CJK
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Feb 5, 2001
- Messages
- 7,595
After a very restful sleep, we were ready to tackle the Magic Kingdom! We got there around 9:30am by bus. Main street is still very beautiful with its decorations during the day! I was trying to soak up the atmospher but dh was determined to get to Tomorrowland as quickly as possible! 
We immediately got a fast pass for space mountain, and lined up for Buzz Lightyear. It was about a 10 minute wait. We didn't mind waiting because we found a couple hidden mickey's in the queue! I joked with dh that I was finally going to beat his score this trip. Well, so much for positive thinking! Dh maxed out in the second room but I ended up with 600,000 - may be my personal best. By now we could use our fast passes for space mountain so off we went. It still baffles me how so many people don't use fast pass. We walked by soooo many people! I even think I saw someone stick out their tongue at me?? 
Anyway, next stop was the TTA. I just love this ride and how it circles tomorrowland. We saw one hidden mickey on this ride. Next, we got to ride the Carousel of Progress!!! I must admit that one wonderful bonus for going during a busy time, is that the Carousel of Progress is open! I really, really like this show/ride and missed it during our last trip during the off season. I think the concept is brilliant. I got a few strange looks from people when I started joining in the singing of the song! After finding some hidden mickey's in the final scene, we decided to leave Tomorrowland.
We had never seen the Country Bear Jamboree Christmas show! What a cute show! We really loved Liverlips McGraw singing as Elvis! Before leaving the MK for the day, we decided to try the Riverboat ride. I don't think either of us have been on it for at least 10yrs. I didn't realize there were animatronics to look at during the voyage. I liked it........dh slept! Go figure! Crowds were continuing to build, so we thought we'd leave the MK for now and take the bus to Fort Wilderness. We really enjoy eating lunch at Pioneer Hall. Our favourite waiter, Donnel, was there entertaining the guests as usual! Sometimes I think I was meant to be a southerner with my love of fried chicken! All the Christmas trees in Fort Wilderness are decorated with the country feel. Charming!
After lunch, we took the boat to Wilderness Lodge. WOW! The lobby is absolutely stunning. I had heard that the Wilderness Lodge was not to be missed. We sat in the lobby for a few minutes just soaking it all in. We wanted to come back at night, but it wasn't in the cards for this trip. Well, that just means we'll have to go back! We then decided to go to Epcot. On our way to world showcase, we saw an incredible acrobat show. Three people dressed in gold attire were standing on a small platform doing many difficult feats that I didn't know the human body was capable of doing!! Absolutely phemonemal show! We got a fast pass for Maelstrom which had been closed duirng our last trip. We had time to go listen to the Liberty singers before heading back to Malestrom. No wonder we don't gain too much weight on our trips - we're practially walking marathons during our trips! Back at Malestrom, we saw the hidden mickey in line and stayed for the film. Does anyone know if the film is new? It had been so long since I had seen it, that I couldn't remember if it was new or not. We really enjoyed it this time.
Next stop was Mexico and the ride there. Nice Mexican version of It's A Small World! It does make me want to go there for a visit. If only we could travel as much as we wanted to!! Just before this trip, we had heard that Spaceship Earth may be closing in 2005 so I had even more nostalgia for the attraction. We went on this ride next and found a whole bunch of hidden mickey's. By now we were pretty thirsty and headed to Ice Station Cool. We didn't see anyone trying the beverley on this trip! I like the watermelon, lemon & gingerale there. We thought we'd try fast pass and see how big the line was there. The singles line didn't seem too bad (about 15min. wait) so we decided to go for it. I got seated with a father and daughter combo and the father just had to tell me a story. He said that he and his daughter had been in the back of the line when a cast member got them out of line and brought them inside. The CM explained that he does this once each day and brings a family inside to the top of the line. They got passes for other rides for the rest of the day (for no long waits in line). The guy was beyond excited!! He kept saying, "only in Disneyworld"! Nice to see that the disney magic is indeed alive and well!!!! 
We decided to do the Imagination ride one last time before it closed. We bumped into some friends so they joined us for the rest of the day. One of my favourite buildings in future world is the Land building. We wanted to try to do all the ride and shows in there today, but we didn't have time. We did do the land ride though and found two hidden mickey's made out of pumpkins! It was fun to see. We still are amazed by the greenhouses here. Gives me inspiration for our own garden! We were cutting it close for the Candlelight Processional so we had to motor it to world showcase again. However, the tree lighting ceremony in Epcot was just about to start so we stayed to watch it. Great music and just like the Osborne lights, I like how they turned on the lights progressionally. The archway by the tree was stunning too. Nice show! Okay, now we REALLY had to motor it to the candlelight processional! We somehow thought the show started at 7:15pm so we got in line at 6:15pm thinking we'd have an hour which would be enough (we didn't do the candlelight processional package today - that was later in the trip). We got there and world showcase was a zoo!! While waiting in line, we got to watch the entire Tapestry of Dreams parade. None of the people I was with particularly like this one, but I really do. There's something about that drum float and how the CM continues to play. The music is beautiful to me too. We JUST got a seat for the show. I think the people behind us were told they wouldn't get a seat so get out of line! Wow. We got seated at about 6:40pm and thought we'd have a half hour to wait and talk. Next thing we knew, the show began! We were soooo lucky we got a seat because the show was beginning at 6:45pm instead of 7:15pm!!
The show absolutely blew me away!! The enormous choir, living Christmas tree, full orchestra, Christmas story, etc.....were absolutely spectacular. I highly recommend this to people visiting during the christmas period. It brought tears to my eyes. The show was about an hour long. Roy Disney was supposed to be the narrator but it was another gentleman instead who I didn't know. He did a very good job though. After the show, we had some time before Illuminations began so we decided to ride Test Track and Spaceship Earth again. We really don't mind the singles line so it's nice not having to get a fastpass for that ride and can use the fastpass perk for other things. We went back to the Mexico area and had a terrific view of Illuminations. We both really like this show. Dh loves the part where the white fireworks are going off so that it seems like it's daytime again since it provides so much light. I love the music in this show. Ahh Disney!
The four of us didn't want to go back to our room just yet, so we decided to take the monorail to the monorail resorts. First stop was the Polynesian. Very nicely decorated but dh was disappointed not to see a big tree. I still love looking at the detail. Next stop was.....*gasp*.......the Grand Floridian!! While I LOVED Wilderness Lodge, the Grand Floridian absolutely blew me away! What a stunning tree they have in the lobby! I understand the tree is in 3 sections and had to be brought in one at a time. Every last decoration is stunning. There's an enormous ginger bread house in the lobby too. I suddenly had an urge to buy one, but I resisted! I could never get it home on the plane! Last stop was the Contemporary. There were a few nice Christmas trees scattered on the bottom levels of the hotel, but no major Christmas trees. I liked it, but after the Grand Floridian, it's very hard to compare! We were all pretty tired so we took the bus back to our hotel. Tomorrow was MVMCP so we knew we should get a good night sleep!
We immediately got a fast pass for space mountain, and lined up for Buzz Lightyear. It was about a 10 minute wait. We didn't mind waiting because we found a couple hidden mickey's in the queue! I joked with dh that I was finally going to beat his score this trip. Well, so much for positive thinking! Dh maxed out in the second room but I ended up with 600,000 - may be my personal best. By now we could use our fast passes for space mountain so off we went. It still baffles me how so many people don't use fast pass. We walked by soooo many people! I even think I saw someone stick out their tongue at me?? Anyway, next stop was the TTA. I just love this ride and how it circles tomorrowland. We saw one hidden mickey on this ride. Next, we got to ride the Carousel of Progress!!! I must admit that one wonderful bonus for going during a busy time, is that the Carousel of Progress is open! I really, really like this show/ride and missed it during our last trip during the off season. I think the concept is brilliant. I got a few strange looks from people when I started joining in the singing of the song! After finding some hidden mickey's in the final scene, we decided to leave Tomorrowland.
We had never seen the Country Bear Jamboree Christmas show! What a cute show! We really loved Liverlips McGraw singing as Elvis!
Before leaving the MK for the day, we decided to try the Riverboat ride. I don't think either of us have been on it for at least 10yrs. I didn't realize there were animatronics to look at during the voyage. I liked it........dh slept! Go figure! Crowds were continuing to build, so we thought we'd leave the MK for now and take the bus to Fort Wilderness. We really enjoy eating lunch at Pioneer Hall. Our favourite waiter, Donnel, was there entertaining the guests as usual! Sometimes I think I was meant to be a southerner with my love of fried chicken! All the Christmas trees in Fort Wilderness are decorated with the country feel. Charming!After lunch, we took the boat to Wilderness Lodge. WOW! The lobby is absolutely stunning. I had heard that the Wilderness Lodge was not to be missed. We sat in the lobby for a few minutes just soaking it all in. We wanted to come back at night, but it wasn't in the cards for this trip. Well, that just means we'll have to go back!
We then decided to go to Epcot. On our way to world showcase, we saw an incredible acrobat show. Three people dressed in gold attire were standing on a small platform doing many difficult feats that I didn't know the human body was capable of doing!! Absolutely phemonemal show! We got a fast pass for Maelstrom which had been closed duirng our last trip. We had time to go listen to the Liberty singers before heading back to Malestrom. No wonder we don't gain too much weight on our trips - we're practially walking marathons during our trips! Back at Malestrom, we saw the hidden mickey in line and stayed for the film. Does anyone know if the film is new? It had been so long since I had seen it, that I couldn't remember if it was new or not. We really enjoyed it this time. Next stop was Mexico and the ride there. Nice Mexican version of It's A Small World! It does make me want to go there for a visit. If only we could travel as much as we wanted to!! Just before this trip, we had heard that Spaceship Earth may be closing in 2005 so I had even more nostalgia for the attraction. We went on this ride next and found a whole bunch of hidden mickey's. By now we were pretty thirsty and headed to Ice Station Cool. We didn't see anyone trying the beverley on this trip!
I like the watermelon, lemon & gingerale there. We thought we'd try fast pass and see how big the line was there. The singles line didn't seem too bad (about 15min. wait) so we decided to go for it. I got seated with a father and daughter combo and the father just had to tell me a story. He said that he and his daughter had been in the back of the line when a cast member got them out of line and brought them inside. The CM explained that he does this once each day and brings a family inside to the top of the line. They got passes for other rides for the rest of the day (for no long waits in line). The guy was beyond excited!! He kept saying, "only in Disneyworld"! Nice to see that the disney magic is indeed alive and well!!!! We decided to do the Imagination ride one last time before it closed. We bumped into some friends so they joined us for the rest of the day. One of my favourite buildings in future world is the Land building. We wanted to try to do all the ride and shows in there today, but we didn't have time. We did do the land ride though and found two hidden mickey's made out of pumpkins! It was fun to see. We still are amazed by the greenhouses here. Gives me inspiration for our own garden! We were cutting it close for the Candlelight Processional so we had to motor it to world showcase again. However, the tree lighting ceremony in Epcot was just about to start so we stayed to watch it. Great music and just like the Osborne lights, I like how they turned on the lights progressionally. The archway by the tree was stunning too. Nice show! Okay, now we REALLY had to motor it to the candlelight processional! We somehow thought the show started at 7:15pm so we got in line at 6:15pm thinking we'd have an hour which would be enough (we didn't do the candlelight processional package today - that was later in the trip). We got there and world showcase was a zoo!! While waiting in line, we got to watch the entire Tapestry of Dreams parade. None of the people I was with particularly like this one, but I really do. There's something about that drum float and how the CM continues to play. The music is beautiful to me too. We JUST got a seat for the show. I think the people behind us were told they wouldn't get a seat so get out of line! Wow. We got seated at about 6:40pm and thought we'd have a half hour to wait and talk. Next thing we knew, the show began! We were soooo lucky we got a seat because the show was beginning at 6:45pm instead of 7:15pm!!
The show absolutely blew me away!! The enormous choir, living Christmas tree, full orchestra, Christmas story, etc.....were absolutely spectacular. I highly recommend this to people visiting during the christmas period. It brought tears to my eyes. The show was about an hour long. Roy Disney was supposed to be the narrator but it was another gentleman instead who I didn't know. He did a very good job though. After the show, we had some time before Illuminations began so we decided to ride Test Track and Spaceship Earth again. We really don't mind the singles line so it's nice not having to get a fastpass for that ride and can use the fastpass perk for other things. We went back to the Mexico area and had a terrific view of Illuminations. We both really like this show. Dh loves the part where the white fireworks are going off so that it seems like it's daytime again since it provides so much light. I love the music in this show. Ahh Disney!
The four of us didn't want to go back to our room just yet, so we decided to take the monorail to the monorail resorts. First stop was the Polynesian. Very nicely decorated but dh was disappointed not to see a big tree. I still love looking at the detail. Next stop was.....*gasp*.......the Grand Floridian!! While I LOVED Wilderness Lodge, the Grand Floridian absolutely blew me away! What a stunning tree they have in the lobby! I understand the tree is in 3 sections and had to be brought in one at a time. Every last decoration is stunning. There's an enormous ginger bread house in the lobby too. I suddenly had an urge to buy one, but I resisted! I could never get it home on the plane! Last stop was the Contemporary. There were a few nice Christmas trees scattered on the bottom levels of the hotel, but no major Christmas trees. I liked it, but after the Grand Floridian, it's very hard to compare! We were all pretty tired so we took the bus back to our hotel. Tomorrow was MVMCP so we knew we should get a good night sleep!
