PrincessTToo
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- May 11, 2003
- Messages
- 159
PRESHOW - This is my 3rd solo trip. The other two were in January (02 and 03). All other trips to WDW over the last 8 years have also been in the winter. When I asked my DH if he wanted to come along on this trip, he said Florida.. in MAY? Are you nuts?.
SHOW - Thurs., May 8.
I had set my cell phone alarm clock for 5:30 AM but the clock radio alarm beat me to it. It went off at 4:00 AM. I was picturing some little kid thinking it was funny to set the alarm as his family was leaving the hotel room. Or maybe the maid bumped the little alarm button when she was cleaning. Either way I fell back asleep and didnt wake up until 6:00 AM. I guess I had accidentally turned off my phone alarm when I was incoherently trying to turn off the other alarm. So I scrambled to get ready and grabbed a bagel and water at the Concierge lounge on my way out to the bus stop.
I didnt have to wait long for the bus and was surprised when it let us off right at the Magic Kingdom. I was assuming it was like the DTD bus and we would get dropped off at the TTC. So I ended up taking the resort monorail to the TTC and then changing over to the Epcot monorail. But I got to the front of Epcot by 8:30 AM anyway.
Our Hidden Treasures tour guide was right on time. There were only about 6 of us in the group. The guide was great. I guess I was asking some pretty insider questions because about half way through the tour another couple in the group asked if I was from Orlando. My reason for taking the tour was actually just to get pictures of the World Showcase when no one was around. I got some great pictures and the extra touches from the Flower and Garden Festival really added to them. I also enjoy the tours because they force me to go places I dont normally go, like inside the China pavilion. And I just loved seeing the little girls all dressed up going to the Princess Breakfast in Norway. They were so cute!! Even the tour guide was gushing over them.
After the tour I went to do the usual. Spaceship Earth, send an Email to my DH, and grab some ginger ale at Ice Station Cool. Then I walked back to the boat launch. The CM there said the boat wasnt due for another 8 minutes. Then hed update me every couple of minutes on how long it was until the boat came. I didnt really care because I was having a blast just sitting in the shade and looking at the pictures I just took on my digital camera. Then the CM and I got talking. Turns out he was living my dream. He was retired and working at WDW. He just loves it at WDW and it really showed.
I didnt really have a plan for the rest of the day but decided to get off the boat when it landed at Boardwalk. Then I went to ESPN and had the best veggie burger of the trip. It tasted like it was cooked on an open flame grill. The icy cold tap beer added to the joy of the meal. And I got a great seat to watch SportsCenter on the big screen. (GO TWINS!!) After lunch I walked back to the Swan and took a shower and a long nap. I guess Im not used to having beer in the middle of the day.
Then I got cleaned up, changed clothes and went to the Concierge Lounge for evening snacks. Then I took the boat to Disney-MGM.
Once inside the park I stopped at my favorite show, Beauty and Beast. Then I went on the ToT. I had never appreciated before how cool (both temperature and effect) the queue area is for this ride. I went to the left in the boiler room and got in a car with all seat belts. This is now one of my favorite rides. I didnt like it in January when I rode in the car on the right-side of the queue and got a lap bar. There was a huge guy in our row and I got way too many hard bumps. I think the seat belts are perfect. And the new drops are perfect. And the special effects are perfect.
Next I rode RnRC. The line was long and very hot. Sometimes this line moves really fast and sometimes really slowly. Ive never seen the ride break down but Im assuming thats what is happening when the line doesnt move for a very long time. Its still one of my favorite rides. I was screaming (and smiling) at the beginning but was singing along by the end of the ride. Dude looks like a lady!
Then I walked over to Millionaire and everything over there was closed. I started wondering why the park stayed open until 9:00 PM if so much shuts down at 7:00 PM. Then I found myself in front of The Brown Derby. I didnt realize I was hungry until I saw the derby. I just had to have my favorite, the Thai Noodle Bowl with Coconut Crusted Tofu. I was seated in just a few minutes. I had a beer, a salad, and the wonderful, wonderful tofu. Then I decided to risk it and try the grapefruit cake. I thought it was absolutely wonderful until I got to the next to the last bite. And then I bit into a big hunk of grapefruit in the icing. The waitress gave me the recipe for the cake and that definitely wasnt part of the recipe. Oh well, live and learn and order crème brulee.
I took the boat back to the Swan and walked around by the adult pool. A sign said the pool closes at 9:00 PM but there was a guy in the pool. And there was a couple in a hammock. When the fireworks started at Epcot the guy in the pool asked me if it was fireworks at MK. I morphed into Tour Guide Barbie again and explained that there werent any fireworks at MK until the weekend and that the fireworks were part of Illuminations at Epcot. He didnt know what Illuminations was. If he hadnt been so scantily clad and if it hadnt been so late, I would have dragged him to Epcot. I was explaining to him how wonderful Illuminations is when I realized that I had already been there two nights and hadnt seen it yet either. But then, by tradition, thats the last thing I do on my vacation.
Once I was back in the room I found that they had turned down my beds complete with some chocolates on the pillow. The lights were on and so was the TV. I watched TV (even the locals on the news were complaining of the heat) and called my DH. I was glad I was only going to be gone for one more night because I already missed him a lot. And the cats and the dog. And not necessarily in that order.
I made sure the clock radio alarm was off and my cell phone alarm was on. I wanted to be at MK the next day for my very first ever MK rope drop.
SHOW - Thurs., May 8.
I had set my cell phone alarm clock for 5:30 AM but the clock radio alarm beat me to it. It went off at 4:00 AM. I was picturing some little kid thinking it was funny to set the alarm as his family was leaving the hotel room. Or maybe the maid bumped the little alarm button when she was cleaning. Either way I fell back asleep and didnt wake up until 6:00 AM. I guess I had accidentally turned off my phone alarm when I was incoherently trying to turn off the other alarm. So I scrambled to get ready and grabbed a bagel and water at the Concierge lounge on my way out to the bus stop.
I didnt have to wait long for the bus and was surprised when it let us off right at the Magic Kingdom. I was assuming it was like the DTD bus and we would get dropped off at the TTC. So I ended up taking the resort monorail to the TTC and then changing over to the Epcot monorail. But I got to the front of Epcot by 8:30 AM anyway.
Our Hidden Treasures tour guide was right on time. There were only about 6 of us in the group. The guide was great. I guess I was asking some pretty insider questions because about half way through the tour another couple in the group asked if I was from Orlando. My reason for taking the tour was actually just to get pictures of the World Showcase when no one was around. I got some great pictures and the extra touches from the Flower and Garden Festival really added to them. I also enjoy the tours because they force me to go places I dont normally go, like inside the China pavilion. And I just loved seeing the little girls all dressed up going to the Princess Breakfast in Norway. They were so cute!! Even the tour guide was gushing over them.
After the tour I went to do the usual. Spaceship Earth, send an Email to my DH, and grab some ginger ale at Ice Station Cool. Then I walked back to the boat launch. The CM there said the boat wasnt due for another 8 minutes. Then hed update me every couple of minutes on how long it was until the boat came. I didnt really care because I was having a blast just sitting in the shade and looking at the pictures I just took on my digital camera. Then the CM and I got talking. Turns out he was living my dream. He was retired and working at WDW. He just loves it at WDW and it really showed.
I didnt really have a plan for the rest of the day but decided to get off the boat when it landed at Boardwalk. Then I went to ESPN and had the best veggie burger of the trip. It tasted like it was cooked on an open flame grill. The icy cold tap beer added to the joy of the meal. And I got a great seat to watch SportsCenter on the big screen. (GO TWINS!!) After lunch I walked back to the Swan and took a shower and a long nap. I guess Im not used to having beer in the middle of the day.
Then I got cleaned up, changed clothes and went to the Concierge Lounge for evening snacks. Then I took the boat to Disney-MGM.
Once inside the park I stopped at my favorite show, Beauty and Beast. Then I went on the ToT. I had never appreciated before how cool (both temperature and effect) the queue area is for this ride. I went to the left in the boiler room and got in a car with all seat belts. This is now one of my favorite rides. I didnt like it in January when I rode in the car on the right-side of the queue and got a lap bar. There was a huge guy in our row and I got way too many hard bumps. I think the seat belts are perfect. And the new drops are perfect. And the special effects are perfect.
Next I rode RnRC. The line was long and very hot. Sometimes this line moves really fast and sometimes really slowly. Ive never seen the ride break down but Im assuming thats what is happening when the line doesnt move for a very long time. Its still one of my favorite rides. I was screaming (and smiling) at the beginning but was singing along by the end of the ride. Dude looks like a lady!
Then I walked over to Millionaire and everything over there was closed. I started wondering why the park stayed open until 9:00 PM if so much shuts down at 7:00 PM. Then I found myself in front of The Brown Derby. I didnt realize I was hungry until I saw the derby. I just had to have my favorite, the Thai Noodle Bowl with Coconut Crusted Tofu. I was seated in just a few minutes. I had a beer, a salad, and the wonderful, wonderful tofu. Then I decided to risk it and try the grapefruit cake. I thought it was absolutely wonderful until I got to the next to the last bite. And then I bit into a big hunk of grapefruit in the icing. The waitress gave me the recipe for the cake and that definitely wasnt part of the recipe. Oh well, live and learn and order crème brulee.
I took the boat back to the Swan and walked around by the adult pool. A sign said the pool closes at 9:00 PM but there was a guy in the pool. And there was a couple in a hammock. When the fireworks started at Epcot the guy in the pool asked me if it was fireworks at MK. I morphed into Tour Guide Barbie again and explained that there werent any fireworks at MK until the weekend and that the fireworks were part of Illuminations at Epcot. He didnt know what Illuminations was. If he hadnt been so scantily clad and if it hadnt been so late, I would have dragged him to Epcot. I was explaining to him how wonderful Illuminations is when I realized that I had already been there two nights and hadnt seen it yet either. But then, by tradition, thats the last thing I do on my vacation.
Once I was back in the room I found that they had turned down my beds complete with some chocolates on the pillow. The lights were on and so was the TV. I watched TV (even the locals on the news were complaining of the heat) and called my DH. I was glad I was only going to be gone for one more night because I already missed him a lot. And the cats and the dog. And not necessarily in that order.
I made sure the clock radio alarm was off and my cell phone alarm was on. I wanted to be at MK the next day for my very first ever MK rope drop.
)
