3 WDW Trips in 6 months: August, October and December Reports *Completed*

[meeko_33785]

Hi Meeko!

Another great update and photos! As for the komodo dragon - was it not one of them that attacked Sharon Stone's ex-husband and he nearly died?

Anyway, glad you liked Yak & Yeti, it's a gorgeous restaurant and the food is lovely! I was paranoid and phoned to double check our ADRs about twice before the holiday. They had spelt my surname wrongly the first time on some of them, and then again when we got to the hotel, I had to give them the ADR numbers to clear it all up! So I wonder if that's what happened with you maybe?

Di x

Hey Di.

Yes, it was a Komodo Dragon that attacked him. I think the CM said that if you're bit by one of them you have a 1-in-10 chance of living. I guess he was the 1.

Hmm... I don't think that was the same problem we had. Somehow, our ARD (and apparently a bunch of others) just didn't make it from Central Reservations to Yak & Yeti. It was a bit strange. Plus, our ADR for Chefs de France, which we made at the same time, had no problems.

 

[meeko_33785]

After lunch, Mom and Dad wanted to look through the little Yak and Yeti shop near the restaurant, so Buzz and I took the opportunity to head to Expedition Everest to get a Fastpass for later in the day. When we got there, return times were down to 5pm, which worked for our touring schedules, so we each got one.

Tried to get a few pictures now since the sky probably wouldn’t still be that beautiful blue by 5pm.

The area leading up to Everest is so detailed.

After meeting up again, the whole family headed back to Maharajah Jungle Trek to see the parts of the trail that we missed before lunch.

The tigers were a little more awake this time. Still not very active, but at least one was awake and sitting up.

The main area that we hadn’t done was the aviary. Unfortunatly, there didn’t seem to be many birds out. It did give us a chance to check out these beautiful birdhouses though, which we normally don’t even notice.

The lone bird in the aviary that day.

Last time we were at the Animal Kingdom, Mom and Dad really enjoyed just hanging out in Harambe and seeing some of the live entertainment that happens throughout the day at the Dawa Bar, so we made it a priority to catch some while we were in the park today as well.

When we got there, it was a little before an act called Tam Tam Congo. The group was mostly a drum ensemble, but included a lot of audience participation as well. They kept pulling a ton of people from the crowd and teaching them to dance. It was a cute show.

After our time in Harambe, we headed off towards Camp Minnie-Mickey, pausing to check out some of the sights of Discovery Island along the way.

The area around Creature Comforts had lots of fanciful touches.

Princess Atta holds court inside the shop's "Disney Princess" display. It's not too often she gets recognized as a princess too.



Next chapter: Good Times with Kenai

 

[meeko_33785]

Hey everyone. Sorry the updates have been so slow lately. I was really hoping to get on a schedule of posting two updates a week so I could get the August report done before Buzz and I go back in October, but it doesn't look like I'll be able to do that.

Speaking of the October trip, Buzz and I are gearing up to do some more planning on that in the near future, so you can expect some pre-trip updates for that trip to start showing up in probably the next couple of weeks as well.

Anyway, thanks for reading. Hope you're all enjoying the report so far.

 

[Dr_Finkelstein]

Hi Meeko!

All caught up now, the photos were great! I really liked the one of the tiger, I've not yet seen them upright!

I've been reading the Imagineers Guide to AK and it's really interesting, it tells you all about the little details and themes in each of the areas, just like the ladybird lamps you got a photo of of!

Anyway, get busy with the updates! Hope to read more soon!

Di x

 

[meeko_33785]

Hi Meeko!

All caught up now, the photos were great! I really liked the one of the tiger, I've not yet seen them upright!

I've been reading the Imagineers Guide to AK and it's really interesting, it tells you all about the little details and themes in each of the areas, just like the ladybird lamps you got a photo of of!

Anyway, get busy with the updates! Hope to read more soon!

Di x

Hey Di.

The Imagineers Guide to AK sounds good. Buzz has the MK version and it's been very helpful in us finding details there. I can only imagine how wonderful the AK Guide must be.

There should be more updates soon. I'm hoping to get one posted by Monday with our Camp Minnie-Mickey adventures.

 

[Lady Lallie]

I got behind again.

I loved your review of Yak N' Yeti. Jen & I are planning to go there so I love reading about places I'll be eating at soon.

You took some great photos in AK, they are just so vibrant and beautiful.

As a side note, have you read about all the new Fantasyland things to come? Those greeting areas sound like they will be a lot of fun!

 

[meeko_33785]

I got behind again.

I loved your review of Yak N' Yeti. Jen & I are planning to go there so I love reading about places I'll be eating at soon.

You took some great photos in AK, they are just so vibrant and beautiful.

As a side note, have you read about all the new Fantasyland things to come? Those greeting areas sound like they will be a lot of fun!

Hey LL! I bet you're going to love Yak & Yeti. It really was fantastic.

Glad you like the pics. I always find AK the hardest park to photograph. It's so beautiful in real life that it's hard to capture it. Nice to know that these are good enough to be enjoyed.

And yes, I did hear about the new Fantasyland! It sounds great, but I'm sad to hear that Toontown is leaving. It was nice to have a whole area for Mickey and friends. Still, the new meet and greets sound really different and imersive and I'm very excited about the Little Mermaid ride and Beauty and the Beast restaurant, and new Dumbo.

 

[meeko_33785]

Off to Camp Minnie-Mickey!

The Dragon Rocks from the bridge to Camp Minnie-Mickey.

First stop at Camp Minnie-Mickey was the Good Times Gathering Spot, which was located at the former Pocahontas theater. I had heard before I left that Kenai and Koda from Brother Bear had been hanging out there recently, so finding them was one of my main Character goals. Lo and behold when I arrived both of the bears, Pocahontas, Chip and Dale were all out meeting and greeting. Unfortunately, all of their lines were closed and CMs were telling everyone that everyone was leaving.

Much of the staging for the old Pocahontas show, including Grandmother Willow, was still all there, although she never did show her face at any point.

The Good Times Gathering Spot was scheduled to close for the day about half an hour after we arrived, but they had one more dance party scheduled for the day, complete with DJ.

Kenai was the lone character who returned for the dance party. It was hard to get pictures of him since he never stopped moving and was facing towards the stage dancing with the kids and not towards the seating area where we were. I did manage to get a few shots of him “turning himself around” during the Hokey Pokey.

At the end of the dance party, the DJ announced that they would play a game and sent Kenai on the search for a “team captain”. Next thing I know, a big bear is running towards me and pulling me onto the dance floor. I’ve never been picked out of the crowd for anything at Disney before! Usually, I'm scared to death of being picked to be part of a show, but the crowd wasn't too large, so I went ahead and followed Kenai to the middle f the action. The game turned to be a race to see how long it took to take to pin an entire bucket of clothes pins- on the team captain! As soon as the DJ gives the word Kenai and a bunch of kids (and a few CMs) race to pin clothes pins all over me. I’ll have to admit, it was a little fun and a little embarrassing. Mom and Dad were there watching and were getting a big kick out of it! Of course, once every pin in the entire bucket was pinned onto me, then the race was to get them all off! Once I was completely pin-less, the party was over and we headed on.

We rejoined Buzz outside the Lion King Theater. While the rest of us were at the Gathering Spot, Buzz had gone to the Camp Character Greeting Trails and met Goofy and Donald. I was planning on seeing them tomorrow at EPCOT anyway so I wasn’t too miffed that he saw them without me. It was getting near time for the Festival of the Lion King, so we made our way to the theater. Along the way, we checked out the little character statues fishing by the river.

Donald looks happy about his catch…

but probably won’t be so happy once he finds out it’s a boot.

We managed to get seats in the Lion Section (but closer to Pumbaa’s float than Simba’s) fairly close to the front. This was the first time we’ve made it back to the show in the last five years, so it was great to finally see it again.

This was the first time we had seen the show since Timon got his “animated” makeover, similar to Mickey and friends in Dream Along. What a great addition that was. It really helped bring Timon alive more.

I thought it was interesting that this time around, one of the singers was a white guy. I’ve never seen any white performers in the main roles. It was a bit strange. Not sure if he’s an understudy or if he’s a regular in the show, but having a Donny Osmond-esque singer do the show was pretty different from what I was used to.

The big finale.

I believe that the Pumbaa and Simba puppets were also improved since I had seen them last. They were fantastic to watch throughout the show. If you’ve never really watched them, next time you go there, check out how they react to what’s going on and follow or interact with the performers. It’s very interesting.

Outside the theater, Gi-tar Dan performs songs and points out where to find the characters to the guests exiting the theater. Buzz makes his way to see Mickey before the crowds from the theater fill the queue. I, instead, head over to the Good Times Gathering Spot to see if any of the characters that were out earlier had returned.

Koda was out now, but Kenai was nowhere to be seen. All for the best, I guess. I might have been able to face him again after the embarassment of the clothes pin incident.

As we all make our way back to Discovery Island, we pause for a quick glance at Daisy and the nephews hiking their way towards the camp.



Next chapter: Will we make it to Everest?

 

[Lady Lallie]

I would have been so embarrassed to be picked out of the crowd. I think that is one of my worst fears at Disney, to be picked for a show. Now if they wanted to pick me to win a night in the Castle then I could handle it.

I would love to meet Koda and Kenai though so I will have to make my way over there.

The three times I've seen FOTLK I have always sat in the same section between the warthog and lion section. It's weird. I want to sit somewhere else just to get a different perspective.

 

[meeko_33785]

I would have been so embarrassed to be picked out of the crowd. I think that is one of my worst fears at Disney, to be picked for a show. Now if they wanted to pick me to win a night in the Castle then I could handle it.

I would love to meet Koda and Kenai though so I will have to make my way over there.

The three times I've seen FOTLK I have always sat in the same section between the warthog and lion section. It's weird. I want to sit somewhere else just to get a different perspective.

I usually have the same fear of being picked, but the crowd wasn't too big so it wasn't like I was picked to do something in front of thousands of people like at the Lion King show or something.

As far as Kenai and Koda go, they might not be there much longer. Rumor has it that they might be replaced at Camp Minnie-Mickey late this year or early next year by Thumper and maybe his girlfriend Miss Bunny. Those two have already been out at Tokyo Disneyland for a little while and word has it are coming soon to AK. I'm hoping that those rumors are true, but hopefully Kenai and Koda will still be around, maybe outside the Oasis.

 

[jenjolt]

Okay I'm all caught up!! I'm so sorry I have been behind!! I've been working away getting ready for my October trip that I have fallen behind with some of my subscriptions!!

I loved your review of Yak and Yeti and I really can't wait to eat there again! I had the best meal in January and I cannot wait until those Fried Wontons are mine again...oooh heaven on a stick!!!

LOL...I wouldn't mind getting choose to do a Street act with someone at DHS, but to get to be the "team captain" for a game at AK...hmmmm I'm not so sure about! I'm glad you were a good sport about it and that you had a good time!!

FOTLK...is a must do for me this next time I really really want to see that show!!

 

[meeko_33785]

Okay I'm all caught up!! I'm so sorry I have been behind!! I've been working away getting ready for my October trip that I have fallen behind with some of my subscriptions!!

I loved your review of Yak and Yeti and I really can't wait to eat there again! I had the best meal in January and I cannot wait until those Fried Wontons are mine again...oooh heaven on a stick!!!

LOL...I wouldn't mind getting choose to do a Street act with someone at DHS, but to get to be the "team captain" for a game at AK...hmmmm I'm not so sure about! I'm glad you were a good sport about it and that you had a good time!!

FOTLK...is a must do for me this next time I really really want to see that show!!

Hey Jen. Great to see you back. I knew you had mentioned how much you were looking forward to the Yak & Yeti report, so I'm glad you finally got to see it.

I would think that I'd be more embarassed to be in a street show at DHS. Seems like it would be a larger audience with all the people on the street. That was the nice thing about the Good Times Gathering Spot- it was kinda hidden back in the old Pocahontas theater so there wasn't a huge crowd around watching- just a little one.

I didn't know you were going back to WDW so soon. I'll be looking forward to the TR for that.

 

[meeko_33785]

Between now and the October trip, I’m going to have to pause the “Days of Discovery” August report every now and then to continue with the Pre-Trip for Buzz and my birthday trip. We’re really trying to get some stuff nailed down, especially for our day at MK. I thought now might be a good time to check out some of the potential firsts we want to make priorities as well as some things we’re hoping to see again for the first time in a while.


All Star Movies- I know I’ve mentioned this before, but it bears repeating that this will be Buzz and my first stay at any of the All Star resorts. From what I’ve seen of Movies, it looks really cool. I hope to be able to get some pictures of a lot of the big icons in the area, and, if there’s time, check out some of the other All Stars. Music is the one I most want to see besides movies- especially the Broadway section.


Halloween Decorations- Buzz and I haven’t been to Disney in the fall since we were really young, and back then there weren’t any decorations up for Halloween that I can recall. Now, the entire Main Street area looks amazingly decorated. I really want to check out especially all the scarecrows in Town Square, the statues in the Hub and all the decorations along Main Street.


Move It! Shake It! Celebrate It! Parade- This is brand new since the last time we were in the park. I’m not sure if we’ll stay for the whole thing, but I definitely want to see part of it, especially since Lumiere and Sebastian are both in it (you hardly ever see them out in parades).


Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade- We haven’t seen the afternoon parade since it was “Share A Dream Come True” with the snowglobes. Hopefully we’ll be able to catch this new version.


Hall of Presidents- It has been 15 years since we’ve been here (I believe it’s the one attraction in the park at the moment that we haven’t done since the 1990s), and the new re-Imagineered show and President Obama animatronics seem like enough of a reason to try this again.


Pixie Hollow- What kind of a character fan would I be if I didn’t meet Tinker Bell at least once in my life? I missed this last time because the lines were always so long. This time, I’m going to try to make it to Toontown before the rope drop to try and beat a lot of the lines there. Buzz has already let me know that he won't be joining me here (no surprise), so he might be spending the time taking pictures around Toontown since, with the new Fantasyland redo on the way, it won't be there much longer.


More info on the October trip coming here and there bewteen August TR chapters over the next few weeks.

 

[Lady Lallie]

Pixie Hollow is a must! It's so pretty and well themed there.

The Halloween decorations are so great in MK. It makes you want to go trick or treating.

 

[Dr_Finkelstein]

Hi Meeko!

Finally all caught up now - have been neglecting the DIS lately! Enjoyed all the updates and photos - though no photo of the pinning incident?

Hey Di.

The Imagineers Guide to AK sounds good. Buzz has the MK version and it's been very helpful in us finding details there. I can only imagine how wonderful the AK Guide must be.

There should be more updates soon. I'm hoping to get one posted by Monday with our Camp Minnie-Mickey adventures.

Gordon has bought the Imagineering Guides to MK and Epcot as well - they're all really good, the DHS one isn't out, I'm assuming they're rejigging it from MGM to DHS!

Good to see the plans for October - hope the lines for Pixie Hollow are a bit shorter now! The new plans for Fantasyland sound really good, but it is a bit girlie orientated, I really think they should go for a POTC or Toy Story themed character meal for the boys and the tweens. But Gordon was hearing there is plans for a 'Cars themed' land at Disney's California Adventure, so that could hopefully be on the cards for WDW as well in the future!

Di x

 

[jenjolt]

Great PTR Update!! I hope you and Buzz are able to conquer everything!! I have to agree Pixie Hollow is definitely a must do at least once! I may not stop by this trip just because I'm not sure where to fit it in and I have been twice!!! But you will love it!!!!

Can't wait to hear more about your plans!

 

[meeko_33785]

Pixie Hollow is a must! It's so pretty and well themed there.

The Halloween decorations are so great in MK. It makes you want to go trick or treating.

Can't wait to see Pixie Hollow and the Halloween decorations. From the pictures I've seen, they really do look as cool as you say.

Hi Meeko!

Finally all caught up now - have been neglecting the DIS lately! Enjoyed all the updates and photos - though no photo of the pinning incident?



Gordon has bought the Imagineering Guides to MK and Epcot as well - they're all really good, the DHS one isn't out, I'm assuming they're rejigging it from MGM to DHS!

Good to see the plans for October - hope the lines for Pixie Hollow are a bit shorter now! The new plans for Fantasyland sound really good, but it is a bit girlie orientated, I really think they should go for a POTC or Toy Story themed character meal for the boys and the tweens. But Gordon was hearing there is plans for a 'Cars themed' land at Disney's California Adventure, so that could hopefully be on the cards for WDW as well in the future!

Di x

Hey Di. Good to see you.

Well, as far as the pinning incident, there are pictures- Mom, Dad and the Photopass photographer all had a ball taking a ton of them. They won't be making it here though. It was embarassing enough in front of the little crowd at the park, it would be way too embarassing for it to be in front of everyone on the internet.

Yeah, the new Fantasyland stuff does seem a bit Princess and Pixie heavy, but still sounds like fun. The Cars Land sounds amazing too though. I'm hoping we get it- maybe in Pixar Place?

Great PTR Update!! I hope you and Buzz are able to conquer everything!! I have to agree Pixie Hollow is definitely a must do at least once! I may not stop by this trip just because I'm not sure where to fit it in and I have been twice!!! But you will love it!!!!

Can't wait to hear more about your plans!

Thanks Jen. Yeah, I figure Pixie Hollow is a must at least this once. Looking forward to it. More plans for October should be coming soon, maybe next week. If not, some should be up by the time you get back from WDW.

 

[meeko_33785]

Back in Discovery Island, we decided to spend some time exploring some of the animal trails around the Tree of Life since we don’t always seem to check them out.

Along a trail that we can’t seem to remember ever going down, we found a large habitat with a couple of different types of kangaroos. They were a lot of fun to watch- very energetic, hoping and rolling around. We watched them for quite some time.

Not only were there some cool animal habitats along the way, but the paths really give to a nice view of the carvings in the Tree of Life.

Dad loves squirrels (actually we all like them, but Dad especially), so I think he got a big kick out of these.

Back to the Tree. Looking back on all my pictures, I think I took almost the exact same shot when we first got there. Well, it is a nice photo opportunity.


At this point, Mom and Dad decided they wanted to go back to Riverside and maybe try to get in a trip to the pool. Buzz and I still had out Fastpasses for Everest, so the two of us stayed at the park. Our Fastpass windows weren’t open yet, so while we waited, we decided to go meet Pooh and friends. Buzz hadn’t met Pooh and friends in a while so he came along.

The line at the Character Landing wasn’t very long, so we got up to see the characters in no time at all.

Pooh was first. I think he stayed in this one pose for every photo we took of him. Once we were done and saying goodbye, he stayed in the same pose frozen. Buzz came up to Pooh to ask if he’s alright and Pooh suddenly unfroze lunged a little at Buzz and did a little mime laugh before saying farewell.

Eeyore was next. I like how he held out his years like this. It’s a bit more levity than I usually see in Eeyore.

Eeyore is one of Buzz's favorites, and it had been years and years since he had seen him in the parks.

Last but not least was Tigger. As I walked up to him, I did what would prove to be a big Tigger no-no. I greeted him with “Hi Eeyore… I mean Tigger!”. The CM with Tigger found it amusing and began teasing Tigger. I tried to explain to him that I had just seen Eeyore and calling him that was a total slip of the tongue with no ill will. Tigger, however, acted a bit miffed at the whole thing. He may look all smiles in this photo, but I assure you when I took it, his had his arms folded in a huff and was tapping his foot disapprovingly. As the meet-and-greet went on he seemed to forgive me (I hope) and returned to his normal self. After our amusing encounter with the 100 Acre Woods gang, we headed through Dinoland and towards Everest.

As we approached the mountain, the beautiful blue sky of earlier in the day was quickly disappearing, and dark grey clouds were beginning to look ominously above. Buzz and I were hoping that we would be able to get to the ride before any rain storm could shut it down.

This was our first time doing Fastpass on Everest (previously, we had only gone at opening and done stand-by), and I have to say I was impressed on how the smaller Fastpass line could appear to succinctly tell the story in such a small amount of space that the amazing sprawling standby queue does. We didn’t really get a chance to look around though- we were hurrying to get on the ride as quickly as possible. We managed to get on the ride with very little wait. As usual, the ride was great. I don’t think that it’s as intense as some of the coasters at Busch Gardens (though it is somewhat intense), I really do like the theming and storytelling on it. It has to be some of the best in the parks here.


After Everest, our plan was to head back towards Dinoland and exploring that land a bit, but then as we were passing the Finding Nemo Theater…


**Splash!!!**



Next chapter: The end of Day Two

 

[Lady Lallie]

Phew! Sounds like you got to ride Expedition Everest just in time!

I don't think I have ever seen pictures of Kangaroos in Animal Kingdom. I am going to have to search them out for sure! They are so cute.

Too funny about Tigger. Eeyore looks adorable with his ears held out.

 

[meeko_33785]

Phew! Sounds like you got to ride Expedition Everest just in time!

I don't think I have ever seen pictures of Kangaroos in Animal Kingdom. I am going to have to search them out for sure! They are so cute.

Too funny about Tigger. Eeyore looks adorable with his ears held out.

Yep, it seemed like we just had perfect timing, at least as far as Everest goes. Good thing we didn't wait any later to get a Fastpass!

The kangaroos were a lot of fun to watch. The path with them on it started across from Pizzafari and winded back around the tree to the bridge back to the Oasis. It's a little hidden, but is worth the look.