Day 2 - Thursday - September 18, 2003
We pulled our earplugs out at 9:30 and pulled back the drapes to a beautiful sunny Florida morning. There is a snorer among us (We're not talking about delicate little snorts and snurgs). But we're still chipper and rejoicing in the fact that were not waiting in the DC airport terminal.
We walked down the meandering path to Islands of Adventure and were at the gate around 11:00. This, by the way, was only 1 hour after the park opened and there was a light but steady stream of visitors coming through the gates.
After christening our 5 day passes (these were a good deal on the Universal site - 5 consecutive days hopping between both parks for $87), we headed over to Croissant Moon to check out the bakery offerings. I quickly decided that I would just plop myself down at one of their tables and spend the rest of my vacation slowly eating my way through the dessert case.
Alas it was not to be and I was rudely dragged away by my travelling companions who's attention had been diverted by the appearance of Woody Woodpecker. Laura had her picture taken with Woody and then Spiderman. It was only later upon close examination of the photos that we noticed that Spiderman was a little...um...enthused at the time.
We drag Mary onto Spiderman and have no wait using our RPR FOTL cards. The 3d on this ride seemed to be better than it was a fews ago when we first rode it. Could have been better glasses, or maybe it was that we were sitting up front.
Onward we walked to preview Ripsaw Falls and Jurassic Park. These we were saving for another day when we would be appropriately dressed to act like human sponges. This was Laura's first time to IOA and with camera in hand, we quickly got bogged down in the eye-candy that is Toon Lagoon.
So here we are among some of the most sought after fast paced in your face rollercoasters in Orlando and guess what our next ride is? That's right! The Flying Unicorn. There was really no line but we used our cards (because we could) and had to wait a few minutes before we could walk merrily, merrily, merrily to our unicorn cart. (They were adding another unicorn cart "for our convenience".) I tried to take pictures on the ride but Mary kept yelling at me to sit still and stop twisting around and jiggling the lap bar. She's such a daredevil.
Next was the Eighth Voyage of Sinbad where we again used our cards and were treated to a separate entrance near a trash receptical that smelled as if someone had used it as a baby changing table. "Pleassssseeeeee. Let. Us. In." We found good seats up front in the center and enjoyed the swashbuckling stunts.
We continued on to Seuss Landing and boarded the couches for The Cat in the Hat. There's something really alluring about riding a couch after you've been walking around in the heat for a while. After this was One Fish,Two Fish where Laura deftly manuevered us out of the way of the spitting fish. Afterward, we both notice that we have that darn song stuck in our heads.
The soothing couches have worked their magic on Mary and she has finally recovered from the Flying Unicorn. We coax her onto the Caro-Seuss-el. But there's nothing doing when it comes to looping back for another go at Spiderman. Mary sits it out while Laura and I ride twice. On our first turn, there's a glitch and we're just sort of lurching around in the dark next to some grey screens. They got things sorted out and we went around again.
We call it a day and meander back to our rooms around 3:30. I'm sure when they designed the walking path between CityWalk and RPR, they had grand visions of emulating Olmsted. But in the Florida heat, I really started to build up a healthy resentment for the big loop around the little cove by the bridge. We make matters worse by following the sign on the left directing us to the lobby. More meandering. Up hill. In the heat. And we pop out at the front of the hotel. I wouldn't recommend this path unless you're wanting to check in after going to the parks.
Laura and I hit the pool until 4:30 and Mary naps in the room. We shower and change and then catch the boat to CityWalk ("There's a party goin' on right here, A celebration to last throughout the years").
It's a little after 5 and the plan is to have dinner at Mythos. Bad plan. After the long walk back to The Lost Continent, we find Mythos closed. There's a sign on the door bidding us to try Confisco Grille and so we do just that. Even though the park is open until 7pm, Confiscos is pretty barren. This does nothing to help dispel the cafeteria feeling I'm getting from the setup.
Oh well, once you're there, you're there, so we sat and ate. The food was okay, but the daquiris were dreadful. Our waittress did confess that it was her first day. Perhaps she was filling in as bartender too. 1 Pizza + 1 Pasta + 1 Fajita + drinks + 1 dessert = $64 with tax and tip.
We meander back in time for the premier of Survivor. Afterward, we discover what will become an ongoing source of amusement - Pool People. These are those hapless souls who somehow find themselves inside the pool gates but cannot find their way out. They wander from locked gate to locked gate until somehow they escape. The young and fit choose the leaping method; the humble, the service entrance; while others just sort of fade out of sight. In the dark, I imagine them huddled together in the sand waiting for the morning blare of rock music to signal their freedom.
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=443696">Day 1</a><br>
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=444145">Day 2</a><br>
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=445560">Day 3</a><br>
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=446091">Day 4</a><br>
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=446592">Day 5</a><br>
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=447105">Day 6 & 7</a>
We pulled our earplugs out at 9:30 and pulled back the drapes to a beautiful sunny Florida morning. There is a snorer among us (We're not talking about delicate little snorts and snurgs). But we're still chipper and rejoicing in the fact that were not waiting in the DC airport terminal.
We walked down the meandering path to Islands of Adventure and were at the gate around 11:00. This, by the way, was only 1 hour after the park opened and there was a light but steady stream of visitors coming through the gates.
After christening our 5 day passes (these were a good deal on the Universal site - 5 consecutive days hopping between both parks for $87), we headed over to Croissant Moon to check out the bakery offerings. I quickly decided that I would just plop myself down at one of their tables and spend the rest of my vacation slowly eating my way through the dessert case.
Alas it was not to be and I was rudely dragged away by my travelling companions who's attention had been diverted by the appearance of Woody Woodpecker. Laura had her picture taken with Woody and then Spiderman. It was only later upon close examination of the photos that we noticed that Spiderman was a little...um...enthused at the time.
We drag Mary onto Spiderman and have no wait using our RPR FOTL cards. The 3d on this ride seemed to be better than it was a fews ago when we first rode it. Could have been better glasses, or maybe it was that we were sitting up front.
Onward we walked to preview Ripsaw Falls and Jurassic Park. These we were saving for another day when we would be appropriately dressed to act like human sponges. This was Laura's first time to IOA and with camera in hand, we quickly got bogged down in the eye-candy that is Toon Lagoon.
So here we are among some of the most sought after fast paced in your face rollercoasters in Orlando and guess what our next ride is? That's right! The Flying Unicorn. There was really no line but we used our cards (because we could) and had to wait a few minutes before we could walk merrily, merrily, merrily to our unicorn cart. (They were adding another unicorn cart "for our convenience".) I tried to take pictures on the ride but Mary kept yelling at me to sit still and stop twisting around and jiggling the lap bar. She's such a daredevil.
Next was the Eighth Voyage of Sinbad where we again used our cards and were treated to a separate entrance near a trash receptical that smelled as if someone had used it as a baby changing table. "Pleassssseeeeee. Let. Us. In." We found good seats up front in the center and enjoyed the swashbuckling stunts.
We continued on to Seuss Landing and boarded the couches for The Cat in the Hat. There's something really alluring about riding a couch after you've been walking around in the heat for a while. After this was One Fish,Two Fish where Laura deftly manuevered us out of the way of the spitting fish. Afterward, we both notice that we have that darn song stuck in our heads.
The soothing couches have worked their magic on Mary and she has finally recovered from the Flying Unicorn. We coax her onto the Caro-Seuss-el. But there's nothing doing when it comes to looping back for another go at Spiderman. Mary sits it out while Laura and I ride twice. On our first turn, there's a glitch and we're just sort of lurching around in the dark next to some grey screens. They got things sorted out and we went around again.
We call it a day and meander back to our rooms around 3:30. I'm sure when they designed the walking path between CityWalk and RPR, they had grand visions of emulating Olmsted. But in the Florida heat, I really started to build up a healthy resentment for the big loop around the little cove by the bridge. We make matters worse by following the sign on the left directing us to the lobby. More meandering. Up hill. In the heat. And we pop out at the front of the hotel. I wouldn't recommend this path unless you're wanting to check in after going to the parks.
Laura and I hit the pool until 4:30 and Mary naps in the room. We shower and change and then catch the boat to CityWalk ("There's a party goin' on right here, A celebration to last throughout the years").
It's a little after 5 and the plan is to have dinner at Mythos. Bad plan. After the long walk back to The Lost Continent, we find Mythos closed. There's a sign on the door bidding us to try Confisco Grille and so we do just that. Even though the park is open until 7pm, Confiscos is pretty barren. This does nothing to help dispel the cafeteria feeling I'm getting from the setup.
Oh well, once you're there, you're there, so we sat and ate. The food was okay, but the daquiris were dreadful. Our waittress did confess that it was her first day. Perhaps she was filling in as bartender too. 1 Pizza + 1 Pasta + 1 Fajita + drinks + 1 dessert = $64 with tax and tip.
We meander back in time for the premier of Survivor. Afterward, we discover what will become an ongoing source of amusement - Pool People. These are those hapless souls who somehow find themselves inside the pool gates but cannot find their way out. They wander from locked gate to locked gate until somehow they escape. The young and fit choose the leaping method; the humble, the service entrance; while others just sort of fade out of sight. In the dark, I imagine them huddled together in the sand waiting for the morning blare of rock music to signal their freedom.
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=443696">Day 1</a><br>
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=444145">Day 2</a><br>
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=445560">Day 3</a><br>
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=446091">Day 4</a><br>
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=446592">Day 5</a><br>
<a href = "http://disboards.com/showthread.php?threadid=447105">Day 6 & 7</a>
