A BB-Great Day for the Race (Star Wars Rival Run 2019 TR) *Updated 5/24*

[evre13]

Day 2: Wednesday, April 3
THE MAGIC IS ALIVE HERE (Part 1)

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I am one of those annoying morning people - I wake up naturally around 6:30 - 6:45, and “sleeping in” for me is around 7:45 AM. Wild and crazy over here, I know. All that to say I’m not at all surprised that I bounded out of bed around 6:15! It was so quiet in my room, too. I actually made a note of that in my trip notes — I live on a fairly busy street in DC, so it was a little eerie to have it be so silent.

I got ready for the day while snacking on some leftover Truffle fries - I mean, I had too - I wasn’t going to move them over to the Boardwalk with me. I probably left the room around 7 AM, and I dropped my bags off at Bag Services for transfer over to my next home: The Boardwalk. This was the first time I had used this service, and it was super easy; with a split stay, this was what made me most nervous, but I should have trusted Disney would know how to take care of it with ease.

It was shockingly a little chilly at this point (57 degrees!), and so I decided to take the bus to Magic Kingdom. While waiting, I actually encountered a family that said the boats weren’t running that early, which seems weird as it was 7:30? It was a fun wait for the bus though because there were lots of tiny excited children in costume on their way to character breakfasts. I felt quite boring in my jeans.

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Even though I had already seen the Train Station on my transportation adventure the night before, I was still super excited to arrive at the Magic Kingdom that morning! At that point, it was around 7:50, and I confidently strolled over to the tapstile where they were letting in people there for tours/breakfast reservations, and my band wouldn’t scan. I tried probably about 5 times, to the point that they brought over a supervisor, and when he scanned it on his iPad, he told me that I didn’t have a park ticket.

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I felt myself getting flushed, and I think I stammered out something along the lines of, "yes, I do, and I have 8 days of fast passes. What do you mean I can't get in?" I was sent over to Guest Services, and though I might have looked calm on. the outside, I felt like I was having a little bit of a panic attack. Finally, I thought to open MDE, and it showed that I had all of my fast passes and I had purchased an 8 day ticket, so at least I didn't dream that.

Long story short, at Guest Services, we realized the MagicBand I had brought with me to the park that day was somehow tied to F's account on MDE and not mine? I'm honestly not sure how that happened, but at least there was a reason the Mickey head wasn't turning green. I thought that I was going to have to go back to the hotel, find the other MagicBand I had brought with me (somewhere in my luggage), and miss the beginning of the day; however, the lovely man at Guest Services was able to give me a hard ticket to enter the park. Whew.

It's weird that this doesn't have MK on it?
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I looked at the time stamps on these photos, and I arrived at the park at 7:51 and had the new ticket issued at 7:58, so it only felt super long in my head! At that point, I was able to enter the park and walk down Main Street to see the best view someone could ask for on a Wednesday morning.

I guess this is a good time to apologize in advance for all of the selfies you’ll see in this post - it was only me in the parks today, and I didn’t trouble other guests for taking pics.


If you walk past the Castle and you don't take a selfie, were you even there?

Breakfast that morning was at Be Our Guest. I feel confident that I learned on the boards that, due to the nature of the restaurant and its pre-ordering, your reservation time was immaterial to when you were seating. Following my minor heart attack and walk down Main Street, I beelined straight for the Beast’s Castle, and I sat down around 8:10, I think. I had pre-ordered a kid’s breakfast, which thankfully came with coffee, and it was the perfect amount of food to start the day.
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I also hadn’t expected to get a full pastry plate with a kid’s meal order and and as a solo diner, so that was a fun surprise! I only wish that I had remembered a ziplock, so I could have thrown them into my bag as a snack for later. My pic info shows that I got breakfast at 8:14 AM. I ate, got more coffee, and headed out to get in line for Mine Train around 8:30 AM. At that point, there were probably only about 20 people ahead of me.
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I drank my coffee, I watched people around me who were all super excited to be in the park, and I got ready for what I was sure would be a great day (spoiler: I was right - it was a fabulous morning in the parks). Riding Mine Train to start the day hadn’t been part of my original plan, but I am so glad that I was able to make it work. They started moving us to the ride around 8:55 AM, and I think we entered the line a minute or two later.

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To date, I have only ever ridden SDMT through the Fast Pass line, and so today was a special treat! I've read about all of the entertainment in the line for a long time, and it was neat to finally see all of it. However, as we were basically powerwalking through the line, I didn't really get a chance to play with anything. I'm not going to complain about no real wait on the ride, though.​

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I was on the second train of the day, and I was in the second row! It's such a cute ride, and I am so glad that was how I started my solo morning in the park. By the time I was off the ride, the park was just opening! I could hear the welcome show and see the fireworks on the other side of the Castle, and I was already off my first ride of the day! This is when I thanked my obsessive Dis reading coming up to the trip - I felt like I was already winning the game. ​

I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to get to park opening, but I guess verbosity is a gift of mine. Up next - the rest of a magical morning!
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[evre13]

I love the Wilderness Lodge... Been my favorite since the first time I visited. We always manage to find an excuse to pop in for a visit if nothing else.

Looks like a really enjoyable evening. I have no problem going around like that by myself and I'd love to have an opportunity to visit a few resorts to have a drink or 2 and just take in the atmosphere! Sorry for the transportation headaches.

I loved it, too - I can't believe it took me so many trips to get there! It was a really enjoyable evening, and I actually liked being solo and wandering so much that I did it even after my friends arrived. Transportation headaches are a given when you rely on Disney transport sometimes, and there are way worse things than having to spend time on boats!

 

[afwdwfan]

Even though I had already seen the Train Station on my transportation adventure the night before, I was still super excited to arrive at the Magic Kingdom that morning!

Well yeah, you're actually going in this time!

I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to get to park opening, but I guess verbosity is a gift of mine. Up next - the rest of a magical morning!

Well, to be fair, there was a whole lot going on there before the rope ever dropped! Aside from the ticket experience, looks like it was a good morning!

 

[lvcourtneyy]

Omg that ticket situation would've made me so anxious too! But I'm glad you were able to work it out pretty quickly.

Getting on Mine train as the park is just opening is such a fun feeling!

 

[amazingact21]

Well, that was a little more excitement on your first park day than you expected! What a relief that it was a simple fix and Guest Services had you back at the tapstiles with a hard ticket in no time. (And I definitely thought to myself when I saw the photo, "A little weird that they gave her a ToT pictured ticket.")

The kids meal at Be Our Guest looked like the perfect size for a breakfast. And it came with coffee? That's awesome.

I can't wait to hear what more you accomplished with your solo time. Still living vicariously through your solo adventures.

 

[evre13]

Well yeah, you're actually going in this time!

Well, to be fair, there was a whole lot going on there before the rope ever dropped! Aside from the ticket experience, looks like it was a good morning!

It really was! Nothing like an adrenaline spike and coffee to get you going.

Omg that ticket situation would've made me so anxious too! But I'm glad you were able to work it out pretty quickly. Getting on Mine train as the park is just opening is such a fun feeling!

So freaking anxious! Plus regular "I'm going to Disney" excitement meant I was pretty wired to start the day! I loved starting my day on Mine Train - I really felt like I was winning planning.

Well, that was a little more excitement on your first park day than you expected! What a relief that it was a simple fix and Guest Services had you back at the tapstiles with a hard ticket in no time. (And I definitely thought to myself when I saw the photo, "A little weird that they gave her a ToT pictured ticket.")

The kids meal at Be Our Guest looked like the perfect size for a breakfast. And it came with coffee? That's awesome.

I can't wait to hear what more you accomplished with your solo time. Still living vicariously through your solo adventures.

I'm glad I'm not the only one that thought it was weird I got a Tower ticket at MK - but it got me into the park! More solo adventures coming up ASAP!

 

[evre13]

Day 2: Wednesday, April 3
THE MAGIC IS ALIVE HERE (Part 2)

Sorry it’s been a little radio silent around here - I was felled by a spring flu last week, and I’m finally feeling back to normal. Between that and conspiracy theories around the birth of Prince Archie and sleeping like 80% of the time, I didn’t have time to update. That changes…now.

So, I left off with a joyful ride on SDMT - such a fun little ride, but like so many others before me, I can’t imagine waiting an hour+ for it.

At this point, the park was open, and I decided to head toward Tomorrowland first; strategically, this seemed like it would be a good call since so many people head toward Fantasyland, Thunder Mountain, or the like. Space Mountain was my first roller coaster — and still one of my favorites! — so I thought I might be able to get another ride in before my FastPass that morning. By the time I made it to Tomorrowland at 9:05, the line at Space Mountain was showing at 50 minutes!

I honestly have no idea why as the park wasn’t super crowded at that point, but I decided not to waste that precious RD hour in line, so I headed over to Buzz Lightyear to see if my shooting skills had improved in a year.

Narrator: They had not improved.

I ended Buzz as a Ranger First Class, and I maintain that it’s because the gun didn’t shoot like it should.

At that point, I decided to hop over to one of my favorite rides: the Peoplemover! I was able to take a quick spin around Tomorrowland, but I forgot to take a foot propped up photo - so did it really happen? When I got off the Peoplemover, I noticed that the Space wait was down to 35 minutes, which was how much time I had until my FP window opened! It didn’t actually look that long, so I decided to hop in the line.

Ultimately, it only took about 15 minutes before I boarded on the Alpha side! I hadn’t ridden that in a while because I’ve usually ridden with a Fastpass, so that was super fun. I landed back on Earth just in time to rocket back into outer space. At that point, the line was up to 50 minutes, and it looked so much longer as I came back through. I think I was having the first of my many “better lucky than good” moments on the trip - I hit at a good lull in ride attendance and was able to ride twice!

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Now that I had accomplished all I planned to in Tomorrowland, I decided to slowly make my way over to Frontierland for my next two FPs (Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain, completing the mountain trifecta). Like any good millennial, I stopped for a #purplewallselfie, but I am old enough to not really understand why I was doing it.
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Post-selfie, it was about 10:30 AM, and all of a sudden, I could tell that it was still Spring Break crowds. I had been fairly insulated in Tomorrowland, which ended when I got to the Hub. My v v optimistic thoughts of how much I would get to get done that morning shifted as I assessed exactly how many humans were in the park, and I decided to get a snack!

Disney popcorn is one of my absolutely favorite treats, and I planned on consuming a lot of it while I was there so I went ahead and got the refillable bucket. Right after I got it, I saw a few special friends wandering through Frontierland - I think they were on their way to a show.​

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I may have to hand in my Disney fan card when I admit that I don't know which of the Bears this is. Hopefully this remains a judgment-free zone!

My next Fastpass didn't start until 12:15 or so, and it was only 11 AM at this point (I'm too lazy to open MDE to see exactly what time it was), and I was right there, so I decided to go see some Happy Haunts! I have in my notes that it was 75 minutes for Jungle Cruise and 55 for Pirates, which is more than I really want to wait for just about anything. ​

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When I first got in line, it said that it was 35 minutes, but after about 5 minutes in line, it jumped up to 45. I was annoyed but committed at that point - but I also had a snack, a fully charged cell phone, and friends that had just landed to talk to! Plus, I ended up having some unexpected drama in line. As we were in the interactive section, a man collapsed and had to be medically evac'ed from the ride! I think it was a blood sugar issue, but it was so scary to see! And so amazing to see how quickly the CMs handled the situation.

At that point, I was excited to meet a few ghosts, and I ended up being what my friend P called #DisneysNextTopModel.
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To be honest, I had no idea there was a photo on Haunted Mansion, and I'm not entirely sure what I'm looking at, but I hope Tyra would be pleased.
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And on that note, more MK adventures coming up next week! See ya real soon!​

 

[michigandergirl]

I love your Haunted Mansion picture!! All of ours were the same thing - looking intently at something.

 

[amazingact21]

Ouch, the Space Mountain wait was pretty brutal right at park opening. Glad luck was on your side that morning, and you were able to ride back to back. I love Space Mountain, too, but haven't been on it in years because my husband has such a hard time climbing in and out of it. (Tall people problems.)

Good thing you grabbed that popcorn before entering the HM queue. And yikes! Seeing someone needing medical attention had to be scary. Kind of takes you out of the Disney bubble for a moment and reminds you that you gotta keep up with hydration/nutrition/etc even on vacation.

 

[SarahDisney]

50 minute wait for Space at park open? Yikes! I'm glad you were able to catch the shorter line later and get the back-to-back rides!

I'm a terrible millenial ... I've never gotten a purple wall selfie. I just don't get the point.

I love your #DisneysNextTopModel picture ... you look like you're very concentrated on whatever you're looking at.

 

[afwdwfan]

Ultimately, it only took about 15 minutes before I boarded on the Alpha side!

I'm pretty skeptical that it was actually the 50 minutes that was posted earlier, but I'm glad you were able to catch a short line and get an extra ride in.

Like any good millennial, I stopped for a #purplewallselfie, but I am old enough to not really understand why I was doing it.

I can relate... I'm an early millennial that doesn't understand 90% of millennial things.

At that point, I was excited to meet a few ghosts, and I ended up being what my friend P called #DisneysNextTopModel.

 

[evre13]

Day 2: Wednesday, April 3
THE MAGIC IS ALIVE HERE (Part 3)​

Okay, let’s wrap up this magical morning and get to Day 2!

I luckily made it out of Master Gracey’s house without becoming the 1000th happy haunt, and it was time for my Thunder Mountain fastness! I am a little bit of a thrill junkie, and so I have to rank Thunder Mountain as one of my favorites. I strolled over, tapped my Magic Band, and I was on the ride within a few minutes.

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Please enjoy this terrible selfie of me riding. Why isn’t there a ride photo here? They prioritized that on Pirates but not on BTMRR? Disney, sometimes I don’t understand you.

After hitting the Wildest Ride in the Wilderness, I had an awkward amount of before my Splash Mountain FP. I checked the app, and holy Spring Break crowds, Batman - lines were getting nutty. Magic Carpets was a 65 minute wait.

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With my 25 minutes or so to kill, I decided to go see Tom Sawyer Island - another new experience for me! I don’t know why I haven’t been over there before. It was such a cool spot, and a wonderful break from the increasing crowds in the parks. I traversed the whole island, and I enjoyed all of the little thematic details that Disney does so well. I know that this is valuable real estate in the Park, but I hope it doesn’t go away. I’d be so sad now that I’ve discovered it.

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After my lap around and over and under things, I grabbed the raft back (I did notice that some of the names were a little eye-poppingly not PC, which is surprising in 2019), and I was able to scan my card at Splash Mountain.

This is a fact of life that will only impact a few of you, but I have quite wavy thick hair naturally. For the purposes of photos, I had woken up that morning to dry and straighten it, so I was hoping to not get totally soaked on Splash. Girl problems, I know. I just wanted to look good in my selfies.

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So, of course, I was front row in Splash on a day that they had turned the splashes up high (I’m not sure that’s the correct phrase, but I’m going with it.) Please enjoy the following visual story.

I love this ride! This is going to be so so so great!


Wow, some of those water eruptions look gigantic. I think I'm on the wrong side of the boat for this? Ahhhh...


Well, I guess there is nothing I can do about it now besides hope?!


THIS IS SO FUN I LOVE THIS RIDE SO MUCH


Welp. That was so worth it. SO SO SO worth it.


This is just my favorite scene and I like this photo. No pithy caption.​

Needless to say, I got soaked. Just drenched - luckily it was hot and sunny that I dried fairly quickly. My hair, however, would not recover that quickly. However, the ride was still as fun as always, and I left singing zip-a-dee-do-dah under my breath.

While I was in line for Splash Mountain, I got the notification that B&P had arrived at the hotel and were currently enjoying lunch at the ESPN Club. Since I had already hit all of my FPs for the day, and I was starting to get hungry, I decided to venture outside of the park and grab a lunch I had been looking forward to for months before heading to my new home away from home at the Boardwalk: nachos from the Polynesian!

more below - silly photo limit! I'm determined to wrap up Day 2 today!​

 

[evre13]

You may not have noticed this yet, but I'm highly motivated by both snacks and peer pressure, so I thought nothing of taking the monorail to the Poly, getting nachos to go, grabbing a bus to Hollywood Studios, and walking to the Boardwalk. And that's exactly what I did.

It was an uneventful journey, and I actually timed the buses fairly well. I was getting more and more excited to get to my friends though - as much as I had enjoyed introvert time (and trust me, I had!), it was going to be nice to have buddies.

Plus, I was getting texts like this the whole time!

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The only downside of our quiet balcony is that it was literally a quarter mile from the elevator. That was fine on most days, but so so so long on post-race days. I almost gave up walking after the half. Seriously.

B&P went for a run (overachievers), I ate my nachos — I wasn’t in potential TR mode at this point because I didn’t take a photo — but they were huge and delicious! I also had a bud light, which was not huge but also delicious.

That afternoon was what I considered beginning-of-trip admin - we unpacked; got the room arranged to hold three adults, 1 sofa bed, and a lot of luggage; did our Amazon Prime order, etc. etc. At around 5:30 or so, we motivated to head to Disney Springs for a “progressive” dinner — basically, we couldn’t decide where we wanted to go or what we wanted to eat, so we were going to hop around!

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First Stop: Enzo’s Hideaway!

I had read about the Tunnel Bar on the Dis, but I didn’t realize that it was a full restaurant down there. I honestly just thought that it was going to be a counter and a few stools and have more of a speakeasy vibe. It was huge! We grabbed stools at the bar and wasted no time ordering some fried cheese and a pitcher of white sangria to start the trip!

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I promise it was the White Sangria, even if it photographs pink.

After a delicious appetizer, we headed to a favorite of all of ours: Jock Lindsay’s! I have been on every trip since it opened, and it still remains one of my top spots to enjoy a snack and an adult bev. We ordered queso and decided to make it a progressive cheese dinner - we booked a table for later that night at Wine Bar George.

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One of the best parts of Jock’s for me is the ability to get a Tusker beer. It is one of my favorite Lagers, and it has been since I had for the first time in Kenya. I know that you can get it in other parts of the States now, but the first time I had seen it in America was years ago while there for the Princess Half (it’s at the Dawa bar). So Tusker is not only a Nairobi tradition for me, but also an Orlando one.

We wrapped up at Jock’s and since we still had a little bit of time before our reservation, we decided to hit some of the Disney Springs shops. I know we went to Uniqlo (both B&P forgot their sunglasses, which is not great in Florida), World of Disney, TrenD, and the CoOp. I didn’t end up buying anything, but it’s fun to see all of the new designs for Disney merch.

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I actually do have some more complicated thoughts on how I feel re: small producers -vs- Disney protecting their IP and using their “muscle” that may be a bit much for a TR.

Window shopping done, it was time to check-in to Wine Bar George! We were seated at a high-top in the front room, so we could see everything that was going on. Our waiter was mostly great (he had a weird moment in the middle of the meal), and he had really deep knowledge of the extensive wine list. (He actually used to be a CM, and hearing some of his stories was an unexpected dinner treat).

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We ordered the giant charcuterie board for dinner, and it was amazing. I wish I had taken notes that were more intense than just “CHEESE!” But I didn’t. Sorry @kastoney. Just not as interesting as your tipsy notes.

Wine-wise, B&P decided to stick with red. I’m normally a red or pink wine consumer, but I’m trying to branch out — and it was honestly too hot for red wine. I can’t do it in the summer. I thought this might be a good opportunity to try a new white wine, and I was right! I gave our waiter (I really wish I could remember his name!) my list of likes and dislikes, and he gave me a great recommendation. So great, in fact, that I had 4 glasses! Whoops.

I also got a dispatch from home while at dinner, and sorry not sorry, I will never not post a cute dog pic! (That's Taffy, and she's the great grumpy love of my life).

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After a delicious dinner (and maybe one glass of wine toooo many), we made the long trek to Uber pick up, went back to the Boardwalk, and got settled for the evening. Evening Elizabeth was nice enough to put out a bottle of water and some Advil for morning Elizabeth, just in case.

Next up: Day 3! Expo! Epcot! Excitement!​

 

[evre13]

I love your Haunted Mansion picture!! All of ours were the same thing - looking intently at something.

I know it's in one of the portraits at the beginning, but I can't figure out what the heck held my interest so intently! There's another one coming up soon!

Ouch, the Space Mountain wait was pretty brutal right at park opening. Glad luck was on your side that morning, and you were able to ride back to back. I love Space Mountain, too, but haven't been on it in years because my husband has such a hard time climbing in and out of it. (Tall people problems.)

Good thing you grabbed that popcorn before entering the HM queue. And yikes! Seeing someone needing medical attention had to be scary. Kind of takes you out of the Disney bubble for a moment and reminds you that you gotta keep up with hydration/nutrition/etc even on vacation.

They may have been inflating wait times, but I was definitely confused! Maybe you could Space Mountain on your adults only trip? Or try to get Landon on the ride?

Re: medical attention - it was definitely unexpected, and it reminded me to stay hydrated, but I am still so impressed at how quickly guests jumped into help and the CMs took care of it!

I'm a terrible millenial ... I've never gotten a purple wall selfie. I just don't get the point.

I don't get the point either - I think it started because there was good light in that location? It took on a life of it's own!

I'm pretty skeptical that it was actually the 50 minutes that was posted earlier, but I'm glad you were able to catch a short line and get an extra ride in.

Me, too! It was a great start to the morning!

 

[lvcourtneyy]

I got behind here but I'm caught up now!

Sorry it’s been a little radio silent around here - I was felled by a spring flu last week, and I’m finally feeling back to normal.

Oh no! Glad you're feeling better now.

so I headed over to Buzz Lightyear to see if my shooting skills had improved in a year.

This is me every trip. I never get better either.

Ultimately, it only took about 15 minutes before I boarded on the Alpha side!

Awesome!

To be honest, I had no idea there was a photo on Haunted Mansion, and I'm not entirely sure what I'm looking at, but I hope Tyra would be pleased.

I think she would be!

Please enjoy this terrible selfie of me riding. Why isn’t there a ride photo here? They prioritized that on Pirates but not on BTMRR? Disney, sometimes I don’t understand you.

Yessss this is my question also!! BTMRR is my favorite and I don't understand why it has no ride photo!

Magic Carpets was a 65 minute wait.

With my 25 minutes or so to kill, I decided to go see Tom Sawyer Island - another new experience for me!

I've only gone over there once and DBF never has! It's on my list to fit in because I'm convinced Disney will take it away soon.

For the purposes of photos, I had woken up that morning to dry and straighten it, so I was hoping to not get totally soaked on Splash.

My forever struggle

This is just my favorite scene and I like this photo. No pithy caption.

I love this scene too!

I had read about the Tunnel Bar on the Dis, but I didn’t realize that it was a full restaurant down there. I honestly just thought that it was going to be a counter and a few stools and have more of a speakeasy vibe. It was huge! We grabbed stools at the bar and wasted no time ordering some fried cheese and a pitcher of white sangria to start the trip!

Oo adding this to my list to try in DS!

Evening Elizabeth was nice enough to put out a bottle of water and some Advil for morning Elizabeth, just in case.

Very kind of evening Elizabeth.

 

[kastoney]

Long story short, at Guest Services, we realized the MagicBand I had brought with me to the park that day was somehow tied to F's account on MDE and not mine?

How on earth did that even happen? Very strange but glad they could fix it quickly.

I also hadn’t expected to get a full pastry plate with a kid’s meal order and and as a solo diner, so that was a fun surprise! I only wish that I had remembered a ziplock, so I could have thrown them into my bag as a snack for later.

My grandmother used to do this at breakfast buffets all the time and we were mortified!

By the time I made it to Tomorrowland at 9:05, the line at Space Mountain was showing at 50 minutes!

That is insane for 5 minutes after opening.

I may have to hand in my Disney fan card when I admit that I don't know which of the Bears this is. Hopefully this remains a judgment-free zone!

We'll let ya keep the card.

As we were in the interactive section, a man collapsed and had to be medically evac'ed from the ride! I think it was a blood sugar issue, but it was so scary to see! And so amazing to see how quickly the CMs handled the situation.

Oh no! How scary

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To be honest, I had no idea there was a photo on Haunted Mansion, and I'm not entirely sure what I'm looking at, but I hope Tyra would be pleased. ​

Tyra would be very pleased. I've yet to see a "good" photo on this ride. I don't think anyone knows where the camera is, yours truly included who took perhaps the worst picture of all time.

So, of course, I was front row in Splash on a day that they had turned the splashes up high (I’m not sure that’s the correct phrase, but I’m going with it.) Please enjoy the following visual story.

Do they do this? Don't think I ever realized they had control of the "splashes"

You may not have noticed this yet, but I'm highly motivated by both snacks and peer pressure, so I thought nothing of taking the monorail to the Poly, getting nachos to go, grabbing a bus to Hollywood Studios, and walking to the Boardwalk. And that's exactly what I did.

Snacks is the bestest kind of motivation and those nachos are a thing of beauty

At around 5:30 or so, we motivated to head to Disney Springs for a “progressive” dinner — basically, we couldn’t decide where we wanted to go or what we wanted to eat, so we were going to hop around!

This is so how Jason and I loved to roll before the kiddo came along. She's a great dining companion but has no tolerance for her parents hoping to more than 1 place

We ordered the giant charcuterie board for dinner, and it was amazing. I wish I had taken notes that were more intense than just “CHEESE!” But I didn’t. Sorry @kastoney. Just not as interesting as your tipsy notes.

I don't even think you need tipsy notes. CHEESE! says all anyone needs to know

Evening Elizabeth was nice enough to put out a bottle of water and some Advil for morning Elizabeth, just in case.

How nice of you. Hope it wasn't needed

 

[amazingact21]

All your snacks and drinks from Day 2 sound amazing. Hopping around, trying a little bit of everything, was a great idea. Glad the white wine was a win!

 

[SarahDisney]

I can relate a little bit to your Splash hair situation. I have naturally straight hair, but it can sometimes dry funny (which is why I usually iron it), and somehow any time my hair looks decent before I get on Splash Mountain, it's just a wet mess when I get off. Splash Mountain is a good attraction, but they need to have hair dryers and irons at the end for people to fix their hair.

All the food and drinks look and sound great! That white sangria looks good, even in pink.

I actually do have some more complicated thoughts on how I feel re: small producers -vs- Disney protecting their IP and using their “muscle” that may be a bit much for a TR.

If you're willing to share your thoughts, I'm interested to hear. I have mixed feelings - I liked the idea of people making specialty ears, but I also like that Disney understands the trend and wants variety to be available on property.
I don't do ears, but if I did want fun ears, I'd probably still go the handmade small shop route. But I dunno.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

Just joining in now, but it sounds like a great first day.

It's weird that this doesn't have MK on it?

I got 5 hard tickets in the mail for an upcoming trip and they're all DHS with one from EP. Maybe they're trying to subtly push people to lower attendance parks.

Like any good millennial, I stopped for a #purplewallselfie, but I am old enough to not really understand why I was doing it.

I am this age of millennial, too. Young enough to know that there is a trend, too old to actually care about said trend.

They prioritized that on Pirates but not on BTMRR?

This is so odd to me. This coaster definitely deserves a ride photo!

 

[afwdwfan]

I am a little bit of a thrill junkie, and so I have to rank Thunder Mountain as one of my favorites.

Me too! It was my first "big kid" coaster, so it is the one that started and fed my addiction and will always be special to me!

Please enjoy this terrible selfie of me riding. Why isn’t there a ride photo here? They prioritized that on Pirates but not on BTMRR? Disney, sometimes I don’t understand you.

I hear ya... makes a lot of sense.

I checked the app, and holy Spring Break crowds, Batman - lines were getting nutty. Magic Carpets was a 65 minute wait.

And this is the point my kids would freak out when I make it clear we will not wait in line for Magic Carpets at this point in time...

This is just my favorite scene and I like this photo. No pithy caption.

I have to agree... I love that scene to end the ride!

Needless to say, I got soaked. Just drenched - luckily it was hot and sunny that I dried fairly quickly. My hair, however, would not recover that quickly. However, the ride was still as fun as always, and I left singing zip-a-dee-do-dah under my breath.

Sorry about the hair... as a guy with very short hair, I can't relate to that part, but getting soaked on a hot day and leaving humming zip-a-dee-do-dah... yeah, I can go for that.

After a delicious appetizer, we headed to a favorite of all of ours: Jock Lindsay’s! I have been on every trip since it opened, and it still remains one of my top spots to enjoy a snack and an adult bev. We ordered queso and decided to make it a progressive cheese dinner - we booked a table for later that night at Wine Bar George.

Actually, that's a great way to enjoy a few fun places and have some drinks and snacks. Great idea!!

Evening Elizabeth was nice enough to put out a bottle of water and some Advil for morning Elizabeth, just in case.

Evening Elizabeth is a Rockstar.