One trip in February is just not enough! *Finished 5/7

[onelilspark]

Great report!

I'll have to remember to do this after our June trip.


Do you think the crowds were down because of the time of year, the economy, or a little of both?

Yes! I demand a trip report

We go this time of year all the time, same week. I really didn't feel a huge difference in the size of the crowds. We were able to do a lot in the morning at the MK because we got there right at opening. But other than that, the crowds were pretty steady, still loads lighter than the summertime, but that's normal for this time of year. Honestly? I didn't see the effects of the economy while I was down there, especially at DTD. Loads of people were out. IMO, people are still traveling & spending, but they might be cutting back when they do...limiting their souvenirs, eating more CS than sit down, etc etc. But that's just my opinion

 

[onelilspark]

We got off to a late start this morning. Nice because it was already warm by the time we got started! It was going to get up to 80! Now...notice how my Dad's dressed...

Yes. Long sleeves. He has Florida blood now Anyways, so obviously we were off to Epcot this morning. We had some good parking Karma going today. You know when you drive in and you notice that hey! We're getting close to the end of a row...we're either going to get really lucky, or get the shaft. Well this week we tended to get really lucky! It was the second lot back, but I think the second row? And right on the end (seriously 2 cars in...so close! ) Once in the park we immediately headed towards Soarin to get our FP's for the day. Then we headed back to start our stroll around the countries...

As I mentioned a ways back, my brother is studying abroad right now, he's in London. Apparently the first week he was there he went to use a payphone which has ads on it for "ladies of the night." There was a...ahem...gentleman? standing next to the payphone who asked if he was "looking for a tart?" Of course he said it with a very heavy accent so my brother didn't understand him the first time and said, "excuse me?" So he repeated. "Are you looking for a tart?" In London apparently a tart=a lady of the night. So my brother goes, "NO! no! I just need to make a call!" So that's the story behind this photo:

My Dad was "looking for a tart." Yeah...we're weird.

(I love this picture, can't you just see what a glorious day it was!)

So I had made an ADR for 1215 at Tokyo Dining. My Aunt, Uncle, & Cousin were staying with us at the Condo, but most days we were doing our own thing. But...my parents don't do sushi (I just recently started.) So my Uncle & Cousin joined me...

Afterward we all met back up for the first showing of the Voices of Liberty at the American Pavilion. The one gentleman who has worked there forever was standing in the middle and talking about the different things you can find in the building. It was very interesting. We keep joking that when my Dad retires he's going to have to work at the American Pavilion because he was so into what this guy was saying (btw...anyone know his name??) And it got to the point where he was pointing things out to other guests! He could also probably stand there and listen to the Voices of Liberty all day. Then of course we did the American Adventure.

Our plan for the day was to catch the Voices of Liberty (either the show that we saw or the next one) and then it was tasty beverage time. So my Mom and I were excited, we really planned on seeing the next one, so our tasty beverage schedule had just been moved up

Off to France!

We each got one of these, my Dad plopped us down at a table where we people watched and he went over to Germany to get himself a pretzel. (Anyone surprised? ) Oh, and I forgot to mention, they had lunch with my Aunt in England, they got some Fish & Chips. What was funny is when we were all talking my Mom got real excited and she goes, "I know what I want for lunch!" And I looked at her and went, "Fish and Chips?" She started laughing and went, YEP! My Dad's just looking at me like ...finally he asked how I knew When my Mom and I went for the day right after Christmas (my brother and him had to work, so my Mom and I went to Epcot ) She really wanted Fish & Chips but I was really not feeling greasy and we were over in the Land when it was lunch time, so she gave up her Fish & Chips for my stomach and for timing.

Anyway...where was I?

Right! Tasty beverages... So my Dad took a journey to Germany for a pretzel. My Mom and I were getting a tan and people watching...

A nice lady took this picture for us after seeing us try to do a self shot that didn't turn out that great...

When my Dad came back I started to realize that the combination of a light lunch (sushi is tasty and light...not really a good drinking food!!) the heat, and the alcohol...well, I was feeling a little lightheaded. We also discovered that my drink was stronger than my Mom's, which is weird since they come out of a machine!! So I needed a snack...luckily the patisserie was right around the corner and this beauty caught my eye:

Mmmm perfection! After our "snacks" we strolled the WS a bit, pulled my Dad in the opposite direction of China so we didn't have to sit/stand through that movie.

Then we were headed back towards Future World...

 

[wdwgirl03]

Great report! Love all the pictures.

 

[TeresaNJ]

What a wonderful report! I'm so glad you were bored, LOL. Your mom and dad are a very attractive couple. I have to agree with your dad about the coffee. I love coffee, and that Nescafe crap makes me want to puke.

We usually bring our own coffee to keep in the room, but sometimes I have to resort to that Nescafe crap if we are out in the parks.

My uncle introduced us to WDW back in 85. He had gone every year since it opened, by himself, and was an avid photographer. The reason I'm telling you this is because he too, like your dad, loved "It's A Small World". I have no idea why, but we have a million pictures of it.

Right now I'm so wishing I had those fish n chips from the UK. I love them. When we were living in Florida a few years ago, we'd head over to Epcot during a low season time, and I'd get the fish n chips and then go sit down by the water, on a bench, eating my treat, and it was so beautiful and peaceful.

Can't wait for the rest of your report!

 

[onelilspark]

Great report! Love all the pictures.

Thanks!

What a wonderful report! I'm so glad you were bored, LOL. Your mom and dad are a very attractive couple. I have to agree with your dad about the coffee. I love coffee, and that Nescafe crap makes me want to puke.

We usually bring our own coffee to keep in the room, but sometimes I have to resort to that Nescafe crap if we are out in the parks.

My uncle introduced us to WDW back in 85. He had gone every year since it opened, by himself, and was an avid photographer. The reason I'm telling you this is because he too, like your dad, loved "It's A Small World". I have no idea why, but we have a million pictures of it.

Right now I'm so wishing I had those fish n chips from the UK. I love them. When we were living in Florida a few years ago, we'd head over to Epcot during a low season time, and I'd get the fish n chips and then go sit down by the water, on a bench, eating my treat, and it was so beautiful and peaceful.

Can't wait for the rest of your report!

Even though I'm usually not a fan of fish & chips (if it's hot, I don't want greasy food...I make an exception for Corn Dog Nuggets because they're not real greasy!) I could really go for some right now too!!

Onwards!

 

[onelilspark]

We headed back out towards Future World, those FPs for Soarin' were burning a hole in our pockets! After Soarin' we did Journey Into Imagination with Figment! (My favorite! I love Figment ) And of course Test Track.

After that we headed back out towards the front of the park. We left the jackets in the car so we wouldn't have to carry them all day, but we knew we'd need them in the evening. With our awesome parking spot, this certainly wasn't a problem today!! We rode Spaceship Earth, then my Dad went out for the jackets...

(I took these while we were waiting for my Dad.)

When he got back, we rode Spaceship Earth again (there was no line! Yippie! Always, always come back to this ride, never hit it as soon as you come in!) This time, I hit French as my language so I didn't have to listen to Dame Judy Dench. Don't get me wrong, she's nice and all, but they should have a "Jeremy Irons" button.

We still had some time to kill before dinner at Bistro de Paris (or as my Mom kept calling it...Bistro de France or Chefs de Paris...) So we wandered a bit.

I tried some artsy shots, but I don't do so well with nighttime/dusk shots.

We reached France with about a half hour before our ADR. We decided that since we weren't overly hungry yet, we'd just pop a squat on a bench and people watch (have you caught on yet that it's one of our favorite pasttimes?...especially at WDW!)

I switched shoes for dinner...hey...I ain't no crazy! I might wear a dress to the park (cotton, I might add.) But I wore flip flops til dinner. Then I changed into low heels. My feet still hated me, but I didn't feel right wearing my Croc flip clops into Bistro, kwim?

Anyways...as we were people watching, there were some shady dealings goin down at Chefs. Next thing there were some security people (some "plain clothes") standing around the perimeter. We never figured out exactly what they were there for, but it was mighty fishy I tell you. So the security people started leaving and it was about 10 minutes before our ADR, we thought, "why don't we check in now..." Which would lead us right by the entrance of Chefs. Still didn't see anything. Oh well.

So we checked in for our meal at Bistro, which I could go on and on about, it was wonderful (check out my Dining Report for full details.) They have tables right along the window so you can see Illumniations. From where we were seated we could kind of see it, but it wasn't a big deal to us. As far as we're concerned, if we want to see Illumniations, we won't schedule dinner during it! (Just our POV.) We had an awesome waiter at Bistro too. Kinda wish my brother was there because he speaks fluent French and that would have been really neat, but alas, he's gallivanting through England.

We were done dinner just as Illuminations was over. I was starting to get a migraine and all the smoke was blowing right over the International Gateway, so we took the long way back around to the front of the park. Turned out to be good. The fresh air helped my head and we walked off some of dinner

Oh, for the record, this is why I don't take night shots and you don't see any from me:

Next up: Hollywood Studios (probably not til Wednesday!)

 

[moburg]

How was the new Spaceship Earth? It was still under renovations last time we were there.

 

[onelilspark]

How was the new Spaceship Earth? It was still under renovations last time we were there.

I like it. I enjoy the end. You can definitely tell the sponsor went from a communications based company to a technology based one though. And I really miss Jeremy Irons. But ya know, things change. I wish they'd change the smell of Rome burning, it gives me an instant headache (I have to hold my breath!) It's still a classic ride though!!

 

[shebaxric]

I tried some artsy shots, but I don't do so well with nighttime/dusk shots.

I don't know what you're thinking!! This shot is absolutely beautiful! You should post it on the PTOD Thread!

 

[moburg]

I tried some artsy shots, but I don't do so well with nighttime/dusk shots.

I don't know what you're thinking!! This shot is absolutely beautiful! You should post it on the PTOD Thread!

I agree! It's a great pic! I just went through my pics from the last few trips, and I didn't have any of the SE at dusk. Just a few closer shots in full daylight, or later night with lights.

I usually take so many as to make it cumbersome to sift through the find the really good ones.

 

[moburg]

I think I found this guy's galleries from one of the POTD threads. Could be wrong, but that's what's sticking in my mind. Anyway, he takes some AMAZING shots at Disney. Like me, he takes many, and some are just stunning. The difference, is that even his bad ones, are still pretty awesome!

Check him out!
http://www.totalsham.com/gallery/vacations/

 

[onelilspark]

I tried some artsy shots, but I don't do so well with nighttime/dusk shots.

I don't know what you're thinking!! This shot is absolutely beautiful! You should post it on the PTOD Thread!

Thanks!

I agree! It's a great pic! I just went through my pics from the last few trips, and I didn't have any of the SE at dusk. Just a few closer shots in full daylight, or later night with lights.

I usually take so many as to make it cumbersome to sift through the find the really good ones.

Thanks to you too! I guess I don't like it because it looks grainy to me. And if I had a camera better than a point and shoot (or knew how to use it) I think it would come out a lot better!!

I think I found this guy's galleries from one of the POTD threads. Could be wrong, but that's what's sticking in my mind. Anyway, he takes some AMAZING shots at Disney. Like me, he takes many, and some are just stunning. The difference, is that even his bad ones, are still pretty awesome!

Check him out!
http://www.totalsham.com/gallery/vacations/

Those are pretty!

 

[onelilspark]

Today was our Hollywood Studios day. I was a little nervous because it was a Fantasmic night, but when I told my Mom and asked if she wanted me to change our ADR, she told me that she thought we'd be fine. (Or we'd park hop to Epcot )

We got to HS around 10ish. I don't know why we had the late start today, I think we were just being sluggish, probably all the heavy food in our stomachs Of course when we got there we headed straight for TSM:

My Mom grabbed Fastpasses while I snapped the pictures Joy. 4?! Yucko...that's why you gotta get there at opening I suppose!!

We headed up to the Great Movie Ride...I love this one. I have no idea why, but I do. And I can probably narrate it better than most of the cast members...

We've hit the mobster scene every time in the past few years. I forget the bank robber scene And every time we point out the hidden mickey's to each other. You would think after pointing them out once we'd stop...ummm no...

Next we were off to Star Tours. Only problem is that with all the food we ate last night, my stomach was doing flip flops all morning

My boyfriend is a big Star Wars fan though, so I decided I had to do it and then check out the gift shop for him...

I got off and oooooboy, I wasn't feeling well I had to go sit down outside! I'm getting old But I discovered something: Disney sells little bags of pretzels for only $.85! What a deal!! So I sat and munched on my pretzels...and started to feel better...so I went back into the store and bought the bf a keychain light saber.

Then we were off to Rockin Roller...yes, I just said my stomach was queasy... We hopped in the single rider line (best invention EVER...) We were split up throughout the car, but we all were in the same "limo!" So that worked out splendidly. We walked back up to ToT and got FPs for later in the day (I think around 2?) I guess it was about noon then. We decided to shop a bit...and I munched on my pretzels trying to get my stomach to calm down again!! My Dad saw a sunglasses carry thing that attaches to your belt that he thought was neat, so we set out on a mission to find it again (he saw it coming into Epcot the day before, but didn't see it since.) And we came up empty handed But in our quest, we did run across the HSM Pep Rally Then it was off for lunch at one of OUR favorites! 50s Prime Time Cafe

My Aunt, Uncle, and Cousin were joining us here. We walked in and found them here:

Yup! At the bar! We gathered them, I checked us in, and with 5 minutes we were being yelled at We really love this place!!

We finished up, decided to meet them back at the condo (we have big plans for the evening!)

And we were on our way...

 

[onelilspark]

After lunch, we headed back to ToT, the fastpasses were burning a hole in our pocket. My Dad didn't go on because he hates ToT, but my Mom and I quickly made our way through the line. Really people...look at both lines, don't be a sheep!! Luckily my lunch seemed to stay down without a problem and my stomach queasy-ness seemed to be in the past

After ToT, we shopped a bit more and eventually made our way back to the front of the park...hmmm... We still had quite a bit of time to kill before our FPs at TSM were good, what to do...what to do... PARADE!

We found a nice section of curb and took a seat.

Pretty soon the street performers were on their way out.

We've never really stopped at watched them before, but man, I'll sure make it a point now! They were hilarious! The policeman had us in stitches, "protecting" the street. And the talent agent "LeRoy Smalls" started talking to me about my job, which was just too funny. It was a great way to spend the time!

Not long after that the Block Party Bash started rolling out.

Oh. My. Goodness. We were exhausted just watching the people. And it's not really a parade, it's like an explosion of color and jumping. It was a little too much for us. Maybe cause we're old It left us a little frightened to be honest... We composed ourselves and headed over to TSM, we only had about 15 minutes or so to kill before our FP's were up.

I rode with my Dad:

I'm on the left My Mom had a higher accuracy, but her score was lower than mine, so I WIN! Horrah!

We left HS and headed back to the condo after that. We were meeting up with the rest of the family members for the evening (which I don't have any pictures from!) The plan was to head over to Spoodle's and grab pizza from the window then go to Jellyroll's. Well...it was getting kind of chilly, so we opted for the bar area of the ESPN Zone instead. Which hit the spot. Then it was time for Jellyroll's. I'd never been there before...my cousin was a CP CM, so she'd been there before lots of times. I thought it was just wonderful! We all had a blast! What was great is that my cousin and I are the same age, and then our parents were able to go with us and we all enjoyed ourselves. I think it's tough to find an evening activity to satisfy that age range. Good goin Jellyroll's!

After a late evening (midnight! Yikes! I am getting old when I think that's late! Hahaha...) we rolled back home and it was up early for a tasty Character breakfast the next day!

 

[onelilspark]

Is anyone still reading this?

Our next day was Tuesday and it would be a little discombobulated. My parents were heading back home in the afternoon, after my Dad & other family members played golf. My Mom & I didn't want to golf, so we were off to the parks.

Originally, my Dad wasn't going to take off of work during the trip, so we had planned an early ADR for a character breakfast! At first we had it booked for more people, but the rest of the extended family didn't want to get up in time to make a 740 AM ADR So we rescheduled for just my family and made it for 8...and then my Dad decided he wasn't going into work, he was going to take vacation time after all! So we were still getting up wayyyy early and having breakfast with the characters...eh, what the heck, we're in Disney!

If you've read my Dining Report, you know why we went to Cape May Cafe, so I'll spare those details We loved this breakfast, definitely will do it again! The characters here were great, had wonderful interaction and we got to see them more than once.

(love this picture!)

So after breakfast was over, we headed back to the Condo to drop off my Dad for golf. Then my Mom and I decided on going to the Magic Kingdom (yes, again!)

The nice part about having Annual Passes, is that when you decide to go into the park for just a few hours, you don't feel guilty We had to be back by 2 or so to pick up my Nana for tea.

It was pretty warm out that day (you'll see in a later shot I'm actually wearing shorts! I HATE shorts!) So my Mom and I headed over to Splash Mountain... we were like, "oh we won't get too wet, look, it looks like the splash is turned down a bit today." WRONG!

My Mom took the brunt of it...

You can't entirely tell here, but trust me, she's soaked!

We were attempting to dry off a bit before getting on Thunder Mountain.

I'm about to lose my battery, so I'll continue later...

 

[shebaxric]

Is anyone still reading this?

I'm still here! I have been waiting for an update Keep going and I'll keep reading!

 

[onelilspark]

I'm still here! I have been waiting for an update Keep going and I'll keep reading!

Yay!

I'll get moving again!

 

[Dis_Yoda]

I'm reading

I'm more of a lurker when it comes to TR.

 

[onelilspark]

After drying off, my Mom and I shopped a bit. She needed to get her 2009 Christmas ornament. Yes...they live close, but it's on this trip that she gets her ornament! We then headed back towards the train and took a leisurely ride around the MK from Frontierland to Main Street. It was Popcorn time! Since we had the big breakfast and tea scheduled for later, we just grabbed a snack.

We popped a squat at the end of Main Street and people watched. I was asked to take a few pictures for families, which I happily obliged, but honestly people?? Why ask the girl with the greasy popcorn hands to handle your camera? Don't worry, I wiped my hands off first, but it struck me as odd...

We weren't quite done with our adventure, so we set sail on the Jungle Cruise in Adventureland (Touring Plans? What's that?! ) Then we decided we had to try Aladdin's Carpets. We'd never been on it, and well, with no boys to tell us no, or where to go... (hah...I crack myself up ) We were off...

We attempted a self shot in the air...

We made a quick trip over to Monster's Inc (we had to, ok?) And listened to Mac & Cheese It's been awhile since we've heard the Eiffel Tower jokes, we were amused.

Then it was time to go freshen up and get my Nana for tea!

I snapped this on the way out:

I was highly intrigued. At the time I was in fact 23. But the day they were announcing it was after I turned 23! I was worried it would be something for only 23 year olds...

We headed out, back to the condo, picked up my Nana, freshened up and headed back over to the Grand Floridian for tea. This was our first experience doing this, we thought it would be nice for all of us to do together We really enjoyed it. I would highly recommend it!

After tea we headed back to the condo, waited for the guys to get back from golfing...and my parents packed up to go home that night. I was flying out the next day though...oh what to do...what to do...

My Nana & I headed back over to Downtown Disney (it was nice to have a car ) and did a little shopping. I really just wanted to visit Goofy's Candy Company We had a light dinner at Earl of Sandwich just because I hadn't eaten anything normal all day!

Up Next: last day of trip one :'(

 

[onelilspark]

I'm reading

I'm more of a lurker when it comes to TR.

I was starting to think I was talking to myself