A Salute to All Orlando Area Theme Parks But Mostly Walt Disney World ***THE END***

[DisneyKid4Life]

Just love your trip reports and all your pictures!!!

Thank you so very much!! I am so pleased to your first post on this TR.

Mickey clouds... I see them everywhere!!!

Oh WOW, I never noticed that at all. AWESOME catch Michelle!!!

Ummmmm... I mean, yeah totally saw that in the clouds and snapped that picture just for that purpose.

I have been reading along with both of your trip reports and they are great! I'm so jealous of how much time you've gotten to spend at Disney. My trips are normally quick 4 day-ers. I would LOVE to be able to stay for two weeks and spend some time at the Dark Side and Sea World. I need to find a job with more vacation time

Thanks Jess. I just can't stay away. The "other" parks do have a lot going for them, but my heart still belongs to Disney.

Haha. Currently I get 5 weeks a year (that's what comes with being at one company for so long). I'm really hoping to to get one more in this year in early December. Hey I have a Annual Pass. Can't waste it.

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

The Green Army Man is one of my favorite characters to meet. I don't know how it started but I have to get a picture with him on every single trip. So I LOVE that picture of him hiding in the foliage. Too hilarious.

Awesome picture of Mickey giving you the thumbs up! Definitely a good start to the evening. I love Move It Shake It as well. The music is great and it's just such a random assortment of characters when you think about it. You gotta love it.

Haha, I've never actually gotten a picture with him ever. But I just burst out laughing when I saw him "hiding".

I really do love Move It Shake It. Outside of Boo To You, I think it's my favorite "parade'. Great costumes, great energy, just wonderful.

Great Pics...

I know what you mean about going into MK- without an agenda-I need to do that one day..... This upcoming trip, we will go to MK 3 times... Once for half a day, the next for the parade and wishes and then the Halloween Party!

I need to check out your other TR!

Thanks Marcie.

It's really such a great way to tour MK. I don't think I did one single ride and I didn't care. Being there is enough. I'm so excited for you to see MNSSHP.

Winging it is always a good plan on the last day, although I tend to go everywhere..lol. Nice fp scores! Gangster, boourns, one of these days I’ll get the cowboy and all life will be grand!

VOTLM is seriously just not long enough, and they cut out SO MUCH, but I guess they did what they could with the movies they had at that time. They should put a PaTF musical in somewhere…

Nice army man pics

Aw man, never thought of being able to take early leavers parking spots! Smart! Oh my gosh! The pic of the contemporary is GREAT! I love the views from the ferry boat, it will definitely be on the list of things to do for Sept, especially with a first timer!

Baha! Mad Hatters face! What a great way to start off a solo evening in the Magic Kingdom!

Ha true that!
Gawd you would think at some point with law of averages and such that I would end up in the right car for the cowboy scene. I mean, I know it's the front one and I could probably wait, but gee whiz...

Oh my, I seriously could not believe how short it was. Cliffs notes has nothing on this.

I thought that was so cute.

There is always spots by that time. I guess where I always get a car I've learned a bit of the secrets.
Oh man the photo ops from the ferry are unreal. I still remember that awesome shot you had from one of your reports.

It was PERFECT! I so love that parade (although to call it a parade is a bit misleading really. It's so much more). To have the whole thing right there when I arrived was heaven. Plus... lots of open spaces to find a spot easily.

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Just got all caught up! Looks like you really enjoyed Universal's Halloween party. I don't think I would every do one. I don't enjoy being scared! I'm a big wimp. Your pictures were startling enough without actually going!

I would like to do a Sea World day one year. I think my son would especially enjoy that park.

No better park to visit than the Magic Kingdom to finish off a Disney trip! That way you get some last moments with the castle and main street!

It was SOOO much fun. Haha, it can be intense at times, but we thought it was really fun. I can't wait to do it again some day.

Absolutely. It's a very different vibe since there's not as much line queueing. The shows are marvellous and the animal exhibits are wonderful too. It's really great and I highly recommend it.

Now that is the the absolute truth. Every last second I can spend in that place, I'm going to do it.

Sounds like you had a really nice bonus day at Sea World!

More rides, dolphins, polar critters and TURTLES!!!

Sea turtles are our favorite marine animals, but this exhibit wasn't open yet when we were last there. I snorkeled with sea turtles last February in Mexico and it was awesome!

That was kind of 3-D

Interesting about the wrestling at Universal. Where does that take place?

How did you get the pictures of you on tv? Did someone record the show for you or was it replayed?

A last visit to MK- so bittersweet!

Great pictures from the ferry and of the parade!

Very much so Dee especially since it was basically free.

I just can't get enough of Manta I swear. And it enabled us to see the stuff we missed like the Arctic animals and especially that Turtle Trek. I really can't say enough about it, it's that good.

Haha, yeah I'd say that would qualify as 3D!

It took place in Soundstage 21. They'd been doing the show there for years, but earlier this year, they took the show on the road, so they no longer do any shows from Universal.

Haha... I may have gotten a copy online when I got home and then just took a image capture of the frames.

Very bittersweet for sure. But always with the knowledge that I'll be back again (which turned out to be about 6 months).

Thank you. It was a great way to start the last evening, that's for sure.

 

[quandrea]

We were at wdw at the same time. I celebrated my 40thon that trip.

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

We were at wdw at the same time. I celebrated my 40thon that trip.

That's awesome!! I so want to do a birthday in WDW. Hoping for this December!

 

[teekathepony]

Last day already?
Good way to kick off your last day, with phone DHS and some fast passes!
The voyage of the little mermaid surprised me too, I thought it would be longer.
The army man hiding behind the tree is too funny, I had to call DH in to see that!
Glad you both got to do what you wanted that day, I would have done what you did and gone agenda-free to MK!
I love the parade, so upbeat! Great pic of the thumbs up from the boss!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Last day already?
Good way to kick off your last day, with phone DHS and some fast passes!
The voyage of the little mermaid surprised me too, I thought it would be longer.
The army man hiding behind the tree is too funny, I had to call DH in to see that!
Glad you both got to do what you wanted that day, I would have done what you did and gone agenda-free to MK!
I love the parade, so upbeat! Great pic of the thumbs up from the boss!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

I know... the time sure did fly. But yeah, I'm kinda blasting through the last few days so I can try to focus on only ONE report

Fastpasses rule! The jury's still out on Fastpass+.

Right!!?? Talk about a condensed verion! Still cute though. And hey, it has finned Ariel so it can't be ALL bad.

I though that was the cutest thing. I think the little guy in the photo likes it too.

Totally. I think K8 was done by that point (little did I know what she was up to...) but I just couldn't stay away. I need every last second I can get.

Oh me too. It's just fun. I hope they still keep it when the new regular parade starts.
Ha, I took that thumbs up as a "Yup you made the right decision coming here. Nice job! I approve."

 

[glennbo123]

You know Rob, I've had a realization after reading along on this trip report: you haven't changed the way that you stand for a picture in like, ever!

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

You know Rob, I've had a realization after reading along on this trip report: you haven't changed the way that you stand for a picture in like, ever!

Hey why screw with what works?

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

A PRELUDE TO A SOLO TRIP!
Day 12 – October 19, 2012 Part 2


I had just entered the Magic Kingdom SOLO and welcomed with Move It Shake It…

Now What?

Well, first you get a photo of the castle of course. DUH!

I’ll state right here and now that this night was basically just spent wandering and enjoying the atmosphere.

The real beauty of Disney is that you don’t even have to actually do anything to have a great time.
Thoughts of a full on SOLO trip were beginning to materialize.

Disney bunnies rule!

Sadly Splash was down yet again… or still down… one of those.

I eventually got to Tomorrowland, where Stitch and friends were gettin’ down.

Poor Stitch just seemed lost with nobody to dance with…

The others seemed to be doing ok…

Finally Stitch found his groove thang.

A quick check of Space Mountain… 55 minutes… PASS

CONTINUED NEXT POST​

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Day 12 – October 19, 2012 Part 2 Cont.


After watchin’ the dancin’ I popped around through Storybook Circus

Before heading back towards the hub.

I took a few castle photos, because how can you NOT take castle photos...

And then headed over to Liberty Square to watch a bit of the, ummmm,

Liberty Square Electrical Parade.

After the parade had passed by and become the Frontierland Electrical Parade,
I slowly made my way out to Main Street to wait for Wishes to begin.

Since I just posted as much as I could possibly post about my love for Wishes in the other Trip Report, I’ll refrain from doing it again here.

Suffice it to say… I LOVE WISHES.

While I was waiting, an older lady in a wheelchair arrived right behind me, along with her daughter.

As soon as I noticed her, I immediately told her to move in front so she would have a better view.

She could not have been more appreciative and sweet.

She then told me that on another day, they had stationed themselves on the curb for the parade when some guy walked up and stood right in front of her and would not move.

People are unbelievable sometimes.

I think because of that she was surprised that anyone would actually go out of their way to accommodate her.
Honestly, I can’t imagine NOT.
In no way would it affect my enjoyment of the show, and would in fact probably only enhance it knowing I had allowed someone else a better viewing location.

It’s a Win-Win.

She just could not be more excited to see Tinker Bell fly. It was just the sweetest thing.

CONTINUED NEXT POST​

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Day 12 – October 19, 2012 Part 2 Cont.


After Wishes ended and rather than fight the crowds, I made my way into Tomorrowland.

I just hung around for a bit and watched some Disney friends dance the night away.

Eventually, I knew the time had come to leave my happy place for the last time.

So I made my way, slowly, down Main Street and out of Magic Kingdom.

There was still a line for the Monorail, but I was in no hurry, so it was no bother.

While in the line, I met a gentleman who was there with his 2 little girls when he commented on my Mickey watch.

He asked me how it was working as he had a similar one at home but it had stopped working a while back.

I asked him if he tried changing the battery.

His reply… “There’s a battery?”

Apparently he had been “winding it”, which obviously does nothing, and when it no longer worked assumed it was broken.

Anyway…

We chatted while waiting to board the monorail and I told him where I was from and that I would be leaving to head home the next day.

One of the little girls then piped in, “You’re driving all the way back to Canada tomorrow?”

I explained that, no, I would be flying.

Suddenly they become very talkative, asking a million and one questions about my trip and telling me all about their day.

I asked them what their favourite ride was, and one picked RNRC and the other picked Tower, then asked me which one I liked the best.

I said that I really love RNRC, but I would have to pick Tower.

The one whose favourite was Tower totally gloated to her sister about that one.

So cute.

After arriving at the TTC, I said goodbye to my new friends and made my way to the car.

I texted K8 to see if she had eaten, and that I would pick up some Popeye’s Chicken on the way back.

I love Popeye’s Chicken as we don’t have this back home, and she was dying to try it, having heard so many good things.

I made the drive up to Sand Lake Road to Popeye’s.
A few years back a bunch of us had gone here and while the food was terrific, the service was UNBELIEVABLY SLOW.

I figured that it was just an off night.

Nope, they still suck.

After FINALLY getting our food, I drove back to the condo and got a picture of our trip mascot, Sal, who was always in the same spot above our door when we arrived home each night.

I forgot to mention previously that on a prior day, we had stopped into one of the nearby gift shops because there was something I was after.

On a previous trip I had spotted real (expired) Florida license plates for sale in a particular shop, but never made it back.

So I made sure to stop there a few nights prior, but they no longer had them.
I was disappointed, but it wasn’t a huge deal.
I had checked in a few others throughout the trip as well, but… nada.

Anyway, I entered the condo and dropped the food on the table, then made my way to my room to change.

On the floor in the doorway was the following,

Which is now hung on my wall at home,

Accompanied by a postcard that I have in a frame at home as well.

It was a perfect way to end my last night in Florida.

Oh… And the chicken was good too.



UP NEXT… THE END ​

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

THE END!
Day 13 – October 20, 2012


I’m not going to spend a lot of time here as the final day was relatively uneventful and simply consisted of the dreaded trip home.

And nobody wants to talk about that.

Just go back and read the the first update, "WE'RE GOING TO WALT DISNEY WORLD”, but in reverse and with sad faces.

I do want to say to each and every one of you a very heartfelt and sincere

THANK YOU!!!!!

for reading

for commenting

for being a HUGE part of my very first Trip Report.

I cannot express to you all how much of an honor it has been to chronicle this story for you,
And I only hope that it provided you even a fraction of the enjoyment to read that it did for me to write.



If you haven’t already done so, and you feel so inclined, please join in with the still in progress SOLO journey

"IF THIS IS A DREAM… I DON’T WANT TO WAKE UP" – POP! GOES THE SOLO TRIP!!


There's still a lot more left.

If not for people actually reading this, there is no way I would have attempted a second, let alone at the same time.

Hopefully in the not too distant future, I will be starting Trip Report #3!

And

​

 

[missangelalexis]

I was a lurker on your trip report and just wanted to say I really enjoyed, it was a great read!

 

[teekathepony]

I'm not gonna lie Rob, I'm sad to see the end. I'm glad you are still writing your other report and look forward to many more in the future!
Sounds like a wonderful evening bombing around MK for your solo evening! I love the idea of just wandering around with no place to be.
You got some really beautiful pictures of the castle that evening! And you can never have enough of those.
Nice Guy Rob strikes again You were so kind to move for the lady in the wheelchair. Can you imagine just standing in front of her and refusing to move??
That was really nice of K8 to get you the license plate you wanted that's a pretty cool souvenir!
Well my friend, it's been a pleasure reading all about your trip. Thank you so very much for sharing it with us!

 

[courtneybelle]

Thanks for the awesome TR, Rob! I really loved reading about your trip, and I definitely learned a lot about the art of trip reporting (which I will be trying my hand at soon!). I'm a big fan and excited to hear about future Disney trips. Stay awesome!

 

[Carable]

I have thoroughly enjoyed this trip report, you two had an amazing time and I learned so much about Halloween season in the big O. Thanks for all the detail and enthusiasm, it was contagious. I will definitely continue reading the Solo thread and look forward to your next one to begin.

 

[Aurora1972]

It's always sad when a trip report ends. Atleast you still have your other trip report still in the works. Maybe a PTR is in your future That would be fun!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

You know Rob, I've had a realization after reading along on this trip report: you haven't changed the way that you stand for a picture in like, ever!

congratulations -... you win the internet

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Day 12 – October 19, 2012 Part 2 Cont.

As soon as I noticed her, I immediately told her to move in front so she would have a better view.

She could not have been more appreciative and sweet.

She then told me that on another day, they had stationed themselves on the curb for the parade when some guy walked up and stood right in front of her and would not move.

People are unbelievable sometimes.

I think because of that she was surprised that anyone would actually go out of their way to accommodate her.
Honestly, I can’t imagine NOT.
In no way would it affect my enjoyment of the show, and would in fact probably only enhance it knowing I had allowed someone else a better viewing location.

It’s a Win-Win.
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kinda sad when doing "the right thing" is the exception, not the rule



so really, what a great report and thanks for sharing. And I didn't also quote that comment, but K8 is so sweet and what a nice/thoughtful gift. Always great to have good friends and to share great experiences with them