Because We're Insane: Driving & Triple Split Stay! Updated 10/23. Pg.16

[JenSop]

.....continued.....


On our way out of the park, we caught the tail end of the afternoon parade. We thought we'd stay so we could get some pics.

I felt SO bad for the poor CM's in that parade. The fur characters must have been soaked from head to toe inside their costumes - heck, even the poor dancers who were not heavily clothed, were dripping sweat.

By the time the parade ended, it really hit me how hot I was. I was soaked and felt kind of sick. It was time to go.


We went back to OKW for some swimming, then got ready for dinner.

Tonight we were going to be eating at Hacienda de San Angel - the new restaurant in Mexico! For those of you who haven't been in awhile, this restaurant is NOT inside the Mexico pavilion. They totally redid what was just the counter service outside, and made it into a combination of a table service restaurant and a counter service restaurant.

Tonight I was going to wear my awesome dress that I thought worked for Mexican restaurant.

Olé!


(hehe!)


Once we got to Epcot, we filmed the intro talking about Soarin' (also on my Top 10.)

Then we headed to Mexico. Since we were early, we went inside first.

(Still haven't gotten around to checking out the new tequila bar there...)

We had an 8pm ADR, so it was just about time to check in.

Before long, we were shown inside and this was the view from our table.

The restaurant is set up really well for being able to view Illuminations from your seat. (Why else would I choose an 8pm ADR?)


Our server's name was Jesus (pronounce in spanish, people!)

First up was the tequila flight!

Of course it wouldn't be a mexican dinner without chips and salsa!

(Green salsa was mild, and the red salsa was chipotle with smokiness and heat.)


And our appetizer was the "Bonita", which was three different specialties.

Excellent!

Here's what our booth looked like:

By the time the apps came, I was certainly feeling that tequila. (I'm a bit of a light-weight.)

But that didn't stop us from getting more to drink. (What can I say - I like to drink when I'm on vacation. Or out to eat. Or out with friends...... I'm a social drinker!)

Haha!


Here's my next drink - the Rosita Margarita - with tequila, orange liqueur, and rose petal infusion.

Brian got more tequila...

For our entree, we ordered the Del Mar grilled seafood dinner for two.

It was really good.

You know, I had read mixed reviews about Hacienda so far on the DIS, but I have to say that the food was really good and the service was excellent.

Although I would have like the food to be a bit more spicy. Our server warned us that the shrimp would be a bit spicy - which we were excited for - but when it came, it was NOT spicy. I didn't taste any spiciness at all. Bear in mind that we have a high tolerance for spicy, so maybe it might be spicy to people who like bland food or something. To me there was no spice. Just sayin'.


But I have to say again how excellent our server was - AWESOME!

And the food was good, since even though we were both full, we kept on eating.



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[JenSop]

Before long, it was time to watch Illuminations!

Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Smiley face, smiley face, smiley face!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


They piped the music into the restaurant, and even though our view was slightly obstructed because of the wall section, it was still amazing. Pure Disney magic.

And it was quite nice to be watching Illuminations from inside the air conditioning!

For dessert, we went with some of the more unique options.

We got the chocolate pudding with wonton toppings and honey, and the Tamal, which was corn cake made with quava paste and strawberry sauce. Both were really good.

By this time, there was hardly anyone else in the restaurant.

Off we went....

(Another Olé from me in my tipsy-ness.)


Epcot had totally cleared out by this time and looked SO cool!

After getting back to our room, we watched our video footage that we had taken, then went to sleep.


Up next - our AK day AND dinner at Victoria and Albert's!

 

[shan23877]

Can't wait to hear about V&A. I just read a review on the dis about it, and I'm really eager to hear another opinion!

 

[JenSop]

Okay... I'm still rarin' to go, so I'm going to try to whip out another day here. I'm insane!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mwahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!



So for Day 6, we got up before 7am. We were going to AK today and needed to be there for Rope Drop!

We left our room at 7:50am and got to AK nice and early.

As we waited in line at the turnstile, we heard some people behind us speaking in a lovely accent, but seeming to not know totally what to do in AK. I offered to help them with any advice. They were a bit skeptical of this stranger offering help until I told them I was a Disney specialist for a travel agency. Then I gained their trust and we were chatting away about the best AK strategy.

I just love being able to help people with Disney stuff!

Once we got through the ticket turnstiles, we moved to the left and front, so we could be right there for the walking of the rope.

Rope Drop ceremony....

And the walking of the rope back to the safari!

As we approached Africa, there were people coming out of their Tusker House breakfast, just milling about. Until they turned. And saw the massive crowd walking swiftly in their direction. I have to say the look of fear on their faces was real.


Off to the safari!

Yay animal pics!!!

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[JenSop]

.....continued.....

As we got off of the safari vehicle (we were the VERY first car of the day, by the way), we saw that there was a really cool mist floating around.

(What can I say, this kind of ambiance wins me over every time.)

We headed towards Everest to get some FP's.

But the stand by wait was so short, that we decided to just go and do that right away.

Then it was off to ride Dinosaur...

I don't think all the people in our car had ridden this before. I think some of them were a bit freaked out by the dino at the end!

By this time, we were able to get our next FP, so we got some for Kali.

Then we did Maharajah Jungle Trek and Pangani Forest Exploration Trail. We NEVER miss these on any trip, and I had to film some video footage. Although the animals were all kind of over-heated and laying around. I'm going to have to use still pics from previous trips to fill in some of these videos so people can see just how good you can see the animals. But every trip is ALWAYS different and you never know what you're going to see!

We did get a cool hippo shot:

We walked around then and saw DeVine!

and I snapped a shot of this sign:

After that, it was lunch at the Yak and Yeti counter service.

Too much food!


But I tried not to eat too much. Why? We were going to use our Everest FP's!

And this time, I was taking the camera on with me to get action shots on the ride!!!

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[JenSop]

.....continued......

Okay - time for EE - WITH the camera out!


First little hill just as you get going:

On our way up the first big hill:

View looking down from the train car:

Hey! There's a waterfall!

Ummm..... where's the track?!

The Yeti!

Well, after that, you know it goes kind of fast and is not conducive to picture taking. But just know that it was awesome as always!

Then, it was time to use our FP's for Kali River Rapids! Thanks GOD for FP!!!!

We got all of our stuff put into a plastic trash bag that we brought from the room. We warned our fellow riders that you'll either get a little wet or insanely soaked.

We got soaked.

But in that heat, it was very welcomed!


As we got out, the monkeys were hooting up a storm and playing like crazy. I think we stayed here for about half an hour just watching them. (Especially the cute baby monkey!)

After Kali, we did some gift shopping, then headed out.

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[JenSop]

.....continued....

So we went back to the resort for a little bit of pool time.

Once back in the room, I noticed that I had gotten a call from one of my friends that I've done a few shows with. She just retired and was also in Disney at the same time. (I booked her trip!)

We were planning on meeting up for lunch in Epcot the next day. That meant bagging our Fulton's reservation - but that was okay. CS in Epcot was covered on our meal plan. Fulton's was going to be out of pocket. We made the right choice.


But it was time to get ready for our dinner at Victoria and Albert's! I was SO excited to finally try it!

Here's my awesome dress for dinner! (And my super obvious tan line to go with it!)

Dinner was amazing and fancy. Fancy was the word I used the most when we got there. I had never been in a place like this before. We had two servers, our menus were personalized, and they did EVERYTHING for you. It was unreal.

But that's where I'm going to stop for now because I want to see if I can find my menu and give you the FULL details of our meal. It was SO GOOD.

SO.

GOOD.

 

[JenSop]

Can't wait to hear about V&A. I just read a review on the dis about it, and I'm really eager to hear another opinion!

Oh, it was awesome! Just wait!

 

[Sooze]

I'm assuming you did not sleep last night... HOLY UPDATES!!!

I have to start with your Dinosaur ride photo. I was laughing so hard my kids had to come see what was so funny. I LOVE how your whole ride vehicle looks like they are about to wet themselves, then there's you and Brian just waving... "HEeeeey!!" HILARIOUS!!

Next, your parade pictures. WOW! You got some GREAT shots! Hope you are able to use them for your travel agency stuff.

Your dresses are fantastic (even with the tan line). You have inspired me to bring a dress or two along when Matt and I make our own trip again. It probably feels great to clean up and get 'pretty' for your evenings out with your man!

Awesome report, Jen. Thanks so much for sharing. Super excited to hear about VandA!

 

[saintstickets]

Continue to enjoy your TR as I post very little and lurk a lot!

Glad to see DeVine is still "hanging" around....I have yet to see her/him/it when we have been there. Great pics from EE. I'm too busy hanging on to dare anything like that!

Don't you just love Kali River Rapids? It is one of my favorite rides.

Can't wait to read of your experience at V&A. AAA rates it as one of only 43 5 diamond restaurants in the entire U.S. and the one time DW and I ate there during our trip the week after Thanksgiving, 2010, it was well deserved of the rating. I hope your dining experience (it's not just a meal!) was as fantastic as ours.

 

[JenSop]

I'm assuming you did not sleep last night... HOLY UPDATES!!!

I have to start with your Dinosaur ride photo. I was laughing so hard my kids had to come see what was so funny. I LOVE how your whole ride vehicle looks like they are about to wet themselves, then there's you and Brian just waving... "HEeeeey!!" HILARIOUS!!

Next, your parade pictures. WOW! You got some GREAT shots! Hope you are able to use them for your travel agency stuff.

Your dresses are fantastic (even with the tan line). You have inspired me to bring a dress or two along when Matt and I make our own trip again. It probably feels great to clean up and get 'pretty' for your evenings out with your man!

Awesome report, Jen. Thanks so much for sharing. Super excited to hear about VandA!

Haha! Thanks on the Dino pic! Yeah - us vets know when that last dino pops out (AND that it's the picture spot) - we're always ready!

And thanks on the dresses - I'm a tough girl who can work hard, but I also love wearing pretty dresses! Getting dressed up and putting on make-up to go out is fun! I highly recommend it!

Continue to enjoy your TR as I post very little and lurk a lot!

Glad to see DeVine is still "hanging" around....I have yet to see her/him/it when we have been there. Great pics from EE. I'm too busy hanging on to dare anything like that!

Don't you just love Kali River Rapids? It is one of my favorite rides.

Can't wait to read of your experience at V&A. AAA rates it as one of only 43 5 diamond restaurants in the entire U.S. and the one time DW and I ate there during our trip the week after Thanksgiving, 2010, it was well deserved of the rating. I hope your dining experience (it's not just a meal!) was as fantastic as ours.

Thanks for reading!

I totally love Kali, but EE is so much better for me by far! But then again, I really do love roller coasters. And it's only after riding it a bazillion times that I'd finally gotten the idea to keep the camera out and take pics. It was strapped on to my wrist really tight and I knew exactly when I needed to hold on to it a bit tighter.

V&A was an amazing experience. I would totally recommend it to anyone!

 

[MEK]

Holy cow Jen! Did you do a heavy dose of caffeine or something last night. Holy Mega Update. So much I don't know where to begin.

I remember being there june two years ago and it was hot like that. so hot that you do start to feel sick and even crossing the parking lot is painful. Yuck. I swore I would never go back in summer, but I booked a trip for next June.

Love your dress for LaHacienda. Very festive! Aren't the ritas there superb? Your dinner and desserts also look delish!

Love your lion picture! I never see the lion. I must always go at the wrong time.

Love your dress for V&A's and I can't wait to hear all about it. I'm sure it was superb!

 

[Merida]

Wow! Take a break for work and there's suddenly five zillion new posts!

I miss living in Pennsylvania because none of the food I grew up with is available out here in Colorado (and people didn't know about Fasnacht Day!)

I'm seeing more and more of my opera friends doing tours in Austria and they look like so much fun to organize and do!

Star Tours looks like so much fun - it was one of my favorite rides before it was refurbed and I'm glad they didn't mess up the renovations. Plus the glasses are cool.

I love the desk - though I wonder how they knew he was the WD? It makes me laugh to think that they just grabbed a desk to give to their most famous alum because he was visiting.

Ugh, free dining day must have been terrible! I called in, but didn't actually have to wait. Maybe because I called two hours after the rush? I did use my boyfriend's cell phone, which has a Florida area code, so maybe there are super secret Florida phone lines?

You have such great pictures! I would never get photopass because the only photo-friendly ones in our family are the cats, but you always have such creative poses.

Love the lights in Hacienda de San Angel.

 

[mousegear]

Great update Jen! I think this is one of the longest update I've read!!! I love reading it all instead of little bits. I'm very excited that you liked La Hacienda. We have ADR this Sept. and are really looking forward to it. We love spicy food and have very high tolerance than average people so I'm pretty sure we will be ok. I love your dresses for both La Hacienda and V&A.

 

[Shannon84]

So many updates, I dont know where to begin!! I am loving all of your top choices...I have been over to Tom Sawyers Island once, but haven't really taken the time to check it out. I may have to do that this trip, I didnt realize how much was going on there How cool that you caught the parade and got the close up shots of characters...though they were probably sweating like crazy!!

I am glad to hear your dinner in EPCOT was good, I have been reading a lot of mixed reviews on the boards, very cool to watch Illuminations from there

I LOVE the pics you got while riding EE! I cannot wait to read about V&A's

 

[Villainess]

All caught up! *Love* all of your dinner dresses, but esp. the Mexico and V&A ones!

 

[ajf1007]

Me too, me too!! I'm all caught up and ready for another update. I have to say, you've pointed out many things that I've never taken the time to do. I never even looked twice at Sawyers Island - now I want to check it out - never rode the Dinosaur - now I totally want to - there are many more, but you get the idea.

I also have to agree with all of the PP's, your dresses were awesome! I can't pick a favorite one, I loved them all. I agree, after being all sweaty and yucky from the parks all day, it feels so nice to shower, get dressed up and feel like a person again!

BTW - I checked out your FB page and saw the video - LOVED IT! I'm in the process of starting a monthly newsletter for our family, to get us going for our trip next year and since none of my other family members have been there before, I realized I should share the FP info! Thanks!

So I'm anxiously awaiting the next update! I love your TR's!!!

 

[JenSop]

Hi everyone.

Thanks so much for reading along and being patient with me.

I hope you'll be a little more patient, as I have to take a brief break from the TR. I can't talk about it right now, but there are some difficulties going on here and that's really all I can say.

I promise I will be back to finish this up - I know you'll all love the pics of the food at V&A's. Probably the best food I've ever eaten.

I hope some of you will stick around when I pick this back up.

MODERATORS - please don't close my thread. I am going to finish it, I just need a little bit of time right now. Thanks.

 

[ShesAPirate]

Hope everything is okay, Jen!

Don't worry, your readers will still be here when you come back!

 

[disneyjr77]

we'll be here when you get back, take your time. I hope everything is ok, hang in there!!