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Kumba is now running again.

so.. when I heard that TPR was going to doing a UK trip in 2024, and that they were going to a park that I had dreamed about ever setting foot in for almost 40 years? yeah, I quickly inquired and was able to join them on the trip. I decided to be comfortable - my spouse passing really made me into a bit bougie/enjoy while you can kind of person. . so I not only booked flights, but paid for upgrades. United was "kind" enough to upgrade me for the 40 minute flight from Austin to Houston (which ended up being so bumpy there was no drink service anyways), but due to an error on their part? yep, didn't upgrade me for the longer, 9 hour flight, and had me in Economy. the wonderful desk agent in Austin, tried for almost an hour to "fix" the longer flight, but eventually told me there was nothing they could do and that I should check in at the gate in Houston and see if they worked it out. But offered me a bunch of drink vounchers for the longer flight and told me to go relax in the United lounge until my flight in about an hour. don't think it will surprise you to hear that the United lounge wouldn't let me in, as I was only upgraded on the Domestic portion of my flight, but not the International. . therefore I didn't qualify to go in. . . but I could pay $56 for a day pass? Yeah.. no. Instead I gave the name of the agent who had been helping me and they called down to her (turns out she's a supervisor) and she told them let me in. . . .so I did get a nice snack while waiting for my plane to leave. I was determined to stay in a positive mood, and not let glitches like this deter me - after all, at the end of the flights, I'd be in London. But oh yes, I'll deal with United when I get back after. not worth $56 to pay to get in, so glad that I didn't have to. but a nice snack. my "surprised" face at the gate in Houston, upon being told that nope, they didn't have an upgrade for me. I was number 12, and they had filled upgrades 1-11 and had no more seats in Premium Plus. shocking, I know! oh well. .I had figured out I'd not be getting the upgrade they had charged me for. BUT. . I was glad I had stayed positive, as it turned out the center seat was empty (despite it being a full plane), so my neighbor in the window seat and I had lots of room to spread out on the longer flight. So it all worked out. I ended up watching an Anime movie about a otherworldly "keymaster" that turns into a chair. ("Suzume" which I highly recommend. . I quite enjoyed it), and Disney's "Wish" - which I liked so much, I watched it twice. Sunrise from the plane as we were in transit. here's what I had for a meal on the flight. that Milk cookie was so sweet I really didn't care for it and spit most of it out. The Steward seemed surprised and said most like it. but it was edible and decent (I wasn't all that hungry anyways) I did make use of some of my Drink Coupons tho. . . the Bloody Mary hit just right Finally landing in Heathrow, and getting thru Customs was a breeze. I had decided to be a little bougie, and had hired a car - that picked me up at the Customs area with a little sign. LOL. . I felt so important turned out to be an excellent choice, as there were protests all over London - seems to be something that happens pretty much every Saturday - and the drive took over 2 hours to get to my Hotel. but since I had paid a flat rate for the driver, he took the way scenic way, to avoid many closed off streets, and I ended up seeing many sights I might have not even gotten a chance to see. from the car, yes, but still. . very cool to see and now I could say that I saw them. Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliment London Eye, Parliment, Big Ben. .from the other side. I think that's the shard in the back on the right? eventually tho, I finally made it to the hotel, and only wanted a hot shower. but turned out they were having issues with the keys (creating them). . . so they moved some things around and put me in this room (which was fine, I just wanted to sleep there anyways for 2 nights before the TPR trip started). I went back down to the front desk and talked to the Concierge. i was really interested in seeing a show in the West End (I was staying at the Doubletree West End - and huge shout out to Elissa for helping me decide to book a room there) my "wish list" show had been "Spirited Away". . but tickets were quite expensive, and I didn't want to pre-purchase just in case of delayed flights or some other issue. So had been leaving it up to the universe. The Concierge got hold of the box office, and via some miracle, there was ONE open seat available. In row 7, near center stage! They told me they would be happy to put it on hold for me, and I could pick it up at the on call one hour before the performance. i was stoked, and tipped the Concierge well for the help, and then got walking directions to the British Museum (another reason I had chosen this hotel was the proximity to that). and off I went. (I had gotten a free ticket online, tho I was well over an hour past my ticketed time, due to the issues getting to the hotel. . but I wasn't too concerned, as I had been told I could just go around to the backside of the museum and get in over there even without a timed ticket). it was a lovely walk, and the weather was just cool enough that I was having a grand time. I mean. . as a first time visitor to London, one HAS to, right? it's a gorgeous, and HUGE, museum. and was absolutely packed with schoolkids - which I guess is a good thing? (tho I ended up chatting with multiple security guards - chatting or perhaps flirting? I'm not really sure - they kept commenting on my Katya shirt and boots). even tho it was past my ticket time, I was told to get in the line and just go in with the other timed ticket people. So got to go in the front of the museum. I spent just about 4 hours here. . by no means did I even come close to seeing everything. But was able to hit up every area that I was interested in. unfortunately "the Wave" the famous Japanese silkscreen, was not on display at the moment - having been taken down for some restoration work. . but there was plenty of other things to see (and photograph) yeah yeah. . .juvenile humor.. but it was funny to me. a few purchases later (mostly magnets) and I headed back to the hotel to change up a bit - to get a little fancier for the theater some fresh walking directions, and I headed out (exhausted, but determined) to go see "Spirited Away" the theater it's playing in is one of the oldest, and the staff told me is the largest, in the West End: the London Coliseum. ahhhhh. . THIS is why the show was nearly sold out. the actress playing Yubaba/Zeniba? (Mari Natsuki) That's the actress who voiced the part in the original Anime! I was VERY lucky to get a ticket. the show had only been playing in London for a couple of weeks and the gift shop folks were freaking out, as it still had to run thru the end of August - and they were sold out of almost everything. they had a few T-shirts (in smaller sizes), and some keychains. . .but most of the merch had sold right away and they desperately were trying to find a way to restock (I spoke with them before the show started, and they were expressing how surprised everyone was at how well the show was doing). hopefully that's a good sign, and we'll see the show here in the States? It sticks VERY close to the film - tho there's a new song and set piece added in act II to pad it a little bit. The puppet work on the characters is super impressive. . I loved it, particularly when Haku flies out thru and above the audience to end Act I. anyways. . . I bought a couple of shirts that are a little too small for me, but will hang in the closet as souvenirs. . .and enjoyed the specialty Martini the theater truly is GORGEOUS. (pics taken when they opened the doors. NO photography during the performance. . I think they want to keep the puppets "hidden". . which is strange when two full versions of the show are avail. on Max to watch, so you could see the puppets anyways.). they relaxed the rule during curtain call. .so that's how I got that pic. the whole show is in Japanese, with English translations flashed above, and to the sides of the stage. after the show, I had totally forgotten it was Saturday night. (I was exhausted, and was lucky to have kept my eyes open for the whole show. . LOL). . . but seemed like most of the West End shows ended around the same time, and everyone poured out into the streets, and it was like a big, festive, party going on out here. this was my back-up show, if I had been unable to score a ticket to "Spirited Away".. just for Tom Holland. Ian McKellan was also headlining a show. . but he had just fallen off the stage a couple of days before my arrival, so his part was being played by an understudy. So I didn't even look at tickets for that. I was focused on my wish list one I wandered among the crowds, enjoying some pastry and the art installations on some streets. then gave in, exhausted, and hired a pedi-cab to get me back to the hotel, where I went up to my room and promptly crashed. I had to get up fairly early tomorrow for a full day at Tower of London. so a quick shower, and off to bed. but hey, I was in London! (the two Spirited Away shirts I got. . . the XL "might' fit. . . but the other one for sure wont)

day 7 (full day at Alton Towers) concluded: continuing our way around this side of the park, the next thing we came to was Smiler yeah. .this 14 (!) inversion coaster looked really intense. I was wary of it, but since we had the fast passes, we figured we'd try to ride everything. it broke down while we were in line tho, so denied (for the moment) it really is sensation overload. . even just in the queue - the blasting giggling over the loudspeakers gets into your head! the employees didn't look thrilled with their outfits, but one of them did confide in me that "at least they are warm" what a gigantic mess of track! with Smiler down, we went over to the world's first dive coaster, Oblivion. I'd heard about this one for ages. . but didn't realize it's really just a drop. there isn't much to this coaster, but being the first of it's kind meant that it was a must ride. and ya know what? it gives a hell of a thrill still. I quite enjoyed it. Smiler was still down, so we headed towards the forbidden forest area - the only part of the park we hadn't explored yet, and home to the last two coasters here. cutting thru the ruins at the center of the park along the way it was a shame that Hex was down - as I love madhouses, and I'd heard this was a good one. but hey, a reason to go back at some point! whoops. . we'd taken a wrong turn and totally missed the forbidden forest area, and ended up in the world of David Walliams. as a fan of Little Britain, I knew who he was, even if I wasn't familiar with his kid's books. But the Gangsta Granny ride sounded great - and it was a fun , stupid, dark ride, that I think I rode a 1/2 doezen times. so well worth the stop over in this section. it even had a photo op! why yes, I'm the Queen this was apparently a building they used for a show that was not running at the moment. but next to it was a sizzler . . and a small carousel. on site in the park, there was also an Alton Towers Dungeon - which one of the workers told us was about to shut down, so we made sure to do it the next day. glad we did too, as they seem to have removed it from the park, so I got to experience my first ever "Dungeon" (in talking to others on the trip, the Dungeon experience is very similar in different locations, but typically do include a ride of some sort - in this case, was a boat ride in the middle of it). we finally found our way over to where we had been headed earlier tho: home to Rita and 13 the last two coasters in the park we hadn't seen yet. I did enjoy Rita for what it is. . . but found it to be really rather short. Just when I thought we were gearing up for another launch, we pulled into the station. it was fun tho, and I believe i did ride it a couple of times. 13 (Thirteen) is 100% a family coaster, but I truly don't understand why some are disappointed in it. for what it does? it does very, very well. and I enjoyed it. but my favorite coaster in the park? Wicker Man. we had ERT on it tomorrow night. . but that didn't stop me from riding it several times during the 1st day. I absolutely loved the layout, the fire/smoke effects, and that double down / double up lift/drop. so, so good. even the station was kewl! and the exit thru the gift shop offered lots of great swag! making a face, but seriously, I loved this! and some Rita pics and the mine train. . . Nick had photo pass, and he must have shared them all with us at this point, since all are together in my pics Oh, I was incorrect. . we hadn't been to all the coasters yet. We had come back to this area earlier, but only rode sub-terra. . we hadn't actually gone into the main area, and ridden Nemesis or Galactica. . so we headed back over that way. Nemesis looks amazing. . and that giant eyeball in the center moves to follow the trains! and it blinks. . . really rather creepy. more characters out, patrolling the area (there were also a group of "freaks" out, protesting to protect the creature from government prodding). it's good! Galactica is a B&M flyer. . and yeah. . it knocked the wind out of me. a bit too intense! I liked it. . but yeah, 1 and done for me. way too intense. it was almost time to head back across the park for Smiler ERT. . . but we swung past Nemesis again for a few more pics (and another ride) to get back over to Smiler, we decided to cut thru the "Gardens" section of the park. it's hard to believe we're still in the middle of a theme park (tho to be fair, I think if the skyride had been operating, instead of in refurb mode - now back open I hear - it wouldn't have seemed so "forrest-ry" back at Smiler, which was now back up and running. Group pic before ERT. I'd be danged if I didn't ride it at least once. . even tho I KNEW I wasn't gonna like it. (and I didnt' care for it. . the 14 inversions were just a bit too much for me. . so I was one and done,and then took pics of others riding it). it's a great looking ride, just too much for me, but i know a lot of folks on this trip LOVED it. and they were yelling out inversion counts as it went. the photo must be early on, as I was still enjoying the ride at this point. not sure about how Colin felt tho. . LOL the track is so long, they can operate multiple trains. . . which with the twisted up track, really gives the impression they might hit each other! I did make it to the end of ERT, even tho only rode that one time, and then we headed back to the hotel to grab some food and crash after a long, exciting, and exhausting, day. I wasn't too hungry tho. . perhaps Galactica and Smiler back to back had my stomach in knots. . . so I stuck with a desert. and no, I didn't share and with that, it was off to shower, and bed. Tomorrow was another full day at the park, and there were a ton of things I wanted to ride, and re-ride.

day 7, full day at Alton Towers: the next morning, got up in time for breakfast (they had to split us up into groups, so several of us met in the lobby to head over to the park together after eating something) view from where I sat at breakfast: and then headed out to the monorail station, that would bring us around to the front of the park. we were on our own for most of the day today, meeting up later for some ERT on Smiler. ready for a full day at this park that had also always been on my bucket list. at the front gates, we're met by a monument to a Vekoma Corkscrew that I guess used to be at the park. I was just glad we had so many other coaster options (some of which I had heard of for decades, and always wanted to ride). park map. . this place is HUGE. the Map really doesn't give the full size of the place. our hotel is way up there on the left, and park entrance is way over there on the lower right. So the Monorail brought us thru the park and to the front gates. from the main entrance, you get an amazing view of the castle ruins (which can be toured as part of the Gardens. . but also is home to Hex (sadly closed for refurb during our visit) CBeebies land is the WTF kids area, that has some "never in America" characters. . . looking back at the Monorail we had just gotten off of. interactive squirting frog fountain in the main entrance area better view of the castle / ruins/ gardens from the end of the main street. nothing quite opens with the park, but it's so large, we headed in anyways to get to near what we wanted to hit up first. there are a lot of coasters here, but most are very spread out. Mutiny Bay area has a bunch of rides, including teacups, splash battle, the rapids ride, an electric mine train, and is also home to the sealife aquarium here at the park. lots of interactive stuff all over the park too. I believe this button on the scull activated the parrot - who interacted with guests. not open yet, but we'd be back! possibly my most looked forwards to ride here (tying with 13), the Wicker Man wooden coaster. people were already lining up to get on it when it opened. and this was *before* all the smoke and fire effects that are in use during the ride were turned on! spoiler. . it's an amazing coaster. I loved it. no water in the rapids (yet), but they would be up shortly. that track next to it on the right is the Mine Train it's a really long train, and they send it around a couple of times - in our case, we got the "Australian" 3-peat. . so got to go around 3 times, because Nick was riding with us. and they really love saying "choo-choo" as the train passes under the station. another coaster I was very much looking forwards to! this section had a recently re-imagined dark ride that is total WTF, and was my favorite flat at the park. so fantastic effects, and a truly whacko storyline. the "Curse of Alton Manor" not sure what's up with the "Giant chairs". . but sure, I'll sit in this one too! it's haunted mansion, crossed with a ghost train, and a bit of Tower of Terror mixed in. LOVED it. and the castmembers were having a ball. it's kinda "hidden" in the middle of the park, in it's own section. so it never really had a line. I think I rode it at least 10 times, and ended up with a couple of T-shirts and magnets from it. if you continue on the pathway towards the back of the park, you come to the section that Nemesis is located. and is heavily themed, as an area that the Nemesis lifeform has invaded and the Government is trying to keep under control tons of actors in character back over here.. . and this is a separate ride off by itself, but also themed to the Nemesis creature in the area. won't spoil it, but it has live acting, and a pretty "jumpscare" ride that you won't see coming. apparently it doesn't operate too often - I can see why, it takes a lot of cast members - so I'm really glad I got to experience it. Pretty scary for a non-halloween themed ride! rapids now full and ready for riders! and the aquarium was open now too. . so time to go take a look! oooo. . .pretty! cast members out in this area too. . . love how well they had this park staffed! I even got to meet the Alton Towers mascot bear. . tho never caught his name some of the folks I was hanging around with today wanted to ride EVERY coaster. . and that included the kiddie one over in CBeebies land). . .so we headed over there next I STILL have no idea what the hell these things are. yellow boogers? ahh.. a daisy I recognize! ok.. I'm absolutely coming back to ride this tomorrow (and I did) here's the kiddie. . I believe it was basically a roller skater? tho the theming was adorable. several TPR folks on this train whoops. .I've been seen! lol. . I already saw you, can't hide from me, Doug! Stacy wanted to ride too. I stood in line, but actually didn't ride (just wasn't feeling it). . . but I'm glad she had fun. right next door was Spinball Wizzer tho.. and that I really wanted to ride. it's an extreme spinner, with some great theming. . . very good ride. to be continued. . .

and two random pics that found their way in (out of order) this one is sad to share, as Oakwood just announced it's shutting down. . but here's on the bobsled slide at Oakwood and I THINK this might be the Wave at Drayton Manor? anyone know for sure?

Just in case you thought the colours of AlpenFury and Leviathan were the same, Canada's Wonderland recently clarified this on their social media. Source: Canada's Wonderland Facebook I do hope they begin to share more construction photos of AlpenFury soon!

That is actually really cool.

Slight correction: the retrack is being done by RMC. They're just adding GCI trains.

Gotta be pretty fun to be a team member and one of the first to experience a completely brand new park before everyone else. Pretty rare these days to get that opportunity. I'm looking forward to going but will probably wait till maybe Jan/Feb of 2026 if they have just single day tickets for Epic available then. Right now you have to buy multi day tickets that include the other parks.

Day 5: Travel day, but with a stop at another surprise on this trip - Barry Island (a seaside resort town in Wales) - where we'd stop along the way to Drayton Manor. I thought the scenery in Wales was quite lovely, even if a bit industrial. so I snapped pics from the bus as we passed areas on the morning drive: as we got closer to the seaside town of Barry, there was some nice architecture that we passed too: and off in the distance? our destination for a "quick" stop (I think we were there about 4 hours?) on the drive - Barry Island. the Ferris Wheel was a giveaway, as was what they advertised as the tallest ride in the UK, AeroSpace (a Booster carnival ride) Barry Island is a seaside resort area, that reminded me a bit of Seaside Heights area, but without the boardwalk stalls. lots of homes in this area headed down to the beach. . tho not sure if folks live here year round, or rent them out for vacationers. pulling up into the "Amusement" area of Barry Island. this made me giggle, as it's giving off some "Amityville" vibes the area around here seemed very "touristy" and perhaps a bit "well loved". . but I was liking the atmosphere we had made good time, and the main Amusement area hadn't really opened yet (Robb & Elissa were meeting with the park owner at opening - he was quite the character, and was very excited that TPR was visiting his amusement park. so we passed a bunch of non-cycling (for the moment) rides. that tall one there is AeroSpace. pulling into the parking lot, the beach area is quite lovely - even tho it was a bit overcast, and maybe a little chilly for me. but I had a jacket and was ready to go! a bit windy, and as noted, a bit chilly. but ready to have some fun. bumped into Santa Biker on the path from the lot to the rides areas - as we decided to walk along the beach in search of a public restroom. Very nice guy, as was pretty much everyone I met today at Barry Island. and one of the 1st things I saw was a rainbow bench. I felt very welcome, in my big, gay, sunglasses (which I kept getting compliments on. . LOL. . I brought them on the trip as I didn't care if I lose them) a map of Barry Island, including the rides, and attractions. again, a bit run down / "well loved". . but I really did enjoy the atmosphere, and the design. there is another cluster of amusement rides at the far end of the beach area (near the public restroom) and this one actually was open early. so many on the trip flocked here first, to get the kiddie credit. personally, I don't tend to ride many kiddie things - I don't judge, but just cause it's a coaster doesn't mean I'm gonna ride it - so I took pics while others rode. Hi Albert! the ONLY reason I didn't hop into this chair, is because I was worried my fat ass wouldn't be able to get out of it creepy clown bouncy play area not quite the same as the Legoland fire academy we'd seen a couple of days prior. . . but I loved that it's called "Fire Blasta" Andrew, Stacy, Nick (I think David behind him) and Ryan enjoying the caterpillar coaster. one of several smaller carousels available to ride at Barry Island. the "fun bus" looks like a tight squeeze for fun. across the way looked like a casino? but it wasn't open yet, and we didn't' really have a lot of time to spend on things that weren't all that interesting to most of us. so we skipped it. the big park was about to open, so we headed in to meet up with the TPR group. on the main Carousel, one could ride in a carriage with the Queen! lots and lots of flat rides here. . mostly running decent cycles. it's a pretty good carnival set up. ohhhh. .a ghost train! featuring Boney M music??? sadly no, but still I enjoyed it when we rode it later. I just hummed "ra-ra-Rasputin, lover of the Russian Queen" in my head while we rode didn't "ride" this as was afraid of breaking it! but I did want a pic on it what IS it with scary clowns in European countries? still some remnants of Covid Protocols in place, tho no one was really following them at this point. it was time to head over to meet up in front of AeroSpace, and get our tokens to ride stuff. and TPR was gonna get rides on this "UK's tallest ride" here's the group with the owner of the Barry Island amusement area. I am NOT a fan of heights. . but I was willing to ride this. I ended up regretting it, as I hung on for dear life once I realized if the restraint releases while you're at the top, there's absolutely nothing that will keep you from falling out of that seat. I was terrified - worried something would release. and was also in pain - as this was the place on THIS trip where I got injured. Something I seem to do on every trip, cause I'm a klutz. But at least this wasn't my fault - on this ride, they had a very gung ho operator (a short little fireplug of a lady) who jumped up and slammed her full weight into the restraint to get it secure. It took the breath out of me the 1st time she did it as I wasn't expecting it. but then they had to undo the restraints to walk someone off who they deemed too large to ride (which is what created my fear of them undoing while at the top), and when she came back and closed my restraint the same way? I actually felt my rib snap when her full weight came down on it. luckily I always bring really good painkillers with me on trips, so was able to make thru the rest of the trip relatively ok. . tho it took almost 8 weeks to heal enough that I could sleep on that side. but I digress. . I rode it and it was fun. smiling. . but more of a grimace thru the pain in my ribs. it *was* fun. . .don't get me wrong. . but terrifying too. the pics are courtesy of Elissa and Andy, I believe. (Daniel is filming for Robb if you're wondering what's on his arm in some of the pics) after the rides, we were cut loose for a couple of hours to do what we wanted before meeting back up at the bus later. it was suggested we eat, but I really needed to pee by this point. . and over on this side of the park, the only restrooms were in the pubs (and for patrons only). so Stacy and I went to get a drink. . and met this lovely bar owner. she was so nice, and we had a good chat with her while sipping our cider & Lager. PROST! (no wait.. that's the other TPR Trip report I'm doing) SOMEBODY noticed that the dragon coaster over here had started running, and wanted to get a ride. so I hung out and took pictures while they got that credit. she wasn't the only one tho. . saw lots of TPR folks on it when I took pics of the ride before hers . this was about my speed for a ride at the moment. . . LOL actually saw someone puking after this. . so I guess that means good cycle? these bears were in front of the Cyclone - a Galaxi coaster. not sure why, but sure, I'll pose with bears! a mini Waltzer! it was so cute! this guy was running an insane cycle, with loud music and lots of smoke, so we headed over to it next. whee! I watched this Top Scan, and saw that TPR was gonna ride it and decided those restraints with my hurting rib was NOT a good idea. so I passed, and glad I did, as they gave the TPR folks a very long (something like 15 minute) nutso cycle. I still think Robb paid them off to run it like that for TPR another one more my speed at the moment - inside one of the arcades. not gonna lie, I was tempted! but passed up a chance to have a Princess Party. . . we happened upon the big Waltzer right as a bunch of TPR folks were also gonna ride. so we hopped on sharing a car with Andy. . and got an absolutely bonkers ride, with the ride ops coming up behind the cars - while the ride was in motion!!! - and pushing the cars into more intense spins. it was so amazingly great. see? hanging on and laughing the whole way. back to the Cyclone for Stacy's ride (sorry.. pics got out of order somehow) I, again, passed. This one isn't a kiddie, but I just wasn't in the mood to ride it. Ride Nelly the Elephant! and John Wayne's Horse! (made out of plastic) kiddie rides scattered all over the place here. . most of them quite odd. back to the carousel. . you not only could ride with the Queen, but you could also ride with Mr. Bean! and this guy. . who NO ONE knew who he was! not even the Carousel operator. I asked several people and no one had any idea who this guy was! he must be someone, as he's in good company (the Queen and Mr. Bean) two Queens after using up our tokens, and checking time, we decided to do some shopping and go eat something. I had snapped a pic of this as we passed from the bus, but now could get up close with the horse. and a very odd "Lady and the Tramp" kiddie ride in one of the stores. good idea.. I hadn't yet really had Fish and Chips in the UK. . and on the shore seemed to be a good place to try. it was so good, y'all. tho I found the smashed peas a bit. . . unpleasant and bland. but here's the place we went. the Fish was really great, so no wonder it's "famous" while eating, Stacy allowed me to use her shoulder to model the souvenir shirts I had gotten. turns out the show "Gavin and Stacey" was set here. . and we found a store selling merch. so of course I grabbed some (love that show) a quick stroll down the beach on the way back to the bus showed that as the clouds had cleared out, the beach had gotten a bit more crowded. it was still way too chilly for me to even consider going into the water, but here in Wales, I guess they are used to it? and then back onto the bus, and we continued on towards Drayton Manor. we were staying in a hotel nearby, and that was to be our full day park tomorrow. lovely. once checked in, we had a few hours before having to go to bed, so some headed off to check out the nearby castle ruins. Some went into town to check out the night life. and some of us went to the restaurant at the hotel to grab a snack. awww.. the moo-moo has a "tasty bottom" I wasn't all that hungry, as still was full from the Fish & Chips. . so I went with lemonade and a desert. I'd also yet to have "Sticky toffee pudding" since being in the UK, and thought I should try it. there were lots of ways to order it, but I asked for the most traditional. it wasn't bad. . although my stomach did not quite agree with it, and I ended up with a rough night of sleep. (but that also could be due to the pain meds I was taking by this point for my ribs). before going back into the room, wandered out into the parking lot to snap a pic of the castle ruins nearby: poison ivy? I dunno. . but the thorns (and gnats in the area) kept me from wandering over to check it out in person, so instead I went back to the room for a nice long, hot shower. tomorrow? Drayton Manor.

Day 4: a visit to Oakwood. . . home of some interesting rides, areas, and the classic: Megafobia! on the bus early, and headed to the home of a classic coaster (and some other rides), I had only read about in books. it seemed to be in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by greenery & hills. . . but also a huge housing/apartment complex building up behind the far side. It was hard to tell exactly how "big" the park is from the lot, but it seemed to stretch on for quite a bit. . . and they DO have an awful lot of space to expand if they so choose to. . tho not sure the location means they ever get HUGE crowds. (we were there on a day where there were several school groups, but it never really felt too crowded) a pic of the park map. . . it looks like there is a lot to do, and there are a ton of things if you're interested in a "THEME Park" rather than a "thrill park". . as there are only a handful of "thrill" rides. but I quite enjoyed the day here, even with a couple of the rides not operating. the map also makes it look way more compact than it is. . .the park is pretty spread out, so did a LOT of walking. the first thing you see when entering the park from the parking lot is the looming "Drenched" (aka: Hydro) - which is known really for two things - it being the last "Mega Splash" model from Intamin still operating, and from an accident where someone fell out on the drop ~20 years ago. sadly this was not open today. . although it did look like Maintenance was working on it. And as we were heading out, the water was flowing in the flume (it had not been when we came in and I snapped this pic). . so it probably did open shortly after our visit. oh well.. . a reason to go back (as if Megafobia isn't enough reason ) there is a train that can bring folks from the parking lot to the main entrance, but as we were there before park open for some ERT, it wasn't operating when we passed it. I'm not sure if it ever did operate, but I didn't ride it if it did. Vertigo (a Skycoaster) looms over the front entrance. . . and many in the TPR group did ride it - including Robb who got Jack Crouse to finally ride with him for his 1st Skycoaster experience. walking thru the park to get to Speed, you can get a sense just how big (and hilly) it is here. this whole area is a kids/family area called "Neverland". . .it's JUST Peter-Pan-y enough to get the idea across, while not *reaaaaaly* violating any copyrights from other companies, I'd say. there are at least 6-7 rides back here, but only a couple are true "kiddie only" rides. the entrance gate to this section. across the great lawn, I get my first glimpse of Megafobia thru the trees a water slide, that several folks on this trip rode - you ride on a little "tray" - and most of them got wet. that's Speed - where we're headed - in the back on the left over there. also further down hill is Bounce (a shot/drop combo tower), a complex of slides, a swinging ship (which I don't think was open today), and a lake with paddleboats. here's where we were headed first: it's a Gerstlauer Euro Fighter, and I believe was the 1st one in Europe? yeah. . I'm not a big fan of Eurofighters, but I did ride it at least once. and then went and took pictures. from the station (Pic courtesy of Elissa I believe). . thumbs up before we leave. . . but the onride photo gives away my true feelings. . . LOL after our ERT, we were cut loose for the day in the park and several of us headed back over to something we passed while walking back to Speed: the Bobsleigh - a toboggan slide that opened with the park and is the last original attraction remaining from when it first opened. it was a sorta TPR takover, that many of us ended up in the line. NOTED (no tracks, no rails.. .just a toboggan and a chute to navigate down) and you ride the think up as it pulls you. . .think "Mountain coaster' but with no track. . . it was actually quite fun. and yeah. . NEVER in America. LOL but it was really fun. I think I rode this a few times. checking out the Megafobia gift shop, I was quite amused that the park sells old ride parts, and even ride signs! ("Plane Crazy" is what they used to call the flying scooters before retheming it for Neverland area) I think we didn't go to Megafobia right away because it was full of some of the schoolgroups (and besides, we had ERT on it later this afternoon). . so instead we headed over to "Spooky Street" sheesh. .can someone buy a vowel - no wonder I can't understand anyone in Wales! I was told this used to be a tracked dark ride, but they had removed the interior and had just been using it as a Haunt during the spooky season. seemed to be a waste. . but there were some other things over here in this area (not much tho) this is a Pinfari coaster, called "the Creepy Crawler" sadly this one too was not operating today . . . but the theming on it is great. you can see why it's not operating. . LOL they were waiting for some replacement track, and that's why it was shut down, but I was told that it WAS going to be opening back up once they repair it.. . so the park should have another operating coaster in 2025. the worker i chatted with told me that this area used to be based on Roald Dahl, and hence the giant pumkin walkthru that I loved to enter the ride? Used to be a giant Peach. really nice job by the park to retheme and reuse, as it fits the "spooky" area theme very well now. the two ladies back there were the operators on the only real "ride" that was operating over here in this section, hence them looking a bit bored. they were thrilled to talk to me tho and to have someone come to this section. the only other thing over here - which actually was open, but I didn't want to take my boots off - was this self play, trampoline area. here's the ride the ladies were operating. . a. kiddie teacups but we were invited to ride, so we did. TPR takeover! it actually spun a LOT, and was more intense than it looked like it would be. and the ops were happy to pose for a pic after our ride cycle. if you headed out of the Spooky Street area towards the parking lot, you pass by the Skycoaster, and the entrance line to Drenched. that they had a maintenance guy heading back there was a good sign that the ride *might* open today - so I snapped this pic to send to Daniel, who loves flumes and really wanted to ride this Mega Splash. still no water at this time tho you can see how steep that drop is! awwwww. . something over here just randomly to sit on/hump? don't mind if I do! Stacy and I split off to go explore the "Neverland" section this was really the only ride that was truly a "kiddie" ride - a miniature version of the boat. . .but I think there was a space that looked like it SHOULD have had a carousel on it (and the park clearly needs one). . so maybe there was that as well, but not at the moment. but we DID find a T.A.R.D.I.S.. . . . so of course, I immediately loved this area. one of two tracked rides over in this area. . . "the Sights of London" was a fun little thing where you just sit in a taxi, and a kid can "drive" you, or it just drives itself for you. having started the trip in London, of course I wanted to do it. we had a nice chat with the gentleman operating it, and he was surprised when I knew that the big building in the middle of the ride was the Tower of London. He said I'd be shocked how many people think it's the Taj Mahal (on a ride called "the sights of London" ????? LOL) whee! there's also a roller coaster back here - the Crocodile Coaster - a powered Kiddie. I usually don't bother with kiddie coasters, but this one was adorable, so when Stacy wanted the credit I went ahead and joined her. we had the whole train to ourselves. there's also a log flume, with a small indoor section (that was all kinds of weird). . . the best part of this? they only had 3 logs. So when several TPR folks showed up back here, we created a line but it was fun. . .whee! the flying scooters that have been renamed to "Tink's Flying School". . . with Tinkerbell on the flyers, and a figure in the middle. well.. .. SORTA Tinkerbell. More maintenance guys over here doing some planting/fixing as well. you can see how much space the park has here. Neverland Chase is the other tracked ride over here. . .this one clearly was a retheme from something prior, but no idea what. Maybe a Flinstones ride? but I'm always up for a tracked ride.. . my motto usually is: "the sillier and slower moving it is, the more I'll love it" even got Stacy on it. tho we did our own "trucks" rather than squeeze in together hmmm. . . I don't remember Neverland being this phallic? but hey, they tried to get some theming in the station, but having (what I think) are quotes from the Peter Pan book. . . still in the Neverland section, there's a little park/walkthru play area outside (there's also a really large indoor play area with soft pads/monkeybar climbthru over by the flume) but this outdoor one has things to climb on, and to slide down. D'awwwwwww you can't climb on this tho! but for some reason, you can sit in these. . .LOL and that's the skycoaster way back there on the left. yeah, as noted, the park is bigger than it appears. very spread out. oh my. . multiple sizes to choose from! headed back towards the Neverland entrance to go back out into the main park. (we still had one coaster to hit) sadly, tho I totally would have bought some stuff in this section? everything in this area was kiddie sized only it worked out ok, as I got a nice Megafobia shirt later. the design on the giftshop door in the Neverland area is very well done tho. we hadn't eaten lunch yet, so we stopped to grab a burger (the lunch rush from the school kids was dying down, so it was a good time to eat) and the Seagulls knew it too. Speed from our table while eating lunch. we went the long way around (down and then back up) for the final coaster. . . stopping to ride "Bounce" first it was a fun, and exciting ride, with a long cycle first shoot up. . then slow lift and drop. . then repeat in reverse. luckily we got on it, as there was some sort of incident a few days after our visit, and the ride was shut down for a long while. so I'm glad we got to ride it. and then to the only other coaster (besides Megafobia) we hadn't ridden yet: the Treetops Coaster it's just a Zierer that's got a wonderful location buried among the trees. . .lots of Helixes. but it was a nice, Family, coaster. I think I recall this had tire lift, rather than it being a powered coaster. with a really long train, that was themed to Logs! i felt very much reminded of being back in Japan riding "log" coasters. many of the school kids were headed out, so we went back over to the Bobsleigh, and rode that, and then finally after so much waiting/teasing, we got in the short line for Megafobia. another dream coaster I never thought I'd ever get a chance to ride. I'm not sure why it has the 2023 on the front - we were there in 2024 and it wasn't any kind of anniversary the year before - so it was odd. . . but I liked the looks of the trains (PTC?) it was great in the front. . and so good, we went back around and immediately got back in line for a back row ride freaking FANTASTIC. after our ride, it was close enough to ERT time, that while several TPR folks went over to Vertigo to ride the Skycoaster, I snapped some pics in the area, rode the Bobsleigh, and got some very good icecream, even tho I recall it being a little bit chilly. Megafobia from the entrance line. eventually it was time for our ERT after park close, and you can easily tell how much I loved this coaster in that I believe I did every ride during ERT.. here's just some proof (and thanks to Elissa & Robb for snagging these pics while we were riding. . and for arranging this wonderful treat. such a fantastic coaster) Group shot in front of the coaster before we head out (pic courtesy of Robb) and then just to break Daniel's heart? Drenched had water running in the flume now. no boats were testing, but it looked like it could open up any minute - tho it never did - and so we headed back to the bus and continued the drive. hope you enjoyed this update. I really liked Oakwood. . . sure, it woudn't be a full day park for someone who just wants thrill rides. But for those that enjoy walking around and the atmosphere? I recommend it. and Megafobia is worth the trip alone!

working on the next update (spoiler, next park is Oakwood in Wales - home to the incredible Megafobia, among other things). I hope to have that posted in the next couple of days. but I found a couple more pics from the snack exchange and a fun hotel pic, I thought I'd share int he meantime as Elissa mentioned online, this was a great Snack Exchange with some wonderfully odd things to try (again, Nick brought a Vegemite snack from Australia, which was odd, but not terrible) it's always a lot of fun when everyone gets together to try out snacks and yes, Hotel Door I was very alarmed too! no elevator, and I was on the 2nd floor. . . and I still had that big ass suitcase (I upgraded to a 4 wheel smaller size before Oktoberfest)

Day -1 (part 1): full day spent at Tower of London, Crypt Museum, St. Paul's Cathedral, and more! FLASHBACK TO PRE-TRIP: Once I knew a while back I was going to be in the UK, and starting in London, my #1 bucket list item was to visit the Tower of London. and I quickly scored a ticket for it. my #2 bucketlist item was to get a ticket to the "Ceremony of the Keys" - which is the ceremony that happens each night at the Tower, that locks it down in the name of the Monarch. And tickets for the Ceremony of the Keys are *very* hard to come by (limited to less than 50 a day, and they sell out instantly). The tickets for the Ceremony of the Keys go on sale on the first day of the month - and as noted, they tend to sell out instantly. Despite my trying for hours in the queue, I was unsuccessful in trying to get a ticket. . even when it finally let me in to see if there were any tickets avail. (what can I say? I was working, so just left that window open in the background to see if MAYBE I could score 1 ticket). When I finally got into the ticket purchase site, it looked like nothing had ever been made available? Certainly if it had sold out, they would say sold out for the days, right? so I sent a polite email to the Historic Royal Palaces, questioning if I had done something incorrectly, and noting I was in the city just this one day and would love to get a ticket if there is any way possible to squeeze me in. And then I went ahead and purchased my ticket for Tower Of London (complete with guidebook), for 10am on that Sunday, figuring I'll knock out the Tower of London, then go find some other stuff to do - maybe go back to the British Museum or the London Eye. cut to two days later, and I got an email response from the Historic Royal Palaces, explaining that there had been a glitch in their computer system, but the tickets were live now, and try this link. And sure enough, I was able to score a ticket to the Ceremony of the Keys! INCREDIBLY lucky. . as the whole month of June actually did sell out less than 30 minutes later. so it was fate that I happened to be on the computer and saw the email as soon as it came in. Downside tho? I now had to be back at the Tower of London at 9:30 pm, since that's when the Ceremony starts, and I had already purchased my ticket for 10am. Oh well. . was gonna be a long day, but worth it. back to real time: I woke up fairly early on Sunday (9am) - which was surprising how exhausted I had been the day before, and grabbed some coffee, then headed down to the lobby to ask the best way to get to Tower of London. they gave me several options, but the simplest was "grab a cab and they'll drop you right in front of it". So I did that, and the doorman called a cab for me. before long, we were pulling up by the main entrance - something I found out later most Cabs aren't allowed to do. . how I got so lucky? I dunno. it was still well over30 minutes before the Tower opened for the day, and some folks were already lining up in the queue for entrance. But since I had some time, I walked over to the river to snap some pictures of the London Skyline. ians of the Tower of I believe this is "the shard".. the well known building in central London and to my left? the famous Tower Bridge. on the day I was there, it was not scheduled to raise for any ships - I was told the ships have to put in a request 24 hours in advance - but I still managed to get some great pics with the iconic red double decker busses crossing in some shots. Still amazing to see this famous landmark in person. the gift shop had opened early, so I went in and browsed a bit, and chatted with one of the ladies behind the counter. (what can I say, I have the gift of gab). we talked about where i was visiting from and how the Tower of London was top of my list of things to do in London, and she advised me: "go to the Crown Jewels first. Everyone will wait for the first tour that starts at 10am, but ignore that - the tours happen every hour - and go to the Crown Jewels, it will be the shortest wait it ever is" I thanked her for the advice and headed out to queue up, as they were opening the gates a little bit early. (and spoiler, as you'll see, her advice as SPOT on. . . I was basically walk on for the Crown Jewels, but by Noon? it was a 2 hour wait just to get in that building!) Pics of the Tower of London from the queue outside to get in. Entrance is on the far right. looking down into the moat here. the famous Menagerie that was kept at the Tower is represented all over by these amazing Wire Sculptures. myself and a Beefeater (Yeoman Warder) - the Ceremonial Guard of the Tower of London. he was happy to stop for a picture with me. tickets scanned, and into the main complex. these people are gathering for the first tour group. I was headed to the left to follow the Cashier's advice on what to do first. the iconic and most famous castle keep in the world: the White Tower in the center of the Tower of London. as I was there on a Sunday wasn't allowed over here. This lovely area is the section of the complex that holds the Church, and it was off limits. There were a lot of folks in Suits, and members of the families that live in the Tower headed in for services tho. THIS is where I was headed - the Crown Jewels. as noted. .a walk on. absolutely NO Photography allowed. and no cell phones or cameras even allowed out while walking thru. the stuff in here is truly impressive tho, and well worth seeing with your own eyes. More of that fabulous wire art - it was all over the Tower complex walking along the side walls among the turrets - and there are TONS of paths and tours one can do at the Tower of London, I easily spent 5-6 hours here - one gets some nice views of downtown London, and the outer walls of the Tower. the exhibit about the Menagerie is in one of the many turrets. Very thick walls on the inner parts of the Tower complex. Peeking out thru one of the "turret slits". . . great views everywhere. This is in front of the Crown Jewels complex. I got very lucky and happened to be there the 1 week that the Yeoman Warders (the guys in the Red uniforms with the giant Bearskin hats) had stepped aside to honor the Brigade of Ghurkas - who were being given the honor to celebrate the 110th Anniversary. a bit more info from Wiki (and from the Beefeater who explained who the gentlemen were taking part of the Ceremony of the Keys later that night): The Royal Gurkha Rifles are Infantry are manned by Nepali soldiers and officers; and British officers, it is this blend of cultures that makes the RGR unique. Gurkhas are known for their professionalism, fighting prowess, humour and humility. so instead of seeing the Red Uniforms and Bearskin hats, I was pleasantly surprised to see the guards at the Crown Jewels were the Royal Gurkhas it was a really cool experience to see something that not a lot of people get to experience while in London. in a building off to the side, is a museum honoring all different Battalions who have fought for England. I particularly was impressed by this display from "the Jewish Legion" In addition to the museums on site (as well as a couple of way overpriced snack places), there are also free tours, and several free shows put on thruout the day at the Tower of London. I was admiring this Cannon, when I heard a commotion, as they were getting ready to start a show about the famous Ravens that live at the Tower, and how they got there. so I walked to the other corner of the White Tower (hadn't been in there yet) to see what was up. as you can see. . gorgeous day too. the show gave off VERY "Renaissance Festival" LARPing vibes. . but they all stayed in character, and told a fun story that got lots of laughs from the crowd. this is the giant that kidnapped a Princess and brought her to Wales, and how in rescuing her, the Ravens came to live at the Tower and as long as there is a Raven at the tower, the city will never fall. (behind him in the queue to go into the White Tower) and I think I managed to get just one of the Ravens in this pic. . but hey, at least I got one! Joining the queue for the White Tower. . and couldn't resist another Selfie with Tower Bridge behind. the whole entrance floor of the White Tower is dedicated to displays of Armor but you are able to go up multiple floors, and explore a lot of areas of this famous keep. and there is a small section dedicated to Torture - but most of that stuff is in a smaller museum area in another section of the Tower Complex. but (t) yes, you can go into the famous White Tower Toilet. whoo-hoo! it was blocked off. . so please don't use, but was still an interesting thing to see the White Tower , of course, has a cathedral on an upper floor: and a pretty impressive display of weapons. this one caught my eye, as it's firearms that are covered in jewels and stones: they even have a full size Dragon on display on this floor - made out of weapons, and bullets. remnants from some of the many fires the White Tower has withstood over the years. and down in the basement is the weapons room. . all displayed lovingly. there's also a small display here about those executed at the Tower of London. and like any good tourist thing? you exit the White Tower thru the gift shop. tho in the middle of the gift shop? the White Tower's Well Exiting the White Tower. . wowza. . look at the line for the Crown Jewels now!!! (and per that clock, it's only 12:05 More Menagerie wire animals. the Moat around the back side of the Tower of London has been turned into a wildflower sanctuary (something I'm pretty familiar with from here in Texas with Ladybird Johnson an all). So I went down that way to have a look. I found this part of the Tower just fascinating. . . and it was such a lovely day, that I spent a good 20 minutes here talking to the ladies who were educating anyone who came down here about the flowers. one of them took this picture for me with the dragonfly sculptures in the gardens. which don't photograph near as lovely as they looked in person. There was a tour of the Tower about to start up (even tho I had done a lot of it on my own already. . but I had time, so I headed back in to where the tour started) and here we are starting. . by the infamous "Traitor's Gate" exiting the Tower complex to the Thames river and then continued up thru the Queen's quarters, and the King's Quarters - that can be entered via just over the Traitor's Gate (something I found interesting) following the crowd for this tour. they've restored as close to the originals as they believe. . . I think it's rather impressive. I particularly liked all the stained glass. and vaulted ceilings and I love me a throne, of course. (tho couldn't sit in this one) tour done, I was starting to get a bit hungry.. but decided to do one more round to make sure I didn't miss anything, this time walking along the walkways connecting the turrets. and got a lovely selfie in front of the White Tower and again, Tower Bridge overview of the complex. . discovered more pretty neat sculpture are among the walkways.. .made to look like Battalion Members fighting. looking down to see some of the residences of folks that live within the Tower walls. (families of the Beefeaters) the thing I was going to later tonight, the Ceremony of the Keys? No photography allowed. So I took advantage of this display of Tower of London Keys to take a pic now, since not allowed to later I mentioned earlier that there was a torture display area somewhere in the complex. . it's down here, kind of "hidden" in a tiny area in one of the corners, where the walls connect. . . coming out of the torture area, I made a quick pit stop and realized I had done the whole tower complex. I had been there almost 6 hours, and it was just past 3 pm. I had about 7 hours to kill, and considered just heading back to the hotel to nap, as my sleepyness was catching up with me. and then whom did I bump into? why Mr. Ryan Crash! also on the TPR trip, and also sightseeing the day before the trip starts officially. what are the odds? so we snapped a pic and briefly chatted before heading off knowing we'd see each other tomorrow. Still. . really wild to bump into him in all of London. I went ahead and exited the tower complex and headed along the Promenade along the river . . here's a pic of the outside of the Traitor's Gate. and one final pic (for the moment) of the Tower Bridge there were lots of food trucks here along the side of the Tower/along the river, but I was kinda in the mood for a sit down service. I popped back into the gift shop to thank the Cashier from earlier, bought a few things, and she suggested the plaza around the corner for a meal. I almost ended up at WagaMama, but I knew that the welcome dinner was at one of those the next night. . so I kept walking for the moment. goodbye for now, Tower of London, see ya in about 6 1/2 hours for the Ceremony of the Keys. to be continued. . .

Jealous of that. . . . closest I've come is seeing Goblin perform live to a screening of "Susperia". .that was cool. I just stumbled across "Suzume" and was blown away. I'm tracking down the other films he/they have done and here's the trailer for those who might be interested... it really is SO good and I highly recommend it