Monthly Archives: May 2012

Universal Studios part 3

This blog is focused on the Jurassic park section of universal. The only ride there that is worth the wait, and we could go on, was the Jurassic Park river adventure. it basically was a narrator telling about random dinosaurs until you go into a raptor facility with escaped dinosaurs.

A flaming sign

Then at the very end a T-Rex tries to eat you and you go down an 85 foot drop. but the T-rex was not my favorite Dinosaur. My favorite was an Underwater dinosaur that shot up 15 feet in the air. It sorta looked like a combination of a unicorn and a goat. Yeah disturbing thought huh?

well anyway hope you enjoyed

Universal studios part 2

This part about universal is mainly the marvel super hero island attraction at universal.

Marvel superhero island. The first ride is the amazing spider-man ride. And the only way to describe this ride is to call it “sensory overload”.  You begin the ride by noticing the awesome job they have done in making the area you walk through while you in line.  You start by walking through the office of the “Daily Bugle newspaper”, where TV screens tell story you are about to see, basically doctor octopus stole the statue of liberty . With 3D glasses on, your ride begins.  Almost immediately, you will see that this will be a very different ride.  A state-of-the-art 4K high definition film and 16-channel audio thingy will make you feel like you’re in the driving in the the Streets of New York, allowing you to see every single tiny detail down to the sewing on Spidey’s gloves. In one part, Spider-Man appears to jump on the roof of your car/bus/thing, and the car/bus/thing responds to it.  Throughout the attraction, 3D villians such as “Scream” and “Doctor Octopus” appear to punch, kick and otherwise pummel your car/bus/thing into spins and even very high free falls. The other rides include the incredible hulk coaster, a very fast paced green roller coaster, and doctor dooms fear-fall.

All throughout the island are marvel characters and gift shops full to the brim of marvel merchandise. This area in universal had to be my favorite because of my love of spider-man. I also got a T-shirt that has picture of Venom (my favorite villain.) So, umm…………………………………………………… Derp?

This is the entrance for the amazing spiderman ride

Universal Studios part 1

Sorry i haven’t gotten round’ to this sooner, I’ve kind of been derping around going well this is fun what should i do. Well anyway this blog is about the harry potter attraction at universal. Hope you enjoy.

Harry Potter world. While entering harry potter world, the first thing you see is Hogwarts castle, standing tall and very beautiful. The castle is also home to The “Harry Potter and The Forbidden Journey” ride, an AWESOME simulation ride that

Hogwarts castle

takes you through Hogwarts and its grounds. You first start in the castle then outside to the Quidditch pitch and the have to battle certain creatures along the way. After the ride you are directed into Filch’s emporium, a gift shop packed to the brim with Harry Potter merchandise. Then you can follow a path to HogsMede the wizard town. The first few shops you see are Olivanders wand shop, Dervish and Banges wizarding shop, Honeydukes sweet shop, Zonkos joke shop, and The three broomsticks bar.  Inside Olivanders you get a wand presentation featuring three wands. Also in Dervish and Banges there is everything from wizard scarves to biting books. In Honeydukes there is everything from Bertie bots every flavor beans to Chocolate frogs and Peppermint toads. In Zonkos joke shop they have every joke and prank imaginable. And in the three broomsticks they many a food including giant turkey legs.

 

GIVE THE GRAHAM YOUR FOOD

 

But what really makes it so cool is the little details like hearing moaning myrtle in the bathrooms, and Butterbeer stands every few feet. All in all harry potter world is one of the coolest attractions at Universal Studios. Ya, so, umm, i can never end these well can I, oh well.

Orlando and beyond…

We had a great time visiting with Roger, Lana and Nicole at Seaworld.  We also went to Harry Potter world at Universal (a favorite) and Disney.  It was actually quite nice to get back to the boat and away from cars, people, expense and sensory overload again.  From St. Augustine we went on to Cumberland Island, GA.  It is a national treasure and and we anchored in the Cumberland Sound just west of the island.  On the other side of the small island is, of course, the Atlantic Ocean.  It is a short and beautiful walk through to the other side under moss covered trees which create a shaded canopy of green.  The other side opens up to a big and beautiful beach that looks just like the Jersey shore except there are no houses.  Graham played for hours in the surf.  The next day we had to hightail it to Jekyl Island to tuck in for Tropical Storm Beryl.  From here we will go on to Charleston and on up the coast.

from the mouths of kids…

Graham reported to me the other day that when in the Bahamas, he and the other cruising kids were sitting around getting to know each other and in addition to stargazing, swimming, snorkeling, sailing, volleyball, he asked them what their favorite color is. He said almost everyone said “it’s the deep deep blue of the ocean when you make a crossing”. I loved it.

Up, up and away!

Yesterday we visited the Kennedy Space Center and wow was it full of information. It was a super interesting day and we all loved it. We all rode a simulated ride of the space shuttle. Graham spent a lot of time spinning the solar system (huge marble fountain). The boys are back there today for a look at the Astronaut Hall of Fame and a few more IMAX shows. We were all impressed to learn of some of the country’s greatest accomplishments

St. Augustine and beyond

Our anchorage in Ft. Lauderdale

We spent 3 weeks in Ft. Lauderdale at a nice anchorage. We were able to spend quite a bit of time with our friends Jon and Jill who are not only extremely hospitable but also quite knowledgeable about cruising which was very helpful to us. We just sailed from Ft. Lauderdale to St. Augustine this week — 48 hours straight offshore, no real sleep, no real meals and a bit of seasickness for everyone. But we made it and we found a fabulous marina — River’s Edge which is quiet, has clean facilities, is close to town and has a great restaurant. This weekend is a folk and blues festival. We are going to take a trolley tour today and perhaps a Ghost in the Graveyard tour this evening. Matt and I went to Art on the Avenue last night in town. We plan to spend about three days touring St. Augustine and next week we are going to Cape Canaveral for a couple of days and then to Universal Orlando to Harry Potter world and then to Sea World to spend the weekend with our friends Lana, Roger and Nicole Parks who we traveled with in the Bahamas. We are very much looking forward to seeing them again.