Barcelona Photoblog: amusement park
Showing posts with label amusement park. Show all posts
Showing posts with label amusement park. Show all posts

March 02, 2009

Hurakan Condor - Port Aventura's Dreadful Drop Tower

Hurakan Condor - Port Aventura [enlarge]

Hurakan Condor by the Swiss company Intamin AG is a frightening drop tower which provides the happy customer with a thrilling 3 second free fall ride from a trifling height of about 300 feet or 100 meters. Wanna see how it looks like from the top? Check a Hurakan Condor ride video. There are other famous attractions in Port Aventura like Dragon Khan which were featured here in the past.

July 17, 2008

Tibidabo Roller Coaster Thrill, Barcelona, Spain

Tibidabo Roller Coaster Thrill, Barcelona, Spain


Not that it is a big roller coaster but watching the whole city of Barcelona while being up there, taking a scary look at the valley at your feet and raising your hands to enhance the thrilling experience is definitely a different way of approaching our city.

Take some time to visit Tibidabo. If you have kids it is really a must-see. Barcelona Photoblog has published many pictures about this park but I will only suggest a very similar shot: Amusement Parks - Roller Coaster Panic.

July 16, 2008

Tibidabo Amusement Park Barcelona: Log Splash Attraction

Tibidabo Log Splash Attraction, Barcelona, Spain
Log Splash attraction at Tibidabo Amusement Park


Although the picture today is about the log splash attraction in Tibidabo amusement park, you don't really get to see the log much here nor you see the slide. In fact I didn't want the log to appear since it is not specially attractive. This time I wanted to concentrate on the big waves spreading like imaginary wings over the water.

June 22, 2008

Polinesian Ship Attraction in Port Aventura, Tarragona, Spain

Polinesian Ship Attraction in Port Aventura, Tarragona, Spain [enlarge]

And here's another attraction at Port Aventura amusement park in Tarragona. The ship is located in the Polinesia area. I am not very fond of this one. I get sick with the ups and downs. This time I stood in the shade and calmly composed my picture. Don't forget to click on the image for a better view!

June 02, 2008

A Day at the Races

A Day at the Races [enlarge]

If you've visited a local fair maybe you are familiar with the usual horse race to fight for a wonderful teddy bear. We went to Port Aventura and I prayed for my daughter not to win the first price. She had never played before so the odds were little. Bulls***, she won an enormous banana, taller than me and we had to hold it all along the park so imagine how funny it should be.

April 19, 2008

Port Aventura Amusement Park: Dragon Khan Attraction, Salou, Tarragona

Port Aventura Amusement Park: Dragon Khan Attraction, Salou, Tarragona, Spain [enlarge]

The eight-inversion-ride roller coaster called Dragon Khan designed by Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) is Port Aventura Amusement Park's major attraction. Although the Furious Baco, a recent addition, is following closely, the impressive mountain of steel and its red silhouette visible from miles away still draws thousands of visitors. When you talk about amusement parks in Spain (I don't know in Europe) it is common stuff to boast about how many times you rode on Dragon Khan as if that was some sort exploit, you know. My personal record, is three times. Of course I am getting too old for this. My stomach was OK this weekend when I last tried the famous attraction, but my cervical bones ached all along. Not because of the initial 148 ft lift hill or the following 118 ft tall vertical loop but because of the roller coaster elements coming next: the diving loop, zero-G roll, cobra roll, etc. I posted this image so you had an idea although you may find it repeated hundred of times on the web since it is the classic spot you stop to point and shoot. About the other attraction, Furious Bako, I have to say, it is not fit for cardiacs. The speed is so huge that your head shakes and you look like having an epilepsy spell. In this case you don't need any height to fall and gain acceleration, you are literally fired at an almost unbearable speed: Top speed: 84 mph in just 3.5 seconds, G-Force: 4.7 G's.

April 18, 2008

Tibidabo Amusement Park: Hurricane Thrill

Hurricane attraction Tibidabo Amusement Park
Hurricane attraction at Tibidabo Amusement Park


I will be out of Barcelona city for the weekend cause we are going to visit Port Aventura amusement park in Tarragona. I hope I bring many pictures of the park although heavy rains were forecast. In the meantime to introduce the topic, I leave you with one of the most thrilling attractions in Tibidabo: Huracan (Hurricane).

The ride is short but as you see they turn you upside down for a while and then move you down towards a fountain that sprinkles some water on your face. The block of seats spins around its axis, swinging dizzily every time the big arms go up and down.

October 09, 2007

Amusement Parks: Swinging Ship Attraction at Tibidabo, Barcelona

Amusement Parks: Swinging Ship Attraction at Tibidabo, Barcelona
Swinging Vessel at Tibidabo Amusement Park

There are thrilling and exciting amusement park attractions and thrilling and nauseating  amusement park attractions.

Take this swinging ship at Tibidabo for example. So beautiful a vessel can only inspire confidence in the rider-to-be! You might think "What the heck, I'll get on this one!, at least I don't go upside down or fall like a corpse with a concrete block tied to the feet". But alas! Upon the fourth or fifth swing, those friendly guys sitting upfront start grasping the security lever and they don't look that tough anymore. The beautiful lady right on the matching row on the other side was not that cute, in fact she could make it in the cast for The Exorcist V.

The usual screaming suddenly sounds like desperate calls for help and little by little, swinging up, swinging down, you remember that you got that hotdog with fries, and the memories turn so vivid!...Well folks, I hope you are not having lunch or dinner when you read this and that you visit Tibidabo Amusement Park...on an empty stomach of course.

September 09, 2007

Classic Marionettes at Tibidabo Amusement Park: Clown

Marionettes at Tibidabo Amusement Park
Marionetarium at Tibidabo Amusement Park

Since one picture wasn't enough here is a second marionette: the Clown. In fact at Tibidabo they have a workshop where experts make new marionettes for the park and preserve the old ones which are part of Herta Frankel's collection.

Herta was a famous Austrian puppeteer that came to Barcelona in 1942 and became very well known for her TV series for children.

Tibidabo's show only lasts about half an hour but you are going to see authentic collectionist antiques there. The place is called Marionetarium.

September 08, 2007

Classic Marionettes at Tibidabo: Trapezist

Classic Marionettes at Tibidabo: Trapezist

These are classic trapeze marionettes you can admire inside Tibidabo Amusement Park.

The trapezists were hanging from the ceiling on our way to the small room where the marionette show was about to start.

I am sorry if the picture appears to be upside down. There are many flaws because the image was snatched in a hurry. It was totally forbidden to take pictures of the marionettes.

July 23, 2007

Mayday, Mayday! Stop sending tourists up here!

Mime at Tibidabo Amusement Park
Mime at Tibidabo Amusement Park

Mayday, Mayday! Stop sending tourists up here! - might as well say this funny artist during his short performance at Tibidabo Amusement Park. Of course he didn't say that since he was a mime. 

Tibidabo is always full of visitors on weekends and during summer holidays it is packed with locals and tourists alike as the rest of Barcelona is. 

He was there jumping, dancing, stretching on the floor and tiptoeing after people to dust them or make them look towards an imaginary plane in the skies. 

I am not an expert on costumes so I can only guess that he was disguised in an American army's pilot uniform.

June 24, 2007

Dizzy Flying Chairs Attraction at Tibidabo Amusement Park

Flying chairs at Tibidabo Amusement Park
Flying Chairs attraction at Tibidabo Amusement Park

Flying Chairs are common attractions in amusement parks or local fairs but I doubt they take you for a spin with such strength and so high as the Chairs at Tibidabo Amusement Park.

Imagine your feet dangerously approaching the surrounding trees and your body on the verge of slipping away headfirst towards Barcelona City at the end of the mountain slope.

More pictures of Tibidabo have been shown before in this photo blog but I don't remember any video: Watch Tibidabo Mix BkR Studio, a compilation of attractions among which you can see the Flying Chairs not only during the day but also at night.

June 19, 2007

Birds of the Same Feather Flock Together

Fishing sitting ducks at Tibidabo Amusement park
Ducks at Tibidabo amusement park

Of course if you intend to deepen into amusement parks you ought to deal with other fair attractions different from thrill rides, as it is the case of sideshows and side stalls.

Freak shows are something of the past now but you still have magic mirrors, fortune telling machines and classic string puppet shows in Tibidabo. As to the side stalls there is not much of a difference with other amusement parks.

This is the case of the rubber ducks. How many can you hook? Apparently easy if they only stopped moving for just one second!


June 16, 2007

Amusement Parks: Roller Coaster Panic at Tibidabo, Barcelona

Roller Coaster Thrill Ride at Tibidabo Amusement Park, Barcelona

This is a snapshot I took of the roller coaster at Tibidabo Amusement Park in Barcelona. 

I did more or less what those automatic cameras do when you are sliding down the roller coaster: capture the panic expression in your distorted face. The only difference is that this picture was not for sale in the stall  at the end of the ride!

I hope they find Barcelona Photoblog some day and download their photograph for free.

June 05, 2007

Log Flume Thrill - Tibidabo Amusement Park

Log Flume Thrill - Tibidabo Amusement Park
Log Flume attraction at Tibidabo Amusement Park

Tibidabo Amusement Park has been featured in Barcelona Photoblog many times, but this particular attraction had escaped from the lens of my camera: the log flume

Compared to other parks these are pretty modest attractions but being on top of a mountain and enjoying a panoramic view of Barcelona City adds up to the whole experience. 

From a narrow passage between a tree and the protective wall that prevents passerbies from getting soaking wet on their way to the park's exit, I managed to take a series of shots. It was fun cause I had to shoot and hide the camera every time logs hit the water. Big drops wouldn't touch me but a silent drizzle was constantly coming my way with some seconds delay. 

I will tell you now what I like about the image: Most of the times when you take snaps of people and they are aware of your presence they hide in their shells and wear a mask, but with moments like these you are able to capture for some seconds the real person underneath.

June 03, 2007

Tibidabo Park: Tickles

Actor dusting a child's armpit during show at Tibidabo Amusement Park
Actor dusting girl's armpit at Tibidabo Amusement Park

Spontaneous scenes make the best shots, at least for me and if they include hilarious situations, much better. 

On a recent visit to Tibidabo, Barcelona's Amusement Park, I spotted this guy entertaining the crowd. His outfit looked great for a picture so I came up closer. I didn't expect him to suddenly rub this small girl's armpit with his colorful duster, that was really too much to ask.

September 29, 2006

Tibidabo Amusement Park, Barcelona: Airplane

Tibidabo Amusement Park, Barcelona: Airplane


Now that we are in Tibidabo (check last post) let's take a look at one of the most traditional attractions, the airplane. Located over the cafeteria, it goes round and round monotonously since 1928, stopping at night of course. One of the most boring of them all and yet surrounded by a halo of classic style, like a collector's toy. Here is a closer Tibidabo plane photograph against the sky. I thought a slight view of the balcony projecting over the city would make a better shot than just plain sky.

Barcelona Hotel nearby: Gran Hotel La Florida, (the picture I took)

September 28, 2006

Magic Mirrors at Tibidabo: Self Portrait

Self Portrait at Tibidabo, Barcelona


As I felt like posting people today, particularly kids, I decided to pick up this picture taken back in June and the sequel to a similar image published then: Tibidabo Park: Kids in the Magic Mirror. I think I invaded the scene enough this time, so why not call it "self portrait", me in the back and the kid we all have inside in front, or is it the other way around?. Trivia: These distorting mirrors are called literally "haha" mirror in Chinese (thanks Lisi).

Google Maps Barcelona, Spain: Tibidabo Amusement Park.

July 27, 2006

Ferris Wheel at Tibidabo Amusement Park in Barcelona



This is another shot of the ferris wheel at Tibidabo Amusement Park. I like it because you can see Collserola Tower in the background. If you want to know more about ferris wheels check this link. Do you feel like enjoying another panoramic view of the city where you can see Barcelona's Fabra Astronomical Observatory, watch this one
PS: I will be on the air till Monday and then will start summer holidays, for more details read previous post. (I have published plenty of images with maps of Tibidabo, so please search site for previous posts).

July 01, 2006

Expiatory Temple of the Sacred Heart at Tibidabo, Barcelona

Expiatory Temple of the Sacred Heart at Tibidabo


The Expiatory Temple of the Sacred Heart at Tibidabo mountain, was designed by architect Enrique Sagnier. First of all, back in 1886, the property of the land was donated by twelve distinguished gentlemen to San Juan Bosco who decided to build a hermitage, gothic in style and 8 meters high. 

The main crypt was not started until 1903 by the same Sagnier and finished partially many years later by his son. On the central tower there is a bronze statue built by José Miret in 1961, it is 7 meters and a half tall and weighs 4.800 kilos. The statue of Christ and the Sacred Heart spreading his open arms has become one of the main symbols of Barcelona. Here you can see a detail from the frieze at the portico.
Web Analytics