Observation Wheel Pictures Wanted

I recently launched a brand new website called Observation Wheel Directory, that features a comprehensive list of the world’s largest observation wheels. The site contains numerous information and statistics on Ferris wheels around the globe including an interactive map to find an observation wheel near you.

One thing the site is currently lacking is pictures, and that’s where you come in! If you have a picture of an observation (and it is a picture you took and hold the copyright for) please submit it to the site. We will of course give you credit for the picture and link back to your website or blog if you have one. At this time we are only accepting large Ferris wheels, those over 150 feet in diameter ( we may make exceptions in the future). Or we will also accept pictures of unique Ferris wheels, like the Big O centerless Ferris wheel or the eccentric wheels like the ones at Coney Island and Disney California Adventure.

 

Submit your pictures by emailing me here: nick@observationwheeldirectory.com

 

Thanks, and I can't wait to see your photos.

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Hershey Chocolate Factory Tour Review

The Wonderful World of Chocolate and the Sweetest Place on Earth

After riding Skyrush at HersheyPark and visiting ZooAmerica, the other highlight of our visit to Hershey world was creating our very own candy bars at Hershey’s Chocolate World. There are several different attractions inside Chocolate World and the first one we did was the Hershey make your own candy bar experience. 

When you purchase your ticket they enter your name into the computer. At each station you scan your ticket and it displays your name so you know where your candy bar is at all times. We donned the white hair nets and aprons we were given and proceeded inside to the candy bar design studio. Using touch screens, I selected my base to be white chocolate and added butterscotch and milk chocolate chips and opted for no sprinkles. Scan our tickets at the start of the assembly line and pull the lever to begin. A suction cup contraption picks up the chocolate base you picked out and sets it gently onto the assembly line conveyor belt. The bar slowly moves down the line stopping at each respective station to receive its proper fillings. A layer of chocolate is applied on top (the same for everybody regardless your base flavor) and your fledgling bar is whisked away into the inferno of the oven. While it cools you get to design your packaging.

Next up, we did the free Hershey chocolate tour. Please note, this ride is a replacement for the original Hershey factory tour, as the original Hershey chocolate factory tour was so popular, and drawing so many guests it was impossible to please them all without disrupting operations of the chocolate factory. So an omni-mover type ride systems was created to move thousands of people a day through the sets of animatronics and video screens, a sort of virtual Hershey plant tour explaining how chocolate is made. Fun fact: Milton Hershey chose the location in Pennsylvania due to the abundance of nearby cows for his milk chocolate (I guess it’s cheaper to transport cocoa versus milk). At the end of the ride you are given a free chocolate bar before being dumped out in a giant Hersheys store.

I can’t wait to visit Hershey park Hershey park again! Pictured below is the 2012 Chocolate World map of attractions. Click here for the Chocolate World hours of operation.

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Check out our sister site: Zoo Tails!

Not only am I a fan of amusement parks, I also really enjoying visiting different zoos across the country. I have created another blog called Zoo Tails to post all of my zoo related news, stories, pictures, and trip reports. As an engineer, I am think I am drawn to zoos because I love to see how the exhibits are designed. I especially like exhibits with creative, innovative, or interactive features, such as the "Sniff Ports" in the Polar Bear exhibit at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium (my "home zoo").

Embedded below is a quick video I put together from my visit to the Cleveland Zoo in June. Check it out!

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