2011 Vacation Part II
Originally Published Date:
August 27, 2011
Monday
So Monday started out our vacation. Since check-in at The Brittany Hotel was not until 2pm, we decided to leave early and head to the Cape May Zoo before we roll into Wildwood.
We got to the zoo and finally found parking. We made our way into the zoo and it was so hot that even the animals were hiding themselves from the sun. An hour later, we were hot, sweaty and had heat headaches. On to Wildwood we went.
We get to the hotel, check in and bring our bags up to the room thanks to one of those little baggage carts. As we are pulling our stuff in, we notice we are directly across the street from the Pink Cadillac Diner. So, after we put our things in our room, we headed over to the diner for lunch. We also kept in mind where the local drug store was so that we could get a couple of things with a discount.
The hotel was very nice with all the rooms opening up to a center courtyard where the big “B” shaped pool was. So, you can look out the front window and check out the pool area. The room was just big enough for us with a nice size living room area for the baby to run around. There were two beds in the back bedroom with a small private balcony which we really only used as a personal dryer.
After settling into our room, we quickly got into our bathing suits and made sure everyone was covered in sun tan lotion before heading down to the pool. It was awesome to jump into the 8 foot and swim down to the 3 ft end where the kids and Kelly were waiting for me. After about an hour, the baby was done with the pool. She had enough so Kelly took her up to the room to get her changed and fed. Brianna and I, on the other hand, stayed in the pool and had a bit of fun. Then I happened to notice something on the bottom of the pool. I told Brianna to grab me her goggles and I went down to investigate only to find out someone pooped in the pool. We got out, dried off and went into the office to let them know. We then tried to quietly slip away back to our room so no one knew it was us who ruined everyone’s good time by having been kicked out of the pool to be cleaned.
After we got showered and dressed, we headed up to the boardwalk just to see what was going on up there. It was so crowded you could barely walk which I thought was odd for a Monday night. As we walked along, we pointed out all the new things that had gone up since the last time we were there. The sign on the Gateway Arcade has been replaced with all new updated colors, there is a new family indoor maze, the new rides and attractions, it really looks like they are trying to bring Wildwood back as a family resort. Brianna decided to get a Henna Tattoo but with the chlorine in the pool it faded quickly. By 9:30 we were ready to call it a night but apparently the baby was not quite ready. She may have fallen asleep on the boards but she was merely charging herself up for a night of running around the hotel room.
Tuesday
On Tuesday we decided to hit the rides and take advantage of the Morey’s deal of riding as many rides as you want up till 6pm for $22. Now I love roller coasters but before I get on them, I tend to get very nervous. So, I figured we would build up to the big ones by starting out with a small one or something. But Brianna would have none of that. No, she threw us right on the Sea Serpent first. As we are being pulled backwards up the first 125-foot tower, we could actually see our hotel room just before they let us go. By the time we got to the second tower I was so dizzy but just as the dizziness went away, they dropped us again to do it backwards. She did a few more rides before we all headed up to the next pier. By the time we got to the next pier, we were so hot and sweaty so we went right onto the log flume. We got wet enough to make us hit the Great Nor’ Easter to dry off. When we got off of that, the baby was getting cranky so Kelly decided to take her back to the room while Brianna and I finished up the rides. Brianna wanted to get on the Sea Serpent Again! But the best part was that this time she wanted to sit in the very first car so we could see everything. We then went on this Pirate Ship looking sight-seeing ride that convinced me that next year we were going to Raging Waters Water Park. She then saw this ride under the Ferris Wheel that were boats that you pedal around a small pond. She wanted to steer it and she steered us right into the side wall. It took me the rest of our time to turn us around. Moral of the story is not to let her steer a boat. By the time we got off of there, the new attraction The Ghost Ship was opening up and Brianna said I had to go on it. She had gone in it before and told me that it was so much fun. She told me about certain parts of it. But once we got inside of it, she changed her tune. She cried the entire time she was in there and even screamed that she wanted her mom. After I calmed her down, I was excited to take her on The Great White for the first time. This is my favorite coaster down there. It starts off going under the boardwalk and then lifts you up 125 feet for the first drop. It is and always will be awesome.
By the time we got back to the hotel, we were sweating again so we quickly changed and jumped in the pool for a little bit. I took the baby down to the pool so that Kelly could have a little quiet time. But once Kelly poked her head out of the room to look down on the pool, the baby was yelling “MOMMMMYYYYYY” loud enough for Kelly to hear it on the third floor. When the baby got tired enough of the pool, we all went up to get ready for dinner.
Kelly wanted seafood but Brianna and I do not eat it. So, we decided to go to the Rusty Rudder for dinner. The Rusty Rudder is an all you can eat buffet dinner, I got roast beef, Kelly had her seafood and everyone was happy. At least until we got back out to the car. We made sure to feed the meter so that we did not run out of time. However, my car was ticketed for parking the wrong way on the wrong side of the street. I’ll tell you. The wildwood cops must have nothing better to do than to look for ANYTHING to write a ticket for. Afterwards, we went back to the room and called it a night.
Wednesday
Since the hotel offered free barbeque lunch on Wednesday, we decided to go to the beach in the morning and spend the rest of the afternoon by the pool. We packed everything up and walked the boardwalk, down the pier to the water park so that we could use their beach entrance to cut out a lot of the long beach walk. The stroller we put the baby in would not work for the sand so Kelly wound up having to carry her. After she could not carry her anymore, she decided to let the baby walk on the sand. Once Savanna’s feet hit the sand, she stood there like she was glued to the floor, looking down at the sand and not knowing what to think. So, between Brianna and Kelly they had to carry her to our spot. Once we got settled, we took the baby down to the water’s edge and she tried to get way from the waves. So, Kelly took her back to the blanket while Brianna and I went boogie boarding. Half an hour later, we had to pack everything up and head back to the hotel because the baby was freaking out over the sand. By the time we got back to the hotel, Savanna had completely picked her feet clean of sand. She couldn’t stand her feet being dirty. We spent the rest of the afternoon in the pool.
Around 7, we all got ready and wanted to hit the Boardwalk for some last-minute shopping and dinner. We ate at Jumbos’ on Mariner’s Landing then went into the arcade right there. Kelly gave me $5 in quarters to play skee-ball which was plenty for me considering the games were 25 cents a game. On the third game my quarter got stuck and I told the attendant about it. He quickly fixed it and I went back to playing. When my quarters ran out, I noticed the balls came back down the shoot for another game, and then another, and then another. I must have played 10 free games. It was great.
After Brianna picked out her prizes, we picked up matching shirts for the kids: Thing 1 and Thing 2. Then we headed back to the hotel and turned in.
Thursday
Thursday morning we got up early, packed up, loaded the car and came home. Once we got home, we vegged out in front of the TV the rest of the day and relaxed.
Sunday
Being that Sunday was our last day of vacation, we decided to take the kids to Adventure Aquarium since it was supposed to rain most of the day. We got up early and headed over. When we got there, sure enough it was raining. What we didn’t plan on, however, was the line being so long. We were stuck out in the rain under an umbrella and got a bit wet before we even got in the place. Once we got inside it was amazing to see the kids marvel over all the different type of fish.
As we got to the “Touch A Shark” pond, it was so crowded. After we finally found a spot, Brianna showed Savanna how to reach in and touch a one of the sharks. The baby was a little distracted by the fact that she could just splash the water.
I then took Brianna over to touch the sting rays. It was too crowded to have the baby lean over and touch them. It seemed like the little stingrays kept coming over and when they did, the bigger ones got jealous so they would come over and try to push the smaller ones out. It took a bit of courage but finally Brianna touched one. They kind of felt like the old rubber spiders that you would throw at the wall and watch them climb down.
We then headed upstairs to the Rainforest area. There was another section where you could touch the animals. Kelly, Brianna and I touched the Jellyfish then made our way down to the pond where they had star fish and lobsters. Brianna was ok with touching the Jellyfish and Starfish but drew the line at the Lobsters.
By this time, we were all hungry and went down for lunch. Everyone got what they needed but I had to wait around because, as usual, everyone assumes that everyone eats cheese on their burgers. So, I had to wait till the hamburger was done. Then we had to pace back and forth through the cafeteria area just to find somewhere to sit. One family were nice enough to let us sit with them.
After we ate, we headed over to the see Kelly’s favorite, the Hippos. But they were eating on the land. We decided to come back in a bit in hopes that they were in the water.
We then headed on to see my favorite, the Sharks! When we got to a big window, we stood Savanna on the ledge to look into the shark tank. I showed her the Sharks and then was talking to Kelly about something. When we stopped talking for a second, we realized that Savanna was trying to call the sharks by singing the Jaws theme. It was hysterical. After Brianna took Savanna into the big Shark mouth for pictures, we walked through the Shark Tunnel. All of us kids were amazed just watching the Sharks come and go and even more amazed by the sawfish laying still on top of the tunnel.
When we were done, we went through the gift shop and back to the Hippos and sure enough they were in the water. One was just sitting still while the other was swimming circles around the tank. We then went through the Shark Realm one more time before heading home and calling it a day.
All in all, we had so much fun on Vacation. We can’t wait for next year so we can make some minor adjustments and have even more fun!
Until next time,
Thanks for reading!
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