The Day the Mickey Died - In memoriam: Pal Mickey

[Peter Panic Attack]

Originally Posted by shebaxric

The three B's. I'd partake in two out of the three. Bratts aren't my favorite thing in the world (Epcot and in general). We've always eaten inside at Germany, never at Somerfest. This year we'll probably be doing that because DH wants to do the CS dining plan instead of TS. I am not very happy about that, but for some strange reason I'm letting him get his way. Perhaps it's because he's going to let me drink my way through the world at Epcot. . .

The Fish and Fries () in England is one of my favorites, despite the extremely long line.

Shhh....don't tell anybody....but free dining has been extended through your trip if you have a Disney visa. We just added it last friday. Might be a problem if you're staying in a villa however.

If that doesn't work out......you've always got "drinking your way around the world" to fall back on.

Originally Posted by My sister's princess

Glad to see you update again. I mean jeepers it is no fun to be at work, not wanting to do work and not have an update available.

Might be another update tomorrow.....if you don't feel like working then either.

Originally Posted by DisneyChristian

My DW (Mickey'sGal) and I absolutely love your trip report. We sat and read all 40 chapters together in one sitting (ok actually two seperate sittings), well she read it to me because she can read outloud with "inflection" which made it even more funny I must admit. It only took us about 4.5 hours to get through too! We see that you are leaving WDW on the day we arrive this year. We are having a terrible time trying to work out our touring plan this year. Too bad we don't have Tinkershell's non-negotiable itinerary. It probably could tell us what parks to go to on what days that would be the least crowded. Do you and Tinkershell have your schedule's worked out for Christmas 2009?

PS. DW and I both think your Trip Report could be published.

Thank you very much. I can't believe that I've accumulated 4.5 hours of TR....without ever writing anything of substance. That's not easy to do.

Tinkershell has a rough draft of our itinerary put together....but it won't become non-negotiable until the official December park hours are released. We use Tourguide Mike by the way......and I profit in no way by telling you that.......which doesn't really seem right.

[luvngoofy]

Originally Posted by babydinosaur03

Here you go! The Chunnel.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channel_Tunnel

Thank you babydino... it WAS built after I visited. 31 miles is too long for me!...

Now back to our regularly scheduled TR...
What? no TR today?

[skywaywaver]

Originally Posted by Peter Panic Attack

But then again, I love those Hostess fruit pies that you can buy at the gas station....even though they are probably the exact same ones that have been on the shelf since I was a kid....

Nothing wrong with those...some days they can rank right up there with dark-chocolate-covered-Mickey-head-on-a-stick.

[Peter Panic Attack]

Chpt 42 - Park Hopping to MK....after spending a bunch of time in the Norway pavilion

After our pleasant lunch at Sommerfest, we bid adieu to Germany. To be honest, it was a little hard for me to leave....for a number of reasons. First, I felt a great affinity with the German people....possibly because my mother used to dress me up in lederhosen as a small boy; second, my body was still trying to decide whether combining a McFlurry with the three B’s had been a serious mistake; and third, Germany was Pal Mickey’s favorite pavilion. He used to love to stand in the cobblestone-paved central plaza and stare up at the big glockenspiel clock. I think he just appreciated it’s craftsmanship......or how it made him feel connected to days gone by.......or maybe he had a school-boy crush on the little mechanical maiden who came out on the hour and was wondering how he could get up there and get her phone number. With Pal Mickey, it was often times hard to tell.

A quick check of the park map.....which was filling in admirably while Tinkershell’s non-negotiable itinerary was off somewhere trying to find it in it’s little leather bound heart to forgive us.....revealed that we were approaching Norway. Ah, that explains my lightheadedness and feelings of euphoria. I was being drawn by the irresistible siren call of my homeland.....for I am full-blooded Norwegian on my mother’s side. Tinkershell is Norwegian too....passed down from her grandmother I believe. Sadly, her grandfather was a muggle.....which is why she will never be fully embraced by the Norwegian wizarding community. Anyway, it was our common love of lefse that brought us together. What’s that? You’ve never heard of lefse? Well, by all means...allow me to enlighten you. Lefse is a Norwegian delicacy that looks like a tortilla.....but it’s made of potatoes. You lay it out flat and then smear it with butter. Here’s a word to the wise, don’t ever let Tinkershell’s brother butter your lefse.....he’s a chronic over-butterer. Frankly....it’s probably best not to butter someone else’s lefse....because it sounds naughty. ”Man, I’d like to butter her lefse”. See what I mean?

Anyway, the next step in lefse preparation is also the subject of much family controversy. If you wish to properly prepare your lefse, you sprinkle it with brown sugar and then roll it into a cigar shape before you eat it. However, if you were dropped when you were a baby like Tinkershell.....you sprinkle it with white sugar and fold it up like one of those paper footballs we used to flick around 7th grade social studies class when the teacher wasn’t looking. I know....sounds ridiculous doesn’t it? What reasonable person wants their delicious potato tortilla smeared with butter and sugar folded up like a paper football? Oddly enough, our kids don't care for either variety.....the cigar or the football.....which leaves me dumbfounded.

The Norway pavilion is also the home of Maelstrom.....a stormy voyage back through time...on a dragon-headed longboat.... through a forest full of trolls. Some people scoff at the idea that Maelstrom is a fastpass attraction but I can only assume that these folks have never stayed for the delightful short film they show in the fishing village at the end of the ride. Plus, who are we to second guess Walt Disney? I mean, the man was a genius. What's that?.......the concept of the fastpass was developed long after Walt's time.....and it probably wasn’t even his idea to have the World Showcase in the first place...let alone the Norway Pavilion? Granted, you make some valid points.....but I’m still not going to sit here and listen to you bad-mouth Walt Disney.

After Maelstrom, we browsed around the gift shop….for it had long been a dream of mine to buy a troll. When I was a boy, I had bought a little wooden troll on one of our family vacations. I don’t exactly remember where….but it might have been at one of those little gift shops in Yellowstone. Anyway, I loved that troll. Sadly, one day…..as sometimes boys are wont to do…..I was too rough with my troll and I broke off his little wooden toes. Obviously, I was devastated……but now, after all these years….I finally had a chance to replace my precious troll. The Norway gift shop was lousy with trolls. Big trolls……little trolls…..trolls who climb on rocks. Wait a second…..that's starting to sound an awful lot like the armour hotdog song. Fat trolls...skinny trolls...even trolls with chicken pox. Yup, it's the hotdog song alright. Little known fact there Normy...it's believed that it was chicken pox that cause the extinction of the trolls. It was either that or a giant meteor. There is support in both camps. In fact, it's nearly as controversial as the proper method to fold lefse. Anyway, after much searching….I was able to find my exact troll……but I thought it was too expensive….so I spent my money on a ice-cold Carlsberg beer from the cart outside instead.

As we exited the World Showcase for the last time on this trip, we couldn’t help but feel a little nostalgic. Goodbye Black Forest Cake. Goodbye Fish and Fries. Goodbye Marrakesh belly-dancer whose culturally rich dance Tinkershell will no longer allow me to enjoy because she insists on turning it into something dirty. Goodbye glockenstien clock which houses the hummel maiden that once held the key’s to Pal Mickey’s heart. Goodbye expensive gift shop trolls and surprisingly reasonable Carlsberg beer. Oh sure, we knew we’d be back someday…..because we are Disney folk…..but that knowledge didn’t make parting any easier. On the way out of the park, we stopped to use our fastpasses at Test Track and then said a final goodbye to Ellen at the Universe of Energy…..who still liked Tinkershell’s hair during the pre-show by the way. Finally, with out looking back, we boarded the monorail and left Epcot behind us.

Next up: Chpt 43 - our last night at WDW.

[Rosiekins]

I love your report, though I was hoping you could help me with something? Ever since my Pal Mickey read about the sad passing of yours he has been clingy, he sits in my lap all the time at home and clings to my leg when I walk around. To leave the house I have to shake him off and RUN often when I get home he is passed out by the door little tears still in his eyes. Any tips for Pal Mickey anxiety?

[Wish_I_Was_At_WDW]

I am sad your report is almost over! Could you just pretend you went back to Disney in say . . . August? And October? We'll never know the difference!

[Peter Panic Attack]

Originally Posted by skywaywaver

Nothing wrong with those...some days they can rank right up there with dark-chocolate-covered-Mickey-head-on-a-stick.

At least Pal Mickey wasn't horrified when I ate a hostess fruit pie.

Originally Posted by Rosiekins

I love your report, though I was hoping you could help me with something? Ever since my Pal Mickey read about the sad passing of yours he has been clingy, he sits in my lap all the time at home and clings to my leg when I walk around. To leave the house I have to shake him off and RUN often when I get home he is passed out by the door little tears still in his eyes. Any tips for Pal Mickey anxiety?

Thank you. The behavior you are describing is quite typical in Pal Mickey's who have been introduced to the idea of their own mortality. I would suggest giving him extra attention.....and if that doesn't work you can always pop out his batteries.

[Peter Panic Attack]

Originally Posted by Wish_I_Was_At_WDW

I am sad your report is almost over! Could you just pretend you went back to Disney in say . . . August? And October? We'll never know the difference!

Actually....you may be on to something. A totally fictional TR would be way easier......none of those pesky facts to have to deal with.

[shebaxric]

Originally Posted by Peter Panic Attack

Shhh....don't tell anybody....but free dining has been extended through your trip if you have a Disney visa. We just added it last friday. Might be a problem if you're staying in a villa however.

If that doesn't work out......you've always got "drinking your way around the world" to fall back on.

Drinking around the world it is! We actually rented DVC points from a friend and are staying in a 1BR Villa, so we won't be able to get the free dining deal anyway. DH parents are going with us. . . .

I love Norway, too! I don't have any facts of being of Norwegian descent, but I think the blond hair and blue eyes must count for something.

[wdwlovin'family]

Originally Posted by Peter Panic Attack

Chpt 42 - Park Hopping to MK....after spending a bunch of time in the Norway pavilion

After our pleasant lunch at Sommerfest, we bid adieu to Germany. To be honest, it was a little hard for me to leave....for a number of reasons. First, I felt a great affinity with the German people....possibly because my mother used to dress me up in lederhosen as a small boy; second, my body was still trying to decide whether combining a McFlurry with the three B’s had been a serious mistake; and third, Germany was Pal Mickey’s favorite pavilion. He used to love to stand in the cobblestone-paved central plaza and stare up at the big glockenspiel clock. I think he just appreciated it’s craftsmanship......or how it made him feel connected to days gone by.......or maybe he had a school-boy crush on the little mechanical maiden who came out on the hour and was wondering how he could get up there and get her phone number. With Pal Mickey, it was often times hard to tell.

A quick check of the park map.....which was filling in admirably while Tinkershell’s non-negotiable itinerary was off somewhere trying to find it in it’s little leather bound heart to forgive us.....revealed that we were approaching Norway. Ah....that explains my lightheadedness and feelings of euphoria. I was being drawn by the irresistible siren call of my homeland.....for I am full-blooded Norwegian on my mother’s side. Tinkershell is Norwegian too....passed down from her grandmother I believe. Sadly, her grandfather was a muggle.....which is why she will never be fully embraced by the Norwegian wizarding community. Anyway, it was our common love of lefse that brought us together. What’s that? You’ve never heard of lefse? Well....allow me to enlighten you. Lefse is a Norwegian delicacy that looks like a tortilla.....but it’s made of potatoes. You lay it out flat and then smear it with butter. Here’s a word to the wise, don’t ever let Tinkershell’s brother butter your lefse.....he’s a chronic over-butterer. Frankly....it’s probably best not to butter someone else’s lefse....because it sounds naughty. ”Man, I’d like to butter her lefse”. See what I mean?

Anyway, the next step in lefse preparation is the subject of much family controversy. If you wish to properly prepare your lefse, you sprinkle it with brown sugar and then roll it into a cigar shape before you eat it. However, if you were dropped when you were a baby like Tinkershell.....you sprinkle it with white sugar and fold it up like one of those paper footballs we used to flick around 7th grade social studies class when the teacher wasn’t looking. I know....sounds ridiculous doesn’t it? What reasonable person wants their delicious potato tortilla smeared with butter and sugar folded up like a paper football? Oddly enough, our kids don't care for either variety.....the cigar or the football.....which leaves me dumbfounded.

The Norway pavilion is also the home of Maelstrom.....a stormy voyage back through time...on a dragon-headed longboat.... through a forest full of trolls. Some people scoff at the idea that Maelstrom is a fastpass attraction.....but I can only assume that these folks have never stayed for the delightful short film they show in the fishing village at the end of the ride. Plus, who are we to second guess Walt Disney? I mean.....the man was a genius. What's that?.......the concept of the fastpass was developed long after Walt's time.....and it probably wasn’t even his idea to have the World Showcase in the first place...let alone the Norway Pavilion? Ok....you make some valid points.....but I’m still not going to sit here and listen to you bad-mouth Walt Disney.

After Maelstrom, we browsed around the gift shop….for it had long been a dream of mine to buy a troll. When I was a boy, I had bought a little wooden troll on one of our family vacations. I don’t exactly remember where….but it might have been at one of those little gift shops in Yellowstone. Anyway, I loved that troll. Sadly, one day…..as sometimes boys are wont to do…..I was too rough with my troll….and I broke off his little wooden toes. Obviously, I was devastated……but now, after all these years….I finally had a chance to replace my precious troll. The Norway gift shop was lousy with trolls. Big trolls……little trolls…..trolls who climb on rocks…..wait a second…..am I getting mixed up with the armour hotdog song.? Anyway, after much searching….I was able to find my exact troll……but I thought it was too expensive….so I spent my money on a ice-cold Carlsberg beer from the cart outside instead.

As we exited the World Showcase for the last time on this trip….we couldn’t help but feel a little nostalgic. Goodbye Black Forest Cake. Goodbye Fish and Fries. Goodbye Marrakesh belly-dancer whose culturally rich dance Tinkershell will no longer allow me to enjoy because she insists on turning it into something dirty. Goodbye glockenstien clock which houses the hummel maiden that once held the key’s to Pal Mickey’s heart. Goodbye expensive gift shop trolls and surprisingly reasonable Carlsberg beer. Oh sure, we knew we’d be back someday…..because we are Disney folk…..but that knowledge didn’t make parting any easier. On the way out of the park, we stopped to use our fastpasses at Test Track….and then said a final goodbye to Ellen at the Universe of Energy…..who still liked Tinkershell’s hair during the pre-show by the way. Finally, with out looking back, we boarded the monorail and left Epcot behind us.

Next up: Chpt 43 - our last night at WDW.

I can remember when Maelstrom was *the* ride to go on in Epcot. Back in it's day, Fast Pass would have been a really good thing -- it's unforturnate that Disney is about 20 years late. I can remember riding it for the first time and waiting at least 45 min in line and being sorely disappointed when I got off. Maelstrom w/o a line is a fun little ride though.

[Peter Panic Attack]

Originally Posted by shebaxric

Drinking around the world it is! We actually rented DVC points from a friend and are staying in a 1BR Villa, so we won't be able to get the free dining deal anyway. DH parents are going with us. . . .

I love Norway, too! I don't have any facts of being of Norwegian descent, but I think the blond hair and blue eyes must count for something.

Well.....with in-laws on the trip.....you probably would have had to do the drinking regardless.

Just a little heads up to a fellow Norway lover....they do sell lefse at Epcot....just don't blame me if you don't like it.

Originally Posted by wdwlovin'family

I can remember when Maelstrom was *the* ride to go on in Epcot. Back in it's day, Fast Pass would have been a really good thing -- it's unforturnate that Disney is about 20 years late. I can remember riding it for the first time and waiting at least 45 min in line and being sorely disappointed when I got off. Maelstrom w/o a line is a fun little ride though.

To be honest.....our kids aren't huge fans....but sometimes they have to take one for the team.

[luvngoofy]

Originally Posted by Peter Panic Attack

[B]

Next up: Chpt 43 - our last night at WDW.

Last night!I hope that is several chpts!

Do you do pre-trip reports? If not, no time like the present to start!

[TK Brown]

I cant believe this TR is almost over! Now what am I going to do?? Work? Thats just too painful...............

[Peter Panic Attack]

Originally Posted by luvngoofy

Last night!I hope that is several chpts!

Do you do pre-trip reports? If not, no time like the present to start!

Don't worry....its definitely going to take a few chapters to wrap things up.

I haven't given much thought to a pre-trip report......but I'll keep an open mind.

Originally Posted by TK Brown

I cant believe this TR is almost over! Now what am I going to do?? Work? Thats just too painful...............

Well......it has been about four months. You're going to have to deal with that overflowing in-box eventually.

[MagicShell]

I can't believe that after all those years you passed on buying a troll. I have never ridden Maelstrom. Actually, I didn't even know it was there until a couple years ago. I need to check it out sometime.