A Savanna, A Wizard, and Oodles of Food - AKL/DxDP/WWoHP (COMPLETE!)

[SimplyGoofy]

Hi there

I have joined in your trip report and loving it so far - the lodge looks wonderful!!

Looking forward to the rest.

Cheers

I'm thrilled you're here! The lodge was BEAUTIFUL - I'm so glad we had a chance to stay there!

Joining in!!!

Oh boy, you are so lucky that you stayed near the airport the night before your flight! When I saw your picture of the plane, I never thought you were making it out that day!

(Side note: hugs for being open-heart surgery buddies! (Mitral valve repair here!) )

Your room at AKL looks awesome! We love visiting there, and I actually sometimes forget that you can actually stay there! And your lunch at the Mara looks really good too!

Oh, Epcot on the first day is pretty much a must-do for us too!

I know, isn't that airplane crazy?! I was glad we had a direct flight!

We loved staying at the lodge! I was rather impressed by the Mara - quite a step up from your average counter service spot!

Ah, Epcot. I Epcot.

(It's always nice to have a heart surgery buddy. )

Joining in! Your trip looks so fun!

I can't wait to hear about the rest of your adventures!!

We had a fantastic time! I'm glad you're joining us!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

The AKL is beautiful.. never stayed there but visited..

How did you guys like the buses there? We had to take a bus there from AK one day to make it to DD and I swear we waited about 30 minutes!

Your food looks wonderful and we always go to Epcot the first night too! We enjoy Epcot but with 2 small kids- they dont like it as much as the others so we always just do it first

I'm glad there are fellow Epcot lovers! My sister and I have loved Epcot for years - I'm sure it will grow on your kids as they get older (and can go on the really fun rides!).

Despite all the dire warnings I heard about the AKL buses, I didn't think they were too bad. I was only irritated twice that I remember (once trying to get to AK for an early morning breakfast ADR, and another time trying to get to MK for the parade). Other than those two times, I think a bus never took more than 5-10 minutes.

Awesome report so far! I'm joining in to read more.

I'm glad you're here!

Enjoying your trip report! The snow on departure morning looks like something that would happen to me (I live in the Midwest, too). So glad it didn't delay your trip for more than an hour or two.
That lady on the plane really needed to take a pill and chill. Wow. Glad she wasn't on your ME bus!

I walked rather quickly off the plane in order to leave that lady in the dust...

Hah! I was thinking the same thing! She probably would have shouted out to scold the driver. Just think what she must have thought about Stacey!

She should've just put earmuffs on 'Junior' to keep him from hearing anything that would 'ruin' his first trip.

You guys are a hoot! I'm glad other people think she was a bit out of line.

Earmuffs! I love it!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

An Afternoon in Epcot
Day 1 - —Part IV


Ahh, Epcot… the land of numerous countries, excellent attractions, and likely the highest number of restaurants and food stands per capita in the World. How we love you.

After sprinting off the bus (okay, we may not have sprinted - —but we would’'ve liked to!), we scouted for the first Photopass photographer we could find. I’'m very proud that our very first Photopass picture of the vacation was right here:

As for our first attraction, that was a no-brainer. Test Track it is!

Now that the ride has been re-vamped, I'’m glad I took a few photos of the queue:

The single-rider line was incredibly short and we were on the ride in less than five minutes. Hooray for the single-rider line! Even better, they seated us in the same car right next to each other.

A view from the front seat:

Brrrr!

There’'s nothing like your first attraction of the vacation.

Mission one accomplished, we headed to another mission:

We started riding Mission Space when the only choice was the “orange” side. We’'ve never thought to switch sides, so Orange Team it is!

Hello, Astronaut Mickey!

Fueled by two high-octane attractions, we skipped past the Universe of Energy and headed to another favorite attraction in Epcot. Say “hello” to everyone’'s favorite golf ball:

We had not been on the ride since the changes so we were quite excited to see experience it! It was fun to enter all the information about yourself (and also interesting to try and keep from getting a goofy looking picture on the story of your future! That’'s hard, by the way!).

A few views from our journey through this, our Spaceship Earth:

Also, the beginning of our future!

How fun! We really liked the updates they made to Spaceship Earth!


(continued in next post)

 

[SimplyGoofy]

(continued from previous post)

Three big rides out of the way, it was time to go to the other side of Future World:

Alas (and not surprisingly), all of the Soarin'’ fastpasses were gone for the day. No matter - —there is another excellent attraction in the Land Pavillion:

(Does anyone else miss the song they used to sing on this ride? It’'s still fun and all, but it was much more catchy with the song!)

I was still figuring out the ideal camera setting for all these “moving attractions,” but I did get a few pictures! Here are a few plants:

And a few more plants (plus a nine pound lemon!):

And finally, some additional plants (in the form of herbs):

One of these days I really need to take the Behind the Seeds tour. Walking around “inside” the attraction would be pretty fun!

We had a little more time before we needed to head into World Showcase, so we walked right next door:

I LOVE these seagulls! (Doesn'’t everyone?)

Just a few photos from Nemo— - if those darn fish wouldn't have listened to Dory and stopped swimming I would have a lot more (less blurry) pictures!

After our tour of the seas, we had a great time wandering around the remaining tanks.

Some beautiful coral:

Hello, (not so hidden) Mickey!

We only had one more item on our agenda before dinner—we had to find a use for these fastpasses we'’d grabbed on our way in:

Back to Test Track!

After a wonderful ride in the dark (I think I like that ride even better when you’re zooming around the track at night!), we took a few nightscape shots:

Unable to spare any more time in Future World, it was time to head into World Showcase for a dinner half-way around the world (almost literally!). It was time to travel to Italy and visit the new(er) restaurant, Via Napoli.

We were just a teensy bit excited. Forget about the food - what would our Italian waiter look like?


Up Next: Dinner at Via Napoli

 

[Tricia's mom]

following along.... 60 days til our first stay at AKL.

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

Sounds like you still got a lot done at Epcot, despite the Soarin FP's being gone!!!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

following along.... 60 days til our first stay at AKL.

You'll LOVE the Animal Kingdom Lodge! I hope you built in some time to hang out at the resort, as there's tons of activities and lots to explore. The pool is pretty awesome, too!

Sounds like you still got a lot done at Epcot, despite the Soarin FP's being gone!!!

Looking back, I can't believe we did all of that in just three hours! Not too bad, even for the off-season!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Chock Full of Cute Italian Waiters
Day 1— - Part V


It was time for our first ADR of the trip! I booked a late evening reservation at Via Napoli after reading so many good things about it. It seemed like a great way to kick-off our reservation lineup!

Upon arriving in Italy and locating Via Napoli, here is what we found:

Yikes! Where did all these people come from?!

I stood in this line for a minute or so before thinking, “Wait, this doesn’t make any sense! There’'s no way that ALL of these people have a reservation!” So we left the huge long line and walked forward to find this very empty check-in desk for the restaurant:

Yes! That gigantic line was wrangling for walk-up tables (chances: slim-to-none). The lesson to be learned here is if you have a reservation, it’s pretty darn likely you do not have to wait in the big, long line. Good to know!

We enjoyed a few details such as this very colorful light fixture:

Only a few minutes later, we were in! I really liked the interior of the restaurant:

Don’t forget about the three wood-burning ovens - —Stromboli, Vesuvio, and Etna!

Much to our delight, we indeed had a cute, male waiter named Michele. Via Napoli, in fact, was CRAWLING with male waitstaff. Yes, there were a few waitresses, but the majority were male. Has anyone else noticed that Italy and France have a lot more male waitstaff while Norway has the opposite? Interesting marketing technique, you sneaky Disney World...

Our drink orders weren’t exciting enough for a photograph, as I ordered iced tea and Anika ordered water. (Anika ordered a lot of water as it’s one of the very few things she drinks. The others include milk, fancy coffee beverages, and Tropicana Orange Juice with no pulp. Period. No tea, no lemonade, no soda. What kind of teenager is she?!)

It’s' time to get down to the actual food ordering, complete with pictures!

We started with the Calamari Fritti and the Mozzarella Caprese:

The calamari was excellent! Anika tried her very first piece of calamari, and although she enjoyed it, she thought one piece was enough. It would be a great appetizer to share as there is a TON of calamari on that plate! The salad, meanwhile, was just okay. I thought the tomatoes were good but I’'ve had much better mozzarella.

As we were in a pizza restaurant, of course we ordered pizza!

I ordered the Quattro Formaggi (mozzarella, parmesean, fontina, and provolone cheeses):

Anika ordered the Pepperoni (no explanation needed for that one!):

Although both pizzas were good and the crust was great, Anika'’s pizza was far superior to mine. If you’'re a fan of cheese-only pizzas, you’'d love the four cheese. I prefer toppings on my pizza (yet I ordered it anyway? Maybe I was going for variety on the table…). The zest on the pepperoni pie was great, and even Anika couldn’'t keep herself from eating three big slices. I don'’t think I'’ve ever seen her eat so much pizza in one sitting! Next time, pepperoni all around!

Although we were stuffed, dessert is never an “option”! Bring on the dessert menus!

Here is mine, the Gelato Frizzante (an Italian-style ice cream soda with San Pellegrino’s Aranciata and vanilla gelato):

This was heaven in a glass, I tell you. I didn’t think I could hold any more food, but I couldn'’t. stop. eating. I finished the whole darn thing, it was so good.

Anika made a more traditional choice, and ordered the chocolate gelato (complete with brittle cookie):

She was pretty excited about her gelato:

At some point during our dessert one of the sous chefs from the restaurant came and sat down at the table next to us. Anika was struggling with her dessert (due to stomach capacity, not tastiness!) and the chef began giving her a bit of a hard time. Well, she didn'’t want to disappoint him, so we continued eating with gusto. I believe she felt a little ill afterward.

Our adorable Michele delivered our bill so we paid and went on our way. I did not get a picture of the waiter (although I should have!), but I figured I didn’'t need to totally embarrass Anika on the first night of our vacation. I was embarrassing enough by photographing every dish before I let her eat it!


Final Thoughts - Via Napoli
The calamari and the pepperoni pizza were excellent, the atmostphere is great, and the desserts were phenomenal! We would absolutely return to Via Napoli! The only change we would make next time is pay without dining credits so we could order a lot less food. Those pizzas are a lot bigger than they look!


We rolled ourselves out of Epcot (a theme on this trip!) and headed for our AKL bus. It had been a very long day and we had a full day planned for tomorrow.


Up Next: Breakfast at Grand Floridian Café

 

[msbiscuit]

Okay, it's like 9 degrees here, but that Italian ice cream soda looks soooo good right now.

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

Your meal at VN looks really good!! We've never tried there (we usually don't like making ADR's at types of restaurants that are pretty much EVERYWHERE at home - Italian is basically #1 on that list!) but I have heard excellent reviews!

Too funny about the chef wanting Anika to finish her dessert!

 

[Marsheliz]

Cant wait to try out Test Track next time... YOu know the past three times we have been- we havent done it? I was pregnant 2 of the times and this last time, the day we were at Epcot, it poured and poured and we ended up just leaving.. Do you know what the height requirement is on it? My almost 5 year old would die to be able to do it!

Via Napoli looks wonderful too- never ate there- sadly!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Okay, it's like 9 degrees here, but that Italian ice cream soda looks soooo good right now.

It was so good.

Your meal at VN looks really good!! We've never tried there (we usually don't like making ADR's at types of restaurants that are pretty much EVERYWHERE at home - Italian is basically #1 on that list!) but I have heard excellent reviews!

Too funny about the chef wanting Anika to finish her dessert!

I absolutely understand aiming for the out-of-area choices, but I would definately recommend trying it out sometime!

Anika never wants to make anyone feel bad! I thought it was very nice that she wanted to impress the chef, but I don't think her stomach appreciated the gesture.

Cant wait to try out Test Track next time... YOu know the past three times we have been- we havent done it? I was pregnant 2 of the times and this last time, the day we were at Epcot, it poured and poured and we ended up just leaving.. Do you know what the height requirement is on it? My almost 5 year old would die to be able to do it!

Via Napoli looks wonderful too- never ate there- sadly!

Test Track is our favorite ride at Epcot! I'm on the fence on whether or not we'll like the update (we'll see in May!) but I'm sure that won't stop us from riding it.

The height requirement is actually not too bad - only 40 inches! If your son can ride Soarin', he can ride Test Track. I'm sure he'll love it - even when Anika was young and didn't like most thrill rides, she enjoyed Test Track from her first ride!

 

[blessedmom4]

Nothing could ruin my day if I was headed for Disney! I never even thought of the fact that she probably thought we were just annoying kids... I'm actually a lot older than I look!
It doesn't matter how old you are, she should have been nicer. I KNOW she would not have said something like that to me...and you are adorable! Having adult sons, I see how some people are to nice people that look young....you deserve better
I took a peek at the wonderful stories about your daughter - it just warmed my heart because I actually have congenital heart disease, too! I've had five open heart surgeries and four pulmonary valves due to tetralogy of Fallot. You'll have to look for my scar in upcoming pictures!
I am so sorry for what I know you and your parents have been through, but i am SUPER excited you shared that with me! I read it last week but this is the first time I have had a chance to respond. Lisa turns ten this year and it is just a blessing to see someone as strong as you, who has been through so much, enjoying life! And I DID see your scar...badge of courage!!!
(Tell your daughter to be super proud of her scar - it shows how tough we are.)

She is!!!

Joining in!!!


(Side note: hugs for being open-heart surgery buddies! (Mitral valve repair here!) )

My Lisa has had a mitral valve repair (OHS #2) and a Mitral Valve Implant (OHS #3). I do hope you are doing well!


Jenny, I LOVE the foodie pics but have a bone to pick with you...pictures of cute guys MUST be included...always!!! I hope you have some to share soon....and no WONDER my guys love Norway and we spend NO time in Italy!

 

[emmysmommy]

What a GREAT TR/DR!!! I'm so glad that I found you!

First I have to say that you and your sister are so adorable! I'm excited to follow along here!

Em and I will be staying at AKL next trip (only 1 nite but at least we get to stay there) so I was excited to see your AK photos.

How exciting that you will be going back to WDW in a few months.

 

[luckylady]

Great update. Oh my I so wanted to see a picture of a hot waiter, be still my heart. It's all good tho no drool to mop up. Pizza looked so good and those ovens, I want one. To cute.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Jenny, I LOVE the foodie pics but have a bone to pick with you...pictures of cute guys MUST be included...always!!! I hope you have some to share soon....and no WONDER my guys love Norway and we spend NO time in Italy!

I will try and do better next time.

I seriously did see a difference in waitstaff ratios among the differrent countries. I'm not a bit surprised that your guys prefer Norway!

What a GREAT TR/DR!!! I'm so glad that I found you!

First I have to say that you and your sister are so adorable! I'm excited to follow along here!

Em and I will be staying at AKL next trip (only 1 nite but at least we get to stay there) so I was excited to see your AK photos.

How exciting that you will be going back to WDW in a few months.

Thank you for all of your wonderful compliments! I've enjoyed reading several of your trip and dining adventures, so I'm thrilled you're along for the ride on mine!

I'm sure you and Em will love the AKL! It's a very beautiful resort and I highly recommend doing some exploring while you're there. (And don't worry, I have many more pictures to share in future updates!)

As I sidenote, I'm not sure if you noticed a very familiar looking Master Schedule in my pre-planning chapter... I may have been slightly influenced by a schedule I ran across in one of your reports. Your schedule template was great, and definitely kept us on track and on time all week!

Great update. Oh my I so wanted to see a picture of a hot waiter, be still my heart. It's all good tho no drool to mop up. Pizza looked so good and those ovens, I want one. To cute.

Next time I really next to take a picture of the waiter!

 

[emmysmommy]

I did notice the "master schedule" but I have to give credit for the original template I used from someone here on the Disboards. I don't even remember who it was now since it was several years ago.

Glad to see someone else who is a spreadsheet lover and stayes organized by columns and rows of data!!! Love it!

Reading about how you flew out of Omaha made me feel so nostalgic. My father is from Nebraska and as a child we would go there during the summer so I have a fondness for the area.

Anyhoo... I can't wait to read more.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Those drinks are not included on the dining plan!
Day 2 - —Sunday, February 5th


We had a wonderful first night at the Animal Kingdom Lodge! The beds were very comfortable and we didn't hear one peep of noise.

Thank goodness your digestive system keeps working throughout the night - —by morning we were actually hungry again! This was a good thing as we were headed to our breakfast reservation at the Grand Floridian Café. In order to get to the Grand Floridian without dealing with the multiple transportation switches, we decided to call a taxi to take us straight there. It was very easy - —we called the front desk, asked for the taxi, and it was waiting for us by the time we got to the front door of the lodge.

Let me preface this by saying that most of our experiences with taxis in Disney World were excellent. They were prompt and the drivers were pleasant. It was a very relaxing and low-stress way to travel. Then there was the driver we had for this particular taxi ride...

This taxi driver was CRAZY! I'm seriously shocked that we didn't get into about four accidents on our way to the Grand Floridian. He swerved in and out of lanes, would speed up and then suddenly brake, and thought cutting off other vehicles was a wonderful game. What made it even worse is he listened to the strangest music I think Ive ever heard at the loudest possible volume. It took every bit of restraint I had to not scream, "STOP! Let me out and I'll WALK to the Grand Floridian!"

After that awful journey we (amazingly) arrived at the Grand Floridian in one piece. Plus, we arrived fast (I guess that's one point for the nutty taxi driver!).

Hello, Grand Floridian. You have NO IDEA how excited we are to see you!

Anika LOVED the Grand Floridian. She's my history gal and loves the Victorian era, so this resort was right up her alley. It was really fantastic to see that lobby in person - —it's even more beautiful than you can imagine.

(And now you're thinking, well, that's very nice... where are the pictures of this so-called beautiful lobby? I actually didn't take any this morning as we were planning to return later in the week. I promise we did return and I did take pictures which I will share in a future update!)

We were even more excited about our calm and relaxing breakfast since our stress levels had already peaked enough this morning. The Grand Floridian Café is located in the back corner on the first floor of the main building. Here is the entrance and a view of the restaurant:

It was really quiet in there! If you're looking for a nice sport for a relaxed breakfast this would be a great choice. This was our view from the window behind us - —very nice!

Our waitress recommended we start with the fruit plate. Since I had nearly died that morning I thought a fruit plate was well deserved. It was a very pretty fruit plate:

Along with our fruit selection, we also ordered our beverages. I knew exactly which beverage I wanted from this restaurant from the first time I saw it on a dining report (Stringbean&Wingnut, I'm looking at you!):

A chocolate frozen cappuccino!

Ahhh... I'm happy to report it was everything I'd dreamed it would be. As fancy coffee beverages are one of the few non-water items Anika will drink, she ordered one too. Definitely a stellar choice.

With our beverages and fruit underway, we ordered our main dishes.

Anika ordered the Vanilla French Toast with bacon, complete with butter and syrup:

I ordered the Smoked Salmon, which comes with tomatoes, red onions, eggs, cheese, and capers, all to be loaded on a bagel with cream cheese:

Anika thought her French toast was excellent. As she allowed me to try a bite (or two), I would agree that it was very good. My smoked salmon was good as well, but I think I would order something different next time. It may be more fun to try something that is a specialty at that particular restaurant.

When our server came with the bill I explained that were were on the deluxe dining plan. If you are astute readers and noted the title at the beginning of this episode, you know exactly what happened next. Our waitress took one look at our card and immediately exclaimed that our drinks were not included on the dining plan. I'm sure I must have looked confused, as I know I've seen it on multiple dining reports (from people who had a dining plan!). Well, whatever works. That frozen cappuccino was worth it, even if I had to pay out of pocket.

Our waitress either felt pity for us (or she realized our drinks actually were on the dining plan) as we were not charged for them. Our first victory of the day! We left around five to nine and headed straight next door to the Magic Kingdom. We'd likely missed our chance to see the opening show (darn that extra time for the fruit plate!), but we would live.


Final Thoughts - Grand Floridian Café—
If you are looking for a quiet and tasty dining spot right next to a theme park this is an excellent choice. I don't think this will be on the top of our "must do" list every trip, but I think Anika wouldn't mind another order of that Vanilla French Toast. As for me, I would come back for another chocolate frozen cappuccino!


We got to climb the beautiful Grand Floridian staircase in order to reach the monorail on the second floor. Hello, monorail!

I like that you can see other resort buildings (and palm trees!) from the monorail station:

And, look! Here comes our monorail!

It's great that so much magic is just a short ride away...

Up Next: Magic Kingdom

 

[DisneyATlast]

Love the report! I'm trying to put together an itinerary for our (me, husband, 2 kids) first trip EVER late in the year, and it's hard since I don't know what's what and have horrible map reading skills!

I've been looking around at trip reports to get some ideas, but it's hard to go through page after page after page....of comments. I caught this one at the perfect time!

So, do you ride the monorail from the Grand Floridian into the Magic Kingdom? Also, do you have to be staying in a deluxe resort to ride the monorail, and have some sort of pass to board?

We're planning to stay in a value resort and from what I gather, that involves riding a bus. I'm not sure how the transportation works if you eat breakfast at a different resort though. Hmmmm.

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

Yay!!! Glad you enjoyed the Frozen Cappuccino!!! (And yes, unless something recently changed, that should have been included in your DDxP.)

I've always wanted to try their French Toast, but the Steak and Eggs there keeps drawing me in!

Wow, your cab ride sounds a bit crazy!! Glad you all got there in one piece!