She's Five at Riverside - A September 2014 Trip Report (Completed 2/27)
- Thread starter GrandCalifornian
- Start date
GrandCalifornian
Can't Wait To Go Back
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2012
It looks like you had a really nice day at AK. We never seem to fill a whole day there, but then we don't play in the Boneyard or brush the goats.Allie seemed to love everything about the day. The dress fits her perfectly for this trip.
I hope you were able to finish your snacks before the unexpected adventure began.
We love AK. This was the longest we have ever spent there at once, but we like coming back to see things again there.
Yes, we were fortunate with that part of the timing, we were on our second or third mug refill and had finished up the snacks.
Ooooh an adventure that starts with being told to leave a building. Interesting!
Lol, yeah, it was something different. We didn't realize we'd be stuck where we went...
Yeah, it is a bit of a cliff hanger, but that's when we reached 25 pictures. We'll post the next update soon with the rest of the story.
One of the things we like about EE is it is more gentile than some roller coasters, but on medicine and watching a phone it had to be odd.
Zebra Domes are AKL's signature dessert treat. They are balls of white chocolate covering a liqueur center. The closest thing I can relate them to is a Sees Candy Bordeaux. They come five to a package for a snack credit at Mara (AKL's quick service) or they have them at the buffet at Boma.
We do find them to be delightful. They are sold refrigerated so the best bet is to devour them right away, which isn't hard with two or more people.
ElsasMom
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Mar 5, 2014
I've never been on EE it looks awesome! I love the baby Yeti, every Disney trip needs a mascot! 
My DD ADORES that pig! The entire time we were in there she was petting the pig.
I'm starting to think a stay at AKL needs to go on my Disney bucket list right next to ride EE.
Can't wait to hear why they cleared you guys out?!?
My DD ADORES that pig! The entire time we were in there she was petting the pig.
I'm starting to think a stay at AKL needs to go on my Disney bucket list right next to ride EE.
Can't wait to hear why they cleared you guys out?!?
kastoney
Disney foodie served with a side of sarcasm
- Joined
- Jul 18, 2010
Catching up on all your AK adventures. I'm totally with you all on not being rope drop people. I've never made a single one, but your safari pictures from first thing in the morning may just make it worth the price of admission.
Your Yak n Yeti lunch looks great. I'd never heard of the mango pie, but it sounds relish.
Love all your EE photos and baby Yeti. Had to laugh at your phones out in both pictures. I was waiting for a great EE selfie ; )
That boneyard sure is loved by kids. We have to spend at least an hour there each trip because my daughter loves it so much. Strangely her favorite thing is the door that doesn't open and the "man" that says get away from that door you rascal. On our trip down she kept telling the flight attendants about the rascal door and they of course had no idea what she was talking about. While its a great place to take a break, my hubby and I think they need to open a bar inside ; )
Having seen a preview of your AKL adventures in your PTR, can't wait to hear the whole story....
Your Yak n Yeti lunch looks great. I'd never heard of the mango pie, but it sounds relish.
Love all your EE photos and baby Yeti. Had to laugh at your phones out in both pictures. I was waiting for a great EE selfie ; )
That boneyard sure is loved by kids. We have to spend at least an hour there each trip because my daughter loves it so much. Strangely her favorite thing is the door that doesn't open and the "man" that says get away from that door you rascal. On our trip down she kept telling the flight attendants about the rascal door and they of course had no idea what she was talking about. While its a great place to take a break, my hubby and I think they need to open a bar inside ; )
Having seen a preview of your AKL adventures in your PTR, can't wait to hear the whole story....
WDWKOOK
NOW WITH LESS TAG!
- Joined
- Mar 10, 2009
Those early morning shots at POR are so serene. That's my favorite time of day at WDW.
Does anyone know if those nifty transportation message boards will be coming to all resorts or is this a beta test? Would be great (if they are actually accurate) to have them at all transportation points at WDW. Just put those MBs on the buses and boats and you'll know where they are at all times
Great photo of the Silverback at AK. They are mesmerizing when they're actually doing something other than resting. DD's fav are the bats, too, but I can see why Allie skipped them in favor of the lizard. They looked like they were fast friends.
EE being closed must have been disappointing at first, but you sure made up for it. Did you think there wasn't a line at first? I think we've all gotten a little excited once thinking a ride wasn't busy at all when in fact it was closed
. Allie's baby Yeti is so cute; DD has the big one that looks like a basketball. Have you thought about getting a GoPro? You'd have hands-free operation and you could still take photos
Really enjoyed your Y&Y review and was the Mango Pie a lot like Key Lime in consistency?
I hope the parents of the boy who fell asleep on the Dig Site mammoth got a photo of that! I completely appreciate Allie's need to have everything aligned just so
, her buckets were perfect.
The photos of Allie and the goats are precious. I love the one where her head is resting on one.
Does anyone know if those nifty transportation message boards will be coming to all resorts or is this a beta test? Would be great (if they are actually accurate) to have them at all transportation points at WDW. Just put those MBs on the buses and boats and you'll know where they are at all times
Great photo of the Silverback at AK. They are mesmerizing when they're actually doing something other than resting. DD's fav are the bats, too, but I can see why Allie skipped them in favor of the lizard. They looked like they were fast friends.
EE being closed must have been disappointing at first, but you sure made up for it. Did you think there wasn't a line at first? I think we've all gotten a little excited once thinking a ride wasn't busy at all when in fact it was closed
. Allie's baby Yeti is so cute; DD has the big one that looks like a basketball. Have you thought about getting a GoPro? You'd have hands-free operation and you could still take photosReally enjoyed your Y&Y review and was the Mango Pie a lot like Key Lime in consistency?
I hope the parents of the boy who fell asleep on the Dig Site mammoth got a photo of that! I completely appreciate Allie's need to have everything aligned just so
, her buckets were perfect.The photos of Allie and the goats are precious. I love the one where her head is resting on one.
GrandCalifornian
Can't Wait To Go Back
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2012
I've never been on EE it looks awesome! I love the baby Yeti, every Disney trip needs a mascot!
My DD ADORES that pig! The entire time we were in there she was petting the pig.
I'm starting to think a stay at AKL needs to go on my Disney bucket list right next to ride EE.
Can't wait to hear why they cleared you guys out?!?
EE is great. The little Yeti did become a great mascot, and Allie loved explaining that she adopted him.
We totally would stay at AKL, and it is really high on Melissa's list. For me it gets overshadowed by WL because we can stay there for the same price and get boat transportation (and close proximity) to MK, but AKL is a great resort.
We'll get the next update up before long, and you'll see that we finally made it out.
Yeah, we like not rushing in the morning on vacation, especially Melissa and Allie. I enjoy waking up fairly early but spending quiet time at the resort. We do always try for EMH at AK though, and enjoy it.
We had the phones out on EE because one of the guys at Melissa's work wanted video of it, so we recorded both rides. It is fun video to have, and came out surprisingly nice.
That's cute about your daughter and the "rascal door". That stuff kind of freaks Allie out, but once she works up the courage to play with it once it becomes a thing she's proud to do. I think Disney should listen to your idea about serving drinks inside the Dig site. Throw in some air conditioning and it might get so popular that there's no room for kids...
The rest of the story from the AKL pool courtyard is coming up soon, stay tuned.
Mine too, especially at a beautiful resort where you can go out and explore in awe.
Does anyone know if those nifty transportation message boards will be coming to all resorts or is this a beta test? Would be great (if they are actually accurate) to have them at all transportation points at WDW. Just put those MBs on the buses and boats and you'll know where they are at all times
I hope they are coming soon to everywhere. We saw them at the GF as well, and were very impressed with their accuracy. There were times when the posted time would fluctuate a bit, but we enjoyed having them. I think it helps to have a time to shoot for in your head, and to see that your bus is coming, even if four others arrive first.
We love taking pictures at AK, and we had some great opportunities this time. The hard part was choosing which pictures to post...
EE being closed must have been disappointing at first, but you sure made up for it. Did you think there wasn't a line at first? I think we've all gotten a little excited once thinking a ride wasn't busy at all when in fact it was closed
Yeah, they had very recently closed it when we first arrived, so there were still a couple of people in the line so it looked so good. Oh well, they sure do right by honoring Fastpass+ later in the day.
We do have a GoPro that we use in the dune buggies. We took it to WDW last year, and actually got some cute video from the stroller and riding the boats from WL. Melissa doesn't ever want to be one of those people who wear one though, and would probably refuse to be seen with me if I wore the GoPro at WDW, and I probably don't blame her. We always laugh when we see somebody walking in a crowd with their GoPro recording, and picture them reliving the trip back at home by watching video of walking through the crowds and waiting in line...
It was a little thicker, almost like a cheesecake. Yummy stuff.
I hope the parents of the boy who fell asleep on the Dig Site mammoth got a photo of that! I completely appreciate Allie's need to have everything aligned just so
The photos of Allie and the goats are precious. I love the one where her head is resting on one.
Yes, she loves her goats, and does have to have things just right. She usually gets her way (surprise surprise..)
GrandCalifornian
Can't Wait To Go Back
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2012
When we left off, we were being told to leave the building.
We had finished eating so evacuating wasn't a big deal. We waited right outside Mara for a little while and once it was obvious it was going to be a couple more minutes at least we walked over to the playground to let Allie play.
As we walked we could hear the fire alarms in the background, and could also hear sirens outside. Additional sirens kept arriving, so we could tell it was more than just a fire alarm.
The pool was still open, so from the other side of the courtyard we could see the crowds standing outside while other guests swam and the pool bar drew quite a crowd.
Allie had fun at the playground and made friends with some other kids that were there.
We let Allie play for about 45 minutes then decided to go see if we could get out of the courtyard anywhere. We quickly learned the lobby is the only way out of that courtyard unless they open up the big gates which they hadn't done. So we were more or less stuck.
Shortly after we realized that we were stuck Allie decided that she had to go potty. After eyeing the bushes closely we headed back to Mara and found that they would let guests in to use the restrooms by the pool, but you still could not get out.
We were able to snag a bottle of water from a passing CM who was carrying a case of them and handing them out.
I think this is when I realized it might be a while.
We were over by the Kiddie pool at the time, and didn't have much prospect of going anywhere so Melissa and Allie sat by the edge of the pool.
There was a group of Cast Members playing games with kids that had been in the Kid's club, but couldn't be checked out of the system even though some of their parents were now there to get them. Allie got to play too, and participated in a "stack the buckets" game.
She had fun and it felt good to soak my feet.
We debated about whether this was considered pool hopping, but at this point getting thrown out of the resort sounded like a good idea so we weren't too concerned with it.
I wasn't actually "hopping" in the pool so I figured we were good. Plus like Paul said, at this point we kinda wanted to get thrown out. Allie grew board of the pool side games so we meandered back over to the playground. By this time Paul was on the DIS and local news websites and had figured out that there was an actual fire in the building somewhere. Luckily we couldn't smell smoke in the courtyard or I think that might have incited some kind of panic among the rest of the people who were stuck with us.
Over by the playground we heard rumors that they were letting people out by the lobby, so we headed over to investigate. We got to the doors and were told by CMs that they had let people out, but that nobody else would be let out until the fire department said it was safe to do so. Appearantly there was some backup in front of the building and they didn't want crowds backing up into the lobby.
So we waited with a bunch of other anxious people waiting to get out through the lobby.
Fortunately about 10 minutes later they allowed those of us who wanted out to go in and up the stairs to get out.
We walked past a completely empty Boma and into a lobby that was empty except for CMs lined up guiding us to the doors.
We were finally free! We figured we would be able to get a bus right outside the lobby to get to Downtown Disney where we could then move on with our lives.... nope, the whole bus stop was part of the evacuation zone.
We were told that the buses were still running at Kidani, so we walked that way. We got to see the lights of the fire trucks behind a gate.
On the way we passed lots of guests coming back from the parks who were let off there because buses were not gunning to Jambo, and they were making everyone wait out in the parking lot.
It was a bit of a mad house and the people coming back from the parks had no idea what was going on. We filled some people in on the situation. They seemed to be running extra DTD busses as there were two sitting there when we walked up. They were leaving packed with people trying to wait out the evacuation or people like us who were just visiting and needed to connect back to their home resort.
We got on a DTD bus at 8:15 and felt relieved to be headed out from there.
(The next day we read an article and found out that the fire was in a storage room attached to the hotel.)
We texted Grandma and Grandpa, who headed down to catch a boat to meet us for dinner. We arrived at Downtown Disney at 8:30 and shopped for a bit while we waited for Grandma and Grandpa.
We met up with Grandma and Grandpa by the new boat dock (which had opened in time for our trip) and headed for Grandpa's favorite, and arguably the best QS meal value, Wolfgang Puck Express.
The key picture here is of the star of the show, the meatloaf sandwich.
We read about this on the DIS years ago, then tried it two years ago and fell in love. We were glad to see that they had not sold out, and both Grandpa Jim and I got one.
I was definitely in the mood for some serious comfort food after our crazy evening and ordered spaghetti that I shared with Allie.
After dinner it was time for shopping, and we made our first visits to the toy store and World of Disney. This is when Melissa met and fell in love with a giant stuffed Stitch.
Seriously this guy is so huggable and loveable and squishable. He's just BIG so I decided not to buy him. Paul suggested getting the smaller version and this is what I thought of that.
Lol, yeah, there is something cool about the giant sized stuffed animals. I wish we could have fit him in a suitcase or decided to have him shipped, because they don't have that size Stitch at Disneyland. The bigger issue would be finding room for him in our house though, so I guess we made the right call.
We shopped around Downtown Disney until almost 11:00 and never made it past World of Disney. We decided to head back to the dock to catch a boat back to POR before they closed.
The boat ride back was quiet. It is crazy how dark those canals get at night but the boat drivers know the way so well.
When we got back to the resort at 11:40 it was pretty quiet. Getting off the boat we noticed something on the handrail, and it turned out to be a giant Frog just hanging out.
We walked past the relatively empty lobby and restaurant.
We walked through the Riverside Mill and took some pictures with it as empty as we ever saw it. .
Then we filled our mugs one more time and headed for the rooms
It had been a very long day and it didn't take long to crash into bed.
Up next: A makeover fit for a queen
We had finished eating so evacuating wasn't a big deal. We waited right outside Mara for a little while and once it was obvious it was going to be a couple more minutes at least we walked over to the playground to let Allie play.
As we walked we could hear the fire alarms in the background, and could also hear sirens outside. Additional sirens kept arriving, so we could tell it was more than just a fire alarm.
The pool was still open, so from the other side of the courtyard we could see the crowds standing outside while other guests swam and the pool bar drew quite a crowd.
Allie had fun at the playground and made friends with some other kids that were there.
We let Allie play for about 45 minutes then decided to go see if we could get out of the courtyard anywhere. We quickly learned the lobby is the only way out of that courtyard unless they open up the big gates which they hadn't done. So we were more or less stuck.
Shortly after we realized that we were stuck Allie decided that she had to go potty. After eyeing the bushes closely we headed back to Mara and found that they would let guests in to use the restrooms by the pool, but you still could not get out.
We were able to snag a bottle of water from a passing CM who was carrying a case of them and handing them out.
I think this is when I realized it might be a while.
We were over by the Kiddie pool at the time, and didn't have much prospect of going anywhere so Melissa and Allie sat by the edge of the pool.
There was a group of Cast Members playing games with kids that had been in the Kid's club, but couldn't be checked out of the system even though some of their parents were now there to get them. Allie got to play too, and participated in a "stack the buckets" game.
She had fun and it felt good to soak my feet.
We debated about whether this was considered pool hopping, but at this point getting thrown out of the resort sounded like a good idea so we weren't too concerned with it.
I wasn't actually "hopping" in the pool so I figured we were good. Plus like Paul said, at this point we kinda wanted to get thrown out. Allie grew board of the pool side games so we meandered back over to the playground. By this time Paul was on the DIS and local news websites and had figured out that there was an actual fire in the building somewhere. Luckily we couldn't smell smoke in the courtyard or I think that might have incited some kind of panic among the rest of the people who were stuck with us.
Over by the playground we heard rumors that they were letting people out by the lobby, so we headed over to investigate. We got to the doors and were told by CMs that they had let people out, but that nobody else would be let out until the fire department said it was safe to do so. Appearantly there was some backup in front of the building and they didn't want crowds backing up into the lobby.
So we waited with a bunch of other anxious people waiting to get out through the lobby.
Fortunately about 10 minutes later they allowed those of us who wanted out to go in and up the stairs to get out.
We walked past a completely empty Boma and into a lobby that was empty except for CMs lined up guiding us to the doors.
We were finally free! We figured we would be able to get a bus right outside the lobby to get to Downtown Disney where we could then move on with our lives.... nope, the whole bus stop was part of the evacuation zone.
We were told that the buses were still running at Kidani, so we walked that way. We got to see the lights of the fire trucks behind a gate.
On the way we passed lots of guests coming back from the parks who were let off there because buses were not gunning to Jambo, and they were making everyone wait out in the parking lot.
It was a bit of a mad house and the people coming back from the parks had no idea what was going on. We filled some people in on the situation. They seemed to be running extra DTD busses as there were two sitting there when we walked up. They were leaving packed with people trying to wait out the evacuation or people like us who were just visiting and needed to connect back to their home resort.
We got on a DTD bus at 8:15 and felt relieved to be headed out from there.
(The next day we read an article and found out that the fire was in a storage room attached to the hotel.)
We texted Grandma and Grandpa, who headed down to catch a boat to meet us for dinner. We arrived at Downtown Disney at 8:30 and shopped for a bit while we waited for Grandma and Grandpa.
We met up with Grandma and Grandpa by the new boat dock (which had opened in time for our trip) and headed for Grandpa's favorite, and arguably the best QS meal value, Wolfgang Puck Express.
The key picture here is of the star of the show, the meatloaf sandwich.
We read about this on the DIS years ago, then tried it two years ago and fell in love. We were glad to see that they had not sold out, and both Grandpa Jim and I got one.
I was definitely in the mood for some serious comfort food after our crazy evening and ordered spaghetti that I shared with Allie.
After dinner it was time for shopping, and we made our first visits to the toy store and World of Disney. This is when Melissa met and fell in love with a giant stuffed Stitch.
Seriously this guy is so huggable and loveable and squishable. He's just BIG so I decided not to buy him. Paul suggested getting the smaller version and this is what I thought of that.
Lol, yeah, there is something cool about the giant sized stuffed animals. I wish we could have fit him in a suitcase or decided to have him shipped, because they don't have that size Stitch at Disneyland. The bigger issue would be finding room for him in our house though, so I guess we made the right call.
We shopped around Downtown Disney until almost 11:00 and never made it past World of Disney. We decided to head back to the dock to catch a boat back to POR before they closed.
The boat ride back was quiet. It is crazy how dark those canals get at night but the boat drivers know the way so well.
When we got back to the resort at 11:40 it was pretty quiet. Getting off the boat we noticed something on the handrail, and it turned out to be a giant Frog just hanging out.
We walked past the relatively empty lobby and restaurant.
We walked through the Riverside Mill and took some pictures with it as empty as we ever saw it. .
Then we filled our mugs one more time and headed for the rooms
It had been a very long day and it didn't take long to crash into bed.
Up next: A makeover fit for a queen
kaelalala
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2013
just joining in, loving it so far!
I love the baby yeti that Allie got, omg it's so cute! and her yeti impression is just as cute, haha. and adorable pics of you all with Chip & Dale, too!
oh gosh, I remember hearing about that evacuation from AKL and wondering what was going on - glad everything turned out okay!
sounds like a full and awesome day! can't wait to read more
I love the baby yeti that Allie got, omg it's so cute! and her yeti impression is just as cute, haha. and adorable pics of you all with Chip & Dale, too!
oh gosh, I remember hearing about that evacuation from AKL and wondering what was going on - glad everything turned out okay!
sounds like a full and awesome day! can't wait to read more
kastoney
Disney foodie served with a side of sarcasm
- Joined
- Jul 18, 2010
Wow, quite the story you all have. How long were you actually stuck at AKL for? Thank goodness for the play ground though. And you rebels you, pool hopping ; ) Of course in today's day and age good thing you could find out what was going on, but I'm surprised disney wasn't informing the guests.
On the lighter side, your WPE meal looks great as usual. Agree it's one of the best values on property. I always say its table service quality at quick service prices, and especially a great deal on the dining plan. Meatloaf and spaghetti are some of our fav choices too.
I'd completely forgotten about the riverside boat to DTD. What a great option. You keep making riverside look better n better ; )
On the lighter side, your WPE meal looks great as usual. Agree it's one of the best values on property. I always say its table service quality at quick service prices, and especially a great deal on the dining plan. Meatloaf and spaghetti are some of our fav choices too.
I'd completely forgotten about the riverside boat to DTD. What a great option. You keep making riverside look better n better ; )
scholastica
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2012
Wow! Now there is something you won't ever be able to forget! It was lucky though there was somewhere for kids to play at, I can't imagine if there hadn't been!
The meatloaf sandwich looks amazing! I could go for one about now!
The meatloaf sandwich looks amazing! I could go for one about now!
TheLittleKatie
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 4, 2014
Following along! Allie is so precious 
We overlapped a bit, we were there 2nd - 16th September. Didn't hear anything about the fire though, that must have been.. Interesting?!
Also, I love your pictures of Port Orleans Riverside. That had been the only place I'd ever stayed until our most recent trip. It's such a lovely place
Looking forward to hearing more
We overlapped a bit, we were there 2nd - 16th September. Didn't hear anything about the fire though, that must have been.. Interesting?!
Also, I love your pictures of Port Orleans Riverside. That had been the only place I'd ever stayed until our most recent trip. It's such a lovely place
Looking forward to hearing more
TheLittleKatie
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 4, 2014
PS. My boyfriend also fell in love with the giant Stitch...!
GrandCalifornian
Can't Wait To Go Back
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2012
just joining in, loving it so far!
I love the baby yeti that Allie got, omg it's so cute! and her yeti impression is just as cute, haha. and adorable pics of you all with Chip & Dale, too!
oh gosh, I remember hearing about that evacuation from AKL and wondering what was going on - glad everything turned out okay!
sounds like a full and awesome day! can't wait to read more
We're glad to have you following along. Baby Yeti is super cute, and is a very portable size, so he got to join in on lots of fun for the rest of the trip.
It was an awesome day, and we were just getting started.
We were in the AKL courtyard for about an hour and a half before we got to head upstairs. The Cast Members were super nice, and let us know that the fire department wasn't letting anyone into the building. They did everything they could to make it nice, and the free water was a nice touch.
We love WPE. The food is just really good, and it is sit down quality and service for a QS credit. It was one of the only QS meals we did more than once this trip...
The boats to DTD from POR are really nice. It is about a 25 minute trip, but it is very pretty and relaxing. They were one of our favorite parts of POR. At some point we'll sum up our thoughts on the resort, and in particular how it compared to WL, but for the money it was a nice option. It has its transportation drawbacks, and we missed being so close to MK and on Bay lake, but POR served us very well.
It was an adventure. Fortunately there was a lot of activities to keep everyone busy, we were just there for a lot longer than we had planned.
I could go for a meatloaf sandwich right ow too, and it is only 8 AM.
Following along! Allie is so precious
We overlapped a bit, we were there 2nd - 16th September. Didn't hear anything about the fire though, that must have been.. Interesting?!
Also, I love your pictures of Port Orleans Riverside. That had been the only place I'd ever stayed until our most recent trip. It's such a lovely place
Looking forward to hearing more
Welcome! We are glad you found our report, and it is neat that you were there for a few days of the trip. This was our first time staying anywhere besides Wilderness Lodge, and we really appreciated the beauty of POR.
We've got a lot more to share and we hope you continue to enjoy it.
That's cool! You gotta love Stitch.
TheMaxRebo
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 12, 2008
The bone yard is a very fun area! We didn't get to play in the sand pit there but did spend some time in the one out front of T-Rex in DTD (it is made using the same small rocks vs. actual sand)
That is so cool about the macaw's flying over you heads - had no idea they did that at AK
The baby yeti is super cute!
Ok, I really enjoyed the poop signs, but if we were ever to debate getting a hippo of our own, the fact that they spin their tails to better spray their poop is a definite show stopper
wow - that is quite the cliff hanger! ... one benefit of being off the DIS for a few days is that I didn't have to wait for the result!
oh man, once they start handing out free drinks you know it is serious!
and wow, to be stuck like that - I mean, obviously safety first but once you hit the hour mark or more and no specific end it sight you all must of felt kinda trapped! And while I guess there are worst places to be trapped (like, behind a hippo flinging it's poop), still not great
You read a lot of positive reviews of WPE but don't often see the meatloaf sandwich featured a lot (generally a lot of pizzas and mac & cheese) - but that looks pretty darn tasty
Goodness, that does sound like a long day - I am sure you all slept well that night. Very cool to see the resort so barren though.
That is so cool about the macaw's flying over you heads - had no idea they did that at AK
The baby yeti is super cute!
Ok, I really enjoyed the poop signs, but if we were ever to debate getting a hippo of our own, the fact that they spin their tails to better spray their poop is a definite show stopper
wow - that is quite the cliff hanger! ... one benefit of being off the DIS for a few days is that I didn't have to wait for the result!
oh man, once they start handing out free drinks you know it is serious!
and wow, to be stuck like that - I mean, obviously safety first but once you hit the hour mark or more and no specific end it sight you all must of felt kinda trapped! And while I guess there are worst places to be trapped (like, behind a hippo flinging it's poop), still not great
You read a lot of positive reviews of WPE but don't often see the meatloaf sandwich featured a lot (generally a lot of pizzas and mac & cheese) - but that looks pretty darn tasty
Goodness, that does sound like a long day - I am sure you all slept well that night. Very cool to see the resort so barren though.
WDWKOOK
NOW WITH LESS TAG!
- Joined
- Mar 10, 2009
Or so you thought
Did she know why you couldn't leave? Thought it might seem odd to a five-year-old that there's a fire, but you can't leave
When in the Animal Kingdom...
NO! Maybe they were for the fire!
YAY! I know she loves her buckets and I bet she was good at this.
Now you know how those poor animals on the savanna feel in the morning.
So how long total were you held captive?
I wonder how your dogs would have felt about GIANT Stitch?
Were you still on CA time? That's late for me, but not for the cute frog. Love all the empty places
I like how the claws are on top of his head.
GrandCalifornian
Can't Wait To Go Back
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2012
We love visiting AKL, but it would have been nice if we got to be inside the building for a while. By the time we got out, we were ready to be somewhere else.
I know! I find myself wanting to stop by for a snack or a mug refill. Too bad I'm 2000 miles away...
Neither did we, we weren't sure what was going on and we talked to one of the animal handler guys about it. He said it was a new thing, and that it was going better than it did at first. I guess they had some birds getting distracted during the free flight at first.
The baby yeti is super cute!
Ok, I really enjoyed the poop signs, but if we were ever to debate getting a hippo of our own, the fact that they spin their tails to better spray their poop is a definite show stopper
wow - that is quite the cliff hanger! ... one benefit of being off the DIS for a few days is that I didn't have to wait for the result!
oh man, once they start handing out free drinks you know it is serious!
and wow, to be stuck like that - I mean, obviously safety first but once you hit the hour mark or more and no specific end it sight you all must of felt kinda trapped! And while I guess there are worst places to be trapped (like, behind a hippo flinging it's poop), still not great
We both laughed a lot at your hippo swinging tail comments. That will probably be an ongoing joke for some time. No matter how bad it is, at least you're not stuck behind a poop slinging hippo.
You read a lot of positive reviews of WPE but don't often see the meatloaf sandwich featured a lot (generally a lot of pizzas and mac & cheese) - but that looks pretty darn tasty
Oh it is. When they have been out of it I have tried the spaghetti and the pizza, but the meatloaf sandwich is by far my favorite, and I've never had one anywhere else.
It became our normal schedule to get back to the resort between 11 and 12 at night, which I guess means we got our money's worth out of each day.
Or so you thought
Did she know why you couldn't leave? Thought it might seem odd to a five-year-old that there's a fire, but you can't leave
Yeah we didn't tell her about there being an actual fire, just that there was an alarm so everybody had to go outside. She was the least bothered by it of any of us, she got to play. We were the ones scratching our heads going "there has to be an outside way out of this courtyard..." I guess that's one more advantage of WL...
When in the Animal Kingdom...
LOL, exactly!
I half expected the CM to pull out one of those magic band readers to charge it to our dining plan...
She had a ball, and after finishing ran right around to get in line to do it again.
Now you know how those poor animals on the savanna feel in the morning.
So how long total were you held captive?
From the time the alarm started until we made it out front it was an hour and a half. Not crazy long, but we were about done there anyway when it started, so it delayed our evening plans a bit, and worse yet we missed out on the AKL gift shop.
I wonder how your dogs would have felt about GIANT Stitch?
Lol, good question. If we had to keep it away from them our potential storage locations for it get even fewer. I could see us explaining why we have an alien on top of our refrigerator...
Were you still on CA time? That's late for me, but not for the cute frog. Love all the empty places
That was pretty much our schedule at WDW, since we often got back to the resort between 11 and 12. After 10 days no wonder we were really tired once we got home...
Yes, that is very cute, and if we had bought him we could recreate that scene in our kitchen at home...
GrandCalifornian
Can't Wait To Go Back
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2012
We got up on Tuesday when the alarm went off at 7:00 AM. Allie was still sleepy because she always is sleepy in the morning, and we had just gotten back to the room about 7 hours earlier.
While Melissa showered and attempted to persuade Allie to get up, I walked over to Riverside Mill and got a waffle platter to bring back to the room and share.
I asked her if she wanted to change into her Elsa dress when we got there or just wear it. She was so excited she decided to just wear it.
We scarfed breakfast and made it to the bus stop ahead of schedule.
The reason for our early morning was that Allie had a BBB appointment at the Magic Kingdom at 9:55. We figured this would be late enough to avoid most of the rope drop rush, but we still wanted to leave some extra time for bus travel so we were at the bus stop by 8:30. A MK bus arrived at 8:31, but filled up before we could get on. A second bus came at 8:42 and we got on.
We then arrived at MK at 8:58 and could see the rope drop ceremonies from the bus stop.
So we kinda made it for rope drop I guess. Getting into the park wasn't really a big deal, we have the bag check and entrance procedures down. Side note, since the premiers are adult tickets they require a fingerprint last year we had issues with this with Allie but this year we had no problems. I think they must have had some sort of meeting or memo about it.
Yes, not one entrance CM had any issue with using your fingerprint for Allie's pass, while we were questioned multiple times about it last year. Perhaps they are figuring out the system.
We headed up main street.
Then we stopped for a couple of photopass pictures and did a little bit of shopping.
We walked through the castle at 9:30, but were still early for our appointment so we headed to the carousel.
We don't often walk through the castle, even at Disneyland so it was a nice thing to do.
Come to think of it I don't think we ever had at the Magic Kingdom before. The carousel was a walk on.
Then we went over and I tried to convice Allie to ride Peter Pan because it was a walk on at that point but she insisted on Small World.
By the time we got out of Small World the line for Peter Pan was too long to ride before her appointment. We walked over and used the Tangled restrooms so that she would be all ready to go for BBB.
The potty break and walk back to the castle took a little longer than I had planned, so we arrived at BBB right at our appointment time, and had to wait in line for about 10 minutes to get in.
I figure as long as we are in line by our appointment time we are fine. No one gave us a hard time at all.
It worked out great though, because Allie wound up with a great stylist. She was part of the college program from Dartmouth and was stydying Marketing. Because she had a beautician's license from prior pageant experience, Disney was using her at BBB.
She was great with Allie and great to talk to. She really wanted to intern with Disney in concierge or some other marketing position but she said she enjoyed getting to work with the kids.
Allie picked the pop star hair style which is slightly more involved then the classic bun that most of the girls seem to get. Between the complicated hairstyle, the amount of her hair, and her crazy cowlicks she was in the chair for a while.
Grandma, Grandpa, and I all enjoyed watching and taking pictures too.
We were impressed with how long she spent with Allie, and everybody was having a great time so it was nice that it lasted a while. I had been concerned that Allie would be disturbed by the fact they didn't offer braids like Elsa's, but the opportuunity for pink spikey hair overwhelmed any concerns she had about it not being like Elsa's real hair.
She is really into weird color hair right now and I haven't let her dye her hair at all so she was all over the pinkness.
As a Daddy it surprises me how much I wind up enjoying BBB. I hadn't been looking forward to it last year, but it wound up being one of the highlights of the trip. This time it was as well, and Allie just loved all the attention from the girls doing the makeover, and this year she even got her fingernails painted too.
When she was done she gave Amber a big hug and we headed off to ride.... Peter Pan, with a 45 minute wait. I had a face palm moment but rolled with it because to not roll with it would be how I'd go insane. Anyway we were in line for about 10 or 15 minutes when the princess decided it was time for a potty. So we hopped out of line leaving Grandma, Grandpa and Daddy, took care of business, then caught back up with them a little later in the line.
In the line Allie got a lot of attention from other guests who liked her dress and her makeover. She decided she wasn't sure about being the center of attention from strangers, but did well with it.
Several ladies asked if they could take her picture and she obliged.
The wait wound up not being too bad for Peter Pan, and we all enjoyed it. On the way out Grandpa got stopped by one of the survey people and gave his positive feedback.
Then we headed to Haunted mansion, which we had snagged fastpasses for right after BBB. We had never ridden it in Florida, and were curious to see how it was different. Allie was a little scared, but wanted to prove that she could do it.
She did great and only seemed to be affected by the stretching room and the end where the hitchhiking ghosts were. She did great and was so proud of herself when she was done.
Allie even said she had fun on Haunted Mansion.
Allie was getting hot and we needed yet another potty break so we stopped off so she could change out of her Elsa dress and into something cooler.
After the potty break and costume change we still had about 20 minutes until our lunch reservation, so we finally got to see Country Bear Jamboree. This had been closed during our trip two years ago and then we never made it last year. It was fun and everybody enjoyed it.
The country bears show was super cute and I remember seeing it at Disneyland before they pulled it out.
The timing worked out great, and the show let out just in time for our lunch ADR...
Next up: Anna likes Allie's Hair! Continued in the next update.
While Melissa showered and attempted to persuade Allie to get up, I walked over to Riverside Mill and got a waffle platter to bring back to the room and share.
I asked her if she wanted to change into her Elsa dress when we got there or just wear it. She was so excited she decided to just wear it.
We scarfed breakfast and made it to the bus stop ahead of schedule.
The reason for our early morning was that Allie had a BBB appointment at the Magic Kingdom at 9:55. We figured this would be late enough to avoid most of the rope drop rush, but we still wanted to leave some extra time for bus travel so we were at the bus stop by 8:30. A MK bus arrived at 8:31, but filled up before we could get on. A second bus came at 8:42 and we got on.
We then arrived at MK at 8:58 and could see the rope drop ceremonies from the bus stop.
So we kinda made it for rope drop I guess. Getting into the park wasn't really a big deal, we have the bag check and entrance procedures down. Side note, since the premiers are adult tickets they require a fingerprint last year we had issues with this with Allie but this year we had no problems. I think they must have had some sort of meeting or memo about it.
Yes, not one entrance CM had any issue with using your fingerprint for Allie's pass, while we were questioned multiple times about it last year. Perhaps they are figuring out the system.
We headed up main street.
Then we stopped for a couple of photopass pictures and did a little bit of shopping.
We walked through the castle at 9:30, but were still early for our appointment so we headed to the carousel.
We don't often walk through the castle, even at Disneyland so it was a nice thing to do.
Come to think of it I don't think we ever had at the Magic Kingdom before. The carousel was a walk on.
Then we went over and I tried to convice Allie to ride Peter Pan because it was a walk on at that point but she insisted on Small World.
By the time we got out of Small World the line for Peter Pan was too long to ride before her appointment. We walked over and used the Tangled restrooms so that she would be all ready to go for BBB.
The potty break and walk back to the castle took a little longer than I had planned, so we arrived at BBB right at our appointment time, and had to wait in line for about 10 minutes to get in.
I figure as long as we are in line by our appointment time we are fine. No one gave us a hard time at all.
It worked out great though, because Allie wound up with a great stylist. She was part of the college program from Dartmouth and was stydying Marketing. Because she had a beautician's license from prior pageant experience, Disney was using her at BBB.
She was great with Allie and great to talk to. She really wanted to intern with Disney in concierge or some other marketing position but she said she enjoyed getting to work with the kids.
Allie picked the pop star hair style which is slightly more involved then the classic bun that most of the girls seem to get. Between the complicated hairstyle, the amount of her hair, and her crazy cowlicks she was in the chair for a while.
Grandma, Grandpa, and I all enjoyed watching and taking pictures too.
We were impressed with how long she spent with Allie, and everybody was having a great time so it was nice that it lasted a while. I had been concerned that Allie would be disturbed by the fact they didn't offer braids like Elsa's, but the opportuunity for pink spikey hair overwhelmed any concerns she had about it not being like Elsa's real hair.
She is really into weird color hair right now and I haven't let her dye her hair at all so she was all over the pinkness.
As a Daddy it surprises me how much I wind up enjoying BBB. I hadn't been looking forward to it last year, but it wound up being one of the highlights of the trip. This time it was as well, and Allie just loved all the attention from the girls doing the makeover, and this year she even got her fingernails painted too.
When she was done she gave Amber a big hug and we headed off to ride.... Peter Pan, with a 45 minute wait. I had a face palm moment but rolled with it because to not roll with it would be how I'd go insane. Anyway we were in line for about 10 or 15 minutes when the princess decided it was time for a potty. So we hopped out of line leaving Grandma, Grandpa and Daddy, took care of business, then caught back up with them a little later in the line.
In the line Allie got a lot of attention from other guests who liked her dress and her makeover. She decided she wasn't sure about being the center of attention from strangers, but did well with it.
Several ladies asked if they could take her picture and she obliged.
The wait wound up not being too bad for Peter Pan, and we all enjoyed it. On the way out Grandpa got stopped by one of the survey people and gave his positive feedback.
Then we headed to Haunted mansion, which we had snagged fastpasses for right after BBB. We had never ridden it in Florida, and were curious to see how it was different. Allie was a little scared, but wanted to prove that she could do it.
She did great and only seemed to be affected by the stretching room and the end where the hitchhiking ghosts were. She did great and was so proud of herself when she was done.
Allie even said she had fun on Haunted Mansion.
Allie was getting hot and we needed yet another potty break so we stopped off so she could change out of her Elsa dress and into something cooler.
After the potty break and costume change we still had about 20 minutes until our lunch reservation, so we finally got to see Country Bear Jamboree. This had been closed during our trip two years ago and then we never made it last year. It was fun and everybody enjoyed it.
The country bears show was super cute and I remember seeing it at Disneyland before they pulled it out.
The timing worked out great, and the show let out just in time for our lunch ADR...
Next up: Anna likes Allie's Hair! Continued in the next update.
scholastica
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2012
Allie looks ADORABLE! Glad she had a great experience!
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