Nrthwnd

Yeah, but that was only this Fair, with the normal space (where extra rides used to be placed) completely gutted for the construction of the new Amphitheatre. That removal was also paired with removal of the entire north row of arcade games, and my very special on-site bar, The Ride Side Bar, too. Which I guess, is why there are so many Drink Huts this year onsite, as well as some larger bars that offer mixed drinks/cocktails, too. Still, I was surprised that only four extra rides made it to the Fair. I expected a few more. But, what can ya do? This may also lead to lower attendance next year, since the new outdoor stage won't be finished till 2026. And they seemed to cut down on themed displays, compared to previous pre-covid years. Taken during the 2023 PNE ~ R.I.P. Ride Side Bar.

^ Thanks, I'll check that. (And....) Woo hoo! Did it! Now why the heck didn't I check my loaded photos, before? We'll call it an "age thing", and leave it at that , mmmm'k? Hugs.

My visit yesterday to The Fair, was mainly to check out the gardens and Sanctuary that reside on the PNE site. AND to get myself some chicken from Henry's BBQ! Unfortunately, the chicken I got turned out to be somewhat dry, and not very juicy. No matter. The order of fries was f-ing HUGE! So much so, I had nothing to take the extra fries home with me. The container was too greasy, so sadly, I dumped about 1/3 that was left, into the compost bin. The first garden I visited was The MOMIJI Japanese Garden which was located beside the Garden Auditorium, where a (usual) themed display was installed. Past ones include, Game of Thrones; Hockey; The Beatles; Dungeons and Dragons, etc. But not since covid has there been anything there, except an ongoing circus school for young kids and teenagers. Which is great, all the same. Anyway, this garden has been around for several decades. Not very many stone lanterns and/or stone statues to be seen. But it's a quiet place, with running water into the small lake the garden surrounds. It's amazing how The Fair sounds fall away, when you're here or in the Sanctuary. The Italian Gardens, not so much. ^ The un-used Garden Auditorium looming over the Garden. Fun Trivia: This is where David and I attended Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of The Moon Tour". In the centre of the building , we all sat on the floor. And then I remember this lemon-scented smoke coming from the stage, and 'wafting' (wafting?) over everybody! It was trippy. What I remember..... Not exactly a Sacred Temple. But good enough, for sudden (and ongoing) rainfall. The Italian Gardens are more out in the open space of the fairgrounds. And a somewhat orderly presentation of walkways and fountains, etc. They also share space with two 'attractions' for the kids. One is the Discovery Farm, which was usually found in the Barns. The outdoor setting looks much nicer, to me. Also, a performance space called Toon City to entertain the young ones. The Discovery Farm looks great outdoors, and in this setting. The Toon City stage. Then it was time to get my BBQ chicken! This is what 1/4 BBQ Chicken, looked like. I bought fries as well. And a beer <g>. Too ~ many ~ fries! I couldn't eat them all. And as I said before, the chicken was more dry than juicy. (Flower)Pot-heads. After this, it was on to The Sanctuary. And instead of walking around the whole place, for $2 I took the PNE Express train to circle the green space. Which reminds me. This whole area used to be the row of three separate buildings, side by side, joined together by overhead walkways between buildings. Several decades later, all three buildings were removed, to create a massive green space on the fairgrounds, including a lake, and several spots to just chill out and enjoy the greenery. The train didn't get that close to the centre lake and other pathways. But it was a nice casual way to enjoy this as part of the PNE, with a lot of the noise from The Fair being muffled by all the trees, etc. We all agreed (on our train) that "This was the best ride at the PNE - and cheaper too!" The train. And look! It's a TRACKLESS ride! Got a pic of myself (finally) at The Fair, on The Train. The rest of our train load. The lake is there, once you look past all that greenery! Very woodsy here. Noted. A better look at the lake in The Sanctuary. On my way out of The Fair I saw this. Coming back tomorrow (Thursday) with David.

^ Maybe the deal with doing the Candy Collection, might be the price of buying "the bag", itself? No reservations needed? And they may just sell a set # of bags, so that there's not a stampede on a particular night, etc. That's just what I think, but I hope you get some info. soon. And, so sorry to hear about your dog's passing. Our cat Stella is 13+ years old, and we're hoping she'll hang around with us for a few more years, etc.

"Easy" from the Original Broadway Cast Album... Water for Elephants. Starring wonderful, sexy Grant Gustin (he of GLEE, and "The Flash," filmed here in Vancouver!).

^ Um, I think they did (see above your post?) with the add-in of a Indiana Jones Adventure using the same track layout, as it is in Disneyland. But it's a whole new ride adventure and not a copy of DL's or TokyoDL's either, I have found out.

I took a short 30 second 'movie' of the 'constantly moving' ceiling of the Agrodome. Pretty trippy. MVI_5607.MOV

Thursday I went back to The Fair, this time taking in the dog show "Super Dogs", and an annual fave for a lot of visitors - "For The Love of Drag." Really. The 1/2 hour Rock Icons show, complete with ~air~ guitar playing and lip syncing, was pretty good, and not only had drag queens in the show but a couple of drag kings, too! One played 'Prince' and the other did 'Jon Bon Jovi' It was fast, quick, and less microphone talk. I think David will enjoy this, too. However...... "Super Dogs" was a lot of introduction of the dogs, explanation of the course, and challenges ..... it was a lot of talk. The "action" of the dogs charging through the setups was great. I think the audience especially enjoyed it, when two dogs were pitted against each other. Made for fun, loud cheering them on. But I really think that this may be the last time I see this show. It's always a themed variation on the usual challenges, and the only big difference here, was that the show was moved to the small Agrodome, as the Summer Nights Concerts were moved to the Coliseum, where Super Dogs used to be. And the dogs being in the Agrodome, eliminated a number of horse showings, and a great knights on horses show. And I think the setup won't change too much, since the Amphitheatre will still be being built, But hey - the dogs really worked their ....um .....behinds of! And the races are really intense for what they are, to and for the dogs. But I think I'll pass on next year's at least. Then, when the Amphitheatre opens in 2026, I'll maybe give the doggies another look-see. And coming out of the drag show at 6:30pm, it was mobbed at nearly every food truck, so I didn't get my Henry's BBQ Chicken <sad>. But when I return on Tuesday, I'll sure to get my Henry's earlier in the afternoon. Back to the fair we go.... I'll be visiting this garden and another one on Tuesday. And the Sanctuary as well. Today's corn dog comes from .... Another foot long. It was good. Add a beer, and it's a perfect snack! A lot of seating, including picnic tables all over the fair. This bar also served mixed drinks and cocktails. Must remember this. The bar inside the Roadhouse, where .... ^ .... is playing. (o: The main stage. After the "Love of Drag's" last show of the day, "Dueling Piano Kings" schedules shows into the evening. This was 'Jon Bon Jovi'. And this was Pat Benetar. I think this was .... 'Prince' ? The guitar playing sister, (Nancy Wilson) of 'Heart.' 'Dolly' singing "Rock Star." Coming out for bows. That's 'Prince' in blue, back there. They also did photo shots with the gp. I declined to do that. Since I couldn't get Henry's chicken, I went to Lil' Cocos for (guess what?) another corn dog. But I got this one with a green Ranch dressing on it. Fancy, eh? Now to the dog show. The 7:30 one. Souvenir "Doggies for Sale" in all shapes, sizes, and furriness. The ceiling of the Agrodome was this moving, artsy creation. Most of these photos turned out very fuzzy. Got to figure out my camera, more. So these are the best ones out of the bunch. Yay! A clear shot of the setup. And a dog is entering that tube, upper right of the shot. There were three pugs that just went crazy all over the place, while one of the three actually did the course. Conga! This was a game of "Musical Chair Stars-On-Spots." Had it's moments of fun. The Bow(-Wow)s. <sighs> This is Henry's Quarter and Half BBQ chickens. I could just stand there, inhaling for a while. Soon... A mariachi band playing for the public. They were great! Amphitheatre Construction carries on... Good on the PNE! Not exactly totally dark. But overcast enough for all the lights of Playland to turn on. Two of the 'four extra rides' at The Fair. The other two of the 'four extra rides' in Playland(PNE). Hellevator's signage is so neon and retro (to me). Undersides of Gladiator. I didn't notice that the Break Dance middle orb tower wasn't lit. Too bad. Skybender Shot #1 The statue at the right is very nice to see. Skybender Shot #2 All the AtmosFEAR seats have white lights under their butts! A blurred Wheeee! The Merry-Go-Round Carousel all in white lights. Enterprise on full tilt. Explorer (Lit Up) Balloons. Another Wheeee! on The Beast. This was about the only thing lit at night, at this kids' coaster. I figured this could be a mildly scary kids' coaster, with all the darkness around the coaster itself. Blazing White Lights on the Swings Sea-to-Sky Swinger. That's it. Another beer, and I exited The Fair. Till Tuesday, then.

Yesterday, I went to The Fair, and just toured around The PNE Barns. These buildings have been around for a long, long time. And they are a great way to introduce kids and city families to country life, etc. Unfortunately, since this was a Tuesday, with gray skies overhead, the crowds weren't there as much as the usual weekends. So I believe a few of the scheduled demos didn't happen, just because of the lack of .... people! Going in the Main Gate of the PNE. David and I will get to this place (i.e. shopping) next week. BC Transit had their info. display open.... ....Including a nice big double decker, although I don't know where this would be running in the system. More sales huts along the walkway. Metro Vancouver's annual display and info. area. "Meet Pee & Poo" .....? Not sure if I want to, lol. Noted. One huge Adirondack PNE chair.... Another huge Adirondack chair. The others are over near The Barns. Then I saw this. "Deep fried Giant Squid"? "Eel"? Um ....no thanks. I'll pass on this. Tuesday's Corn Dog came from Corn Dog King, an annual regular to The Fair. IT was good. The batter was light and a bit sweet. The hot dog itself was fine, and cooked thru. And I hit The Barns. There were a number of tractors on display, here. Kind of vacant, it was. Not busy with crowds, as it probably is during the weekend. Moo. Not sure what this was about. But it looks like I wasn't going to find out, anyway. Pony rides for the youngsters. A TPR Mascot having a snooze. Two goats and a lama. Well, I hope this is a busy area during the weekends. It was a quick journey, to walk thru this setup. My "Egg Type" is probably Sunny Side Up, lol. Again, not sure if the scheduled showings were still happening. But I didn't stick around to find out. Ooooo, something dangerous! I might try this, next visit. The famous annual Pig Races happen here. And I think that's the piggies on the left, below the red tent, just leaving the gate. What a Chef's Garden might be growing. This is always a nice display to walk thru. Always interesting trivia about bees, honey, and beekeeping. YOU WANT HONEY??? WE GOT HONEY!!! Here's another one of those chairs. After the barns, I looked for this place since the details of it were interesting. I had the Chicken Karaage, which is pronounced 'Kara-gay'. Truth! It already looks messy to me, but I did enjoy it, as this was my first taste of Karaage chicken. Work continues on the soon-to-be Amphitheatre. Opens in 2026. I must remind myself, that the PNE Epress line up is here, near Playland. $2 to ride it, full circle. These are the other two 'extra rides' (of four) to ride. The Tilt-A-Whirl and a biker's ride for kids. I've never seen the Pirate Ship this full during Playland's season. But then again, this IS the PNE. Up and over, ThunderVOLT goes... The line up for it wasn't too bad here. But then this wasn't The Weekend. And Coaster actually had a bigger crowd lined up for it. All of the Games Arcade was open, except for the Quarters Games. Covid-related closure, I guess. One for the road. Got my $1 popcorn, and I was outta there! I revisit tomorrow, later in the day, for some night shots I hope.

I remember thinking that Vampire's load/unload station was one of The Best Themed stations, I'd ever seen. And - gotta love that SeaLIfe franchise. I like they had aquariums (and all of them different in some ways) at many of the UK parks. And about that stool ..... yeah, I'm with 'the above' - getting on suspended coasters, etc. is a chore for me now. Then, there's getting off ... hah. Great start of your UK visit, Bert. Looking forward to more.

^ No, Coaster was still running one train only. I was really surprised, as I assumed they'd have two trains going by Fair time. Not to be, sadly. And I must admit.... I too have waited for several coasters, on TPR tours overseas, for an hour (or much more at Fuji-Q in Japan), some of which only ran about as long as what you mentioned, Xcelerator and definitely ThunderVOLT. So I get the thing, that everyone will wait tons of time, just for one ride on whatever, etc. etc. But I'm past that now. And for now, the only way to get a couple of rides on either coaster at Playland, is to line up at least an 1/2-1 hour before the park opens, during Playland's season. With your pass and/or printed ticket bought online with you. The lineup for the box office(s) don't open until when the park practically opens, at 11 am. So I did it twice, on one Friday and got in the second train for Coaster, and the first train ( ! ) for Volt on another Friday. I never tried to ride them together. Too much distance between them. And I stopped running a long, long time ago, heh.

Opening Day on Saturday wasn't a big deal for me, compared to the crowds coming in. The only things I wanted to do was 1. Getting my Two Weeks' Pass to the fair and 2. Don't go into any buildings (except a bathroom, if needed) and just check the whole site out, to see where everything was, etc. Especially with the new amphitheater being built (and not open until 2026), a lot of space was lost onsite. But it was packed with food trucks, the nightly Concerts were moved to the Coliseum and the Super Dogs show moved into the Agrodome, which usually has horse events, knights jousting, etc. Not this time, sadly. 2024 The main entrance to The Fair. But I didn't enter here. After walking roughly 15 minutes to get to the north end of the park, this is where I was to pick up my PNE Pass. It took nearly 20 minutes to figure it all out but.... I got 16 separate tickets, one for each day of the fair. A bit much, but hey - I can go every day, now! The BLUE GATE entry into the PNE. Where I went in, after getting all my fair tickets. Then you travel by a bunch of cars on display, for sale. Not all the 'huts' were used, so I'm hoping they all get used by my next visit. Crafts and stuff, there. Where the Summer Night Concerts are taking place. Who's playing when. If directions are needed. Where the PNE Prize Home is usually located to check out. Apparently it's already in it's location. Langley, Surrey, Coquitlam? I forget, but I wouldn't move there, myself. Just displays set up. Opposite the Prize Home display. A nice, random place to sit and eat, rest, drink or ....? I can't remember a year where this hot tub business wasn't at The Fair. So, here they are again! Super Dogs, yes. Horses and knights jousting, no. Then I saw this. Great! A BBQ food truck, found! Then I went around to the front and .... Woo hoo! Prairie Smoke & Spice has always been one of our fave BBQ places. So we'll be there, soon enough. I need to take a movie of this. Constant movement, really nice to watch. The centre Fair Festival stage was moved to the other side of where it usually was. And mmmmmm, all those red and white Adirondack chairs to lounge in! Found another BBQ, this time in an actual truck. "Food Truck Way" with everything you could imagine, to eat. I don't think these farm buildings have changed since The Fair began! Over 100 years ago! The route to get to Playland. And you can get a different angled look at all that dirt being moved around, for the Amphitheater. They have a trackless train that travels all around the Sanctuary, which is a designated green space in the fair. The kiddies should love this, hmm? It's really cool that the PNE has two haunt walk thrus to do. And they have 'such a ticket deal' to do both! With less space available, less extra rides were brought in. This is two of four rides extra, to Playland? By Coaster, this is where I get my $1 popcorn refills. $! pop refills are just a few steps from here. So to start the Corn Dog Ball rolling, I stopped here before leaving the fair. The Coaster line must be at least 2 hours long, now. I dread to think what ThunderVOLT's line is like. A foot long corn dog. It was good, as I expected Coaster Dogs' corn dogs to be. One of the many Drinx Huts (Drinx?) onsite. Right beside Coaster. And out I went..... What you're given every day, you go to The Fair. Schedule of all the free entertainment available, along with the (paid) Summer Night Concerts. Flip side has the PNE Map on it. Noted. I hit the fair again, tomorrow. Till then, Cheers!

^ And thanks for enjoying the pix! And yeah, after seeing the line ups for Coaster at the "front" of Playland, I have no doubt that Volt will be killer waiting times ....for a 40 second ride. Eh. I did get to ride it once, as well as Coaster in a couple of visits. I found Coaster to be be surprisingly rough, and felt thankful (ironic) that the seat belts I railed against, held me tight, and actually comfortably "in the seat". Honest, I didn't expect Coaster to be this rough. Without seat belts, it had been actually pretty smooth. Until now. And as for ThunderVOLT, it's a one and done for myself. Very forceful through the rest of the ride, after being launched up the (what I call) "Little Top Hat." It is intense for the short time you ride it. But...waiting up to (probably) two hours for this coaster? Not for me. Opening day photos I'll post tomorrow. And for those who want to know more - https://www.pne.ca/ The lineup for Coaster extended past/outside the shade tents. That is a very - long - wait. But the ride's longer, lol.

Today IS the day, apparently. So ..... Happy National ROLLER COASTER Day! everybody! Myself, on the Kettle Creek Mine Coaster, at Playland(PNE) on Opening Day (May 18) of the '24 Season.

It's The Day Before our annual fair, The PNE (Pacific National Exhibition), opens. And it's been a good couple of months, between now, and 'back then' in May when Playland opened for it's 2024 season. I ended up visiting it a few times, though not as many as I've done before, in past seasons. It's an "old age thing". And I'm dealing with it, LOL. Here's the pix from my Visit(s) to Playland, after all the rain we got in June. New coaster to check out; new drinking 'huts' to get your beer from; and a LOT of DIRT! This was what the line looked like, 1/2 hour before the park opened. Glad to see they're still flying the Pride Flag. Why be sorry? Everything's open! Or so one would think ..... Coaster running. Check. The Games Arcade wasn't fully open yet, so they put claw machines there, hoping some one will play them. Over priced pizza slices. Check. ThunderVolt, behind the Kids' Drop ride. Who says "I'm so fly," anymore? View of The VOLT from the West Coast Wheel. And some dirt... A new HUGE performance venue's being built, and opening in 2026. I always enjoy taking mountain shots, when the sky is clear and blue. I decided to eat something onsite, so this where I went. Many many choices... I decided to go the carnivore way, lol. Wasn't too bad. I'd had it before, so I knew what I was getting. And that finished up this visit there! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The other visits were varied and random. Crowds were actually GI-normous, way more than I'd seen before. But other seasons the park was open included Mondays and Tuesdays in the week. This season they were not. So here's (at least) three days' visit to Playland. AtmosFEAR's looking good. Ditto the Log Flume ride. Another fantastic Dirt Shot. I don't think Enterprise goes totally upright. Only this far in it's 'tilt.' Though the run of The Gladiator is always awesome, "landing" is sooooooo sloooooow. Really slow. One of three I counted, onsite. These replace the Ride Side Bar that was closed for the new amphitheatre build. My usual - Stella Artois. Then I headed out. I attended this on July 20th. Hey - two bucks for a hot dog? I'm in! Wish I'd gotten more than one of these.... A bit messy, but still good. And my $1 popcorn refill. Using the same bucket after what? 8 seasons??? Can't wait to see these new signs lit up in the evening, during the PNE. How long would YOU wait, for a 40 second ride? During the PNE, this is going to be insane, queue wise. Speaking of 40 seconds .... Wheeeeeeee! Got my $1 refill of pop with another container that's been used for 9 seasons! I had one of Coaster Dogs more 'busy' dogs. This was with pulled pork and other stuff on it. A good one. My last visit that I actually took photos of. Unlike Disneyland's shutting down their Shooting Gallery, and as simple as it is, we still got ours! Over the hump. Another dirt shot. I'll stop after this. Hellevator now does both it's up-launch and it's fall-down, together in one cycle. (o: ....And One more Stella Artois before heading out - and getting ready for two weeks of the PNE!

Instead of posting my Happiness, after every D23 posting for all the parks that Disney has (except Japan - they're already set for their future with Fantasy Springs just opened and the new Space Mtn. re-build coming in 2027) and posted the various new attractions coming up... I am totally in awe of ALL the stuff coming to the other Disney parks! It's a true abundance of attractions opening in the next several years. Awesome!

^^ I think my 'one and only' show, would be to see the original Cirque show..... "Mystere" that was the beginning of all the Cirque shows that had/have been there, since then. Good TR on what we can see, nowadays.

^ I love that, too! They do a Spider Roll at my fave sushi place. Though not as fully 'pronounced' as the menu suggests. But, it works. And at my go-to sushi place (Britannia Sushi), I get a lot of choices to make, including anything to do with crab. It's all good!

^ To myself, IMhO, it looks like Option #2 could be your best bet, for fulfilling your son's Disney needs, etc. You don't have to reserve a lot of stuff, so it's a bit easier for yourself. And helps you enjoy this visit, even more.

Tagadas Forever!!! And I still want one of those mini-Tagadas! Too cute to pass up.

Just saw the touring production of FROZEN on Wednesday night. And we were blown away by how much 'production' they put into this! Since it was a touring show, things like trap doors, revolving stuff, etc. can't happen, unless you pay A LOT to have it done. Anyway... All the leads were awesome, the chorus was amazing, and once again, I was exhausted watching allllll the choreography. Really excellent dancing. And after Elsa did her "9 o'clock number" <grin> of "Let It Go", ending Act 1, complete with the onstage dress change .... including myself, several people around us were commenting... "Now THAT's the way to end Act 1!" It was stunning to watch, even though I knew it was coming. And .... apparently this was one of Caroline (Elsa) Bowman's last performances with this tour, with a new Elsa taking over in a few weeks. So glad we got to see and hear her. I've known about her being Elsa for several months now, due to postings by Broadway.com . She is/was a powerhouse singer! This was also one of the very few touring shows (and there have been quite a few these past couple of seasons) who sold an actual Souvenir Program, along with the usual t-shirts, and related souvenirs. Cost $30 (cdn) but it was so nice to finally have one. Front of the program w/o the tag line.

This just in .... "ThunderVolt – Opening Saturday" And .... there it is!

That is truly an EXHAUSTING piece of POV, LOL! 6+ minutes? Too long for me, ha ha.

And now, after that great video on Dark Universe ...... IMhO, Universal has beaten Disney, for the All-Villains Park/Land/etc. concept. So will Disney (finally) ante up and put their own Villains Land together (question mark HERE; Im having one of those days, here)