Archives for August 2012

Best Of The Rest

August 24th 2012 Adventure

Magic Kingdom, Castle, Cinderella, Disney, Disneyland, Walt, Disney World, Florida, Main Street USA,

These are the last of the photos from our Florida trip, a round up of all the other parks & places we visited. I hope you’ve all enjoyed them & they haven’t had you bored stiff! Everything will be back to normal from Sunday, so keep an eye out for heaps of outfit posts coming up, I’ve been buying lots of things I can’t wait to show off!

Other than the 4 parks I’ve featured so far, we also managed to do Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Universal Studios & Universal Studio’s Islands of Adventure. We spent that other 3 days at the water parks, Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon, Disney’s Blizzard Beach & Sea World’s Aquatica – Though there are almost no photos of the water parks for obvious reasons!

We loved Magic Kingdom & strolling around the very Disney streets, it really is a magical place & the fireworks were the best I think I have ever seen, it’s worth going just to see those, such a spectacle! Sorry about the awful iPhone photos of these by the way! I’ve been before when I was much younger & I have to be honest though, I didn’t enjoy it as much as the last time. I think mostly because I’m a huge adrenaline junkie & love big rides, Magic Kingdom is much more family orientated, so there wasn’t much I was interested in going on this time around. Plus, as it’s the main park tourists want to visit, the queues are huge even for the ‘boring’ rides, so we didn’t get to do as many of them as we’d have liked! I did get to try on a lot of hats though… It became almost a game by the end of the holiday, I think I now have a photo of myself wearing every hat available to buy at Disney World… Seriously, there are over 30 photos, I very nearly did a ‘Hats of Disney World’ post, but don’t worry I’ve spared you!

I think Disney’s Hollywood Studios is worth going to just for it’s main two thrill rides alone. Tower of Terror is a creepy hotel styled after an episode of The Twilight Zone, once inside you are taken in the elevator right up to the 13th floor where you crossover into ‘The Twilight Zone’. The elevator then suddenly falls the entire 199 feet right into the basement, it’s a real stomach turner! The other thrill ride & possibly one of my favourite roller coasters ever (no, not just because I adore Aerosmith!) is Aerosmith’s Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster, a pitch black, indoor coaster that goes from 0-60mph in under 2.8 seconds & blasts out Aerosmith songs whilst you’re riding!

All three of the water parks were amazing, Typhoon Lagoon is more relaxed with a huge wave pool, lots of sandy beaches & a lazy river to float around in, whilst Blizzard Beach has all the huge water slides, including the 120 foot, vertical, free fall slide ‘Summit Plummet’ – If the queue wasn’t over an hour I would have rode this over & over! Aquatica is Sea World’s brand new water park & although I really enjoyed the majority of the rides there, I was severely disappointed with their signature attraction ‘Dolphin Plunge’, a clear water slide that shoots you through the middle of a pool containing 4 commerson’s dolphins. It was one of the things I was most looking forward to, but the slide scraped my back red raw & the clear portion that goes through the pool is much too short & you go through way too quickly to actually see any of the dolphins! It was a real let down.

Universal Studio’s two parks were both really fun, I definitely enjoyed Islands of Adventure best though, The Hulk roller coaster was so good we rode it twice (even despite the long queue!) & the Spiderman ride blew me away with its innovative use of 3D. The Jurassic Park area was really great too, with it’s main ride featuring life-sized animatronic dinosaurs that looked incredibly realistic. The only down side was Harry Potter land, I can’t stand it & Ollie totally loves it, so I got dragged around the entire area even though I protested (a lot!)… I might have secretly enjoyed the dragon roller coaster just a little though…

Driving into Disney…

Magic Kingdom, Castle, Cinderella, Disney, Disneyland, Walt, Disney World, Florida, Statue, Micky Mouse, Walt Disney, Parade

Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom

Magic Kingdom, Disney, Disneyland, Walt, Disney World, Florida, Carousel, Horses, Fantasyland,

“Ahhh! This is the best ride eveeeerrr!”

Magic Kingdom, Castle, Cinderella, Disney, Disneyland, Walt, Disney World, Fireworks, Display, Princess, Fairytale, Magical

Fireworks at Magic Kingdom

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Soo many cute plushies!

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Couldn’t resist trying these on when I saw them! Nerd alert!

Downtown Disney, Disneyland, Walt Disney World, Candy Apples, Toffee, Micky Mouse, Kermit, Sweets, Shop, Candy

Candy Apples at Downtown Disney

Disney, Hollywood Studios, MGM, Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, Aerosmith, Florida, Walt Disney, Disneyland, Walt Disney World,

One of my favourite rides – Aerosmiths ‘Rock N Roller Coaster’ at Disney’s Hollywood Studios!

Disney, Hollywood Studios, MGM, Florida, Walt Disney, Disneyland, Walt Disney World, Tower of Terror, Muppets, Kermit, Pirates of the Carribean, Jack Sparrow, Fancy Dress

‘Tower of Terror’ at Disney’s Hollywood Studios / This poster made me laugh – two of my favourite men all rolled into one ‘Kermit Sparrow’!

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T-Rex Restaurant at Downtown Disney

Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Florida, Jurassic Park, Dinosaurs, Ride

Jurassic Park at Universal Studio’s Islands of Adventure

Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Theme Park, Superheroes, Comic Book, Captain America, Rides, Diner, Florida,

Marvel Super Hero Island at Universal Studio’s Islands of Adventure!

Hollywood Studios, MGM, Disney, Disneyland, Walt, Disney World, Hats, Jack Sparrow, Cheshire Cat, Dressing Up

More hats!

Disney, Disneyland, Walt Disney World, Florida, Typhoon Lagoon, Sharks, Swimming, Snorkeling

Sharks at Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon water park!

Aquatica, Sea World, Water, Park, Lazy, River, Rapids, Waterfall, Commerson's, Dolphins, Dolphin Plunge, Underwater, Viewing, Slide,

Lazy river at Aquatica / ‘Dolphin Plunge’ ride at Aquatica

Disney, Disneyland, Walt, Disney World, Florida, Sunset, Palm Trees, Orlando

Sea World

August 22nd 2012 Adventure

Sea World is another of the parks I enjoyed the most. Since I was small, I’ve loved the ocean & to swim, I’m like a fish out of water & it also houses some of my favourite animals, so it was obvious I was going to love our day here. We managed to catch two of the shows ‘One Ocean’ the Shamu / killer whale one, which was really beautiful & also the ‘Blue Horizons’ one with dolphins, birds & acrobatics, it was a real spectacle & a lot of fun. We spent the rest of the day seeing all of the amazing animals & doing the few rides that Sea World has.

My favourite ride was ‘Manta’, as your lying with your face to the ground instead of sitting, it really feels as though you’re soaring through the air like a manta does through the water, such a great idea & one of the most fun roller coasters I’ve been on in a long time. I also really enjoyed the ‘Wild Arctic’ ride, a helicopter simulator which takes you on a journey across the arctic, seeing the sights & animals that inhabit it. Of course, being a ride though, it ends badly with the helicopter falling down gorges & dodging chunks of falling ice, really good fun & possibly the best simulator ride we did! After the ride you then emerge at the ‘Wild Arctic’ base camp, where there are beluga whales, walruses & one very lazy polar bear!

Even though we did this day after Discovery Cove where we got to get really up close with the dolphins, it didn’t stop us spending a rather large amount of time watching the baby dolphins in the ‘Dolphin Nursery’ & the adults too at ‘Dolphin Cove’ where you can lean across & stroke them, they’re all very playful & seem to love getting a tickle & also squirting water at everyone, I guess the signs don’t say ’24 hour splash zone’ for nothing!

The rest of our day was spent wandering around the huge indoor aquariums Sea World is famous for, I really could have spent the entire day in there. The massive shark tunnel was a highlight, the photos really don’t do it justice, but there were some monsters in there! I noticed a few posters around advertising a cage dive with the sharks, I was super gutted I only found this out on the day as it’s something I’ve always wanted to do! The largest aquarium which houses many different tanks was also a favourite, so many beautiful animals & the section with the manta rays was amazing. There is little area where the glass tank extends from the wall right over the ceiling & it’s breathtaking watching the rays soar above your head, almost as though they’re flying!

‘One Ocean’ show with the killer whales

‘Manta’ rollercoaster

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Cheeky baby dolphin in the nursery coming to say hello!

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Dolphins playing at ‘Dolphin Cove’

‘Blue Horizons’ show

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Inside ‘Wild Arctic’

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Lazy polar bear inside ‘Wild Arctic’

Sea World, Orlando, Florida, Theme Park, Aquarium, Tank, Rays, Manta, Fish, Guitarfish, Swimming, Gliding, Flying

Manta aquarium

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Beautiful reefs & fishes

Lion Fish / Moray Eel

Sea World, Orlando, Florida, Theme Park, Aquarium, Tank, Octopus, Starfish, coral, plants, giant

Beautiful giant octopus

Sea World, Orlando, Florida, Theme Park, Aquarium, Tank, Sharks, Fish, Underwater, Tunnel, Tube,

Shark tunnel!

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More pretty mantas

Sea World, Orlando, Florida, Theme Park, Aquarium, Tank, Rays, Manta, Flying, Swimming, Underwater, Gliding

Wearing throughout : ASOS Twisted Bandeau / H&M Highwaist Denim Shorts / ASOS Bag / Lux Coronette Lion Claw Pendent / All Saints Cateye Sunglasses

Kennedy Space Center

August 20th 2012 Adventure, Style

Kennedy Space Center, Florida, Rocket, Shuttle, Asymmetric, Dress, Skirt, Black, Casual, Outfit, OOTD, WIWT, Cross, Necklace, Gold, Cat Eye, Sunglasses, Sandals

Topshop Tank Top / A Wear Asymmetric Skirt / CC Skye Crosses Necklace / AJ Morgan Cat Eye Sunglasses / GAP Sandals / ASOS Bag

If it wasn’t for the fact that my maths skills are beyond horrendous, I would most definitely have gone into physics instead of art & fashion. I would have loved to have studied cosmology, but I knew I’d never be able to pass the entrance exam when I struggle with even basic mathematics! I can easily grasp the ideas & principles, but when it comes to the formulas I’m totally lost! I’m sure most of you are aware by now of my fascination with the cosmos, so it’ll come as no surprise that Kennedy Space Center was another day I seriously enjoyed. It was a really nice change from all the Disney parks we’d done the week before too.

This was one of the last places we visited & it was the only time I actually remembered to take some outfit photos! Sorry about that! How stunning is the ‘Rocket Garden’ though? Things like this always really overwhelm me, it’s so awe-inspiring standing at the foot of these ginormous machines & seeing just how massive & what a feat of technical engineering excellence they really are.

There were so many amazing pieces on display too, I especially enjoyed the little Apollo 14 exhibit they had. There were chunks of moon rock, astronauts diaries, prototype spacesuits & even Alan Shepard’s actual space suit from the mission, still covered in a silvery layer of moon dust! I got pretty excited about that one, I know it’s just dust, but it came from the moon, how amazing is that?! They also had the actual Apollo 14 capsule there, which I loved! The Hubble exhibit was another favourite, huge back-lit images from the telescope covered the walls & it was really quite magical to see them at such a large scale & felt almost as if you were amongst it all.

Like the big kid that I am, I had so much fun playing around with all the interactive exhibits they had too! I got to touch a real (3.7 billion year old!) piece of moon rock, rode the space shuttle launch simulator (not as good as the one at Epcot, sorry NASA!), sat in a mockup Apollo capsule, experienced what a shuttle launch was like from the control room & got to look around a replica cockpit!