Robb Alvey's Theme Parks of Asia Tour!

[robbalvey]

Hey everyone!

Some of you may know that Elissa and I have just recently toured several theme parks in China. Below are tons of pictures from that trip with a link to a full report of about 500 photos. I'd post the whole lot here if I could!

Overall the parks of China were *much* better than expected. I thought many of them would wind up being pretty crappy but what we discovered were not only some of the best looking parks in the world, but quite a good collection of rides as well!

I'll let the photos speak for themselves....

Day Zero - China Culture Day!

Our aircraft of choice...this snazzy Korean Air 747 equipped with all the bad movies you can watch at your finger tips and an outlet to plug your laptop into! Yes, all this in economy!!!

Yet another reason why international carriers are FAR superior to American airlines. This is what I saw in front of me when I woke up...

We have arrived in Beijing! First order of buiness? FOOD!

I'm happy to report that traditional Chinese food in China is pretty much the same as a "good quality" chinese place back home.

TPR at the Great Wall of China! This goes down in TPR history as the most cultural thing we have ever...EVER done!!!

This would be our carriage of choice getting up the Great Wall. 15 Apline Coaster cars all hooked together.

Yup! KidTums is allowed to ride....OUTSIDE the restraint...better hold on tight! Well, at least this is only the going up part!

"Wyatt...Your kitchen is BLUE!"

You have to admit that is really freaking AWESOME!

ROBB!!! DO NOT EAT THE GREAT WALL! IT HAS NO SOY SAUCE!

The trip down the mountain is "fun"...not really thrilling or very fast...but fun. I think KidTums actually looks bored!

Day One - Beijing Shijinshan Park!

Group photo at our first China park. Don't we all look excited?

Ahh, yes...the Chinese knock off Wacky Worm...this should be a QUALITY ride!

"Um....mommy...I don't need the credit THAT bad!!!"

Ooh! "Spinning Batman!' Now THAT sounds awesome!

So here is Spinning Batman...not only did it not spin AT ALL it had nothing to do with Batman!!!

Chinese Knock Off SLC!

It looks like an SLC...but it is NOT!!!

This was the park that a few years ago was sued by Disney for copyright infringement. This was really the only thing left that was Disneyland related. Two things to note...one it's bigger than Disneyland's castle...and two, it wasn't as ghetto as Nara Dreamland.

We took a visit to the Forbidden City...I have two things that remind me of this place. 1. Wonders of China film at Epcot, and 2. The "Just Say Mao" sampler CD from the 1980s. (Anyone else know what I'm talkin about?)

Day Two - Beijing Park and Sun Park

Yup, we are at Beijing Amusement Park...at least I hope so...that's what the sign says.

first we'll go to the Togo Loop Screw for some real good pain.

This is two days in a row now I felt like I *could* fall out of a coaster.

Yes, the name of the coaster is "Super Speed Cool Cool bear."

Joey sits in the "Big Thunder Death Seat!'

I'm CRRRRRAAAAAZZZZYYYY Disk-O Monster! Feed me some PEOPLE!

It *looks* like a normal Top Scan...

Nope! Just another Chinese knock off!

This is the entrance to Sun Park... 'Nuff said!

Some of the park rules were very interesting.... "No Assasinations..."

"No outside food"

This mouse is what happens when a Hershell and a Maurer Söhne moue have sex.

This coaster was bad...like really REALLY BAD!

Proof that EVERYTHING is made in China!

"Thunderclap Tank!!!"

This cats name was "lunchmeat"

This was the "cutest" coaster of the trip so far! "The "Fruit Worm Coaster!"

"I'm gonna DIE!!!!"

Yay! KidTums gets her fruit worm credit!

Yes...you are seeing that correctly...you can rent hamster balls and they drop you in the water.

Elissa got to hit up her first Chinese McDonalds.

"This is even better than kinky sex!"

That night for dinner we did Chinese Pizza Hut!

ok, we are certainly not in Kansas anymore... "Assorted Seafood? Octopuses?!?! WASABI SAUCE!?!?" On a PIZZA?!?!

Day Three - Happy Valley Beijing

Yay! Another group photo! They have giant letters that spell out the parks name ala California Adventure.

Someone should tell Hard Rock Park that THIS is how to theme a Vekoma Mine Train!

It's hard to believe that this is the EXACT same ride as Life in the Fast Lane at Hard Rock.

Same thing goes for the B&M Flyer. The pretzel loop is about the only thing you can really see.

The rest of it ducks in and out of the rock work.

I kind of wish Dueling Dragons was built more like this.

It was a lot more like Nemesis or Black Mamba the way it was hidden within the theming.

And it *felt* like you were getting VERY close to some of those rocks!

The bottom of the pretzel loop looked like it should have had a splash element!

Just look at how amazing that is!

An overview shot of Crystal Wings from the flying island.

Once again KidTums was pretty popular with the locals! I take it they don't get many "Western" babies here very often.

With a Tesco across the street from the park we figured we'd go check out a Chinese grocery store (Dan, this is where you need to pay attention)

That's a lot of....yup....*FEET*

"Grab a bag and fill it with meat!"

All we need is a deep fryer and some Blazin' sauce and we're set!

Good to know you can buy a scooter at the grocery store!

MINE!!!! ALL MINE!!!!

So that's a pretty good start to this update! If you'd like to see more, we've posted the rest of the photos HERE

I will most photos and park updates here soon!

--Robb

 

[trav]

I've been looking at all the trips you do recently, and I have to say, they do look fantastic.

If you're still doing them in a couple of years, I'll definatly be signing up for one or two of them.

 

[Ben]

I've been keeping up daily on TPR - and loving it!

I still find it too hard to believe that Crystal Wings is a clone of what we rode at Great Adventure! In fact, I refuse to believe it is .

And that that SLC would be a clone of the hunk of crap they have up at Flamingoland!

But, screw any of the rides - I want that Tesco! I hope someone had a Clubcard handy and got the points!

And I'm so jealous - I can imagine TPR-takeover of China being quite an experience! Oh well, I'm just looking forward to doing TPR-style again next year! Woo!

 

[DjTommyB]

How old do you have to be to go on the trips as they look fun.

Crystal Wings looks absolutely stunning. <3

 

[MouseAT]

If you're going on your own, I believe the minimum age is 16, but your parents may be required to sign a release form in order for you to attend if you are under 18.

Once you reach the golden age of 18, you're good to go regardless.

The East Coast trip was amazing, and I certainly intend to do more TPR trips in the future. Just be warned that they are absolutely exhausting - most days, we'd be on the road at 7 or 8am, and wouldn't get back to the hotel until around 10:30 or 11:00 at night. After 10 days, such a hectic schedule can really take its toll on you.

 

[suryavl]

Crystal Wings looks absolutely stunning. <3

I have nothing to add to that!

 

[gavin]

China really is a fantastic place, and yes, some of those parks really are gorgeous.

I'll never understand, though, how people can travel to the other side of the planet and eat 90% of their meals at American fast food places, especially when the local food is so much better and costs the same, if not less.

 

[ECG]

I'll never understand, though, how people can travel to the other side of the planet and eat 90% of their meals at American fast food places, especially when the local food is so much better and costs the same, if not less.

It's an American tradition that only yanks can understand. They always have to compare how their awful fast food tastes in foreign lands. :?

 

[robbalvey]

I'll never understand, though, how people can travel to the other side of the planet and eat 90% of their meals at American fast food places, especially when the local food is so much better and costs the same, if not less.

We're actually not. Just posting a lot of those photos for "show" more than anything else. I think out of about 26 meals so far, we've eaten 4 of them at US fast food or pizza chains. We just haven't posted pictures from the other 22 meals.

--Robb "Just wait until I get to the Ed the Chicken photos!" Alvey

 

[Screaming Coasters]

Aint shameless promotion fun...

 

[marc]

Crystal Wings looks so good just shows what can be done.

Some really good pictures there. China and Japan are 2 places I really want to go to.

 

[Peter]

I've been following this report since it's been bringing back alot of memories for me.

I went to China earlier this year, and ended up going to the same factories that you've been too, like the Silk and Pearl ones. I even have pictures of my parents making that silk duvet just like the ones on TPR.

Happy Valley Beijing really is a stunning place, i'm just annoyed that the day I chose to go had 3 coasters down for maintenance, with only the mine train open, which had about a 3 hour queue. Crystal Wings looks even more spectacular with a dull misty/smoggy background.

And LOL at the chickens feet. One of the hotels I was at tried to serve us that for breakfast. :shock:

Have you had "fish head in a pot" yet?

 

[Screaming Coasters]

Yay, riveting TPR plug.

 

[Tomatron]

^No need for that. Really.

Robb, I'm glad you're having a great time there and thanks for sharing all these pictures. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it looks fairly similar to Japan in the respect that there's some really nice stuff, some really weird stuff and some stuff which is about to fall apart.

Looking forward to the next photos!

 

[Screaming Coasters]

^ It is a cool report and I enjoyed reading and viewing the pictures, full respect to Rob, but theres every need... I know you'll disagree but theres just no respect when you plug your site on another site without being a proper contributer. It is considered spam and I really don't think it's an ethical way of creating leads. If you want leads, be an active member and then post a report like this with a plug.

I'm done now anyways...

Just like to say, gimmie one of those chicken feet.

 

[robbalvey]

Aint shameless promotion fun...

Please go gently f**k yourself in the ass sideways with a chainsaw and then, if you wouldn't mind, please cut off your gonads with a pair of garden sheers and place them in your throat, sewing your mouth shut so you choke on your own balls. Yes, I do believe that is my thoughts about your response to my thread.

I posted, contributed, whatever you want to call it nearly SIXTY photos here of parks that are rarely covered! That's more than most trip reports I see on here. By the time I'm done I will probably have posted two or three hundred.

If you call posting most of the photos we've taken to another site as "shameless promotion" then you need to register yourself for the special olympics because you're ****in retarded! And you know, I'd probably be more willing to post more if everytime I posted a report some asshat didn't complain about my posting.

You may call my reports "shameless promotion" but I'll bet I've contributed hundreds of photos to CoasterForce in my reports. How exactly is that shameless promotion?

If someone from CoasterForce posted hundreds of photos to TPR I'd be more than thrilled and would let them post whatever links they wanted to!

--Robb

 

[Ian]

Oh for ****s sake. Robb knows where he stands posting his trip reports and I'm not going through it again.

SC - It's not your place to say what and what is not posted.

Alvey - It's not your place to go tell my members to **** themselves. And I think it's bang out of order that you make a joke about the special olympics.

Grow up everybody!

Back on topic or it gets locked.

 

[robbalvey]

^ C'mon Ian...if Family Guy, South Park and the Simpsons can make jokes about the Special Olympics then can't everyone?

--Robb "And yes, my sense of humor does quite often offend people, sorry" Alvey

 

[Ian]

I'm sure my cousin competing in the SO will find your comments hillarious.

 

[robbalvey]

^ He might actually. Elissa used to be the events coordinator for the SO in Valencia and everyone there had a very good sense of humor. I actually shot the video for the 2006 SO games in our chapter.

I know you're just trying to prove a point, but the real point here is that if you go through your life trying not to offend someone, you're always going to offend someone.

Try to have thicker skin.

--Robb