Evening Two (Im tired of seeing the word Day at the beginning of these installments):
Heres the short version of the remaining afternoon:
Me: (at AK bus stop) Are you tired?
TEEBEE: Yep.
Me: Feel like taking a nap?
TEEBEE: Yep.
And thats what we did.
Fast forward two hours and Im listening to Mickey laugh while being assaulted by Stitch again. I will say this, its an effective wake-up call--if for no other reason than it makes me wonder why Disney couldnt come up with something MUCH more Disney
esk.
We had an ADR for Rose and Crown in England at 7:20pm. Its the latest seating we could get. Prior to our trip I had e-mailed TEEBEE a link at work to the menu on Allearsnet.com so that he could start planning ahead. This way I didnt have to see him rolling his eyes at me (AGAIN) for having him plan ahead. His reply back to me was:
TEEBEE: Why the heck (but worse) did you make reservations there?
Theres only one reason that I would make reservations there and its NOT because of British food.
ILLUMINATIONS! Duh!
Now I had already explained this to TEEBEE prior to sending him the menu, but he has selective hearing. If Im talking he typically SELECTS not to hear it. Its just our thing. And he makes NO apologies. Trust me.
Rose and Crown has a nice little patio that overlooks EPCOTs lagoon (or is it a lake?). I hear its an EXCELLENT place to sit and watch Illuminations
.assuming you can get a reservation, that is. And I wanted to give it a try. But since our reservations were for 7:20pm, I figured wed be finished long before Illuminations started. Sometimes I LOVE it when Im wrong.
We head on over to EPCOT and stand in line to check-in. Ive gotten to where I really LIKE this part of the ADR process. It separates those that are in the know from those that just dont know. One can see all sorts of interesting human behavior while standing in line to check in for an ADR. There are those people that by-pass what they assume to be all those poor people standing in line with out ADRs. These folks like to bully their way up to the front of the line and engage in the following conversation with CMs:
Bullying ADR Man: I have a reservation.
Too-Sweet-and-Kind-CM: Yes, sir. Please take a spot in line and well be with you shortly.
Bullying ADR Man: But I already have a reservation. I just want to check-in.
Too-Sweet-and-Kind-CM (and/or a Cranky-Guest-Already-In the Know): Yes, sir. As do most of the folks standing in line.
Bullying ADR Man: (As hes walking to the back of the line) Grumble
grumble
silly process
grumble
youd think
grumble
reservation
grumble
Heh, heh. I just love that part. Im not sure why. That doesnt make me a very nice person, does it?
Then there are those poor folks that REALLY have no clue. I actually feel sorry for these folks. Theyre the ones that have waited patiently (or not so patiently) in line and get up to the CM and say:
Mr. Clueless: Id like a table for 6 please
on the patio.
Too-Sweet-and-Kind-CM: Do you have a reservation?
Mr. Clueless: No.
Too-Sweet-and-Kind-CM: Im sorry, sir. We are booked for the evening
and the next evening
and the entire next week
and the entire next 180 days.
Mr. Clueless: #$&%*))$!~!
Yep, folks. Its a good idea to make your ADRs in advance.
We get up to the podium, ADR # at the ready (in case giving them my name wasnt enough), and get our pager. We decided to go across the street and browse the UK shops while we waited. As far as I could tell, the main thing the British were proud of was their connection to the Beatles. I did, however, buy some of the candy bars. I bet they had Beatles candy bars, too. I just didnt look hard enough. As we were passing through Beatle hall, look who we spotted:
I really like Mary Poppins. Her attitude ROCKS! She pretty much thumbs her nose at folks and does it here way
all the while acting like those strange things happening around her are perfectly normal
or are someone elses fault. I wish she could have been my nanny. I never got a spoon full of sugar from any of my babysitters. But that's another story.
Our pager beeped at us and said that we were out of range so we went back outside. The whole UK area had topiaries of the Winnie the Pooh Gang, so we snapped a few shots:
Piglet and Eeyore...
Pooh, himself...
TEEBEE as thrilled as ever to be posing yet AGAIN for the camera (notice the bag..it's full of my candy bars):
And then it was our turn to eat. I was actually hoping for (and got) a table inside since it was still pretty hot outside. Plus, I know that if were still around when Illuminations starts, they let us go outside on the patio and watch from there anyway.
I cant remember our waiters name, but he was really good
and from Ireland. One of the other servers came by as we were being seated and said something to him
.and his cheeks went BRIGHT red. Hmmmm
. So from here on out Ill refer to him as Red Cheeks.
For an appetizer I chose the cheese and fruit plate. If I wasnt on the dining plan I never would have done this, but since we were, I figured
why not?! And you can see TEEBEE's prawns in the background.
It was pretty good. Im glad I tried it. For an entrée I had the Chicken Pasty and TEEBEE had the Grilled Steak. It was edible and I didnt have to use the salt shaker near as much as I figured I might. And dont listen to TEEBEE's reviews. He just likes to complain. Heh. Heh.
By the time we had had dessert, Illuminations was about to start and Red Cheeks had come over to escort us to our place on the patio. TEEBEE and I stood there about three minutes before we decided to leave. Although it probably seems like we had finally lost our minds, it was evening EMH (extra magic hours) and we had yet to ride Soarin
EVER! (Jaws back up off the floor please.) Weve seen Illuminations over a dozen times and without Princess J there, it really just made us sad (its her FAVORITE thing to watch
next to the princesses).
So we wanted to get a jump on the crowds and get to Soarin while so many folks were gathered to watch Illuminations. The stand-by line was already 30minutes long when we got there, so Im glad that we decided to head over when we did. The line only got LONGER as the night progressed. (Ill fill you in later as to why I know this).
I cant say that the queuing area of this attraction is one of Disneys best, but we enjoyed reading the facts on those ever changing screens. We started challenging each other on the quizzes, too. Ill just say it was a tie
.even if it wasnt.
Now, Ive seen WDWs website photo of the family of four soarin around in what appears to be a seat that looks alot like a ski-lift chair. And Ive read reviews on various forums talking about how if youre not in the front row (out of four) youll see the dangling feet of the other riders. Given all of these varying descriptions I had NO IDEA what to expect as far as seating went. But I was hoping for row 1.
We got row 4.
So were outside the doors lined up in row 4 waiting to go in. Then its our turn. We enter. And anything I could have imagined for seating was soon shot out the window. It was NOTHING like what I expected. But I had faith. I stowed my belongings, buckled up and before I knew it, we were Soarin
.across California, I believe.
FREAKY! Thats the feeling I had
.but in a good way. With the chair contraptions hidden by the darkness all you can see is the picture on the screen. And I felt as if I was in a chair
flying all by myself (along with some dangling feet above me)
through some really cool and good smelling places. I also felt like if I leaned over too far, Id fall right out of my chair and smack-dab onto some trees
or in some water
or onto some snow. Thats the part that was freaky
.well, that and the dangling feet.
Go experience this attraction.
TEEBEE has pretty severe motion sickness and this ride didnt bother him at all
just the dangling feet.
Here's a picture from our table at the Rose and Crown. I'm bummed that it came out blurry, but it was such a GORGEOUS site, I had to try and capture it...
Up Next: The end of Night Two
.maybe...