Photo TR: TPR 2014 SCANDI Tour - Bill's Awesome Revisit!

[Barge84]

Nice update, Bill. I laughed at the marshamallow comment, because every time I saw those I'd think the same thing. Balder + Helix = Awesome.

[Nrthwnd]

^ Thanks Thad! I always think of mashmallows, when I see those things out in a field, lol.

 

Here's some more photos of Liseberg... including Helix, a bit of the new children's area the park opened,

park views, and I happily run into the park's Mascot!!!

In front of Balder, the man who welcomed us to Liseberg, gave us a quick history lesson on the park, Helix, etc.

I'm sorry but my age (sticking to that excuse) prevents me from remembering his name. He was a really

awesome host to us, at the park. Thanks again, whoever you are, lol! (o:

I like this shot I took of Helix' tracks. Through a window, which I wasn't sure would help or not. It helped. (o;

The loading floor for the new drop tower, seen through windows near the Helix station.

Hellllp! I am being held against a Wall of Science I cannot comprehend! Actually, this was...

The Opening Day "blackboard" for HELIX! And Hanno repped TPR in presence and signing the board!

He also took a lot of great photos of the coaster in it's first day of operation.

Marcus/Lond and Peter/Loefet are there.... some where.

Another club, immortalized on the board. But more importantly: Opening Day Date, Checked! (o;

The start of the queue area for Helix. We dutifully entered, and nobody jumped the queue.

And I see you down there, Nicole. (o;

At this point, I believe a few of us were high-fiveing each other, as we passed by each other, LOL.

Zig - Zag - Zig - Zag - Zig...

Somewhere in there, a Gasten Hotel haunt walk-thru awaits.

The view, the opposite way, from where the Gasten Hotel is, behind me. It's really a great skyline now, with HELIX joining the others on the hill, lol.

Lisebergbanan on the move! I would get one with Helix on it's track, later on.

Going up? Or going down? I forget. This is the drop ride that replaced the Observation Tower.

Looks great (didn't get the chance to ride it) but I still miss that (camera) view from the old OT.

Woo Hoo! Mascot meet-up! And I bought the souvenir 'ears' again, too. (o:

Overhead monorail - remind you of anything cough*IOA-SeussLand-Trolley*cough?

All the themeing sometimes looks like it's totally hiding the ride. I loved that.

Another flag under the plants I planted, lol.

One of the many (not so) flat rides for kids in Liseberg's newly redesigned children's area.

The whole area was great, filled with lots to ride and see and eat/drink. It looked like the parents

were enjoying this area as much as their kids were. (o;

Edited August 23, 2014 by Nrthwnd

[rcjp]

Nice! That helix-through-window shot looks really cool.

[Scandinaviour]

In front of Balder, the man who welcomed us to Liseberg, gave us a quick history lesson on the park, Helix, etc.

I'm sorry but my age (sticking to that excuse) prevents me from remembering his name. He was a really

awesome host to us, at the park. Thanks again, whoever you are, lol! (o:

 

Thank you Bill! It was a great day and it was pure fun to guide you guys around.

And for help to refresh your memory, my name is Pontus

 

Great trip report, I'm looking forward to more photos!

[fatdaddy]

Pontus was awesome, I didn't know pimps wore bow ties.

[Nrthwnd]

^ Oh, Caeser...

 

^^ And thank you again Pontus, for hosting us... and I won't forget your name, ever again LOL!

 

Liseberg Park ~ It's Lunch Time!

 

I think this set of photos sort of focusses on our meal that we had at Liseberg. For myself, and a few others,

I believed there was a buffet around in there, somewhere. But - not to be. Table service! And when the "salad"

showed up, I wasn't sure whether to just start dishing it out, or "wait for the signal," lol. Thankfully, I/we

waited, and lunch turned out to be these wonderful burgers they made for us! I couldn't believe how big

these things were, even before we added the "salad" and condiments. Truly a burger to behold, heh. And there

was dessert too, which for a few was too much to have. So, there was dessert sharing going around.

 

It was a great meal, and Thank You, Liseberg for it. Here's some more photos including that meal...

The park's Raft Ride was really something to watch at this part of the ride. For example...

Although you can't make them all out, there were seven (!) of the rafts bumping and bobbing, there.

And water jets were shooting out randomly, just when you thought you'd made it through, safe and dry. Ha!

Kanonen shot. I still love this steel coaster. Even (dare I say it?) a bit more than the woodie beside

it, which we shall not name, heh. (o;

A little 'extra' with the ride. After climbing the first lift hill, you get a little "outdoors view" before heading

back into the show building. I went on it, later in the day.

The park's dark ride. Half Peter Pan (suspended ships) and the other half with (some) memorable

fairy tale scenes. It's okay, but I wouldn't go out of my way for it, again.

The disko ride in the park. I rode it last visit, but not this time. It's quite well themed, actually.

Helix has a a nice number of sexy curves.

Another nice big sexy Helix curve.

This little plush was just sitting behind one of the gift shop doors. Not knowing whether it had

been put down and forgotten or something like that, I added a flag just in case the owner returned. (o;

We're heading to lunch. But wait - who's that on the right?...

OMG it's Marcus/Lond, brother of Peter/Loefet! A nice "special guest appearance" surprise, lol.

Even boobs can be artsy.

Lunch time!

Where they put us, in the restaurant.

Waiting to begin, with Ryan looking particularly methodical.

Fries and salad. Do we share, now? No, not yet....

When they brought us the burgers, the "salad" all made sense, now. (And those fries, of course, lol.)

How it all looked, when everything was put together. And great fries, too!

"Salad" being passed.

I almost didn't finish it, too. There was so - much - burger!

Dessert. Very nice, and just enough for myself. No sharing!

David - feelin' lucky with dessert.

Edited August 23, 2014 by Nrthwnd

[Nrthwnd]

From the "I Just Have to Add" Dept...

 

As this is the park where this particular video came from, I decided to repeat posting it,

since.....well.... there it is! There was previous discussion about a "plane-themed coaster,"

and I think I got it in my head that, THIS was IT. That coaster. But as I discovered, it wasn't

the one in question.

 

And even though I filmed it in it's entirety, I did NOT ride it. Nope. Not even tempted, lol.

 

[coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=MVI_5315_02k5[/coastertube]

 

By the way, the ride is called Flygis. And I have to also add, it was really sweet, seeing

all the Dads riding with their kids. That was very cool, to me.

[Nrthwnd]

After Lunch...More Liseberg!

 

The title pretty much sums up what i did for the rest of the day. Wandering around, riding a ride,

snacking here and there, enjoying the landscaping, themeing and everything in between, lol!

Continuing where we left off, last posts...David scores two desserts! (o;

Back out into the park, I finally get a fairly decent shot of HELIX running by. It's really a great skyline,

now that HELIX has joined those on the hill, heh.

It's Swedish, I know. Still, when I first glanced at it, first word that came to my mind was....

Another flag in the dirt.

General shot this part of the park. I have started to notice, I am tending to take a lot of photos of

swings or 'wave swingers'. For no reason, other than I think they look effortless and circling lights.

I spy... Gave this one some shade, lol.

This was the rehearsal of an upcoming live TV show we saw, on the way to Balder. David and I would later

watch and listen (with an evening meal) to one of the lead singers rehearsing her song for the show. Great singer, catchy song.

Entrance to a special place in TPR's Twisted Heart and Mind...Gasten Hotel. We went in later that evening.

On the escalator up (or down) from HELIX. Major fire destroyed most of the park, very very early on.

But they rebuilt, and now, all is awesome! (o:

Actually, this is about the bottom flat ride there. I always loved riding it when it came to our

annual fair, The PNE (Vancouver). And when it was evening, it was like three birthday cakes

all spinning (and tilting) around each other. I still think it should be revived and updated.

Roof says it all. Upside down, that is...

View from the ferris wheel. Balder and Kanonen in perfect harmony...placement. (o;

Helix upside down...again.

Buh bye! You won't get wet! (hee hee hee)

View through Helix of the new children's area. Can't see much, because of all the wonderful

TREES planted all over the park. It's a great view.

I had the feeling this said "Come Back Soon" or something like that. But we weren't

leaving any time soon. Lots of exploring, still to do, in Liseberg Park! (o;

[Nrthwnd]

Liseberg, cont....

 

More of the park, heading into the evening.

And later on, a "special event" will happen, back at Balder...

Beyond the Helix entrance, there was this particular garden the park had created.

Which also had entertainers' and celebrities' hand prints and signatures...

And this one, in my humble opinion, is the Only One That Counts. Yo, Leonard! (o;

Our lunch place - now with light-up signage!

Follow the crowd, follow, follow, follow... which I did only so far. Then I went to ride the dark ride...

On the dark ride. View from the "ship", just before I dive back into the show building.

The Emperor has no clothes! Also....uh.....no genitals?

A shot of Balder now and then, is good for the system. (o:

Pontus leading a smaller group tour of the park. The rest? Totally forget their names.

Bunch of balloons makes a clean get-a-way!

Kanonen doing it's thing, loop de loop.

Every time I have been at this park, there is always dancing going on, here.

I think this group was learning the cha-cha at the time. A nice way to spend the day, I thought.

My evening meal, along with watching and listening to some of that TV special rehearsal, which was nice.

Office buildings going up, a few sides with great park views, yes?

And the World Cup was playing on a big screen in the park.

I was a bit disappointed when I walked into this shop, and found all of this. I thought

there would be more....uh...design and colours in the park's t-shirts and such? But that

was okay. I picked up some other souvenirs, there. (And a HELIX t-shirt, Woo Hoo!)

[805Andrew]

Wow, the Scandinavia Tour looked amazing. Great, detailed TR and pics!

[Nrthwnd]

^ Thanks, and it was amazing! I would love to go back to Scandi another visit.

 

* The little house in the middle of Balder.

 

At 8 pm, we met back at Balder, inside a small area with a "workers cottage" there.

In the morning we had hammered nails and signed the coaster. Now we having a

cocktail party, with trains of Balder riders rushing by, all around us. We also did

a TPR Toast to the park and staff, there. It was great.

 

And after that, we all headed to Gasten Hotel for a private tour through it's many

hallways and ghostly rooms. With a Special Ghost Appearance by some body named... Robb?

That was fun, especially when he started to name specific people inside - freaking

them out in the process, lol. Great stuff.

 

Then we had a few hours of ERT, but not just on Balder and Kanonen as the schedule showed.

The park also opened up HELIX for us and I LOVED riding it at night! The only

wee problem was dashing across the park to get rides on all of them. But it was worth it,

thanks to Robb, Elissa and the Liseberg staff.

 

And of course all good things must come to an end..... till the next Liseberg visit.

See? Right there on the schedule!

Our schedule for most of the rest of our evening at Liseberg.

Three Guys from Vancouver! David, me and Tom strike a pose.

That little "house" in the courtyard, inside Balder. With bubbly. (o:

Me and Shawn share a bunny moment.

The TPR Toast to Liseberg Park.

The woman who was working there looked a bit moved, that we did that.

Shirley has a fave.

So does Kristen.

Everybody gathered around the TPR 2014 signing on balder.

Too dark, but a Balder train is wooshing by up above us. Who's us? Four of us who visited Balder,

back in 2006, when TPR first visited the park as an add-on to that year's UK Tour. They gave us

this little bottle of Balder Liqueur as a souvenir, back then. So I held onto it, and this visit, I cracked

it open, and shared it as much as I could. That was fun!

Here's that little bottle of Balder, sitting in my snacks drawer for...eight years!!!

And I lightened the photo up to show me, Daron, Chris, and Derek finishing it off. Thanks guys!

Then, it was on into Gasten Hotel and a little surprise awaiting us (surprise = Robb!).

Starting to head out, after many many night rides on Balder, Kanonen and Helix.

Marcus/Lond took this somewhat goofy of me and the others, probably walking to Helix. Thanks Marcus!

My night shot of the Helix train.

Getting darker as we slowly leave the park.

One last look back. Thanks Liseberg (and Pontus!) for a wonderful day's visit!

And some people are going to have an awesome view of the park, when they move in.

[Nrthwnd]

06-23-2014 ~ Skara Sommarland

 

We starting heading towards Stockholm, and Grona Lund park, but not before a few hours were spent at

another park created for family enjoyment (large green areas, waterpark, camping facilities), Skara

Sommarland.

 

The Big Attraction for everybody here was Tranan, loosely described (by me) as

"canoes on tracks", lol. It really is one of the most unusual coasters I and others have ever seen, or

ridden. And even with it's short ride cycle, it never fails to amaze riders, and the canoes effortlessly

swing up and around the coaster tracks. It makes you wonder what a longer length of track would produce.

But that was okay. It was fun five years ago, and it's still a great ride, again and again.

 

The rest of the park is very spread out, with lots of visual stuff to see, like fountains. The "Main Street"

looked like a somewhat deserted ghost town to me, as we got there early for ERT on Tranan, Gruvbanan

(a rather fast powered coaster), and their new coaster Spinner, a spinner. (o; When the park actually

opened, and people started coming in, it was about time for us to continue on our way to Stockholm.

 

But not before we had lunch before we left, and WTF about the FRIES on my order! It - was - GI-Normous!

So many fries. I couldn't finish it all. Really a great lunch it was.

 

Here's some of the photos taken there... more to follow....

Ah yes. The Japan Tour last summer, 2013. So peaceful....

(I actually admire people like Neil and others who can just nod off and sleep awhile, wherever they are.)

Our schedule for the day. Short time at Skara Sommarland, then on to Grona Lund.

Hmmm. Where have I seen this before?

Catching sight of a harness racer in the countryside of Sweden, from the bus.

We arrive at Skara!

The map on display. It really is quite a big area to explore.

Tranan. Or "Canoes on a Rail". (o;

Close-up of the 'train'. And the canoes, just balanced, so.

Kristen gets her credit on Tranan, after having to miss out, five years ago.

Sweeping by.

This shows the whole vehicle, better. It's really something just to watch, too.

Rolling up over/under and around.

It would be nice if they made another of these special coasters, but so far, none that I know of. )o:

And...the new spinning coaster called.... SPINNER!

[PKI Jizzman]

Love it! Great entertainment during my lunch break I can't decide if I like the pictures of the park or food better!

[Nrthwnd]

^ Thanks, and you can always have both park AND food together, right?

 

Skara Sommarland visit continues... then we leave for Stockholm!

 

Some stuff in the park besides the rides, lunch, and

eventually we leave for Stockholm. And Grona Lund Park.

Some of the fun water stuff in Skara Sommarland. I always get a kick out of that water faucet thing.

Several "small houses" creating a village for kids to play in. This house was my fave....I want it.

OMG - what happened to the bottom of that ferris wheel???

The park's "main street," looking well-themed as a deserted ghost town, lol.

"Closed" See? I learn Swedish fast!

Where I and others ate. I wanted to eat at the Mexican Buffet, but it opened only a 1/2 hour

before we were supposed to be leaving the park. I remember eating here before, when we

had minimal time, before leaving. This time, we had more time... so it was a Good Time. (o;

omg - I just looked at the plate when he gave it to me. I ate all of the meat, but left "a few fries".

And this reminded me of something I saw in Japan, during the 2013 TPR Tour...

MEGA-POTATO! Over One Pound of fries! My plate looked pretty close to that amount, lol.

Interesting. A swimming suit for a woman, whose religion/lifestyle tells her that she

cannot show any part of her body at the waterpark. I thought it was sad actually,

with what that woman would have to put up with. Now why would a woman want to wear this......

I have a version of this at my home park, Playland (PNE). But THIS version kicked butt!

In speed, height...I just couldn't believe this was the same flat ride we had at home! WTF?

Where popcorn wagons go to retire.

And shamed dinosaurs who have lost their horn.

And here we have our lovely model, showing a GI-NORMOUS package of Cheez Doodles.

That'll be hell to pack in your suitcase, lol. But others helped eat all of the contents before

the tour ended. And it did end. Thanks Skara Sommarland for a great few hours' ERT and visit!

Even busses need a rest (stop) once in a few hundred kilometres. On the way to Stockholm.

Yeah, one of those. We passed a few of them, during the tour.

Woohoo! Grona Lund on the far shore! And rain clouds had moved in, before we got to our hotel.

...When she could enjoying the park in this, modeled by our very own Jolie (in Djurs Sommerland waterpark).

[Nrthwnd]

~ Our Evening Visit to Grona Lund Park Stockholm, Part 1 ~

 

When we rolled into Stockholm and got to our hotel, the rain clouds had already come in,

and it looked pretty likely there would be rain that evening. No matter. Rain never stopped

TPR from anything, LOL! And this visit was no exception.

 

We got a warm welcome from the owners of the park, a nice meal with pizza salad and

beer (yum), and then we could stay inthe park past closing, and doing some night time ERT

on Jetliner, Twister (the new wooden coaster for all of us), Jetlliner AND the Star Flyer,

named Eclipse. Sadly, I didn't ride the Star Flyer, missing a great evening view of the citty

around me. I think the rain put me off, which shouldn't have, but it did.

 

And we ended our visit that evening, back near the front of the park, in a lovely outdoor

(but covered and with blankets!) bar, with complimentary pizza! It was an awesome evening.

 

More to come the following morning/afternoon, too...

Mattias welcomes TPR to their park, Grona Lund. And we're dry!

The group convenes for the welcome and an evening meal!

PizzaPizza, salad...and BEER! A great evening meal, I'd say.

The oark's walk through Haunt House. I will visit that tomorrow.

Another new credit for everybody, Tuff-Tuff Target. A family coaster. That of course, didn't stop TPR from whoring it out.

Slowly we zig and zag, back and forth, down down down. It was fun.

Simple, yet elegant design of some of the park's themeing.

Ah yes, that coaster. Evening ERT would be there, on Insane, soon enough.

The park's Star Flyer, named Eclipse.

It's one of those, that does this.

Big mural posted above the stairs and queue area of Eclipse.

SPINKLES! The Mother Lode! Mmmm....

[Nrthwnd]

~ Our Evening Visit to Grona Lund Park Stockholm, Part 2 ~

 

And the rain kept falling. But we were okay. Enough to do ERT at Night!

What's this? - What's this?

I can't believe my eyes...

It's "Bla" - and blue - and "taget"-Dragon size! (o;

Everybody enjoys a good dark ride. And Blataget was a Great Dark Ride!

More happy freaked out TPRers.

This kept whooshing by. Kavasten, the Vekoma suspended family coaster.

A new friend on the Arcade. She was sooooe excited for us all being here!

Ah - this is where everbody ended up. The rain was coming down so much, I had to get back to the hotel

and change into better footwear. And the walk back, was eeeee-zy.

Here's a view of the park from where I was, meters away from our hotel.

Another shot from outside the park.

Back inside the park, Grona Lund's Fun House had closed for the evening.

See? Better footwear! Got these in Japan, back in 2011.

Everybody gathered for pizza and beer. And Ross is obviously "head" of this table, lol. Poor Thad and Chris.

It's like a "Game of Thrones" power struggle - for owning the table!

It was a lively and happy group for ending the evening. Beer! And we had tomorrow to enjoy, too!

Night shot of Insane. I rode it at night and liked it. The next day I wanted

to ride it in daylight, and see if it was a different ride. And...it was! (o:

[Nrthwnd]

Before I get to posting how our day visit went at Grona Lund, here's a little video I took during that time,

one that I suppose, sets up the question of where and wtf is this????

 

 

[coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=MVI_5579_ue6l[/coastertube]

 

 

A (not so) secret elevator. To where?

[Nrthwnd]

06-24-14 ~ Grona Lund by (cloudy) Day

 

Today was a lot of stuff to be doing before the park visit and during the visit. First, we had to lad up

our luggage on the bus, and not be able to touch it until the following night! That's because, on the

overnight ferry we were boarding later in the day, no access to the bus was possible. So we had to do

that first.

 

Then, a bit of breakfast at the hotel, followed by more breakfast in the park, before we started our

next ERT session.

 

Several of the people on the tour had put out charity money, for a chance to get on TOP of

Eclipse's (their star flyer) main mechanism (holding the swings), and then rise to the top of the

tower, get photos taken,then back down to terra firma. Took awhile, but they all got it done,

and money was raised for a great cause, Give Kids The World.

 

ERT was offered again on Twister, Insane, Jetline, Wild Mouse, and Kvasten. I really enjoyed

riding Insane in daylight. Better than at night, for myself. And Twister was (another) insane!

Several times during rides, I thought the ride had ended, then another twist and turn in the

tracks to say otherwise, lol. Great coaster. This was one of the ones I was really looking

forward to riding, and it didn't disappoint.

 

(more to follow...)

Schedule for the day, including (eventually) our overnight ferry to Finland!

The early ones heading out to the park, for their Eclipse Experience.

The rest of us waited to go over to the park.

Yep. There's an "ABBA The Museum" here. But I was more interested in that Swedish Music Hall of Fame.

Unless they're one and the same thing. No matter. Maybe next visit...

Look! Giraffe! Sort of!

People on top, ready to (literally) ride on up to the top of the Eclipse tower.

Too intense for me. Fear of heights, fear of falling off...usual stuff.

After breakfast in the park, somebody (Anth) had bought a new hoodie, so somebody else (Robin) decided

that this was the right time, to get rid of the old one! Um, better to take it off the body first, right guys?

Twister stats. Good stats. And the last stat, height, just kills me how amazing it really is!

Twister seats. Nice and comfy, they were.

Noted. With everything built over, around, and under each other, (I call Grona Lund

the "Blackpool of Sweden"), this sign isn't a surprise.

First drop. And the whole coaster just goes and goes and goes!

Catching a shot as it whizzes by.

Yes, I remember! My painful experience five years ago, reminded me not to do the same again.

And this was the coaster I 'barely' hit tips of my fingers on a metal tunnel, the coaster is heading towards.

And it felt like my whole hand was on fire - I learned, since then.

The Jetline coaster.

Interesting way to do a coat hanger. (o; In the queue for Kvasten.

Oooo, what's this?

It's narrow, dimly lit. But it leads....

To the front row of seats on Kvasten, the park's suspended family coaster!

That was AWESOME, Grona Lund. Thanks!

Speaking of the front row... there's Happy ... and then there's Extreeeemly Happy! Enjoy the ride, guys.

[Nrthwnd]

Grona Lund, continued...

 

After all of the morning ERT had been done, the park was about ready to open, at 11 am. I started to

notice groups of people (tour and staff) figuring out their next move, ride, coaster, etc. So I decided to

take a short break outside the park, and ended up at a very nice pub less than a block away from

the park's entrance.

 

Which gave me an "interesting" video of Insane, mostly of the "sounds" coming from it, from where

I sat at my outside table. Here's the video. I call it "Insane Sounds"...

 

[coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=MVI_5551_ufcj[/coastertube]

 

And here's some more photos, into the afternoon at Grona Lund...

After ERT, everybody re-group!

Another re-group!

A small re-group.

Staff Group.

Bigger Staff Group. (o; And a THANK YOU to all the Grona Lund STAFF for such a great day, there.

You all really are a Big Part of what Grona Lund Park is all about - I can't wait to come back and

visit with you again.

A bathroom stop, before heading out of the park. But then I thought, when I saw This....

"It needs this facade, from Tokyo Disney Sea." (from the 2013 TPR Japan Tour)

The Public enters the park! And I exit, returning in a couple of hours.

This is the pub I found. Looked friendly.

TPR still ascending Eclipse, on the outside.

Even though it's in Swedish, I understood it! Woo hoo!

The lovely staff at O'Leary's Bar.

And one with yours truly in it, lol.

Where I sat, drank, had a smoke, and taped that "Insane Sounds"video.

Sky doesn't look good, but it was a really nice day, into the afternoon.

There's the entrance, back into the park, Busy, huh? (o;

Great set of concerts coming here in the summer!

I was told there was a full ship over there, brought up from the deep, in it's entirety! But the walk to

get to it was too long (far away) for me. Maybe next visit. Like the ABBA Museum, lol.

Duh, I think this was an aquarium of some kind. (o;

Liked the entrance with how they did it with water effects.

Hmm. Dark clouds rolling in. No matter. The day went fine.

[Nrthwnd]

SPOKHUSET Welcome Video! And the rest of the Grona Lund visit...

 

After I'd had my beer and smoke, I went back into the park, and headed for an old credit I hadn't ridden

on this tour: Vilda Musen, the Gerstlauer bobsled coaster. A mouse-like track that weaves in and out of

Jetline and is just a great coaster to ride! But, I didn't know where the "fastpass" entrance for TPR would

be. So I went to the entrance, showed the ride op my TPR wrist band, and then....then she put her finger

up to her lips and said to me, "shhhhhhhh." Then she opened this door we were beside, point to it, and

then me to get in - and up I went in The Secret Elevator! Which was cool and freaky at the same time.

That's when i decided to make a video of the (ahem) journey up to the loading station. Here it is again...

 

[coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=MVI_5579_ue6l[/coastertube]

 

After that ride I had some lunch, and then headed over to the park's walk through haunt house, called

Spokhuset. It was supposed to open an hour after the park opened. What I didn't know, was that

the denizens and local ghouls of the place put on a "Welcome to Our House" musical number! So, I got

most of it, and here it is, with some pretty energetic dancing, too...

 

[coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=MVI_5595_sxs0[/coastertube]

 

And after that, and a great tour through the house, and a few more rides on Twister, Insane, and Jetline,

a few souvenirs to buy, and then we all had to re-group and leave the park at 3 pm. )o:

 

But that was okay, We were heading for our final ferry trip, this one being the overnight cruise, from

Stockholm to Helsinki! And I was definitely looking forward to this one, like the one we did five years ago.

The Secret Elevator, leads to this great bobsled coaster, Vilda Musen!

Lunch time! I decided to try the cone for fries with a glob of garlic mayonnaise on top of it.

It lookedc great, till I got half way through it, and realized there was more mayo than fries, now!

The remains of lunch. Next time - less mayo. (o;

Jetline whizzes by Blataget dark ride.

When Spokhuset opened, these two appear, first.

Then, several more - and then they went into the musical Welcome number. It was great!

Couldn't resist. My kind of eyewear, heh. Also found a great park t-shirt here.

Dessert after lunch. Coffee was fine; the donut, not so much.

Thai food at at this theme park Rocks!

Yes. Yes Thai food does rock at Grona Lund.

Another wave swinger shot.

Saying bye bye to Twister. Awesome wooden coaster. I loved it!

The ferry that travels all around the nearby water area. There's a Grona Lund stop, too!

I do like to take photos of swings and such.

Street entertainment - and yes that is a gp on the shoulders of the performer!

Would they allow this in Canada or the USA?

One more workout in Grona Lund's awesome Fun House. Don't hurt yourself, guys.

Last shot in the park. And another great thing the park provides. Blankets on the benches in the

bar area. For the colder times. In North America, these probably wouldn't last two minutes there.

THANK YOU for a wonderful visit, GRONA LUND! I do want to come back and visit again. (o;

[Nrthwnd]

Stockholm ---> Helsinki ~ Our Overnight Ferry Cruise

 

Of everything that happened on and in this tour, the overnight cruise was one of

The Things I was most looking forward to. Not just the chance to stay overnight

of the waterways, with (most of) the amenities available. But this was a new

cruise line for me, and the ship - was - a - ma - zing! The second we stepped into

the central "mall" of the ship, I was immediately fantasizing about The Big Cruise I

was about to take. And it didn't disappoint.

 

The room was great, with plenty of space for us to move around. There was another

buffet dinner to enjoy (with a surprise thrown in that evening - reveal later), and

the selection and variety of food was just as wonderful as it was before, back in 2009.

 

And of course, the MASSIVE DUTY FREE shop on board, too. We ALL enjoyed that, lol.

 

Here's all the photos, from afternoon departing, into the late evening...

Happy to be eventually boarding our ship....

Our ship. A very big ship.

We start to head on board. Note the woman in the white coat? She just wandered by the entire

line, which was well behind us, and then just fit herself into the front, there. Talk about LINE JUMPING!

We entered the ship, and I was immediately amazed at the central mall . The window light at the

bottom there is where our bar for the evening would eventually be. (o;

The other direction, towards the neat elevators and our room(s). A full shopping mall, too!

Our room. We like!

Coming down to mall level on one of the elevators.

Our first drinks from the bar, en route to Helsinki.

More of the bar.

Then, dinner! And it was Grande.

What I started out with. And look Elissa! Mozzarella balls and cherry tomatoes on sticks!

Some seafood. The mussels were very good. And I always love herring, done many, many ways.

Meat and Salad Plate. I forget what's all on here, but it was all great, I remember.

Dessert. And I do believe I see a Hidden Mickey (retro) in there! (o;

Me and my dessert plate.

After dinner, Duty Free Shopping! And since it WAS Wednesday, when we were on board....PINK!

My little trio of liqueurs. And it was enough, for myself.

Looking out. I swear this could be back home, ferrying through the Gulf Islands!

An interesting couple, at the bar. Wasn't sure what was going through the bartender's head, there.

Poster in the bar. I liked it.

How The Night Ended. For most. In the bar for Karaoke. I passed.

And what IS AJ doing to that head there? And Travis looks bemused.

Nighty night everybody! See you all at breakfast!

[Nrthwnd]

And from the ~ Special Congratulations Dept. ~...

 

This happened on the top of the Eclipse star flyer, during the day visit to Grona Lund park.

And the rest of us didn't find out about it (well me, anyway) until dinner on the ferry.

 

But, way up there above Stockholm - He proposed. She said Yes! And now they're engaged!

 

Best Wishes, Bright Blessings, and Big Bear Hugs to Nicole and Jeremiah on your betrothal.

 

(And P.S. If you got a photo of that occasion up there, please share! )

The Happy Couple ~ Nicole & Jeremiah ~ Congratulations you two! (o:

[SuperShawn]

So ready to go back to Sweden, and that Over night boat ride, well that was fun to say the least

[Nrthwnd]

06-25-2014 ~ Docking, Driving, and a Bonus Credit!

 

After arriving the next morning in Helsinki, we were back on our busses and heading

up through Finland to reach one of the more 'unusual' family parks in Scandinavia.

Power Park packs a lot of rides and coasters in it's small space. But what really sets

this place apart from other Scandi parks, is it's Grand Prix-like mini go-cart track.

 

But before that, and before arriving at Power Park, we got a Bonus Credit along the

route, with a quick lunch...and I ended up with a new piece of (needed) clothing!

 

From Helsinki to Power Park ~ With Fun park in between!

Today's Schedule.

Good Morning Finland!

Dinner buffet islands, used for breakfast.

My food, my coffee, my meds and vitamins. A full breakfast! (o;

Back in the ship's mall. And is that coin space EVER going to be filled???

OMG it's a marker from television's "The Amazing Race!"

Just before everybody packs into the exit area of the ship. It was a great overnight trip!

And no, this is not in the ship's boarding building. This is an escalator to.... (Entering 12:47pm)

Um, not this guy. Eep. Scary, even in cardboard.

...to Fun Park. Home of a bonus credit for us!

Lunch. Quick. Filling. Good!

Then we all lined up for the Bonus Credit.

Ben avoiding the papparazzi.

Our credit - a dragon coaster.

Hi guys! Some people got several cycles on this thing. Others, a couple of runs.

hi Cheryl! Enjoying the ride?

There were two of these simulators. I Passed.

6D?

Other than if the ceiling fell down on them, I don't see much "6D" to this at all.

An indoor shooting type walk through. And with all of it in Finnish, I'd probably get killed the second

I stepped into the place, lol.

Edited September 10, 2014 by Nrthwnd

[gisco]

It seems like so long ago we were on this trip.