Category: Theme Parks

Bryon, my 2007 Animal Kingdom bartender

In the late 90s, I used to travel with a PalmPilot PDA (a Palm III, actually). These PDAs (personal digital assistants) were what we used in the years before Androids and iPhones. I also had a snap on 14.4 modem (spiffy!) so I could dial in to my ISP and download/upload e-mail from a hotel, or even from a payphone (if it had a phone jack on it). High tech! Later I would upgrade to a Kyocera 6035 – one of the very first smartphones. It was a phone with a PalmPilot and modem built in! Higher tech!

I used my Palm III (and later, Kyocera) to take vacation notes and maintain a TO DO list of everything I wanted to see/ride/experience. These notes are how I used to document my trips on my 1990s website from my front page “news.”

But I digress.

When the first iPhone came out in 2007, I purchased one and brought it with me on Disney trips. It became my new notepad and TO DO list. Even though I’ve upgraded my phone a few times since then, my old notes and reminders I had migrated to my later phones.

Recently, I came across my “cast member kudos” notes I took during a trip in March 2007. If I ran into a CM who I thought was really exceptional and going above and beyond “typical Disney,” I’d make a note of them and write into to Disney to share my kudos after I returned home. (This is something I encourage all of you to do.)

My 2007 trip notes included the following:

Barry Plank City, FL photopass
bryon at Dawa Bar DAK
Tomoko, Yuki

Cast Member Kudos, March 2007

I don’t recall what PhotoPass Barry did to impress me, but I think Tomoko and Yuki were the fun CMs at the saki bar in Japan. (That was the first time I’d ever really been there.) But Bryon? He was one I think I remembered. I wondered if he might still be around, twelve years later…

Many things have changed since 2007. The Dawa Bar in Animal Kingdom, for example, has been rebuilt and relocated since I last saw it. Here’s the version I remember:

Dawa Bar on September 30, 2007.

And here’s what it looks like today:

Dawa Bar in 2018.

I decided to ask at the current incarnation of Dawa Bar if they knew of a bartender named Bryon. Indeed, the bartender I spoke of said he did, and informed me he was still with the company and currently working over at Epcot at the Garden Grill.

I now had a mission to find out if it actually the same Bryon that impressed me so much in 2007 that I included him on a very short list of cast member kudos?

The next day, I visited Epcot and made a specific trip into The LAND to ask about their Bryon.

Garden Grill in 2018.

To my surprise — their Bryon was indeed the Bryon I remembered! He’s been with the company for almost 30 years.

It’s a small world, after all!

If you make it to Epcot, and feel like a huge all-you-can-eat breakfast with visits from Mickey, Chip, Dale and Pluto, check out the Garden Grill and ask for Bryon. If he’s not around, Vickie is also great fun.

That’s your Park Hopping tip for the day. Use it wisely.

Until next time…

Park exclusive beers at Universal Studios Florida

I don’t know why, but it’s always annoyed me to see so much “generic” merchandise for sale at Disney and other theme parks. What compels people to buy a generic Mickey Mouse shirt at Disney prices when they can get the same shirt for much less at their local Walmart?

Over the years, some things have gotten better. At least now you can buy a generic Mickey Mouse shirt (that doesn’t mention Disneyland anywhere on it) that at least has “Disneyland” on the sizing tag.

I’ll also give a pass to generic things found at World Showcase and spots in Universal Studios’ parks — you might not ever make a trip to the United Kingdom or New York, so perhaps picking up something “from there” in the parks is fine since you probably can’t get them at home.

But folks still pay jacked up prices for Starbucks coffee or Coca-Colas that we can find, literally, around the block back home.

With that in mind, I present you with a list of the park exclusive beers made just for Universal Studios Orlando … Feel free to try as many of these as you want, since you can’t get them back home at your local brew pub.

The beers of The Hog’s Head at Islands of Adventure’s The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Hogsmeade

Kudos to Casey at the Universal Orlando twitter account for this list.

Universal Studios Florida

  • DUFF Beer and DUFF Lite – Springfield – Duff Gardens
  • Dragon Scale and Wizard’s Brew– The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Diagon Alley – Fountain of Fair Fortune, Leaky Cauldron, and The Hopping Pot
  • Mardi Gras Brew (only available during their Mardi Gras celebration) – French Quarter

Islands of Adventure

  • Dragon Scale and Wizard’s Brew – The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Hogsmeade – Three Broomsticks and The Hog’s Head
  • Hog’s Head Brew – The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Hogsmeade – The Hog’s Head

Volcano Bay

  • Volcano Blossom – Dancing Dragons Boat Bar and Kunuku Boat Bar

Loews Royal Pacific Resort

  • Jake’s American Red Lager– Jake’s American Bar

Casey adds that Jake’s American Red Lager is one of her personal favorites. She also notes that many locations also have signature drinks, and recommends the Triple in Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade. It is three different beers layered on top of each other (Strongbow, Hog’s Head Brew and Guiness). I can’t wait to check this out my next visit. Thanks, Casey!

Until next time…

American Puppet Theater asks for your vote…

The American Puppet Theater has asked for your vote in a poll conducted by Des Moines Parent website. (I have contributed content for them in the past, relating to local Halloween haunted house activities.) They would love it if you’d vote for them in the category of “Best Children’s Theater” or “Best Outdoor Entertainment”:

Survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CZ5G955

Some categories you might consider:

18. Favorite Local Place for Children’s Outdoor Entertainment
66. Favorite Local Children’s Theater

American Puppet Theater at Advenutureland would fit in either spot, I think.

I’m sure the Little Adventurers would thank you for the support!

 

The ghost of Royal Hanneford Circus, revisited.

In a previous article, I asked if anyone knew where you could still find a reference to the Royal Hanneford Circus inside the park:

Royal Hanneford reference somewhere in the park in 2017. (Photo taken on 6/20/2017.)

This was from a sign you pass on Dragon Island going to Outlaw Gulch:

On Dragon Island, you could find this sign referencing Royal Hanneford Circus

Since the first article was posted, the reference has since been removed:

Farewell, Royal Hanneford! (Taken 7/1/2017)

So today’s question is … where else can you find remnants of Royal Hanneford Circus? There are still a few out there . . . but maybe not where/what you think 😉

Answer (or guesses) in the comments.

Tornado and G-Force updates…

On Saturday, July 1, 2017, the Tornado was closed:

Tornado closed on 7/1/2017.

At first, I thought this was because it was too windy. I have been told they close the ride on windy days because too much wind can keep the coaster from making it one of the hills. Later I found out that the coaster had been down for awhile.

Also during the day, G-Force was still being worked on:

G-Force repairs on 7/1/2017.

Later in the day, folks posted in the Facebook Group that both of these rides have returned to operation. Huzzah!

The Underground also was down for awhile during the day, but I was told this was because Bad Bob had finally blown up the mine shaft. The ride would be resuming as soon as they got the rubble out of the way 😉

The Underground, closed.

If you are planning a visit to the park for a specific ride, be sure to contact them first before driving out.  Otherwise, you can check on the sign at the front entrance – it clearly lists any ride not operating that day:

Front entrance sign.

Get well soon, rides!

G-Force update.

In the Facebook group, Joey Hayes reports that work is being done on the G-Force ride today. He submitted this photo:

G-Force being worked on, 6/30/2017. (Photo by Joey Hayes.)

According to a member of park management, it sounds like this is just routine maintenance that needs to be done every eight years or so.

G-Force was added to the park in 1997. It was originally located outside where the Scrambler currently sits. After the side of Main Street burnt down in 2010, the park rebuilt it and moved the G-Force indoors. You can read more about it on the Adventurelandians Wiki:

http://adventureland.parkhopping.com/wiki/index.php/G-Force

John Krantz: Adventureland President, and Jazz musician.

Adventureland is owned and operated by the Krantz family. You can regularly find the Krantz siblings, Mike (CEO), Matt, Molly (Director of Advertising) and John (President), roaming the park.

Resort president John Krantz can also be found behind a piano at various locations around Des Moines. He performs jazz music. We recently had the pleasure to listen to him perform with Bryan Schumacker and special guest Brooke Peters at Louie’s Wine Dive.

Jack Krantz performing at Louie’s Wine Dive on June 25, 2017.

If you have an interest in live jazz, check out his website and make an effort to go hear him perform: http://www.johnkrantzmusic.com/

The ghost of Royal Hanneford Circus

In a previous article, I mentioned the conversion from Royal Hanneford Circus to the new Adventureland Circus, and noted that even the opening show guides still listed the old circus:

Adventureland2017-circus1
2017 handout circus ad.

There does seem to be one Royal Hanneford remnant still in the park…

20170620_181759
Royal Hanneford reference somewhere in the park in 2017.

Do you know where this is? Answer in the comments 🙂

 

A look at the Monster’s dinosaurs

As noted earlier this week by Dee and Anna on the Facebook group, two dinosaurs have appeared on the grounds of The Monster roller coaster. They are very difficult to see from ground level.

You can see this velociraptor (?) near the corner of Chicken Shack:

Velociraptor (?) at The Monster.

Seeing it behind the barbed wire seems very Jurassic Park-ish.

If you go down a bit further, you can catch a glimpse of this triceratops (?):

Triceratops (?) at The Monster.

To get a better look, Dee and Anna took photos from the nearby Storm Chaser:

(Photo by Dee and Anna.)

The Sky Ride is probably an easier way to see them, so that’s what we tried. Traveling from the County Fair station, you can see them as soon as you get near The Monster.

Dinosaurs at The Monster, as seen from the Sky Ride.

Here’s a closer look.

Hello, dino.

And he has a friend…

Hello, other dino.

He’s ready for his close-up.

Marvelous!

Coming from the other direction, or by doing a technique called “turning around,” you can see his better side.

Is this your good side?

Yep. It’s a dinosaur alright.

Here’s a look at both of them.

Twice the prehistoric fun.

A friend of mine, Kevin, who works with magician Ben Ulin posted that he heard these dinosaurs were in storage at the park for awhile, and they just decided to set them out.

The Monster zooms by…

Very neat.

What other surprises are lurking in the park this year?

Raging River, G-Force and Inverter update.

June 20, 2017.

The recently re-opened Raging River was down today. Christian E. in the Facebook group reports that the conveyor belt wasn’t working.

The G-Force has also been down lately, but I don’t have any details on why.

The Inverter remains closed.