"Guess who`s back"...3 Return for 3 Weeks @ RPR. Parks, KSC with lots of good food and fun...A May 2023 TR

The Simpsons is not any of our favourite shows, to be honest we never really watched it, still don`t, we maybe caught the odd clip, especially if they weirdly predicted something many years ago only for it to actually happen, but that`s the only time we ever watched it. Of course we knew the storyline and characters so Springfield makes sense, but if it disappeared tomorrow, I certainly wouldn`t miss this area.





i-KrgTSvQ-X2.jpg







Same with the Bumblebee Taco Truck......Tom tried something from it several years back, maybe when it first appeared and it wasn`t good, of course I think we were just unlucky the meat was more fat than anything else, but again, that style of food is not for us generally. However, it is very popular and folks seem to like it.






i-VrZkqFG-X2.jpg








i-K5nv5zr-X2.jpg







Duff Beer bar is always nice to sit and have a chill out, they sell cocktails too and they`re not too bad, although I`d suggest getting a double measure, it needs it ::yes::






i-mfKFKzz-X2.jpg







My two went on The Simpson`s ride and as many of you who have been reading forever will know this is not a ride I will ever go back on. It knocked me senseless and unbelievably dizzy many years ago, I came off green and that was the end of the day for us. Tom and Kyle had no idea as they merrily walked out and thought I was behind them, when they noticed I wasn`t behind them they came back and saw the TM looking after me. Yes, it was that bad.

But, they like it and it doesn`t affect them at all so I have a wander round the store which is very cute and then sit on one of the benches and watch the world go past.







i-Pz9Jsqz-X2.jpg








i-58kGZq8-X2.jpg







A man came and sat beside me and chatted for a time, his family had all gone on the Simpsons ride too, he found out the day before couldn`t handle it at all, his experience was similar to mine and like me he could do all rollercoasters but not this one, so he was happy to wait while they enjoyed it. He was about 10 years younger than me and they were from South Florida but had never been to Orlando before which surprised me, but theme parks had never interested them up till their kids were slightly older.

I was hoping they wouldn`t be long as we wanted to see the Bourne show which would time nicely for the Horror Make up Show afterwards, but they were taking forever, eventually they appeared and they had been held up by the Express Pass line being held up to let up more of the regular line through. This wasn`t the first time this had happened and it`s not a popular thing to do, the man`s wife and family appeared and said the same thing, they were really annoyed as they had purchased the EP`s for their 3 days, that is a lot of annoyed with the cost of them!!

But, we headed off down to Bourne now and it was still fairly quiet in this area.







i-2szv5Js-X2.jpg






We had timed it nicely as everyone else, more or less had already gone in so the line area was almost empty which is good for pictures!





i-KcZcnZ8-X2.jpg








i-pKhvmdT-X2.jpg








i-T7WC7zV-X2.jpg






We really hoped Kyle would enjoy this one as he had never seen it before, and he did, he liked it and said he`d happily do it again.

It is a good show and where I used to have a snooze during the T2 show (yes, really) I didn`t snooze through this one. It`s a mix of live action and screens, but not screens that are awful, it is really well done and entertaining, one not to miss.

Of course you exit to a gift store......and they had already started to put out the HHN merchandise for this year, I did like the see you in the fog merch and it was selling already, people were snapping them up even this early. As a fellow HHN fan I understood they were keen to get something. We won`t be going this year though, first time in many years excluding Covid of course, but I think a break will do us good as we didn`t enjoy it as much as we should have last year, it was just too crowded to the point where it was scary busy.





1688223010501.png






Our next stop was the Horror Make up Show and it had been many years since Kyle had done this as I`m not sure we did it on any of our recent Christmas visits with him. But, he was keen to see it again as it is a very good show.

The theatre is filled with memorabilia from a lot of the old movies that we love so much, classic monster movies, images from the family show The Munsters and some modern scary movies too, it is wonderful to just wander and look at the images.

I love these old classic pictures behind the scenes from these movies, somehow makes Frankensteins monster and Dracula not so scary when they`re sharing a pot of tea!!!

Pictures are from a Google search.





1688223557223.png




1688223594063.png






1688223758792.png




I loved the display to include anything by Lon Chaney, aka man of a thousand faces. He was terrifying in most movies including Phantom of the Opera, Hunchback of Notre Dam and I believe only made one talking movie in his career. I would have loved to have seen him in the 1927 Tod Browning movie, London after Midnight, aka The Hypnotist but there are no surviving copies of this movie. The only copy had been stored in MGM`s movie vault but fire destroyed everything in that vault in 1967. It was supposed to be a genuinely terrifying movie.

Carl Laemmle Jr. wanted Lon Chaney to play Dracula in the 1931 movie and not Bela Lugosi, but he died before the movie was made. Rumours are they got Bela Lugosi for a much reduced price than Chaney would have incurred.







i-ck76HrP-X2.jpg








i-kQzZszD-X2.jpg








i-BPPk7FV-X2.jpg








i-JfJSKzH-X2.jpg






They have so many items to look at and some of them amaze me every time I see them, when I think some of these movies were made in the 1930`s. They don`t lose their appeal if you are a horror fan.

Seeing Kyle sitting in this chair reminded us of the older lady who used to work here years ago, she used to wander round with a rubber arm and hand hidden in her outfit and would very silently creep up behind folks and gently touch them with the hand....it was hilarious and she caught so many people, me included!! She must have retired many years ago.






i-vzr8gWR-X2.jpg






Tom gave me an extra hug as we went in, it hadn`t gone unnoticed that the last time we were here was the day we spent time with Lindsey in the park and I had the vision of her bouncing in full of excitement and happiness as she joined us for some park fun. Sometimes you don`t need to speak, he knew it was on my mind as we went in, she loved all things horror so this was a special show for her, it was hard to think of her as she was so happy and full of excitement for the show and told us so many things we didn`t know, including the shorter lady of the show, Summer was actually Mike Aiello`s wife....he is Mr HHN. We never knew who she was and she has worked for Universal in various positions for over 20 years.

I didn`t cry although I felt like it as we were in a huge group of people and I didn`t want to bring the mood down, especially for Kyle who would enjoy the show.






i-k4b7LMR-X2.jpg






It sounds awful to say, but I was disappointed it was this guy who was one half of the show today, he is perfectly fine, but it meant Summer wasn`t the other half of the double act, she just adds so much to the show but it was still very good.






i-Q24RHqf-X2.jpg







i-fphjDdn-X2.jpg






They do stick to the same format, same script and same finale and have done since the beginning and it is clever. They choose a member of the audience, and have them as part of the show, show some tricks and some movie clips, make some jokes including the old classic about not having to be nice to kids as it`s not Disney, that one always gets a cheer.....but they have added some new jokes to include the Kardashians and some other pertinent comments.

It is worth seeing and completely suitable for kids...there`s nothing scary about it whatsoever.



More to come..... :-)
 
Last edited:
Hi Carole: I agree with not going on the Simpson's ride. I think I am the only person in America who never even watched the show. We have avoided that part of the park because the Simpson's don't interest us.

I'm glad Kyle got to see the Bourne Show. We haven't seen it yet, but it's my kind of show:)

The Horror Makeup Show is one of our favorites. There are always people who don't know the ending, and it's fun to watch them:)

I'm enjoying the photos and your fun TR, as always:)

ruth
 
Loving your trip report as always 🤗!

Both hubby & I had the same reaction as you did our first time on the Simpson's ride 🤢- one and done for us & definitely a never again. Fortunately there are so many others we love at UO to enjoy 👍💖!

Thank you, I`m so glad you`re enjoying it ☺️

Completely agree, there are so many other rides to go on but I`m always amazed at how many folks do suffer a reaction to Simpsons. Not fun at all, sorry you suffered the same way.
 
Hi Carole: I agree with not going on the Simpson's ride. I think I am the only person in America who never even watched the show. We have avoided that part of the park because the Simpson's don't interest us.

I'm glad Kyle got to see the Bourne Show. We haven't seen it yet, but it's my kind of show:)

The Horror Makeup Show is one of our favorites. There are always people who don't know the ending, and it's fun to watch them:)

I'm enjoying the photos and your fun TR, as always:)

ruth

Thanks Ruth, yes, I always think we`re in the minority not watching the Simpsons, it is quite a nice area of the park and Kang and Kodo`s is a good little ride you`d enjoy, but yes, we usually just walk straight through it.

You`ll love Bourne. It is a lot better than T2 ever was and Horror Make up is a definite not to be missed show. Yes, it`s fun when you see first timers reactions.

Glad to see you`re enjoying it Ruth......always good to see you comment ☺️
 
Now, I was hungry.....nothing unusual there, but my two said they could eat and we had decided to try Lombards again, Kyle always enjoyed it here and despite our last, well my last negative experience we looked forward to it.

It`s such a beautiful restaurant and it is very different from most people`s impressions of theme park restaurants will generally be like. One of the most beautiful theme park restaurants we had ever seen was way back in 1991 when we went for the first time to DLP, Walt`s, An America restaurant is a gorgeous place and one we would make sure we went back to again on our next visit which we did and enjoyed it again and several times after that, it was like stepping back into a timeless elegance with some very nice food to compliment the surroundings.

But, Lombard`s is maybe not just as pretty, but it certainly has something appealing and not a bad menu too.

My two ordered a strawberry smoothy and I had some kind of margarita that was very nice and we did have a lovely waiter this time unlike our last visit where even the manager was appalled at how he spoke to us, we liked this man and unlike other waiters we didn`t feel he was pushing us to order alcohol. This was a much nicer experience so far.

Famous last words!! 🙄






i-bJf9Pw7-X2.jpg







i-PcsLxwn-X2.jpg






Tom ordered shrimp alfredo which did look lovely, Kyle went for the fish and chips which he has had before and although anything deep fried is never the same for some reason in Florida as we`re used to, he always enjoyed it and it looks and smells lovely.





i-WzVHwJR-X2.jpg








i-K5Rk9jb-X2.jpg






I had ordered the Mahi Mahi dish which came with a carrot and ginger sauce and another one I forget what it said it was, I checked there were no herbs I didn`t like it and he assured me no, it was fine.

I know what you`re thinking.......she can`t be that unlucky again and have a bad meal......well, I didn`t get the chance.

It looked lovely, but I saw it had come with rice and beans, I abhor beans of any kind so that wasn`t so good, but I could work around it. I love this fish so I`d eat that and some of the sauce.......until I took my first bite of the fish.







i-B5n5sGc-X2.jpg







The fish was off. Really off.





i-Cfz7kLG-Th.gif




I do think I`m jinxed with Lombards!!

Tom said he couldn`t believe it was off, it didn`t smell bad as off fish usually does, but it was sour tasted and nasty! I`ve eaten Mahi Mahi enough to know what it should taste like and it wasn`t like this. It really was becoming a little surreal how unlucky I had been here.

Meanwhile Kyle was tucking in and his was lovely, we were so glad of that and Tom`s was delicious too. Our waiter appeared as I was starting to look for him and told him the fish was off, I expected a question or two but he simply apologised and took it away rather swiftly asking if I wanted something else, I really didn`t now and by the time they cooked something, they would have finished, so I said I`d share Tom`s.....he was delighted with that......🤣

I had a few shrimp and Kyle gave me a piece of his fish which was very nice apart from a slightly soggy batter, so I didn`t go hungry.

Tom has insisted I`m now not allowed to eat here unless I order the lobster roll which is hard to get wrong??????????

When we were finished we paid and headed off back out into the heat of the day and it was lovely. Kyle said he wanted to go do Kang and Kodo`s and MiB then get some ice cream, sounded good to me.

Kang and Kodo`s is a very simple ride, although you go round, it`s not fast and nor is it "spinny" so we went on that first and we each got a ride vehicle and it was actually really good.






i-rtG7wjK-X2.jpg






I don`t think we made it to MiB today in the end, I think we were all a little weary with lack of sleep over the last couple of nights and we aren`t usually in the parks into the afternoon, yes, we sound like wimps!

Kyle wanted to go to Haagen Dazs again, we were happy to go along with that.

He ordered his usual chocolate ice cream with chocolate sauce and chocolate chips, I ordered Dulce de Leche and Tom and I would share that one as you do get a lot of ice cream in that tub!






i-3QJ6JQg-X2.jpg







i-rCX3nn4-X2.jpg







The ice cream was lovely, and it really filled us up, but now we were heading home I think we all wanted a snooze. Today we actually did want to stay in the park, but we all looked so tired and I think we all knew we needed a sleep.

We did watch the street performers with their Sing Off competition which is quite fun to watch, then we go on The Mummy for a quick ride, the EP line was fairly quick today so we got on and off in no time. The Mummy is definitely one of our favourite rides in the parks.







i-XnbvMGB-X2.jpg








i-hcVR5JP-X2.jpg






We decided to be healthy today after our ice cream and walk home today and it was a lovely walk as there was a slight breeze in our faces so it was pleasant and not too hot despite it being mid afternoon.






i-XJ2h7jw-X2.jpg







We went straight to our room and we all fell asleep almost straight away, Kyle just slept on the sofa. I next looked at the clock and it was 4.30, if I didn`t get up now, I`d be there till midnight, so I dragged myself to the shower knowing it would wake the other two with me rumbling about especially when I put the hair dryer on, always popular with Tom back home!!! But we did all have a good snooze but still felt tired so we decided to have a low key night instead of heading back into Citywalk as we had planned.

Tom and I went to the lounge and I told him wherever we went we`d get an Uber so he could enjoy a glass or two of wine with me, he didn`t argue tonight. Kyle joined us around 6.30 and had a hot chocolate before we headed down to the lobby to order the Uber, we had decided to go back to Carrabbas as we had enjoyed it so much last time.







i-CNDcmm2-X2.jpg






Our Uber was 5 minutes away so we grabbed some pictures, including an empty front entrance which is incredibly unusual, there`s always someone arriving or leaving at all times of the day.





i-nPDJvPm-X2.jpg








i-24w9hRS-X2.jpg







Our Uber driver pulled up, we checked it was the right one, and Kyle and I were getting in the back as Tom tried to get in the front pasenger seat, but there was something already there.....a dog, in a basket, with a sailor outfit on it. We were all a little bemused by this and she said Tom would have to sit in the back, thankfully it wasn`t the smallest car and Kyle is very slim otherwise, we`d have had to get another. It was tight though, I`m glad there weren`t four of us.

She said this was Miss Lily and she went everywhere with the driver!!!

This was an odd drive with conversations about the dog as if it was her child....and some very odd comments about the dog, we would be glad to get out of this car as this woman seemed to be not of this planet at times.

We told her it was Carrabbas we were going to and she did turn in but then turned right instead of left and stopped and said you`re here......we said no we`re not, it`s over there! She didn`t really say anything but she did sigh, moved the car and dropped us off at the door and then got out and took the dog out too for a play, the poor little thing could hardly move with this silly outfit on, we quickly went inside and hoped we didn`t get this lady again!

Kyle asked the question we were all thinking......why is it always us!!

Carrabas was busier tonight than the last time we were here, we got a booth and Kyle ordered a strawberry lemonade and as we had been drinking red wine in the lounge, we both ordered their Blackberry Sangria which were lovely, very fruity too.

Excuse my blurry image again!!






i-83C8VRc-X2.jpg






Our waitress was lovely again tonight, very chatty which we do like, we decided to share a couple of appetisers and ordered a hot shrimp dish and mussels in white wine and garlic. Kyle is not fond of cold shrimp, but in a hot dish like this, he loves them and she had given us extra garlic toast as she heard us say we were sharing.






i-275j47W-X2.jpg








i-CWMgt88-X2.jpg








i-gDHHHLD-X2.jpg







They were all lovely, including the salad but we were ready for our entrees although we had asked for a break between courses as we do like to take our time with dinner and she did give us a decent gap till they arrived. One of our pet hates is when they bring the entrees out when you`re still eating your appetiser or almost immediately, so a little gap works out nicely.






i-pCz52xn-X2.jpg








i-d9KhzFV-X2.jpg






We all ordered filets, one rare and two medium rare, I had ordered creamed spinach with mine instead of brocolli, but the dishes were all the same so I`ll just post one. And they were all perfectly cooked.






i-srHT67R-X2.jpg






We loved the food here, steaks were gorgeous and we were well looked after again, this is a really lovely place we`ll go back to again.

Our Uber was 4 minutes away and we were glad to see it wasn`t the same woman that was driving us home.

We only started using Uber last September/October and we do like using it, with having to stay an extra week with the hurricane it came in very handy, so we were glad we had set up an account early in the trip and we did a fair few rides with them.







i-jxMPL4p-X2.jpg






Our driver was very nice and no dog which worked for us as we weren`t all squished in the back for the very short drive, and we were home in only a few minutes.

None of us felt like going to Orchids or Jake`s for a drink as we thought we might, Kyle still looked a little pale and tired so it was straight upstairs for us and got ready for bed and I did hope Kyle would sleep well and I hoped my coughing wouldn`t become an issue for a second night.

Tomorrow we had KSC, a place we all love and wanted to enjoy so much.
 
I'm sorry, Carole, but I just had to laugh at your bad luck at that restaurant! And also that very strange Uber driver! Wow, I can't imagine that she told Tom to ride in the back. That's horrible customer service. And to dress up a dog like that? That is just sooo weird! I have heard that the quality of the Uber driver's has gone downhill, and I wonder if it is true. We have only used taxi's while at Universal which worked well for us.
Kyle does look a little pale and tired in those pictures. Your steaks look delicious. I love a really good tender steak. Sadly, around here there is no place that serves steak like that every time. One time it will be good and the next, not worth the money! We need more good restaurants where we live. It is a resort area so you would think we would have a lot of wonderful restaurants. We travel an hour away to a restaurant that we love and we always get good food there. It is a little town way out in the boondocks, with probably 20 people and one very short main street. However, people travel here from all over the north country just to eat here. I guess I'm rambling on, sorry:) Awaiting more TR!
 
All caught up! Sorry been a crazy couple of weeks!

What is with Cheesecake Factory and cilantro lately?!?!? My mom is the same way and they never have it off!

Congrats to Kyle for the race!

Sad to hear he was under the weather that was me in 2012-very similar. Possibly because of our fair skin and being in the sun even with all the protection and relaxation.

Loved all this food (minus your Lombard’s experience!) And while Jakes was a so/so experience for us that burger was delicious and I miss it lol.

What was with that Uber driver yikes!


and also dear Lindsay…..I hope she is at peace wherever she may be🙏🏻💜
 
I'm sorry, Carole, but I just had to laugh at your bad luck at that restaurant! And also that very strange Uber driver! Wow, I can't imagine that she told Tom to ride in the back. That's horrible customer service. And to dress up a dog like that? That is just sooo weird! I have heard that the quality of the Uber driver's has gone downhill, and I wonder if it is true. We have only used taxi's while at Universal which worked well for us.
Kyle does look a little pale and tired in those pictures. Your steaks look delicious. I love a really good tender steak. Sadly, around here there is no place that serves steak like that every time. One time it will be good and the next, not worth the money! We need more good restaurants where we live. It is a resort area so you would think we would have a lot of wonderful restaurants. We travel an hour away to a restaurant that we love and we always get good food there. It is a little town way out in the boondocks, with probably 20 people and one very short main street. However, people travel here from all over the north country just to eat here. I guess I'm rambling on, sorry:) Awaiting more TR!

It is getting ridiculous isn’t it, I have to say we did have a giggle about it, Kyle asked if I ever offended their chef somehow!

That was our only negative experience with Uber, I’m not sure Uber has gone downhill as we had excellent service from every other ride we ordered. One or two didn’t speak the best English, but we were very happy with it and will absolutely use Uber again next trips. Our one experience with a taxi was hilarious……we grabbed it when we were at the Orlando Eye area…..our driver was like Shaggy from Scooby Doo and there was a very strong odour of marijuana in the car and he was obviously a little spaced out. We couldn’t even get out as we hit every green light….very odd experience too, but that was years ago.

My friend txt me last night saying Kyle and both looked as though we were wiped out, him worse than me……but trip reports show good and bad, so I posted as we were, but yes, he is very pale in some pics.

We love a good steak too. We do have a lot of very good restaurants near us and some we do have quite a drive to get to, but they’re worth it! We also have some very poor chains across the UK that we avoid like the plague!

I hear you though, a good restaurant is worth travelling to and yes, those little gem places are priceless. One we drive to is in a tiny little village that doesn’t even have a village shop, but it has two pub/restaurants that are both amazing!!

Now I’m thinking of steak for dinner!
 
All caught up! Sorry been a crazy couple of weeks!

What is with Cheesecake Factory and cilantro lately?!?!? My mom is the same way and they never have it off!

Congrats to Kyle for the race!

Sad to hear he was under the weather that was me in 2012-very similar. Possibly because of our fair skin and being in the sun even with all the protection and relaxation.

Loved all this food (minus your Lombard’s experience!) And while Jakes was a so/so experience for us that burger was delicious and I miss it lol.

What was with that Uber driver yikes!


and also dear Lindsay…..I hope she is at peace wherever she may be🙏🏻💜

Thanks, he did so well!

This was definitely a cold/bug he had and not heat related, it was mainly his nose that bothered him and a sore throat. We are all good with the heat, but when someone coughs in your face, it’s hard to avoid bugs.

Well, my fish looked good……lol…….we did and do have some lovely food though throughout the trip.

The Uber driver was certainly an odd one!

Good to see you post, hope life gets less hectic :)
 
When you have a wild adventure, you go all in! 🤣

Between the food, the unusual Uber driver, and your history at Lombard’s, swear you just somehow attract the crazy 😜

I’m so glad Kyle had a good race and you all enjoyed that experience. It is a shame to get sick but as you said, with the poor hygiene of others pretty difficult to avoid. 😔

You are doing a great job with hitting all the rides. I do love the Horror Makeup Show. I wish they would update it a bit, but it always entertains. The store as you exit is incredible. I love all the classic monsters and their merch, and I think this area of Epic will be something special indeed.

I always want to ride the Alien Swirling Saucers in the Simpsons. I enjoy the funny banter, and it really is fun to be up in the air at night and see the view of all the lights.

I have to ask if you are excited for the Minion Land? I think it adds a much-needed area for, well, Minions 🤣 I’m sure smaller visitors are delighted 😁

Looking forward to KSC coverage! 🔭🪐🛰️🧑🏽‍🚀🚀
 
Thanks, he did so well!

This was definitely a cold/bug he had and not heat related, it was mainly his nose that bothered him and a sore throat. We are all good with the heat, but when someone coughs in your face, it’s hard to avoid bugs.

Well, my fish looked good……lol…….we did and do have some lovely food though throughout the trip.

The Uber driver was certainly an odd one!

Good to see you post, hope life gets less hectic :)
Oh definitely-theme parks are geek magnets lol

It will definitely not get less hectic but more of a routine if that makes sense
 
When you have a wild adventure, you go all in! 🤣

Between the food, the unusual Uber driver, and your history at Lombard’s, swear you just somehow attract the crazy 😜

I’m so glad Kyle had a good race and you all enjoyed that experience. It is a shame to get sick but as you said, with the poor hygiene of others pretty difficult to avoid. 😔

You are doing a great job with hitting all the rides. I do love the Horror Makeup Show. I wish they would update it a bit, but it always entertains. The store as you exit is incredible. I love all the classic monsters and their merch, and I think this area of Epic will be something special indeed.

I always want to ride the Alien Swirling Saucers in the Simpsons. I enjoy the funny banter, and it really is fun to be up in the air at night and see the view of all the lights.

I have to ask if you are excited for the Minion Land? I think it adds a much-needed area for, well, Minions 🤣 I’m sure smaller visitors are delighted 😁

Looking forward to KSC coverage! 🔭🪐🛰️🧑🏽‍🚀🚀

Oh we really do Maria, Kyle often comments we do seem to attract them at times!!!

We were so grateful he was healthy enough to do the race, especially as he enjoyed it so much, yes, I think we noticed more people cough and sneeze into their hands than ever before, then go touch stuff around them. I`m not a germophobe at all, just someone who follows basic hygiene but some people`s hygiene standards are quesionable to say the least.

I do think the Horror make up show needs an update too, I do like the familiarity of the show but they could shake it up a little and yes the Five and Dime store is always a lovely store to walk around, especially during HHN`s when they always have an excellent display from the classics.

Yes Epic Universe will finally do justice to that era of movies, I think it`s going to be truly amazing when they open at Epic.

I have to say I have no interest in the new Minion area, we will go look at the new attraction of course and the cafe of course we`ll have a nosey as there were one or two things we would try, but as I hate anything banana flavoured or anything with banana in it, there`s a lot I won`t try. Yes, it will be popular though, probably a one and done for us.

KSC coming up......I doubt I`ll spend as much time on this visit as I did the last trip report as it was far more detailed as I know it`s not for everyone, so although we love it and could talk for hours on the subject, it won`t be too intricately detailed. But, we loved our day there.

Good to see you and enjoy today Maria......🇺🇸🗽🍹
 
we didn`t enjoy it as much as we should have last year, it was just too crowded to the point where it was scary busy.
& u go early n the haunt season! It truly was a mass of people last year. Many nights I thot it should’ve been sold out
m always amazed at how many folks do suffer a reaction to Simpsons
Opposite here lol.
Tom has insisted I`m now not allowed to eat here unless I order the lobster roll which is hard to get wrong??????????
IDK after having it last year pre HHN, won’t again. The lobster had that unfortunate just ‘improperly’ thawed soggy texture. I’ve certainly had better
Tom tried to get in the front pasenger seat, but there was something already there.....a dog, in a basket, with a sailor outfit on it.
Whaaat?

Willing to bet that’s against Uber’s policy if only as to liability of a dog bite. It’s those little cute ones you have to watch lol
Oh definitely-theme parks are geek magnets lol

It will definitely not get less hectic but more of a routine if that makes sense
I have encountered theme park goers that rival
Sport team’s aficionado’s
 
WEDNESDAY MAY 10TH






We all slept a little better last night, my cough was getting worse so after today I was going to get some proper medication for it as it wasn`t clearing at all, but I wasn`t sure what to get as it really was the oddest cough to describe.

Kyle felt ok this morning thank goodness and would enjoy today for sure, of that we were all glad, poor Tom surrounded by sickies that weren`t really sick??

We were in the lounge for breakfast just after the doors opened and I must admit they did giggle at us being in so early, something we never do. The place was busier now than at 8am somedays with most of them in to grab food before heading to the park.....not for us, we did see some folks rushing everyone to finish food so they could get going, EE is certainly popular, maybe we would try it once just to experience it.

We enjoyed our food then went back to our room to get sunscreen on and I dithered about what to wear......I chose the wrong clothes!!!

It takes about an hour to get to KSC, Satnav will try and take you through Orlando and a ridicuously long way round....but go past MCO and then keep going, it`s an easy drive and as you get closer you can see the Vehicle Assembly Building and really see how large it is which I don`t think pictures show.

You pay to park and we were fairly close to the entrance as it wasn`t really busy, the last time we were here I think every school in Florida had turned up, it wasn`t really that bad but to go in took much longer than it should have due to them. But, today it was very easy, after we bought the tickets it was straight through to the turnstiles and bag search which was very cursory. Although as soon as we had got out of the car I realised I should have worn a dress or some shorter leggings as it was absolutely boiling hot and much hotter than predicted! I even had a dress out, but....hey ho.

Our first stop was the Heroes and Legends building which has displays and some screen shows that educate us on how space travel has evolved over the years.

The astronauts etched into a huge fibreglass bas-relief on the side of the building were the original Mercury 7 which launched six missions from Cape Canaveral from 1961/63, although the original project began in 1958. They made it deliberately oversized to emphasis how huge a project it was and they were involved in something much larger than even them.







i-4TRsKSL-X2.jpg







I admit I can`t watch the screen as it does cause some vertigo issues for me, but it is very good apparently, we were in the theatre with two other people which was nice.

The screen is wraparound and 28 foot tall and presented in 3D and shows the journey of four astronauts and one of the nicest parts that I could watch was seeing the earth from what would have been their view, that is impressive.

There are so many things to see in here and you can probably spend up to an hour, probably not any more but as we had seen through this building several times before, we didn`t need to study everything in such detail.

But, the interesting thing for us was the Gemini 9 capsule which is quite something to see, mainly as it is so tiny, as someone who is quite claustrophobic, I couldn`t imagine for one second being cooped up in that for a few seconds never mind any longer.

You can see a hologram journey of Gene Cernan`s journey that was terrifying as the visor fogged up and he wasn`t sure if he was going to make it back while Tom Stafford was the commander who must have been equally horrified and this is all created with computer generated scenery.







i-xNDpnPj-X2.jpg







You then head into the Hall of Fame and are welcomed by the bronze statue of Alan Shepard.

There are likenesses of 93 astronauts and it is interactive with touchscreens where everyone can learn more about the inductees and get your picture taken with them which is quite cool.








i-bRgdpKw-X2.jpg








i-sQZT52N-X2.jpg







The Rocket Garden is always interesting and had been improved since we last visited, also to the side was a new addition to us and there was one thing in there we were all keen to see.

But, first the Rocket Garden holds a vast array of rockets to see and admire how large or how small they actually are, this is somewhere you can easily spend an hour wandering around. From the Gemini-Titan II to the Mercury Redstone to the smaller Juno I and II there are so many interesting facts about them all and there are info plates in front of all the rockets for folks to read.





i-LnSLq7x-X2.jpg







The largest one there is the Saturn 1B was being refurbed last time we were here and here it is pictured on it`s side with the lovely and very interesting Delta II with the shark face on top which is certainly a little obvious and makes it stand out. We did hear a kid ask their parent which football team did it stand for......lol......






i-vNNHqJQ-X2.jpg








i-JPVrKpJ-X2.jpg







I think we could have spent longer here but it was so darn hot and we didn`t know how long this new building would take to explore then going to the other displays after that.

We were excited to explore the new Gateway: The Deep Space Launch Complex as we had heard so much about it from the man we know who works here, he said there were a few displays in there we would love.







i-zD9fPWm-X2.jpg







This is the Orion capsule and this was launched in 2014 for a test mission, along with the SLS rocket, Orion will play a huge role in getting us back to the moon with the Artemis missions. This is another display that has interactive screens full of info.






i-NrR4Q2m-X2.jpg







SpaceX has a huge involvement here and this tiny little capsule is their Cargo Dragon which delivered and returned cargo from the ISS.







i-9mwDTj8-X2.jpg






The real highlight for all of us was seeing the SpaceX Falcon 9 Booster. It is suspended over the whole length of the building and is the most impressive thing in here.

The booster has flown twice once notably for the Falcon Heavy test flight in 2018 and to see that behemoth take off is one of the most impressive things ever to see. The history of SpaceX is all out there, but to see something that was part of history was massive for us to see up close.





i-rKZ7WnC-X2.jpg








i-GC9FcvZ-X2.jpg








i-mVXVd5f-X2.jpg





The landing of these huge monsters is incredible and it has to be seen to be believed, how exacting they can be for it to land in such a small pre designated area.....or not in some cases, but the technology is incredible.






i-KLdmrhQ-X2.jpg







Kyle and Tom did the Spaceport experience which was not for me to do, but you do experience seeing Mars, The Horsehead Nebula which Kyle has some beautiful photographs of from his own telescope, Saturn, Jupiter and so much more. They enjoyed it a lot and would do it again....I wandered around while they were up there.






i-mhpcxdT-X2.jpg








i-dNWS2wR-X2.jpg







It sounds weird but we expected more. I think because the Saturn V and Space Shuttle displays are both so extraordinary and this felt a little less than. It was still excellent especially seeing the Falcon 9 Booster, but he area lacks seating of any kind except for a little food place which encouraged people to buy and not just sit we were told. We saw several elderly people ask if there were some seats and were told no they`d have to go to the cafe or another area outside. One of the staff mentioned to one lady it was the thing most people complained about, lack of seating.






i-bW6QMqF-X2.jpg








i-PWkscWD-X2.jpg








i-mWB5L2B-X2.jpg







There are many little activities along the way including interactive displays, but we had again done them before and as we wanted to do the Shuttle display and head out to the Saturn V display, we missed them out and we also wanted to eat before we went any further as I knew how long it would take to do the Shuttle experience, so eating now made sense even though it was a little early, but with the place closing at 5pm we knew we were a little limited with time.

I will say the food options here are not the best. Our friend J had told us the Orbit Cafe place was marginally better than the one at the Saturn V exhibition, we had eaten here on our previous trips and it filled a hole was the best description of the food.

However, the staff are lovely in comparison.







i-MXfRCFw-X2.jpg








i-c2xQL7v-X2.jpg







Tom and I went for the double burger mine without cheese which did come with cheese that he somehow managed to prise off the burger.....yes, I wondered why it stuck so much too!! Oddest cheese ever, Kyle went for the mac n cheese with fries and I do admit it was decent and the fries were nice. They have a fixins bar at each end of the food service area with a selection of sauces including a very nice bbq one. That did help with the burger.






i-qsZQzV7-X2.jpg








i-JDbBRrJ-X2.jpg







We had fanta and Kyle had water and it was just ok, we`re not here for the food to be fair, so once we had eaten and visited the very clean bathrooms we headed up to one of the main attractions here, Space Shuttle Atlantis.






i-bD3Zkdx-X2.jpg








i-956B9Zz-X2.jpg








i-BCKW74K-X2.jpg






More to come.
 
& u go early n the haunt season! It truly was a mass of people last year. Many nights I thot it should’ve been sold out

Opposite here lol.

IDK after having it last year pre HHN, won’t again. The lobster had that unfortunate just ‘improperly’ thawed soggy texture. I’ve certainly had better

Whaaat?

Willing to bet that’s against Uber’s policy if only as to liability of a dog bite. It’s those little cute ones you have to watch lol

I have encountered theme park goers that rival
Sport team’s aficionado’s

Yes, we went for the first month which extended into 5 weeks, but crowds weren`t that much different from opening night throughout the month. It should have been sold out, but seems they just kept selling tickets, I mentioned on that TR, when SA and Tour Guides mention how bad the crowds were you know it`s overly busy.

Yes, Tom and Kyle have no issues on Simpsons either and don`t get why it knocks me so bad......

I knew someone mentioned a dodgy lobster roll......I forgot it was you! Shame as it was always so nice on visits years ago, I guess budget comes into play and maybe cheaper options.

We weren`t sure what to say to be honest, we shouldn`t have got in the car and ordered another looking back, but yes I`m not fond of little yippy dogs even though it was very quiet and looked timid, but as you say you never know. I wouldn`t get in another one with a dog for sure.

Glad you`re enjoying it and hope you`re having a wonderful trip!!!!
 
Last edited:
Being a 🦎. You’d love the heat. Worse than any of our previous trips.

Enjoying seeing the updates to KSC. It’s been far too long for us

Going to swipe that comment as to food ‘it feels a hole’ lol

Trying Lyft for first time tomorrow. Have looked for rides from it & Uber. Uner has always beat them as to arrival each time for Time & price. Need to use Minnie van thru lift. only one allowed to drop in front of tomorrow’s hoop de doo. One of those you can’t get there from here places
 
Last edited:
Being a 🦎. You’d love the heat. Worse than any of our previous trips.

Enjoying seeing the updates to KSC. It’s been far too long for us

Going to swipe that comment as to food ‘it feels a hole’ lol

Trying Lyft for first time tomorrow. Have looked for rides from it & Uber. Uner has always beat them as to arrival each time for Time & price. Need to use Minnie van thru lift. only one allowed to drop in front of tomorrow’s hoop de doo. One of those you can’t get there from here places

lol.....I am a total lizard for sure!!! But, yes, I`ve been hearing it is hotter than Hades...true lizard weather for sure.

Yes, you would love KSC now, so many new additions but it`s hard to beat the Shuttle and Sturn V to be honest for us.

We never tried Lyft, but Matt and Rob used both Uber and Lyft in September and had no issues with them. Hope you enjoy the hoopy thingy!
 
It knocked me senseless and unbelievably dizzy many years ago, I came off green and that was the end of the day for us. Tom and Kyle had no idea as they merrily walked out and thought I was behind them, when they noticed I wasn`t behind them they came back and saw the TM looking after me. Yes, it was that bad.
I feel the exact same way about this ride. I don't understand why it's so much worse than a lot of others but I will not be going on it again ever lol.

That shrimp dish that Kyle had at Carrabas is my fave with the toasty bread...I could drink that sauce.

Sorry about the cough...ugh...

And the food at KSC...yeah...I guess with nothing else around they don't have to work too hard at it there...but...it could definitely be better!
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!











facebook twitter
Top