disneyfan1313

Sad News from RCCL today.. The ship of Robb's Birthday Cruise (the Mariner of the Seas) will no longer be home ported in LA as of Jan 2011. It will be doing summers in Europe and Winters in Galveston, TX. Doesn't surprise me considering how low the fares were for it. Why is it that LA can't support larger / newer ships?

While I realize that almost everyone has seen some basic photos of the largest cruise ship in the world - "The Oasis of the Seas", I thought I would put together a selection of some more detailed ones. This really is a very unique ship with its different neighborhoods and things like the Carousel, Donut Shop and Zip Line. These are all courtesy RCCL.... enjoy! From the front it looks large...but normal. From the top you start to really get a feel for the scale... This really is a huge ship - but strangely enough one of the initial complaints is the lack of deck space! It looks VERY different from the back. You can see the large area for the Aqua Theater. The have some unique rooms including this "Loft Suite" The balcony cabins in the boardwalk area however have a view of..... other balconies! This ariel view gives you a better perspective. The real greenery in the Central Park area looks awesome! It is hard to believe how HUGE the main dining room is. These are some seriously funky looking couches hanging out in the main lobby. More odd furniture in one of the lounges.. is this the strange furniture ship? Reminds me of the Dragons Lair.... ahhh memories! The inside promenade has a "same yet different" feel from the voyager class ships. I really *love* the look of the central park area. Hot Tubs over the edge of the ship? Count me in! The aqua theater at the rear of the ship is a very unique outdoor performance venue. They even have an up charge gourmet cupcake shop! As close to a credit as you will get on a cruise ship! Looking at the indoor promenade from a different angle. Free Donuts! Nom...nom....nom.... Chops Grille is located in Central Park and has a very upscale feel. WTF?!?!? The only cruise ship with a zip line on board! I will leave you with a shot of everyones favorite... the Flow Rider!

^ Huh? Gotta disagree with you there. Admission prices are almost identical. Parking is the same. Food costs are quite a bit higher - burgers were a buck more than WDW the last time I was there and a slice of pizza was the same price as an entire personal pizza at pizza planet. Bottled Water and Soda is either .50 or .75 more depending on where it is purchased. Resort Hotels at WDW without any discounts start at just over $100 a night (but lots of discounts available) - Cheapest Uni hotel is generally in the $200 range. Even comparing a moderate WDW hotel which is more comparable to Royal Pacific the prices are almost identical. And don't forget Fastpass is free at WDW vs. having to pay at Uni.

^^ That is a great idea to have the circus. I am really starting to think they might make some inroads with the "family friendly" park. If they can nail this and convince people to go this will be pretty big!

Its a decent app but it needs to be fleshed out a little bit more. Would be nice if the scrolling map could be touched to bring up info about a location. Also it seems to take an abnormally long time to load for such a simple app.

It has really become insanely formulaic. Plus - how on earth could they EVER do a second season?!!??! With their Superbowl viewership alone they would have someone in each place that would have heard of them and become instantly suspicious.

Wow! Brings back memories... we used to go there every now and again when I lived in Rumson. Looks like it is still as ghetto as I remember!

^ Who knew it was a chain. Group rate is only $6 a person. We TOTALLY need to all go here!

OMG.

Orlando is always cheaper than West Palm. If you are planning on flying out of Orlando there are usually flights non-stop to LAX in the $250 - $300 range round trip. I usually like the ones that leave orlando at 7am and get in early morning in LA so you have the whole day. Other cheap options to fly out of is Fort Lauderdale. They have cheap directs to Long Beach on JetBlue. Play around on Orbitz and you will see all the different options..

Norwegian Cruise Line made a couple of big announcements today at a big trade show in Miami. The first one has to do with the dining options on the new Norwegian Epic. One of the coolest things I think is the "freestyle" pizza delivery. For $5 you can get a pizza delivered anytime to anywhere on the ship - Pretty good idea! The other announcement has to do with a huge refurb to their private island... great stirrup cay. This island needs some help in a BAD way so it is good to see them realizing this and taking action. Kayak tours through man-made rivers? That sounds pretty cool! I'm not holding my breath because of how ghetto it was late last year when I went - they have a LONG way to go. Check out my photo TR of the Norwegian Sky to see how ghetto their island is.. GHETTO ISLAND!

LOL - sorry! That was me... Nice to meet you guys in a very rushed fashion though..

The fort is fun! It's been a few years since we have been to St. Augustine but it was kinda fun. I was surprised how "down-market" so many of the tourist attractions were. Did a lot of it still feel kinda run down?

Is it just me or is Mr. Six a somewhat creepy "mascot" to have for a water park?

^^ Unless you live anywhere in Florida... F.

^ I didn't get a chance to! I didn't realize they were so rare or I would have. I did find some good video on youtube of the ride cycle... that looks pretty awesome! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdtOa839Sms

^ Its weird - I wonder if it was so busy because there was a ride band special. I don't think there is one on the weekends which might have made a difference. It also seemed like there was a ton of kids there so perhaps there was a school out!

^ Thanks for the catch... Stupid head cold clouding my grammar skillz

Part Deux! It really is an enjoyable event... If you find yourself in the Central Florida area this time of year.. make sure you go! You do see a lot of this at the fair.. Its racing pigs time! This year they had a round of Pot Belly Pigs. They were so big they walked. CREEPY HOME DEPOT GUY! They also had the lamest motorcycle "ball of death" I have ever seen... Only 3 riders in the ball.. The circus does 7! We were thinking about doing some rides.. but the lines were out of control. Very strange for a Monday. Is this a children's ride? WTF is this thing? I took the picture because I thought the name was "Scrotum". Up next - Sheep Jumping! There was a TON of epic fail with this. 30 minutes later this was pretty much the only jump. Medieval sheep torture device! A sheep in humans clothing? I thought it was a wolf in sheeps clothing.. hmm. A redneck dressing his sheep for a night on the town.. Awwww.. EVIL RABBIT! You have seen Yetti Ball.... now meet YETTI CHICKEN! Is this literally the Disc-O from Steel Pier? What on earth is this? We never saw anyone try it.. Fairs always have classy prizes. This is what happens when you give your kid a novelty sized margarita! Dave - is this better than DAK's Dinosaur? Another creepy strawberry dude! Thanks for joining us! See you next year Strawberry Festival!

It is a tradition each year for Stacey and I to go to the Strawberry Festival in Plant City, FL. Mostly it is because it is a chance to eat a crap-load of strawberries in all different forms (which Stacey loves), but it is also comedy gold. Lots of scary rednecks and people who probably have been addicted to meth for 10+ years. Adam did a great job of showing the midway and the traditional fair aspects, so I thought I would take a slightly different approach.. Enjoy the photos! On our way to Plant City we stopped in Lakeland to eat at a highly rated hole-in-the-wall called Mr. Fish. I just had to take a pic of the creepy sign! And we are here! $10 each and the weather is fine... should be a great day! You know you are at a redneck fair when the first thing you see when you walk in is a booth selling cowboy hats and belts! Yee-Haw! Clothes with strawberries on them are VERY popular. How about this sexy tie-dye sweats outfit! Lots of free entertainment including Lumberjack Log Rolling! Obligatory "Random Fried Crap" shot! Hulk Hogan has a limited edition Camero.. WTF?!?! Are the American car companies that desperate!? For $3 you can race an inflatable pig!!! Adults can join in the fun also.. too bad they had a large line. Confederate Flags are always the theme of the day in Plant City. Elephant Eggs?! WTF is it with Elephants and Strawberries!?!? Doesn't she make a cute Strawberry? They have lots of traditional fair contests including baking ones! These cakes must be stale after 10 days! The "Ask a farmer" ride didn't have a lot of visitors... Stacey found her caboose! I AM EVIL STRAWBERRY MAN!! I AM HERE TO STEAL YOUR SOUL! It's time for "Make your own Strawberry Shortcake!" There are at least 10 booths that sell strawberry shortcake and you can decide which charity you want to help. It's like Tokyo Disneyland! You have to find the guy holding the sign at the end of the line. We go to this booth every year.. First you choose a biscuit or shortcake.. then load up on sliced strawberries, then whipped cream then a full strawberry on top! You can put as much on as you want! Awww yeah.. its SHORTCAKE TIME!

Welcome back to the MCO. I've really wanted to do Characters in Flight but always seem to time it wrong when there is a storm in the area, high winds, etc. Looking forward to more exciting photos! Please visit Dinosaur World - Concrete dinos rock!

50 parks is INSANE! Can't wait to get my membership on Day 1!

I was really hoping for "Precious" or "up" to win.. but I am happy that it wasn't Avatar!

^ It's an interesting thought.. I really doubt it could be an above deck coaster since the salty sea air wrecks havoc on anything metal! Perhaps an indoor promenade could fit a Miner Mike style kiddie coaster - I wonder if it would get many riders....

Woah! I'm probably going to go later this week. Gotta do it every year! Thanks for the TR!