Sat, Nov 29 2008 - West Ed Waterpark / Galaxyland Adventure Part Deux (View Original Event Details)
|  |
In my experience sequels are never as good as the original (at least when it comes to movies) so I knew planning another West Edmonton Mall trip would be somewhat of a challenge. The only down side to a very successful original event is trying to live up to increased expectations on the following one. It was definitely a challenge but after it was all said and done, I think we succeeded!!
The day began long before the sun rose at Franklin station where 4 of us were busy adding some Hawaiian flavour to the inside of our motor coach. Mandy, Fluffy and Amanda all did a fantastic job under tight time lines to get the decorations up before our guests arrived. Our bus driver Dave (same driver we had in April) was very gracious and allowed us complete freedom to set everything up the way we wanted and even tolerated the playing of my "Hits of Hawaii" CD throughout the morning!
As the attendees began to arrive they were greeted at the door by yours truly dressed in a lovely Hawaiian outfit complete with colorful lei, hula skirt and rainbow knee high socks. As registrants boarded the bus they each received their very own lei before proceeding through the decorative "Welcome to Paradise" curtain and into the seating area where they settled in for the journey. All 48 guests arrived without incident and we were able to depart relatively on schedule at approximately 8:25am. The weather and road conditions were ideal for travel and before we knew it we were northbound on the Deerfoot and headed for paradise (kind of).
Almost immediately after departing the flight crew (ooops I mean Amanda and Fluffy) began assisting me with the preparation of our first round of food and drink service for the passengers. We started things off with a tropical juice/champagne mix served in little plastic wine glasses complete with fresh pineapple and orange pieces on little umbrella sticks. Tasty fresh timbits were also passed around and devoured during the serving of the drinks. By the time we wrapped up round one we were already approaching Red Deer so the flight crew temporarily packed up the drink cart in preparation of our short stop at Red Deer College where we would be picking up one more guest.
Just off the highway, the bus pulled into the college parking area where Kim was eagerly awaiting our arrival. As we pulled up, everyone jumped off for a quick stretch and group photo opportunity. It was a perfect place for it, lots of room and good sunlight! I was so glad we did this as I missed the opportunity to take one on the last trip. Unfortunately I somehow forgot to sneak our inflatable palm tree into the shot but other than that I was really happy with the pictures. The stop took no more than about 10 minutes and we were right back on the highway again ļ
With half the distance already covered and so many more goodies to hand out we got right back at it preparing the goldfish crackers, Jell-O shooters and Fluffy's yummy homemade chocolate muffins. As always her Jell-O shooters were a HUGE hit as many people asked for seconds. The muffins were delicious and the decorative icing looked fantastic! As food and drinks continued to be served and devoured we made time for some fun little door prizes as well. Tickets were handed out at the beginning of the trip and numbers were drawn for little prizes such as chocolate bars, talisman centre admission passes, Tim Horton¡¦s gift cards and Cineplex Odeon gift certificates. All the activity made for such a quick trip that we barely had time to finish up before arriving in Edmonton around 11:40am!
Once we arrived at the mall everyone split up into smaller groups heading off to take in various mall attractions. Many started out at the food court for lunch then madeph their way to either Galaxy Land or World Water Park. Some chose to meet up with family or friends from Edmonton while others just went shopping. Bath & Body Works seemed to be the #1 destination on this trip!! That store is INSANE!!!!
I spent a few hours running between Galaxy Land and the Water Park to capture as many photos as I could before eventually settling in to enjoy my favourite attraction, the water slides!! WOOHOO!! I also discovered how much fun the brand new children's play area can be as I found myself in the middle of a few good water fights between some pretty fiesty 7 year olds! I totally dominated in there though dishing out some pretty good soakings! Ha-ha
As expected the afternoon flew by and before you knew it everyone had regrouped for our 7:30pm dinner reservation across the street at Boston Pizza. Once again the service was EXCELLENT as 50 hot meals were served within a 15-20 minute time frame. It was a great opportunity for everyone to relax and share the days experiences with each other before reboarding the motor coach around 9:00pm.
The drive home was a fairly quiet one as most of us were exhausted after a non-stop jam packed day of fun! Even Mark, Todd and Ryan were passed out!! Let me tell ya, when these guys are subdued its heaven for any coordinator!! Ha-ha Anyway with most of us passed out there's not much left to tell other than we made it back home safe and sound, rolling into town around 12:15am. Another successful event in the books!
In closing I would just like to say thanks to all who joined me today. I absolutely loved spending the day with each and every one of you. The people I have met and continue to meet through COC events like these are the reason I love coordinating so much. My hope is that many of you made at least one new friend today because as far as I'm concerned that's what it's all about!
SPECIAL THANKS TO:
All of You: for the thoughtful thank-you card
Chris (a.k.a Fluffy): for all that you did behind the scenes to help make this event so much fun including preparing your world famous Jell-O shooters and chocolate muffins!!
Amanda: for all your help decorating and serving of food and drinks on the bus
Mandy: for your assistance with the decorations
Boston Pizza Management & Staff: for once again providing fantastic service with a smile!
Dave (Cardinal Coach driver): for being so incredibly accomodating of all us wild COC'ers and getting us home safe and sound.
Rhonda Scheurer: for making this event possible in the first place! The number of lives you have touched through the creation of this club are too numerous to count.
Photo Album:
Please be sure to take a few moments and enjoy the many photos posted in the attached photo album. Don't forget to add your comments!!
Thanks everybody
Duane