Flying 2 days for 3 days at WDW is a SNAP! Final Thoughts 01/02

[Jade+3]

Jade - In some of the pictures, I had the camera set to No Flash mode. The EXIF show that the ISO moved between 800 - 3200. My camera will go to 6400 (and 12800 extended but I've never pushed it this high). I have played with ISO 3200 at home and find the pictures grainy. But the ones of the parade weren't too bad.
I also seem to have played in Aperture Priority mode as well. For these pictures, the ISO seems to have been set to either 800, 1600 or 3200 as well. In the shots that worked best, the speed was > 1/50 sec; in line with that 1/focal length rule of thumb.

The ISO on my 450D only goes to 1600. Looks like another reason to upgrade to the 7D. I shoot in manual mode, but need to figure out my speedlite. All my parade photos from last year were in Program mode, and not that great.

 

[franandaj]

Wow this is becoming incredibly technical! I use to know all about this stuff in 6th -8th grade when I was in photo journalism, but I find as my adult life encroaches on my brain power, I don't have the time to keep up with stuff like this. We have a DSLR Camera and it takes very nice pics, but I wish I had the time to mess with the settings and stuff so we could take great pics and show them off!

 

[PrincessInOz]

The ISO on my 450D only goes to 1600. Looks like another reason to upgrade to the 7D. I shoot in manual mode, but need to figure out my speedlite. All my parade photos from last year were in Program mode, and not that great.

I kept the flash off for the night time shots and the rides where ever possible. I don't think you're meant to flash in rides and I didn't want to flash the Headless Horseman and spook the horse.

Wow this is becoming incredibly technical! I use to know all about this stuff in 6th -8th grade when I was in photo journalism, but I find as my adult life encroaches on my brain power, I don't have the time to keep up with stuff like this. We have a DSLR Camera and it takes very nice pics, but I wish I had the time to mess with the settings and stuff so we could take great pics and show them off!

Normal programming will return soon. I'll try and keep the technical side down to a minimum .

 

[PrincessInOz]

After the parade, we headed out to collect candy. There are candy stops scattered throughout the park where CM put a handful of candy into your Trick or Treat bag. And there is no limit to how many times you can go round per candy stop.

We passed by these seven friends and much as I would have liked to stop to take a picture with them, the queue was at least 25 groups long.

You know, they’re not as short in real life as they appear in the movie!

We headed towards the Candy stops in Toontown. Even the Toontown sign was decked out in pumpkin orange.

We saw Alice and the Mad Hatter during our walk and got a Photopass photo taken. I’m waiting on Firefly to get her CD to see how this picture turned out as I think it’s the only one of all 4 of us.

The other Dis-ers had worked out that the best bang for buck was along the Alice trail. There were at least 6 stops along this one path and we sure got a lot of candy along the Alice trail!

My full bag of treats:

And some of the selection on offer:

As we were in the neighbourhood, we stopped by Space Mountain for a final thrill ride. I just love the darkness of the ride and not knowing where this rollercoaster is heading! And we get our picture taken somewhere in the ride; so I always enjoy coming out to see people’s expressions during the ride. Heather’s DH looked like he had a ball on this ride!

We also stopped by Peter Pan before scheduled park closure and found this Hidden Mickey.

I felt a bit of a nostalgic pang when I was queuing up for this ride. It was the first ride I’d ever gotten on in a Disney park…EVER. And I rode it with DH; and I don’t believe that I’d ever gotten on this ride without him. It was about the only time that I truly wished that he were with me rather than on a conference. I contemplated riding it by myself for a while but in the end Firefly and I got on it together. Let’s just not tell him.

Although I know that this ride is dated and tame in today’s world, I still think it’s a classic. I love the view of London from above.

I guess I had collected a lot of treats earlier; so it was prime payback trick time! For some reason I just couldn’t keep the camera still when I clicked. These shots are all a bit blurry. Sorry!

After the ride, it was time to go. So, we headed out of the park …

Through the Hub…

Down Main Street for these Precious Moments….

And it was way past pumpkin time when we got to the front entrance.

I could see a bus waiting at the CSR stop but without teleportation, there was no way I’d make it. So, I took a leisurely stroll down; I was in no mood to give Usain Bolt a run for his money.

Turns out I was right and even though I was nowhere near the stop, I could see that the bus was packed! And there were still people waiting at the stop to get on.

So, I waited for the next bus to come along. It didn’t take long; about 5 or 7 minutes and was back at the resort by 12.45 am.

It had turned out to be a great night at MK’s MNSSHP. And I’d managed to DisMeet, ADR at CP, got on HM, Peter Pan, two of the mountains at MK and ignored the 3rd by choice; enjoyed HalloWishes, Villains, Boo To You Parade and gotten a heap of candy.

There was one slight problem – since before exiting the park and all the way back to my room, I couldn’t manage to pull, break, yank or chomp my way through the MNSSHP wristband.


Up Next: Conclusions

 

[PrincessInOz]

Despite the long flights yesterday, DH and I had hit the ground running. I was really glad of this as it meant that we could maximize our touring time at the World.


Today exceeded any expectations I may have had about the day:

• Mickey cheating with Harry was a lot of fun. I’m glad that we decided that it did not make sense not to spend more money and made the effort to go.
  
• DisMeet with Firefly, HeatherBelle614 and her DH was fantastic. I was glad that Firefly and I got on as well in person as we did on the Boards.

Disney sure knows how to throw a Halloween party. And the guests dressing up made the experience so much better.


The park is a great location to learn how to and how not to use a lens capable of shooting in low light.



I still don’t know how I’m going to eat all that candy!

 

[skier_pete]

Holy Cow - after flying 1/2 way around the world - you did all THAT on the first day? I would've been fall down exhausted! (We can't do days that long as it is!) The day we did MNSSHP we hung at the hotel all day.

Good job at maximizing your entertainment time!

SkierPete

 

[shushh]

PIO! Because you had broken it down into parts, and we got sidetracked somehwat...it only just registered that you did all that 1 day! Wow!

 

[franandaj]

Holy Cow - after flying 1/2 way around the world - you did all THAT on the first day? I would've been fall down exhausted! (We can't do days that long as it is!) The day we did MNSSHP we hung at the hotel all day.

Good job at maximizing your entertainment time!

SkierPete

I second that! We would have had to go back to the room for a nap after that much activity at HP world. After that we could probably have manged dinner out, but then would have been back in bed!

 

[kyl]

Can you bottle some of your engery and give it to me!

 

[ehsmum]

Wow, your day was so full-on! But definitely worth it . I love all the fireworks shots!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Holy Cow - after flying 1/2 way around the world - you did all THAT on the first day? I would've been fall down exhausted! (We can't do days that long as it is!) The day we did MNSSHP we hung at the hotel all day.

Good job at maximizing your entertainment time!

SkierPete

I was really pleased to have gotten to the other end without any issues.

PIO! Because you had broken it down into parts, and we got sidetracked somehwat...it only just registered that you did all that 1 day! Wow!

Thanks.

I second that! We would have had to go back to the room for a nap after that much activity at HP world. After that we could probably have manged dinner out, but then would have been back in bed!

Naps....yes, I certainly needed some; but I only had 3 days.

Can you bottle some of your engery and give it to me!

If you could see me at home; you may think twice about asking this!

Wow, your day was so full-on! But definitely worth it . I love all the fireworks shots!

Thank you.



Sadly, no one in my extended family want to travel with us anymore. They certainly all get a lot more tired/jetlagged than we do...but then we travel so to the US that we get used to the change in time zones and don't notice it anymore.

 

[PrincessInOz]

The plan:

Mon 25th: Blissful Bites day

Firefly has graciously let me swipe the below from her PTR as I'm not as detailed as she has been for this trip planning (well, not much).
Her plans show the following:
Monday, October 25
Head over to Epcot to meet up with PrincessInOz and maybe LuvChefMic
F&W festival
Hop over to MK for EMH
Grab a late dinner at Casey's, if they're open

I guess I know what I'll be doing for the day; in between all the eating, I'll be hanging out with her and LuvChefMic (maybe or maybe not).




The reality:

After the late’ish night last night at my first ever MNSSHP, I was deep in DreamLand when the alarm rudely went off at 6.40 am.

DH had been asleep when I got back to the room so I hadn’t found out that he planned an early start as Conference kick-off was 8 am.

So, with no chance of a sleep-in, I got up, got ready and faced the perplexing conundrum of….

How the heck do I remove this MNSSHP wristband?

I’d slept with it all night after determining that I was way too tired and my brain too caffeine deprived to even think of how the wristband was going to get off.

I do remember my last thought was to stop by concierge and ask for them to cut it off. Which is EXACTLY what ended up happening this morning.

And I STILL have this souvenier......somewhere.


It was still early early morning, so I decided on having a sit-down breakfast at Pepper Market this morning. Afterall, I figured that a 10% service fee was reasonable compared to the expected 15 – 20% tip you’d pay anywhere else.

And I had my heart set on this for breakfast this morning.

It was freshly cooked, just the way I like it. I also ended up drinking 2 cups of American brewed coffee in order to give myself that boost juice I needed.


I hadn’t made a Disney rope drop in a while and given that I didn’t have anyone else to worry about, I headed on over to Bus Stop 1 and waited for an Epcot bus. I didn’t even get a chance to settle down at the bus stop as the right bus came along within 2 minutes of me getting there. Sweet!

It had just ticked over to 8.30 am when I got to Epcot; so I found myself at the front of a turnstile. Just perfect to take this shot to remind me of the Special Event happening at Epcot.

And also to try and take a picture of that Tron Monorail.

I’m glad I got this snap because I never saw that Monorail again for the rest of the day.


Before long, the gates opened and the early birds filed in, past the Epcot Ball…

And over to the allocated rope depending on which attraction you planned to head towards.

Me? I was planning on hitting one of my favourite rides in this park, so I veered off towards the right hand side of the park. And watched the ceremony from over there.

The bonus of this strategy was that DONALD came right up to say hello to us. I was pleased with the shots I got of him and think that these are the best I’ve ever gotten of him.

Isn’t he adorable?

I guess Disney must take safety very seriously, as we were ‘walked’ by the attraction Cast Members to the respective attractions. I’m glad to see this change as it really was bedlam in the past having human missiles flying past you to get to the various attractions.

Yes. We’re heading for Soarin’.

I had decided that I was picking up a fastpass first and then getting on the ride. My return time was 9.42 am!


I then headed in line for the ride; strictly walk-on. Because I was so early, I must have been on either the second or third departure.

It has been a while since I’ve been on Soarin’ first thing and I have to say that the smell of oranges is definitely stronger first thing than at any other time during the day. And I still haven't managed to catch that golf ball!


Up Next: Arranging to continue a new DisFriendship

 

[Jade+3]

I am feeling tired just reading this - how on earth do you function on so little sleep??

Must remember to pack scissors to remove the MNSSHP wrist band - thanks for the tip!

 

[DisneyFirefly]

Lovely update I just pulled at my wristband until it broke, but I'm used to taking off those kinds of wristbands. Lots of concerts, lol

 

[stephielela]

I can only hope to be as active as you were! Of course, that requires the rest of my family to fall into step as well...

 

[franandaj]

Those wristbands can be pesky little things....

 

[ehsmum]

We always entered Epcot via the International Gateway so I never got to see a rope drop show . Those are great pics of Donald!

 

[PrincessInOz]

I am feeling tired just reading this - how on earth do you function on so little sleep??

Must remember to pack scissors to remove the MNSSHP wrist band - thanks for the tip!

Jade - I knew I only had 3 days to cram everything in. So, that thought and extra caffeine in the morning got me through!

And I just couldn't get that wrist band off no matter how hard I tried. In the end the scissors were the best option.

Lovely update I just pulled at my wristband until it broke, but I'm used to taking off those kinds of wristbands. Lots of concerts, lol

Yeah! I, on the other hand, obviously can't take them OFF!!!!

I can only hope to be as active as you were! Of course, that requires the rest of my family to fall into step as well...

I hope that your trip in December goes as smoothly as you plan it!

Those wristbands can be pesky little things....

We always entered Epcot via the International Gateway so I never got to see a rope drop show . Those are great pics of Donald!

Thanks. We entered Epcot via the IG in May a number of times and never got to see rope drop either. And with DS and DH, we never seemed to make it in earlier than 9.15 am so I would have missed it anyway. I was determined to get to it this time round.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Last night before we parted, Firefly and I had worked out that we were as compatible face to face as we were type/texting. So, we figured that we should meet up at Epcot in the morning.

I think I got a text from Firefly sometime during Soarin’ as there was a text waiting for me to see if I was at the park. We worked out that she would get the park ASAP and we would then text again to work out an appropriate meeting point. I also sadly figured that we would not be hearing from LuvChefMic today.

It was about 9.20 am by this stage and the thought occurred to me – I could pick up ANOTHER Soarin’ fast pass if I waited for my window to open up. That would mean that I would be holding 2 fast passes and could use them later in the day when DH was planning on joining me at Epcot.

So, with a little bit of time to kill and not wanting to move too far away from The Land, I headed over to check out an attraction that I had not been on for over 5 years.

I got into to the Clammobile.

Anyone else getting the feeling that I was going to be enjoying this attraction by myself?


Until Up came out, Nemo had been my favourite Pixar movie. I know that there is so much competition and it is only my favourite by a very very very short margin. So, I really enjoyed seeing some of the characters swimming with the real fishies!

Such a pleasant way to spend a couple of minutes! And I love the fish as well.


And then it was time for me to go get another fast pass. At 9.42 am, the fast pass return time was out to 12.30 pm. Stand by was out to 40 minutes.


I grabbed a couple of shots of my favourite Epcot foodcourt on my way out.

And headed over to another favourite attraction.

I got in the single rider queue and it was walk-on as well for single riders. Wait time was about 20 minutes for everyone else.

I’d only ever done this ride with DS and/or DH. I’d never gotten on this ride as a single rider. Did you know that you by-pass the waiting room and system checks as a single rider?

I love the feel of my cheeks flattening against my cheekbones when traveling at 64 mph!


It was shortly after 10 am. At this point, I got a text from Firefly…she was on her way.

Up Next: The Mistake of NOT buying at WDW

 

[Jade+3]

I love Test Track, but for some reason, I am not at all keen on doing rides on my own.