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time : Wednesday, March 30, 2011

title : Universal Studio
I went to the Universal Studio Singapore today. And yes, I went by myself.

Of course, there were voices saying how idiotic I am, how I would be the first going by myself, how the stuff would denied my entrance, how that is so weird but hey, since the rest of the Deeots refused my offer of going along, what can I do?

Besides, it would be a different experience, going by myself and let me tell you, I had LOADS of fun. And I took a truckload of pictures.

Therefore, this post would be a semi-walkthrough plus my experience on Universal Studio Singapore. And I am going to post ALL of my pictures.

So make sure your internet connection can keep up, sit tight and read this baby.




Woke up early in the morning as Universal Studio Singapore (USS) opened at 9am, till 6pm, and head on out to Sentosa.

My mum sponsored this trip to USS and gave me $100 bucks. Out of that amount I spend $3 on the ticket over. So yeah, I am on a very tight budget.

Once there, I followed the instructions, or directions would be the correct term over to USS and got my ticket at $66. Which leaves me with very very very little amount left.

Happy, I took my tix and went to search for the gate in.
HAAH.
One signage kind of broke my plans.

"Opening hours - 10am till 7pm "

I was early. By an hour. So okay, I got an hour... To do what exactly? Easy. I went to the toilet. Then I whip out my itouch, turn on the music, switch on my DS and started training my pokemon. Yeah. I managed to get my Ice Bear to level 60.

From level 56.

Oh, I also got the must-take picture of the Universal Studio globe.
A note, I really dislike have random passer-by in my pictures so I try to get them taken without anyone in it. Which results in a lot of tries. But sometimes, especially in the afternoon and evening, it is almost an impossible task. But I try. To my best.


Yeah, this took me 3 tries. But look! No one is in the picture! Ah the mist... Cool.

Which afterwards I went toff back to the gates and presto, people lined up, ready to head in. So I joined the line that looks to be the shortest and wait for a couple of minutes and presto!!

I'm in!

Erm. It's impossible to get it without anyone in the photo...
And I have no idea why that guy in the photo is shrugging. But yes, the first thing I am in is the Hollywood street. Here's a map to understand better.

See the globe? See how Hollywood street is joined at the gates? Good. From here on it would mostly be pictures so... enjoy.

Hollywood Street

What did I tell ya? Hollywood BLVD and no, I don't know this man. Well then, lets move on!

Yep, even Hollywood needs their daily dose of news. And what do we have here? ' The HOLLYWOOD STAR ' and ' The New York Daily ENQUIRER '.

Isn't it cute, the way US citizen buy their newspaper?

The popcorn car!

Information : You would be able to see this car anywhere you visit, be it The Lost World or The Mummy. Of course, the cars shape would be different as they cater to different themes but the contents remains the same. Popcorn and nachos. For a price you will be very unwilling to pay.

But at the time I saw this little beauty, it's too early and thus, the store is not yet open.

Speed limit! Good, it seems like the 2 of them are obeying the law.
Note : The star on the floor. Star of fame!

Wow, the USS shop is beautiful.

I love beautifully designed buildings.

A photo shop! Cute. How many do you see outside with sure a quirky design / architecture?

Hollywood China Bistro! How come Ang Mo always associate us chinese with dragons?

Can't see a thing? Damn sun.

There we go. The sign, or should I say traffic light switch to 'stop' the moment I saw it. As a law-bidding person, of course I have to obey.

I saw this hugemongous tree the moment I step 'out' of Hollywood. It captured my attention. Don't you think it looks very cool?

The very next thing you'll see is a fountain. With them.
Beyond the fountain is a full view of all the attractions.

And besides that...

Breathtaking, isn't it? Doesn't look like I'm in Singapore.
Now, full shots of the different attractions from the same place.

Battlestar Galactica!

Ancient Egypt!

That's all to it. Lol. So after picture taking, I turned and begin down the route and what do I see... ?

This little cutie is just directly beside the fountain, you can't miss it. My little yellow beetle.

There are 3 cars in this area. Cool.

It does emit a James Bond feel, doesn't it?

In front of this car lies a very 80's looking...

On yeah, baby. Austin Powers my boy.

The 3rd car I mention.

All this took a lot of tries to get as I patiently waited for people to get out of my view for the picture.

Following down... Ah!

Monster Rock! Doesn't seems to be open though..

Wait. What's that?

Oh my! I've ventured into New York! Love the car, by the way.

Like I said. The buildings.

Full view!

New York time!


New York

The street of New Yorkers.

Don't know why but I'm interested in what the signs say..

Ah!

I love seeing the 'real' buildings that are found in New York.

I'm not in Singapore anymore. That's what my pictures says.

Look at all the zig-zagging patterns of those stairs... Fruits?

Looks good.

They deliver!

You know, I haven't eaten a thing. Nope, not even breakfast. And those make me feel hungry. Even though I hate veggies...

Hmm? What happen? Why are those signs there?

Got a little distracted by the opposite street view...

"Apartment To Let". I want!

Lol. Look, a parking meter!

Charges!

This is just behind the awesome parking meter. Look! A Pharmacy! For men.



So, after piquing your curiosity, here's the answer!

Which doesn't really say anything. I have total no idea what happened here. Maybe someone just decided to drop a ton here?

Any answer anyone?

Ah, the unlucky store that is just in front of the accident.

Looks good.

The other window display. Okay, now I'm really hungry.
I'm going to stop looking.

Just directly in front of this cafe lies...


A Court?!? What's what tiny yellow thing (bottom right hand corner) that got into my picture?

Yellow cab! Wait. What's the sign?

"Hackstand Taxicab" .... Huh?

You don't think I would forget the protector of the Court, would you?

A subway just beside! What a convenient way to get to Court... Why? Wouldn't that increase crime rate?

" By Police Dept ". I really got a thing for signs...

Sigh.. Look at that building.

The opposite street across the subway. Which is worse? Making the Courthouse very accessible or living just opposite a Courthouse?

I love the details given to all the buildings. Stuff like " Apartment To Let " and this

It's the 2nd level window.

Information : Be sure to take note of all the building windows for most of them are printed with signs like this; of different 'existing' companies.

This is what is on the 1st level that of same building. A newspaper company! And not just any newspaper, it's the 'The New York Times Enquirer'!

"Established 1914 ".

It's just in front of the newspaper company. A gold hydrant? Seriously?

A chinese store selling antiques. Another stereotype.

Oh look, they do have normal red hydrent. "Queensboro Bridge". I love signs.

And we are at the end of New york. This picture show how clashing the 2 themes are. Science-ficion and old time building. Love it.

I did a U-turn and went back for the attraction of New York, ' Lights, Camera, Action! Hosted by Steven Spielberg '.
I wanted to go for everything since I'm here anyway.

No pictures as I forgot. But the moment you step in, movie posters of old-time movies adorned the walls. They are beautiful. Hand-painted since in the 80's people rarely pose for movie posters.

Examples : Dracula. The Wolf Man. The Invisible Man. Creature of the Black Lagoon.

As you head in, recent posters came up.

Stuff like : Chucky 2, Jaws. You get the drift.

I stood in line a several minutes before they usher us in. I totally have no idea what to expect. I imagined a box where you sit and as the 'movie' plays, the seats move according to the movie.

I was wrong.

We went into a simple place, standing only with screens in front of us. My expectation for this attraction went way down. The screen came alive with Steven Spieldberg face and we were shown how special effects make movie look good.

And they do.

But now the surprise came. We were to move into another area called the 'sound stage' where it is to mimic a old abandon boat house in a level 5 typhoon.

My gosh.

The set came ALIVE. I was totally blown away by the scene in front of me. A twist came in the end and I was so glad I came.

Information : This attraction may seems boring but trust me, you won't be disappointed. I won't say too much here as I do not want to spoil the surprise of you experiencing it yourself. Steven Spieldberg created a movie in which we are the actors. I feel like I am really in New York, experiencing a level 5 typhoon.

Not a good thing. Typhoon.

And when I walk out, I saw him...

Okay, I have no idea who he is but people apparently do. Here's a front look at him with some random people as he is supposed to be posing with random people for pictures.

Sorry for the blurriness.

I love it. So go ahead, New York is a very beautiful place with lots of different buildings never seen in Singapore. Take a good look around and immerse yourself in the place. And don't forget to go for ' Lights, Camera, Action! Hosted by Steven Spielberg '.

Tips : There's a hat shop just before ' Lights, Camera, Action! ' building where you can try on all kinds of different hats and take all the pictures you want with your friends. Trust me, you should see those hats. Kooky.

Tiny tip for ' Lights, Camera, Action! Hosted by Steven Spielberg ' : The ones standing on the first row get wet. I meant it. Lol.

Okay, next stop, Sci-Fi City. Time for Battlestar Galactica.

Sci-Fi City

I'm in! Boy, am I excited. What else is there to this place apart from the two red-blue rides named 'Human' and 'Cylon'?

Hmm. This is not a good picture but who am I to fight against the sun?
Like New York, I am walking through the entire place.
While taking pictures.

The walls. I miss my old time feel of the New York street.
This? This looks like machine bugs with a lot of eyes. And jaws.

And what do we have here? 'Daybot Robotics'. Does this shop really exist in Battlestar Galactica?

And so, I moved on. To tell the truth, there wasn't much to see around here. People came here to be thrill which explains why there's not much to see around here.

Information : There's another popcorn car here with names like ' Blah blah blah from planet blah '. And ' All food is imported directly from so and so planet '. Kinda cute actually.

And what greeted me at the end of the covered walkway? Ta-dah!

To the right we have...

Accelerator! The lady in charge looks bored though. Hey people, you've only just opened for business! Show some joy!

And forward on...

The main attraction. Boy, is my heart pumping or what?

But first, allow me to have a walk through.

This is what is in front of the Battlestar symbol. A alien pod / egg like thing that spurts out water.
A pawn of the Merlion, perhaps?

Beyond this is Ancient Egypt, thus I headed back.

Time for the coasters.

My heart is beating so fast I had a though that at the current situation, I would be deemed 'unhealthy both mentally and physically' for the ride. Having heard of the coasters, I knew the red one, 'Human', would be the tamer of the two.

But I said before, I am going to ride on every ride.

I chickened out.

Look, I'm sorry but hey, I lack the guts man.

Note : Due to the state of my mind and body, I am so psych out that I forgot to take the pictures of the entrance of both rides. Too bad guys, get in and have a look yourselves.

Made my way towards the red tunnel like area, preparing myself for the ride of the century.
Remember my slight fetish for signs? Well yeah, a sign caught my eyes.

" Loose item such as bags, accessories must not be taken in. These items can be kept at lockers. "

Well okay. Where are the lockers? Well here's a tip for them, make a sign pointing towards the lockers. Since the sign is near to the entrance of the 'Human' ride, I see soon-to-be raiders being turn away by a staff asking them to remove their 'loose' items. Well, here's someone who can tell me where the lockers are located.

" Excused me. Where are the lockers? "

" You need to place all your items in the lockers... "

" I know. Where are the lockers? "

" Your loose items need to be placed in the lockers as well as your scarf... "

" I know. Where are the lockers? "

You really can't blame me for losing my patience. I went up and asked my directions to the lockers which shows I know what I have to do, doesn't it? How many time do I have to ask?

Apparently, my tone shows my temper and she pointed to her left. Well, that took 2 seconds.

Information : Rides, mostly roller coasters would require you to deposit your bags, water bottles (if you brought one), bangles, scarf, ' loose items ' into a locker or a non-rider before going onto the ride.

The lockers are free for the first 30 minutes which after will begin charging. It uses your birthday as the password as well as your favorite color. Simply press on the "Hire Locker" button to begin.

To open the lockers after your ride, press the "Reopen Locker" button and proceed to type in your birthdate and your favorite color.

Not following? No worries, there're always Staff there to help. And to guide the noobs.

After which I deposit my stuff, bangle included, I returned back to the entrance of the ride and head in, heart thumping again.

This is it.

Oh boy.

There's a certain distance you need walk before reaching but remember! Notice the walls. They're adorned with pictures and posters like : "Be on guard, anyone would be a Cylon". Or stuff like "We need you, are you ready?".

By this time, I felt like I am ready to beat the crap out of the enemies, Cylon. Never will you defeat us!

Reaching, I was bunched together with a couple of random riders.

"Push down the safety guard and buckle on the seatbelt. " Which I did. I don't want to die you see. Then there were Staff to check if we did it correctly after which they gave a thumbs-up to the control station.

"Initiation, preparing to launch. "

"Battleship, launching. "

Here we go! We moved out together with the 'Cylon' and immediately we head on upwards.
Okay, that was fast. Way to fast, they don't even have a build up and before you know it, we fell!

Well, throughout the entire ride I shut and open my eyes and there were actually tears. But when we came to a slow, I was grinning like an idiot with loads of adrenaline coursing through me body. THAT WAS FUN.

And as we reached the platform, everyone clapped for us, including the would-be riders. Nice touch!

Tip : For most of the roller coasters rides, people will clap for you will you reached the platform after your ride so don't forget to do the same for people ahead of you!

I climb out, legs a little wobbly, head slightly giggy, grinning like an idiot as I made my way out. I was thirsty as I screamed but there were like metal water fountains, 2 of 'em to be exact, but I was following the flow of people walking out thus I miss my chance of drinking.

Information : Bad idea. If you're thirsty, drink now. Drinks sold around USS is basically robbing you of your money with a smile.

I went out, going through the Battlestar Galactica souvenir shop, head to my locker, grab my stuff, still grinning like an idiot and continue on my journey.

WAIT A MINUTE.

I forget about the Accelerator!


And so I did a U-Turn and went straight for that.

Information : You're allowed bags.

I sat in a car all by myself and things starts spinning. I grinned. Man, I really love rides that spin, I have no idea why. But this is kind of slow, will it, like it's name is called, accelerate?

" ......*not clear on what is being broadcast*.... 85% "

"......95%"

"...100%"

Yes! Finally, is it going to accelerate?
To my utter dismay, the ride ended.

So yeah, there's no harm trying out this ride since you're here anyway but don't give it too much expectation. Either that or my tolerance for spinning rides are way high.

Right outside the rides is Ancient Egypt. Ancient Egypt, here I come!

Ancient Egypt

Wow, look at those statues. They are huge!

Close up. Oh crap, I crop out the load this guy's carrying.

There we go, full close up. Ignore the black little corner please, that's just my camera's protective cover. And near it's feet was...

So much more to see that the Sci-Fi City.

Another angle. Mummy, look how tall he is!

And right ahead, to the right side...

Imposing.

After which were walls fill with stuff like these ...

And this.

And the last of the three ...

Which I have to comment on how some people are blind to your efforts of trying to a picture without them in it. I had to wait very very very very very patiently for them to move out of the way.

Next to them are ...

Horuxs?

On the direct opposite of these walls are still walls, only with different impressions on them.

The crack adds to the feel.


This can't be even classified as a crack. It's an entire chip off the block.

It's actually a popcorn car I mention earlier, with this guy on top. And no, I have no idea who is he scaring.

A flat on view of the previous side impression I managed to capture.

And finally, for the main attraction of Ancient Egypt, 'Revenge of the Mummy'!

Will you look at that. If that build was in a triangular shape I would be weeping tears of joy.

Close up.

And right in front of them are rows and rows of .... them?

And yes. Mission Impossible to get it without living, breathing people. Although I would love for that to happen.

2 rows of these guys, bowing before the almighty.... Me.

A pictures show a thousands words... This just shows 4.

A coffin. Out in bright daylight??


Enough picture taking, I have been waiting for this ride. I'm ready, especially after the little 'tidbit' named 'Battlestar Galactica Human'.

Knowing the drill, I immediately when off to the right to search for lockers. There're 2 areas, one to the right, one to the left, after you enter. I simple enter the one with the shortest queue for the lockers.

Not long after, and empty of anything but my watch, I went in.
Ahead of me was a couple of teens, which one of them kept on exclaiming how scary it is.

Information : Like the Battlestar, you would need to walk a certain distance before you reached the platform. Unlike Battlestar, this place is dark. and filled with coffins. I'm serious. There are certain parts where you definitely need to slow down and try to grope your way around cause you will be hardly able to see.

Take note that there will be stairs and be careful of tripping over them.

You know how I have the fear of supernatural stuff and all and with all the whining of the lady in front of me, plus the scary music flooding the place, I am feeling very creeped out. I kept on imagining something will burst from the coffins to scare me.

Nothing happened. Apparently the ride doesn't starts until you're in the car.

I reached, after a long winding snake route and some stairs with an active overload imagination, to the platform.
Once again, I'm bunched with some others, japanese mother and her kid, being 1 person. But the thing is... I ended up on the side.

No. No no no no no.

I heard from others that the sitting at the sides is way scarier than the ones sitting in the middle. Well, it's too late isn't it? After checking, the Staff gave their thumbs-up and oh no, the car started moving.

Like I said, I'm psych out from the start and the monologue plus background music isn't really helping me to calm down. I am officially scared out of my wits. Something happened, I'm not saying what, and that's it, my eyes shut on it's own.

Like the Battlestar, I open and closed my eyes throughout the ride, mostly closed. But I enjoyed the thrill and the jerking and the falling of the ride.

Yes, I'm a scaredy cat.

But it was fun and I did open my eyes for all the correct and important parts. And as the rule, we were rewarded applause as we climb out of the car. I was giddy and smiling idiotically. Once outside, I was rewarded with a blast of sunshine.

Information : USS is hot. Really hot. So wear light and please don't be stupid and wear improper clothes for riding roller coasters.

So her I am, sweating and feeling really really thirsty. Screaming makes you thirsty, I found out. So I took my stuff and spotted a stand selling those koonky little bottles filled with liquid. I went forward and ask for the price of the bottle shaped like a rounded chemistry tube with cutie Puss-In-Boots on the front.

" $15.90. "

Damn USS and their daylight robbery skills.

" Any top-ups after that would be $2. "

That sounds better. I took a look around and saw lush green trees just up ahead. The Lost World! Which means ' Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure '!

I gave my thanks to the guy selling drinks for his information and starts heading forward. I am not going on a ride with a full stomach. Maybe later, I thought to myself, maybe later.

The Lost World

The first thing you will see. "Popcornasauras"! Told you guys that you'll see popcorn cars everywhere.

And we're here!

I got a thing for big trees.

Besides, don't you thing this thing looks kinda like a dinosaur?

How cute is that? I mean, where else can you see a dino wearing a t-shirt, a cap, carrying a bag with it's skull on the cover? Although they are different species.

I got my USS magnet here as my dad wants a magnet.

Tip : Bring money and try to get magnets from all different themes as the magnets are beautiful. My dad wail about why didn't I told him I didn't have enough money to by the rest of the magnets for him, he would have gave me money. Oh well. Now I know.

Information : There's a DBS, UOB ATM near this shop so fret not if you find your money lessening and you want to buy stuff. Just bring your card.

From here on now, there'll be a shade covering the path so at least you'll be away from the friendly sun for a while.

This is what was tied to the post of the shade covering us. Sorry but it just seems fake.

After walking through the shaded area, you'll see this scene. 2 dino circling each other with sprouting water eggs in between them. Are you feeling the terror?

Close up. At least this was done much better then the head one.

Very brave of me to walk up this close to a dinosaur.

And just behind is ...

What are we going to discover except overpriced food?

And we reached the gates!

It was then someone went past me dressed weirdly and carrying a...

What heck was that?!?

He stopped for a kid which explains the stroller wheel in this picture.
Believe it or not but the dinosaur in his arms do move!

No more pictures beyond this point as I am, once again, pump full of adrenaline as I saw the ' Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure ' just right in front of me. I went up, got a poncho for $2 from a Staff and proceeds to the nearest lockers area.

To which I then discover that they do not provide the 'first 30 minutes free of charge'. There were 4 options with the first one starting " 1 hour - $4.oo ".

Being on a tight budget and a cheapskate, I decided to skip paying and instead start heading back towards Ancient Egypt for their free lockers.

I came out, carrying on my poncho with me and went in.

Unlike the previous rides I ridden, there was a long queue.

Damn. No wonder they charge us for the lockers, we're going to have to either way, looking at the queue. Oh man. Then I spotted another thing, people are carrying their bags in. Apparently, if you don't mind your bags getting wet, you're allowed to bring them in.

DAMN. I don't even have to pay for the first time!!

That's the punishment I get for being a cheapskate.

Tip : Here's what I learned. Skip the lockers and just bring your bags along. There will be dinosaurs trivia on the walls so don't forget to read them as you're waiting!

After waiting, I was grouped along with a family of 6 consisting of 2 adults and 4 young kids, and a couple. I was the only one with poncho. I don't mind. I am not going to get wet. I don't have a change of clothes.

So I put on my poncho, pull up my baggy pants, clamp the poncho tight around my legs, grab the loose ends of my poncho sleeves, making sure water can't get in and I'm ready! Let's go!

There are jerking movements as the boat hits the land which creates some thrill as you see dinosaurs around you. There isn't a lot to see though, before you get into the 'warning' zone where they so-called ask you to turn back immediately as the dinosaurs had escaped.

Dinosaurs leaped out and hiss at you as I braced myself for the ending.

I miss a thing.

My shoes. There were a huge splash and my feet were flooded. Which means my sneakers and socks were soaked thoroughly.

Tip : Either bring slippers along to changed into when you're going for this ride or simply wear slippers from the beginning. I recommended the former as you'll need to remove your slippers in fear of them falling off when you ride Battlestar.

I climb out, not really wet apart from my feet and some parts of my pants ( which is made out of thin cloth so I know they dry as I walk along under the hot sun ) and made my squishing way towards the lockers in Ancient Egypt.

Information : I knew I would need to pay but there's something they need to improved on. I left my ez-link (you can pay by ez-link) and my cash in the locker so how do I pay? A little idiotic it seems.

I got the help of the Staff around and took my stuff, paid and begin making my way towards The Lost World for slippers to change into.

Having no choice, I brought a pair of slippers to change into, dump my socks and slip my soaked sneakers into the plastic bags and hope they won't stink.

Well, you can consider this lessons learned.

Feelings : There's nothing too specular about this ride and if you have to miss one, you can go without taking this ride. It is fun but to me, it loses out to ' Lights, Camera, Action! Hosted by Steven Spielberg '. It's just a feeling of mine.

And onwards I go.

Information : Far Far Away will be right in front of you but luckily for me, I spotted .....


Right at the side of The Lost World.

WaterWorld

This is not on the map as well as it is quite easy to miss out on. It seems like a beautiful place and I am going in.

But first, I am thirsty!

I moved forward to Far Far Away first, thinking of getting the drink I asked just now and since Puss-In-Boots are on the cover, I would be able to find it in Far Far Away. I head towards the nearest stall and asked for it.

They have it!

Information : If you want it filled with either blueberry or fruit punch slushie, it cost $15.90 and $14.90 if you want filled with soft drinks. Any additional top-ups after you finished your drinks are $4.90 for slushie and $2 for soft drinks.

I recommend you get a bottle like this as the top-ups are for a bargain. Trust me. Since when a bottle of water cost $3. Plus you get a lanyard and a cute bottle as a souvenir.

I got fruit punch slushie and after comforting my throat, I head back to WaterWorld.


Near the entrance was a hotdog stand overfilled with people and of course, a restroom.

Information : Every theme park have different theme restroom so it's a hoot to check them out.

" Come on in! Show's starting at 1pm! "

Am I lucky or what? I managed to stumble across the 1pm show on time.

Information : There're 2 shows daily, one at 1pm, the 2nd at 4pm.

Yes! Of course, I still have about 25 minutes before the show starts so I took my time in walking towards the queue and taking pictures.

There are many stuff like this displayed along the walls.

I just love the view of these stuff.

There was nothing more to it so I joined the queue under the shade. But hey! There're more stuff on display.

Why am I showing this? Read and process.

1st Jet Ski Transformation.

2nd.

Final Transformation.

Had a very old-school feel to it. I love this feel.

See the queue? At least it's under the shade.

Some scene of some sort was lay out on displayed.

I have no idea what the cage is for.

Wilted plants are popular with the people 'living' in this scene.



Now I get it. The cage is to contain tableware like cups!

I told myself I have to get the entire scene with the piece of ragged cloth hanging on the line.

Where have the people gone?

That's fake meat on the plates by the way.



I'm fascinated by this ...thing and I have no idea what this is.

More cages. What do they use this for??

And so time passes and ding, it's 1pm. The show is starting. We are led into the show area.


Close up of the stage.





The seats are divided into 2 parts by a railing in between. Thinking to catch the action right in front of me, I proceeded to the first area. Just when I am about to plonk my butt on the seats, I caught words on the seats.

"Splash Zone".

My gosh! No thank you! I had enough of water from 'Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure' ! I couldn't get up fast enough as I head back towards the 2nd area with benches in deep red color.

I am a genius.

Because this is what happened.

Of course, I took this by chance but it came out nicely, doesn't it?

There were 3 of them running around, using their water guns to spray at everyone in the 1st area. And when I say everyone, I meant everyone. No one looks dry.

It's a hoot, watching them spray without any guilty conscious. Especially kids, they love spraying at kids. And when you try to escape to the 2nd area, what you're doing is making yourself out to be a huge walking target. You'll be soaked from head to toe. They'll definitely attack you.

Surrender now or prepare to fight!

Filling up my guns~

Die!

More ammo~

Die faster!

You think this is bad? After which the 3 of them attempted to prep us audiences for the show by asking us to shout "Hey!" to them while raising both our arms up in the air. Of course, the efforts for the first round was lackluster.

Which results in a punishment. Out come the buckets!!

Man, I'm so glad I change my seats. And now you know. Unless you love to get wet.

After that the shouts were awesome from us and thus, the show started! All 3 of them ran to their places.

One here.

Another here.

The last one right on top.

The show was great, with boats, jet skis, fire, explosions, machine guns, even a plane! Don't miss it for the world!

After which it ended, the actors took a bow and went off in a boat. There were a scene laid out when I entered into the show area so I am itching to go back there to take pictures.

What happened here?

Looks like a worktable... Or not.

There were status in a glass case, 3 of them actually.

Counter Strike?

I'm sorry, but this one just look like a ghost to me.

Captain Jack Sparrow! An old one!

The land of the living, lol.

And with that, there were nothing more to see which I proceed out and into the land of Far Far Away!

Far Far Away

Now this is what you see when you come out of WaterWorld.

Just a glimpse of the wonderful castle.

Far Far Away!

Full view. And with random people. Lots of them.

Their street lamps are just too perfect.

And welcome to Far Far Away.

Will you look at that.

And when you enter through the gates, you'll see....

Yes, even Far Far Away needs advertisements. Notice the hand holding the wand? It moves. Up and down.

Elves live in Far Far Away!

Actually, they're Staff telling people to heading over to the Donkey's live show which is starting.

Yes, it's a real restaurant in which you can order food. Or have your lunch there.

Below this is actually a signboard telling where you are. Rather boring so I cut that out and focus on the cute stuff.

Information : You might want to remember this place as a certain pussycat will be station here for picture taking.

And directly besides the Donkey family is Gingy's House of Sweets!

Moving forward, I've reached the attraction 'Shrek 4-D Advanture'! And the delightful castle is simply behind.

Sorry about the slightly off-tilted pictures here and there from here on now as I'm single-handedly taking pictures as my other hand needs to hold my drink.

Will you look at that. A crown fountain. And yes, I waited for an eternity, since eternity is plentiful in Far Far Away, for people to move out as I try to get this taken.

The tents are actually lines for people to queue in for 'Shrek 4-D Adventure'. Like I said, I'm planning to try out all the rides here so I'm up for this one too, on matter how cute this sounds.

Plus the fact that I had never catch a Shrek movie before.

Once I entered into the castle, I saw this.

A painting painted directly onto the wall. Looks like a king. Sorry, I really didn't watch Shrek.

This is on the wall behind me. The princess (?) look beautiful.

As we moved on, this was hanged on the wall. You know I have a thing for signs....

Ah.

As I slowly reach into the other room, this piece of paper with words caught my attention. What does it says?

Oh. But I'm already in.

Chandelier!

You're going to see this flag everywhere in Far Far Away.

At the end of the queue, the Staff will pass you a 3-D glasses and you'll be lead into another room which you'll see...

3 little piggies and Pinocchio, all tied up.

What happen next is that a story will unfold and I am then lead into another room with seats. Very comfy seats actually. And now, place on your glasses.

Although I have no expectations of this attention but this surprised me greatly. Within minutes into it, I have thoughts of coming back for the 2nd time.

Though the 3-D gave me a little headache, the experience was wonderful! I really had fun even though you can tell it's not the original voice actors voicing the characters as Shrek had a heavy australian accent.

Information : You will get wet. A little, but yes, you're gonna get wet. So prepare some tissue.

So yes I say, try this ride and you'll never regret it. It's all fun.

And after it ended, you exited through the doors and into the theme shop. You're going to experience this after every ride so you're kinda used to it by now. There will be a ferry wheel ride for kids with ...

Donkey and GingerBreadman! Cute, aren't they?

They do sell cookies and nachos here too. And so I head out of the shop and turn right.

Look! they do have newspaper here too! Let's take a closer look.

"Behind Bars : It's Just Not Right!"
Now this is one newspaper I wanna read.

And besides that we have... "Versarshery". Sounds like branded goods for Far Far Away.

Advertisement featuring .... Snow white perhaps?

Ad featuring Sleeping Beauty. How do they they get roped into this?

Even Rapunzel.

You know, I actually wait for this couple to walk away but then they just plonk down their butts onto the bench.

Game over.
I had to allow them into the picture.
Actually, they kind of forced me to.

But hey, did you notice what the shop is selling?

I wanted to go nearer but this little baby...

....caught my attention! How cute is that? They have coach taxis in Far Far Away!

I really want to ride in this so I went nearer.

Talk about being disappointed.

This is just beside the lovely coach taxi.

They have a post office!!! Someone will be receiving my letter via a dragon sooner or later.

Watch out for it.

Hmm?

Sounds like a pub. Sounds like a very good pub.

This was on the side. And why does this catch my eye?

They sell armor!

I'm confused. Does guys have boobs as big as this?

It was then the elves ... or Staff, shouted across the street that the 'Donkey LIVE' show is starting soon. I thought back to how surprised I was from 'Shrek 4-D Adventure' that I'm game for this too.

And so I entered, waiting to be surprised.

These posters adorned the walls.

After a short wait, we're all lead into another room where people had sat down on the floor. So I followed and settle myself nicely on the floor.

In front of me is...

Sorry, the room was dark.

Wow. They actually have singers. That produced CDs. How cool is that? Is Stonehenge a band of some sort?

More bands!

"Dragon Slayer"!

After which a host walked out, amuse us with her quirky quotes and then proceeded to lead us into another room.
To think I settled down so nicely.

We sat down on benches and suddenly... Donkey spoke! Of course, the curtains are still closed but he mumbled something.

"Oh, sorry guys, you'll have to reach under your benches for your 3-D glasses before Donkey can come out. "

*Wow, they actually hide the glasses under the benches for us to reach for it? That's so cool!*

We were tricked.

They laughed, both Donkey and the Host and finally, the curtain rose.

Donkey kicks off with a song and then proceeded to speak to us.
I thought the Host had timed her lines to the recorded scene but hey! Donkey totally know what is happening here and now! Which cause me to begin to search for a reason why.

I came out with a reasonable one. Someone was behind the scene, dubbing live for the donkey.
You have to admit that was reasonable.

Feeling : Well.... Unless you're a kid, or very very very fixated with Donkey, this is an attraction you can skip. There are certain funny parts, sure, but nothing stands out at all. At all.

We went out, went through the theme shop again and finally I stand out in the scorching sun.
I finished my fruit-punch slushie. I need a toilet.

So I went searching for one.

Remember this? I got caught by this again. Only that I finally noticed what they're selling.

"Julia Child Cookbook".

Mirror mirror on the wall.

Spider web chair!

Julie?

The thing hanging the signage is actually a broom!

Okay, now I really need a toilet.

A toilet for... Kings and Queens. Well, that's me.

Definitely a King, definitely a Queen.

Goldilocks sells chicken!
Apparently, they do 'em just right.

I moved on and I found another ride!

'Enchanted Airways'.
A junior roller coaster ride.
Well I'm up for everything. In I go!

If I have those, I won't even be here.

Hey Gingerbreadman, stop slacking and sell me some tickets!

He looks dead.

I ready for my flight.

Onboard and towards 'Shrek's Swamp'!

Information : Certain rides have shelves on the other platform which you can gain access to by crossing over the roller coaster car. So simply place all 'loose' items on the shelve, get back into your seat and prepare for take off.

WOAH. For a junior roller coaster ride, it sure was good. Short, fast, thrilling and sweeeet. So go for it, have fun and enjoy the flight on 'Enchanted Airway'.

Oh no. My mace!

And why is this important? Well, the floor is beautiful, it's just that with my poor skills of photography, it doesn't come across.

My battery for my camera died so all the pictures coming in next are all taken by my old trusty phone.

Look who did I spotted!

Lil Puss was just right beside the wall that is very easily missed so remember to watch out for him!

Puss-In-Boots is so cute. Just then, a certain Pussy walked by me.
I could not whipped my head around fast enough. He waved and beckon my to follow.
Of course I had to. Of course I had to.

He then tap on two girls back in which they turn and saw old Pussy. Once again, he beckon to them to follow him. They stood stunned for a moment before they followed him, behind me.

" It's Puss! "

" He's so cute! "

After a while later.

" Are we seriously following him? "

" Let's just follow. "

I'm not making this up. This is their conversation.
Remember this?


Puss-In-Boots stopped here and the Staff shouted.

" Anyone who wanted to take a photo with Puss please line up over here! "

I tried. I really did. But I can't take one of it with only Puss. I had been standing there for so long that the Staff told me to line up of I want to have my picture taken.

" Even if I want to just take him? "

" Oh, then no need. "

I gave up. I just took pictures with Puss posing with other random people.

Your hand, madam.

Meow.

Hi!

Pussy!

Shall we dance?

I realized, that when you're Puss, you can actually do anything and get away with it. You can pat the head of a woman like she's a 5 year-old kid and get away with it. With looks of "You're so cute! ". You can slap a man on his face, lightly of course and get away with it, with him laughing it off.

Plus you get a goggle of girls going gaga over you. Me included. He is just too cute to resisted.

After getting my fill of pictures of him, I continued my walk.

Whose house was it?

This house is huge.

Now I see.

After Shrek's house, I'm in ....

Madagascar

This is actually the first thing I see when I get out of 'Far Far Away'. A shack selling Madagascar plushies. How cute is the lemur?

And directly next to this shack is...

' King Julien's Beach Party-Go-Round ' !

I like to move it move it.
I like to move it move it.
I like to move it move it.
I like to.... MOVE IT!

And since I wasn't a 5 year-old, I choose to ignore the ride and simply move on. I mean, come on. No matter how game I am for all the ride, I am not riding in this one ride ALONE. This is silly even if you're not alone.

When I was getting the pictures for 'King Julien's' ride, I spotted this.
They actually have animals footprints leading out! Looks like the trio of penguins are up to something.

They have this too!
" Madagascar : A Crate Advanture ". Sounds good.

The ride is roped off. Damn it.

It's the TREE! The glorious looking tree I spotted when I am cruisin' Hollywood BLVD!

Sorry, I really have a thing for beautiful trees.
Moving on.

Finally. it's not just a dream of Gloria's anymore.

It's... nothing. Really. Another shop. Madagascar doesn't really have much rides. Period.

This is actually a place where people stand to get their pictures taken with the mascots.
So to get this picture, I have to wait for the exact moment to get it before the next couple went forward. Took me a lot of tries, this one.

And you know what is above of this one?

Yes. Can't see clearly?

Yes, a ship. I have no idea why they placed a ship there but I rekon it has something to do with the movie.

And with this, I came back to Hollywood. Apparently the place goes in a circle.

Hey, "Welcome to Hollywood"!

Crowed, isn't it, Hollywood?

Yes, I'm still taking a stroll through here just in case I miss anything.

Oh look. A cute little blue postbox. I really hope we have this cutie in Singapore.

Another snacks car. This time with a Hollywood theme.

You see cameras around everywhere in Hollywood. Looks like we are not the only one being stereotyped.

Oh my. And who own all these Oscars?

Me of course.

Can never resist a car in power.

And so this concluded the tour of Universal Studios Singapore. I have officially completed the entire round of USS. And it's only around 4pm plus.

Not up to go home yet, I decided to go for another round of rides. There are certain rides I wanted to ride again.

And connecting Hollywood is New York street!

What exactly is this place?

And when I re-tour New York, I discovered things / sightings I missed before.

"Sherman-Teo Building 1892".

Patrolmans!

Up for anything grilled?

Note : This is a real shop. You can have your dinner here.

"Safari Outfitters Limited."

It's actually part of the grill shop.

I spotted an ally! I can't believe I missed this earlier on.


" No through trucking over 5 tons. " "No parking, loading zone. "
Yeah, I love my signs.

And what do we have here? "Gotham.Ice.Company". Gotham as in Gotham city of Batman?

Like I said, notice the windows, they're cute. Sorry about the blurriness though.

As you know, these are all taken with my phone as my camera battery died. My phone lighting is not as great as my camera which, because of the sun, results in me seeing almost nothing from the screen.

I'm sure you guys get it. Try reading a text message under the sun and you'll not see a thing. A lot of my pictures are taken with me seeing nothing. I just relied on my instinct man. And surprisingly, most of those turn out great! Though there're a couple which results like... this.

Yes, I'm giving an excuse and I'm proud of it. Let's move on.

Yes! Cute quirky windows.

I have no idea why this is spraying but it just is.

What building is this?

"Empire Hotel". As in Empire State Building, "Empire"?

The Bakery.

Wow. Look at the cake.

"Finnegan's Bar Grill".

Look, a pizza parlor!

Okay, for a place that makes pizza, there's nothing pizza related in it.
Is that a banana I see?

Well, at least they served pizza.

Remember the court? This is at the side of the court. I can't believe I missed this.

Ta-dah! The inside of the sub-way station!

And you know what's after New York. Sci-fi City!

They have posters like these. Are you sure you wanna travel to Mars for your vacation?

I have no idea what this shop is selling but it doesn't look safe at all.

Well, remember how I chicken out and only went to ride 'Battlestar Galactica Human'? I'm ready now. But my heart is pumping like hell.

Same as usual, place my stuff into the lockers and then I walked towards the blue corridor instead of the red one. I braced myself as screams fly over my head as the ride is in motion. I prayed. I looked at the walls which are nothing like the 'Human' one. Stuff here are about destroying humankind. Sorry, but I'm not brainwashed. I'm still human.

Finally, I'm at the platform. It was sparse. About 2 others was there plus a group of guys I went in with, with them in front of me. Got roped in with a couple, once again, Filipinos or Indonesian. We were the second batch as the first batch got strapped into the car.

"Battleship launching."

We applauded as the car moved out. Okay, I steadied myself and tried to slow down my heartbeat. I don't want to suffer a heart attack in the middle of the ride. That would be a bummer. And then, the car was back.

Okay! It seems like the ride is as short as the 'Human' one plus I learned how to scream. (I always shut down and my voice failed me when I want to scream. But I learned that I'm not like the others, high-pitched screams are not for me, my throat opens when I'm screaming normal / low pitch. It works! Released the pressure building inside of me when I want to scream but is not able to.)

We applauded once again, congregating them they survived the ride and it was our turn. I took off my slippers and placed them on the other side of the platform and strapped myself in.

" Are your specs okay? "

" Erm... No. "

" Okay, would you hand it over to me? "

" Sure. Erm... Where will you be placing it? "

" I'll be placing it near the latch. "

" Oh, okay. "

With this, I'm blind. Which helps a little. It doesn't feel as scary when you can't see a thing. And so...

"Battleship launching."

People applauded for us as we moved out, together with the 'Human' riders on the right side. And again, it went into overdrive immediately and I shut my eyes. This thing do the 360 turn and I am not opening my eyes to see that I'm upside down. It traumatized, people! But woah, is it shiock!

And we're back onto the platform, exclaiming and grinning like an idiot once more as people applauded. I'm glad I got onto this thing. I climbed out, a little wobbly, slipped into my slippers, spotted my specs, placed them on, and head out of there. After retrieving my stuff, I head on towards the 'Ancient Egypt'!

Remember how chicken I was when I shut my eyes for the ride, well, after going through it once, I'm going to open my eyes big this time round. I repeated the usual stuff before entering the ride but I still have to say, some parts are way too dark to see anything. I have to rely on seeing the back of the couple ahead of me to know how to navigate around.

And not long after, I arrived at the platform. I got grouped in with the couple and I got to go in first. My god, not again! I refused to sit at the side again and since there's only 3 of us and 4 seats, I left an empty seat besides me and simply choose to sit on the 2nd seat.

Boy! I did not missed much when I closed my eyes the first time round but I'm glad I managed to opened my eyes this time. It completed the adventure. The 2nd time is as thrilling as ever.

And so, after the ride, I took my stuff from the locker and went out. It was went I saw this guy. He was dressed like the character from 'The Mummy' and his side preview look 92% similar!

"Can I.. take a picture?"

"Sure, come on around. Be careful, there're mummies around."

Erm, right. I just wanted a picture of him but I got roped into the picture as well. Can't really tell him, oh sorry I just want you, can I?

Yea... my Ali-baba pants. They are really comfy and they dry fast. He kept on saying, to random passer-by and me, that the mummies are attacking and what not. Cute.

And I saw these as well. They're pushing their faces towards everyone and scaring them. Especially those taking picture of them. But they're happy to take pictures with you.

Tip : Don't take it personally, it's their job to scare, especially when the guy is still running around, telling people that they're evil.

Yeah, they did went after me but I just took their picture, laugh and walk away.

I made my way over to 'The Lost World' and found out a ride I missed. 'Canopy Flyer'. No lockers required, shelved on the opposite platform is provided. As the ride started, It begin to rose up. Slowly.

Oh shit. Oh shit shit shit. This is torturing. I'm scared of hight! Plus the fact that I'm sitting backed-faced to the front, it increase my terror. Then hey, it's not scary. It's only the hight, some jerks and you're done. I was shaking my legs when we arrived back onto the platform.

Tip : This ride mainly is to let you enjoy the view so don't expect too much from it. Like I did.

And then I ventured back into 'Far Far Away' since I'm done with 'The Lost World' anyway. It was then when a girl exclaimed, in cantonese, to her friend.

" I saw that cat! "

Damn! I want that cat! I ran back to the place where Pussy stationed before and voila! He's there! This time though, I queued up. Luckily the queue was short.

"Can I just... take a shot of him?"

"Oh. Oh sure."

This time, I finally got the picture.

Puss-In-Boots!!

I love you. So much.

Afterwhich I proclaim my love, I went once again, to 'Shrek 4-D Adventure'.

Tip : There's 2 areas to this ride, one in front, and another behind a row of stationary seats for people with children who wants to sit on their laps. Sit at the front area for maximum enjoyment. You will feel the wind. It's a plus, trust me.

When I came out, I brought a cookie for $4.20, just cause I am $0.10 away from buying nachos. gobble the only food I have for this entire day and proceed back towards the entrance via 'The Lost World'.

Back at 'Sci-Fi City' I noticed these guys.

There're tall.

I also noticed something I missed out earlier. Well... not exactly missed out, it's just that I did not give them the attention they deserved.

Oh yeah.

"Rental & Repair". Really? I really want one.

"01 02"

Somebody somewhere is missing a robotic hand.

This look bad-ass. How much for rental?

"Welcome to New York. Spitting on the sidewalk is unlawful. Offenders are liable to arrest. " Offenders can arrest people? What upside down world is this?

It seems like all the mascot people are out at around 5pm plus. I want Marilyn Monroe but who am I to ask?

I'm here an I'm back to get some pictures of those posters.

Since the show starts at around 15 minutes more, I can take my pictures!

"The Hunchback of the Notre Dame"
Once again, I apologized for the quality.

"1931"

"Psycho"! This is classic.

This is not as blurry. "The Invisible Man".

This time, it's his bride.

This is so old, it's cool.

"The Wolf Man"

"Creature from the Black Lagoon".

And then, I'm off for the ride!
Okay, here the scene you'll see when you arrive at the sound stage where it's going to have a level 5 typhoon.

I'm not giving anything else. Go try it yourself, it's really good.

And when I'm done with 'Lights, Camera, Action! Hosted by Steven Spielberg', I head out and towards the entrance, thinking I done with USS and was ready to go home. It was then, I heard Staff shouting at the musical is starting.

"Monster Rock!"

"Sorry, do we need to pay for the tickets?"

"There's no need to."

What am I waiting for? I went in, settle down on a seat and waited for it to start. It's a musical and I enjoyed it immensely. There're 7 monsters, including a newcomer which is 'The Mummy', with 'Dracula', 'The Phantom of the Opera', 'Wolf Man', 'Cat Woman', 'Frankenstein' and his bride. It's cool and it's rock music, what's not to like?

And after the musical, I went out and saw...

'The Daddy-os'.

Tip : Stay until USS closes, which is 7pm, as there are many street performance and rides like 'Monster Rocks' that only starts at around 6pm plus. Don't miss it since you're here anyway.

They have amazing vocals and they charmed the audience with old school english songs like 'Poison Ivy', which I liked best.

After their performance which set back to about... 15 minutes give or take, it's over. My trip to USS is officially over. And today is the best day of my life. It has been really fun.

So random pictures :


Here's what I brought with my own money from USS :

Battlestar Galactica 'What the Frak' t-shirt, $23.90 and ...

A keychain, $8.90.

I paid these through NETS and in the middle, I took another $20 out so yeah, I went out of my budget.

$100 for USS = NOT ENOUGH. Now you know.