Summer in the States 2006: July 2006

Monday, July 31, 2006

Random posts and pictures.

Me and Dalia at work one day.

Lee, Dalia, me and Pat at the Soak City $1 beer party. We were only there for a short while though.

Ambrose while playing bridge and drinking Kahlua or Bailey's.

Niyoshi, me and Dalia at work.

Niyoshi and Dalia.

Sunday, July 30, 2006

July 19th.

Took a day off to go play rides with Tai and Noy before they go back to Thailand.

On the bus to Cedar Point.

In the line for Raptor

Raptor is this rollercoaster that you take with your feet dangling in the air and you go upside down 180 degrees. It wasn't too bad as a starting ride because it was a pretty small ride (as in not that scary). Quite fun because u're able to see things around the park during the ride.

Then we walked on to meet Jade and walked to the back of the park - Frontier Town. Yes, the back of the park is called Frontier Town, I dont know why either.

A group photo in front of the Town Hall Museum.

Me and Tai
Me and Jade
We bought some frozen custard ice-cream after some rides and they struck a pose while deciding what to get.

Tai, Noy and Geri
Then we went to take Magnum, my favourite rollercoaster! Also known as the red rollercoaster because its tracks are red and it's located next to the Resort Gate where I normally work at.

The other time when it was Magnum Ride Night (means employees get to ride the rollercoaster as many times as they want to at night after the park closes without waiting in line with guests), I took Magnum 4 times in a row together with Dalia and Brandon. It was soooo good. Especially if u PUT YOUR HANDS UP IN THE AIR!

It's built at 205 feet above the ground and goes up to a speed of 72 miles per hour. And the first drop is the best at 60 degrees, one of the steepest in the world. After that the rollercoaster gives a spectacular view of the Lake Erie coast.We took a rest in the employee cafeteria after some rides.

Next was Gemini, a wooden rollercoaster with double carts running side by side simultaneously. It isn't exactly a ride that I enjoyed because of the rickety nature and I bumped my back against the seat a few times. But the bends were pretty fun and there was one part when the cart was going under the wooden structure we thought we were gonna hit our heads so you could see everyone ducking. Haha.

Taking a time out from rides by taking a train ride around half the park.

Last ride of the day was kind of a highlight. Top Thrill Dragster - the rollercoaster that's keeping everyone going. Initially I didnt wanna take it because it really looked damn blardy scary and intimidating. But Geri dragged me up and I'm glad she did, even though I had weak knees just before I got on the Dragster cart.

It goes up vertically to 420 feet (yes 420 feet, that's about 42 storeys) at a speed of 120 miles per hour, which means it's about 180 km/h. Then it goes vertically down in twists and turns. And then it's over in 17 seconds. It really lives up to its name, Top Thrill. I was soooooooo high when the ride ended and the next time, I'm riding on the 1st cart.

Mariya, one of our Bulgarian friends working with us at Admissions. We took this photo before dinner when we were going out the gate, on the way to Famous Dave. Every time i work at the Marina Gate, i will smell the ribs from Famous Dave and finally i'm able to eat it!

Famous Dave's had their own sauces with names like Devil's Spit, Texas Pitt, Honey Mustard and BBQ sauce. The waitress poured the sauce onto a plate to form a face. Appetizer - Tangy-flavoured salad with chicken.

We ordered the All-American big platter that had 2 slabs of ribs, one chicken, some beef, a whole load of fries, corn buns, coleslaw and beans. It was HUGE platter, trust me.

We are waiting, and waiting, and waiting. And salivating...

So hungry still must take photos.

Pat trying to stuff a sauce bottle up Tai's nose.

Dessert - Brownie with fudge.

The bread pudding with ice-cream.

Friday, July 28, 2006

Chicago.

3 days 2 nights. July 12th-14th.

Twas a LONG drive up there. One that was not only long, but tiring and dark. We took about 6 hours to reach our hotel from Cedar Point. 2 cars, 9 people, 5 drivers.

By the time we reached town, we were soo tired but we juz parked the cars and went to get breakfast immediately. That's a picture of our hotel - Howard Johnson. Not really 5 star, juz affordable and situated in a good place.

We look kinda gonecase huh.

We ate at some cafe along the street our hotel was located at. Some English muffins and much-needed caffeine and alot of stupid photos.

Breakfast

Me, Tai and Noy.

Me and Pat again.

The guys.

It was pretty foggy when we first reached in the morning. Actually it was foggy for the entire day.

We went to Magnificent Mile, an upmarket stretch of shops in town. The photos and names are pretty self-explanatory.

Gucci

Chanel

LV
Trying to strike a Paris Hilton.

The Drake Hotel

The Water Tower.

A nice church in town.

An outdoor performance in front of the John Hancock Tower next to the Water Tower.

Just below the John Hancock - The Cheesecake Factory.

The selection of cheesecakes!

Chocolate Pecan Truffle Cheesecake.

Adam's Peanut Butter Cup Fudge Ripple Cheesecake. The cheesecake that i ordered. Dont ask me why it's named Adam but it's not that bad, considering the fact that i DONT eat cheesecake.

Michelle Li, i can hear your stomach growling and stop salivating pls...

Yum!

Dont ask me why she made that face. The wait for the cheesecake must have gotten into her head.

That's the toilet in the restaurant. It's pretty impressive because each cubicle is damn huge and has its own sink and mirror in it. And the lighting is pretty soft and romantic. Too bad there was only 4 cubicles in the restroom.

Some photo whoring after the meal.