Day 909: Bay Beach

I always have beleived that you can never appreciate Disney quite as much as when you go to another amusement park and suddenly feel like something is missing. I've been to my fair share of parks that aren't Disney, believe it or not, and while some have been enjoyable (like Valleyfair only a couple of weeks ago), others have been, to say it lightly, not fun. Disney does an incredible job with their parks, whether you realize it or not, and while the closest amusement park to me is a far cry from the enterprise Disney has created in central Florida, it still made me think about what I could be missing out on.

Bay Beach is a super tiny little amsuement park right here in Green Bay, and it's one that my family used to frequent back in the day. Of course, we don't head over there often now, and if I do, it's probably because I'm off hunting for a glance at a Swan at the wildlife sanctuary. It has your classic carnival sort of rides, a merry-go round, a ferris wheel, bumper cars, that sort of thing, and then there are some more thrilling attractions...if you can call them thrilling. The Zippin' Pippin' is the latest of the additions to the park, although I've been told new attractions will be appearing throughout this summer as well, and for those of you who may not have heard of this little coaster, it's an interesting one.

My roommates and I headed to Bay Beach to celebrate a birthday, and that meant that Megan and I got to experience the Zippin' Pippin' for the first time. We'd been told by numerous people that it was sort of harsh, whiplash sort of coaster, but I suppose that's to be expected with its wooden form. The coaster actually is more interesting than it sounds though, because of all things, it was Elvis' favorite roller coaster. Would I call it my favorite? No, not by a long shot, but it wasn't bad either. Think of a mix of Big Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain and Everest and that's about what this thing in, only much shorter and is mostly just up and down and up and down.

What sorts of things did I really miss from Disney though? The variety for one. As I've said time and time again, it's very easy for my entire family to head to Walt Disney World and all go on an attraction that suits us, even with my motion sickness problems. You don't have that same variety at other amusement parks, where, if you want to do something, you'd better believe it'll be a roller coaster. Granted, not all attractions are roller coasters, but with motion sickness you've got to remember that anything that spins is off limits too. Otherwise, I definitely missed the food options and air conditioning, not to mention ample seating and covered queue lines. Definitely things you don't even realize Disney is providing until you have to live without them.

After our time at Bay Beach itself, we headed over to the Mini Golf course across the street. I actually ended up winning by like a point (it came down to the last hole), but there's something to be said for Disney's mini golf courses too. Playing on one that wasn't themed sure makes you miss the weird stuff you putt past at Disney, even if that snowman DOES make it harder for you to get the ball in the hole.

Have a magical day!