March 2012: The Year I Almost Survived Spring Break

[Lidian]

Wow! I just saw your trip report's title and thought I needed to read to see how you managed some spring break crowds!

I read through all your updates and loved it!

Can't wait to hear about the rest of your day at Universal, and then how you spent your time at WDW!

Hmm... I'm not sure we did manage the Spring Break crowds.

I'm glad you enjoyed the updates! I'm going to dig deeper into our IoA day momentarily (just finished uploading a few rounds of pictures).

Then perhaps we'll get to some WDW parks.

I see you're going in May! May is my favorite time to go!

 

[Lidian]

So here we are ... a precious child running towards me calling "Mommy!" Why was he so excited? Well, he HAD to tell me all about what he did with daddy.

So as I leaned down so he could tell me he rode the train and the fish and he got daddy soaked, I hugged him and asked him if he'd take me on the train, too!

So off we went! Enjoy some pictures of Suess Landing (SL)!

There it is! The "train ride":

The queue had large pages from Dr. Suess's books on them and some weird thing in the center that went all the way to the top. You walk up the winding queue to the top platform to board:

Once up top, you're directed to a line to correspond with seating on the train. They have two tracks and you can be sent to either the blue track or the purple track. They were loading for the blue track when we got to the top. Okay, so we'll ask for the purple one next time! Both tracks run different areas (but they do have moments of overlapping).

Oh dear. I wonder if we'll follow directions?

Hi boys!

I guess we're not following directions today. Honestly, I took a picture of the sign, but I didn't actually read it. So I hear DD say ... no cameras allowed mom.

Mom, you're going to get us in trouble!

MOM!

I'm being yelled at by my own daughter for taking pictures. I honestly didn't see the note.

Now, I can get why they don't want you having your camera out ... I thought the train would be similar to the WEDway at WDW ... and it sort of is ... but there are moments you lurch and speed forward. If you dropped your camera on a guest below ... that wouldn't be very fun for anyone. So I tightened the grip on my camera and kept snapping away. I held it closer to me (and I always use the wrist strap).

Let me say ... it was COLD on this right. It wasn't as gloomy as it was earlier in the morning ... but it hadn't warmed up MUCH. So the wind was very cold. The entire time, a narrator was talking to you in Dr. Suess rhymes. It was non-sense things, but very entertaining. There were also kids who would chime in, and they did kind of a sing-songy thing. It was really quite entertaining!

Back to the pictures:

Oh Hulk ... I look forward to riding you soon! Please don't let the wait be very long!

After coming in to the "landing", we were slowed and sent on down the purple track! The recording said something about it being our lucky day and the ride doesn't have to end just yet. I was thrilled! We knocked out both tracks!

So I started snapping more pictures (they were pretty blurry -- as most of them are, and I had TONS of pictures of this ride, but only shared SOME) ...

This is when the recording was interrupted and a staff member tells me to put my camera away. Caught. Red handed. And then DD did the "I told you so" routine. The boys were laughing. So I slid the camera down into my bag, defeated. I mean, I totally GET the safety issue, but I wasn't holding it out over the train, and if it fell, it "could" have bounced over the edge, but unlikely. We were reminded that the rides have a no photography rule when we unboarded the train.

Oh well. Where to next?

 

[Corrine 1973]

Ok, You did it. IoA if officially on the calander to visit during my next trip. Now I just need to figure out how to save the extra couple hundred dollars.

I am so like you when it comes to going to the parks. I have to remind myself to slow down and enjoy the scenery sometimes because I am so excited about getting to the next ride. "Oh isn't that lovely, enough of that lets go to PotC."

We loved Suesses landing in 2009 but I don't remember two tracks. I do remember going through the big top (that's where we ended up eating for lunch.) What a naughty girl taking all those pictures.

I totally agree that you can do the entire day and just do IoA. There was so much to do in just that one park that we spent almost the whole day there in 2009, and that was before Harry Potter.

Oh by the Liddy, my PTR misses you and wants your advice. So please come visit before she starts to cry. I really don't know what to do with a weeping PTR.

 

[Lidian]

We exit the ride and DD starts yelling, "THE GRINCH, THE GRINCH!" I look around and I don't see anything resembling The Grinch. Sure enough ... there was The Grinch (I was looking for a statue, a building, something immobile). So I told the kids to run over there and hug him. He didn't like that.

The Grinch also let us know that we took too long to get the picture taken and he was not happy. Then he shooed us away. lol

So then DS runs off, screaming "SAM I AM, SAM I AM!" It took me a minute to recall who Sam I Am was ... and honestly, I'm not sure I would have made the connection if DS hadn't announced it.

Sam I Am was tickled that DS knew who he was and leaned down with his arms out, so DS could run and give him a hug! He hugged and played with DS and then we all got a picture! Sam I Am pulled me in tight, and almost knocked me over. lol

Hey, Truffula Trees! (I want to see The Lorax so bad!)

The sign at the top of the building says: The ONCE-LER

Here's the circus tent that's a restaurant (pics taken inside from the train ride):

Then the kids wanted to ride the Caro-Suess-el. I chose to sit this out, as round and round makes me ... well ... it was just best I didn't ride. Kouga was the same way, so he decided to head off to a pit stop and I made myself comfy on a bench and took pictures!

I just love how exotic the "horses" are! Such a fun ride to look at! Then it was time for DH and the kids to pick a "horse".

There they are!

Once they were finished, DS tried to talk us into riding One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. DH wasn't impressed and asked us to not ride again since he wasn't thrilled with getting soaked yet again. I opted to not get wet, too. So we walked on to ride The Cat in the Hat with a 5 minute wait:

I started taking pictures and was promptly told to put my camera away. Ruin all the fun IoA.

This was a family ride ... but I tell you ... it was NOT a pleasant one. Be warned ... it is very ... spinny. I sat next to Kouga ... and I wasn't sure which one of us was going to be sick first. I prayed I didn't get sick on Kouga, and I prayed Kouga didn't get sick on me! I thought the ride would be similar to Snow White or Pooh ... in a sense, it was. You do go through the storybook (like in those rides), but you're constantly SPINNING. And not just turning around like on TSM, but spinning full circles round and round and round ... not slowly ... but quickly. I'd have rather taken the merry-go-round. There was no way I could have snuck (no flash) pictures in here ... with as much as we were moving and spinning. That said, it really was an adorable ride. You DID feel like you were in the story. They had lots of props (moving and stationary) and it was fun ... if you can handle the spinning.

I wouldn't ride it again, but only because I suffer from motion sickness. But if I could handle the spinning, yes, I would totally ride it again. It was fun. The "cars" were sofas. It was well-designed, but not for those who get sick easily.

We exited into a gift shop where we browsed the merchandise.

I immediately thought of the kids upon entering the gift shop (this was the FIRST thing I saw):

DH found a shirt that he debated on getting later in the day (so we weren't tied down with bags):

DD found one for me:

They also had Grandfather/mother as well. We browsed around a bit and then went back out into SL. What should we do next?

 

[Lidian]

Ok, You did it. IoA if officially on the calander to visit during my next trip. Now I just need to figure out how to save the extra couple hundred dollars.

I am so like you when it comes to going to the parks. I have to remind myself to slow down and enjoy the scenery sometimes because I am so excited about getting to the next ride. "Oh isn't that lovely, enough of that lets go to PotC."

We loved Suesses landing in 2009 but I don't remember two tracks. I do remember going through the big top (that's where we ended up eating for lunch.) What a naughty girl taking all those pictures.

I totally agree that you can do the entire day and just do IoA. There was so much to do in just that one park that we spent almost the whole day there in 2009, and that was before Harry Potter.

Oh by the Liddy, my PTR misses you and wants your advice. So please come visit before she starts to cry. I really don't know what to do with a weeping PTR.

I must have missed it on your PTR, because I was just there and didn't see any advice questions. I'll head back there momentarily and look to see what I missed!

And just do what I do to the kids ... bed until you stop crying.

Best of luck on saving up for tickets to IoA! So much fun! I can't wait to go back!!!

 

[oopsiDAISY]

Suessland does look like so much fun. It is funny that before you even mentioned how cold it was on the train ride, I had already noticed that all the people you had in the pictures were hugging themselves from the cold. BURRR!

WWoHP looks cool. I must quietly admit something...

I have never read a HP book or seen any of the movies.

DH and I had decided we just weren't sure about introducing the kids to the whole wizards and witchcraft thing. But a funny thing happned through the years....We all started watching Star Wars together and I realized that has all that kind of stuff in it too. What sort of crazy decision was that to put the kabosh on HP and promote SW???

Anywho, some of our "at home" friends that we met up with on the last day of our trip had been to WWoHP earlier in the week. They enjoyed it.

 

[Lidian]

It was around 10:30, and I knew the lines in WWoHP would get worse throughout the day ... so I hugged and kiss MY boys (none for Kouga) and handed over the camera. DD and I had a date with some roller coasters. I told DH I'd call him after we rode all the HP coasters plus Hulk. The boys went their own way.

DD and I walked back over to WWoHP and into the locker area for Dragon Challenge. No pictures here, because one camera is dead and the other one is with DH in case they saw more characters.

We stowed our bags in the lockers and walked over to the queue. There were a lot of people walking the queue, and I didn't notice the wait time. I didn't care either, as I knew it would only get worse, and I wanted to hit the coasters before lunch.

It was nice and scenic for a bit, we enjoyed seeing the banners for the various champions (for the Triwizard Tournament). We also enjoyed seeing the Ford Anglia from the movie. We proceeded to enter the Champions Tent, where we were greeted by the staff as Champions and were wished good luck.

Then we were immersed indoors into a "cave". It was dark. I struggled to see and DD and I kind of tried to lead each other through the cave by feeling for walls and handrails. I admit, I was NOT happy. I kept saying over and over that I couldn't see. DD's eyesight is really good, and she ended up leading me a bit. We saw other things like the Goblet of Fire and various other articles for the movie ... but mostly it was a long, very long, winding cave. Once we got to the "end", there was a sign that directed you to either the blue side or the red side. I wasn't sure what the wait time was in either line and I couldn't recall the differences. I asked DD which one she wanted to ride.

We went Left. I'm pretty sure Left is the red track (ie Chinese Fireball), but if I'm mistaken, please correct me.

We were met with more options. Directions for "front row" and directions for "all other rows". We didn't care where we sat, so we went all other rows. WOW, the line for front row was MASSIVE! I'm glad we didn't pick it. We were directed forward and the girls in front of us asked if it was just the two of us. She said that we could go in front of them so they could ride with their friends (and there would have been two empty seats on that ride if they hadn't let us pass). We thanked them (they looked to be teens, perhaps very young adults) and I was impressed with their courtesy! As we were boarding, I turned around and thanked them again for letting us in front of them (because most people would have let those seats go empty and made riders behind them wait).

At this point, I had been worried about my glasses. I was terrified I'd lose them. I would NOT have survived the trip if I lost my glasses. SO I panicked. I took them off. Great, now what? I can't very well hold them. I could drop them or crush them. Where's a great place to store them? Well ... in an impromptu situation, I stuffed them down my shirt. Yep. Down my shirt they went. I was a bit worried that I'd break them against the harness, but I'd rather break them (and tape them) than lose them altogether. DD asked where I did with them and then she laughed at me.

After safety checks, the ride lifted up off the ground and we moved forward. Weeee! I confess, I loved it! It was so much fun, and we were tossed and twirled and flipped and god knows what else! It was amazing!

After the ride was over, I held onto the glasses through my shirt as I climbed out of the seat (my shirt wasn't tucked in). Once we were clear of the ride, I pulled my glasses from my shirt and proceeded to put them back on. They were intact! HUZZAH!

Meanwhile .... The boys had made their way over to Marvel Super Hero Island! DS found a character he wanted to meet.

I later asked, and DS wanted to meet Dr. Doom because he looked cool. DH said that when DS came over, after the picture, Dr. Doom did a bro-fist with him. I asked what a bro-fist was and he said the bumped knuckles and then Dr. Doom made it "explode". Does that make sense? Knucke-bump then explode (fireworks)? I dunno if that's what a bro-fist is, but that's what DH called it. If you've seen Rio, then you know what I'm talking about.

Meanwhile ... we're making our way out of Dragon Challenge back to the locker. I'm starting to feel a bit... odd. Kind of hung over in a sense. My head hurts and I feel ... not so well. I shrugged it off. We got to the lockers and had to wait. The computer I needed to use was being tied up by a lady who didn't make it back before the timer. It was asking her to pay, but her credit card was in the locker. So a staff member opened up the locker for her and she had to pay. She started complaining that it was a free rental. The staff member was very nice and explained the timer. He asked her if the line was long (because the timer could have been off), she responded that the line was so short, she rode the ride three times! The staff then explained that the timer is only to ride the ride once for free lockers. I don't think he was going to push it, but she admitted defeat and proceeded to pay. SO I proceeded to wait. I leaned up against the lockers hoping this feeling would go away. After we collected our stuff, we went off to ride the Flight of the Hippogryph!

It was a cute roller coaster, family friendly, similar to the Barnstormer.

While we were in line, this group of older guests (not seniors, but probably late 40s, early 50s) were being kind of obnoxious. There was a wait. Again, I didn't check posted wait, as we were there and I knew it would only get longer. They were complaining about having to wait. They were all dressed nicely ... like business professional dress. Heels on the ladies, jacket and tie on the men. They looked VERY out of place and "how dare we have to wait!". I'm not sure who they are ... but ... they were getting on my nerves. Okay, when we first got to the entrance, they were trying to use the "fastpass" line. The staff stopped them since they didn't have access to it and sent them to the regular standby line.

After them complaining for what seems like forever, we could finally see the top of the queue and boarding area! Huzzah! (I'd estimate we waited for about 15 minutes tops.) Well, they took it upon themselves to cross over the railing and into the "fastpass" line. They looked HILARIOUS trying to cross over the rail! I prayed they got stopped at the top. Meanwhile, our line was moving and soon enough, I was past them. They finally made it over the rail and proceeded to the top. Drat, they weren't stopped. But all that work for nothing. We boarded the same train. lol

It was cute, I enjoyed seeing Buckbeak. It was very much like the Barnstormer in "thrill". The only thing I couldn't understand was the "net". It seems that most of the rides, there are "nets" on the restraints the cover your legs. It didn't make sense to me.

After we rode, and I got off, I had to lean against the rail for a minute. DD asked if we could ride Blue side and then go to Hulk. I needed to sit down. I told DD we'd come back later, it was getting close to lunch time. Maybe I just needed to eat something.

I pulled out my phone and called DH. The call went something like this:

Hey, where you boys at?
Mumble-Jurassic-grumble-(static)-mumble-(static)-(dropped call).
GRRRR! (redial)
(Voicemail)

So DD and I walked over to:

The boys had already paid JP a visit and DS was not impressed with the dinos:

DD and I arrived and wasn't sure where they would be. So we walked into the nearest building and looked around a bit for them. THen we came back out and saw them sitting at a table (they weren't there when we went in). SO we came over and joined them. I really needed to sit down. DH asked if I was okay and I told him that I would survive, but needed to take it easy. Kouga said I looked pale. SO we sat and chatted for a few minutes. It was nice to be off our feet. They suggested lunch, but I asked if we could wait a bit. I was afraid if I ate, it wouldn't stay with me. After more chatting, I suggested we go into the building we were sitting in front of. It was just a little after 11AM when we went into the store.

DS found a hat:

Then it was time for some WoW fun. I run a guild in WoW. Kouga is one of my officers-in-training (Marshall) and Scrappy is my right-hand man (Seneschal). We've all played together for many, many years. We decided that it was time to get Scrappy involved with our trip since he was missing all this awesome fun.

It is now 11:27 and I pull out my phone. Kouga grabs a gem and holds it up. Message to Scrappy: Can you cut this gem?

How much will this cut one go for on the Auction House?

We browse the store a bit more and Kouga comes up behind me.

Tell Secret Friend (another WoW friend) that I just skilled a billion points in Archeology with finding this Devilsaur Claw!

SF (Secret Friend) replied back that it was awesome and asked if Kouga had given me a non-creepy hug from her. When we first got to IoA, Kouga did give me a hug from SF, so I replied and let her know it was super creepy (jokingly).

So then it was time to prospect for gems. First Kouga:

Then Me hoping to find an epic:

We had so much fun in this store playing our WoW characters. (The WoW doesn't stop here, we carry it through all week with texts to Scrappy, SF, and some other guild members.)

DD and DS both got those long pixie stick candy things (like what they have everywhere at WDW, where you fill the tube with powdered sugar). At the check-out, I saw these delicious treats!

OH NO! IT'S GOT ME!

Pictures of the Jurassic Discovery Center (the name of the building, after looking it up):

These dinos were pretty neat...

You see, you can "view" through them and see how they saw things and move their heads:

As you moved the "vision box", you can see what the dino is looking at and it turns their head and stuff. Hard to explain. They had several different ones you can play with.

Then there was some Archeology stuff DD and my boys had fun playing with the interactive area:

Then they had a viewing center for dino eggs (and an interactive dino egg area):

I knew there was a "hatching" show that happens periodically.
How did you know?
Because there was one happening when we first got there, but it was crowded.

So I let the kids play and we lingered. I really wanted to watch the "hatching" show. SO the kids played with the interactive egg thing:

Kouga pointed out a poster:

ARMOR: Why be passive aggressive when you can be aggressively passive? (It's a WoW reference.)

HEY LOOK! A dino egg is hatching!

The scientist talked about how we were witnessing a never-before-seen miracle. He also talked about the dino that hatched. It really was a good show! The baby dino kept screeching and looking around. Then he let someone from the audience name the dinosaur. I don't recall what he named it ... it was very... generic. Dino I think? Anyway, he got a certificate for it. Afterwards, the scientist offered to pose for pictures (through the glass). Almost everyone walked away, but I wasn't going to pass up a photo opportunity!

We went and sat on a bench afterwards and looked over the park map. What sounded good for lunch? It was right at noon, and I was feeling well enough to attempt something.

Do we go to Mythos? The Three Broomsticks? What's for lunch?

 

[Lidian]

Suessland does look like so much fun. It is funny that before you even mentioned how cold it was on the train ride, I had already noticed that all the people you had in the pictures were hugging themselves from the cold. BURRR!

WWoHP looks cool. I must quietly admit something...

I have never read a HP book or seen any of the movies.

DH and I had decided we just weren't sure about introducing the kids to the whole wizards and witchcraft thing. But a funny thing happned through the years....We all started watching Star Wars together and I realized that has all that kind of stuff in it too. What sort of crazy decision was that to put the kabosh on HP and promote SW???

Anywho, some of our "at home" friends that we met up with on the last day of our trip had been to WWoHP earlier in the week. They enjoyed it.

I loved the series. I attended midnight book releases and movie screenings. I miss those days.

And while yes, they are wizards, the plot of the series is much more deeper than that. I think I'd have a change of heart if they were drawing on demons or souls or evil stuff as their source of power. DD10 has seen all the movies and has attempted reading the books (but thinks movies are better than books so she hasn't stuck with it).

The girl I sit next to in class isn't allowed to read/watch HP.

The way I see it .... there is so much "magic" in cartoons and especially in Disney ... what's the difference? There's no "adult" scenarios in the HP series (aside from an innocent kiss now and then and death -- but those are in PG rated cartoons as well!).

I feel like if I wouldn't allow DD to see the series then I shouldn't let her see things like Princess & the Frog, or Tinkerbell, or Peter Pan. They all use magic.

And yes, there's good magic and bad magic in HP ... same with Princess & the Frog.

That said, if your kids aren't allowed to see HP and such, while I may not understand, I won't question your beliefs or judge you or anything like that. You have your reasons and that's good enough for me!

However, if you change your mind, I think you guys would enjoy the series! You'll have to let me know.

 

[DMGeurts]

I loved this last update Liddy... Did you ever find out what was wrong? I hope you felt better after you ate something.

D~

 

[Moodyzblu]

Loving all the pics !! Jayden is sitting here with me looking at them ... He's so excited !!

 

[Lidian]

I loved this last update Liddy... Did you ever find out what was wrong? I hope you felt better after you ate something.

D~

Loving all the pics !! Jayden is sitting here with me looking at them ... He's so excited !!

I have more! LOTS MORE! We haven't even had lunch yet and I'm on part 7 ... so ...

I'm so glad you're enjoying this! I've scoured for more IoA TRs, but there just isn't a lot to be found for those who enjoy both parks!

 

[Lidian]

It was noonish and we were all hungry. I was feeling well enough to tolerate food, and thinking that it may actually help me feel better. So we left Jurassic Park and walked over into ....

We were headed towards the agreed upon place, but we had to stop for pictures!

This one ... I think D might enjoy.

The IoA version of Splash Mountain! (It's actually named Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls.) But it was still COLD, so we didn't consider attempting.

I really enjoyed the look of Toon Lagoon! It was fun, and SO MUCH TO SEE!

Plus ... you got to be PART of the comic strips!!!! How awesome is that???!!!!???

It was such the strangest feeling ....

MMMM! LUNCH! We headed in to Blondie's for a refreshing sandwich! And yes, I have pics! (Even though we were stared at.)

It took about ten minutes to get our food. They were SLOW!

I had a Stacked Sandwich (Turkey on something bread ... I want to say Parkerhouse bread?) and Potato Salad:

It was very good. Granted, I wished I had gotten a different bread, it wasn't very good -- it was VERY DRY. But it didn't taste stale or anything. It just wasn't very yummy bread. The potato salad ... YUM! I could eat a whole plate of it! I originally got this to share with DS to keep costs lower (he got his own beverage though).

DD wanted a Slaw Dog (with Nathan's hot dog) and that little bugger snuck more cheese in on me. It came with a bag of chips.

She enjoyed it, but didn't eat a whole lot.

DH got The Dagwood (Fresh-baked onion & poppy seed bread piled high with Baked Ham, Turkey, Roast Beef, American and Swiss Cheese. Topped with lettuce, tomatoes, mayonnaise and mustard.) And for the record, half of the sandwich is missing for a better picture. It also came with a bag of chips.

Today, I did not force Kouga to allow me to take a picture of his food. Plus, he got a Chili Dog, which I'm sure you've seen plenty of ... if not, just imagine DD's hot dog with chili.

DH finished his sandwich, with the help of DS. Then DH finished my sandwich. lol

We would gladly eat here again ... but we hope the service isn't as slow. It wasn't busy at all. We were the only people in line. There was a handful of people eating at tables ... so it wasn't like it was slow because they were busy and in the middle of a lunch rush. I just didn't get it. Plus, the sandwiches were pre-made. Well, DH's was. I got to request what I wanted on mine. Who knows.

After we ate, we just sat there for a bit, trying to decide what to do next. It was still too cold for water rides. We just ate so nothing turbulent. SO we decided to finish checking out Toon Lagoon, and then move over to view Marvel Super Hero Island.

I grew up watching this guy on TV....

Help me out here... what was this from?

I loved Beetle Bailey!

This isn't familiar at all ...

The boys found their perfect speech bubble:

I loved these speech bubbles! They were EVERYWHERE!!!! I know I missed half of them. SO MUCH TO LOOK AT!

Kouga found a speech bubble (and DH decided to ruin the picture by not moving):

HAGAR!

Another counterservice restaurant:

Boop-boop-a-doop! DD asked if we could go in. I told her we'd come back and she could shop there later. Was this a wise choice?

We found a speech bubble for DS!

And this speech bubble ... I love!

I hear that they rotate out the speech bubbles and they're different. I heard daily, but not sure if they do ALL of them daily. But it was, indeed, Sunday. It was very fitting.

But this was the end of Toon Lagoon ... up next is Marvel "land". Sounds like a snoozefest to me!

 

[BridgetR3]

My ds5 was looking over my shoulder as I was reading this part and hollers, "MOM LOOK!!!!!! It's Sam I am!!!" He's a HUGE Sam I am fan and for Dr. Seuss's b-day this year he was Sam I am at school.

Your trip report about IOA is making me think we need to visit on our next trip!!!!! Looks awesome!!!

 

[pharmjenn]

I was reading about you not feeling well and thinking "She didn't put her glasses back on, is her vision bad enough that she would notice?" So a page later there is finally a photo of you with glasses on. So probably not that. Hope you continued to feel well the rest of the day.

 

[sjs314]

Liddy Fantastic updates! I have not been to US since the late '90's. Before IOA. Back when I was there there were no hotels or parking garage. I can' wait to show DH and work on convincing him about a trip there.

I did just what you did by not getting a spare battery for my camera and had it run out on me at MK and one day at Epcot

Your lunch looked good

 

[Lidian]

So we walked over to Marvel Super Hero Island (Marvel henceforth). It is now around 1 PM.

It is also where I will zone out so the guys can do boy stuff. But here's some pictures before I fell asleep:

Hey look! It's a guy with claws! (Okay, so I know it's Wolverine. Is he supposed to be a jerk? Because I thought he was pretty rude to my kids, and I thought he was supposed to be a good guy....)

Then there's Super Sunglasses! (Okay, so I know it's Cyclops.) He tells the kids they have to pose like super heroes with him. The kids loved Cyclops!

Hey, it's two chicks! (Okay, so it's Storm and Rogue. I've seen the live-action movies.) They loved that DD was happy to see them!

I confess. My kids were CLUELESS ... but they knew they were characters and tickled pink to see them. lol

Oh, we should ride Spiderman now that we're here! Oh wait ... That's right. REFURB! Everything good was on refurb. Ugh.

And apparently the super heroes ride these little bike things. I commented that Captain America forgot his shield.

Hey, look! It's Captain America! So the kids run over to meet him.

Hmm... what is DS saying?

What is Captain America saying back?

There's the pose!

So I asked DD what was said, and she told me DS informed CA that he forgot his shield on his bike. She said that CA replied by saying he didn't have enough time to hold it and asked DS if he wanted to hold it for him. DS didn't want to hold it, it was too heavy he said. She said CA was kind of a jerk. Is this normal for their characters? Honestly, I know very little ... and we encounter characters later in the day that I have to ask who they are and if they're good or bad.

So for those who like Marvel ... is Wolverine and Captain America jerks? Or did we get some staff members on a bad day?

And let me demonstrate the difference in how I take pictures and how my DH takes pictures. Scroll back up at the character pictures. I took those. Now see how my DH takes those SAME PICTURES!

Where's the kids honey?
I don't care ... did you see the characters?
Yep, my DH was in love with the characters. ROFL!

We continued walking and came across The Hulk coaster. We had just eaten, so I wasn't about to take a chance at riding it. We walked a bit further (took a rest stop) and found the tea cups (Storm Force Accelatron). On our way back, there was one of those souvenir stands with a staff member playing with a toy. It was kind of like a yo-yo, but it wasn't. It was more like a bouncy ball on a string. Anyway, I saw him playing with it and we kept walking. Next thing I know, IT'S IN MY FACE AND I'M SCREAMING! I just knew I was hit. ROFL I know I was a sight. The staff member about wet himself laughing. I was laughing too, so he was lucky it was someone like me he got. Otherwise, they might be in his face, filing a complaint, the works. But I took it in stride and we all had a laugh at my expense.

So where to now? Well ... it was time for something, that's for sure! But what to do?

A SHOW!

So we decided to catch The Eighth Voyage of Sinbad Stunt Show. It's a stunt show like Indy ... but only it's not there to try to show you how things are done. It's actually a story. They don't really focus on showing you how things are done, but entertain you instead with a live show that includes stunts.

Personally, I could take or leave the show. Until ... well ... you'll see. And it will be a MUST DO when we go back. What do you think could really make it a "must"? See if you can figure it out before the reveal.

So we head over to the Sinbad show. We had some time to kill before they'd open up the theater (it was a theater much like Indy -- outdoors). So we found a wall to sit on. But I kept hearing a buzzing sound. The last thing I need is to get stung. Can you imagine being taken to the hospital in an ambulance while on vacation? I was NOT going to go to the hospital today. No sir-ee! So I'm kind of flipping out. Kouga tried to tell me he "thought" it was a speaker making a buzzing sound. But I couldn't take that chance. I was on vacation. I couldn't possibly go to the hospital!

Sure enough, it was the speaker. And soon enough, we were let in.

The stage! It was kind of creepy looking.

Then Mr. Delicious .... err .. I mean Sinbad. Yeah. Sinbad came out.

Is he the reason why I claim this is a MUST? Sadly, no. He was delicious ... but he's NOT the reason.

Next, he was joined by his comical sidekick, Kabob.

This little guy was HILARIOUS! He was the comic relief to the whole mess in the plot. (I won't give the story away, but it really was entertaining!)

Is he the reason I have to come back? I do love comedy ... Nope. Well, I do love comedy, but Kabob and his antics aren't what will bring me back! (More on Kabob in a moment.)

Hey look! It's a Princess (Princess Amoura to be exact). And you didn't think we'd meet a Princess today. WRONG! We totally got to meet a Princess. One who needed saving!

Are we such diehard Princess fans that we must go back to see her? Not really.

And then the plot thickens. The Evil Queen Miseria makes an appearance.

Look a bit familiar?

Oh, I do believe SHE is the reason I must return. I immediately fell in love with Miseria. She reminded me so much of my favorite character!

After the show was over, everyone started to pour out of the theater. An announcment was made that guests could meet the stars of the show at the front of the stage. DH and everyone else started walking towards the exit, and I made a beeline for ... MISERIA!

DH and everyone else realized I wasn't behind them, but instead, bouncing my way to the Evil Queen. Grinning, I announced that I loved her! She saw my bag. She LOVED IT! She said, "Did you know, the Evil Queen is my cousin?" I responded that I recognized the work, and it was why I was such a fan of hers! She was tickled pink to have a fan! I forced DH to take a picture. The kids decided to join me (and if you couldn't figure it out, the guy is her stunt double)

Yep, I'm sporting my EQ bag in all its glory! This is one of my favorite pictures!

I HAD to send D a text ... "I just met the EQ's cousin!"

The kids insisted on meeting the Princess and Sinbad. So we walked over to them.

Kabob insisted I get in the picture. And he hugged me SO tight before we posed. He really stayed in character. As you can see, he just made himself at home. lol

On our way out ... Kouga asked if I'd send Scrappy another text message. He wanted to know if an axe would transmog. So at 2:30, I'm sending another message to Scrappy with this picture attached:

For the record, yes, it will transmog (according to Scrappy).

So a show has been seen. Now what? Does someone get lost? Does someone get attacked by a bird? Is there a sword fight in someone's future? Do we ever feel the effects of The Hulk? How far is it to England? Which character did we see that we never imagined to meet? Does DD ever get to go back to the Betty Boop store?

Hmm... guess you'll have to wait. Patiently. Oh so patiently.

 

[Lidian]

My ds5 was looking over my shoulder as I was reading this part and hollers, "MOM LOOK!!!!!! It's Sam I am!!!" He's a HUGE Sam I am fan and for Dr. Seuss's b-day this year he was Sam I am at school.

Your trip report about IOA is making me think we need to visit on our next trip!!!!! Looks awesome!!!

THAT IS ADORABLE!! He is SUCH a GREAT Sam I Am! I'm glad your DS enjoyed the picture! (I enjoyed your picture!)

I highly recommend it. Especially if you have a DS who loves Dr. Suess!!

I was reading about you not feeling well and thinking "She didn't put her glasses back on, is her vision bad enough that she would notice?" So a page later there is finally a photo of you with glasses on. So probably not that. Hope you continued to feel well the rest of the day.

Thank you for the kind words!

Actually, my vision is HORRIBLE. There's a story coming up that you'll be able to understand HOW horrible it is. I would definitely notice not putting them on ... and actually, I would have gotten worse if I didn't have them.

But, yep, I remembered to pull them out of my shirt. I know I looked like an idiot. And honestly, I couldn't tell if anyone could see me. But I know I embarrassed DD.

Liddy Fantastic updates! I have not been to US since the late '90's. Before IOA. Back when I was there there were no hotels or parking garage. I can' wait to show DH and work on convincing him about a trip there.

I did just what you did by not getting a spare battery for my camera and had it run out on me at MK and one day at Epcot

Your lunch looked good

Sheila, you should go back! AND TAKE ME! I had such a great time. I'm really looking forward to going back, and visiting USO! I was sad I could only pick one park ... but I think I picked the RIGHT one!

Sorry that you didn't have a spare battery either! I was lucky enough to have a second camera this day. Otherwise, I dunno what I would have done. Well, I guess I could have used my phone. But it's not the same. I can't do as much with my phone as I can the Canon.

Lunch was great! It wasn't Mythos or Three Broomsticks ... but it was delicious!

 

[sjs314]

My DH wil flip out when he sees your pics of the Marvel area! He grew up with Marvel comics and still loves them, in fact this past Xmas he was checking out the Cap't America toys

Oh yeah He will want to go to US IOA for sure. By the was I use to play WOW big time Alliance

 

[DMGeurts]

OMG Liddy! I missed not one, but two updates last night! And they were great updates too! The sandwiches you had looked delicious - especially DH's - kind of bummed that it was premade though - that put a little damper on it.

That ride - Dudley Do Right Falls - that looks cool. I wonder what the ride vehicles look like. Part of the reason I love splash so much is that it tells a story. When I was little - my dad took my to the local amusment park and made me ride "the Flume" - the hill was huge and I was screaming for them to turn around and take me out. It wasn't until long after I'd had children that I rode another flume type ride - and it was Splash - so, what I am trying to say is, not all flume rides are created equal. LOL And to a 4 y/o (?) kid - this hill was taaaaalllllll.
http://jimvid.smugmug.com/Amusement-Park/Valleyfair-9106/vfflume1/92754420_difsz-M.jpg

Anyways...

Loved all the thought bubbles - how cool is that? I am seriously considering a trip there the next time we go - it just looks amazing. Were you able to see everything you wanted to see in one day (or less)?

And, as usual, my adopted children are as sweet as ever!!!

D~

 

[MHTeacher]

I'm loving your Universal updates! In all our trips to Orlando, we've never made it over there. Lately though, I've been thinking that we need to make a day trip over there while we're at Disney!