On Thursday I was lucky enough to get to visit Playland, an amusement park on the PNE grounds in East Vancouver, as a chaperone for an "Amusement Park Physics" Science 10 field trip. Playland is Canada's oldest amusement park (built in 1958) and I've long wanted to pay a visit!
We set off in the school bus before 6 am, the rising sun already promising a nice day. All 39 students made it on time, so we were off to a good start.
 |
| Mt Doug through the mist |
We walked onto the 7 am ferry at Swartz Bay and headed to the cafeteria for breakfast.
By the time I'd finished my oatmeal we were approaching Active Pass, so I found a window seat to enjoy the view.
We walked off the ferry at Tsawwassen and, after a bit of a delay, were met by a rental school bus. Around 10 am we arrived at Playland, got our wrist bands, and set off into the park.
Foreshadowed by the sea of yellow school buses in the parking lot, Playland was exceedingly busy. There were thousands of students!! The lineups for the more popular rides were over an hour long -- pretty annoying, considering that Playland had charged $17 per student and was only open from 10 am - 2 pm. Unfortunately about half of the rides were closed or required additional fees ($5.50 for the Haunted House or $16 for the Revelation...no thanks!). The park seemed understaffed and I thought that the staff weren't loading the rides too efficiently (tons of empty seats -- and no singles lines to fill them). Clearly I had lots of time to contemplate all this while I was waiting in lines! At least it was a gorgeously sunny 18-degree day :)
 |
| watching people have a splashing good time on the log flume :) |
Since Grade 10s don't require close supervision, the teachers spent the four hours hanging out at the Triple O's or going on waiting in line for rides. I did get to go on three rides, which was fun! I headed over to the ferris wheel first, which didn't have too long of a lineup, and got a nice view of the park and Vancouver in the distance.
 |
| looking south |
 |
| looking north |
I wandered through the glass house, a maze with transparent walls, and got on the bumper cars, which didn't yet have a line.
Of the two roller coasters, I was looking forward to trying the original 1958 wooden one, and spent around 40 minutes standing in line, watching (a few of) the students fill out their ride-analysis physics worksheets, and feeling old (note: high-waisted denim shorts and low-hanging backpacks are where it's at in Grade 10...oh and Toms are out and Vans sneakers are in). The roller coaster was a lot more intense (and fun!!) than I'd expected, with huge drops and tight turns. I'm not sure it's the safest of rides though, as the restraining bar is a good foot from your body and you definitely get thrown around! I got whiplash and was legitimately concerned for my spine...yes, I'm pretty much a senior citizen.
 |
| that's the old wooden roller coaster in the distance |
For lunch I had my first Triple O's burger (yummy, but not as phenomenal as I'd been led to believe).
After lunch I headed over to AtmosFear, a super high rotating swing ride. Unfortunately after standing in line for 75 minutes, just as I reached the very front of the line, the ride closed. I wasn't the only one disappointed -- there were a good few hundred people behind me.
At 2 pm our group reconvened and took the bus back to Tsawwassen to walk on the 5 pm ferry.
 |
| watching the ferry dock |
I was grateful that the school covered the cost of our meals for the day, which included dinner at the ferry's Pacific Buffet. We headed to the restaurant at the stern of the boat and were seated right beside a window.
 |
| so beautiful! |
The food was fantastic, including plenty of salads, clam chowder, roast beef, pork curry, pakoras, salmon, prawns, and ravioli, among other delicious things.
The dessert bar was also incredible, with various cakes, mini cupcakes, pie, rice pudding, lemon bars, thin mints, florentines, chocolate-covered strawberries, and fruit.
 |
| so |
 |
| many |
 |
| desserts! |
It was so pleasant to sit back with coffee and dessert and enjoy the view for the remainder of the ferry ride -- we even spotted a seal that had caught a fish. At $23.90 after tax, the buffet is definitely a treat but not a terrible deal, considering that you're getting a waterfront view and really nice food, including seafood, desserts, and drinks.
Overall the trip went smoothly and the students (and chaperones) had an enjoyable time!
No comments:
Post a Comment