Edward

^ Hmmm.... I know you mean it as a joke, but there are some differences between American English and Brittish English. For example instead of French Fries you say Chips, and instead of Chips you say Crisps. I know there are some others but can't think of any at the moment. Maybe I shall ask Boz to see if there are any other things to look out for.

Ok. Thanks. Not sure what's wrong with me, but I seem to be passing by alot of threads on the forum. May be lazy, busy, or psyched about a possible trip.

Actually, that sounds like there is no Age limit, really. Suppose KidTums is proof of that.

Read the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for such details. This is the 2593rd time its been answered.

Hi. I've got a problem getting into Coaster Tube. Before it seemed like anyone could get in, but now an Apache alert comes up asking for a Username and Password. I try my own, but it won't accept. Anything I forgot to do? /Edward

....oh crap... did I just do what I think I did? I think I just sent a deposit... .... PARTY!!!

Robb and Elissa are headed back to LA as I write, but plan on having flyers for the trips ready this week. Always plan to fly out the day after the last park, not the day of the last park. Generally the bus won't get back to the hotel til evening. As far as arriving, most people arrive the day before (or two days before). Two days allows for sightseeing in London, adjusting to times change and the ability to take advantage of any Day Zero events that might be scheduled for a little extra $. Never arrive the day the trip starts as you will be hard pressed to make it to the hotel before the bus leaves for the first park of the trip. This will all be explained in the flyers. Oh my... So, as soon as the Alvey's are in the country they pretty much dash off to the first park? And I take it one will have to make ones own hotel reservations for the night before the first park and after the last (not included in the trip fees)? Suddenly a trip sounds somewhat more expensive than what I had imagined. /Edward

Hello all. So, SAW isn't all that scary? Hm. Well, just by judgng from the sounds that came out from around the corner I kinda imagined that there would be imigary or sounds that would give me nightmares or something. Oh well. Oh, and I forgot to post my YouTube video of some of it. And one other thing. Just remembered that I have ONE photo pass voucher left. I bought one of these rebate things where, oh can't remember now, £30 per photo and one of these tickets makes the photos £25 each or something? Can't remember but question is: Are they still valid next year? /Edward

Oh! Only saw the part about a transcript. Ok, nice that the "show" will be downloadable aswell.

Just had a thought. Maybe someone with the resources could record the whole thing and post it somewhere. Of course this would first require alot of disk space for the WAVE writing, unless they can encode as fast as the thing is playing. I myself have an early Thursday so I can't really participate. /Edward PS. Do you guys have Skype? Not asking just for me, but for anyone else who can't afford the overseas phone call. Or would that be too much of a hassle trying to get the programs to share a mic?

Hm... Interesting... I had a thought of going on a trip next year, and I had my mind set on the UK seeing as I have now been there (know the place with friends, then do it with "strangers"). However, the European trip looks cheaper (and closer) so I may go for that one. I'm not gonna commit myself until like the last minute when I know my economy has reached at least maybe $2500, the price hasn't changed much, and maybe once I know some other details. 8-days does sound like a reasonable time for a beginner like me. And maybe I should mention that I'm not a sports fan, so if I'm on a trip I hope there won't be a huge hulubaloo or stress in getting back to a hotel to catch a game and ending people's fun abruptly. Or maybe find a non sports fan who can act as leader for those who stay behind who can guide people back to the hotel if needed. /Edward

Hello all. This is gonna be a belatent Trip Report of when I was in London. I have no idea why I've been putting it off for so long. I did a small thing on YouTube so maybe it was a bit of "Done it, why again?" kinda thing. Or I just didn't feel like writing at the time. Anyways, let us begin. The "week" started off a little bad. Felt the beginnings of a cold but tried to brush it off because it was too late to cancel the tickets and get a refund. So off to the airport, go through the checks, and up into the air. Didn't especially like it because during altitude changes my ears (which hadn't flown for 13 years) imploded, exploded, and pierced my brains. But a successful trip. Took a train into town, underground to Kings Cross, checked into the hotel, and decided that I was hungry enough for dinner. For some odd reason, for a period of maybe 3 days I didn't really pick up on that I was in another country (despite that everyone was talking Brittish-English). Only thing that sort of made me think that I was elsewhere on the world was the sky. I don't know why, but at Stansted Airport there was definately something different with the horrizon. It looked more round, somehow. Anyways, for dinner I went off looking about for some place and I ended up at Q's. Now I told myself to avoid the "nutorious" Fish'n'Chips that I've heard so much about, however at Q's I just so happen to order... Fish'n'Chips! But it was Ok. The chips weren't soggy, the fish was good as was the lemon. It was a good dinner. The next day came, and I was thinking of executing a plan I had for as long as the planning of the London trip was taking place: If weather permits (in which I had my doubts about seeing as this is London), take a day trip to the nearest Theme Park. Which is why this TR is ending up here, because weather permitted, and was so totally not English weather. Sun with some clouds and hot. Does that sound like England to any of you? Didn't sound like it to me, but I didn't complain. I took the underground straight to Waterloo Station, and then went for Lunch. Thanks to a tip by jkwan I decided to go to Burger King and order a nice big Adult Meal so I could get 50% off of the entance fee (yes, it was offered this year as well). With a burger in hand I took the train to Staines, and then the shuttle buss to Thorpe Park. When I got in properly I noticed Queues! Also an out-of-order Stealth, but I didn't mind. Wasn't ready for such dives. But when I went around a little bit and noticed the queues I thought maybe I should pick up one of these fast tracks. I was trying to think of how much I was gonna do and if I was gonna ride anything twice. However, as the queue moved closer to the till and the funny feeling of pressure overwhelming me, after a few questions with the guy behind the till I made a fun mistake of buying an Ultimate Fastrack for £70. After buying that I went off to Tidal Wave and got DRENCHED!!! Thought it was a nice idea seeing at was a hot day, but didn't take into account how much colder the breeze was once one was soaked to the skin. After drying off a bit I walked around, took some pictures, then decided on Colossus. That thing was fun. A little rough, but fun none-the-less. Now this was not my first Loop or Twist inversions. I did managed to bravely take on Kanonen at Liseberg. However, this was my first Cobra Roll, my first Corkscrew (let alone two in a row), and my first series of Barrel Rolls (rolling over 5 times) all in one ride. Then walked about and took some more photos. Then went queuing for the SAW! I got almost all the way in before realising "Ello! This is half a scary dark ride! NOT MY CUP OF TEA!" and fled the scene. Yes, I chickened out. If it weren't for the Dark Ride part I'd probably have given it a go. Walked about some more until I came across Nemesis Inferno. I thought Sure, my first proper Inverted Coaster. Kvasten at Gröna Lund is just a Family Suspended Coaster. This was a good and proper Adult Suspended Coaster with speed, inversions, and anything else that are not suitable for minors. Hm. Just looking at RCDB. Zero-G Roll? Oh, there! Heh, didn't even think about it. Thought it was just another twist. Ok, add that to my list of first timers. Anyways, it was a nice fun ride. Ok, looking up Kanonen as well and they say it has a Zero-G Roll as well. I'm not sure, but doesn't Zero-G Roll entail that the track must incline during the roll/twist? Oh well, never mind. After the fun thrills I decided to go for some Rapids, saw the time and saw that the park was closing very soon, ran for one last coaster ride on the Flying Fish, then went for the bus back to Staines station, the train back to Waterloo, had dinner at a bar. Can't remember the name, but it was barish, but was also in some ways fancy (or at least a little fancier than any dinner-bar that I've been to). Well, anyways, had to go up a flight of nicely lit stairs. Then the underground back to the hotel. Review of the park? A nice place. Worth coming back to, despite the short open hours. Day 3 was kinda boring. One of the reasons for coming to London was to attend a small funeral for my Grandmother. She wanted to be burried in England, so better attend. During and afterwards I rediscovered some long lost second cousins, who invited us to dinner at their place and we all tried to catch up on what we've been up to. 4th day, for some STRANGE reason, I went to see Cambridge. I heard that a long lost friend was studying there, but didn't know which building, and his mobile phone wasn't working. But otherwise, took a nice sightseeing trip around the place, learnt a few things about the Schools and Universities, and took the time to study and see a difference between the English and Swedish bricked houses. (Also took pictures for future comparrisons. ) Didn't bump into my friend, sadly, but a fun outing none-the-less. On the 5th day I decided to actually do some sightseeing of London. Got a little lost in trying to find the sightseeing bus, but after maybe an hour managed to find a stop. Bought a 24hour hopon-hopoff ticket with a bonus boat ticket, and enjoyed some of the history up to Baker Street. Did not go into Madame Tussauds. Again, chicken, but instead took another sightseeing bus to Trafalgar Square where I had lunch at the Sherlock Holms. Mmmm, delicious steak with a very large mushroom ontop. After that I crossed the bridge for the London Eye and went for a 'spin'. Next up, went on a boat tour guide of the Thames. A fun tour guide, but he himself says he was no tour guide, just a commentator with a "Captain's Bucket". This boat went to the Tower of London, which was closed sadly, but didn't stop me from taking pictures of the outside. After which I went over the Tower Bridge (top part was closed), then took a normal bus in the direction of China Town, but it stopped a little short, so continued the walk in that direction, got a little lost, but finally found something China like and had dinner at one of the restraunts. Afterwhich walked a heck of alot of stairs down to the purple underground to get back to the hotel. Day 6, pretty much pack up, have lunch, and catch the flight back home. Again, ears killed me and I don't think they properly landed until at least a week later. Anyways, this was my week in London, and I found it quite nice. Except, one whole week in London and not a single site of Dr.Who! Only the season boxes at HMV. Now for a nice big load of pictures. /Edward 2009.07.05 2009.07.05 Nice building shape. Oh, it's two seperate buildings? Thought some odd plucked-chicken shaped space ship had landed there. 2009.07.05 2009.07.05 Upper part Closed. 2009.07.05 Thames from the bridge. 2009.07.05 2009.07.05 The Tower Bridge. 2009.07.05 In one name: The Fortress Tower of London. 2009.07.05 A Place of Execution. 2009.07.05 A Royal Observatory. 2009.07.05 A Place of Residence. 2009.07.05 A Royal Palace. 2009.07.05 A Royal Prisson. 2009.07.05 A Royal Fortress. 2009.07.05 Sorry, we're closed. 2009.07.05 2009.07.05 The Tower Bridge. 2009.07.05 Thames. 2009.07.05 And more houses of London. 2009.07.05 Red-Blue trains. 2009.07.05 Red Trains. 2009.07.05 2009.07.05 But without a tripod I guess I'm not truely successful. 2009.07.05 Trying for a panorama. 2009.07.05 More of London. 2009.07.05 A Pirate in London. 2009.07.05 Some coloseum... Don't know, didn't go for a tour guide of that place. 2009.07.05 Climbing higher and higher. 2009.07.05 Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. 2009.07.05 Railways station. 2009.07.05 Park, people, and the rest of Waterloo. 2009.07.05 Railway bridge. 2009.07.05 The London Eye from a supports perspective. 2009.07.05 Thames and Ben, and a plaque naming everything one sees. 2009.07.05 Big Ben through the trees. I know, you'd all prefer Big Mike through the trees. ;P 2009.07.05 Just across this bridge. 2009.07.05 London Eye. 2009.07.05 Trafalgar Square. 2009.07.05 Trafalgar Square. 2009.07.05 Trafalgar Square. 2009.07.05 Buildings of London. 2009.07.05 Elementary... 2009.07.04 Level with the houses. 2009.07.04 Yep, looks about right. 2009.07.04 We are here. 2009.07.04 Oh look. A nice little miniature of Campus. Notice the scale in comparison to my mobile phone to the left. 2009.07.04 2009.07.04 Anyways, nice art work. 2009.07.04 Churches were built but lunchrooms were never thought of until later. Or have I got that down wrong? 2009.07.04 Almost more important than lunch itself. 2009.07.04 Oh and that's right... Reason why so many places look like and are churches was because in the beginning the founders believed that Religion was a very important thing. 2009.07.04 One of the many schools in Cambridge. 2009.07.04 Cambridge Coton Orchad. 2009.07.04 Cambridge. 2009.07.02 Ok, that's enough. Back to Waterloo station for some grub. 2009.07.02 We're Soaked to the SKEEEEEN! 2009.07.02 Which do you think is hotter, the ride or the girl? 2009.07.02 Oh right, maybe some on-ride photos. If your wondering about the glossiness, it is just the sunblock. 2009.07.02 This is sort of what I looked like on Colossus. 2009.07.02 And of course... Through Tha Trees! 2009.07.02 Loopy! 2009.07.02 While I wait for things to dry, I walk around and take pictures before exposing myself to rushes of wind. 2009.07.02 Even though I was next to 3 drenched girls, I wasn't especially happy. 2009.07.02 Can you spot me in this wet mess? 2009.07.02 TIDAL WAVE! Never seen such a big splash. Does that make Sweden boring? 2009.07.02 STEALTH! Upclose but not really personal. If it was running, then maybe... 2009.07.02 Dingy race, swimming pool, Tidal Wave, and Stealth. 2009.07.02 Ah! There we go. Who knew it was on the way. 2009.07.02 The entrance to Atlantis. ...Wait, weren't we headed for Thorpe Park? 2009.07.02 Any TPR Members here? No? Now that's a shame. 2009.07.02 Guesses are that he's after the Intamin Booty. Yarr! But before then needs to take a train to Staines. 2009.07.02 Now what would a pirate want at Waterloo? 2009.07.02 Underground to Waterloo. 2009.07.01 Ah, London. What a busy city. 2009.07.01 Fields of England. Hey, is that Postman Pat weaving between the fields there? ;p

Holy Crap! Such service just for being a popular thread! I'm envious and happy for you. Wonder if you're gonna be Jay Leno's lead guest as well. /Edward

WOW, WOW, WOW, I didn't realize by making a joke about "finding" the Mikestery cards at the Big Mike Hotel and posting pictures about it would create such controversy and cause me to be branded a "cheater." I guess you can't have a little fun here. Mike, sorry about causing a stir. I had fun staying at the exclusive Big Mike Hotel and visiting the Big Mike Headquarters. Hopefully Big Mike will talk about how Big Mike is feeling about this. BTW, I didn't eat the ducky either.... I meant the "cheating" as a joke. Note emote icon.

...I'm not sure, but would that be considered cheating? I had a thought that if I found the Gröna Lund card I'd ask Mike to send me the Liseberg card to hide for him. Oh well...

Ah, shucks. Didn't make it into any Chuck Pictures. Oh well. I met up with you guys sometime around the "Frozen cow excretions" EST (Exclusive Snack Time). And looks like I didn't get any good pictures of you either... So I suppose we're even. /Edward

Hello. Did people stop dreaming of interesting things? Well, I have had 2 dreams that may be of strange interest. One night I dreamt that I was on a TPR trip and was gonna ride a Diving Coaster. Now as always, dreams put things out of proportion so it seemed like a Juniour dive because it wasn't very tall and the cars (6 seated) were slightly extra small. Also, got the feeling we were in Japan because some of the other riders looked Asian. The Coaster went up the hill, turned a bit, then stopped at the holding break. The coaster stood there for what seemed like 10 seconds (or was it 5 'dream seconds'), and then we dove down, went up into a loop, and didn't make it all the way so we ended up doing a rollback, then forward, then back, forward, back, and so on until it was safe to step off. Discussion occured around the group and I awoke. Another night I had a quick dream of that Big Mike visited me in my flat and I was showing off some stuff, and showing how much I was keeping an eye on his Road Show all of a sudden. Question... After visiting a handfull of TPR people in Liseberg on the 15th of June, am I a little obsessed now? /Edward

I'm pretty sure of it. If one looks at the pictures it is a telescope next to a corner. From what I can tell there are only 2 telescopes, and one is next to a corner. [1] [2] [3] You can see in the 3rd picture that it is still identifiable as a corner thanks to the chains. I did have a look at other lanterns left and right, but this was the only one with marks of tape. I'll attach vid to show I went the right way. /Edward WalkToCard2.wmv I'm sure of it! I'm sure. I'm as sure as I am in a Myst realm. ... It was... Blue... KI...?

Nice to see you found a nice little out of the way place of fun. I however have had myself a bit of a wild goose chace. I went to find the Mikestery card at Gröna Lund, but all I found were queues, queues, queues & queues, and remnants of pieces of tape. I wish people could immediately post when they've picked up the card so I didn't have to go on such a strange adventure. I think next time they should be hidden better, and maybe put under the "Members Only" category so that not just anyone knows its location and just steals it. Also mention to the staff so the cleaning crew doesn't think "Bah, clutter". Unless it fell off in the rain or a seagul ate it, then... Anyways, another unsuccessful treasure hunt. /Edward Should've dusted for fingure prints, but it's been just under a month.

Ok. I believe I can be there at 13:00. Though it has happened that I end up being a bit late. Don't feel that you have to wait for me. Go on right in and we'll maybe find each other eventually. I look something like this (left) or this. Hope to see you. Now, I'm off to London for 5 days. /Edward

Hi! I'm gonna stay in London for about 5 days as of the 1st of July, and I was thinking of going to Thorpe Park one of those days (if weather permits). It may not happen, but if I go I'd like to be prepared about a few things. When I looked on their site for entrance costs, it said £35. Seems a bit much. But I didn't see any ride prices so I'm guessing that those are included in the entrance fee. Am I right about this? The other thing is transportation from Waterloo to Staines and the Shuttle link to the park. What kind of transportation ticket should I ask for? Thanks! /Edward

Well, an English Troll coming to Gothenburg. How fun. I lived in Gothenburg for about 12 years, yet don't know much turism or what sites are special. I think the language itself can be quite fun (Swedish that is and its many dialects). Anyways, if you are gonna see Gothenburg I would suggest you buy the appropriate transportation tickets. There are lots of varieties depending on what it is you need. There are Monthly cards, Yearly cards, Rebate cards, Day cards and many more. Plus a fun little coupon system. If you are gonna spend 2 days in Gothenburg, and one day is gonna be spent only in Liseberg then I would suggest one of these cards called a "Maxirabbatt/Hundrakort", which is a substitute to 100 SEK. Instead of paying 25 SEK when you start a journey on a tram/buss you pay something like 17 SEK. Oh wait... I heard there was gonna be some kind of change with these cards, but can't remember when this was gonna happen. But with these cards that I know, you put them into a green box and punch a 2. 2 means an adult traveling within Gothenburg. From the moment you have done this (started your trip) you are allowed to change trams & busses for free within 90 minutes by putting your card into the Green box and pressing the top-most (white) button. If you are wondering how much money is left or when did the trip start, the information is printed on the back of the card. Alternatively, you can get yourself a 3 day card for 130 SEK where you can hop as many trams and busses as you like for 72 hours. The good thing is that once you buy one of these cards you can "fill" it again later with a "Period", i.e. 24 hour, 72 hour, Month, Year. You can do this until they change the system (or the chip inside rusts ). For more information, see Västtraffik. /Edward PS. Need a guide? A "local" to hang out with?

You'll be in Sweden for 2 weeks as of Tuesday? Huh, how fun. I'm leaving for London the day after. 5 days later I'll be back, but I'll be in Gothenburg for a few days before returning to my home in Skövde. Also, thought I had all the time in the world for a treasure hunt like this. Kinda gave me an excuse to visit Gröna Lund again. This may sound silly, but maybe we can do the search together? Maybe the 11th? 12th? Just a silly thought. /Edward PS. Mike, I know I haven't read the whole BMRS, but about these "clues". Aren't they a little bit obvious? I think 2-3 pictures would be enough for a really good treasure hunt, like entrance, general area, and an optional narrowing down (for examble picture of the card). This seems a bit too much like a walkthrough.

Heh, you can all thank me for that Peter pic. And what's this? No card at Liseberg? And none at Skara. :S Oh well, from Gothenburg to Stockholm, I live like 2/3rds of the way to Stockholm. Wonder if I should make a days excursion sometime. Btw, once I find the card. Do I keep it for myself or just get a picture and put it back for someone else to find? /Edward PS. Mike, if you want you may also grab that package of pictures: http://edward.leuf.org/x/20090615.zip May also share with Lou.

Heh. Greate to see an update of the park I was closest to. I've moved to the neighbouring town to Skara. But for some reason I found it easier to meet you at Liseberg rather than Skara Sommarland (simply because I haven't been there and most of my friends are in Gothenburg (took your advice on bringing a friend)). Bit of a shame I only got to see you twice and for short periods; once as I was having lunch and spotted you as of the 25th picture, and again as you were about to have your night time ERT on Balder, but I shouldn't be too disapointed. Was very accepted in the Big Mike group (or was it just Big Mike). I should just try harder to get my money to grow, flurish, and be spendable on a nice "cheap" trip with you guys (I think one of the things that makes it look expensive is that the flight to and from the meeting place isn't included in the price). Oh, just a note, this "Naked, pregnant, Pope" thing is actually a story about an Emperor's new Style. No, not the Emperors New Groove as in that... llama? (never watched it) The Story Castle contains things from classical stories, some of Swedish classic stories. Not sure where this story originates from, but it had to do with a new "invisible" look. Oh, and I'm guessing you are all home now, I suppose I can find a spot so you can download the photos I took. Here's a nice contained package: http://edward.leuf.org/x/20090615.zip Beware of the size: 325MB Please pick it up quickly and tell me when you've got it. The server is a little iffy, plus there is limited space. /Edward