The good, the bad, and the crowded July - Update: August 23

[PopArtGal]

Hey there! Hi there! Oh there! You're as welcome as can be!

Welcome to my tr, new comers. Welcome back, dis friends.

Our traditional July trip has passed.

Our best ever trip was in December 2007, and my mom and I both know it will be very hard to top. But oh well, we are trying. And it'll take as many trips as it has to.

This trip started out with just my mom and I. We had originally booked POR. We have stayed there on previous trips and love the mansions part. Our absolute favorite is the CR, but in order to try and save some money, we decided to be reasonable and book POR.

Well..... our first idea was this:

July: My mom and I would go and save some money by staying at POR. Save money for what?

December: For Christmas we'd go as a family (my parents and I, since I'm an only child), and might stay at the CR.

Well come January, my dad decided that he wanted to come too. So we booked his flight and when it was time to add him to our room ressie he decided we'd be staying concierge at the CR.

So let's just say that for now, there are no talks about going in December. But I'm so not complaining. I am happy to go along with what they decide. Whatever it is, I'll follow as long as I get to Florida and WDW.

So we went to WDW July 15 to 25.

And we flew "Air Canada" from the Montreal airport.

It was a very hot and crowded July.

Now let's start this, shall we?

 

[PopArtGal]

Chapters

 

[PopArtGal]

First of all, there's me. Basically I think I am the main reason we are going to WDW so much. Yes, I. Am. Obsessed!

Well I do think it's because of the other 2 people in the My parents. My first trip at WDW was at 2 years old and I guess it sparked something in me. I am a 29 year old high school teacher (still waiting on tenure). My first degree and qualifications are in arts. I am an Art Education Specialist. But it isn't easy finding full-time contracts in that subject. Because of that about 2 years ago I started a second bachelors degree. This time I am doing it in religion. The reason for that is that I am now a: Ethique et culture religieuse teacher. Basically I teach high schoolers about world religions and how to be able to act and think with ethics on different subjects.

This coming school year will mark my second year at a new school and may lead to tenure.

Now back to Disney. I have a lot of favorite characters. I especially like Timon and Mushu.

I think that's all you need to know about me for now.

 

[PopArtGal]

And now let me talk about my parents. To respect their privacy I won't say too much. Let's say that they are priceless. As an only child, I will forever be their baby and I am thankful for them. I love these vacations as it lets us reconnect in a world where we don't really have obligations. We don't have things to do on vacation other than be together and enjoy our time.

They, like me, hate to have a schedule on vacation. We only have a schedule when it comes to restaurants and it's not because we really want to. It's because we have to.

My mom is my usual WDW companion. She's come with me during all previous trips. We have a great relationship. We like to hang out and rest. We both love Magic Kingdom and Downtown Disney. And we love indulging in WDW. As far as I know her favorite character is the Mouse himself. She's not a big shopper in life, but loves shopping in WDW.

My dad is also a big kid at heart. His favorite character of all is Donald Duck and he does not let us forget about the duck. He spoils me and I am grateful for the support everyday. He's the reason we are going to the Contemporary and on the concierge level. He decided that it's what he wanted to do. So who's to complain right?

 

[PopArtGal]

July 15

We left home around 4 am. I had barely slept that night. I may have slept 30 min, or 1 hour max.
We made it to the airport at around 5:50 or around that. There was no line at the airport check-in. I already had our boarding passes as I did the online check-in and had them printed out. All we had to do was check our bags. It went rather fast, and so did security. Where it slowed down was at customs. We had a customs agent who knew about Disney. When we mentioned the hotel he talked about the monorail.
We then went on the side of the gates and waited for an eternity. Well the down side of all the pre-boarding things going pretty fast is that you have a long time to wait on the other side. I didn’t read as I could not concentrate. We grabbed some Starbucks and waited a bit in that area. After that we went buy the gate and I walked around.
Boarding started around the time that was written on our boarding passes: 7:30am. Our flight was scheduled to depart at 8:05am but it might have been earlier when we left. The flight was uneventful. I was so tired I slept on and off. Well not soundly but it made it go by faster. At one point I tried to watch “Mirror Mirror” but decided to let it go and try to rest some more. About 1 hour before we were to land I decided to read a magazine and look at the map on the tv in front of me. It was the longest hour, but the landing was great.
We landed around 11:02 and soon were at the gate. I’m pretty sure we got there earlier than the scheduled arrival time of 11:32.

 

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

Joining!

 

[tinkerbell60]

Joining in! I am sorry it was crowded, it was not too bad earlier in July.........can't wait to hear all about it!

 

[photographymom517]

You knew I'd be here!! Going back to read!

 

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

Yay for landing early! Boo for no sleep. I know that feeling all too well.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[dolfinjuls]

I'm here! Can't wait to hear about it all!

 

[kmab00]

I'm here! Subscribing!!

 

[anjalee6]

Joining in. Can't wait to see how our July trips compared.

 

[PopArtGal]

We made a few pit stops on the way down to DME, and once we got in line for DME, it was the longest wait time we ever had. I can’t tell you how much time it took, but the line was so long. We finally made our way to the bus, and I realized it was a newer bus. Well at least it was a new bus to me. Sadly, we did not get to see the little welcome video since there was a problem with the GPS/Satellite system. We made our first stop at the Polynesian, then at the Grand Floridian, then the Wilderness lodge, and finally to the Contemporary. By that time, the lovely sun was gone and it was now raining.

As we stepped off we met up with a castmember who escorted us to the check-in desk. I had previously done the online check-in. As my dad gave a picture i.d to the lady, the castmember who had escorted us in informed us that we were to follow her to the concierge desk to complete our check-in. As we stepped into the elevator we noticed that they had changed the key card readers inside. And sadly, that castmembers “key” did not work. We tried several elevators with no luck. Finally, she asked someone else for help and we were on our way to the floor. Our check-in went quickly, and we got the room we had requested: 4801. It was the same as last year, and we had loved it. It the last room on the Bay Lake side, above Chef Mickey.

 

[PopArtGal]

Joining!

Joining in! I am sorry it was crowded, it was not too bad earlier in July.........can't wait to hear all about it!

It definetly was crowded. I found it harder to manage than past Julys.

You knew I'd be here!! Going back to read!

A Banana for you hehe

Yay for landing early! Boo for no sleep. I know that feeling all too well.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

I know. It was the first time that it had happened and it was not pleasant at all.

I'm here! Can't wait to hear about it all!

I'm here! Subscribing!!

Joining in. Can't wait to see how our July trips compared.

 

[disneybarbie]

Subscribing!


Emma x

 

[PopArtGal]

Subscribing!


Emma x

Welcome!

 

[Mindy5767]

Joining!

Joining in! I am sorry it was crowded, it was not too bad earlier in July.........can't wait to hear all about it!

You knew I'd be here!! Going back to read!

I'm here! Can't wait to hear about it all!

Subscribing!


Emma x

I'm so excited!! Its a reunion!!
I'm too am sorry the crowding was so bad. It was not so horrible when Wendy and I were there the first week of July. I expected worse for the 4th than it was... although my husband did learn the meaning of Red days and Green days the hard way!

 

[solana131]

I'm joining in too! I was there the 18th-23rd (POFQ). It's funny....I had only been in February before this and I was expecting the worst as far as tour groups and crowds. I was pleasantly surprised. Don't get me wrong...it was by far worse than the first week in Feb, but I thought it was very manageable. We got up early to hit EMH or opening almost every day. Then took a break mid-day and headed back around sun-down.

Well, anyway...good start, can't wait to read more!

 

[PopArtGal]

I'm joining in too! I was there the 18th-23rd (POFQ). It's funny....I had only been in February before this and I was expecting the worst as far as tour groups and crowds. I was pleasantly surprised. Don't get me wrong...it was by far worse than the first week in Feb, but I thought it was very manageable. We got up early to hit EMH or opening almost every day. Then took a break mid-day and headed back around sun-down.

Well, anyway...good start, can't wait to read more!

I don't know why I felt this way this year. A lot of things may have come together to make me feel this way. But the worst was the night we went to the dessert party.... it was a madhouse. MK was packed from side to side and I saw at least 5 BTGs on main street. I normally am a relaxed person who just goes with the flow, but the crowds really got to me this time.

 

[PopArtGal]

We toured the room, and rested a few minutes. Sadly, I have to say that the new rooms are already starting to show some wear. The drapes have some stains on them, and the walls in the bathroom show some places that lack paint. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a nice hotel, but I’m sad that it’s already starting to go down in the looks department.
We decided to go down to the Contempo café since we were getting hungry. At that time it must have been around 1pm. We got grilled chicken sandwiches with homemade chips. Yum!
We walked around the hotel stores a bit, I saw some cute things but didn’t buy anything. By that time, the lack of sleep was really making it’s presence known. We soon made our way back to the room and I fell asleep. I slept for about 2 hours. When I woke up, it was 5pm and we still had not received our luggage. My dad and I decided to go to the lounge to grab some things to snack on and ask about our luggage. As we were walking in the hallway, we saw that the bellhop was coming towards our room with our luggage! Finally! So we turned around to go to the room and make sure everything was there.
After that we walked to the lounge and grabbed some appetizers, bread and cheese. It was yummy. And it was plenty for that day. The rain had stopped but looking at the time it was, we decided against going to the Magic Kingdom. We did not want to use our park passes for only one hour. So since my mom and I did not want to turn in that early we decided that we wanted to go to Downtown Disney.
As usual, the bus ride was not comfy. Why? Well because the A/C was making it freezing! How can someone survive that? It was aweful. We were thankful to be able to get off that bus and into the warmth of Florida. Our first stop was the Christmas store. Awe, I love Christmas. It’s my fave holiday. You have to understand that it’s not the day of that I love. It’s the season. I love decorating, and the food, and the music. So I love Christmas Stores. I saw a few items that I might buy, but didn’t right away. Our next stop was the Pantry. That is where I found the travel cup I have had my eyes on since I saw it online. It’s the “monorail” cup. I love it!! I was really excited that it was still in stores. My parents grabbed a few items too. Our next stop was Tren-D where we salivated over some purses hehe Well we decided to wait and see what they had at the Magic Kingdom so we didn’t buy our purses yet. Yes, we were both planning on getting purses. We did find clothes though. My mom bought a “Tokidoki” hoodie and I bought a cute dress that I could wear to work. We then ate our “dinner” at Ghirardelli. It was a madhouse in there. We had to walk around a few minutes before we finally found a table. We got our yummy order and started digging in. My mom got her usual chocolate milkshake, my dad got a chocolate ice cream cone, and I got a butterscotch sundae. Well in the middle of my sundae I realized that there were nuts. And that realization came as I chewed a handful of them. I had asked for no nuts as I am allergic. As soon as I realized that I went to see if I could get a replacement. The guys were really apologetic and fixed me a new one right away. While I waited I drank a few glasses of water, hoping to avoid an allergic reaction. I got my replacement sundae and ate some. I had no allergic reaction. It’s mostly a nut intolerance that makes my throat scratchy, but my doctor said to avoid nuts in order not to develop a stronger allergy. So I was glad to be ok.