Last night I got back from a New York trip with my mom and big sister to see THE LION KING. I kept a notebook in my pocket the whole way and kept track of as much as possible. We took a bunch of pictures as well. To make my blog a bit more interesting I decided to put what I wrote in my notebook. It came out near eleven pages but that thing is small. So I can't tell how long it is, but either way, why not?
6/23/12
7:18 AM
We just got to the 'bus stop' about 40 minutes early. We've been listening to THE LION KING soundtrack on the way here. Well, not the whole way. Kaitlin turned on the radio first thing, and it was somehow on the 'Asia' station. A song called "Heat of the Moment" blared on, and we spent the time laughing, pointing and cocking our heads. The song had played in the episode of SUPERNATURAL we just watched last night, so "What are the odds?" I said.
7:31 AM
We just went through (what used to be) an old diner for bus tickets and are in some blank and ancient waiting room. Bit by bit people come in, and there are only 3 benches and 1 small candy machine in a corner. The room isn't 'big' but its big enough to hold more benches for people to sit on. More people are coming in as well. I just hope it doesn't get too crowded and the bus doesn't run late.
8:11 AM
Three buses pulled in: 1 for Philly, 2 for NYC. We got on the big bus, me sitting at the window with Kaitlin next to me and mom opposite. Its chilly now but it's supposed to be about 85 later. So, I like it.
9:31 AM
After passing so many trees and plain roads, we're on highways surrounded by construction, dumpy abandoned buildings and we've been on bridges. Mom pointed in my direction and I looked out the window. "That's incredible." I said, seeing an amazing view of New York City, just minutes away. So many tall buildings, more than i can count. God knows I'm gonna have plenty of stories to tell after today. New Jersey train is visible, parallel to the bus. I think that's the train my friend Hannah went to NYC in before. I'll have to mention it.
9:53 AM
The bus stopped in a parking garage darker than the tunnel we just got out of. After getting off, we walked through a station that looked mostly like an underground mall.
10:59 AM
Ok. Now that I've settled, I can recount following events. After getting out of the station, we came out to a large crowded street, buildings so high that just looking at the tops made me dizzy. Amazed, I took a bunch of video clips with the camera. We walked through Times Square and into a a huge three-story M+M store. There was a lot of themes merchandise, and tall glass tubes holding SO MANY colors of the candy. The tubes ran up to the third (and smallest) floor. I took a picture from there to show how high up we were. After walking out, we went across the street to a Hershey store. Now, what got my attention were the huge $40 Hershey bars, "world's largest." After going with Kaitlin to a music store called Colony, and settling by a large fountain while mom and Kaitlin ate bagels, I looked around wondering "What next?" The city is amazing and there's so much to see. I don't know what to do next.
12:12 PM
Ok, right after that stop, we walked down the street till we came to a huge toy store called FA-O-Schwartz. It, on the inside, was enormous. After walking past the huge stuffed animals, a small set of steps led to a wide assortment of candy, including boxes of NERDS the size of cereal boxes and fish-bowl style containers of stuff like rock candy and Starbursts. On the next floor, there was a shelf of Harry Potter stuff like LEGOs and scarves. nearby, HUNGER GAMES figures, dog tags and shirts. Just less than 20 feet away was a hallway filled with stuffed animals of all sizes, and past it was a section with different types of rocks. Some of those rocks even went on necklaces. Past that, it was the best. The big floor piano that you play with your feet is, as I've just found out, where Big was filmed with Tom Hanks. Walking by it led to a while section of LEGOs. I recognized and pointed out most of them, and saw the new Lord of the Rings sets. "When the video game comes out, that's all I'll be doing for days." I said. After we headed out, it seemed like we'd been in there forever. Just a short way down the street came Central Park, where I sit and write now.
1:47 PM
After resting on a bench, we wandered the park. And let me tell ya, the rocks are AWESOME! It was more like a small mountain, with a dirt trail around it. Mom and Kaitlin to the easy way and went up the trail. I climbed up the jagged side and then down the other after meeting them at the top. Later, we took pictures on a stone bridge above a big pond, and made it down the trail to an even bigger rock! Yeah, I looked at the sides and found one just hard enough to challenge me. Once I got to the top, Kaitlin took a few pictures and I took another tricky way down the rock. We left after getting water and lemonade (Kaitlin) and walking to a McDonald's. Unfortunately, it was way crowded and we only had a half hour left before the show. So we got our food to go and high-tailed it. We got to the theater and stood in the shade, eating as much as possible.. We didn't finish (at least I didn't) but then after chucking the rest, we walked in and took pictures of the posters. Ahead was a wide set of doors where bags were checked, and then two escalators with a wide set of velvet-covered stairs. We ran up the stairs. MUCH FASTER. After using the restroom fast, I was tempted to take pictures of the decor, but I didn't want to risk it before the show. Me, mom and Kaitlin went into the theatre through a nearby door, found our seats and settled. The curtain has a cool design on it, and we got some good seats on the ground floor (other section of seats suspended above).
3:25 PM
So far, the show is breathtaking. For the first song I was lightly crying, it was so good. Its so cool seeing all the African detail and culture, the props, and pretty much everything else is amazing, almost too amazing. The stampede scene was made intense, and the funny characters like hyenas were done perfectly. When Act 1 was over, me, mom and Kaitlin went to the souvenir stand and got two yellow t-shirts (big lion symbol) and went back to our seats. What I seriously can't wait for is to see how the second half looks.
6:10 PM
Ok, back up to Act 2. It was an amazing spectacle. There were all kinds of stage effects to make stuff like lightning flashes and clouds looked realistic. It was a bummer to have it end, but we gave a good standing ovation when the cast gave their bows. After the show, we went past the counters, took pictures of the displays and then left the building. It took me a minute or so to get used to the sunlight after being in a dark theatre, but it was nice and breezy out so it wasn't too hard. By Kaitlin's suggestion we wet to Cold Stone, and she recommended to me ice cream with peanut butter and crushed REESE'S CUPS. It was delicious for my first order at any Cold Stone. I didn't finish it, though. Hey, it filled me up quickly. After ice cream, we went back to the station, "Goodbye New York City," Kaitlin said. Well, we had time to kill, so we looked around in a bookstore, Kaitlin got a smoothie, and now we're here, waiting with a bunch of other people to get on the bus.
6:54 PM
We're finally on the bus, its moving and we're going home. Its still light out, but it won't be when i get through all the videos and photos at home.
After going through all the photos and videos, cutting them together with music from the show, I was able to make this in less than 24 hours.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Van1WQHcho&list=UU5U6Kg2xlQShMi9aHr87OJw&index=1&feature=plcp
