12 days at bwv, LIVE! You name it, we’re probably doing it. *DAY 8 with PICS p7#100*

[MissMet]

Welcome to my trip report!​

If you’re coming from my ptr, thanks for coming over.

If you’re new to my tr, let me get some of the details together for you...

This is an ADULTS ONLY trip at the Boardwalk Resort for 12 days beginning tomorrow (9/28). Yeah! Characters Gone Wild!!! Whew!! Just kidding! I say adults only just for those who, like me, especially enjoy TRs from an all adult perspective.

The cast:

Me (Lisa)- I’m just shy of 24. I grew up with WDW in my life & feel so blessed that I did. I was ready to buy into DVC at the age of 17, but felt I better finish school first, so I convinced my parents to purchase and then I finally bought two years ago. My goal is to have DVC paid off before I’m married, so that way my family will enjoy “free” WDW vacations...one less expense to worry about. My favorite resort is Boardwalk since a special Mother/Daughter trip where we did a split stay at CR Tower with a MK view & BWI. My favorite “ride” is Mickey’s Philharmagic. Growing up it was Small World & Kitchen Caberet/Food Rocks. I had the Small World book with the cassette that you would read along with & it had the song in the background... I would drive my older brother CRAZY playing it over & over.


Mom (Rose)- She is 59 years old, don’t tell anyone. She loves WDW as well. She says she could just sit with my dad on Mainstreet the entire trip, but we all know she’s the wild one of the bunch & that would only last maybe a day. She was one of those mom’s that would force her kid onto every ride, whether they were scared or not. Thanks mom. To this day I love to tease her about this fact & reflect on those terrifying rides on Maelstrom & Haunted Mansion. She also has to be one of the most sarcastic people I know & I have her to thank for my sense of humor. Her favorite resort is the Boardwalk. Her favorite ride is Space Mountain & screams on every drop & jolt. Riding it with her makes it even more fun than the ride actually is.


Dad (Don)- He is 61 years old and has learned in his 39 years of marriage to just go with the flow. He loves WDW & could sit on Mainstreet or at the Boardwalk for his entire trip. I have him to thank for my fear of scary rides... Thanks dad! His favorite resort is Beach Club, although we have yet to stay there and his favorite ride is probably Ellen’s... he loves his power naps! I think in the 20 years we’ve been going he has yet to see that whole ride.



Like I said, we will be staying at the BWV for 12 days. The last time I went to wdw was 20 months ago & the last time with my parents was over 2 years ago, so it will be nice. My mom & I are checking in tomorrow. My dad is at a business conference & will be flying in late Thursday night. This trip has been almost a year in the making. It is a VERY special trip. This will be the first trip in five years that my mom will be visiting wdw without the need of a wheelchair. For everyone’s sanity I will not go through the long story. If you would like all the details & see all the crazy changes this trip has gone through, feel free to head over to my PTR: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2217047

What you can expect in this TR, among other things:

sarcasm
lots of pics
F&W food pics
water pics
sarcasm
daily updates
at least one tour
very possibly, parasailing
“characters in flight” ride
sarcasm
Wishes Dessert Party
my parent's first time on EE (they insist they're not going on, but they are!)
everyone's first time on TSM & American Idol experience
& most important, FUN

On this trip I will be bouncing back & forth from my point-and-shoot camera, Olympus Stylus 790 SW (waterproof) & my still somewhat new Nikon dslr D60. I bought this camera to force myself to learn on, however I am ashamed to say, I’m still not comfortable to use it off of auto mode, so don’t expect awe-inspiring. When I get home I’m taking classes! Ok, that was a random thought, but I’m gonna go with it. Yes, when I get home I’m taking lessons & I feel you all should know.

Well, that’s all I can think of tonight. If I don’t get a sudden thought, I’ll talk to you guys tomorrow after my first complete day at Disney!!!!

Oh, by the way... I'm a recovering DISboard SMILLIESaholic. I will try & keep the smillies in control, but they are just so cute!


Up Next: Let the fun begin! I’m at WDW during the final week of the NY Met's season... THANK GOD!

 

[MissMet]

​

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

I'm just coming in to say good luck with the Live TR and I hope you find the time to update.

 

[annnewjerz]

I'm in!! You should be at (or on your way) to WDW by now. Can't wait to hear all about the trip!!

 

[heaven2dc]

Came over from your PTR and can't wait to read all about F&W Festival! Hope you, your mom & dad have tons of fun!

 

[sisaaliyah]

Can't wait to read your report and hear all about the BWV. I just found your TR from your post on the BWV renovation photos thread. We'll be staying there for the first time in two months. Day after Thanksgiving trip!

 

[lily23]

Followed you.Have a great time.

 

[DisneyJen]

Can't wait for the fun to begin!

I followed you over here from the DVC BoardWalk Renovation Thread.

Looking forward to seeing my home-away-from-home ... as well as following your fun in the sun!

 

[MissMet]

I'm just coming in to say good luck with the Live TR and I hope you find the time to update.

Thanks! I'm also hoping to have time each night for my tr posts. Because we have 12 days we are taking it a lot easier, so I don't think it will be too hard.

I'm in!! You should be at (or on your way) to WDW by now. Can't wait to hear all about the trip!!

Glad you came over! Just close your eyes whenever I post a pic with the Nikon.

Came over from your PTR and can't wait to read all about F&W Festival! Hope you, your mom & dad have tons of fun!

So glad you came over! We had a great day & I'm about to go write it up. Stay tunes F&W pics coming soon.

Can't wait to read your report and hear all about the BWV. I just found your TR from your post on the BWV renovation photos thread. We'll be staying there for the first time in two months. Day after Thanksgiving trip!

Oh, what an awesome trip you have planned. Well, if you have any questions about the BW, let me know while I'm here & I'll try & answer them.

Followed you.Have a great time.

So glad you made it over.

Can't wait for the fun to begin!

I followed you over here from the DVC BoardWalk Renovation Thread.

Looking forward to seeing my home-away-from-home ... as well as following your fun in the sun!

Pics will be up soon & we definitely had sun!

 

[B&WMickey]

Looking forward to seeing your F&W pics since we’ll be there in about a month and are anxious to see what are some good choices for us to use our snack credits from DP on.

 

[annnewjerz]

Glad you came over! Just close your eyes whenever I post a pic with the Nikon.

Uh oh! This could mean one of two things. A) the pictures are going to be horrible and I should avoid looking directly at them (which I doubt) or B) you think I own a ::gasp:: CANON! I totally do not! We may differ in our love of baseball teams, but when it comes to cameras we're on the same page. I, too, had a D60 before upgrading to the D90---so I'm excited to see what you end up with, even if they're all in auto mode.

 

[jekjones1558]

I also followed your from DVC board and can't wait to see the flat screen and armoire. As far as I know, you will be the FIRST to post a photo of the new TVs at BWV! Thanks for taking vacation time to feed us BWV lovers!

 

[mhmcduff]

This looks like it is going to be GOOD!!- Have a great trip and I am in!!!
Also will be arriving on the 7th so advice for Food and Wine - what to get and what to avoid would be great!!

 

[Lizziejane]

Hey Lisa,

I'm so glad I found you as you're just beginning your trip! I am planning a family trip for January - me, hubby and our two sons ages 21 and 23 and we'll be staying at our favorite - the BWV! I'm soooo looking forward to the "adult" perspective, especially as you're about the same age as my oldest. We've been 3 times before, but this will be the first time we're all legal to drink, so I'd really appreciate it if you could let me know where the cool watering-holes are for 23-year olds!!

Looking forward to your report...!

 

[MissMet]

Well, Day 1 of this amazing trip is complete, so now it’s time to fill you all in. Just a warning this is gonna be a long one.

For those of you who did not read my ptr. We have actually been in Florida since Tues night. We were visiting some family in Ocala, Fl.

Anyway...

After staying about until about 1 am doing last minute things, I finally called it a night. I had set my alarm for 6am, but I really could have gone without it. I was so excited I woke up every hour. Finally at 5:45am I got up. I had bought my mom a special souvenir & had it wrapped & waiting for her by the coffee pot. She loved it.


I had some last minute things to pack up, then it was my job to pack up the car, for the two of us. Anti-overpackers please look away now. Here is our rented PT cruiser packed up & ready to go for the TWO of us to go to wdw.


Can we say a little out of control?? Oh & yes, the backseat is folded down to accommodate the luggage. Now I will go on the record & say that yes I do overpack- I can’t help it. However, I’m not near as bad as my mother. Do you know of anyone else who checks into a hotel, especially one at wdw, with leftovers???! Yeah, she did. “Hi we’re checking in. 3 suitcases & a bag of leftovers.” Yeah, it’s bad. While at my family’s house we had Sonny’s BBQ, which is not available in NY. Well, my parents are obsessed with it. Since my dad is off at a conference my mom felt the need to pack a plate of leftovers for him. So we checked in this morning with a bag of leftovers! After packing up the van. I was told that we had to drop my aunt’s garbage off at the dump. Ummmm... okaaaaay. So instead of unpacking the entire half of the PT cruiser, I got left & this took my place:
[img=http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/4771/p9280233.jpg]

My mom got back from the dump & we were finally ready to leave. But wait! My mom had to have Dunkin Donuts. She has been watching her weight & was dying to have some hash browns. So we headed over to DD. HUGE mistake. We ordered two boston cream donuts, one hash browns & a coffee. Kind of hard to mess that up right? Oh, no. We’re in Florida folks. First of we get up to the window & the lady behind the counter hands us a bag with the two donuts & the coffee. She then disappears for 2 minutes. She then reappears walking through the parking lot. Oookaaay. I look through the bag to get out our donuts & there’s something wrong... wrong donuts. I opened the bag & saw no chocolate frosting. I then lifted the donuts & still saw no frosting. She reappears in the window & we give them back & tell her they’re wrong. She hands them back & says they’re right, just up-side-down. Now when it comes to me & my boston cream donuts I don’t mess around! I take the bag back & flip them completely over this time. Now, I don’t know about you guys, but this is not how we get out boston cream donuts in NY. Fine whatever. We begin to eat them as we sit there waiting for the hash browns. We sit for about another 4 minutes. During these four minutes the window of the drive through is opening & shutting like every 20 seconds. We don’t know what is going on in there, but we don’t know what to think. Now it’s 15 minutes of sitting at the window for a stinking cup of hashbrowns! The window opens for what felt like the 150th time & our girl reappears. She then asks us to pull over into a parking spot & she will bring them when they are ready. Okay, maybe I’m missing something, but usually you’d think at now 8am, probably DD busiest time that maybe I don’t know, they’d have some food! It’s fried potato for goodness sake! 20 minutes later we finally get the long awaited hash browns. Really at this point I was expecting my mom to pull out a cup of solid gold hash browns. This is what we got.


We were so beyond annoyed, I think we laughed about half of the way to wdw. It really was crazy & a really weird experience to say the least. So finally, we actually are on the road. I was the navigator. I never recommend Mapquest, but they actually did a good job. We got to the BWV in exactly an hour. It was a nice drive & it went buy really quick. We arrived at BWV & the valet took the bags & car- poor guy! Check in was a breeze, or so we thought. There was a small hiccup you’ll hear about later. After checking in we walked the boardwalk & then to my GREATLY saddened eyes I turned the corner & saw this!!!


Noooooo! One of my main objectives this trip was to get as many BW photos as I could. Hoping it’s down before I leave. Also, there are construction walls up at the front of the resort, as well as the dtd marketplace bus stop is still closed, until at least Thursday. the MK bakery is closed until the 6th, hoping it stays on track, as well as others. After we walked the bw, we picked up the car, gassed it up at the hess & returned it to the Dolphin resort. It was about 10:15 by then so we lazily walked over to Epcot to enjoy F&W right at opening. The walk was nice. We had to pick up our annual passes. Now this I was very worried about. Just a few days before leaving I realized that I had lost all confirmation info on my ticket purchase. We got there & explained the situation. The girl searched the database & found 47 women with the exact name as me picking up tickets. One from the same town, but still found nothing. Turns out, I purchased them in my mom’s name. Oops. After about 10 minutes she found it & we were finally on our way. We went into Epcot & found a bench right in between Greece & Canada’s booths. We were armed & ready. We had the plan of attack all mapped out. My mom would sit on a bench in the shade & I would be the food runner. She would also journal what we ate & right each of our ratings from 1 - 10 down. When it comes to food, I don’t mess around. Once we were done that area, we'd move to the next shaded bench & continue the process. Now let me take a moment to put in my brief disclaimer for the day. IT WAS 93 DEGREES TODAY!! That is oh, my God we’re gonna die hot. Not exactly the type of weather you want to lug around a 300 lb camera, take lots of pics of yourself & eat a lot in. I did get some pics today, but not a lot with us in them. Just thought I’d let you know.

Continued on next post...

 

[MissMet]

Day 1 continued...

Athens, Greece.
Spanakopita
Mom’s rating 7
Lisa’s 7


Montreal, Canada
Glazed Slamon with Lentil Salad
Mom’s rating 4
Lisa’s 5 - 6


Wellington, New Zealand
Lamb Slider with Tomato Chutney
Mom’s rating 6
Lisa’s 7


Oh my God, Cork, Ireland
Lobster & Scallop Fisherman’s Pie, SOOOOOOOO GOOOD!!!!
Mom’s rating 10+++++
Lisa’s 10+++++



Paris, France
Escargot Persillade en Brioche
Mom’s rating 9
Lisa’s 10 (tastes like the best garlic bread ever. you’d never know there were snails in it)


So that was it for F&W today. It was just too hot. We did those in less than 30 minutes & it was empty. The most I ever had in front of me was two people. All the other lines, I walked right up & ordered & it was only the 4th day of the festival! It did however get busy at about 12pm. So if you’re going, get there early. After F&W we continued throughout the rest of the world showcase & onto that ice cream place at the front of the park. We both got a raspberry smoothie & it really hit the spot! After the smoothy we walked back to BWV in a daze due to the 93 degree temperature I’m sure. We got back to the resort & of course our room wasn’t ready yet. We sat in the lobby for a while, then moved to the porch on the rocking chairs. We sat there for about an hour, still pretty zombified (is that even a word?). We got a text saying our room was ready, so cool by the way, but you still have to go to the front desk to find out your room number. We got our room number & right away I knew what was most likely awaiting us. A few weeks ago I had heard that the entire 4th & 5th floor were closed due to renovations & we were just assigned a 5th floor room! Could it be?? We get off the elevator & I smell fresh paint. Then I see new everything. We walk for a good amount of time, about a 6 minute trip from the lobby. We get to our room & I’m so excited I’m flipping out. I put my key in, red light. I try again, red light. I keep trying. Same thing. My mom tries her key, red light! Nooooooo! So now I walk all the way back to the lobby hoping to just get new keys. I didn’t know if it was an accident & they assigned us the wrong room. So I get back to the lobby & they tell me that the lady didn’t assign us a room on our keys. So they gave us new keys & now I head back. These keys worked & we did in fact get a refurbished room, complete with flat screen tvs. Here’s the pics:





After we get our bags from bell services & yes, even our leftovers made it. Thank God. Don’t know what my dad would have done for food. We headed to HS to take a look around at the new Pixar area. Cute. We then head back to the BW and enjoy a nice dinner at ESPN Club. It was really good. A while ago I had read a survey that the ESPN Club had the best hot dog on property & I do have to agree, it was huge! My mom got a turkey sandwich with a cranberry mayo which was also good, except I wasn’t a fan of the cheese. It tasted like swiss, but it wasn’t. My hot dog was a chili cheese dog that came with onions on it, so I asked for them in the side. Here’s the pics:



After dinner we headed to Downtown & walked & window shopped. We then met the coolest cast member, who we actually made plans with to go back & visit when my dad gets into town. He was hysterical!! He was joking around that he wasn’t happy with the new hall of presidents. He said how disney is usually always so accurate but this time they dropped the ball... they forgot the TelePrompTer. Then he was making jokes about how people get upset when they come & see things are being rehabbed. His answer was something to the affect of, “...what do you think we have magic here?” Then he talked about the economy & that when people ask how wdw is doing he replies, “Oh, we’re ok. Whenever there’s a downturn, we just turn on the rain machine & then people run inside & shop.” The best is people think he’s serious!!! He was hysterical. After that we got on the bus to go home & I don’t think any of us thought we'd live to see our resort. Oh my God. This driver was bad. She’s gonna have to get new breaks on that bus every two months. At one point a guy (from NY of course) spoke out, “I feel like a bobble head!” It was so funny! After our bus fiasco we got to our room & my mom was in bed about a minute later.

Tomorrow we have a resi at Tony’s for lunch. So we’ll spend the morning at MK, then after lunch head back to the resort for some pool time- it’s gonna be 92! Thankfully there’s a cold front coming in after tomorrow, so it will only be 87. Wish those were the cold fronts we had in NY.

If I’m forgetting to mention important things or if you guys are wondering anything, ask away & I’ll try & get you the answer. Oh, one side note, TSM standby line was only 40 minutes at 4 this afternoon. I thought that was pretty good for what I had been reading.

Also, I will be posting more random photos periodically. I don’t want to overwhelm each day’s post.


Up Next: Day 2... will it be another day of refurbishment walls???

 

[lily23]

Sounds like your having fun! Love the refurbed rooms, Boardwalk is one of our favs,stayed their on our honeymoon.My daughter wants to know if the pizza window is still there because Spoodles is gone. That's her favorite pizza she was looking forward to that.Also did you buy your annual pass at the international gateway enterance that's what I'm hoping to do in Nov. I want to get the T.I.W card too. Well have to go pack lunch for my daughter,have another magical day. Oh ya great pics.

 

[jekjones1558]

No more armoires! The living room TV stand doesn't really look much like a TV stand but I guess that it puts the TV at a good height. Thanks for giving us our first view of the new TVs!

 

[MissMet]

Looking forward to seeing your F&W pics since we’ll be there in about a month and are anxious to see what are some good choices for us to use our snack credits from DP on.

Oh, this is the place for you. Between the three of us, we will most likely try each F&W offering. We're not doing any other the special, additional priced events, just the booths.

Uh oh! This could mean one of two things. A) the pictures are going to be horrible and I should avoid looking directly at them (which I doubt) or B) you think I own a ::gasp:: CANON! I totally do not! We may differ in our love of baseball teams, but when it comes to cameras we're on the same page. I, too, had a D60 before upgrading to the D90---so I'm excited to see what you end up with, even if they're all in auto mode.

Oh, I know you're a Nikon girl. I'm just trying to make sure no one has there expectations too high. Since yesterday was so hot, I didn't even take it & today is gonna be the same. Starting tomorrow I'll start using it, but it's just been way too hot.

I also followed your from DVC board and can't wait to see the flat screen and armoire. As far as I know, you will be the FIRST to post a photo of the new TVs at BWV! Thanks for taking vacation time to feed us BWV lovers!

No problem. I love the BWV, so there is going to be a lot more BWV pics soon, especially if they get that scaffolding down.

This looks like it is going to be GOOD!!- Have a great trip and I am in!!!
Also will be arriving on the 7th so advice for Food and Wine - what to get and what to avoid would be great!!

Well, our plan is try try everything they offer between the three of us. After just yesterday I can definitely say make a beeline to the Fisherman's pie at Ireland, if you're a fan of seafood. It just may be the best thing I have ever eaten!

Hey Lisa,

I'm so glad I found you as you're just beginning your trip! I am planning a family trip for January - me, hubby and our two sons ages 21 and 23 and we'll be staying at our favorite - the BWV! I'm soooo looking forward to the "adult" perspective, especially as you're about the same age as my oldest. We've been 3 times before, but this will be the first time we're all legal to drink, so I'd really appreciate it if you could let me know where the cool watering-holes are for 23-year olds!!

Looking forward to your report...!

No problem, I'm on it. If they're into sports, definitely head to ESPN Club. Actually even if there not, the food is great too! We went on a Monday night, which was real cool. They have two hosts & broadcast live in the restaurant on all the tvs while watching the game. They were hysterical! I don't know if they do it every night or just when there's a big game, but it was fun!

Sounds like your having fun! Love the refurbed rooms, Boardwalk is one of our favs,stayed their on our honeymoon.My daughter wants to know if the pizza window is still there because Spoodles is gone. That's her favorite pizza she was looking forward to that.Also did you buy your annual pass at the international gateway enterance that's what I'm hoping to do in Nov. I want to get the T.I.W card too. Well have to go pack lunch for my daughter,have another magical day. Oh ya great pics.

Oh, we are having a good time so far. Thanks. BWV has always been our favorite too. So to stay here for 12 days is just amazing!

Yes, the pizza window is still there. So your daughter will still be able to enjoy her pizza. Yes, we bought our APs & TIW card at the International Gateway. It was great 'cause there were no lines. I will tell you that buying the TIW card on property, you get it like an ap, it's that paper. That was new to me. Last time I ordered it ahead, so it was plastic like a cc. I think I actually like it better as the paper though.

 

[DisneyJen]

Thanks for a wonderful report! Felt like we were right there with you ... which is a great cure for those of us suffering from WDW Withdraw

I can totally understand your disappointment with all the scaffolding that is up around the BW. I hope they take some of it down while you are there so you can enjoy the view!

Love the photos of the refurbished room. Never too many photos of WDW for me. What view do you have from your room. I know I read you have a BW view but would love to see a photo. Also, it looks like you have a dedicated 1-BDR ... as I didn't see a door to the studio.

Have a magical day!