A Disney-Universal Hootenanny Trip Report - Completed!

[xmattodx]

This is a pre-trip report. I don't really know why I'm writing it. The trip is months away but in a weeks time I'll have very little access to the internet.

The cast of characters - and they are truly characters - is large - and we are truly large.

In no particular order:
The own a home in Atlanta but have been in Palestine for the past 5 and a half months two:
Me - me. An optometrist who never wants to see a patient again.
Swell - my wife. An optometrist dragged willingly (?) to Nablus for a semester (?) to teach optometry. Named Swell due to a funny disease that causes her to have edema at the drop of a hat. Fine one day the next her arm could be 3times its normal size. We've been lucky because this hasn't been as serious/deadly as it is for some people.


The lives in Washington State 1 (2?):
Tata - Swell's very Romanian father. Doesn't know what to think of a theme park vacation but will come just to spend time with his daughter.
Mama (?) - will join us if her work allows. Tough to ask for more vacation time when you've just returned from 6 weeks in Romania.

The live in Edmonton, Canada 9:
Mustard - my Mum.
Pappy - my Dad. With Mustard they sprung for airline tickets for the following:

BBL - my eldest sister
Cami - her eldest son (10)
George - middle son (9)
Cheese - youngest son (5)

JDL - the sister just older than me. Because she is a teacher it limits when this trip can happen.
Jill - my brother (4 years younger than me)
The Good One - my make beleive sister. A friend of the family for as long as I can remember. If we have a family event she'll be sure to be there. We're just that cool.

The following is a small portion of something I posted on my blog a number of weeks ago.

My family is having a reunion of sorts this August. It is the culmination of a lifetime of dreaming for my parents I think. When my two sisters, my brother and I were young we were always saving for a Disneyland vacation. When we returned our pop bottles - it was for the Disney fund. When we put our pennies in a jar it was for the Disney fund.

The Disney fund never reached maturity.

It was always a pipe dream and I don't think my parents ever really believed we would go. I always dreamed of it but was never disappointed when it didn't happen. We were not the wealthiest of families and a trip for 6 to California would be very difficult to pull off. As kids we were never left wanting. I was able to join ski club in Jr. High and I am sure it was a sacrifice for my parents to spend the few hundred dollars that cost. We went to summer camp every year. If we asked for something we were sure to get it sooner or later - wait maybe that was just me... I am, after all the favourite- perhaps my siblings have a different version of childhood. Perhaps they went through childhood deprived of their deepest desires. I didn't. Maybe all the extra money was spent on me? I'm not complaining. It was the least my parents could do after stealing me away from bowling league when I was 6 or 7.

Anyway. As we kids got older and moved past believing that the Disneyland vacation would ever happen other things happened. Weddings, school, kids for one of us, moves to the south for me and to the north for one of my sisters.

My parents also found that not having four kids to support allowed them to get out and see the world. Eventually they decided that a cruise was in order and ended up in Florida and the Bahamas and were able to go to Disneyworld and Universal Studios.

My mother survived accidentally getting on Revenge of the Mummy (she gets motion sick and... well Revenge of the Mummy happens to move. My dad laughs about it now but I think he was quite concerned when he realized the err of their ways).

My folks were able to get an amazing deal on a time share while in Florida and have made use of it a few times. Once they were able to bring JDL and the good one with them and my dad finally had someone to go on rides with. (My mother on-the-other-hand finally had someone to take my dad off of her hands.)

When I graduated from public health school my Mustard, Pappy, Jill, Swell and I went to Disneyworld and Universal Studios and had an amazing time.

The initial dream of a once-in-a-lifetime family vacation will reach completion this August when all those who have gone before: Mustard, Pappy, Jill, The Good One, JDL, Swell and I are joined by my eldest sister and her three boys.

Eldest sister, BBL, has had a tough 18 months (well lets be honest a tough 5 or 6 years that culminated 18 months ago).

So 11 of us will be in Florida for a week in August. Now this DisneyLAND savings of our youth has taken a drastic turn of events and turned into a week where we will celebrate our family's growth and steadfast love for each other while my parents finally get to provide a Disney trip and see the joy of a Disney vacation in children's eyes (their grandchildren's). We will be in Florida rather than California and three boys will get to go on an airplane for the first time and then enjoy the heat, humidity and crowds of Florida in August. It should be a good time.

Now why would this be posted as a trip-report in the Universal Studios thread?

Our trip will entail 3 days at Disneyworld followed by 2 days at Universal studios. The bulk of the family will leave the day after the second Universal day but my wife and I will celebrate our release from 6 months of self-imposed occupation, my birthday, and our fifth anniversary by staying at Universal for another 3 days.

When you live in Palestine you don't get to go out much. So I wrote a vacation proposal entitled the *insert family names here* Hootenanny. I'll post that sometime soon and tell you how I convinced my family to spring for the Portofino Bay when they already had a condo booked.

As my wife and I say with great regularity - Good times, Good times.

 

[tlinus]

What a great story......I will wait for any updates and of course the officialy Hootenanny report once the trip is done!! (with loads of pictures of course!!)

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Awesome story! Sounds like you guys are going to have a blast. We can't wait to hear all about it. I'd be interested in hearing more about Palestine as well. I always love reading about places & cultures I've never experienced.

 

[xmattodx]

What a great story......I will wait for any updates and of course the officialy Hootenanny report once the trip is done!! (with loads of pictures of course!!)

Thanks so much. My wife and I both enjoyed your trip report very much. She especially liked the pudding eating contest. "I need a spoon!"

 

[xmattodx]

Awesome story! Sounds like you guys are going to have a blast. We can't wait to hear all about it. I'd be interested in hearing more about Palestine as well. I always love reading about places & cultures I've never experienced.

Thanks. I'm actually a Canadian citizen with US permanent residency who doesn't speak a lick of Arabic.

We really love Palestine. It is a beautiful place with wonderful, kind, loving people. We are in the West Bank which is substantially safer than the Gaza Strip.

We're leaving in four days to head to Romania and we'll miss much of what we've experienced here. Hopefully the political situation can get sorted out one day as this would be a wonderful tourist destination. If you ever get really bored check out our blog at swellandsheepie.blogspot.com

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Thanks. I'm actually a Canadian citizen with US permanent residency who doesn't speak a lick of Arabic.

We really love Palestine. It is a beautiful place with wonderful, kind, loving people. We are in the West Bank which is substantially safer than the Gaza Strip.

We're leaving in four days to head to Romania and we'll miss much of what we've experienced here. Hopefully the political situation can get sorted out one day as this would be a wonderful tourist destination. If you ever get really bored check out our blog at swellandsheepie.blogspot.com

The two of you really do have a life full of adventure. Thanks for taking us along for at least a small part of it. I'll definitely read your blog. Enjoy the rest of your journey, & stay safe.

 

[xmattodx]

This time last year we - my wife and I - took our first trip to Orlando. We went with Mustard, Pa, and my brother Jill immediately following my graduation from grad. school.

I find it funny that many people on these boards claim that Disney is a theme park and Universal is an amusement park with only thrill rides. I had never been to either and the first park we went to was Universal and my Mum came too.

You see my Mustard does not do rides. She will not do anything that spins, goes backward, etc. She loves Universal. She made a point to join us on both of our Universal days and decided to spend the day at the hotel when we did MGM. (We didn't have enough time to do more than 3 parks and my Dad wouldn't let us miss Universal.) Anyway back to my Mum. She loves the shows at Universal. She will ride the water rides and enjoys them as well.

Here is part of a trip report I did for last years Orlando trip - I posted it on my blog.

Flashback

We spent today at work doing little to nothing and then had to head to the airport to pick up my parents. They were to be patiently waiting for us to pick them up as they arrived before we could get there from work. Luckily, according to the NWA updates their plane was delayed so I didn’t think they’d have to wait very long. WRONG.


Word of advice: if you live in Atlanta do not try to get from Buckhead to the airport at 5:30 p.m. on a weekday. It took us about an hour and a half to get to the airport (shoulda taken about 20 minutes.) Traffic was b-a-d, and people tried to kill us a few times on our drive there but that’s nothing new with driving in Atlanta.

We finally arrived at the airport and found my parents sitting next to each other excited to be on vacation with each other… they couldn’t stop staring at each other… wait no… they were holding han…. Wait no…. that’s right, I’ve just been reminded they were sitting beside each other reading. Wouldn’t have known they were even friendly with each other if I didn’t know them. Books are dividing yet another family.

Anyhoo we found them and said: “Hi, let’s go”. So off we went. Now I know that me Mum isn’t the tallest lady in the world and on top of that she has recently had fairly major surgery so we weren’t moving very quickly. There are only four of us though and we were walking - I suppose walking is being generous, perhaps a better description would be shuffling in two single file lines so we weren’t taking up that much room. As we made our way to the exit we were just talking about the flight, the weather, the bathrooms… you know important stuff and out of the corner of my eye I see some jerk staring at us and not trying very hard to get by. Obviously this guy was in some sort of hurry and we seemed to be blocking his way with our slow moving caravan. Just as I was about to say: “Look dude, quit staring, just move along you can get by.” I realize that the jerk is my brother!

Without our knowing Jill joined my parents for their vacation and Swell and I didn’t even see him sitting behind my parents where we met them. (Poor guy probably had to sit by himself for an hour because we were so delayed in traffic).

So instead of two visitors we now had three --- and barely enough room in the car to get them home. It was at that moment we decided it would be best if we rented a larger car to get us to Florida and back. (Over the next two days me Mum and Swell hammered at the computer, phones, books, coupons, flyers trying to get the best deal possible. We did end up getting a pretty good deal through Hertz and AAA which allowed both me and me Pa to drive.)

We ended up at home and arranged the sleeping – Me folks in our futon and Jill on the floor in the living room.

Swell and I both worked the next two days so me family found some stuff to do on their own – CNN tour and the World of Coke “museum” and sampling room. Jill broke his personal edge and drank some of the world’s most disgusting beverages. He’ll never be the same.

Monday was my big day. (Thanks for noticing). I graduated yet again. Some fool decided that 8:00 am would be a good time to have the ceremony and that the graduates wouldn’t mind being there at 7:15 a.m.

I walked across the stage, got my degree, grabbed some free lunch, took some photos and ran away from that school as quick as a bunny – never to return.

After graduation we picked up the rental car, loaded up and drove around looking for a AAA to get cheap attraction tickets. We found the AAA (after an hour or so) got tickets for one thing as nothing else was cheaper and headed to Florida.

My graduation dinner was held at Cracker Barrel – yes Jill did mock the name incessantly – where the south’s finest cuisine was consumed and we all gained 5 pounds and had minor heart attacks. Good times, good times.

Our 6 hour drive to Orlando took longer than planned and we didn’t get in to the hotel until 2 am. Feeling that the next day we would be too tired and it was supposed to rain (Rain in Florida!) we decided to sleep in and just have a boring day in and around the hotel.

Sleeping in did occur as did the rain. Lots and lots of rain.

We drove around trying to find cheap tickets to attractions ending up at Wal-Mart (Yuck, ick, and so on and so forth). Cheap tickets were found including tickets to “Sleuths Mystery dinner theater” which we did that evening. Food was good, mystery was mysterious and nobody in our family got it right. Jill – being the ham that he is – cracked everyone at our table up by saying something about Col. Mustard in the Conservatory to which Swell proceeded to crack no-one up by saying it was Apu in the Nuclear power plant. It was a valiant effort at humour Swell but nobody plays Simpson’s clue but you.

We went home to get some sleep before the first visit to an amusement park. Swell has never been on big rides before, Jill has only gone on a few but no real roller coasters, I haven’t been on a ride since before the big accident of ’93, Pa on the other hand is old hat at these rides but the problem is he can’t remember what any of them are like. He just says: “oooh I like this one!” “Why Dad? What is it like?” “Dunno.”

Our first park was Universal Studios Orlando home of the very fun Shrek 4-D which caused me Mum to scream, Swell to giggle and Jill to wet himself. I figured it was going to be a long day if people couldn’t handle a 3-D movie with some moving seats. Boy was I right. Also at this park was E.T. which was fun. It’s like a train but the track is above you and you’re riding a bike. It was awesome but scared Swell a little bit. There were a lot of other things we did there but the best was the Mummy. A great little roller coaster that Swell ended up loving but the first time was pretty scary for her and I still bear the scars.

The Mystery Machine!!!

The next day was Disney World MGM Studios. Me Mum didn’t join us that day as she doesn’t like most of the things at it. This day was highlighted (as was the day previous) by NO CROWDS. There was no one there. If we wanted to go on a ride it was a very short wait. A highlight was also seeing the stunt show where one of the stunts went a little awry and they emergency evacuated us as they tended to the very injured stunt guy. He didn’t even come close to making the jump but many in the crowd still thought it was part of the show. Idiots.

Other highlights were going on the Rock and Roller Coaster three or four times and on the Tower of Terror an even dozen. Swell grew to like the rides I think. One fun part of the tower of terror was when Jill found the camera that takes a picture of you as you descend rapidly. He had some fun making faces at the camera and then laughing at himself as people looked at the pictures (which you could buy for a mere $20) One of the pictures you can see below. Another thing Jill did was so crude that they didn’t even show it the first time he did it so he tried again… they showed it that time I think mostly because the guy in the back of the car looked like he was dying… funniest thing ever. Just ask Jill what he did…. To give you an idea hold your hands directly in front of you. Extend you index and middle fingers. Bend your arms at the elbow so your fingers point toward each other. Rotate your wrists so the meat of your fingers face you. Now pull your fingers toward your body and make a funny face when they touch you…. Good times.

The Tower of Terror (White trash picture - that's us, white trash)

The third and final park day was Universal Studios Islands of Adventure. It was a lot of fun but it was school day so there were a million bratty little kids there that created a lot of havoc. A LOT OF HAVOC. Rides were closed because of the bratty kids but we were able to enjoy the incredible hulk roller coaster twice (Not Swell – chicken). The dueling dragons thrice. The Jurassic Park ride twice and many more. Most of the riding took place in the last couple of hours.

The Spiderman ride was closed all day. Just before close Jill, Dad, and I went on the Incredible Hulk Roller Coaster one last time. Swell really wanted to try Spiderman but the line was very long and I didn’t think I’d like it as I thought it was just one of those movies you watch and the room moves. After the roller coaster they were still letting people into Spiderman (I think to make up for it being closed all day). Boy was I wrong. Best. Ride. Ever. I won’t give anything away but it messes with your mind dude. It was soooo awesome that we snuck back in and did it again. Awesome.


Jill, Pa, and I on there somewhere

The last full day we spent in Orlando included shopping (Nice clip-ons Dad), Mini-Golf (Jill destroyed us all) and Pirates dinner theater (boy did that suck).

We left the very next day after another round of mini-golf (boy did Jill suck). And then we made it home in time to work the next day.

End Flashback

The short trip we took last year was so fun that this year's trip has been consuming our thoughts. There is next to nothing to do here. We are trapped in our homes, not allowed to leave without an escort and had to deal with a nearly week long curfew (not allowed to leave our home at all) this gave us ample time to surf the internet. I found this site which further fueled our excitement. Really learned a lot and hope to make this year's trip even better than last years. Thanks to all who take the time to answer questions and give hints.

More about our upcoming trip soon.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I loved your TR. You are too funny. I'm looking forward to the next installment, & reading your blog. Continue on.....

 

[macraven]

i had fun and lots of smiles when i read your report above.
can't wait to see how you present the family reunion trip in this coming august.

 

[xmattodx]

Thanks to all who are reading this pre-trip report.

It should be noted that I am very long winded when I write things. If I can say something in 10 words why wouldn't it be better said in 20 words?

I wrote a grant proposal to obtain funding to keep my position here in Nablus as well as two scientific papers to submit to journals just prior to writing the following. I say this to explain why in the world someone would write a document such as the one I am replicating below. The short answer... I was a little bit loopy.

It was well received.

If you write proposals for a living please don't judge me harshly!

Pe-Pf (full last names removed for anonymity) Orlando, Florida Trip 2007
Proposal​

Background
As a Christmas gift all of the Pe and Pf children received airline tickets from Edmonton, Alberta to Orlando, Florida. This was a surprise and is eagerly anticipated by all of them. For many years the elder(ly?) Pe’s had hoped to bring their family on a “Theme Park” vacation. Due to the sheer number of children that the elder(ly?) Pe’s had they were unable to bring this dream to fruition. After years of diligent saving (as if) and hard work (this is true) they have decided that the summer of 2007 will be the perfect opportunity to fly their children and their children’s children to Florida to enjoy the oppressive heat, humidity and crowds on the First ever Pe-Pf Phlorida Hootenanny.

Proposal
Goal: Leave the central Florida tourist/theme park industry shell shocked and unable to recover from excessive Pe-Pf Hootenanny-y-ing.

Objective 1: Plan the perfect theme park onslaught which will enable hootenanny-y-ing like no one has ever hootenanny-y-ed before
Objective 2: Ride as many rides as possible as many times as possible all the while hootenanny-y-ing
Objective 3: See as many shows as possible as many times as possible with silent hootenanny-y-ing
Objective 4: Secure accommodations allowing adequate rest between bouts of hootenanny-y-ing
Objective 5: Ensure proper hootenanny-y-ing attire is obtained prior to the commencement of the First ever Pe-Pf Phlorida Hootenanny

Plan to Accomplish Goals
Through extensive research and consultation a proposed itinerary was developed.

This itinerary enables the best use of fast-passes and front of the line passes to ensure that all objectives can be completed. This itinerary also takes into account Pe-Pf need for sleep and nourishment.

Itinerary
August 11 early am – Swell and I depart Atlanta, Georgia by car.

August 11 – The majority of the Pe-Pf clan depart Edmonton, Alberta via Aeroplane. Upon arrival in Orlando, Florida they rent a “Hutterite” van – whatever that is (editor’s note – I think my Mustard calls large passenger van's "Hutterite vans." Why? ) – and proceed to the first night’s accommodations. After rest, shower, toothbrushing the entire Pe-Pf Party commence Hootenannying by going to Downtown Disney where they will look at shops and certain “statues” that they Pf boys will very much enjoy. Dinner that evening will be at the Rain Forest Café where I am a preferred member (whatever that means) which allows priority seating. After dinner the Pe-Pf Party will retire to their accommodations to rest up for the first full day of Phlorida Hootenanny-y-ing.

August 12 – Magic Kingdom
This is the what many would say is the true Disney World Experience. Cinderella’s castle, Disney characters, rides, and shows. (See appendix 1) This will be the time to get a taste of Disney. It is a large park with a lot to do but the first day of Hootenannying will be one of relaxation. Getting a feel for the park. Eating, shopping, riding rides, seeing characters. It will be the icebreaker for the more hardcore Hootenanny-y-ing to take place as the week progresses. The Pe-Pf clan will decide which rides/shows are of most importance and do those first. If time remains they will do the others. An early night is suggested as the next night will be a long one.

August 13 – Disney MGM Studios
There are major, major rides to Hootenanny on in MGM studios. Rock ‘N’ Roller Coater for 1 and of course everyone’s favourite – the Tower of Terror. Cheese Pf will be unable to Hootenanny on the Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster due to his short stature. There is still a lot for a little Cheese to Hootenanny on, however. Many fun shows, including a couple of stunt shows will enable all to Hootenanny in a way that will create lasting memories. The evening will end with the Phantasmic Show complete with Mickey Ice Cream Bars – of which the eldest male Pe will eat two because he’ll claim; “I forgot your mother wasn’t with us.” The hootenannying will end but more will occur the next day.

August 14 – Off Day
While an off day would sound like a day of little to no Hootenanny-y-ing this will not be the case. Mini Golf, shopping and possible splitting up of the Pe-Pf clan will enable the hootenanny-y-ing to reach new levels not yet seen in Central Florida.

August 15 – Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom is, surprisingly, filled with animals as well as rides. Many rides will be had. A safari will also be had as well as some walking and pointing at the “funny looking animals.” Jill Pe and I will hope to see an Elephant with five legs so that we can recall good times at the Portland zoo and have a good hootenanny at the Elephant’s expense. There are many, many shows and things to look at in the Animal Kingdom and great fun will be had by all.

August 16 – Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure
This is where the real ride Hootenanny-y-ing begins. Many thrill rides, shows and good eats will occur at the Universal studios park. Swell will weep tears of Hootenanny-y-ing on these days as there is a Starbucks Coffee shop on the premises. Many will enjoy the Revenge of the Mummy, however, Cheese is yet again on the short side of this ride. He can enjoy many other things though including Men in Black which will test who can Hootenanny the best via shooting aliens.

August 17 – Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure
The Hootenannying will reach new heights today as many Spiderman rides will be ridden by everyone who likes a good Hootenanny in 3D motion. With the Front of the Line Passes (see next section) this ride can be ridden as many times as one wants.

August 18 – The end of the Hootenanny-y-ing
Every good hootenanny must come to an end. I will be showered with gifts and well wishes on this my birthday. The majority of the Pe-Pf clan will depart for Edmonton this day but not until after a meal is shared by all.

Preparations
For the goal to be reached all 5 objectives must met.

Objective 1 is met via the itinerary listed above. Further work is required to ensure that the itinerary maximizes the Hootenanny potential for all Pe-Pf’s. If it doesn’t an email summit is suggested to reach consensus.

Objectives 2 and 3 will be best met by arriving at the parks prior to park opening. Between the hours of 9 and 11 the parks are less busy than between 11 and 5. This will enhance the ability to hootenanny sans crowds. Many rides can be ridden in this two hour window. This will require that all Pe-Pf’s be up and “at-em” at an early hour. It is suggested that breakfast be had at the park or supplies purchased at a grocery store sometime prior to the commencement of the Hootenanny-y-ing. The Atlanta Pe’s can shop for all in the party prior to their arrival if they are provided with a shopping list.

For the Universal parks it is strongly suggested that Front of the Line passes are obtained. These are obtained by securing a domicile on the Universal property. (see budget). This will allow all bearers of a room key to go to the front of the line as many times as they want thereby maximizing the potential for level 10 Hootenanny-y-ing.

Objective 4 will be accomplished via Mother Pe who will secure rooms at the time share facility or elsewhere. It is, again suggested that one night be spent on the Universal property. This will require that other Pe’s pull their share of the cost. It will be well worth going without food for one week to get Front of the Line Passes – from this point forward referred to in speech and written language as “We are Better than You Passes”.

Objective 5 requires that all Pe-Pf’s have comfortable clothing, preferably something that dries quickly so that water rides can be ridden without permanently dampening the Hootenanny-y-ing. It is also suggested that all find and wear the most comfortable of foot-wear. A lot of walking will be done and if proper footwear is not worn than it is highly likely that the Hootenanny-y-ing will be trampled.

It is further suggested that both Cami and George Pf receive eye exams prior to the beginning of the Hootenanny-y-ing to ensure that they can enjoy the 3D movies with clarity. Also suggested is the purchase of Sunglasses for everyone to prevent squinting and headaches in the bright Florida sun.

Rides/Shows
Please see attachment for a list of rides and shows at all the parks.

Budget
Airfare Provided by donation
Rooms TBD
Parks TBD
Front of the Line Passes ~$237.50 X 3/whoever is willing to pay
Excessive Hootenanny-y-ing Included in the price

Conclusion
It is never too early to prepare for a trip of Hootenanny-y-ing. This is a working document and it is expected that others will add and subtract from it. The budget is to be finalized as soon as possible and tickets/rooms reserved within the next month.


Because of the preceding document my Mustard booked three rooms at the RPR for one night - the 16th of August. The rate she was paying seemed a little high to me. She booked it with a GA resident discount. Not wanting to pay more than we had to Swell got on Skype (what an amazing invention that is) and phoned the booking agent and pestered them until the were able to come up with a better deal for 3 rooms at the PBH (funny thing was that while she was speaking to this poor booking agent she couldn't stop laughing because of the sporadic gunfire in the background - on our end. Its funny because we never hear gunfire...until we phone the US.) We got a decent rate, I think, using a GA resident discount for two rooms and an airline employee discount for another (Swell's Dad works for an airline). Everyone is excited about the hotel and the trip.

Swell and I also booked a room for the 18th-21st at the PBH and will spend a few more relaxing days there with her Dad.

 

[Minniespal]

Fantastic story ~ Looking forward to reading more.

 

[xmattodx]

On Saturday, August 11, 2007 the Hootenanny officially began. At 5:30 am Eastern Time Swell and Sheepie woke with great anticipation for the good times – and long drive – ahead. Around the same time 3:30 am Mountain Time the rest of the clan were on their way to the airport in Edmonton, Alberta.

The plan was for Swell and Sheepie to pick up a few remaining groceries (they already had a trunk full of non-perishables) in Orlando drop them off at the rental home and meet up with the rest of the group at Downtown Disney for shopping and dinner.

By 6:30 pm the whole group would be together and the fun would begin in earnest.

But before that, traveling would have to be done.

Swell and Sheepie left Atlanta around the scheduled time of 6:45 am. After a short drive it was already time to stop for a quick Chick-Fil-A breakfast. The drive was very uneventful and Pam-Pam (our GPS) guided us flawlessly. Traffic slowed dramatically near Arabi, Georgia – what kind of name is Arabi anyway?

We were dismayed to see the aftermath of what seemed to be a very serious single car accident. There was a pick-up truck straddling the central median with its roof completely pushed in from what appeared to be a multiple rollover accident. Having been in a car (1970 VW bus) that slid on its side down the highway after hitting a moose it always bothers me to see accidents. It always brings back bad memories. After making it by the accident (a tow truck was at that point pulling the truck of the median) we resumed to normal freeway speed and made it into Orlando with no further issues.

We weren’t able to access the rental house until 4pm and we arrived in Orlando at 1:30ish so we decided to go and do the remainder of our grocery shopping prior to heading to the house. We found a Costco via Pam-Pam’s vast memory and were soon on our way to the I-4 parking lot. Traffic was not moving… at all.

After about an hour we found the cause of the non-moving traffic. It appeared to by, yet again, a single car roll over accident. Again the car was on the center median and the tow truck was nearby getting ready to pull the car off the road. Strange coincidence.

Shopping done we headed back toward the house with our perishables quickly melting in the oppressive heat of Orlando. It was hot. Soooo hot.

We were listening intently to Pam-Pam for the route to “home”.

<b>Pam-Pam</b> Prepare to exit to the right.
<b>Me</b> OK
<b>Pam-Pam</b> Exit Freeway on the right… Now.
<b>Me</b> What!? There is no exit on the right! Pam-Pam what do I do?
<b>Pam-Pam</b> Recalculating route… exit on the right… now.
<b>Me</b> What!? There is still no exit. Am I supposed to drive through the grass? What are you telling me Pam-Pam?
<b>Pam-Pam</b> Recalculating route you idiot. Stay to the left. I’ve now added 10 extra miles to your trip.

It appears that the map that Pam-Pam uses has two freeway exits on it that don’t exist in real life. So for the rest of the week we would fly past the correct exit saying as we did – I think we should have exited there – only to hear Pam-Pam say “exit now” when there was no exit around. We would then have 10 miles added to our trip. Good times. Good times.

I should mention that we had dinner reservations at the Rainforest Café at Downtown Disney scheduled for 10 pm. We’re not real good planner aheaders. So we didn’t call until somewhere on the route to make a reservation. By that time the only time available was 10pm. I took the reservation but fully expected to go elsewhere.

Pam-Pam eventually took us to our rental home. We pulled into the driveway and had the following conversation.

<b>Swell</b>: “Ummmm… how do we get into the house?”
<b>Sheepie</b>: “Easy. The management company gave us a code. We just need to pull up the code on my computer. Enter it into the keypad and we’ll be in the house putting away the groceries.”
<b>Swell</b>: “Sounds good, but can you explain to me why there are people in the house?”
<b>Sheepie</b>: “No. I actually can’t explain that. I’m going to continue with my plan of finding the code on my computer and entering the house.”
<b>Swell</b>: “Well I’m going to find out who is in the house and why.”

Swell comes back stating three surprising things:
1) We’re not expected until tomorrow
2) They are cleaning the house
3) The house doesn’t look like the pictures

I’m very, very slow and put all the blame on my mother who booked the house. I wouldn’t have been surprised had she booked for the wrong dates. We had a meeting time fast approaching so Swell arranged to have our perishables put in the fridge while the house was being cleaned. The cleaners phoned the home owner and he said we could stay that night but might own a little bit more money. We left all of our food – perishables in the fridge the rest in the garage – and left for our dinner date.

Every 15 passenger van we passed on our way to Downtown Disney received stares as we scanned the passenger’s faces looking for our family.

At 6:30 pm exactly we saw a bright red van pulling into the parking lot of Downtown Disney. I pulled up alongside it and saw that it was, in fact, filled with the 9 Edmonton members of our Orlando Hootenanny. We all waved at each other with excitement and soon parked our respective vehicles. Upon exiting the vehicles we were told that my eldest nephew was very sad as he had forgotten his hat, and more importantly, DS Lite on the airplane. This fact would haunt him off and on for the whole week.

We spent the next couple of hours exploring Downtown Disney and when I say Downtown Disney I mean the Lego store as we had three young boys with us. We decided to cancel our 10pm Rainforest Café reservation and head elsewhere as the Edmonton folks had yet to eat since early that morning.

After dinner we pulled up to the house – after missing the exit of course. The van arrived prior to our car and we pulled up to a very confused group of people.

The magic code didn’t work for the door. The house didn’t look like the right house. My father pointed out that the house across the street actually looked like the right house. We all compared the address we had to the address on the house. We were at the right address but the picture included in the rental package looked a lot like the house across the street.

As my mother phoned the management company – no answer – my father and brother walked across the street tried the magic code on that door and presto/chango was granted access.

Three problems arose from this:
1) The house had not been completely cleaned
2) Our food was in the other house
3) I was very confused

After 30 minutes of phone calls we finally got a hold of someone and it turns out that we were given the wrong address and we had, in fact, rented the house to which we were able to gain access. We were given a code for the first house and retrieved our food. Someone soon came to finish cleaning the house (one room was a mess, the rest was fine) and we were happy. The house was everything that was promised to my Mum and matched the photos she had viewed on line.

Our first day in Orlando came to a close and we had an early morning planned so everyone fell into a deep, content sleep.

Upcoming installments:
Three days of Disney in a paragraph (or 2)
Why doesn’t my camera work?
Portofino Bay is NICE
Why can kids ride roller coasters with no fear but freak out in Twister?
Dudley Do-Right ate my keys

 

[macraven]

i'm loving this report.


now i'll be left hanging until you come back and write more

 

[xmattodx]

Thanks Mac!

I promise we'll get to the Universal Studios section soon!

Our first three days in Orlando were Disney World days. Due to various events along the planning route of our trip we decided that it would be best if we did three Disney World days in a row followed by a rest day and then two Universal days. (Swell and I would add another three Universal days after everyone else left for home).

Our itinerary changed multiple times as well. We eventually – for a vast number of reasons – decided on doing three Disney Parks and doing them in this order:

Animal Kingdom
Magic Kingdom
Disney MGM Studios

Why am I going to quickly talk about the Disney leg of our trip on the Universal Trip Reports board? Quite frankly because I can’t tell a story out of order and I refuse to post it on the Disney side of the board. Why do I refuse? Because those folks scare me. Lets just leave it at that.

So real briefly here are our Disney days.

I did just enough planning to kind of know that we should get to the parks early and that there were certain rides we should do in the am and then fastpass if we wanted to do them again.

Our plan for Animal Kingdom was not grand. We wanted to ride Expedition Everest (the three young boys were really looking forward to this – the eldest especially – after watching the Disney World trip planning DVD) and we wanted to do the Safari.

We were at the park at opening. We made it to Expedition Everest quickly and found a short standby line. While my Mum, who doesn’t do rides, got fastpasses the rest of the group rode EE and loved it. Well everyone loved it but me. You see I don’t have kids. I have nephews that I see once a year. Half way through the ride the ride did something and as it went through that motion (an intended motion) I couldn’t help but think, “Well Cheese just fell out.” Cheese is the youngest of the three boys and is just tall enough to ride EE. I know that it was an irrational thought that he fell out but it was a thought that flashed across my brain and it kind of took the fun away from the second half of the ride. Although the second time we did it I enjoyed it more. When we finished our second EE ride (having used our fastpasses a couple hours later) we received Year of a Million Dreams Ears which made everyone very happy. We even wore them for a while. I’d post pictures but I forgot the battery for my camera in Atlanta and, therefore, took no pictures. Ooops. Others took pictures but there is only so many pictures of a group of people standing around looking lost that you can post without becoming boring. I’ll save the boring pictures for later.

ETA: Pictures from Swell's camera added!

We saw Devine on the way to the Safari.

We also really liked the safari. It was great and we saw lots of animals. It had the same feel as the real safari Swell and I did in South Africa earlier this year. It was great to see people enjoying seeing the animals up close and personal.

Kali river rapids was fun but we did it only once as we knew we had a similar although superior ride to go on our universal days. We didn’t really get wet although it is a water ride. My sister really wanted to see the bird show. I was meh! But it turned out to be quite good and most importantly the boys really liked it. Nothing else really stands out in my memory on the Animal Kingdom day and we left around 4. That night Swell and I had to drive to the airport to pick up her Dad. With his arrival our group was complete.

Magic Kingdom day was a lot of fun. I wasn’t expecting much from this day as I had never been to the MK before but it was very enjoyable.

We rode all the popular rides multiple times and were impressed with them (Space mountain, splash mountain, etc.).

Saw the afternoon parade at which Cheese – who is unbelievably cute – was greeted by many, many characters. They would come up to him and rustle his hair, poke him, high five him, etc. They seemed to come to him more than other kids but I’m sure every family thinks that.

We particularly liked Big Thunder Mountain Railroad although we were only able to ride it once because it was down for part of the day (we were in line when it went down and they evacuated everyone from the line – we were grateful not to be stuck on the ride in the blistering heat). Many liked Buzz Lightyear, and we enjoyed riding a lot of the family/young kids rides like Snow White, Winnie the Pooh, etc. It was a good day. Cami loved Monster’s as he has a great sense of humour. He was in stitches and it was fun to hear him laugh so much. Stitch was fun as a one time only type thing. Poor George was a little scared I think because the shoulder harness didn’t come down on him the way it was supposed to (for those who don’t know the shoulder harness isn’t a protective device in this ride it simply adds to the – well it creates – sensory experience). A very hot day but the boys were great and we didn’t experience any meltdowns. We left in the early evening despite the park being open until 11 so that we could have an evening of swimming at home.

I don’t go in pools. Its not that I completely despise the concept of communal bathing (which is really what swimming is at its core) its just that I don’t swim. I took lessons as a kid but they didn’t stick. I started to take adult swimming lessons when I was in grade 12 but shortly after finishing a course I was in a pedestrian vs. motor vehicle accident.

I was the pedestrian.

This caused my left shoulder to have permanent nerve damage and muscle wastage. I have limited range of motion of my left arm. So if I was to swim I would only be able to manage swimming in a clockwise circle.

One of my life goals is to stand next to as many large bodies of water as possible without actually going in them.

Anyway the boys were super thrilled to be able to swim and seemed almost as excited or more excited to do that than go to parks. Nothing eventful happened during swimming except when I was watching the boys to ensure that if they were drowning I could explain precisely to the EMTs how they drown I “accidentally” fell in the pool (fully clothed of course) after taking my phone, wallet and keys out of my pocket and setting them on the table. I think the boys thought my “accident” was a hoot. ETA: actually looking at pictures it seems that this happened during our off day. Hmmmm... I'll leave the story here because I already typed it...and I'm lazy.

Disney MGM Studios days was great. We love the Tower of Terror (although Cheese looked terrified the first three times. I think he was about to cry after the first ride but when the rest of us were hooting and hollering about how fun it was he started to believe that what was probably to that point in his life the worst thing he’s ever experienced – and he’s had major surgery – was actually fun) and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster (George just about didn’t ride this one. We were nearing the front of the line and he was certain he wasn’t going to do it so his Grandpa was going to take him out the chicken exit but just as we got to the front he said “I’m gonna do it!” and he did. No one prodded him or told him to do it or else. I think he just did it because Cami – his older brother – was going to and he didn’t want to be “behind” his brother in the ride count.) The boys enjoyed the playland, and the various shows (Backlot tour, Great Movie ride, Drew Carey, The stunt shows etc.) We stayed late this night to enjoy Fantasmic. There were some crummy things this day as well but we chose to ignore them (Rock ‘n’ Roller coaster went down when a few of us were trying to rush through the single riders line. We waited it out but had to send Swell’s Dad back down to the rest of the group to tell them to go and get their Fantasmic seats. A protein spill on Star Wars by another guest was also a negative. I didn’t experience that as I ride Star Tours once and only once at the very most and this occurred on the group’s second ride.) We also saw a lot of line cutting. Groups going into the single rider line only to join the standby line during the preshow. Anyway it was a very fun day and we were able to enjoy all of our favourites many, many times. (Thanks to an expertly planned trip – of course by me.)

Like I said I won’t go into a lot of detail on the Disney side of our trip because I was looking forward to Universal much more and the stories from Universal are better.

Next up rest day (how much shopping can one family do? and how I beat Jill senseless in mini-golf) and then moving from a great house to an even better hotel.

 

[ATAfamily]

I am really enjoying your trip report and I am looking forward to reading more. Keep it coming!

 

[macraven]

i love the way you tell the story, great writing!

the disney portion was nice. i love TOT and the safari ride also.


keep posting away.

 

[dsmom]

Patiently waiting for more I love your style of writing!

 

[bubba's mom]

 

[xmattodx]

<b>Rest Day</b>

During the planning phase of our trip we decided that it would be prudent, in fact welcome, to have a day away from the parks. The plan was to have an easy day where everyone could sleep in. We could lounge by the pool, perhaps go mini-golfing, shopping, and end the day at dinner theater of some type.

By the time our rest day rolled around during our vacation everyone was quite anxious to relax but they still wanted to accomplish something, after all how often does one find their way to Orlando?

So we slept longer this day but we didn’t sleep too long. We had to head for Pirate’s Cove Mini-Golf.

Mini-golf for some of us is a time to prove our superiority to the rest of the family. Now it’s known that I am vastly superior to the family in every regard but it is an unspoken superiority. When mini-golf time rolls around the silence is broken and everyone is left gasping at the manifestation of my superiority. Today’s mini-golf would be no different.

Mini-golf is a funny thing because my brother, Jill, has grand delusions before every game that this could be his day to shine. It really never is.

We split into three groups. Played the “difficult” course at Pirate’s cove. Not because we were up for a challenge but rather because the nice young lady running the register mentioned that there were 200 fewer stairs on the difficult side.

Being Pearce’s slothfulness supersedes the desire for a challenge so had the easy course had moving sidewalks and a robot to putt for you we would have done the easy side. On this day, at this course the difficult side allowed for less expenditure of energy so we did the difficult side.

I was in a group with Swell, her Dad, and little Cheese. We had fun. I think everyone else did as well despite the ridiculous temperatures and their terrible mini-golf skills.

I was, of course the grand champion by tens of strokes and the family was reminded of my superiority in all things once again.

Following mini-golf it was time for SHOPPING!

There is very little I hate more than shopping. Shopping for souvenirs is one step worse than just regular shopping. Shopping for souvenirs in the discount stores is slightly worse than regular souvenir shopping. Shopping for souvenirs in the discount stores with 11 other people… Jesus take me home.

They shopped. I stewed. We were lucky enough to shop at multiple discount stores and just when everyone was done my brother, Jill, decided that it was a good time to FINALLY START LOOKING FOR SOMETHING FOR HIS GIRLFRIEND.

What did you do for the last 3 hours!!!!!

The only thing that made that afternoon worthwhile was lunch at Chick-Fil-A. Southwest Chicken Salad with Spicy dressing.

Manna from heaven.

We then made our way home to shower, change in time to go to Medieval times Dinner Theater.

On my last trip to Orlando I was lucky enough to experience Sleuth’s dinner theater which was quite fun (see earlier post) and the Pirate’s waste-of-time-and-money-please-don’t-make-me-do-it-again Dinner Extravaganza.

I had low hopes for Medieval Times.

It turned out to actually be quite fun although it is a little disconcerting to hear your young nephews shouting at the top of their lungs: “KILL HIM! KILL HIM! KILL HIM!”

I slept with one eye open the rest of the trip.

Medieval Times had something for everyone in my group.
Horses for my Pa, BBL, and “The Good One”
Action for the three boys, Cami, George and Cheese.
An easy to follow story – a necessity for my Mustard.
Meat for Swell’s dad (including the now infamous family joke - Bar-B-Que Spare Rib – note the lack of plural spare ribs. It was a grammatically correct menu, I’ll have you know.)
Dreamboat actors for my three sis’s BBL, JDL and the Good one
And little flags to wave around for Me, Jill and Swell. Fun, fun flags.

Our rest day concluded with a swim in the pool. And according to photo documentation recently uncovered this was actually the day I “fell” in the pool.

It was a great rest day all in all and I’m glad we took some time to do things away from the theme parks. I highly recommend a day to explore other tourist traps in Orlando if you get a chance.

<b>Going Home</b> To Universal Studios that is!

By now we had reached our 5th full day in Orlando and we would be transferring from our mansion of a house – which Ma had booked for the correct amount of days, starting on the correct day (I never doubted her…much) – to a great four star hotel.

I was excited. So excited.

I really don’t know why I was looking forward to Universal so much. Last year we spent two days at Universal and one at Disney and we seemed to just have a better time at Universal. We didn’t have a bad time at Disney but my Ma didn’t come that day but she did come to the Universal days. There are rides at Universal that we could all go on including motion sick Ma that aren’t really there at Disney.

We were also looking forward to Front of the Line passes from the hotel. This perk sounded cool but we hadn’t ever experienced it. Our last day at Universal last year was marred by out of control lines (school groups) and we spent much of our otherwise great day fighting off rowdy, line-cutting kids. The last four hours at Islands of Adventure last year was heaven when all the kids had gone and we had the park to ourselves. Front of the line sounded like those four hours being available all day.

We were not disappointed.

<b>Arrival</b>

We left the house quite early and hoped to get to the hotel, check-in – get our FOTL passes – and get to the parks before 9.

We arrived to the parking lot of the Portofino Bay in good time and found our way to the lobby without difficulty.

Swell and I booked the hotel so we were left in charge of checking in.

There was no wait at the front desk in the beautiful lobby. Our reservation was found without issue and they even remembered to give us adjoining rooms (two adjoining, the third room was down a floor).

No check in problems at all.

Except.

Now I think some of you may have figured this out by now.

I’m not the brightest guy in the world. To say I’m a little slow is a wonderful compliment and I thank you for your kind words.

The lovely woman at the front desk says: “So, who is in room 1?”

I respond: “Say whaaaat?”
Lovely woman: “I need the names and ages of the people who are staying in the room.”
Me: “Ummmm… sure.” I then list four names of the people in our party randomly.
Lovely woman: “Ok, and how about in room 2?”
Me: Randomly blurting out names half of which I’ve already said.
Lovely woman a little exasperated: “Are there two Cheeses in your party?”

By the time we got to the third room I didn’t know who I’d said, who I hadn’t and more importantly I actually couldn’t even remember everyone who was with us.

It was embarrassing…for Swell.
For me? Meh.
I knew I had a room key. The rest of the party? Meh.

My advice. If you’re checking in to a hotel in a large group have your room assignments written down in advance. Unless of course you’re smart and can do it off the top of your head.

We were given our 12 room keys along with 12 really cool little change purse thingies that you could hang around your neck.
They could hold your money.
Your tickets.
Your room key: AKA no line for me passes.
As well as the keys to your rental van. (Remember this one it will become important later!)

So much for our buying name badge holders on a retractable string. Everyone far preferred this free gift and wore it proudly for the next two days.

We were done checking in (one room ready the other two would be ready later) and headed immediately for the water taxi that would take us to Universal studios.

We were a little behind schedule but it was just after 9am and we would soon be in Universal Studios Orlando.

 

[Sharon G]

There is very little I hate more than shopping. Shopping for souvenirs is one step worse than just regular shopping. Shopping for souvenirs in the discount stores is slightly worse than regular souvenir shopping. Shopping for souvenirs in the discount stores with 11 other people… Jesus take me home.

We were given our 12 room keys along with 12 really cool little change purse thingies that you could hang around your neck.
They could hold your money.
Your tickets.
Your room key: AKA no line for me passes.
As well as the keys to your rental van. (Remember this one it will become important later!)

Hey....I did'nt get a free cool little change purse thingie
I loved the lobby of PBH too!
Oh no, what happened to the keys?