Disney dangled the visual weinee & Mickeystoontown gobbled it up! 10/26

[Chicago Mo]

I came i read and i'm waiting.. HA HA

I'll give you photo credit if they are used. Right now, we are in need of photos of all sorts of things

If there is anything of mine you would want please let me know! there are too many to even think. just go to my photobucket account?

 

[mickeystoontown]

I came i read and i'm waiting.. HA HA



If there is anything of mine you would want please let me know! there are too many to even think. just go to my photobucket account?

You are so awesome! I may just hit you up for pictures as we need them. Is your photobucket public? If so, I'll scan through and see if there's something we need.

 

[Chicago Mo]

You are so awesome! I may just hit you up for pictures as we need them. Is your photobucket public? If so, I'll scan through and see if there's something we need.

Sure is! i don't think anything is locked except pictures from my cell phone.. and who wants those?!?! LOL

 

[mickeystoontown]

A nursing home? Seriously? Oh yeah, a nursing home!

Remember how I couldn't remember what happened and when it happened? Yeah, still can't remember. I am sure that we went back to the resort but I have no picture proof which could be because I just snapped some pictures on my phone and that went kerplunk when I dropped it at the Mardi Gras parade. So, I'm going with CaptainOblivious' suggestion and am going to make something up. No, seriously, I am not making anything up. When I think about it more, it becomes more obvious that we went back to the resort before going back to Downtown Disney.

I had told John and Hunter how pretty Port Orleans Riverside was and had talked them into taking the boat from Downtown Disney to Port Orleans. I really enjoy going to other resorts and looking around. John is kinda ehh on it and Hunter is so go-with-the-flow that he doesn't really care one way or the other. Whoa! Wait! Hold up a sec! I am looking at my pictures and we are at the bus stop at Port Orleans Riverside which leads me to think that we left Hollywood Studios and went straight to Riverside. Dang, this part of the report is confusing me the heck out!

Sooooooooooooo, we get off the bus at Port Orleans Riverside:





When I had taken my solely walking tour, I never say this side of the resort. We walked into the main building and it was just as pretty as I had remembered it. Apparently, memories are all that I'll have of it because the first set of pictures were horrible and I didn't take any this time.

We walked into the General Store just to look around which is what we did a lot of this trip. That's one of the good things about having the extra days. You have time to stop and smell the roses AND take a gander at a woozy Donald Duck!



Even though I am not active over on the POR thread, I still took pictures of some of the items available for purchase in the store because that's just what I do. I am sure that Dee can relate to this.











Our wandering took us into the food court but it was fairly busy and I didn't take pictures. I really liked the feel of their food court as it had a lot of wood tones and a natural feel to it. We went outside:


Our stroll around the resort was a little on the quick step side as we realized that we needed to get a move on if we were going to get to Disney Quest and then over to our dinner reservation.

**Continued in next post

 

[mickeystoontown]

We were walking along and I'm pointing out this and that to the guys and I'm commenting on how pretty everything is.







And, the guys are kind of mum and are indulging me until we come to this part of the resort:


'
John looks at the buildings and the resort grounds and then turns to me and says "This place looks like a nursing home". To which I reply "Seriously? A nursing home?". John says "Yeah you know TUV and XYZ?" (he said the names but ya'll don't know the places so it really doesn't matter) I looked around again and I went "Oh yeah! A nursing home! " Gosh, it really did look like a nursing home in some odd sort of way. A nice nursing home but like a few of the nursing homes here nevertheless. At least Port Orleans Riverside has a pool and a pool bar that look nothing like the nursing homes here.



We walked down to French Quarter just because:



and caught the boat from there. John noticed this watermelon plant growing by the boat dock while we waited.



We enjoyed the boat ride to Downtown Disney and made the walk through the maze walls to Disney Quest.

**Up next: This is freakin' addicting! I can NOT stop!

 

[Chicago Mo]

whatever you actually did. the pictures are great!!! we LOVE POR. i will say the rooms are really small..
the resort itself is BEAUTIFUL!

 

[mickeystoontown]

whatever you actually did. the pictures are great!!! we LOVE POR. i will say the rooms are really small..
the resort itself is BEAUTIFUL!

At least I knew where we ended up! LOL!

 

[rteetz]

I love POR, great pictures by the way. To me I don't see how it looks like a nursing home but maybe that's because Wisconsin doesn't have any nursing homes that look like that.

 

[KatMark]

Great updates, Lisa. I'll admit I skipped the update on LMA as I have no interest in it (sorry).

I'm glad you got to Star Tours. And I am in 100% agreement with you on the Streetmosphere...we love them.

I have a feeling the reason you are forgetting is that it's been almost a year since the trip and you've got your mind on the upcoming one.

A Nursing Home? He's got a point there. But I do LOVE POR-Riverside. If we ever went back to moderates and couldn't get CSR, we'd go to the Riverside.

 

[mickeystoontown]

I love POR, great pictures by the way. To me I don't see how it looks like a nursing home but maybe that's because Wisconsin doesn't have any nursing homes that look like that.

After John said it, I realized that we do have nursing homes that look like that here. It's still very pretty though!

Great updates, Lisa. I'll admit I skipped the update on LMA as I have no interest in it (sorry).

I'm glad you got to Star Tours. And I am in 100% agreement with you on the Streetmosphere...we love them.

I have a feeling the reason you are forgetting is that it's been almost a year since the trip and you've got your mind on the upcoming one.

A Nursing Home? He's got a point there. But I do LOVE POR-Riverside. If we ever went back to moderates and couldn't get CSR, we'd go to the Riverside.

Yes m'am! I am ready ready ready to go back. You've been through a lot and know that "I have got to get away or I'll go crazy" feeling.

 

[mickeystoontown]

This is freakin' addicting! I can NOT stop!

John and Hunter had told me about this game that they found on the night that they were at Disney Quest together. They were telling me how it was addicting and that you just have to play it over and over and over again until you beat the game. Now, I'm not a game player. Never have been, never will be. But, you knew that there was going to be a but, I played it once and I couldn't stop! I wish that I could remember the name of it. it looked kind of like an old Pac Man screen. There was a maze and you had to put your fingertip on the screen and get out of the maze within a certain amount of time. Seems like some sort of dots or something came up too at certain points. Anyway, there were two games right next to each other and John and I were playing them over and over and over again. The game was freakin' addicting! In case you are wondering, we did make sure that nobody else was wanting the game and would have made ourselves stop had they wanted to. I bet that I ran through the maze at least fifty times. Sometimes, I would beat the clock but most times I wouldn't. It is the one game that I'm looking forward to playing when we go back this next trip. Well, that and Pirates of the Caribbean.

I see this picture amongst my other pictures but I don't know if it's the game that I'm talking about. Not that it shows anything descriptive anyway.



After some stern talking to myself, I finally gave up the game. John had already given up and had moved on to the more classic style games like he used to play back in high school:



I was off to the bathroom which I now knew how to get to. It wasn't like last time when I walked up the stairs and, BAM, you could see down a couple of stories. This time, I hugged tightly to the tables and chairs on my way:



The guys were still playing games when I got back. This guy looked like he was done. Stick a fork in him done. He was sound asleep.



John finished up his game and we found Hunter flying a fighter jet.





I know those two pictures are sucky but I was trying to get a picture of the screen. It was large and I could hear all of the noise from the outside. I don't know how anyone could sit through this as it almost made me ill watching it from the outside. He finished up his game and I took a picture before we left of these things hanging from the ceiling:



**Up next: Well, this is a one and done....at least in John's opinion.

 

[totebagg]

So sorry to hear about John - I know you guys are ready for your vacation. We have never been to LMA - missed it the last two years and had heard a rumor that it may be going away, so really hoping to see it during our trip this Fall. All the trips to Disney Quest has made me want to try it out - I love a good game so we may go on our first night! Also, I know you mention that you make knapsacks - do you have a website or FB page? Thanks!!!

 

[PhoenixStrength]

That building does kind of look like a nice nursing home

George and I mostly did the larger games at Disney Quest, so I don't know which maze game you're talking about but it does sound addictive for sure!

 

[KatMark]

Keeping good thoughts about John...I hope you get it figured out.

Is this the second time at Disney Quest this trip? You are a saint. I couldn't wait until we got out of there in May.

I will try to come back if I see you updated, but I have a busy week at work and my Saturday is shot and I'll be in bed super early on Saturday night as I have to be up at 3 a.m. to get to the airport on Sunday. If I don't get back here, I hope you guys have a magical time. I'm only sorry our paths aren't going to cross this trip.

 

[Chicago Mo]

GALAGA!!! i have to agree with John the traditional atari type games are the best.. I am now stuck on matching games on my phone.. TSUMS TSUMS farm hero ya know things that drive me crazy! i blame the kids.
How is John doing?

 

[mickeystoontown]

So sorry to hear about John - I know you guys are ready for your vacation. We have never been to LMA - missed it the last two years and had heard a rumor that it may be going away, so really hoping to see it during our trip this Fall. All the trips to Disney Quest has made me want to try it out - I love a good game so we may go on our first night! Also, I know you mention that you make knapsacks - do you have a website or FB page? Thanks!!!

Thank you! I hope that the doctor's appointment will lead to answers. I'm not one who likes to play games but Disney Quest is actually fun.

I do make the cinchbags! Shoot me a p.m. and we'll chat about it.

That building does kind of look like a nice nursing home

George and I mostly did the larger games at Disney Quest, so I don't know which maze game you're talking about but it does sound addictive for sure!

Doesn't it! I didn't even see the nursing home until John pointed it out.

Keeping good thoughts about John...I hope you get it figured out.

Is this the second time at Disney Quest this trip? You are a saint. I couldn't wait until we got out of there in May.

I will try to come back if I see you updated, but I have a busy week at work and my Saturday is shot and I'll be in bed super early on Saturday night as I have to be up at 3 a.m. to get to the airport on Sunday. If I don't get back here, I hope you guys have a magical time. I'm only sorry our paths aren't going to cross this trip.

Thanks Kathy!

Yes, this was the second trip to Disney Quest. We have two DQ visits planned for our upcoming trip too.

I know that you are going to be a busy woman the next few days! Tell that "sister" of your's hello!

GALAGA!!! i have to agree with John the traditional atari type games are the best.. I am now stuck on matching games on my phone.. TSUMS TSUMS farm hero ya know things that drive me crazy! i blame the kids.
How is John doing?

I have never gotten into any games. Well, I can beat the heck outta most folks on Wheel of Fortune! Love it! I once got Gaggle of Geese in the things category with only the Es showing. Kids still think that's something.

 

[Bethislucy]

I'm all caught back up. Only one more week of school & I'll have some free time for the summer to stay on top of Dis. It looks like you had a great trip & it's almost time for your next trip.

 

[mickeystoontown]

Well, this is a one and done...at least in John's opinion

Remember the talk throughout the report that I changed up some of my ADRs but I didn't really know why we did? Well, I remember now. I cancelled Splitsville because, on our walk through Downtown Disney earlier in the trip, we could see seating on the outside and it looked really busy on the inside as well. The construction walls were making the walkways tighter and tighter and people were squeezing through every little open nook and cranny. Because I hadn't done any real research on Splitsville, I didn't know how likely it would be that we'd be seated outside and we just weren't feeling it. (After coming home and reading more, I wish that we had kept the reservation.)

Canceling Splitsville meant changing around a couple of other reservations. Somehow, we ended up forgetting to cancel a Rainforest Cafe reservation that I had made "just in case" I didn't get another restaurant. I never did go back and look at my credit card to see if I was charged a no-show. The new 1 day policy had just gone into effect at the time so it's very possible that I did get charged which would have been all on me if I did.

We made our way to the bus stop and caught the bus to the Polynesian Resort.










Ya'll I'm not exaggerating when I say that the Poly was a complete and utter mess and it wasn't even just the inside. It extended to the outside as well and it was pretty bad/sad to look at. I can't imagine trying to stay there during all of the construction. Unlike at the CBR where it was confined to just one area, this was everywhere. The tan wall/box hiding what used to be the pretty lobby was there and it wasn't fixed up all cute with the murals like it was in some of the pictures that I saw later. As we were walking to the restaurant, I spotted a possible hidden Mickey.



Tonight, we were dining at Kona which was a first for us. Lacey and Jesse have eaten there a couple of times and I knew others had too. It seemed to get good reviews so we were hoping that we'd have a great experience as well. We were seated about fifteen minutes after we arrived and were seated at a corner table on the far right of the restaurant. Our server was pleasant and offered suggestions before going to get our drinks and bread.


Because we absolutely love the pot stickers at Ohana, we ordered them as an appetizer and paid out of pocket for them. The description as per allears: Pot Stickers: wok-seared pork and vegetable dumplings with a creamy soy-ginger sauce. They weren't as good as those at Ohana but we liked them enough that I'd order them again. Those that are served at Ohana are on the crispier side which is one of the reasons that I'd give them a better rating than these.




I ordered the Grilled New York Strip Steak - served with roasted fingerling potatoes, seasonal vegetables, and molasses-bacon butter:



Hunter ordered the steak too but changed our fries as the sides:



John ordered: Grilled Kona Coffee-rubbed Pork Chop. The description on Allears has different side items.




Sorry for the semi-blurry pictures. We ordered the steaks medium well so that they'd still be juicy and slightly pink on the inside. They were sooooooo dry. I'm talking like the desert dry. Our waiter who had been attentive in the beginning was nowhere to be found so we made due. I hate sending food back but this was so dry that I might would have sent it back. The vegetables were hard as rocks. They had to be cut with a knife, they were so hard. On a brighter note, everything had a good flavor. Hey, I'm trying to look on the bright side here. None of us finished our food and when our waiter finally came back around, I did mention that the meat was dry and he just say "I'm sorry." but that was it.

For our desserts, I ordered the chocolate fondue with Tropical Fruit and House-made Cookies:



**Continued in next post

 

[mickeystoontown]

Hunter did not want dessert but we had him order something so that we could all try it. His dessert was some sort of apple pie or tart but I'm not seeing it on the menu. It was more crust than anything else.



John ordered the pineapple upside down cake:



We spotted our waiter and I asked him to go ahead and bring the check. I didn't want him to go missing again and us have to wait forever for our bill.

I wish that I could give Kona a great review but I really can't. This is a one and done...at least in John's opinion. I might would give it a whirl again but not until we give other restaurants a try.

**Up next: Going down under! Where's the rest of it?

 

[PhoenixStrength]

Well that is not a great experience! We actually had a reservation for Kona for dinner but wound up doing breakfast instead and now I'm glad we did! Sorry your food wasn't all that good. I don't blame you for wanting to go other places before considering coming back there!