Do NOT step on any animals, please! A May 2012 TR. NEW! 6/25

[klacey1]

Hey, Joyce! Mmm I love mushrooms! Sorry! (Not that I have any interest in growing my own re: that kit!) I cannot believe you woke up at 3:30 & were still going strong at this point-- especially two drinks in! You are a champ.

 

[Imagineer5]

I have no idea why Mark didn't want pictures together... we have plenty from our past trips. I could see how it would seem a little awkward to others, cause he's a guy and I'm a girl and it was just the two of us, without my DH. But, let's just say... that's not remotely an issue with Mark.

YES! That is exactly the difference: "At least, when I go with my DH, I'm not really trying to be nice and polite and all that when we disagree about what to do, and generally he just follows my lead."
I couldn't put my finger on it, but you got it... DH and I have a routine and we know each other so well that neither of us worry about what the other wants to do right then. We figure it out. Trying to be polite and fair about who chose what to do next was tough!

I think our trip in October will be better because we are traveling with another couple- we can always split up when we want to do different things.

There were signs on every FP machine reminding you to come back during your hour. I never saw anyone trying after their window, and we didn't either, so I don't know if any CMs would have let us. It was hard to get used to- I had always taken advantage of being able to be late to my FPs!

I'm glad you understood what I was trying to say. I have a head cold that's sort of screwing with my brain and I didn't know if I was being clear. but yeah, hopefully two couples will work better since you can go your separate ways without leaving someone alone.

Haha I'm happy it wasn't an issue being a guy & girl with your friend - if it was an issue I'm sure you wouldn't have gone! And Ben might not have been so understanding. but still the picture think striked me as sort of odd...idk why. oh well!

Thanks for the info on FP's. Yeah it's going to be hard to get used to. Too bad you didn't get to try out the xpass thing or whatever it's called since it didn't work out with your schedule.


I forgot to mention - I DVR Bethenny Ever After. I love that show. A day of drinking wine and watching random TV sounds AMAZING!

 

[debrapagliasotti]

Pomegranite margarita...sounds yummy!

Sounds like you guys had a very busy day 1 so far!

 

[Missyrose]

What an awesome arrival day so far. I love when getting to Disney is easy peasy with no glitches along the way. And I'm loving the Ben on a stick photobombs.

That pomegranate margarita looks delish! Did it taste as good as it looked? You weren't kidding about Mark and his commando tendencies. I may not *love* AK, but even I love to stop and check out all the details and theming in the park.

Can't wait to hear what you think of Boma!

 

[Joyciemc]

I don't think I could've done so much on an arrival day. Everest is fun, but combined with the Safari, Dinosaur, and alcohol, I'd be done...

Interested to see how your Boma dinner went! It might sound crazy, but I think it's cool that you visited AK, then ate at the AK Lodge...keeping the same theme throughout the day.

Hey, Joyce! Mmm I love mushrooms! Sorry! (Not that I have any interest in growing my own re: that kit!) I cannot believe you woke up at 3:30 & were still going strong at this point-- especially two drinks in! You are a champ.

Not sure what it says about me, but having a drink here and there throughout a day at Disney is fairly normal for me.

By this point in the day, though- I was ABSOLUTELY running on fumes, just trying to keep up with Mark. I still don't know how we managed to do everything else we did this day (yup... it's not over, yet!)

I'm glad you understood what I was trying to say. I have a head cold that's sort of screwing with my brain and I didn't know if I was being clear. but yeah, hopefully two couples will work better since you can go your separate ways without leaving someone alone.

Haha I'm happy it wasn't an issue being a guy & girl with your friend - if it was an issue I'm sure you wouldn't have gone! And Ben might not have been so understanding. but still the picture think striked me as sort of odd...idk why. oh well!

Thanks for the info on FP's. Yeah it's going to be hard to get used to. Too bad you didn't get to try out the xpass thing or whatever it's called since it didn't work out with your schedule.


I forgot to mention - I DVR Bethenny Ever After. I love that show. A day of drinking wine and watching random TV sounds AMAZING!

I partly think he just didn't ever want to stop long enough to take a picture- seriously... I had to start just stopping and hope he noticed before getting too far away. The dude did not ever stop moving!

Pomegranite margarita...sounds yummy!

Sounds like you guys had a very busy day 1 so far!

What an awesome arrival day so far. I love when getting to Disney is easy peasy with no glitches along the way. And I'm loving the Ben on a stick photobombs.

That pomegranate margarita looks delish! Did it taste as good as it looked? You weren't kidding about Mark and his commando tendencies. I may not *love* AK, but even I love to stop and check out all the details and theming in the park.

Can't wait to hear what you think of Boma!

The margarita was actually a pre-made Absolut mix. It was ok, not great, and definitely a bad choice given the price and the much more delicious options around. But it was an impulse buy!

 

[Simba22]

my gosh, i feel tired just READING all of this! i don't know how you managed to keep up! I get super excited in WDW too but I think I would have passed out by now!

 

[Nermel9]

I'm glad you were able to get your AP, that would have been annoying if you had to go to SSR to get a new card!

Wow, I can't believe you guys had so much energy after that early flight! And you can drink in that heat! I'm impressed, I wanted to just relax with a margarita the second I got to Epcot that day, but it was too hot and I was getting a headache. Brandon, however, made up for the fact that I wasn't drinking, since apparently that's all he wants to do in Disney World...drink and eat!

You guys did so much in Animal Kingdom, looks like a fun day!

 

[Joyciemc]

my gosh, i feel tired just READING all of this! i don't know how you managed to keep up! I get super excited in WDW too but I think I would have passed out by now!

You'll see that I do pass out, soon!

I'm glad you were able to get your AP, that would have been annoying if you had to go to SSR to get a new card!

Wow, I can't believe you guys had so much energy after that early flight! And you can drink in that heat! I'm impressed, I wanted to just relax with a margarita the second I got to Epcot that day, but it was too hot and I was getting a headache. Brandon, however, made up for the fact that I wasn't drinking, since apparently that's all he wants to do in Disney World...drink and eat!

You guys did so much in Animal Kingdom, looks like a fun day!

Mark set the pace as far as energy goes, but I was having fun keeping up. Once we stopped, though- I got real tired!

I can always drink- heat or no This was not the last of it!

 

[Joyciemc]

It seems that I have tuckered a lot of you out with the tales of Day 1 so far... hope you'll stick with me anyhow!

May 6, finally the end. "Code Lifeguard"

While we had done a lot up till now, we managed it all with little-to-no waiting in lines. I think this helped a lot with our stamina and ability to keep going!
We were, however, losing a lot of steam as we waited for the bus to bring us to AKL. Luckily, it wasn’t too long of a wait and was a super-duper quick ride over. Only problem was… it was not even 3:30, and our ADR was for 4:45. I plopped down on a couch in the gorgeous lobby, and actually fell asleep. Homeless person style. Classy.
Mark went to ask what time Boma opened, hoping it was 4. He came back with bad news: 4:30, now we had to make it a little longer!
I woke up to take this flattering picture of him.

I was getting pretty hungry, and figured a change of scenery was in order. So at my suggestion, we walked down to the Mara and ordered a veggie flatbread to share. Once we had that snack, I had another brilliant idea: let’s head out to the lounge chairs by the pool and take a little cat-nap!
As we walked out the doors, we both noticed a lifeguard bent over a bunch of bushes vomiting copious amounts of grossness. When he was done, he just stood up and went back to his business.

Code Lifeguard over, we found comfy chairs in the shade and relaxed:

I set the alarm in my phone, just in case- we were that tired!

Now that we got a little relaxing in, we felt a bit better and it was now time to fill our hungry bellies!
As soon as we sat down and placed our drink orders, we ran up to the buffet to start gorging ourselves. Incidentally, it was when walking around Boma that I realized by Mary Jane Crocs had torn up the heels of my feet. These are not new shoes, and I have never had a problem with them before. It was getting super painful to walk in the, but I soldiered on in search of food!

I think I tried a little of everything, and there was not one thing I didn’t enjoy. One of my favorites was the curry pasta salad, and the bobotie was soooo good! But I really outdid myself at desert… embarrassing, really. Too many zebra domes, too much bread pudding… too much everything. I enjoyed every bite, though!

When it was time to pay, our server told us we couldn’t split the check if we used the TIW card. Which was weird because it was no problem earlier at Olivia’s… we were left with no real choice but to believe him and pay with one card, settling up with each other later.

When we got to the AKL bus stop, an Epcot bus was waiting so we hopped on to transfer to OKW. That whole process went as easily as could be expected, since a bus was waiting for us there, as well! We got off at the Hospitality House and claimed our carry-ons from bell services. Mark asked if we could have a ride to our room, and we immediately climbed aboard a golf cart and zoomed off to building 35, the same place Ben and I stayed last year!

He is quick! I swear, when I snapped the photo, Mark was not there!

Taking a picture of the bathroom proved too much for Mark- he couldn't resist.

It wasn’t long before we passed out, but I did set an alarm hoping we might make it to MK for evening EMH.
When we got up, we took a vote and decided that we were up for it, so off we went! What was that? The sound of all of you gasping in exhaustion?

I could not put those evil shoes back on, and my heels were so sore that flip flops were the only thing I could fathom putting on at that moment.

The Electrical Parade was in full swing as we walked in. We were kinda stuck by the fire station right up at the rope, so at first we figured we’d just stop and watch.

But neither of us was really into it (I am a Spectromagic girl!), so we thought we’d try to go around to the other side of the street and make it to Tomorrowland. We had good timing, though, and were able to cut through the walk way just opened up by CMs through a break between floats. We kinda swam along with the crowd and ended up in Adventureland.

First order of business? Dole whip floats (pineapple juice and vanilla ice cream for both of us- just the right combo!). Never mind the giant meal I had at Boma…
We ate them on the way to Pirates, then had fun in Adventureland before heading to Splash Mountain as Wishes started. We were able to watch the fireworks during all of the outside parts of the ride- it was amazing!
Our tour of the park continued around, ending up in Tomorrowland where we rode Space and Buzz (I won!).

There had been no wait at all for anything, so we managed to get quite a bit accomplished in just a couple of hours. And now that I had seen the MK, I really felt like our trip had started!

We left the park at about 11:30, and back in our room by midnight and asleep almost immediately.

Day 2: "The Time is Now..."

 

[diznee25]

OMG, I could not imagine my arrival day looking like that! In comparison that makes me and my DH seem like old farts, even though we're quite young!

No way we could get up at 3:30am and have our day jammed packed like that! You are my Disney hero.


Our plans for arrival day in October: Arrive at POFQ at 11am. Go to DTD for afternoon. Go to MK at night for parade/Wishes. Yep, that's it....

Can't wait for the next installment!

diznee25

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

WOW that was a marathon of a day!!!! You guys definitely got a lot done on your first day!!! Glad you enjoyed your dinner at Boma! at Mark's room photo-bombs!

 

[Nermel9]

Haha, I always see people sleeping in the lobbies...now you're one of them! (Not that I can say I'd never do that, if I was tired enough, I would absolutely! And I've fallen asleep in the American Adventure and HoP, you nap when you can in Disney! )

I really need to try dinner at Boma...I didn't know they had bread pudding. Is it as good as 'Ohana?

Your room at OKW looks cute! HAHAHA, LOVE the bathroom pictures! You should see some of the pictures Brandon and I take of each other in the privacy of our resort room... We can get really obnoxious!

I was at MK magic hours that night! Ugh, I wish I texted you!

 

[amazingact21]

I'd like to say I got tired just reading your update, but thinking back on my trips, that sounds like something Alex and I would do if we were on a tight schedule or hadn't been to WDW in awhile. So, I can totally see what you and Mark did being feasible.

I laughed out loud at the part where you fell asleep in the AKL lobby. Disney can be so exhausting, that it's not surprising. If you ever really look around in the parks, you'll see people dozing off everywhere. (I totally took a nap in the Seas aquarium after Nemo last October.)


A Dole Whip on arrival day.....that sounds amazing.


I'm so jealous you got to see Wishes while riding Splash! I've tried twice to do that on Thunder but haven't had luck. Splash is such a great attraction and it's the best at night....add fireworks and I bet it was brilliant.

 

[JayhawkFans]

Loving your trip report ... going to have to check to see if I can snag an ADR for Boma ... not sure I'll love it but I know my DH will ...

 

[debrapagliasotti]

Busy, busy first day of your trip, but it sounds like you guys had a blast

 

[Joyciemc]

OMG, I could not imagine my arrival day looking like that! In comparison that makes me and my DH seem like old farts, even though we're quite young!

No way we could get up at 3:30am and have our day jammed packed like that! You are my Disney hero.

Our plans for arrival day in October: Arrive at POFQ at 11am. Go to DTD for afternoon. Go to MK at night for parade/Wishes. Yep, that's it....

Can't wait for the next installment!

diznee25

Your arrival day plans sound soooooo good! I think I should've paced myself that first day- I had no idea that Mark would never slow down!

WOW that was a marathon of a day!!!! You guys definitely got a lot done on your first day!!! Glad you enjoyed your dinner at Boma! at Mark's room photo-bombs!

This being a fairly short trip, neither of us wanted to leave the parks unless we had to. Unfortunately, I couldn't keep this pace up!

Haha, I always see people sleeping in the lobbies...now you're one of them! (Not that I can say I'd never do that, if I was tired enough, I would absolutely! And I've fallen asleep in the American Adventure and HoP, you nap when you can in Disney! )

I really need to try dinner at Boma...I didn't know they had bread pudding. Is it as good as 'Ohana?

Your room at OKW looks cute! HAHAHA, LOVE the bathroom pictures! You should see some of the pictures Brandon and I take of each other in the privacy of our resort room... We can get really obnoxious!

I was at MK magic hours that night! Ugh, I wish I texted you!

The Boma bread pudding is different than 'Ohana (it's better there!), but still very enjoyable!

I thought about texting you, but I didn't have my phone! Since I wasn't carrying a bag most days, I usually left it in the room

I'd like to say I got tired just reading your update, but thinking back on my trips, that sounds like something Alex and I would do if we were on a tight schedule or hadn't been to WDW in awhile. So, I can totally see what you and Mark did being feasible.

I laughed out loud at the part where you fell asleep in the AKL lobby. Disney can be so exhausting, that it's not surprising. If you ever really look around in the parks, you'll see people dozing off everywhere. (I totally took a nap in the Seas aquarium after Nemo last October.)

A Dole Whip on arrival day.....that sounds amazing.

I'm so jealous you got to see Wishes while riding Splash! I've tried twice to do that on Thunder but haven't had luck. Splash is such a great attraction and it's the best at night....add fireworks and I bet it was brilliant.

It was doable! And this was a short trip. But Mark was just there in January, and I am going back in October... we toured like Disney was going away for good at the end of this trip!

I was thrilled that the timing worked out on Splash! It was great

Loving your trip report ... going to have to check to see if I can snag an ADR for Boma ... not sure I'll love it but I know my DH will ...

Thanks!!
Boma is nice in that it has the 'exotic' stuff, but also really good familiar things... the carved meats have sauces on the side, but are pretty tasty on their own if you're not feeling adventurous. Give it a shot- there's always dessert to fill up on!

Busy, busy first day of your trip, but it sounds like you guys had a blast

It was soooo much fun! If only my Crocs hadn't ripped my feet apart...

 

[DreamEagle]

Well, after that first day, I'm going to lay down for a snooze. *yawn*
Woowhee! What a first day full of action. Good for you!

Looking forward to the next day.

 

[silverhaze269]

You certainly started your vacation with a bang! Sounds like an awesome day though!

The earliest we've ever been able to get to our resort has been around 1 pm, so we've only ever been able to hit one park on arrival day, but to get to 2...

 

[Imagineer5]

LOL your first day was ridiculous!! I could have done it up until the EMH at MK, though I have never been one for evening EMH. Sounds like you had a blast though!

 

[annmarieda]

I am here! I would say finally... but it would appear that your TR is moving a fast as your first day did. Wow that was a full day!!! Just from the pics, it looks as though Mark has a lot of energy!!!