mackeysmom
Let's Go Mets!
- Joined
- Sep 16, 2003
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Cousins take on the World - Day 7 - The day the cousins pampered themselves
Cast of Characters:
Laura (me) - age 34 (sister to Am and and cousin to Annmarie)
Annmarie - age 32 (cousin to Laura and Am)
Annmarie - age 38 (sister to Laura and cousin to Annmarie - to avoid confusion will be called Am)
We got up pretty early this day, and went down to the lobby to have breakfast at The Whispering Canyon Cafe. It was great - our server was really into her role
We then hopped a bus to Epcot. We posed for a few pictures outside and then made our way to World Showcase. We walked around World Showcase since Am hadn't had the chance to do that on this trip previously. We rode Spaceship Earth and then went over to the Camera Center to see how our pictures turned out. They came out great and we each bought a copy.
We boarded the monorail, and made our way over to the Grand Floridian. We had reservations for "high tea" at the GF. It was great. The atmosphere was unbelievable - you actually forgot that you were in Orlando, and thought you were sitting in a little English garden. I highly recommend it. After that, we walked around the GF a little bit before making our way over to the spa.
Annmarie and I had originally planned the spa retreat for day one, but once Am decided to join us on our trip we changed it to day 7 so she could enjoy it as well. Am and Annmarie were really looking forward to the spa treatments, but I was kind of "iffy". It's really not my thing, and I had actually considered canceling my appointment the day before. Am and Annmarie talked me into keeping the appointment, and I was glad they did.
Annmarie was originally scheduled for a sports massage, but opted for a Swedish massage instead. She was very happy with her choice. She paid $105 for a 50-minute massage. Am chose to get the head, shoulders and neck massage. It was a 25 minute massage for $60. She too, was very happy. I chose the soothing tired legs massage. It was 20 minutes for $40. Had I known how much I would have enjoyed it, I would have gotten a longer treatment.
In addition to the treatments, we had use of the facilities which included a steam room, Jacuzzi, pool, and health club. The locker rooms provided everything you might possibly need -- shampoo, conditioner, hair dryers, razors, q-tips, towels, robes and slippers. I was worried about the robes when I first saw them - they looked kind of small, but they also have larger sizes to accommodate those of us who eat too many dole whips
Once we finished our spa treatments, Annmarie and I wanted to head over to Downtown Disney to do some last minute shopping. Am didn't want to, so she was going back to the hotel. We gave her detailed instructions, but she carried on until we reluctantly agreed to accompany her to the WL boat launch at the Magic Kingdom. (Let me add that a bus to DD arrived at the GF as we made our way to the monorail.) We hopped the monorail to the MK (we got to ride up front and got co-pilot licenses) and walked Am to the boat launch. We then hopped the monorail to the Contemporary, figuring we could grab a bus to DD from there. We proceeded to wait, and wait and wait. Let's just say that by the time we made it to DD, we could have walked there and back.
Annmarie and I raced through DD and grabbed a bus back to the WL. By the time we made it back, we had less 15 minutes to get ready for the Hoop-Dee-Doo. We blamed Am, of course, because we could have grabbed that original bus to DD from the GF and would have had time to rest before the show. Am thought we were being unreasonable, and blamed us for making her worry about our where-abouts.
We hopped a bus to Fort Wilderness and made our way to Pioneer Hall. We posed for our obligatory photo. The photographer was nice, and let us re-take the picture three times until we were pleased. We were seated and very happy with our table. We were on the floor and were the second table from the stage. Annmarie and I had seen the show before, but it was a first for Am. As predicted, she loved it. We all had a great time.
After the show, we made our way back to the room to start the dreaded packing.
Overall thoughts -
Be adventurous -- I'm very happy that I didn't cancel out on the spa. It wound up being a highlight of the trip.
Do not eat a lot before tea. The little sandwiches and pastries add up to one hearty meal.
Stay tuned for our next installment - the day the cousins say good-bye.
Cast of Characters:
Laura (me) - age 34 (sister to Am and and cousin to Annmarie)
Annmarie - age 32 (cousin to Laura and Am)
Annmarie - age 38 (sister to Laura and cousin to Annmarie - to avoid confusion will be called Am)
We got up pretty early this day, and went down to the lobby to have breakfast at The Whispering Canyon Cafe. It was great - our server was really into her role
We then hopped a bus to Epcot. We posed for a few pictures outside and then made our way to World Showcase. We walked around World Showcase since Am hadn't had the chance to do that on this trip previously. We rode Spaceship Earth and then went over to the Camera Center to see how our pictures turned out. They came out great and we each bought a copy.We boarded the monorail, and made our way over to the Grand Floridian. We had reservations for "high tea" at the GF. It was great. The atmosphere was unbelievable - you actually forgot that you were in Orlando, and thought you were sitting in a little English garden. I highly recommend it. After that, we walked around the GF a little bit before making our way over to the spa.
Annmarie and I had originally planned the spa retreat for day one, but once Am decided to join us on our trip we changed it to day 7 so she could enjoy it as well. Am and Annmarie were really looking forward to the spa treatments, but I was kind of "iffy". It's really not my thing, and I had actually considered canceling my appointment the day before. Am and Annmarie talked me into keeping the appointment, and I was glad they did.
Annmarie was originally scheduled for a sports massage, but opted for a Swedish massage instead. She was very happy with her choice. She paid $105 for a 50-minute massage. Am chose to get the head, shoulders and neck massage. It was a 25 minute massage for $60. She too, was very happy. I chose the soothing tired legs massage. It was 20 minutes for $40. Had I known how much I would have enjoyed it, I would have gotten a longer treatment.
In addition to the treatments, we had use of the facilities which included a steam room, Jacuzzi, pool, and health club. The locker rooms provided everything you might possibly need -- shampoo, conditioner, hair dryers, razors, q-tips, towels, robes and slippers. I was worried about the robes when I first saw them - they looked kind of small, but they also have larger sizes to accommodate those of us who eat too many dole whips
Once we finished our spa treatments, Annmarie and I wanted to head over to Downtown Disney to do some last minute shopping. Am didn't want to, so she was going back to the hotel. We gave her detailed instructions, but she carried on until we reluctantly agreed to accompany her to the WL boat launch at the Magic Kingdom. (Let me add that a bus to DD arrived at the GF as we made our way to the monorail.) We hopped the monorail to the MK (we got to ride up front and got co-pilot licenses) and walked Am to the boat launch. We then hopped the monorail to the Contemporary, figuring we could grab a bus to DD from there. We proceeded to wait, and wait and wait. Let's just say that by the time we made it to DD, we could have walked there and back.
Annmarie and I raced through DD and grabbed a bus back to the WL. By the time we made it back, we had less 15 minutes to get ready for the Hoop-Dee-Doo. We blamed Am, of course, because we could have grabbed that original bus to DD from the GF and would have had time to rest before the show. Am thought we were being unreasonable, and blamed us for making her worry about our where-abouts.
We hopped a bus to Fort Wilderness and made our way to Pioneer Hall. We posed for our obligatory photo. The photographer was nice, and let us re-take the picture three times until we were pleased. We were seated and very happy with our table. We were on the floor and were the second table from the stage. Annmarie and I had seen the show before, but it was a first for Am. As predicted, she loved it. We all had a great time.
After the show, we made our way back to the room to start the dreaded packing.
Overall thoughts -
Be adventurous -- I'm very happy that I didn't cancel out on the spa. It wound up being a highlight of the trip.
Do not eat a lot before tea. The little sandwiches and pastries add up to one hearty meal.
Stay tuned for our next installment - the day the cousins say good-bye.
