10 Days in October: Argle-Bargle or Foofarah? UPDATED: POSTS #984 & 995!!!

[jakenjess]

Two trip reports and a dining report! That should get me through until October!

 

[kikigirl]

Oh, you poor thing... I hope you're feeling better now, but you must have really felt awful if you ended up with colon removal. Do you mind my asking just how restricted your diet is? Bless your heart...I want to send you some cake now.

Thanks so much Brenda. It was very hard, especially for my parents (I'm an only child). I am feeling much better now thanks. In fact, when I was in the hospital, they promised me a trip to WDW...mom actually read one of our WDW books to me when I was really sick. The thought of going back there someday kept my spirits a little higher.

My diet is restricted- no nuts, no seeds, no peas, no corn, no popcorn, no steak (or other rough meats like corned beef), and for a long time, no fresh fruits (except bananas) or veggies. I was told I can eat fresh stuff again...and so far, I've eaten fresh carrots and lettuce. Most of my veggies come from a can and are thoroughly cooked. At least I can have chocolate (just not too much of it) because to me, a life without chocolate is just not cool. I remember reading in some of the literature that I can't eat really spicy stuff, but I want a little bit of heat. I have to make sure I chew everything really really well.

Cake?! I love cake! LOL

Can't wait to read the next part!

Kiki

 

[LisaDKG]

Brenda?
May I call you Brenda?
After that many pages and anti-pants details I feel I know you?! This has been my first oybolshoi report but I can pretty well guarantee that I will be here, tomorrow, catching up on the others. You set a pretty high standard.
Can I say that the cocktail recipes really set the mood and add a certain je ne c'est hoo hah? I have learned that my bar shelf is severely lacking. And that my next trip may require a mascot...
Thanks for the great read(s)!

 

[oybolshoi]

***Please don't be concerned...you didn't overlook the 56 pages that will make up the rest of Day 8 because I haven't written them yet. I'm jumping the tracks if you will, to post some pictures and information about a behind the scenes tour Jon, Jason, and I took early on Thursday morning. MAPiglet Fan booked this tour for her sweetie and they're headed to WDW next month and I know she's been waiting for this portion of the trip report for something like a decade now. Thank you all for humoring me...and for any of our British and European friends...thank you for humouring me. All credit goes to CMP111 for that idea! ***

Thursday, October 26th - Disney's Behind the Magic of our Steam Trains Tour

Here's how the tour is described: Get an insider’s look at one of Walt Disney's greatest passions, steam trains. You'll join the opening crew as they prepare the Magic Kingdom's steam trains for their daily operation. You’ll visit the backstage roundhouse where these treasured transports are maintained and stored. All aboard for a ride on the Lilly Belle, Roy O. Disney, Walter E. Disney or Roger E. Broggie.

The tours are offered Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday mornings at the Magic Kingdom for $40 per person. The tour starts at 7:30AM and lasts for three hours - you have to be at MK Guest Services by 7:15AM to check in.

15% discounts are offered for Annual Passholders and AAA members; 20% for DVC and Disney Visa cardholders. We used our DVC membership to get a discount.

So, why on earth did we book this tour?

Jon.

Jon loves trains. I'm talking crazy, obsessive, stalker-guy love...for trains. So crazy that he and his buddies hop in their cars on certain evenings and weekends and chase trains all over rural Illinois and Missouri, taking pictures and shooting video...of trains. And when you mention steam trains, Jon gets a mad glint in his eye and he turns into Professor Locomotion and things just spiral out of control from there.

Don't misunderstand...I'm not putting Jon down for his fascination with trains. Just because it's not something I'm interested in doesn't mean it's not worthwhile. Do you know how many times this man watched "Gone With the Wind" while I was growing up?

More times than there are whiskers on a hillbilly's chin.

I'm a Civil War geek...Jon's a train geek...Jason's an astronomy geek...now let's have a game of Trivial Pursuit!

So what's my point? I don't really have one, I'm just killing time while all the pictures upload to Photobucket.

Just kidding.......

or am I?

We knew Jon would really enjoy taking this tour. And Jay and I thought it would be kind of cool to see a side of the Magic Kingdom that guests aren't normally given a chance to explore. So, we treated Jon to the tour...along with ourselves and a stowaway.


The tour can be booked 90 days in advance and has apparently become very popular, so I recommend booking as soon as possible. Grimace and I discussed the tour before I reserved it last summer, and I'm sure none of you will be surprised to learn that she had no interest in coming along for the ride.

The first thing I will point out is that getting to the MK by 7:15AM poses something of a logistical problem for anyone staying on property who does not have a car. Buses for the character breakfasts start running at 7AM - that's not enough time to get from the Beach Club to the MK.

Our only option was to take a cab. Which meant that we had to get up really early Thursday morning.

How early?

If I may quote a dear DIS-friend...

"the butt-crack of stupid."

Those Look Like Pants...

It was so early I'd forgotten to change glasses - I have an old, beat-up pair I wear around the house on weekends or when I'm getting ready for work; saves wear and tear on the "good" pair. And yes...I'm wearing pants. Those are my comfy yoga pants; I knew it was going to be cold and I knew that this tour was outdoors. The only way I was going to survive the morning was with pants.

I think we were down at bell services by about 6:30AM that morning - they called a cab and we were on our way. But for some reason the driver said he couldn't drop us off at the Magic Kingdom - he ended up dumping us out in the parking lot of the Contemporary and we had to walk over to the MK from there...in the dark and the cold and the non-coffee filled morning.

Why Are We Here?

You know it's bad when Jason takes a picture that turns out like this...but I wanted to show everyone how dark it still was at 7AM that morning.

We were met by our tour guide, Jack, who has been working on the WDW railroad for something like 15 years. He had the official tour group clipboard and after verifying our IDs and making sure we all had our theme park tickets he presented us each with nametags.

Yeah, I know...this picture isn't of that moment in time, but what's a girl to do?

Slowly but surely other members of the tour group shuffled towards us, eyes unfocused, gait unsteady, mouths hanging open...sort of like this:

Hey, look at what you can see once the sun rises! There's our ride for the morning.

Here is Jack - a very personable and knowledgable WDW train conductor and tour guide. And see the gentleman to his right wearing the Grumpy sweatshirt? That guy was like the male version of Grimace. He apparently was a big train buff but he sure was throwing off an unhappy vibe for most of the morning.

Before we entered the park, Jack introduced himself to everyone and then had the rest of us also introduce ourselves. And then we took a few extra pictures.

This second picture I just couldn't resist taking and I apologize for the early morning blurries. I'm sure that some of these fine people are waiting to be admitted to the MK for breakfast reservations they have at Crystal Palace...but not all of them. I think it was an extra magic hour that morning and a lot of that crowd was waiting to get into the park. And they were giving all of us the giant eyeball, especially when we were admitted to the park while they had to stand there and watch. I know it's juvenile but I felt the urge to stick out my tongue and yell, "nanny nanny boo-boo!"

We followed Jack up to the Main Street train station and paused to take a picture of a relatively empty MK.

In all honesty, this was the highlight of the tour as far as I was concerned. How often do you get to stand inside the MK and see the first rays of early morning light touch Cinderella's castle when there is almost no one else in the park? The whole of Main Street was beautiful and silent - I could have stayed there quite happily until park opening.

I don't have notes about the tour, which tells you just how much I was paying attention. I'm just going to give a general overview of what I remember and post some of the pictures we took. If anyone has any questions feel free to ask and I'll do my best to answer.

While waiting in the station for the train to take us through part of the MK on the way to the roundhouse we were given a lot of history about steam trains and Walt Disney's love of trains which dated back to his childhood when he actually worked on them.

A lot of what the guides share with guests on this tour is very interesting, I just don't remember enough detail to include in this trippie because I'd probably end up getting it wrong.

Here are some pictures from back at the roundhouse where they do all the maintenance work on the trains.

Did you know that the WDW railroad has four engines? Three of them are named after members of the Disney family, but the fourth one is the one that we got to spend time playing around with.

Roger Broggie was an Imagineer - probably one of the most influential ones to ever work with Walt Disney - and he shared a love of steam trains with Walt. He even helped Walt Disney to design a scale model steam train that they built in his backyard and which they would ride around on! You'll hear more about Walt's personal train and Roger Broggie on the actual tour.

Update TBC...

 

[lamagique]

FIRST!

okay, i am sure it's a great installment... now i will read it!

 

[lamagique]

i did! i can't wait to read more!

 

[lawyergirl]

Slowly but surely other members of the tour group shuffled towards us, eyes unfocused, gait unsteady, mouths hanging open...sort of like this:

OMG! Shawn of the Dead!!!! Brenda, I heart you!!!

Great installment to the trippie, but is it wrong that I am so ADD that I might have missed out on the fact that you didn't get to finish Day 8 had you not mentioned it...

(Oh, and Canadians also stick random "u"s into words like honour and colour... So thank you on behalf of your Northern friends as well!! )

 

[cntkg1]

B. Great update. Loved the picture of Plankton with the engineer. Priceless! (and shameless if I do say so myself)

 

[Karen Mouse]

***

If I may quote a dear DIS-friend...

"the butt-crack of stupid."

Great phrase

In all honesty, this was the highlight of the tour as far as I was concerned. How often do you get to stand inside the MK and see the first rays of early morning light touch Cinderella's castle when there is almost no one else in the park? The whole of Main Street was beautiful and silent - I could have stayed there quite happily until park opening.

I think I just might of stayed there

Ahhh, he looks so happy with Planky - "Look Planky - no Grimace in sight!!

Update TBC...

brilliant AGAIN!

 

[Twingle]

Oh, dur. I am ashamed to say that I was trying to figure out why there were pumpkin decorations in those photos of the Castle.

Well, duh, Twingle. The trip was in OCTOBER.

Off to bed to pick up the brain I left in there this am when the rest of my body got up.

 

[MA pigletfan]

you are the BEST-EST!!
That was so sweet of you to post that update for me..i love it! I am forwarding this to Greg right now.. whoohoo!
He is going to be so excited about the trains, and i am with you, a nearly empty MK...i'm all about it!

 

[zweihund]

That tour looks awesome! That and the Segway tour are on our to-do list. Maybe when our Canadian comes to town in July......

And you referenced Shaun of the Dead! How could it get any better?

(we just saw Hot Fuzz, which I highly recommend if you have not)

 

[BriarRosie]

Jon is the cutest thing. You can tell he really enjoyed hamming it up with
Plankton. I'm glad you were able to share this with him.

 

[oybolshoi]

Thanks so much Brenda. It was very hard, especially for my parents (I'm an only child). I am feeling much better now thanks. In fact, when I was in the hospital, they promised me a trip to WDW...mom actually read one of our WDW books to me when I was really sick. The thought of going back there someday kept my spirits a little higher.

Good for you; I'm glad to hear that you're feeling better and you have a WDW trip to look forward to. If anyone deserves it I think you do.

My diet is restricted- no nuts, no seeds, no peas, no corn, no popcorn, no steak (or other rough meats like corned beef), and for a long time, no fresh fruits (except bananas) or veggies. I was told I can eat fresh stuff again...and so far, I've eaten fresh carrots and lettuce. Most of my veggies come from a can and are thoroughly cooked. At least I can have chocolate (just not too much of it) because to me, a life without chocolate is just not cool. I remember reading in some of the literature that I can't eat really spicy stuff, but I want a little bit of heat. I have to make sure I chew everything really really well.

Cake?! I love cake! LOL

Can't wait to read the next part!

Kiki

Seeds and nuts are over-rated anyway! I avoid them like the plague just to be on the safe side. And thank goodness you didn't have to give up chocolate...that would have been cruel and unusual punishment.

Spicy food, sauces, BBQ, lots of veggies...these are some of my dietary enemies. But I'm not complaining...I haven't even gotten to the point of needing surgery for treatment (thank goodness) so I know that I've been very lucky.

Thanks again for reading!

Brenda? May I call you Brenda?
After that many pages and anti-pants details I feel I know you?! This has been my first oybolshoi report but I can pretty well guarantee that I will be here, tomorrow, catching up on the others. You set a pretty high standard.
Can I say that the cocktail recipes really set the mood and add a certain je ne c'est hoo hah? I have learned that my bar shelf is severely lacking. And that my next trip may require a mascot...Thanks for the great read(s)!

Lisa...where have you been all of my DIS-life?

I read your post and nearly soiled myself from laughing so hard.

First of all... woo hoo!!! Another new reader and poster!! Welcome to the party and thanks to taking the time to read and comment - I love to know what people think, even if it's nothing more than, "For the love of all that is holy would you please put on some pants???"

I'm glad you've enjoyed the cocktails...there will be more to come but I need to ration it a bit. Don't want anyone imbibing too much.

And vacation mascots, as we have learned, really add an extra dimension of madness to a trip. It's been fun to see who can come up with the most demented picture ideas.

Thank you so much for reading!

FIRST!
okay, i am sure it's a great installment... now i will read it!

i did! i can't wait to read more!

Lamagique...thanks for popping in to read!

OMG! Shawn of the Dead!!!! Brenda, I heart you!!!

We love this movie...can watch it over and over again and it's never not funny!

Great installment to the trippie, but is it wrong that I am so ADD that I might have missed out on the fact that you didn't get to finish Day 8 had you not mentioned it...

Thanks for reading - glad you liked it! And no, it's not wrong that you wouldn't have noticed the missing pieces of Day 8. If I hadn't put that in there I would have forgotten to go back and include it...now that's bad!

I'm actually trying to figure out a better way to make updates accessible for people in the next TR...I'm tossing around a few ideas for that one, but this one is just gonna have to muddle on to the end as is.

(Oh, and Canadians also stick random "u"s into words like honour and colour... So thank you on behalf of your Northern friends as well!! )

I didn't know that. Well, thank you for humouring me.

B. Great update. Loved the picture of Plankton with the engineer. Priceless! (and shameless if I do say so myself)

Thanks Nancy!

brilliant AGAIN!

Thanks for reading Karen and thank you for the butt-crack comment.

And your comment about Jon and Plankton smiling due to a lack of Grimace...

Oh, dur. I am ashamed to say that I was trying to figure out why there were pumpkin decorations in those photos of the Castle.

Well, duh, Twingle. The trip was in OCTOBER.

Off to bed to pick up the brain I left in there this am when the rest of my body got up.

Twingle don't be too hard on yourself...you've got enough to occupy your attention as it is. But I must admit that your post cracked me up, so thanks for sharing!

 

[oybolshoi]

you are the BEST-EST!! That was so sweet of you to post that update for me..i love it! I am forwarding this to Greg right now.. whoohoo! He is going to be so excited about the trains, and i am with you, a nearly empty MK...i'm all about it!

Hi Gina - glad you liked it! I do have a little more to add this evening so be on the lookout. And it was a pretty cool tour - I think you'll enjoy it, too.

That tour looks awesome! That and the Segway tour are on our to-do list. Maybe when our Canadian comes to town in July......

I would definitely recommend the Train tour at least once to anyone. You get to see some cool stuff and hear some really neat WDW stories. And you get to ride the train through a paritally empty MK!

Jay and I are doing the Segway tour in October. We were considering it and then BriarRoise was kind enough to tell me about her last Segway Tour and we were sold. It sounds like it will be really cool!

And you referenced Shaun of the Dead! How could it get any better?

(we just saw Hot Fuzz, which I highly recommend if you have not)

I had no idea Shaun of the Dead was so popular...no one at work even knew what I was talking about when I brought it up one day, and three of our department employees are males 25 or younger. How is it that I have seen this movie and they haven't???

Movie recommendation duly noted! Thank you.

Jon is the cutest thing. You can tell he really enjoyed hamming it up with Plankton. I'm glad you were able to share this with him.

Thanks, Lori.

I hate to say this, but the man had so much more fun when we got him out of the Grimace's clutches. He's like a big kid.

 

[mlill]

You know, I STILL can't believe that we missed each other by 4 DAYS! It's inconceivable! We went on the Train Tour on October 30th! Steve & Jon would get along famously! Does Jon have model trains, too? When we took the tour, we got to go in the Roy O. Disney engine. I thought the roundhouse was pretty cool, but the background info started to get a bit much for me after 3+ hours... (don't tell Steve I said that! )

 

[Kay7979]

I've had fun catching up with your report. I left off at the Brenda pantless episode so, as you can see, I had a lot of reading to do. Loved the cartoon reference. We use lines from that one, too. "I will pet him and pat him and call him George."

The Food and Wine Festival episode and pics were great. You tried a lot more foods than we did. Some of your selections looked really good.

The steam train tour looks like fun. I'm glad at least one of the parental units found something of particular interest at Disney. Too bad there's no casino tour for your mom.

 

[50 years Too!]

Brenda,

Only two more days!
Have a great trip.

Deb

 

[disgrits]

Another great one, girl. I love the train station in the dark and then in the light. It's the best time of day, I think. Your pics are so vibrant; they really show how clean and crisp everything is at WDW. Have a great trip....enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!

 

[oybolshoi]

You know, I STILL can't believe that we missed each other by 4 DAYS! It's inconceivable! We went on the Train Tour on October 30th! Steve & Jon would get along famously! Does Jon have model trains, too?

"I do not think this words means what you think it does."

Oh yes, Jon is Mr. Model Train. When the weather is too nasty for he and his buddies to chase trains they get together at someone's house and "play" trains instead.

They're so cute, aren't they?

When we took the tour, we got to go in the Roy O. Disney engine. I thought the roundhouse was pretty cool, but the background info started to get a bit much for me after 3+ hours... (don't tell Steve I said that! )

I think that Roy was the other train that was running that morning while we were "preparing" Roger. And I agree about the information overload...by the end of the tour I was ready to go to Epcot and have some food, but our guide just kept talking and talking and talking...

I've had fun catching up with your report. I left off at the Brenda pantless episode so, as you can see, I had a lot of reading to do. Loved the cartoon reference. We use lines from that one, too. "I will pet him and pat him and call him George."

Glad to see you again Kay! Hope you are doing well. Jay and I love to use that line...we use it on our cat all the time.

The Food and Wine Festival episode and pics were great. You tried a lot more foods than we did. Some of your selections looked really good.

I was pleasantly surprised by how good some of those samples were. And there is plenty more F&W sampling to come...eventually.

The steam train tour looks like fun. I'm glad at least one of the parental units found something of particular interest at Disney. Too bad there's no casino tour for your mom.

Jon always has a good time when no one is around to make him act his age.

Brenda,

Only two more days!
Have a great trip.

Deb

Hi Deb! Thanks so much.

Another great one, girl. I love the train station in the dark and then in the light. It's the best time of day, I think. Your pics are so vibrant; they really show how clean and crisp everything is at WDW. Have a great trip....enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!

Paige! How are you? Busy busy busy? Thanks for reading - I thought the pictures (those that aren't blurry) turned out really well. Photography is not our strong point.

Thanks for the trip wishes - catch up with you when we get back.