Can you really call it a solo trip if you have plans with 8 million DISers? Day 4

[TLinden16]

Day 4--Thursday, December 1, 2005

I was up bright and early after another late night at the bar, and ready to go have some more fun! I walked over to the Dolphin with Goofy4Tink to meet up with KristaTX, KayTX, and Towncrier, who were having breakfast at Tubbi’s with NancyIL. We sat and gabbed while they finished up breakfast, and then all of us but NancyIL took the boat over to Disney/MGM Studios.

We immediately headed down to Tower of Terror and the Rock ‘N Roller Coaster, and took a ride on both of them. I was so proud of Goofy4Tink. She doesn’t like the Tower of Terror, but she road on it with us anyways, although she did have to hold on to the handle while the rest of us had our hands waving in the air.

We then took a ride on the Great Movie ride. We walked around the park a bit killing time before heading over to Who Wants to Be a Millionaire--Play It. We were hoping that our good friend KristaTX would make it to the hot seat with a bunch of crazy DISers cheering her on. Most of us made it into the top ten, and both Towncrier and KristaTX spent some time in the top spot, but time ran out before they had the chance to make it to the hot seat. I was number 7, and I was very proud! I didn’t try as hard as the others--the thought of going into the hot seat petrifies me. I know I would choke.

After the show, we met up with CrazyBoutDisney. We went to another Millionaire show, and once again, no one in our group made it into the hot seat. I guessed wrong on a Mickey Mouse Club question, so I tanked out pretty early (Mickey Mouse Club was way before my time, and I didn’t wait to hear all the answers before guessing).

WebmasterKathy met up with us at the studios after the show. She would have been there earlier, except she walked on the wrong side of the water when she began her walk from the Swan and wound up in the Swan parking lot. Oops.

Goofy4Tink, CrazyBoutDisney, and I said goodbye to the others, and headed out of the park. We walked back towards the Boardwalk. Along the way, we ran into IluvDisney’s DH, and he told us that she was at the Boardwalk with her sister and brother-in-law. I called IluvDisney and told her that I was having really strong vibes that my good DIS friend was in the area.

Goofy4Tink went up to her room, and CrazyBoutDisney and I went to say hello to IluvDisney. We chatted with her, her sister, and her brother-in-law for a few minutes.

CrazyBoutDisney and I headed over to Epcot and had lunch at Nine Dragons. I got my typical Nine Dragons meal--pot stickers and General Tso’s Chicken. CrazyBoutDisney got Shrimp Toast and Sweet and Sour Pork. We both really enjoyed our meals.

After lunch, we headed over to catch a set by Epcot Vybe, and they were as fantastic as ever. I really love this group. They are just so amazingly talented. I like the better when they are singing at the Rotunda in the American Adventure, though. The sound is a lot richer in there.

We then headed over to the International Gateway for the DVC Merry Mixer. We met up with a lot of our DIS DVC friends there, including: CrazyBoutDisney’s husband DaveH, Goofy4Tink, KarenNY, IluvDisney, and CherylP3. I’m sure there were a lot of other DIS folk there, but there are too many to list.

I was able to get my picture taken with Mickey and Minnie in their holiday best. I also had a picture taken with Goofy. Goofy4Tink had her picture taken with one of those scary long neck reindeer.

After the Merry Mixer, Goofy4Tink and I walked back to the Boardwalk to get ready to head over to the Magic Kingdom for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. I wasn’t going to go to the party, but I got peer pressured into going by my dear friends.

Goofy4Tink and I waited a long time to get a bus to the Magic Kingdom. When one arrived, it was pretty much filled by folks at the Boardwalk. When we went on the Swan, the driver decided there wasn’t any room for others. I saw KristaTX and KayTX standing there, so I screamed, “Bye, Krista & Kay.” So, the driver asked everyone to move further back in the bus, and Krista, Kay, and a few other people were able to board.

When we got to the Magic Kingdom, we met up with Kaycee for a quick hello. I stopped at the Chapeau to buy a holiday Mickey ears. I actually bought the kids version so that they would stay on my head with the string.

We then met up with Ray Sharpton, and a bunch of other DISers/Mouse fest folks for Mickey’s Twas the Night before Christmas. We were the first group in line, and found ourselves some great seats a few rows from the stage. The show was a lot of fun. I’ve seen it the past several years, and it always entertains me. I love it when Minnie sings “Santa Baby” to Goofy.

After the show, we went to check out the party merchandise. I didn’t buy anything. I think the only person in our group who bought something was Goofy4Tink. We then went to have our picture taken. Even though they said there was an eight person limit, they let us have ten people in our group picture.

We then went over to Mickey’s Philharmagic. We may have done one or two other things before heading over to Cosmic Ray’s for dinner. I got a bacon cheese burger, which was half decent once I loaded it with condiments. The quality of the fast food burgers has really gone downhill. I won’t buy one unless there’s a good fixings bar.

After dinner, everyone else headed to the Rose Garden for the big Mousefest Fireworks viewing. I wanted to run up to the camera shop to print out the picture I had taken of Scotty wearing the tiara so that I could frame it for him, and give it to him the next night at the bar. That took a lot longer than expected, as the machine didn’t seem to want to read my memory card. Some Japanese woman was trying to help me even though I didn’t need it. It wound up printing up extra copies of my pictures.

By the time I got out, I wasn’t able to make it to the Rose Garden to watch the fireworks with the others, so I wound up finding myself a nice spot in front of Casey’s. I really enjoyed the fireworks, although they aren’t as good as the regular Wishes fireworks, or the display at Disneyland.

After the fireworks, I went to say a quick hello to Isyne4u and her mom and sons. I was very excited to meet her sons. I’ve heard so much about them in the past couple of years, so it was nice to finally meet them. They were so cute.

I then went back to the Rose Garden to meet up with the others. I said hello to a few people, and we headed over to ride on the Haunted Mansion and the Pirates of the Caribbean. Dan Murphy pointed out that we had lined ourselves up in rows according to where we were from. Goofy4Tink and I represented Massachusetts. Krista, Kay, and Kathy represented Texas. Dan and NancyIL represented Illinois. I feel bad for the people who were on the boat with us because we were singing and clapping along throughout the ride.

After Pirates, we went to the Diamond Horseshoe to get some cocoa and cookies, and watch the parade. We had a decent spot for the parade, and I sang and danced along throughout the parade.

After the parade, we headed over to the Carousel to meet up with Ray Sharpton and others. We road the Carousel several times without getting off. We then went for a ride on Peter Pan.

 

[pumba]

what a fantastic night for a party. We had a good time last year and hopefully next year we can do it again...

Thanks so much for the great report Karen..

 

[CamColt]

I agree about the fireworks. After seeing Remember...Dreams Come True on my last 2 Disney trips, these were disappointing. I thought the actual fireworks were pretty good, but I didnt like how it was totally holiday themed. I wanted more "Disney" in them. I had expected Holiday Wishes to be Wishes with some holiday stuff thrown in, not all holiday.