Hershey Park in Oh-Eight

When I reached LAX, there were a LOT of peeps waiting in line at the Immigration. It took more than an hour for me to get interviewed. I was asked what Telos does, what I do, etc.

After my interview, I quickly dashed towards carousel numero uno. Minutes have gone by and still no luggage. I have two very large luggage so I can't miss 'em.

When I overheard an airport personnel saying, it's the last batch of bags from PR 102. I almost panicked. I went around and searched for my missing luggage. Oh no, this can't happen to me again!

And then I found my 2 luggage sitting in one corner. I got a cart and immediately proceeded to Customs. Got nuthin' to declare so I ran towards the exit. My friend, Ony, advised me that the gate is still far ahead. I'm not familiar with LAX so I got lost thinking it's already Gate 4. I found the arrival section of American Airlines but it's useless to me.

I asked someone and got directed to a small double-sided door with an elevator leading to the second floor. There I found many people trying to leave the place too.

I dashed towards the kiosks and entered my flight information. I got a message that I'm already too late to check-in my luggage. I freakin' know and you're NOT helping!

I waited in line at the main gate. Every minute I get frustrated. It's like being a lone contestant at the Amazing Race and you're already in danger of being eliminated.

I was thinking about where I would spend the night here in Los Angeles. Scary thought!

I was given a boarding pass and was advised to leave my luggage at the TSA counter. The guys there informed me that I won't make it and my luggage won't make it anymore. They might end up in the second flight going to IAD.

After doing so, I quickly ran upstairs only to find a slow line at the Security area. Oh no! I only have 10 minutes till the plane leaves and I must still go through Security.

Then, I ran like hell. At gate 45, I was already panting like crazy. 2 more freakin' gates to go. I can do this. I can do this. I couldn't run anymore.

At Gate 47A, I shouted at the airport personnel closing the terminal door. I showed him my boarding pass. He let me in. I ran again towards the plane. Another guy is closing the plane already. I shouted, "wait a minute!" at the top of my lungs. He said, "You're 15A, right?!" like it's a bad thing.

I quickly found my seat and continued catching my breath. I knew for a fact that my luggage were not in the plane with me. I can worry about them later.

At 6 am, I reached a familiar airport. I went to the baggage claim area and looked for AA counter. I informed the guy there that I'm missing my luggage. This is like deja vu!

I was told that they will be included in the 12:30 flight. Okie doke. That's a good sign.

Then it's time to meet my friends. I waited outside for my pick-up. Richie & Ony were my angels ;oP They were surprised to see zero luggage so I told them about my situation.

Back at the apartment, Joy cooked brekky for all of us. Sweet!

Then it's time to pack my stuff for the three-State trip. We're going to Hershey Park today for the company get-together, then after that, we're heading out to Jersey and the Big Apple.

En route to Hershey Park, I took a nap. Joy's behind the wheel. I didn't know that Ogz couldn't drive because of an expired license.

After more than 2 hours, we reached the theme park. Our first stop was the Chocolate World. We took the tour explaining how the famous chocolates of Hershey's are made. Afterwards, we had lunch. Joy bought this delish choco drink. Tuna sandwich and a pasta side dish filled my belly.We planned to do some shopping before we leave for Jersey later.

At the gate of the park, we showed our 50-dollar ticket and got in easily. We're really thankful that our company did this for us.

One of the places where you'll see peeps smiling all the time is a theme park. It's meant to be enjoyed with your family and friends. Too bad, Raz missed all of this. She's flying back home on Tuesday so she needs to do some more packing & last-minute shopping.While looking for rides to try, we visited this shop where you could dress up in different costumes. Our options include looking like pirates, gangsters, or cowboys/girls. We tried Civil War era. I was given a gray costume, complete with a gun and a cap. Joy dressed up in a frilly gown with a fan as a props. Ogz wore this blue uniform and was given a sword. I'll post later how our photo turned out.

The first ride we tried is the "Lightning Race". It's a wooden roller coaster ride and two groups of thrill seekers are in a race to the finish line. We chose the red car (the other is green). This is just a mild ride for me. No crazy drops or spins here.

Verdict: Good for a first thrillAround 4:30, we bumped into my friend, Ms. Brendz, with her hubby, Trevor. They're the first ones we've seen from our company. They informed us that dinner is only served from 4:30 to 5:30. That means, we had to eat an early dinner.

Inside the pavilion, we saw our colleagues: Tammy, Leslie, David, Andrew, Bob, Jon, and their families. I'm still full so I ate a burger minus the bun and some fruits. To finish the meal, I had some ice cream ;oP

As a gift, we were given a gift card from Shell. Free gas. Sweet!

Even though we're not wearing any bathing suits, that didn't stop us from riding the "Tidal Force". There's a warning that the riders will get soaked. They weren't kidding. First, the ride will pull you up a steep slope then you'll turn a corner and then you'll drop down (long way down) and get wet, really wet. Other rides will give you mist. This is 100x better. Nuthin' was spared. Even my underwear got soaked.

Verdict: So much fun to get wetFor our last ride, we mustered enuff courage to try the new ride called "Fahrenheit". The waiting time is, like, 2 hours. While waiting, we kept looking at how riders react to the first scary drop and the twists & turn. All we hear is loud scream and clapping. That's a good sign.

When we could already see the actual coaster we'll be riding on, we got scared. When we strapped on the harness, we got very scared. When the car got pulled up and we could see the sky and the whole area below us, I almost peed in my shorts. I raised my hands during the ride and screamed all the way to the end.

Verdict: 'twas damn exhilarating!!!

Before we headed to New Jersey, we went back to Chocolate World and bought some stuff.