It's Just a 13.1 Mile Walk in the Park - Feb. 2013 (10/9 Finally, It's Done!!)

[Eight]

I forgot to include this picture in the last update, it's the view from the living room.

We had dinner reservations at Le Cellier for 7:10, so we took the monorail to Epcot. I think it was slightly faster than driving, however, we did have to wait a little bit to transfer. Not bad though.

We had some time to kill before Le Cellier, so it was time to do a classic!

That's right, CAPTAIN EO!!

Gosh, I love Captain EO. It’s so ridiculous. There’s space and aliens and SINGING and DANCING, and tell me what’s not to love. Go on, I dare you.

Here's one of my favorite pictures from the June 2012 trip (yes, I know I started a TR for that way back when, but at this point, I don’t anticipate finishing it.) from when The Friend and I did a mini Captain EO photo-shoot.

Good times.

We still had time before dinner after watching my favorite 3D movie of all time, so we walked over to the Seas. Where we walked through the ridiculously long queue and were promptly seated in some clamshells to take a journey through the big blue world.

And yeah, I totally sang at the end. I can’t help it! I love Finding Nemo: The Musical.

Let’s just say it was a good thing I was riding in a clamshell by myself.

I don't think we spent too long in there. I challenged my mom to, what’s it called? You know the little interactive quiz where you answer questions about sea life? Well, I challenged her to that. Sadly, I lost. Normally I win, so I felt slightly ashamed that my sea life knowledge was lacking that evening.

So after that embarrassing defeat, we figured it was time to check in for our ADR. We had to wait about 30 minutes to be seated, which was frustrating for me because I was super hungry at that point. But one of the cast members started playing a version of 20 questions with Disney characters for the waiting guests. It was fun. Between my mom, B, and I, I think we got like 5 or 6 stickers for getting the answers right. Sorry little kids waiting who probably actually wanted stickers, you’ll just have to brush up on your Disney character trivia!

That made the time go by a little faster, though not fast enough when you're hungry and anticipating cheddar cheese soup and pretzel bread, and finally we were seated.

And then our server didn't show up until like 10 minutes after we sat down. That was kind of weird. At least by that time, we all knew what we wanted so we were able to order right away.

We all got a bowl of the cheddar cheese soup, and then ordered a bunch of sides, including the poutine fries, the sautéed mushrooms, and the lobster macaroni and cheese. And extra pretzel bread.

I probably don’t even need to tell you that it was delicious, but I will, and it was. The pretzel bread dipped in the cheddar cheese soup is my absolute favorite, though the poutine fries were delicious too. I kind of wish they hadn't taken the hamburger off the menu though.

Since we had just stuffed ourselves full of delicious food, naturally, the best thing to do next would be to ride a ride. No, not really. We talked about walking around the World Showcase and getting a drink or desert, but B said she had seen that when she had come in 80’s and wanted to see something new.

Which I didn’t entirely get, because that was like over 20 years ago, so how do you even remember that, but I didn't really care, I just thought it was kind of funny.

So no, I didn't go to the World Showcase at all this trip, unless you count running through it. And I’m not sure if that counts or not.

But Soarin’ is new since the 80’s, and my mom loves that ride, so we figured that would be a logical next stop. We decided we’d only wait though, if the wait time said less than 35 minutes.

When we got there, the wait time was 35 minutes, but since we were there now and we wouldn’t have another chance to ride it so we waited. I think we only waited about 15 or 20 minutes though, so it wasn’t bad.

Okay, so we had been standing in front of two women in line the whole time, and they talked kind of loudly. Which, okay, was a little annoying after a while, but I mean, it wasn’t a big deal. Until we got on the ride, and they continued having their loud conversation through the entire ride!

I don’t know, maybe it’s just me, but I thought it was weird. Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with people pointing out things on Soarin’ or ooh-ing and aah-ing or making comments or just generally enjoying the ride. But these two women were having a full on conversation about something totally unrelated that I could hear every word of and it kind of took me out of the moment of pretending I flying over California.

In retrospect it wasn’t a huge deal since I’ve been Soarin’ more times than I can count, but it did seem like a funny place to have a conversation. Or is it just me?

I think it was probably around 9:15 at the point, and Extra Magic Hours were going on that night at Epcot. We were all too tired to really take advantage of that, but we did make final stop at Spaceship Earth.

Awkward selfies with everyone's favorite scientist!"

I would be totally okay if this was my living room.

I finally went out of my comfort zone and chose answers at the end that I never choose, and I got a totally different result than normal, which pleased me. It’s the simple things in life, guys.

Since it was EMH, not many people were playing the games at the end, so we did something I had never done before. B and I played the game where you use sticks to push around energy to a city.

It was fun (and a work out! I got really in to it.)! I don’t know if I would wait to play it if it were more crowded, but I am definitely glad I was able to do it once.

My mom and I also played another one where you had to press colored buttons at certain times and in patterns to test response time, memory, and spatial awareness. I did pretty good at the response time, decent at memory (I swear I could have done better but I got distracted halfway through….), but I was awesome at the spatial awareness one. Which surprised me since I don’t generally think of myself as having good spatial awareness, but apparently I am awesome at pushing buttons at the right times. I don’t even know.

I just realized that previous paragraph doesn’t make a lot of sense, without the context of what you were doing with the buttons, but whatever, just go with it.

We were all exhausted at that point, so we took the monorail back to the Contemporary. And then I think we all went to bed, at least I did! I was still sick and tired, so I fell asleep right away.

 

[Eight]

I apologize for the lack of pictures in this update. The weather that day wasn't great, which always makes me less inclined to take pictures, and I was still feeling sick. The probably won't be too many in the next update, but I think the update after that will finally have some!



It was a good thing I went bed somewhat early the night before, because we were up at 6:45 the next morning! We were going to Universal Studios and I wanted to be there at opening, of course.

This was when I discovered that the second bathroom was in the running to win the coveted title of Worst Disney Shower Ever. Which is saying, because I think Disney resorts have some of the worst showers of any hotel I’ve stayed at. Inevitably the water pressure is awful and there’s something about Disney water that makes my hair gross by the third day. There are very few things I hate in relation to Disney but I hate Disney showers.

So what made this particular one so bad? For once, it was not the low water pressure, in fact, the water pressure in this shower was so strong that combined with the type of shower head it had, was actually painful. I don’t know how to explain but it hurt! It was so weird. My back was actually red, and not because the water was too hot, by the time I got out.

I ended up taking showers in the master bathroom then next two days, which was sort of annoying since one of the main reasons we booked BLT was the two bathrooms, but since I could get ready in the second bathroom, it still saved some time, I guess?

Anyway.

It didn’t take us too long to drive there, which I appreciated because I had thought it had taken a while to get there when we went two years ago. In retrospect, that’s probably because we stopped at a mall and a grocery store on our way back, but I had imagined it taking like an hour, so I was pleasantly surprised when it took like 20 minutes. Or so. I think? Who knows.

We bought the two park tickets with the express pass because the guy at the ticket booth said it had been super crowded the day before. This may have been true, since I have no evidence to the contrary, but as it turns out, we probably didn’t need the express pass. That said, I did like not having to wait for anything, so while it probably wasn’t the best value, it was still nice to have.

I was, okay, I still am, a pretty big Harry Potter fan, so our first stop was the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Or as we like to say, Harry Potter-land, since that takes like the half the time. And I mean, who has time to talk when there are rides to be ridden? Really.

And our first stop in Harry Potter-land was Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, AKA my favorite ride in Universal Studios, possibly even Orlando, beating out Tower of Terror and Expedition Everest for the coveted title of Rachel’s Favorite Ride in Orlando. Oh yes, theme parks compete for that award. Highly prestigious. The theming is pretty close to perfect and the technology is amazing.

Naturally, we rode it twice in a row. It’s just that good.

We looked in the shops, but most of the merchandise was the same as they had two years ago. I thought they’d update it some, but I only saw a few things I hadn’t seen before. The Harry Potter nerd/shopaholic in me was a little disappointed.

I didn’t really want to go, but somehow I got talked in to riding Jurassic Park. The inner child in me loves log flume rides, the current adult in me does not love getting wet. I don’t think I had been on that ride in close to ten years so I’m glad I chose to ride it, plus, having a poncho helped.

Having gotten our fill of chlorinated park water on a cloudy February day with Jurassic Park, we decided to not ride anything in Toon Lagoon, and instead headed the Spider Man ride. Which is probably called something besides the Spider Man ride, but uh…. I’m too lazy to look it up?

My lack of bothering to look it up should not stop you from thinking it’s a good ride, because it’s pretty cool. Hate to say it, but Universal does do a better job with more thrilling rides in my opinion.

I was starting to get hungry at this point, because a) I am almost always hungry, and b) I tend to eat pretty early, and I knew where I wanted to go. Panda Express at City Walk. Confession: I have a slight Panda Express addiction. I was disappointed they didn’t have my favorite entrée at all, but hey, at least I was getting cheap, delicious, American-ized Chinese food, so I was happy.

Then it was time to ride Rachel’s Favorite Ride in Orlando That Is Not A Thrill Ride Or At A Disney Park, E.T. Adventure!

You know how people could probably write poetry about the smell of the Polynesian? Which okay, I would totally do that too because I love the Polynesian, but that’s not the point. The point is, I could do that for the smell of E.T. Adventure. I am obsessed with it. It takes me straight back to my childhood when I was four and I went to Universal Studios in California and rode it over and over. Except I had to cover my eyes for the part with the police because I was a law abiding child who did not want to get in trouble with the cops.

Or maybe it was just scary? I don’t remember.

I do remember loving it though.

Especially the part at the end where, SPOILER ALERT, E.T. says your name. If that doesn't win you over, I don’t know what will.

I will probably cry if they ever take this ride out in Orlando because they took it out of Hollywood a few years ago, and I’m still not over it.

Okay. I’m done. With E.T. With this chapter. Not with Universal Studios because there is still more to come. Or Disney, because there’s still more of that too. So hang on until next time!

 

[Eight]

After that nostalgia trip, we made our way counter clock wise around the park, which means our next stop was The Simpsons Ride. None of us are really fans of the show, but we hadn’t been on the ride before either, so we decided to check it out. I think the biggest surprise of the day was that we all loved it. I mean, I wasn’t expecting to hate it, but I also wasn’t expecting it to be as entertaining as it was. It’s your fairly standard motion simulator, but I loved the references to other Orlando theme parks, including Disney.

I think it was somewhere around there that I got my picture with the guy from Back to the Future. I may not know his name, but he has a Deloreon, which I thought were amazing when I was a kid, so he's cool.

Our next stop was Men in Black, where somehow, my mom beat me. See, she always beats me at Midway Mania and I always beat her at Buzz Lightyear and Men in Black. I have no idea how it happened, but I swore I would exact my revenge. Or maybe just ride again later and beat her. Same thing.

The Mummy is another favorite ride of ours, so of course, we had to ride that. I think B might have sat this one out, if I’m remembering correctly. It’s weird though, because my mom and I both remember a fireball effect from when we first rode it in 2004, but there’s nothing like that in the ride now? Maybe we both have the same fake memory.

Finally it was time to ride the new Despicable Me ride, which was one of the main reasons I had wanted to go to Universal again. I love that movie, so I was excited when I heard they were making an attraction based on it. I can’t help but love those minions. The attraction was pretty cute, but I wouldn’t wait more than 10 minutes for it. Luckily, we didn’t have to.

Once we got off the ride, I crashed. I was still feeling sick and tired, and I had reached my limit. I needed a break, so I got some popcorn and waited in one of the restaurants while my mom and B went to Shrek 4D. I’ve never cared for any of the Shrek movies, so I didn't feel like I was missing out. Their consensus was that it was cute, but not a must-ride.

I was feeling a little better, and since we were near the Mummy, my mom and I rode that again. I challenged my mom to a rematch on Men in Black, and thank goodness I won that time, because my reputation would have been tarnished. I mean, really. Having your mom beat you at MiB? So embarrassing.

For some strange reason I don’t remember, I didn’t ride E.T. again as we made our way out of the park. I probably should have because I suspect that ride could be the next to go to make room for another attraction. I love it, but I don’t know how popular it is?

We were all pretty tired by that point, so we figured we’d see how long the line for Harry Potter was before going back to Disney. Luckily, there was no line so we rode it twice in a row! And it was as awesome as ever.

I had made reservations at Sci Fi Dine In, so our plan was to go to Hollywood Studios directly from Universal. We actually debated going, because we were all so tired, but we attempted to rally and got there about an hour early for the reservation. Unfortunately, by that point in the evening, the lines for everything were pretty long and there were no fast passes left, which was disappointing. So we tried to get in early for our reservation, and thankfully, they were able to seat us early. I had the buffalo popcorn chicken, which must have been new since the last time I was there in October because surely I would have ordered it if it had been there before. I love buffalo sauce with some blue cheese dressing. It was pretty good.

A rare picture of my mom!


We left right after dinner since none of us were that excited about the idea of waiting in long lines to ride anything, and we figured we could come back on Thursday morning before we left for the airport if we really wanted to ride anything. We got back to the room around 8 that night, and I went to bed right after that. Like I said, sick and tired.

Up next, the first time I go to the Magic Kingdom this trip unless you count running through it!

 

[Eight]

I think I might have mentioned in this thread that I had signed up for the Tower of Terror Ten Miler. I think I might have also mentioned that I thought I wasn't going to be able to do it later on.

As it turns out, I will be able to go after all!

So that's exciting and sort of crazy all in one.

It's one of those things where I am not super happy about the reasons why I am able to go, it ended up being a situation where because I'm not doing something else, I am able to take this trip, but that something else was more important to me. Sorry for the vagueness, but I'm not comfortable sharing all the details on the internet.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that this trip feels sort of bittersweet. Don't get me wrong, I am happy I am able to go, but I feel like something else has been given up, and that's hard.

But I am trying to focus on the positives. Like resorts!

I have officially become addicting to resort changing or something.

It all started when I called to make room reservations using the runDisney phone number. At this point, both of my parents plan to come and cheer me on like they did last year, so we wanted two rooms at a deluxe. The deluxes that provide transportation to the ToT ten miler are Wilderness Lodge, the Polynesian, and the Yacht and Beach Club. When I called about two weeks ago, both the Yacht and Beach Club were both booked at the runDisney rate. They had rooms at WL and the Poly, but neither had availability Sunday night, the last night of our trip. I decided to go with the Wilderness Lodge, since we've never stayed there.
To be honest, I wasn't thrilled about the Wilderness Lodge, because having stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and the Grand Californian (since they were all designed by the same architect), and being from the Pacific Northwest and having been to Yellowstone, I don't know, I sort of feel like I've already been there even though I've never been there, if that makes sense. I like staying at Disney resorts that feel totally different.
On the other hand, I do like both the Animal Kingdom Lodge and the Grand California, and the pictures of the resort looked nice, and the idea grew on me.

But we still had that last night to deal with. They had rooms at the Wilderness Lodge, but only bunk-bed rooms, and I decided if we were going to have to change rooms, we may as well stay at another resort. I mean, it sort of makes sense.
I wanted to stay in the Magic Kingdom area because we're doing MNSSHP on Sunday, so I booked a room at the Contemporary, since for one night, the three of us can share one room.
I was pretty happy with that, until they released the room only discounts for fall.

That changed everything.

So as not to bore you with the details of making online reservations, I changed our one night at the Contemporary to one night at the Grand Floridian, and the nights at the Wilderness Lodge to the Yacht Club, because I still could not get Sunday night at the Yacht Club.

What is going on Sunday night??

Anyway, I did most of that the past two nights, so now I have to call today and cancel the WL and the Contemporary reservations. They're probably going to think I'm crazy for having so many reservations, but then again, I'm sure there are other obsessive Disney planners who have done the same thing.

So yeah, fun stuff.

I'll try and post another installment of the mini DLR TR next time.

P.S. I am leaving for Disneyland and the Dumbo Double Dare in 27 days!? I am so excited!

 

[WDWRids]

Love the Universal update- Haven't been so pretty cool to read about it. Glad you are doing the ToT 10 miler - that is one race that I was looking into as my first one at Disney. Sorry your other plans didn't work out - that does make it hard to get super excited about this trip.

Quick Question - do you run with a headband? I've been looking at some of the ones on etsy but can't decide if they work or not. I need to keep the hair out of my eyes (our hair is about the same length) but don't want to wear a hat due to our excessive heat.

Hope you are having a great day!

 

[Eight]

Love the Universal update- Haven't been so pretty cool to read about it. Glad you are doing the ToT 10 miler - that is one race that I was looking into as my first one at Disney. Sorry your other plans didn't work out - that does make it hard to get super excited about this trip.

Quick Question - do you run with a headband? I've been looking at some of the ones on etsy but can't decide if they work or not. I need to keep the hair out of my eyes (our hair is about the same length) but don't want to wear a hat due to our excessive heat.

Hope you are having a great day!

Glad you liked it! I don't feel the need to go to Universal every trip, but it's pretty cool, and worth checking out at least once, in my opinion. And yeah, it's disappointing, but I've been feeling a little more excited about the past few days, especially since the initial let down is wearing off. Plus, I'm lucky this trip is even working out, so I'm doing my best to look at the positives.

With shorter hair, I always run with a headband. I love them! I've never looked at the headbands on etsy, but I imagine if they say they're running headbands, they would work? I would recommend getting ones that will 'grip' your hair, so to speak. A lot of mine have what a velvety texture on the back and that holds my hair in place very well. I also like the kind I wore for the Princess Half Marathon, the yellow one with the tiara on it, because it prevents sweat from dripping in my face. I have a couple of those, and tend to use them more when it's really hot.

When I started running a year ago, I never wore them because I had much longer hair and could pull it back easily, but now that I've used headbands, I don't think I'd want to run without one, even if I had longer hair.

So in conclusion, headbands are awesome, they work, and I think they're worth investing in.

Thank you! I hope you are having a nice one as well.

 

[Eight]

Okay, I have one more day of the WDW trip to post, and I will do my best to post it before I leave for Dumbo Double Dare in two weeks.

So while you are waiting for that, have a little more of the Disneyland 58th trip report.

The next morning I had a mission, to ride the Lilly Belle. We made it to the park by 7:50 and headed immediately to the train station. We were the second group waiting, and were able to get a slot at 9:15. Since we had an hour to kill, we wanted to ride it's a small world, but they were filming something in the queue, not sure what.

Merida meets back by iasw so we decided to hop in line, because why not, and we were hoping the filming would end soon, since one of the cast members did say they thought they were supposed to have ended at 6am. We never got to ride iasw, but Merida was nice, and I was excited to see that they had the bears still since I was told last time I was at WDW, they didn’t have them there any longer.

I thought the detail on the CM's costumes were cute.

We grabbed some Space Mountain fast passes and made our way up to the front of the park to ride the Lilly Belle. I would definitely recommend trying to take a ride if you are able, it’s pretty cool.

There were about 8 other people in the car with us, and a cast member who was answering questions and talking about the history of the Lilly Belle and Disneyland.

I was very hungry by the time we got off, but we had to use those Space Mountain fast passes first. I love Space Mountain, but only at Disneyland. I always ride it at WDW to see if it’s somehow better than I remember, and I’m always like, nope, Disneyland’s is way better. The track is much smoother and the audio is better. I was starting to get a little cranky from hunger, and those pancakes I had the day before sounded delicious, so it was off to Carnation Café for the second time!

Also, they had Fix It Felix in the arcade next to Space Mountain.

I was super tired for some reason after breakfast, so I headed back to the room while my mom decided to ride Star Tours. I read for a little bit until my mom got back, and then I crashed and took a nap for an hour. I could have slept longer, but I had to get up because I was meeting Lauren (magichusky on the DIS) for lunch!

Unfortunately, her AP was blocked out that day, so we were limited to the hotels and downtown Disney but we decided on Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar at the Disneyland Hotel. I don’t have any pictures but it kind of reminds me of a super tiny Adventurer’s Club minus the interactivity, but more Adventureland (think Jungle Cruise and Tiki Room). I have no idea of that description makes any sense, but go with it, it’s pretty awesome.

Lauren had just been at WDW, so it was great to hear about her trip and catch up. This was the fourth time we've met up, and it’s kind of cool to think it’s all because of our first TRs on the Disneyland board here on the DIS. After lunch, we walked around downtown Disney for a while until she had to go. I had such a fun time seeing her, and I definitely hope we will be able to meet up again when I go down in August.

I made a quick stop at the room to pick up my nice camera and my mom, and it was back to the parks! DCA, to be precise. I played around a bit with my camera, but I wasn’t feeling like particularly inspired.

We wanted to see how long the line for Tower of Terror was, but it was around 40 minutes, and no way were we going to wait for that.

Right after we got there, the Pixar Play Parade started which would have made getting to the front of the park difficult, so we decided to wait to take a ride on the Red Car Trolley, even though we’d still have to wait like 15 minutes since the parade was blocking the route. It doesn't make sense now and it didn’t make sense at the time, but that’s what we did. I rocked out to the music and took a few pictures.

Finally it was time to ride, and I’m guessing we probably got dinner after that because I was probably hungry. Aren't you glad I have such a great memory??

Actually, I’m pretty positive that’s what we did before going back to the room to drop off my camera and so my mom could check us in to our flight the next day. But we had like 30 minutes before she could check in, so she waited while I went back to the DCA, grabbed a Tower of Terror fast pass and got my picture with Buena Vista Street Mickey Mouse, who is probably my favorite Mickey Mouse. I think his outfit is adorable. I actually dressed up as Buena Vista Street Mickey Mouse for the Tinker Bell Half Marathon. See?

Since my mom was still waiting to check in, I decided to ride the Red Car Trolley again. So for those of you who have never been to DCA or have, but haven’t been there since they redid everything, the trolley runs in the middle of the street though Buena Vista Street (the equivalent of Main Street) back to the Tower of Terror, making two stops along the way. I think they’re amazing.
Anyway, it was interesting, because I was by sitting up front by the conductor and he had to do what I think must have been an emergency stop because some guy walked right in front of the trolley and almost got hit! Thankfully no one was hurt, but man, that guy needed to be a little more careful and watch where he was walking.

We were able to make it back to the Tower of Terror without any further accidents where I met up with my mom. I used my fast pass, only to regret it. I was stuck in an elevator with a bunch of preteens who thought it would be funny to shriek very shrilly the entire time. I don’t really care if people scream because they’re scared or whatever, but these kids were obviously doing it to be obnoxious. Not cool, kids.

I was not in the best mood after that, but we noticed the fireworks were going off over in Disneyland, so we power walked over to Disneyland and made it there about half way through and were able to find a semi-decent spot on Main Street. We didn’t see Dumbo flying though, which was disappointing, as that’s my favorite part.

After the Dumbo part, my mom had this idea that we could try and run over to Indiana Jones while the fireworks were still going because there might not be much of a line. Of course, getting any where during the fireworks is a pain since Disneyland has such narrow walkways, and despite the cast members doing their best to direct traffic, it gets very congested. We could have made it if we didn’t have to walk all the way around the hub as part of the flow of traffic, but you weren’t able to just head left in to Adventureland. By the time we got there, the line was 25 minutes long, which really isn’t too bad, but we opted instead for the Jungle Cruise since it had a 15 minute line, and I think we only waited 5-10 anyway. The skipper we had was entertaining, and had some new spins on some of the jokes, at least I had never heard them before. The park was open until midnight, but I think we left around 10?

Because the next morning was the 58th anniversary of Disneyland!!

 

[emilyindisney]

Your face in that ToT picture! Priceless! I definitely feel you- I'm all for people having a good time on the ride, but let's not get carried away with the dramatics. You definitely didn't look like you were feelin' it!

Very cool that you've got to meet up with a fellow DISer once again!

I'm absolutely in love with your Mickey costume from Tink. That picture of you two is fantastic! Did you attach brown pieces for suspenders or just paint the stripes right on the shirt? The costume looks like its got a 'Disneybounding' comfort level because its made out of real clothes as opposed to a costume.

 

[Eight]

Your face in that ToT picture! Priceless! I definitely feel you- I'm all for people having a good time on the ride, but let's not get carried away with the dramatics. You definitely didn't look like you were feelin' it!

Very cool that you've got to meet up with a fellow DISer once again!

I'm absolutely in love with your Mickey costume from Tink. That picture of you two is fantastic! Did you attach brown pieces for suspenders or just paint the stripes right on the shirt? The costume looks like its got a 'Disneybounding' comfort level because its made out of real clothes as opposed to a costume.

Oh man, it was the worst ToT ride ever. I could tell other people on the ride were getting irritated as well. On the bright side, as least I got an amusing ride picture out of it.

It was cool. I'm a little shy in person, but at the same time, I love getting to meet people I've talked to online. Especially people that 'get' my love for Disney.

Thank you!! The suspenders were some thick brown elastic I got at a craft store, and my mom sewed them in to the waistband of the shorts. I was a little worried at how well they'd stay up, but I had no problems with them, or any part of the costume, it was perfect to run in.

 

[Eight]

I leave in three days for Disneyland! I can't even begin to explain how excited I am. I don't know if any of you readers have Twitter, but I'll be using that and posting pictures. If you want my username, please PM me.


It was definitely weird to have been at WDW nearly a week and not have gone to the Magic Kingdom yet, unless you count running through it. Which I think only sort of counts? I mean, I was probably in there for less than 30 minutes. And I didn’t ride anything. So.

But before we could go there, we had to get breakfast at my favorite breakfast spot, Kona!

I had been planning to get my favorite breakfast item, Tonga Toast, but they had a special, Red Velvet Pancakes. And since I like red velvet cupcakes and pancakes, I figured it would be an excellent choice.

I was sort of right. The pancakes were good, and I liked the cream cheese topping, but I also thought they were too sweet, so I didn’t end up eating much. Live and learn.

My mom and B were still eating when I was done, and I was determined to try and get to the Magic Kingdom for the opening show, so I left them to eat and pay and hopped on the monorail. Unfortunately, I just missed the opening show, it was ending as I was walking down the monorail station.

Since I had yet to see New Fantasyland, so I went straight there. And by straight there, I mean I stopped and took a few pictures along the way.

I was hoping to see Enchanted Tales with Belle, since I knew my mom and B wouldn’t have much interest in waiting for that, but by the time I got there, the line was already an hour and 45 minutes! I was shocked, I’m a fast walker and I didn’t take that many pictures, so it was hard to believe that so many people made it back there before me. I actually asked a cast member if that was accurate, and he looked at the line and guessed it was probably even a little longer. So much for that idea. He did tell me that if I wanted to see it, I should try coming back around 8 or 9, as the line tended to be shorter.

I figured I could ride the Little Mermaid ride, but that was closed. I wasn’t too disappointed though, I’ve ridden the ride at DCA, and I had only been interested in seeing the queue since I had heard the detail was great.

So much for New Fantasyland! I did make a quick stop in the shop and Gaston’s Tavern to take some pictures. I liked the theming there.

That morning I had been tweeting back and forth with a friend about the Dumbo Double Dare. I think I’ve mentioned it on this TR before, but the Dumbo Double Dare is part of the Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend, and involves running the new 10K on Saturday and the half marathon on Sunday for a total of 19.3 miles in two days. I’m super excited about doing it. Anyway, I decided I should stop by Dumbo, and take a few pictures.

And I did.

Shortly after that, my mom called me to let me know that they were in the park and heading to Big Thunder. I always love how un-crowded Liberty Square feels in the morning.

I liked this sign.

We also rode Pirates and the Haunted Mansion.

There wasn’t much else to do on the left side of the park that we wanted to do, since Splash Mountain was closed, but for whatever reason, my mom and B really wanted to do the Hall of Presidents. I had no desire to sit through that (even though I feel like I should someday), and attempted to cross the park to get Space Mountain fast passes for us.

I say attempted because the Move It Shake It Celebrate It Parade sort of blocked my efforts. I made it in the center of the hub, and then the floats started circling and I couldn’t cross. Oops.

Once I finally made it to Tomorrowland, I was able to get Fast Passes that were within the next hour, and saw that my favorite character, Stitch, was out, so I got in line, until I was told that the line was already closed but that Stitch would be coming back in 10 minutes. Since my mom and B were still at the Hall of Presidents, I decided to wait, since I have a picture with Stitch from nearly every trip I’ve taken in the past 5 or 6 years. It’s a tradition, you know?

I guess I did already get one during the half marathon, but hey, what else was I going to do while I waited for my mom and B?

Stitch was just walking out when I saw my mom walking up, so luckily, I had someone to take my picture.

And yes, I was wearing my Coast to Coast medal, because it’s fun wearing your medals in the parks. Bragging rights, you know?

Being in Tomorrowland, we obviously had to introduce B to the wonders of the TTA. And by we, I mean I, because even though my mom rode, she doesn’t get my love for it. Oh well.

We picked up some Buzz FPs, and it was time to ride Space Mountain.

Here’s the thing about Space Mountain at WDW. I ride every time I go, thinking that maybe I’ll like it this trip. I love Space Mountain at Disneyland, but not so much at WDW. It’s much jerkier and there’s no synced background music. And every time I ride, I think, gosh, I really don’t like this ride here. But for some reason, I always ride it anyway. Go figure. Even I can’t explain that one.

I was starving by this point, and I had heard that Pinnochio Village Haus had flatbread pizzas now. I love the flatbread pizzas at Disneyland, so I wanted to go there. It was super crowded, huge lines and everything, but I noticed no one was in the upstairs seating area. I asked a CM if we could eat up, because I wasn’t sure it was opened because despite it being super crowded, no one was up there. It was open, so we got a nice table away from everyone. For a few minutes. I think once people noticed people up there, they realized it was a seating area, and pretty soon it was full too.

It was a great place to sit if there’s room. There’s a little balcony with a lovely view of the castle and the carousel.

I loved the flatbread. It seemed a little different than Disneyland’s but maybe that was my imagination. I can’t stand the personal pizzas they serve at most QS places, and these are much better.

After lunch, we rode Buzz. This was my score, though I can’t remember who I played against or if I played by myself.

I needed to take a break for a while, so I walked back to BLT (I LOVED being able to walk to the room), while my mom and B went on the Carousel of Progress. They came back after that, but didn’t stay very long because they were going to Animal Kingdom. I needed to relax for a little longer, so they drove over and I figured I'd catch a bus there.

Around 3:20, I left, and luckily I didn’t have to wait too long for a bus. There were a few people on when I got on, but then we stopped at the Poly and the Grand Floridian, and everyone but me got off.

VIP bus to Animal Kingdom!

I was sitting near the front, so I remember wondering if the bus drive would talk to me, since don’t all Disney rumors start with, well, a bus driver told me…

He asked me a question, but it was not what I was expecting!

“Did you like running at Disneyland or Walt Disney World better?”

It took me a moment to process how he knew I had done both but then I realized I was wearing my Coast to Coast shirt. Duh.

As it turned out, he’s volunteered at many of the runDisney events as a driver who picks up people who can’t maintain the required pace. It ended up being the best Disney bus ride I’ve ever had, because he told me about his experiences doing that.

I met back with my mom and B by Yak + Yeti. I was sort of cranky, so I figured I should probably eat something since I tend to feel better after eating. I ate at the QS place there, but I wasn't impressed.

I still wasn’t in a great mood, but luckily Expedition Everest had no line, so we were able to ride it twice. By the end of the second ride, I was in a much better mood, because you can’t be upset or mad while riding Everest. I don’t think it’s possible.

It was getting close to park closing after that, so we drove back to BLT. My mom got dinner, and I was in a hurry, because I was hoping to get Tiana to sign my race bib, since it was a Tiana bib, and I thought she wouldn’t be out after a certain time. I don’t remember what time it was, but I remember I was doing my super speed walk to the Magic Kingdom. The CM checking my bag asked where I was going to in such a hurry. I was a little embarrassed to say why, so I think I made up something.

I raced back to Liberty Square and Tiana and Naveen were out but the line was closed. Thankfully the CM standing there let me know they would be coming back in a bit, so luckily I was wrong about her not being out later.

I sat near the hub for a while, people watching, until I figured I should head back near Liberty Square, because I’m sure most of you know how character lines often start forming before they’re even out. And yep, there was already a line, even though they weren’t going to be out for another 20 minutes. I ended up talking to the mom in front of me for most of the time. She was so sweet.

Finally it was my turn, and Tiana and Naveen both signed it. Naveen figured they could probably do a half marathon as frogs, but probably not as humans.

I wanted to see if that CM from this morning was right about the line for Enchanted Tales with Belle being shorter at night, and he was! Actually, the line still said 50 minutes, but the CM at the front said it would be more like 20, and he was correct.

Overall, I thought it was very cute, and while it’s not something I’d want to do every trip, it was definitely enjoyable, and the mirror IS as amazing as everyone says.

I was going to walk back to BLT, but then the fireworks were starting, and I couldn’t leave during the fireworks! It didn’t feel right to walk out during the fireworks when it was my last night there, and I hadn’t seen them this trip.

I’ll spare you the majority of my blurry fireworks photos, but I thought this one was kind of cool.

It was a mess trying to get out of the park, but it’s a lot easier when you’re by yourself. The park was closing at 10, I believe, and as I was trying to get out, there was an announcement that said the park would be staying open an hour later. I had never heard anything like that before, and I’m still wondering if that happens often? It wasn’t EMH or anything. I was sort of tempted to stay after hearing that, but I had already texted my mom saying I was going back.

Surprisingly, considering how early I had been going to bed, the night wasn’t over yet. B wanted to go to Downtown Disney to find some gifts, so we all went. We only went to a few places, including Goofy’s Candy Company, where we discovered they have really good Mickey Mouse cake pops. Wish I had one now!

My mom was super nice and had washed and folded some of my clothing while I was at the Magic Kingdom, so packing didn't take too long. Thanks mom! Then it was time for bed, because our flight didn’t leave until 6:30PM so there was still valuable park time in the morning!

 

[wiigirl]

Great pics!

 

[Eight]

Great pics!

Thank you

 

[Eight]

And this why you don’t wait like 8 months to write the final day of your TR, because you will not remember it, even if you took notes. I’ll do my best though.

My mom and I were ready to go by 8 on the final morning of our trip, but B was not. So being the great friends that we are, we drove to Hollywood Studios and told her to catch a bus and meet us there later. Great friends.

Of course, we had to get FPs for Toy Story Mania right away, and ride one of our favorite rides, the Tower of Terror.

B met us shortly after that and we rode Star Tours. I don't remember what scenes we got, but I can almost guarantee we went to the Wookie planet because I always get the Wookie planet. I’m pretty sure I have had a curse placed on me so that I will always go to the Wookie planet. I wish I were joking.

So after visiting the Wookie planet for the millionth time, my mom and B shopped around a little bit as B was looking for some gifts for friends and family back home. I sat on a bench.

We had lunch at 50’s Prime Time Café after that, and all I wrote about this was we had a lot of food. I cannot tell you what this food was, but apparently there was a lot of it. And I don’t remember it being bad, so it was probably good.

We watched the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular, and actually I just looked this up and found out it's really called the Indiana Jones Stunt EPIC Stunt Spectacular (emphasis my own), so yeah, I think it's safe to assume it was EPIC.

Actually, it was, because even though I’ve seen it before, I remember that last scene made me a little nervous. EPIC.

Since my mom and I had never seen The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow, that was our next stop. Also because the time for our Toy Story Mania FPs was coming up and that was nearby.

To be honest, I don’t really remember much about it, except for walking out with a feeling of ‘I waited 20 minutes for that’? It was disappointing. There was a lot of potential there, but it fell flat.

Finally it was time to ride TSM, and while Indiana Jones Stunt EPIC Stunt Spectacular may have “EPIC” in the name, this was actually the most EPIC part of the day.

Guys.


I GOT BEST IN VEHICLE.

I know that’s not as prestigious as Best in Hour or Best in Day or Best in Month, but considering my mom normally beats me (although I was playing against B this time, since we only had two FPs), I was extremely proud of myself.

Here’s some photographic evidence.

After that EPIC moment, it was time to leave. We got our bags at BLT and drove to the airport. We dropped B off first since she was on an earlier flight, returned the car, and that was it.

Wait, no, not quite. In my notes, I wrote that security wasn't horrible, which is saying something, since I think MCO is in the top three for US Airports with the Worst Security. I don’t know, it’s usually slow, the TSA are usually grumpy, and I usually hate it.

I don’t remember why it wasn’t so bad this time but that’s good.

We had some time before boarding, so we ate the Mexican restaurant in the terminal. And apparently we had the exit row on the flight, which I don't remember, but that’s always awesome, so yay past me for getting the exit row!

It’s still a six hour flight so that’s kind of awful.

And okay, I think that’s it. Finally.

I feel like I should wrap this up nicely somehow, but I’m not sure how to do that, so thank you for reading, take care, and be on the lookout for a new TR in the next few weeks.

Until next time!

 

[Leleluvsdis]

Thanks for sharing!!! It was a great trip!!!

 

[jdd]

Thanks so much for sharing your trip with us! Looking forward to being there for the Princess weekend this year Are you running the half again? I'll be on the lookout

 

[Eight]

Thanks for sharing!!! It was a great trip!!!

You are welcome!! It was a definitely a fun trip.

Thanks so much for sharing your trip with us! Looking forward to being there for the Princess weekend this year Are you running the half again? I'll be on the lookout

Funny story, I wasn't going to do the Princess Half Marathon this year since WDW is so far away from Seattle, and I just did the ToT Ten Miler again. But then I got accepted to the Disney College Program for spring so I'll be there in February, and the charity I ran for this last time had spots, so I was like, welll..... I'm doing it. I'm addicted, what can I say. Of course, now I have to make sure I can get that day off, but I am hopeful it will work out. If not, I'll still have raised money for a great cause.

 

[jdd]

[FONT="Tahoma[SIZE="3Funny story, I wasn't going to do the Princess Half Marathon this year since WDW is so far away from Seattle, and I just did the ToT Ten Miler again. But then I got accepted to the Disney College Program for spring so I'll be there in February, and the charity I ran for this last time had spots, so I was like, welll..... I'm doing it. I'm addicted, what can I say. Of course, now I have to make sure I can get that day off, but I am hopeful it will work out. If not, I'll still have raised money for a great cause.
[/COLOR][/FONT]

Wow, that's so amazing that you'll be doing the College Program - congratulations!! Do you know where you're working? I'll be at DW for the Princess Half weekend (just running the 10K this time - hoping to maybe do the Half in 2015 ) and it'd be so cool to run into you!

Best of luck!!

 

[Eight]

Wow, that's so amazing that you'll be doing the College Program - congratulations!! Do you know where you're working? I'll be at DW for the Princess Half weekend (just running the 10K this time - hoping to maybe do the Half in 2015 ) and it'd be so cool to run into you!

Best of luck!!

Thanks! I don't know specifically where I'll be working until I arrive there, but my role is attractions.
I think the 10K will be great! They haven't released a course map, have they? I'm excited to see where it goes. And the medal!
And if you see me, feel free to say hi and let me know you're from the Disboards. I had someone come up to me once and they knew my name and everything but I had no idea who they were. I didn't mind, but I felt bad that I was trying to figure out who they were the entire conversation! Eventually they told me because I think I looked very confused.

 

[emilyindisney]

Finally caught up!

Sounds like you guys had a great trip! I particularly enjoyed your MK recap day. Of course you can't leave during the fireworks! It's practically an obligation!

Did you enjoy the proximity to MK at BLT? I can't remember reading whether you walked over or not but I suppose you definitely could of!

Can't wait to read more of your Disney adventures, Rachel!

 

[Eight]

Finally caught up!

Sounds like you guys had a great trip! I particularly enjoyed your MK recap day. Of course you can't leave during the fireworks! It's practically an obligation!

Did you enjoy the proximity to MK at BLT? I can't remember reading whether you walked over or not but I suppose you definitely could of!

Can't wait to read more of your Disney adventures, Rachel!

I think the MK day was probably my favorite day during the trip (I would say the half marathon if I hadn't felt so sick the rest of the day.). It had a lot of random but awesome moments.

I loved being able to walk to MK. I'm a big fan of being able to walk somewhere vs. talking a bus or boat or a monorail. It was especially great when I left after the fireworks since there was the biggest line I've seen to get on the express monorail to the TTC. The resort monorail line might have been shorter but I was so distracted by how long the other line was!
So yeah, being able to walk instead of waiting in a long line when you are tired was awesome.

Hopefully I'll be getting the ToT Ten Miler trip up in the near future, I need to write a few more chapters.