Baileymouse
<font color=teal>Has now been touched by the Tag F
- Joined
- Jan 19, 2001
- Messages
- 1,047
Hi All,
Just got back last night from my trip. I drove down because of flight cancellations last week.
I left NJ on Saturday, 9/15. Picked up my Mom and drove to Fayetteville. Everywhere we stopped (rest stops, food places) people were gathered around TV sets. Everyone was displaying the flag. People had them posted up on the overpasses on I-95. It was amazing.
Mom hates car trips so she wasn't a happy camper when we had to get back in the car on Sunday. I drove another 9 hours and found Orlando.
Friends who had moved there a couple of months ago were expecting us and they insisted that we stay for the night. Gotta love friends!!!! They took us over to Downtown Disney that evening for some shopping and ice cream. DD looked good, still full but not as empty as I would have thought. One of our friends works for the Hard Rock Hotel and he was down to 10 hours this week because of a lack of guests.
On Monday we checked into our room at OKW. I was very disappointed with the room. There were many problems with it, things that I usually don't see at any Disney resort. Do they not take care of the studios? It was bizarre. The drains weren't working, the a/c wasn't working (and when it was fixed it leaked all over the rug), the remote was cracked and broken, and some inconsiderate person left the alarm clock set for 7AM so that the next morning we were blasted awake.
Because security was so tight we had to list our friends as staying in our room so that they could come over during the day to pick us up and go places. The weather was beautiful - a bit too warm. I burnt immediately. We went in the main pool and found it to be too cold. Then we went in the hot tub and the jets weren't working. Another visitor called maintenance and they said they would send someone over but they didn't while we were still there.
My friends decided to call Chef Mickey's and see if we could get reservations for that evening. We did. That's a first! People usually can't get in there. When we got there we noticed empty tables.We were kinda rowdy and the characters kept coming back to our table. When my friend commented that he wanted a napkin holder like the one there because it matched his kitchen, Mickey made a motion indicating that he should smuggle it out in his shirt. We died laughing! It was truly funny and dinner was great. If you like characters and you like kids, it's a great restaurant. The food was fantastic.
Afterwards we walked around the Contemporary and bought a few items. The biggest selling item of the week is the American Flag Mickey head pin. It's sold out at every location. Mom wanted one and couldn't find one anywhere. We called it a night at 10:30.
The next day rain had been threatened but it was taken out of the forecast so we put on our suits and headed to Typhoon lagoon. I hadn't been there in years but I still love it!!!! Everything is clean, the pools are great and the river rafts are the most relaxing. We went on slides, hung out in the wave pool, and cultivated our sunburns.
Most of the people around us were British. It wasn't crowded at all. There weren't any waits for the slides. We drank as much water as we could because it was so hot.
That night we had reservations for Ohana's - another really fantastic meal. The place was more than half empty. We were supposed to have 2 more members to our party but they didn't come down because of air travel problems and they didn't have time to fly. The server told us that it's never that empty. We had a great time - it's sort of like Rodizio - all those skewers of meat. Yum! Everything was delicious. We skipped dessert and went over to the Yacht and Beach club to have ice cream at Beaches and Cream - again yum! The Y&B were empty. Ghost town empty. I've never seen anything like this.
On Wednesday we spent the entire day in Epcot. Again, it was empty and we were able to get on the Test Track without a fastpass - there wasn't any line! Mom was upset becuase she still couldn't find that pin she wanted. We didn't do too much in future world other than Spaceship Earth and the Test Track because we wanted to get back to the World Showcase. I've never before seen anyone from Mexico have to come out and ask people if they wanted to have lunch at the San Angel Inn. We rode the boats in Mexico and Norway, saw the Chinese Acrobats, had wine in Germany (pretty good!) and ignored Italy, which had some scaffolding up. When we went to the American Adventure we were ready for seats and a/c. The show always makes people tear up, but when the sweeping view of the NY skyline comes on at the end, I lost it completely and cried. So did many others.
After that I bought some stuff in Japan and our party had pastry in France. Mom tried to buy perfume in Guerlain but they were out of what she wanted. Mom was really disappointed - she looks forward to going to Guerlain because they carry stuff the department stores don't. Now it seems they are cutting back like the other Guerlain boutiques. We decided to leave because we were hot. We went through the UK and I bought my DH an Underground t-shirt. A gentleman came in wearing pins and wanted to trade with the lady at the counter. Mom saw he had the Mickey pin she wanted - the American Flag - and asked him where he had found it. He asked her where she was from and she said "Brooklyn." He told her he was from Connecticut and that she needed it more than him and he gave it to her!!!! She broke down and cried, which embarrassed him because he walked out. It was the nicest gesture and if he reads this I hope he knows that he really made her very happy.
We went back to the hotel and swam in one of the smaller pools, which was warmer. It was very relaxing, and we ran some wash. I know that the other rooms have the washers in them but the studios don't and you have to use the laundry room. What moron put those dryers up so high??? The tile floors are slippery, too. We had to use a chair to get stuff out! Not safe. We wanted to go to Sassagoula's at PO for a light dinner but they were closed. I can't believe it! We had to go to the Cotton Mill at riverside, not the same for us. We like Sassagoula's.
The next day we went to Universal. Had fun, headed back and went swimming again. Mom went to sleep for a late afternoon nap. My friend decided to surprise her with dinner at Boma at the AKL. We got dressed, woke her up and took her over. WOW! What a place! The AKL is stunning. I'm not a huge fan of dark wood and rustic looks but the place is spectacular. Boma was out of this world. If you aren't adventurous don't try it but if you appreciate all different types of foods this is the place for you! The buffet was scrumptious and the service was excellent. It was great to walk around afterwards and see all the animals. The rooms that overlook the back looked nice - people who left their curtains open and their lights on ought to be warned - especially for those on their honeymoons
!!!!
So, that was it for us. Friday morning we got up, met our friends over at their place, and had a final breakfast together. Then it was off to NJ for me. I made it from Orlando to Petersburg, VA before I couldn't go anymore. Stayed at the HI Express, got in the car the next morning and came home.
I'm really, really happy to be home. I hope the travel and tourism industry picks up again, I really do.
My summary impressions: Both Disney and Universal were empty. I noticed many closed stands and restaurants during our stay.
Maintenance at OKW should have been better. I was sorely disappointed with the room this time.
The AKL shouldn't be missed.
People are wonderful everywhere.
Just got back last night from my trip. I drove down because of flight cancellations last week.
I left NJ on Saturday, 9/15. Picked up my Mom and drove to Fayetteville. Everywhere we stopped (rest stops, food places) people were gathered around TV sets. Everyone was displaying the flag. People had them posted up on the overpasses on I-95. It was amazing.
Mom hates car trips so she wasn't a happy camper when we had to get back in the car on Sunday. I drove another 9 hours and found Orlando.
Friends who had moved there a couple of months ago were expecting us and they insisted that we stay for the night. Gotta love friends!!!! They took us over to Downtown Disney that evening for some shopping and ice cream. DD looked good, still full but not as empty as I would have thought. One of our friends works for the Hard Rock Hotel and he was down to 10 hours this week because of a lack of guests. On Monday we checked into our room at OKW. I was very disappointed with the room. There were many problems with it, things that I usually don't see at any Disney resort. Do they not take care of the studios? It was bizarre. The drains weren't working, the a/c wasn't working (and when it was fixed it leaked all over the rug), the remote was cracked and broken, and some inconsiderate person left the alarm clock set for 7AM so that the next morning we were blasted awake.
Because security was so tight we had to list our friends as staying in our room so that they could come over during the day to pick us up and go places. The weather was beautiful - a bit too warm. I burnt immediately. We went in the main pool and found it to be too cold. Then we went in the hot tub and the jets weren't working. Another visitor called maintenance and they said they would send someone over but they didn't while we were still there.
My friends decided to call Chef Mickey's and see if we could get reservations for that evening. We did. That's a first! People usually can't get in there. When we got there we noticed empty tables.We were kinda rowdy and the characters kept coming back to our table. When my friend commented that he wanted a napkin holder like the one there because it matched his kitchen, Mickey made a motion indicating that he should smuggle it out in his shirt. We died laughing! It was truly funny and dinner was great. If you like characters and you like kids, it's a great restaurant. The food was fantastic.
Afterwards we walked around the Contemporary and bought a few items. The biggest selling item of the week is the American Flag Mickey head pin. It's sold out at every location. Mom wanted one and couldn't find one anywhere. We called it a night at 10:30.
The next day rain had been threatened but it was taken out of the forecast so we put on our suits and headed to Typhoon lagoon. I hadn't been there in years but I still love it!!!! Everything is clean, the pools are great and the river rafts are the most relaxing. We went on slides, hung out in the wave pool, and cultivated our sunburns.
Most of the people around us were British. It wasn't crowded at all. There weren't any waits for the slides. We drank as much water as we could because it was so hot.That night we had reservations for Ohana's - another really fantastic meal. The place was more than half empty. We were supposed to have 2 more members to our party but they didn't come down because of air travel problems and they didn't have time to fly. The server told us that it's never that empty. We had a great time - it's sort of like Rodizio - all those skewers of meat. Yum! Everything was delicious. We skipped dessert and went over to the Yacht and Beach club to have ice cream at Beaches and Cream - again yum! The Y&B were empty. Ghost town empty. I've never seen anything like this.
On Wednesday we spent the entire day in Epcot. Again, it was empty and we were able to get on the Test Track without a fastpass - there wasn't any line! Mom was upset becuase she still couldn't find that pin she wanted. We didn't do too much in future world other than Spaceship Earth and the Test Track because we wanted to get back to the World Showcase. I've never before seen anyone from Mexico have to come out and ask people if they wanted to have lunch at the San Angel Inn. We rode the boats in Mexico and Norway, saw the Chinese Acrobats, had wine in Germany (pretty good!) and ignored Italy, which had some scaffolding up. When we went to the American Adventure we were ready for seats and a/c. The show always makes people tear up, but when the sweeping view of the NY skyline comes on at the end, I lost it completely and cried. So did many others.
After that I bought some stuff in Japan and our party had pastry in France. Mom tried to buy perfume in Guerlain but they were out of what she wanted. Mom was really disappointed - she looks forward to going to Guerlain because they carry stuff the department stores don't. Now it seems they are cutting back like the other Guerlain boutiques. We decided to leave because we were hot. We went through the UK and I bought my DH an Underground t-shirt. A gentleman came in wearing pins and wanted to trade with the lady at the counter. Mom saw he had the Mickey pin she wanted - the American Flag - and asked him where he had found it. He asked her where she was from and she said "Brooklyn." He told her he was from Connecticut and that she needed it more than him and he gave it to her!!!! She broke down and cried, which embarrassed him because he walked out. It was the nicest gesture and if he reads this I hope he knows that he really made her very happy.
We went back to the hotel and swam in one of the smaller pools, which was warmer. It was very relaxing, and we ran some wash. I know that the other rooms have the washers in them but the studios don't and you have to use the laundry room. What moron put those dryers up so high??? The tile floors are slippery, too. We had to use a chair to get stuff out! Not safe. We wanted to go to Sassagoula's at PO for a light dinner but they were closed. I can't believe it! We had to go to the Cotton Mill at riverside, not the same for us. We like Sassagoula's.
The next day we went to Universal. Had fun, headed back and went swimming again. Mom went to sleep for a late afternoon nap. My friend decided to surprise her with dinner at Boma at the AKL. We got dressed, woke her up and took her over. WOW! What a place! The AKL is stunning. I'm not a huge fan of dark wood and rustic looks but the place is spectacular. Boma was out of this world. If you aren't adventurous don't try it but if you appreciate all different types of foods this is the place for you! The buffet was scrumptious and the service was excellent. It was great to walk around afterwards and see all the animals. The rooms that overlook the back looked nice - people who left their curtains open and their lights on ought to be warned - especially for those on their honeymoons
!!!!So, that was it for us. Friday morning we got up, met our friends over at their place, and had a final breakfast together. Then it was off to NJ for me. I made it from Orlando to Petersburg, VA before I couldn't go anymore. Stayed at the HI Express, got in the car the next morning and came home.
I'm really, really happy to be home. I hope the travel and tourism industry picks up again, I really do.
My summary impressions: Both Disney and Universal were empty. I noticed many closed stands and restaurants during our stay.
Maintenance at OKW should have been better. I was sorely disappointed with the room this time.
The AKL shouldn't be missed.
People are wonderful everywhere.
