Day 10: Universal 360 - A Fireworks Spectacular

  Orlando, Florida, United States
Sunday, July 30, 2006

02 - Hanging Out in the House

I woke up at 9:00 this morning and laid in bed for ten minutes before I got up to have breakfast.  Mom and dad were sitting out by the pool so I turned on the laptop and checked a few websites while I had a Lender's everything bagel for breakfast.  I then sat in the living room and checked my mail, before I took a shower at 11:30.  At 12:00 I got ready in my room while I watched the "E True Hollywood Story: Saved by the Bell."  I always loved that show and we had been watching a lot of it this vacation so I thought it was fitting.  I had never seen it so it was really interesting and entertaining.  I was finished getting ready by 12:30 when I watched the end of the show and then watched the beginning of the "E True Hollywood Story: Full House."  I had already seen it around a year ago but I wanted to see the end of it so I went out to the living room and watched the end of it with mom, dad and Mike.

04 - Hanging Out in the House

As we watched the show mom and dad looked through the menu for Finnegan's, the Irish pub that we wanted to eat at in Universal Studios.  At 2:15 Mike went in the pool and I went online for a little while.  I then took the cutest pictures of Oreo hanging out in the house.  She went outside with dad and was looking in at us through the sliding glass doors in the backyard.  It was hysterical, she's too cute!

20 - Hanging Out in the House

We left for Universal Studios at 4:00.  The drive went by faster than it usually does, and we were pulling into the Universal gates by 4:25.  The line to get through the parking gates was ridiculously huge though!  There were tons of cars trying to get in and only two people taking the money.  It was crazy.  We spent the time listening to the radio where I was again reminded that Orlando had better radio stations than New York.  In New York you'll hear the same Nick Lachey and Chris Brown songs every three minutes.  Here we turned on a rock station and heard Blue October, Angels and Airwaves, The Strokes and Weezer all in a row.  Nice!  It took us a good twenty minutes just to pull into the parking garage.  I had to go to the bathroom really, really bad so I was freaking out!  Universal Studios is a huge multi-million dollar company... they can't pay more than two kids to work the parking lot?  I was in the worst mood.  We parked in the Cat in the Hat section and ran our way to the big circle that connects the two parking garages to CityWalk.  I ran into the bathrooms over there and two minutes later we were walking through the other end of the parking garage to CityWalk.  When we got to CityWalk we walked right over to Universal Studios, swiped our passes and were in.

21 - Finnegan's

We had wanted to see the Animal Actors show and the last time we were in Universal Studios we saw that the last show was at 7:10.  It was only 5:40 so we had plenty of time.  We walked through the huge Universal Studios store on the left side of the park just to get out of the heat.  The week before had been gorgeous; we hadn't felt the heat or humidity at all.  Now things were getting back to normal, though, and it was ridiculously hot!  We made our way over to New York and found the Finnegan's Pub on a small side street.  We walked into the restaurant and it was huge.  There weren't many people in there since not many people even know that the restaurant's there, and there was a guy playing the guitar and singing.  We were seated in a nice booth and looked over the menu.  We had already seen the menu many times since I had printed it out, so we already knew what we wanted.  We ordered our drinks and then our food.

22 - Finnegan's

A few minutes later we got our appetizer.  It was the Finnegan's Potato and Onion Webb which was a mountain of thinly sliced potatoes and onions, hand dipped in beer batter, crispy fried golden brown and served with malt vinegar.  It was delicious!  It was very greasy and deeply fried, but delicious.  It was weird, though, because the potatoes tasted just like French toast sticks.  They were really, really good!  When we were halfway done with our appetizer our food came.  Mom and I both got the Tipperary Corned Beef Sandwich which was a fresh baked pretzel roll piled with warm corned beef and topped with sautéed onions and Swiss cheese.  Mom and dad had wanted to share, and my Uncle Marc and Aunt Tanya kept saying that Shepherd's Pie is really good so they shared the Corned Beef Sandwich and the Shepherd's Pie which was a hearty pot pie baked with chopped meat, mushrooms and leeks under a flaky pastry and covered in cheese.  Mike got the Shamrock Steak Sandwich which consisted of perfectly grilled tips of beef with peppers and onions served on a baguette with wedge fries.

25 - Finnegan's

The food was all absolutely delicious!  I had never had a pretzel roll but it tasted just like a big, fresh pretzel.  It was so good!  The Corned Beef was also great; it was Boar's Head and was very thin and lean.  It was nothing compared to mom and Grandma's corned beef, but it was good.  The bill came to $60 with a 10% discount which wasn't bad.  Our waitress said that we get no 20% employee discount but that she gave us a discount for our season pass.  It made no sense, she just had no idea what she was doing but we didn't feel like dealing with it so we took our 10% discount and left.

26 - Finnegan's

On the way out of the restaurant I went to take a picture of the front of the restaurant when I noticed that the shutter on the camera wasn't opening all the way.  I got so nervous because it looked like it was broken.  Dad pretended that it was broken at first but then he fixed it for me.  Thank God!  We walked over to the other side of Universal Studios to Kid Zone and were going to see the Animal Actor's show when I saw that the last show was at 6:00.  What?!  I thought it would be 7:15 like it had been last week!  It was now 6:15 so we had missed the show.  We'd have to catch it another day.  We went into the ET store since my little cousin Alison had told us that she wanted an ET shirt.  A few days before, mom had bought her a Disney Princess shirt which was the only shirt she was going to buy her.  When she spoke to Alison on the phone and told her that we had gotten her a princess shirt she said, "Wow, you got me two shirts?!"  It was too funny; she really wanted that ET shirt!  We found a cute gray one for $17, and with our 35% discount it came to $11 which was awesome.

27 - Finnegan's

We then stood around thinking about what we wanted to do.  We were going to walk over to Men in Black but we had done it already a few days before, so we headed over to Hollywood to see the Terminator 2: 3D show.  There was a man standing out front saying that there was a magic show going on in the shop across the street and mom, Mike and I wanted to see it, but the Terminator show was starting in seven minutes and dad really wanted to see it so we just got on line.  The line went by fast and we were in the pre-show room within five minutes.  I hate the pre-show for the Terminator 2: 3D; it's so long and boring.  What I noticed about a lot of the Universal attractions was that most of them had extremely long pre-shows that made it very undesirable to experience each attraction more than once on each trip.  I love the rides, but it's a pain sitting through the pre-shows.  This one consisted of a video featuring Linda Hamilton and an employee pretending she was part of the evil Cyberdyne Corporation.  Parts of the video were funny because they preached the rewards of the world being run by robots, but after a while it just got old.

28 - Finnegan's

As crappy as the pre-show is, the attraction itself completely makes up for it.  As technologically advanced as the new 3D shows are, I don't think anything will ever beat Terminator 2: 3D.  The special effects are crazy!  I love how the live action on stage blends perfectly with the film, and the robots shooting at each other on both sides of the theater are great.  The part of the show that featured a giant, computer-animated alien reaching its claws out at us was amazing, and the end of the show where smoke fills the entire theater and the floor shakes is the best part of the show.  It really is great and I wouldn't pass up a chance to see it again.  If only they could get rid of that damn pre-show!  When it comes to pre-shows, I guess it wouldn't help to get rid of them in the long run.  Come to think of it, the pre-show is just a way to make the wait on line a little shorter.  When you're part of the next group to be let into the ride, they allow you to come into a big, air-conditioned room and be immersed in the attraction before it even begins.  It's better than standing outside in the heat!  So I change my mind... yay for pre-shows!

29 - New York

When we were done with the Terminator we left and heard the same man saying that there was a magic show across the street.  They must time the magic shows with the time in which the Terminator lets out so people will go right over there.  We went into the small magic shop and stood in an even smaller room where we were told by the magician to all gather up around him.  He pulled me up to the front and said that short people should get to stand in the front.  Ew!  Haha!  At least my height got me a good spot!  The show was good but it was very short.  The magician just made a few things float, including a penny that mom had given him.  The entire thing was a big commercial for the magic kits they were selling that would allow you to make things levitate.  When the show was over, a whole five minutes later, I told dad that that's why Universal is great - they not only put you in the movies, but they also put you in the commercials!

30 - Hollywood

We walked back towards Kid Zone and on the way I wanted to see the Horror Makeup Show since it was beginning to rain and the next show was starting in five minutes.  Mike kept insisting that he didn't want to see it, though, since we had just seen it.  That was last year, dude!  I knew that he just didn't want to go in because of the big Chucky doll that was in there last year, haha!  As we were walking over to Men in Black at the back of the park it started pouring.  It was really coming down!  Everyone started RUNNING for cover; it was the funniest thing ever to see hundreds of people just flying in every which way!  We went and stood under the big umbrella of a food cart with twenty other people, but the rain was dripping and leaking through the umbrella so we walked in the rain over to Men in Black.  Mom didn't want to go on it but we told her that she would be fine, so we got a locker and walked over to the attraction.  There was a forty-minute wait and I didn't want to wait.  The last time we went on it we had walked right on and loved it.  Last year there had been a forty-minute wait and the ride hadn't seemed worth it afterward.  We didn't want that to happen so we got off of the line and got our stuff back out of the locker.

31 - Hollywood

The rain was letting up so we walked back through Amity and San Francisco and saw that there was only a fifteen minute wait for Jaws since it was just reopening after the storm.  The line was always huge for this attraction so we got on line and were on the ride within five minutes.  As we were waiting on line, there was a mother behind us with two kids.  One of her sons was in a wheelchair but was able to walk onto the attraction perfectly well so he just must have been tired or hurt his leg, and the other son wasn't... too bright.  As we were waiting on line he tapped on dad's shoulder and asked him what ride we went on to get so wet.  Dad looked at him with a blank stare and said, "The rain ride."  Haha!  Priceless.  Anyway, remember these people as they came back into play two days later...

32 - Universal 360

Anyway, I was on the left side of the fourth row of the boat, the spot where Jaws jumps up and tries to eat the boat. T he attraction was fun and definitely better this year than last year since we were right in the middle of the action.  It was still pretty tame, though.  There was one point that got to me and it was when the entire lake was set on fire.  It was so hot that my eyes actually hurt!  The only part where I got scared was at the very end when I was talking to Mike and not at all paying attention to the ride, and the fried Jaws jumped up out of the water after our tour guide shot him.  I had forgotten all about that part and wasn't at all expecting it, and it scared the crap out of me!  I literally jumped out of my seat!

34 - Universal 360

By the time we got off of Jaws it was 8:00 and we wanted to get a spot for the fireworks.  It was still early but there was nothing else we wanted to do so we walked over to Richter's Burger Company and got a seat on an outdoor bench right near the lagoon.  It was still drizzling, though, so we went to sit inside.  Mom and dad went to get coffee while Mike and I sat at a table, but they didn't have coffee.  We sat around for five minutes before the heat and humidity in the restaurant got to mom and we went back outside.  It was actually hotter in the restaurant than it was outside.  Ew.  At 8:30 we went back outside and hung out by the lagoon.  The area was slowly getting more crowded so we leaned up against the railing to make sure we had a good spot.  We spent the next half hour taking pictures of the area and listening to the music.  We were directly between New York and Amity/San Francisco which was interesting.  There was music being piped into the New York area through the sound system and there was a DJ playing different music in the beginning of Amity/San Francisco.  We got to listen to both sets of music at the same time!  There were a lot of ducks in the water which was cute, so we took some pictures and just waited around.

56 - Universal 360

The fireworks eventually began at 9:00 and it was one of the best nighttime spectaculars that I had ever seen!  While the other Orlando fireworks are nice and tell a good story, the Universal 360 show was so relateable since we knew all the sound and video clips.  In the midst of fireworks, lasers and pyrotechnics were huge globes that projected a montage of the best Universal films.  It was amazing!  There were several different montages including the comedies, horrors, epics and inspirational films of Universal's past and present.  The show made both mom and I cry!  They showed films that we all grew up with, including ET, the Breakfast Club, The Jerk, Pretty Woman and yes... Child's Play!  They also showed new favorites such as American Pie, Shrek and Meet the Fockers.  It was HYSTERICAL!  What was even cooler was that while a clip was being shown on the globes, there were corresponding clips being projected onto the surrounding buildings so it entirely encapsulated us in the action and nostalgia.  Two thumbs way up, it was an amazing show!

57 - Universal 360

The show ended at 9:25 and we started to make our way to the back of the park.  Almost everyone leaves the park right when the fireworks are over but the park is open for another forty minutes.  We were hoping to take advantage of a short line on Men in Black, but the crowds making their way towards the entrance were a force to be reckoned with.  It would have taken us forever to get to the back of the park, so we switched directions and headed towards the front.  We wanted to try to get on Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast since the line was always at least an hour long. Now it was only fifteen minutes long so dad, Mike and I got on line.   Mom was being a pain and didn't want to wait on line with us.  She was mad that we were going on a ride she didn't like.  She walked around to a few stores before meeting us ten minutes later.  We all hung out and talked until we got to the front of the line ten minutes later.  Mom got off the line and went to wait in the Nickelodeon Store which was also the exit of the ride.

58 - Universal 360

This was the first time that any of us had ridden Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast so we enjoyed the pre-show.  It featured Jimmy Neutron giving us a tour of the different Nickelodeon sets including Spongebob's ocean scene and the home of the Rugrats.  Mike and I grew up absolutely loving the Rugrats so it was cute.  We then got on the ride and it was the craziest ride I've been on in along time.  It was just a regular simulator like many other rides we've been on and there were lots of kids on it, but this ride was intense!  It really banged us around, and it was so hot in there that I was about to pass out.  I was just really hoping that the ride would end.  At one point they played the Chicken Dance and with each "clap-clap-clap-clap" part they would completely bounce us up and down four times... and they did this a good five times!  It was nauseating.  When the ride was over all three of us had the same opinion... never again!  We usually love simulators but this one was no fun.  I'm surprised so many kids go on it and love it.  I wouldn't put my kids on that thing!

55 - Universal 360

At 9:45 we met mom in the Nickelodeon Studios gift shop.  She had asked an employee if we get an employee discount on the carved glass pictures that dad had been wanting but he said no.  Dad asked again and got the same answer, so that was the end of that.  We headed out of the park and it wasn't as crowded now as it had been the last time we left at closing since most people had already made their way out of the area.  We made it through CityWalk in no time, stopping only to take a quick look at the TV's playing the Angels - Red Sox game where we were very happy to see that Boston was losing.  Go Yankees!  As we were walking through the long pathways that lead to the parking garage we were behind a bunch of people who were... interesting.  A guy was pushing a carriage with no shirt or shoes on.  I always take those, "No shirts, no shoes, no service" signs as a joke, but apparently people think it's OK to walk around a public place like that.  I can understand not wearing a shirt, especially in a theme park.  But walking around barefoot?  I don't even like looking at the floor.  Ew!!!

We made it back to the house by 10:30.  Mom and Mike played California Rummy while I watched the episode of "E True Hollywood Story: Home Improvement" that I had taped while we were out.  I used to love that show and still sometimes watch it in syndication.  When it was over dad went to bed since had had been falling asleep anyway, mom went to get her pajamas on and Mike took a shower.  I sat on the couch with Oreo and watched the "Hilary Duff: Revealed" special that I had taped.  I wanted to see what she had to say about dating Joel Madden.  Weird, weird couple.  I was really tired as I was watching the Hilary Duff special so when it was over I headedt to bed at 1:30.