Theme Park Adventure 1

JULY 15
Guess what? The hotel we’re staying at in Disney World doesn’t have a strong internet signal so I’ll probably be posting in large chunks. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Today started at Islands of Adventure. We hit the 2 big coasters (Hulk and Dueling Dragons). Brooke and Lisa road Dragons 5 times, while Mom and I rode 2 and Dad rode none (he checked us in at our Disney hotel, his choice to do so). After we were done with those rides, we rode Spiderman. Then we met Dad and ate lunch. After that, we headed to the other park.

We started with E.T. Then we saw Animal Planet Live. It was cute. Then we went on other rides, I don’t remember the order. Twister was kind of cool. It was a ride but it was a stand-up ride. The goal was to experience a tornado. As I said, it was kind of cool. Earthquake was kind of the same. I learned some cool things about special effects when creating weather in movies. The ride itself wasn’t my favorite, but that’s fine. We also saw Fear Factor Live. Mom and Lisa attempted to try-out, attempt because you had to be 18 or older (Lisa was out) and have ID (Mom was out). So they didn’t get to try-out, but we saw the show anyway. It was interesting. I could do all of the stunts that the real competitors did (most likely not to their success level, but I could do them). As for the in-between acts, I couldn’t do those. These stunts included drinking a combination of very disgusting things. I don’t even want to write them down. If you’re truly curious of the gross concoction, feel free to watch my mom’s tape. We rode the Mummy 3 times in a row (in order to get the perfect picture). The line was extremely short and the crew loading us was very funny. We had them all three times we went. We saw the Horror Make-Up Show. That was hilarious. We also saw a Beetlejuice show with Dracula, Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, and Wolfman. It was interesting. At this show I thought to myself, “Where is my Disney?” A lot of the dance moves (done by 2 other dancers called Hip and Hop) were very suggestive. Then I had to remind myself that Beetlejuice was putting on the show and he’s pretty vulgar in general. Other than a few choreographic dislikes, the show wasn’t that bad. I was entertained.

Today was a full day of park fun. I’m exhausted! And yes, I’m still sick, though I could at least talk almost regularly by the end of the day. And no I didn’t scream on the rides 1) because I had no voice to scream and 2) I wanted to try and save my voice. And yes, we’re drinking LOTS of water. It probably was a good thing Brooke fainted because now we’re drinking water every time we see a fountain (ok a little exaggeration but still a lot of water is consumed from us).

I’m really excited for tomorrow! Disney World here I come!

JULY 16
We started our adventure at the Magic Kingdom. I must admit, I teared up when we got there and Mickey and Minnie and others came out for the opening and welcoming of the crowd. I’m so glad to be here. Anyway, we then proceeded to Space Mountain. Let me say that Disneyland and Disney World definitely have a different lay-out. All of us weren’t sure where to go (except with the obvious conclusion that Space Mountain is in Tomorrowland). We went on it twice. I missed this ride a lot (since it wasn’t working in Disneyland). We went on other rides, but not all of them because this is our Flavor of Disney World tour for Lisa. One ride was Stitch’s Great Escape. I didn’t like it too much. Don’t get me wrong; I like it better than what was there before (Alien Encounter), but it didn’t thrill me too much. Anyway, since this is the Flavor of Disney World tour, about 1:00 we went to Epcot. This is not usually what we do, but Lisa is not with us on a day we planned to go to Epcot so we spent half the day at Epcot. We went to Test Track, while Dad attempted to get Fast Passes for Soarin’. That didn’t work, but Lisa, Brooke, and I rode single rider on Test Track. After that, it was time for dinner. And guess what? Nous avons mange au Bistro de Paris (We ate at the Bistro of Paris). Dad made reservations there and Brooke actually agreed to eat there (thanks to Lisa being here, we went to another park and didn’t have anywhere planned to eat so we ate there). It was pretty cool. Unfortunately, it was a very nice place and we all felt very underdressed, though we did ask what we could wear and what we had on was just fine. Funny enough, there was a less fancy place right below us that would have sufficed, but oh well. I personally liked the food…Brooke not so much. And Dad told the waiter to talk to me only in French. Yeah that lasted about 5 seconds. I don’t know what it is but when I talk to a real French person, I loose all memory of everything I’ve learned. Like the waiter asked if I had any questions. I knew he asked that, but 1) he spoke so darn fast I only caught some words and 2) I second guessed myself. I felt dumb. Dad also made me order for everyone…in French. Good practice yes, enjoyment for me no. Anyway, it was fun to have real French food and listen to real French people. Though I did think of Alison and wished she and her parents were here so that they could tell us what is good and they could speak the French. Anyway, I had a good time. That is until the bill came. I will admit it was spendy. Brooke wasn’t pleased. She kept saying that she didn’t think the meal was worth $$$. And she really wasn’t too pleased with her meal either. Everyone else liked the food and the set-up. Anyway, I felt horrible and really down after dinner because Brooke kept saying stuff about the meal not being good enough for what we paid. Finally, Dad talked to her and she dropped it. I still feel sad, but I feel a little better because I got to eat in a French restaurant and don’t need to do so until we go to France (whenever that is). I still feel cheated however, because we’re eating at a Chinese place next time we’re there and we ALWAYS eat Chinese food. But oh well. I got to eat in France in Epcot. On our way to Soarin’, we stopped at Germany (to get Brooke gummy bears) and Norway (Lisa spoke Norwegian to a lady at the bakery. It was funny. Lisa doesn’t speak Norwegian, but Dad taught her one phrase to say just because). Then we booked it to Soarin’ and we rode that as our last ride. You may ask why we rode Soarin’ if we were just in California and had just ridden it. Well, Lisa had never ridden it before, so we couldn’t leave her in the dark. Anyway, that was our day.

As of right now, Brooke and Lisa are swimming and Mom and Dad are shopping. Why am I not swimming? Because I’m still sick and need to go to bed. That is what I plan to do after this post. It is interesting…my throat is really soar in the morning, gets way better in the afternoon, and gets soar again at night. Why? I don’t know but it’s annoying! As for my health, I am getting better…I think. Well, good night all!

JULY 17
We went to MGM today. Interesting enough, we slept in until 8:30! Why is that a shock? Well, the park opened at 9:00 and we’re usually there at 8:30. Guess not! Anyway, we drove to MGM today. New experience. We usually take the bus. Well, we got there and had a great time.

Highlights include: Tower of Terror, Rockin’ Roller Coaster, Lisa being chosen as an extra for Indiana Jones, eating at the Sci-Fi Dine In, and Who Wants to be a Millionaire.

We ate at the Brown Derby too. It was fancy, but had really good food. It was delicious. Along with the Brown Derby food came a special seating to the Fantasmic. The Fantasmic was ok. Don’t get me wrong; I liked it, but I like the Disneyland version better. Yes, they are different.

We saw Beauty and the Beast (Mom’s favorite). It was different from the last time we saw it. 5 years ago, the show started with Be Our Guest and then went on to tell the story of Belle and how she got to the castle. In Be Our Guest, they welcomed the audience as opposed to Belle. Anyway, this one actually followed the Disney story. It was interesting how this one seemed a lot like the one I saw in Disneyland my first time ever (when I was 4). There were a few different things, but the song Gaston and the opening when Gaston comes out were combined (like in Disneyland). I was slightly sad because in this production Gaston didn’t sound very manly. Actually, he was the only character who didn’t sound even a little like the Disney character. And I thought to myself, “Where’s Scott when you need him?” Belle was pretty good; she sounded like the movie Belle (However, Michelle, you were better). All the other characters had the original recordings for their voices so I really can’t compare them to the other wonderful cast of the Musical Theatre performance. I must say, however, I like my choreography of Be Our Guest better than the one presented today. But oh well. I liked this show better than the one 5 years ago.

The Great Movie Ride was slightly different. I liked it how they had it 5 years ago better than now (I’d explain further but it would ruin the ride).

We saw Lights, Motor, Action also. It was pretty impressive. It wasn’t my favorite, bit it was cool. Since it came from Disneyland Paris, the lady hosting opened speaking French. And yes ladies and gentlemen I understood every word. It was really cool. She did convert to English after a short while and translated what she said. Anyway, this show showed the audience some car stunts. It was pretty neat.

As I said earlier, Lisa was chosen as to be an extra for the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular. It was really cool to see her up there. However, she did do it kind of…there’s no better word for it…illegally. Why illegally? Well, on the first round of volunteers, the lady hosting asked for people ages 18 and up. So Lisa didn’t try for it. He second and third time, she didn’t say 18 and up, so Lisa took that to mean she to could try (she’s only 16). Well, she was chosen 2nd the second time around, so there wasn’t much we could do to stop her (not like we really wanted to anyway). Lisa getting chosen reminded us of when, 5 years ago, our friend Steve Walti was chosen to be an extra. Now that’s 2 people we know who’ve been an extra for this show. Pretty neat huh?

I have decided that I like this Tower of Terror much better than Disneyland’s. This one is longer. It weaves through a room before you drop. I like the set up better too.

Pretty much I like everything about Disney World better than Disneyland, though there are a few things I like better about Disneyland.

Anyway, Who Wants to be a Millionaire was so cool. It was just like the TV show, but the audience had the opportunity to be in the Hot Seat. How you got there was either by winning the fastest Finger at the beginning of the show or when the person in the Hot Seat was done you were the one with the most correct answers with the fastest time getting those answers. So yes, you play along as if you were in the Hot Seat yourself. I did pretty well…most of the time. And no, none of us were chosen for the Hot Seat, but we had fun anyway.

Tomorrow equals Typhoon Lagoon. Lisa has never been and we went 5 years ago. I’m excited, even though I’m still sick. Good news on my health…my throat is the only thing that hurts. I can talk pretty normally now. It just hurts to swallow. But we’re working on that. Well, good night!

JULY 18
Today was Typhoon Lagoon day. We slept in until 9:00! We got to the park about 10:30. It was fun. Though now, I have hurting ears and a soar throat (soar throat continuing from previous days). My ears aren’t plugged, they just hurt. Other than that, today was a lot of fun. Unfortunately, I got sun burned. And it’s not where I put the sunscreen either…it’s where Mom put it on me. Guess I won’t let her do it any more (just kidding). Anyway, Typhoon Lagoon just built a water coaster. There were 3 tracks. The 3 were similar to Noah’s Ark’s coaster, though I like Noah’s Ark’s coaster better. But all 3 were still fun.

After the park, we went to AMC theatre to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It was pretty good. Definitely different than the original. I don’t know which one I like better. I think I like the new one better, and not just because Johnny Depp’s in it (though that is a plusJ). I do like the old Oopa Loompa’s better than the new ones and I like the old song better too. But oh well. The new one explained better why Willy Wonka is as weird as he is. The new one made me laugh a lot more than the old one. Anyway, I liked the movie and would recommend it, though it is kind of slow in some parts but so is the old one.

That’s it for tonight. Tomorrow is the Animal Kingdom…Brooke’s favorite (my least favorite but oh well). It’ll be fun. Good night!

JULY 19
Today started horribly and ended pretty well.

We woke up about 7:00 and had breakfast at 8:00 (Mom, Brooke, and Lisa ate hotel food while I ate cereal and dad had nothing). Dad and I stayed in the room while the others ate in the cafeteria. After I was done eating, Dad and I went to move the car and meet the others in the food hall. We got there and they were no where in sight. Finally, we hooked up (they had gone back to the room looking for us). And we started our Animal Adventure. The first thing we did once at the Animal Kingdom was the Safari. That was fun, though we waited for Dad to catch up, even though we were very far a head and he said he’d walk fast. Anyway, the ride was cool. Then we went on an animal trail thing where we walked on a trail and looked at animals. This was not my personal cup of tea, but Brooke enjoyed it. Then Lisa and I went to get fast passes for Dinosaur while Mom, Dad and Brooke went to stand in line for the rapids ride. Well, Lisa and I met them at the entrance because they got caught up in looking at a girl who was dressed like a vine and blended into the scenery. Anyway, the ride was fun. I really didn’t want to get too wet and guess what…I got the most wet out of our group. Go figure. From there, the problems started to occur right and left.

Lisa and I went to get fast passes for another dinosaur rollercoaster ride while Mom, Dad, and Brooke went to get us seats for the Lion King show. Lisa and I got to the theatre and noticed a line. We went to the front and overheard that they weren’t going to let many more people in. We didn’t se Mom or Dad anywhere so we knew they were inside. I said politely that our family was inside and the lady pretty rudely said that we should have kept our family together. I replied with that fact that we had to do something. Anyway, we went to the end of the line and hoped that we could get in and find Mom and Dad. Well, they let in 35 people and we were 4 people away from getting in. So I asked a different man at the front how we could communicate to our family that we were out here while they were in there. He asked if we knew the section and I said no. Then I asked where would be the best place to meet them. He said the bridge. So Lisa and I waited at the bride for 30 minutes. By this point I was depressed…I was going to cry. Why? Because we were split up with no way to communicate us not being there, we weren’t seeing the show (yes there were other shows but we didn’t want to repeat when it was our only day there), and I had a horrible headache. Finally, the show was over and we met the other family members. Pocahontas and her friends show was next to the lion King show, so we went to that show. Well wouldn’t you know it, it started to rain and a thunderstorm was approaching. So that show was canceled. Then we ate lunch. After that, we went to Dinosaur and had a fun time. It was different than I remembered. Then we went to Flights of Wonder show. Well, it rained some more, so that show was canceled too, though we did see some pretty cool birds they brought out instead of doing the show. Then we went to the dinosaur coaster Lisa and I had gotten passes for. Then we booked it back for the last Flights of Wonder show, which we saw. After that, we had an hour and a half before the next Lion King show. So Lisa decided to go on a train ride and visit a research center they have at the park. It was interesting, but I was very worried about making it to the show on time. We ended up making it, though we booked it some more to the show. We were able to see it. It was great. I have decided that I will be the bird in the show when I work here. Why? Because she partners and flies all in one dance. It’s awesome! Anyway, then we went to the Tarzan Rocks show. It was ok…not my favorite…but better than last time. Then we went to Rainforest Café for dinner. And after much confusion, we finally had our dinner. The waitress was amazing. She was very friendly and very nice. So from a very bad start to the day, it sure ended nicely.

Tomorrow, Dad’s taking Lisa to the airport and then joining us at the Magic Kingdom for breakfast.