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

[dawnmichele]

That frozen cappuccino looks incredible! I am putting it on my list of things to try to try!

 

[debrapagliasotti]

Joining in!

We love VN -- delish!!

GFC is one that I have booked and cancelled, but I do ultimately want to end up there one day for bkfst. That french toast always sounds so good. And that fruit plate looked amazing!!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

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.

I actually go to Omaha quite a bit as one of my dearest friends lives right next door (in Council Bluffs, Iowa).

Go, Huskers!

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.

I'm so excited that you're planning your first trip! Thanks for joining! I hope you're able to pick up a few fun things (and feel free to ask questions)!


The quick and dirty on Disney Transportation: Any Disney guest is allowed to take any Disney transportation they like (bus, boat, or monorail). No tickets or passes of any kind are required. If you're at the bus stop or monorail station, they'll let you on!

As for early breakfast ADR's, you have two options. Option one is to take a bus (in your case) to a theme park and then switch to another bus (or boat, or monorail) to get to your desired resort. You have to switch as buses don't go directly from resort to resort (although sometimes nearby resorts will share a bus or boat). I found it easiest to do option two, which is to call a taxi for an early breakfast or late dinner reservation. This was faster and more direct.

I promise that it's much easier than it sounds.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

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!

I thought the waitress didn't make much sense!

Perhaps the cab driver wanted to make sure we were really awake for our day? If so, he succeeded!

That frozen cappuccino looks incredible! I am putting it on my list of things to try to try!

It was very, very good. Highly recommended!

Joining in!

We love VN -- delish!!

GFC is one that I have booked and cancelled, but I do ultimately want to end up there one day for bkfst. That french toast always sounds so good. And that fruit plate looked amazing!!

We really enjoyed Via Napoli... so much so that we have an ADR on the first night of our May trip!

I really wish I had ordered the french toast... my salmon was good, but that french toast was great!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Fantasyland Rush
Day 2— - Part II

We arrived at the Magic Kingdom around 9:10 so we definitely missed the welcome show. Maybe next time!

I had to grab a few pictures of our walk into the Magic Kingdom:

We bit the bullet and rented a locker that day. Our plans called for a very long day at (and around) Magic Kingdom, so we didn'’t want to spend the whole day lugging coats and umbrellas and such. This was a great decision and I highly recommend it!

Our first stop was a Photopass photographer. This one was pretty fabulous and included a magic shot for us!

As a side note, I really loved having the Photopass CD. The ability to crop, resize, and border to your heart’s content is pretty darn fun. Plus, we got some really nice pictures with both of us in them:

A walk down Main Street USA is simply not complete without close-up shot of the castle:

In order to avoid the crowd gathered in front of the “Partners” statue, I took a different view and got this shot from the back:

I rather liked it!

Now onto the attractions! Our original plan for the morning was to hit all of the major Fantasyland rides in usual “Touring Plan” order. The fact that we got into the park fifteen minutes late was not to our benefit for this plan of attack. So, we improvised a bit. We grabbed fastpasses for Peter Pan and then chose our first ride in Magic Kingdom:

Yes, looking back, I can’t believe it either! It’s a Small World is such a classic Disney attraction that I like to experience it at least once each trip, but it certainly isn’'t my favorite! Anika is not a fan of the ride (I'’d like to think the song is mostly to blame), but she humors me and agrees to go on it for me. What a nice travel companion she is!

Here’ are a few photos of the “Happiest Cruise that Ever Sailed”:

Look how empty this ride is— - there'’s absolutely no one on the boat in front of us:

A few more views of IASM:

Anika was no less than thrilled to have that particular “must do” was out of the way! We headed for another classic Disney attraction that both of us were more excited about:

I took just a few shots before we got on our "Happy" cart:

We both agreed that this was our favorite among the three MK slow-moving cart story rides. Yes, more than Peter Pan and more than Winnie the Pooh! We'’re a bit sad it won'’t be here the next time we visit.

Next, it was time for a spin on some crazy, wild teacups:

Is this a face of joy or what?!

I’'m so glad Anika is as big a fan of all the nutty rides that I am!


(continued in next post)

 

[SimplyGoofy]

(continued from previous post)

We passed by Cinderel, er, I mean, Prince Charming'’s Regal Carrousel (which I never did ride - —I'’ll have to make up for that next time!).

We were out to try an attraction we’'d never experienced before:

We'’re all ready with our 3-D glasses!

And, the verdict? What an awesome attraction! We'’ve been missing something that involves The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, and a crazed and frantic Donald Duck? Why have we never seen this before?! We both thought it was great.

After finding a new favorite, it was time to enjoy an old favorite:

I got a great shot of the horseless carriage:

We were pretty excited about checking out the new queue. This was an excellent addition to an already excellent attraction!

We had a great time hanging out with these guys:

We also really enjoyed the musical instruments and moving books, as well as the headstone that randomly leaked water:

Finally, I had to get a shot of my favorite headstone:

I always think that one is a riot. Don't mess with the wrong woman, buddy!

Yo ho, yo ho— - it'’s time to meet up with our favorite band of pirates!

Another Disney classic! I really liked the changes they made to this ride— - the new part at the beginning as well as the surprise from the dive into the water… both excellent additions.

We had time for one more attraction before lunch, so we headed here:

I know Anika had been in the treehouse before, but she didn’'t remember it! We both thought it was rather fun and I had a great time getting a few pictures:

Lunchtime! I was especially excited for this reservation as it was a bit of a “bonus”. Originally we'’d planned to arrive on the 5th, but later decided to extend our trip by one day and arrive the day before. That allowed me to make three additional reservations - —Via Napoli for dinner, GFC for breakfast, and what was up next…... Liberty Tree Tavern for lunch. I was REALLY excited about it.

Up Next: Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern

 

[blessedmom4]

Loved the latest update all the pretty smiles and the breakfast at GF looked scrumptious, especially the fruit!

 

[luckylady]

Lots of fun before lunch. Wonderful pictures. WHat's the new begining to PoC. Haven't been on that one yet.

 

[wiigirl]

Wonderful pictures!

 

[Marsheliz]

HMM, I could go for a smoked salmon bagel right about now.. And your drink looked pretty darn great too....

I can't believe you had never done Mickey's Philharmonic before.. That is seriously one of the best things at MK

Can't wait to hear about Liberty Tree.. I remember eating there a super long time ago but would love to try it next time!

 

[glennbo123]

Signing on, and I'm all caught up. I know it was a few chapters ago, but what was the deal with that lady on the plane? Talking about DisneyWorld will ruin her kids' trip? Get real, lady!

I'm glad you liked Animal Kingdom Lodge -- it's my favorite resort!

I've never had that cappucino-concoction that Stringbean steered you to, but it looks wonderful!

You're doing a great job making the most of your park-time and in looking at your Photopass pictures, it looks like you're having a great time.

Nice job on the TR....looking forward to more.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Loved the latest update all the pretty smiles and the breakfast at GF looked scrumptious, especially the fruit!

Thanks! We had a lot of fun at Magic Kingdom that morning.

Lots of fun before lunch. Wonderful pictures. WHat's the new begining to PoC. Haven't been on that one yet.

Watch as I won't quite get it right... the beginning of the ride has a bit more build up than I remember, including drifting by an empty boat and such before reaching the more "active" scenes. Also, (I think near the beginning?) the boat rushes down with a bit of a drop. It's not Spalsh Mountain, by any means, but certainly an unexpected rush. I thought they were great additions!

Wonderful pictures!

Thanks! I had a lot of fun with my camera.

HMM, I could go for a smoked salmon bagel right about now.. And your drink looked pretty darn great too....

I can't believe you had never done Mickey's Philharmonic before.. That is seriously one of the best things at MK

Can't wait to hear about Liberty Tree.. I remember eating there a super long time ago but would love to try it next time!

We loved Philharmagic! I can't believe we never did it either!

Signing on, and I'm all caught up. I know it was a few chapters ago, but what was the deal with that lady on the plane? Talking about DisneyWorld will ruin her kids' trip? Get real, lady!

I'm glad you liked Animal Kingdom Lodge -- it's my favorite resort!

I've never had that cappucino-concoction that Stringbean steered you to, but it looks wonderful!

You're doing a great job making the most of your park-time and in looking at your Photopass pictures, it looks like you're having a great time.

Nice job on the TR....looking forward to more.

We LOVED AKL, and definitely plan to return there (whether we stay there or not!).

I don't know what was wrong with that lady... perhaps she hated to fly and the stress made her unreasonable? Who knows.

If you ever visit the GFC for breakfast, I highly recommend their frozen cappuccinos!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

All Hail the Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake
Day 2— - Part III


It was time for our lunch right here:

YAY!!! Liberty Tree Tavern, home of the OOEY GOOEY TOFFEE CAKE!!! (No, I was not excited AT ALL…)

We checked in about fifteen minutes early, but they seated us after just a few minutes. We noticed that happened a lot on our trip, so it never hurts to show up a little early!

Here’'s a shot of the lobby of the restaurant:

We decided we weren'’t hungry enough for two appetizers, so we decided to share the fabulous plate of Tavern Fried Cheese:

I LOVE cheese. If I ever become lactose intolerant I will be a very sad gal.

I also had to take a picture of my Sprite (not so much for the boring beverage, but more so for the fun mug!):

Anika ordered her usual water. Shockingly, no picture.

While we were waiting for our main dishes, I took a few pictures of our seating area of the restaurant, as well as this picture of Anika:

We’ll refer to this as her, "“Really, Jen? You’re taking ANOTHER picture of me?"” face. I have an entire collection of increasingly amusing Anika pictures with an increasingly annoyed expression as the week went on. I thought they were hysterical.

Thankfully, our food arrived quickly and Anika was spared from more pictures (for the moment, at least!).

I ordered the Tri-Corner Sandwich (roast beef, swiss, and horseradish on focaccia) with a side of New England Clam Chowder, and most importantly, a pickle:

I was in no way surprised with Anika'’s order - —the Angus Chuck (without cheese) Burger with a side of fries and another pickle:

She ADORED this hamburger and fries. I heard about how good these fries were for the rest of the week! My soup was quite good (it’s hard to beat clam chowder from Quincy Market in Boston, but this was tasty), but… I hated the sandwich. I have no idea why, as I love roast beef and focaccia and don'’t even mind horseradish! Perhaps I caught the chef on a bad day and he decided to take it out on my sandwich? Who knows… - next time I'’ll try something else. Anika felt bad for me and gave me her pickle.

(I realize I’'ve seemed quite ho-hum or disappointed in all of my choices— - don’'t worry! My ability to pick a suitable entrée improves dramatically in future meals!)

Now, it was time for the BEST PART OF THE MEAL...… I hoped. We put our order in for one Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake (extra gooey, please!). Here it was:

Unfortunately, we were so stuffed from the rest of our lunch that we just couldn’t bring ourselves to make room for it.



...



...



...



...



...



Um, yeah, I wouldn’t have believed me either.

Anika and I polished off the whole darn thing. I will joyfully say that this dessert ABSOLUTELY lives up to all of the hype it receives on the DISboards (and the Disney Food Blog, and about five million other Disney-related websites), because it was AWESOME. We would’'ve ordered another one if only we hadn’'t thought our eyes would cause our stomachs to explode at the sight of more food.


Final Thoughts - —Liberty Tree Tavern
Even though Magic Kingdom choices are a little slim to begin with we really loved Liberty Tree Tavern. All of our food was good (mine tasted fine even though I wasn’'t in love with it) and Anika couldn’'t stop talking about her darn french fries for the rest of the week. I’'m STILL hearing about these french fries. Not as much, however, as I’'m hearing (and thinking!) about that fabulous, fantastic, phenomenal dessert. Yum, yum, and more yum.

But no, we’ll never return.

(Kidding. We already booked another ADR for May.)


Up Next: More fun in the Magic Kingdom

 

[blessedmom4]

Thank... you...very...much...Now I must eat at Liberty Tree Tavern...the Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake looked delicious!

You two ladies take great pics! I look forward to the increasingly annoying ones that Big Sis took though.

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

Hahahaha DF always does the "increasingly annoyed as the trip progresses" photos too!

Sorry to hear that you weren't a fan of your sandwich. We had the pot roast, and LOVED it! Isn't that cake awesome though???

 

[Aussiesalad]

Sounds like such a fantastic morning! I can't believe I have never started my day with a frozen cappuccino!! That must change next trip!!

Those photopass pics are adorable! You guys look great!

Ahhh we love philharmagic so much! I love how good it smells in there!!

The Ooey Gooey toffee cake looks amazing! I'm glad it kind of made up for your mediocre sandwich.

 

[amathieu3]

Love the report so far. Going on a trip with my sister in April. Though we are bringing some our kids.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Thank... you...very...much...Now I must eat at Liberty Tree Tavern...the Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake looked delicious!

You two ladies take great pics! I look forward to the increasingly annoying ones that Big Sis took though.

It WAS delicious!

Thanks for the compliment on the photos! The increasingly annoyed Anika pictures are pretty darn funny...

Hahahaha DF always does the "increasingly annoyed as the trip progresses" photos too!

Sorry to hear that you weren't a fan of your sandwich. We had the pot roast, and LOVED it! Isn't that cake awesome though???

I love that other people take those photos, too!

I may have to try the pot roast next time - I love pot roast! And yes, the cake is absolutely awesome!

Sounds like such a fantastic morning! I can't believe I have never started my day with a frozen cappuccino!! That must change next trip!!

Those photopass pics are adorable! You guys look great!

Ahhh we love philharmagic so much! I love how good it smells in there!!

The Ooey Gooey toffee cake looks amazing! I'm glad it kind of made up for your mediocre sandwich.

My cappuccino was fantastic!

We loved PhilharMagic, too! I can't believe we've never done it before.

(In case you couldn't tell from all my previous exclaimations...) that cake WAS amazing!

Love the report so far. Going on a trip with my sister in April. Though we are bringing some our kids.

Thanks! I'm thrilled that you joined in!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Bring on the Mountains!
Day 2 - —Part IV

Full of Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake, it was time for more fun! We thought it might be a good idea to let our food digest a bit, so we headed over to the calm (and seated!) Hall of Presidents:

Anika LOVES the Hall of Presidents and was pretty excited to experience it again. We took a few photos before the show started, including this nice one of the atrium:

After our exploration of American presidential history, we headed for another favorite attraction that involved prolonged sitting (that cake takes some time to digest!):

I’'m sure I'’m not in the minority here on the DISboards, but I LOVE the Carousel of Progress! I’'m rather baffled at the folks who don’t “get” it or like it since it’s so fantastic. I’'m even more baffled by the people who say their kids won’t like it since my 16 year old sister LOVES it!

When we finished singing along to the Carousel of Progress (please tell me that other people also start singing along!), we took a spin on the TTA:

Isn’'t the Peoplemover the best? There'’s never a wait, you get out of the sun, and there'’s so much to see! I love the full, seated tour of Tomorrowland:…

This is as close as we’'ll be getting to this attraction:

I know it's popular with young kids, but I think until I come with young kids it's one I can pass by.

A view more views from our relaxing ride:

Before our trip, my research unfolded the fact that you could collect Fastpasses and use them any time during the day. I’'m rather sad that this is no longer the case as I got pretty darn good at collecting them. Here was my Fastpass stash by 2:15 in the afternoon:

I was rather proud. It’'s too bad I won'’t be able to have the same collection next time (and don'’t even get me started on this Fastpass Plus business...…)

By this point our window was open for Buzz Lightyear!

Onward, Space Rangers!

We had fairly abysmal scores, but still had good time:

(continued in next post)

 

[SimplyGoofy]

(continued from previous post)

It was time for to try another new ride (for us)— - Splash Mountain!

We were both quite excited for another mountain adventure (as we love Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad). We had never experienced it before since Splash Mountain didn't exist when I visited as a young child, and our last two trips have been in the winter months when it'’s been under refurbishment.

I must have been a little nervous about the water and its possible effects on my camera, as this was my only Splash Mountain picture:

What did we think? While we thought it was fun (and will certainly do it each trip), we weren'’t exactly overwhelmed. The storyline and scenery were interesting but it didn't upset any of our current favorites. Perhaps I'd built up the idea of it so much since many people seem to love it?

While crossing the park to ride another mountain, we had to stop for a journey through Neverland:

I love that you ride your own ship through this ride!

After the pirate ship, it was onto the spaceship!

I didn't take any pictures of the ride itself, but did take a few of the line (and a rocket!):

We haven'’t been on Space Mountain since the refurbishment and we LOVED it! I realize Space Mountain is essentially a mad mouse coaster put in the dark, but as it’s now REALLY DARK it was awesome. It’'s a pretty exciting ride since you have absolutely no idea where you’'re going next.

We had one final ride before we headed across the Seven Seas Lagoon:

It was time for a cruise in the jungle!

I realize the ride is a little hokey (especially when compared with the live versions over at Animal Kingdom), but I can’'t imagine a Disney vacation without the Jungle Cruise.

Your skipper can make or break your cruise experience… and ours was FANTASTIC. I’'m kicking myself that I didn'’t record that entire cruise because she was easily the best skipper we’ve ever had. It included the usual quips, such as the “backside of water”:

A view before the tunnel:

You can't forget about the elephants (or a few elephant butts!):

Our great ride and phenomenal skipper was the perfect way to end the afternoon.

We had dinner plans at the Poly and thought it would be fun to explore the resort before dinner. We also thought it would be a nice break!

It was off to see the Poly!


Up next: Relaxing at the Polynesian