Our flight wasn’t until 7 p.m. that evening, so even though we’d accomplished everything we had wanted to do at Universal Studios (i.e. Harry Potter stuff), it was only lunchtime and we had some time to ourselves that afternoon.
So, we did what any reasonable person would do when faced with a free afternoon at Universal Studios.
We hopped in the van and drove to Walt Disney World.
Sounds like a perfectly reasonable plan to me!
A couple of years ago, Disney made a rash decision to cease the fun and noise, apparently in an attempt to appease some entitled guests who were born without a sense of humor. Thankfully, those of us who enjoy things like “fun” eventually won out, and the goofiness has returned to the restaurant, even if it’s a bit more low-key than before.
When was this? I think it was 2016 that I went with Naked Jim and we had a hilarious time. Especially with the ketchup and Fran getting put in jail.
Anyway, for this visit, I finally changed my order. I’ve learned the hard way that at 45 years old, all-you-can-eat is not nearly the value it was when I was younger.
Try when you get to 55.
So I ordered a bison burger instead (that’s a fried pickle on top, in case you’re wondering).
Wow!
Scotty has now taken the Biggest Appetite crown in the family, so he got the BBQ dish.
That's A LOT of food!
Even better, another family in the restaurant wanted some ketchup later, so the dad walked over and asked if he could take a bottle from our table. Our server was standing right there and immediately started giving the guy a hard time. “Hey, what are you doing? No, no, no, no! Get back to your table, sir, we got a certain way of doing things around here!”
It was hilarious just watching the utter confusion on the guy’s face. I love watching newbies there. The man’s own server then informed him of the proper procedure, and soon we were delivering 20 bottles of ketchup for their use.
I love that, and especially not knowing what was coming!
Scotty wanted a “little” more Sprite with his meal. The server obliged him.
That's just perfect!
Mission: SPACE still looks good. I’m interested in the new restaurant they’re building there.
I am too! It was supposed to be open by now, but.....
It’s a different feel than Universal. At Universal, I mostly felt like I was in an amusement park. A very well-made amusement park. At Disney, I felt like I’d escaped the real world. That was the difference, to me.
I agree. Even
Disneyland is like that for me. When we stay at the Grand, it's so easy to forgot about home....
We’d fulfilled our long-overdue promise to Sarah, and finally experienced Universal Studios and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
So glad you did it "before". I don't think folks our age will really see normal again in our lifetimes, or we may be too old to enjoy it by the time it rolls around again. Hopefully your kids can raise their kids in something close to the normal that they grew up in.
We were glad to spend the time riding around on boats and monorails, wandering through resorts, and looking at all of the attractions around us. I have a feeling I would have gotten bored trying to do the same around CityWalk.
I've tried to do that, at least at the Royal Pacific. Fran likes to sleep in the afternoons, so I walked around trying to entertain myself and it wasn't nearly as much fun as it would have been at Disney.
Well, folks, here's the update: we pulled the plug on the Alaska trip. It was a sad day yesterday, but I think ultimately it was the call we had to make. In the end, there were too many worst-case scenarios that I couldn't rule out. I think the most likely scenario is that we could have traveled and had a great time and been fine. But there was also risk of either getting the virus, or someone else getting it and causing something on the itinerary to be shut down, and that risk was much higher than zero. In the end, it was too high for me to be comfortable spending the money to go.
I think you made the right decision. Too many variables, especially with delays in testing and all that hooey. Unfortunately, I don't see this ending anytime soon. Too many people who think it's a hoax, or that we are infringing on their rights just keep moving the goal post. Even in California where we had done so well, and then summer came and everyone just said, "Screw it! We're gonna Partay!"
Us, we are staying home, not hanging out with anyone but our cats and trying to keep up with the laundry and dishes!
I hope your alternate plans work out, and I'd still enjoy hearing about your adventures, even if you think they are boring!