Robinrs
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 7, 1999
Cast of Characters:
Me, Robinrs aka Cheapskate, 45yo kid in Disguise
Michael, 8yo Adult in Disguise
___________________________________________
Well, everything is set, I'm just about LOONY getting everything together for my first meet with MOST of the moderators on this board. I was so looking forward to seeing some of them again, RhondaS and Dan Murphy, and meeting the rest for the first time! It may sound crazy but it felt like I was actually going to meet celebrities. These were people I had grown relationships with for months, but never set eyes on... wow!
My plane leaves at 7:00am May 24th. I park my car at the long term parking lot at the train station near my home here in Atlanta at 5:55am to take the 6:00am train to the airport. After parking my car the 6:00am train toots right by us at 5:56am! *&^%$#!!! Since WHEN is it EVER on TIME, much less EARLY????
Well, we wait a crucial ten mins later and the next one shows up. Twenty mins later we get off the train dragging 7 days worth of luggage with us. The choice of North or South Terminal looms over us. I ask which one has Airtran and told "South".
Of course it turned out to be NORTH...
We end up running back to the North Terminal and told to go STRAIGHT TO THE GATE! And the Gate? It was the second to the last one in the terminal!! What is going ON???
We sprint like OJ and Flo Jo through the airport and made it to the gate at 6:55am.
So, sorry, this plane is the FIRST DOCUMENTED AIRTRAN FLIGHT TO EVER LEAVE ON TIME!
The disinterested ho-humming "customer service" person told me I would be put on the 8:45am flight...
Oh well, what the hey.
To make a VERY long story VERY short, this flight had a pilot's seat that broke all of a sudden
, and they could not leave until it was fixed THEN inspected. This 8:45am flight did not take off until almost 11am. 
..
It's my fault. Do NOT book a vacation anywhere near me. I'm a walking bad luck monster... And being the world's biggest CHEAPSKATE is the reason I keep stupidly going back to AIRTRAN ...
Well, we FINALLY make it to Orlando at about 12 noon. I run to the Emerald Aisle, it was slim pickings at this time of day and on a holiday weekend, so I found a Chevy Lumina and road away.
National provides really neat printed up directions to all of the attractions in town. I had a very clear card telling me how to get to Universal.
I am finally on my WAY!
But WAIT! Cheapskate has to get her tickets!
I had read on the boards that the Florida lottery was running a deal for Georgia, Alabama and Florida residents, for every losing lottery ticket you get two days at both parks for the price of ONE! That was right up Cheapskate's alley! So I drive up to the gas station on Kirkman Road right outside of Universal and asked the clerk for two Lottery tickets.
Now remember, the tickets have to be LOSING tickets.
Guess who could NOT lose????
I kept scratching and kept winning! WHAT is UP WITH THAT??? I won more tickets or $5 FIVE times! Well, I finally scratched off two of the tickets I won and they lost! Yay! The clerk looked like she was about to call the authorities on me.
So I left with all my money and my tickets and was on my way to the Hard Rock!
Check in was about five minutes. I had set up my reservations through HRN so it was all prepaid and I was ready to go. It was only 1pm and I was afraid it was a little early but they had my room ready. I had the Loews card and requested the cookies and milk. The upgrade was not available with my rate so I didn't push the matter. I figure for the price I paid I was lucky to get a room, period!
So with the precious lump of gold called a card key, to be explained later, a super cool little faux animal print bag full of Hard Rock goodies, including the requisite dark glasses, we went up to our room. We were on the 4th floor, which was one floor up from the lobby which is on the THIRD! Go figure!
The bellhop, who had the same degree of COOL
like everyone we'd met up till that point at the Hard Rock, was great at pointing out all of the interesting points of interest and the incredible memorabilia displayed in the hotel. Our room was gorgeous. I loved the muted tones and the very contemporary style of the room. I've never been one too keen on color, I wear virtually only black and white, so the subtle beiges and whites in the room were music to my eyes. What amazed me is how close the room looked to the advertisement I'd seen on the HRH. Things NEVER look the same as the picture. But this one was identical.
On the walls were pictures of Elvis in the army, the Beatles and my personal fave, a circa 1960's picture of Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. Michael was not impressed but I was in HEAVEN.
Well, it was time to hit the parks. Our bellhop showed us the boat dock which was right outside our window. The view of the garden was breathtaking. He told us we could use the boat, take a shuttle bus or walk. The walk, he told us was the quickest route, because it was about a 5 minute trek. So we chose the walk.
The walk IS as short one, we wound our way through some beautiful terrain and before we knew it we were at the entranceway to Universal. I went straight to the Guest Services window. I figured they'd know about the Lottery deal. Well, the lovely Guest services lady DID know about the deal. She explained that it was a new deal and she hadn't handled too many of them but knew it was a great deal. She pressed a few buttons and told me that it would cost the same for child and adult and with tax two days two parks would be approx $100. Not bad! I had to show my Georgia license, no problem, my losing lottery tickets, no problem, and my credit card....
PROBLEM!
I had left it in my purse at the hotel! AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!
WHAT was on my mind?? I grimaced and explained that I had to go back to my room to get my card, that I was sorry and so on and so on and she said the words that I still hear till this day...
Would you like to just come on in and enjoy the park???
What?
She repeated the words. I was still
She told me to meet her at the door next to guest services. Michael and I went there, still in shock, and she walked us through the hallway and led us to the park. I could not thank her enough! Her name was Camille and she was the sweetest, most adorable thing. I guess she must've felt sorry for us, but I still think she was a wingless angel sent down to make everything that went wrong for me up until that moment, RIGHT! Thank you, Camille!!
Well, Michael and I were FINALLY IN! With our little lumps of gold in our hands, our cardkeys, we walk up the walkway. What first, Mommy?? Hey, let's try out Hanna Barbera, it was right there after all.
I flash my card key to the attendant and she points me towards the Universal Express line. She asked me if I was new to FOTL, and I guess I must've looked like a fish out of water so she explained that I was going to be "automatically Univeral Expressed" all day. I thought, cool...
Two minutes later we were in Hanna Barbera. I like this little rough ride, Michael yelped and hollered the whole way.
Our next stop was Alfred Hitchcock, who my son has come to really admire since our first trip back in 1999. We "skipped" the line there, too, and were in for the next show right away. Inside the resident Hitchcock expert reeled off some incredible trivia about the director before the show. Inside, we saw the great 3D birds show and the Psycho show. My son put it in a nutshell, "although quite violent, Alfred Hitchcock was a genius!" Well said and quite accurate, I might say.
We skipped the next part which showed how the scene in which an actor fell off the Statue of Liberty in "Saboteur" was filmed, saw and enjoyed it the last time, walked through the attached store and took off up the street to the back of the park. Michael then remembered that I promised to do Jaws with him this trip. I was growing tired of this attraction, especially since it usually left me with a wet rear end which I did not find comfortable for the rest of the time there... Remember, our last trip was in January, and wet is not good on 40 degree days!
Well, it was about 85 degrees today so I relinquished. We went to San Francisco and rode Jaws. As anyone who has ever rode this ride knows, its the tour guide that makes this ride. Our tour guide this time was quite talented, so it made the ride fresh. I had the best time watching the face of a little girl who was in her Mom's lap, she was too young to really understand what was going on but her face showed the total amazement expected when one sees a shark for the first time. It was more of a "what the Heck" look than one of total terror. It was so adorable. Her mother told me afterwards that she probably would NEVER speak to her again!
Upon exiting we both realized that we were starving! It had been a LONG day and I hadn't eaten ANYTHING all day. I remembered Kelly Monaghan's book mentioned that his favorite USF place to eat was Louie's in New York. Hey, I like anything New York and Italian!! (hence my obsession with Robert DeNiro..) So we backtracked to New York and hit Louies for some pizza.
The pizza was surprisingly good and washed it down with some water then hit the road again. Since we were in New York, Michael suggested we "skip the line" at Kongfrontation, so off we go. We do the cheesy King Kong thing and then Michael makes a suggestion I could appreciate.
Why don't we go on Men In Black?
Off we GOOOOOO!
I LOVE this ride. It has all the good stuff, comedy, competition, and at the end, a hysterical picture to remember it by.
I reminded Michael about the infamous red button at the end which gives you 100,000 if you're the first to press it. Note to self... Press HIS button...
We do the Express line and we're on in minutes. I saw the inevitable nightmare of me beating my ultra competitive son and like a good Mommy I pressed his button in the smoke and gave HIM the 100,000 points.
"Cool, Mommy, I won, I won!!"
I know....
Next is Back the The Future. Michael LOVES this ride. Me, well, after the 20th time I think I kind of had it...
I have to work hard to make sure that I get on the front seat because that back seat can do a job on my bum shoulder, I found that out the hard way. The New Yorker in me has no problem pushing my way to the seat of choice, but pushing my laid back Georgia boy is another story. Move, Michael, MOVE! Mommy NEEDS that front seat! So far we've always managed to make it there.
Next ride is ET, which usually leads to the point of no return, the KIDZONE! Warning Warning, once sucked into the Kidzone with anyone under the age of 9, you will not, repeat WILL NOT, emerge within the hour...
We did ET, which splits inside the building for the Universal Express, and this time actually heard our names at the end! That's always a plus.
Michael was lit up about "skipping the line" at Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster, but I didn't see an Express entrance. The attendant told us to go straight to the exit. There we showed our "gold" and we were allowed in the next ride after the car emptied. By now we were kind of used to the dirty looks we got from the befuddled riders who did not possess the "gold"... but HEY, not everybody reads these boards! Too bad!
We rode this one twice without exiting, then headed for the wettest possible area outside of Blizzard Beach and Wet 'N' Wild... Curious George!
I find a place to park and stay dry amongst some other worn out parents while our children run like maniacs through a little fake town with hidden water obstacles everywhere. They can crank, throw, shoot and be shot at with every imaginable weapon from a mailbox to a large bucket that came down with the clanging of a bell. Michael ran wild through this while I imagined my warm bed back at the Hard Rock. Then I look up and like a mirage in the desert, I realize that behind the "town square" was the HARD ROCK. I got this vision of me vaulting the wall in one bound to get to that stylish little room that I had seen for about TEN MINUTES and was calling my name...
But right now it was "Mommy, look at me.... wooooohooooo!"
Where's my BED???
Finally the park is about to close and so were my eyes, so I drag my sopping wet child back to the front of the park and back to the Hard Rock. This time we go back in through the pool which I was really looking forward to seeing. I had read that the pool was shallow, a good thing for a non-swimming duo. I was so psyched by the sand, a sort of pseudo beach feel, and the cabanas were so cool. Michael was already wet so he tried out the pool, wanted to stay but I had been up and moving since 4am that morning so nothing doing. He relinquished, as he's been trained well to do all his life, and we headed up to our room.
I picked the Smokey Robinson bed, Michael got the Elvis bed by default. I chose to do room service for dinner. I ordered the mac 'n' cheese for him from the kid's menu and I ordered their club sandwich and mashed potatoes. The food was beyond good, it was excellent. I thought of the post about seeing so much of the food on the plates out in the hall.. I thought, no wonder. They gave so much there was no way I could finish it. I had also ordered the puzzle ice cream sundae from the kids menu. We ate it with our Loews cookies. The ice cream tasted homemade and was complete comfort food. Yummmmmmm...
I put the TV on the sleep mode and hit the sack. A wonderful day in paradise. I know I fell asleep with a smile on my face.....
Stay tuned for Part 2 : A Full day of FOTL! IT IS DA BOMB!
Me, Robinrs aka Cheapskate, 45yo kid in Disguise
Michael, 8yo Adult in Disguise
___________________________________________
Well, everything is set, I'm just about LOONY getting everything together for my first meet with MOST of the moderators on this board. I was so looking forward to seeing some of them again, RhondaS and Dan Murphy, and meeting the rest for the first time! It may sound crazy but it felt like I was actually going to meet celebrities. These were people I had grown relationships with for months, but never set eyes on... wow!
My plane leaves at 7:00am May 24th. I park my car at the long term parking lot at the train station near my home here in Atlanta at 5:55am to take the 6:00am train to the airport. After parking my car the 6:00am train toots right by us at 5:56am! *&^%$#!!! Since WHEN is it EVER on TIME, much less EARLY????
Well, we wait a crucial ten mins later and the next one shows up. Twenty mins later we get off the train dragging 7 days worth of luggage with us. The choice of North or South Terminal looms over us. I ask which one has Airtran and told "South".
Of course it turned out to be NORTH...
We end up running back to the North Terminal and told to go STRAIGHT TO THE GATE! And the Gate? It was the second to the last one in the terminal!! What is going ON???
We sprint like OJ and Flo Jo through the airport and made it to the gate at 6:55am.
So, sorry, this plane is the FIRST DOCUMENTED AIRTRAN FLIGHT TO EVER LEAVE ON TIME!
The disinterested ho-humming "customer service" person told me I would be put on the 8:45am flight...
Oh well, what the hey.
To make a VERY long story VERY short, this flight had a pilot's seat that broke all of a sudden
, and they could not leave until it was fixed THEN inspected. This 8:45am flight did not take off until almost 11am. ..It's my fault. Do NOT book a vacation anywhere near me. I'm a walking bad luck monster... And being the world's biggest CHEAPSKATE is the reason I keep stupidly going back to
AIRTRAN ...Well, we FINALLY make it to Orlando at about 12 noon. I run to the Emerald Aisle, it was slim pickings at this time of day and on a holiday weekend, so I found a Chevy Lumina and road away.
National provides really neat printed up directions to all of the attractions in town. I had a very clear card telling me how to get to Universal.
I am finally on my WAY!
But WAIT! Cheapskate has to get her tickets!
I had read on the boards that the Florida lottery was running a deal for Georgia, Alabama and Florida residents, for every losing lottery ticket you get two days at both parks for the price of ONE! That was right up Cheapskate's alley! So I drive up to the gas station on Kirkman Road right outside of Universal and asked the clerk for two Lottery tickets.
Now remember, the tickets have to be LOSING tickets.
Guess who could NOT lose????
I kept scratching and kept winning! WHAT is UP WITH THAT??? I won more tickets or $5 FIVE times! Well, I finally scratched off two of the tickets I won and they lost! Yay! The clerk looked like she was about to call the authorities on me.
So I left with all my money and my tickets and was on my way to the Hard Rock!
Check in was about five minutes. I had set up my reservations through HRN so it was all prepaid and I was ready to go. It was only 1pm and I was afraid it was a little early but they had my room ready. I had the Loews card and requested the cookies and milk. The upgrade was not available with my rate so I didn't push the matter. I figure for the price I paid I was lucky to get a room, period!
So with the precious lump of gold called a card key, to be explained later, a super cool little faux animal print bag full of Hard Rock goodies, including the requisite dark glasses, we went up to our room. We were on the 4th floor, which was one floor up from the lobby which is on the THIRD! Go figure!
The bellhop, who had the same degree of COOL
like everyone we'd met up till that point at the Hard Rock, was great at pointing out all of the interesting points of interest and the incredible memorabilia displayed in the hotel. Our room was gorgeous. I loved the muted tones and the very contemporary style of the room. I've never been one too keen on color, I wear virtually only black and white, so the subtle beiges and whites in the room were music to my eyes. What amazed me is how close the room looked to the advertisement I'd seen on the HRH. Things NEVER look the same as the picture. But this one was identical. On the walls were pictures of Elvis in the army, the Beatles and my personal fave, a circa 1960's picture of Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. Michael was not impressed but I was in HEAVEN.
Well, it was time to hit the parks. Our
bellhop showed us the boat dock which was right outside our window. The view of the garden was breathtaking. He told us we could use the boat, take a shuttle bus or walk. The walk, he told us was the quickest route, because it was about a 5 minute trek. So we chose the walk.The walk IS as short one, we wound our way through some beautiful terrain and before we knew it we were at the entranceway to Universal. I went straight to the Guest Services window. I figured they'd know about the Lottery deal. Well, the lovely Guest services lady DID know about the deal. She explained that it was a new deal and she hadn't handled too many of them but knew it was a great deal. She pressed a few buttons and told me that it would cost the same for child and adult and with tax two days two parks would be approx $100. Not bad! I had to show my Georgia license, no problem, my losing lottery tickets, no problem, and my credit card....
PROBLEM!
I had left it in my purse at the hotel! AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!
WHAT was on my mind?? I grimaced and explained that I had to go back to my room to get my card, that I was sorry and so on and so on and she said the words that I still hear till this day...
Would you like to just come on in and enjoy the park???
What? She repeated the words. I was still
She told me to meet her at the door next to guest services. Michael and I went there, still in shock, and she walked us through the hallway and led us to the park. I could not thank her enough! Her name was Camille and she was the sweetest, most adorable thing. I guess she must've felt sorry for us, but I still think she was a wingless angel sent down to make everything that went wrong for me up until that moment, RIGHT! Thank you, Camille!!
Well, Michael and I were FINALLY IN! With our little lumps of gold in our hands, our cardkeys, we walk up the walkway. What first, Mommy?? Hey, let's try out Hanna Barbera, it was right there after all.
I flash my card key to the attendant and she points me towards the Universal Express line. She asked me if I was new to FOTL, and I guess I must've looked like a fish out of water so she explained that I was going to be "automatically Univeral Expressed" all day. I thought, cool...
Two minutes later we were in Hanna Barbera. I like this little rough ride, Michael yelped and hollered the whole way.
Our next stop was Alfred Hitchcock, who my son has come to really admire since our first trip back in 1999. We "skipped" the line there, too, and were in for the next show right away. Inside the resident Hitchcock expert reeled off some incredible trivia about the director before the show. Inside, we saw the great 3D birds show and the Psycho show. My son put it in a nutshell, "although quite violent, Alfred Hitchcock was a genius!" Well said and quite accurate, I might say.
We skipped the next part which showed how the scene in which an actor fell off the Statue of Liberty in "Saboteur" was filmed, saw and enjoyed it the last time, walked through the attached store and took off up the street to the back of the park. Michael then remembered that I promised to do Jaws with him this trip. I was growing tired of this attraction, especially since it usually left me with a wet rear end which I did not find comfortable for the rest of the time there...
Remember, our last trip was in January, and wet is not good on 40 degree days!Well, it was about 85 degrees today so I relinquished. We went to San Francisco and rode Jaws. As anyone who has ever rode this ride knows, its the tour guide that makes this ride. Our tour guide this time was quite talented, so it made the ride fresh. I had the best time watching the face of a little girl who was in her Mom's lap, she was too young to really understand what was going on but her face showed the total amazement expected when one sees a shark for the first time. It was more of a "what the Heck" look than one of total terror. It was so adorable. Her mother told me afterwards that she probably would NEVER speak to her again!
Upon exiting we both realized that we were starving! It had been a LONG day and I hadn't eaten ANYTHING all day. I remembered Kelly Monaghan's book mentioned that his favorite USF place to eat was Louie's in New York. Hey, I like anything New York and Italian!! (hence my obsession with Robert DeNiro..) So we backtracked to New York and hit Louies for some pizza.
The pizza was surprisingly good and washed it down with some water then hit the road again. Since we were in New York, Michael suggested we "skip the line" at Kongfrontation, so off we go. We do the cheesy King Kong thing and then Michael makes a suggestion I could appreciate.
Why don't we go on Men In Black?
Off we GOOOOOO!
I LOVE this ride. It has all the good stuff, comedy, competition, and at the end, a hysterical picture to remember it by.
I reminded Michael about the infamous red button at the end which gives you 100,000 if you're the first to press it. Note to self... Press HIS button...
We do the Express line and we're on in minutes. I saw the inevitable nightmare of me beating my ultra competitive son and like a good Mommy I pressed his button in the smoke and gave HIM the 100,000 points.
"Cool, Mommy, I won, I won!!"
I know....
Next is Back the The Future. Michael LOVES this ride. Me, well, after the 20th time I think I kind of had it...
I have to work hard to make sure that I get on the front seat because that back seat can do a job on my bum shoulder, I found that out the hard way. The New Yorker in me has no problem pushing my way to the seat of choice, but pushing my laid back Georgia boy is another story. Move, Michael, MOVE! Mommy NEEDS that front seat! So far we've always managed to make it there.
Next ride is ET, which usually leads to the point of no return, the KIDZONE! Warning Warning, once sucked into the Kidzone with anyone under the age of 9, you will not, repeat WILL NOT, emerge within the hour...
We did ET, which splits inside the building for the Universal Express, and this time actually heard our names at the end! That's always a plus.
Michael was lit up about "skipping the line" at Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster, but I didn't see an Express entrance. The attendant told us to go straight to the exit. There we showed our "gold" and we were allowed in the next ride after the car emptied. By now we were kind of used to the dirty looks we got from the befuddled riders who did not possess the "gold"... but HEY, not everybody reads these boards! Too bad!
We rode this one twice without exiting, then headed for the wettest possible area outside of Blizzard Beach and Wet 'N' Wild... Curious George!
I find a place to park and stay dry amongst some other worn out parents while our children run like maniacs through a little fake town with hidden water obstacles everywhere. They can crank, throw, shoot and be shot at with every imaginable weapon from a mailbox to a large bucket that came down with the clanging of a bell. Michael ran wild through this while I imagined my warm bed back at the Hard Rock. Then I look up and like a mirage in the desert, I realize that behind the "town square" was the HARD ROCK. I got this vision of me vaulting the wall in one bound to get to that stylish little room that I had seen for about TEN MINUTES and was calling my name...
But right now it was "Mommy, look at me.... wooooohooooo!"
Where's my BED???
Finally the park is about to close and so were my eyes, so I drag my sopping wet child back to the front of the park and back to the Hard Rock. This time we go back in through the pool which I was really looking forward to seeing. I had read that the pool was shallow, a good thing for a non-swimming duo. I was so psyched by the sand, a sort of pseudo beach feel, and the cabanas were so cool. Michael was already wet so he tried out the pool, wanted to stay but I had been up and moving since 4am that morning so nothing doing. He relinquished, as he's been trained well to do all his life, and we headed up to our room.
I picked the Smokey Robinson bed, Michael got the Elvis bed by default. I chose to do room service for dinner. I ordered the mac 'n' cheese for him from the kid's menu and I ordered their club sandwich and mashed potatoes. The food was beyond good, it was excellent. I thought of the post about seeing so much of the food on the plates out in the hall.. I thought, no wonder. They gave so much there was no way I could finish it. I had also ordered the puzzle ice cream sundae from the kids menu. We ate it with our Loews cookies. The ice cream tasted homemade and was complete comfort food. Yummmmmmm...
I put the TV on the sleep mode and hit the sack. A wonderful day in paradise. I know I fell asleep with a smile on my face.....
Stay tuned for Part 2 : A Full day of FOTL! IT IS DA BOMB!
How wonderful for you both.
