A Celebration Trip Full of Surprises - May 2015 PTR (New 9/15 - New TR Link!)

[pkondz]

Both of us got sick during the trip

That sucks.

but thankfully, we weren't down for long.

Well, at least there's a bright side.

For starters, I will say that both the previous and the new sections of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter were AMAZING and picking a favorite ride between their two headliners is impossible

Interesting.

I will say I wasn't always impressed with the Riverside bus service - our running joke throughout the trip is we should've stayed at Caribbean Beach as we saw those busses EVERYWHERE.

We had so-so luck with POR busses, so I'm not surprised.

The two big surprises of Universal and the Grand Floridian... you'll have to stay tuned to hear about those reactions.

Hmmm.... Looking forward to the reveal.

It was fantastic and wonderful to have the opportunity to meet a few of you on this trip - my first DISmeets ever!

DISmeets are the best!

Anika was a little nervous about meeting strangers ("So, we're meeting random people from the Internet?!" ),

Non-DISers don't get that... and that's okay.

but she agreed that everyone we met was very nice.

Glad to hear.

I will post the trip report link as soon as it's up and running!

Can't wait!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

One or two... decades.

At least you're not missing much?

Seriously, there is no end to snacks that look tasty.

Woot!!!

Hey, the lying worked... so I'll take it!

Good idea.

She never found out until after the fact!

That's the way it should be. Go enjoy! Have fun!

Thanks - we did!

The feeling is mutual.

Thank you!

Can't wait to see and read all about it!

Have a wonderful trip!!!

We had such a great time! I still have photos to sort through (as I've barely been home since I've gotten home! ) but the trip report is on it's way!

Have an amazing time!!! I can't wait to hear all about it after...how all the surprises went especially!!!

Thank you for your good wishes! We had a great time and I can't wait to tell everyone about our trip!

Have a great time!!!! I can't wait to see how it all went down when you get back!
And, you know, after the surprises are no longer surprises... tell Anika Happy Birthday from your Dis friends.

Thank you! All the details will be coming soon!

Don't worry - I did!

 

[pkondz]

At least you're not missing much?

I wouldn't know!

Hey, the lying worked... so I'll take it!

We had such a great time! I still have photos to sort through (as I've barely been home since I've gotten home! ) but the trip report is on it's way!

Looking forward to it!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Have a wonderful, magical, fantastic trip!!

Thanks, Lauren! We had a great time!

Have fun!!!!

Thank you! (And, , I believe? )

I haven't been on the Dis for a few days and I just realized... YOU'RE PLAYING WITH HARRY TODAY!! Yay!!!!!!
I hope you guys are having an amazing time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I didn't post while on vacation, but I did sneak onto the boards once and read your comment! As you can see from my "We're Home!" post, Harry Potter was FANTASTIC.

Awwww, I had wondered (and forgot to ask) how Anika got ahold of the graduation Mickey ears already on Saturday afternoon! Now I know... LOVE THEM! Again, it was SO great to meet you two - you are just as awesome and sweet as I expected you'd be!

It's a good thing I did, too - there weren't any available in the parks! Anika really loved them, too!

It was FABULOUS to meet you as well! Thank you so much for your compliments (and right back at you!). Who knew how fun it could be to chat with a stranger for an hour?

I hope that you're having a fantastic time! I can't wait to read about Anikas reaction to Universal! Or her reaction to any of the surprises.

Thanks for the good wishes - we had a great time! She was super, super surprised!

So can you, like, just get home already so that I can start reading your TR..?

JUST KIDDING, stay there forever!! I hope you're having an amazing time!

Well, we're home... I just have to get my act together and finish loading the pictures so I can get started!

We had a fabulous and wonderful time, and I look forward to telling all of you about it!

Finally caught up on the PTR! My mind is boggled that I met you WAY back on our trip and you still have another week left. I hope everything is going fabulously and it was so fun to meet you both! See you real soon!

It was so much fun to meet you, too! I'm so glad it worked out!

Our vacation was wonderful minus the few bumps that I mentioned. I hope to get the trip report up and running soon!

I hope you are having a fabulous trip. Can't wait to read all about it!

Thank you for the good wishes, Mary Ellen! I can't wait to tell you about it!

Loved reading your PTR! Hope you are having a fantastic time! I can't wait to read all about it when you return!

and thank you for your good wishes! I look forward to telling you all about it!

Let's see... today is June 9th you should be back now. And unfortunately probably at work. So welcome back. Not that you're happy to be back at work, but welcome home. I hope everything went great.

I know it is going to take some time to adjust to normal life after that long trip, but hurry up and get with it, because we want to hear all about the surprises!!!!!

Just kidding, take your time, we'll be here.

Yes, I was definitely back at work when you wrote your message! At least I was at a favorite client that week or it would've been a lot less pleasant!

Now that my work conference is out of the way I should be able to dive in shortly. The surprises went over quite well!

Thanks.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

OOOOHHHHH...I can't wait to read about this trip!

We came home with some lovely upper respiratory virus. It was pretty bad for a few days. I hope whatever you guys faced was much milder and shorter lived!

Lynn

Thanks - I can't wait to tell you about it!

Yuck! I had some sort of sore throat/sinus thing (which I managed to keep from becoming an upper respiratory infection, thank goodness), and Anika had some sort of combination stomach bug/sinus problem. I can't believe how much we stayed to the plan given our respective illnesses.

Welcome home!

Thank you!

Can't wait to hear more abou the trip!! Sorry there were illnesses on the way...but hope it was mostly good!

Yes, most of the trip was great!

Hey, every great dramatic story has to have its obstacles, right?

Haha, yeah, that's about right. home just the same.

UGH, so sorry Jenny. But I bet it will make for some interesting stories.

Never change Ah-Nik-Ah. Question is, how did this initially compare to meeting Disney characters.

Really looking forward to hearing all about it Jenny. Although I do expect to be jealous of the epic-ness (outside of the illness of course.)

(In case you're still reading secretly...)

Thank you! The illnesses will definitely add to trip report.

At least the DISboards folks are real! She really liked all the people we met, so it all worked out.

Saw your comment on Dugette's thread, so I wanted to catch up on your PTR. While I just read the highlights, I can't wait to read the trip report!

and thank you for joining in! I hope to have the trip report link posted soon!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Welcome home! I am so excited to read all about it! Sorry you encountered some bumps, but I'm glad that it was overall a good trip

I am literally and and over this! That's the exact reaction my family gives me too!!!

Good luck prepping for your work conference. We'll be here and waiting, no worries!

Thanks, Tracy! Overall, our trip was fabulous... every trip has to have its unexpected stories, right?

Anika was seriously concerned, but thanks to our fabulous DISmeet with you she was far less worried about the DISmeet with Dugette. Thank you so much!

The work conference was great although crazy and tiring (but I think that can be said for all work conferences). I hope to get the pictures sorted so I can get started!

LOL...meeting strangers from the internet...that was me many years ago...but I wouldn't have met my DH if it wasn't for it! (I didn't exactly meet him online, I met his roommate through a friend whom I met online). But I must say...I love my DISmeets!! Welcome back!

Nice! I think as long as you're smart about it, meeting people through an online venue can work out great. Online dating wouldn't be as popular as it is if that wasn't the case.

Now that I've had two great ones, I'm a big fan of DISmeets, too!

Welcome back! So glad you had a great trip, despite getting sick! YAY for your first DISmeets! Can't wait to hear all about your trip!

Thank you!

We did have a fabulous trip, despite the illness. Both of our DISmeets were GREAT and I hope to have more in the future.

I can't wait to share my trip with everyone!

Welcome home! It's kind of discouraging though -- if the epic trip you were planning had an end, then there's no hope for the rest of us to experience "perpetual Disney". I guess that's what trip reports are for. And speaking of which, can't wait for yours!

Thank you!

Yes, even super long trips unfortunately come to an end. Thank goodness for trip reports to fill in the time between trips!

Thanks - I hope to get it up and running soon!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

That sucks.

It did, but it could've been worse.

Well, at least there's a bright side.

Interesting.

Both rides were awesome in their own way. Depending on your preferences, one could be better than the other... but I thought both were EXTREMELY well done.

We had so-so luck with POR busses, so I'm not surprised.

Overall, the buses were fine, but we definitely stood in a few long lines. I was okay with it but not super impressed.

Hmmm.... Looking forward to the reveal.

Anika's not over-dramatic, but she was super surprised.

DISmeets are the best!

Yes, they certainly are!

Non-DISers don't get that... and that's okay.

True.

Glad to hear.

She felt much better about the second DISmeet when the first one went so well.

Can't wait!

Thanks!

I wouldn't know!

Trust me, based on the last time I went, all you're missing is a nice break in the air conditioning.

Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do, right?

Looking forward to it!

Thanks! I look forward to sharing it with all of you!

 

[pkondz]

Overall, the buses were fine, but we definitely stood in a few long lines. I was okay with it but not super impressed.

We never had any lines at all. We were in Magnolia and would go to the bus stop behind the building.
Almost always it was just us. Maybe once or twice there was a person or two there, but that's it.

She felt much better about the second DISmeet when the first one went so well.

Good!

 

[sailored]

Where did you go?! I want to read a trip report for this trip! Especially the surprises from GF.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Hello, friends!

I'm sorry for my absence! I seem to take a DIS break after my vacations - at least this break was just a few months! I'm back, ready to go, and have a shiny new trip report started for you:

Aren't Graduations Grand?!

Most of you know the details of our trip, so you have a leg up on what you can look forward to!

If you've been kind enough to leave a comment along the way in this pre-trip report, you should have received a notification from me. If I happened to miss you, I apologize! I can't wait to chat with you again!

For the lurkers - I'd love to see you on the new trip report! Please feel free to say hello or comment along the way!

(As reflected in my updated signature, I intend to wrap up the 2013 TR posts on this report, as well. You're welcome to stay subscribed here until I finish it up! I don't have an unfinished trip report yet!)