A Grand Dream of a Honeymoon - June 2011

[disneybarbie]

Wow! MK was really crowded that afternoon! How neat that you saw Kobe Bryant. I don't think I've ever seen a celebrity at Disney. We LOVED the "Magic, Memories and You" show! I thought it was absolutely incredible.

Oh no! I hate to hear that you almost fainted! The heat really does take a lot out of you, especially when you're not used to all of the humidity! When we were on our Segway tour, our guide told us about a man who was from England who actually fainted on the Segway because of the heat! He said that he just kind of slumped over his Segway and the thing just took off! I'm glad that you were able to get better quickly and enjoy Wishes! How sweet of Steve to take car of you like that!

Hi Courtney - oh no that would be awful to faint on a Segway! ... Steve was so good that night, he even carried my purse & camera for me when we left MK lol .. all the next day he kept saying "do you feel ok? are you sure? you have to tell me if you don't feel well!"

Aww hun, so sorry you felt faint during Wishes, but good on Steve for taking good care of you.

That's the thing with Florida it can get so hot that you have to remember to keep hydrated. Do you know, I drink more water on holiday then I do at home.

So cool that you saw Kobe Bryant

Thank Stefy after the near-fainting experience, I couldn't believe really that I hadn't thought to drink more water.. it's always the 'number 1 tip' about going to WDW in the summer months after all! and I guess the last two times I've been in December when it's been so much cooler - never mind, learnt my lesson, and we'll always remember that dessert party

Sorry you felt ill during Wishes!

We brits are just not used to the Florida heat - no matter how well we try to prepare for it.

With each trip I've had to WDW there has always been that 'Oh-oh' moment where I've realised I need to chug a whole lot more water down! (It happened during the Indiana Jones stunt show last time!)

It's amazing how quickly the water helps!

Steve's Wishes photos are amazing! And well done to him for looking after you so well when you were poorly.

Can't wait to hear more!

Thank you - lol yes he got some awesome photos of Wishes that night, before he had to stop and look after his fainting wife instead! - every time we saw fireworks for the rest of the trip, we kept joking that I hadn't fainted yet

Great updates! Your room looked GORGEOUS! The next time my DH and I go to WDW (Whenever that will be) I'd like to do the Dessert Party. Was it worth the money in your opinion?

Ugh, how scary that you almost fainted. That feeling has only happened to me once and it was when I was working for Starbucks. I had cut my finger kind of weird and it got me woozy and I started blacking out. I had to be seated and was given some cold water and felt better after a few minutes. It was the strangest and scariest feeling.

Hopefully you'll feel better in your next update!

Hi Alesha! I loved our room so much at the Grand Floridian.. it was definitely very 'grand'!

IMO, I think the dessert party was worth the money - not something to do every trip, it was about $25 each I think for unlimited desserts and coffee/tea/milk/lemonade/iced tea ... and I liked the view of the fireworks, bit of a different perspective to being on Main Street - plenty of room and seating too (which is especially good if you feel faint !)



Hope everyone is having a good Monday!


Emma x

 

[k_reile]

just found your report! This is the 3rd Dream report I am reading right now. Its making me really want to go on the Dream now! But I want to wait until my DS (almost 3 now) is older so I don;t feel bad about leaving him in the kids clubs.

The dolphin excursion do you know if there was a minimum age limit? If I could convince my parents and brothers family to go on the Dream when we do our big family trip in 2014 this would be awesome but my niece would only be 4 and I don't know if that would be too young or not?

 

[Lorelai]

Truly enjoying your report, as we will be there during the same dates of June 2012.

 

[cindianne320]

So sorry that you almost fainted That has happened to me before, but not at WDW! I am glad to hear this was the only mishap of the trip, and look forward to more pictures and memories from my favorite place on Earth!

 

[Dream426]

We did the dessert party last summer and really enjoyed it. I would def. do it again. Isn't the Grand Floridian so nice. We have stayed there the last couple of times we were at Disney and don't think I can stay anywhere else. It is our favorite place to stay. Love the updates as usual.

 

[buddles norfolk uk]

Just found your PTR and TR and spent most of the evening wading through- you are VERY gorgeous and you and your DH seem so sweet and happy and so far seem to be having a wonderful Disneymoon! Sorry to hear that you fainted but I'm happy to hear that was the only mishap... I'm excited for the rest of the report!
I just had to say I am loving the TR glad you've got to WDW and now I will be subscribing! Hope you are well!

Jodie
xxx

 

[pinkfairy1684]

Emma, I have really enjoyed reading through your honeymoon TR! I especially appreciated all of the details about the cruise. We are finishing up our honeymoon with a 3 day Disney cruise (my first cruise ever!!!) and you made me so excited!

 

[disneybarbie]

just found your report! This is the 3rd Dream report I am reading right now. Its making me really want to go on the Dream now! But I want to wait until my DS (almost 3 now) is older so I don;t feel bad about leaving him in the kids clubs.

The dolphin excursion do you know if there was a minimum age limit? If I could convince my parents and brothers family to go on the Dream when we do our big family trip in 2014 this would be awesome but my niece would only be 4 and I don't know if that would be too young or not?

Hi! Thank you for reading.. I hope you do get to go on a Disney cruise in the future, we had the most incredible time!

I had a look on the Blue Lagoon website (http://www.dolphinencounters.com/) - and it looks like children of all ages can take part in the dolphin encounter, under 3's are free too there were some fairly young children in our group when we were there.

Truly enjoying your report, as we will be there during the same dates of June 2012.

Thank you for reading! June 2012 will be here before you know it

So sorry that you almost fainted That has happened to me before, but not at WDW! I am glad to hear this was the only mishap of the trip, and look forward to more pictures and memories from my favorite place on Earth!

Thank you for your comments! Yes we were very fortunate in a way that the only 'bad' thing that happened our whole trip was me nearly fainting - it became a thing to joke about after a few days & I'd made sure to stay hydrated in the heat .. any time we watched fireworks, I'd say to DH "look... I've not fainted yet!"

more updates to come soon.. now it's 2 months ago, I'm really missing the World!

We did the dessert party last summer and really enjoyed it. I would def. do it again. Isn't the Grand Floridian so nice. We have stayed there the last couple of times we were at Disney and don't think I can stay anywhere else. It is our favorite place to stay. Love the updates as usual.

Hi! Yes I think we'd do the dessert party again one day... just so I can experience it properly and not feel ill hehe.
We loved staying at the Grand Floridian, it felt so majestic and decadent! As my family are DVC members we'd probably not stay there very often, but maybe special anniversaries etc

Just found your PTR and TR and spent most of the evening wading through- you are VERY gorgeous and you and your DH seem so sweet and happy and so far seem to be having a wonderful Disneymoon! Sorry to hear that you fainted but I'm happy to hear that was the only mishap... I'm excited for the rest of the report!
I just had to say I am loving the TR glad you've got to WDW and now I will be subscribing! Hope you are well!

Jodie
xxx

wow thank you so much for your comments and for reading!
More updates to come this weekend (3 days for bank holiday, yay!) - no more fainting, just lots of Disney magic

Emma, I have really enjoyed reading through your honeymoon TR! I especially appreciated all of the details about the cruise. We are finishing up our honeymoon with a 3 day Disney cruise (my first cruise ever!!!) and you made me so excited!

Thank you! I hope you love the cruise.. we completely have the cruise 'bug' now and look forward to doing more in the future.. there's many parts of the world that we'd like to see that would be great to see from a cruise... Mexico, Asia, Alaska...
Are you going on the Dream for your cruise?



Hope everyone has had a great week & all those in the East USA are keeping safe with the hurricane

Three day weekend in the UK so I'm sure to get a couple of updates done soon!


Emma x

 

[pinkfairy1684]

Yes, we are going on the Dream!!! I can't wait. It looks like such an amazing ship!!!

 

[disneybarbie]

Yes, we are going on the Dream!!! I can't wait. It looks like such an amazing ship!!!

I hope you have an amazing time! it's an incredible ship, I'd love to go back on it one day.. or the Fantasy... or any of the Disney ships really, it was such a great experience!

 

[disneybarbie]

Hi everyone!

While I'm working on my next update.. I just thought I'd share a few pictures with you of the pins I bought this trip and some other Disney-related photos. I joined in the pin trend fairly late, but decided just to buy ones of each resort we stay at, and any special occasions.

So this trip I bought..

Bride & Groom Ear pins..

(thank you to Mindy for sending me a picture of these a while ago, so I knew to look out for them!)

Castaway Cay..

I bought this from one of the little shops on the island, such a nice memory!

Disney Dream..

Animal Kingdom Lodge..

Grand Floridian..

and a 40th Anniversary pin..

my lanyard is pretty full now, might have to think about getting another one or a pin book soon!




A few weeks ago, I was looking through our 'Mickey and the Disney Chefs' cookbook - and was very pleased to find the Palo chocolate souffle recipe in there!

My attempt was pretty good! They didn't rise as much as the ones on the cruise ship, but tasted delicious

When I was writing my thank you cards for the wedding to our florist, photographer, cake maker etc, I also decided to write them to the Grand Floridian and the Disney Cruise Line to let them know what an amazing time we'd had!

and... this week, I got a letter back from DCL!

It was a thank you letter for my thank you card! It said that they always aim to please their guests, and getting a card like mine meant they knew they were doing a good job - each Crew Member that I'd mentioned (stateroom host, Remy waiter, bar staff and waiters) were listed and it said that they would all be commended. It made my day to get a letter from Disney, they didn't have to send me anything at all!




Next update is almost done.. will aim to post soon!


Emma x

 

[Leshaface]

Your pins are so cute! Especially the bride and groom ones!

And how awesome of Disney to send you a letter! It's always fun to get Disney mail.

 

[lilsqueakrr]

LOVE the pins! My mom bought me the Mr/Mrs set when we got engaged and then handed it to me by accident before our engagement party! lol.

I say get a pin book! DF has one and loves it!

I got the same cookbook! I can't wait to try some recipes!

 

[Dream426]

I love the pins. I didn't see the bride and groom ones when we went on our honeymoon. I wish I did because I would have bought them.

 

[lilwitch646]

Concierge looks wonderful! I can't believe they even had alcohol out for you, that's amazing! My mom keeps trying to get into concierge at Animal Kingdom so she can use her DVC membership, but it fills up so quickly that so far they've been unable to do it.

I'm sorry you got heat exhaustion and felt faint. If it happens again (and I hope it doesn't) it helps to lay down. I know that's strange to do in a public place, but it will help equalize your blood pressure so you won't feel faint. Then water, water, water! I usually find it helps to get something cool on the back of your neck, and on your feet. Almost like instant air conditioning! (I have a terrible history with fainting, this is what my doctor told me I should do.)

That's amazing that DCL replied to your thank you letter. I think it's really important to let Disney know when their CM's are going above and beyond. They deserve commendations, raises, something to thank them. I've so impressed by your graciousness! I never thought of bringing the flight attendants gifts, but I imagine it brightens their day to know they're appreciated. It's amazing how such a small gesture can make such a big impression on someone.

 

[disneybarbie]

Your pins are so cute! Especially the bride and groom ones!

And how awesome of Disney to send you a letter! It's always fun to get Disney mail.

Hi Lesha! I'm so pleased with my pin lanyard now.. it's only taken 3/4 trips to get a good mix of pins - although I don't think I could ever trade any of them !

LOVE the pins! My mom bought me the Mr/Mrs set when we got engaged and then handed it to me by accident before our engagement party! lol.

I say get a pin book! DF has one and loves it!

I got the same cookbook! I can't wait to try some recipes!

Thanks Jenifer! maybe I should 'invest' in a pin book on our next trip - that cookbook is so good, we love the cobb salad, flame tree bbq marinade & the 'pollo de las rajas' dish from San Angel Inn in Epcot! I have a much older one, from 1993, which has the Main Street bakery cookie recipe in it, which I put with our wedding favours hehe

Btw hope you are safe & well this weekend, keep checking the news about the hurricane

I love the pins. I didn't see the bride and groom ones when we went on our honeymoon. I wish I did because I would have bought them.

Hi! Thank you - sorry you didn't see those pins.. maybe they'll still have them on your next trip :

Concierge looks wonderful! I can't believe they even had alcohol out for you, that's amazing! My mom keeps trying to get into concierge at Animal Kingdom so she can use her DVC membership, but it fills up so quickly that so far they've been unable to do it.

I'm sorry you got heat exhaustion and felt faint. If it happens again (and I hope it doesn't) it helps to lay down. I know that's strange to do in a public place, but it will help equalize your blood pressure so you won't feel faint. Then water, water, water! I usually find it helps to get something cool on the back of your neck, and on your feet. Almost like instant air conditioning! (I have a terrible history with fainting, this is what my doctor told me I should do.)

That's amazing that DCL replied to your thank you letter. I think it's really important to let Disney know when their CM's are going above and beyond. They deserve commendations, raises, something to thank them. I've so impressed by your graciousness! I never thought of bringing the flight attendants gifts, but I imagine it brightens their day to know they're appreciated. It's amazing how such a small gesture can make such a big impression on someone.

Hi! Just caught up on your TR - we were so impressed with the concierge lounge at the Grand Floridian.. when we got the champagne and beer that evening, I was half expecting a Cast Member to come over to us and ask for ID!

Thanks for the tips on feeling faint! it had never happened before and thankfully didn't happen again on our trip, but it was a horrible feeling - particularly as we were in my favourite place in the world and I just wanted to watch the fireworks! lol

I have to thank my sister for telling me to give chocolates to flight attendants - she said it always made such a difference to her flight when she worked on an airline and received a little gift from a passenger!


Emma x

 

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

What a great idea to send a thank you and specifically mention people who helped make your honeymoon special! People are always quick to complain when things don't go well but rarely say anything when things do. Very cool they wrote you back!

 

[disneybarbie]

Monday 27th June 2011

Animal Kingdom, Winter Summerland… Epcot.. and Hollywood Studios!

Despite feeling quite ill and shaky when I went to bed, I woke up early and felt all most better again – and ready for our first full day in Walt Disney World!

The day before, Steve had said to me “what park are we at tomorrow?” (he’s used to me planning each day with ‘the spreadsheet’ lol) and was surprised when I replied “I don’t mind.. where do you want to go?” – not like me at all on a Disney trip! As it was our honeymoon, I’d purposefully not planned every day, apart from dining reservations, so that we’d take it easy and do as much or as little as we wanted! It turned out to work really well, although we didn’t race around the parks – it meant we could get up early and go to extra magic hours or rope drops, or have lazier mornings if we wanted.

So, Steve decided that he’d like to go to Animal Kingdom as it was EMH from 8am.. so that’s where we went!
We got some breakfast from the concierge lounge while we got ready, muffins & coffees, and headed to the bus stop around 7.30am.

It wasn’t very busy, but there was a large family group there with ‘reunion’ buttons on.. they asked Steve if he’d mind taking their photo (this became a theme of the trip, everyone seemed to ask him to take their photo!). One of them was wearing a plush hat shaped like Simba.. it was quite unusual so we noticed the group a few times while we were in the park that day!
Very soon the bus arrived and we were headed for the Animal Kingdom.


We arrived just after 8am so had missed the opening ceremony, which was shame because I really like this one.. but we were among the first there so walked towards Harambe.

Our usual plan for Animal Kingdom is to ride the safari, and then get fast passes for Expedition Everest.. but this time, Steve suggested we get FPs for the safari, and head straight to Everest!

We waited less than 10 minutes to get on the train and visit the Yeti..

We both really love this ride! One thing I did notice when we were climbing the mountain was a huge plume of smoke in the distance… we saw later on the news that a motel had burnt down near WDW, so I guess that was it.


Our fast pass time for Kilimanjaro safaris had been from 8.25am, so we were able to pick up FPs for Everest before walking back over to Africa.

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[disneybarbie]

.........

When we got to the cast member in the line who checks FPs and takes them off you, he noticed our ‘Just Married’ button, and handed the tickets back to Steve – saying “keep these in case you guys want to ride again” ! Never had that happen before, must be a perk of being newlyweds – we actually didn’t ride again, but it’s nice to have the FPs for my scrapbook!

We had a really good safari, had some great encounters with a lot of the animals…

And lots of my favourite… elephants!

After the safari, we wandered back towards Asia – and my husband insisted we stopped for a drink, so that I kept hydrated!

He had a Sprite and I got an iced honey green tea. I really like this area of the park, it’s a nice place to sit and watch the world go by.

We rode Everest again, got fast passes for Kali River Rapids, and then headed over to Dinoland to save a dinosaur!
I know a lot of people find this ride very intense and jerky – but I love it! I think the theme and story are great – plus I seem to know the pre-show off by heart! (“flash photography? I wouldn’t – it alters the homing signal and that’s not good… )

We walked through dinoland, and towards the Tree of Life..

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[disneybarbie]

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We saw ‘It’s Tough to be a Bug’ 3D show next – I love to watch people in this attraction who obviously haven’t done it before… there’s so many surprises to make them jump!

We did the Maharajah Jungle Trek – when we’d done this in December, it had been so cold that the Kimono dragon & fruit bats hadn’t been out!

The tigers were being pretty lazy…

We watched the monkeys for a while..

And stopped for a soda at the Yak & Yeti counter-service (keeping hydrated!) – I noticed these ducks nesting in the foliage..

Steve wanted to go on Kali river rapids next – I’m not always too keen on this attraction, as I seem to get ‘the’ seat that gets soaked! But it was such a hot day, it was actually quite nice to get wet and cool off!
Plus I didn’t get the wettest on our ride..

By this time it was about 11.45am, so we went to find some lunch… we’d already agreed on where we’d like to go..

One of our favourite counter services! We got two pulled pork sandwiches and a side of onion rings, and two large lemonades.

I noticed several other guests feeding the birds while we were eating… it’s frustrating when there’s signs saying not to – and surely birds shouldn’t be eating French fries, chicken & pork?! Lol.

After a delicious lunch, we decided we’d done everything we wanted to for the day and headed out of the park – stopping for some Photopass pictures on the way …

The photographer told us to kiss.. but we started giggling and it made an awkward photo!

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