upside down and inside out!!

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Our second day in Williamsburg was dedicated to a full on theme park day. We've been big theme park fans for years both at home and abroad but only ever in Florida in the USA. Several years ago I was of sick with the flu and reduced to watching random programmes on obscure satellite channels. One such programme was about the top roller coasters in the world and featured Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. "Coaster Dan" was a frequent visitor to the park at that time and was even presented a birthday cake by the staff running that ride. Coaster Dan had the appearance of someone who eats a lot of cake and has been somewhat of a legend in our household ever since that day.
Anyway, the ride itself did look impressive, and I've always harboured a fancy to give it a go myself, never thinking I would have the opportunity. So that, in essence, is how we came to be at this theme park. Bill had treated us to a VIP ticket which basically gave us a personal guide for the day, instant access to all attractions without queuing and three "up close" experiences. Pretty cool!! The weather was a stark contrast to yesterday's child and wet being both sunny and hot - perfect for a day in the park!
Our guide was Jake. A very enthusiastic young man who basically landed his dream Saturday job, especially as he was responsible for accompanying yours truly on the rides that Bill had to sadly avoid due to his dicky ticker!!
Our three experiences were meeting the Clydesdale horses up close, behind the scenes at the coasters and.......meet and greet the characters from Sesame Street. No prizes for guessing which my favourite was! The horses were beautifully cared for and majestic. The technology be hind the rides was reassuring and it was really interesting to go into that little room where you see them pushing all the buttons before take off, but meeting Elmo and the Cookie Monster??? Come on!!! That was the best thing ever!!
The coasters themselves did not disappoint in any way and I was catapulted at speed around tight bends, over 360 degrees, corkscrewed both fast and slow, the latter being by far the scariest, and completely soaked. Good decision both on the lightweight shorts and non- white tee shirt on my part!!!! The aforementioned Alpengeist was by far the best ride i have ever been on, even if I did emerge from the experience with a slight tremor.
Jake recommended the barbeque stop for lunch. Whilst in the queue we were discussing the differences in our cuisines whilst pondering on whether to select the fried pickles as a side dish. The lady behind the counter suddenly exploded with disbelief when she overheard that we had never tried biscuits and gravy. I couldn't even understand the next food item she asked us about but at least we were able to confirm that we had indeed both heard of and eaten an open sandwich!!
I should have mentioned that another aspect of Jake's rule was to keep a photographic record of or day which will be shipped to us later on a CD. Looking forward to seeing it as I am I have to say the last time we had that many photos taken off us as a couple was the day we got married!!!
Finishing off with the interestingly themed London Rocks musical stage show I bought the obligatory tee shirt and we bid our farewells to the park. A day of education and history awaits at Colonial Williamsburg tomorrow, making our time here a kind of cultural sandwich but for today all I had energy left for was a shower, a cold beer, and Despicable Me 2 on DVD!!
Our sponsor would now like to ad a few words on our day.....

Respect,manners and politeness, the're all big out here. However I was surprised to be called Sir all day by Jake and countless others in the park. I assumed this was respect for the old country. Wrong. When I consulted my cultural adviser (sadly not now employed) I was informed that I was due this respect because I am a Senior!!
Not happy.

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Comments

[drew Smith]

I’m there!
Reading the blog so far it feels as though I’m there with you. I’m having an extremely enjoyable virtual tour and have one up on the real participants - every day is a surprise location because I don’t have the itinerary and you do... As for respect, manners and politeness - isn’t that the American way of business?

[mandytrott]

thank you!
Hi drew Thank you so much. I plan to print it all of on my return to keep as a record sho I hope it's not too self indulgent... Plenty more to come either way - we are here until May 15th. Hope all is well with you both xxx

[Jake]

Your tour guide
I found this blog whilst looking to see if there were any reviews during my time at Busch Gardens! I was pleasantly surprised to find this blog and it brought back great memories! You guys were an awesome tour group and I remember our conversations from coasters to culture being one of the most inquisitive experiences I’d had during my time at Busch. I’m so glad to see you enjoyed your experience and I must say it was an honor to lead you guys around! Hope all is well these few years later! ~Jake

[mandytrott]

Jake!
Hi Jake So great to read your comments! We look back on our visit with really great memories. We loved the photos you took too and they are a prominent part of the album we made. We really hope you are well and enjoying life ! Best wishes Mandy and Bill x

[mandytrott]

Ps
Should have said - can’t believe you remember us!!!