Jake and I went to Universal Studios with our friend Pattie this weekend and had a blast. It was a last minute day trip that ended up being worth every cent. We took TONS of photos and walked our asses off. It was nice to just get out and be entertained. I gave it a review over at 43 Places, and decided to cross post it here.

I just got back from Universal Studios and had a blast. They are constantly changing and upgrading the tours so it's always something new. I took my boyfriend, who has never been to Universal Studios, and my friend. We arrived at opening time (9am) on a Saturday and there were hardly any lines. We headed straight for the guided tour (a MUST SEE) and walked right on. The rest of the day we spent going through the different attractions and enjoying the day.

If you are into movies you will appreciate this more. It is geared towards showing people what happens behind the scenes and giving them an enjoyable time.

Attire: Prepared to get wet. Most places have at least a mist. By the second ride my makeup was off and my hair was wet. Keep this in mind when carrying bags, cameras, etc... Comfortable shoes are a must. It's a very large place.

I enjoyed every attraction I went to, so I'll give a break down of my opinion of each (I did not go on all of them so this is an incomplete list of what is available):

The guided Tour: Go there first to beat the lines. It's a great ride where you get to see set designs, surprises and thrills. My favorite part on this ride was King Kong as far as scream value. My friends' left ear can attest to this.

Jurassic Park ride: Be prepared to get soaked. SOAKED. I swear you would have thought someone stood over me with a bucket of water by the time I got off. It's perfect for the hot summer days.

Backdraft: Perfect for after Jurassic Park ride to dry off. A pyrotechnic show with some surprises. I never saw the movie but it was still highly enjoyable.

Special Effects stages: We had a blast in here. Sit down and watch how the magic happens. Everything from Blue Screen to CGI is covered, as well as sound effect. The tour guides were hilarious and we had a lively group.

House of Horrors: Oh G-d! I screamed my way through this place. It was definitely one of my favorite parts. I walked in expecting some sort of museum about horror films and ended up walking through a VERY dark haunted house tour. I have a scream factor of ten so I spent half the tour scaring those around me.

Back to the Future ride: Fun but a tad long in the beginning. The signs give warnings about claustrophobic people but I didn't think it was bad. It's a simulator that takes you on a trip through time, flying around.

Terminator 2 - 3D: There was an obnoxious guy on the mic outside which was funny for about 2.3 seconds... but thankfully he was not part of the ride. Long intro, so be prepared to stand. I was almost ready to leave when we finally went into the seating section. If you like 3D movies and special effects together you will enjoy this one. The funniest part was the 'commercial' showing how Shaq's free throw improved with Cyberdyne technology.

Revenge of the Mummy ride: A roller coaster with fun special effects. I thought the warning signs were a tad over done. They made it sound like a terrifying ride that only the healthy should ride (back/neck problems, seizures, heart trouble, motion sickness, recent surgery, prosthetic limbs, etc...) It was a little too short but still worthy of checking out. I wouldn't bother standing in a long line for it though.

We ate lunch at Doc Brown's Chicken, which had decent prices and really good chicken. There are tons of places to eat or grab drinks.

Overall: City Walk is an interesting place to go in itself. You can hang out, eat and go to the movies. I would recommend this to anyone wanting to enjoy a fun day who enjoys the magic of movies and fun rides. The park is kept clean and the staff are very friendly. You can always find someone to help you with directions and the rides are enjoyable for all age groups. I'm not sure why some did not like the place, but we had a blast.

Saturday we had a blast on our first official day trip. We started out an hour later than planned (beauty will not be rushed) and made our way up the coast in what turned out to be a wonderful ride. It added a little more to the drive time, but was worth it just to enjoy the scenery and get a chance to talk.

We finally arrived at Solvang a little after 12 noon and started to wander around the streets. Half a dozen tour buses pulled up and small groups of Japanese tourists piled out, snapping pictures at all the buildings and chatting politely to each other. The first impression of this little town is 'hokey'. Then 'touristy'. After peeking through a few shops filled with the best junk that money could buy I was about to call it a day, but knew Jake wanted to see more. As we walked around to more of the shops I wondered what it would be like to live in a place like this. It was the ultimate tourist-driven town. Every shop was filled with glass baubles and little Danish themed nicknacks. Then we arrived at the food section. Yummy deserts that we didn't get and overly priced meals that we also didn't get. Finally Jake found a decent priced cafe called Mandarin Touch and we started to enjoy the atmosphere. I even got to see the Clydesdale horses I remembered from so long ago.

The town is worth a visit just to see. You need to come with an open mind and just enjoy it for what it is: A touristy spot with nice people to guide you along the way. Everything is kept clean and freshly painted. The public toilets are everywhere and kept clean and stocked. The town maybe a tourist trap, but it's a well done tourist trap. I'm glad we went.

On the way home I started feeling... sad. The day was only halfway over and I just didn't want to go back to our normal routine: Computer or TV. Three O'Clock seems to be the most frustrating times for me on the weekends. It's almost too late to go most places and yet worth it just to get out. I looked at the clock and saw the time. I sighed. Jake asked what was wrong and I told him I still wanted to hit Santa Barbara... even if it was to just go on the beach. I admit being the fussiest person... so this was a last ditch effort to just prolong going to our crappy little apartment. He agreed and my mood lightened.

We arrived at the beach around four and parked next to a skating spot. Dips and curves that made me cringe were being treated as ramps by kids that came up to my hip. We oohed and ahhhed all the tricks they did and groaned when a few ate concrete in front of us. A couple of guys sat at the side with Skating Monitor on their shirts and listened to their MP3 players. Every once in a while one would call a kid over and hand them a helmet. They were always polite and the kids seemed to have a good repore with them. We ventured on, taking pictures of all the beautiful sites and walked along the beach. I asked a few people if they were locals and what restaurants were good. Everyone seemed to be tourists or new in town. We ended up eating at a restaurant back on Stearns Wharf. After choking on the *nice* restaurant menu ($34 for some sort of lobster dish) we ambled up to the bar/cheap restaurant called Longboard's Beach Bar and Grill on the upper level. There we had a delicious casual meal (the chicken strips are to die for) and drank some alcohol (I had two glasses of wine, he had some beer) while watching the boats and birds glide across the ocean. When the sun finally got close to setting we rushed out to snap a couple of photos. It was a wonderful day that I didn't want to end. I thought about getting a hotel room but figured we'd wait a paycheck (or two) and look for a few more spots to hit while there.

It feels so good to finally be able to travel around. I felt like we were falling into a horrible routine of just being together instead of enjoying each other. Saturday was a much needed shot of relationship 'couplism' time that was long overdo. Sometimes just being together isn't enough. You can be in the same room and still be miles apart. I look forward to venturing farther and traveling more. Yay for couplism!