I think of all the rides in MK my favorite (or at least 1 of the top 3) has to be the HM. I was so looking forward to seeing it all lighted for MNSSHP. We ended up riding HM 5 times that night and even got to laugh along with Madame Leota as she flirted with a group of boys! The magic shots ended up being such a pain to get...with the lines and parades...
For months I had been reading everything I could find to make Wednesday afternoon a successful adventure (it was one sided planning for the most part for this self proclaimed foodie until I introduced Cammy to the Disney Food Blog and I finally had someone to salivate with me over a chance to release our inner foodies) and with Discovery Passports in hand we made our way past the Epcot fountain and cranberry bog to the World Showcase now filled with booths from around the world with some of the most alluring aromas and flavors. First stop, Terra...
Chili Colorado with House-made chips & Cashew Cheese Chocolate Cake with Coconut Mousse & Passion Fruit Sauce. I think I should have done a little bit more reading of the fine print...but all I saw was Chili Colorado and thought yummy spicy Mexican food...from my first bite of the Chili Colorado I knew something was off...it was good but the meat as off, it was then Cammy asked if I liked it. I told her the meat was strange and she busted out laughing and showed me the find print...featuring Gardein BeefLESS Tips. Apparently, in all my excitement I had failed to see that Terra happened to be the vegan booth of Food & Wine. While the Chili Colorado was good, the vegan chocolate cake made up for it! With my first vegan experience of my life behind me, we decided that a stop at Brazil was in order for the exact opposite...
Crispy Pork Belly with Black Beans, Onions, Avocado & Cilantro Carnival Moscato Sparkling White Wine. I have to say, I wanted to lick the plate clean, the beans were so yummy and I loved the Moscato! We skipped by Argentina and opted for dessert in Australia...
Pavlova (Crispy Meringue Shell with fresh Driscoll's Berries and Vanilla Custard). We found the berries and custard yummy, but the meringue shell massacred our forks and ended up in the trash is was so hard and tasteless. In Mexico...
we decided to head in for a little shopping, a boat ride and a couple of premium margaritas...
I ended up with the blood orange and Cammy the mango. I had really wanted to try the rice pudding, but the booth line in Mexico was crazy long so we passed and headed for Norway's Kringla Bakery where we shared...
a Viking helmet of chocolate mousse (washed down with our margaritas of course). It was very yummy...I passed on the school bread which has been such a disappointment lately. Afterwards it was another boat ride (walking through the movie much to the dismay of the CM) and some more shopping.
Even though we were splitting everything, we still were already finding ourselves full and so we did a little more shopping in China and yes, skipping that movie too...can you tell Cammy does not like to stand around too long?
before stopping at the Singapore Booth were we selected...
Lemongrass Chicken Curry with Coconut & Jasmine Rice. The aroma coming from Singapore was so inviting, but the chicken curry was such a disappointment that it did not have the flavor I was expecting or the little spicy punch...it was pretty blah. The rice was very well cooked though! We had planned to stop in China for some Silk Ice Cream Ribbon but the only flavor they had was mango (I am not an mango fan and Cammy was mango-ed out after the margarita). So it was on to South Korea, where we selected...
Lettuce Wrap with Roast Pork & Kimchi Slaw...one of our favorites of the day! I love Kimchi and this was very good! Cammy was excited and took a picture to send to her little brother who was adopted from Korea. I think we would have had several more lettuce wraps had we not been so full and the lines growing so long. We did not find anything in Africa so we stopped in Germany to look around...
before parting for 2 different booths. I had planned to get a glass of my favorite ice wine but the line coming out of the wine store was so long that I opted to skip it. Cammy headed to the Cheese booth while I went to the Germany stand. My line was way longer but I ended up beating Cammy back to a table. Apparently a guest was not very happy with a CM who refused to use a snack credit for a glass a wine (even though there was a sign at that clearly stated this right in front of the guest). This guest demanded a manager to speak to and would not leave the line until they got their glass of wine. This was the only area that we saw people that should have been clearly cut off and it was only late afternoon. Finally, security arrived to escort this guest away...Cammy meet me at the table where we shared....
the Artisan Cheese Selection, glass of Once Upon a Vines Big Bad Read Blend, and some Apple Strudel with Werther's Original Karamel & Vanilla sauce. Loved all of our selections...but Cammy is so lucky that I saved her half of the apple strudel it was so yummy!
While touring and shopping in Italy,
I heard something and looked at my watch. Oh my how did I let time slip away and dragged Cammy away from her glass of wine...
#11 Food & Wine (Part 2-Wednesday):
Another Half Way Around to Go
After what sent me running in Italy, (you know I am not going to spill the beans until its time) we were ready to tackle the rest of the F&W booths and countries in the World Showcase in a happy giddy sort of way. We decided to head back to Italy for a little dessert...
a cannoli and Tiramisu (and another glass of moscato). We sat down the stairs overlooking the lagoon and I imagined myself for the moment being in Italy next summer on the Spanish Steps.
Sweet tooth controlled for the moment, it was on to Hops & Barley, Florida, and Japan...all places where we had things picked out to try, but sadly the line was so long that we decided to skip them. In Japan we did a little shopping, had to get my dd some more Origami paper and then it was time for Morocco for a piece of...
Baklava (which was not so good...very dry and tasted stale) and a little more shopping...
and a stop in New Zealand for a glass on Pinot Grigio. Nothing in Belgium caught our attention (all sweets) so we went shopping in France...
and afterwards, it was time to be really adventurous with some...
Escargots. Cammy gave me the look that no way was she trying, but in the end I won out. Really there was not much to taste except for some really strong garlic bread. By the time we got to England we were tired, full, and Cammy's leg was hurting (if you noticed she elected to tape up her foot instead of the boot all day...I told her that was a mistake and rest assured she did not spend another day outside of the run without the boot on)...so we passed on through without stopping and found ourselves a place to view Illuminations at. I left Cammy and headed to Desserts & Champagne to pick up 2 glasses the Ice Imperial for us to celebrate with.
When I finally arrived back to our viewing spot I sat enjoying the moment and had to smile...I was so happy I got to spend the day with another self proclaimed foodie and not someone needing an ADR. I spent the day, just like I wanted (plus spreading a little magic)...enjoying each moment and each taste. Closer to the show lots of people started to crowd in...and wouldn't you know it, 5 minutes before the start a family tries to crowd themselves in front of us...but after already being nice at the Eat to the Beat Concert Cammy and I (and another couple we had made friends with while waiting) stood our ground and held off the invasion of our space. They got quite upset with us, but we just ignored them and continued talking with our new friends, enjoying our champagne, and watching Illuminations.
Afterwards, we decided to call it a night (even though tonight was EMH until 11 pm) and headed to the bus stop and fell into bed exhausted, full and giddy for our date in the morning.
#10 Akershus (Formally Hidden Mickey Search):
Brunch with Royalty
This TR update was supposed to be about Hidden Mickey Search...well we did find a lot of hidden Mickey's, but quickly we found that the app was draining my battery so fast that we decided just to find them on our own...so I am changing this favorite thing to Akershus....
When putting back together the pieces of my derailed trip, I wanted to make Cammy's trip as magical as I could and part of that magic had to be meeting some Disney Princesses. So with that in mind I sat our to find an ADR for Akershus that would fit into our schedule and it just happened that there was a breakfast opening on our 1st full day at WDW. After riding Soarin and Test Track we headed over to the World Showcase, where I told Cammy a surprise was waiting for her. After I checked us in, we waited along with all the other little princesses and Cammy kept commenting how cute they were and wanted to know what was inside...I simply told her breakfast and that it was special. Soon it was our time, to be ushered inside and greeted by Belle. Cammy was full of delight when she realized we were eating breakfast with the princesses...magical moment created! We were seated just inside the door in the main ballroom area...not a great location nor a great table (little shakey) but we could see everything that was happening around us and watch all the magical moments as the princesses moved from table to table, we even watched Aurora tying a little princesses shoe...what a precious moment.
Breakfast was good (not worth the price, but again you are paying for the magic which makes it totally worth it to me). We both tried to be a little adventurous in our selections...trying the Norwegian offerings. Our favorite was a type of muffin that tasted just like a sugar cookie. I would not suggest having such a late breakfast reservation, we found that we could only make 1 trip to the buffet before it was being switched over for lunch and the selections were not very plentiful.
After finishing our special breakfast with royalty, we stopped to pick up another set of fast passes for TT before going to the Food & Wine Festival Center to make the most important purchase of the day...our F & W Gift Cards to use to make all of the yummy food and drinks for the rest of the day. While at the Festival we took some time walking through the Chocolate Experience...
and through the various booths before making our way back out into Future World to spend what was left of the morning with the attractions we had missed before breakfast. First up was Mission Space and like all adventurous girls we did the Orange side with our secret mission being that our full stomachs would land on Mars without incident.
The mission was a success and we then decided to see what our future held for us after being astronauts on Mars.
After we decided that our future did indeed look bright, it was time to do a little diving under the sea with Nemo and walk underwater looking at all the aquariums.
We really wanted to take a picture from inside Bruce, but there were way too many people so it was on to our next adventure high above California and then take it a little slower with a boat ride around one of my favorite places in Epcot. However, I was disappointed because it seemed all the Mickey pumpkins must have been picked for the season. I love Living with the Land and on my next trip, thinking that behind the seeds tour is going to be on my list.
See proof we did find a few hidden Mickey's. Afterwards, I decided that we needed a little something to quench our thirst and I took Cammy into Club Cool to sample...and yes, I pulled a Beverly on her with my camera ready to catch the moment.
We had a good laugh and then decided that we would share a little magic and handed our fast passes for TT to a couple getting into the now 70 minute stand by line. I am really going to miss this chance to spread magic when they do away with the fast pass system. With Future World completed, it was now time for an adventure that I had most been looking forward to...
Thanks Susan...I am already thinking of F&W in 2016 maybe just Jeff and myself. I know he would love the F&W part of the trip and I am thinking of doing the 1/2.
I LOVE HM and the scrapbook pages don't disappoint...but the food pics make me swoon!
Beverly...can you believe one of mine actually LIKES it?!?!?!?! I think it tastes like barf smells! Looking forward to more pics (especially of the food ).
#8 Air Supply:
Ceasing Our Eating to Get on Our Beat
It was 5:30 when I heard a familiar sound from my days of a teenager in the 80s and drug Cammy out of the wine shop in Italy towards the America Gardens Theatre and a line that was building. I could hear, but I could not see them...but I knew who was starting their first Eat to the Beat Concert of the evening...AIR SUPPLY. Any girl of the 80s knew those love ballads! I was so excited, last time I heard these guys in concert was in the early 90s with my sorority sisters in Denver and ever since I saw the line up for Eat to Beat Concerts, I knew exactly where I would be on this Wednesday night. I left Cammy in line for a moment to sneak up to the back of the theatre so I could text a picture my friend Amy, who was supposed to be here with me. Listening to the music and seeing Graham and Russell instantly transported me back to time many years ago, and listening I was sad that Amy was not here with me. It was all that I could do to pull myself back to the line...but when I did find Cammy she was singing right along with the music....she might have been born in the 80s but she was making her mama proud (who I might add is a big fan). Not much later, the first concert was over and we were being ushered into the theatre. We found some great seats right next to the stage and began chatting with other people around us, mostly sharing our memories with Air Supply! We happened to leave the handicap seats open next to us, when about 10 minute before show time a couple (who were not handicapped) sat down and then asked if they could squeeze in friend of theirs. Being in the happy mood we were, we slid down a little to make room for the friend...but instead of 1 friend they tried to squeeze in 4 friends. REALLY? Thankfully 2 of the friends found some room behind us, but there still was not room for 2 more people next to us...we basically ended up squished and sitting on top of each other for the entire concert....so much for being nice but I was in such a good mood that it really did not bother me that much. These ladies were "Air-Heads" self proclaimed fan club members...with shirts to match and during the concert drew a lot of attention from the guys on stage. When Russell and Graham got on stage and started playing,
all thoughts of being squished were gone and I found myself being transported back to the 80s...although I have to say these guys need to start acting like they are living in 2013...while they still sound great, I have a little problem with old men in tight leather pants and unbuttoned shirts...ICK! The music was awesome and we had so much fun singing along! After the concert, we thought about just sitting and waiting for the next one to start, but we still had another half way around the world to go and many more foods to try!
Welcome Cassie...I never imagined ever running this far...but it works as a great excuse to get back to WDW. I am already planning my next Disney run...they are quite addicting.
I worked most of Christmas vacation trying to figure out a touring plan...the great news is that I think I have a skeleton framework for what we are going to do each day. DH asked me if this trip was going to be planned down to the minute...yikes he thinks I am still OCD when it comes to planning. My response was I am trying not to do that, but we don't want to miss anything (because unlike WDW I know this will be a once in a lifetime trip).
Does anyone know of any places to post a PTR for this vacation...much like we do her for Disney? I find that I like doing PTR to keep me organized and get input!
I LOVE HM and the scrapbook pages don't disappoint...but the food pics make me swoon!
Beverly...can you believe one of mine actually LIKES it?!?!?!?! I think it tastes like barf smells! Looking forward to more pics (especially of the food ).
Happy New Year...your trip is so close! I am so excited for you...are you and Betsy going to be there at the same time?
My dh actually like the Beverly...but I have to agree with you YUCK!
F&W was amazing and I cant wait to take dh...he loves to try new things too! While some of the food was a disappointment, most of it was good. I just wish I would not run out of time or stomach space!
# 7 MNSSHP: Partying with the Mouse (Part 1)
Getting our Party on
After spending the morning with Harry, it was time spend the evening partying with Mickey. When we arrived back at CBR from USO, we were a bit hungry so we headed over to OPR for a little lunch.
I had the Beef and Blue on Ciabatta Bread (Roast Beef, Tomatoes, Roasted Balsamic Red Onions, Greens, and Blue Cheese Dressing) and Cammy selected the Royale Sandwich (Turkey, Ham, Salami, Roast Beef, Provolone, Lettuce, Tomato, and Red Pepper Ranch Spread on Foccacia Bread).
These sandwiches were HUGE&we could have easily split one and shared the meal. I loved the House-made Jerk Chips the best&YUM-O! Afterwards, we changed into our costumes for MNSSHP. Now I am not so much of a costume person, but I was really excited about getting into the spirit of the party and wear the costume that I had wanted (plus it was an excuse to buy another SparkleSkirt). When I told Cammy what I was going as she decided that she wanted to do the same thing (which I never expected her to do...it was nice that someone else like my idea instead of shooting it down), she thought it was so Disney and so much fun! Dressed for our evening date with the other guy in Orlando it was off to MNSSHP.
We both were excited as we approached the main gate and put on our party wrist bands! Then through the entry into MK in all of its fall finest, which following my PTR you know I was excited about seeing! Our first stop was into Town Hall where we had to get pictures with our date for the evening...
Then it was time for me to take that stroll down main street that I had been dreaming of...taking in all the fall decorations (which I would stop and do many times, because my goal of this trip was to live in the moment really experience the little things).
After stopping for a few pictures in front of the castle, we took a left turn into Adventureland for a couple of cruises, first being my boys favorite ride&
they just love the bad jokes and me too. I have to say I HATE THIS STANDBY LINE, while the wait really was less than 20 minutes the winding around and around makes you groan just like the jokes. We ended up in a boat traffic jam at the end of the cruise that lasted for a good 15 minutes. Not completely sure what was going on, and while our captain had great jokes she really needed to work on delivery, mainly needs to be louder and stop mumbling! Next up was POTC and little fun search looking for Hidden Jacks&lol.
Then we headed toward Frontierland. We decided to skip Splash Mountain after our experience on Jurassic Park earlier in the day, but decided since the wait time was 10 minutes on BTMRR we would give it a ride. Not my favorite mountain by any means (I dont like jerky), but it still is a fun ride and with such a short wait time we could not resist.
From there we headed to Haunted Mansion&hey isnt this the focal point of the night. And I want to ride as many times as possible. The line moved quickly, so there was not much time to play this time.
Afterwards, it was time to for the most important drink of the day (yes something even better than the mornings 3 rounds of Butterbeer)&
Dole Whip! I was VERY sad not to be sharing the moment with one of my friends that could not make the trip&I texted and had a little moment together. Cammy had never had a dole whip before, and lets just say I created another Dole Whip Addict! When we finished it was time to finally get to see what had been teasing me my last 2 trips&
# 7 MNSSHP: Partying with the Mouse (Part 2)
New Fantasyland, FINALLY
So what had been teasing me for my last 2 trips, well the New Fantasyland of course! It was time to see what was behind all those walls!
And like all good trips one must check out the bathroom of course and if this bathroom was any indication of the rest of the NFL I knew I would not be disappointed. I wish I would have known about all the hidden Pascals before the trip, because it would have been so much fun to look for them...How on earth did I miss not knowing!?! probably too busy worrying about getting a room reservation nailed down. But there was plenty to look at in the best bathroom in WDW!
It was crazy how much time we took in a bathroom before we made our way to It's a Small World, where no trip is complete without that song stuck in your head.
We skipped over Peter Pan, it was closed for refurb and it really is not on the top of my list to do. While I love that it is a classic ride, I dont feel the need to go sprinting to it the first thing I do in order not to miss it&there will be other trips. Next it was time to pass through those faux walls and into a new land...but not before I had to fight with myself about getting in line for the dwarves picture.
While I love characters, I dont necessarily have to have my picture taken with them, especially if there is a huge line. But for some reason I had to have an inner battle about this photo op...lingering memories of trip planning past and those who know it all with what you have to do during MNSSHP was haunting me and I felt like I would not being doing MNSSHP if I did not get in line...so instead of fighting with myself I gave Cammy the choice...past the dwarves and line we went, battle over! We slowly made our way past Storytime with Belle and BOG knowing that we had plans for these places another day. Stopped to dream a little bit about the new Mine Ride....
before visiting Cammy's favorite princess, Ariel, which we were surprised by walking on (which almost was a shame because the theming for the line area looked like there was lots to see). I have to say that I am glad now that it was walk on, because I really could not see myself waiting too long to go on an undersea adventure with Ariel again.
No trip undersea would be complete without singing along with Ursula...
which I had been doing a lot lately..."Poor Unfortunate Soul" in my best evil voice. I hade to send a friend another text and share yet another evil laugh together! After Ariel we made our way to Storybook Circus where I was thinking that Cammy would love a ride on Dumbo&
but I was mistaken we spent our time there looking at the theming, checking out the MNSSHP merchandise and began our trick or treating. All which was good for me, since this trip really wasn't about running from attraction to attraction but enjoying the moments.
From Storybook Circus, we stopped to ride Pooh...Cammy loves Pooh and I even got to play for a brief moment on the walls of honey in line. With Fantasyland completed, we headed off to another adventure...
# 7 MNSSHP: Partying with the Mouse (Part 3)
Walking in Circles
After having a great time exploring the New Fantasyland, we then made our way into Tomorrowland for a trip on the Peoplemover and a shoot out with Buzz.
Heading back towards the hub, I pulled Cammy off the bridge for one of my favorite PhotoPass locations. There was only 1 couple in front of us and much to our delight we watched the man get on 1 knee and pull out a ring...wow, talk about magic. I am so happy we got to witness this moment.
After we had our picture taken Cammy and I decided to wander around and trick or treat and make our way back to the Haunted Mansion for some magic shots now that it was dark and of course another ride in those doom-buggies.
When we emerged from the mansion we ran into another group of Mousekeeters and they insisted we take a picture together.
By this time people were already lining up for the 1st parade, which we had decided that we would skip and get another dole whip. Trying to make our way back to Adventureland was almost impossible and we managed to make it across the street just as the Headless Horseman passed by.
We stood and watched the parade for a few moments before making our way towards Aloha Isles for round 2.
Dole whips in hand we wandered around a deserted Adventureland and then to the trick or treat trail at Splash Mountain, stopped for another ride on HM where we met up with Madame Leota where is was actively flirting with a couple of teenage boys.
We then trick or treated all the way back to Tomorrowland for yet another ride on the Peoplemover and another shootout with Buzz.
Candy bags full and Wishes about to start we made our way to the hub to watch the Villain Show and stake out a place for Wishes...talk about walking in circles, but it was no nice to worry about any OCD touring plan and just going where the moment took us!
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).
probably too busy worrying about getting a room reservation nailed down. 
But there was plenty to look at in the best bathroom in WDW! 
