A Private, Romantic 30th Anniversary Trip- Just Ask My Friends! Last Afternoon: EP p. 37 9/19

[SarahDisney]

I love your pictures of Flights of Wonder. That's one of those things I'll likely never do (I tend to run in the opposite direction when I see a bird), but it definitely looks and sounds very interesting!

Happy New Year, Dee! I hope 2017 is full of wonderful things for you, your family, and your friends and loved ones!

 

[JanetMom]

Glad you got to see it. Our family saw it almost exactly one year ago and I loved it. As soon as I saw the rooster cross the stage I thought of you and Rusty and knew you had to see this show at some point.

 

[annie170]

Happy New Year, Dee! I hope 2017 is a great year for you and your family!

Between two deaths, my husband's cancer diagnosis and trying to sell my late MIL's home, needless to say, 2016 wasn't the best for us. I try to remain optimistic about it all, though. My dad and MIL were in their late 80's and went peacefully, my husband is in remission(!!!) and we have an offer on the house that took most of my summer break to clean out (hoarder). As trying as times were, I always think that someone has it worse and I'm very lucky to have such a good life. We need our family Disney trip later this month desperately!

Rusty is quite the handsome boy and he's got a good story, too! I never gave it much thought that roosters are harder to find homes.

Great pictures of the Tree of Life and Flights of Wonder. We usually just do a half day at AK and I've never seen the show. Unfortunately, AK didn't make the cut four our four day tickets this upcoming family trip, but there's always the next time.

 

[amazingact21]

Your roosters pics are awesome. Our next door neighbor back in FL had 8 chickens, and I kind of fell in love with them. I loved going out on my deck in the mornings and have them come over to me. (we had a chain link fence so they were pretty accessible to us. Plus the owner let Landon and me go through the gate whenever we wanted) Your photos made me miss them a little bit. However, I do agree that roosters are the black sheep of barnyard animals. You don't see too many folks with roosters.

I'm happy to hear you enjoyed Flights of Wonder. Your photos were great!

 

[pas130]

I can't even remember if we have ever done Flights of Wonder, but I think we have. Love how you've incorporated the rooster pics from home with the show A saw a bald eagle when DH and I ate at O'hana and it really was cool to see that. Happy 2017 my friend

 

[natebenma]

I loved flights of wonder! I did it for the first time last January and really enjoyed the show. You got some great photos and I enjoyed hearing about the chickens! Happy New Year Dee!

Flights of Wonder is a really unique show. You are kind with your comments about my photos. I just went back to your trip report and re-read that update. Wow! There are some amazing pictures of the show in your report. Really fantastic close-up photos of the birds and the people in the show.

Couldn't agree more very happy to say goodbye to 2016. Wishing you and your family the very best in 2017

Wishing you and your family a wonderful 2017!

I like your review of Flights of Wonder. We have never seen it but now I think we need to catch it next time we are in Disney.

I hope 2017 is a better year for you than 2016 was. I'm glad we were able to see you last January, especially since I couldn't get away from work to join the "group" in October. But I see from your trip report that you spent a lot of time doing your own thing on this trip.

This is definitely a sleeper show. I think there are many more people who haven't seen it than have. I thought it was a worthwhile use of our time.

Thanks for your wishes for 2017. The things that concerned me last year were mostly problems encountered by friends. It has been difficult for me to see so many people I care about suffering.

I am so glad we had a chance to meet in August 2015 and then to spend a little bit of time with you last January. Yes, this trip was mainly about Mark and I doing our own thing, but we did meet up with our friends a few times. And unfortunately, some near misses.

I'm another one who hasn't seen FOW but will have to give it a go next time if I can persuade the kiddos to join me. Great review and photos

Wishing you, and everyone here, a healthy, happy 2017

We liked the show, but I think we would have trouble convincing our teens to go. I can't even interest them in Lion King or Nemo there, so I'm sure trying to get them to go to a no-name bird show would not fly.

Wishing all the best to your family this year!

 

[natebenma]

I love your pictures of Flights of Wonder. That's one of those things I'll likely never do (I tend to run in the opposite direction when I see a bird), but it definitely looks and sounds very interesting!

Happy New Year, Dee! I hope 2017 is full of wonderful things for you, your family, and your friends and loved ones!

Flights of Wonder is not a show to see if you are not fond of birds! I don't mind being close to birds, but I get a little uncomfortable when I am under them, if you know what I mean!"

Glad you got to see it. Our family saw it almost exactly one year ago and I loved it. As soon as I saw the rooster cross the stage I thought of you and Rusty and knew you had to see this show at some point.

Speaking of a year ago... a year ago tomorrow (or probably today if you are reading this on Sunday) was our fabulous girls night at MK!

Good times!

I think you and probably @luvpoohandcompany (does this sound familiar to you) are the only ones here who know the secret Rusty story- I can't put it in a public forum because it is a little gross and because Mark does not know the story and I don't want to risk him reading about it.

But I don't want to be a tease, so if any of you are itching to hear the story, let me know by posting here and I will PM you.

Happy New Year, Dee! I hope 2017 is a great year for you and your family!

Between two deaths, my husband's cancer diagnosis and trying to sell my late MIL's home, needless to say, 2016 wasn't the best for us. I try to remain optimistic about it all, though. My dad and MIL were in their late 80's and went peacefully, my husband is in remission(!!!) and we have an offer on the house that took most of my summer break to clean out (hoarder). As trying as times were, I always think that someone has it worse and I'm very lucky to have such a good life. We need our family Disney trip later this month desperately!

Rusty is quite the handsome boy and he's got a good story, too! I never gave it much thought that roosters are harder to find homes.

Great pictures of the Tree of Life and Flights of Wonder. We usually just do a half day at AK and I've never seen the show. Unfortunately, AK didn't make the cut four our four day tickets this upcoming family trip, but there's always the next time.

Wow, you did have a rough year with a lot of challenges. I am so glad to hear your husband is in remission. I'm sure his diagnosis and subsequent treatment have been difficult for you both.



It is so important to remain optimistic. I employ that same attitude in dealing with challenges- recognizing that we have a great life even when times are tough.

I have sympathy for you on dealing with the cleanout of your MIL's house. I have been trying to make a dent in the clutter at my dad's house for years but it is slow going because he is resistant to letting us clean up and clear out all the junk. It is overwhelming!


AK is definitely the park we visit the least on our trips. I love the shows at Animal Kingdom, but my family doesn't like to spend the time at them, so once we have done the few "big" attractions there, we are done.


Rusty is definitely a special rooster. As I mentioned in the reply to Janet, let me know if you want to hear another story (but don't say I didn't warn you)

You are so deserving of a wonderful trip. I look forward to hearing about it!

Your roosters pics are awesome. Our next door neighbor back in FL had 8 chickens, and I kind of fell in love with them. I loved going out on my deck in the mornings and have them come over to me. (we had a chain link fence so they were pretty accessible to us. Plus the owner let Landon and me go through the gate whenever we wanted) Your photos made me miss them a little bit. However, I do agree that roosters are the black sheep of barnyard animals. You don't see too many folks with roosters.

I'm happy to hear you enjoyed Flights of Wonder. Your photos were great!

Aw, thanks! The picture of Ben and Rusty is one of my favorites- I have it as Ben's profile picture on my phone. It was surprising to me to see that Rusty has so much personality. It makes me smile to think that you and Landon were friends with your neighbor's chickens.

I can't remember if you have seen the show. I'm thinking no.

I can't even remember if we have ever done Flights of Wonder, but I think we have. Love how you've incorporated the rooster pics from home with the show A saw a bald eagle when DH and I ate at O'hana and it really was cool to see that. Happy 2017 my friend

I loved having an opportunity to throw a few pictures of my favorite bird into my report.

Wow, you saw a bald eagle while at the Poly? That is so cool!

I have read that there is an eagle that hangs around the Swalfin- someone posted a picture on the BC/YC FAQ thread but I don't think I copied it.

Happy 2017 to you and your family!

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

ok I need a refresher on the gross Rusty story lol
Something is vaguely ringing a bell but call it old age or menopausal memory, whichever you like, I can't grasp it and not I'm curious!!!

 

[natebenma]

ok I need a refresher on the gross Rusty story lol
Something is vaguely ringing a bell but call it old age or menopausal memory, whichever you like, I can't grasp it and not I'm curious!!!

OK, writing up "What's Worse than Love Bugs" now.

I'm not sure if I emailed/messaged you or not

 

[natebenma]

Yeti and Yak and Yeti

After enjoying the Flights of Wonder show, a jungle trek was in order.


Unfortunately, the animals were playing hard to get.


We didn’t see any Komodo Dragons out while we walked by their pen.


Next, we went into this hangout.

A couple of the dudes were there, but not as many as we usually see.


“The Lady or the Tiger?”

I don’t know this little cutie, but I thought this was a sweet picture


This was the only view we had of a tiger.

Not our best trek for seeing animals but I thought these cattle wading through the water were cool.

Nice jugs!


Next up was the aviary.

Use caution! Not because of what is above, but what is below.

See the people through the foliage here? A woman had fallen on the slippery, wet walkway and was hurt. This happened right before we got there- they blocked off the path near where it happened. They had a stretcher there to get her out.


Watching our step, we watched these beautiful, colorful birds:

We had about 30 minutes left before our lunch reservation- we decided to take a stroll over to Everest to see if we had time to ride.


First, past these monkeys.


See the little guy in the bottom center of the picture below? He was running on the slanted surface and a couple of times it looked like he was going to slip off, but he didn’t

We got a peek at the mountain and the Rivers of Light stage as we were walking

The wait time said 20 minutes, so we got in line and rode.


We were going a little slower in the queue line than we did earlier that morning, so I did snap a couple of pictures, but I didn’t take any while on the ride:

Here’s our ride picture.

Check out the couple in the front row with the matching Hakuna Matata shirts. How quaint!




It was time for our lunch at Yak and Yeti, so that will be the next update. But since I only have one more picture in the park, I’ll post that here.


As I mentioned earlier in the report, when we arrived at AK, we didn’t take the time to stop for a photopass pictures because the lines were too long and we were excited to yet to Everest. I said we would get one on the way out. But we didn’t see any photographers on the bridge, so I had Mark take my picture.

Continued in the Next Post- Yak and Yeti

 

[natebenma]

Yak and Yeti

There were many reasons we wanted to have a meal at Yak and Yeti on this trip. We had not dined there since 2008 with the kids. While we enjoyed it, meals at Boma have been our go-to when in the AK area. The menu here appealed to us and honestly, the reviews of the wonton dessert won me over. This restaurant is part of the Landry’s Restaurant Select program. We signed up for that since we like to dine at Bubba Gumps at when we are at Universal. October is my birthday month, and just a few weeks before the trip, I received an email with $25 off our meal, good in October only. The timing could not have been more perfect!


Originally we had booked dinner on Thursday night anticipating that we would want to do some of the AK after dark activities. We had heard credible (but ultimately incorrect) rumors that Rivers of Light might be having preview shows the week we were there. But we made a game time decision the morning we were at AK to change the meal to a lunch and as I reported earlier, we were able to make the change.


We arrived at the check-in stand and the hostess stand and I was asked if we were members of the Landry’s Select Club. When I said “Yes”, she smiled and said, “Excellent- I will make sure you get a great table” We waited a few minutes to be seated and as she brought us up the stairs to our seat, she asked about what we planned on ordering. She was excited when I said the duck and she told us to let her know how we liked it because she hadn’t tried it yet. (Sadly, we did not see her on the way out)

We were seated here:

It was awesome! We had a view out into the park and at one point saw these characters walking down the path

Our waiter, Jock , was incredible- friendly, helpful and funny.


He took our drink order. Mark got a Berry Cherry Limeade and I ordered my usual Iced Tea.


For lunch, we decided on the Asian side salad, Dim Sum Basket for two and the BBQ Plum Duck- I have included the pictures and descriptions below, along with the menu cost and the price that appeared on our bill. They took the $25 credit I had and applied it to the things we ordered.

House Salad - Romaine and iceberg lettuce, sesame seeds and Asian dressing - $5.99/$1.76

Dim Sum Basket for Two - Pork pot stickers, shrimp siu mai, cha su bao and pork siu mai steamed on a banana leaf, soy lime dipping sauce - $14.49/$8.61

Bhaktapur Duck - Roasted half ducking, plum BBQ sauce, jasmine rice, stir-fried vegetables - $26.99/$16.03

Fried Wontons - Skewers of fresh pineapple and cream cheese wontons, vanilla ice cream, honey-vanilla drizzle - $8.99/$5.34

The candle on our dessert was a special touch.


Everything was excellent!


The manager came over at one point in our meal to thank us for being loyalty customers and to ask how everything was. We complimented our waiter and said we enjoyed everything about our meal. We also filled out a comment card at the end recognizing our waiter, the hostess and our outstanding meal.

The cost of our meal: $38.92 plus a generous tip. Not bad at all by Disney standards!


Next up: Do we make it to Hollywood Studios for our Fast Passes?

 

[JanetMom]

Speaking of a year ago... a year ago tomorrow (or probably today if you are reading this on Sunday) was our fabulous girls night at MK!

Good times!

I think you and probably @luvpoohandcompany (does this sound familiar to you) are the only ones here who know the secret Rusty story- I can't put it in a public forum because it is a little gross and because Mark does not know the story and I don't want to risk him reading about it.

Ah Dee, so many stories, so little time!

 

[annie170]

That's an adorable picture of the little girl on the Jungle Trek. So sweet!

Your lunch looked great and cute photo of you two! It always helps to have great service, too. I've been reading a lot of good things about Yak & Yeti and would love to try it. Tusker House is one of our favorite buffets, so we have not ventured out much at AK.

I'd love to hear another story about Rusty!

I feel your pain with hoarding, aging parents. My mother-in-law went into a nursing home this past spring. I had been offering to clean up around her house for at least ten years. I also tried to talk her into downsizing to something smaller and more manageable. I was always denied because she knew I would come armed with trash bags and boxes for donation. Most of my summer break was spent bagging and boxing up sixty some years worth of belongings. She couldn't get rid of anything! All of this has me reevaluating my own possessions and why I hang on to certain things. I will not so this to my kids.

 

[SarahDisney]

Your Everest ride picture is hysterical. You look so excited and Mark is just sitting there looking bored.

I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed Yak & Yeti. I love that they took such good care of you because you're Landry Select Club members - it's always nice to see a restaurant that takes care of their loyalty program members.

 

[Wood Nymph]

We have made Yak & Yeti a regular dinner stop for every trip. We love the pot stickers. I tried the duck for the first time on our most recent trip. It was very good but very hard to eat gracefully.

 

[rteetz]

I have never eaten at Yak and Yeti but your review makes me want to check it out! Sounds like you had a great time there.

 

[afwdwfan]

About a week before the trip, I went into Sam’s to get the cards, found the display… and the Disney cards were sold out! I checked one more time before the trip, but they did not restock. L

Of course now that we are back, the Disney cards are there!

Well, if that isn't a kick in the pants...

I texted Ben when our plane touched down:

9:17 Landed

9:23 OK. I’m still alive.

The nuggets were good, but didn't blow us away. Not a must do for us.

I like them. But yeah, I think they get a little overhyped. They're a great snack, but not something worth really going out of the way for.

I love the views on this ride, especially the preview of EPCOT as you travel above the park.

When she came over to ask us about dessert, we decided to pass.


Maybe a sundae would have saved the meal for us. Maybe not.

How do you even go to Beaches & Cream and not get ice cream????

We have one rooster, Rusty, who was found wandering in a Toys ‘R US parking lot.

Because why wouldn't there be a rooster in the Toys R Us parking lot?

My sister used to have a rooster. My niece would carry it around and play with it like he was one of her dolls. Until he had enough and cornered her in the barn.

I'm glad you had such a nice lunch at Yak & Yeti! Seems like it was a good idea to change your plans around some.

 

[wdwnut61]

We love the Maharajah Jungle Trek just picked our FP's on Monday. We have Safari, Lion King show and EE for our AK day. We love walking through the jungle trek right after the safari in the early morning. Hoping we can catch Flights of Wonder on our way to EE.

More beautiful pics I like the little girl looking at the tigers Again great ride photo and the couple in front are holding hands
We have never tried Yak and Yeti but your pics look yummy. What a great seat looking out at the park.

 

[natebenma]

Sorry to take so long to get back to everyone replies. Busy week. The normal stuff, plus this weekend my theatre group has 3 performances of "Keeper of the Tales" based on stories from 1001 Arabian Nights.



Big Christmas Tree bonfire at the farm tonight- We usually get hundreds of people coming for food, drink, entertainment and other activities to benefit a local volunteer fire squad.

And of course, in a couple of hours my favorite football team has a playoff game. Go Pats!

Ah Dee, so many stories, so little time!

I am so happy that you have been in my "live audience" so many times!

That's an adorable picture of the little girl on the Jungle Trek. So sweet!

Your lunch looked great and cute photo of you two! It always helps to have great service, too. I've been reading a lot of good things about Yak & Yeti and would love to try it. Tusker House is one of our favorite buffets, so we have not ventured out much at AK.

I'd love to hear another story about Rusty!

I feel your pain with hoarding, aging parents. My mother-in-law went into a nursing home this past spring. I had been offering to clean up around her house for at least ten years. I also tried to talk her into downsizing to something smaller and more manageable. I was always denied because she knew I would come armed with trash bags and boxes for donation. Most of my summer break was spent bagging and boxing up sixty some years worth of belongings. She couldn't get rid of anything! All of this has me reevaluating my own possessions and why I hang on to certain things. I will not so this to my kids.

I love the picture of the little girl. Her dress is adorable and I love the way she is bending over to peek into the window. I'm sure most of the time she is on tippy-toes trying to look over barriers, so this was probably a nice change for her.

We had an amazing lunch! I loved the table overlooking the park. The whole experience was fantastic. We left a very positive review of the restaurant on the comment card they gave us.

Hope you enjoyed the Rusty story and our shared commiseration.

Your Everest ride picture is hysterical. You look so excited and Mark is just sitting there looking bored.

I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed Yak & Yeti. I love that they took such good care of you because you're Landry Select Club members - it's always nice to see a restaurant that takes care of their loyalty program members.

Ha! That is funny about my expression and Mark's. Hadn't really noticed that, probably because it is a pretty common scenario with us.

You actually have to pay $25 to join the Landry Select Club, but you get a $25 with your first visit. So we were break even at our trip to Bubba Gumps in Feb 2015. I was so excited when I got the birthday email. There aren't any other Landry's restaurants that are convenient to us at home, and we already had a reservation to dine at Yak & Yeti, so it was perfect timing.

We have made Yak & Yeti a regular dinner stop for every trip. We love the pot stickers. I tried the duck for the first time on our most recent trip. It was very good but very hard to eat gracefully.

The food was great! There were so many things we wanted to try, but I have no complaints with what we ordered. The theming is really fun there, too.

Ben LOVES potstickers, he loves duck, I think we probably should go back again next time we visit Disney with him.

I have never eaten at Yak and Yeti but your review makes me want to check it out! Sounds like you had a great time there.

Once we read over the menu when it was time to make our reservations, we knew we were going to go. YUM!

 

[natebenma]

Well, if that isn't a kick in the pants...

I really like saving money, it is kind of like a game, and it bothers me when I leave money "on the table". I think my savings from the discount at Sam's Club would have been over $100 if I had purchased all of the Disney Gift Cards I needed.

I like them. But yeah, I think they get a little overhyped. They're a great snack, but not something worth really going out of the way for.

I probably should have mentioned in the update that we ended up going back to Casey's later in the week to satisfy a craving for a treat that we saw while we were there with our corndog nuggets.

That would have made an excellent contest question if I was doing that for this report.

How do you even go to Beaches & Cream and not get ice cream????

Wait. They have ice cream there?

Because why wouldn't there be a rooster in the Toys R Us parking lot?

My sister used to have a rooster. My niece would carry it around and play with it like he was one of her dolls. Until he had enough and cornered her in the barn.

Because the mascot is a giraffe?

We don't know if Rusty was dumped or escaped but his temperament is so good that he must have come from a home where he interacted with people.

Oh, no, your poor niece!

The rest of the roosters we have at the farm are mean and scary. We actually have to keep Rusty in his own coop within the coop because the others pick on him/at him. When I go into the coop to get Rusty, the biggest rooster flies up at me when I am holding him.

I'm glad you had such a nice lunch at Yak & Yeti! Seems like it was a good idea to change your plans around some.

Switching over to lunch at Yak & Yeti during that visit to AK turned out to be an excellent move and really allowed us to do some special, unplanned things on Thursday. You will be particularly pleased with one of the things we ended up doing.