IAAPA 2014

The Feast of Thanksgiving was scheduled for Sunday, November 16, but we missed it this year. After church that morning, we loaded up the car and headed south to Orlando, Florida. We knew with a ten hour drive ahead of us, that we should probably go ahead and get a head start.
It's a good thing that we left right after church, We made about a half dozen pit stops between home and Orlando. Two or three stops for fuel, a coffee stop, a lunch stop and a sit down meal for dinner at  Applebees in some random Georgia town.

 By the time we arrived at the resort, we explored a little, got our window decorations up and then got ready for bed.

We spent Monday, November 17 at Disney's Magic Kingdom. The temperature hit an 84 degree high and I was in jeans. I should have packed a pair or two of shorts for the trip. New things we tried at Magic Kingdom on this visit was Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and we stopped to eat some Dole Pineapple Whip while at the park. Most everything else felt nostalgic from our previous visits. By the time we left, we were beat. On the way back to the resort, we stopped for dinner at Olive Garden and then called it a night.

 Brooke's fave...Space Mountain

 Evening Parade

On Tuesday, November 18, we experienced the IAAPA (International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions) all day long. We walked and tried new things for hours. I even won a $25 gift card at one of the booths. By 4pm, we still were not through all the booths, but it was time to close for the day so we had to go. That was okay with us because we had covered miles of booths and our legs and back were worn out for the day. Dinner at TGIFriday's and some exploring around town before turning in for the night.

We want this! A bowling alley with a theatre built in.

I don't like spook houses, but there were some great exhibits for those that do.

As you spin horizontally, you also spin vertically...no thank you

Carnival Games

 Heading to the outdoor inflatable exhibit

 A water slide that is 4 stories tall. 

Wednesday, November 19 was our second day at IAAPA and we were determined to finish. After testing games, massage chairs, food, sno cones and much more, we had more than seen enough. At the end of the day, we took Brooke to dinner at Planet Hollywood.

Thursday, November 20 was bitter sweet. We went to visit Universal Studios, which we have not been since around 2003. So many things that I remembered and loved had been changed, yet other things were still trapped in the wrong century. The back to the future ride that was my favorite, has been changed to Krusty the Clown ride. Jaws is now Harry Potter. Yet, The Terminator is still in use. We almost dosed off in that experience. Three rides that were totally worth it were, Rock It, Mummy, and Transformers. Those three rides saves the whole park. As we left the park at closing, we strolled over to have dinner at the Hard Rock Theater.  

Afternoon  Parade

 Mummy Souvenir  Shop

We got up Friday morning, November 21,  to revisit the spot where the hubs and I said "I Do" all those years ago. It took us a minute to find it because the last time that we were there, we were delivered in a limo. Once we made it, we walked inside the Fourier and realized that nothing looked familiar. We walked through and went straight out back to stroll up the pathway to Paradise Point.  Still confused by all the fences blocking our view, we stumbled around for about 15 minutes before asking for directions. The cast member informed us that the very place we stood on our wedding day was being refurbished into a line of waterside bungalows.  That was disheartening to say the least. Nevertheless, we stood somewhat near where we said "I Do" (in the middle of a construction zone) and took a photo.