January

I'm not a big follower of astrology, however, I thought it was interesting that last week, my horoscope said that someone important would be calling. Sure enough my phone rang with a number I did not recognize. Normally I would try to screen it, yet for some reason I was inclined to answer it.

Of course, I shouldn't have.

Isn't it strange how things like this end up happening at just the wrong time. How someone can ruin your day with a simple phone call. I was surprised at myself of how peaceful and calm I remained, however, I saw how it affected me the rest of the day. However, I am going to stay positive and try to stand by what my horoscope says:

"Communication is your specialty, Gemini. On Monday you will talk your way out of a difficult dilemma. Steer clear of pessimistic thoughts when your ruler Mercury squares Saturn on Wednesday. Don't let negativity enter your mindset. A person with influence may appear in your life on Friday. Doors may open, thanks to your new mentor. The chance to reconcile with a former foe may come up on Saturday. You may feel forgiving and ready to forget a grudge."

While I talk all day, I'm not sure I would say communication is my specialty. I am quite passive in conversations and rather enjoy listening to conversations and soaking in what others have to say and input when I want to. In any case, let's see how this week goes. I had a pretty good weekend, so I hope that leads into an even better week.

Two runs and one night of basketball in two days ... I'm off to a good start :)

Greeting from Orlando, 2011!

I open up my new years blog from Orlando, Florida as I sit in an airport waiting for my flight. There is a bit of fear that the flight will be canceled as it slowly gets delayed minute by minute as my connection time gets tighter and tighter.

My flight to Orland was quite fun as I sat by two young'ns who fly between Hawaii and Florida between their parents who are divorced. They were very comfortable flying alone. We ended up playing inflight trivia together and after getting owned by the younger of the two, the game reset and my second place finish to her was erased. In the next round, I owned and won by over 1,000 points over the rest of the plane! Then to bed, then to bed I said.

After arriving to Orlando, I noticed there were thunderstorms! It was a bit of a worry as the the itinerary was suppose to be a day at universal, which would not go well with thunder and lightning! However, despite a little early morning drizzle, the skies cleared and the shuttle arrived at Universal!

Upon entering, I hurried back to Islands of Adventure. I was surprised that the gates opened early and I quickly walked back to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. It was like being teleported right into Hogwartz! I waited in a twenty minute line for Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey and I never could have been prepared for the amazing journey that would be ahead! With movements I've never experienced on a coaster, I was very happy with the combination of movement, technology, and other special effects in place! The ride was AMAZING + more! The one thing I didn't like about universal was the fact that you have to put everything in a locker, unfortunately, my backpack was not small enough to fit in nicely, so every ride that required it was a challenge! Flight of the Hippogriff was quite fun and if you went to the Islands of Adventure before the Harry Potter craze, it's pretty much the same as the Flight of the Unicorn :P After that, I hit up the Dragon Challenge (formerly Dueling Dragons), which was one of my favorite rides! The G-Forces are incredible and since I sat in the front, when the two dragons were racing towards each other, it was quite a rush as they barely avoid each other. It was cool checking out the rest of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. In order to get into two stores, you actually had to wait to get into! In Dervish and Banges, the line did not take very long, but they monitored the amount of people coming in and leaving the store. The store had a lot of cool items, but I found out, you can also purchase items in the main store in the front. In any case, I may have brought home one too many items, but I guess, I would rather get it than regret it! Of course, it is much cooler in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. A line I did not wait in, Ollivanders, they go through the wand choosing ceremony one person at a time! Thinking back, maybe I should have done it, yet if you saw the line, waiting an hour or two may not have been the best use of the day. After finishing up, drinking some Butterbeer and pumpkin juice was a must before leaving the land!

Because I had an express pass, which I suggested for at least one day if you are staying one or two days, I got to the front of the line of most rides (a few attractions such as Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey are not included). It made it quick to be able to experience the park very quickly! Jurassic Park was a fun ride to be on. It seems like the first two rows (especially the middle) stay a lot dryer, as the back left me soaked! Popeye and Bluto's Blige-Rat Barges didn't have much of a line and I discovered why pretty quickly as the colder temperatures didn't mesh too well with the wet clothing. My suggestion to you is to sit on a plastic bag as your but gets the wettest which might be different during the summer as it seemed like some water falls/spout were off.

Marvel Super Hero Island has the best rides in the Island of Adventure as a collective group, The Incredible Hulk Coaster caught me off guard and I went zipping at the top of the initial climb, different from the normal suspenseful climb of most coasters. Doctor Doom's Fearfall wasn't too scary but provided a nice rush and view of the park! I was also amazed with the technology and special effects used in the Amazing Adventures of Spider Man with 3D special effects and 4D type effects as well! After a day in both parks though, the movement on some of these rides can leave your stomach and heard turning a bit, so beware those with motion sickness, take the pill!

One last adventure in Islands of Adventure, the Cat in the Hat, was a big mistake. I thought that ride was the High in the Sky Seuss Trolly Train Ride as I was looking for a ride to recover from all the spinning. Unfortunately, there was a lot of spinning on the ride and left worse than when I entered.

Heading to Universal Studios, I thought that this one coaster was the Simpson's Ride since it looked a little goofy and nuts. Of course I found that the ride was called the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit which was one of the most intense experiences I have ever had! After breaking down, I waited, as I knew it was the last ride that I wanted to ride. It was worth it, as after the people disappeared, it was only about ten to fifteen minutes before the ride was back up and the line reformed! I had about a ten to fifteen minute line versus the 45-1:30 line it had most of the day. The ride has a moving entry platform (unseen anywhere else for a coaster) so you need to move quickly. It also means, a quick loading process!! In the ride you get to pick your song of choice to enjoy during the ride. When heading up, you head STRAIGHT upwards! The first drop is intense, then heading into the first loop, you do a normal loop with a twist at the top! The drops are intense and it's a great rush throughout the ride! I highly suggest you give it a try, even with a line!

Shrek 4-D was fun to watch of course, after a day of twisting and turning, more movement did not feel too well! Twister provided an amazing look at special effects and gave me that Universal feel of watching a set in action! It felt like being in a twister! I wanted to get things from their store, but didn't go back today! Revenge of the Mummy reminded me of a ride I rode in Segalopolis at Tokyo Bay. The roller coaster goes forward and backward and has effects that top many rides. After the ride, I ran into the street to catch the Blues Brother Show which provided some relaxation after a long day (red eye + day at universal). I also got to play the crane game and the stacker game, two of my addictions! I also rode Jaws, which was fun, Men in Black where I got our cart's high score but also got me dizzy, and the Simpsons Ride which also got my even more dizzy.

I had one of my worst meals of the weekend at Universal unfortunately, but I was happy just to eat and rest. After getting back, it was easy to crash after eating TGI Fridays and falling asleep to a few movies.

The next morning, I drove over the Disney World and arrived at Coronado Springs. I was excited to hear that I would be able to check in early (8am), but the good turned ugly as they said they did not have a reservations for me! After calling Orbitz, they had my reservation in the system, but the guy I was talking to stated that there was a miscommunication! After spending almost 90 minutes on the phone with them (two people and a supervisor), my reservation was canceled and I was left at square one, in my car, in the parking lot, with no room. I finally got connected to a Disney World reservation agent who found me a room at the place I was trying to initially get a reservation at, Port Orleans - Riverside! I was able to get into the room and was greeted by Mickey shaped towels on the bed! Yahoo!! The day at Disney World has began!

I headed over to the Animal Park and got to use my Premier pass for the first time. One of the coolest things about being in Disney World (which is why I wanted to be there) is that you get shuttled everywhere in the park for free! In any case, I got to see the tree in the park, toured through a few animal areas seeing tigers, elk, and some birds! It was like being at the zoo! :) I also got to ride on Expedition Everest which caught me off guard since I was thinking it would be like the Matterhorn, but I was completely wrong. Very great ride!

After looking at the Dinosaur ride, I decided against it and then headed to Finding Nemo, the Musical. Cute, but I was so tired that I fell asleep. After the park close, I headed to Hollywood Studios! Very much like California Adventure, but the coolest thing I did there was going to the American Idol Experience! I got to see the finale! It is JUST like American Idol, where the people try out and they have to go through a voting show to qualify for the finale and then in the end, the crowd votes for the best out of the top five from the day! The winner was amazing, but I wanted someone else to win. Two of the finalists were actually husband and wife and both won their semi-final!

That evening, I took a boat down the river to Downtown Disney from my hotel. It was cool to be able to feel like you were traveling in New Orleans down a small river. Downtown Disney was very cool especially because it was like along the water. They had a hot air balloon that goes straight up like they have in Orange County's Great Park, then a bunch of places to eat and also performances, etc. They had an amazing Lego dragon in the water! Totally amazing!

Arriving back later than expected, it was time to hit the hay, as it was an early morning the next day!

At 2:30am the next morning, the alarm went off! After showering and prepping, I got all my stuff together. One problem I had was that my pack did not have safety pins in it! I was planning on using my trading pins I had purchased in the store, but when arriving on site, someone actually had extra pins, luckily!

The morning commute was amazingly slow as I was just trying to get over the bridge to the starting line on the other side of the road! The bus took almost an hour to get to the check-in area/bag check! After arriving, I had to rush to the port-a-potty, through the check-in area, and to the starting line. If you ever run this race, ONE, there are a lot of bushes/forest you can use (#1) and plan ahead and get to the starting line early because it takes awhile! Corral A was very open compared to Disneyland which was nice but the course was definitely not as fun. The course was not well lit and TOOK forever before anything interesting came up on the course. Since the park is so big, it's mainly just traveling through the various roads of the park. When entering the parking booths at the Magic Kingdom booth, I was looking up and around as the guy in front of me slightly stumbled over a speed up. Before I could react, I hit the speed bump, got tangled up and hit the ground on my hip. I was able to go, but my hip tightened up and I had to ice at the medical tent (an asian staffed one!). After going through the Magic Kingdom and the castle, which was amazing, I started to feel my left hip as well, which I think came up because of the bruise I had on my right hip. Slowly my hips tightened up, then my calves started to pre-camp twitch, then my abductors, then in my quads/groin area. I was forced to slow down then eventually walk and jog in order to avoid cramping up. Late in the race, I needed one more stop to get worked out with biofreeze before heading into the finish. Epcot was painful as I started to cramp up and I didn't think I could make it to the finish, although just over a mile to go. I walked, I jogged, and I hobbled. When I got to the final stretch, I was amazed at how many people were there! As I cramped up bad (my worst of the day), I had to stop and was amazed at the support I got from complete strangers. I guess as horrible as the race was, the final moments made my proud of myself, but inspired by those who cheered me on and others who yelled at me, patted me on the back, or helped encourage me. I've never felt so bad coming in during a half, but thinking back, I guess I never felt as accomplished after a half. Plus, I got my medal and my chance to still get the coast to coast medal.

After a shower and a change, I headed back to Epcot.

I was able to go through the park and have a better experience this time! The rides were great including test track! Of course, the lands were my favorite even though there aren't really rides in that area, seeing the architecture, stores, etc. make it an amazing experience!

It ended up that I ate at a Mongolian restaurant where I had a salad, chicken kabob, lamb, couscous, and ended with baklava! The food was delicious and the entertainment was great there as well! Belly Dancer :P and music ... haha ... the architecture was also fabulous!

After finishing at Epcot, I took the monorail to the Magic Kingdom. which had a similar layout to Disneyland. I was able to go to the laugh floor of Monsters Inc., Stich's Great Escape, Astro Blasters (which is far better at Disneyland), the Peoplemover (which they should bring back to Disneyland), went to Splash Mountain (but it was closed), and finally to Space Mountain before trying to escape through the crowds for the Main Street Electrical Parade which was great to catch as I left.

As I headed back on the monorail to the car at Epcot, I saw the place that I had fallen and was proud that I had got up and continued on. In any case, I headed back to my car and eventually to the hotel and Universal.

The last moments were spent at Universal revisiting the Wizarding World of Harry Potter to ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey again (despite the wait) and a few other rides! The water rides were not smart, as my jeans and money are a little moist still, but I guess it's all working out.

I'm a bit worried because the flight keeps getting delayed and I hope I make it back to catch my connecting flight from Denver, but I guess I'll see. For now, I must keep track of my Clippers as they lead 86-71 in the 3rd and the Packers are up 7-0 in the 1st.

*UPDATE* ... I made it back to LA at thirty past midnight and to my bed by 2am! The alarm for work was a horrible sound to hear, but at least I'm awake now! I made my connecting flight, amazingly! Also, the Clippers won and the Packers snuck one out! Yahoo! Such a wonderful weekend! Pictures coming soon!

For now though, I say Happy New Years and thanks for joining me as I share my wonderful journey to Orlando! I wish you were here!

Sincerely,

Jason Watanabe