I felt like Bambi on his worst day. As I slid my ticket into the slot at the turnstile, I KNEW it wasn’t going to work. Bunny’s did, once again. Nana’s did not. And predictably, mine did not.
Once again, we were “stepped aside” by a CM who checked out our tickets and admitted us after calling our resort to confirm the length and dates of our tickets. Once again we were heartily admonished to have our tickets re-issued at the front desk back at POR because they had become demagnetized. Once again, we were warned NOT to keep our tickets next to our cell phones (we weren’t!) or with our credit cards (we weren’t!).
Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to point out that we were both wearing our Keys to the World in little plastic sleeves attached to our lanyards which were around our necks, nowhere in the vicinity of the cell phones and credit cards which were being carried in our backpack purses! I pointed this out to the CM, who was unimpressed, and began that familiar litany of dire warnings…can’t be held responsible for …blah blah blah…sudden violent outbursts…blah blah blah….dangerously high levels of mercury…yada yada yada.
All right, all right! Let us in already. We’ll get the cards re-issued. Sheesh, we wouldn’t want to be responsible for the fall of democracy, or anything.
We begin to make our way down Main Street, when I spot a PhotoPass photographer, and we stop for the obligatory picture of Bunny with the castle. We also got the gotta have it pic of Bunny holding that sassy Tink in her outstretched hands. And a couple more great shots of Bunny not looking at the camera.
Once again, my master scheduling plan for the day had been foiled by Dr. Incredible and his nefarious minions in the case of the cracked molar, so I threw caution to the wind, and suggested we wing it, more or less, for the rest of the afternoon. We actually hadn’t too much time until dinner at the Castle, so there wasn’t much winging to be done. We hung around Fantasyland for a very short while, and then it was time to meet Cinderella. The line was short, and Bunny got a nice picture with the Princess. Shortly, our name was announced and we took the elevator upstairs to be seated.
Not looking at the camera:
We adored the interior of the castle as much as the outside. It was just beautiful! And being called “my lady” just added to the regal feel, though I suspected they charged extra for this little amenity. Bunny was addressed as “Princess”, and when I inquired as to whether or not that made me queen, our waitress said she hoped not, because queens hadn’t a very good name around those parts. I suppose she was thinking of Snow White’s Mama, and, although she wasn’t royalty, perhaps Cinderella’s evil stepmother.
Nana and I ordered the Prime Rib, and had just been served our salads when, who do you think was seated right at the very table next to ours, but Princess Gianna of New Jersey and her mother and Nana, from our table at the Princess Tea earlier in the day. The girls were thrilled beyond belief to see each other again. Bunny and Gianna wasted no time in hugging each other, jumping up and down, and squealing in unison at a pitch best appreciated by organisms with completely intact cochlear structures. We got several pictures of the princesses together, including a keeper shot of Bunny trying to teach the younger Gianna how to whistle (a newly acquired skill).
A whistling tutorial:
We thoroughly enjoyed our meal, and I the very chocolaty dessert that followed it. We wished Princess Gianna and her ladies in waiting a magical evening and whisked ourselves down the spiral staircase and back into the great outdoors. Once again we were at the Magic Kingdom under the cover of darkness. Every light seemed to twinkle with magic and merriment. Even the tin foil volcano interior on Peter Pan’s flight seemed marginally more magical. Mostly.
Within minutes, Wishes began overhead, but Bunny, not being overly fond of loud noises, wanted to ignore the fireworks and score a few more rides before the park closed. That was fine with me. One really couldn’t ignore Wishes entirely, anyway, but it was difficult to appreciate the full effect while charging across Fantasyland. We were able to hit up Dumbo, Peter Pan and IASW for repeat performances at Bunny’s request. Then we wandered over to ToonTown Fair, where Bunny wanted to check out Minnie’s digs.
Unfortunately, someone was stationed outside Minnie’s cottage, deterring us from entering. It was either a CM or a uniformed real estate agent. When we asked if we could still see Minnie anywhere, we were directed inside the Hall of Fame Tent, where, we were told, both a dance party and all heck were about to break loose. Furthermore, it was rumored that Minnie would very likely be getting her groove on.
Once inside the “tent”, however, we saw neither hide nor hair of Minnie, and no sign of dancing, so we got in line to see Mickey. I think we were one of Mickey’s last visitors of the day, as there was no one in line behind us, and he patiently took his time with Bunny, getting down on one knee and listening attentively as she explained that she had waited “a forever long time” to get to come and see him. Mickey sweetly hugged Bunny and patted her head and cheek, then signed her “odergraph” book, and accepted Bunny’s own odergraph, which she insisted he have, to add to his collection.
Still not looking at the camera:
After our audience with the mouse, we found ourselves back inside the gift shop that is connected to the Hall of Fame Tent, and that’s when things got a little crazy. Somebody cranked the tunes and suddenly, there were characters everywhere.
STILL not...you know....
Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Belle in her yellow ball gown, Goofy, Donald, Minnie, Eeyore and Pooh were all there. Bunny hardly knew where to turn. Goofy began to limbo, and a conga line was started by that wild party animal, Snow White.
A wild party animal:
Seriously, if you are traveling with small children or other guests who gotta see the characters, go, go, go to the Toontown Hall of Fame at closing time. Lots of great character interaction, and video/photo ops!
When the dance party ended, we made our way back toward Main Street, our autograph books and camera memory cards full. We were tired, but very happy. As we headed toward the park exit, I heard someone shouting behind us, “Princess! Oh Princess!” Bunny turned, and a CM who was sweeping up said to her, “Princess, did you make a wish?” gesturing toward the sky, where the fireworks had now faded. Bunny nodded, and the CM smiled and said, “I hope it comes true!”
Wow…those little magical touches are the finesse that makes the World STILL the happiest place on earth, for me, and for Bunny, too. We smiled big goofy grins at each other as we walked hand-in-hand out of the park, and home through the cooling night air, winking back at the stars that deigned to share their secrets with us and grant our wishes.
Can't wait to hear more!
And for putting up with all my "proud mama" gushing. 
Glad you liked the pics. I couldn't find some of the ones I wanted to post, doggone it! Oh, well, you get the idea, anyway. Wasn't that forgery something? And the funniest part was listening to her trying to convince me that it really was from her teacher. Hoo boy, we had to sit down and have a little chat about honesty at that point! (Once I'd collected myself and stopped laughing inside...)
Did you little ones enjoy it? It sure sounds like fun!
I sympathize with her, though, because I'm not fond of spinach, either.
