4th of July

[blondie]

I got to the park around 3:00 pm. It was too hot to do much, so I spent most of the time finding shade. I managed to catch the last Vibe show of the day and I got to see my favorite guy singer *wink wink*. I see so many people wait around after the shows to chat with the performers and take photos. And yet, I can't seem to get my nerve up to even say hi to this one particular performer... I chicken out every time. :-(

I then headed over to Coney Island to scope out a good seat. I got a great bench and just sat. They came over with the announcement of the storm and I thought I would just go out to the parking lot to watch the 9:00 fireworks. Trying to walk out of the park was a challenge! Wall to wall people all pushing their way out. I've never been claustrophobic before, but being completely surrounded by a mob of people and then everyone stopped moving for some reason... I was a little nervous. Thank goodness the crowd started moving again and I got out to the parking lot.

I have a gold pass and was parked in the gold pass area near the big PKI sign. What a view! It was a perfect shot of the Eiffel Tower! Next time I try to see the fireworks, I will go to the parking lot.

By 9:00, the storm had rolled in. I thought I would wait it out in my truck. The parking lot was terrible. So many people trying to leave at the same time. I decided to just sit and watch. I can't begin to tell you how many verbal fights I witnessed. One man driver was cussing and threatening a woman driver and nearly got out of his vehicle to fight her. So many people were losing their tempers... I just sat in the truck.

Once it was all said and done, I finally got home. It was after midnight and I had spent 3 hours in my truck.

I was thinking about going back today (July 5), but I see there are storms out there again. :-(

[italianchef]

By 9:00, the storm had rolled in. I thought I would wait it out in my truck. The parking lot was terrible. So many people trying to leave at the same time. I decided to just sit and watch. I can't begin to tell you how many verbal fights I witnessed. One man driver was cussing and threatening a woman driver and nearly got out of his vehicle to fight her.

I would like to quote a great man who has inspired me over the last 31 years:

"A man who hits a woman is not a man"

- Italian Chef's PROUD PAPA

[italianchef]

I got to the park before 10 AM with Mrs. Chef. Our MAIN goal was to witness Nights of Fire and since we didn't want to deal with drunk drivers....we rented a hotel room.

The park was jam packed. I had to wait for a long time on almost every ride. But hey....it's July 4th, I expected as much. And with all the money PKI lost this year with bad weather...I was happy for them though I despise long lines.

We rode Delirium, The Beast, and White Water Canyon twice in a row before lunch at Bubba Gump Shrimp Shack. For those of you who are seafood eaters, Mrs. Chef states that the shrimp are good, but the salmon is better.

After lunch we rode a few more rides and then left the park to check into our hotel and have dinner. We went back to the park which was more crowded than I ever recall seeing in my life. Around 9 PM a speaker announced that Nights of Fire was canceled because of the storm - and it was raining and soon thundered. Hence, we walked to our car as fast as possible. We were stuck in the parking lot for almost an hour.

Well, it's not PKI's fault about the weather - which they surely lost money because of it. They can't influence it anymore than I can. The Weather Channel predicted good weather. It was just one of those rotten things that happen. Either way... I still had fun (expcet for the rain and parking lot) and love PKI. I just hope that the next time I try to attend a fireworks show at PKI the weather will be better.

Italian Chef