“It was a blast!” said Benny Vasquez, a Visalia, Calif., welder who was regaining his bearings after a dizzying turn on the Spider, an arachnid-shaped contraption with blazing green bulbs lining its black legs. “It’s exciting for people to be able to sit on something that he owned.”

Over the years, Jackson acquired about 18 rides for his 2,600-acre ranch in Santa Barbara County. Some gradually were swapped out for newer models and hit the carnival circuit without fanfare. But most stayed in place even after Jackson, acquitted on child molestation charges in 2005, left Neverland for good.

Several big amusement companies purchased what remained in 2008, repainting and sprucing up rides run down by weather and lack of use.

Link -via Fark

(image credit: Tomas Ovalle/LA Times)

Hyperactive children and those with attention-deficit disorders can now queue jump at theme parks because they cannot cope with the stress of waiting.

Tourist boards are offering the privilege so that they can skip the queue with their friends.

Teachers have criticised the scheme, saying that it undermines their efforts to encourage patience and it would be better for children with ADHD, attention deficit and hyperactive disorder, to learn how to wait.

Link

Due to open in 2010, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter will be a theme park at Universal Orlando based on the world’s most famous scar-faced boy. 

The 20-acre park will be located in Universal’s Islands of Adventure, which are themed "islands" built around a lagoon and currently comprises Seuss Landing, Marvel SuperHero Island, Toon Island, Jurassic Park and The Lost Continent. 

Universal isn’t saying much yet about what the Wizarding World will include, but so far it looks like there will be a Hogwarts Castle, a village of Hogsmeade, and a Three Broomsticks Pub.  I hope they serve butterbeer.

Link – via darkroastedblend

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by Marilyn Terrell.

Kelsey Timmerman, author of Where Am I Wearing? – a book about the countries, factories and people that make our clothes and a similarly named blog, was in Dhaka, Bangladesh, when he discovered a local amusement park named Fantasy Kingdom.

There Kelsey got a crazy idea: get as many kids, many of whom live just outside of the park but couldn’t afford the ticket price, into the Fantasy Kingdom for a day of fun!

Sixty Dollars admits one child for one day to Disney World in Orlando, Fla.

Sixty dollars admits 20 people for one day to Fantasy Kingdom, near Dhaka, Bangladesh.

I discovered this not long ago when I was in Dhaka. Now all we have to do is find those 20 Bangladeshi children to take to Fantasy Kingdom, I thought.

Behind us were the gates of Fantasy Kingdom, the brightest, cleanest, and most out-of-place sight in all of Bangladesh. The walls are plastic but look like sandstone. Standing atop them are two very happy cartoon kids – sentinels looking out to the crowded streets and the surrounding garment factories.

"One girl and one boy would be best," Ruma said. She is a 20-something Bangladeshi sportswriter who had taken the day off to help me with my crazy idea: Take as many kids as we can – who live in the park’s shadow but haven’t been inside – into the amusement park. Riding a roller coaster is a luxury they’ll probably never know otherwise and, as a lifetime roller-coaster enthusiast, something I hoped to change.

"I want 20," I replied.

Ruma approached three boys. As she talked, they stared at me before running off to find more kids. It wasn’t long before we had a crowd.

Read more of Kelsey’s fascinating account of the day trip at The Christian Science Monitor: Was it a frivolous gift or a lifelong memory?