Happy Anni-birth-aversary...A 33 night Celebration & HHN too.....SF & RPR September 2022 TR

[saskdw]

I don't get the whole line-up thing at Ghirardeli's either. Yes they have good cookies and chocolate, but there are a bunch of places close by that also have good cookies and chocolate. Those places don't require me to wait in line for an hour or book an appointment.

 

[schumigirl]

I don't get the whole line-up thing at Ghirardeli's either. Yes they have good cookies and chocolate, but there are a bunch of places close by that also have good cookies and chocolate. Those places don't require me to wait in line for an hour or book an appointment.

Ain`t that the truth!!!

I had no idea lining up for a baked good place was a thing.....nah, not for me either, I`ll pass.

 

[shh]

I don't get the whole line-up thing at Ghirardeli's either. Yes they have good cookies and chocolate, but there are a bunch of places close by that also have good cookies and chocolate. Those places don't require me to wait in line for an hour or book an appointment.

Never will I ever....wait that long for a cookie - or any restaurant in general. And never, ever in the broiling heat and sun. But I must admire their passion. lol

 

[schumigirl]

Never will I ever....wait that long for a cookie - or any restaurant in general. And never, ever in the broiling heat and sun. But I must admire their passion. lol

Nope....I`m with you, that`s crazy, especially in that heat, folks looked miserable. I was genuinely surprised to see a line like that as I had heard of Gideon`s, but never knew it was quite as hyped as it was.

 

[kbelle8995]

I got in the virtual line of Gideon's and we got cookies. We went to dinner and waited for them to call us. The cookies were good but I thought it was a bit much to go through for the cookies. And I adore Chocolate Chips but the Hype for them and the hurdles that we had to jump through was a bit much

I didn't think it was worth it. But I checked off the list. I love Boathouse but Homecomin is also Delicious. I have been there only had one bad meal at Homecomin. Just don't order the Chicken Fried Steak. More quantity than quality. The Fried chicken is so tender and lovely and the sides are really good.

And the Staff at the hotel so sweet

 

[schumigirl]

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 14TH

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As always we were up with the larks and I must admit it was so cosy this morning we almost didn`t want to get up, but we had a park day planned and being honest I was hungry now! That will always get me out of bed.

The lounge was fairly quiet this morning which can be nice, we took our time and enjoyed a relaxed breakfast and some fun chats with our lovely lounge staff.

As we were going to IOA we walked as we always do and it is the prettiest of walk. They were doing some clearing and replanting along the pathway to the parks and it was looking good, some of it was getting a little overgrown in parts. We had seen so much of the foliage planted over the years and it was nice to see some of them fully grown now.

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Heading over the waterway is always so pretty too, there are so many scenic areas around the parks and hotels and it`s so much more than a coaster park.

There was a little line to get in this morning and of course we picked the wrong line to get in.....folks in front with the mother carrying all the kids cards and trying to find the right ones.....we moved lines. Sod`s law.

We tend to wander in through the store and it is a nice store with so many items to purchase and always so tempting.

And of course the Scarecrow Stalk......it was so nice seeing a little boy discover this one today, he was so excited he had found his first one.

There are many little displays around the store and a lot of Potter merchandise which I was interested in as I had a few Christmas gifts to buy for relatives and kids friends who love anything Potter and it was getting more and more difficult to buy them something unique they didn`t already have.

And when you go out the back of the store and wander behind the sun clothes and hats for sale, there are some hidden gems that make lovely pictures.

I remember the very first time we ever came to Universal way back in 2007 and I was immediately mesmerised by this wonderfully themed area that was before we even hit any rides at all and as I stood I told Tom and Kyle I could hear voices in the building above...they looked at me as if was wandering a little, but then they heard it too.....lol.....you can hear the voices coming from the Dance Studio above. Cool, and there are several places you can listen and hear conversations around POE.

The most overlooked restaurant in both parks is Confisco Grille, it`s just as you turn right coming out of POE and it is a real gem of a restaurant. Table service and like a lot of Universal restaurants, the prices are very reasonable, food is very good.

Just don`t get their sangria......lol....the wine for it comes in 10 gallon drums!!

Backwater Bar is just to the rear of Confisco and it used to have tables inside and it offered the same menu, you just walked in and sat down. Now, it`s just a bar although they do have tables outside too. It`s a shame as it was a nice place to meet up with folks for food or just drinks.

This morning we were heading in the opposite direction we usually go and wanted to do rides like Cat in the Hat and the Trolley Train.....very simple rides, but they are so cute! Well, CitH is maybe not so cute as it`s a little odd to say the least, but it`s one of those rides we don`t do every visit, but a couple of times every trip.

And again, it was an enjoyable but very weird little ride.....it is a little creepy to me, but many love it.

I`ve often said, I never grew up with Seuss, and was only introduced briefly to it by my cousins who came over from NY when we were around 10 and the younger one was 6. Then I think my next experience was the wonderful Jim Carrey as the beloved Grinch. Beyond that, I knew very little of the whole genre.

But, the whole Seuss area is lovely, bright and feels like somewhere you`d want to walk through.

Tom and I are very much creatures of habit and stick to a lot of the same places for food we like, it usually works well for us and the one time we didn`t listen to someone`s advice, we ended up with the worst meal ever in Circus McGurkus. That was many years ago, but not somewhere we`re ever going to try again. I don`t know anyone who has a good word to say about it either whose opinion I value.

We have learned a lot about the stories of Seuss from these stores over the years......and this store is a little classic full of stories and images of the characters.

The best ride in Seuss for us is the Trolley Train.....it`s a little awkward to climb out of, don`t wear a skirt without modesty shorts.....

You can see so much of the park from the train and it is quite the view at times and you can see right over to the Studios too, at one point over the lagoon it does get quite high for a kiddie ride.

Mythos is such a gorgeous building to picture and you should go round the back of the building as it is gorgeous, overlooking the lagoon and you get quite the view of the Velocicoaster from here.

And of course you have to listen out for the Troll underneath the bridge........

The park isn`t too busy this morning so it`s lovely wandering around without the crowds, of course we haven`t reached Hogsmeade yet! But, it is especially quiet in this area which we do enjoy.

Poseidon was closed again and a TM we got chatting to offered to take our picture......you can see from my red face it was flaming hot today!!

The store however, Treasures of Poseidon is beautiful....I love this store and it does have so many little joys to find for sale in here and they have some stunning displays. The TM who was working today was so lovely...she was filling us with info, most we already knew but loved her enthusiasm for the park she obviously loved and was keen to impart everything she knew about it. She had only worked there for a year and we ended up chatting about the parks the way they used to be Pre Potter.....

I will say, I don`t think we`ve ever bought anything other than water from here.....but they do have some lovely little pieces of jewellery in there.

Fire Eaters Grill is another place we don`t really eat in, mainly because they only have outdoor seating.

When we first visited we enjoyed the Chicken Stingers, they were coated in spice and delicious....Kyle had the plain ones.....but I always wanted to try them again and we got the chance to try them again at the Orlando Informer event and we were so disappointed as they no longer coat them in spice, they give you a little pot of hot sauce with regular tenders...they were ok, but wouldn`t have them again.

Although we won`t eat here, the outdoor area is beautiful and has some nice little touches and for just an outdoor theme park restaurant....

Over the other side where the tables are, there are little details like the secret door most folks don`t realise is there, it`s like hidden in plain view.

More to follow....

 

[schumigirl]

I got in the virtual line of Gideon's and we got cookies. We went to dinner and waited for them to call us. The cookies were good but I thought it was a bit much to go through for the cookies. And I adore Chocolate Chips but the Hype for them and the hurdles that we had to jump through was a bit much

I didn't think it was worth it. But I checked off the list. I love Boathouse but Homecomin is also Delicious. I have been there only had one bad meal at Homecomin. Just don't order the Chicken Fried Steak. More quantity than quality. The Fried chicken is so tender and lovely and the sides are really good.

And the Staff at the hotel so sweet

They have a virtual line?? Well that would be better surely.....but although we`ve heard the hype most folks say the same as you.....good but not worth the process.

I agree, we much prefer quality over quantity....I do like chicken fried steak, but won`t order it if we ever go there. And fried chicken is lovely!

Yes, they really are the nicest of folks.......

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

I really got to get back to Seuss Landing. I have no idea why we didn’t do it last fall

 

[keishashadow]

Never will I ever....wait that long for a cookie - or any restaurant in general. And never, ever in the broiling heat and sun. But I must admire their passion. lol

Meh FOMO to pad instagram & tiktok feeds lol

I have been there only had one bad meal at Homecomin

Prepandemic, We were regulars. Happily splitting the chicken breast dinner & that delightful dinner salad that’s now off the menu wah

After one exceedingly long wait for an ADR and chicken that had obviously sat under the heat lamp too long, we are taking a break

There are many little displays around the store

Enjoyed the unexpected little displays they had this year! Guessing there’s a new take on merchandising?

 

[schumigirl]

I really got to get back to Seuss Landing. I have no idea why we didn’t do it last fall

It really is a rather delightful area, pure simple fun.

 

[schumigirl]

Meh FOMO to pad instagram & tiktok feeds lol

Prepandemic, We were regulars. Happily splitting the chicken breast dinner & that delightful dinner salad that’s now off the menu wah

After one exceedingly long wait for an ADR and chicken that had obviously sat under the heat lamp too long, we are taking a break



Enjoyed the unexpected little displays they had this year! Guessing there’s a new take on merchandising?

Doesn`t sound so good now then.....if a place is that busy, food shouldn`t be sitting around.

There were so many new displays this year, yes, seems they are being pushed more to the fore everywhere.

 

[schumigirl]

Our next stop was the Halloween Boutique, I loved this little store and it`s so much better now than what it used to be. There was a rather dismal magic show and similarly themed products to buy in there for many years. I say dismal as it really was and quite sad to see it flounder along for so long. But this little building has been given a new lease of life as it themed by season several times a year.

It is dark, but beautifully themed and filled with little delights to charm and amuse and of course plenty of opportunity to make a purchase of the many items available.

We didn`t buy anything today, but after a good rumble around it we headed to Hogsmeade where I felt like a Pumpkin Fizz in the Hogs Head.

And it didn`t look too busy today in here.

Sometimes you go into the Hogs Head and it is packed solid and the line can be out the door, but today it was deserted at this point. They had gone back to putting a few tables in this area, most are reserved for diners, but it`s always nice to be able to sit with just a drink but that wasn`t always possible. Today however there were no reserved signs on the tables. This would change further into our trip.

We do always share this as it`s a little sweet to finish on one`s own, so it`s just enough for the two of us. Neither of us like Butterbeer in any drink form so this is a nice alternative to enjoy in the bar.

Tom had gone out back to take some pictures, we love seeing the VC up close and seeing the delight....or terror on folks faces as they hurtle past the rear of the pub.Hearing the shrieks and screams always makes us smile as we sit.

Meanwhile as I waited for Tom to come back in I heard a lady say my name......I looked up and there was Robbie.......it was so good to her as it had been a few years, so this was a lovely surprise!!

We both knew each other was here and wondered if we`d run into one another at some point. Robbie had got her drink and we sat and had a lovely chat and catch up, it`s so much easier to sit and yak away in the inside where it`s cool with a nice drink.
And of course before we went our seperate ways we had to get a picture.....

Everything here is so colourful and beautifully themed....the incredible detail can only be admired and it always amazes us just how detailed it is down to the last corner.

The Frog Choir is very good and the show is delightful, if it`s on as we pass we`ll watch it, but we don`t deliberately schedule to watch it.

We went on FJ today and for some reason we popped the camera in the locker, so no pictures inside today but we did enjoy the very short walk in the EP line which was nigh on empty today and in a few moments we were on the ride. It is a very good ride and one we enjoy when we`re here but not every visit.

It`s one that the movement on the screen does affect me, and only certain parts of the ride like when Harry is swooping into Hogwarts, other bits I`m fine. And again, I don`t close my eyes as that makes it so much worse for me. Focussing on one spot works every time for me. Hence, I only do it once maybe twice a day, any more and I`d regret it.

We turned down to the VC and the line was showing at 50 minutes, but the line looked a little shorter so we hopped in and it did only take 35 minutes to get to the ride itself. I was determined today to not close my eyes as that had definitely caused me issues last time.

We ended up on the second front row today, we just missed the back row of the cars that were leaving, but near the front is excellent too. The only area I wasn`t so keen on was the middle of the cars, we much prefer the front cars or the back row. We did like the second row ok and this ride is amazing.....especially since I did manage to keep my eyes open all the way round today. And no nauseated feeling today. Win!!

The airtime in this ride is fabulous! And it is better at the back of th ecars, but you still get one heck of a ride anywhere on the cars and I think I managed to get round without cursing to myself today.....maybe a few minor ones though!!!

We did wonder about going again, but the line did look longer this time around and was showing 75 minutes, so we passed and headed back out of this area.

As we were staying onsite today we wanted to stop off at The Watering Hole for one of their themed cocktails which are very nice and always a good pour....except for that one woman who wasn`t working today!!

I grabbed a table, sat down and forgot you can only buy one drink and they have to see the second person before they`ll hand it over....so I waved at the guy making the drinks so he knew there was a second person and he spotted my birthday button and said he`d make it extra special for me as a birthday special.

And he did.....he added a lovely little flower and although I`m not sure, it did taste a little stronger than usual, and they are already doubles!! He did get an extra tip!

I had the Mai Tai which was a lovely mix of Gosling's Rum, Myers Dark Rum, grenadine, orange, pineapple and lime juice and Tom went for the Ti Peach which blended Captain Morgan spiced rum, Don Q coconut rum, bitters, cinnamon, lime juice, grenadine, peach syrup......

Mine was strong!!!! But, so good.....very fruity and full of flavour, Tom`s I found a little too sweet, maybe too syrupy but they were both emptied!!!

They do a refill with these glasses if you take them back you get so much off your next drink. I don`t think we did that as it`s annoying carrying them around, but we did take these glasses home as a little souvenir.

We were tempted by a second drink here as it was so lovely just relaxing, there was hardly anyone around so it was peaceful and we just watched the world go past. I think we had a discussion of where did we want to eat lunch......we would wait a while to make up our mind. But as we would probably have a cocktail with lunch, we stopped at one here.

Love this view!!

Jurassic Park never really had a line anytime we were here and today was no different, we walked straight to the front and got on the third row with just the two of us on it so we could leave the bar very loose which is ideal for the big drop to come.

Such a gentle start to the ride and almost immediately a TM asks someone to put their camera down please. Always one. And again before we turn off course......he told him again just before the ascent and said the ride wouldn`t move until he put it away......how many times do you have to tell some folks. He was behind us so he must have put it away as we moved off within a few seconds. Some folks think the rules don`t apply to them.

We love this ride......and the drop is always fun!!! And we don`t get wet today......maybe a little drop or two on us, but the row behind us get absolutely drenched......lol......

Kong had a very short line for EP today so we did get on it and we were sat in the middle of the second last row which is the row we prefer for some reason and we do enjoy this ride, not an everyday ride but every so often is enough. It`s not amazing but if the line isn`t too long, give it a go if you`ve never been on it.

We are just meandering round the park now and head for Me Ship the Olive and it is deserted today down here.

We stand at our usual space on the bridge that sits conveniently just before the large deluge of water that awaits unsuspecting victims as they hurtle along the rapids towards it!!

It really is our favourite part of this ride.....watching it anyway and we have been reduced to laughing hyenas at some of the reactions folks have as they get drenched.....some laugh, some get annoyed and some are downright furious.....they are the funniest ones!! Imagine getting irate for being soaked on a water ride......lol....the clue is in the name!

Lunch and dinner to follow......

 

[schumigirl]

It was incredibly hot today, we did feel like we were melting as we headed out of the park today.

The covers were up in a few places for refreshing the facades already in place, such a shame this one is up as the Christmas Store is beautiful from the outside and as you went inside, my goodness it was dark!! I said as soon as we walked in it was horrible being so dark, the TM said thank you, it is isn`t it!! They were really feeling the difference with the boards up and no natural light coming in, it`s not the brightest store in the world anyway, but take away the windows and it did make a difference. They told us it was going to be quite a time before it was down.

To be honest we still hadn`t decided where we were going to eat today, and as we walked out IOA we saw Margaritaville and decided to go there as we hadn`t been yet.

We prefer to sit at the bar which we did today but the restaurant was only half full, anyone could have got a table with no wait at all, and this was around 12.45, so peak times. The bar was empty too which was unusual as it`s normally quite full, but we had our choice of seats today.

After the pandemic they would only let you order appetisers at the bar, but it was back to full menu again to choose from.

But, first......cocktail time......I knew I was having a Blackberry Margarita and Tom opted for the Raspberry Tropical Fruit Margarita and they were both delicious!!

Our barman gave us real menu`s to peruse and there are so many options here it always takes us a while to decide, well me really as Tom either gets the Cheeseburger in Paradise or the Club Sandwich...today he was having the Club Sandwich with fries and it is rather large. We didn`t plan on a sit down dinner tonight as we planned to snack at HHN so a larger lunch was just fine today.

I went for something a little different to my usual, the Chicken & Shrimp Teriyaki bowl, minus the broccoli as I don`t like it, I did keep the rice but wouldn`t eat much of it, I did like the sound of the pineapple teriyaki sauce that came with it. I did order a side salad with honey mustard too.

Not a great success. It was cold when it arrived.....we had begun to realise this trip when we waited longer than usual for food, it was going to arrive cold and today was no different. They sent it back and brought it back and I could see it had just been reheated despite being assured they had cooked it fresh......not in a million years had this been cooked fresh, it was returned just a little too fast.

I would have preferred him to be honest and say it was reheated, but.....I tried one of the shrimp and they were rubbery as was the two pieces of chicken that was in the dish and small pieces they were too. The sauce was very nice though and I loved the salad.

Margaritaville is never going to be fine dining, but it usually serves decent food well cooked, so this was disappointing. Tom however loved his sandwich as he always does.....he did give me a little piece of the sandwich and very nice it was too.

The cocktail was also lovely!

It was mid afternoon by now and we had a quick wander into the tribute store before walking home and boy were we feeling the heat now. We said we hoped it rained a little before HHN tonight as it would clear the air a little.

Me and my big mouth.

We popped along to the lounge to get some teas and Alex was working tonight, always a joy to see her! We chat and say we`ll be back later before heading down to our room to drink the teas and get changed. I also have a couple of emails I want to respond to, so we chill out for an hour or so before getting changed and headed back to the lounge.

Chatting is something we do very well.......and our American Kids are folks we love chatting to, we do have such a lovely time in here.

And we were excited for Matt and Rob to appear.....

I was up at the desk chatting and telling Alex we had two friends arriving today.....and as if by magic....they appeared through the door as I said I wondered when they would be in!!

Hugs all round!!!

It really was so good to see them again. We mainly kept in touch by email after meeting several years ago, and just always got on so well and we had been looking forward to our dates matching up again, well they would have been the same last year but for Covid.

So, hugs all round for us and we had plenty of time to catch up this trip.....and we would!!!

Looking out the window, my big mouth hoping for rain was coming back to bite me in the behind......

It was absolutely pouring down and so dark.....this looked to be on for the night. And everyone seemed to be of the same thoughts apart from a few real diehards that came in with HHN attire on, ate some food, grabbed ponchos and left. We did think about going for all of a few minutes and decided to wait and see if it went off anytime soon........

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Nope, this rain was on for the night. So we made the executive decision to just not bother and hope tomorrow night was better.

We had a few wines and had such fun in the lounge tonight and caught up some more with Matt and Rob before we headed downstairs to have dinner in Orchids, never lets us down and no reservations needed.

And I was "made" to wear my birthday button......lol.....I reluctantly agreed!

We got one of the corner tables we like and Marielle was working tonight who we have known for a while, our second son Colby wasn`t working tonight but we knew a few of them on tonight, so we managed to chat to a couple of folks here too.

This lounge is so different from what it used to be, folks who have never seen the Old Orchids are quite amazed by the difference and how it looks now. The chandelier is one of the biggest changes and they used to have tiny little tv`s over by the bar and now they have a huge screen which shows all sorts of sports on there, not that we`re sports fans, but folks love it.

A bottle of white wine was what we fancied tonight, so got that ordered and we started with Miso soup and the Tuna Tartare from the menu......not sure where Tom`s miso soup is, but the Tartare is very nice.

We waited till we had finished the appetisers before ordering our entrees, but we knew roughly what we wanted, I chose the Chefs special of the day, Tom chose the Mexican Roll and we got a 3 piece smoked salmon as I love it.

All dishes were delicious and both were spicy, the special was shrimp too and had a light spice to it, but full of flavour and we wished we had room for another!

However, we did like the coconut ice cream from downstairs, so we asked for two little bowls of it and of course it was no problem. This ice cream is completely gorgeous and really we would have loved to have had room for 10 times the amount, but we were good.

However a few minutes later we were glad we hadn`t ordered a larger portion of ice cream......

The lovely Mariella had sent over a birthday dessert topped with a little candle too......deep fried cheescake with coconut ice cream and I have to say, we cleared the plate! This dessert is very decadent and very filling but wonderful, and such a lovely birthday treat too!

Whew!!! We were full to bursting now......I wished I could lay down, but we sat for a while chatting and going over the day and what our thoughts were about tomorrow....we just hoped we could get to HHN again. More rain was forecast again.

We went up around 10pm and we were both shattered, Tom never even put the tv on which is unusual for him and I think we were both out for the count before our heads hit the pillows.

 

[Cara]

Carole, what a lovely birthday you had! I'm excited because we fly out with our daughter, son-in-law and grandson tomorrow night! I'll catch the rest of your trip when we return!

 

[schumigirl]

Carole, what a lovely birthday you had! I'm excited because we fly out with our daughter, son-in-law and grandson tomorrow night! I'll catch the rest of your trip when we return!

Thank you Cara, it was one of the nicest of birthdays.

Tomorrow evening!!!!!

Wooooooohooooooo......I am so excited for you with this trip, I hope you all have the BEST time ever, I`m sure you will though. Spending time with your family will be priceless.

Will look forward to hearing all about it when you get back.....safe travels and have so much fun!!!

 

[schumigirl]

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 15TH​

We took so few pictures today!!

Up as usual and down to the lounge for breakfast....and some bubbly too .....and we were looking forward to seeing Matt and Rob too. They had so many plans while they were here, I was exhausted listening to what they had planned, lots of park time and they were planning to go to Miami to see Lady Gaga too, funnily enough Raphael was going to the same concert, but we`d catch them whenever we could in the lounge.

And I had a partner in crime now......Rob was as big a sparkly fan for breakfast or anytime really as I was.......

We did see them had a quick catch up and then they were heading off for some park time, we sat a little longer as we for some reason had no real plans to do much except do a little shopping and have some lunch out and we planned to meet a friend for a chat in the afternoon.

We chatted to Tory who was getting married soon, she is one of the Concierge Supervisors and is uncannily identical looking to one of my nieces! It is quite weird talking to her as I feel I`m looking right at my niece. And we`d had a sneak peak at her dress which was stunning, she would look gorgeous in it.....spoiler, she does as she has already sent us some pictures....beautiful bride and groom!!

There is such a lovely view over the pool towards the parks and Sapphire Falls.

In the lobby we ask if our friend Samuel is around, we have known Samuel several years now and always love to make a visit with him when we can, of course if he`s busy we`ll come back as we have all the time in the world but he has 5 minutes, so we have a catch up before setting off to do a little retail therapy.

Our first stop was Bed Bath & Beyond off I Drive and to our surprise it was closing down......no one told us.....lol.....they were selling off the rubbish they had been left with, so we just turned around and came back out. There are other stores around but we didn`t bother. We headed into the outlet centre, but to be honest we saw nothing we wanted, so we came out of there empty handed too. This day of shopping was not going well.

Last time we were here we had visited Coopers Wine Hawk as everyone had raved about it to us.....well, it was ok but they brought our appetisers out with the entrees and then reheated the entrees along with several other things, but we wanted to give it another try.......maybe we had been too harsh.

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Last time we had dinner, so thought we`d give lunch a try and it is a nice looking restaurant and it had an extra appeal as it was quite dominated by their wines.

We went to the desk and asked if we could have a table for two, she said yes, but it would be 15 minutes, we assumed they were busy, we said fine and we passed some time looking at their wines and other items they sell including some very nice wine glasses I doubted we could ever make home safely!

Around 10 minutes she told us the table was ready and we went through to see an almost empty dining room, there were maybe 3 tables with folks on them.....

I had this funny feeling.........

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Our waitress was very nice, but was missing quite a lot....we asked for menu`s and thought she had got lost, we asked for water and again thought she had got lost, then she said she`d bring bread for us......yep, she got lost again. It was weird as she wasn`t looking after any other tables.......but we did eventually get bread.

Tom asked if I wanted wine or a cocktail, but I got the feeling I didn`t today. The bread was nice enough I have to say.

Tom ordered Chicken Madeira which came with mushrooms, fontina cheese and their apparently famous Mary’s Potatoes and I`m not quite sure why they were famous as they were very average to say the least.....Tom omitted the asparagus as we both hate asparagus with a passion.

And we waited again which did not bode well to us considering how empty the place was.

When his dish arrived, the veg was rock solid and inedible, mash was on the cold side and although the chicken was hot, it was so overcooked it was like a piece of rubber. I think it had been microwaved.

Then it came to mine.......

I asked for a fish sandwich with fries, but could I have grilled fish with no batter, she said that was no problem....I asked if the slaw had cilantro in it, she said it had and would make sure it wasn`t on the dish.

What I got after a very long wait was this........

Where to start. First the fish was not grilled, it was in batter, and not just any batter....the thickest and most overcooked hardest batter I have ever seen, the bread was hard as if it had been left out for several days and there was cilantro slaw on the base of the sandwich.

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I wish I had paid attention to that little voice in my head that said run when we came in......

This had been truly dreadful and of course we couldn`t find our waitress, we asked a woman who passed if she could find her. And a few minutes she appeared and we pointed out all the errors in both dishes and she took them away and then came back and incredulously asked if we wanted to order anything else...

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We had wasted almost 2 hours in here and all we`d had was bread and water......lol, it really was laughable. I have no idea what is so wrong with restaurants, maybe it`s that they don`t have proper chefs and anybody is doing the cooking that`s available......whatever it was here, we wouldn`t be back. You don`t catch us a third time.

She did take them off the check, but we would rather have eaten lunch and paid for it, she did apologise, but I think she was used to doing that. We left feeling very disappointed that this place had let us down a second time and annoyed we had missed a meal.

Tom asked if I wanted to go get some food, but you know when you are actually beyond being hungry? I said lets just go home, go to the lounge and get some tea and snacks if they were still out.

We made it back just before they cleared the snacks at 3pm, so Tom got some pictures as I made us a tea and a coffee.

Snacks are laid out from midday till 3 and there is also fresh fruit laid out as well as the usual soft drinks, teas and coffee. If you`re in the resort it`s ideal to pick up a few snacks, but not worth coming out of the parks to enjoy them.

We sat and chatted as always and had a lovely time as it was so quiet, but the sky outside was again very ominous, it wasn`t looking good for HHN tonight and as the afternoon drew on, the sky got darker and the rain got heavier. It made us feel so bad for the SA`s that again would be missing out performing if this didn`t stop for the evening.

Matt and Rob appeared at some point and they joined us at our table, they were hoping to do HHN tonight too.

The food tonight was the usual salad, crackers and cheese and as I was quite hungry we did partake in the hot dish tonight, which was a dish I did enjoy....the Beef Bulogi stir fry and rice.

Granted the beef looks a little overdone, but it really wasn`t....it was lovely and just what we needed after missing a lunch. I did add some tabasco to mine which just added a little spice to the dish, but even without it, this dish is lovely and I`m not someone who enjoys rice often, but this one was very nice.

We ended up having two servings of this tonight, and we thought well, that`s dinner sorted as I doubted we`d have room for anything later.

Matt and Rob are fabulous company and we laughed a lot over the length of our trip and we really got to know each other much better. Tonight was no different, the sparkly and the wine were very much enjoyed and yes, lots of laughter too.

Alex and Daniel were working tonight and we enjoyed all four of us chatting to them too, Alex is so funny and naturally funny in her observations about life in general, and Daniel has a very dry quick witted sense of humour, so altogether we just had a lovely time every visit.

The weather was still dreadful, however the storm was quite spectacular to watch from the windows, I love watching storms and discovered Matt did too!!! But around maybe 8.30ish it looked like it was easing a little, so we all made the decision we would brave the dissipating rain and head out for at least a couple of houses tonight.

I said give me 5 minutes and headed down to get changed into shorts, shirt and tennis shoes, I wasn`t going to the park with sandals on tonight.

I got back and we realised we hadn`t taken a picture together yet, so Alex offered to take a few for us.....I do like this one! Rob is the one next to me.....

We got the boat and we were quite squiffy by now, but headed into the park hoping this drizzle would stop. It wasn`t a downpour or anywhere near it, but it was annoying, however it did get a little lighter as we walked around.

And even more annoyed we never got any pictures together in here tonight.....doh!!!

We did Halloween and I have to say it was hilarious doing that house with the guys......Matt got every scare going and he was hysterical as he screamed, I wished he was in front of me so I could see it all.....I don`t think I laughed like that in a house for the longest time!!

That was classic.....it was so much fun.

We did Dead Man`s Pier next, I never noticed how long the lines were tonight, I was just having so much fun but as Matt and Rob had EP too we really never noticed how long we waited.

Dead Man`s Pier was another good house and watching Matt and Rob react was even better than getting all the scares myself!!

We were so glad we had come in tonight after all, the rain was really easing now and all the SA were out.

Matt and Rob wanted to go do houses near the back of the park, we said we were heading back to the hotel, so we said our goodnights and we`d see them in the morning.

The park was busy tonight despite the rain and it was quite uncomfortable in one scare zone. However we did do Coven and Hellblock on the way out as the EP line wasn`t too bad. Neither house impressed us tonight and after we did those we headed off home for the night, but then we realised it was well after 11pm, I didn`t know it was as late as it was.

We got a boat and were back home in no time at all and I think we were asleep by midnight!!

 

[KathyM2]

It was lovely, I said to Tom we should drive on it again just for the drive as it was stunning. So many folks told us it was, should have listened.

If you have a chance one day....you can drive all the way on and off that road to Miami...it's quite lovely

The line stretched all the way around and I was genuinely amazed anyone would line up in that heat and sunshine with no shade for cookies.

I would lol ) I have wanted to try those cookies for a while!!!

Great updates as always and especially love the food pics...sorry about your bad experience...that bread did look good though!!

 

[schumigirl]

If you have a chance one day....you can drive all the way on and off that road to Miami...it's quite lovely

I would lol ) I have wanted to try those cookies for a while!!!

Great updates as always and especially love the food pics...sorry about your bad experience...that bread did look good though!!

That does sound lovely, I can see us doing something like that in the years ahead. Tom`s been to Miami, a long time ago, but always liked the idea of going back at somepoint.

Definitely join the virtual line!!! Much better than standing in line for ages.....

Thank you, glad you`re enjoying it.....there were a few bad meals this trip I have to say, I think we sent more food back this one trip than we ever had in all our visits. There was definitely a drop of quality or service in some places. Yes, the bread was very nice, and gratefully devoured......lol.....

 

[Worfiedoodles]

I am so glad your birthday celebration was a joy! All those wonderful surprises, and everyone wanting to celebrate you!

Sorry about the poor food experiences. It is rough when you have a reasonable expectation for a meal and instead you end up overly hungry. Moving on to tea and snacks was a good choice.

Also, that beef dish looked delicious! It’s nice when you are pleasantly surprised and feel like you’ve eaten plenty. And of course the cocktails are essential to that feeling

What a shame the weather wasn’t fully cooperating for HHN. I am glad you were able to meet up and have some fun, though!

I agree it’s just pointless to compare UOR and WDW. They are 2 different experiences and I’d you dislike one so much you frankly shouldn’t spend your money to go there.

So here’s a conundrum — which do you prefer, US or IOA?

 

[macraven]

I prefer US but there are some shows and rides at
IOA that I have to do each trip