Third Time's The Charm At The DISNEY COLLEGE PROGRAM Fall '19! (COMPLETE - 8/14)

[missjackiemcg]

It's weird to say but my dad basically raised me on some songs from that album. Dragula and Living Dead Girl bring me back big time to my early iPod years. Two songs we'd play regularly in the car when we first discovered how an AUX card worked.

Jimmy's favorite song in preschool was Dragula Glad I'm in good parenting company!! Only I'm so old that we played the CD!

I know how much you loved HHN this season, so it's cool to read about your actual experiences at the event!! I know there's more to come, and I'm excited for it all....I'm such a chicken, this is as close to attending the event as I'll be coming!

 

[NancyLuvsMickey]

Looks like you had fun at HHN (minus the unnamed person you had to block later)...

Doing HHN alone takes guts... Serious, huge, ginormous guts... You have them... Me, not so much... I'm a scaredy cat...

 

[Jenny Sanders]

Timmy, you should DEFINITELY be the poster child for World Showcase! Love all the pics!

 

[RoseBen009]

Oh my gosh I'm just finding your trip report and I'm LOVING it! You are adorable and it's so fun to get an "insiders" perspective! Looking forward to reading more!

 

[dromio42]

It was such a simple but integral aspect of the Epcot experience. It's like how they got rid of the lights in the ground too. I guarantee people will say they won't miss it until they're like "Hey, wasn't this here?"



It was pretty annoying what happened but it didn't derail the entire night and I'm grateful for that at least.



Definitely not the most comfortable shift I've had, but luckily it didn't become anything worse than what I dealt with on that day.



It is incredible. It amazes me how Pixar came out with that and Coco right after the other, they both are so groundbreaking.



Thank you! I did, it definitely went better than I expected. And omg love that popcorn bucket. Only one of two popcorn buckets I own. That's so cool, Nightmare is fantastic. And YES, facts. No opinions lol

They got rid of the lights in the ground?!? Oh boo.

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Jimmy's favorite song in preschool was Dragula Glad I'm in good parenting company!! Only I'm so old that we played the CD!

Oh I had it burned on a CD too (remember when that was a thing?) Truly quality parenting though haha

I know how much you loved HHN this season, so it's cool to read about your actual experiences at the event!! I know there's more to come, and I'm excited for it all....I'm such a chicken, this is as close to attending the event as I'll be coming!

Be prepared there is so much HHN to come. Also, I definitely implore you to try it. As you'll soon find out, I got many a friend who thought they'd be too scared to do all of it but they did it all and love it as much as I do.

Looks like you had fun at HHN (minus the unnamed person you had to block later)...

I did! Definitely a solid start to the season.

Doing HHN alone takes guts... Serious, huge, ginormous guts... You have them... Me, not so much... I'm a scaredy cat...

I genuinely do not know where they came from. Might be my natural stubbornness to go and being like "I'll do it alone if no one will go with me" lol

Timmy, you should DEFINITELY be the poster child for World Showcase! Love all the pics!

Omg thank you so much!

Oh my gosh I'm just finding your trip report and I'm LOVING it! You are adorable and it's so fun to get an "insiders" perspective! Looking forward to reading more!

Awww you're so sweet. And thank you! I update daily at this point so always new content coming in.

They got rid of the lights in the ground?!? Oh boo.

They did I forget when it was, but yeah they are very much gone, probably because a lot of them were very close to the construction going on near where FountainView used to be.

 

[PlutosRHM55]

You'd Think I Would Stay Away From Batuu, Wouldn't You?
9/9/19: Block Out Date Lifted

We got some good news on this day when Disney started lifting block out dates to Studios. We all kinda saw it coming since it really wasn't that busy on planet. Savi's was but that's a given since we are a limited capacity location, but the amount of people on planet had dropped significantly since opening weekend and luckily it got so low us cast members were now allowed!

Of course, I was gonna take advantage of this, especially since I had a later shift today. I also was messaged by Sydnee asking if I was gonna be in the park so we decided to meet up to hang out together. I believe she had the day off so I'd be splitting be off, which was fine. We'd at least have company in the morning.

I arrived at Studios before she did so I did my own thing for a bit.





When I got into Studios, I realized that I hadn't been inside Keystone Clothiers since it reopened. It might've opened this day. I can't remember but I was gonna check it out.

Click to watch!


It was wild to see so much of what we thought was Batuu exclusive merch off-planet. This has become more rampant. Certain items do stay on-planet, but for the most part nothing has stayed sacred for the sake of upping that revenue. A real shame.

Anyways, since we're on the topic of Batuu, let's go visit! As an off-worlder! The first time since my preview!



Gosh, I miss when my hair was so so light from all the sun I got.

Click to watch!


I decided I was craving a certain on-planet staple so I stopped by Bubo's for some.

Click to watch!


And I said what I said. Green milk is the superior drink.

While I was enjoying my green milk, I decided to wander a bit on planet...



I then ended up at a pretty familiar location...

Click to watch!


Many did not know yet about the block-out date being lifted so I was glad to spread the news and talk with all the morning crew people. I rarely ever saw any of them I worked evenings so regularly. It was around this time that Sydnee finally caught up with me and we eventually decided to head on over to Toy Story Land.

Click to watch!


We decided to go ride Mania. I believe we just did standby, which wasn't too bad. Again, it really wasn't that busy around these early months of opening.



And how did we do against each other?



Clearly I am out of practice and you now understand why I usually do these gamer attractions alone so I don't feel as bad about myself.

Sydnee gloating all the way we decided to head further back into Studios. We stopped by Walt Disney Presents quickly. Partly because I love this location, partly because I needed some photos there too.







From there, we went directly across the park to go ride Star Tours.

Click to watch!




No, neither of us got the Rebel Spy, but I believe this was the first time Sydnee had done it and gotten the Batuu ending. Needless to say, we still get emotional about it.

After this, we were feeling a bit hungry so we decided to go to Min & Bill's Dockside Diner. I was trying to avoid buying food since I was pretty low on funds since my HHN endeavor the other evening. I believe I did end up getting some nachos or something, of which I didn't end up taking a photo of. Yeah, it happens. We chilled there for a bit, vented about things until we both had finished and went on our way.

We saw this as we began to leave though...

Click to watch!




If you know me, I LOVE the Citizens of Hollywood and not only that, but I also love It's A Wonderful Life. It's my favorite Christmas film of all time and one of my favorite films of all time period. I never knew there were any references so this made me happy to see.

After having that moment, we went on over to Sunset for a bit to say hi to people we hadn't seen in awhile. We had been blocked out for a few weeks so it was great to actually see our old Sunset fam. We also got all the tea on the new CPs now working on Sunset since we left. Let's just say... we were dearly missed hehe

It was however time for me to go to work so I bounced while Sydnee went to do other things. I don't remember too much about this shift nor have any hints hidden in anything so I guess it wasn't a bad night nor a good night. Nothing to complain about there.

It was however great to go into Studios sooner than later with our main gate block out dates gone. I would definitely take advantage of that a lot more. Maybe. We'll see how tired I am lol

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[PlutosRHM55]

We Are Here To Celebrate The Birth Of R5-T9
9/10 – 9/13/19: Friday the 13th Shift And Better Luck

September 10th & 11th, 2019

These were basically two insignificant days to me. I was working. I didn't visit the parks before or after. I knew I was definitely planning to at this point on the 12th since it was coming around a big pay day, which meant only one thing...

September 12th, 2019

Click to watch!


I decided I was going to build my droid today!

I originally intended to do this during my preview when cast was allowed a 10% discount on droid building and saber building. However, even with the discount, I still could not cough up the funds but now I could. Not only that, the land was dead so if I got there early enough before the lunch rush I could just walk in. And so I did.



My friend, Emily, was one of the greeters so she put my name in. The droid leader, Maritza, was also there along with many co-workers who I knew fairly well. It was basically an event. My friend, Sarah, was on the belt and ended up being super helpful because I unfortunately became THAT GUEST who couldn't decide what they wanted. I totally thought I had decided once I was settled on the R-unit but alas I struggled. Luckily she got me on that purple pointy head life since it lights up and eventually I went to my station where Maribeti assisted me. Becki, another good work friend, also watched on.

I obviously was pretty familiar with how to build these darn things so it didn't take long for me to get it together and soon enough, it was time to activate, my little Virgo baby with a Taurus rising, Miss R5-T9!

Click to watch!




If you couldn't tell, I was getting mad attention during all of this. Based on how quickly I built and everything, I literally had the build area to myself. Something that would definitely not happen today so I highly recommend getting a reservation for this experience as much as you would for Savi's. You can do walk-ins here unlike Savi's, but the reservation ensures a shorter wait.

Anyways, I built my droid and I love her to death! We have since been separated for a temporary time due to the fact I could only bring so much on a plane, but she is in good hands. We however had a great little day together on my home planet on this day. She also came with me on the day I would eventually ride Rise. I also bought the droid backpack so she didn't have to sit in that ugly box, but for now she was comf in there.

Click to watch!


I was working today, but I had time before I would be going in so I decided to go grab lunch at Docking Bay 7 since I never actually ate there before. I had had the samples they gave out during the Studios Cast Expo, but not actually been there during a full service.

I ended up getting the Tip Yip and the Moof Juice, which I don't remember too much about but I believe I got to enjoy this during the Studios Expo. The Tip Yip for the record is basically boneless fried chicken on top of mashed potatoes and gravy. This was also before they changed the name to feature both the Batuuan name and the more regular name. Miss those days.



I only had this once but my mouth just waters thinking about it. It was THAT good. The way they cooked the chicken and the mixture of that with the savory almost mildly spicy gravy and warm mashed potatoes, which I normally am not a big fan of, it was so filling. Highly highly recommend.

Not to mention, I got to enjoy this with my new baby, who was getting all kinds of attention.

Click to watch!


Click to watch!


Click to BOOMERANG!


I then wandered around the land a bit letting R5-T9 enjoy the sunshine a bit.

Click to watch!


Yup, R2 was indeed on planet at one point. This was very limited. You can see them at Launch Bay now, I believe due to a space issue in Droid Depot.

Click to watch!


It's always fun watching the bucket heads try and be competent.

I decided that I was due a mission with Hondo so I went over there.



Click to watch!


It was R5-T9's first time and she was oddly quiet. Not to mention, I had a fairly new flight crew so I kinda backseat drove during this one. Oops.

After that, I decided it was time to head out. First, a quick rant.

Click to watch!


To explain my point since it might not be as clear in the video, but Yoda does not speak broken English. He is fluent in the language, he just does not speak it in a grammatically favorable manner. For example, Yoda says "Judge me by my size, do you?" That is passive voice, which, if you've ever taken an English class, is what you want to avoid in writing academic or professional essays or papers. The proper way would be to say "Do you judge be by my size?" He also speaks in a weird elegant cadence such as "Do or do not, there is no try", which is not exactly passive but in the context of the question he eliminates using a 2nd person pronoun (You) and then uses try as the object noun. It's proverbial. However, nothing he says is incorrect English which "The Happiest Place on Earth, This It" is. If you wanted that to be Yoda speak, it would be "The Happiest Place on Earth, This Is" since that's the passive of "This is the Happiest Place on Earth." There also is the matter of the fact that Happiest Place on Earth is Disneyland, but frankly the grammar and incorrect understanding of how Yoda speaks bothered me more so I thought I'd explain that. I'm sure most of you get it, but just in case here is an unnecessary academic explanation of Yoda speak.

No, I don't have an English degree, but this is high school stuff to be quite honest.

Anyways, I had to head to work. I'd woken up fairly early to build my droid so I had to go grab something to get my body ready for the evening ahead.



It definitely got me in the zone, but that wasn't enough. I don't know the details but while I had a great morning, my night was difficult. It happens sometimes, you know? Again, no specific details written but I do vividly remember leaving work in not the greatest mood.

September 13th, 2019

This was actually a Friday the 13th, which after the evening prior, I felt was not gonna be a good day but actually went a lot better than I thought. It still wasn't great. Something was bound to go wrong on a day such as this, but again there are worse days. Luckily, I was off the next day followed by a morning shift and a staycation I had planned for myself so fun times are ahead.

Continue Here​

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Staycation Secured, Let's Go Drink!
9/14/19: Food & Wine With Robbie

Today was my one day off and by some happy coincidence, Robbie had messaged me letting me know that he was available to hang out. I had no plans initially for this day so I said, of course, and now I had a whole day planned (as in, Robbie and I were going to enjoy F&W together). Unfortunately, the next day I had a very early shift, but that wasn't gonna stop me from living it up today.

Of course, I had to get up a bit early to meet up with Robbie and deal with some business elsewhere...

Click to watch!


Soooo, again, I was making a lot of extra money and of course, being me, I was spending it like crazy. Not the smartest move, but it was what it was. However, I was really needing to get out of my apartment. Things weren't exactly on good terms with my in-room roommate so I needed a day away so I reserved myself a staycation at Port Orleans Riverside! The deals were pretty good and it was a resort I always wanted to stay at so I did it.

To ensure that I got the discount, I had to show the front desk, my blue ID so that was exactly what I was doing before heading to Epcot to meet up with Robbie. It was quite the adventure since the bus to Port Orleans drops in a weird backstage area that is a ways from the main area of POR. I did eventually find it and it was pretty busy, which I had accounted for and hopped in line.

Click to watch!


A front desk/concierge leader was walking up and down the line asking people about their reservations and such. Eventually, she got to me and I told her that I just wanted to show my blue ID for my reservation. It was during this that for the first time I got a negative response to being a cast member. I've heard this stuff happens on occasion, but this was the first time where I felt like an inconvenience. It was odd. I remember how lovely all of the cast members I met at Pop Century when I had to do this for my mom and sisters. However, this leader was not even remotely close to how friendly those cast members were. I was so taken aback with how brusk she made about doing what I needed done. It made me nervous that she wasn't going to really help, but she did. She actually pulled me out of line for it so I didn't have to wait for a front desk teller. It didn't take long and I was on my way. Thank goodness.

I went into the POR general store they had. Literally, one of the cutest little gift shops I've seen on property. It had an old school Disney Store vibe to it.

Click to BOOMERANG!


Click to BOOMERANG!


I ended up grabbing a nice big sugar cookie to nibble on as I headed to Epcot. I knew I'd be purchasing plenty of food today, but this would hold me over well.



I was nervous going up to the cast member to ring me up, especially after my interaction with the leader at front desk. Thank goodness my worries were for naught and this one was very sweet and did not change the minute I handed over my blue ID for my discount. *Deep Breath*

It was off to Epcot now!



I saw Pluto was out with a rather short line and Robbie hadn't texted me to tell me he was at Epcot yet so I hopped in line for that.









Pluto was being so chivalrous today. He was however sad about IllumiNations leaving when he saw my shirt, but he obviously knew I was a bit sad. Lucky for us we still had a few weeks so we could be cute and adorable for the photos.

After saying goodbye to Pluto, I continued on deeper into Future World... or what was left.

Click to watch!


Truly the beginning of a sad state for Epcot. Everything was just gone. *sad sigh*

I decided to head on into the World Showcase as I waited for Robbie. I hung out in China's Shanghai exhibit as I do when I'm on my own.



Robbie finally texted that he was in the park so I went to Future World to go find him. As soon as I found him, we immediately went back into World Showcase ready to have our F&W fun. We saw Daisy was out so of course we had to see the fierce queen of the sensational 6 first.



Robbie had brought up about the Arendelle Aqua Lemonade that they had so we were on a mission to find it. He said from what he heard that it was gonna be at American Adventure. However, we couldn't seem to find. We knew it existed but not where. Eventually, we finally asked someone, which ended up being no help. Then, we actually just checked each menu and discovered it was at the little stand they have there. The line at American Adventure was for the big booth in the back so we ordered up for this THIRTEEN DOLLAR drink, but it came filled right up and tasted delicious.



For the record, the Arendelle Aqua Lemonade is lemonade mixed with moonshine and it is STRONG. However, you can't tell while drinking it. We both were skeptical so we drank as we walked, but still managed to drink it up before we got to Morocco. Then at Morocco, it hit us. Robbie and I were so shook that we eventually had to sit down there. It gave us time to vent and such about life, but wow Robbie looked like he might've been out of commission pretty early. We sat for quite a bit in hopes that we'd avoid that. Here's to hoping that was the case.

Continue Here​

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Shimmering Sips Spilling All The Tea
9/14/19: Food & Wine With Robbie

Long story short, Robbie ended up being fine. As we tried to avoid, we drank that Arendelle Aqua way too quickly and while I only got tipsy, Robbie's drink just went right to his head. Luckily after sitting for a bit and some water, we were good to continue! No ending this day early, woohoo!

We decided to head back to Japan to get some food over there. I felt ok to continue drinking while Robbie stopped. I don't remember what he got there, but this is what I had.

Click to watch!

Teriyaki Chicken Bun: Steamed Bun filled with Chicken, Vegetables and a Sweet Teriyaki Sauce
Nami Sake Cocktail: Sake, Gin, and Blue Curacao

It was decent. I don't remember really being blown away. The cocktail was very strong so I was careful with it. Robbie even had a sip and he was like "Yeah, nope." It definitely didn't hit as hard as the Arendelle Aqua but it was a nice pairing there. It also took awhile to drink as it started to rain while we were there so we hid in that little bridge building at the back of Japan to keep everything dry. We stayed there for a bit while Robbie and I finished what we got. Then we went inside, checked out Mitsukoshi until the rain had passed and continued along.

I believe next we ended up heading to the front. We stopped in the Canada cider orchard area just to see that. We ran into some of his friends and talked with them. I also saw a co-worker there. Apparently, F&W was the place to be on this day. Once we finished talking with them and decided we didn't want anything from Canada, we continued along.

Robbie was finally feeling better enough to get back to alcohol so I dragged him over to Shimmering Sips, my new favorite booth. I recommended the Frozen Mimosa while I tried the Key Lime Mimosa.

Click to BOOMERANG!


It was here that we befriended an entertainment captain who noted that I was a cast member based on my shirt. We ended up talking with them for awhile which ended up being the wildest experience of the day. They were giving us all the tea on their personal lives including marital problems and some stuff I'm not sure I bring on the DIS. It was insane and Robbie and I just sat there and took it in while drinking our drinks (Key Lime was great by the way). They were nice and quite entertaining so we were fine talking with them. Eventually, we did bounce as did they but Robbie and I were dying over what happened and we still laugh about it to this day. Too crazy.

We decided it was time to maybe take a break from that F&W life and go enjoy some Future World attractions and what better attraction than...

LIVING WITH THE LAND!

Click to watch!


Click to watch!


Click to watch!


It was a nice little detour from our eating and drinking endeavors. It was also just after they had updated the video in the finale of the attraction so that was cool to see. We love an original attraction getting some love.

It was back to F&W though and I had to get what was becoming my usual.



It's just so addicting! I believe Robbie also got it too and he agreed that it was GOOD. Can't go wrong with some Loaded Mac N Cheese.

From there, we went back into the World Showcase again. We clearly did not have a concrete plan for the direction of things. We wandered as far as the UK where we stopped at the Ireland booth. It was when I got there that I realized this was the first booth that I had been to on my prior program where the menu had really changed. The one item I got years ago was gone so I had to find something new to get, even though I really liked the Shepherd's Pie they had.

I knew my funds were not looking too too great so I held back and got this cheap pairing.


Warm Irish Cheddar Cheese and Stout Dip with Irish Brown Bread

Guinness Bailey's Shake

I eventually came to the realization that the Irish Cheese tasted exactly like this year's Cheddar and Bacon soup from Canada, which was more a discredit to Canada's offerings. It was good for what it was at Ireland. Not a favorite, but it was tasty. I'm also a sucker for Bailey's anything so I really liked my shake and it also came in a special cup that I still have. Not that I really use it for much, it's small but it was probably one of the only commemorative things I got from F&W.

If I recall Robbie got something more substantial, but we both ate at the same rate and once we finished, we decided that that would be where we would leave things off with F&W. We had had a pretty fruitful day so no need to continue.

We still wanted to do things so we went on over to Future World. I stopped in a bathroom quick to clean out my cup. When we got out of the bathroom, we saw where the temporary C-Spot was so we decided to go in there. People still hadn't really figured out where this location was so we didn't have to wait and got nice long interactions with all the characters.

























Despite how awkward a lot of these photos look, we actually had a really enjoyable time. The attendants were fairly nice and helpful and the characters were so much fun. I can't remember specifics besides them pointing out my shirt over and over again. I vividly remember Minnie being the sweetest and it was clear she adored both of us the minute we walked up. Such fun.

After that, we realized it was getting late so we considered starting to head out. In our wanderings though, we stumbled upon this...



It was a new dance party that they had for F&W. I forgot this was a thing. Robbie and I couldn't pass it up so we stuck around for that.

Click to watch!


Click to watch!


This dance party reminded me so much of the Pixar Fest one they had in Tomorrowland at Disneyland. It was high energy, a solid flow and a constant change of characters. They also had these great dancers in the crowd who were really getting everyone into it. We even ended up doing the Cupid Shuffle.

After spending a bit of time there, we decided it was time to leave. Robbie had to head out to guest parking while I went to cast services so we said goodbye by MouseGear thus ending our adventures for the day. It was such a great day and set a great precedent for how my experiences at F&W went. There are many great stories to come from that, trust me.

However, I was opening Savi's workshop the next day, checking into my staycation and... well you'll find out soon enough. See you real soon for that!

Continue Here​

 

[PlutosRHM55]

IT ACTUALLY FITS MY PRINCESS AND THE FROG PRE-HHN FANTASY NIGHTMARE
9/15/19: A Short Staycation & A Proper Horror Nights Evening

I was up rather early today since I was blessed with a morning shift on this day. As far as I know, this was a rather uneventful shift so we're gonna get into a really fun evening.

To begin, I had my staycation to move into. I did online check-in, had my MagicBand connected along with my phone just in case, so as soon as I got the text that my room was ready I was good to go. I did some last minute packing when I got home from work and just about the time I was planning to leave I got the text confirming my room and that it was ready for me to move in. What a blessing.

It was definitely a weird journey since they only had a van this time when I went over to Riverside and I had a ton of bags since I had all my overnight stuff on top of work clothes for when I had to go to work the next day after I checked out. I did manage not to be too much of a nuisance. The bigger nuisance was the broken door on the transdev van. Don't worry I arrived at Riverside in one piece.



I was in room 2736, the second floor of Alligator Bayou Building 27. It was a bit of an adventure going to find it since it was kind of hidden but it wasn't too far from the backstage bus stop for Riverside. I really didn't care about the location, I was just excited to be enjoying a new Disney resort for the first time in nearly 3 years. Not only that, my first moderate level resort. Prior to this I stayed mostly in values and then I've also stayed at DAK. It also was the first time I'd be staying in a resort with a room entirely to myself. Honestly, a dream come true.

Eventually, I found my room...

Click to watch!


Click to watch!


Click to watch!


Needless to say I was already in love with this room and this resort.





Then, I opened up the pullout bed or whatever it's called. I know there is a fancy name but I don't know it off the top of my head.



OH. MY. GOSH.

If you've been reading my TRs long enough or just know me in general, you know that Princess & the Frog is my favorite Disney movie ever. I've watched it way too many times. I knew the Port Orleans resorts paid strong homage to it, especially in the new Princess rooms they had but I did NOT expect it in the regular rooms. It felt so right. Let's not even forget that they had a print of the Blue Bayou restaurant from Disneyland on the wall. It was heaven. It was just the respite I needed with all the madness going on working in Galaxy's Edge as well as my living situation back at home. I needed this.

I was feeling pretty beat from the morning at work then having to pack, head over here and such so I decided to take a nap. As you can already guess, tonight I had decided to give HHN another go. This time, I invited Dina and we were gonna meet up with our friend from work, Emily. Dina was gonna meet up with me at Riverside then we both were gonna Uber to Universal together to split the cost. It was a perfect plan and gave me another thing to be excited about. It really felt like the perfect staycation.

For my little cat nap, I left this on in the background to give me some white noise to help me rest but also make sure I didn't fully pass out and lose out on what was definitely going to be a great night.

Click to watch!


Eventually, I magically came to from my nap with only a few minutes until my alarm was gonna go off so I began getting ready. I texted Dina to make sure she was still coming and had a plan for getting here with enough time to get to Universal. We both obviously had plenty of time, but I knew I was gonna do a full spooky glam look tonight so that was really where my time was being spent.

And with that, I think we had time well spent on my look for the evening.



Better photos to come.

Once I was done with that, I was texting Dina giving her information on where she could go to get to me at Riverside and such. I thought initially she was taking the bus but come to find out, our co-worker Rowan drove her which made it much easier in the end. After all that, getting my bag ready for the evening, I went down and found Dina in the main lobby. I called our Uber, had Dina venmo me for to have our cost split and we were soon enough on our way.

Dina and I had a nice vent sesh in the uber. Our driver was very nice and was great for minding themselves while we had our more personal conversation in the back. It was after that that I imagine Uber drivers must have the tea on EVERYTHING.

We arrived at Universal in no time and were eventually heading right on over to the gates to the Studio side of things for a wonderfully horrifying evening!

Before that, I did make a stop at the little cart they have outside the CityWalk cinema to make a return. I had tried on my shirt that I bought on the first night and it just felt too small so I wanted to exchange for a size bigger. They luckily got that squared away fairly quickly there and had the size I needed so that was great getting that out of the way.

With new shirt in hand and ready to change into as we waited to be let in, I was ready to go!

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Without further ado, it was time!

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We had previously discussed where we wanted to head first and I had heard a lot of good things at this point on the Universal Monsters house so we wanted to go there. This would also give us the opportunity to go through Vanity Ball, my fave, as well as see Vikings Undead in the day time. It also would put us on the track to do back-to-front, which I always heard is the better way to tackle HHN.

Click to watch!


It was getting a little rainy at this point, but nothing too too concerning. However, I really wanted photos and the entryway for Marathon of Mayhem had a really nice aesthetic to it that would be perfect to show off my make-up and outfit choice for the evening. Dina was more than happy to oblige and got some great shots.











I might've also taken some photos for Dina, but I know we were in the mood to keep moving since the rain was very much coming in. It did however lead us into a scareactor-less Vikings so opinions were reserved on this zone.

Click to watch!


As you could tell though, we were pretty into it.

We were on a mission and that mission was to go do our first house, Universal Monsters.

Click to watch!




That line filled up fairly quick, but the wait really wasn't as bad as it looked. With a constant flow through conga line, these lines always move quick. Unless your Stranger Things lol It was here Dina and I were seeing our nerves start to come out. We were excited but you know you're gonna get scared. Lucky for us, Dina's a whole head shorter than me so as we walked into the house, Dina ended up in front and eventually had grabbed my hands around her stomach as we "prom-posed" or as we eventually called it "assuming the position." It became a recurring thing for many of my friends who were nervous going into houses and it totally looked "coupley", which made it all the more fun and reassuring.

It also got us through Universal Monsters, first house of the evening. And our thoughts on it?

Click to watch!


For the record, there was no Jekyll & Hyde in Universal Monsters lol

But OMG, we started off with a bang! It really was so so good. If you've followed along with me on social media, you know this was my favorite house of the entire event. And it was an IP that I wasn't exactly well versed in, which was the deciding factor of my favorite in HHN26. I'm now however a big Monsters fan since I watched every single one of the main films in the franchise. ANYWAYS, that first run through WOW, the house was absolutely gorgeous. Costuming, stunts, creature design, etc. Not to mention, the scare actors in there were fantastic. That house could've been a cheesy mess of things, but it was genuinely scary. Again, the misdirection was great and it was just a lot of fun. I was glad the first time I did it, I did it with someone else, but either way it was a house that blew me away off the bat.

When we got out, we had gotten messages from Emily saying she was just arriving. Dina and I decided that even though we had only done one house, we'd wait for Emily and use the time waiting to sample some HHN classics.

We also managed to put an age old battle of iconic HHN snacks to the test inadvertently. Dina got in line for some Twisted Taters while I hit up the Kidz Pizza Co. for some Pizza Fries. We'll see how this goes.

Click to watch!




Now, I know everyone has strong opinions on which one is better. As far as I know, most people I talk to tend to fall in one majority. However, I fall in another as did Dina and we both agreed that PIZZA FRIES are the superior.

We frankly both found the twisted taters to be a bit too cold and soft. It just tasted like lukewarm potato chips to us. I would have my own eventually and yeah I did find them enjoyable, but underwhelming. I even hung out with someone who was familiar with them as a generic fairground food and they said HHN does not nearly do them as good.

Pizza Fries however... food from the gods to be quite honest. I thought it was a weird concept at first, but GOSH they are delicious. They were so delicious I never even really got around to trying the 'Smores Fries. They were just so friggin good. I'd honestly die for them. So my recommendation, if you come down to deciding between the two, Pizza Fries all day every day.

While we ate and chilled, Emily did catch up to us. She sat with us for a bit as we talked and decided on a game plan. Even though Graveyard Games was right next to Monsters, we were gonna wait due to the wait times as well as the fact that its "outer facade" was pretty integral so we wanted to make sure it was dark to see that. We wanted to keep to the back of the park so we headed through Springfield to go to Depths of Fear and Nightingales: Blood Pit.

Springfield is also another scare zone, the classic chainsaw gang scare zone that is a staple of horror nights. Sometimes they also have roaming hordes with them like they did when I was here in 26, but this year it was just the gang in Springfield. Back in 26, I believe the gang was themed to demented hillbillies. This year, it was kinda these video game-esque assassins. They had these blinking masks and such. They were really fun to watch and to interact with. We ended up skipping with one of them. I know many don't get them or think they add nothing, but I feel they have become something I really look forward to. They cannot only be quite scary, but also have this wonderful dark sense of humor that just gets me. I live for it.

Eventually, we made it out the other side and were headed into Depths of Fear.

Click to watch!


For the record, Emily had done all these houses already since she went pretty frequently with her work schedule being mornings so she would give us her thoughts. I usually had already heard certain things from social media.

On Depths of Fear, Emily didn't have a strong opinion on it if I recall. I had only heard mixed things. Some people enjoyed it while others thought it was disappointing or weird. I had also watched a bit of Tim Tracker's vlog on this one and I was definitely curious about this one. Something about it drew me in.

So what were our thoughts on a first run through of Depths of Fear?

Click to watch!


If you didn't notice, we had made some cool friends in line. They were first timers at HHN so Emily and I were trying to give them all the advice. They also had great energy going through the house.

Aside from that, I personally really liked Depths of Fear. It was a very fast paced house. It felt as if you had to move at an urgent pace. I didn't think the creature design was as hokie as everyone said it was. I thought it was cool. The scares weren't too strong a lot of the time with the mouthbrooders, but I don't know I just loved them. I also loved how there definitely was some cheesiness in this house mixed with the actual horror of being trapped under water and having monster eggs implanted in your face. It was fun. The hand puppet scare from above also got me real good. I also think it was the best house finale at the event with the final implosion and that one last mouthbrooder and diseased human coming at you. It was cool, especially when you realize that that ending means you don't make it out alive technically. I was about it. I vibed really well with Depths of Fear and I just don't get the hate. I think y'all are mean.

As soon as we got out of Depths of Fear, we immediately hopped in line for Nightingales.

Click to watch!


The sun was going down at this point and Horror Nights was really started to begin. Time to be afraid... be very afraid. MWAHAHAHAHA!!! *insert devil emoji here*

Continue Here​

 

[Jenny Sanders]

And I said what I said. Green milk is the superior drink.

I agree 100%!

I ended up getting the Tip Yip

This is next on my list to try in SWGE. It looks soooo good!

I arrived at Riverside in one piece.

Umm, we have 3 nights booked here in a Royal Room for my bday at the end of July. I love everything POR!!!!! I am PRAYING we can go!!!!!!

 

[missjackiemcg]

I love that you treated yourself to a staycation!! Roommate issues are the absolute worst. I don't know what possessed me to do it, but I lived with five other girls one year in college.....it was THE. WORST. year ever!!

Those pizza fries look absolutely amazing, along with all the tasty drinks and of course the loaded mac 'n cheese. Now, I'm officially starving. And pouting because I should have been at Flower and Garden a few weeks ago eating and drinking, myself!!

 

[Tink2Day]

Your look for HHN.....scarily glam. Yum pizza fries and I don't even like pizza...Smores I just don't get, especially with fries....gag. I grew up in the fifties an quite frankly
I never had a Smores....maybe it was more of an Eastern/Midwestern thing??? we traveled quite a bit but I just never even saw them.
Love your room at Riverside, perfect for the number one Tiana fan. That bed looks almost like a mini Murphy bed, do the graphics light up?

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Inducting New Members Into The Haus of Vanity And Always Getting Attention Anyways
9/15/19: A Short Staycation & A Proper Horror Nights Evening

We left off last at us about to enter Nightingales: Blood Pit. Before entering the labyrinth underneath the colisseum, let's look at what Emily and I had for preemptive thoughts. I hadn't heard really any good things about this one. Emily's experience with it on her first run through wasn't great. I don't have many details on why. People just weren't impressed.

But how did we feel after our run-through?

Click to watch!


This one surprised me. I totally went in expecting not to enjoy it, but after the cute topless gladiator I was sold. It was definitely the goriest and most claustrophobic house, but the scare actors in this one definitely were some of the most intense. It ended up being my best run-through the entire event, particularly because I got the lion puppet scare which was really cool. This one definitely fell into the crowd, but it was unexpectedly great. It also had a neat facade that melted well into the tent aspect of the house, maybe even better than Depths of Fear. So far, no major complaints about the houses this evening.

After this house, we all now were down to go do Graveyard Games so we headed back down thattaways, saying hello to our favorite chainsaw gang on the way there. We were all feeling a bit parched since we never really got drinks with our food earlier. Emily told us they really filled up your cups with cider over at this one stand so we went there. We all got some Angry Orchard, a very reliable choice, while Dina also got a Turkey Leg. *gagging noise*

Click to watch!


We drank, Dina ate and we all just talked and got another nice vent session in. Working six days a week in a newly opened land that's changing on the daily is hard. Vent sessions are just a common occurrence and I'm more than welcoming of it. Also, at Horror Nights, it is by far the most perfect place to have these vent seshes.

Once we were mostly done with our drinks, we decided to head on over to Graveyard Games. On the way there, we ran into our coordinator Erin who became one of my good friends.



I believe there was some other SWGE coordinators hanging out at HHN. Honestly, in retrospect, HHN29 needs to thank the opening cast of SWGE for high attendance numbers because a lot of us went pretty regularly. It was our off-planet respite.

Anyways, it was time for Graveyard Games!

Click to watch!


Graveyard Games was when the actual crowds started to settle in. It was the longest wait we had that night. Most of the other houses they were closer to 20 or 15 minutes, but this was a solid 30. It's also the house where the queue goes past the Curious George area which is always funny to walk through, especially since you could hear the creepy forest music they played in the final stretch of queue.

Eventually, it was time to actually go in.

What were our thoughts on this one?

Click to watch!


Easily the scariest house at the event. Emily, who was stone cold unafraid, got a good jump scare in this one. It had such a good story and it was both really creepy and aggressive. The scares were all very dramatic and well placed. It also had the one instance where I actually ran through a room. It was the children's playground room where I booked it. Evil kids is the worst for me, I cannot do it. On other night's I'd get stuck there and want to cry but tonight we had a gap and I FLEW. This was most of my friend's favorites from the event and while not my favorite, definitely one I really really loved.

After we got out of Graveyard Games, we decided to escape the back of the park for a bit and go enjoy other areas of the park. To do that, we had to go through Vikings in all its eery dark Central Park glory.

Click to watch!


Click to watch!


Out of all the scare zones, this is the one that felt most like the usual scare zones that Horror Nights gets. Very dark, very creepy, low-to-the-ground, hidden in the shadows... you know the type. While it wasn't my favorite, it was kind of a breath of fresh air to the high energy of the other zones. It was cool. It was the one to really bring me back to my first HHN experience.

Obviously, we couldn't not just go through Vikings and detour anywhere else. We had to spend a little bit of time at the Vanity Ball.

Click to watch!


Click to watch!


Click to watch!


We ended up staying in there for quite a bit to watch the runway. I'm not sure if we caught one of the surgeries but we were here for a bit. There was also a scare actor in this zone who had sneaked up on me and was mad focused on me the whole time we were there. Again, I really did get attention in this zone.

Killer Klowns just so happened to be right next to Vanity Ball so we went in there next. We saw they had the Klowns out for a photo op so we did that first.





Then, we went right on into the queue. Per usual, a very short wait, heaven bless. It was however during this wait that I did find out I apparently had over-shot somehow on my debit card as my mom texted me to let me know I was in the negatives. I found out later this was because of the $100 hold they put on your card on file at Disney resorts. I had no clue this was a thing, but thank goodness my mom caught it or I would've been in deep deep ish. Well, no more food or drink tonight lol

Click to watch!


As I mentioned in the video, I did this one already so it was my first repeat, but it was Dina's first time and she was nervous since she is a little scared of clowns. I assured her it was way more fun than scary, which Emily agreed. We all had a really fun time going through. Definitely the house we laughed the most in. I also think I might've hit the button that squirts yourself or Emily hit the one that squirts me who was behind her. This was also the first house where Dina and I were not "assuming the position". Like I said, probably the least scariest house. The most fun one for me, but most definitely not scary unless you really are afraid of clowns because they are EVERYWHERE.

I believe it was after this that we headed over to do Stranger Things. I have no video or photos to confirm when I did Stranger Things on this night, but I know we did do it. It was our longest wait and we all agreed it was disappointing, but not awful. It was also the only time I think that I did Stranger Things during the night. Usually I did it at the beginning or the end, but tonight we did it at a midway point. The line lengths had peaked for like an hour then dropped.

After that house, we did end up taking another breather. We walked around Zombieland a bit and after finding out I had never been on Revenge of the Mummy, Dina and Emily had me do it. I definitely was a bit nervous even though I knew I would be fine. They however tried so hard to freak me out in the queue. I didn't fall for it, but gosh what a cool queue.

And the ride? AMAZING. I absolutely adore this attraction. It is so much fun. It ended up becoming a staple of my HHN nights. It just was that much fun. I'm sure most of you who have been to Universal have done it, but if you haven't, this is probably my favorite ride at that park. I'd say it is a huge reason to spend a day just to experience it alongside a lot of other attractions, but I'm getting ahead of myself on this.

After we had our fun, we went right back to houses now trying to knock off the houses at the front of the park. Next up was YETI: TERROR OF THE YUKON!

Click to watch!


This was a house I lightly anticipated. A lot of the hype for it came as an off-shoot of a yeti's presence in the Slaughter Sinema from the previous year. I'd heard many good things. Emily however said it was not a good one. She said it might also be chocked up to a bad run-through like she had with Nightingales. We were going to find out soon enough.

So what were our thoughts on Yeti?

Click to watch!


It was about time we did a house that we unanimously were not a fan of. Don't get me wrong, this house is gorgeous, but it was not scary for a house that really needed scariness. What the naysayers thought of Depths of Fear, I definitely thought of Yeti. I thought the Yeti design was not scary at all. The house was cold, at times a bit too cold for me, and yeah... I just didn't find it scary or all that exciting. I kinda walked out confused by the whole of it. I know on here from what I've read I'm in the minority on Yeti, but upon a first run-through... not a fan. Dina and Emily back me up.

One bad egg don't ruin a whole event though. Personally, I had two more houses to do to have done all of them. Dina had three more houses. The evening was getting closer to a close so would we do it in time before we were hurried out?

We shall see...

Continue Here​

 

[PlutosRHM55]

I agree 100%!

Thank you! So glad to have someone in agreement.

This is next on my list to try in SWGE. It looks soooo good!

It is really good. Definitely try it when everything reopens and you can go back.

Umm, we have 3 nights booked here in a Royal Room for my bday at the end of July. I love everything POR!!!!! I am PRAYING we can go!!!!!!

Fingers crossed for you. POR is lovely. Hopefully everything has leveled out by then.

I love that you treated yourself to a staycation!! Roommate issues are the absolute worst. I don't know what possessed me to do it, but I lived with five other girls one year in college.....it was THE. WORST. year ever!!

It was the best thing ever. I wish I had been able to do it again before I left, but it was the biggest expense I had so I had to be careful when I did it. Took a big chunk out of my paycheck and potentially savings too. Made living with my in-room roommate a whole lot more palatable thereafter.

Those pizza fries look absolutely amazing, along with all the tasty drinks and of course the loaded mac 'n cheese. Now, I'm officially starving. And pouting because I should have been at Flower and Garden a few weeks ago eating and drinking, myself!!

So much good food had during the fall. Probably the best time for food in the parks. And omg don't remind me. I barely got to try anything at F&G. I don't think I even got a passport. Or if I did I like checked off two things and that was it. But you know, better healthy than catching a potentially fatal virus and passing it off to many many others.

Your look for HHN.....scarily glam. Yum pizza fries and I don't even like pizza...Smores I just don't get, especially with fries....gag. I grew up in the fifties an quite frankly
I never had a Smores....maybe it was more of an Eastern/Midwestern thing??? we traveled quite a bit but I just never even saw them.
Love your room at Riverside, perfect for the number one Tiana fan. That bed looks almost like a mini Murphy bed, do the graphics light up?

Thank you! And yes, pizza fries are the best. Better than pizza. Never heard of Smores? Really? That's the first time I've ever heard of someone not knowing what smores are. Look them up, they are good and what they did with them for the fries was pretty cool (Sweet potato instead of the regular potato fries).

MURPHY BED, THAT'S WHAT IT IS! Thank you for clarifying that. Again, I had no clue what to call it. Unfortunately the graphics did not light up but it made me happy and that's what matters most lol

 

[Tink2Day]

Oh I do know what they are. I'm just saying they are supposedly something we ate in the 50's and I never saw them back in the 'olden ' days.
We roasted marshmallows around the campfire but never added them to chocolate (which was a rare treat as 'charms' suckers were the big thing back then because we could buy one for a nickle and had a chance to win a free one and they were big suckers) and definitely didn't add graham crackers.

 

[PlutosRHM55]

The Last Mad Dash To Complete HHN29... Or Was It?
9/15/19: A Short Staycation & A Proper Horror Nights Evening

Picking up right where we left off, we immediately went right next door from Yeti to Us, passing by some zombies along the way.

Click to watch!


Us was another of the few IPs that I was recently familiar with. My mom and I saw it. We both thought it was a very strange film, not necessarily scary, but strange. I wasn't overly hyped for it but I was hype. I had heard really good things. However, someone spoiled the last room of this house for me, which was unfortunate, but I was still excited as was Dina. We were however the most scared. I mean, the movie does have a creepy undercurrent that works well for a haunted house so... it was for sure gonna be terrifying.

What did we think of it in the end?

Click to watch!


We had a most interesting run through of this one. A good run through, but interesting. The ops at the front was asking everyone to walk in side by-side instead of conga line, which was to make the house a bit more claustrophobic. We tried to do it at first, but Dina and I got too scared so we switched to "the position" again. We also got stuck in the long hallway before the main entrance to the house which was the facade of the VisionQuest. Like I said in the video, this house was ACCURATE. Everything was super well detailed and thought out down to the actor's movements. It was nuts. Again, really enjoyed it.

Also based on that video, apparently this was when we did Stranger Things. My bad.

Anyways, after Stranger Things, we were down to two houses and cutting it close. The one that Dina and I hadn't done was House of 1000 Corpses so I tried to push for that, but it felt weird skipping Ghostbusters. Emily and I did really like Ghostbusters so in the end, we decided to do that and hoped we had time to make it over to House of 1000 Corpses, which would also allow us to go through Hellbilly Deluxe, which Dina had not seen. I still was not a fan at this point, but it would knock off another scare zone. I'm not sure if we ever actually went through Anarch-cade on this night...

Anyways, Ghostbusters...



Click to watch!


This ended up being our worst experience of the night. We ran into a friend of Dina's who had been the victim of unauthorized pictures and fat-shaming while waiting in line, but this was way worse. There was a group of guys about our age, maybe in the DCP, who knows, but they all were very drunk. Definitely at a point of blackout or beyond. They were being really obnoxious, making the line move very slowly. Then, one of them started talking to us and he was not coherent. He was invading personal space and just being absolutely awful. We tried to ignore it and just glare to give a hint to his more sober friends, but he just kept wanting to talk to us when we were trying to talk amongst ourselves. Of course, this whole mess followed us into the house or we followed them. The run-through started out ok, but we were a bit distracted as this guy touched everything. We were even held up in the room with Janine and they were just all over her things. She handled it well but god we were annoyed and we were held there for quite a bit. Then, the worst came when we saw this guy grab the thigh of the scare actor playing Sigourney Weaver's character in the chair. We were appalled. The poor actress. She walked right out so it also meant that probably a big group behind us never even got to see that moment from the film, which was a big distraction for a scare right next to it. We were so mad. We tried to enjoy the house, but that just pissed us off so much. We thought ops would get involved, but saw no one and could not find anyone to talk to once we exited to let them know. We hoped that maybe the actress had alerted someone and this group got ejected. Literal worst experience in a house I had had and it was in a house that's normally so much fun.

We were not gonna let them ruin our evening as we realized we still had some time to make it over to House of 1000 Corpses so we booked it across the park, sliding on through Hellbilly Deluxe and right into line with plenty of time to spare.

Click to watch!


I wasn't too excited for this one, which is why it came as the last one. I hadn't heard many good things. Either about the movie or the house (I did eventually see the movie). Emily however said she liked it more than she thought she would. It was the biggest surprise for her.

And how did we fare with it?

Click to watch!


First off, we managed to do everything before it all shut down! All 10 houses and apparently all 5 scare zones so we did make it through Anarch-cade at one point. Interesting. As I said, no Lagoon show or AOV tonight, but we had plenty of nights to go. Or at least I did. Personally, I only had not seen Marathon of Mayhem so after two nights I had covered quite a bit. Food, attractions, houses, etc. I was covering it all.

And what was even better? WE HAD TIME TO SPARE.

The one house we hadn't done with Emily was Universal Monsters and it was at this point my definitive favorite so we decided to hike on over there before they closed everything off.

Click to watch!


The best way to end our night in terms of houses. There was absolutely no wait for the house. Nobody really behind us or in front of us so when we went through, it was just us three and by far, best run-through of the night! Our first run through was great but this was better. Again, entire house to ourselves and we all had such great encounters with all the monsters. They got us at every turn and we had the entire house to ourselves. It was awesome! We were living our best lives. AMAZING.

After we left the house, we passed by Graveyard Games which was still open so we tried to go into it, but ops just would not let us through even though there was nobody in line but it was just about closing time so we wouldn't be able to make it around to go through. As a back-up, we headed on over to Vanity Ball to get one last good walkthrough there before they all headed in.

Click to watch!


Gosh, what a truly fabulous way to end the night.

And with that, the evening was officially over. Here was my definitive ranking after this night...

HOUSES

Universal Monsters
Graveyard Games
Killer Klowns From Outer Space
Depths of Fear
Ghostbusters
Us
Nightingales: Blood Pit
House of 1000 Corpses
Stranger Things
Yeti: Terror of the Yukon

SCARE ZONES

Vanity Ball
Anarch-cade
Vikings Undead
Rob Zombie's Hellbilly Deluxe
Zombieland: Double Tap

For the most part, I enjoyed everything and as the event went on, I found things to enjoy more and more about certain things. As for this night, it was a really fun night. We did beginning to close, got everything we had hoped to get done and had so much fun. Despite some not-so-great moments, it's a night I still look back on fondly and felt like the real proper kick-off to a whole season of HHN.



Dina and I split off from Emily when we got to the parking structure since she had her own car. Dina and I both had to call separate ubers. I was going back to Riverside while she was going back to Patterson. I had to some transfers after that whole $100 hold debacle, but I was able to call an uber. I did it after Dina and somehow my uber came sooner than hers so I said goodbye first.

I had the nicest uber driver ever on this night. He was so friendly and didn't make the conversation feel too forced. We talked about a lot of things and by the time we got to Riverside, we basically were good friends. He even called me a "5 star passenger", which was the best compliment I ever got from an Uber driver. I made sure to tip him high.

Before I went to my room, I stopped by concierge and asked about the $100 hold. I originally thought it was because my blue ID check hadn't gone through (remember how that went?) But the concierge guy who was doing over night explained what it was so I got that squared away and to not put you in suspense, it was long gone by my check out the next day.

I was ready for some sleep and lugged my completely exhausted, sweaty and make-up dripping self to Alligator Bayou to get some shut eye.



I passed out in an instant once I had cleaned myself off a bit and changed. It luckily wasn't the latest ever so I would get a decent night's rest. Either way, totally worth it. See y'all back in the sad reality of work and not an HHN staycation!

Continue Here​

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Oh I do know what they are. I'm just saying they are supposedly something we ate in the 50's and I never saw them back in the 'olden ' days.
We roasted marshmallows around the campfire but never added them to chocolate (which was a rare treat as 'charms' suckers were the big thing back then because we could buy one for a nickle and had a chance to win a free one and they were big suckers) and definitely didn't add graham crackers.

OOOOHHHHH got it. Never heard of those "charms suckers". Interesting. The more you know.

 

[RoseBen009]

Oh my gosh I LOVE your outfit/makeup! So festive and perfect! I am such a wimp there is no way I could EVER go to an event like that, but it was fun reading about your adventure