cfc

Zeus at Mt. Olympus.

I don't think there's any such thing as a bad view at Tokyo DisneySea--such a beautiful, photogenic park. Dang--now I have to go back and try one of those pork rolls.

Ready for a bit more merriment? Welcome to Canada, . . . . . . where even the grizzly bears celebrate Christmas by not eating you. I like the how they light the way into Germany. Simple, but very pretty. Whoa! Germany is jumping tonight. The Festhaus at its most festive. (This is where you can catch the O'Tannenbaum light-and-music show.) Local choirs often perform here during Christmas Town. I caught some of Deck the Halls as I was eating my turkey dinner. Watch out! It's raining Christmas trees! There's little danger of getting lost in this maze. I admit to being a bit confused by this attraction. It seems a bit plain compared to other Christmas Town offerings. It was kind of a "crafts" thing. Well, nearly time to head home . . . . . . under the watchful eyes of the Klaus Organization. The Polar Pathway is one of my favorite spots at Christmas Town . . . . . . even if the wind is messing with it a bit. Elmo and his friends celebrate the joys of hot chocolate. Merry Christmas from Busch Gardens Williamsburg! Thanks for reading.

Christmas Town Opens at Busch Gardens Howl-o-Scream is over, and with all the ghouls safely tucked back into their respective tombs, graves, and isolated cabins and castles, it's time for Christmas Town! The park kicked off its annual yuletide extravaganza on Saturday, November 16, and other than "Merry Christmas" and "ho, ho ho," the word of the day was wind. A coastal storm was lashing the East Coast, and while BGW didn't see any rain, the park definitely felt the cold winds that were gusting between 20 and 30 miles per hour. This played a little havoc with some of the decorations (and closed the skyride), but the opening came off pretty well. Not much has changed this year for Christmas Town. You can still visit Santa's Workshop in Germany and chow down at his Fireside Feast in Ireland; catch a performance of Deck the Halls (Festhaus), Gloria (Abbeystone Theatre), Scrooge No More (Globe Theatre), Elmo's Christmas Wish (Sesame Street Forest of Fun), and Twas the Night (ice show in France); score a turkey dinner or sirloin sandwich at the Festhaus; ride the Christmas Town Express; and, of course, take in the 10 million or so lights shining throughout the park. Flat rides were running, as were Verbolten and InvadR. One new attraction was the Traditions Tree Maze. It's a maze of fir trees leading to various kiosks where you can learn about holiday traditions in other cultures. Better bundle up, as it's pretty chilly tonight. I threw in some photos of Pantheon, too. We can always warm with a cocktail at Grogan's Pub later. Christmas Town runs on select days through January 5. No, I did not count them. Welcome to Christmas Town--until January 6. It wouldn't be Christmas Town without some big balls. I like England's traditional decor. These fire pits were very welcome on that cold night. Do you know "Christmas at Ground Zero"? What? They're builiding a new ride? The heck you say! Yep--the gusty winds were causing a few issues that night. This is the first time I've seen this golden tree in Italy with red fall leaves. It looks pretty cool. Let's see what can see of Pantheon from Holiday Hills (AKA, Festa Italia). Santa points the way toward Pantheon. We all know about the spike, . . . . . . and they've added some more track to this section, but . . .. . . . I didn't know that they were building a noninverting loop. (I think the reindeer makes it look rather festive.) Who's ready for some spikin' and loopin'? One last look at Pantheon. I was hoping to get some photos from the train, but it opened an hour late, and it was too dark out. Shall we explore Christmas Town a bit? Only 38 days as I write this--better get shopping! Green is the main color of Ireland, naturally. The path to France is always pleasant. France prefers purple and silver. The train ride uses the log-flume queue. The train runs a complete circuit with no stops. You board in New France. Even InvadR is looking pretty festive. You will believe a penguin can jump over an igloo! Christmas town is rather fond of glowing balls . . . . . . of various sizes. InvadR wishes you a "Merry Christmas." More to come.

Thanks for the great photos of HHN! I thought Rob Zombie's Hillbilly Deluxe was the best of the scare zones.

William's expression in the screenshot looks like he's just seen Cthulhu and is contemplating his impending doom.

I second this wholeheartedly!

Same here. I liked Iron Reef, and didn't understand all the local hate, either.

The Orange County Register said it's replacing Voyage to the Iron Reef. Sounds like they're putting a new shooting dark ride using the Iron Reef ride system.

But will it have a "crab as big as a cow"?

I'm not a fan of Wing coasters overall, but I like Fenix at Toverland, and haven't tried Holiday World's Thunderbird yet.

I love Karnan. Like Skyrush, it's a legitimately terrifying ride.

^Yep--that could be. The ride's elements are named for four different gods.

A Quick Look at Pantheon I went to Busch Gardens on Sunday, November 3 1) to hit the "last day" of Howl-o-Scream and 2) to check out what's happening with Pantheon. As for the former, it was sort "Half-o-Scream." The park's staff is working hard to get ready for Christmas Town, which opens on November 16. So, there were no Terror-tories, no "Night Beats" show in the Festhaus, and five mazes out of six open (augmented with some Terror-Tory scareactors). As for the latter, I shot some photos, mostly from the train. I hope you're ready for plenty of shots of golden Intamin track. I got a few shots from the Germany-Italy bridge and through the fence in Italy. Let's go in. The golden spike of "Neptune's Trident" towers over the parking lot. Let's try Festa Italia first. Oops! Let's try the train, instead. (So, no Cirquo Sinistro today. I noticed they were putting up a lot of Christmas stuff back there, too.) Behold the track of gold! I really like the color they chose--and that element is going to be fun. A closer look at the spike. I wonder if they'll mount a trident in top. I imagine there'll be some nice air heading backward down that spike. This was just a big gap in the hill the last time I checked. Not sure what it's going to be--maybe part of the entrance? A view of the site through some Christmas Town stuff. Sorry about the sun glitch, but that track is solid gold! I have no idea if you'll be traveling up or down this part. There's still quite a bit of track to be installed, but it's coming along nicely. Looking back from the Rhine River Trestle. Christmas is coming, It requires a lot of balls. "Help! If those deer find their way through our maze of balls, they'll eat us!" The spike from the bridge between Germany and Italy. Another view of the supports from the far side of the river. As I've said earlier, I really like this color for the track. Even the Dead like Pantheon. I'll leave you with this shot of the train and fall foliage.

The "Fiends" show at Williamsburg was called "Fiends in the Festhaus," and it was part of the first Howl-o-Scream (it eventually moved to the Abbeystone Theatre in Ireland). People complained that the show was too "dirty," so they toned it down a bit, only to raunch it back up in later years. No "Fiends" this year, probably because they revived the "Jack Is Back" dance-party show in Ireland. That's why Dr. Freakenstein and his Naughty Nurses ended up in the Vault.

"Trainers" for chopsticks? I still need them.

Did you use you Player's Club card to get that VIP gondola?

Why, I can't imagine which two. I sure did! Yep--that's a good one. Please say it was named "The Evert Taube Experience." My thanks to everyone who took the time to read my nonsense and enjoyed it--and to Robb and Elissa for yet another amazing trip!

We're not quite done with Grona Lund yet! Ah, the fun house! Surely, this will assuage the terror of the House of Nightmares. It's fun! What's so scary about that? Agh! What is happening? This place is more nightmarish than the House of Nightmares! Angry spirits! Please stop warping the floor! In the Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room! . . . not that song! Why are these ghosts so mad at us? You are getting sleepy . . . your eyelids feel very heavy . . . What place is this? There is some deviltry at work here! I sense the presence of . . . Loki! “So, Elissa questions my Whack-a-Mole skills, does she?” (Satan is standing behind Larry, grinning over the trouble he’s caused between two friends.) “Challenge accepted!” Behold the Towers of Grona Lund: Frit Fall, Ikaros, Eclipse, and Katapulten. (Larry suggested this photo. He was on quite a roll that day.) Grona Lund tore down this dark ride to build Twister (a wooden coaster), then rebuilt and upgraded it when the coaster was done. I’m happy that they kept this wonderfully weird facade. From a lost verse of the Book of Revelations: “And then I beheld an enormous bird with the face of a crocodile and swollen breasts cooking a demon with enormous ears in a pile of burning charcoal. And by this vision did I know the Beast was near.” “Hmm--that was a good one. Nine out of 10!” “We’re Sgt. Pepper’s Only Dead Club Band!” Brad and Larry are entranced by the swirling flames. Boogie, boogie, boogie! I didn’t know Jetline had working headlights. I like Eclipse, but I can understand why people are terrified of it. You’re 200 feet up, and your life depends on those tiny chains! Grona Lund had a bunch of these kites on the roof tops. Who doesn’t like Jetline’s retro station and lighting? How to make a great ride even better? Nighttime ERT! Who wants to ride the pink tower? As the sun sets on Stockholm . . . . . . Twister lights up like an old-time penny arcade. Again, I love this retro lighting. Are you ready, gentlemen? How about the rest of you? A study in contrasts. “My own personal train? YES!” One last half day in Grona Lund: How about a cruise in the park’s “Tunnel of Love” ride? It has some nice tableaus . . . . . . and, er, some nice . . . this. She must be thinking of Evert Taube singing ABBA songs with Lady Gaga. “Let’s see. There are naked women in here, but we’re doing this . . . we are so lame.” It was a beautiful last day in Stockholm. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say . . . . . . people like Twister, with the exception of the boy in the front row. “Hmm--turning him into a toad is so tempting . . .” My last beer in Sweden. Goodbye, Grona Lund! Farewell, Stockholm. Till next time, that’s a wrap. Thanks for reading this!

Hot Times in Sweden, Part 3: Grona Lund “Our revels now are (almost) ended . . .” Yes, we have arrived in Stockholm for the last two days of the trip. That’s the bad news. But we’re going to Grona Lund! That’s the good news. Grona Lund is a classic amusement park on the water, just across the street from our hotel, the official ABBA Museum, and a place that makes damn good pizza. If you’re looking for a grand finale for your theme-park vacation, it’s hard to top Grona Lund. They always show TPR a great time, and they offer everything you’re looking for in a classic, old-school park, including some great coasters, a very enjoyable dark ride, every type of drop tower you could want, a lawyer’s dream of a fun house, and even some nudity (if you know where to look for it). The park’s resident historian, Andreas, gave us an interesting presentation about the park’s history, as well as a tour of their latest project--a new B&M Inverted Coaster. Well, at the moment, it’s nicknamed “the Big Hole,” because they’re building the station under part of the park. That’s what you have to do when your space is a bit tight topside. This is going to be unique ride, especially during a time when Dive Machines, Wing Coasters, and launched coasters are sprouting on the theme-park landscape like dandelions. Sounds like a good reason to go back to Grona Lund someday. So, let’s have a look at TPR’s last two “official” days in Sweden. But before we go in, I want to thank Robb and Elissa for another excellent theme-park tour--first rate all the way! And my thanks to Mathias, whose family owns Grona Lund and Kolmarden, for making the trip’s big finish even bigger. Welcome to Grona Lund! Can you not hear the ABBA tunes already? Andreas fills us in on the park’s history. Rides from the old days. The one on the right looks a tad sketchy. The park has been home to many great concerts by performers such as Jimi Hendrix, Louis Armstrong, Elton John, Miles Davis, and, of course, ABBA. This classic Schwarzkopf is gone, but the park has another to make up for it. OK, who wants to see a Big Hole? The park put up some carnival games near the construction site of the new invert. These games hide a “secret entrance" to the Big Hole. Dracula could hide a lot of coffins down here. I’m sure Drac wouldn’t mind a little dampness. I was impressed with the size of this project. “Yes, I see it now. That water stain looks just like ABBA in concert.” Yes, the ride will start down here somewhere . . . . . . and head outside to add another coaster to the park’s skyline. Hey--I’ve been looking everywhere for that CD! Imagine what they could do with this rebar in “Friday the 13th: Jason Takes Sweden.” OK, Andy, careful! Slowly step back from the edge . . . Who wants to ride the Snake? “Whee! Serpents are evil, yet fun! Who knew?” Robb goes to work. “Er, is it supposed to do that?” “WE REGRET NOTHING!” “Er, we might have a few regrets.” People were also going (on) Insane. “Have mercy on us, Odin!” "Odin? Hah! You're in the hands of Loki, now!" Robb also did some filming on Ikaros, the park’s face-down drop ride. I didn’t get any decent photos of the ride running, but I liked it a lot. Jetline was my favorite of the Schwarzkopf coasters until I rode Olympia Looping. It’s a great ride, and the park takes great pride in it--lots of fun. Andreas gave us a backstage tour of the park’s concert venue, too. We got a good look at someone's elbow, too. Yes, many classic acts performed there, . . . . . . but none of them charmed the ladies more than Evert Taube. It’s too bad Gaga never had the chance to collaborate with Evert. Is Larry ready for the exquisite horror of the House of Nightmares? It’s amazing how many rides they’ve crammed into this park. Shaken by the House of Nightmares, Larry soothed his jangled nerves on this kiddie coaster. More to come.

I don't know. The watch thing makes Fremont's claim seem a little more legitimate. Or maybe just a strongly worded letter to the editor.

Don't know about that. That's a sweet camper underneath all that scrap steel. Well, the truck.

Ahem! Everyone knows that Ashland, Virginia, is the CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE.

Looks like the Dark Harbor people have definitely upped their game in Orlando. I like the idea of a hidden bar in one of the mazes.

Thursday and Friday shouldn't be too bad.