Twinkle twinkle... who's it shining?

out of this world.

okay. try this:

imagine yourself seated in an elevator. forget the fact that people stand in elevators. this is a unique one, where around thirty seats are lined up inside. and so you buckle up, and the doors close. everything turns pitch black, and you feel the elevator starting to move up. it opens on some floors, and the doors on the last floor opens to reveal a giant mirror where you could see your reflection. okay, you can do whatever pose you like, but then you in your reflection disappears. the seats remain. the door shuts close and you can see nothing again, but you're not numb enough not to feel that the elevator is speeding up so fast, you only had time to catch your breath when it suddenly stops at the top. you gasp as you look out the giant window at the very top. there's the sky, the clouds, rays of the sun.. and then nothing. the elevator crashes down. and when you feel like it's slowing down, that's when you realize that it's going up again. oh horrors. you have only a second to scream as the elevator halts once again in front of the giant window, and down you go again. boom! *evil laugh*

the tower of terror: the newest and scariest attraction there is in tokyo disney sea. located in the AMERICAN WATERFRONT, and one of my personal favorites. *laughs out loud* but no, i won't deny the fact that it left me all shaky and out of breath after i finished the ride. that's what makes it extra thrilling, don't you think? *winks*

i'm sure i've mentioned this trip in one of my previous entries, but i guess i'll do another round with the explanations. last year's december 27th, i went to disney sea with my friends, the 9 girls with whom i eat lunch every schoolday. ultimate cuties. *giggles* it was the first day of winter vaction then, and though everyone were at school the previous day, no one seemed tired enough to spoil the day. okay, except for some of us at some point, including me. but let's get on with that later. i'd also be a brat here because i'm going to make some slight revelations that would make me (and could make some of the other people involved) appear rude, but please don't be too critical. *gulps*

at 5, the doorbell rang, and i got on one of my friends' family car. her father brought me and another girl (whom, from this point on, i would be calling "girly" for easy identification's sake) with her to the matsukawa terminal, where we caught the 5:20 hana bus (do you remember this? the "flower" bus, although this time it wasn't the van-looking thing that it was before; it had two floors! *gapes*) and so we climbed up to the second floor. yatta! and i ended up sitting with girly. which wasn't all too fair. but i didn't really mind. or maybe i did. whatever. *sighs*

let me just give you a short background. you see, the ten of us have been eating lunch and hanging out together as a group since the day we met (although at first it was a whole bunch of girls, and then later the other 10 girls had their own lively group). nothing was notably exceptional then, except when once one of the girls commented about girly, and the other girls started agreeing with the negative opinion. i never really thought it would grow bigger and bigger, but when this one girl who was always with girly said that she didn't really like her and was just hanging out with her for the sake of, well, for the sake of hanging out with her, i knew that the tiny bit of issue has now turned more to be a like a fact. and so no one wanted to hang around much with girly. and i admit that i hold the same feelings too. *frowns*

okay, enough with that before you start lecturing me for being a fake friend or something. *winces* and so i sat with girly, and tried to be nice whenever she talked with me. add up all the "sorry's" from everyone, and the fact that they were all extending efforts to talk with me as well so as not to leave me out, and all my iya feelings ceased. there was an agreement that the person who sits beside girly on the bus doesn't have to end up being with her all day long, i think. i was hoping my friends loved me enough to spare me the betrayal. *drama mode*

it was the usual bus ride so no need to elaborate on that. except for the bit when my one man yen keeps on popping into my mind, everything went fine. i just folded the bill and tucked it into my pocket, just in case my wallet gets stolen. and the bugging stopped. whew.

before finally arriving at disney sea, we rode the super cute mickey train. yey! it was a smooth and short ride, and i just took snaps of the cart's features, and a group pic as well. (girly was kind enough to let me into the picture by volunteering to shoot). anyway, here's one pic:

on entering disney sea, i couldn't help but be amazed. it is wider than disney land. or probably because there were lots of water around the place, or because the group was split into four-four-two and none of the members of my group knew the place too well that we seemed lost. *sweatdrops* we rumagged through the map (huh?) and even asked a staff to point out where we were, but we didn't have any clue what the rides were all about so we just decided to head on to the huge volcano in the middle of the place. one of the girls in my group was calling the other group to ask if we could meet up, but the others just said that we'd be together at lunchtime anyway, so maybe we could resume with the split-up status for a while. so we were stuck with girly. wow. honestly, i was irritated, and i felt betrayed. stupid me.

at the volcano, we got our fast pass (a fast pass saves you from lining up on standby, although there's a partular period of time when you could enter, e.g. in our case, from 12:05-13:05). we spotted two of our other mates who just got fast passes as well. we then decided to be together, and so we would meet up with another two mates to complete a group of eight (the remaining two don't ride bumpy or scary rides, so they just went on to have fun with themselves). i was shocked because we ran. all around disney sea. i felt like i was dying then. *bitter cry* i'm such a pain because i don't do sports, thus i ain't as fit as everyone. and add up that i was wearing boots then. *bonks self*

girly waited up for me, and she pushed my back so i could keep running. i thanked her, and she told me that she's good at running and stuff so she might as well help me. okay, she's a good girl, but her head was inflated again. but i ignored that. she was kind enough to help me.

we lost track of the two who were running ahead because i was such a ditz. later on, we spotted them lined up with the other two, so the four of them were inside a ride, whilst the four of us were left out. again. and so we decided we'd go somewhere else. we lookd at the map, but it didn't make sense to us. poor us. while we stood there trying to decipher the huge piece of paper in our hands, the other group was calling us. one of the ride's staffs saw us and asked if we were together, and then she offered to let us into the line with our friends! so shocking! despite the looks that we were getting from the people whe were lined up behind, we squeezed into the line. oh heavens!

it was a very long wait. the tower of terror is the newest attraction anyway. add up the fact that people wouldn't miss the screams coming out of the top windows of the building, and you get an ultimately packed ride. whew. i was feeling like hell then after the long run, but i managed a shot at girly. at the pic, i figured how ragged i turned out to be, so i decided i'd just clip my bangs up so it wouldn't be a pain. the hairstyle got approving nods (and flatters) from everyone, so i figured i'd leave it that way. minus the irritation, and self-consciousness.

after the ride, we went on back to the giant volcano because it was almost lunch time then. the ride was called journey to the center of the earth, and it was like a bumpy roller coaster ride, plus a great slide or two (i loved all that screaming *laughs maniacally*) it is located within the MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, arund the center of the whole park. it was fun! fun fun fun!

hmm, where did we go next? probably to the MERMAID LAGOON, because we planned to meet up there to watch a show. we met the two who were dating (those two who despises scary rides) lined up to buy food, and we then decided that maybe we'd just leave the assembly for later. and so we went on ahead to the lagoon. the group was then split again four-four, and we remained in the mermaid lagoon whilst the other group went to get fast passes in the indiana jones ride. they told us to go on and take pictures, because they knew that i love ariel so much and so i'd better have fun taking pictures around the lagoon. okay, i'll show you one of the shots:

when they came back, we spent more time taking pictures (i was flattered when they each said they wanted a picture with me), and left. we dropped by a stall called the grotto goodies and bought some snack to much on while we walked. it was yummy! *drools*

we were back yet again at the MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, and rode another ride called 20, 000 leagues under the sea. it's like a round submarine where you sit in pairs by the windows and take a tour under the water. you even get to control the lights of the submarine at some points, to enhance what you want to see. i especially loved the last part when everything turns black and with glittery lights. wai!

our next stop was at the PORT DISCOVERY, where there was this very cool ride called stormrider in which you get sprinkled with real water. *sweatdrops* it's pretty like the enchanted kingdom's realto, wherein you sit with a whole bunch of people in front of a giant screen, and you feel like you really are in the scene you are watching. the set-up was being in one of the planes called stormriders, which gets into the eye of a storm to blow it. our pilot was called david, and the other plane's pilot (there were two planes) was called scott. david was a baka because the people at the headquarters were telling him to back off after scott's plane was hit by a lightning and was dust (one of my friends was shouting "scott, scott!" it was so funny i was laughing during the whole ride). really fun! can't describe any further!

we dropped by the toilet, and rode the nearest ride, aquatopia. you ride in pairs and get twisted and turned in the water. simple yet fun!

the two who were dating were also on the same ride, so we get to be assembled again after that. we dropped by the only souvenir shop in the area, discovery gifts, and i bought... well, something. ahehe. and we took pictures wearing the headbands with minnie mouse ears!

it was then time to use the fast pass to the indiana jones ride in LOST RIVER DELTA. the ride, in full, is called indiana jones adventure: temple of the crystal skull. nest to the tower of terror, this must have been my favorite ride! one of my friends told us that a picture would be taken at one point of the ride, wherein there's a giant rock rolling down from above. when that point came, i remembered what she said so i flashed a peace sign. they were all surprised and asked me how i did it. well, "she told us", i said. but they told me "arienai!" *lol*

we then went back to the MERMAID LAGOON to finally watch the show at the mermaid lagoon theater. it was so pretty! i was almost in tears like the ultimate fangirl. my friends asked me how it was after we left. well, i couldn't describe it. i was so glad! especially coz ariel sang my favorite disney song! *starts to sing*

up where they walk, up where they run
up where they stay all day in the sun
wanderin' free, wish i could be
part of that world

okay, i'm not a mermaid or some sorts. but there are times when i could relate with this song. it's like you have everything, even more than other people might have, but still you wish for something more, for something different.. *bonks self* what's with the sudden drama??

so anyway, they left me to buy souvenir's from a shop (i think it was called the sleepy whale shoppe). after much fussing and consulting, i settled with a necklace and a bag. actually, i wanted to buy everything! *bonks self* okay, just majority of the stuff. *lol*

i decided then to use my one man yen, but when i put my hand into my pocket.. it wasn't there.

doki doki.

*nervous laugh*

T_T

my one man yen was gone!! *cries* i was soo stunned i didn't know what to do at first, and the first thing i did was spill the secret to the two people who were with me (girly and one of my girl mates. the other were munching at the nearby reataurant). i tried to calm myself down as we took rounds around the shop to look, but it wasn't there. i decided to leave it be; let's just bury it down and forget it.

but when we went to our friends, i figured that the other girl who knew had told everyone while girly and i were searching. two of my mates said we'd search, and was already out of their seats before i could put a straight face and say we should just leave it be. another pair asked for our passports so they could get fast passes at some rides, and everything was so blurry i can't remember much.

we decided to go back to the PORT DISCOVERY because they said i must have dropped the bill when i bought the.. something there. i really didn't think it was there because the money i used when i bought o\something there was from my wallet, not from my pocket. but i decided to come anyway. because i thought i dropped the money when i went to the toilet there before riding aquatopia. there was just that feeling within me that said i'd find it there. i haven't been to church in ages then but i still believe God was instructing me. i prayed. very very hard.

but it wasn't there.

one of the two girls with me appeared and i told her i found nothing. she excused herself and said she needed to go to the toilet, so i let her be. i decided to ask the lady who was cleaning the place if she found some money, but she said she didn't. okay, that was it. game over.

when my friend went out of the cubicle, i decided to tell her we should go back to the others and carry on because it was already dark then and we didn't have all day. but before i could actually persuade her, the lady in the toilet budged in, asking how much the money was. we told her it was one man, and she said that maybe we should check out the guest relations at the entrance of the park, because it's also a place for lost and found items. she pointed to us where in the map, and we thanked her, met up with the other mate, and left.

it took us a long time because we didn't realize until later that we were running in the opposite direction. we took wrong turns at several points, and i was so close to collapsing then, whether it was due to the constant running or due to all the hope that was drained off me.

one of my mates sat down beside me as the other one dealt with the processes at the guest relations. we were interviewed: what time we came in, what time i found out the money was missing, where we were at that time, where we thought i dropped the bill, how the bill looked like, etc, etc. in the end she even asked me to fold a piece of peper the way i folded the money. and then she left to inquire.

i was so down i didn'T listen to the rest of the conversation that they had. when finally they pulled me outside, that was way i was able to comprehend what they were saying. the lady at the guest relations asked if we rode the tower of terror, and my friend had enthusiastically sai "hai!" and then we were off to that attraction to fetch the money.

i couldn't believe it. the money was found.

T_T

before i knew it, i was already crying like a baby as we walked. i didn't know what to tell them so i repeatedly said "arigatou". one of my mates was hugging me and telling me that it was good that i didn't give up, and that i didn't hide it from them in the first place. actually, i did tell myself i won't tell them; i guess i own one to my other friend who spilled the secret to everyone. my friend who was hugging me told me she didn't want my memory of the trip to be an awful one, so she was glad as well. she said she liked me. and i told her i like her too. *sniff*

three other friends (including girly) met us at the tower of terror. when the money was handed to me (in a resealable plastic), they hugged me and told me "yokatta ne, joyce!" i have ceased from crying, but i was still so glad then. as i looked back on it, i must have dropped the money when i pulled out the comb from my pocket to clip up my bangs. wow, it was the first ride, and i was oblivious that i lost it.

God bless the person who handed it over to the staff and didn't just pocket it. i don't know to thank you, but God knows how to reward you.

i had money then, so we all decided to do our shopping. it felt so good to be able to buy something for other people. especially with money that everyone has worked for. yet still, i tried not to spend much because i've already spent a lot at disney land. we decided to share a gift for the whole class so it would be cheaper. i bought food for my club, for my host family, and for our chapter president. without her, my papers wouldn't be processed and i wouldn't be allowed to go to tokyo with my friends. we also said we wanted a gift for our math teacher, because we all love him so much. *sparkly eyes* it was a simple shopping, but it was fun. plus the flattery that i got when everyone was saying "ii naa~" while looking at the ariel bag on my shoulder, with the souvenirs and food in it. *hearts*

after that, we ate dinner at LOST RIVER DELTA's miguel's el dorado cantina. i ordered tacos and melon soda, and got to do some more picture-taking with everyone. the tacos were delicious. *drools* and someone pointed out again how cute my bag was. ahihi. *beams*

for the nth time, we went back to the MERMAID LAGOON and took pictures (with the two who had been dating before). after that, we all rode rides (the not so scary ones), such as the flounder's flying fish coaster (a mini roller coaster which made me laugh so hard because it was soo cute) and scuttle's scooters (eggs that go round and round and turn around and around *lol*) it was fun too! *grins*

we then had our second round at the 20, 000 leagues under the sea, and then we split the group into two: six of us went to do some last scary ride take-two's, whilst the other four went to to buy something matching for eveyone (called "osoroi"). they brought our bags.

we did take-two's at journey to the center of the earth (where they got fast passes while we were searching for my money), and at the angelina jones ride (where everyone did the peace sign this time around. nyahaha). it was soo fun! but then the not-so-fun part came.

we had to run and run and run. i felt like i'd have no tomorrow then. we had to run to catch the bus, and i was so tired and has turned ut to be the ultimate pain in the ass. *wails* i was thankful to girly because she dragged me along, and then another friend came to aid me.

T_T

we were left by the group, and it took us a long time before we were able to meet again because even if we made calls to each other we couldn't seem to meet at an exact place. i felt like i was the worst person in the world and i said sorry to everyone, but they said it was okay. we boarded the cute mickey train again, and had to run all the way to the bus in 6 minutes. i was dead.

girly was there beside me as everyone overtook and told me "ganbatte!", and when we finally reached the bus, i literally collapsed on my seat. one of our friends was missing then so some of us came back out to look for her, and when all were there, we cruised home. whew.

at the bus, i got my piece of the osoroi, which was a grape made up of mickey's. *huggles* i was surprised though when girly handed me a disney sea plastic bag. she told me to just open it when i was home, and said it was a gift. i didn't know what to say. i just kept it. guilty.

girly's mom took us home, and when i was inside the warmth of our house again, i told all the stories and showed all the pictures to my host parents. and gave them the food. i also opened the gift from girly, which were earrings. three different pieces. hmm, i wondered how i would us them. i have two ears, both with pierces. girly had only her left (or is it right?) ear pierced, so she's probably happy with the single pieces. in the end i decided to wear the earrings anyway, even if the one on my left ear is different from that/those on the right. *laughs*

i wouldn't forget this particular day, not just because of all the fun rides and wonderful spots, but also because then, i was able to make a very special memory with my friends, who never left me and wished me to be happy even if i'm leaving them soon. thank you Lord for them.

*wipes off tears*

sore ja, mata ne!

God bless! *peace*

by the way, there are parts of the park wherein we didn't get to ride any attration. they are the MEDITERRANEAN HARBOR and the ARABIAN COAST. if you would like to check what they are all about, and also all the stuff about the tokyo disney resort, go here:

http://www.tokyodisneyresort.co.jp/index_e.html

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