How A Trip Goes From Relaxing To Lets Do Everything? 2 Week Pic Report From Mar '11

[skidisney]

So what is the longest line in Universal

Oh yeah! Disaster!!!

We had some time in the queue to take a few pics of the fake props

Funny tag line

Disaster was pretty good. The new Christopher Walken part was cool. The end is the same old Earthquake. I hear this attraction may be on the chopping block soon but I still think it kinda holds up.

One thing is for sure, it is still better than:

Maybe it's just me, but Bill Paxton just does not look interested. And the show is a little rough around the edges.

A few more pics on the way out for the afternoon

We decided to go to the McDonalds down by Animal Kingdom and passed by

My meal was fine. Brittany's was non-existent. They forgot to put it in the bag. This infuriated Brittany to the point where she wanted to drive all the way back. Now with the stop lights, this might be an hour round trip. I just told her to go to the snack bar at the resort. We went over to the Turtle Pond pool and snack bar and not a cast member to be found. We had to go to the snack bar outside of the main pool. It still took around 30-45 minutes when all was said and done to get Brittany her chicken nuggets. But hey, any time you can get Brittany fed and keep the cranky bug away, that's a win.

Next: Time for Mardi Gras​

 

[skidisney]

Sorry, it has taken this long to update the TR. I had a bit of a computer meltdown but now we should be back on track with our trip.

Let's get started with a drink at the Nascar Cafe (sorry this is the only pic we got of it, we were busy the rest of the time )

It was slightly busier when we returned for the evening part of our touring

Some street performers

Some Universal Beignets for you.

People were already lining up for the parade

Some decoration

Let's start the parade, shall we?

Some of the really fantastic float

Tons of beads being thrown out

A big bug doohickey

Next: More Mardi Gras Parade To Come​

 

[iamtheprincess]

Very good report!!! Makes us want to go back now!

 

[skidisney]

Let's continue with our parade, shall we?

Sparklies!!!

Lots of bead throwers on this float

About the parade, really well done. I am not a parade person but this one is fun with the interactivity of catching the beads. Yes I know, the beads mean nothing, and Britt has a stack of them somewhere just cluttering up something, but it was fun to have a few adult beverages and try to catch some.

Next: A Little More Mardi Gras​

 

[skidisney]

So we went over to the other side to watch the parade and catch some more beads . But we took a a pic of the small band for ya'll along the way.

And then it was on to the Ne-Yo concert. And man, were we far back. It was packed and we only stayed for a few songs but it was fun.

There is a blurry Ne-Yo.

Look how far back we were. But kinda cool the coaster as the back drop.

A Madhouse in CityWalk

Time to go out in CityWalk for an evening out

A look inside the Rising Star bar. A really cool Karoke place with a live band

And then over to the dance club, The Groove

We also stopped by Pat O'Briens but we were tuckered out at that point, so on to the long walk to the car and the drive back to Old Key West for the night

Next: Time for a float​

 

[skidisney]

It was time to check off something on our Disney bucket list.

So we headed to:

Time to get our ride!

This pontoon boat was really cool, and way oversized for two . But hey, if your gonna do it, might as well do it big.

The view of Olivia's from the docks

Carefully driving the boat . Notice that the thing has a CD player

The bridge heading into Old Key West

A shot of the canal

The guest room buildings at OKW

Here I come in my Sun Tracker

A Treehouse Villa at Saratoga Springs

A look across the golf course towards Saratoga Springs

Next: Downtown Disney from a different point of view​

 

[skidisney]

So here is a look at all of the pictures we took from the boat during our tour. It took about 15 minutes from the dock to get to the lake at Downtown Disney.

Bongo's

A look over at Disney Quest and Cirque du Soleil

And Planet Hollywood/Characters In Flight

House Of Blues And The West Side Dock

The other side of the boat looking at Saratoga Springs

At Fulton's

Little boat fishing, big boat eating

World Of Disney

Rainforest Cafe

And then Brittany took over the driving

Back at Saratoga

Old Key West

A lovely Disney Bus

Back to the docks at Old Key West

The boat rental was one of our favorite things of the whole trip. It was really relaxing for someone like us who feel like we must keep moving or else time is wasting at Disney . i am sure there are other people like us out there. It was very open and once we left the dock, no one told us where to go and when to be back. A very nice experience.

Next: Back to Epcot for another ADR​

 

[skidisney]

So where is our next ADR at. I am sure, as I let the pictures roll from our walk there, you will be able to guess where it was at.

First things first, which park?

There is the strawberry smelling Lotso

Another shot of Spaceship Earth

Britt's picture of a bush

Here is Daisy

And Stich

We went by Mission: Space

Not to ride but to pick up these

I know, we probably wouldn't need them, but why pass them up when we had the time to stop by?

Across the bridge towards World Showcase

La Cantina was packed as always

Norway was slammed (it looks like most of this was for the Akershus Princess lunch)

Not stopping at China

Unfortunately not here for lunch

Next: We have made it to our lunch destination​

 

[walt's girl]

Wow, looks like a terrific trip!! Looks like I've got a lot of catching up to do

 

[skidisney]

So where did we end up for lunch!

Italy!

Not Tutto Italia

There we go! Via Napoli

A look at the inside

The Menu

The Strawberry Agua Fresca

And of course, the Margherita - tomato, mozzarella, basil $28 for the large

Dessert Menu

The Coppa, which may or may not be on the menu any longer, $10

The obligatory oven shot on the way out

The pizza was good to great. The Fresca was ok as well as the service. It seemed very rushed even though half the tables were empty. We rarely saw the waitress except to take our order. The price is a bit steep, but as you saw the pizza was huge and that was only the large.

The total TIW discount at Via Napoli was $9.20. The total after tip and tax was $47.48 for two.

Next: A relaxing stroll through Epcot​

 

[skidisney]

After lunch, it was time to walk off the calories and clean up some of the remaining things to see in the Showcase.

Here we go, walking out of Italy

Lady And The Tramp topiary

Rapunzel's Tower on the way to Germany

A few shots of the train set outside Germany

Town Square

Like the Flower & Garden Festival banners

And the little Lotso topiary

Back to the rest of Germany

Here is Pumbaa

And Timon

Little Simba and Rafiki

And over the bridge into China

Into Reflections of China

Reflections of China was another 360 film, not as good as O Canada, but it far surpassed Impressions de France. Great little spot inside the waiting room with a ton of benches and air conditioning. A spot we will be visiting again when we need a break.

Next: The Signs of the Chinese Zodiac​

 

[skidisney]

Since Britt went around collecting the sculptures/topiaries of the Chinese zodiac before and after Reflections of China, I thought I should include them in this special entry.

Monkey

Sheep

Horse

Snake

Dragon

Pig

Bull

Rabbit

Rat

Tiger (which apparently has something to do with Kim Possible )

Dog

Rooster

I think that's it! Should be, considering Brittany ran around like a maniac collecting them all.

Next: More of a look around China​

 

[skidisney]

So here we go around China

The outside of the museum adjacent to Reflections of China

The ceiling

And walls

Inside the museum

Exiting out of Reflections into the store

The Panda topiaries again

The trolls

And back around to where we started, with Lightning McQueen

And Tigger

Eyeore

Pooh Bear, of course

Rabbit

Ah, the scenery

Brittany with the scenery

Next: Some more flowering bushes ​

 

[skidisney]

A little more walking around and exploring the details of Flower & Garden.

First, to Bambi's Butterfly House

Flowers

Of course, a step into Club Cool while we are over on this side of the park

Everyone's favorite, Beverly is here

Next: Tinker Bell and Time for Mission: Space​

 

[skidisney]

So after our brief visit to the sticky floors of Club Cool and Britt trying Beverly, just to remind herself of "why everyone thought it was so bad." We moved on towards Mission: Space (checking off another attraction on our list of remaining attractions to do) via Tinker Bell's Pixie Hollow.

Couldn't tell you the name of the fairies (I am 30 and male ) but here they are.

So we rode Mission: Space using the Fastpasses. Unnecessary, because we walked straight on. We chose the more intense orange side this time (we had ridden the green side the last trip.) The orange side wtill made Britt and I feel a bit ill. I love roller coasters and extreme rides and I still can't get the sick feeling away on Mission: Space. Probably won't have to ride that one again any time soon.

Here are a few photos on the way out of Epcot at about 5:15 PM.

Everybody loves a Monorail picture, right?

Next: Back over to DTD for everyone's favorite meal and more late night antics at the Magic Kingdom​

 

[skidisney]

So we went over to the Marketplace (by car this time) because we don't know the meaning of sitting still and we wanted to get some shopping done before we headed over to MK for EMH.

Of coursewe stopped by Earl of Sandwich for a quick bite. And by quick, I mean the line went all the way to the kitchen supply store next door. Still, it moved pretty quick. We left the Marketplace around night fall to head over to the Magic Kingdom for our favorite, evening Extra Magic Hours until 3 AM.

We decided to take the ferry boat across to the Magic Kingdom and wouldn't you know it, the fireworks went off while we were crossing. It was a private show for the 20 of us who were on the ferry. Spectacular view. We have video and I will provide links as soon as I get them uploaded.

We were now in full swing of the checking attractions off of our list game so that we could say we had seen everything, so we entered the Magic Kingdom and went straight to:

Every time we go here I say, this won't be worth it, and it totally is. Makes me laugh every time.

And then over to:

There you go, a huge amount of photos for you Carousel fans.

Next: Working our way around the park​

 

[ronnmel]

Just wanted to say I'm still following your TR and enjoying all the photos.

 

[skidisney]

So as you may have noticed, after midnight, the park is yours on Evening EMH in spring. We were cleaning up our list at the Magic Kingdom pretty fast and thoroughly. The moral of the story is, if you can stay up late, do it!!

So off we keep going. We took another round on the Peoplemover to let the crowds die down and then started moving through attractions.

Still had to check off this:

Still just as bad as I remember it, though I do enjoy the preshows.

Onto a party

Not so pleasing to my stomach, I must say

And then onto something everybody's speed

Britt failed at pulling the sword out of the stone

We went and checked out Philharmagic, one of Britt's favorites

And It's A Small World

Onto Frontierland, where guess what. Splash Mountain was closed again.

Poor Splash

10 days in the World and no Splash, what was this trip coming too. Fine then, over to Big Thunder I suppose.

Next: Finishing up day 10​

 

[skidisney]

We have walked from the land of Tomorrow to the land of the Frontier, so where are we headed next. The land of Adventure.

Wanna ride Pirates, why not, there is no line and nobody around. Just one lonely cast member.

And on to the Magic Carpets of Aladdin, why, because we need the credit for Brittany's list of course.

And on to another unexplainable 2 AM attraction.

The view from the top

We had more time, so we went back over and rode the Haunted Mansion after dark, always better after dark, right?

Back over to Tomorrowland, we just can't stop when there are no lines like this.

To the ride that really does make you super dizzy.

And to end it all, another ride on Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin. Why? Because we can, that's why?

We went through the Emporium on the way out because we were having trouble letting go, took the Monorail to the empty tram where the tram operator was trying out his new stand up routine for the 10 of us on it. It wasn't that funny, it was just that bad.

Back to the hotel at 3:30 AM. Time to sleep iin.

Next: Day 11 Starts With a Bad, Bad Blizzard​

 

[skidisney]

So we slept in on Day 11 as one might imagine we would after getting home at 4 AM the night before. We decided to use our new Water Park AP's and head over to Blizzard Beach for a dip. Now the parking lot didn't look that bad at 11 when we got there, but boy was that instinct wrong. It was packed, jam packed, not a chair to be found in the place. Wrong idea and so weird compared to the Typhoon Lagoon experience we had the week before. So we took a walk around the park, took some pictures for this TR and didn't get a toe in the water.

So here's the pics.

They really shouldn't let this guy in the pool!

So that was our tour around Blizzard Beach. Hopefully, the rest of the day gets better.

Next: Back To Animal Kingdom Where Our Luck May Turn Around​