robbalvey

When we go to China we hire a guide but in Japan, Elissa and I know enough Japanese and understand how to get around the country that we are able to do it on our own. --Robb

More Japan Credit Whoring!!! Miles had a *wee bit* too much to drink last night! We have found a vending machine selling "Muffin in a can!" Hey look! This muffin in a can is made out of REAL space shuttle! Check us out girls! We have "muffin in a can!" Steve says "see this man sitting next to me? He and Jesus used to party it up in the biblical days!". Oh no! Joey!!! Look out for that T-Rex! Follow this sign. Walk about a mile. And you'll find a roller coaster! Wow! The coaster looks great! And they had a bonus dark ride! Just in case you forgot the name of the park! This Jet Coaster was much bigger than we were expecting. Step on the bug!!! STEP ON THE BIG BUG!!!! ...before he gets to the children... The next stop was not only a coaster credit but also a culture credit! We were smack in the "center of Japan!" The park mascot was also in the center of japan. You all ready to ride the Roller Skater in the center of Japan? TPR totally takes over the Roller Skater in the center of Japan! There is a giant ferris wheel in the Center of Japan! The park was cute! They had plenty of those ride on pigs and pandas. Ooh! Scary walk thru dark ride! I'm not sure what this is, but it makes me nervous! KidTums plays with balls. Time for a pit stop at JAPANESE MCDONALDS!!! Dan will be sad to find out that the "rabbit burger" is now the "dork burger!". Same sandwich, Same promotion, different mascot. Out with the rabbit, in with the dork! The next park is so far out in the boonies that we have to take the ghetto train! Galaxy Express 999 fans may like this! Yay! We made it to the middle of nowhere! It's a little ghetto but we've seen a lot worse. This ghetto coaster turned out to be GREAT! For a smaller sized coaster this had a lot of speed and a great pop of airtime at the end! Hold on TIGHT KidTums!!! Even Jeff Johnson loved the coaster! Hey look! A ride that is perfect size for both Joey and Kristen! Time to get back on the train! The Galaxy Express train has seen better days. We totally got the Pokemon bullet train! Shinjuku station is a little crazy, but you can find our favorite Indian restaurant near here. "Hey Dan...we had 24 Chicken Tikka's, 18 garlic naan, and 11 Chicken Malsala. All level 10 "Indian Spicy!". Good to see the "Fishing Restaurant" is still alive and kicking! "Ooh Tastey Fish!" Party in the elevator!!! Still one of my favorite JR Rail signs! Remember! For live updates, add us as a friend on FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/robbalvey (We have just posted more photos from Tokyo Disney!)

Was that rude comment really nessecery?

The creator of the Hoodie series can correct me on anything he wants to! Because I worship him. Seriously though Jeremy, thanks for posting that. I knew it wasn't Power Rangers and I couldn't for the life of me remember the name of the actual show. (also figured people would get the PR joke better anyway) I'm pretty sure a friend of mine worked on the Super Famicom version of the show which is the only exposure I've really had to it. But the characters are all over the Japan parks. --Robb

More Japan awesomeness! Next day - up way too early in the morning. KidTums has the right idea. I come prepared for the bullet trains! Mickey Mouse sushi anyone? In Japan Coca Cola is refreshing and uplifting! (make note Bryan and Adam!) We made it to our first park today! Koriyama Dreamland! OMG! The coaster...it's ... It's... "cute!" And it's decent too! This ride had "wierd" airtime on it. It's cute!!! Too much fun with the capsule machines. Blue us for boys potty. There is some scary Japanese cosplay going on! I'm not sure what this is but it makes me nervous! Park conquered! Back on the bullet train to the next park! KidTums is playing with her toy Jeff Johnson. On our way to another credit! Ok this place looks a bit sketchy. "Poke you in the eye Godzilla!!!" OMG!!! Yet again! The coaster....it's CUTE! Yay for more cute Japanese coasters! KidTums got the cute coaster credit! Dumbo looks like he was out on an all night bender! I am SURE this Mickey ride is an official Disney product. I'm not exactly sure what this shop was selling and I'm not sure I want to find out. We should make a quick lunch stop before heading to the train station. Kristen has a science to how she eats her fries. I wonder where she gets that from? Vie de France? I hear they have fantasic bread bowls that you can put clam chowder in. I usually LOVE the bizarre Fanta flavors but diet bubble gum cider was NASTY!!! The final park of the day, Tochinoki Family Land was a ten minute walk from the station. They had a great "Jet Coaster" here also! "Watch out for some surprise airtime on some of those hills'l KidTums is learning to drive! And she's also learning to fly! Another great little fun park! What was originally a "credit whore" trip has resulted in some hidden gems! We had about a one mile walk between two train stations. This resulted in some "interesting" photos. I'm CRAZZZZZYYYYY CREPE'S!!!! Gimme some Nutella. I'm not sure what this is, but it makes me quiver an abnormal amount! Go! Go! Power Rangers!!! WHAT. THE. PHUUUUQUE!!! Karaoke bar! Score!!! Hamburger capsule machine! Yummm! We didn't have time to go check this out, but I'm sure it's amazing! Culture credit!!! Cha-ching!!! Aww...poor sick Giant A$$ Pandas. We are soooo there! "Please don't kill me! Just take my wallet! Here!!!" Where is Hot Fuzz Rich when you need him? I spy a WEENIE!!! Yay! We made it to the station. Where are you, Bob? Yay! Double Decker bullet trains! Mmmmm... Double Deckers... Crashed out!!! Another Yakitori bar credit!!! This one wasn't quite as good as the yakitori bar in Shibuya but it had some interesting things on the menu... "Yup I'm totally eating chicken beak!" Chicken Testicles or Anal Beads...you decide! Remember! For live updates, add us as a friend on FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/robbalvey (We have just posted a bunch of photos from Tokyo Disney!) --Robb

This portion of our Asia 2009 trip is mostly Northern Japan. Kind of a "recon mission" to scope out some parks before potentially doing a trip! While this Japan portion started out as much more of a "credit whore" trip, all of the parks so far have been great!!! Check out the photos... This is the most awesome train station in Tokyo. Why? It has a McDonalds and an Intamin looping coaster nearby! There are so many trains! Where do we go? Yamanote Line of course! Welcome to Tokyo rush hour! Can you pick out the Westerner in this photo? I sure can't. Miles seems to blend right in. Welcome to Shibuya! Home to the largest crossing in Tokyo and.... ...our favorite Yakatori bar! This stuff is f**king amazing!!! "Which part do I eat first?" A real "man" would not consider this to be "chugging"... THIS is chugging! We could eat here all week long! (and we probably will). This place is freaking awesome! (and remember it's just across the street from the Disney Store in Shibuya!) Time to start our day of credit whiting across Japan! There are going to be a LOT of bullet trains on this trip! Mickey Mouse Sushi anyone? (this really is the most awesome thing ever!) What exactly is this ad selling??? Crashed out on the bullet train! We will be arriving at our first park soon! We have arrived at our first Japanese credit whore park - Lina World! (aka Lima Bean World) It's cute! Welcome to Lima Bean World! First credit of the trip! Jetcorster? All of the coasters here are purple and yellow! It's Box Coaster The Ride. Yes!!! Bonus random dark ride!! Every park in Japan seems to have a Hello Kitty land. Back in the taxi. Time for the next park! We picked up some babes at the train station. I'm not sure what this is, but it makes me nervous. Another train to another park... "No Chuck! Don't press that button!!!" The train station wa pretty much in the middle of nowhere, Japan. Hooray for local taxis! Next stop...Sendai Hiland! Sendai Hiland is home to one of the most intense shuttle loops ever! OMG this coaster was insane!!! Are you all ready to pull about 40 Gs? This ride was completely awesome! They also had a pretty cool little mouse coaster. Even KidTums got the credit! The "blue coaster" also had some wicked airtime hills that took us by surprise. Lick it boys! Japanese Mexican food!!! Our last park of the day. Beneyland! It's nice looking! We found Gemini/Excalibur's long lost brother!!! Then we encountered another "coaster box the ride!" The bathroom privacy policy leaves something to be desired. GIANT. A$$. PANDA!!! Yay! An Arrow Corkscrew and it didn't kill us! The park kind of looks like this. Another bullet train! Today was a great day! Now back to Tokyo for a great night! Remember! For live updates, add us as a friend on FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/robbalvey --Robb

More Japan photos posted to FaceBook: www.facebook.com/robbalvey Click on "photo albums" and we are on China/Japan 2009 Part 2 --Robb or try this link: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=310713&id=681415369

Lots more Japan photos posted to FaceBook: www.facebook.com/robbalvey I will get around to adding them to this thread probably tomorrow night, so if you want to see them now, add us! --Robb

Let's try to keep the thread on the topic of the China and Japan trip. I'm pretty sure we have a "favorite fast food" thread in the random forum if you want to keep the discussion going. Anyway, we just posted photos from Lina World (Lima Bean World) to our FaceBook page. www.facebook.com/robbalvey

^ No I'm not kidding you. But thank you for your obnoxious comment! Other people ARE allowed to have an opinion you know! EDIT: Nevermind. I just saw your age. I wouldn't expect anything more.

We have just posted the first set of Japan photos to our FaceBook page! Add us now: http://www.facebook.com/robbalvey

Megafobia really ROCKED the first few years it was open. Lately though I'd say the coaster is "solid" but not over-the-top amazing. I think Oakwood has a very good woodie there, and we will always make a stop when we do a UK tour, but it's not quite what it was in 1996. --Robb

^ Sorry Bill. Our Japan trip is not open to meet ups. This is more of a "private trip" where we need to just have fun with a small group of close friends and family. Hope you can understand! --Robb

Today was our last day in China... The first Chinese Carl's Jr has just recently opened in Shanghai. For those of you who may not know, Carl's Jr is a California based fast food chain which also bought Hardees about 10 years ago. They have started to go international and this September marked their entance into China. Personally I prefer Carls to the other famous California based burger joint In-N-Out. This is what a Chinese Carl's Jr looks like! The menu looks pretty much the same! Double Western Bacon Cheeseburger please! Oh I almost forgot Criss Cut Fries please! And just like in California they bring your food to the table and they even have a drink refill station (something that is not common in China) "Hi my name is Joey and I am number 75!" My Double Western Bacon Cheeseburger tastes just how it's supposed to. Freaking awesome!!! They tell the Chinese that swine flu comes from America!!! Our last day in China brought us to some smaller parks in Shanghai. Let's start with Century Park! No sewing??? No string on your finger??? WTF!! Here we are wandering through the park...I really hope there is a roller coaster around Herr somewhere! Ooh! We found tonight's luxury accomodations! We found the coaster! And...oh joy....it's another golden horse spinning coaster! Dirty Dirty whores!!! Jeff, no matter how much Chinese Mountain Dew you drink, It's not going to make you any younger! It's a good thing none of us psychopaths want to ride the bumper cars! Next stop. Shanghai's Pearl Tower via the subway! Smack the card against the blue disc and you're good to go! We have now officialy taken planes, trains, and automobiles on this trip! I am totally loving China's subway stations! There it is! China's Pearl Tower! If you ask me I think it kind of looks like the worlds largest anal beads! There is a small park and a coaster inside, but it's down for annual maintenance right now Fortunately there was a shopping mall across the street. Hot American blonde chick were pretty popular here Tanks and military equipment were under "toys for learning" I wonder if that is a real space shuttle? The final stop was a little park right next to our hotel. It was just a powered Dragon Wagon but we didn't care. We still rode anyway! Our hotel was also near the Hershey Chocolate World! (too bad no dark ride!) This area was like "litte America" with the Carls Jr... Cold Stone Creamery... Subway... ...and Papa Johns! We opted for some Mongolian BBQ for our last meal in china. (damn those mongols tasted great!) OMG! Chinese IKEA!!! Our visit to China comes to an end...and now...eleven more days in Japan! Everyone is on their iPhone! Hooray!!! TPR takes over Japan for the next 11 days!!! Remember! For live updates, add us as a friend on FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/robbalvey --Robb

^ It's similar, but it's not the one that used to be at Fuji-Q. --Robb

Today began a series of "credit whore" parks that we visited around China. There seems to be a lot of parks, some big, some small, some nice, some REALLY ghetto, all over the country that seem to have one or two credits each and a bunch of other random rides. Not much else to say, so onto the photos! (and don't forget, if you want to follow us live on the trip, add us on FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/robbalvey) Check out my swanky hotel breakfast! The Chinese don't quite understand the concept of "merge". "Did we hit? I think we hit!" Would anyone like a tree? Yay! Another Chinese ghetto park! No effiing way I'm doing the hanglider zipline thing of death. Oh no! Please do not let this be another Chinese knock off SLC!!! I have never been so happy to see the word "Vekoma" in my life! This area of the park has seen better days! One Jew is heavier than two Alvey chicks. This area of the park looks nicer. Enter through here and you are teleported to Europa Park! Best 4D movie name EVER!!! "Hey Dan. Is this an acceptable amount of wetness?" Chinese knock off Small World! Looks more like "Bride of Chucky" than Small World! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are in Small World!!! Elissa grabs balls Mickey Mouse Club? Next stop...HarborLand. Home to an Intamin 8 looper! Intamin loopyness! Chinese knock off skee ball! Insert coin, bowls come out! A bit like Colossus minus two inversions. Decent looking park though. Please no more photos!!! Leave me alone! Joey found Revenge of the Mummy!!! Too bad it's just a Top Spin. Yay! Flight of the Phoenix credit! Note the lack of any air gates or rows! Our final credit whore park of the day! Hmm...I feel like I have seen this somewhere before... Oh, this is going to be a QUALITY ride!!! Big A$$ pirate ship! Oh yes, this ride looks safe! Big Thunder Log Flume??? The "napping on the table" ride was actually a highlight attraction here. There appears to be a desserted outlet mall here. This should be interesting. The Devil Wears Chinese Knock Off Prada. Oooh! A Disney store! This should be authentic! Authentic Disney camo outfits! Good quality "Disney Stuff" in here. OMG! We have found *one* Disney item in the Disney Store. Overall, it was a GREAT credit whoring day around China! Next up, more random credits! Iif you want to follow us live on the trip, add us on FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/robbalvey

^ If we are able to shoot one it would go on a future RAW DVD. --Robb

You might actually get a response if you use the search function to find one of our Fright Fest threads and post there instead of steering this thread off topic.

The last couple of years it's stopped going backwards as soon as Fright Fest was over. That's not to say they could decide to run it longer, but my reccomendation would not to expect to run past Fright Fest. --Robb

The whole area where the mine train is was still under construction. I'm guessing it will be quite a few weeks until that section opens.

Is the park planning on opening the ride? I looked on RCDB and the ride is completely done and was testing. Seems like a waste if they're never going to open it. No clue. I just know it won't be open during our trip so there was no point in wasting time to go view a closed roller coaster. We have a thread about the stingray coaster if you want to discuss it there. Otherwise this thread us about out current China trip and the parks and rides we visited during it. --Robb "Stay on topic!" Alvey

We didn't go here. That ride never opened.

Nope! And when they do get announced we will start a real thread about it.

As Elissa said it's good, really REALLY good but it doesn't beat out Balder or T Express for me. I'd say it's a solid Top Ten ride and I'm sure you'll see some people even put it in their top five depending on tastes. For the record I prefer this over Voyage. It has all of the elements I like about Voyage but without the over-the-top brutal agressiveness so you can just throw your hands in the air and have fun! The pacing reminded me a bit of some of the best CCI woodies like Rampage, Mega Zeph and Tonerre De Zeus in that it felt out of control from start to finish and you still hit the brakes with a good amount of power. If a park in the US ever asked for a clone or a similar layout I'm sure it would be a huge hit with both the public and coaster geeks! --Robb

http://www.altoonamirror.com/page/content.detail/id/522221.html?nav=742