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Day 8: Sat, June 10th part 2 (of 2): Djurs Sommerland we headed over to "Vikingeland" section of the park, for the next coaster on our hitlist: Thor's Hammer - a Gerstlauer Bobsled coaster some nice ride theming here, but this was one of the sections where the operators were wearing kahkis (I was hoping for heavy fur vests. . LOL) Don't forget. . Thor died on the cross for you. . . or something. .what do I know? I'm Jewish | as mentioned. . great theming thruout the park. . . even if the trains scream "traveling carnival" (and you can catch the bottom half of an operator's Viking Khakis in this pic) a really fun bobsled tho. . with some of it over the water - and thru a house! in the lake there on the left, one can go around the island in either a canoe or a paddle boat. it was hilarious, because they apparently just put the people in them and let them go - regardless if they know how to paddle (or steer). there was a canoe with four little kids in it, stuck on this turn here for a good 15 minutes as we watched them panic and try to paddle with their hands to move (someone finally came along in a boat and helped them) a self operating "pulley" ride that are "poles with helmets on them". . that's ALL they are. get your minds out of the gutter! here's the station where you can get either a canoe or paddleboat. Didier and I sat on a bench and watched as brave folks decided they wanted to paddle the lake. no shade, but I think David paddled for all. . . it wasn't quite time for lunch yet, so we passed back thru DinosaurLand (where lunch was to be) hence another pic of the Disc-O (the park also has a decent sized waterpark area called "VandLand". . but I'm not sure if any of the folks on the trip went to the waterpark here) and back into Westernland. .the theming on the outside of the Bumper Cars building I didn't actually look at them to see if the cars themselves were themed to Buffalo or not.. .but thought it was rather cool that the kiddie version is in the same building as the adult version. not a Bumper Cars rider. . but a Pony Espressen? Yes please! whee! the park also has a wave swinger called "Wild West Carousel". . . I don't typically ride these, but this one ran forwards, and then backwards, which looked like a unique ride experience (and it was). oh, it also shoots water up at you to try and get you wet. heading back for lunch, some I was with wanted to ride the Disc-O. these always make me a bit nauseous, and I certainly didn't want that right before lunch. .so I passed. tho managed to get pics of them on it. Can you tell which pic is before they noticed me with the phone up, and which is after? Lunch was a PACKED Pizza buffet. I recall it had some really weird stuff on it - such as corn pizza ?? but it certainly wasn't the worst pizza I had, and I recall enjoying it. the table I saw with. at first I thought I had misfiled this, as I don't recall them having one of these (at all). . but I see the dino in the background, so it must still be at Djurs Sommerland, and I just don't remember. this style of ride seems to have gotten popular tho, as I saw it at many parks in Scandinavia on this trip. Universal Denmark? after eating way too much pizza (as you can probably tell from the belly in this pic), needed something calming. So I suggested we ride the train. it's not a full size train like you'd see in USA.. but similar to a lot of the trains in the parks I'd been to in Europe. a lovely route, and gave a great view of the park. Thor's Hammer Juvelen Piraten playground full of ways to injure oneself. . . more playgrounds and trampolines. all really full too! Jonathan and David were eager to try out the King of the Mountain and made it up easily. I watched. oh. .there was plenty to look at. . . . while they attempted to make a hospital visit in a foreign country. . . yeah. . getting up was easy. do you want me to call the fire department to get down now? all played out, we headed into the "kiddie" area, which did have some adult rides. we were ready to ride: Vilde Hønsejagt (the wild chicken hunt) - another Zierer family coaster with lots of chicken theming. . and a fox at the front of the train trying to eat said chicken (I think?) hey. . TPR folks here too! Howdy! Pic courtesy of Didier I believe this was absolutely adorable. . a frog hopper, but themed to pigs in slop. I didn't ride it, but I really wanted to just to say I did I DID ride the classic carousel type ride tho (of course). . with Big Mike and Jonathan and I can't recall if we rode the tractors or not, but I think we did ride a couple of things over here in this section. a wet/dry slide. . . for some reason called Speedy Gonzales. . .hmmmmm. . there was a band playing music, that some folks were hanging out listening to. and we headed over to the one big section of the park we hadn't been in yet: Piratland this was a kiddie flume ride, Piratefisken, but it looked like there were adults riding with their kids, so got in line to ask. gaaa. . . lots of photo ops where you can get bitten here and a great view of Skatteøen (Treasure Island), the park's Mack Water Coaster from the kiddie flume queue the "boats" (or more realistically, barrels) are tiny, but after bonding with the operator over ABBA (I caught him singing along to "gimme gimme gimme" and joined in with him), he said OF COURSE you can ride, and let us each take a barrel. Said operator. . in a section that is participating in "full immersive costume" he he even let me hold his sword (get your mind out of the gutter!!) for a pic and them offered to take a pic of those of us who were riding before sending us on our way. . . whee!!! (pic courtesy of Andy, I think?) no. . I'm not embarrassed at all. . this was a fun flume! and got me a bit wet too. they also have this really weird "Sword ride over here called Sablen (the Saber) that's kind of a drop ride, but it also sways back and forth kinda like a topple tower. regardless, we got on it and it kinda broke, and we got stuck on it for a good 15 minutes while it kept cycling over and over. . . . it was funny, and I'm glad it wasn't anything too extreme. they had to call maintenance to come get it to stop cycling. but yeah, when it finally stopped, I was ready to get off. after we got off. . but smiling happily before we started our ride. . . and then we headed over to Skatteøen a Skull! theming love this pic because it caught a bird in it. . . from the Skatteøen line, you can see Piraten cycling (that's the park's incredible Intamin Mega-Lite). . we had ERT on it after park close, so hadn't been over to that yet. Treasure Island theming in the station. an onride pic snapped by Big Mike as we left the station and the official onride pic, that I loved, so bought for the memory. I think we headed over to Piraten to get a ride on it (just in case. . ya never know what might happen before end of day). I don't remember doing that, but these pics seem to be from Piraten's queue line, so we must have. we still had an hour or so before the park closed, so we went back to hit things we still wanted to ride, or just to wander. i went back over to Wild Asia to grab some pics of DrageKongen and Tigeren. . . dang. . look at the height this thing gets to! sadly, the bread/smores place was out of packets, and so we weren't able to cook our own over the fire. but I got to sit on a horse and pretend I did! and then hit some souvenir shops for Magnets, and, of course, ice cream! while enjoying our ice cream towards the front of the park, we watched the kiddos play in the water play area up here. . . and I spotted the park Mascots, Karlo & Karoline. . . (and Karoline's pet duck Anden Palle (Second Pallet??)). . so of course got in line for a pic it was close to end of day for the park, so we made our way over to Piraten square. . . and discovered Soulken (the Soul?). . a pretty intense octopus flat. . so we took a spin on that - it was great! and in the shadow of Piraten one of the many reasons I love TPR trips. . the ERT. Look at this (lack of) line. . as they were cycling thru the remaining guests for us. ok. .I took this pic so I would remember where we were.. . see??? a reminder. . ok, ok. . maybe that wasn't the ONLY reason I wanted to remember. . . .. (hey, I'm single, and looking is just fine) after several wonderful rides on Piraten. . whee!!!! It was decided that it was time to play "Pass the Sword" !!! we did great, and didn't lose it even once. . . what a great time, everyone just had a blast on this coaster and then we all posed with the fantastic crew at Djurs Sommerland for ending on a great day with us! and with that, we said goodnight to Djurs Sommerland, and headed back to the hotel. what a fantastic day!

Day 8: Sat, June 10th part 1 (of 2): Djurs Sommerland Elissa had mentioned this one was among her favorite parks, and I totally understand! a wonderful combination of park, playground, and Amusement park, I absolutely loved this park (and the next Sommerland, Farup, we went to the next day for similar reasons) It really did feel a bit like we were out in the Countryside in Denmark. . but before I knew it, we were turning off the main road into Djurs Sommerland parking lot. walking up to the main gate from the lot we parked in, really felt like we were at Summer Camp group photo before we start off our day (courtesy of Robb) soon enough we were met by the park rep, and they brought us in for a walk back to the first of two coasters we were going to have ERT on before the park opened: Juvelen the park is just beautiful. . and i was very impressed with the theming in and around the kids area (or at least one of them - where many kids rides were centered) Park Map large open areas of park, for picnics, and yes, those are all trampolines! dozens of them all over this park. I believe this coaster we passed is Vilde Hønsejagt (Wild Chicken Hunt). . one of a couple of Junior/kiddie coasters in the park. and before we knew it (tho it was a bit of a walk - this is a very large park), we were standing in "MexicoLand" in front of Juvelen (Jewel) my impression of the logo. . . LOL for some reason, I don't seem to have ANY pics of this coaster itself - hopefully either Chuck or Erik got some of the ride itself - which is an Intamin multi-launch "straddle" coaster, where you're riding on 4x4's low and fast to the ground. it also had a pre-ride / dark ride show section before the first launch with some tribal chiefs sending you off on the search thru the jungle for the jewel (if I'm remembering correctly). I rode this multiple times during ERT this morning, but don't think I ever went back to ride it again - regardless of how good it was, as there is just too much to do at this park to do a lot of re-rides during the day. That might be why I never got a pic of the coaster itself? anyways. .here's a jewel from the queue line. . and the group picture (courtesy of Robb - tho yay, he's in this one, so the park rep must have taken it) before we moved on to the next coaster. before we headed across the park for the other morning ride, I snapped a pic of this "flying carpet" type flat in front of Juvelen I didn't ride this today, because - yes, those "idols" on the sides? got everyone wet! ah. .here, in this pic you can see SOME of Juvelen's green track. .. walking back across the park to the "Wild Asia" section. . . snapping pics as we walked. that's the giant pendulum type ride that replaced the Topple Tower this park used to have.. it's HUGE. . . Never in America. . no crossing arms, just a sign noting to look out for the train. this is where we were headed in "Wild Asia": DrageKongen (Dragon King), and Intamin suspended coaster tons of really cool theming over here in this section of the park. on the right here, is another Junior/Kiddie coaster, Jungle Rally (a Zierer) even the queue line here in the "Wild Asia" is heavily themed. . a fun ride, but not the most exciting in the park. I did enjoy it tho, and rode it a couple of times. a "Crazy Bus" type ride with Asian theming. . our two morning ERTs done, we were about to get cut loose in the park, when the rep offered to walk us over to "TIgeren" - the giant pendulum for a couple of rides if we wanted. of course! so most of us went to ride it - while the "non swinging/spinning" ride folks watched or took pics. the detailed theming continued over here, and I loved it. these pics are courtesy of Elissa (who stood under one side of the pendulum and took pictures straight up, while the group rode twice) man. .the arc of this is REALLY extreme. . nearly upside-down! LOVED this. on our 2nd cycle, the park had been opened, and so there were park guests joining us on the ride. cut loose to enjoy the park until lunch time, a good chunk of folks headed right next door to the log flume, called "Long Cun Expedition" oh. . did I mention I have a VERY juvenile sense of humor? tee-hee. Caroline & Barry Myself & Big Mike Daniel, Barry & Collin Didier - who was driving the TPR bus. . he had a blast too! Andy & Steve these pics, I think are courtesy of AJ ? (really appreciate that he captured these, it's great) the group I was walking around with then headed back a little bit to get a ride on Jungle Rally. . and found some other happy TPR-ers had also made that call hey. . no judgement! we rode it too since we were already "moist" from the flume - well. . most of us were. . .we decided to go ahead and ride the park's rapids ride, which is located in "WesternLand" not too wet for a rapids ride, but pretty heavily themed which was adorable.. little playgrounds litter this park too. . . the loading station is full of "animatronics" . . .so it's sorta a "dark ride" ? and they wore cute little "western" outfits. . . .(the staff styling was a little weird. .some sections of the park? the uniforms fit that section and were full on "costume". . but in other parts? the employees wore khakis and polos. . as noted, it was a little weird. Maybe in the middle of switching things up). he was thrilled I asked if I could take a pic of his outfit a bit young, but wow, look at the size of that gun!. . .LOL he was having a blast staying in "western" character. . .made the interaction with him so much more fun than just "how many?" and being seated. um. . ok. . only slightly ethnically insensitive. . . (and from what I understand, a pretty big improvement over some of the attractions that used to be in the park section called "AfricaLand") as you can tell. . we had fun riding . . staying in WesternLand. .they have this little set up where you can buy supplies, and either buy bread balls or makings of a Smore, and sit on the little horses around the campfire and cook them! We made note of this to come back later when it was opened. the section of the park that used to be called "AfricaLand" is now redone into "Dinosaurland"! home to several flats, and a new powered family coaster by Mack - "T-Rex Family Coaster" the Disc-O rides along the back of a Dinosaur skeleton. . . great theming. a large kiddie playground here too the T-Rex Coaster has a really long train, and although not exactly "thrilling". . it was fun, and it goes around twice. the queue line is pretty heavily themed with Animatronic Dinosaurs too. . so that was pretty neat. and next to it is Dino X-pedition - which looks like just a powered jeep ride, but has a dark ride section, and lots of animatronics too, and is worth a ride. queue line for the T-rex coaster and then next door the queue and some onride pics from Dino Xpedition oh look. . I managed to get a pic of the T-rex coaster train. . LOL. . . SPOILER!!! ---- . Kong shows up in the DinosaurLand Jeep ride. . . I was told he was leftover from the "problematic" dark ride they used to have here when this area was AfricaLand. heh. . .got a pic of Robb filming on T-Rex Family coaster. Dino Eggs. . ready to hatch! to be continued. . .

SeaWorld has announced new attractions at all three US theme parks for 2024, including a brand-new jellyfish experience coming to SeaWorld San Diego! https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/seaworld-to-open-exciting-one-of-a-kind-marine-life-themed-rides-and-experiences-for-the-whole-family-in-every-park-in-2024-301941243.html?fbclid=IwAR2sI-YLXuCex8PumYog6zravF8H04-JShfKX9kej41HzW24oVO_4jhmoic SeaWorld is thrilled to announce it will open one-of-a-kind marine life themed rides and attractions in every SeaWorld park in Spring 2024. Guests to the award-winning parks in Orlando, San Antonio, and San Diego can look forward to epic journeys and experiences for the whole family that will leave them breathless, drenched, and utterly mesmerized. Attractions include "Penguin Trek" at SeaWorld Orlando, an all-new family friendly coaster for guests 42-77 inches in height that will transport riders on an unforgettable expedition through the Antarctic wilderness aboard unique snowmobile styled ride cars traversing an indoor/outdoor track that ends at the penguin habitat where riders can experience the enchanting world of these remarkable animals. The first of its kind at SeaWorld parks, the all-new "Jewels of the Sea: The Jellyfish Experience" at SeaWorld San Diego offers an immersive and interactive view into the mysterious underwater world of glowing and graceful jellyfish, along with touch and behind the scenes experiences. At SeaWorld San Antonio, guests will celebrate the first splash of the much-anticipated opening of Catapult Falls, the world's first launched flume coaster and the only vertical lift in North America. The new attractions continue the SeaWorld legacy of blending marine life inspired adventure, discovery, and family-friendly thrills. The best way to experience the new attractions is with a SeaWorld 2024 Annual Pass on sale now. 2024 pass members will be the first to experience the new attractions before they open to the public. "2024 looks to be another fun year with exciting new rides in our parks and our first jellyfish exhibit," said Marc Swanson, CEO of SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. "We know our fans will delight in the all-new lineup of marine life inspired experiences that gives everyone even more new ways to really enjoy our parks. And when they do, they can feel good knowing that a portion of proceeds goes toward our rescue and conservation work." "Jewels of the Sea: The Jellyfish Experience" at SeaWorld San Diego Offers an Immersive Experience with the Beauty and Wonder of Graceful Jellies, the First at SeaWorld Parks SeaWorld San Diego is thrilled to announce the upcoming debut of "Jewels of the Sea: The Jellyfish Experience" in 2024, adding another exciting and educational dimension to the park's offerings. The first of its kind for SeaWorld parks, the Jellyfish Experience will be the newest immersive and interactive aquarium at the park. Nestled within the Ocean's Explorer area, guests to the new exhibit will be greeted by a kaleidoscope of colors and shapes in three unique galleries as if diving into the heart of the ocean. Glowing with an ethereal light, Moon Jellyfish, Pacific Sea Nettles, Upside-Down Jellyfish, and Comb Jellies will gracefully glide through the water, showcasing their hypnotic movements that seem almost unworldly. The experience features an 18-foot-tall cylinder, among the tallest jelly cylinders in the country, a 10-foot-tall acrylic living arch of jellyfish for guests to walk through for views from multiple angles, plus a vivid display from walls to ceiling that show virtual oceanic moments, ranging from calm waters to dynamic, energetic crescendos. Guests can also upgrade their experience with a behind-the-scenes tour led by an aquarist and learn more about jellyfish propagation and have hands-on experience to touch the ocean's translucent treasures. As part of the park's commitment to education, the Jellyfish Experience also offers a fun way to learn more from experts about what makes a jellyfish, the beauty and diversity of the translucent species, their behaviors and patterns, and how they have adapted to some of the most extreme environments on Earth. Plus, guests will come away with a better understanding of what they can do to protect jellyfish and our oceans.

Part 12 Hey, It's a New Park for TPR: Furuvik Furuvik is another part of the Swedish theme-park empire that also encompasses Grona Lund, Kolmarden, and Skara Sommarland. Like Kolmarden, its much larger cousin, Furuvik is a zoo with a small collection of rides. Unlike Kolmarden, all the rides are gathered in one spot called the "Tivoli," so you don't have to hike to two or three miles to get to them. The main attractions in the Tivoli are two Vekoma family coasters: Lightning (a fun launched ride with cool-looking, kind of retro trains) and Fireball (one of those Family Boomerangs that have been sprouting like dandelions all over the place recently); there's a family "dragon" coaster, as well (it's a Zierer--just for a change of pace, I guess). They even have a Sally "Boo Blasters" type dark ride with a nicely themed queue to round out their collection of flats and carnival games. But the zoo is the main attraction here. Furuvik has an interesting mix of habitats, ranging from a Swedish farm to an island for primates to enclosures for camels and other hooved beasts. Even the zoo contains a few odd attractions. There's a somewhat creepy boat ride that winds through a mysterious cave and abandoned village (not sure if there were supposed to be live animals there). They also have a little obstacle course where people ride hobby horses. The zoo is working on rebuilding its image following an unfortunate incident involving some escaped chimps earlier this year (Google it if you're curious). But they still have a fair-sized collection of orangutans. You can even walk among some of the smaller primates in both indoor and outdoor habitats. The name "Furuvik" means "pine bay" in English, and it certainly lives up to it. The park sits in a forest by the sea, and there's a nice spot where you can hang out by the water. There's even a museum there devoted to coastal defenses. This makes sense, as Russia isn't too far--just on the other side of the bay. They have a cat as a mascot? I like this place already. All zoos should have a Tivoli. Behold the power of neon! Art Deco lives at Furuvik! Sarah looks rather blissful sitting on what looks like a dynamo from a 1930s "Flash Gordon" serial. Hear that dynamo hum! Seriously, it looks like Emperor Ming the Merciless mounted some sort of death ray on the front of this train. Lightning is a good ride--thrilling for kids and fun for adults. For families, yes, but we old farts like it, too. (Photo by either AJ or Andy, I think.) I saw neither fire nor balls on this ride. But Vekoma Family Boomerangs are becoming a "thing," it seems. At least it's not themed to a gravy boat. Well, if you were disappointed by the lack of fire or balls earlier, here are some furries on a dragon-themed coaster. Well, may as well get in line . . . OH MY GOD! We must escape the furries! (Photo by . . . Elissa or Jere, I think?) OK, ghosts. We're gonna get all "Scooby Doo" on your ass! OK, everybody got that? His instructions are in Swedish, but I think it boils down to this: Aim your gun . . . . . . and blast the hell outta them ghosts! (Not sure who took this photo.) OK, all you Mystery Science Theater fans--sing along: "It's Joey the Lemur! The friend to mankind!" "I don't know about you, but this yellow stuff is getting me really high!" "Yes, you can walk under me, but be advised that I eat a rather high-fiber diet. You have been warned!" "Look into my eyez-z-z-z-z . . . you are in my power . . . you will accept me as your sovereign leader . . . understand?" It was a bit of a walk to the creepy boat ride. SNAKE! MONKEY! OH MY GOD! This boat ride would make a pretty good haunt. It's already kind of spooky. And the unstable boats add an extra thrill. There's a walk-through habitat full of critters, such as this white-headed saki. ( That's this animal's name according to the park's website). Looks like it's feeding time. "How about feeding me, pal? Just stick you hand down here." "OK, where's that lady with the food?" "I'm out here. Please don't try to tear my arm off this time." I think one orangutan is about to mug another orangutan. Meanwhile, back at Lightning, this bird seems oblivious to the peril it's in. "OH CRAP!" You'll be happy to know that the bird escaped unharmed. "Oh boy! Sticks and leaves! We camels love sticks and leaves!" "Hey, big boy, once you go camel you don't ever want to go back. Get me?" As I said earlier, "Furuvik" means "pine bay." "Yeehaw! Yahoo! And other such cowboy nonsense!" Thanks for a fun day, Furuvik. We hit this somewhat frightening single-rail alpine coaster on the way back to Stockholm. (Photo by Elissa.)

It's rather pessimistic, but part of me wonders if the park just decommissions Montezooma completely and says "whoops, we tried, but here's some new stuff in Camp Snoopy instead!" At least with Xcel, there were occasional statements about waiting for parts and whatnot. With Montezooma, it's been near total silence.