A benefit of staying in an Epcot resort is the proximity to not just Epcot but DHS. After breakfast at Cape May, we chose to take the Friendship boat to DHS instead of walking or driving.
We were through the gates at 9.45 am, which was late for us. We didn’t linger around Hollywood Blvd; my two boys are really into the Guitar Hero rock music. So, it was only natural that our first stop was here.
I wanted to head off for TSM fastpasses but with standby time of 10 minutes, we got in line.
We were all nervous about going upside down. Afterall, if humans were meant to defy gravity, we would all have self-inflatable balloons instead of lungs. And we would be breathing helium; not an oxygen/nitrogen mix. But I figured that the Disney magic would keep us in the right place, like this car.
And I was right! RnRC is a now family favourite. When we came out, standby was still 10 minutes so we rode it again.
And DS scored big with a new t-shirt. Is it just me; or did anyone else notice that tie-dye was back in fashion at the World?
The boys rode RnRC a third time – I declined because that headache was starting up again and my cough was so bad that I barely heard any of the Aerosmith music during my second ride. Perhaps the pm EMH was also catching up on me.
Whilst the boys were doing RnRC for the third time, I looked over at ToT and contemplated the stand-by queue of 10 minutes. Anyone who has read my PTR will know that I had my own real life experience of ToT in an office building. I was in a lift that free-fell about 6 floors before the emergency brakes took hold. I had been determined to experience ToT this time.
Just call me chicken!
Instead I rushed off to get fastpasses for TSM and by the time I got there, the return time was out to 1.55 pm!! Not a good sign – this probably meant that there were a lot of people in the park already!
The boys got sidetracked at another character spot.
Sometime real soon, DS will work out whether he loves or hates Lotso. For the moment, he played it safe!
I managed to weave some teleportation magic and got there in time for this memory. For me, this is my all time favourite Mickey’s costume.
By this time, the extended family called us to say that they had arrived. We met them near the hat, where we saw some favourite friends.
I think someone’s been on a diet…
And I defy anyone to be miserable on a day like today!
We headed to the Beauty and the Beast stage, as it was close on show time. We didn’t catch this show 5 years ago because it clashed with Indiana Jones and the timings didn’t ever work out for us. So, I’m really glad to have been able to see this today. I love the music and I think that Beauty and the Beast is one of the two cartoon musicals that revived the Disney brand in the 90’s (the other being The Little Mermaid).
We headed back to RnRC after the show – DH, DS, DB and my niece wanted to do the ride and the rest of us waited for them. Stand-by time was 20 minutes; so my fears of a crowded park were unfounded (so far).
I then headed back to TSM to see if I could pick up another set of fast passes for the entire family. Stand-by was 75 minutes; and return time was 3.30 pm!
The rest of the family decided it was time for lunch! Despite the fact that today was the first day that we were no longer on the Quick Service Dining Plan, we ended up at yet another Counter Service eatery –Rosie’s All American Café.
I got the double Cheeseburger.
I won’t be rushing back here.
DS got the Chicken Breast nuggets.
DH got the Green Salad; probably the pick of the lot.
We then all ran towards the Streets of America – there was only one performance of Lights, Motors, Action! Stunt show left for the day. And this was the one show that I was determined to make!
5 years ago, we got fast passes for the 4.30 pm show. But it was a very hot day and DS decided to have a rare meltdown that day. We ended up having to give the fast passes away and leave the park early.
We managed to find great seats and video taped the entire show! Sorry – no photos! I’m so glad I saw LMA this time round – we just loved all the stunts; and I now really wish that we had made this show 5 years ago as well.
The extended family wanted to linger down the Streets of America and our fast pass window was up; so we headed to do TSM.
I definitely think that this park is defying gravity somehow!
I might be queen of BLSRS; but I’m beyond pathetic on TSM. Both DH and DS beat me hollow on this ride (everytime here and in DLR)! I feel a little guilty now that we didn’t offer our fast passes to the nephew and niece then; but I really love TSM and we got to the park earlier to pick these up.
We arranged to meet up with the rest of the family in Streets of America. All that to-ing and fro-ing from one end of the park to the other was not good for my headache and I decided to call it a day. The BCV resort and bed beckoned!
I also knew from experience that the afternoon at DHS was going to be spent in search of lycra – specifically multicoloured lycra.
The 3 kids had indeed spotted the rainbow materials and were starting to chase photographs and autographs. I only had one question in mind - I wonder how much Body Glide these 5 go through in a week?
When the boys headed back to BCV later in the day, I gather from the boys that the rest of day panned out as expected.
Some of the extended family ended up catching the Indiana Jones afternoon show.
The family also redeemed their TSM fast passes at the appropriate time. Check out the 90-minute stand-by time! I figured that the park was busy; and everyone was standing in line here!
We got a full set of the lycra colours photographs and autographs, which pretty much took up all the rest of the afternoon.
Pink and yellow are missing from the above set because they contain all 3 kids and I don’t have permission to post pictures of my nephew and niece.
And DS looked like he had a great day.
I just have one other thing to include about our DHS day. On my way out, I remembered to stop at Starring Rolls and drooled over all the cupcakes, particularly the Chocolate Butterfinger cupcake and the Marble cupcake. I ended up buying a Chocolate Butterfinger cupcake, taking it back to BCV and storing it in the refrigerator. We ended up eating this a couple of days later.
I now know and understand what all the fuss is about the Starring Rolls cupcakes. This is easily by far, hands down, the best cupcake I’ve ever tasted….EVER!
Even though the cupcake was a couple of days old, the cake was still moist and fluffy. The chocolate fudge in the center was creamy and chocolate-y without being overly sickly sweet and the Butterfinger frosting on top of the cupcake perfectly balanced the cupcake and fudge.
And for anyone who has yet to taste this delectable snack – Beware! It is incredibly rich and filling. It took the 3 of us to make a reasonable hash at finishing the cupcake!
[Up next – Around the Boardwalk, an Iron Chef dinner and SAB at night]