saw the row upon row of food. This is going to seriously scupper any plans I had for the rest of the morning. Ill have to rejig it (again) according to how much time we have left once we drag her away from the table.
Now our Julie will be able to recite the whole menu (alphabetically and in order of preference) but I had to write it all down for me little report (I Luv details ,Me.)
There was sausage, bacon, thick sliced ham, biscuits(dumplings to us), fried potatoes, scrambled eggs, cheese grits ,sausage gravy, breakfast quiche and pizzas , pancakes, syrup and cherries, cereals, bagels , danishes, chocolate French toast, doughnuts, sweet toast and fresh fruit. Oh, and Mickey Waffles - just to make a little girls day complete! We all enjoyed the food and Julie was happy in her you dont go to America to dangle upside down! world. Fresh orange and pots of tea and coffee completed the feast.
There didnt seem to be as much character interaction as ICS but that might have been coz we were too busy stuffing our faces and waving them by as they tried to interrupt our attack on the American food mountain. For the record, there was Wide boy Goofy, Pluto and Chip n Dale touring the tables and Film Star Minnie posed for photies at the door. I would say the characters came to each table 3 ,maybe 4, times and were funny and attentive to all who could be bothered with them! There was one moment with a toddler beside me that was very shy and nervous of the attentions of Pluto. Pluto must have stood there coaxing him for all of two minutes. The smile and cuddle he got for his trouble made me mist up so much I couldnt see me plate.
Julie got her picture taken with Minnie on the way out and the whole event had taken just over an hour. The bill would have been $68 , had we not used our FlexFeature , 3 of us had gone round twice and 1 small one could have saved a lot of time not bothering to come back to the table between raids. We were stuffed for the rest of the day and I would thoroughly recommend this to anyone just for the breakfast never mind the theming and characters.
We had a slow walk down New York Street and into Washington Square to add to me hours of video footage for the folks back home - well itll keep them away all summer so we can get some peace. It was breezy and a little overcast which made it quite cold. have we had any sun yet?
Next, we headed for Voyage of the Little Mermaid - Gary could hardly contain himself! Probably one for the littluns, and little girls in particular, this show is really good for its mix of different techniques and effects. Teenagers will be bored witless and terrified anyone tells their friends they were ever there but it really is worth a look. A 17 minute show wont take too long out of your day with a judicious use of FastPass to get you straight in.
The Indy show was due to start and we headed there to see if we could get in. Just in before they roped off the approach (another victory that wins us back an hour in queuing time) were so late, and only just within the capacity, the only place to stand is behind the wheelchair section dead centre of stage - perfect for me video. Just before the show starts, a CM removes the rope to let us into the seats reserved for those who cant manage the steps (which is empty) and we even get a seat - result! Its appropriate for me to sit there anyway coz me blisters are very tender today. The music starts - one of me favourite films, it always send a shiver up the back of me neck- and the man in front unravels his hunched shoulders and takes his rightful place in the foreground of me Indy video. Oh, well, most things are turning out ok today so just go with the flow.
This is another dont miss show - well they all are at MGM - they pack an awful lot in for a 30 minute show. There are three sections of Temple of Doom youd expect, if you know the film, and an extra bit thats almost as good as the Muppet 3D preshow. If you dont want to risk a late walk-in then FP will guarantee you a good seat for the next show. One tip we found in 99 was if its raining , the show will be cut to miss out some of the stunts which would be too dangerous on a wet footing. Go back on a dry day and the show will be very different. Maybe this is stating the obvious (well, theres a change) but we saw the wet show first in 99 and enjoyed it & only went again on another dry day coz our Gary wanted to see it and the show was even better.
Heading for Backlot Tour we stopped for Julie to get Winnie Poohs autograph and picture then Tigger. Valerie muscled in to get her photie taken with Tigger and looked very pleased with herself as it was the first time shed plucked up the courage to get a photie with a real film star!
Wed gone on the Backlot tour again to get a better seat on the bus for Cat Canyon. This time me head counting and manoeuvring let me down and we ended up towards the back of the tram but at least it wasnt the front again. We enjoyed the ride again but will have to wait for next trip to get a middle seat to complete the set!
It was 2ish now and very cold. Me feet were giving me serious gyp so we decided to head back to ASMu. It would give the kids a chance for some pool time, Valerie could get some laundry done and I could get a beer to soothe me blisters.
On the way to the bus I paused for the obligatory video of the car park trams (sad ,I know, but I bet youve all got them!) and we were soon back home and went off on our chosen pastimes. I got me beer (two cans to save getting up again) put on the telly, propped meself up on the bed and begun the ritual that is a Mans lot - flicking through and through the channels at such a speed no-one but us lads has the mental capacity and instinct to focus on what the last channel was before its over to the next one. The pain from me blisters was now so bad I couldnt bear to have me ankles flat on the bed. It seems the gel insoles I bought the other day to protect the sole of me ankle had created its own problem coz it wasnt a tight fit. The discomfort I thought was just the pain of walking on a blister turns out to have been new ones appearing over and around the old one. More info than you needed , I know, but figured Janice and Shirley would enjoy the serve you right moment for apparently ruining me childrens lives and warping their little minds!
So as comfortable as you can be once youve got two cans of Icehouse medicine in you, I flicked and flicked until I thought I must have nodded off. Is that Robbie Keane? Is that Elland Road? Footy on American telly ! I hadnt nodded off, Id died and gone to heaven ! It was Leeds versus Lazio in the Champions League and the second half had just started. Bliss.
You know lads, when you sit up all night waiting for Match of the Day to come on and the minute the music comes on..? Well, I must have hummed it in me head coz within seconds me Icehouse sedative had done its job and I was in a place where your feet dont hurt and Sunderland win the Champions League every time.
When I wake up, dear friend (Ill not abuse you again if youll stick up for me with Janice and Shirley!) well go to meet Janice and Chris on the boat. I wonder how shell cope out there on the water with no shops. Shell probably have a catalogue and a torch!
SUMMARY
Decided MGM was a much better choice than Sea World today , so went there.
Took the boy on R&RC and made a man out of him.
Julie shooed all the characters away from her food at H&V.
Got some lovely shots of a mans head at Indy.
Found a football match on tv but decided it would spoil the mood of me holiday so refused to watch it.
Previous drivel
The Plan and The Flight
We get off the plane
Discovery Cove
"Walk this w..a...yyy!" MGM & Reflections
An unusually quiet day- Universal & Jungle Jims
Where's the Plan? !! (EPCOT)
The safe key incident
Four Go Wild in Florida
Part 7 1/2
Breakfast till tea time.
So, my only friend. Weve been through too much already for you to be a stranger, Ive even verbally abused you. Sorry, bout that. It was the stress of the moment you see. The boy losing the key and all that.
I quickly hobbled back to the room (me blisters have been made worse by the gel insoles I bought at Goodings the other day!) and told the family me change of plan and hurried them to the bus stop.
No time to savour the mood and music today, straight through the gates and me and the boy headed for R&RC. Told V to meet us at H&V 9.20 as we hurried away from her and shouted back , as an afterthought, maybe youd be better just standing there now, in case you get lost. Her abusive retort was wasted on us as we were by now far away.
Straight into the R&RC area, I was excited to be back on me rock tour and was busy telling Gaz how much he was going to love this.
DOWN ? Dont you just love it when a plan comes together! We spun on our heels (ouch,that hurt) and headed straight back up the hill for ToT. FPs were out of the question coz they were already beyond 9.10 so wouldnt have been any use before breakfast and even Im not foolish enough to tackle these two within hours of even smelling food! The line for Tower was only 20 minutes and we were soon in me favourite spooky hotel room. I love that room, (trying to do the music in prose, but it wont work) so atmospheric. We were quickly placed in the cage of death and fell , and fell, and f...e...l.l ! It was great.
Now R&RC is still confirmed as me favourite but this ride will never lose its appeal for me. The build up, the suspense (literally) then ..............
I know people are scared of it, and probably rightly, but it really is a must do just once. Its such an out of body experience - wrong words but those whove done it and love it will know what I mean.
Right, back to R&RC, just got time if its running. We wobbled down the hill and it was up! 25 minute line? Well just be late but Ive waited too long this morning to miss out now. Come on Son, youre going to love this!
We were soon into the garage and it seemed odd having to go all the way round before being allocated a car. I did think of suggesting we ride singles but he is still me little boy and was unusually quiet for someone Id been telling all day about how brilliant this ride was. No matter, hell enjoy it once his eardrums recover and were back the right way up! Our Gaz is in that I want to try it so I can brag to me mates back home but am scared witless in case I die place at the moment. When he came back from Alton Towers he was full of I rode Oblivion you know,Dad, bravado for weeks. So I naturally thought right, well have to do all the rides we qualify for on this trip - for the boy. Turns out hes not so brave without his mates, but it takes him a couple of days, yet ,before he tells me. Dads dont do body language!
We get round and round and r..o..u.nd and its as good as I remembered. The boys quiet - but we dont talk much (other than footy) - so Im none the wiser.
(Now I know youre all worried about the little soldier but hes all right. Its just it takes me a couple of days to discover hes a bit scared of these big coasters and we havent dangled our feet yet! Just remember its him that did Oblivion ,not me. Im scared too but do them coz I think he wants to ! Parent/child communications,eh? Its a language from outer space!)
So we rush to H&V and its just gone 9.20. V&J are there, so we assume theyve done nothing. Turns out they went all the way to Muppet 3D and back and didnt even have to ask any grown ups for help.
Soon, our names are called (Robinson party, not Test Track Dummies - name calling? Oh, never mind!) and were in. After the ice cream Social, I was looking forward to the event but not sure what to expect from the meal. The minute we walked into the diner I was impressed. 50s style -all chrome and booths- just right. Looking back it was a busy cafeteria but thats the Magic - I didnt see any of the hustle and bustle just the overall picture and feel of the place. Having only Ponderosa as our term of reference we were a little uneasy of what to do once seated. Unfortunately our lady CM server spoke so fast we were none the wiser so sat and waited for another family to move and just followed them! Julies eyes lit up when she saw the row upon row of food. This is going to seriously scupper any plans I had for the rest of the morning. Ill have to rejig it (again) according to how much time we have left once we drag her away from the table.
Now our Julie will be able to recite the whole menu (alphabetically and in order of preference) but I had to write it all down for me little report (I Luv details ,Me.)
There was sausage, bacon, thick sliced ham, biscuits(dumplings to us), fried potatoes, scrambled eggs, cheese grits ,sausage gravy, breakfast quiche and pizzas , pancakes, syrup and cherries, cereals, bagels , danishes, chocolate French toast, doughnuts, sweet toast and fresh fruit. Oh, and Mickey Waffles - just to make a little girls day complete! We all enjoyed the food and Julie was happy in her you dont go to America to dangle upside down! world. Fresh orange and pots of tea and coffee completed the feast.
There didnt seem to be as much character interaction as ICS but that might have been coz we were too busy stuffing our faces and waving them by as they tried to interrupt our attack on the American food mountain. For the record, there was Wide boy Goofy, Pluto and Chip n Dale touring the tables and Film Star Minnie posed for photies at the door. I would say the characters came to each table 3 ,maybe 4, times and were funny and attentive to all who could be bothered with them! There was one moment with a toddler beside me that was very shy and nervous of the attentions of Pluto. Pluto must have stood there coaxing him for all of two minutes. The smile and cuddle he got for his trouble made me mist up so much I couldnt see me plate.
Julie got her picture taken with Minnie on the way out and the whole event had taken just over an hour. The bill would have been $68 , had we not used our FlexFeature , 3 of us had gone round twice and 1 small one could have saved a lot of time not bothering to come back to the table between raids. We were stuffed for the rest of the day and I would thoroughly recommend this to anyone just for the breakfast never mind the theming and characters.
We had a slow walk down New York Street and into Washington Square to add to me hours of video footage for the folks back home - well itll keep them away all summer so we can get some peace. It was breezy and a little overcast which made it quite cold. have we had any sun yet?
Next, we headed for Voyage of the Little Mermaid - Gary could hardly contain himself! Probably one for the littluns, and little girls in particular, this show is really good for its mix of different techniques and effects. Teenagers will be bored witless and terrified anyone tells their friends they were ever there but it really is worth a look. A 17 minute show wont take too long out of your day with a judicious use of FastPass to get you straight in.
The Indy show was due to start and we headed there to see if we could get in. Just in before they roped off the approach (another victory that wins us back an hour in queuing time) were so late, and only just within the capacity, the only place to stand is behind the wheelchair section dead centre of stage - perfect for me video. Just before the show starts, a CM removes the rope to let us into the seats reserved for those who cant manage the steps (which is empty) and we even get a seat - result! Its appropriate for me to sit there anyway coz me blisters are very tender today. The music starts - one of me favourite films, it always send a shiver up the back of me neck- and the man in front unravels his hunched shoulders and takes his rightful place in the foreground of me Indy video. Oh, well, most things are turning out ok today so just go with the flow.
This is another dont miss show - well they all are at MGM - they pack an awful lot in for a 30 minute show. There are three sections of Temple of Doom youd expect, if you know the film, and an extra bit thats almost as good as the Muppet 3D preshow. If you dont want to risk a late walk-in then FP will guarantee you a good seat for the next show. One tip we found in 99 was if its raining , the show will be cut to miss out some of the stunts which would be too dangerous on a wet footing. Go back on a dry day and the show will be very different. Maybe this is stating the obvious (well, theres a change) but we saw the wet show first in 99 and enjoyed it & only went again on another dry day coz our Gary wanted to see it and the show was even better.
Heading for Backlot Tour we stopped for Julie to get Winnie Poohs autograph and picture then Tigger. Valerie muscled in to get her photie taken with Tigger and looked very pleased with herself as it was the first time shed plucked up the courage to get a photie with a real film star!
Wed gone on the Backlot tour again to get a better seat on the bus for Cat Canyon. This time me head counting and manoeuvring let me down and we ended up towards the back of the tram but at least it wasnt the front again. We enjoyed the ride again but will have to wait for next trip to get a middle seat to complete the set!
It was 2ish now and very cold. Me feet were giving me serious gyp so we decided to head back to ASMu. It would give the kids a chance for some pool time, Valerie could get some laundry done and I could get a beer to soothe me blisters.
On the way to the bus I paused for the obligatory video of the car park trams (sad ,I know, but I bet youve all got them!) and we were soon back home and went off on our chosen pastimes. I got me beer (two cans to save getting up again) put on the telly, propped meself up on the bed and begun the ritual that is a Mans lot - flicking through and through the channels at such a speed no-one but us lads has the mental capacity and instinct to focus on what the last channel was before its over to the next one. The pain from me blisters was now so bad I couldnt bear to have me ankles flat on the bed. It seems the gel insoles I bought the other day to protect the sole of me ankle had created its own problem coz it wasnt a tight fit. The discomfort I thought was just the pain of walking on a blister turns out to have been new ones appearing over and around the old one. More info than you needed , I know, but figured Janice and Shirley would enjoy the serve you right moment for apparently ruining me childrens lives and warping their little minds!
So as comfortable as you can be once youve got two cans of Icehouse medicine in you, I flicked and flicked until I thought I must have nodded off. Is that Robbie Keane? Is that Elland Road? Footy on American telly ! I hadnt nodded off, Id died and gone to heaven ! It was Leeds versus Lazio in the Champions League and the second half had just started. Bliss.
You know lads, when you sit up all night waiting for Match of the Day to come on and the minute the music comes on..? Well, I must have hummed it in me head coz within seconds me Icehouse sedative had done its job and I was in a place where your feet dont hurt and Sunderland win the Champions League every time.
When I wake up, dear friend (Ill not abuse you again if youll stick up for me with Janice and Shirley!) well go to meet Janice and Chris on the boat. I wonder how shell cope out there on the water with no shops. Shell probably have a catalogue and a torch!
SUMMARY
Decided MGM was a much better choice than Sea World today , so went there.
Took the boy on R&RC and made a man out of him.
Julie shooed all the characters away from her food at H&V.
Got some lovely shots of a mans head at Indy.
Found a football match on tv but decided it would spoil the mood of me holiday so refused to watch it.
