ytterbiumanalyst

This Saturday Dollywood is only open until 9. You're not really going to get a true night ride then. Sunset ride, yes, but it's still fairly light at that time.

Great start to the report! Cedar Point is so awesome. It's hard to understand until you've been there, and once you've been, you want to go back as often as possible. Glad you enjoyed the hotel, even if the bartenders have questionable expertise....

Shuttle buses, not trams, but yes. You don't have to move your car at all, and the resort has free parking! No, the shuttle only goes to Dollywood and Splash Country. If you want to go into Pigeon Forge, you'll need your car. You should not assume that! They have a full bar, and even their own signature drinks! The Front Porch Swing (a rum-based fruity concoction with pineapple juice as the primary mixer) was my favourite. Reasonably priced especially considering it's a resort, with beers about $4-5 and specialty drinks about $8-9. I think so, but (spoilers!) we never went into town. The resort had so much to offer, and it was so relaxing just leaving the car there and taking the shuttle. We went for the true resort experience and just spent that part of the vacation completely on Dollywood properties.

Boo! You tease us horribly! (seriously looking forward to this TR--you make some good ones) And where did you get that 1st visit button? I feel like I missed out, didn't get one last year when I went for the first time.

Please tell me they kept the singing cows, at least. They've... changed... Are they singing steaks now?

Day 1 Continued: To Sleep, Perchance to Dream More We left the Memphis Zoo in the early afternoon to give ourselves plenty of time to get to Pigeon Forge. Storms were coming, and we were already going to be losing an hour going into Eastern Time. This was my kids’ first time in another time zone, and my oldest was very interested in why it was a different time where we were going. Science lesson! I was very impressed with the wide, well marked roads leading from the Interstate to Pigeon Forge. It’s like they expect there to be lots of traffic and have planned for this eventuality! Branson, take note. One thing that’s not great, though, is the drivers. Wow, do people in Tennessee drive awfully. Compared to the dream that is Los Angeles traffic, Tennessee is downright awful. Unlike California, in which everyone pretty much minds their own business and gets where they’re going, Tennessee drivers are aggressive and vindictive. They will not hesitate to get back at someone they feel has slighted them. It’s like the whole state still holds a grudge for having lost a war or something. And so as I switched from the middle to the left lane on Veterans Parkway two blocks before the DreamMore entrance, I was immediately tailgated by a man in a heavily modified large red pickup truck. All traffic was moving at the speed limit, and I wasn’t just driving in the lane. I had an imminent left turn to make. This was a montrosity of a vehicle, with an extended cab and extended bed. It had a wraparound graphic of an American flag and on the dashboard and roof, LED lights that alternated similar to a police car’s lights. And so this jackass redneck flashed his police-esque lights at me as he tailgated me for the great crime of getting in the left lane two blocks before I turn left to my destination. I swear, some people just love to stereotype themselves. We arrived at DreamMore a little after 9, which was a bit too late to get our tickets. We did a bit of exploring around the hotel, but we were mostly very tired from two days of driving and went up to the room. The kids really liked the bunk bed, and we loved all the room amenities. This room had outlets and USB ports everywhere. When traveling with three kids, we have a few electronics, and we could charge them all each night. Also, the toilet paper was embossed. I can safely say this is the only hotel I’ve ever stayed in that had embossed toilet paper. In short, book this hotel! All the included extras make it very much worth the cost, and it was really very affordable, especially considering this was Memorial Day weekend. I’ll have more to say about DreamMore in the next few installments, as we continued exploring everything the resort has to offer. Breathtaking. Thanks! We're sure glad to be here! Just inside the main entrance. And look what was waiting for us in the room! The kids loved the bunk bed. Conference area corridor Concierge desk Lobby, or "the living room" as they like to call it Another seating area in the lobby The Pantry serves Starbucks in the morning and pizza later in the day. Song and Hearth is the very high quality restaurant downstairs. A bit pricey, but absolutely worth it. We ate breakfast here the next day, so stay tuned to this trip report. Elevator area There were a bunch of these pithy sayings from Dolly all over the resort. The corridor carpet was full of butterflies. They do not miss a single detail! This is the way to experience Dollywood! OMG! Embossed toilet paper!

Actually, you gain an hour going from Eastern to Central. If you were crossing the line right now, you'd change the clock from 1:50 to 12:50, making your day in effect 25 hours long. I say that just for accuracy's sake; this is not to imply that going from Michigan to Texas via Georgia is anything less than certifiable.

[Claudius, drop a smooth beat.] Man, Open your Eyes. Open Your. Mind. Seethediskofeelthedisco HYYYYYYYYYPE

Then HFE would have 2 coasters called Wildfire. What if New Orleans had a theme park?

Both were enclosed coasters. Coney Island Cincinnati and Coney Island Brooklyn

PlayStation. Just downloaded my 6 free games for the month! Penguins or puffins?

5/10 Brilliant 3D effects, but it could have used a story. Avatar Airbender ride at Nick Universe

^ Ha! Great minds think alike!

With their last ride being a Super Loop coaster, I'm really, really hoping they buy a Disko coaster next. Two awesome coasters in two years!

Day 1: Hours of Driving Punctuated by Pandas With school letting out very early this year for an unseasonably warm winter, the opportunity presented itself to take our family vacation a bit earlier in the year. We chose the week of Memorial Day to go all over Tennessee and then end the trip at Holiwood Nights. Now, this is a lot of driving, and our kids are still pretty small, so we broke up the driving into small chunks. We took off on Friday May 26 as soon as we were off work and drove to Memphis that night. US-63 is a beautiful drive through the Ozarks hills on a winding two-lane road. If you can avoid the motion sickness enough to appreciate it, that is. We got up Saturday morning to our first destination: The Memphis Zoo. This is a remarkable zoo, very large and well laid out, with lots of highly detailed exhibits. The real draw here, though, is that it’s one of only a handful of zoos in all of the United States that has giant pandas. The pandas, Ya Ya and Le Le, have an elaborate home built with traditional Chinese architectural designs, and it’s a treat to walk through the space. By the time you reach the centre of the exhibit and see the pandas for yourself, you are fully immersed in the environment. There are a few rides here, but nothing substantial, and in fact, I didn’t see anyone in line for any of them. We had plenty of theme park days on this trip, and updates to this trip report will feature plenty of photos, but for now, enjoy your vicarious journey through one of America’s best zoos. Cool Egyptian themed entrance. There's just something enduring about dick-shaped stone monuments. Plenty of photo ops throughout the zoo. This is a river cat. Note the stripes on its head but spots on its body. Never seen one before. Lots of big cats here. My girls are cat fans, so they enjoyed this exhibit. There were quite a few exhibits that allowed you to see the animals unobstructed, usually relying on slopes at the front of the exhibit to prevent animals from reaching the visitor observation areas rather than glass or metal bars. Very elaborate habitats. Red panda! Cats are cats, no matter the size. Meerkats! There were a bunch of LEGO statues all over the place. Some cool topiaries, too. The rides section. Operators were present, but no guests were interested. The zoo has a lot of komodo dragons--I think abut 6 or 8. We got to see a tortoise feeding. The keeper was available for questions, and that kid got to feed them! The biggest one weighs 350 pounds! And now...the panda exhibit! My kids always like these music playgrounds. Thanks for a good time! Now on to Dollywood!

I meet a lot of people at SDC who are from Kansas City or St. Louis and have season passes to Worlds of Fun or Six Flags respectively, but then are spending their vacation at SDC. It doesn't have to be an either/or proposition--and we're not talking enthusiasts here. These are normal people who bathe regularly. SDC doesn't need to compete against the other two Missouri parks. Season passes are targeted to the Springfield, Joplin, and Branson markets, and beyond that, they market their arrive after 3, next day free evergreen promotion. They don't need or want everyone in St. Louis to come to Branson instead of Six Flags to be successful. And Six Flags isn't worried about a mass exodus of St. Louisans to Branson for their theme park entertainment. Truth. And I used to criticize this park too, but in the last couple of years they've made major improvements to the overall experience, so that even though there hasn't been a new coaster in a while, the park is still more fun to me than it used to be. I've had SDC season tickets for years, but Six Flags still draws me away for a weekend trip. So chew on that a bit.

Honestly, this is 99% of my opinion on the two as well (Voyage is my #2, behind Outlaw Run, but Shivering Timbers is also my #5--everything else I completely agree).

NPR affiliate WNYC has a new report on the project, outlining all the risks involved that have the potential to prevent its completion. Full text and audio clip available at this link: http://www.wnyc.org/story/tax-codes-traffic-megamalls-risks

May the Force let you live long and prosper. Decahedron or dodecahedron?

Pipe Scream is a great coaster. More parks should have coasters like that.

Time Machine is a seriously awesome themed ride. Spectacularly done!

The airtime is incredible on Shivering Timbers. It was not lacking at all. I rode it with the trick track, and haven't yet with the new bunny hop, but any air on the latter would just be gravy.

^ Have fun, it's super awesome! Good luck on Lightning Rod.

Dude, I get it. You like your local parks. I'll admit Timber Mountain kicks El Aserradero's ass. I'd even be with you if you said Timber Mountain is the best log flume--it's certainly my favourite anywhere. But it's not the original. Sorry that hurts your feelings, but it's a fact.