The most fun 2 people could cram into a day!

[GreyStr0ke]

Great installment - what a shame about Dudley's - it's such a great ride, it seems a pity that they aren't keeping it looking good.

I wish I could have taken pictures on the ride to help point out it's flaws but it wasn't worth risking ruining the camera.

Next installment will be up very soon!

 

[GreyStr0ke]

I sent everything I needed to update this to myself at work today so that is why the update is coming so soon.

Part 3

Being already soaked we decided to pass on Popeye and head for Jurassic Park. I kept reading that if you get to the Pteranodon Flyers early enough you can get on without having to borrow a kid. We went into Camp Jurassic and I was so excited because I thought there was no way we would miss this ride. That excitement turned to disappointment when we saw a 60-minute wait posted . Oh well, maybe someday I will get to go on the only ride at IOA that I have never been on.

Ashley was still in need of a brush so I remembered buying socks at Jurassic Outfitters one day when my shoe got soaked at Camp Jurassic. I figured if they sold socks there they had to have a brush and sure enough they did. I got her a brush and the both of us some sunscreen which was SPF50+.

We both wanted to go on Jurassic Park and there was no wait so we decided to go on it.

One thing I don't understand though is there was a family who was coming to ride it rihgt behind us and they all had Express Passes. Now the ride had no wait but they used there Express anyway and wasted it for no reason. If a ride has little or no wait and you have an Express Pass then don't use it! Save it so you can ride it again later when the line is an hour long.

It was pretty much choose your own row becuase there was no one riding it so after just going on Dudley we opted to sit in the back. Everything appeared to be working pretty well. The Hadroasaur was working, the box dropped, ect. We took some pictures and just enjoyed the ride.

How exciting.

The Hadrasaur!

Going behind the waterfall.

Look at that wet hair.

This is one of my favorites.

Our on ride photo would have turned out great but the lady in front of me had her arm covering my face .

There wasn’t really much else do in Jurassic Park except walk to the Lost Continent. I noticed that there seems to be so much space in between the JPRA and the exit of the island heading towards LC. A new attraction is greatly needed in this Island . As we were walking out we spotted the Watering Hole. They opened at 11am; I would be back in a little bit .

We headed to The Lost Continent and stopped to take some pictures.

Ashley was scared Dueling Dragons would have a long wait by now and thought we were gonna have to use our Express Pass. We walked up to the front of the queue and there was a 5-minute wait posted so we got in the normal line again. It was about 10:15-10:30 now and we had not had to use our Express Plus passes once. Things were going exactly as planned. Not to mention it was a beautiful day outside and no sign of rain or “isolated thunderstorms”.

Once again we had to find a locker to store her purse and my sunglasses in and it was just ridiculous watching people get so mad cause they couldn’t figure out how to work them. These people seemed so misinformed about them to. One guy was like “they only work for 15 minutes then you have to pay for them”. Um no. An hour and 15 minutes is more like it, smart one. Well stupid people will be….well, stupid people. Not my problem unless they are holding up the line.

The journey from the front of the line to the actual ride was very scenic as it always is. I really hope they don’t mess it up to much with Harry Potter. We chose Fire as our fate and there was no line at all. I guess by 5 minutes they meant that was how long it takes to get to the actual ride.

We got off Fire and got back in line for Ice. After riding both back to back we once again agreed (2 times in one day, that’s a record ) that we liked Ice better. Fire felt like there were more drops were Ice seemed like it had a lot more inversions and went faster.

One thing I noticed while we were up on the lift hill were some bulldozers over near the employee parking lot. Don’t know if that means anything but just an observation.

The both of us were really starting feel hot. We kept applying the sunscreen so that the overpowering sun wouldn’t fry us. It was time to cool off so it was either watch Sinbad or go to Poseidon's Fury. I know, it was a lose lose situation but we both needed to just rest. Fortunately Sinbad didn’t start for another hour so Poseidon it was. There was 10 wait so we just got in the regular line and enjoyed the air conditioning.

It felt very cool in there

This picture came out a lot better on the actual photo we printed and edited at Walgreens. For some reason none of the edits we made to the pictures showed up on the photo CD we bought.

Our guide was really good. I wish I could give a name but it is always Taylor. He really brought out the best of the remaining good aspects of the show. The sword/trident fight between Darkennon and Poseidon was really hard to see though. It was almost like there was too much light on the screen. Regardless, I was surprised by how well the Taylor actor interacted with the audience and the voice recordings and made the show a lot more believable/entertaining.

 

[WeirdEyes]

Great report so far! I like the picture of Ashley also.

 

[dsmom]

Another great installment! I love the pictures! The one of ya'll at Poseidon's is my favorite!
We also live at the beach not far from Jacksonville. It usually takes my husband 2 1/2 hours to get there but on our last trip- Memorial Day morning he got there in 2 hours! I'm glad I slept the whole way. Can't wait to read more.

 

[damo]

Great job! Keep it coming.

 

[macraven]

what a great report. loved it.


you two make a beautiful couple !

 

[GreyStr0ke]

I don't have too many pictures for this part as well as the following parts. Sorry.

Part 4

Once we were finished enjoying the refreshing air condition inside of Poseidon’s Fury, we decided to go see how the crowds were doing around Seuss Landing. It looked like things were beginning to pick up around the parks and they should have been since it was almost 12 now. Seuss Landing was so bright and colorful and really looked like it had been kept up very well.

Neither one of us had ever been on the High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride and we were both eager to try out the newest addition to IOA. I had read around on the boards that it’s a very short ride so waiting in a line past 10 minutes wasn’t even gonna be an option. We walked up to the queue and the wait was posted at 20 minutes. This was the longest line we had encountered up to that point so we figured we probably wouldn’t want to ride it again so we decided to break in our Express Plus passes. As we gave the TM our Express, they were marked with a red star with a permanent red marker. I quickly thought that we may really enjoy this ride and want to go on it again later so we both put a little saliva on our fingers and rubbed the star until it came off. As you see later on, this isn’t the last time we pull this trick off.

We make our way through the Express line and are quickly boarded on the next Trolley. I thought that there would be some space in the seats so that you could slide around and move to see different views of the park but they really lock you down into those seats. We were seated in the back row on the blue tracks which are on the left side. We waited at the station for a little bit before the ride finally took off. Immediately we began to hear the rhyming narration, which you can come to expect on any of the attractions in Seuss Landing.

We went through Circus McGurkis and thought that it was pretty cool being able to get a bird’s eye view of the restaurant.

The Trolley then proceeded to go around through the outskirts of Seuss Landing which allowed me to get these pictures of the rest of the park

Before we knew it, the ride was back at the station. Now I see why everyone said that it was so short. Besides the time duration of the ride, it was a pretty good ride...Just a few years late but still a good ride . We exited the Trolley and saw the 20 minute wait for the Standby Line. It hardly looked like a 20 minute wait. More like 5 minutes considering how long it takes them to load and unload the ride. Either way no big deal, we got on it and that’s all that matters.

Ashley asked if I wanted to ride the Caro-Seuss-el put I wasn’t really interested . I had my heart sat on one of my favorite dark rides of all times, The Cat in the Hat! The crowds were really beginning to pick up as was the heat. Seuss Landing felt like a desert. Cat in the Hat had a 20 minute wait as well which I would have been more then happy to wait in but as we were walking up to get in line, a TM changed the wait to 30 minutes . We could have used our Express Passes but we declined because we would rather ride it later after we came back from Universal Studios with our Express.

Neither one of us were extremely hungry so we ended up skipping lunch and getting a snack. She wanted a soft pretzel and an Icee and I wanted a churro . We both lucked out when we found a stand right next to Cat in the Hat which had both snacks available. We sat down next to the little pool where you throw coins into the fish mouths and rested while we enjoyed our snacks. Her pretzel was amazing and I wish I could say the same about my churro. It was one of the worst churro’s I have ever had and I have had a lot. For those churro enthusiasts out there like me, you know when you get a bad churro. They taste stale, are scarce on cinnamon and absolutely cold . Oh well I paid for it so I might as well of eaten it and I did.

The both of us had made it around IOA once now and were contemplating what to do now. We walked by the sign in front of Port of Entry to check out the wait times for the popular attractions. Hulk and Spider Man both had around an 80 minute wait. So we decided to just back track a little and walk around the park. I really wanted a drink at this time so we headed back towards the Jurassic Park/Lost Continent area…

 

[dsmom]

Another great installment! OMG what a georgous picture of the two of you waiting for the Train ride- you should have that one framed. The train ride is short but it was my sons favorite ride! Thank goodness for front of the line because we had to do it MANY times!

 

[damo]

I love Ashley's Tiffany's necklace. A gift from you?

 

[jayster]

I am looking forward to the rest of the report...you really seem to have your USO / IOA act together....carry on!!!!!

 

[GreyStr0ke]

I love Ashley's Tiffany's necklace. A gift from you?

That was her graduation presnet from me

 

[GreyStr0ke]

Part 5

Our long trek back around the islands had begun. It was funny to walk by Marvel and see the lines for the Hulk and Spiderman exceeding past the front of the queues. It sure made me feel good about getting there so early and going on both with no waits at all. I was getting tired of using me debit card on everything so I found an ATM right past Spiderman so I could take out some cash.

We passed through the Lost Continent and headed back to Jurassic Park. It was time to find the Watering Hole so I could pound a few drinks before making our way over to Universal. I figured if I had a few drinks right now, I would have plenty of time to get myself back together before driving home. So before anyone starts telling me how dumb I am, It was now about 12:30ish and I had plenty of time before we left considering we were both gonna have a big dinner at around 5. I stopped by the bar and got myself a Top Shelf Long Island Iced Tea. It sure was good too . We walked around for a little bit then headed back to the Lost Continent. It was getting really hot out and Ashley wanted to go sit down for a while so we headed to the Enchanted Oak Tavern/Alchemy Bar .

What a beautiful site that was to see...A full bar .

While she was cooling off I went up to the bar and ordered a double Jack & Coke. Hey! For what they were charging for a single shot, a double was a bargain. It was dark and cool in the Enchanted Oak, but it was a busy time for people too eat lunch and we felt bad sitting at a table not eating anything so we got up and walked back towards Jurassic Park.

The both of us were still not fairing well with the heat so we went to the one place where we new we could enjoy the AC and not have to worry about hogging a table. One of the best kept secrets in the parks is the Jurassic Park Discovery Center. We stopped around the back to take a few pictures with the lagoon behind us.

Being behind there was seriously like being in the desert . It was Seuss Landing times 5. After about 5 minutes we went inside and looked around at the exhibits. I showed Ashley that if you shake the eggs, it feels like something is moving around inside of them.

I also showed her the best place to take a nap in there. Several trips to IOA I have taken a midday nap in the Discovery Center only to be waken up by people standing over me and my friends taking pictures like we were part of the attraction or something. However, she wasn’t comfortable taking a nap in a public place like that. Me on the other hand, I spent my junior year and senior year of high school sleeping anywhere and everywhere so I could care less what a bunch of tourists thought.

We looked around some more and snapped a few more photos before we left.

It tried to eat me!!!

Now remember, the weather forecast insisted that there were going to be thunderstorms scattered throughout the day. So far the sky was clear and we had experienced no rain. Other then the 90 degree weather, the day was beautiful so far.

It was a good time now, to start heading over to Universal Studios and take advantage of our Express Passes. We made our way back through Toon Lagoon and noticed that people were doing what ever they could to keep cool as Popeye’s wait was now up to an hour. Where as earlier it was walk on and get your own raft to yourself. We weren’t ready to get soaked again though because we had just finally dried off for Dudley nearly 3 hours ago. I had now acquired some quarters and dollar bills so we decided to spend some time soaking people on Popeye’s. There’s a little section right near the bridge were there are 3 of the machines in a row and all of which activate a shower head on the bridge above the where the raft passes by. We used all 3 and soaked the people before they even got wet from the actual ride . We still had some anger left in us from the people that got us on Dudley.

As we were walking out of the park, we were amazed by the hoards of people coming in so late. It was funny to think that as these people came rolling in at around 1 pm, that me and Ashley had already been on most of the major rides and some more then once. Some people will never learn. I say let them stand in line for the Hulk for 80 minutes.

As we were walking out of the park, the Marvel Super Hero parade was going on and we wern't prepared but we managed to get a back shot of Spiderman.

We walked out of the park and sat down to reapply sunscreen as the walk over to Universal looked like it offered no shade to walk in.

 

[Melanie230]

GREAT REPORT!!! We have 2 of those cups Ashley is holding! Bought those last year and bringing them back this year!! Cant wait to hear more.

 

[GreyStr0ke]

The installment today is short and lacks pictures so I apologize in adavance. We took pictures on and around ET but they didnt come out too good.

Part 6

The walk over to Universal felt horrible . Just when we think that the heat is at its worse, we are proved wrong. It was really beginning to get to her more so then it was too me. After we went into IOA I held onto both park tickets so we had no idea which one was which but we each took one and tried our luck. Of course we each had the wrong ticket so after exchanging with each other we were inside Universal Studios. We first walked over to the board where the wait times are posted and we noticed that the lines were much shorter here then compared to IOA. The longest line appeared to be 45 minutes and that was for MIB. Even Revenge of the Mummy was a 30 minute wait. Regardless of wait times we were gonna use our Express over here as our time was no becoming limited. Ashley was still feeling very hot and she wanted to ride E.T. first so we headed down Hollywood to make our way to help our favorite little Alien get back to his home planet.

On the way to E.T. was Terminator 2: 3-D. I could tell that she wasn’t really feeling good so I suggested that we go see this show since it was all indoors and we would get to sit down. We whipped out our Express and cut the line of people who were forced to wait for the Next show to start as we entered the pre-show room.

The pre-show “SUPER” lady was not as good as some of the other ones I had seen. Either way she isn’t something to complain about when Shaq is still wearing an Orlando Magic jersey and his signature shoes from when I was in the 5th grade . We moved into the theater and were pretty much forced into the back row. I don’t think either one of us wanted to see the show but it sure was nice sitting down in that A/C. The actors who played John and Sarah looked pretty believable; I wish the same could be said for the Terminator.

It was now time from the best ride in the park….E.T.!!!!!!! I think the time was around 2:00 now but the crowds were still not that bad over here. E.T. had a 20 minute wait but we didn’t wait so we walked right in. The first thing I noticed in the pre-show room was that they were no longer using the large TV screen.

Whats up with that?

Instead they were little screens to watch which really took away from the pre-show in my opinion. Maybe the screens have been like that for a while but who knows. The last time I rode this was at HHN16 and I was so plastered I could barely walk so who am I to remember? Unlike most people who give the TM’s ridiculous names, I just give them a normal name, the same name every time I go on. FRANK. It’s 1 syllable so E.T. has less of a chance to butcher it and I find it extremely funny when he calls me Frank. I’m weird ok? After walking through the forest and enjoying the most wonderful smell of the world, we board our bikes and prepare to help save E.T.’s home planet. We took some pictures on the ride but none of them came out good. I really wanted pictures of the baby E.T.’s cause they are my favorite part of the ride. The ride then got to the part where E.T. says goodbye and then says our names. That wasn’t the case today .

It was more along the lines of “Goodbye, htrewprbgf swrgtbhewrbg wergwybc ebfwjbfsafaeyti ebwnjtbwtu”.

It sounded like he was speaking a completely foreign language. I could not make out one name, let alone Frank or Ashley. That stupid alien! See if we ever save his planet again.

 

[Selvan]

This brings back fun memories. Thanks. I had told my family you could give yourselves strange names on ET, but didn't realize from reading the boards that you actually had to give the name to person to type in. We all thought of bizarre names that were a family inside joke, but I was the only one to have the guts say the name out loud.

Keep going, I'm hooked on your report.

 

[Melanie230]

Keep the report coming! I am enjoying in between PACKING!!!!

 

[GreyStr0ke]

Sorry for the delay in updates. The TR is almost over though so there isn't going to be many more installments.

Part 7

Universal Studios now seemed very busy once we exited out of E.T. We really had no game plan at the Studios except for if we saw something we wanted to do then we did it. I personally was there for one reason only and that was to go on Revenge of the Mummy. Unfortunately, Revenge of the Mummy was on the other side of the park so we decided to just make one circle around and enjoy the park.

I wanted to stop and get a picture showing my true feelings about how I felt about Back to the Future being replaced by The Simpsons.

We headed towards Men in Black and stopped along the way to just relax for a few minutes.

After our short break we headed right for Men in Black. If I remember correctly, the stand-by line had a 60 minute wait. Thank god for the Express passes!!! Once again we had to check her purse into a locker but it wasn't nearly as bad as the situations over at The Hulk and Dueling Dragons. Everything was set so we got right into the Express line and headed down that hallway before we were intertwined with the regular guests. I really don't like when this happens because I always feel bad meeting up with the regular guests who have been waiting for an hour in line where as we just walked all the way up to the front.

Ashley had never been on this before so she was excited to see how it compares to Buzz Lightyear. However, she really had no idea what she was doing. We were seated on the left track and had the back row to ourselves. She was sitting on the right side and I was in the middle. Thinking back now, I probably should have sat on the end. Ashley started off strong and was beating me but then fell far behind as I locked my gun onto the other car's exhaust port. In all honesty, I'm not very good at Men in Black. I can max out on Buzz halfway through the ride but I just haven't really had enough practice on this ride to know where to shoot to get a lot of points. Regardless, it's still one of the best rides at the Studio. As we got to the end I made sure to get the “Red Button Bonus” and that made me feel a little better about my sad score. I don't remember the exact number but it was in the 400 thousands. Ashley on the other hand didn't break 20 thousand . Either way we beat the other car so that's always a plus.

Afterwards, I wanted to go back on since our Express Passes weren't marked or scanned but Ashley wanted to keep going forward. This was probably the best idea since it seemed to be getting later then we had both thought it was and we still wanted to eat dinner at Margartiaville and go back to IOA.

It was still really hot out and neither one of us wanted to stay in the Studios for much longer so we just bee lined it over to the Mummy.

I really wanted to go on Jaws and see the new effects but Ashley really doesn't like that ride and still wasn't feeling too good so we passed on it . The fire effects probably wouldn't have felt too good in the 90 degree weather anyway.

We also passed by Earthquake but we didn't have the time to sit through 3 pre shows so that got skipped as well. No big loss there.

Before going on Mummy, we stopped to get some bottles of water and just sit down and reflect on how much fun we had already. A few minutes later we were ready to go on the best ride IMO in all of USO. But first we had to check her purse into another locker .

The line was only a 45 minute wait but that was 45 minutes too long for us. We pulled out our Express Passes and proceed to get in line. That’s when the worst thing ever happened. THEY MARKED THEM!!!!! . No big deal though…We casually walked further into the building and did our infamous erase trick. The initials came right off and we were happy again . It was nice walking through the cold and dark line enjoying being out of the sun. We headed up the stairs and got right on the back row. The ride was amazing as usual and everything seemed to be working perfectly.

After getting off we hoped right back in line and went unnoticed :ninja: by the same TM that marked our Express Passes before. If only it were this easy at Halloween Horror Nights. This time the Express line was backed up a little so we ended up waiting 5 minutes or so and then we got on again. Once again it was just as good and now there was just one ride that I still needed to go on to being fully satisfied.

It was now about 4:45 and we needed to get moving. The both of us were starving and it was time to leave the studios but on the way out we agreed to go on Jimmy Neutron which had a pretty long line. We got in the Express Line and made the next showing .
The ride was fun but still not as good as Hannah Barbara was. I could have done without the chicken dance. We got off and looked around for a few minutes and then exited the park back into City Walk.

 

[JMCDAD]

Thanks for your report

Question, why do you have to put her purse in a locker for MIB, do you have to do this for most rides there ?

just trying to figure out how much or less to carry when we go

 

[GreyStr0ke]

Thanks for your report

Question, why do you have to put her purse in a locker for MIB, do you have to do this for most rides there ?

just trying to figure out how much or less to carry when we go

They don't allow you to bring carry on bags on Men in Black. I guess its for safety reason. You have to check it into the lockers before you can ride. The lockers are free for the first hour and 15 minutes though so it's not a huge deal.

The only rides you cant carry things on if I remember correctly are The Hulk, Dueling Dragons, Mummy and Men in Black. Im probably forgetting something though.

 

[Nicole786]

Awesome TR, we will be at US this september. Its cool that you live in Lake WOrth, i live in Wellington, not too far!