17 Days of Disney Magic (aka Brits, Pirates & Princesses) - Lots of PICS!

[seobaina]

The 976 was what I kept. I have no idea how many I deleted. I really think that I took more than the 976 but when I came home from our trip and tried to download the pictures onto my computer, they were somehow deleted. Nowhere to be found on my camera.....nowhere to be found on my computer. I cried for three days. I finally took my camera to a camera shop and, after two solid hours, they were able to retrieve the pictures from my camera. They burned them on a disc and charged me a whopping $15.00. Needless to say, I tipped the guy $20.00. Anyway.....I remember taking other pictures but they aren't on the disc. So, I guess some weren't retrieved.

Now that I have joined the Disney Food Pictures forum, am trying a new resort and have started posting pictures over on the picture threads, I am sure I'll be taking waaaay more pics this year. And, we are staying for 10 days this next trip.

Ahha, welcome to the food porn And that's great about the trip - you'll take soooo many pics. I'm sorry to hear about your camera problems though. I had that myself recently - after a weekend away my computer crashed and deleted all the photos on my camera card that had been connected at the time. Luckily I had printed most of them off while away otherwise I'd have lost them all too. Glad you got at least a good chunk back.

 

[GottaLuvMickey]

Oh wow lol my sister asked me if Disney had a gators and I told her no at least not loose just in the animal kingdom. Your pics are great Dolphins are just so much fun I would want my sis to go and have that experience but she doesnt know how to swim.

Oh no! I used to work at Disney World, I was a lifeguard at Blizzard Beach... there are Gators at Disney World! They really come out after hurricanes pass through! But they're definately out there, but the pretty much mind their own business... I've never heard of one causing problems!

 

[lizet313]

Oh no! I used to work at Disney World, I was a lifeguard at Blizzard Beach... there are Gators at Disney World! They really come out after hurricanes pass through! But they're definately out there, but the pretty much mind their own business... I've never heard of one causing problems!

Oh wow I need to pay attention to the tv news now. Good at least they mind their own business.

 

[chiefdragon]

OK my name is Angie and I have a photo additiction at Disney World. I average 1000 pictures just on a 4 day trip and this is not even all of them...but I guess you can say I have the whole trip documented.....even worse is that I have them all printed out.

 

[mickeystoontown]

OK my name is Angie and I have a photo additiction at Disney World. I average 1000 pictures just on a 4 day trip and this is not even all of them...but I guess you can say I have the whole trip documented.....even worse is that I have them all printed out.

It's okay......looks like we are all photo addicts.

 

[snoopywoodstockus]

Helen,

thank you for this wonderful trip report. I can't tell you how much pleasure I have gotten from it. My husband and I go every year but the time between trips seems F O R E V E R.

The pictures are lovely and I was wondering after reading this far, how are you going to get all that shopping packed into your luggage for the way home

Thanks again, I needed this today!

 

[jenseib]

Oh wow lol my sister asked me if Disney had a gators and I told her no at least not loose just in the animal kingdom. Your pics are great Dolphins are just so much fun I would want my sis to go and have that experience but she doesnt know how to swim.

Yes they are. I hear that they have quite a few in the Pop lake, but they are samll. I guess when they get too big they call someone to catch them and take them away.

Also the old tree house villas (which are being redone right now) has been rumored to have had gators coming in at times on the first floor!

I love your pictures too. I think I took about 1500 between two cameras this last trip of 6 nights/days. I actually thought I would take more. I do know I didn't take some of stuff I had planned on taking. I don't know what I was thinking. LOL!

 

[seobaina]

Oh no! I used to work at Disney World, I was a lifeguard at Blizzard Beach... there are Gators at Disney World! They really come out after hurricanes pass through! But they're definately out there, but the pretty much mind their own business... I've never heard of one causing problems!

LOL how cool....well, cool that they don't bother anyone Kinda assumed being florida they'd be somewhere and I kept my eyes open when I drove around Btw, congrats on meeting your prince charming...maybe I should do the college program

OK my name is Angie and I have a photo additiction at Disney World. I average 1000 pictures just on a 4 day trip and this is not even all of them...but I guess you can say I have the whole trip documented.....even worse is that I have them all printed out.

Yay, welcome to the group. *stands up* My name is Helen and I am a disney photoholic!

Helen,

thank you for this wonderful trip report. I can't tell you how much pleasure I have gotten from it. My husband and I go every year but the time between trips seems F O R E V E R.

The pictures are lovely and I was wondering after reading this far, how are you going to get all that shopping packed into your luggage for the way home

Thanks again, I needed this today!

Aww, thank you. I'm glad you are enjoying it. I haven't stopped, I'm just sorting and uploading pics so I can continue

*blush* we took an extra case each for the shopping...and Karen still couldn't close hers! Last time Karen's man, Dave, ended up carrying some of her things home in his bags See, she's worse than I am...but then my home already looks like a Disney Store.

Yes they are. I hear that they have quite a few in the Pop lake, but they are samll. I guess when they get too big they call someone to catch them and take them away.

Also the old tree house villas (which are being redone right now) has been rumored to have had gators coming in at times on the first floor!

I love your pictures too. I think I took about 1500 between two cameras this last trip of 6 nights/days. I actually thought I would take more. I do know I didn't take some of stuff I had planned on taking. I don't know what I was thinking. LOL!

Ohhh, maybe I don't wanna stay in the tree house villas anymore then Gators are cool from a safe distance. I live in the UK...I think the most dangerous animal I come across is my kitten when he's in 'mad cat' mode

And it's amazing isn't it...I always forget something or wish I'd taken photos of something...despite the amount I do take. Someday I'll edit the video footage for online too.

 

[seobaina]

Monday morning dawned bright and early and we were off to Hollywood Studios. I was still really tired for some reason but I was at Disney and determined to keep going, so we got there at a reasonable time. We had already decided on the bus that our first stop would be the times board to see about the shows and then form a game plan (military planning again - “I don’t know but it’s been told, Disboard planning is solid gold, from Mickey’s house to tower of ‘T’, there not one thing we won’t see”).

On the way up to the board we were grabbed by a photopass photographer

and we spotted a familiar face

With the show times noted and the plan set, it was off for a quick dash to the Jedi training. We actually didn’t think we’d make it in time but we did YAY! However, it was sooooo hot that day that we almost died in the heat (“suffer for your entertainment you must, yes!” ).

I know a couple of adults who would have love to take part in this but the kids lucky enough to do so were having a great time. It took a few of them a while to learn how to operate their lightsabers but when they had, there was no stopping them. They took on Vader with no fear at all.

But my favourite moment was with this lad

He was thinking outside of the box and stepped forward, holding up his hand to use the force against the stormtrooper. Luckily the stormtrooper was very quick thinking and flew backwards…amidst much crowd cheering! I just happened to take a photo at the right time!

After the show and a much-needed drink, we headed over to Streets of America.

As we were walking along I shrieked ‘Kim’ and ran off leaving a confused Karen behind. See, I love Kim Possible but Karen has never seen it and there were Kim and Ron with no line at all. Gotta say I was a little unimpressed though. I know we were adults and it was a hot day but Kim in particular looked bored and uninterested at first. She warmed up a bit though so I took my photo with them. Karen did too even though she still had no clue who they were.

With a quick explanation for Karen and a couple more streets of America photos we headed off to the backstage tour.

I should probably state here that when we did this in 2006, Karen, Dave and another friend, Alex, were all dragged into the show. Karen ended up being in this position.

and Dave and Alex were here:

These photos (above) were from the show that day but we were very impressed because the gentleman in particular got into the spirit as much as Dave had in 2006.

 

[lizet313]

Jenseib,
I agree with seobaina I don't think I would want to stay there either wow I think I have to tell my sister the truth is that she wanted to see some up close and personal maybe I shouldn't tell her they are loose far away is better.

 

[Mombits]

Thank you Working on more as we speak. You guys will be sick of this by the time I get all 17 days done though

I love your TR! So many great pics and you met soooo many characters. I am hoping to find a lot of characters for my kiddos to meet as well.

 

[seobaina]

I love your TR! So many great pics and you met soooo many characters. I am hoping to find a lot of characters for my kiddos to meet as well.

EPCOT!!!! We always meet most of our princesses (outside of the dinners) at Epcot World Showcase. Meals are certainly worth it though for getting to see characters without the wait. And don't forget you can ask Guest Relations etc where certain characters are gonna be for the day and they have a number to call to find out! Good luck

 

[seobaina]

For those of you who have not done the backstage tour, after the special effects show above, you get into a tram/trolley and are driven around past some old movie props, etc. Here’s some of the pictures from that part of the tour.

The earful tower

From Pearl Harbour (movie)

Pirates of the Caribbean

Lights, Motors, Action Stunt Show and Herbie Fully Loaded

Then it’s in to Catastrophe Canyon. Somehow I always end up near the water on the part of the ride

And back on the tour bit. Walt’s plane

Star Wars

And Herbie again

At the end of the tour they had an exhibit of movie villain costumes and props, which was actually really cool. Some of the ones there included these:

And Davy Jones’s organ

As we left the tour I went looking for a store that might sell stuff from Disney television shows. In 2006 they had stuff from Lost and Desperate Housewives and I was thinking they would make good presents. I couldn’t find any however (if anyone knows please let me know) but we did stumble across the Monsters Inc meet and greet. The line wasn’t too long so we figured we might as well meet them – we both like Monsters Inc and I use a clip from it when I teach my audio postproduction classes.

We also saw that some of the Power Rangers were out and about…but we decided not to meet them.

 

[seobaina]

As we hadn’t done it on the last trip, Karen and I decided to go and see the Lights, Motors, Action Extreme Stunt Show. We joined the line for it and despite the fact that it was a while til show time it was already getting really busy. I get completely why they do it this way (numbers of people) but at the same time it was very annoying that people coming in later could push forwards because of the crowd style line-up. It was also extremely hot that day.
As I was still in my ‘I’m so tired what is wrong with me’ mode, Karen left me in the line while she went to get us some food. If the line moved into the arena then I could get us two seats. I’m not one of these ‘save seats for everyone’ people but there are only two of us. Of course the line did go in and I managed to find us two great seats (or spaces on the bench). However, I then realised just how huge the seating area was and began to worry that Karen wouldn’t find me. She knew where I’d have been aiming but still…
As the time went by the arena became full and still no Karen…so now I’m worried she won’t even get back in. The lady next to me, who I had been chatting too by now, kept trying to help me spot her. Then we finally see her enter the arena but of course there is no way for me to get her attention in amongst all these people. So the nice lady told me to go down to the front to grab Karen while she held our seats…which is what I did. We literally sat back down and within five minutes the show started. Apparently the McDonalds line had been HUGE and slow.
Anyway, we ate while the show went on. If you’ve not seen it then it is worth it but it is not my favourite show. The stuntmen are very talented but I personally prefer the interaction of the Indiana Jones show instead.
Here’s some pics for you stunt fans

After the show we took shelter in the air-conditioned store

And then decided to grab a space for the parade – Block Party Bash. Balloon shot

I’d never seen this parade before but I’d read mixed reports on it. It was already soooooo busy along the route that we struggled to find a space. We finally found a small gap up some steps across from Hollywood and Vine. I’d also heard, however, that you could get photopass photos with characters in HS at certain times and places. I spotted a photopass photographer and left Karen where we were stood to try and get some pics before the parade.
The lady I spoke to was lovely. She originally said she couldn’t do it because the parade was due to start and they weren’t allowed to do them after the parade time. I begged and grovelled and explained that it was my last real chance to do it as we wouldn’t be there this late in the afternoon on another day. So she said she would take them but she had to do it right now, which might mean I missed some of the parade. I didn’t mind so she found a little ‘quiet’ spot and decided to do them ALL!!!

 

[seobaina]

We had a lot of fun taking them (she was so, so nice) and it didn’t take too long. The parade had started while we were finishing but I managed to find a spot diagonally opposite from where Karen was stood. I couldn’t get back to my place very easily so I didn’t bother. Here are some photos of the parade from both Karen and I

I actually ended up in a better position than Karen because Sulley and Boo came into the crowd where I stood. Have to say though, I was unimpressed with this parade. I like the concept of them bringing the kids into the party but it is SOOOOOOOOOO slow. You get one float stuck by you for ages and then others go straight past really quickly. Bring back a more normal parade please!

 

[seobaina]

With the parade over, we went to one of Karen’s favourite things at HS – Muppet 3D.

Now, I gotta admit I don’t really ‘get’ this one. Sure it’s nice enough but I think it’s dated now and they could do more with it. But Karen loves it. I think it depends upon your nostalgia for the Muppets. I really liked them but she loved them. Still, there was no queue. Although I was struggling to stay awake again which probably didn’t help. I’d find out why I was so tired in two days time and it wasn’t just because I had a cold.

We moved next to the other side of the park. On route we passed the hat and some characters, like the last time we were here. We wanted to join the line this time but we were told that they were about to go for a break. We checked when we should come back and then figured we had just enough time to go and watch the Little Mermaid show…which we did! The photos aren’t great I’m afraid because I obviously didn’t use flash.

Then we headed back to the hat. You know I said we got an even better photo than we could have done the other day? Well, here it is:

We were very excited when all the characters came out. They weren’t signing it was just a group photo but still! Oh, despite the line that had formed beforehand, when the characters came out some people still tried to push in…but luckily the cm’s were on the ball and moved everyone!

 

[MaleDisneyBeliever]

Oh my days! I have never seen anything like that group photo! You are SOOOO LUCKY!!!

 

[seobaina]

Our next stop was the animation story. I really like this. I used to love being able to do the fishbowl view of the animators working but even though this has gone the new show, with Mushu, is still really good. I think they’ve done it nicely with lots for kids and adults. One day I’ll do the class here but we always seem to miss time it. It was nice to see some Wall.E stuff though – this was last year remember.

We also poked our nose in to the One Man’s Dream but didn’t have time for a proper look around.

I missed this last time so I was determined to do it but we had other things to do right now. We planned to pop back later that night. We also saw Mickey but the line was really long.

We headed off instead to see Fantasmic again. Told you I love this show.

Because we were so early we got really good seats, then Karen held them while I went to get us some food and drink. The line for food everywhere was really long, I guess cause of the time of night, but we had plenty of time so I wasn’t worried. I got back and we actually finished eating before the show even started.
The place was packed – cue crowd shot

Then it was time for my fave show

After the show we filed out along with everyone else and made our way around to One Man’s Dream. Despite the EMH though it was shut

So we decided to go back to the hotel instead. It was late and I was still in the ‘falling asleep anywhere’ mode.

 

[seobaina]

Oh my days! I have never seen anything like that group photo! You are SOOOO LUCKY!!!

I know, I've never seen it either. My colleague Jade actually commented on it cause she's worked there and never seen it. I dunno if it was something they were trialing or a new thing. If anyone knows I'd love to know.

 

[seobaina]

Ok, this is the first day that I’m gonna be a bit of a failure on. We spent Tuesday at Typhoon Lagoon so I don’t have many pictures (I just had my underwater disposable camera). I also have very little memory of what we did. I know we went in the wave pool, floated down the lazy river, had a sundae, etc but I have no clue what order we did everything in or what we did that evening. We didn’t write enough notes a year ago and Karen and I are trying to put everything together. There are a couple of things we did that we can’t remember when we did them, so if we work it out I’ll post them at the end of this report. So for now Tuesday is short.

I do know we packed that night because we were changing hotels the next day to AKL. I think we went to PI too but I will check that. The reason we were changing hotels was because, when I originally booked the hotel Karen and I had a miscommunication. I thought we needed 16 nights accommodation and Karen thought we’d decided on 17 (I said 17 days, she said 17 nights = 1 day off). Karen booked the flights, I book the hotel. Anyway, we had to do the booking for the hotel as 14 nights then 2 nights. Karen had always wanted to stay at the AKL so when I told her this, she said ‘maybe as it’s only two nights we could change them for AKL’. So I rang up and changed the booking. However, about a month later we luckily realised the goof (only because my cousin decided he was getting married and we realised I wouldn’t be back in time. Well, I thought I would be back that morning and Karen said nope, next day. Then we realised ) We did debate just doing another night at AKL but it was a bit expensive for us, so we figured as we were curious about hotels we might as well do one night in a third one. So we were changing hotels the next day, and then in two nights time. Does that all make sense?