The Real Housewives of Kissimmee

Magic Castle Inn & Suites
(focal point of the film, The Florida Project)

So...last year a movie came out by the name The Florida Project (a play on the development name for Walt Disney World) I had wanted to see it after everyone started raving about it but failed to get the chance. Luckily during a delightful 16 hour flight I was on to Hong Kong, it was being offered as part of the inflight entertainment... So I watched it... and I really, really enjoyed it.
The film follows of the lives of people who live in the hotels off 192 right behind Disney. Knowing the area and living/working in the area.. it almost seemed like the film could have just been a documentary of life in Kissimmee... and up until the very end of the film.. it seems like it could have even been a reality TV show. While obliviously a movie and not real life, it does give a very real feeling of what its like for people who live and work right on the doorsteps of the Disney empire but might never be able to afford the chance to visit and how millions of visitors yearly have no idea whats really going on where they vacation. ....But I guess that could be said for anywhere, really.
 But it was kinda neat to see a whole bunch of places I've been to or been past. Showing things like Orange World, Twistee Treat, different crappy gift shops, the Mickey Pylon!... and even signs for Cici's Pizza and Ichiban Buffet (one of my favorites!)

I almost feel like had I seen this film before moving down to Orlando... it might have even put me off it. ha
But yeah, Magic Castle Inn & Suites.

Yup.

And much like in the movie.... there were even Sandhill Cranes!
((AND A BABY!!))

(((yyeeeessssss)))

Annddd.... here's the Trailer for the movie.

So yeah... if you haven't seen this movie yet... you probably should.

and here's a rather good news story about the hotel and movie - click

2016 Osceola County Fair

Because... rides.. and stuff, uh, like animals.
Even without my beloved Huss Top Spin showing up this year... I had a few hours to waste on a Friday before Deka came into town for our trip starting the next day.... So off to the County Fair I went!

Yay.

 Woo, the 2016 Osceola County Fair!

We got to the fair about an hour before the rides opened, so we made a lap around the grounds and saw the non-amusement County Fair.... things.

 Like the Country Bumpkin Band

(uhh....)

 And this giant inflatable Cow!

 Hello Mr. Turkey.

 <3 Quack Quack! <3

 Moo?!

 And... this sheep.

 Baby trees? And stuff.

 OH NO!

#Totaled

(Cow down, cow doowwwnnnn)

 ...Ditsy

Uh, the clown.

 Oh man! And there were Pig Races!!!

(And we might have watched two different showings...)

<3 <3 <3

 New this year at the fair was this Technical Park built 22 meter wheel.
(Dreamland debuted it at State Fair and Jeff and I were the *first* riders on it!) 

It may not look so nice in the daytime... but at night, its covered in LED and even the cars themselves glow!

 Strates Giant Wheel.

For now, the largest portable wheel on the East Coast...

 Overview of the ride midway from the wheel, woo.

 Oh hey, and you can see Mako at SeaWorld!

(and Kraken... and Manta)

 And the little Wacky Worm... that we skipped.

(but had ridden in the past <3)

Sadly, Strates failed to bring their adult coaster this year.

 We gave the Musik Express a pity ride.. and it was playing some awful sounding country song.. The Op looked at me and questioned if I liked the song.. and said he'd put on something better.

Yeah, I don't really think Kid Rock was much of an improvement :P

 Haunted House... thing

 Scary stuff, I tell you.

 New (for us at least) this year, was this ollddd kinda beat-up Chance Casino!

I'd never seen one down here before! So we took it for a ride, but the cycle was pretty lackluster and no real changes.

(Sam Pino used to tear it up with theirs in the 90's)

 Also new for me.. 
My first time encountering the Watkins Hustler!

(although I've been on many-a-Tempest)

Same basic ride, but the Hustler isn't on an angle.

(It was fun :) )

I don't think this, or the Casino were owned by Strates Shows but rather booked in by them...

 I also thought this take on the Rock Wall was rather neat. All 3 sides offered different climbs

(the non visible side was like.. a bunch of pipes)

 KMG Fireball!

Ugh... why bring such a fantastic ride... If you're just gonna run it in bitch mode?

Its almost amazing how BAD you can cycle some of these rides :(

 Thankfully.. This was located next door...

Mmm, Chance Zipper...

 With iPhone securely put away.... We took it for a ride :D
(#NeverForget)

 Oh.. and we did a quick lap on the Ring of Fire.. or as Six Flags would tell you, this AMAZING NEW ROLLER COASTER!!!!! (lololol)

And most excitingly of all...... 

ENTERPRISE!
My first time getting to see/ride Strates' Huss Enterprise. I've been to 11 or 12 of their stops since moving here in 09, never saw it... and was beginning to believe the ride didn't actually exist, despite still being listed on their website.

And with a silly 'No Single Riders' rule in place... 2 grown-ass-adults squeezed into a single car... 
while the other 19 remained empty.

Woo, Enterprise!
After making our second lap around the fair and getting another ride in on the Enterprise we made our way to what is typically our last ride at a fair. Anyone who reads these posts by now should know what it is too...

Yup, a Swing Tower... This one being a Zamp built Sky Flyer.

Woo, swings... and stuff.

(Oh, and a Sea Ray we skipped)

Yup, the 2016 Osceola County Fair and Kissimmee Valley Livestock Show at the Osceola Heritage Park

Other stuffs... and stuff.

Sky Flyer video (via Vine) - Video

An extra Enterprise photo - Photo

Woo

Ducks! Because, well, ducks!

Well, this one time in Kissimmee, Florida... there was a Muscovy duck with a few baby duckies!

 Mmhm... mhmm

 aww!

 <3 <3 <3

 Yeesss!!!!

Quack quack?!

One last look at Windstorm

Well, that's it... pack it up and ship it out!
With the closing of Old Town's amusement area, Windstorm, Kissimmee's oldest coaster is going going gone. (in fact, soon after I took these photos it was completely removed!) While not confirmed yet, Adventure Park USA has posted a photo showing the Old Town ride as their new coaster, but it could just be a place holder photo as there are more than one for sale at the moment. While not a big loss now... a few years ago the ride was still running rather good and I always gave it a ride when friends were in town and wanted to head down to Old Town. Sadly, in it's last few years on 192, it rarely ran and the rides quality greatly suffered due to neglect by the owners. The park couldn't have even bothered finishing the repainting of the coaster. While changing from green and purple to a red and blue look.. the park just kinda gave up and left the ride is various states of painting, leaving it four colors at once.

In its last few years, this was the only train the coaster had. Its believed the second train was used for parts to maintain a single usable train.

The first drop and also the final helix.

All four colors can be seen in this photo. 

The newer red and blue... 

as well as some left over purple and green.

(when the ride first opened it was blue and white)

:( the biggest loss of the ride is this, the infamous mid-ride diving-turn element.

While the rest of the coaster may not have been anything special, its big mid-ride trick was absolutely fantastic, almost like a reversed inclined loop.

Windstorm is a production model, this was Zamperla's only go at it, although identical models were made by both S&MC and the original model by S.D.C.

(and I've ridden at least one made by each!)

*Premier also made an almost clone of the same layout as well, but its mirrored and slightly modified*

And... one last photo of Windstorms final ground hugging helix.
While not a massive loss for the Central Florida coaster community.. I'll still miss it, someday
(but I too, became guilty of overlooking the ride, especially as Fun Spot next door grew and grew)

On-Ride video from CoasterForce via YouTube

Woo
(uh, RIP?)

edit - since this was an auto-post update Adventure Park hadn't announced the ride yet, but now have -

So this one time at Denny's........

Yeah....So I love finding all these random "off the beaten path" or Roadside type.....things....

Anyone who's looked into this blog should know that by now

anyways.....

So this one time Jeff and I were at a Denny's on 192 in Kissimmee that had just been refurbished with all these photos from the 40's and 50's and one that caught my eye was a reproduction of a postcard showing "the Monument of States" this awful looking tower... thing. I pointed it out to Jeff and we pretty much assumed whatever it was... was long gone (not even knowing it was *in Florida*) 

A few months later we just happened to be driving around downtown Kissimmee and ended up going right past the thing! needless to say a parking spot was found and photos were taken.. After wondering what the hell we were even looking at I googled Monument of States and found an article about it on RoadsideAmerica. Yeah....

 And... there it is!

The completely awesome Monument of States!

 Each "brick" contains stones and items from a different state, 48 at the time it was built

(now it includes all 50 as well as some 21 other countries!) 

Oh.. and did I mention that one of the other items happens to be a human skull?

And of course I found the Massachusetts brick, dated 1941.

Disney even has a marker... 

placed some five years (almost six, given its placement in January) before the Walt Disney World Resort even opened!

Yeah, you could say I was pretty amused.. even dumbfounded yet oddly excited to have found such a treasure.

More info on the Monument of States can be found on the amazing website RoadsideAmerica