(I have discovered, after looking closely, that I am missing about 15 pictures or so from the party. I'm not sure what happened to them, but they're gone - pics of us on a few rides, the crowds, and the mine train being built.
There will probably be more words than there will be pictures in this segment.)
Mom and I happily stopped at Cosmic Rays. We both got a chicken sandwich - she got fries, I got apple slices - and found a seat in the same room in which you order. From our seat, we could see there was a dance party going on in the other room, with Christmas music and some special guests!
We DEVOURED our mediocre chicken and sides and then stopped in the dance party room to watch the festivities!
It was now almost 8:30, and we had plenty more to do. We headed back across the park in hopes of riding LM, IASW, and PP, as well as HM (of COURSE, we LOVE HM) and BTMRR. Plus, I had my GWTS ears on, so we wanted to catch the fireworks and then go on to ride POTC and the Jingle Cruise!
As we walked toward LM, we heard the sound of... a roller coaster! They were running the new coaster in New Fantasyland! We had to stop and watch, but we didn't see another go-round and decided not to waste any more time watching for something we couldn't ride. We headed straight to LM and straight through the queue right onto the ride! We were stopped for just a moment (there was a wheelchair Guest right behind us) but then we were off under the sea.
Mom seemed to like the ride ok, but we both decided once was enough. We went on to IASW and PP. PP was still at over 30 minutes, so we went through IASW and then headed to ... The Bathrooms! (Again!) Those Tangled bathrooms are just gorgeous.
After HM, we jumped in a short line for:
It was just after 9 and the lines were very short. We loved seeing all the snowflakes and Christmas stuff projected on to the buildings. Mom and I kept pointing it out to each other.
I think the new queue here is pretty cool; I'm glad, however, that I don't go during a season that needs all that overflow room! YIKES.
Once we got off the ride again, if I'm remembering correctly it was time for fireworks, but we couldn't get over there fast enough. We stopped to watch from the area right next to Rivers of America. I asked Mom how my ears looked; she said they were "very cool" to watch. I was the only one in the area with them on!
Before the fireworks finale, we decided that it would be a good time to jump in line for the Jingle Cruise. We couldn't see the fireworks very well anyway; bad planning on our part.
But we were still having a great time and wanted to catch one of the parades, so we headed over to Jingle Cruise to see how the line was.
It was a walk on! The fireworks had drawn everyone away, so we enjoyed a nice trip in De Nile. I know I had a few pictures, but can't find them. We had a good skipper, very sarcastic and just a nice, dry humor with good delivery. We enjoyed our Jingle Cruise!
Next we ran over to POTC. My mom has the beginning stages of emphysema due to smoking (she quit smoking right away when diagnosed, but of course it's too late) and this ride makes us both a little nervous due to the the scene with the cannon fire - the thick air can cause her problems, but this ride was seamless.
By now, we were tired. It was almost time for the second parade, so we staked out a spot next to the funnel cake place and helped a family take a few family pictures. We didn't have a front row view of the parade, but it was still good enough for us!
Look at all these characters at once! They did a cool dance together too!
Frankly, all my pictures of the parade are pretty bad, since I was watching and not worrying about pictures so much. Sorry, guys!
We finally went over to Fantasyland for PP. We were tired, and wanted to shop before leaving, so it was time to get in line, regardless of the line time!
It was STILL at 30 minutes! Oh well! In line we went! All the exhausted kids around me were staring at my ears as they flashed in the night. The little boy in line in front of us was mesmerized and sleepily watched my head through the entire queue. It was adorable.
It really did take 30 minutes to get on the ride, and after we were done we were SPENT. Mom and I both wanted a pin, and Mom wanted a shirt, so we went shopping.
It. Was. A. Madhouse. It was like Black Friday in the Emporium. Lines were long, people were arguing over product. They had the pins behind the register, so you couldn't even look at the pins without being in line. We asked how much they were, and were told they were $12.95 - not too bad, right? When we finally got up in line and got to pick them, the ones we picked were $14.95! We bought so much we didn't even know until later that night! I was annoyed at that, but what is $4 in the scheme of things, really? I also got the purchase with purchase WDW throw, which I'll show you at the end of my TR.
Next up, the buses. *cue ominous music*
As we were walking up, the bus was loading. We were about 7 people from the front when they stopped letting people on. Bummer. After about 2 minutes, the person in front of us turned to me and said "oh, they're still letting on people for standing room only." Oh, ok, well we don't have a problem with that! The people in front of us moved aside as we walked up. As we turned to get on the bus, the guy closed the doors and just took off with us standing right there! *sigh*
"Oh well, I guess we'll just stand here instead!" I said, and pretty much everyone in line laughed and made way for us to walk back. A lot of discussion about my GWTS ears ensued, and a new bus arrived within 15 minutes to take us back "home."
Once at BWV, we found my stepdad snoozing on the couch. Mom and I took the king bed - she went right to sleep, but I soaked my feet in the jacuzzi tub first. Even though today was a long day, tomorrow was going to be a long one too - I was doing rope drop at HS and EMH at Epcot! I finally went in to bed, falling asleep to the sounds of must-do Disney!