throw your hands up.

and screaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaam.
it started the minute my crew passed over the bridge from pompei to italy. rumbles under the bridge, horrible screeches from the speakers. a strange fog sneaking through the cracks beneath our feet. a final night of terror at busch gardens.

i'm a theme park kinda boy - the food, the rides, the smells, the odd array of people. but i had yet to venture to one morphed into a spooky nightmare. it starts with my roommate, terry, who, despite being absolutely terrified of all things scary, routinely puts himself through these events. he knows the zombies will try to taunt him. he knows that the vines might be someone in disguise. he knows that blasts of air will stun him while walking through the maze. but it's the thrill of testing limits, i guess, which brings him back for the sixth time this season.

the scenery is quite incredible. from the green fog virtually eliminating our visibility to the singing skeletons positioned throughout the park, europe transforms into a harrowing adventure. the mazes are hysterical because, if you pay attention, you can pinpoint where the "surprises" will be. you can see the holes, you can watch the people ahead of you, you can get a hint to what your fate is going to be. this is why i'm a terrible companion on these things - because the logic dictates they can only do so much before they have to terrorize the people behind you. it's intriguing how we can profit off of fear and things which make our hearts jump. and how, in this land mirroring europe, countries are defined by their rides, not their names, cultures or language. i'm not going to germany, i'm going to the big bad wolf. duh. funny, more so, how we spent more time sampling beer than riding rides - perhaps an indicator of our priorities. or just terry's directive that he couldn't do this sober.

i recommend the trip for the people you'll encounter. like the trio from norfolk who kept trying to score a swig from our beer. despite our repeated declines. the ones who were clamoring to get out of norfolk. or the group behind us who became solid friends during the windy maze set to the pulse of a strobe light.

what's most amazing about this idea of fear is how, even in an amusement park, fear binds all people together. to get through it all. even if it's just a kid dressed in make-up for $7/hour.

my highlight came from the amazing 200-foot drop in complete darkness on apollo's chariot. it's a heightened level of fear because you're moving so fast on a track you know by heart, but you just can't see. and nothing is more terrifying than speeding ahead into the unknown.