Welcome to Day 3 ~ Monday August 18th
I am writing our trip report a little early today as there is currently a torrential downpour and flashes of lightning that sent us running for our lives from the pool deck.
~~~
Our wakeup call today was music from "Men at Work" I forgot to mention that besides characters you can also choose music as your wake up.. such as Aerosmith, Beatles, etc...
The lounge was better this morning, not as mobbed as yesterday but we were there a wee bit later so maybe everyone was already off to the parks. There were no tables available so we took our food back to the room to have.
A quick walk to the water taxi and we were off to Islands of Adventure... our first stop "The Hulk" Noel was not tall enough to ride last year and this year she was still an inch under the height requirement line but I decided to give it a go... no one said a word to us but of course it all happened so fast - with FOTL there is no time for second thoughts - you are on so quick and then it's too late
What a great ride... we screamed our heads off and loved the part where you fly through the foggy mist.
Noel (and I) were thrilled to conquer it and high fived each other! I was also very proud of Noel, she took it all in stride and didn't even bat an eye... it was like she just walked off of cinderella's carousel.
Next stop was the ride next to it... Storm Force? I think... very tame after Hulk.. next was Spiderman. I love the preshow area for this attraction but again with FOTL there is barely a second to stop and look at anything. Spiderman is a first rate 3D attraction - people who haven't tried Universal are really missing out.
Next was the Bilge Water Barges... I was soaked on this last year and refused to go so I waited in the baby swap area for Noel to ride and get soaked... when we left I noticed the Rip Saw Falls sign.. this was not running last time we were here so I thought I would give it a go... duh.. it's a WET ride too... but I figured it could't be as wet as Bilge Water... WRONG.. I was totally soaked... I also don't like the single file straddling way you have to sit on that ride - I will pass on it next time.
Next stop was Jurassic Park River Adventure - this is Noel's favourite ride and she enjoyed it twice.. once with me and once while I waited in baby swap. FOTL is so awesome we passed such a line up you would not believe... and then Noel went on again walking right by the same people STILL waiting for their first ride.
Next was our first disappointment of the parks - The DINO Discovery area is closed for refurbishment. There is a wall around what used to be the open staircase inside Burger Digs and the elevator is blocked off... I asked a CM (can you call these people CMs? maybe UM's?) and they said it should open mid November. Noel loved this area of hatching dinosaur eggs and finding fossils in the wall.. oh well
Next was the Flying Unicorn.. I love the area theming right down to the unicorn hoove prints in the pavement and the announcement "Secure all your charms and trinkets and keep your manes and tails inside car"
Boy it was Hot today... relentless sun, no clouds, a real fry an egg on the pavement kinda heat... I was starting to feel it so we bought 2 cokes and went to the Voyage of Sinbad Show .. we had a 20 minute wait till the show started but that was okay as we had our drinks and enjoyed the cool darkness of the theatre. We missed this show last year and did Posiedon's fury instead which was very lame... Sinbad is corny but has some good stunts and effects so we enjoyed it.
Next was Ice of the Duelling Dragons - again Noel was kicked off last year. After we were sitting on ICE - the guy came with the big stick, made her come off to be measure and then made us leave
Today, however was no problem and we had a good laugh riding this roller coaster... definately not as dramatic or exciting as the hulk.
After this Noel wanted to have her fortune told at the tarot card tent but the wait was too long so we decided to leave it for another day.
We decided to have lunch at Mythos and I was not disappointed - this is a beautiful restaurant which is themed like the inside of limestone caves and caverns..a really neat place to dine. They say every one has a twin somewhere well our waiter's twin is Matt Damon.. he was the spitting image of him and when I asked he said people tell him that all the time.
Noel hated her lunch.. she ordered the Neutronic Chicken Fingers and they came with a coating that resembled deep fried skittles..bright red, yellow and blue dots all over them - she tried to eat them but just could not get passed the appearance so she just ate some fries.
I had the Balsamic Chicken which was served on a smoked cheddar & potato tart (hey, I'm not making this stuff up) it's says so on the menu. It was very good dish and I enjoyed it.
As Noel did not eat her lunch Matt Damon brought her rice krispie sushi which was really cute and tasty (the dessert - not the waiter) it looked just like sushi & california rolls but was made of rice krispies, candies, gummi worms (I think) and chocolate & strawberry sauce - Noel happily ate it all.
By now it was coming up for 2pm - we were hot and tired and full from our lunch... we decided it was time to head back for swimming but we heard the music from "One Fish Two Fish' and couldn't resist this ride! It is fun.. like Dumbo or Aladdin and MK with fish that spit water at you... the song is cute and catchy.
No tacky souveniers today (however, it is only 7:00pm - the night is young) Noel only bought a jurassic park pin at a cart in the Port of Entry - it will be interesting to see if she will trade it away when she has it on her Disney Lanyard.
What a hot walk to City Walk... man oh man - it was brutal and I kept casting a wary glance to the black storm clouds on the horizon - I had a feeling we were in for it - so we headed straight to the pool and our half day Cabana - # 5. I did not like this cabana as much... the TV did not get CNN, where the other 2 cabanas did. There were not as many channels for some reason and also the sun was beating in the front because of the direction it faces...
I heard the first rumblings of thunder in the distance and headed for the water. Fortunately we had a good 90 minutes to swim before the first flash and crack arrived - the whistles blew and the pool was closed just like that.
On the bright side - we were tired and ready for a rest... we took some soda from the cabana fridge and came to the room. Noel went to the lounge to borrow a DVD and I started my trip report for the day. Noel returned with Fantasia 2000 *gasp* a Disney Flick at Universal?! and she reported seeing hotdogs in the lounge. I was not hungry but Noel thought she might like to have one so she went back. I guess rice krispie sushi is not that filling
I went to the lounge for a cup and ice and am happy to report the lounge only had a few people in it, there was chardony and a rose' blush wine, there was beer in the bottle on ice, coffee, tea, hot chocolate (mix) three types of cheese, large soft pretzels in a warmer, dip and veggies and hot dogs and buns. The food looked good and was well presented.
This morning I asked a lounge staff member to make a reservation for me at Mythos and she said
"Oh - you can just walk in, no reservation needed for lunch" WRONG - we had a 20 minute wait today at Mythos - and this was only because I had my resort card.. others were being told 30-40 minutes... it was a pretty busy place.
Tonight I told the housekeeper to forget turndown as she was out in the hall when I went for ice... she looked sad about it LOL... I have been leaving tips for the housekeeper and turndown keeper... if they are one in the same person they will be able to retire soon
Noel just finished watching Fantasia - and is off to see what else they have and if there are any cookies out yet in the lounge... I don't know where she puts the food. It is still pouring outside - if you have seen the movie "The Perfect storm" it is something like that but replace George Clooney with Matt Damon and Mary Steenburgen with me
Well, heres to a quiet evening at Universal's Hard Rock, a good nights sleep and tomorrow we are off to Sea World for a reserved Adventure Express Tour - I am told we get to touch a penguin.. awwwwww..
Goodnight from the Hard Rock
I am writing our trip report a little early today as there is currently a torrential downpour and flashes of lightning that sent us running for our lives from the pool deck.
~~~
Our wakeup call today was music from "Men at Work" I forgot to mention that besides characters you can also choose music as your wake up.. such as Aerosmith, Beatles, etc...
The lounge was better this morning, not as mobbed as yesterday but we were there a wee bit later so maybe everyone was already off to the parks. There were no tables available so we took our food back to the room to have.
A quick walk to the water taxi and we were off to Islands of Adventure... our first stop "The Hulk" Noel was not tall enough to ride last year and this year she was still an inch under the height requirement line but I decided to give it a go... no one said a word to us but of course it all happened so fast - with FOTL there is no time for second thoughts - you are on so quick and then it's too late
What a great ride... we screamed our heads off and loved the part where you fly through the foggy mist.Noel (and I) were thrilled to conquer it and high fived each other! I was also very proud of Noel, she took it all in stride and didn't even bat an eye... it was like she just walked off of cinderella's carousel.
Next stop was the ride next to it... Storm Force? I think... very tame after Hulk.. next was Spiderman. I love the preshow area for this attraction but again with FOTL there is barely a second to stop and look at anything. Spiderman is a first rate 3D attraction - people who haven't tried Universal are really missing out.
Next was the Bilge Water Barges... I was soaked on this last year and refused to go so I waited in the baby swap area for Noel to ride and get soaked... when we left I noticed the Rip Saw Falls sign.. this was not running last time we were here so I thought I would give it a go... duh.. it's a WET ride too... but I figured it could't be as wet as Bilge Water... WRONG.. I was totally soaked... I also don't like the single file straddling way you have to sit on that ride - I will pass on it next time.
Next stop was Jurassic Park River Adventure - this is Noel's favourite ride and she enjoyed it twice.. once with me and once while I waited in baby swap. FOTL is so awesome we passed such a line up you would not believe... and then Noel went on again walking right by the same people STILL waiting for their first ride.
Next was our first disappointment of the parks - The DINO Discovery area is closed for refurbishment. There is a wall around what used to be the open staircase inside Burger Digs and the elevator is blocked off... I asked a CM (can you call these people CMs? maybe UM's?) and they said it should open mid November. Noel loved this area of hatching dinosaur eggs and finding fossils in the wall.. oh well
Next was the Flying Unicorn.. I love the area theming right down to the unicorn hoove prints in the pavement and the announcement "Secure all your charms and trinkets and keep your manes and tails inside car"
Boy it was Hot today... relentless sun, no clouds, a real fry an egg on the pavement kinda heat... I was starting to feel it so we bought 2 cokes and went to the Voyage of Sinbad Show .. we had a 20 minute wait till the show started but that was okay as we had our drinks and enjoyed the cool darkness of the theatre. We missed this show last year and did Posiedon's fury instead which was very lame... Sinbad is corny but has some good stunts and effects so we enjoyed it.
Next was Ice of the Duelling Dragons - again Noel was kicked off last year. After we were sitting on ICE - the guy came with the big stick, made her come off to be measure and then made us leave
Today, however was no problem and we had a good laugh riding this roller coaster... definately not as dramatic or exciting as the hulk.After this Noel wanted to have her fortune told at the tarot card tent but the wait was too long so we decided to leave it for another day.
We decided to have lunch at Mythos and I was not disappointed - this is a beautiful restaurant which is themed like the inside of limestone caves and caverns..a really neat place to dine. They say every one has a twin somewhere well our waiter's twin is Matt Damon.. he was the spitting image of him and when I asked he said people tell him that all the time.
Noel hated her lunch.. she ordered the Neutronic Chicken Fingers and they came with a coating that resembled deep fried skittles..bright red, yellow and blue dots all over them - she tried to eat them but just could not get passed the appearance so she just ate some fries.
I had the Balsamic Chicken which was served on a smoked cheddar & potato tart (hey, I'm not making this stuff up) it's says so on the menu. It was very good dish and I enjoyed it.
As Noel did not eat her lunch Matt Damon brought her rice krispie sushi which was really cute and tasty (the dessert - not the waiter) it looked just like sushi & california rolls but was made of rice krispies, candies, gummi worms (I think) and chocolate & strawberry sauce - Noel happily ate it all.
By now it was coming up for 2pm - we were hot and tired and full from our lunch... we decided it was time to head back for swimming but we heard the music from "One Fish Two Fish' and couldn't resist this ride! It is fun.. like Dumbo or Aladdin and MK with fish that spit water at you... the song is cute and catchy.
No tacky souveniers today (however, it is only 7:00pm - the night is young) Noel only bought a jurassic park pin at a cart in the Port of Entry - it will be interesting to see if she will trade it away when she has it on her Disney Lanyard.
What a hot walk to City Walk... man oh man - it was brutal and I kept casting a wary glance to the black storm clouds on the horizon - I had a feeling we were in for it - so we headed straight to the pool and our half day Cabana - # 5. I did not like this cabana as much... the TV did not get CNN, where the other 2 cabanas did. There were not as many channels for some reason and also the sun was beating in the front because of the direction it faces...
I heard the first rumblings of thunder in the distance and headed for the water. Fortunately we had a good 90 minutes to swim before the first flash and crack arrived - the whistles blew and the pool was closed just like that.
On the bright side - we were tired and ready for a rest... we took some soda from the cabana fridge and came to the room. Noel went to the lounge to borrow a DVD and I started my trip report for the day. Noel returned with Fantasia 2000 *gasp* a Disney Flick at Universal?! and she reported seeing hotdogs in the lounge. I was not hungry but Noel thought she might like to have one so she went back. I guess rice krispie sushi is not that filling
I went to the lounge for a cup and ice and am happy to report the lounge only had a few people in it, there was chardony and a rose' blush wine, there was beer in the bottle on ice, coffee, tea, hot chocolate (mix) three types of cheese, large soft pretzels in a warmer, dip and veggies and hot dogs and buns. The food looked good and was well presented.
This morning I asked a lounge staff member to make a reservation for me at Mythos and she said
"Oh - you can just walk in, no reservation needed for lunch" WRONG - we had a 20 minute wait today at Mythos - and this was only because I had my resort card.. others were being told 30-40 minutes... it was a pretty busy place.
Tonight I told the housekeeper to forget turndown as she was out in the hall when I went for ice... she looked sad about it LOL... I have been leaving tips for the housekeeper and turndown keeper... if they are one in the same person they will be able to retire soon
Noel just finished watching Fantasia - and is off to see what else they have and if there are any cookies out yet in the lounge... I don't know where she puts the food. It is still pouring outside - if you have seen the movie "The Perfect storm" it is something like that but replace George Clooney with Matt Damon and Mary Steenburgen with me
Well, heres to a quiet evening at Universal's Hard Rock, a good nights sleep and tomorrow we are off to Sea World for a reserved Adventure Express Tour - I am told we get to touch a penguin.. awwwwww..
Goodnight from the Hard Rock
I still can't wait to get there!
