"A for effort, C for execution." A September 2014 TR **07/04 THE END!*

[amberg93]

I LOVE seeing characters goofing around! This sounds like true raccoon nature too! (I've never encountered one, but I have a friend who went camping, in the USA over her birthday, and overnight some raccoons came in and stole some of her birthday presents! Luckily she found them outside )



Whoa! That is crazy! Just think how huge that Fantasmic amphitheater it. Heck, how huge the whole of Hollywood studios is! To encounter the same people being right next to you twice?! Definitely a ***** ***** after all..!



Aww that sucks. Did you guys note that it was for them to keep? Maybe they felt like they'd be potentially stealing someone's hard work!! I wouldn't take it personally, the tipping envelopes are amazing!

I love it when characters goof around too, it's always amazing. And ::yess:: It is definitely raccoon nature! It's crazy to me sometimes that animals that are so common in the US and Canada aren't other places, because racoons are everywhere and they've very mischievous. I'm glad your friend got her presents back though

I felt like singing the song in that moment too when we noticed him, but I know how some people detest it so I didn't

We didn't leave a note but I guess we just sort of assumed they would as it had been taken over other day. I mean, I'd guess they mostly get thrown away anyway, but we don't usually think about that. I think Marie would have a mental breakdown if she realized how many of her beautiful creations probably end up in the trash

I never realized Max was a hard character to find at WDW. He is onboard DCL - and since he is a teen - he would often hang out in the teen club (I worked in youth activities so I would see him a lot).

I also am not a fan of PB in Candy... DW gets all mine as well.

Sad that mousekeeping missed the envelope, hopefully they just didn't know they could take it. I really love your envelopes, and I plan to make something for my upcoming trip.

I love watching interpreters during the shows!

Confession time - I have never done TOT. DW loves the ride - drops in rides are the one thing that freak me out. I have heard the theming in the ride is amazing, but I just haven't gotten enough courage to attempt it yet. I am *considering* attempting the ride this September.

Also, I know you guys have cruised before - but have you ever sailed with Disney?

Wow, that's something strange to think about. I knew characters were on DCL but I just for some reason always assumed princesses and then the Fab 5 and Chip and Dale. Strange how the 'rarity' of characters varies depending on what you're used to.

Fellow non-PB candiers unite!

Hopefully. And that's a great idea! Don't tear your hair out like Marie though, she's a perfectionist, these envelopes take her forever.

The interpreters are so interesting to watch and it makes me want to learn ASL. Of course I'm learning French and having a hard enough time with that so I don't think that's anywhere in the near future.

The theming is amazing, but I'm right there with you. I do not enjoy ToT, it freaks me out. Well, that's not true, I enjoy the pre-show, I enjoy the part of the ride before the drops but I hate the drops, hate them so much. If you want to just see the inside and the pre-show you can always use the 'chicken exit' and decide not to ride. I did that in our first trip, so I still got to see the inside.

We have not sailed with Disney It's really a price thing. We've sailed with Royal Caribbean for our first cruise cause we had an amazing flight deal ($12 flights to San Juan) and did a free cruise with Princess last year. For the girls we needed something cheaper and we found a great deal with Norwegian. Likewise, Marie has a free cruise with Norwegian to use at another time so we'll likely sail with them again. I want to sail with Disney but the cost in comparison to other cruise lines makes it hard to justify :/ Someday.

Ah I'm so glad you liked Indiana Jones! I think you would have enjoyed it more if I were one of the volunteers, though...I'm a star.

Yay Phineas and Ferb! I think when you guys go in November they'll be wearing scarves because it's Christmas.

Aw, I'm glad you had a better experience at '50s! And that's so sweet that your waiter took the pot pie off.

I'm with ya, I LOVED the hat. Your pictures are making me all kinds of emotional.

The Frozen Sing-A-Long hosts are the best part! They are so funny!

Eeee such good characters at Characterpalooza! I love those penguins.

Haha I know both those interpreters personally!!! They are so talented. Beauty and the Beast is definitely the best show to see interpreted.

Whaaat? Marie's envelope is so cute!!!

That's very true, Courtney. I mean, if we'd seen you the whole show would have been 5000% better, no doubts.

They were wearing scarves last time we met them in November so I hope so, cause it's pretty cute.

Gary was a sweetie <3

Sorry, I didn't mean to make you emotional. When you get there for your program and have to walk in without it, I'm sure that's when the real emotions will strike.

Soooo funny, they had us all cracking up.

Penguins for life.

Of course you do But no, I totally agree, very talented and so fascinating to watch.

It was a sad moment at POFQ to find the envelope remaining.

That's cool that you just stumbled upon Caracterpalooza - never see Max out so that was extra cool!

Glad you enjoyed BatB!


Also difficult not to stare at the little boy behind the hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil, group that looks terrified!

So did mousekeeping just take the money out and leave the envelope or not even take the money?

It was very lucky timing on our part. Just some extra Disney magical timing.

Well Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorites, so it'd be hard for me not to enjoy it

Too right. Poor child, I feel his pain.

They took the money and left the envelope. If the money hadn't been taken I think Marie would have handled it better, but c'est la vie.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

They took the money and left the envelope. If the money hadn't been taken I think Marie would have handled it better, but c'est la vie.

aw, that's too bad then. Clearly they don't know the value of quality art!

 

[amberg93]

aw, that's too bad then. Clearly they don't know the value of quality art!

Clearly, we're just going with the idea that they didn't think they could keep it because it was that amazing - not that they didn't want to keep it.

 

[amberg93]

Marie and I are going on our Dominican Republic trip on Saturday! So this is going to be the last update this week and there won't be any until after we get back on Sunday the 12th. Everyone have a Happy Easter and a great week

Day 7, Part 1: "I'll do a trade."

We slept in a little again until about 8:30. At that point I went down to the food court so that I could get some breakfast for the two of us.

To be honest, Marie ate everything but the apples. I just wanted the apples.

After we were sufficiently fueled for the day we left the tip envelope.

My favorite one of the week, if you couldn't guess.

Our park for the day?

Animal Kingdom!

While waiting to get in we noticed the signs of construction right away.

Once inside I wanted to stop and look a bit more at the various animals in the Oasis more than we usually do.

These black swans, for instance, are awesome.

And I want to scoop these guys up and cuddle them.

Really, there's just a lot going on in the Oasis and I think we're all mostly guilty of blowing by so I didn't want to be one of those people this time and I was really glad we took the time to just focus on some of the animals at Animal Kingdom.

We also decided to stop for some photopass pictures while we were heading into the Discovery Island area.

Carry on small child, we're just reacting to Stitch coming out of the ground.

Getting wild. Also, shoutout to the Lightning McQueen bag behind us, very fab.

I think park icon pictures are sort of a must, especially if you've got the Memory Maker package. I mean, there's no reason not to.

The closer you got to the Tree of Life the more construction walls you could see up and around and while that was disappointing, I had to give props that they were interesting walls.

Like, learn about the elephants they keep.

Or admire all the colors and the helpful direction arrows to get you where you're going.

As per usual:

We knew where we were headed.

I love Dinoland, okay?

And what is my favorite ride in Dinoland?

Dinosaur, of course!

The ride is always next to nothing in the morning, which is something that I enjoy.

Hamming it up for the camera while Marie closes her eyes.

Now, if you've read our other TRs you'd know that Marie does not like Dinosaur, she's scared of it and just doesn't enjoy it. Dinosaur is like Marie's Tower of Terror and she does it to keep me happy.

The wait time was still next to nothing so I asked if we could go on again. Marie was not for this, but she tried to get a trade out of me. She'd ride again if I'd agree to doing Splitsville (spoiler alert: we didn't end up doing it) and so I agreed to the trade and we got to ride again!

Am I looking the right way?

I would have honestly gone on a third time after that, but I knew that would be pushing it. So, instead we headed out and over to the other part of Dinoland.

And I took advantage of this photo-op. Or I think it was supposed to be one? If it's not, it is one now.

To calm Marie after our harrowing trips back in time, we decided to go for a tamer ride we'd never done before.

Us and everyone else. I mean, we were clearly fighting the crowds here.

Before flying I took a we-sie and then we were off to fly through the air for approximately like a minute and a half.

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[DisneyKid4Life]

Have a GREAT time you guys!!!! I know you will (or did, depending on when you read this).

MICKEY WAFFLES!!!! Somehow better than normal waffles.

I need to spend more time at the Oasis (or any time at all really). I guess with FP+ and not absolutely needing to race to get a FP, it should afford more Oasis time in the future. No more excuses.

It's always amazing to me that the only ones who can see Stitch are you two. The Magic is strong with you.

Ugh walls. I will admit they do a good job theming them or at least making them somewhat interesting, but I stand by my first thought. Ugh walls.

OMG that is an AWESOME Dino photo. Seriously, that is one of the best group non reactions I've seen. Except you Amber. Seriously perfect!

Not only ride again, but the exact same seats!!!

 

[Newsies]

Mickey waffles, bacon, and apples- an excellent way to start a morning!

I love the magic shot with Stitch. Super fun.

Looks like a good time at Dinoland USA!

 

[roxy84]

Wow, that's something strange to think about. I knew characters were on DCL but I just for some reason always assumed princesses and then the Fab 5 and Chip and Dale. Strange how the 'rarity' of characters varies depending on what you're used to.

Fellow non-PB candiers unite!

Hopefully. And that's a great idea! Don't tear your hair out like Marie though, she's a perfectionist, these envelopes take her forever.

The interpreters are so interesting to watch and it makes me want to learn ASL. Of course I'm learning French and having a hard enough time with that so I don't think that's anywhere in the near future.

The theming is amazing, but I'm right there with you. I do not enjoy ToT, it freaks me out. Well, that's not true, I enjoy the pre-show, I enjoy the part of the ride before the drops but I hate the drops, hate them so much. If you want to just see the inside and the pre-show you can always use the 'chicken exit' and decide not to ride. I did that in our first trip, so I still got to see the inside.

We have not sailed with Disney It's really a price thing. We've sailed with Royal Caribbean for our first cruise cause we had an amazing flight deal ($12 flights to San Juan) and did a free cruise with Princess last year. For the girls we needed something cheaper and we found a great deal with Norwegian. Likewise, Marie has a free cruise with Norwegian to use at another time so we'll likely sail with them again. I want to sail with Disney but the cost in comparison to other cruise lines makes it hard to justify :/ Someday.

Yeah DCL's characters vary ship to ship (also itinerary/occasions). The fab 5 also have lots of different outfits for the various ports/activities too which is also super cute! You need to keep DCL on your must do list. I totally get that the price difference is hard to justify - I probably would have never cruised with DCL if I didn't work for them before. DW and I have cruised with NCL (she also cruised with Royal when she was a teen with her family) - NCL was okay, but we prefer Disney. Hopefully one day you will find a good price and try it (but I warn you, it will be hard to go back to the other cruise lines after

I hear you on learning French... if it makes you feel better, in Ontario we have to take french every year in school until grade 9 - most of us retain a very small amount. I can understand the basics on a french menu and that's about it!

Was that your first time ever riding TOT? I have 6 months to gain the courage to at least try it!

 

[amberg93]

Have a GREAT time you guys!!!! I know you will (or did, depending on when you read this).

MICKEY WAFFLES!!!! Somehow better than normal waffles.

I need to spend more time at the Oasis (or any time at all really). I guess with FP+ and not absolutely needing to race to get a FP, it should afford more Oasis time in the future. No more excuses.

It's always amazing to me that the only ones who can see Stitch are you two. The Magic is strong with you.

Ugh walls. I will admit they do a good job theming them or at least making them somewhat interesting, but I stand by my first thought. Ugh walls.

OMG that is an AWESOME Dino photo. Seriously, that is one of the best group non reactions I've seen. Except you Amber. Seriously perfect!

Not only ride again, but the exact same seats!!!

Reading it today, so thanks, I'm sure we will

Everything is better when it's shaped like Mickey!

What can I say, we were blessed by all that pixie dust in our lives.

Agreed, I'm getting pretty tired of the walls and the cranes everywhere.

Most people just don't react. I guess dinosaurs just aren't that scary anymore??

It was pretty darn special. Same seats rock. I like being close to the camera. Makes it easier to ham up to it.

Mickey waffles, bacon, and apples- an excellent way to start a morning!

I love the magic shot with Stitch. Super fun.

Looks like a good time at Dinoland USA!

It is an excellent way to start the morning. Then again, anytime you're in Disney is the best way to start a morning.

That alien is pretty darn cute.
It's always a good time in Dinoland USA!

Yeah DCL's characters vary ship to ship (also itinerary/occasions). The fab 5 also have lots of different outfits for the various ports/activities too which is also super cute! You need to keep DCL on your must do list. I totally get that the price difference is hard to justify - I probably would have never cruised with DCL if I didn't work for them before. DW and I have cruised with NCL (she also cruised with Royal when she was a teen with her family) - NCL was okay, but we prefer Disney. Hopefully one day you will find a good price and try it (but I warn you, it will be hard to go back to the other cruise lines after

I hear you on learning French... if it makes you feel better, in Ontario we have to take french every year in school until grade 9 - most of us retain a very small amount. I can understand the basics on a french menu and that's about it!

Was that your first time ever riding TOT? I have 6 months to gain the courage to at least try it!

It's on our bucket list for sure, but we need to start bringing in more dough for it to work. Plus with Marie getting discounts for most other lines it's even harder to justify the money. I'll be prepared for it to be harder to go back, but honestly I learned on Princess, all I need is some good trivia and group activities and I'm a happy cruiser.

We had to learn either Spanish or German at my school and I picked Spanish. It has helped me some in French but not nearly enough. I'm getting better but it's a super slow process.

It wasn't my first time ever. I rode twice in May because of my friends being there to help me out but I did survive and I did it again. I won't ever be in love with it but, you know, it's sort of not that bad once you get to the end. I believe in you!

 

[1Grumpy9]

I haven't looked around the Oasis much either. I guess I need to do that more next time. (there is a lot I need to do next time...LOL)

I love Dinosaur...It is so much fun.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I hope you both have a great trip! Also, Happy Easter!

If someone left my room and came back with Mickey waffles for me I would be quite happy with them

I think park icon pictures are sort of a must, especially if you've got the Memory Maker package. I mean, there's no reason not to.

That's a great picture of you two! Agree that getting an icon picture if a must .... now to wait and see what the new icon for MGM will be (I think they have been using the Earful Tower again, but you can't really get pictures with that)

Great pictures on Dinosaur (a ride I still have not gone on yet) and glad to hear you survived the massive wait for dino-Dumbo. And of course, and re-visit the argument that it should be pteranadons not triceritops since, you know, pternadons could actually fly

 

[TheLittleKatie]

Marie and I are going on our Dominican Republic trip on Saturday!

I hope you guys had a great Easter, and have an amazing time in the Dominican Republic!!!!

Really, there's just a lot going on in the Oasis and I think we're all mostly guilty of blowing by so I didn't want to be one of those people this time and I was really glad we took the time to just focus on some of the animals at Animal Kingdom.

This is so true, as a kid I never even realised that there was much in there, other than all the vegetation. I think a lot of people think that, but there's actually a lot of cool stuff in there!

OK, this is brilliant

I love Dinosaur, but I've never really looked around the rest of Dinoland. Have you guys done Primeval Whirl - or whatever it's called?! I think it looks quite fast and fun, but also very jerky, I'm afraid of getting whiplash

 

[amberg93]

I haven't looked around the Oasis much either. I guess I need to do that more next time. (there is a lot I need to do next time...LOL)

I love Dinosaur...It is so much fun.

There's always something to do next time, it's why we all keep going back But no, I do encourage you to look around, there's so much in there that it's great.

Dinosaur is so great. It's a must do for me, even if ti's not for Marie.

I hope you both have a great trip! Also, Happy Easter!

If someone left my room and came back with Mickey waffles for me I would be quite happy with them

That's a great picture of you two! Agree that getting an icon picture if a must .... now to wait and see what the new icon for MGM will be (I think they have been using the Earful Tower again, but you can't really get pictures with that)

Great pictures on Dinosaur (a ride I still have not gone on yet) and glad to hear you survived the massive wait for dino-Dumbo. And of course, and re-visit the argument that it should be pteranadons not triceritops since, you know, pternadons could actually fly

Thank you! Belated Happy Easter to you and we had an awesome trip.

I think that's usually the reaction. I might keep it for when Marie is upset with me, bring her Mickey waffles as a peace offering.

Why thanks! Who knows what Hollywood Studios will have in store. I think it's weird if they'd use the Earful Tower if you can't get pictures. I mean, they know people want pictures with the icons. Then again, maybe with the new name they'll unveil a new icon?? A park of mystery that palace is.

It was a hard wait, let me tell you, but it was worth it And I know, they should change it but I think you'd need to start an official petition. When you do, I promise to sign it

I hope you guys had a great Easter, and have an amazing time in the Dominican Republic!!!!


This is so true, as a kid I never even realised that there was much in there, other than all the vegetation. I think a lot of people think that, but there's actually a lot of cool stuff in there!


OK, this is brilliant

I love Dinosaur, but I've never really looked around the rest of Dinoland. Have you guys done Primeval Whirl - or whatever it's called?! I think it looks quite fast and fun, but also very jerky, I'm afraid of getting whiplash

Thanks so much, we had both!

I didn't either until I listened to the podcast and Dustin talked so much about AK. There's a lot of super cool stuff all over Animal Kingdom.

Why, thank you

We have done Primeval Whirl, and you are right on all counts. Very jerky and fast, also moderately fun. I say moderately because I get a bit of motion sickness. Still, doing it once is advisable I'd think.

 

[amberg93]

First and foremost, thank you to everyone who wished us a good vacation. We had an amazing time and Marie is planning on writing up a mini TR as part of our November PTR, so if that's something that interest you, keep an eye out.

Secondly, as most of you are aware that I'm a cancer survivor I wanted to share an important milestone with you: today I've been in remission for a year. Hopefully it's just one of many to come.

And now, on with the TR.

Day 7, Part 2: "Do you see any alligators?"

Once we'd finished with Dinoland, we headed over to our next FP+.

First though, we stopped for a couple more Photopass pictures.

I really like this location for photopass pictures. True, the sun gets in your eyes some, but EE is such a beautiful ride. Worth the sun for sure.

To quote Marie, "Flags are the balloons of Animal Kingdom."

Even without the Fastpass, the wait wasn't bad at all.

Getting on Expedition Everest!

You'd never know it from how easily I manage to pull unimpressed faces now, but there used to be a time when I couldn't ride a coaster without screaming my head off. When you can't scream anymore, you find your inner unimpressed face and can pull it out for the camera.

Clearly Marie still needs practice, as she looks mildly surprised instead of unimpressed.

We do love Everesst though and had an amazing time as usual.

Once we were finished, we made our way over to the Yak and Yeti quick service area as we were hungry.

We stopped to look at the animals first though, as you do.

When we reached our destination, Marie wasn't feeling the menu so we made our way over to Flametree Barbeque instead.

I can never remember, are these lights always like this or is it a Halloween thing?

Marie went to grab the food and I grabbed us a table down overlooking Everest, which I have to say is one of the best seating areas ever. It's beautiful down along the water and, as I said in our October TR, there's just something about listening to people scream in the distance that makes eating seem nicer.

We opted not to get any sides with our meals and instead I got the pulled pork and Marie got the ribs with the chocolate pudding dessert.

As per usual, the food was excellent. I'd recommend the pulled pork over the chicken from my experiences, but that's just personal.

Once I was finished eating, I also decided that I needed to take some pictures of the area (and try to spot an alligator in the wild for Veronica).

I really like lilypads for some reason? I don't know what it is, but I think they're pretty.

Admittedly, the view was a little less stellar with the construction in the way but c'est la vie (especially at Disney right now).

I also snapped a bad quality shot of the ceiling because it's nice to look at.

Somehow, animals in Animal Kingdom, seem better.

Even the area not down by the water is pretty awesome.

Meals finished and pictures taken, we knew that we had to get going because our next FP+ would be coming up soon after that.

There is always time to take pictures, though.

I could have taken the time to get closer and get less people in the pictures, but to be quite honest, I like having people in my pictures. I've talked about it before as it being a good way to remember crowd levels, but other people are always interesting to look at too. Plus, there are so many people on these boards that it'd be really awesome to have someone come and say, "Hey, that's me in your picture!" So I don't really make a conscious effort that often to make sure my pictures are free of others.

I did when I got closer for the Tree of Life picture, but that's a different story.

As you can see, despite the lack of people, it does not lack construction.

At that point I had to stop off for a bathroom break, so I left Marie in front of the stage in the Harambe Village with the camera.

I know in relatiy this guy is probably helping someone, but it's more fun for me to think he's banishing him from the show area. "Go, and do not return. I never wish to see your face again."

Them Disney details though.

Like these chairs, which I had set out to notice this time around.

We were pretty excited to start making our way over to our FP+ because it involved seeing a new area of the park and that's always fun and interesting.

We even stopped to look at the little shop set up outside the theater.

And Marie was happy to see Pumba eating bugs.

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[DisneyKid4Life]

Honestly, I can't believe how fast this month is flying by and that you're back already. Of course I'm sure you feel the same, but I digress.

today I've been in remission for a year.

Oh Amber, this just makes me all kinds of happy. This is basically just one of the best things I could hear today.

This is very true. Nobody does Mountains quite like Disney.

I keep trying to get to Flame Tree and I keep failing. It's been years. It doesn't help that the line is always cra-cra when I'm there.

I actually did have that happen recently where someone spotted themselves in my photo. It was the Christmas TR. Pretty cool.

Ha, I can totally picture that banishment happening in the voice of James Earl Jones.

 

[1Grumpy9]

Congratulations on your milestone...and many more to come!!!

 

[Cando86]

What an amazing April for you! So glad to hear you had a great vacation and even happier to hear your news about being in remission for a year. That is just fantastic news!!! Congratulations !

Animal Kingdom! One of my favorite parks! "Flags are the balloons of Animal Kingdom"

I'm impressed with your "unimpressed face" on EE. It took me a long time to stop screaming like a crazy person for the sake of a funny picture!

Flametree's atmosphere is beautiful...especially with the screams from EE in the distance to add some mood music.

Ohmygosh, that picture of the guy saying "go and do not return" LOVE it

 

[DisneyGal210]

Honestly, I can't believe how fast this month is flying by and that you're back already. Of course I'm sure you feel the same, but I digress.



Oh Amber, this just makes me all kinds of happy. This is basically just one of the best things I could hear today.

This is very true. Nobody does Mountains quite like Disney.

I keep trying to get to Flame Tree and I keep failing. It's been years. It doesn't help that the line is always cra-cra when I'm there.

I actually did have that happen recently where someone spotted themselves in my photo. It was the Christmas TR. Pretty cool.

Ha, I can totally picture that banishment happening in the voice of James Earl Jones.

OMG Rob

 

[TheMaxRebo]

First and most importantly, congrats on being in remission for a full year - really is amazing news!

I do so love the details in AK - I never saw the spider light nor those chairs of the roof - so much to see!

Glad you enjoyed you lunch and that sitting area is pretty fantastic!

For some reason that CM banishing the people makes me think of the Franch guards from Holy Grail: go away or I shall taunt you a second time!

 

[tinkerjlee]

Glad you and Marie had a great trip! A HUGE CONGRATS to you for being in remission for a year now!!!!! Best. News. Evah!

I love all the little details and such at AK. So cool! Great lunch and what a great spot to sit and enjoy your meal. I'll have to remembr that!!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

That's wonderful about being in remission for a year!

Expedition Everest is one of the best rides ever.

I LOVE Pumba with the grubs!