Citypass is Fantastic!

Citypass is a way to experience incredibly fun attractions in some iconic North American cities for a fraction of the price. With a Citypass you pay significantly less than you would to do each attraction individually, but get to do a whole bunch of fun things. There are some attractions that are automatically on the Citypass, and there are some that you have to choose. That being said, if you are choosing a Citypass for your vacation, you are probably picking a great deal. This is especially true if you are going to the attractions anyway. If you are going to one of the 12 Citypass cities, this deal is highly recommended.

Last week, I reviewed the GA Aquarium and talked about how this wonderful place was included with the Citypass. This week I will talk more about the offer as a whole. The price of the zoo and aquarium alone in Atlanta for an adult is $76 a person. With the Citypass, you can get added attractions for that $76 price for an adult. The box office price for the Atlanta attractions we saw was $134, but we only paid $76 as I just stated. We got a tremendous deal and had a tremendous time.

Here is what we got to choose between and what we did in Atlanta....

Georgia Aquarium

On this blog, I talked about our Georgia Aquarium visit from this summer last week. It is the best aquarium we have visited. We will be going back.

 Beautiful Family

Whale Sharks

World of Coca-Cola

This was a cool experience. We were fans and we are glad we did it once. Not sure how many times you could do it and still enjoy it, but I recommend that everyone do it at least one time.

 Family @ Coke Museum

 Jenna and Eli

 Team Noland with our 1st free coke

Team Noland in the tasting room

CNN Studio Tours

We actually ended up skipping this part of the pass. It was the least appealing and we wanted to do it the afternoon after the HOF before we went home. The boys naps went longer than expected and we missed it. However, we ate in the food court at the studio multiple times and that was pretty neat. They also had some cool gift shops downstairs and it is connected to Phillips Arena so we peaked in there a bit.

Zoo Atlanta or Center for Civil and Human Rights

This was our 2nd trip to Zoo Atlanta which is one of our favorite zoos. This time though, Jenna and I got to bring our kids and her mom. It was a cooler experience on that end. It is a great zoo. The zoo though didn't seem quite as epic this time around. Still, it is one of the best zoos we have visited and still top 5 overall. It just doesn't seem like the clear cut #1 anymore.

Jenna the boys and a gorilla statue

The real thing

Red Panda

Jr. in the petting zoo

We had a great time and the boys loved this sign

Fernbank Museum of Natural History or College Football Hall of Fame

The College Football Hall of Fame was the highlight of my trip. It was Noland Jr.'s favorite place too. It was such an interactive Hall of Fame and they had a surprising amount of awesome attractions for little ones. I loved visiting this Hall of Fame. One of the coolest things is that when you sign in you pick your team and it personalizes your visit for that team. Seeing the Hall of Fame catered to the Florida State fan was amazing. If you are a College Football Fan you absolutely have to go. Noland Jr.'s favorite part was the Chick Fil A fan section where he got to participate in some real football drills. He got to run through an obstacle course and then make a diving catch on a giant blue mat. He LOVED IT. We will absolutely be going back here in the not too distant future. This is one of the coolest places that I have ever been.

My favorite Eli picture to date. He was doing the warchant on the way to the HOF. No lie.

My little buddy and me in front of the trophy the Seminoles are bringing home this year!

Noland, my mother in law and me in front of the helmet wall. The FSU one lit up when we came into the museum. So cool.

Noland Jr.'s attempt at the Heisman. Maybe one day?

It was so neat to visit the Hall of Fame

As stated previously, Citypass is also available in 11 other cities. Below are the 11 other cities and the choices for where you may go in those cities....

Boston

Going to Boston to do these things and visit Fenway Park would be a fun vacation. It would have to be summertime though probably because we don't do cold in this house.

New England Aquarium

Museum of Science

Skywalk Observatory

Museum of Fine Arts or Boston Harbor Cruises

Chicago

I went to Chicago when I was little and probably won't be doing this city pass, but it seems cool. We liked the Museum and it had a traveling King Tut exhibit when we went about 20 years ago.

Shedd Aquarium - VIP Entry

Skydeck Chicago

Field Museum - VIP Entry

Museum of Science and Industry or 360 Chicago

Adler Planetarium or Art Institute of Chicago

Dallas

I have never been to Dallas, but I am dying to go. The zoo, Cowboys stadium and a Rangers game would be near the top of the list when we go.

Perot Museum

Reunion Tower Geo Deck

6th Floor Museum or Dallas Zoo

George W. Bush Presidential Library or Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden

Houston

I have been to Houston to visit a good friend of mine, but have done none of these epic attractions. You better believe that a Houston Citypass trip is in the future for the Robinsons.

Space Center Houston

Downtown Aquarium

Houston Museum of Natural Science

Houston Zoo or Museum of Fine Arts

Kemah Boardwalk or Children's Museum of Houston

New York

New York is one of the only cities to offer two options. The first option is 3 locked in choices and 3 choices you make. The second cheaper option is picking between all of the attractions 3 locations. For me the key part to a New York visit would seemingly be the Statue of Liberty so I'd just make sure I'd get that opportunity. Surprisingly only growing up a few hours away, I have never been to New York. Jenna has been several times though and we will likely take the boys at some point.

The Empire State Building

American Museum of Natural History

Metro Museum of Art

Top of the Rock or Guggenheim Museum

Statue of Liberty or Sightseeing Cruise

9/11 Memorial or Sea, Air and Space Museum

Philadelphia

I grew up just a couple hours from Philadelphia too and have never been. It is pretty crazy. I'd love to see the historical stuff like One Liberty and the Franklin Institute. By adding a zoo to the mix for an affordable price, it could make this trip pretty epic.

The Franklin Institute

Big Bus Company and Travel Works

One Liberty Observation Deck

Adventure Aquarium or Philadelphia Zoo

San Francisco

San Francisco is an American city that did not really appeal to me, but the Monterey Bay Aquarium would make a trip worth it. This is especially true if you throw in the other places and the ability to go to see Buster Posey in action in addition to these Citypass offerings.

7 day cable car and muni bus transport

California Academy of Sciences

Blue and Gold Fleet Bay Cruise Adventure

Exploratorium or de Young Museum

Aquarium of the Bay or Monterey Bay Aquarium

Seattle

Not super high on my list to visit, but I'd love to do this and go to a Mariners game.

Space Needle

Seattle Aquarium

Argosy Cruises Harbor Tour

EMP Museum or Woodland Park Zoo

Chihuly Garden and Glass or Pacific Science Center

Southern California

This is the most expensive Citypass, but it seems so worth it. This is the vacation at the top of my list. I just have to make it happen for my family at some point. Hopefully when Eli gets to be Noland Jr.'s age we can make it happen. I mean Disneyland is included!!!! I want to do each of these attractions so badly and I have never been to California.

Disneyland Park and California Adventure 3 day Park Hopper

SeaWorld San Diego

Legoland California

San Diego Zoo or Safari Park

Tampa

These are all pretty awesome attractions in our backyard for a great price. This could be a tremendous opportunity for a staycation that we just have not taken yet. Each of these can be visited for the price of one trip to Busch Gardens. That is a tremendous deal. Of course it isn't as necessary for me because FL Aquarium and MOSI are free for teachers.

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay

Florida Aquarium

Lowry Park Zoo

Clearwater Marine Aquarium

MOSI or Chihuly Collection

Toronto
This is the city on the list that I am least likely to go to. I don't really want to leave the country too badly, but if I did, Toronto in the summer time wouldn't be too bad. I'd probably buy this for my family and go the Jays stadium for a game as well.

CN Tower

Casa Loma

Royal Ontario Museum

Ripley's Aquarium of Canada

Toronto Zoo or Ontario Science Center

These are some great options for awesome things to do, that I actually really want to do now. I want to visit these cities more because they have Citypass and because we had such a great experience in Atlanta. It could be worth it to use a Citypass and have a staycation in Tampa. This offer is almost just too good to pass up in the locations which the offer exists. I hope that you get to visit one of the Citypass cities soon....

- Noland

Georgia Aquarium

We are once again at the time when we review an animal attraction. We visited two new animal attractions this summer, starting with the Georgia Aquarium. That is what will be discussed today.

Georgia Aquarium

Atlanta, GA

Website

Hours: 9AM-9PM

Admission: $36.95 (Included w/ CityPass)

Date of Visit: Fathers Day 2016

Highlights: Numerous highlights at this aquarium as it was the best one we have seen so far. The highlights started with the fact that it was included with CityPass. Once we were inside there were a lot of fun areas to go to. Each area was filled with awesome sea creatures. The big tank with 4 whale sharks, giant manta rays, and countless other fish is the big reason people go to this place. That big tank did not disappoint, especially the tunnel portion of it when you walk under the sealife. My favorite thing to swim over us was the Giant Manta just because it was so huge. Outside of the big tank though, this place also had beluga whales, penguins, an electric eel, and so much more. Another big highlight is the best dolphin show imaginable. I thought the National Aquarium in Baltimore used to have a great dolphin show, but it turns out I didn't know what a real amazing dolphin show was until I visited the GA Aquarium. Everything was just amazing.

Disappointments: There were not a whole lot of disappointments for this trip like I said. The food was not spectacular, but it wasn't like it was bad. It is a tad disappointing that the aquarium is far enough that we can't go often. I also wish we had better pictures of the Beluga Whale, the electric eel, and the Dolphin show. That last one is on us though and not on the Georgia Aquarium in any way.

Additional Tips: Get there early! It got much more crowded throughout the day, I recommend going early. It was a good plan for us to go to mass Saturday night so we could go Sunday morning to the aquarium at opening. There was very little crowd until after the dolphin show and we really got to enjoy each exhibit. Do as many shows as possible too, especially the dolphin show! The shows are free, so make sure you get the most out of your experience!

Pictures

Jenna and the boys in front of the big tank

The whale shark

Eli sitting in front of the big tank

Family with the whale shark mascot

Big whale shark

Giant manta and a whale shark overhead. My favorite part!

Crawling through a tunnel with Jr and looking at fishies

Walking through the tunnel with my buddy

Holding my boys about to go into the aquarium for Fathers Day!

Eli staring at the fishies

Jenna and her mom in the tunnel with Eli

Jenna and Noland in the tunnel looking at the penguins

Final Rating
We gave this aquarium 5 out of 5 Elephants
The Georgia Aquarium is by far the best aquarium we have been to. It is twice the price of most aquariums, but it is so worth it. This place is worth every single penny. For comparison purposes it is less than half the price of Sea World Orlando and so much cooler. I wish that we lived closer so we could go every year. The aquarium should be on everyone's bucket list. We will certainly come back to the Georgia Aquarium at some point. It was a thrilling visit to the Georgia Aquarium and the visit here made our trip to Atlanta a success all on its own.

Next week, we will discuss the wonderful citypass and further talk about our trip to Atlanta!

-Noland

Disney World Blackout Days Are Over

Thousands of Florida residents are about to be coming to Disney World! After a long summer for holders of Disney's Silver Pass, our blackout days have completed and we may now descend upon Walt Disney World Resort. The blackout days officially are over today Friday August 12th. For thousands of residents like us, that means we are ready to take many trips in the coming months.

The Silver Pass is more economical for our family and many others. Forcing us to avoid the park just 3 times a year. Those times are the weeks before and after Christmas, weeks before and after Easter and during the summer. Those blackout days are typically Disney's busiest times, but now with the tiered pass system it is a little less crowded during peak seasons than in years past. It is so brutally hot during the summer that it isn't missing too much, but if I said I did not miss Disney, I would be lying. My family loves the resort. Many visits will be happening through the end of 2016 and into 2017. The updates will be posted here with many pictures to come.

Here are some magic moments so far with our passes this time around....

Animal Kingdom added Lion Guard Statues around the park. Here my son is with the Fuli statue

My son got a lot of 1 on 1 time with one of his favorite characters Rafiki

We got plenty of time with Chip n Dale prepared for space too

Ate some delicious goodies

And who can forget meeting the 4 main Disney characters

Finally, we all saw my favorite character!

There is a lot more to come. Stay tuned for so much more magic!

-Noland

There is a Problem If Your Friend Isn't Good Enough To Date Someone You Care About

People say all the time that they wouldn't want their friend to date so and so. They like hanging out with the person, but they aren't good enough for....Whether it be their daughter, their sister, their friend. The person just is not good enough. I have never understood that line of thinking and believe that it is incredibly flawed.

Now, I am not saying we should pimp out our relatives and friends. I am not saying that we should ignore obvious age or personality differences here. I am saying that we have lost some moral fabric especially when it comes to these situations. Our standards have decreased on who we spend time around. We don't want to challenge each other anymore. We simply do not care what anyone does it seems, that is unless it directly effects us.

That thinking is so wrong. We are called to love. We are called to seek the truth! We are not called to sit wringing our fingers and hope that it does not come to personally affect us. Those we spend our time with, say a lot about us! The people we surround ourselves with reflect us and as a result we should be spending time with quality people. You should certainly hold your friends to the same standard you hold strangers. We should expect our friends to be excellent, to be moral, and to be good. Our friends should be absolutely superb.

If people are not morally upright, we don't have to treat them like dirt. Treating people poorly would be immoral of us. We must not be the problem ourselves. We should expect more out of ourselves as well. However, there is a way to show respect and courtesy for people without constantly surrounding ourselves with them. There are ways to challenge people while being nice to them and there are ways to lead by example. We should seek out these ways to lead by example. We should challenge others to be better in a courteous manner. Most importantly though, we should surround ourselves with good virtuous people as often as possible. Good behavior is contagious and we should let that behavior rub off on us. Our loved ones should be able to trust those that we bring into our lives. We should be able to trust those that we bring into our lives.

I sometimes hear things like "oh he/she seemed like a pretty good person. You can never really know about someone."
That line is a bunch of crap. You absolutely can know about some people. Sure unexpected stuff sometimes happens with some people and that can cause you to change how you see that person. However, you absolutely know about most people. If you are constantly challenging people and constantly seeking moral behavior, than you should know about people. You should know how truly moral those around you are. You should know how good people are. You should know if those around you are good enough.

So tying this back into dating our loved ones.....

You need to have standards with your friends. We should expect them to be good moral people. If they are a good moral person and the cream of the crop, then it makes sense for them to be able to date our loved ones. If we are hanging out with the best people, does it not make sense for us to embrace them being with those we care about?

Again, assuming there isn't some weird age gap, some relationship flaw or obvious personality difference, we should be embracing this. Don't we want the best people for our loved ones? Don't we want the best people as our friends?

If we do not want that, we should change our priorities on one end of the spectrum.

So again!
1) Be a great person
2) Surround yourself with great people
3) Have high standards for our friends, sons, daughters, and everyone we spend time with
4) Don't have different standards for different people
5) Treat your spouse like you want your daughter's or sister's spouse to treat them
6) Make sure you model that ideal behavior (be a great dad, spouse, and friend)
7) Just be consistent

It seems easy, but what I hear often contradicts that. Be good and surround yourself with good. If you are surrounding yourself with wonderful people, there shouldn't be any worry here. Love and let it happen. The whole world would be better if we embraced this concept.

Everyone deserves to be a happy loving family and we need to try to contribute to that.

-Noland