(The majority of the pictures we took of Alison turned out like this. Photographing pre-teen girls is fun.)
Is it feasible that a perfect vacation can become an even more perfect vacation? It must be, because it happened today.
As we were checking out of our hotel in Anaheim this morning, we were met with a mountain of blue sequins, bangs, and braces. About 200 middle school band members were checking in, and the entire hotel was chaos. There were dresses, vests, and bowties everywhere we looked. The middle schoolers were all dressed up for a concert of some sort. We could hardly walk through the lobby without tripping over a suitcase or a group of giggling girls. You have no idea how happy we were to be leaving. During our 5 night stay we saw about 10 families. It was perfect timing.
As we were checking out of our hotel in Anaheim this morning, we were met with a mountain of blue sequins, bangs, and braces. About 200 middle school band members were checking in, and the entire hotel was chaos. There were dresses, vests, and bowties everywhere we looked. The middle schoolers were all dressed up for a concert of some sort. We could hardly walk through the lobby without tripping over a suitcase or a group of giggling girls. You have no idea how happy we were to be leaving. During our 5 night stay we saw about 10 families. It was perfect timing.
We drove to Universal Studios and arrived about 45 minutes after it opened. We paid the $20.00 for preferred parking and it was about a 2 minute walk to the gates. It was the perfect distance.
The Universal Studio employees are without a doubt THE nicest theme park employees of all time. It’s just undeniable. They were helpful and kind and obviously happy to be there. From the ticket-takers to the ride operators. The food-servers to the characters themselves, each one gave us better treatment than we’ve received in as long as we can remember. It was perfect customer service.
The characters were fully entertaining, and they fawned over Alison as if she were on some private tour of the park. Our first encounter was with Doc Brown, and he took us totally by surprise when he drove up to us on his Segway. The kids didn’t know what to think because they had to wait in line at Disneyland to meet the characters, so this was new for them. Groucho Marx came riding by on his bike and stopped to talk to us for about 5 minutes. After he was out of ear shot the kids asked, “um, who was THAT?” We met Frankenstein, Feivel, and Woody Woodpecker. Two Egyptians on stilts and a mummy were hanging out in front of the Revenge of the Mummy ride terrorizing people. We met Beetlejuice, The Wolfman, Homer and Marge Simpson… it was a regular potpourri of Universal genius. And they all approached us which was so fun. It was the perfect character encounter.
Our first ride was the Simpsons Ride. It’s about 2 years old, and has replaced the Back to the Future ride (boo), but the entire concept is brilliant. The kids were stoked because they’re not allowed to watch The Simpsons, and they probably felt like they were getting away with something clever by getting to go on the ride. It was the perfect ride.
Next, we took the kids down the StarWay escalators to the lower level and got on Jurassic Park. In 1996, when Chad and I came here for the first time, the ride was only about 6 months old. We have talked about going back ever since, and it felt surreal to now be taking our 3 children on it with us. The 85-foot, almost vertical drop was even more intense then we remembered and every one of our kids had to have more. So we went again, and we got soaked. It was the perfect way to cool down.
A few people had told us about Revenge of the Mummy. It was a “must-ride” on everyone’s list. So, much like my Tower of Terror story, I will not adequately be able to tell you how freaking awesome this ride was. But I’ll try. We got on right away (again, thank God for broken ankles) and noticed all the head rests and chin guards and warning signs plastered everywhere. Hmm, that's interesting. We also noticed that every single person who got off the ride was cheering and clapping. Always a good sign. We buckled up and slowly headed into complete darkness. Little creepy mummies and things from the movie popped out and it was all really scary and anxiety-producing, but still fun. Then, we pull up to Imhotep towering above us saying all kinds of craziness, but all I recall is him saying, “Now your souls belong to MEEEE.” And that roller coaster shot us from 0 to 45 mph in 2 seconds. Into pitch blackness. The twisting and turning lasted about a minute and then we came to a sudden (and very brutal) stop. And then we did it all over again. Backwards. It was the perfect roller coaster.
There was a deal in the park today that if you apply for the Universal Studios American Express, you get meal passes for $10.00. These meal passes give you all you can eat free food at 5 restaurants in the park. An entrée, a side dish and a dessert every time you go through the line. Unlimited, all day. I wouldn’t apply because I didn’t want to mess with my near-perfect credit, so Chad did it. He has near-perfect credit too, but he’s not a scaredy-cat like I am. He bought 3 meal passes because the kids are such light eaters they could all share. So, now we have a $5,000 American Express card and we ate for $30.00 for the entire day. It was the perfect way to dine.
We spent 8 hours riding the rides, shopping, seeing shows, and doing the Studio Backlot Tour. We hung out at City Walk for awhile, and then drove 20 minutes to Van Nuys where we are staying the night. We’re going back for more tomorrow before we drive north and closer to home. We have no idea where we’ll end up, but we can guarantee we’ll have fun. And it will be perfect.
Oh, and just so you know… we’re starting to miss you. Sorta.
The Niemeyers
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