A Winter Escape to the Enchanted Forest-Jan'13 TR:**5/21 Parting Thoughts/New PTR!

[DaveinFallsChurch]

You got some amazing detail shots in Animal Kingdom! Boma is high on my list of restaurants we want to try - hopefully on the next trip.

Boma remains my favorite restaurant at Disney although I'm ready to branch out a little for our next trip and try either Jiko or Sanaa. Would also love to try Boma for breakfast sometime in the future. Too many restaurants to try and not enough trips.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

IMG_6235 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

We were running behind a bit to our 7:30am Chef Mickey's. After parking the car at the MK lot, we briskly walked to the TTC and caught the Resort Monorail which seemed to take forever circling the lake to CR. I was a bit anxious riding the monorail thinking about how our late Chef Mickey start could affect plans to see the opening ceremony at MK when the monorail circled around the Grand Floridian and we were greeted with this beautiful view. For a few minutes, the beautiful morning light and the lake view had me forget about my worries.

 

[khertz]

I love your trip updates, but I think I look forward to your one-shot photo posts even more! Your GF photo, another stunning beauty!

 

[afwdwfan]

I love your trip updates, but I think I look forward to your one-shot photo posts even more! Your GF photo, another stunning beauty!

I agree. These pictures are amazing.




I hope you've got some of these framed around the house to look at every day!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

I love your trip updates, but I think I look forward to your one-shot photo posts even more! Your GF photo, another stunning beauty!

I agree. These pictures are amazing.
I hope you've got some of these framed around the house to look at every day!

Thank you both for the very kind words! It was a lot of fun taking these pictures during our last trip and also equally fun sharing them with you. I do have some of these pictures as my screensaver slide show on my computer which helps me get through some of the tougher work weeks.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

The kids are gearing up and hoping for a snow day tomorrow. Their teachers told them to flush down ice cubes to make it snow tomorrow. I've never heard of this ritual but didn't stop us from doing them.

Most recent forecast says 3 to 8 inches. Seriously, you've got to love the margin of error the weather experts build into their forecasts.

Anyway, I've made arrangements to take the day off and stay home with the kids if schools are cancelled while DW works. I foresee a couple of hours of quality time with DIS and other Disney related websites during naptime tomorrow afternoon!

I'll post some pictures if indeed we get decent amount of snow.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Sunday January 27th - 7:00am

(I have somehow managed an update without a single picture. Going through my pictures I noticed ebbs and flows which completely correlates to how much supervision the children needs. Whenever we're doing something that requires supervision, my camera appears to have stayed off -hmmm I wonder why?. When we're sitting down for a show or the kids are locked in to confined space next to me, my shutter goes off like crazy!)

At the end of our tour of AK on the previous day, DFIL commented how the touring plans were so relaxing and easy with not much walking as we had bunched the attractions geographically. I told him that Sunday wouldn’t be as easy. The plan for this new day was to start out at DHS to get rides in for both the kids and the adults. Then we would have to hop over to Epcot after lunch to meet up with DW’s aunt, uncle, cousin and his fiancée. Her aunt and uncle live 2 hours away in Florida while her cousin and fiancée lived in northern Orlando.

We started out the day once again at Landscape of Flavors. The kids got their usual waffle breakfast and DW/DFIL got their yogurt parfait. I on the other hand had absolutely no appetite. I was still reeling from a rough night of reflux and indigestion – maybe it was the volume of food I chowed down but I think it may have been the medium rare prime rib that felt like it was just sitting in my stomach all night. Anyway, I was happy to just have a bottle of Coke Zero. I tried very hard to get everyone in gear and in the minivan by 7:55am.

On our way out of the main building and while waiting for the rest of my family in front of the restrooms, I came across a dad with his three sons. Two of them were wearing Baltimore Raven’s jerseys (Flacco and Boldin for you NFL fans out there) and the oldest was wearing a Pats jersey (Brady). This was about a week after the AFC championship game between Baltimore and New England. I looked at them and then said to the father “There must have been a lot of cheering, yelling, and screaming at your house last weekend”. The oldest son then started telling me how he became a Pats fan when he was younger despite that they live in Virginia. The dad said “Yeah, I have noooo idea how he became a Patriots fan”. I wished the other two sons good luck on the Super Bowl as we headed to our minivan.

I wanted to be front in the pack of the rope drop crowd once again at DHS to get a leg up on TSMM. The kids and I had already gone through three times two days prior. We once again arrived at the gates around 8:15am and I chose the RFID entries one more time. While we were waiting in line, a CM appeared to be handing out maps to some of the guests in line. DFIL walked over to the CM to get one but returned empty handed because she only had one left in her hand and it was the French version. I laughed and jokingly asked why he needed a map in the first place when he’s got an excellent tour guide. There was a young couple standing behind us (I think they were celebrating her college graduation based on the buttons they were wearing) who overheard the conversation. The woman joked that at this time in the morning you really didn’t need a map since everyone is going to the same place and we just need to follow the flow.

At 8:42am the gates opened and indeed we did follow the flow. As we approached TSMM and gearing up the key cards to get our FPs, DW announces she needed another pit stop at the restrooms! I gave her the look that said “Seriously? You just went!” then just pointed towards the restrooms located at the end of the TSMM building. DFIL parked the stroller. I went and got the Fastpasses and joined up with the kids and DFIL in front of the entrance. DW was fast and was out in a couple of minutes but it felt like an eternity as I watched one family after another get in line. We still didn’t have to wait too long but the line and walked through most of the queue but we did stop where the 3D glass distribution was.

Since we had an odd number of people, one person had to ride alone. I quickly volunteered to be the solo rider. I really wanted to go through TSMM at full gun speed. The kids were telling their grandpa how they won the game from two days ago. DW and DD rode together. DFIL got in with DS. DFIL ended up not doing so well with his score since he had to help aiming the gun for DS. I can’t even remember what my score was but my arms felt like they were about to pop off near the end. Everyone had an awesome time. I was hoping to go on the standby line again since it was only 9am when we exited. We had no problem going back to back two days ago. So imagine my surprise when we walked out and I saw people standing in line in the external queue two loops long! The wait time was listed as 45 minutes!! At 9am!!!! This was the first indication that we were going to be dealing with crowd levels for the rest of the trip that were going to be higher than advertised by the crowd calendars. We had the FPs for one more ride starting at 9:45am so I decided we would go one more time then. The kids certainly had gotten their fill of TSMM for the entire trip logging in 5 rides so didn’t feel too bad.

We took the kids over to the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground again and they were ecstatic. Where did they run to as soon as they entered? The spider web of course. There was only one other family in the entire playground when we entered which was not surprising since most people in the park are either lining up at TSMM or RnRC at this of the day. I sent off DW and DFIL to ride Star Tours in the standby queue. DFIL really adored that right last time and he was more than happy to go again. After they left, I once again planted myself in front of the exit of the web structure watching my kids run in and out, in and out. During the rinse and repeat process, they made friends with another family and the kids decided to pretend that they were being chased by a giant spider while inside the net structure.

While standing there, I started a nice conversation with the CM working the spider web. He was an older gentleman who had moved to the Orlando area about 4 years ago after having worked in the pest control business for 18 years down in the Miami area. He and his wife decided to become foster parents in Orlando and moved into a home set up by the state government for foster children. They spent a month repainting and fixing up the run down house and when they finished, welcomed in two teenage girls on day 1 of being foster parents. The next day, the state agency called them and the girls into their office to inform them that the state had cut the budget and they lost funding for the foster home. The girls, who were crying at the news would be placed at another temporary home. The CM and his wife had to move out right away. He said it felt very much like an eviction and they didn’t know what to do or where to even stay. They stayed at a friend’s place for the immediate period and eventually both of them found jobs at Disney. He sounded very content with where he was now and said he was happy. I asked him if this was his preferred location to work in DHS and he said absolutely. He loves interacting with the kids and their parents in the playground. And although they can resubmit preferences for duty changes, he has no intention of doing so. He told me how one of the perks of the jobs is that he gets unlimited free access to the parks on his off days. I asked him if he was a fan of Disney before he worked here and he told me that he used to bring his children up here from Miami frequently. I asked him how often, and he said twice a year, so I think that qualifies as being a fan. We must have talked for a good 25 minutes before DW and DFIL showed up. It was my turn to go on the Star Tours excursion while DW stayed with the kids. I told the CM that it was very nice talking with him and went on my way. I don’t get to do it often, but I LOVE talking to the CMs and hearing their stories. With the go-go-go schedule and trying to pay attention to the kids, these moments are far and in between. And it also depends on the CM. A CM stationed at the FP TSMM machines are not in much of a position to have a casual chat with a guest. But when they do happen, I absolutely love it. Maybe once the kids are older, I can spend more time talking with the CMs. I think what I like the most is how the CMs come from all different walks of life and they usually embody the spirit of Disney in their life experiences.

Next Up: The Fifth Dimension!

 

[afwdwfan]

The kids are gearing up and hoping for a snow day tomorrow. Their teachers told them to flush down ice cubes to make it snow tomorrow. I've never heard of this ritual but didn't stop us from doing them.

First time I've ever heard of that one. Did it work?

The dad said “Yeah, I have noooo idea how he became a Patriots fan”

I know they're out there, but I just don't get it?

The wait time was listed as 45 minutes!! At 9am!!!!

I'm sure you pointed out the fact that it would still be 15 minutes if your DW hadn't had to make an unscheduled stop...

There was only one other family in the entire playground when we entered which was not surprising since most people in the park are either lining up at TSMM or RnRC at this of the day.

I'm surprised you weren't the only ones there at that time of day.

I think what I like the most is how the CMs come from all different walks of life and they usually embody the spirit of Disney in their life experiences.

Absolutely! I'm glad you had a chance to chat with that CM for a while. I'm sure it made his day to have someone take a genuine interest and just talk with him, since that seems to be his favorite part of the job.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

First time I've ever heard of that one. Did it work?

We probably should have flushed more ice cubes down. The snow accumulated about an inch over night then the weather warmed up and everything turned into rain and SLUSH. The weather people once again blew it big time. They were telling everyone as loud as they could that we would get 5-10 inches inside the beltway. Schools were closed based on this. Then, nothing much happened. The kids tried to make the most out of it and made a mini-snowman in the backyard before everything started melting.

I know they're out there, but I just don't get it?

Became a Colts fan during my three years living in Indy so I still have a visceral and sometimes irrational dislike towards everything Patriots.

I'm sure you pointed out the fact that it would still be 15 minutes if your DW hadn't had to make an unscheduled stop...

The thought very briefly crossed my mind If the wait was about 25 minutes, I might have!

I'm surprised you weren't the only ones there at that time of day.

This surprised me too. I was fully expecting to be the only family in there.

Absolutely! I'm glad you had a chance to chat with that CM for a while. I'm sure it made his day to have someone take a genuine interest and just talk with him, since that seems to be his favorite part of the job.

If I had more time, I probably could have chatted with him for another half hour as we were talking about college football right before I left. His grandson apparently is the starting QB for UCF. I tell you, the stories are awesome.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

IMG_7701 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

I watched Celebrate a Dream Come True twice during this trip. First time was from Frontierland during my 3-hour solo tour time when everyone else went back to AoA for some pool time. This picture was taken during the second viewing from Main Street with my family on our departure day right before heading to the airport. DD and I grabbed a spot on the curb while the rest of the gang was doing some last minute shopping in the Emporium. I love watching this parade and each viewing location gives it a very different feel.

 

[khertz]

Even without photos, a great update! I can't believe how quickly the line grew for you that morning. Hopefully that was the exception rather than the norm. It was really fun for us getting to ride twice through the standby line before 9 am.

That's really great that you had time to chat with the CM while your kids had a chance to play. We had a really great conversation with the CM working at the Fantasyland train station when she saw our Saints shirts because she used to live in the New Orleans area too. Actually, now that I think about it, most of our more in depth conversations with CM's have been because of those Saints shirts!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Even without photos, a great update! I can't believe how quickly the line grew for you that morning. Hopefully that was the exception rather than the norm. It was really fun for us getting to ride twice through the standby line before 9 am.

That's really great that you had time to chat with the CM while your kids had a chance to play. We had a really great conversation with the CM working at the Fantasyland train station when she saw our Saints shirts because she used to live in the New Orleans area too. Actually, now that I think about it, most of our more in depth conversations with CM's have been because of those Saints shirts!

I was able to go twice back to back at rope drop two days earlier when it was just me and the kids. Not sure what happened, but was extremely surprised.

You Saints fans had a LOT to talk about this past year! I wonder how many bodyguards Roger Goodell had with him for the Superbowl.

 

[khertz]

I was able to go twice back to back at rope drop two days earlier when it was just me and the kids. Not sure what happened, but was extremely surprised.

You Saints fans had a LOT to talk about this past year! I wonder how many bodyguards Roger Goodell had with him for the Superbowl.

That's good that it worked out another day! It's a fun way to kick off a morning in DHS with a double dose of TSM.

I wouldn't be surprised to find out that he actually sent a body double to NOLA for the Superbowl.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Sunday January 27th - 9:35am

As DFIL and I walked back to Star Tours, I asked him how he liked it and he started gushing about how fun it was. There’s something about this ride more than others that gets him all giddy. It was almost about 9:30am and the ride was still a walk on. As we entered the building, I got a good view of the Jedi Training Academy with the younglins facing off against Darth Vader.


IMG_6025 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

I would have LOVED to have tried JTA when I was a kid. In fact, if Disney would let me I would have no hesitation donning a jedi robe and swinging a plastic lightsaber at Vader right now! Unfortunately, my kids so far have not shown a remote interest in Star Wars.


IMG_6027 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

Noticed some subtle differences in the order and location of robots in the queue compared to the one in Disneyland. The sequences I got were droid/millennium falcon, the wookie planet, leia, and asteroid field/death star. I might have not been looking in the right area, but I couldn’t find the speeder bike that used to be there for photo ops.

When we got back to the playground, the kids had finally moved on to a different spot. There were these leaf walls with water streaming down and the kids were giggling and laughing as they pressed their hand against the stream and then started spraying them on each other’s faces. There was a young toddler about 15-18 months old who was just grinning and watching DD and DS with their antics.

It was time to go back to TSMM one last time. When I asked the kids if they wanted to go back on the Toy Story ride, DD answered “YES!” while DS gave me a partially blank look. I forgot that he calls the ride “The Gun Ride”. So I asked him if he wanted to go on the Gun Ride, he immediately started sprinting towards the exit. As we walked in the FP queue, I had to remind the kids that this was the last ride. The kids must have gotten enough rides on this one because there were no arguments from them. I sat with DS so that DFIL could get a chance at the game unhindered.

After we exited the ride, I asked DW to take the kids with DFIL to Muppets. I had to make a FP run to RnRC. I enjoyed the stroll down Sunset Blvd looking at the theming. I reached the FP machines for RnRC around 10:40am and it was distributing for 11:30am-12:30pm window. I got two FPs for myself and DFIL. Took some time to get some pictures of the RnRC external theming.


IMG_6066 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6069 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

Then walked over to ToT to grab more FPs with a return time of 11:15am-12:15pm. I then found a nice shaded table next to Fairfax Fare and called over to DW. She said they actually didn’t go to Muppets. The kids wanted to go back to the playground! I asked her to start making their way over here for lunch at Fairfax Fare. As I sat at the table by myself, I noticed an elderly couple with two of their grandkids (the boy must have been about3 years old and the girl was less than a year old). I could tell the grandmother was a little perturbed. She was telling her husband that this is her least favorite park because there’s “absolutely nothing” to do for the younger kids. A couple of minutes later she asked her husband how long he thought the RnRC took. So, it appeared that the parents of the kids asked the grandparents to stay with the kids while they got in line for RnRC. Another 5 minutes later, the grandmother finally gave up, collected the children, and said they should walk over to RnRC to see what was going on. I felt a little bad for her and the kids – I would have been bored and perturbed too if I had to sit at the picnic tables and minding the kids. I retold the story to DW and she asked me if I chimed in and told her about the playground or the shows. I joked back “Sometimes you just have to let someone vent.”

We ordered some lunches. DW got a salad. DFIL got a BBQ pork sandwich. I got myself a chili dog. The food was decent enough, worthy of using our quick service credits. Speaking of using our quick service credits, the CM taking our order was very patient with us as we were still newbies to the Dining Plan. When we finished our laundry list of orders and then told her we were going to use our dining plan, she kindly reminded us that we would have to pick out dessert items! Had totally forgotten about dessert items being included. Also realized that we had forgotten to order dessert items at Flame Tree BBQ the day prior but the CM there hadn’t given us a reminder. Oh well, live and learn. We chatted with the CM about where we were coming from. She asked how the weather had been at our home and I just blurted out “God awful” which elicited a hearty laugh from her. She was from Michigan and works part time at Disney during the winter months and spends her summer months back in Michigan.

We were all done by 11:30am. I then directed DW and the kids across the street to see the Beauty and the Beast show starting at 11:45am while DFIL and myself walked over to RnRC to use our FPs. On our way, I pulled four more FPs for ToT with a return time of 12:15-1:15pm. We had a blast on RnRC. This being the second time I’ve been on this ride, I was able to pay more attention to the theming along the coaster as we flipped and spiraled through the course. On our way out, spotted a Mickey doll decked out in a rocker outfit complete with an Aerosmith hat!

It was about 12:05pm and the show was still going, so we moved over to ToT to use our the first set of FPs that I drew earlier. As we were lining up in front of the library, I was taking some pictures of the ceiling light fixtures when the woman standing behind us commented how great the theming was for this ride which I wholeheartedly agreed. I told her that one of these days when I have more time, I will get in the regular standby line so I can get more chances to look at the detailing in the lobby area. I don’t know what it is about ToT but I think it has the most ardent fans of all the rides at WDW. It feels like every time I go on this ride I seem to meet at least one person who clearly loves the attraction and is expressive about their appreciation of every detail for the ride. We walked through the boiler room. And finally got assigned to row 6 which is basically the nosebleed section in the corner. Was able to snap more pictures before tucking my camera away and getting ready for the drops! I just love this ride.


IMG_6064 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6073 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6075 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6078 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6079 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6080 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6083-2 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6087 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

 

[DisSmis]

I'm loving your travel report!! Can't wait to read more. I found out a conference I go to about every other year is in San Diego in October this year so of course my first stop was google maps to see how far from Disneyland
-Laney

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

I'm loving your travel report!! Can't wait to read more. I found out a conference I go to about every other year is in San Diego in October this year so of course my first stop was google maps to see how far from Disneyland
-Laney

Laney! So good to see you here!

Oh, you absolutely need to take a side trip to DLR and check out Cars Land. That's what I did last October during one of my conferences (unfortunately couldn't bring the family along). Took the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner from SD to Anaheim and it took slightly less than two hours.

In case you haven't seen it yet on my sig, here's the trip report for my solo two day tour of DLR.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

IMG_7263 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

On our last day at Disney, we had a before-the-park-opens 8:10am ADR at Crystal Palace which meant we had a chance to walk down a nearly empty Main Street. Getting an early entry to MK always feels special and as if you have the park to yourself. This particular morning we were allowed to enter the park around 7:45am and I was greeted with a scene that I hadn't experienced before. A foggy Main Street. I love how the approaching car has working headlights!

 

[khertz]

Tower of Terror is ALL about the themeing, and it is impeccable! If you think about it, so many parks have rides that shoot you up and drop you down, but none with the level of detail and backstory that ToT comes with. That's the Disney difference! Great pictures of the queue, that's one of the best parts of the attraction!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Tower of Terror is ALL about the themeing, and it is impeccable! If you think about it, so many parks have rides that shoot you up and drop you down, but none with the level of detail and backstory that ToT comes with. That's the Disney difference! Great pictures of the queue, that's one of the best parts of the attraction!

Completely agree with you! I was reading Carrie (lurkyloo)'s blog article on how she and her husband got to arrange a private dining 'party' at ToT and they let them inside the normally roped off parts of the lobby! I would just be in absolute bliss if I could do the same thing. I'm going to start working on a plan to convince DW that we should try to arrange something like this although I don't think she would be too agreeable to celebrating an anniversary at ToT!

 

[luckylady]

Great update. Love the ToT pictures in B&W. They look great.