Day 4: Wasting Away Again in Margaritaville

  Orlando, Florida, United States
Monday, July 24, 2006

01 - Hanging Out By the Pool

I woke up at 9:00 this morning and mom and dad were sitting out by the pool.  I changed into a t-shirt and comfortable shorts and went to sit outside with them.  I sat with my feet in the water for a while until mom and dad went back inside and I sat out on my own for a few minutes.  At 10:30 I went back in and had Smart Start cereal and orange juice for breakfast before hanging out in the living room and watching TV.  We had the news on to see about the weather for the day and it said it would be around eighty-four degrees by 4:00 which we thought was awesome.  New York was going through a heat wave and it was a good fifteen degrees hotter there!  Little did we know, though, that the humidity would be ridiculous by the time we left for Universal Studios, but that we wouldn't find out until later.

04 - Hanging Out By the Pool

Dad had transferred our pictures from the first few days of our trip onto both our external hard drive and the laptop so I looked at all of our pictures.  Some of them had come out great, but some of them didn't come out as well as I had hoped.  Oh well.  I then went online to check my mail on AOL and my Aunt Debbie had sent me an e-mail asking if we had any good stories yet and to tell us she was thinking of us.  I wrote back and told her a few things that we had done, and told her that we would call her before they left for their cruise the first week of August.  At 11:30 I went back outside to sit with my feet in the pool.  I brought out my sunglasses and MP3 player and I listened to all of my reggae and summer-type music.  It was awesome!  I always listen to reggae and the "sounds of the islands" while I'm sitting at home, moping around and wishing that I was somewhere tropical.  Now I was sitting out by a gorgeous pool as I watched palm trees sway in the warm breeze.  Amazing!  It was really nice out but the sun was soon hidden behind a few dark clouds.  Michael came out at 12:00 and went in the pool while I continued to listen to my MP3 player, and more and more dark clouds made their way into the area.  After a few minutes we started hearing thunder and lightening soon followed, so we got out of the pool and went back inside.

03 - Hanging Out By the Pool

Mom and dad left at 12:30 to go to a few stores.  They went to Publix and Walgreens to pick up cheese, crackers, beer and a few other things for the house while I went back on the computer to type up my trip report from the day before.  Before mom and dad left they had spoken to my Aunt Stacy and told her to meet us down here.  She was actually considering it so I went onto Jet Blue, Orbitz, Travelocity, and American Airlines to see if there was cheap airfare available, but everything was very expensive so I shut the computer off and went to take a shower at 2:30.  Whatever happened, happened.  But I was really hoping they would end up coming!  I took a shower and got ready, and by the time I was out of the shower it was pouring outside.  It was just a complete downpour with tons of thunder and lightening.  It looked awesome reflecting off the lake but I wouldn't want to be out in it!  Mom and dad had bought me a new blow dryer while they were out so I used it to blow my hair but it didn't work that well.  When I was done getting ready I watched "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody" on the Disney Channel.  Yes, "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody."  We were at Disney, come on!

07 - Margaritaville

After hanging out for a while we left for Universal Studios at 4:15.  The rain had let up and it was now pretty nice out.  We had a 5:00 reservation for Margaritaville and we wanted to get there on time.  We drove down 192 this time and there was traffic near all of the attractions but we made it through in pretty good time.  It was a half-hour drive to Universal Studios and the line of cars to get into the parking lot was huge again.  There were only four lanes open and each two lanes were being serviced by only one person.  It was taking forever, but when we pulled up to the gate dad showed his season pass and we were through in no time.  We pulled up to the farther parking lot and parked in Spiderman 124, right in the front of the parking garage.  We walked through CityWalk and it was a lot more hot and humid today than it had been the day before.  It was ridiculously hot, but we just kept walking and we reached Margaritaville by 5:10.  There were a few people waiting outside, but I gave in my name at the podium and since we had a reservation we were seated within two minutes.

08 - Margaritaville

We were brought to a table in the middle of the restaurant and were surprised to see that it wasn't that crowded.  It wasn't empty, but there were just enough people to make the experience fun.  It was definitely less crowded than it had been the year before.  Our server was Tim, and when he came we ordered our drinks I got pink lemonade, mom got a diet Coke, Mike got Sprite and dad got a Volcano drink with tropical juices and rum.  It was really good!  We then ordered our food.  We decided to get some appetizers, and then mom and I shared an entrée while dad and Michael each got their own.  The appetizers came only two minutes before our entrees, but we thought that was better since now we wouldn't fill up on the appetizers and not be able to eat our entrees.

09 - Margaritaville

We had to get the Volcano Nachos after they were so huge and delicious last time, and they were just as good this time!  These nachos can't be beat, they're the best ever!  They give you a HUGE plate of them for only $8 and we still haven't found nachos anywhere else that can compare.  Mom and I had been watching a special on different beach foods on the Travel Channel a few weeks before we left for Florida and they did a whole segment on the Conch Fritters in Key West.  Since Margaritaville is a mix of Caribbean and Key West cuisine we had to try the Conch Fritters and they were delicious!  They were slightly spicy and didn't even taste like fish; they tasted like less greasy Hush Puppies.  For our entrees mom and I shared a crab cake sandwich, Michael got a grilled chicken sandwich, and dad got the Cheeseburger in Paradise.  The food was all absolutely delicious, and the bill came to only $60 with dad's 10% discount.  That was a GREAT price for the amount of food we had!

15 - Margaritaville

My favorite part of Margaritaville, besides the food, was the atmosphere itself.  It was like being in the middle of a big, tropical luau.  Large screens showed people partying and having a great time at Jimmy Buffet concerts down in the Florida Keys and different Caribbean-style music was playing.  There was also a huge glass full of Margarita mix that would empty out a little each time someone ordered a Margarita.  The last time we were in Margaritaville the glass had always been full, but this time so many people were ordering Margaritas that it eventually emptied.  As soon as it emptied a video of Jimmy Buffett singing "Volcano" started playing and the lights began to flicker.  When the song was over the huge volcano above the big glass started rumbling and it exploded with Margarita mix!  The Margarita mix then swirled around the Volcano and refilled the big glass.  When it was finally full, a video of Jimmy Buffett singing "Margaritaville" started playing and it was so much fun!  Margaritaville is without a doubt one of my favorite restaurants of all time, anywhere.  It will forever be a staple of our Orlando vacations and I miss it when we're home!

31 - Shrek 4D

When we were done eating we made our way over to Universal Studios.  Margaritaville is right next to Islands of Adventure so we had to make our way all the way over to the other side of CityWalk to get to the park.  We walked down by the water and saw where the water taxis leave for the Universal resorts.  This came in handy since we would be visiting the Universal resorts in a few days.   When we got to Universal Studios the lines weren't too bad to get into the park, and we were swiping our cards and entering in no time.  We walked through the Universal Studios store on the left side of the park to stay in the air conditioning for a little while and then we exited right near Shrek 4D.  There was only a twenty minute wait so we got on line and walked straight through the first part of the line.  We were stopped a few feet away from the entrance and we spent the ten minute wait watching the video of Shrek that they were showing, and talking about how much my little cousin Alison would love the attraction.

33 -Shrek 4D

Ten minutes later we were in the pre-show room and this attraction has a really long pre-show.  We all stood in a dungeon and a guy at the front of the room told us that we would be flogged if we ate, drank, or smoked in the theater.  Then we watched a video recap of the first Shrek film before the videos and animatronics of the Three Little Pigs, Pinocchio, and the Gingerbread Man told us some jokes.  It was actually really cute and pretty funny.  I don't know if I would want to stand through it more than once each trip, but it's one of the best and funniest pre-shows in an Orlando theme park.  We were then let into the theater and we sat all the way to the left of the second to last row.  We had no problem seeing, though, and we all greatly enjoyed the attraction.  I loved all of the double entendres!  Just like in the Shrek movies there were a lot of jokes that appealed to adults but went right over kid's heads.  There were also some great special effects - the seats shook and there were a lot of light, air, water and prop effects.  This was a great show, and since the entire film was digitally animated the 3D was perfectly clear.  This is definitely one of the greatest 3D shows I have ever seen.  I enjoyed it even more this year than I had last year, probably due to the fact that I've finally seen the movie!

34 - Shrek 4D

When the show was over we looked around the gift shop.  I wanted to get the Shrek 2 DVD since I had just seen the movie a few days before we left for Florida and I loved it.  Usually cartoon sequels suck, as is the case with most Disney sequels.  This was the only cartoon sequel I've seen that I loved.  It was hysterical and really cute!  It was $20 and I thought I would get 35% off with dad's discount, but since the DVDs aren't directly Universal Studios merchandise I didn't get a discount.  Oh well, $20 wasn't too bad although a few days later I found it for cheaper at Target.

37 - New York

After Shrek 4D we walked over to New York.  I took a picture of the Classic Monster Café as we passed it, and then we stopped to watch the end of the "Street Breaks" break dancing show.  When it was over we got on line for "Twister: Ride It Out."  There was a ten minute wait listed so we really couldn't go wrong.  As we were waiting on line I called Aunt Stacy to see if they were planning on meeting us down here, but she said she didn't think so since she wasn't prepared for it.  We only told her that we were coming back to Orlando a year ago!  She should have planned it all out back then.  Oh well.  We were let into the Twister theater within ten minutes, after a ton of Express Pass people were let in first.  They were letting in so many people that I wasn't sure if we would get in, but everyone who had been on line at the time was able to get in.  We first all stood in a big room and watched a video with Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt telling us about how crazy their experience making the film was.  We then went into a large tunnel that was made to look like a destroyed home.  It was cool and I got a few pictures.  In that same room we watched another video on the sheer power and force of Tornados, and then we were let onto the soundstage.

43 - Twister: Ride It Out

We all went into the first row, the closest row to the stage, and leaned up against the railing.  Even thought we had seen this attraction twice last year, we all loved it a lot more this year.  Everything was right in our faces!  I taped the entire show on our digital camera but it was hard holding the camera still.  The wind was unbelievably strong... I could hardly breathe!  The fire was also very close to us and extremely hot, and the rain was coming down in buckets.  This is such a great attraction!  Mike and I used to love "Twister."  There were a few months after it first came out when it was all we would watch, so it was amazing getting to experience it ourselves.  A lot of people write off Twister as an attraction that could be skipped but I wouldn't miss it.  It's one of my favorites at Universal Studios and one of the most unique and powerful attractions in any Orlando theme park.

46 - Revenge of the Mummy

After Twister we continued walking through New York and "Revenge of the Mummy" had broken down when we were in "Twister" but it was now up and running and had only a twenty-minute wait.  The same thing had happened last year so it worked out perfectly.  They weren't letting people on with bags but we told the girl at the gate that mom was going to walk through the line with us and then take our stuff and leave when we got on the ride.  We walked right through the first four rooms of the line.  We've never seen such a short line on this ride!  We walked right into the big room that is made to look like an ancient Egyptian temple, and we had only a ten minute wait.  There was a guy in there making sure everyone was following the rules, but he wasn't as good as the guy from our first ride last year.  This guy was just hanging out; he didn't try to scare anyone.

49 - Revenge of the Mummy

Within ten minutes we were at the front of the line and dad, Mike and I got to sit in the first row.  There was a bit of a hold up when a guy on the car in front of us tried to sneak a bag onto the ride.  It wouldn't fit in his pocket, though, and the attendants didn't want to be responsible for it falling and getting lost, so he and his daughter had to go drop it off in a locker and then were told they could come back up to the front of the line through the exit.  We were in the first row of our car within ten minutes of entering the ride, and this is the best roller coaster of all time!  No, it doesn't go upside down or do any crazy flips or loops, but the special effects and sheer power of the ride is a force to be reckoned with.  In the first room of the ride the big Mummy animatronic was supposed to break through the wall to scare us but it didn't work and there was just a video of the Mummy instead.  It was pretty lame, but I understand that things break down sometimes.  The part of the ride where the ceiling goes on fire was even more intense than I remembered... the room was boiling!  The roller coaster part of the attraction was great, too.  It's definitely intense and one of the best rides in all of Orlando!  It just can't be beat!

55 - Earthquake: The Big One

When the ride was over we met mom by the exit and saw our ride photo.  Then we ran into the bathroom before making our way over to the Amity/San Francisco area of the park.  There was only a twenty-minute wait at "Earthquake" so we went over there.  There was no one on line; everyone was already in the first pre-show room, but the lady at the gate made us walk all the way through the empty queue.  As soon as we got to the big room she opened up the gates and let people walk straight in.  UGH.  The pre-show of this ride is ridiculously long.  The first room demonstrates weather effects in four big windows, the second room shows us videos of some of Universal's most action packed films, and the third room had live volunteers demonstrating some special effects.  It was entertaining, but I don't think I would want to sit through it more than once per trip.  I took video of the pre-show since it featured U571, one of my cousin Cari and my favorite movies, and then we all boarded the tram.  Mom, dad, Mike and I sat in the last row of the tram so when we got to the sound stage we couldn't see much.  We still got shaken around and it was fun, but the ride isn't as thrilling if you're not right in the middle of the action.

57 - Men In Black: Alien Attack

When we were done with Earthquake we walked over to Men in Black Alien Attack.  Last year we hadn't loved the attraction since we had to wait an hour-and-a-half to get on it.  This time there was a twenty-minute wait listed and we only had to wait ten minutes.  We kept telling mom to come with us but Mike talked her out of it.  He always has to be a pain; she would have liked it.  We got on line and it was empty, and the guy working at the attraction thought that it was funny that we were all taking the long way around the entire line instead of walking right in.  When we were let into the first pre-show room with a few other people we were told by the guy, "Blah, blah, blah, blah.  It's been a long day, you're the one hundred and fiftieth show of the day.  Have fun!"  It was really funny!

58 - Pet Stars

We then got on a fake elevator and walked all the way through the first two pre-show rooms of the line.  Then we had a ten-minute wait before we only had two more groups in front of us.  They were looking for a group of three at that point so we were able to cut in front of them to get right on a waiting ride vehicle.  The ride was great!  I liked it a lot more this year than I had last year, which was becoming a theme.  I sucked at racking up my points but it was still fun.  At the part of the ride when we were supposed to shoot at the car across from us nothing happened; neither car started spinning.  Oh well.  Mike ended up with 226, 350 points, dad had 105,000 points and I had... 25,000 points.  Hey, I had fun and that's all that matters!

59 - The ET Adventure

When we were done with Men in Black I wanted to get a spot for the 10:00 fireworks but it was only 8:45 so we made our way over to the ET Adventure.  There was a twenty-minute wait so we got on line right up against the doors.  And we waited and waited and waited.  As we waited we heard the fireworks starting.  I guess they were the 9:00 fireworks... oops.  We were all getting annoyed with waiting so long out in the heat when we could see through the doors that the ride was empty.  This was also the hottest that it had been yet since there were so many people crammed into such a small space.

60 - The ET Adventure

We were let into the pre-show room after twenty five minutes of standing in the heat, and we saw a video with Steven Spielberg and ET.  Then when we were supposed to give the ride attendants our names the row in front of us was closed and people who had just arrived at the attraction ran ahead of us!  It pissed me off really bad, so we squeezed our way in front of people to have our turn.  We gave the ride attendant our names and walked through the forest.  I tried to take pictures in there but it was way too foggy.  We were on our bikes within another ten minutes and we got the last row which was a big bench instead of individual seating.  The ride was as great as ever, but extremely foggy.  We could hardly see anything.  I don't know if something was wrong or if they did it on purpose, but it was kind of annoying.  I still loved the ride and was able to take a few pictures.  This is probably my favorite ride at Universal Studios!  I love everything about it - the special effects, the music, the cool air, the smell... it's all great!

66 - The ET Adventure

When the ride was over we decided to start heading out of the park.  It was unbelievably hot and packed.  I couldn't believe how crowded it was, but there were thousands of people leaving both Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure, and hundreds of other people heading into CityWalk.  It was crazy!  We just kept walking and were heading out of the CityWalk parking garage by 9:50.  We wanted to try a different way of getting home so we took I4 to exit 64B and got off at the Celebration exit.  It took us completely out of the way, though, and the road was completely dark so we made a U-Turn and went back to I4.  On the way we saw the "Wishes" fireworks in front of Cinderella's Castle at the Magic Kingdom.  It was awesome!

We were back at the house by 10:30.  Mom and dad walked Oreo while Mike and I hung out.  I was ridiculously exhausted.  While mom sat in the living room and dad and Mike went in the pool, I laid in my bed and read "The Great Gatsby."  I then asked dad to set up the VCR to tape Jay Leno later that night since Taking Back Sunday was going to be on and I love them, but I thought I would fall asleep before they were on.  I watched some of Jay Leno with mom, dad and Mike until 12:00 when mom and dad went to sleep.  Michael played his video games in his room while I was able to stay up and watch Taking Back Sunday at 12:30.  I was sad to see that Adam Lazzara had dyed his hair blonde and now looked hideous, but whatever.  He's still hot!  Oh, and their music is pretty good too... haha!  I was exhausted by this point so I laid in bed and fell asleep by 12:45. It had been a long day.