Coffee on the Verandah -The Last Slide, Recap & Souvies 5/29 - Link to Aulani TR 5/31

[winkers]

I didn't know that Raglan Rd had a quick serve! I'll have to put that on my "next time" agenda.

I always get a little overwelmed at DTD. I need to go there by myself sometime . I could spend an hour in basin or the christmas store, but it's not fun when someone is tagging along looking like they'd rather be at the dentist.

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Good shopping trip - looks like everyone (almost) found something good they were looking for! I like that t-shirt Evan got!

I'll have to check that menu for Cooke's! Looks like another option.

 

[MRYPPNS]

10 minutes at Cooke's to get your food is actually good from my experience....it's actually the only wdw restaurants that's on my "not again" list.

You should like me with my coffee mugs....have to be the right size and shape

 

[NoOrdinaryPrincess]

I love the update! Families in dtd in the heat can be hard.

 

[rentayenta]

Not our villa. Best caption ever.

The Irish pie looks delicious. Your salmon was tiny. I'm not a huge chilled fish person unless it's on a bagel with shmear, capers, onion, and tomatoes.

Looks like a fun time in DTD.

 

[glennbo123]

We ate at Cookes of Dublin too, but I'll tell you more about that when I get to that point in my TR....probably in about 6 months.

Evan's shirt is awesome, and those shades!

I'm having a lot of fun with Instagram too. I have a very similar username to my Disboards name. Very similar. I haven't tried photosynth.

 

[Flossbolna]

Cynthia, it feels like I last commented several updates ago - but I have a good excuse: I was in Paris (including 1.5 days in DLP - need to use that AP I got in the spring) for 5 days last week. And besides that work is just crazy...

I really love how relaxing your vacation sounds! Katharina and I were at OKW twice on our last trip, once for a wonderful breakfast at Olivias before heading to Typhoon Lagoon and once on our way to DTD, so we did take that lovely boat ride as well. I absolutely get the laid back atmosphere, but I think the fact that it is so spread out would scare me away. I feel like I would want a car there, but then I am not sure how much I would enjoy driving... But your report makes me truly consider it for a trip in the future - even though the current plans are to try to get a studio at VWL for the next trip...

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Love the instagram pics. I can't wait to take some in October.

So glad you got to stop at the rita stand... most important stop in all of Downtown Disney, if you ask me!

 

[eandesmom]

First that mug is adorable.

Thanks! Overall I really love it. It has it's pro's and cons which I'll get to at some point in the TR.

Then TMI on certain parts. LOL

I love the boat rides from POR, OKW and SSR to DTD. It makes staying at them so much better.

Paradiso is so good and so is Bongos but I suggest them when they open and they are not busy because after that the service goes down.

That pie he had for lunch looks so good I might have to try that next time.

Great updates and pics.

I've never heard a good review for Bongos so that is nice to hear. I would like to try Paradiso at some point, this just wasn't the trip for it. I did consider it as a dinner option for our first night but am really happy we went with Olivia's.

Just read this on my phone.

Well then it probably looked like I couldn't spell. For some reason, it keeps removing apostrophe's when you view my updates on the new iphone DIS app. I think it is happening (after doing various "tests" lol when I write the update on one computer and then paste in. When I write them on a different one sometimes it seems to be ok. Which makes NO sense. I'd originally thought it was the font I was choosing but that does not seem to be it. And it seems fixable if I go back in and redo them, in the actual editor. Total pita though but it was driving me nuts! I

You guys are troopers for spending that much time in DTD in August. Glad you found some loot. I do feel like most of the merchandise I find in Disney exceeds my acceptable price point so I never end up with much.

I don't end up with much either. Although over the course of this trip, I actually got more than I've gotten in...um...ever.

I didn't really expect to be there that long but somehow it added up to be a chunk of time. It includes the boat rides but still, much longer than expected but at least I knew no one would say they'd missed out on something or a store.

I wanted to try Cookes but never got a chance. Looks good. Was that the grapefruit Rita? Yummmmmmmmmmm!

It was the Grapefruit. And my word, that thing is strong! It wasn't my favorite to be honest but I'm glad I tried it.

Well your "not a sandwich" looks great! I didn't know they had CS at RR. The pie looks good, but if both choices are lamb, it would not be on my list. You did a good job on scaling back the shopping.

There are 2 other pies, one is Chicken and Mushroom and then a Fisherman's pie. I thought about the Chicken one but it was warm out and I wanted something light and cool.

It was nice to get the shopping out of the way!

I didn't know that Raglan Rd had a quick serve! I'll have to put that on my "next time" agenda.

You should! I knew about Cooke's but didn't really realize it was part of Raglan.

I always get a little overwelmed at DTD. I need to go there by myself sometime . I could spend an hour in basin or the christmas store, but it's not fun when someone is tagging along looking like they'd rather be at the dentist.

Exactly why I didn't make it into either this trip. Yeah, WOD is a bit much, splitting up actually worked pretty well.

Good shopping trip - looks like everyone (almost) found something good they were looking for! I like that t-shirt Evan got!

I love that shirt, it is so cool! He wears it a ton and every time I see something different on it. He was so happy, this year he could fit into mens small sizes and in the past, he was limited to youth large and that frustrated him to no end as everything he liked was an adult style.

I'll have to check that menu for Cooke's! Looks like another option.

It's a nice menu, I'm glad we went there and would go again. I tend to prefer my fish with a panko style coating, not batter but the kids really liked the fish a lot and everyone liked the fries.

I mean chips.

 

[KatMark]

I love that the first place you stopped was the.....bathroom. It sounds so much like my DH.

I'm glad you were able to hit most of the stores you wanted to hit and that everyone (except Jeff) found something they wanted.

That fish and chips looks yummy. We've eaten at Raglan twice now, but never Cookies...I'll have to keep that in mind.

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

I also think that having that boat ride to DTD is an awesome +...That along with Olivia's are def nice amenities to have at OKW...

(Gonna have to try it sometime cause we just bit the Disney Bullet and purchased 80 points in DVC ...home base Beach Club ...plan on adding 25 points a year during the next couple years...)

Cookes of Dublin's looks pretty nice all in all...I too have heard the food growl... and you're right sugar doesn't cut it... (I'd be surprised if there were very many places you're going to be able to get Salmon as good as you can get at home...

Love those Lego sculptures...we always hit that store...I think David thinks its an actual attraction...

 

[LegoMom3]

....

Coffee on the verandah!

We LOVE this quiet time together, enjoying the outdoors, our coffee, each other and the peace and quiet of no kids. They needed to sleep in a little, it was 5am Seattle time and with the long day, some catch up was in order. As some of you know from my PTR, I had some targeted souvenir purchases. One of which was a “new” OKW logo mug. I’d seen the logo, but not the actual mug so had really hoped they actually had a mug with the new logo and that I'd like it. I had stopped into Conch Flats after our dinner at Olivia's and found it, and liked it! Was it my dream color? No but the size of it was perfect and it had these great ridges on the inside of the handle that felt so good in my hand. I'm funny about coffee cups. I choose mine very carefully each morning depending on my mood, the weather and what feels “right”. For example right now as I wrote this update I was drinking out of my Minnie diner style mug from 2004. I should have bought the full set back then as the style has changed but it has held up beautifully and I love it. I find that the typical mug in a condo, villa or resort room is too small and just doesn't feel right. To feel at home, I wanted my own mug!

First things first, I had to brew the coffee

.....

And try to catch our morning view; you could actually see a bit across the canal without the afternoon glare we’d had the day before

I tried playing with photosynth, a stitching app to create panorama shots. It kind of worked.

Mostly I just enjoyed the dappled light and shade

.....

Ok, first of all....just, WOW! I feel like we're the Sisterhood of the Traveling Coffee Mug. Or something ridiculous like that. My vacations always - ALWAYS! - start with coffee early in the morning. In my case, walking to the food court to fill up my Refillable-Only-At-This-Resort-For-the-Length-of-THIS-Stay mug. However on a trip to the Gulf Coast this summer, we rented a condo with a verandah and I savored many a cup of coffee while enjoying refreshing breezes (ok ok, TS Debbie's cranky remnants) and watching palm trees sway. ....But I digress.

I love OKW. Or rather, I love what I've seen of it from the window of a ME bus, and have vowed that if I'm ever fortunate enough to buy DVC, I will find a way to make this "home!" Meanwhile, I'll keep leaving nose prints and little drool marks on the bus window as I go by.

Anyway!.....I'm a friend of TarzansKat and followed the link to your TR from her PTR! Glad I came and really looking forward to more!

.

 

[Angies1274]

Glad that you were able to get everything done that you wanted to do in DTD.

I've heard good things about Cooke's but for some reason I always forget about it when we are in DTD. The fish and chips look yummy! We'll have to check it out next time.

Beautiful pictures on the boat ride back to OKW!

 

[eandesmom]

10 minutes at Cooke's to get your food is actually good from my experience....it's actually the only wdw restaurants that's on my "not again" list.

the only WDW restaurant on your never again list? Wow, it must have been bad!

You should like me with my coffee mugs....have to be the right size and shape

Yep, I was SO sad this morning, wanted to use my mug from flower and garden. Just the right size and shape for mood this morning. Couldn't find it. Turns out Jeff broke it right before our trip while I was at my work conference and had forgotten to tell me. Total bummer.

I love the update! Families in dtd in the heat can be hard.

Even without the heat it can be hard with the crowds. It was a fun afternoon even with the snarls but Jeff definitely needed that Rita!

Not our villa. Best caption ever.

The kids were so funny about the color of the villa, like once you are inside you could even tell.

The Irish pie looks delicious. Your salmon was tiny. I'm not a huge chilled fish person unless it's on a bagel with shmear, capers, onion, and tomatoes.

Looks like a fun time in DTD.

I'm not huge on chilled fish either. Dungoness crab, now that's another story! I'd get that salad again but would add chicken.

We ate at Cookes of Dublin too, but I'll tell you more about that when I get to that point in my TR....probably in about 6 months.

yeah what's this about a trip report interruption????

Cookes was on my list as an option but I admit, I might have played Switzerland but I was rooting for EOS as well.

Evan's shirt is awesome, and those shades!

I'm having a lot of fun with Instagram too. I have a very similar username to my Disboards name. Very similar. I haven't tried photosynth.

Ok, gonna have to check it out! Try photosynth, it's a lot of fun!

Cynthia, it feels like I last commented several updates ago - but I have a good excuse: I was in Paris (including 1.5 days in DLP - need to use that AP I got in the spring) for 5 days last week. And besides that work is just crazy...

Very good excuse!!!!!!

I really love how relaxing your vacation sounds! Katharina and I were at OKW twice on our last trip, once for a wonderful breakfast at Olivias before heading to Typhoon Lagoon and once on our way to DTD, so we did take that lovely boat ride as well. I absolutely get the laid back atmosphere, but I think the fact that it is so spread out would scare me away. I feel like I would want a car there, but then I am not sure how much I would enjoy driving... But your report makes me truly consider it for a trip in the future - even though the current plans are to try to get a studio at VWL for the next trip...

It's a very different experience than a lot of the other resorts. In the off season, if it was cold, I might not love it as much but I'd stay there again in a heartbeat! I bet you would really enjoy a studio near hospitality house, best of all worlds and so relaxing!

I'm excited to stay at VWL next month!!!

 

[Charleston Princess]

I'm here, Cynthia, and all caught up! Thank goodness for your chapter links.

Woo! I can't believe the whirlwind departure that you had! Leaves me breathless! Love the sleeping kids pics from the airplane!

Oh, how absolutely lovely Old Key West is!!! I want, want, want to stay there now! Especially on seeing that the one bedroom sleeps five. Perfect for us since Chelsea and Connor can no longer share a bed and Charles gets cranky if he has to share with Connor.

Perfect coffee on the verandah view -- love the mug!

Great day at DtD -- Charles is the same way about eating.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Can you guess?

Here.

Recognize it?

Cannot imagine why not.

It is.... the bathroom.

You never forget that first Disney experience.

On Evan's agenda..Sunglasses. He wanted to use his own money for it, after he somehow conned Jeff into paying half. Still not sure how me pulled that one off but it didn’t come out of his souvenir fund.

THis kid is good. Any chance he can negotiate with China on our national debt?

Find another bathroom.

Sigh.

Call me crazy, but I'm finding a pattern here.

At this point, my darling husband started to get the growls. You know, the stomach growls. The “hey, I am a grown man and need more than 2 boxes of sugar coated crap to get through the day” growl. It is NOT pretty when this happens. In fact, it is more like a snarl. 1.5 hours in the shops and the snarl had arrived. In full force.

1.5 hours in the shops sounds like enough waiting. Food is a fair trade.

As we went we looked at menus for EOS, Cap’n Jacks and WPE. Evan really wanted to go to EOS. I mean really REALLY wanted to go there.

And Dr. Jones snarled.....

I DON'T WANT A SANDWICH!

Aw, come on. Anyone who says this has obviously never tried the Hawaiian BBQ there.

So what was it that Jeff wanted?

This beauty

He wanted a football?

Jeff liked his pie but whined that it was too much pastry and not enough meat. That is a normal whine for Jeff though, servings are never big enough or have enough meat so take that with a little grain of salt.

That'll teach ya to turn up your nose at EOS. Next time, go for the Hawaiian BBQ.

Anyone know what he has in his mouth?

I'm afraid to ask.

Eric added his new pins to his lanyard

Love that Alaska pin!

Ok, THAT didn't work so well. Let’s go back to normal mode.

But the first one was great!

Nice one!

 

[Chilly]

I had a very yummy meal in Cooks once, the portion was huge and I had to leave some, so unlike me! I'm glad my DH likes shopping as we do a lot of that on holiday.

 

[englishrose47]

The food at Cookes looked good !!I ate there once and was pleased , also had the fried candy bar which was delish but soooo rich !!!

 

[eandesmom]

I'm having a lot of fun with Instagram too. I have a very similar username to my Disboards name. Very similar. I haven't tried photosynth.

Hee hee, you found me! Fun

 

[eandesmom]

Love the instagram pics. I can't wait to take some in October.

I haven't gotten the hang of the whole thing yet but it does have some really fun features with the pictures that's for sure! I'll be playing more in Oct as well I think!

So glad you got to stop at the rita stand... most important stop in all of Downtown Disney, if you ask me!

I'd never been there before, can you believe it? I liked the grapefruit, but would go back to a traditional next time. Glad I tried it though.

I love that the first place you stopped was the.....bathroom. It sounds so much like my DH.

It was so typical. And we did fill up our water bottles there and drained them before the next stop so...there you go I guess. Better to be hydrated!

I'm glad you were able to hit most of the stores you wanted to hit and that everyone (except Jeff) found something they wanted.

Jeff didn't really want anything for himself. He was saving up for something later in the trip. There was one shirt, and now I can't recall what it was, that seemed SO perfect for him but he wasn't in interested.

That fish and chips looks yummy. We've eaten at Raglan twice now, but never Cookies...I'll have to keep that in mind.

The boys thought it was really good. I would try it, if it wasn't so hot out. In that kind of heat, fried fish has zero appeal! Much as I love fish and chips. I would eat there again, overall it was quite good and a decent value.

I also think that having that boat ride to DTD is an awesome +...That along with Olivia's are def nice amenities to have at OKW...

The boat ride, that pool, Olivia's, the Gurgling Suitcase...LOVE OKW.

(Gonna have to try it sometime cause we just bit the Disney Bullet and purchased 80 points in DVC ...home base Beach Club ...plan on adding 25 points a year during the next couple years...)

Congrats and welcome home! That is VERY exciting!!! We started with 105 at SSR and will most likely be adding on in the next month or so. Since I'm already out of points. But the 105 did get us a full week in a 1 bedroom, using 2 years worth of points so it was the right number for us, to start and see what we thought before adding on more. You will LOVE it. I the BCV. THe next trip is hopefully in a Treehouse but if not, more likely to be either SSR or AKV Kidani for a variety of factors but I'm sure we will be at BC one of these days. I'd originally thought our add on would be at a different resort but am planning to keep it all at SSR instead.

I see your upcoming title....no Alice???

Cookes of Dublin's looks pretty nice all in all...I too have heard the food growl... and you're right sugar doesn't cut it... (I'd be surprised if there were very many places you're going to be able to get Salmon as good as you can get at home...

Too true, as a result I generally don't order salmon when we are in FL, if I do fish it's usually other kinds. So I kind of got what I paid for, really. The salad itself was lovely. We'd eat there again for sure, though I still really want to try EOS!

Love those Lego sculptures...we always hit that store...I think David thinks its an actual attraction...

We've never even been in. We went into the one at DLR but never this one, somehow missed the window. Plus the E's were never that into lego's. The liked them but it wasn't an obsession at all.

Thank heavens there isn't a build a bear though, Eric would still want to go in!

Ok, first of all....just, WOW! I feel like we're the Sisterhood of the Traveling Coffee Mug. Or something ridiculous like that.

Sisterhood of the Traveling Coffee Mug

I that! OMG I want to steal it as a TR title or something for a girls trip.

My vacations always - ALWAYS! - start with coffee early in the morning. In my case, walking to the food court to fill up my Refillable-Only-At-This-Resort-For-the-Length-of-THIS-Stay mug. However on a trip to the Gulf Coast this summer, we rented a condo with a verandah and I savored many a cup of coffee while enjoying refreshing breezes (ok ok, TS Debbie's cranky remnants) and watching palm trees sway. ....But I digress.

Ah, the Refillable-Only-At-This-Resort-For-the-Length-of-THIS-Stay mug. I have to say...it's just not the same, drinking out of plastic vesus a real mug. though if the only real mug is styrofoam...plastic wins hands down. Or tiny...bigger wins. But the food court coffee... We've taken to packing Via if there will not be a brewer in the room

I suppose coffee with Debbie's cranky remnants is better than coffee with Debbies rain and wind in the actual moment? I know a few DISers who had some rather bad luck with Debbie and Vero timing.

I love OKW. Or rather, I love what I've seen of it from the window of a ME bus, and have vowed that if I'm ever fortunate enough to buy DVC, I will find a way to make this "home!" Meanwhile, I'll keep leaving nose prints and little drool marks on the bus window as I go by.

Anyway!.....I'm a friend of TarzansKat and followed the link to your TR from her PTR! Glad I came and really looking forward to more!

.

I had originally really really wanted OKW as our home resort. The good news is it wasn't really needed as you can usuallly get in there. And dues were less elsewhere. But between the treehouses and the longer contract I could get, SSR beat it out. Still, I truly think that for all practical purposes OKW could very well be our default resort and am quite positive there will be future stays there!

Any friend of TK's is welcome here!