"But...I can't go to sleep until I write my trip notes!" COMPLETED!

[DisneyCrafter]

"But...I can't go to sleep until I write my trip notes!" (This was true BTW, even though I arrived back at our room exhausted EVERY night, I still made sure to take notes!)

Who: Rachael & Greg (DH), married 7 months. We spent the first half of our honeymoon in WDW back in early June. I had to get my Christmas time in WDW fill. (I fell in love back in 2006.) This was my 4th trip to WDW and Greg's 4th or 5th. I love Disney and DH won't admit it, but I believe he is almost hooked as well!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/006_6.jpg

When: December 13-18,2009

Where: All Star Sports-Resort (We booked only 6 weeks before our trip, VERY last minute! But we got a great deal. :) )

WHAT YOU ALL HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR!

Day One: DHS (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34838282&postcount=1)
Day Two: AK, DTD & MK (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34919020&postcount=7)
Day Two: Cont. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34919961&postcount=8)
Day Three: EPCOT (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=35031232&postcount=12)
Day Four: DTD & DHS (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=35177795&postcount=16)
Day Five: MK (Including MVMCP) (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=35271112&postcount=21)
Day Six: Departure & AKL (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=35369636&postcount=26)

Day One:
We arrived right on time, grabbed our luggage and headed to locate the ME. We walked nearly the entire length of Terminal A, before I remembered that we did the same thing on our Honeymoon and quickly headed over to Terminal B. I won’t forget that anymore! I joked with DH that the walking in Disney begins as soon as the plane lands.

We had to wait between 5-10 minutes for our ME bus (Thankfully, because it was so HUMID in the airport, almost as though they did not have the air-conditioning on!) and arrived at our resort, All Star Sports, in about 25-30 minutes. It seemed as though almost everyone on the bus was getting off here. Nonetheless, we waited for our luggage to be handed off to us and headed for the lobby.

As soon as I walked into the lobby, I immediately began looking for the “Online Check-In” desk. Um, it wasn’t there. I felt like a fool having just told DH matter-of-factly that we did NOT have to wait in the long line to check-in as I did Online Check-In and it has a special desk. The line to check-in was LONG. I got a little red in the face at this point and let me tell you, it was unfortunately not from the Florida Sunshine. However, that frustration lasted only seconds because just as soon as I got frustrated there was a CM announcing that if anyone had done online check-in to come to the front of the line. I apparently was the only one in the entire lobby that had done online check-in. Amateurs. (Ha ha, just kidding, but it was nice!) We quickly received our packet and room number and were on our way to our
“home” for the next 5 days.

Now, on to the room. I am posting the pictures I have of the room on this post and I stupidly deleted the best one (that showed the beds and a better idea of the size of the room). For being just DH and I, it worked our great as we did not need much room and had an extra bed to place our suitcase on. It was clean and our towels were restocked each day. Mousekeeping did not come each day until between 1pm and 3pm, our room must have been at the end of their “route”. A few days, we were in our room at this time and put our “Privacy Please” card in the lock, but were never bothered and our room was always cleaned. It was smaller than our room at POFQ but I enjoyed the bathroom much more as it was an actual tub. Now that I think about it, I have a feeling our travel agent and a relative on DH’s side booked us in an accessible room. Oh well, live and learn. Not forgetting to mention here, that we were booked in the “Homerun” section of the resort, which is one of the farther sets of buildings from the main lobby. I was not happy about this, but I let it go as we had a ground floor room that was facing the second, and smaller, pool.

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In the first picture, if you look in the lower right hand corner you can see how close the beds were to the table. There was just enough space for a walkway, no more.

At this point in the day, we pretty much freshened up and headed straight to the food court to grab some dinner and then head out to DHS. SIDE NOTE: I am also completing a dining review, so I will not go into detail about what DH and I ate during this TR, please see the link in my signature for the dining review. For dinner, I had the Chicken Alfredo Pasta and DH had a Double Cheeseburger.

We then headed over to DHS, and JUST missed the bus! (This was to become a reoccurrence throughout the trip.) We arrived at DHS and boy, was it a lot MORE crowded than our trip in early June. The first thing we headed towards was the Spectacle of Lights, they directed us to walk around to enter from the back, in an attempt to keep the people traffic moving in somewhat of an organized direction. It was a sea of bodies at the Streets of America but the lights were spectacular! My DH was snapping many photos which made me smile, as he is not much of a photo taker so he must have been just as impressed as I was! He took some great photos this trip, I even will include some of them in my TR. (Thanks DH!) It was even SNOWING! (Soap Bubbles) I overheard many conversations of the amazed people, a family behind us even called home to tell their family it was snowing in Florida! (SIDE NOTE: I know this is completely OFF TOPIC and I apologize but I just need to say it, there were so people who bumped into us or rammed us with a stroller and didn’t apologize this trip. This was my fourth time to WDW and I never remember people being, for lack of a better word, inconsiderate. I even heard a family on our last day say “That was the first time someone has ran into me and apologized.” I don’t know what it was but it did, unfortunately, damper my spirit a little. We did, however, encounter some very friendly people as well, but it was few and far between. I also see in my notes that I wrote “More rude people this time or just more people?”)

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After seeing the Spectacle of Lights we headed over to the Great Movie Ride and waited about 20 minutes. This was only the second time I went on this attraction, but the CM was not as convincing of his role this time as the past CM on our previous trip. After riding this, I realized Starring Rolls was not that far, so we headed over only to find out that it was CLOSED. Which made sense, as it was shortly passed 8 at this time, and EMH had begun. I was bummed but shrugged my shoulders in hopes that we would make it here on our next trip to DHS this week. I still had a sweet tooth and I wanted a Mickey Bar so we walked down Sunset Blvd. toward ToT and RNRC, knowing we would pass an icecream cart along the way. We got to the end and didn’t see one so we stopped for some hand-scooped ice cream. We should have walked 5 more steps because there was the cart. We then rode RNRC and ToT both with a 20-25 minute wait. I had not riden RNRC since my very first trip in 2004 and it was intense! Wow.

We then walked over to TSM and saw the wait said 45 but decided to wait because it was either to walk away and come back another day for rope drop (we are NOT morning people) or stand in line. I thought it was a lot of fun and way better than Buzz at MK, which we both experienced for the first time later in the trip. DH, of course, beat me. My arm hurt at the end from all of the pulling!

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I was very excited to participate in the drawing class and hoped that it was available this evening. It was! We drew Scrooge McDuck, which I was a little disappointed about but nonetheless I really enjoyed the class. I wish I would have taken a picture of DH and I’s drawings before I tossed them but I just didn’t think of it at the right time. Oops! It was a little after 10 and we decided it was time to head back to get some sleep. We had a great bus driver on our way back, he even told a joke. So, I will leave you with this as I end Day One.

Peter Pan was flying around Magic Kingdom all day long and saw all of the people but he did not land to say “Hello!” Why not?

[caralyn817]

Subbing! popcorn:: Can't wait to hear the answer to the joke! :)

[praisehisname]

I'm joining in!

[Angies1274]

Joining in!!!:goodvibes

[macraven]

i give up.......


why didn't he say hello?

[DisneyCrafter]

Come on everybody, you can do it! Although it did stump everyone on the bus. You will just have to continue guessing and wait until I write my next post in the next couple of days! :)

SIDE NOTE: Of course I am going through Disney withdrawl BUT I have begun the preliminaries for pricing a trip next November! We are looking at going the week of Thanksgiving. We would leave Friday/Saturday and stay at a hotel near Universal to visit CityWalk and the Harry Potter part then move on to Disney until Sat/Sun. It all depends on our finances. We have until the beginning of May to be able to book the trip and still have 180 days for ADRs. We also want to go somewhere for our first anniversary, so we may have to choose one or the other. We'll see. We are looking at staying at the Coronado Springs.

[DisneyCrafter]

JOKE: Peter Pan was flying around Magic Kingdom all day long and saw all of the people but he did not land to say “Hello!” Why not?

ANSWER: Because he never,never lands!

Day Two:

Our first morning in WDW was spent at Animal Kingdom. I had originally planned that we would wake up at 615am (515am back home) and make it for the EMH. Yeah, that DIDN’T happen. (I told you we weren’t morning people!) Instead we woke up at 730 and were ready and out the door to breakfast at about 810am. We had breakfast at the food court this morning.

We were walking in the park by 855am. We walked right over to Dinosaur and walked right on. It was very rough and of course I was seated on the end where the huge dinosaur appears out of nowhere. I had my eyes closed almost the ENTIRE time. We then walked over to EE and could not even see it until we were very close because it was very foggy that morning! We walked all the way through and waited less than 5 minutes. After EE we decided that we had time to see Festival of the Lion King and got lucky as there was a show beginning in 5 minutes! The show was incredible, I had never seen it before and I got a little teary eyed because to me, it is SO Disney. I am glad that we decided not to wake up early because in about 2 hours we had done everything on our list!

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After AK we took the bus back to AS-Sports and headed to DTD. Our plans for DTD that day were just to get lunch. We went to Earl of Sandwich, and DH still mentions how tasty it was! The line was very long but I believe we waited around 10 minutes and were lucky enough to get a table in the air conditioning as it was becoming quite humid outside. After eating, we walked into one store and I bought some Mickey Pasta. We decided to come back on Wednesday afternoon and do a “Budget Santa”. We would separate for one hour or so and spend a set amount on each other. It worked out really great. But more on that on the day that it actually happened! After DTD we headed back to our resort and took a dip in the pool for about a half hour or so.

We arrived at MK I believe about 3pm or so. There were SO many people. (I had looked at TP website and it had said to avoid MK this day-because of EMH but I had already planned it, so we faced the crowds.) We went to Splash Mountain and it had a 45min wait. We debated standing in the line but it was pretty hot outside and we had plenty of time to get everything done so we entered. It was a MISTAKE. We stood in the same spot for 15min. Our ride should have been called SOAKED mountain as you can see in the picture below of DH. We were drenched. When we walked past the line entrance after we got off the wait said 70 minutes. That was the longest wait time we saw all week. We then walked over to BTMRR. Is it just me or does the BTMRR line have NO air circulation? The line just seems to wind over and over again and I get so hot and sticky!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1552.jpg


I really like this picture that I snapped while on BTMRR. I think I am going to make it my new background. It just has a peacefulness to it, I believe.
http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1554.jpg

Entry continued in next post.

[DisneyCrafter]

(Day Two cont.)

After riding BTMRR we walked over to Main Street and got our spot for SpectroMagic 45 minutes ahead of schedule! We each took a turn going to get a snack from MS Bakery and I even purchased 2 cinnamon rolls to eat for breakfast the following morning! We saw the Move It, Shake It parade twice and continued to get sandwiched in our seats by a family sitting next to us. Finally the parade started and two ladies switched spots with us so they could sit and we could stand and take pictures (the CMs that walk at the beginning of the parade made it clear that if you were in the first row you had to sit). We then got asked, RUDELY, by a man to sit down. Where did he want us to sit? We barely had enough room to stand and we were the first people there that sat down in that area! Ugh! I told him no and proceeded to ask him where he would like me to sit and turned back to enjoy the parade. It’s not my fault they walked up 5 minutes before the parade began and expected optimal viewing. I DESERVED IT. Ha ha. Enough ranting.

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The plan was to stick around for Wishes at 8pm and then head over to the monorail to catch our 850 ADR at Chef Mickeys. However, we were feeling so cramped at this point that we ditched out and headed over to CM early in hopes that we could get seated. We waited maybe 15 minutes and were seating at 810 or so, 40 min before our ADR time! We had a pretty good dinner, we were seated in a “hallway” as I could only describe it. However, it was quieter and we were right next to the window that overlooked the pool.
I really like this picture. My DH said “This is going to be my profile picture on facebook when we get back.” (He really is a closet Disney fan the more I think about it. Ha ha!)

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1631.jpg

I really enjoy this picture because Goofy had just picked up my fork and took a piece off my dessert plate and fed it to me. This is me smiling with a mouth full!
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We then hoped on the monorail and decided to head over to the Grand Floridian to see the Gingerbread House. There were some VERY boisterous people on the monorail that smelled, no make that reeked, of liquor. I mentioned something to DH when we got off and he said “I’m glad it just wasn’t me.” To each his own I suppose. However, in the same monorail ride we gave some advice to a couple who seemed “lost”. They did not know the best way to get to their ADR on the Boardwalk. I hope the advice I gave helped them get there with ease! We made it with about 20 minutes to spare before the little shop inside the house closed. I took a few pictures and go in line while DH continued to happily take pictures. (He is becoming a Disney addict like me, I know it, maybe the next trip he’ll be hooked, if not, definitely the trip after! He he! Just tonight while I was upstairs he shouted to me, “There’s a challenge on Food Network and they’re in DISNEY!”) I bought a shingle and I guest gingerbread is just not my thing, it had such a pungent flavor. I decided I didn’t like ginger, but on Christmas my mom baked gingersnaps and they were delicious. Maybe the bread isn’t sweet enough for me.

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We got back to our resort quickly. The bus driver said he saw us walking up and waited! (How nice of him!) I wrote my trip notes and quickly fell asleep!
To keep you coming back for more, where was this photo taken? Answer revealed next posting!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1550.jpg

[praisehisname]

I really like this picture that I snapped while on BTMRR. I think I am going to make it my new background. It just has a peacefulness to it, I believe.
http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1554.jpg

Love this picture!

Great update!

[serrotak]

Caught up and joining in on all the fun. I love the pic of EE in the fog. It makes it look so realistic.

[DisneyCrafter]

Subbing! popcorn:: Can't wait to hear the answer to the joke! :)

:cheer2: WELCOME! About the joke-I didn't say it wasn't corny! :thumbsup2

I'm joining in!

:welcome: I'm so glad you are going to read my review! Hope you enjoy! :)

Joining in!!!:goodvibes

:woohoo: WELCOME! Enjoy. :cool1:

Love this picture!

Great update!

Thank you! :) I am really happy with a lot of pictures that I took this trip. I think I finally mastered using my camera in the best way possible. I really would like a new camera-just wish money grew on trees! :lmao:

Caught up and joing in on all the fun. I love the pic of EE in the fog. It makes it look so realistic.

:cheer2: WELCOME! I thought so too once I saw it. I love walking up to EE from Dinoland. I don't even feel like I'm at a park! Ahh Disney, you are amazing. :cloud9:

[DisneyCrafter]

DAY THREE:
I am going to call this day “The Day of EPCOT indecisiveness!”

I just could NOT make up my mind this day! :confused3

We decided to sleep in this day and made it to EPCOT about 1030. Our breakfast this morning consisted of Cinnamon Rolls purchased from Main Street Bakery the previous evening. We heated them up in the microwave of the resort’s food court, purchased an OJ to share and we were good to go!

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The first thing we did when we got to EPCOT was go to CLUB COOL! We tried each of the sodas, EVEN…

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Here is DH’s face after trying said Beverly…

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His lips are pinched in pure disgust! Ha ha! :lmao: (Yes, he also made me try it. Man, does it have an awful after taste or what?!) The other sodas were not that bad at all. I wish I could remember which were our favorites. A watermelon and lime flavored sodas are popping in my brain, I just don’t remember the names!

After that we headed over to the Land (We both had never been to this part of EPCOT) and went to check out the wait time for Soarin’. It said 50 mins and the FP Return Time was for after 100! I decided against both waiting and a FP (BAD IDEA!). :mad:

We then headed over to World Showcase and went to the UK. I got some tea for our neighbor that was collecting our mail this week and for my mom who loves “unique” flavors of tea. I also got my friend a Christmas present (a Celtic knot necklace).

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In my original plan I had written that we would arrive at EPCOT around 8, hit up Soarin’, Test Track, Turtle Talk with Crush, and The Seas with Nemo & Friends. This is NOT how our day went at all! Anyway to went to walk towards the Boardwalk for some lunch when I decided that I wanted a TS place. We headed back to World Showcase while I was giving a call to Disney Dining to see if they could seat us at San Angel (I almost booked an ADR here for lunch that day but decided against it! Why?!). They couldn’t seat us so we tried anyway. NOPE! We went over to Nine Dragons and were sat right away (they were nearly empty). It was so HUMID this day and I think that had something to do with my indecisiveness. When we sat down I was so thirsty throughout the meal that I had 5 glasses of Iced Tea. In retrospect, I made the wrong decision to completely change my TP around. We ended up walking more and spending more on food.

After lunch we did a little browsing throughout the World Showcase and stopped to see the American Adventure. I loved the singing performance before the show but I did not really enjoy the actual theatre movie. I have no idea why. History just isn’t my thing, it never has been. I would have to say that the Japan store is our favorite store. We got fans with our names written on them during our honeymoon and they are now hanging in our kitchen. This time, DH picked out some Sake and as a Christmas present I bought a little Sake cup that they wrote your name on! I picked out a couple of small plates in the dishes area to put in our bedroom as they coordinate well with our color scheme. (I hopefully will remember to take a picture of them sometime soon and post it.)

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Look at the reusable tote bag I purchased for about $6.00 in the American Adventure gift shop! I love it! :thumbsup2

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After window shopping and picture taking we stopped in France at the Boulangerie Patisserie. Can I just say YUM! Their pastries are DELICIOUS. The chocolate croissant was my absolute favorite. We loved it so much the first round that DH went back through a second time! (Which was a bad idea because I hate when I get stuffed full of sweets, I feel so sick afterwards.)

I really enjoy this picture. I acutally am going to print out a 5x7 or 8x10 in black and white and frame it to put in our kitchen with a couple other images I find. It fits perfectly with my kitchen!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1690.jpg

After we had traveled the entire World Showcase we hopped back on the boat and headed over to the Land and decided to wait the 40mins it said for Soarin’. We got to talking to a wonderful family and it made the time go by quickly. We were even lucky enough to sit next to them on the glider. DH was not so lucky on this attraction as he sat next to a man that had some horrid body odor (think sweaty with no deodorant). I could smell it so I know DH was not happy. I LOVED SOARIN’! It is definitely one of my favorite attractions at WDW now. Totally worth the wait. I love how you could smell the trees! Wow! I was mesmerized after we got off! We then rode The Seas with no wait just an endless walk through a maze of metal poles. I was NOT impressed. We then walked right into Turtle Talk with Crush as a show was just beginning. It was alright. I don’t believe we will be seeing that again until we have children in tow.

We then walked over to Test Track and waited about 35-40mins for that. I used to think that Test Track was one of my favorite attractions but I wouldn’t be sad if we missed it next time. But if DH likes it a lot then we will ride it. (Compromises, Jeesh! :laughing:)

We then took the boat AGAIN (that makes 3 times this day-and I had never ridden it before). We got in line for the Candlelight Processional. We got seats but let me ask you this, Whose idea was it to put TREES throughout a theatre? They blocked our view! The Candlelight Processional was okay. I was expecting to be more impressed but as much as I love Abigail Breslin as a young actress I just do not believe she puts as much emotion and feeling into the story as it deserves. On the bright side, we only witnessed 1 fainter. Anyone know what I’m talking about here? :)

Our plan for dinner this evening was to eat at Sunshine Seasons but it was 915 by the time we made our way back to Future World and decided not to wait for illuminations or eat in EPCOT but head back to hotel and eat in EZFC. We ended up having a great day despite the TP completely changing but I think that next time I will trust myself and stick to the plan! However, at this point in the trip I began to feel nauseous throughout most of the day. I think it was a mixture of the less than 6 hours of sleep per night and the frequent bus rides, but more importantly the low quality of food that you get from eating at CS locations. I have a sensitive stomach and it was not happy by the end of the trip.

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[Nancy for Disney]

(Day Two cont.)



To keep you coming back for more, where was this photo taken? Answer revealed next posting!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1550.jpg[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]

BTMRR:confused: Otherwise it is Splash.

DAY TWO:
I am going to call this day “The Day of EPCOT indecisiveness!”


http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1707.jpg

Great picture!

Enjoyed reading. I am going to check out your dining reviews.

[DisneyCrafter]

BTMRR:confused: Otherwise it is Splash.

Great picture!

Enjoyed reading. I am going to check out your dining reviews.

It is Splash!

I love the pictures I took at EPCOT! I finally learned how to use my digital camera in the best way possible on this trip. Now, I really want one of those high-tech digital cameras with the fancy lense and instant picture taking abilities. (I have a LOT of research to do on those, haha!)

[serrotak]

I finally learned how to use my digital camera in the best way possible on this trip.

I am glad you finally learned, your pictures are great. Keep them coming.:thumbsup2

[DisneyCrafter]

DAY FOUR

I’m sorry that I have been “SLACKING” when it comes to posting. I have been scrapbooking our honeymoon. I am on the Disney part of the trip now and it is making me Disney homesick. I hope we can swing a trip this fall/winter! Especially since my cousin is applying to be a CM through the College Program this fall!

My TP for this day said to wake-up and make it to DHS for Rope Drop to ride TSM with little to no wait. However, as you read, on the very first day of our trip we rode TSM during EMH. We slept in until about 9 or so and headed out to DTD for the late morning/early afternoon. I was feeling pretty sick at some points by this time in the trip and I just could not bring myself to wake early.

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When we got to DTD we decided to do our “Budget Santa” in the World of Disney because we had received a 20% off coupon for our entire purchase if we shopped before 12 noon. We set a limit of $50.00 and time of 30 minutes and off we went. DH had no problem choosing things for me! On Christmas morning (Yes, we kept them a surprise until then!) I opened a Disney World t-shirt, a Disney cookbook (Cooking with Mickey and the Disney Chefs-I included a picture of the book I found on the internet below!), a Mickey Head ice cube tray, an ornament, and a Mickey Head cookie cutter. (I actually had already purchased on our Honeymoon-DH felt so bad!) I chose only a few things for DH and had him choose a t-shirt out on Thursday in MK to make up for the price difference. I got him a t-shirt, and a Goofy’s Candy Co. Gummy Hamburger and a Minnie’s Bake Shop Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie! After leaving the World of Disney we headed over to WGPE to eat some lunch! Boy, you DIS-ers did NOT disappoint in raving about this place. It was DELICIOUS and for a QS?! Whoa! See my Dining Review for more detail! We then hopped on a bus and headed back to our room to drop our things off and headed over to DHS. (I should have put jeans on at this point-but I told myself I would be okay, IT GOT WINDY that evening!)

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/Cooking_with_mickey_and_the_Disney_.jpg


Looking at this picture, I see the crowds we were dealing with! I don't remember the crowd level during my trip in HS but that was during Spring Break, so I'm glad I was an amateur at that point! This was by far the most crowded I have experienced it! My family and I visited in 2006 this very same week and it was not nearly as crowded and in early June of 2009, it was EMPTY compared to this!
http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1719.jpg

As soon as we got to DHS, I felt so nauseous. I swear it is those Bus Rides! I get motion sickness very bad and you can’t win on those buses, you either sit facing forward and can’t see out the front window (which helps me-A LOT!) or can see out the front window but are in the back or riding sideways! Anyway, I will get off my soapbox now.

We walked towards Muppet Vision 3D and stopped to get an icecream snack on our way. I got the Mickey Bar and DH got the Chocolate Covered Banana! Muppet was OK. It is NOTHING compared to Phillhar Magic or It’s Tough to be a Bug!

I wanted to do the Drawing Class again so we headed over that way but the wait was going to be 45 minutes so I decided NOT to wait. (We probably should have, we could have waited inside, away from the wind!)

We rode RNRC with about a 40 min. wait and ToT with a 10 min. wait. After that we decided to sit and wait for the CMs to let us in to the theatre to watch Fantasmic! DH got a beer and I got a hot chocolate while we waited. They let us in shortly after we finished our beverages. We got great seats and sat some more. It was SO cold! DH was in a t-shirt and shorts and was not complaining nearly as much as I was (I at least was wearing a sweater!) The time went by faster as there were 2 couples behind us that were discussing there plans for the evening. The one man worked for Disney and it sounded like they came to the parks on a regular basis to see various shows. They were discussing whether to catch Illuminations or Wishes after Fantasmic and I wanted to turn around and say that they should go to Illuminations because it was a lot closer and they may not make it to MK in enough time to watch Wishes (MK may have even closed at 7pm that night!) but I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want them to think I was eavesdropping (even though I was-haha)! They went on to complain over the fact that Disney did not make a map of the entire WDW Resort. Yes, you heard me right! Don’t you think people who work for Disney should be more knowledgeable? IMO. Us DIS-ers could give them a run for their money! He he! Fantasmic FINALLY began and it was a great show, I just know that I would have enjoyed it more if I wasn’t so cold! Next time, I don’t think I will be so worried about getting there RIGHT when the gate opens because I didn’t like how long it took to exit!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1744.jpg

We hopped a bus back to the hotel and hopped on a TOUR bus to DTD. (DH asked me if I wanted to put jeans on at this point and I stupidly said “NO!”-Oops!) We ate dinner at Planet Hollywood as it was a TS that did NOT need prior reservations. It was an okay meal. I spilled my meal (which included red sauce) down my WHITE sweater (the stain is still somewhat there) that DH got for me when he went to California with his family in 2008 and they visited DisneyLand! It is a TinkerBell sweater that zips and fits me perfectly. I’m still sad. Does anyone have any good remedies for removing an old redsauce stain? I would be much appreciative! Anyway, after PH we headed to Ghirardelli’s and shared a sundae. We then headed back to the bus stop and made our way “home” to BED!

Well, that concludes Day Four of our trip. Only 1 more full day left! Until my next post, here is another mystery picture! Where did I take it? Good Luck!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1701.jpg

[praisehisname]

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1651.jpg

Gorgeous photo!


http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1719.jpg

It looks like that one group is getting a "Stitch" photo!


http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1701.jpg

I'm stumped!

Denise

[serrotak]

Me too. I know I've seen it before, and I will probably kick myself for not knowing right now.

[DisneyCrafter]

I'm stumped!

Denise

Me too. I know I've seen it before, and I will probably kick myself for not knowing right now.

Okay, I will give you a hint: EPCOT. :)

[DisneyCrafter]

I just wanted to post really quickly to tell you yesterday that my DH said that the shirt he was wearing was one of his favorite shirts. It is a classic Mickey WDW shirt that we got on our last trip. I then said, "I love that I made you fall in love with Disney World." & he said, "I always liked Disney World." I knew it, I knew it, I knew it! He LOVES Disney! YAY! :cool1: This will make taking frequent trips a sinch, since I won't have to convince him! :cheer2:

[DisneyCrafter]

DAY FIVE

This morning we had an ADR at 1900 Park Fare bright and early (8 am to be exact)! That must be the time PF opens as we got there at about 755 and the doors weren’t even open yet. I was relieved because the monorail was down and we had to take a bus from MK to the GF (they had a special bus running b/c of the problems). Our bus driver that morning was really friendly, energetic and helpful. He had a “No Yawning” rule allowed! *Laughing*

As soon as we got to PF they took our picture and down we sat. Can I just say DELICIOUS?! It BLOWS Chef Mickey’s out of the water! (IMO) It was not busy at all, there were countless open tables throughout our time there and the buffet was easy to access. I stuffed myself to the brim before we headed out and took the now running monorail to MK to catch a few rides before heading back to our resort for a nap and some packing.

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1763.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1767.jpg

We were at MK from about 930-1200 and we rode Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, Snow White, saw Phillhar Magic and The Hall of Presidents, and went on Haunted Mansion. I would call that a success!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1772.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1784.jpg

This was the day that it rained and we snapped our poncho bag onto the fanny pack and we were all set for our afternoon and evening! We ended up wearing them on and off the entire night. When we got to MK, it was drizzling and we walked right over to Splash Mountain and walked right on because of the rain. (At least we didn’t get soaked this time, especially since the rocket of water that hits you was turned off.) We then went over to BTMRR and rode that with the shortest wait I had ever experienced! After that, I decided I wanted to ride the train (for the very first time). I loved it!
We took it to Main Street and then walked through the stores looking for any last minute goodies to take home before going to get our wristband for MVMCP and stopping for dinner at Cosmic Rays. I was NOT impressed by CR. I ordered the Chicken Dinner and DH ordered the Rib Dinner. We will NOT be ordering these menu items again.

After dinner we rode Peter Pan’s Flight and It’s a Small World. We then decided to get a spot for the parade, only to find that it was already crowded. We took our spots standing behind a family in front of us and waited. Shortly after we claimed our spots another family came over and little by little kept trying to get us to move over (we had no room to do so)! What is it with our luck with finding people that think we don’t need to watch the parade. At one point the lady was purposely hitting me with her backpack and saying, LOUDLY and RUDELY, that “some people just don’t want to move over!” I bit my tongue and ignored her because I had every right to be there! I wasn’t blocking anyone’s view, there were no children that couldn’t see standing behind us. It was so crowded! They came by and checked for our wristbands 3 times before the parade began.

The parade was great. The characters stopped frequently (is this what we paid for?) and the CMs in the parade were so energetic! It brought a big smile to my face!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1838.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1826.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1814.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1845.jpg

After the parade, we walked closer to the Castle to get a better view for Holiday Wishes. At this point, I ran into a girl I went to high school with that was a CM. This was her last time at MK before she was heading home. Holiday Wishes was nice but I definitely regret not seeing Wishes earlier in the week, it’s Jiminy Crickets voice and the children singing that gets me every time!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100_1864.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af249/grdabkey/100B2000.jpg

After the parade we went over to ride Pirates and then decided it was time to head back. We fastened our pace once we realized the 1030 parade was beginning and got all the way through to the front before we got stopped. Luckily, there was a large break in the parade where they let us through. We got back to the room and I went to bed right away, I was EXHAUSTED and we had a long and early day the next day, our departure day. *Sad Face*

[DisneyCrafter]

Oh yes, I almost forgot! The picture is from the stand-by line for Test Track!

[serrotak]

The parade looked awesome. I loved Eeyore pulling his little wagon with the sad looking Christmas tree in it. That was cute. And the Gingerbread Men are adorable. The Castle all lit up in the cool colors was awesome.

[DisneyCrafter]

The parade looked awesome. I loved Eeyore pulling his little wagon with the sad looking Christmas tree in it. That was cute. And the Gingerbread Men are adorable. The Castle all lit up in the cool colors was awesome.

I HAD to put the Eeyore picture on here because it was too cute! :lovestruc I also loved the Gingerbread Men. That parade was the best I have seen at WDW. :cloud9: I see you are leaving for WDW soon! Have a great trip and be sure to eat lots of delicious food!

[mrskckitty]

Just found your trip report and enjoyed it very much. We were there at the same time and were at some of the same parks as you at the same time. We were at DHS on Sunday, MK on Monday and at MVMCP on Thursday. I haven't done a trip report yet, because I took over 2000 photos and haven't been able to tackle putting them on photobucket:scared1: I hope you had as great of a time as we did. :yay:

[DisneyCrafter]

Day 6

My last post isn't going to be all that exciting...sorry! :sad2: I didn't take the greatest pictures at AKL and that is the only place we went on this day of our departure! I was feeling very ill :sick: but still managed to stuff my face full of the delciousness that is Boma food! :lmao: We woke up too early this morning and I layed back down for a bit before we decided to head out and see if we could be seated early for breakfast. We took a cab this morning, as our ADR was for 820am, and I couldn't rely on the bus service to get us there on time. The cab ride was short from AS-Sports, as AK is the closest park to the AS Resorts. We were seated at 745am and were on our way out about 820am! I would have liked to walk around more and look out onto the savannah but I just felt so sick! (I really felt as though I had the flu!) We went back to the resort and decided to go back to our room so I could sleep before the ME came to get us. After waking up I felt MUCH better! One thing I know for next time is to plan for more down time...and choose better meals! I have a very sensitive stomach and it doesn't react well when I eat too much fat, when food is cooked in certain oils and overly processed foods.

We arrived, checked in, and our plane left about 30 minutes late but we still managed to land back home as scheduled! The ride was VERY rocky as we were flying over several storms. I do not do well flying and that ride left me not feeling much better about flying. It was COLD at home! My MIL picked us up and off we went...the trip was over. :sad2:

[DisneyCrafter]

Final Thoughts:

The trip is over and now, so is the report! I am sad. :sad2: I want to go back as soon as we can afford, I just don't know when that will be. Our next vacation will be a beach vacation, we are thinking Cancun, Jamaica or Myrtle Beach. If we do not visit WDW this year we will definitely visit next year, again, if we can afford it. The only way we are able to afford a vacation this year is because we get to take advantage of the new homebuyer's tax credit. :cool1: My cousin applied for the CP through WDW and is waiting to hear and it would be nice to visit her while she is there. (Fall '10) We were thinking over Thanksgiving as DH would only need to use 3 vacation days but I am worried about crowds, peak rates, and insane air fare! Thoughts??? Maybe September...(We can do Food & Wine Festival!)

To earn gift cards for Disney, I have joined Sunshine Rewards, it was mentioned in a report I read and I decided to check it out. I joined last week and I have almost $7.00 in my account. It has become my "part-time job". It would be nice to have those gift cards for souvenairs/added drinks & appetizers.

[praisehisname]

I really enjoyed reading your report; thanks for writing it!