bengunn
Pirate Member
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- Aug 9, 2001
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Day 5 Islands of Adventure
Previous episodes:
Prequel
Day 1 The trip to Orlando
Day 2 Animal Kingdom
Day 3 Magic Kingdom
Day 4 Typhoon Lagoon, Shopping and Illuminations Cruise
The Cast:
Richard (bengunn): Chief planner
Kathy : DW, just wants to go on holiday
Josie : DD 20, at Reading University, Assistant Planner, not very good at getting up
Sam : DS 17, just done AS exams, can get up very quickly when he wants to
Tuesday 20th August
Slipping again today; we did not leave the villa until 08:45 but it was a fairly straightforward drive along I192, up SR535 and then I4 to the Universal site, which we got to at 09:15. Following advice from someone (cant remember who), we paid $11 for preferred parking and ended up in King Kong 311, which is still a long walk (we mostly avoided the moving walkways as people stood still on them and it was quicker to walk).
Through the usual bag checks and into the park; this was our first visit so it was all new to us. I went to Guest Services to try to make a PS for Mythos for dinner only to be told that it closed at 15:00
; this did not impress us as we were not into large lunches in the summer heat, so sadly we missed out on Mythos this trip.
We grabbed Express Passes for the Incredible Hulk Coaster and then queued 25 minutes for the Amazing Adventures of Spiderman. It is worth doing this ride on standby at least once, as we found out later that you miss a lot of the pre-show if you have Express Passes. I totally agree with all of the claims that Spiderman is the best ride around; it is a thrill ride without being scary; there is movement, 3D effects, heat and water; if you have not tried it yet do so at the first opportunity even if you hate every other thrill ride.
We next walked straight onto Storm Force Accelatron; good fun but just tea-cups in disguise so dont queue long for it. Sam and I decided to go on Dr. Dooms Fearfall next; it was supposed to be a 15 minute wait but was only 10 minutes; Josie and Kathy bottled out of this one. I have read bad reports of this ride but we really rated it; you are thrust upwards very fast and then, just as you get to the top, you are in free-fall; that does not last long though and then you bounce up and down a couple of times before coming to a soft landing excellent. After we had ridden, Josie wished she had gone as well but it was time for the Hulk Express Passes now (she got her chance later in the holiday).
Kathy chickened out of the Hulk (even though she had an EP for it) so the rest of us went on, strapped in, moved off and stopped just before the acceleration ramp. We sat there for 5 minutes while they waited for an engineer to come and reset the ride (nothing wrong just the computer throwing a wobbly); I was not too happy about this as my restraint was a bit tight and I could not breath in fully! Eventually off we went; very rapid acceleration up the ramp and upside down immediately you come out; this is a great coaster but not for the faint-hearted we enjoyed it though
.
On the way out of the Hulk, a CM was giving out Express passes for Duelling Dragons so we grabbed four of those. I think that IOA was very busy around Marvel Island but quieter further back and they were trying to get people to move around the park. We met up with Kathy, who had seen a load of superheroes going by on four wheel motorbikes; we then saw them coming back; Spiderman, Captain America, Dr. Doom, the Green Goblin, and three of the X Men Storm, Rogue and Wolverine.
It was about half an hour until the EPs return time, so we walked through Suess Landing and went on The Cat in the Hat as it was only a 10 minute wait. This ride was nice and cool and was much better than we expected as it spins quite viciously for a small childrens ride and has some amusing models.
We then carried on, through the Lost Continent, to find Duelling Dragons. We managed to persuade Kathy to try this ride (but this was the last big coaster she went on this trip). The standby wait was not very long here but we used our free EPs and bypassed most of the queuing area (which is enormous as we found out later in the holiday). We opted for the Fire Dragon which was a bad choice as it broke down when we were next but one to load (anyone noticing a pattern here?). We then waited for 20 minutes while they ran endless empty coasters round the track; eventually they pronounced that it was safe and let us board. We were fairly near the front and it was worth the wait; I even managed to spot the points where we nearly hit the Ice Dragon!
It was now very hot and so we decided to break for lunch. From our previous resolution, we opted to eat a light(ish) lunch and headed back to the Port of Entry to the Croissant Moon Bakery. The food there is excellent including subs and filled croissants; they also give you a discount if you have an AAA card. While we were eating lunch, there was a quick and heavy rain shower, so it was quite a bit cooler when we ventured out.
We decided to watch the 14:00 show of the Eighth Voyage of Sinbad, however, having sat down they announced that they were unable to reset some of the pyrotechnics due to the thunder that was still rolling around and so the show might not go ahead. We decided to wait anyway and at about 14:00 various CMs appeared and began planting explosives on the set. The show started 10 minutes late in the end and was well worth the wait; do see it if you have not already done so; it has lots of explosions, flames etc. and is great fun.
After this, we had a look at the talking fountain which various American boys were taunting (it absolutely soaked them for it) and then joined the queue for Poseidons Fury (35 minutes wait but a long time for the EP return). The guide we had was very good and played the dumb assistant role beautifully. The effects are impressive, especially the water vortex; again do see it if you have not already.
We next walked into Jurassic Park; love the gates and the theme music; just like the real thing Oh sorry it is the real thing isnt it
. We queued for 10 minutes to see the Triceratops and were shown the two month old baby while we waited. The Triceratops is great, I thought that it would be a model not the real thing; isnt genetic engineering wonderful? (Ok, I am only kidding but it is very realistic).
Time for the Jurassic Park River Adventure next; no Express Passes left and a 30 minute wait which turned out to be only 20 minutes, so not too bad. We repeated the trick with putting our backpack into a bin liner here (and for the other water rides) but did not actually get very wet here, just a little damp round the edges. We managed to escape the Veloceraptors and the Tyrannosaurus Rex and had a look at the photo; this was so funny as a man in the front row (not me) had taken his tee-shirt off and was hiding his face in his hands; it looked as though he was only wearing underpants although I think it was his shorts in reality!
We had decided to do all of the wet rides today as we had brought a change of clothes; so it was on to Toon Lagoon and a 15 minute wait for Popeye & Blutos Bilge-Rat Barges. Kathy and Josie decided to wear ponchos for this, which was a wise move as these are the wettest (and best) raft rides I have ever been on; everyone got soaked. Here I will add a warning do not wear white trousers on this ride; one poor girl did and they were extremely see-through when she got off; I will say no more as this is a family board!
As Sam and I were soaked, we moved on to Dudley Do-Rights Ripsaw Falls. A 30 minute wait turned out to be 20 minutes and we got even wetter (if that is possible) on that amazing final drop. Incidentally, do not stand to close to the edge of the bridge at the end of the main drop as you will get wet; we saw a man push his daughter in a pushchair to the edge for a good view and then rapidly move her back when she got splashed! Sam and I then went and dried off and changed our clothes.
It was now 17:25 so we started looking for somewhere to eat dinner. The Comic Strip Café in Toon Lagoon looked good as it is a food court with lots of different choices, except that all but one was closed. We walked back through Marvel Super Hero Island (50 minutes wait for Spiderman so we gave that idea up) and looked at the Confisco Grille but that was closing at 19:00 and it was 18:45 by now. It appeared that all of the proper eating places (as opposed to snack places) were closing a 19:00 a whole hour before the park closed; what on earth do they think they are doing?
So we left the park and went to the Hard Rock Café instead. There was quite a queue but I prduced my All Access Card and we were treated like royalty; the greeter radioed through that there was a party of four with All Access and off we went straight to a table! Our server was an amusing character called Ziggy; I had the special which was an excellent fillet mignon steak, Kathy had fajitas and Josie and Sam both had the BBQ chicken and ribs combo. For desert I had a hot fudge brownie ice-cream concoction which I could and Kathy could not finish and Sam had an ice-cream. I was pursuaded to buy a souvenir beer glass for a bargain $1.99 and the total bill came to $96.39 plus tip; not bad for a wonderful meal. I should add that I managed to consume three Budweisers here which were my first beers of the holiday (yes I know I am letting the side down Bonzo).
After this, we struggled back to our car (it is a long walk on the way back) and went back to the villa to watch TV and relax. Looking at our receipts, we have one for Wal-Mart timed at 21:42 so I can only suppose that Kathy and I went out shopping (for cereal, clothes washing liquid and surface wipes).
Tomorrow: Epcot
Previous episodes:
Prequel
Day 1 The trip to Orlando
Day 2 Animal Kingdom
Day 3 Magic Kingdom
Day 4 Typhoon Lagoon, Shopping and Illuminations Cruise
The Cast:
Richard (bengunn): Chief planner
Kathy : DW, just wants to go on holiday
Josie : DD 20, at Reading University, Assistant Planner, not very good at getting up
Sam : DS 17, just done AS exams, can get up very quickly when he wants to
Tuesday 20th August
Slipping again today; we did not leave the villa until 08:45 but it was a fairly straightforward drive along I192, up SR535 and then I4 to the Universal site, which we got to at 09:15. Following advice from someone (cant remember who), we paid $11 for preferred parking and ended up in King Kong 311, which is still a long walk (we mostly avoided the moving walkways as people stood still on them and it was quicker to walk).
Through the usual bag checks and into the park; this was our first visit so it was all new to us. I went to Guest Services to try to make a PS for Mythos for dinner only to be told that it closed at 15:00
; this did not impress us as we were not into large lunches in the summer heat, so sadly we missed out on Mythos this trip.We grabbed Express Passes for the Incredible Hulk Coaster and then queued 25 minutes for the Amazing Adventures of Spiderman. It is worth doing this ride on standby at least once, as we found out later that you miss a lot of the pre-show if you have Express Passes. I totally agree with all of the claims that Spiderman is the best ride around; it is a thrill ride without being scary; there is movement, 3D effects, heat and water; if you have not tried it yet do so at the first opportunity even if you hate every other thrill ride.
We next walked straight onto Storm Force Accelatron; good fun but just tea-cups in disguise so dont queue long for it. Sam and I decided to go on Dr. Dooms Fearfall next; it was supposed to be a 15 minute wait but was only 10 minutes; Josie and Kathy bottled out of this one. I have read bad reports of this ride but we really rated it; you are thrust upwards very fast and then, just as you get to the top, you are in free-fall; that does not last long though and then you bounce up and down a couple of times before coming to a soft landing excellent. After we had ridden, Josie wished she had gone as well but it was time for the Hulk Express Passes now (she got her chance later in the holiday).
Kathy chickened out of the Hulk (even though she had an EP for it) so the rest of us went on, strapped in, moved off and stopped just before the acceleration ramp. We sat there for 5 minutes while they waited for an engineer to come and reset the ride (nothing wrong just the computer throwing a wobbly); I was not too happy about this as my restraint was a bit tight and I could not breath in fully! Eventually off we went; very rapid acceleration up the ramp and upside down immediately you come out; this is a great coaster but not for the faint-hearted we enjoyed it though
.On the way out of the Hulk, a CM was giving out Express passes for Duelling Dragons so we grabbed four of those. I think that IOA was very busy around Marvel Island but quieter further back and they were trying to get people to move around the park. We met up with Kathy, who had seen a load of superheroes going by on four wheel motorbikes; we then saw them coming back; Spiderman, Captain America, Dr. Doom, the Green Goblin, and three of the X Men Storm, Rogue and Wolverine.
It was about half an hour until the EPs return time, so we walked through Suess Landing and went on The Cat in the Hat as it was only a 10 minute wait. This ride was nice and cool and was much better than we expected as it spins quite viciously for a small childrens ride and has some amusing models.
We then carried on, through the Lost Continent, to find Duelling Dragons. We managed to persuade Kathy to try this ride (but this was the last big coaster she went on this trip). The standby wait was not very long here but we used our free EPs and bypassed most of the queuing area (which is enormous as we found out later in the holiday). We opted for the Fire Dragon which was a bad choice as it broke down when we were next but one to load (anyone noticing a pattern here?). We then waited for 20 minutes while they ran endless empty coasters round the track; eventually they pronounced that it was safe and let us board. We were fairly near the front and it was worth the wait; I even managed to spot the points where we nearly hit the Ice Dragon!
It was now very hot and so we decided to break for lunch. From our previous resolution, we opted to eat a light(ish) lunch and headed back to the Port of Entry to the Croissant Moon Bakery. The food there is excellent including subs and filled croissants; they also give you a discount if you have an AAA card. While we were eating lunch, there was a quick and heavy rain shower, so it was quite a bit cooler when we ventured out.
We decided to watch the 14:00 show of the Eighth Voyage of Sinbad, however, having sat down they announced that they were unable to reset some of the pyrotechnics due to the thunder that was still rolling around and so the show might not go ahead. We decided to wait anyway and at about 14:00 various CMs appeared and began planting explosives on the set. The show started 10 minutes late in the end and was well worth the wait; do see it if you have not already done so; it has lots of explosions, flames etc. and is great fun.
After this, we had a look at the talking fountain which various American boys were taunting (it absolutely soaked them for it) and then joined the queue for Poseidons Fury (35 minutes wait but a long time for the EP return). The guide we had was very good and played the dumb assistant role beautifully. The effects are impressive, especially the water vortex; again do see it if you have not already.
We next walked into Jurassic Park; love the gates and the theme music; just like the real thing Oh sorry it is the real thing isnt it
. We queued for 10 minutes to see the Triceratops and were shown the two month old baby while we waited. The Triceratops is great, I thought that it would be a model not the real thing; isnt genetic engineering wonderful? (Ok, I am only kidding but it is very realistic).Time for the Jurassic Park River Adventure next; no Express Passes left and a 30 minute wait which turned out to be only 20 minutes, so not too bad. We repeated the trick with putting our backpack into a bin liner here (and for the other water rides) but did not actually get very wet here, just a little damp round the edges. We managed to escape the Veloceraptors and the Tyrannosaurus Rex and had a look at the photo; this was so funny as a man in the front row (not me) had taken his tee-shirt off and was hiding his face in his hands; it looked as though he was only wearing underpants although I think it was his shorts in reality!
We had decided to do all of the wet rides today as we had brought a change of clothes; so it was on to Toon Lagoon and a 15 minute wait for Popeye & Blutos Bilge-Rat Barges. Kathy and Josie decided to wear ponchos for this, which was a wise move as these are the wettest (and best) raft rides I have ever been on; everyone got soaked. Here I will add a warning do not wear white trousers on this ride; one poor girl did and they were extremely see-through when she got off; I will say no more as this is a family board!
As Sam and I were soaked, we moved on to Dudley Do-Rights Ripsaw Falls. A 30 minute wait turned out to be 20 minutes and we got even wetter (if that is possible) on that amazing final drop. Incidentally, do not stand to close to the edge of the bridge at the end of the main drop as you will get wet; we saw a man push his daughter in a pushchair to the edge for a good view and then rapidly move her back when she got splashed! Sam and I then went and dried off and changed our clothes.
It was now 17:25 so we started looking for somewhere to eat dinner. The Comic Strip Café in Toon Lagoon looked good as it is a food court with lots of different choices, except that all but one was closed. We walked back through Marvel Super Hero Island (50 minutes wait for Spiderman so we gave that idea up) and looked at the Confisco Grille but that was closing at 19:00 and it was 18:45 by now. It appeared that all of the proper eating places (as opposed to snack places) were closing a 19:00 a whole hour before the park closed; what on earth do they think they are doing?
So we left the park and went to the Hard Rock Café instead. There was quite a queue but I prduced my All Access Card and we were treated like royalty; the greeter radioed through that there was a party of four with All Access and off we went straight to a table! Our server was an amusing character called Ziggy; I had the special which was an excellent fillet mignon steak, Kathy had fajitas and Josie and Sam both had the BBQ chicken and ribs combo. For desert I had a hot fudge brownie ice-cream concoction which I could and Kathy could not finish and Sam had an ice-cream. I was pursuaded to buy a souvenir beer glass for a bargain $1.99 and the total bill came to $96.39 plus tip; not bad for a wonderful meal. I should add that I managed to consume three Budweisers here which were my first beers of the holiday (yes I know I am letting the side down Bonzo).
After this, we struggled back to our car (it is a long walk on the way back) and went back to the villa to watch TV and relax. Looking at our receipts, we have one for Wal-Mart timed at 21:42 so I can only suppose that Kathy and I went out shopping (for cereal, clothes washing liquid and surface wipes).
Tomorrow: Epcot
