VanBrujah
Cast Member
Posts: 421
Registered: Sep 2002
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Posted 09-29-02 01:08 AM
EPISODE II: SCREW YOU, JIMMY BUFFETT!
Sunday morning came sooner than we thought. After arising at the somewhat acceptable hour of 7:45, everyone showered, enjoyed a refreshing microwave breakfast sandwich, and piled into our cars for the 15 minute trip to Universal Studios. I am a big fan of both Universal parks, having visited both more than once. In fact, a cast member at Disney told me that IOA is often referred to as "The Best Theme Park Disney Never Built". Apparently Universal is where the disgruntled Imagineers go, and possible cast members who have attitude problems.
We arrived at the parking deck at around 8:50. After an amusing ride in on the people mover sidewalks, we got our tickets, and headed in. Immediately we were accosted by 4 or 5 people with little PDA type devices who wanted to ask us questions. As we answered questions, quite a line was forming right next to us for photos with Jimmy Neutron. We decided to skip him, but the kids in line looked thrilled!
Headed right over to the Hanna-Barberra ride...everyone had a ball. This is a motion simulator kind of ride...you sit in rows on 2 large moving platforms, while a large screen film plays in front of you. The best comparison I can make is the 3D Race For Atlantis at Ceasars Palace in Las Vegas. It was fun, a bit loud though. The wait was about 15 min...it's not a very fast loading ride.
After Hanna-Barberra, we headed right over to Twister. On the way we saw a very sick little stray kitten. I mean, this poor thing was probably only about 4 weeks old, and it was in bad shape. The temperature was probably in the high 80's, low 90's, and the kitten did NOT like it. We summoned a helpful employee (I don't think they are "Cast Members" at Universal) who took a look, and got on her radio to get some help. We didn't stick around to find out, but I hope the kitty is ok!
Waited about 10 min, then got right into Twister. If you have never experienced this, basically what happens is you see some interesting video presentations about tornados and the film Twister, hosted by Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt (sigh) and then you move on into a large room which looks like the set from the drive in movie scene from Twister. After everyone is settled in, they re-create that scene, including a large tornado, the flying cow, and lots of rain, thunder, and lightning. This is very loud, very intense, and really cool! I don't think I would take real small kids to this, but our 11 and 8 year olds did fine.
After Twister we had about 35 min to kill while we waited for the last 2 members of our little group to arrive. This was Trina, mid 30's and her son Domenic, 6. While we waited, another little survey guy came over and asked us some questions about what sorts of snacks we eat. Eventually Cassie and I went with the guy to go try some secret samples of potato chips. It turned out to be some new versions of the Lays "Tastes Of America" chips. I got to try the Louisiana Cajun Style, and if they ever market these, I highly reccomend them! Very tasty, and just the right bite!
After that,at around 12:15, we stuck around the street long enough for the "Street Breaks" show. 2 guys and 1 girl breakdancers, with some audience participation. If you are not in a big hurry, check them out. They were very talented and funny.
By this time, Trina and Domenic had arrived, so we moved on to San Francisco and Earthquake. On the way, I stopped and took off my hat, and had a silent moment in honor of Kongfrontation. I was very sad to see him go.
Earthquake wound up being the longest line of the day, at about 35 min. We never found out why, but I suspect they had a technical problem. Once inside, though, things moved quickly. The pre-show has been changed a bit...it seems to go faster. Alicia, Andrea, Domenic and I volunteered to be part of the pre-show effects demonstrations. I was strapped into a fake submarine conning tower, and Alicia was supposed to get us all wet, which wound up with 30 or 40 gallons of water being dumped on her.
Then on into the subway, to travel into the Embarcadero Station, where they simulate an earthquake, complete with exploding tanker trucks, falling buildings, and several million gallons of water rushing into the station. Everyone enjoyed it, but it does get pretty intense.
After that everyone was hungry, so we backtracked to Richter's Burger Bar. These sandwitches were HUGE for a theme park burger. Large "fixin's" bar, so kids (and adults) can customize their lunch.
From there we were off to Jaws, which is one of my favorites at Universal. It's kind of like the Jungle Cruise, in that the better your boat captain, the better the ride will be. We got lucky and had a good one. We had a great time, but the 8 year old and the 6 year old got pretty scared. The line was about 10 min.
Stopped for a picture at the giant shark, then headed to Men In Black Alien Attack. Last time I was here it was still under construction, so I was looking forward to trying it out. It was EXCELLENT. Think Buzz Lightyear, but you sit in 2 rows of 3, everyone gets to shoot, and it spins itself. In some cases it spins really fast. They use some really nice light and sound effects. This was one of the better things we did all week, and the kids are still talking about it. The queue is amazingly detailed, too. Very short wait, probably 10 min.
After MIB, we went directly to Back To The Future, which is still my favorite ride in the park. The line was a bit longer than most had been, probably 20 min. As usual, it was worth the wait. The kids all liked it quite a bit, but it scared Domenic while he was on it - after he got off he said he loved it.
We moved on to ET's Adventure, and some of our gang went to the Animal Planet show, while the rest of us visited ET. I had never been on this one, so I was looking forward to it. The queue was very detailed...a walk through ET's forest. That took around 15 min, then you get on these cool bike kind of cars, and cruise overhead through the forest, with ET himself in the basket on the front of your bike. The kids all enjoyed it. I did too.
The report on Animal Planet was that it was a great show, very fun and lots of action. I was sorry that I missed it.
For our last stop of the day, we finished up with Terminator 2:3D. I have done it before, and I can't reccommend it highly enough. This is a 3D film/live action show that you really have to see to believe. To really feel like you are part of the action, try sitting in the last row of the floor section. The actors run back and forth right behind you, and even shoot over your shoulder!
After Terminator, we stopped and had a snack and rest at the Beverly Hills Boulangerie..whatever that means. Then we headed out to CityWalk.
The adults, being thirsty and tired, wanted to head right over to Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville for some frosty adult beverages, but after walking around the place looking for a table, we were told there were none to be had. Bastards! So we bought margaritas from the walk up window and sat outside to drink them. I headed up to Bob Marley - A Tribute To Freedom for a Red Stripe and a t-shirt. Hey, I'm a fan, what can I say?
We stopped at Cinnibon for another snack, then headed back to the condo. At this point, it was about 7:30 - 8:00. It was still very warm, and the sunset was very nice.
After a shower, Cassie, Alicia and I headed off to the Crossroads for some Pizzaria Uno. YUM! I can't get this stuff very easily at home - I live in Akron, and the closest one I know of is in Cincinatti, so this was a treat!. After Uno's, we were going to stop at DTD, but there was some kind of construction going on, and the traffic made me tired, so it was back home and to bed!
Up Next: EPISODE III: GERMANY VS. THE THUNDERSTORM, THUNDERSTORM 3, GERMANY 0
Respectfully Submitted,
VanBrujah
I wouldn't F*@k RiRi with HOWIE'S Di@k!
and now, name that quote:
"What the F*@k?
You mean you found out I did it?
You can't post that!
I'M TELLING!!"
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