All Our Wishes Will Come True-A May 2010 PTR!-Trip Report is Started 7/14

[bellebookworm9]

Whoo hoo! We are at the three month mark (88 days)!

I'm very excited to see the crowd levels are still low for our days. They are a 4 or a 6 every day. The UG crowd calendar never goes below a 4 anymore, so I think this is as good as it's gonna get! Also, April hours came out on RideMax yesterday. I was using dates with similar hours and slightly higher crowd levels (because they aren't that low in April) and the wait time look fantastic! The longest waits will probably be for Spectro, Wishes, etc. The longest printed wait time is 30 minutes for the Nemo show at 1pm. Everything else seems to be less than 25 minutes, with the average around 10-13. I know they're not my dates exactly, but I'm pleased with what I'm seeing and hoping for similar results! Also, we will be in a recommended park almost everyday. Our second Epcot & DHS days are neither avoid nor recommended parks for those days according to UG and RideMax also says to avoid DHS that day, but Epcot is a recommended park (DHS because of Fantasmic!)

 

[bellebookworm9]

So on Saturday, my roommate Katie, our friend Jill, and I went to the Corning Museum of Glass and to visit Katie's family, about 20 minutes from the museum. All in all, about 3 hours round trip of driving. We had a lot of fun and it was good to have a homemade meal. I took a lot of pictures and I'm linking the Facebook album!

Corning Museum of Glass

 

[MHTeacher]

YAY for three months!

 

[bellebookworm9]

Hey everybody! So the first two Saturdays in February I had interviews for the RA position. I'll find out the results of that next Friday, but I don't think I'm going to get it. That's okay though, as I'm not sure I necessarily I want the position anymore. My friends and I are also applying to live in the Writer's House next year. It's the newest dorm, opened in Spring 2009. It's awesome in there. It's a suite style building, but different than most of the suites. It's two (larger than I'm living in now) bedrooms that share a bathroom (sink and shower/sink and toilet) and they have a large foyer. Hopefully we get in, I find out on the 12th.

I've also applied to be an Orientation Advisor over the summer. During the freshman/transfer orientations you have a group of 10-15 students and you do ice breakers with them and introduce them to college life. It seems like a lot of fun and I'm feeling much better about that than the RA thing. The group interview was really fun and I felt comfortable with the people who were fellow candidates. We played a few ice breakers, answered some possible orientee questions ("What if I don't like my roommate?" "Can I bring a car to campus?") all of which I knew the answer to, except "Where are the parties?" I know the streets but not specific locations. My individual interview was the next day and I think that went well. We had to role play at the end and the Student Orientation Coordinator interviewing me says "I'm going to be the awkward orientee sitting in the corner of the dining hall by myself, looking miserable. You come talk to me." I started with the basics: What's your name, where are you from, what do you want to major in. Then I told her I wanted to introduce her to some other people. When it was over, she said nobody's ever told her that before, so I'm hoping it was a good answer.

I've also been asked to interview at a camp for diasabled/disadvantaged children that I applied at. However, I told them I'd like to interview, but seeing as I'll find out about the OA position before the camp interview I told them I'd get back to them as to whether I'd still be interested.

My friend Katie old me that her grandma wants to take her family to Disney next April. I was trying to talk them out of April because, among other reasons, Katie won't be on break. And college professors won't care that you weren't there because you were on vacation. But then her aunt said something about her family going in two weeks so now Katie and I are just both very confused. She doesn't really like her aunt, but I said "Well, she'll be going at one of the most expensive, crowded times and probably won't have a plan, so she'll wait in line forever." That made her feel better. I told her if her family wants any help planning, I'd be happy to help!

I'm going home this weekend, because for my dance history class I need to see a professional performance and there's one at the Unversity of Buffalo. I'm hoping the snow doesn't strand me!

 

[bellebookworm9]

Yesterday I mailed the last payment for our room. Today I ordered the tickets from Undercover Tourist at 7:30am and had an e-mail at 9:20 saying they had shipped, so I'm pleased so far. And it was cheap! $575.90 for 2 7-day WPF&M tickets using the MouseSavers discount. That's a saving of $33.32 over the Disney gate price So this means that the room, flights, and tickets are all set. I will order our food from Garden Grocer in a few weeks, after I get paid a few times!

Yesterday I was running more RideMax plans. We are going to AK on a Sunday and RM doesn't work for Sundays. The park is open from 9-7, so I'm currently using a Tuesday in April with same hours, recommended park, and crowd levels. The only other days in May with the same hours are days with EMH which we will be avoiding. So I couldn't get it to give me a good plan riding EE twice. Finally I just left it out all together and got a 1.5 hour break from 1:30-3. I asked on the RideMax thread if that would be enough time to ride twice using the singles line. I was then informed that using the Give a Day promotion, if you don't need the free day, you can redeem it for FASTPASSes, sort of like the birthday FASTPASSes of last year. So I'm looking into volunteering when I'm home over spring break in a week! And if mom does it too, we can get these FASTPASSes on TWO different days!
If you're interested in this plan, here's a link.

2 months and 13 days! (For whatever reason, my ticker is off by a day)


Oh and P.S. I just got my RA letter...and they didn't pick me. But that's okay because I decided I didn't really want it anyway. Next Friday though I find out if they've picked me for Writer's House and/or orientation advisor. Those I will be crushed about if I don't get in.

 

[jenbear123]

Woohoo! What a nice feeling it is when everything is paid off

You've been quite the busy bee lately with school and such.

My hat goes off to you being able to ride EE twice in a row. I did that when I was there in Feb and....well.... you'll see my reaction when I get to it in my TR.

 

[scooby9932]

Wow! You've been really busy, huh? And for paying everything off! That's always such a relief, isn't it?

I do hope you get at least one of the programs you're interested in. Writer's House sounds great - and I love the name!

I was an Orientation volunteer one semester. It was fun & a great way to meet new people. But since I didn't live on campus, it took a lot of time away from other on campus activities that I wanted to join. I was assigned as liason for off campus living - this was before they required freshmen to live on campus. Lots of fun & a great experience. Especially since I was a bit shy back then. I'm sure living on campus would make it a lot easier.

--> Your trip (and mine) is just a blink away! We'll be enjoying the Disney magic before you know it.

 

[bellebookworm9]

I got my letter about orientation a week before planned and...





























THEY PICKED ME!!!! So I will be back in Geneseo from June 8th to July 19th. Hopefully I'll have time to work on my trip report and scrapbook before/during that time!

On a trip note, we got our tickets on Saturday, 2 days after I ordered them. Needless to say, I was very impressed. Mom said we have Goofy and Mickey and then said "Wait, is Pluto the gold dog?" (Me looking at the tickets on allears) "Yes-gold dog, green collar, purple background?" "Yup" So we actually have

and

I told mom I want Pluto because his background is purple and that's my favorite color.

Finally, we've signed up to volunteer with Project Linus, making blankets for children in the hospital. I've set our date up through DisneyParks as next Friday. I was a little worried yesterday when I saw that the Get a Day program is closed, but according to the Disney FAQs, as long as we've officially registered through them and are set to volunteer in the next 60 days, you will still get you vouchers.

Now comes the hard part. We want to use the FASTPASS cards on our AK day and first DHS day (with TSM). However, whether or not we need them depends on how many times we want to ride the Safari and TSM. If we do the Safari once and TSM twice, we won't need the passes. If we want to ride more than that, we will. Mom and I decided we would figure that out while I'm home. If we don't need the passes we'll donate our free day to one of the Boys & Girls Club or Dreams Take Flight Canada.

Two months and 7 days!

 

[bellebookworm9]

Katie (my roommate) and I got into Writer's House! Katie's boyfriend did not but he wasn't sure if he wanted to live on campus anyway. Our other friend, Jill, applied but told us the other day she wouldn't be living with us in a very drama filled event. I'm very confused/upset/hurt/angry as to what led to her decision, but that's a story for another day. But I have a place to live next year! The dorm just opened in Spring 2009, so its only a year old. It's technically a suite style building. Each suite has two double rooms joined by a foyer. On one side of the foyer is a sink/shower and on the other side is a sink/toilet. I'm going from the oldest dorm in campus to the newest! Here are some pictures from when it was still being finished (so no furniture)

Main Hallway of Building

View into Foyer of Room from Hallway

View into Bathroom off Foyer

More of the Foyer

View into the Bedroom

View of the Room Facing the Foyer

(I don't like that the fire alarms are IN the room-they're so loud!)

California Closets (we each get one)

This is the central lounge area; there's one per floor. In addition to the kitchen equipment you see here, there are also two small couches, a coffee table, and a high table and chairs. This is also where the vending machines are located. To the left of the counter is the laundry room. I'm so excited to not have to carry all my laundry up and down 3 flights of stairs anymore!

Registration starts at the end of this month. Next semester I have to take Fundamentals of Clinical Processes, Language Intervention, Fluency Intervention,and Speech and Hearing Science (all for my major)-I also have to complete 25 hours of clinical observation. I also have to take Humanities I (required). It is "A search for moral, social, and political alternatives and meaning embodied in the institutions, culture, and literature of Western Civilization from the beginnings to 1600. The course is factual as well as conceptual, including a narrative history of the period covered." I'm hoping to take Humanities II (1600-present) next summer in England, but depending on how much I like being an OA this summer, maybe I'll do that again next summer instead.

On a trip related note: The other day I found a thread asking about people's favorite guidebooks. Someone recommended "The Complete Walt Disney World 2010" by Julie and Mike Neal. I picked it up from the local library and it's very interesting. It gives hour by hour wait times for all the rides, as well as FASTPASS return times based on when you pick up the FASTPASS. They give lots of details about the ride and there's lots and lots of color photos. I wouldn't say I like it better than Passporter or Unofficial Guide- I like all 3 equally for what they are.

 

[bellebookworm9]

Yoo hoo! Anybody there? Well, this post is all trip/Disney related!

First, a few weeks ago my mom bought me window clings of the princesses, Princess and the Frog, and Tinkerbell, so Katie and I decorated the windows (I know they're a little faint, but you get the gist):

Next, my scrapbooking supplies finally came. 30 double sided sheets, various stickers and die cuts-only $4.95! The paper is 12x12, but the box was probably twice that and stuffed with packing peanuts-apparently they didn't want the paper to get bent! The paper is a Mickey theme.

Also, I finished our blankets for Project Linus. The green plaid is toddler sized; the butterfly print is for a teen.

I'm still not sure what I'm doing with the vouchers. We will definitely donate one, but I might keep the other to use for FASTPASSes at AK. I got a good plan with RideMax, but it still involves a lot of FASTPASSes! If anyone will be at AK on Sunday, May 23rd and would like one of the FASTPASS cards, let me know. Each voucher is good for 6 people and there's only two of us!

I've decided we will not be seeing It's Tough to Be a Bug. I'm not really a fan of 3D anyway, plus stingers and crawlies... We'll sit it out this time. I've also decided we don't need to see Country Bear Jamboree. Finally, I definitely want to meet the fairies, so I'm setting aside a good hour and a half or so for Toontown right when it opens. May dates should be up in RideMax in the next few days. Once they are, I can post our daily itineraries!

Now for the sad news. We were discussing the budget and we've decided we need to cancel some ADRs. Though I'm hanging onto the ressies for now, we're saying goodbye to Sci Fi and Akershus. We sat and discussed this for literally about an hour. I put a poll up here and Sci Fi and 50's PTC got an overwhelming amount of cancellation votes, but I really want to keep 50's, so we'll leave Sci Fi and just grab the yummy sounding veggie sandwich from Backlot Express. We can see all the princesses present at Akershus elsewhere in World Showcase. I really want to see Belle in her yellow dress (in France she wears her blue one) but I think she wears it at Toontown, so maybe I can catch her there! Getting rid of those two meals is saving us about $100!

That's all for now. 2 months and 1 day!

 

[bellebookworm9]

We are officially two months away!

 

[scooby9932]

I'm still here! I've been bad about posting, just reading along. I'll try to do better.

That's great news about the Writer's House assignment! The place looks great in the pictures!

Your window clings are super cute, it makes it nice to have daily reminders of Disney, doesn't it?

I think getting FP cards are a great idea.

Aw, what? No love for bugs or ratty old bears? We usually pick a few rides/attractions to skip, too. When you go often enough, it just makes sense.

WOO HOO! on the 2 month mark!

 

[bellebookworm9]

I'm still here! I've been bad about posting, just reading along. I'll try to do better.

Oh good! I saw that this PTR has had over 1000 views and thought-not all of them can be from me!

That's great news about the Writer's House assignment! The place looks great in the pictures!

I'm so excited!

Your window clings are super cute, it makes it nice to have daily reminders of Disney, doesn't it?

Yes, they are absolutely adorable.

I think getting FP cards are a great idea.

Aw, what? No love for bugs or ratty old bears? We usually pick a few rides/attractions to skip, too. When you go often enough, it just makes sense.

I was planning on going to both. Mom was never very enthusiastic about the bears and kept trying to use the excuse "You saw them when you were 3". I was reading my new guidebook that said the sound system is bad and that kind of sealed the decision. The bugs are another story entirely, and my question about whether or not we should do them has spawned a 3 page debate!

WOO HOO! on the 2 month mark!

Yes, we're very excited!

 

[jenbear123]

I'm still here too! Nice windows

I'm thinking we might need to cancel some ADRs too. It's so hard to take some off the list because you want to do them all! Oh well... I'm sure you won't miss to much from Sci-Fi. I hear the service and food is mediocre at best. Too bad about Akershus. I'd really like to go back there myself. You'll still all the princesses around I'm sure.

 

[bellebookworm9]

RideMax posted the May dates this afternoon, so I've made our plans. They all look really good! I'll share our arrival day, first MK day, and Blizzard Beach.

Day 1: Arrival
3:25pm: Plane lands in Orlando
5:00pm: Check in at Kidani Village
6:00pm: Dinner at the Mara
7:00pm: Walk around the resort and look at the animals
9:00pm: Bed! We have to be up bright and early tomorrow!

Day 2: Magic Kingdom
6:00am: Wake up! (I don't think mom will like this very much...)
6:45am: Be at bus stop
8:05am: Breakfast at Crystal Palace
9:00-11:00am: We plan to do the following after breakfast
-Gretchen rides Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain.
While she is riding, mom gets a FASTPASS for each so
Gretchen can ride again later
-Visit Tom Sawyer's Island.
11:00am: Take the bus back to AKV for a nap/swim/lunch in room.
2:00pm: Be at bus stop-back to MK
3:00pm: We will do the following before dinner
-Gretchen will ride Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain
again using her FASTPASSes.
-Liberty Belle Riverboat
-Meet Princess Tiana
4:30pm: Dinner at Columbia Harbour House (the tuna sandwich sounds great!)
5:15pm: After dinner
-Haunted Mansion
-Hall of Presidents
-Tiki Room
-Get a Jungle Cruise FASTPASS and ride later
-Pirates of the Caribbean
-Swiss Family Treehouse
9:00pm: Wishes!
9:30pm: Back to Kidani Village
11:00pm: Bed

*Longest Wait of the Day: 12 min-Liberty Belle Riverboat/Hall of Presidents/Tiki Room
*Shortest Wait of the Day: 0 min-Swiss Family Treehouse

Day 3: Blizzard Beach
7:45am: Wake up, eat breakfast in room
9:00am: Be at bus stop
10:00am-1:00pm: Slide/swim/float at Blizzard Beach
1:00pm: Return to Kidani Village/eat lunch/shower/nap?
3:30pm: Take the bus to MK, boat to Poly
5:00pm: Dinner at Ohana
7:00pm: Take monorail to Grand Floridian and look around
7:45pm: Take monorail to MK, bus back to AKV
9:00pm: Bed

I'm really excited!

 

[bellebookworm9]

Here are some more of our itineraries!

Day 4: Disney Studios
6:45am: Wake up/eat breakfast in the room
7:45am: Be at bus stop
8:45am: Be at the rope-we're booking it to TSM
9:00am-2:00pm: We will do the following
-Get a FASTPASS for TSM, then ride in standby line. Ride later using FASTPASS
-Ride Great Movie Ride
-Ride Star Tours (definitely me, maybe mom)
-See American Idol (is this worth watching?)
-Take the Backlot Tour
-See Lights, Motors Action!
2:00pm-3:30pm: grab lunch at the Backlot Express, meet some characters
3:30pm-5:00pm: See Muppet Vision and Indy Jones
-After these shows, explore the Streets of America, meet some characters, then head back to the hotel
6:30pm: Go for a swim?/eat dinner in the room
9:00pm: Bed

*Longest Wait: 20 Min-Lights, Motors, Action!
*Shortest Wait: 3 Min-Great Movie Ride

Day 5: Downtown Disney
8:00am: Wake up!
8:45: Be at the bus stop for bus to MK, walk from MK to Contemporary
10:00am: Breakfast at Chef Mickey's
11:30am: Take the bus to Downtown Disney
-Shop/explore at World of Disney, Design-a-Tee, Goofy's Candy Co, LEGO Store, Mickey's Mart, Once Upon a Toy
-Grab lunch at Earl of Sandwich
-Take the boat to Port Orleans and walk around (and get some beignets!), take the boat back to DTD after we're done
-Go to West Side and DisneyQuest, Magnetron, get dinner at Wolfgang Puck Express (possibly a sundae at Ghirardelli?)
-Take bus back to AKV
11:00pm: Bed

Day 6: Epcot-World Showcase
9:00am: Wake up/eat breakfast
10:00am: Be at bus stop
11:00am-12:45pm:
-Mexico (Gran Fiesta Tour & Mariachi Cobre)
-Norway (Maelstrom)
-China (Meet Mulan)
-Germany (Meet Snow White & Dopey)
12:55pm: Lunch at Le Cellier!
2:15pm-8:00pm:
-Canada (O Canada! and Off Kilter, if they're playing-right now they don't play on Saturday)
-UK (Meet Mary Poppins & Alice, see The British Invasion and World Showcase Players)
-France (Meet Aurora, Belle & Beast, and Marie if she's there, see Serveur Amusant, Impressions de France, grab a snack from the bakery)
-Morocco (See Mo'Rockin and meet Aladdin, Jasmine & Genie)
-Japan (See Miyuki if she's there)
-America (See Voices of Liberty and the American Adventure)
-Look around Italy & Germany
-China (See the acrobats and Reflections of China)
-Grab dinner at Lotus Blossom Cafe or Kringla Bakeri (and definitely get some school bread!)
8:15pm: Get a spot for IllumiNations in World Showcase Plaza
10:30pm: Bed

We're not big shoppers, so that's not our main focus of World Showcase. I can't make an actual plan for the shows until the day before we leave, but I might not make one anyway and just let us wander and if there's a group we want to see, try and be there at the time they perform.

 

[bellebookworm9]

Day 7: Animal Kingdom

I FINALLY got a decent Animal Kingdom plan that didn't require us to run all over the park. I decided we will keep one of our GAD vouchers to use for this day, just to be on the safe side! (These allow you to get a FP that's good all day, available for use immediately. Between the two of us we will have 6 to use on KS and EE, and 6 for KRR and Primeval Whirl, if we need them.)

7:00am: Wake up/eat breakfast
8:00am: Be at bus stop
8:30am: Exchange GAD vouchers for FP cards at ticket window
9:00am:
-Ride Kilimanjaro Safaris and get a FP for later
-Ride Kali River Rapids or get a FP if it's too cold to ride right now
-See Flights of Wonder
-Take the Maharajah Jungle Trek
-Get a FP for EE
-Possibly get a FP/immediately ride Primeval Whirl
-Eat lunch of sandwiches
-See Finding Nemo
-Ride Kilimanjaro Safaris using FP
-Pangani Forest Exploration Trail
-See Mickey's Jammin' Jungle Parade
-Eat dinner at Flame Tree Barbecue
-Walk the Discovery Island Trails
-See Festival of the Lion King
-Mom can leave to go back to AKV or people watch in Asia while Gretchen rides EE 2x
7:00pm: Back to AKV
9:00pm: Bed!

*Longest Wait:30 Min- Finding Nemo: The Musical
*Shortest Wait: 0 Min- Pangani Trail/Maharajah Trek/Discovery Island Trails

 

[bellebookworm9]

Day 8: Magic Kingdom
6:45am: Wake up/ eat breakfast in room
7:45am: Be at bus stop
9:00am:
-Get 2 Space Mountain FPs
-Ride Buzz Lightyear 2x
-Ride Snow White
-Ride Winnie the Pooh
9:45am: Be at Toontown Rope Drop. Meet the Fairies, then if we have time tour Mickey's & Minnie's houses.
11:10am: Get FPs for Peter Pan before lunch
11:20am: Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern (11:30)
-Monster's Inc Comedy Club
-TTA
-Carousel of Progress
-Gretchen rides Space Mountain using FP
-Afternoon Break
-Mickey's PhilharMagic
-Peter Pan's Flight (use FP)
-it's a small world
9:00pm: SpectroMagic
10:00pm: Wishes
11:30pm: Bed!

*Longest Wait: 14 Min- Monsters Inc Comedy Club
*Shortest Wait: 1 Min- TTA

 

[Jess6001]

Day 7: Animal Kingdom

I FINALLY got a decent Animal Kingdom plan that didn't require us to run all over the park. I decided we will keep one of our GAD vouchers to use for this day, just to be on the safe side! (These allow you to get a FP that's good all day, available for use immediately. Between the two of us we will have 6 to use on KS and EE, and 6 for KRR and Primeval Whirl, if we need them.)

Subbing! I love the detail of your PTR...however, I just want to point out one thing about the GAD and fastpasses. From what you said, I thought that you meant that you'll get 6 sets of FPs to use for once GAD voucher. Although Disney does give you up to 6, if you have 6 people in your party, you won't be able to get 6 w/ just your mom and you b/c they require you to present the tickets of the people in your party when you pick them up. Since you'll only have 2 park tickets, you'll only be able to get two sets of FPs. If you already knew this, then sorry...just wanted to make sure you knew!

Keep up the great PTR!

 

[bellebookworm9]

Subbing! I love the detail of your PTR...however, I just want to point out one thing about the GAD and fastpasses. From what you said, I thought that you meant that you'll get 6 sets of FPs to use for once GAD voucher. Although Disney does give you up to 6, if you have 6 people in your party, you won't be able to get 6 w/ just your mom and you b/c they require you to present the tickets of the people in your party when you pick them up. Since you'll only have 2 park tickets, you'll only be able to get two sets of FPs. If you already knew this, then sorry...just wanted to make sure you knew!

Keep up the great PTR!

Yes, I knew that. What I meant is that we will have one voucher, and we can get up to 6 FP Exchange cards using the one voucher. We will only have 2 cards unless we find 4 more people! Each card has 3 FPs good for KS and EE, and 3 for ITTBAB, KRR, and PW. And since we will have 2 cards that's 6 and 6 in all It's confusing, I know! I had to find a website that explained it all very clearly!