Dancind
Tinkerbell's Mom
- Joined
- Jul 25, 2001
- Messages
- 7,730
Participants: Me (Diana), major planner of WDW vacations ; DH (Kevin) slowly becoming more Disneyfied; and the Dancerina aka Tinkerbell (Alicia, age 10).
Friday, Jan. 4, and day 7 of our trip. We decided to try AK again, since we still hadnt been on the trail in Asia, and we wanted to see the parade. I think we got there about 11. Hey, its a later parade! Asia has a better aviary than Africa, I think. We certainly saw more birds. We also learned about owls and Peregrine Falcons in front of Flights of Wonder, sort of a mini show since there were no shows that day. This is something they do on the hour on days off. We walked through the new area in Dinoland, and caught the Tarzan Rocks show. Its one of our favorite shows, probably because of all the dancing! We got a great spot for the parade, a bench just before the bridge into Africa. Cute parade, very high energy, and a nice length. We were meeting our group for the Illuminations Cruise at ESPN for dinner, so we headed over to Boardwalk and shopped a little first, especially in the Sweet Shop. The group cruise was arranged through the DIS boards, and we ate dinner with a family from San Diego, and one from Oklahoma City. Adults at one table, kids at the other. Alicia loved this, there was an 11 year old girl in the group, and they bonded instantly. We enjoyed the chance to chat with some other Disney lovers, too. Really nice folks. Our cruise met at 8:15, so we walked over to the pier at Yacht Club to meet our captain Scott, and the fourth couple. Somehow, Kevin and I wound up in front with the kids. Great view for the show, but not the best conversation. But once the lights are blown out, you are enchanted. This is our second Illuminations Cruise, and it really is the only way to watch the show. In case you are wondering, they DO have blankets on the boats! I just wish I had thought of trying for New Years Eve!
Day 8 of our trip had to be spent at MGM. I hadnt had enough of Millionaire, and Alicia hadnt had enough RnR. We also saw the Hunchback show, which we had never seen, and saw the Drew Carey show, also a first. The Hunchback show is very well done, with an excellent cast. The Drew Carey show is fun, too, but we had more fun at the sound booths in the lobby. I think we were there through almost two more shows, recording our voices on the videos, and trying to act. Alicia had to do them all. Alicia was planning our day, so Star Tours was next. I was becoming peeved because she hadnt worked Millionaire into the schedule, so I went to a show while they did the Animation Tour. I figured I would probably get in the Hot Seat the one time they didnt go, but only made it to #3. We went and got a spot for the parade, and waited again. Great parade, but the characters were beginning to look familiar. The same ones in every parade, but Mike and Sully made their only appearance in this one. The pre-show was funny, one of the street characters told jokes, played with the kids, and then kind of narrated the show. We all went to Millionaire after, and Alicia almost got in the Hot Seat. She was at #2 when the $32,000 question was about to come up. I told her the answer (Who played Agent 99 on Get Smart), and you should have seen the panic on her face when the guy got it wrong! She was still #2, though. Whew! Finally, it was time for the Osborne lights, one of my must-dos for the trip. That was one great light show. We were trying to figure out how it all could have come from one house, surely Disney added to it. And, how do they make glasses that make little angels appear around ALL the lights? That one was a mystery. Back to OKW for dinner at home, though we picked up dessert on our way out. Fudge!
Last day at Disney. We had thought to get to Epcot early, pin trade, ride Test Track, eat some more Beaver Tails. But it was raining that morning, so we checked out at 11 and went shopping. The Orlando Premier Outlet was our first stop. This mall is located on Vineland Ave., next to Little Lake Bryan, practically on Disney property. Lots of stores we liked here, and we dropped some money at the Disney Character store and the Skechers outlet. The Disney store had a lot of things that are available at the parks, at the same price. I bought some of it anyway, pin books, and a pin backpack (told you, Im a Pin Head now). But they also had some great deals on off season and discontinued stuff. We got some clothing, a bunch of countdown pins for $3.99 each, cheap jewelry, a Disney 2001 photo album for $2, and a rolling carryon bag with Mickey embossed on the front (75%off!) to hold all the stuff we bought at the mall. When we had spent enough money, we drove over to International Drive to shop at the Belz outlet, with a stop at Ripleys. Alicia is fascinated with Ripleys and similar (Guinness World Records), and brought her Ripleys book along to read on the plane. So we were probably there longer than most families (2 ½ hours), as she had to see and try everything. It was a fun stop, but Im glad it cost $28 rather than the $40 I had estimated from their Web site. After the first mall, Belz was a big disappointment. We didnt stay long, but we did shop a bit at the Disney Character store there. We stopped for dinner at the Bahama Breeze on International Drive. This is a tasty place for dinner, and reasonably priced. Large servings and fun atmosphere, and the wait wasnt too bad. When we got the bill, though, I said we could have eaten at Boma! Oh well, its good to try something different.
I had made a reservation through Priceline for the Rennaisance Orlando Airport for that night. With taxes and fees, this cost $44. Its a 4 star hotel, right next to the airport. Check-in took maybe 5 minutes, and we just carried in an overnight bag. Our wake-up call was for 4:15 am, to catch our 7 am flight to Albuquerque. The hotel was decent, clean, and the beds were comfortable. Since we had pre-paid, checking in and out was a breeze. What more could you want? Monday was a looong day, and we were very tired. But it was a wonderful, relaxed trip. Being a Dilletente isnt so bad!
Friday, Jan. 4, and day 7 of our trip. We decided to try AK again, since we still hadnt been on the trail in Asia, and we wanted to see the parade. I think we got there about 11. Hey, its a later parade! Asia has a better aviary than Africa, I think. We certainly saw more birds. We also learned about owls and Peregrine Falcons in front of Flights of Wonder, sort of a mini show since there were no shows that day. This is something they do on the hour on days off. We walked through the new area in Dinoland, and caught the Tarzan Rocks show. Its one of our favorite shows, probably because of all the dancing! We got a great spot for the parade, a bench just before the bridge into Africa. Cute parade, very high energy, and a nice length. We were meeting our group for the Illuminations Cruise at ESPN for dinner, so we headed over to Boardwalk and shopped a little first, especially in the Sweet Shop. The group cruise was arranged through the DIS boards, and we ate dinner with a family from San Diego, and one from Oklahoma City. Adults at one table, kids at the other. Alicia loved this, there was an 11 year old girl in the group, and they bonded instantly. We enjoyed the chance to chat with some other Disney lovers, too. Really nice folks. Our cruise met at 8:15, so we walked over to the pier at Yacht Club to meet our captain Scott, and the fourth couple. Somehow, Kevin and I wound up in front with the kids. Great view for the show, but not the best conversation. But once the lights are blown out, you are enchanted. This is our second Illuminations Cruise, and it really is the only way to watch the show. In case you are wondering, they DO have blankets on the boats! I just wish I had thought of trying for New Years Eve!
Day 8 of our trip had to be spent at MGM. I hadnt had enough of Millionaire, and Alicia hadnt had enough RnR. We also saw the Hunchback show, which we had never seen, and saw the Drew Carey show, also a first. The Hunchback show is very well done, with an excellent cast. The Drew Carey show is fun, too, but we had more fun at the sound booths in the lobby. I think we were there through almost two more shows, recording our voices on the videos, and trying to act. Alicia had to do them all. Alicia was planning our day, so Star Tours was next. I was becoming peeved because she hadnt worked Millionaire into the schedule, so I went to a show while they did the Animation Tour. I figured I would probably get in the Hot Seat the one time they didnt go, but only made it to #3. We went and got a spot for the parade, and waited again. Great parade, but the characters were beginning to look familiar. The same ones in every parade, but Mike and Sully made their only appearance in this one. The pre-show was funny, one of the street characters told jokes, played with the kids, and then kind of narrated the show. We all went to Millionaire after, and Alicia almost got in the Hot Seat. She was at #2 when the $32,000 question was about to come up. I told her the answer (Who played Agent 99 on Get Smart), and you should have seen the panic on her face when the guy got it wrong! She was still #2, though. Whew! Finally, it was time for the Osborne lights, one of my must-dos for the trip. That was one great light show. We were trying to figure out how it all could have come from one house, surely Disney added to it. And, how do they make glasses that make little angels appear around ALL the lights? That one was a mystery. Back to OKW for dinner at home, though we picked up dessert on our way out. Fudge!
Last day at Disney. We had thought to get to Epcot early, pin trade, ride Test Track, eat some more Beaver Tails. But it was raining that morning, so we checked out at 11 and went shopping. The Orlando Premier Outlet was our first stop. This mall is located on Vineland Ave., next to Little Lake Bryan, practically on Disney property. Lots of stores we liked here, and we dropped some money at the Disney Character store and the Skechers outlet. The Disney store had a lot of things that are available at the parks, at the same price. I bought some of it anyway, pin books, and a pin backpack (told you, Im a Pin Head now). But they also had some great deals on off season and discontinued stuff. We got some clothing, a bunch of countdown pins for $3.99 each, cheap jewelry, a Disney 2001 photo album for $2, and a rolling carryon bag with Mickey embossed on the front (75%off!) to hold all the stuff we bought at the mall. When we had spent enough money, we drove over to International Drive to shop at the Belz outlet, with a stop at Ripleys. Alicia is fascinated with Ripleys and similar (Guinness World Records), and brought her Ripleys book along to read on the plane. So we were probably there longer than most families (2 ½ hours), as she had to see and try everything. It was a fun stop, but Im glad it cost $28 rather than the $40 I had estimated from their Web site. After the first mall, Belz was a big disappointment. We didnt stay long, but we did shop a bit at the Disney Character store there. We stopped for dinner at the Bahama Breeze on International Drive. This is a tasty place for dinner, and reasonably priced. Large servings and fun atmosphere, and the wait wasnt too bad. When we got the bill, though, I said we could have eaten at Boma! Oh well, its good to try something different.
I had made a reservation through Priceline for the Rennaisance Orlando Airport for that night. With taxes and fees, this cost $44. Its a 4 star hotel, right next to the airport. Check-in took maybe 5 minutes, and we just carried in an overnight bag. Our wake-up call was for 4:15 am, to catch our 7 am flight to Albuquerque. The hotel was decent, clean, and the beds were comfortable. Since we had pre-paid, checking in and out was a breeze. What more could you want? Monday was a looong day, and we were very tired. But it was a wonderful, relaxed trip. Being a Dilletente isnt so bad!
