And They Lived Happily Ever After - A June '11 Disneymoon TR! THE END - NEW PTR!

[BerrysGirl]

How awesome is the Segway tour? When we did it in 2008 I thought it'd be lame but I really enjoyed it too! My favorite part was when the instructor informed us that his Segway went 12 mph but ours only went 6 mph... because people had tried to make a break for it in the past
I'm really glad you and Miguel enjoyed it too and that your legs hurt at the end! So happy to hear I'm not the only one that that happened to!

 

[starann]

I LOVE the picture of Miguel and his 'demonic' look...it reminds me of the Fire Marshal that Jim Carey played when he would say "Letmetell ys scomething"

My hubby wanted to do the Segway tour, so it's good to know that it's hard on your ankles, my hubby has bad ankles so we may have to skip it!

 

[Merida]

Subbing!

 

[Shannon84]

I think I would be a nervous wreck on the Segways, I have tried them out for just a minute, but I am sure you get used to them! Looks like you guys had fun and I am excited to read how your lunch was!

 

[disneybarbie]

Great update Courtney! Glad you both enjoyed the segway tour - we loved it too (although I was scared for the first 10 minutes when we were training on them, just didn't understand how they stay upright?! )


Emma x

 

[SarahDreamsInDisney]

I LOVE comming back to check your TR! Looks like a fabulous Disneymoon so far! I did a test run of the segways in DLR and that was hard enough, I couldn't imagine the fatigue and mental stress it might have caused for several hours! ha ha glad you had a great time!

 

[SweetSerenity]

I'm joining in a little late, but I've enjoyed reading your trip report thus far. Congratulations on your marriage! Your wedding photos were beautiful, and I absolutely loved your dress!

 

[Disney999]

I have been enjoying your report and I hope someday I get to try the Segway tour. You and your new husband make a very cute couple! I love your wedding dress!

 

[WDWCP96]

I really want to Do the Segway tour. Every time we are in Innoventions I want to try out the Segways but the line is always too long. Someday I will get to ride a Segway.

 

[Mrs T 2009]

Glad to hear that you enjoyed the segway tour

 

[oboedm]

Subbing! Great review of the Segway Tour! Unfortunately, we couldn't do it, as my hubby weighs a bit too much for the segway, but it looks like tons of fun!

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

My family and I have done the Segway tour at both EPCOT and California Adventure. It's amazing how much your legs and feet hurt after you're done! When we were done, I wanted a Segway to get around my town.

I was so surprised how much muscle work it took to ride the Segway!

The Segway tour looks fun. I'm surprised it wears you out. Like you, I would have thought that it would be an easy and relaxing ride. I guess not.

It was fun! I was very surprised, too!

Okay I'm back after my LONG absence and finally all caught up! I was so far behind and I had so much I wanted to say that I had to make comment notes as I went along!

I love the picture of Miguel laughing in front of the castle on your first day! That is such a perfect vacation picture!

I cracked up too at the picture of his sad face! It reminded me of John, because for some reason he can't do the whole "pouting" thing with his bottom lip stuck out. Every time he tries he ends up making these hilarious faces!

I've always wanted to find Tom Sawyer's paintbrushes too! Maybe someday!

Okay I won't give it away either, but I LOVE the new feature at the end of HM! We rode it at least five times on our last trip just so we could see that!

UGH, those tour groups! Sorry to hear they got in your way! We always run into them as well!

YAY for new trip plans! That is SO exciting!

I completely understand about your daily two hour nap ritual. We did that on our June trip as well. I just don't think it's possible to stay up all day in that heat!

Oh my gosh, you are so right, nighttime at DHS is the best time to go! It's such a fun park at night! I love all of your PP pictures!

I didn't know there was two different stories on the GMR either until our last trip! I was determined to see the cowboy because we've always seen the gangster. I figured out if you are sitting in the front car you see the cowboy, but the back car sees the gangster!

I feel like Sci Fi is always running behind. Every time we've had an ADR there we've still had to wait at least twenty minutes. Oh well, it's still my favorite!

I can't wait for more! I am loving this TR so much!

So glad you're back! That is too funny about John's pout! Miguel just can't make a sad face for the life of him! I'm so glad I'm not the only one who didn't realize there were multiple GMR storylines! I don't feel like such a bad DISer now!

OMG the Segway tour looks like SO much fun! I really would love to try it someday, but...I'm nervous I wouldn't be able to figure out how to use the stupid thing! Did anyone there have a very hard time with it? What do they do if you really can't get it?

Can't wait to hear about your Chef's lunch, I can't wait to finally go there this year!

I was nervous, too! I am a perfectionist, so I hate thinking I might fail at something, but they are actually pretty easy once you get the hang of it. It takes a little while to get used to the feeling because it feel so unnatural, but once you learn how to balance, you're good to go. We all had our little mishaps in the group - for instance, one of the "tests" at the beginning was to turn in a circle without knocking over cones, and many people (including me!) knocked them over!

you look so cute with your Segway "beret"!!!! Glad you had a good tour

Your pics reminded me that Aisling has yet to try Beverly...this may be the trip since she always trying to convince people that we let her drink soda

I will be excited to check out your TR and see if Aisling tries the Beverly! That's always such a funny picture!

The Segway tour looks fun! Glad you two had a good time. I have a feeling I would've been a nervous wreck about riding it...I don't have the best balance in the world I bet being alone back in the World Showcase would be very worth it though!

I was nervous to begin with! It definitely takes some time to get the hang of it, but once you do, it's kind of like riding a bike - really simple!

The Segway tour looks like SO much fun! I have to admit, I am actually kind of scared of them, however I feel like WDW is probably the one place that I will ever get to try one of those contraptions out, so I might just have to go for it one of these days! I'm glad that it turned out to be fairly easy to operate after some practice!

We really liked the apple flavored soda in CC too...actually I remember liking a few of them! It was funny because I had gone on and on telling Mike about how everyone bashes Beverly, and how we HAD to try it, but to be prepared...we tried it, by taking a tiny sip and it tasted almost like seltzer. Very mild and not bad at all We had to move to a different soda fountain to try some other flavors because there were a lot of kids pushing ahead of us, and we decided to have another sampling of Beverly as well. We both get a cup and take big gulps...and...there it was . OMG it was awful! I guess the syrup must have been out in the first fountain we had sampled from. Guhhhh-ROSS is all I can say about that soda! ick!

I was scared to begin with! They really do put you through a lot of practice tests and such to make sure you're comfortable by the time you get out to WS. You should give it a try!

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

Wow! The Segway tour looks like SO much fun!!! I think half the appeal for me, though, would be a crowdless WS!!!

That is exactly why I wanted to do the tour! I have a hard time tearing Miguel away from FW, so I knew that might be the only way that I get to see some of the details of WS.

I am so glad I found your TR. Now I have to catch up!

Thanks for joining in!

I never thought about the segways tiring your legs out, but now that you mentioned it, I can see how that would happen. It looks like you and Miguel had a lot of fun, though, and your helmet definitely looks like a beret.
Can't wait to hear how Chef's was!

It never crossed my mind either! The instructor told us that we could stop to stretch our legs and move our feet around if we needed to, and I didn't think it would be necessary, but it so was!

Your segway tour looked fun! What beautiful weather, too I am dying to hear how you like Chefs! We just booked it for our November trip. Hearing mixed reviews Can't wait for more!

I think you will love Chefs! We really enjoyed our meal there!

How awesome is the Segway tour? When we did it in 2008 I thought it'd be lame but I really enjoyed it too! My favorite part was when the instructor informed us that his Segway went 12 mph but ours only went 6 mph... because people had tried to make a break for it in the past
I'm really glad you and Miguel enjoyed it too and that your legs hurt at the end! So happy to hear I'm not the only one that that happened to!

I remember our instructor saying that too! That is too funny that someone tried to run away from the group!

I LOVE the picture of Miguel and his 'demonic' look...it reminds me of the Fire Marshal that Jim Carey played when he would say "Letmetell ys scomething"

My hubby wanted to do the Segway tour, so it's good to know that it's hard on your ankles, my hubby has bad ankles so we may have to skip it!

It's definitely a little rough on the feet. We weren't expecting that!

Subbing!

Thanks for joining in!

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

I think I would be a nervous wreck on the Segways, I have tried them out for just a minute, but I am sure you get used to them! Looks like you guys had fun and I am excited to read how your lunch was!

You do get used to them, but it is nerve-wracking until you do! They are a lot of fun though!

Great update Courtney! Glad you both enjoyed the segway tour - we loved it too (although I was scared for the first 10 minutes when we were training on them, just didn't understand how they stay upright?! )


Emma x

Thanks, Emma! During the first few minutes I thought there was NO way that I would ever be able to ride the thing! It was hard to grasp exactly how they operate - I couldn't believe how precise you had to be with stepping on and off! One time Miguel stepped off wrong and it ran away from him!

I LOVE comming back to check your TR! Looks like a fabulous Disneymoon so far! I did a test run of the segways in DLR and that was hard enough, I couldn't imagine the fatigue and mental stress it might have caused for several hours! ha ha glad you had a great time!

Thank you so much! So glad you're enjoying it!

I'm joining in a little late, but I've enjoyed reading your trip report thus far. Congratulations on your marriage! Your wedding photos were beautiful, and I absolutely loved your dress!

Aww, thank you so much! So glad to have you joining in!

I have been enjoying your report and I hope someday I get to try the Segway tour. You and your new husband make a very cute couple! I love your wedding dress!

Thank you so much! You should definitely try the Segway tour - it is a lot of fun!

I really want to Do the Segway tour. Every time we are in Innoventions I want to try out the Segways but the line is always too long. Someday I will get to ride a Segway.

I hope you get to try them someday! I would definitely recommend the tour!

Glad to hear that you enjoyed the segway tour

It was a lot of fun!

Subbing! Great review of the Segway Tour! Unfortunately, we couldn't do it, as my hubby weighs a bit too much for the segway, but it looks like tons of fun!

It is! You should stop by the Segway place in Innoventions sometime so you can try them out!

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

DAY 2 – Pt. 2

After our surprisingly tiring Segway tour and some fun in Future World, we were more than ready for our first Epcot ADR – lunch at Chefs de France! We still had about 30 minutes before we could check in, though, so we spent some time exploring a bit of World Showcase. First up was Canada, of course!

We browsed a through the little kiosk and took in the sights.

We then moved on to the UK and looked through some of the shops there. I had read that sometimes Pooh is there doing meet and greets, but we didn’t see him.

I absolutely love the UK pavilion. So much beautiful scenery here!

Finally it was on to France! So lovely!

I spotted a PP photographer and dragged Miguel over. I thought the picture was just of the WS lagoon, but I was happy to spot Belle when we arrived! Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney movie and Belle is of course my favorite princess!

By this point it was about 5 minutes to 12:00 and Chefs de France had finally opened its doors. We made our way over and I got us checked in and then we relaxed on the benches while I waited for our name to be called.

I just love the whole Chefs restaurant – the big windows, the inviting entrance, it is all so lovely!

Soon enough our name was called and we were let to our table next to one of those big, beautiful windows over looking the lagoon. We were introduced to our waiter, Jonathan, who was from Cannes, France.

Since we had worked up such an appetite riding the Segways, we decided to order an appetizer and went with the Alsacciene special flatbread, which is a pizza-style flatbread with bacon, onion and cream fraishe. Jonathan kept telling us what a wonderful choice this was, and that it was very authentic.

He was absolutely correct – this was a wonderful dish! I was actually surprised that Miguel loved it as much as he did, since I was a little unsure of how he would like French food, but this really was a hit. It’s not much of a pizza – there isn’t any cheese – but it is still really tasty. The onion is chopped up really finely, so it isn’t too overpowering, and the bacon is nice and flavorful, not like the regular Disney bacon at all!

For my entrée, I went with the Gratin de Macaroni, which is only sort of like a macaroni and cheese. I was expecting a full-on mac & cheese, but it is really a pasta with a cream sauce topped with lots of yummy cheese. This dish was really good, and surprisingly, not as heavy as I was expetcing it to be. There is a lot of food here, too! I only managed about half, and that really filled me up.

Miguel went with the Steak hache Angus, otherwise known as a burger. This wasn’t your typical burger, though. It was served with an onion confit and a mushroom duxelle, almost like a mushroom patee. I took a bite and liked it a lot more than I thought I would with all of that extra stuff in there. Even without cheese, this burger was really tasty. I also loved that the fries were served in a cone with newspaper! I think I liked Miguel’s dish more than he did, but then again he’s not much of a burger eater. He still enjoyed his meal.

We also got a visit while eating! Remy came out! He was so cute. I will admit that I have never seen Ratatouille, but I want to now!

We were way too full for dessert, so we settled our bill, thanked Jonathan and headed out, very pleased with a our meal at Chefs. We will definitely be returning to this restaurant. I think the menu has a nice blend of more authentic food choices as well as some American favorites with a French twist.

After lunch, we decided to walk towards Mexico. Once we made it over to Japan, I convienced Miguel that we had to stop in to the store there so I could do the Pick a Pearl! This was my first time, and after reading so many things about it on the boards, I knew that I had to try it!

I think its so neat how the process is very ceremonial. It isn’t about just picking an oyster and getting your pearl out. I will admit that I couldn’t understand everything the CM was saying, but she was so perky and seemed genuinely excited for every person that went through the PaP exerpeince.

Picking my oyster!

The pearl being cleaned, and then measured.

I ended up getting a beautiful 7 mm pearl!

I browsed some of the settings that they offered at the store, but there isn’t too many of them, especially not affordable ones. The CM told me that as long as I kept my pearl in the bag, they could set it for me at any time, so I decided to hold on to my pearl and look for a setting later in the week.

I love the Pick a Pearl experience! It will be a must do for me every time now. I never ended up getting a setting, so I think when we go back I will do it again and have them made into earrings! Surprising, Miguel enjoyed PaP as well. I was so much fun!

Up Next: More of WS and dinner at DTD!

 

[Nermel9]

Great update, I love the World Showcase! They have such cute things in Canada, Brandon always wants to buy an apron there, but never does, I think this year I'm going to just buy one for him!

OMG Chef's looks SO yummy, I'm so glad we finally have a lunch ADR there! I think I'm going to get what you go, the mac and cheese, it looks great! And Remy is adorable, I haven't see Ratatouille either, but I'm hoping to before we go! Although, our ADR is pretty late for lunch and he might not be around, but still, I'd like to see it!

Pick a Pearl looks like so much fun, I'm thinking of doing that on my trip too! I'm just kind of nervous that I won't know what to do!

I love your picture with Belle! What did you talk to her about? You know how I am about meeting the princesses!

 

[IheartDDuck]

I love Les Chefs de France. I've never had that appetizer, but it looks really good.

I also love that they served the fries in newspaper. My mom immigrated from Belgium, and she said that was how they served them at all of the stands traditionally.

 

[pjennings]

I may have to try Chef's next time we go. I will have to look up the kids menu to see if they have anything my girls would eat . The food looks Yumm-O!

My girls picked a pearl back in May. We all really enjoyed the "show" that was made of the process. I would like to pick one for myself next time we go. One of the girls got a 7mm and the other one received a 7.5mm. The larger one barely fits in the carriage setting I bought off ebay. I can always have them reset in something else later if they want me to.

 

[mickey2minnie1]

The PaP experience looks like a lot of fun. It was fun to see Remi. What did he say or do, if anything.

 

[Mrs T 2009]

I have never eaten at Chefs nor done the pick a pearl, and now I want to more than ever!!! LOL I love France and I always want to do the PaP experience, but the time never seems to pan out for it to happen! LOL

Beauty and the Beast is my FAVORITE disney movie! Belle is my FAVORITE princess too!!! When we go to DHS, we ALWAYS see the Beauty and the Beast Musical haha!!! Never gets old