- Joined
- Feb 6, 2000
Day 9 - Jan 13th
Our last day at the parks. We needed to finish World Showcase and see Illuminations.
We had breakfast in the room, then drove to EPCOT. After entering, I made a PS for
lunch at Le Cellier. We then did HISTA, having skipped it the first day. There wasn't any
line at all. We hadn't down quite this early in January, it just seemed strange having the
parks so empty. The CMs said it was too cold for the locals, and they expected larger
crowds after the MLK holiday. Anyway, after HISTA we did the Mexico boat ride, and
then it was time for our lunch PS. Mom and Flo ordered steaks, I had barbecue beef tips
we all had coffee. The ladies said their steaks were very good. The beef tips were OK,
nothing outstanding. Their dinner breads are very tasty. We had good service and it was
a very nice atmosphere. The boat across the WS lagoon to Morocco wasn't operating
that day, but we hopped on the one to Germany/Italy after lunch. We walked over to the
store near American Adventure and bought a shirt, I friend of mine who had been along on
a previous trip had asked us to buy one for him. Then we wandered through the shops in
Italy and Germany. We skipped the show in China (my least favorite of the Circlevisions),
and browsed in the shops. Flo didn't want to do a ride with a drop of any kind, so we also
skipped the boats in Norway. We did do our normal shopping in Norway for Laila and
Geir fragrances, since there is no Nordstrom in the San Antonio area, we always buy them
at EPCOT. Flo tried on and purchased a beautiful wool Norwegian sweater. We were
assisted by a very nice CM named Jeff. I think he must have been a supervisor, he was not
in Norwegian costume, but street clothes. Then we had some time to kill before ToD, so
we sent e-postcards and saw the House of Innoventions. I liked the fingerprint doorlock,
they're always changing this exhibit. We had coffee at the Fountain View, then walked
back to a bench near Norway to wait for Tapestry of Dreams. It was getting quite cold,
again. Mom bought a blanket at the Mexico kiosk, while Flo waited at the bench The
label says it is made of recycled fibers. It sure is a warm, nice blanket for $25. The parade
was beautiful. I love this parade after dark. While very similar to Tapestry of Nations, I
think this parade is slightly better. After the parade, we moved to the w/c fireworks area
between the shop and the boat to Germany near the entrance to WS. There was a coffee
kiosk nearby, so I got the ladies coffee, and I had hot cocoa. It was some of the best
instant cocoa I've tasted. I assume it was Nestle, like the Nescafe coffee. We all shared
the blanket, it was getting pretty cold. The fireworks were beautiful!!! What a beautiful
way to cap of our days in the parks.
Day 10 - Jan 14th
After a wonderful breakfast at Olivia's (boy, am I glad this restaurant is good again. Last
year we had some lousy food there), it was time to do laundry and pack. We hauled our
laundry over to the pool house and washed, reading books while we waited on the cycles
BTW, OKW is replacing the coin-op style washers with brand new GEs. Really nice.
That afternoon, we went over to DTD and had a late lunch at RC, the food was very
good, and we had good service, even at shift change (we were passed to three different
servers). The leather/belt kiosk at DTD carries a style of purse that Mom really likes, so
she bought two, like she usually does each trip. Then we went to World of Disney for
some last minute items.
Day 11 - Jan 15
We had breakfast at Olivia's and left OKW about 9:45am, a little later than I wanted, but
not too late to get some good driving in. We stopped for lunch at the Waffle House in
Marianna, FL, and filled the tank with gas, then continued on our way. I knew I was
getting tired, and would not be able to drive all the way to Louisiana before turning in for
the night. During one of our rest area stops, about 3pm, I called Onstar, and asked how
far we were from Gulfport, MS. The rep said she showed us 170 miles away so I asked
her to book rooms for us at Hampton Inn. Hampton was full, but she showed a Comfort
Inn nearby, so she booked rooms for us there. The rooms were very nice and clean, and
had been remodeled recently, although the ceilings needed to be redone again. The
texture was crumbling. The price was right, though. $40 for Flo?s single King room and
$44 for Mom & me in a double with two queens (OK, ignore the queen puns). It was
good we had our rooms reserved, there was road construction, and we were at a dead
stop on I-10 for awhile near Pensacola, all in all probably an hour delay with slow traffic
and stops. We could have gotten a 10% discount at Applebee?s with our room key ID, but
we decided on Perkins. Flo had a turkey sandwich & fries, I had a French Dip, fries and
chicken noodle soup, Mom had soup and salad. It was all very tasty. We had driven just
about half-way home.
Day 12 - Jan 16th
We got up and showered about 6am, and went to the lobby for cereal, doughnuts &
coffee. They had Krispy Cremes. The two previous times I?d eaten these, I was
unimpressed - they were heavy and had no flavor - I just didn't understand all the hoopla
over Krispy Kremes. This morning they were wonderful, light, airy and very flavorful.
Now I see why everyone likes them. (we don't have them near our home, but there is a
very good Donut Palace) We got away, after loading our overnight bags, about 7:30am.
We stopped for lunch at Cracker Barrel in Lake Charles, LA. It had been several years
since eating at one, as their quality seemed to slip in San Antonio. Mom ordered the beef
stew, broccoli casserole and steamed carrots. I ordered the ground beef steak, broccoli
casserole and hash brown casserole. Flo had chicken and rice casserole, carrots, and
green beans. Mom has a very severe food allergy to a seasoning called Savory, we told
the server about it, and asked her to check to make sure there wasn't?t any in the stew. We
never saw her again, then another server brought out our meals. We again asked about
the savory, and she went to check. Yes, there was savory in the stew...so Mom changed
to potato soup. After explaining about a food allergy, you would think they would have
checked all the menu items we ordered...duh. The broccoli had it, the steamed carrots had
it. Poor Mom was sick before we got out of the restaurant, and was miserable all the way
home, and all the next day.. And stupid Cracker Barrel said, "Well you said to check the
stew." Duh. And they made us pay for the meal. You'd think the cook would know that
they put the same seasoning in everything, since the food is supposedly prepared on-site.
We had to stop at every rest area between Lake Charles and Seguin. We got to Seguin
around 7pm, dropped off Flo, unloaded her packages and luggage, and pulled into our
drive about 7:35. All in all, a really great trip, except for Mom?s savory allergy. Even
with shortened hours Disney is Magic!! We're already booked for May 28 to June 5th
(flying) in a OKW studio and Dec 1 to Dec 15 in a 1 bedroom. After our June trip we'll
have enough miles for a free 1st class r/t...I hope we can get it for December!!!
Our last day at the parks. We needed to finish World Showcase and see Illuminations.
We had breakfast in the room, then drove to EPCOT. After entering, I made a PS for
lunch at Le Cellier. We then did HISTA, having skipped it the first day. There wasn't any
line at all. We hadn't down quite this early in January, it just seemed strange having the
parks so empty. The CMs said it was too cold for the locals, and they expected larger
crowds after the MLK holiday. Anyway, after HISTA we did the Mexico boat ride, and
then it was time for our lunch PS. Mom and Flo ordered steaks, I had barbecue beef tips
we all had coffee. The ladies said their steaks were very good. The beef tips were OK,
nothing outstanding. Their dinner breads are very tasty. We had good service and it was
a very nice atmosphere. The boat across the WS lagoon to Morocco wasn't operating
that day, but we hopped on the one to Germany/Italy after lunch. We walked over to the
store near American Adventure and bought a shirt, I friend of mine who had been along on
a previous trip had asked us to buy one for him. Then we wandered through the shops in
Italy and Germany. We skipped the show in China (my least favorite of the Circlevisions),
and browsed in the shops. Flo didn't want to do a ride with a drop of any kind, so we also
skipped the boats in Norway. We did do our normal shopping in Norway for Laila and
Geir fragrances, since there is no Nordstrom in the San Antonio area, we always buy them
at EPCOT. Flo tried on and purchased a beautiful wool Norwegian sweater. We were
assisted by a very nice CM named Jeff. I think he must have been a supervisor, he was not
in Norwegian costume, but street clothes. Then we had some time to kill before ToD, so
we sent e-postcards and saw the House of Innoventions. I liked the fingerprint doorlock,
they're always changing this exhibit. We had coffee at the Fountain View, then walked
back to a bench near Norway to wait for Tapestry of Dreams. It was getting quite cold,
again. Mom bought a blanket at the Mexico kiosk, while Flo waited at the bench The
label says it is made of recycled fibers. It sure is a warm, nice blanket for $25. The parade
was beautiful. I love this parade after dark. While very similar to Tapestry of Nations, I
think this parade is slightly better. After the parade, we moved to the w/c fireworks area
between the shop and the boat to Germany near the entrance to WS. There was a coffee
kiosk nearby, so I got the ladies coffee, and I had hot cocoa. It was some of the best
instant cocoa I've tasted. I assume it was Nestle, like the Nescafe coffee. We all shared
the blanket, it was getting pretty cold. The fireworks were beautiful!!! What a beautiful
way to cap of our days in the parks.
Day 10 - Jan 14th
After a wonderful breakfast at Olivia's (boy, am I glad this restaurant is good again. Last
year we had some lousy food there), it was time to do laundry and pack. We hauled our
laundry over to the pool house and washed, reading books while we waited on the cycles
BTW, OKW is replacing the coin-op style washers with brand new GEs. Really nice.
That afternoon, we went over to DTD and had a late lunch at RC, the food was very
good, and we had good service, even at shift change (we were passed to three different
servers). The leather/belt kiosk at DTD carries a style of purse that Mom really likes, so
she bought two, like she usually does each trip. Then we went to World of Disney for
some last minute items.
Day 11 - Jan 15
We had breakfast at Olivia's and left OKW about 9:45am, a little later than I wanted, but
not too late to get some good driving in. We stopped for lunch at the Waffle House in
Marianna, FL, and filled the tank with gas, then continued on our way. I knew I was
getting tired, and would not be able to drive all the way to Louisiana before turning in for
the night. During one of our rest area stops, about 3pm, I called Onstar, and asked how
far we were from Gulfport, MS. The rep said she showed us 170 miles away so I asked
her to book rooms for us at Hampton Inn. Hampton was full, but she showed a Comfort
Inn nearby, so she booked rooms for us there. The rooms were very nice and clean, and
had been remodeled recently, although the ceilings needed to be redone again. The
texture was crumbling. The price was right, though. $40 for Flo?s single King room and
$44 for Mom & me in a double with two queens (OK, ignore the queen puns). It was
good we had our rooms reserved, there was road construction, and we were at a dead
stop on I-10 for awhile near Pensacola, all in all probably an hour delay with slow traffic
and stops. We could have gotten a 10% discount at Applebee?s with our room key ID, but
we decided on Perkins. Flo had a turkey sandwich & fries, I had a French Dip, fries and
chicken noodle soup, Mom had soup and salad. It was all very tasty. We had driven just
about half-way home.
Day 12 - Jan 16th
We got up and showered about 6am, and went to the lobby for cereal, doughnuts &
coffee. They had Krispy Cremes. The two previous times I?d eaten these, I was
unimpressed - they were heavy and had no flavor - I just didn't understand all the hoopla
over Krispy Kremes. This morning they were wonderful, light, airy and very flavorful.
Now I see why everyone likes them. (we don't have them near our home, but there is a
very good Donut Palace) We got away, after loading our overnight bags, about 7:30am.
We stopped for lunch at Cracker Barrel in Lake Charles, LA. It had been several years
since eating at one, as their quality seemed to slip in San Antonio. Mom ordered the beef
stew, broccoli casserole and steamed carrots. I ordered the ground beef steak, broccoli
casserole and hash brown casserole. Flo had chicken and rice casserole, carrots, and
green beans. Mom has a very severe food allergy to a seasoning called Savory, we told
the server about it, and asked her to check to make sure there wasn't?t any in the stew. We
never saw her again, then another server brought out our meals. We again asked about
the savory, and she went to check. Yes, there was savory in the stew...so Mom changed
to potato soup. After explaining about a food allergy, you would think they would have
checked all the menu items we ordered...duh. The broccoli had it, the steamed carrots had
it. Poor Mom was sick before we got out of the restaurant, and was miserable all the way
home, and all the next day.. And stupid Cracker Barrel said, "Well you said to check the
stew." Duh. And they made us pay for the meal. You'd think the cook would know that
they put the same seasoning in everything, since the food is supposedly prepared on-site.
We had to stop at every rest area between Lake Charles and Seguin. We got to Seguin
around 7pm, dropped off Flo, unloaded her packages and luggage, and pulled into our
drive about 7:35. All in all, a really great trip, except for Mom?s savory allergy. Even
with shortened hours Disney is Magic!! We're already booked for May 28 to June 5th
(flying) in a OKW studio and Dec 1 to Dec 15 in a 1 bedroom. After our June trip we'll
have enough miles for a free 1st class r/t...I hope we can get it for December!!!
