Background...
Me (Aisling), Mom 60, DS Chad 18, and DS 12 Jesse
AKL July 5-10, CR July 10-12
Day 4 Thursday July 8
Highlights:
Parasailing, Grand Floridian Glass Slippers and Dog Bones, off to meet Tyler (Chip n Dale Express), Chad's AKL massage, Cirque
Woke up at 7 AM with Mickey on the phone, again. Didn't they used to have a choice of characters? Today was a non-park day, because we only had 5-D PHs and 8 days to fill. It was a nice break from the parks, although I wouldn't be able to stand not going to the parks for too long!
Quick breakfast at The Mara, just bagels and juice. We were getting used to the high prices of food, and having $400 on my Disney Visa Rewards Card helped a ton!
There were always seats available at The Mara, even at prime times. We were going to have athe Boma buffet, was able to get a PS that same morning, but I really didn't want to have a full stomach because we were going parasailing! I had never done this before, and didn't know how it would affect my tummy.
We had a ressie for 9:30 AM. I really wanted to do this before the heat of the day, and also because I had other special things planned for the day later on. We had some time to browse the AKL gift shop before getting on the bus, which was a pleasure. We'd been in and out of the shop, but never really looked to buy anything. I made a mental note to buy a long-sleeved T for Jesse that had the AKL logo on the front and on the sleeve for $28. A men's small would be big on him, but by winter, the way he's growing, he'll fit it fine. I sneakily bought two beaded ankle chains for me and Mom, to leave as pillow gifts, since I already had two Disney books stashed away for Chad and Jesse. The chains were $2 and change a piece.
Bus came right away, and we headed to MK, where we walked to the CR. This was our first time walking the path, and it was longer than I expected. Maybe because it was so hot, but it felt like it took forever to get there. The approach to the CR was awesome, beautiful. Now, many of you may not see the CR as beautiful, but I really love it as a work of art. It's strong and majestic and so cool! At night, it's exceptionally beautiful, with the lights.
While we oohed and aahed, we read the names on the pavers all the way there, looking for New York Cityites, and found many. We did a little dance around the ones we saw, "Go NY, Go NY", and didn't care who saw us. But things got a little silly, because we passed a great climbing tree, and my kids proceded to climb into the tree! I let it go, but then told them to get down, because I didn't want any broken limbs, of the tree! Mom was unusually quiet, I think the heat was getting to her.
We went into CR, straight through to the back, and found the Sammy Duval place at the marina. Only Chad and I were going, with Mom and Jesse watching from the dock. I told them to go inside, not to stay out there where there was very little shade. Go to the arcade, I told them. Jesse jumped on that, but Mom said they'll wait for us.
We got on the boat with 2 teenage girls from Long Island, or Long Giland, as real Long Islanders say! Their father was allowed to accompany them on the boat, but all other watchers had to remain at the dock. We were all dressed in shorts, not bathing suits, which I wondered about before this trip. The girls went first, tandem, and it looked smooth. Then Chad. There was a driver and a young lady on the boat. The YL put life jackets on us, and slipped us into the harness when it was our turn. She explained to keep your behind in the center of the seat, which was made of strips of canvas-type material. You're told to sit downw with knees up, and then the bopat speeds up. The rope lets you go, and you smoothly go up like a kite. It was really high up! Chad was a dot up there! I took pics, but I was using a disposable camera with no zoom, so in the pics he was still a dot. After about 10 minutes, he was reeled in, and it was my turn. I was a bit nervous, but it was so smooth and peaceful, and soon I wasn't even holding on to the ropes. I did the Peter Pan bit, I can fly!!!!!!!
It was a fun experience, and I'v very glad I did it, but I wouldn't spend $105 each to do it again.
We got back to the marina, and we gave the driver and the YL $2 each as a little tip, since they had a sign up that said tips were appreciated. They thanked us very much.
Then into the CR for cooling off and drinks. Jesse played a while at the arcade. We all talked about the excitement we felt since we would be moving into the CR in a couple of days.
At noon, Chad had plans to wander around by himself for the day, while Mom, Jesse, and I went to the Grand Floridian Cafe for our surprise dessert. I had called 2 months ahead of time to order the Glass Slipper desserts and the Dog Bone dessert. I asked for our names to be written in chocolate on the plates. It was $8.99 each.
The GF is beautiful, but really not my style. We went to the cafe, and were seated immediately for our 12:30 PS, even though we were early. Mom and Jesse didn't know what to expect, thinking it was lunch. The server gave us menus, we ordered iced teas, and I told him we were here for our special Glass Slipper/Dog Bone desserts only. He had no idea what I was talking about. I tried to explain without spoiling it for Mom and Jesse. He said he was going to the kitchen to take care of it. After a few minutes, he came back carrying the plates, with the manager of the GF carrying one plate, and they both apologized for the delay. The manager explained that some of the servers have never seen of heard of these desserts. Well, my Mom was so impressed, with the service, and with the desserts. They were smaller than I thought, but so nicely presented on the plate. When they were brought out, everyone in the restaurant looked at the plates, asking their own servers what they were and how can they get them. I took pics of the plates, so Mom could show all her friends, she said! She's so cute! Jesse didn't like the iced tea, no matter how much sugar he put in it, and when the server noticed he wasn't drinking it, he asked Jesse if he'd rather have a nice cold glass of chocolate milk. Jesse just loved that.
After, we walked around the GF for a bit, looking around since it was our first time there. A suit came up to us, Steve from the "Front Office", and asked how we were enjoying our stay. I'm almost ashamed to confess that I played it up, and after telling him that we were just visiting and were undecided about where we would be staying on our next trip, I thought he was going to offer us a free ressie or something. But it turned out he was a suit-in-training making nice with the guests. I asked for his autograph, and he was delighted. Mom and I died laughing as soon as we left. Before we left, I used the courtesy phone to call over to POP, asking if CM Tyler was working today. (He's Chip n Dale Express here on the Dis, and a transportation expert! He's quite the celebrity over on the transportation board.) I was told he was there. So we bussed over to POP.
I'd never met Tylet before, but knew him through the Dis. He was working baggage assistance, but was no where to be found. I asked around, and it turned out that the person I spoke to on the phone thought I said "Taylor", another CM. Tyler wasn't there. Oh well. We explored POP, and liked it a lot. The memoribilia was cool, and Jesse liked all the "old-time stuff". That was in the 60's section!
We took the AK bus, and then planned on getting on the AKL bus, but the driver took us straight to AKL, which was very nice of him. I notice that the CMs reaaly do go out of their way to make people happy, if they can.
Chad had a 4 PM massage scheduled, and I hoped he didn't forget. It was 3 PM, and he was sunning at the pool. He said he spent the day at the AKL instead of roaming around WDW, and saw African drumming, a lecture by a South African youth, and then pool time. We all went up to the room for a snooze, and Chad left for his massage soon after. This was his first massage, and he strutted out of the room like he was a VIP going for his daily massage. Too cute! The rest of us fell asleep.
When we woke up, we found an envelope had been slipped under the door. It was birthday card from safari Mickey and Minnie for Mom!! How nice was that! This was a hand signed card, with her name and age on it. Thank you AKL for that surprise. I had no idea they'd do that.
We were hungry, having only eaten breakfast and dessert, and we thought about Jiko. But the kids wanted Mara again. C'mon you guys, how about trying something different. Well, how about a restaurant at Downtown Disney, since we were going there for La Nouba. We couldn't decide, so guess what, back down to the Mara again. We were dressed in capris and nice tops, and the boys had khaki shorts and polos on, because we heard people dress nicer than park-wear for Cirque. We bussed to DD, and got there at 8 PM.
Cirque is on the other side of DD, so we lingered in the shops, and I spent $40 on black Mickey knobs for my kitchen cabinet doors. I tried to figure out how many I needed, but for the life of me I couldn't remember how many cabinets I had and which ones had double knobs. My Mom was trying to sneak and buy me something, I could tell, so I gave her some space. I asked her what she bought, and she got all silly on me, saying she'll show me later.
The the deluge began. It rained so suddenly and so hard, that people were almost knocking each other down trying to rush into stores for cover. It was getting late, so we put on the ponchos I always carried in my backpack, and we braved it over to Cirque.
It was getting dark, and the tent looked cool with the lights. We got inside, and we had to split up. I originally bought 3 tickets, because I didn't know Mom was going to be coming with us, so then I had to buy another ticket. I directed the three of them, Mom, Chad, and Jesse, have the front center seats, right there next to the stage, and I took the 2nd level seat. I really enjoyed watching their reactions during the show, because they'd turn around to look up at me whenever something really awesome happened. Since they were right in front, they were targets, and a clown-girl with a flower sat on the stage floor, right in front of Jesse and stared at him. My poor shy Jesse, didn't know what to do! I could see Chad moving over to try to get into the girl's line of vision, but she moved to keep her gaze on Jesse. She kept putting the flower closer to him, and I was hoping he'd reach out for it, but I didn't think he would. I was so happy that I got the close cat. 1 seats, it was so worth it for them to be so close, right in all the action.
The show was excellent, and Chad bought the music CD on the way out. As we made our way back to the bus area, I explained to Mom about Pleasure Island, and how Disney has adult night life, showing that Disney has something for everyone. I love telling about how wonderful WDW is!!
When we got back to AKL, we were starting to feel like we lived there. The familiar exotic scent, the background music, the colorful CM outfits...we really love AKL. When we got to the room, surprise!!!, a book of Disney Mosaics, a book of Lion King Art, and two beaded ankle chains were laid out on the turned-down bed. And we got a towel animal! Woo hoo!
Down to the pool for a late, quick swim, and then bed. Wake-up to be at 7 AM, and off to MGM opening in the morning. We planned on a long day tomorrow, since it was MK e-night. Hey, we're ready!
We left the curtains open as we slept, so we could be close to our giraffes and zebras!
Oh yeah...Chad's massage...he loved it! $55 plus tip/25 min.
Me (Aisling), Mom 60, DS Chad 18, and DS 12 Jesse
AKL July 5-10, CR July 10-12
Day 4 Thursday July 8
Highlights:
Parasailing, Grand Floridian Glass Slippers and Dog Bones, off to meet Tyler (Chip n Dale Express), Chad's AKL massage, Cirque
Woke up at 7 AM with Mickey on the phone, again. Didn't they used to have a choice of characters? Today was a non-park day, because we only had 5-D PHs and 8 days to fill. It was a nice break from the parks, although I wouldn't be able to stand not going to the parks for too long!
Quick breakfast at The Mara, just bagels and juice. We were getting used to the high prices of food, and having $400 on my Disney Visa Rewards Card helped a ton!
There were always seats available at The Mara, even at prime times. We were going to have athe Boma buffet, was able to get a PS that same morning, but I really didn't want to have a full stomach because we were going parasailing! I had never done this before, and didn't know how it would affect my tummy.
We had a ressie for 9:30 AM. I really wanted to do this before the heat of the day, and also because I had other special things planned for the day later on. We had some time to browse the AKL gift shop before getting on the bus, which was a pleasure. We'd been in and out of the shop, but never really looked to buy anything. I made a mental note to buy a long-sleeved T for Jesse that had the AKL logo on the front and on the sleeve for $28. A men's small would be big on him, but by winter, the way he's growing, he'll fit it fine. I sneakily bought two beaded ankle chains for me and Mom, to leave as pillow gifts, since I already had two Disney books stashed away for Chad and Jesse. The chains were $2 and change a piece.
Bus came right away, and we headed to MK, where we walked to the CR. This was our first time walking the path, and it was longer than I expected. Maybe because it was so hot, but it felt like it took forever to get there. The approach to the CR was awesome, beautiful. Now, many of you may not see the CR as beautiful, but I really love it as a work of art. It's strong and majestic and so cool! At night, it's exceptionally beautiful, with the lights.
While we oohed and aahed, we read the names on the pavers all the way there, looking for New York Cityites, and found many. We did a little dance around the ones we saw, "Go NY, Go NY", and didn't care who saw us. But things got a little silly, because we passed a great climbing tree, and my kids proceded to climb into the tree! I let it go, but then told them to get down, because I didn't want any broken limbs, of the tree! Mom was unusually quiet, I think the heat was getting to her.
We went into CR, straight through to the back, and found the Sammy Duval place at the marina. Only Chad and I were going, with Mom and Jesse watching from the dock. I told them to go inside, not to stay out there where there was very little shade. Go to the arcade, I told them. Jesse jumped on that, but Mom said they'll wait for us.
We got on the boat with 2 teenage girls from Long Island, or Long Giland, as real Long Islanders say! Their father was allowed to accompany them on the boat, but all other watchers had to remain at the dock. We were all dressed in shorts, not bathing suits, which I wondered about before this trip. The girls went first, tandem, and it looked smooth. Then Chad. There was a driver and a young lady on the boat. The YL put life jackets on us, and slipped us into the harness when it was our turn. She explained to keep your behind in the center of the seat, which was made of strips of canvas-type material. You're told to sit downw with knees up, and then the bopat speeds up. The rope lets you go, and you smoothly go up like a kite. It was really high up! Chad was a dot up there! I took pics, but I was using a disposable camera with no zoom, so in the pics he was still a dot. After about 10 minutes, he was reeled in, and it was my turn. I was a bit nervous, but it was so smooth and peaceful, and soon I wasn't even holding on to the ropes. I did the Peter Pan bit, I can fly!!!!!!!
It was a fun experience, and I'v very glad I did it, but I wouldn't spend $105 each to do it again.
We got back to the marina, and we gave the driver and the YL $2 each as a little tip, since they had a sign up that said tips were appreciated. They thanked us very much.
Then into the CR for cooling off and drinks. Jesse played a while at the arcade. We all talked about the excitement we felt since we would be moving into the CR in a couple of days.
At noon, Chad had plans to wander around by himself for the day, while Mom, Jesse, and I went to the Grand Floridian Cafe for our surprise dessert. I had called 2 months ahead of time to order the Glass Slipper desserts and the Dog Bone dessert. I asked for our names to be written in chocolate on the plates. It was $8.99 each.
The GF is beautiful, but really not my style. We went to the cafe, and were seated immediately for our 12:30 PS, even though we were early. Mom and Jesse didn't know what to expect, thinking it was lunch. The server gave us menus, we ordered iced teas, and I told him we were here for our special Glass Slipper/Dog Bone desserts only. He had no idea what I was talking about. I tried to explain without spoiling it for Mom and Jesse. He said he was going to the kitchen to take care of it. After a few minutes, he came back carrying the plates, with the manager of the GF carrying one plate, and they both apologized for the delay. The manager explained that some of the servers have never seen of heard of these desserts. Well, my Mom was so impressed, with the service, and with the desserts. They were smaller than I thought, but so nicely presented on the plate. When they were brought out, everyone in the restaurant looked at the plates, asking their own servers what they were and how can they get them. I took pics of the plates, so Mom could show all her friends, she said! She's so cute! Jesse didn't like the iced tea, no matter how much sugar he put in it, and when the server noticed he wasn't drinking it, he asked Jesse if he'd rather have a nice cold glass of chocolate milk. Jesse just loved that.
After, we walked around the GF for a bit, looking around since it was our first time there. A suit came up to us, Steve from the "Front Office", and asked how we were enjoying our stay. I'm almost ashamed to confess that I played it up, and after telling him that we were just visiting and were undecided about where we would be staying on our next trip, I thought he was going to offer us a free ressie or something. But it turned out he was a suit-in-training making nice with the guests. I asked for his autograph, and he was delighted. Mom and I died laughing as soon as we left. Before we left, I used the courtesy phone to call over to POP, asking if CM Tyler was working today. (He's Chip n Dale Express here on the Dis, and a transportation expert! He's quite the celebrity over on the transportation board.) I was told he was there. So we bussed over to POP.
I'd never met Tylet before, but knew him through the Dis. He was working baggage assistance, but was no where to be found. I asked around, and it turned out that the person I spoke to on the phone thought I said "Taylor", another CM. Tyler wasn't there. Oh well. We explored POP, and liked it a lot. The memoribilia was cool, and Jesse liked all the "old-time stuff". That was in the 60's section!
We took the AK bus, and then planned on getting on the AKL bus, but the driver took us straight to AKL, which was very nice of him. I notice that the CMs reaaly do go out of their way to make people happy, if they can.
Chad had a 4 PM massage scheduled, and I hoped he didn't forget. It was 3 PM, and he was sunning at the pool. He said he spent the day at the AKL instead of roaming around WDW, and saw African drumming, a lecture by a South African youth, and then pool time. We all went up to the room for a snooze, and Chad left for his massage soon after. This was his first massage, and he strutted out of the room like he was a VIP going for his daily massage. Too cute! The rest of us fell asleep.
When we woke up, we found an envelope had been slipped under the door. It was birthday card from safari Mickey and Minnie for Mom!! How nice was that! This was a hand signed card, with her name and age on it. Thank you AKL for that surprise. I had no idea they'd do that.
We were hungry, having only eaten breakfast and dessert, and we thought about Jiko. But the kids wanted Mara again. C'mon you guys, how about trying something different. Well, how about a restaurant at Downtown Disney, since we were going there for La Nouba. We couldn't decide, so guess what, back down to the Mara again. We were dressed in capris and nice tops, and the boys had khaki shorts and polos on, because we heard people dress nicer than park-wear for Cirque. We bussed to DD, and got there at 8 PM.
Cirque is on the other side of DD, so we lingered in the shops, and I spent $40 on black Mickey knobs for my kitchen cabinet doors. I tried to figure out how many I needed, but for the life of me I couldn't remember how many cabinets I had and which ones had double knobs. My Mom was trying to sneak and buy me something, I could tell, so I gave her some space. I asked her what she bought, and she got all silly on me, saying she'll show me later.
The the deluge began. It rained so suddenly and so hard, that people were almost knocking each other down trying to rush into stores for cover. It was getting late, so we put on the ponchos I always carried in my backpack, and we braved it over to Cirque.
It was getting dark, and the tent looked cool with the lights. We got inside, and we had to split up. I originally bought 3 tickets, because I didn't know Mom was going to be coming with us, so then I had to buy another ticket. I directed the three of them, Mom, Chad, and Jesse, have the front center seats, right there next to the stage, and I took the 2nd level seat. I really enjoyed watching their reactions during the show, because they'd turn around to look up at me whenever something really awesome happened. Since they were right in front, they were targets, and a clown-girl with a flower sat on the stage floor, right in front of Jesse and stared at him. My poor shy Jesse, didn't know what to do! I could see Chad moving over to try to get into the girl's line of vision, but she moved to keep her gaze on Jesse. She kept putting the flower closer to him, and I was hoping he'd reach out for it, but I didn't think he would. I was so happy that I got the close cat. 1 seats, it was so worth it for them to be so close, right in all the action.
The show was excellent, and Chad bought the music CD on the way out. As we made our way back to the bus area, I explained to Mom about Pleasure Island, and how Disney has adult night life, showing that Disney has something for everyone. I love telling about how wonderful WDW is!!
When we got back to AKL, we were starting to feel like we lived there. The familiar exotic scent, the background music, the colorful CM outfits...we really love AKL. When we got to the room, surprise!!!, a book of Disney Mosaics, a book of Lion King Art, and two beaded ankle chains were laid out on the turned-down bed. And we got a towel animal! Woo hoo!
Down to the pool for a late, quick swim, and then bed. Wake-up to be at 7 AM, and off to MGM opening in the morning. We planned on a long day tomorrow, since it was MK e-night. Hey, we're ready!
We left the curtains open as we slept, so we could be close to our giraffes and zebras!
Oh yeah...Chad's massage...he loved it! $55 plus tip/25 min.
