Faith, Trust and Pixie Dust! - Sept 2014 Solo TR *Updated 04/07*

[godders]

NOTE OF WARNING: This post will be very heavy on the animal pics so I apologise in advance....please feel free to skip if animals are not your thing!

Day 5 Part 2 - "Looks like there's a Giraffic jam up ahead"

I marched myself through AK to KS and by the time I got there they were still waiting for the first cars to arrive to whisk us off on our adventures and so it was up to a couple of the CMs to keep us entertained which they did with some great banter between themselves and one of the guests. Made it onto the 3rd car that went out and I was on the edge which meant I wasn't going to have to bash anyone with my zoom lens.


Here was our lovely tour guide


Bongos


Shy Black Rhino


Sable Antelope (I think)


Baobab Tree


Termite mound


Juvenile Reticulated Giraffe


The Giraffic Jam


How rude!


Baby Giraffe


Baby African Elephant


Flamingos


African Lion


White Rhino


Grumpy Zebra


This was the last animal we saw (or that I was able to get a photo of but I can't for the life of me remember what type of antelope it is)

So there you have an overview of my safari. I did enjoy it but I did miss the whole poacher storyline but I can kind of understand why they took it out as it was fairly graphic. Our guide was fairly knowledgeable but I've certainly had better. As you can see those darn Cheetahs were also able to elude my 300mm zoom lens. I had scoffed reading about the problems others had had trying to get a shot of them but my god they were difficult to find!

but anyway, a great way to start my day....​

 

[godders]

Day 5 Part 3 - Construction, Construction, Construction....

After KS it was time for my Expedition Everest FP so I started to wander in the direction of Asia and decided to get my photo taken in front of the Tree of Life





As you can see from the "glow" on my face it was already pretty hot

As I continued through the park I was able to realise just how many construction walls are up at the moment. It was crazy and I swear it made everything feel even hotter, blocking out any potential breeze from the walkways. I did however enjoy reading all the quotes the walls had on them


I eventually managed to find a spot on my route where the Tree was disrupted by any wall or the crane so I was able to get a select few photos



and then finally I had crossed the world to....


I wandered past where these guys usually meet...


Made a mental note to eventually try eating here (as I've heard such good things from people on the DIS)


Managed to get a quick couple of shots of this cute guy



Before I finally arrived at my first Mountain.....
​

 

[godders]

Day 5 Part 4 - Think I might be on the verge of a meltdown....

I made it to EE in time for my FP and thoroughly enjoyed the ride as you can see from the pic


In fact I enjoyed it so much I went straight round and got in the SB line which was only 5 minutes anyway


After 2 rides in a row my head felt a little fuzzy but I think it was because I hadn't been on a ride as thrilling as EE in a while. The temperature was still creeping up and I was beginning to believe all I'd read about AK being hotter than the other parks and I definitely think the construction walls are making it even worse.

So I decided to go on Kali to cool down a little bit which was nice and refreshing as I got slightly wet but nowhere near as soaked as when I was at the Darkside and I still had a while until my next FP so I went to see Flights of Wonder which I really enjoyed. I always enjoy bird shows (which is ironic because I HATE working with them) and I thought it was informative and funny with just that hint of cheesiness that you expect from a Disney show. Unfortunately I couldn't get any photos as there was a really tall guy in front of me.

After the show I headed on over to Dinoland and on my way past the Adventurer's Outpost I saw all of these guys being fed




After watch the Macaws for a while I finally headed into


I was just heading up towards Dinosaur for my FP when everyone started coming in the opposite direction and unfortunately it had broken down and I had an email saying I could use a FP on some of the other rides but I thought I'd give it a bit of time and see if Dinosaur came back online so when decided to go on Primeval Whirl which I'd always wanted to go on but no one else had ever wanted to.

The line was about 15 minutes which I didn't mind waiting for but then when I got to the front and said I was a single rider the CM yelled down the line "Any single riders, anyone else ALONE?" which was one of only two moments the whole trip I felt uncomfortable being on my own. I can understand asking for single riders but the way he said "alone" was very Judgy McJudgerson.

But anyway I carried on and about halfway up the slope I clicked that it was a Wild Mouse type roller coaster. Now I don't know why I'd never realised it before but I HATE Wild Mouse rides. I literally feel like I'm going to be flung off the track and die!

When I finally escaped I went to see if Dinosaur was up and running again but no such luck so I decided to go and see if I could find some lunch. Now if you've read my PRT and possibly one of my earlier posts then you know I have real difficulty finding things to eat as I have a Gastric Band. This means most quick service food is out as I can't eat bread, pasta, beans and all sorts of other foods. So I wandered around AK for about half an hour and I still hadn't been able to find anything I wanted to eat, it was absolutely boiling and was crazy busy and I could feel a major meltdown coming on so I decided to take a break before I did.

I was moving noticeably slower on the way out of the park and I was really beginning to feel the Florida heat but I finally got to the bus stop and luckily the POR stop is one of the first so it wasn't too far to walk. Unfortunately I did have to wait about 15 minutes with a few other people so I just sat on the floor and attempted to rehydrate...and then eventually when the bus did come we then had to wait for a driver change but finally I was sat down in the aircon on my way back to the resort to a well needed chill out​

 

[DisneyKates]

Following! I'm looking forward to reading the rest of your report! Hooray for a solo trip!

 

[godders]

Following! I'm looking forward to reading the rest of your report! Hooray for a solo trip!

Welcome! Welcome! Hope you enjoy my report!

 

[godders]

Day 5 Part 5 - DTD and Cirque du Soleil

I was really starving by the time I got back to POR so I went straight to the food court and got myself some chicken nuggets and chips which were unfortunately pretty gross. The chips almost tasted stale so I didn't really eat much of it and it's why I ended up getting the slice of cheese cake as well. Cheesecake was ok, would have preferred some kind of fruit over the chocolate but that was my own fault for choosing it!



After getting lunch I sat down to update my trip diary only to find that my pen had leaked all over my phone, lip balm and lanyard. Luckily my hands took the worst of it and I was able to clean everything up pretty easily.

Eventually I wandered back to my room and had a cheeky power nap while my photos uploaded so when I woke up to head to DTD I was feeling lovely and refreshed!

I decided to get the boat to DTD in the end as I'd heard so many negative reports about the buses on the DIS. Well what can I say about the boat ride....it was lovely! There was a gentle breeze and it was a great way to see more of POR (as I didn't really explore the resort).



It was also fun to see some of the other resorts in the area like the French Quarter



and Saratoga Springs



The journey, including a stop at POFQ took about 20 minutes and if you stay at POR or POFQ I would definitely recommend the boat to DTD if you're not in a rush. It was very relaxing!



And then finally I arrived at the Marketplace dock and I was ready for a bit of an explore before my ADR at House of Blues on the Westside (anyone else get Ali G in their head then....no? Just me then.....)








How awesome are the Lego statues btw?? Wonder how long it took them to make those???

After the nice refreshing breeze of the boat, DTD was stifling with all the construction walls up and in some areas it made it really cramp so it seemed very packed in some areas but just nicely busy in others...

Anyway, I made it to House of Blues and was seated straight away. I had a very attentive server who asked me all about my day and kept coming back to check on me.

I ordered the meatloaf (again) and a Strawberry Daiquiri which is my favourite cocktail both of which were very nice but I was still pretty full from lunch so I couldn't eat as much as I would've liked but oh well...




During dinner I wanted to actually write my update for the day in my trip diary but once again my (replacement) pen scuppered my plans and ran out just as I got started so instead I ended up playing on my phone while eating.

After my dinner I still had about an hour until I needed to be at Cirque du Soleil and I really needed to new pen so I decided to go back to the Marketplace and nosey around World of Disney for a while....OMG I LOVE THAT SHOP! I could've spent soooooo much money in there!! But I managed to resist (just about). I did think people would think it was weird if I just bought a pack of pens however so I also bought some new pins as well.

By the time I'd paid it was time to head back to the Westside for the show and what can I say about it....it was incredible!! They were amazingly talented (although I've seen better ballet dancers) and the clowns were hilarious! One of them even took my hat off just to hit me over the head with a foam stick. I especially loved the young girls with the plastic diablos. I used to have some when I was younger and they are so difficult to do tricks with!

After the show it was still just as busy outside but luckily it had cooled down somewhat. I wandered back over the the Marketplace, trying to decide if I was going to get the bus or boat back to POR but luckily there was a boat just loading as I got there so I jumped on it and headed back for some much needed sleep before my long day tomorrow​

 

[godders]

Day 6 Part 1 - Magic Kingdom (finally!)

I was woken up at 5.45am when someone rang my phone. Naturally it was on the other side of the room charging so I actually had to drag myself out of my nice comfy bed to deal with it . I dozed for a little bit and listened to sounds of people around me getting up and heading off to start their days. I let myself lie in (if that's what you call it) until 7am and then finally got up. I wasn't too bothered about getting to MK really early because it was a MNSSHP night and I'd heard from the DIS about how they are usually fairly quiet days beforehand (and it was a Friday when more locals would be attending anyway). I decided to skip on breakfast this morning as I had 2 ADRs for the day and wasn't sure how I was going to fit in all that food!

Anyway, I decided to dress up a little for the day and wore my playsuit which was covered in little Mickeys. It was my first Disney themed outfit of the trip and I actually felt a little nervous, not only as an adult but as a solo traveler but I thought I just had to man up and wear it!

I jumped on an MK bus as soon as I got to the stop and I had to stand up so I was a little worried that it was going to be really busy but in fact we ended up being some of the first people outside the gates. There must have been only 40 people there but there was a boat and monorail arriving so I hot-footed it to get through bag check before they all got there


Seriously, it was that empty!

As I waited for the opening show I took quite a few pictures and then managed to snag a seat on a little wall facing the middle of the train station so I knew I was going to have a pretty good view!





It was also fun to see all the Halloween decorations up and it just made me even more excited for my upcoming MNSSHP!!

I did manage to get some very wobbly video of the opening show but I don't want to spoil it for those who haven't seen it yet but it is really cute and really gets you geared up for the day!

and of course no TR is complete without this picture:


but seriously it was so quiet; I mean look at all that space!


I headed straight into Tomorrowland and got straight on Buzz Lightyear and Space Mountain with no wait.



Seriously you'd think nobody liked Tomorrowland....

I did alright on Buzz and managed to beat both the people in the car in front of me (ok, so one of them might have a 6-year old but it still counts!)


You can just see the concentration....

Unfortunately my shot from Space was actually of the car in front of mine so I won't wait your time with a just a glimpse of my feet.... I also found Space to be so much darker than I previously remembered. For some reason I had it in my head that there was quite of few reflective strips (like on The Mummy) but obviously not. Made it way more thrilling in the end and I made some rather embarrassingly girly squeals during some parts of the ride but it was fun!​

 

[godders]

Day 6 Part 2 - New Fantasyland

After Tomorrowland I waltzed on over to Fantasyland to check out all the upgrades. Think I ended up going the long way round as I ended up going past





But it was my first time in years so I was trying to get my bearings....anyway.....

It was amazing! I hadn't really seen it since I was a little kid because on my last trip in 2010 we mostly skipped it (other than IASW for my Mum) and I think adding that extra bit has really helped to spread out the crowds (she says going at one of the quietest times of the year...).

I had heard loads of great things on the boards about the new Little Mermaid ride so I was excited to try that first so I ducked into where I thought it was only it turned out to be...



and I got to meet this little lady....



She was so lovely!!! She asked if my Prince had given me my necklace ("treasure") and I said if only I had one to buy me sparkly things and then she said I should look for a pirate because they are always able to find treasure...laughed at that one! But it was really cool to meet someone by surprise because I don't think I would have otherwise and she inspired me to meet other face characters as well. Plus there was only one family in front of me in the queue.

After meeting Ariel I did eventually find my way onto the LM ride and omg it was so cute! Officially my new favourite ride! I could seriously just have kept going round and round on it. It was also my first look at the new Audio-Animatronics and they are so much less creepy than the old ones!

After that I went on over the IASW as a little tribute to my Mum and it was my first experience of people using FLASH photography.....I never knew it could be so annoying! Luckily there several people who yelled at them to stop so it didn't go on for too long. Next I used my FP+ for Peter Pan so I managed to skip the 20 minutes of SB (so quiet!) Peter Pan was really sweet and it reminded me of ET at Universal except without the feeling that the car was going to drop of the rail at any second.....

Following PP I walked past 7DMT to see the SB wait and it was about 2 hours (pretty sure that's where everyone was...other than the people waiting for Anna and Elsa that is). I wasn't willing to wait that long so I went on Winnie the Pooh instead and while I was in the queue some little kid in front of me was telling his dad that it was like being in a museum which I thought was really cute. When I came out of WP there was a line of people waiting by the castle wall to meet the Fairy Godmother so I thought that would be a lovely M&G so I joined the line.

However just before I got to the front the FG had to go and who should she be replaced by but The Tremaines! Now I had heard that they are an absolute hoot but I was quite anxious about meeting them because they so loud and chatty and I tend to be quite shy at first but they had me in stitches from start to finish even if they weren't impressed with all the mice on my playsuit....


They loved my paw prints tattoo so they were all posing as cats but as you can see I was too busy laughing to pose with them

After the Tremaines I thought I should take the plunge and head over to meet my crush.....Gaston Serious swoon! I mean seriously in the words of my best mate (who is a vet nurse btw) he just kinda makes you want to hump his leg....

So I was waiting in line for the big G and the family in front of me had a little boy with them who must have been about 8. So they get to meet Gaston and he's trying to engage with this kid and the little boy was so scared he actually ran off into the toilets so Gaston couldn't follow him. So naturally the sarcastic Brit in me piped in with how he had such a way with children.....well boy did I get the stink eye and Gaston said I had to have a time out before I could meet him...ooops.....

But I eventually got my turn and he was busy chatting away about how amazing he was at everything....


Yes I know I don't look too impressed

...and then he pulled me in a little closer and told me how really he was a treat for all 5 senses, that he smelt good, he felt good to touch....



All I could think was that meant he tasted good too but there were small children around so I resisted the urge to mention it but it was on the tip of my tongue....



So I definitely felt the need for a cigarette after that but the nearest smoking area (which should've been behind the castle) was blocked off because of the crane so I ended up wandering around for a while before I eventually found the one at the back of Storybrook Circus and it was right in direct sunlight with no shade so suffice to say I got out of there pretty quick.

Then it was finally time for my 7DMT fp+. It did completely bypass the interactive queue but I was soooo not going to wait 2 hours for it so I didn't mind too much. The ride was ok, really quite short but I didn't mind because those seats are uncomfortable!!! Why did they have to have lips on the side of the seats instead of just being one bench....I think I definitely would've enjoyed it more with an extra inch or two!
​

 

[godders]

Day 6 Part 3 - Be....Our.....Guest!

After 7DMT it was finally time for my first ADR of the day at Be Our Guest. I was really looking forward to it because not only is Beauty and the Beast one of my all-time favourite Disney films but it hadn't been open too long so it had been a bit stressful trying to get a reservation. It took a bit of DIS stalking to find out how to do it. I had also pre-ordered my meal so I was interested to find out if it actually turned out like the pictures.

Well what can I say....BOG could only be described as organised chaos! It started off outside at the podium where you had check in but you couldn't get to the podium unless you had an ADR and they had extra CMs turning people away. As I queued to check-in about 3 different people all tried to push in front of me to book in themselves and I was like "helllllooooo! I'm in line here!" Grrrr (heat plus hunger = hangry Vicky!) Anyway, managed to get checked in and said I'd pre-ordered my meal but they couldn't find it on the system (typical!) but they were able to sort it out for me easily (being a solo traveler does have it's benefits!). Then it was inside to pay. As I'd pre-ordered I was able to walk straight ahead to the tills rather than be directed into the mess that seemed to be the order screens. Apparently I wasn't able to pay by card and instead they just stuck it on my MB. But finally I was able to enter the Great Hall....




All I can say was WOW! It is stunning! I mean it's insanely busy but I can imagine at quieter times it is really cool! I managed to find myself a little table and just about located the cutlery (more staff to point out those sorts of things would be great) and I only had to wait about 5 minutes before my food magically appeared...




I went for the French Onion soup which was so tasty!!! I mean I've never had such good french onion soup! And for dessert I ordered the Master's Cupcake....OMG! So good!!! Seriously....the grey stuff is delicious!

After lunch I took the opportunity to look at the other rooms. The one on the right was a little bland with a spinning Beast and Belle statue (which I don't have a good picture of - sorry!)



and the one on the left was the West Wing, complete with that portrait



Overall I thought that BOG was really good fun with amazing themeing and I can't wait to try it again! I would also recommend the French Onion Soup and the Master's Cupcake because they were AMAZING nom nom nom!

After BOG, I came out to some very ominous looking clouds over the castle.....



but as it was Florida I wasn't too worried about the rain just yet so I trotted on over to the Haunted Mansion to finally face a major fear!!!

So I first went on HM when I was 4 years old on my first ever trip to WDW and the bit where it appears like there is a ghost next to you totally freaked me out because for some reason I have a memory that I turned to my Mum and she was the ghost and I just screamed my head off......so skip forward over the next couple of trips to WDW/DL and I skipped it until finally when I was 16 at Disney World I decided to face my fears. Well....I ended up having a panic attack and had to leave....(actually my 2nd panic attack of the trip as I had another one at Twister at Universal as well ). So this meant on my last trip in 2010 I skipped it again.....BUT NO MORE! I was determined beyond belief to do this damn ride!

And I did!

It was still creepy in places and especially in the graveyard scene where the heads keep popping up and making me jump I really wish someone was in the Doom buggy with me but I survived. And I really need to say a massive to those DISers who love this ride because it was you guys who really helped me to man up and do it!

The whole thing from heading in to exiting the ride probably took about 15 minutes but by the time I came out there was torrential rain.....​

 

[godders]

Day 6 Part 4 - Park Hopping I go

My first Florida storm! I missed those! There is something about it still being really warm when there is some seriously heavy rain. No matter where I am in the world it always makes me think of Disney and gives me a happy moment. So I headed off to find some shelter and as I hoped to get on Splash for my next FP I headed in that direction. I decided to hide out under Splash and when I got there I found it full of people with the same idea but I managed to find space on the floor for little ole me and snapped this photo from my dry spot (I apologise for the bad quality)



As I had nothing to do but wait I decided to check how long the rain was forecast to go on for and according to Accuweather I only had 7 more minutes to wait before it stopped. Well naturally I scoffed at such an idea, I mean how could they possibly have guessed it would stop in 7 minutes.....well you know what.......it did! I honestly timed it and couldn't believe it! Accuweather you are gods!

After the rain I quickly dashed over to Splash to see how long it would be before I could get on it but the CMs at the entrance said that they didn't know as there was still lightning in the area so Splash was having to stay closed for now. Unfortunately I had another ADR to get to at Epcot so I decided to say goodbye to the Magic Kingdom for now. On my way to the exit, I thought I might be able to get a quick ride on POTC (as the wait times had been only 5 minutes all day) but alas it was also closed....because of the rain......that's right, an indoor ride was closed because of the weather.....you know it makes sense....So I continued on my way out of the park and by the time I got to the Monorail station the rain had completely stopped but the clouds were still looking pretty dark and angry....

But not so at Epcot!



Blue skies were all around! And looking at the park from the monorail, it was pretty empty!

As I entered the park, I thought I had to hit up the classic Spaceship Earth and as I was heading towards the ride entrance I spotted a familiar face out of the corner of my eye, standing around all by his lonesome....



My first fur character meet! Pluto got so excited by my pawprints that his handler and I just didn't have the heart to tell him they were actually cat paws....but we had a great interaction and danced around for ages as the was no one else around. I was actually really pleased to have met him that day because back home a local dog shelter had just suffered a horrific arson attack which unfortunately resulted in the deaths of 40 dogs so supporters were posting dog selfies to show our support (and obviously as I was away this was the best opportunity I had).

But anyway.....

I headed onto SE and attempted to take some dark ride photography with my big camera (no flash of course) but I just couldn't get the settings right so I had to give up. I had also completely forgotten that Dame Judi Dench was the voice of Spaceship Earth. It was kind of nice to hear a familiar voice; it was comforting like hearing Sir David Attenborough on nature programmes.

After that, I headed over to Test Track!



It was a walk-on as a single-rider but that did mean I skipped out on designing my own car but oh well. I used to love TT with all the "tests" they put new cars through but I just did not get the new Tron theming (and I really liked the remake). I just didn't really get the tie in and think they would've had to make more drastic changes to the ride to really make it tie into the film. But it's still a pretty fun ride and I enjoyed myself although I'm not really sure you can tell that from the pic:



After TT it was time to hit Mission Space which was intense as always but that's definitely part of the fun! After a quick ride on MS I decided to head over the The Land to try out Soarin' for the first time ever. When I got there the SB line was only 20 minutes and I still had plenty of time before my ADR so I headed on in. I'd been waiting about 15 minutes and was only about half way through the queue, sandwiched between two loud tour groups, when I CM came walking past looking for a single rider....well I don't think my hand has ever moved so fast So I managed to bypass a good portion of the line only to get stuck with ANOTHER tour group (seriously where had they all come from??) But anyway, sooo Soarin' itself....was kind of a let down....I mean I'm not sure if it was the dangling over a large drop with 2 other rows of people above me that put me off (thanks for the heads up on that by the way Disers) or whether it was just one of those rides that everyone else seems to love so you just assume you will too.....So basically I won't be doing it again until they upgrade it and even then I'd have to make sure I was on the bottom row otherwise I think a panic attack may come come on.....

Anyhoo....after Soarin I had a quick ciggie and realised that somehow the heat had cranked up even more! Boy was I looking forward to a nice big drink with dinner! I was still a bit early for my ADR but I decided to head on over to the World Showcase anyway to see if I could get in a little early.

As it is family tradition to eat at the Rose and Crown in the UK I decided to eat here on my solo trip too but alas my table was not ready so they gave me one of those pagery thingys so I went off for a little bit of an explore around the UK. I went into the main shop and found a really cute Dr Who dress which would've been really good for a MNSSHP but I didn't think they'd have one in my size. I loved seeing all the Beatles and Rolling Stones memorabilia because you know, awesome bands and great British exports but then I was horrified (and I mean HORRIFIED) to see One Direction merchandise I mean I know they are huge in the US but to put them next to such legends.....just not cool Disney!

But as I got over my shock, my pager buzzed and I headed on back to the pub. Boy was I looking forward to a large alcoholic beverage! But no! Apparently, Disney would not accept my BRITISH driver's license as I.D. in a BRITISH themed pub, so said my BRITISH waitress! Now I would totally understand in any normal Disney restaurant or say in Japan...but really??

Once I got over some more shock (and without any alcohol to help) I decided to go with a classic dish and ordered myself fish and chips with a side of mushy peas...


Sorry, forgot to take a picture before I started eating


Apparently the mushy peas were not quite up to par but overall the meal was ok.

And then I don't know what happened because that was the last thing I wrote in my diary for that day and the first thing for day 7 was that I went to bed around 9pm.....nor do I have any photos of what I did.....I think however it is safe to assume that I did a bit of exploring around the countries...which has actually jogged my memory a little so I know I definitely went for one last ride on Maelstrom before they shut it for its Frozen makeover....but that's about it....god my memory is bad!​

 

[DVC Emily]

I have really been enjoying your trip report, your pictures are amazing! Makes me feel like I'm there all over again! I also totally love your Disney themed outfit! It's adorable, great choice for the day!!

 

[godders]

I have really been enjoying your trip report, your pictures are amazing! Makes me feel like I'm there all over again! I also totally love your Disney themed outfit! It's adorable, great choice for the day!!

Aww thank you so much!! I'm glad people are enjoying it and not just me as I relive it lol. Aw thanks. I was really nervous about wearing it but if you can't wear a Mickey Mouse playsuit at Disney where can wear it....

 

[godders]

Day 7 Part 1 - Downtown Disney

I was knackered by the time I fell asleep at 9pm so I was definitely not amused when someone rang me at 5am AGAIN! I was very tempted to throw my phone away at that point but I was just about able to resist. I decided to give myself the morning off so I stuck the Do Not Disturb sign on the door and got back into bed. I ended up dosing until about 11am when I decided it was about time for me to get up in order to get to my lunch ADR at Planet Hollywood.

When I was ready (after dancing round my room for a bit - don't know why but sometimes you've just got to dance!) I did some research into good camera settings for fireworks as I was finally going to get the see Wishes that night. Very exciting! I also emailed my mum to let her know I was still alive as it had been a few days. Finally I checked the weather forecast and it looked like it was going to rain in the early afternoon but only for an hour so I wasn't too worried. I was also quite tempted to go to the cinema after lunch to try to see the end of Guardians of the Galaxy but the times didn't really work out and I didn't want to tire myself out for EMHs that night. Luckily I had been able to move my FPs to later in the evening so I didn't need to be at MK until 8pm.

So I eventually made it to DTD. I got the boat again as there was one just loading as I came past. It was pretty quiet at DTD compared to the Thursday evening but it was so hot! I was sweating like crazy by the time I got to Planet Hollywood. I was definitely looking forward to getting in some aircon! I was seated straight away at the bar which was ok but it didn't really mean I had much memorabilia to look at. But the barman was really friendly and made me a special cocktail with light & dark rum, mango juice, pineapple juice and grenadine. It was lovely!


Sorry for the bad pic but the lighting was near impossible!

To eat I had the Stuffed Burger and then decided to have dessert (no idea why) and I chose the Key Lime Pie but I really didn't like it. Overall I was pretty disappointed in the meal (other than the cocktail) and the lighting was so bad I didn't even bother to get a photo. The barman was also really nice and I got the glass for free so a few bonuses to a less than satisfactory lunch.

After lunch I pretty much waddled to the boat dock at the Westside because the thought of walking over the the boat dock at the Marketplace just seem way too much in the heat which seemed to have kicked up another notch while I'd been inside. It was about a 10 minute wait to get on the boat but once I was back at the Marketplace I was able to walk straight onto the boat back to POR. I was definitely needing to sleep off lunch so as soon as I was back at my room at about 4.30pm I fell asleep.

I woke up very sleepily at about 6.30pm and was just about awake enough to get myself ready for EMH which was until 1am but in my sleepy post nap head I figured I would until just before the 2nd parade so that I would miss all the craziness of leaving (how little did I know). I also had a FP for Wishes which I was really looking forward to as well! ​

 

[godders]

Day 7 Part 2 - Extra Magic Hours Ep.1

As soon as I got to MK I knew exactly where I was heading......Frontierland!!! First stop....Splash Mountain! The SB line was about 50 minutes so I was very glad I had a FP especially as I'd had to miss my ride the day before. With FP it was a walk on and I was sat in the 3rd row in front of a little girl and her parents. Now this little girl was really cute but she just kept screaming randomly, not even at the drops, just randomly as we went round corners and were trying to enjoy the music. Her dad did ask me if I minded the screaming but I mean, what are you supposed to say to that "yes actually I do mind and if she does it again I'm going to throw her overboard...." Anyway, I enjoyed Splash and I think we must've been quite a heavy boat as we all got pretty wet.

Next I went on Thunder Mountain and I swear it was way more intense than it used to be especially that breaking stop at the end as you're pulling into the station. Now that is a back-breaker! Perhaps they've upped it since 7DMT opened so that it is up at the higher end of the thrills at Disney......or perhaps it was just me....

Anyway, I then began to doubt my FP choices as I was going to have to try to cross the parade route but luckily I had a few minutes to spare and managed to get across to Adventureland to Pirates of the Caribbean. I got chatting to the couple in front of me in the FP line when the woman commented how good I looked in red, "why thank you!" Anyway, they were really nice and they were telling me all about their wedding at Epcot the previous year and then we got chatting about our love of pins so I was getting some good tips off them. I think it was possibly the longest conversation I'd had all week so it really gave me a spring in my step. So random couple! You made my day!

Pirates was definitely shorter than I remembered it and the water vapoury screen with Blackbeard wasn't working but overall most things were moving as they should. I also noticed a backlog of boats when you get to the end with Captain Jack and his haul just before you exit but I can't remember if that was normal or not. Definitely can't wait to see how everything works after this long rehab over the summer!

I still had 40 minutes till the start of my Wishes FP so I went over to Jungle Cruise. The queue said 20 minutes but I didn't mind as I had time to kill. Our Captain was fab! She was still enthusiastic although I imagine it had probably been a long day. She was also very believable as our incompetent tour guide but definitely in a good way.

After JC, I had to make my way across to the other side of the hub for my Wishes FP.....yeh that was not going to happen! I'd managed to time it to when the parade was just hitting the hub so not only was it packed with no one moving but they had also dimmed all the lights so it was rather difficult to see in some areas for someone like me with bad eyesight. Sure all those carrot eaters out there would've been fine though. So I decided to head back to the light of Adventureland and went to a little cart with lots of ear headbands so I could pick out a pair for my MNSSHP costume.

Ended up with these bad boys:



I also got some more pins....

Now what I haven't quite put across enough yet in this TR is just how obsessed with pins I became. I think I ended up coming home with about 50 of them...and I would like to blame someone here on the DIS who is also very into their pins (but who I won't name) and who introduced me to these things during her own trip report:



So if you don't know, these are pin sets only you don't know which pins from the set you are going to get in the box.....so naturally my OCD took over and I just HAD to try to complete it.....yep Disney really saw me coming on that one! So pretty much every time I bought anything I bought a box (or two) of this particular set as well. *hangs head in shame* ​

 

[DisneyKates]

The mystery pin sets are awesome! We were never into pins until our most recent trip, but it's so much fun to buy and trade for a "mystery"! We did a ton of pin buying and trading while we were at the World last week for our summer vacation. Are you going to show us your haul?

 

[godders]

The mystery pin sets are awesome! We were never into pins until our most recent trip, but it's so much fun to buy and trade for a "mystery"! We did a ton of pin buying and trading while we were at the World last week for our summer vacation. Are you going to show us your haul?

Yeh I think I may have to avoid them like the plague on my next trip to save some money. Think I'm going to focus on Princess pins as I literally don't have one. My cunning plan is to not show you my swag till the end to keep you all reading my report.....MWAAAAHHHHAAAAHHHAAAAHHHAAAAA *rubs hands together with glee at cunning plan*

 

[godders]

Day 7 Part 3 - Extra Magic Hours Ep. 2

After loading my new purchases into my rucksack I decided to make a 2nd attempt at getting across the hub. Only there weren't allowing people to walk directly across it (it was full of people by this time) so I was directed down towards Casey's Corner, across Main Street, over the Tomorrowland walkway and then back over the bridge....Wow that was difficult! Luckily I seemed to be moving relatively with the flow of people so I wasn't completely fighting my way through.

I managed to get to The Rose Garden just in time for Celebrate the Magic and was able to get a pretty good seat with the castle nestled between the trees. Oh it was all so lovely!!! And then there was WISHES! Now I am not generally a fan of fireworks (think of my like your pet cat or dog) but wow! Wishes was amazing! I think most of it was the music and I welled up at the bit with Robin Williams as the Genie. My only criticism of the Rose Garden would be the fact that you can definitely tell "Tinkerbell" is a man..... I am definitely looking forward to seeing it from the new FP+ area which are slightly more central so I imagine it would feel completely different.

After Wishes I thought I'd jump on Space Mountain....wrong! Queue was 35 minutes when I got there and 55 minutes just after I got in the line. Damn you FP+. It was definitely very frustrating seeing all guests with fastpasses walking straight past us and there were LOADS of them! Space ended up taking forever but when I eventually got to the front I ended up being in the very front seat. Well, that was a wee bit scary! I could also feel my rucksack with my camera in it slamming up and down a couple of times....

After Space I had a quick ciggie break and then I went on back to Fantasyland. I took another go on the Little Mermaid which I definitely thought it would be my Mum's favourite ride when she visited in November but she ended up skipping it . So silly! Some people just don't know how to do Disney....

After LM I was feeling kind of peckish (which is fair enough as I hadn't actually eaten for about 11 hours so I decided to go to Gaston's Tavern for a snack. I decided to go for Le Fou's Brew and a Cinnamon Roll




OMG!! They were soooo good!! Le Fou's Brew was so much better than Butterbeer! And that cinnamon roll? Delicious! But as you can see from the picture, it was HUGE! I managed to eat about a quarter before I had to go and get a to-go box. That will be my snack for tomorrow and possibly the day after. After finishing up, I decided to go and see Enchanted Tales with Belle. Beauty and the Beast is one of my favourite Disney films so I was really looking forward to it. Oh My God! That affect with the mirror.....amazing Anyway, it was a lot of fun! Love the wardrobe & Belle really sounded like Belle from the films. And she was so pretty!!! Next time I am definitely going to try harder to get a part so that I can get my picture with her.

After that I thought about heading back to the Mine Train but then I saw the wait for Anna & Elsa was only 20 minutes so I jumped in. There were a lot of sleepy kids in that line...But then I finally met the most popular princesses in town:




Anna was lovely! She was asking about hair and how neat hers was and I was like...."have you seen mine...?" Elsa on the other hand....well she was kinda snooty. She had that evil, *****y look in her eye when I walked up so I refused to complement her on her dress even though it was really pretty!

After my m&g I thought it was time to head home as I had a breakfast ADR the next morning. Luckily I didn't have to wait long for the bus and I managed to get home by 1.30am and I curled up really not happy that my alarm was set for 6am ​

 

[godders]

Day 8 Part 1 - My first character meal!

Boy oh boy was it an early morning for me! Today counted as the start of my extension to my holiday that I had added. So for those who haven't read my PTR (you naughty readers you!) I had originally planned only a week in total for my Florida holiday and then I joined the DIS...... Well then I obviously realised that there was no way I would be able to fit in all I wanted to do in only 4 1/2 days at Disney so I decided to extend my trip by an extra 3 days to give myself a full Disney week. And that ladies and gentlemen is how I came to be getting up at 6am on a nice quiet Sunday at POR to head to reception to check out and recheck in and to see if I could stay in the same room because with only a 2 minute walk to a bus stop, I knew I couldn't do much better. (I also REALLY didn't want to pack as my stuff was all over my room).

The lovely CM at reception said that that would absolutely not be a problem but that she had to go sort out me staying in my room in the back.....40 minutes later all was sorted. Apparently they'd had to move people coming into my room somewhere else but the computer system wasn't having any of it that morning....oops! But she said it was all dandy now and my MB would continue to work on my room door (fabulous!)

I was back in my room by 7 and had about 30 minutes to just chill out and listen to some Disney tunes before having to set out for my day. I was very excited because I had taken a massive leap and decided to do a character meal and it was going to be at the one and only Tusker House! I also wanted to go see FOTLK in it's new home and to ride Dinosaur as it had been broken down a few days previously.

It was yet another beautiful morning in Florida!



I wasn't really in a rush to get to AK because my ADR wasn't until 9.20 so I wasn't going to be in a rush to get anywhere at Rope Drop. When I got to the park I decided to get a picture



They were already letting people in when I got to the gate so I just dawdled my way over to Africa taking some pictures along the way:





I was a little early for my ADR so I had to wait about 10 minutes but then I was shown into my seat. I was in a room off to the side of the main room of the restaurant and right by the door as well so the characters definitely wouldn't miss me out. My waitress was very friendly and said I had a plenty of time before Mickey & Co would be round so I didn't need to rush. I tried the "Jungle Juice" which was very refreshing and then headed out to the buffet. I ended up with eggs, cheese & ham quiche and a Mickey waffle which I naturally forgot to take a picture of (sorry guys!). After that I was excited to try some Mielie Pap as it is one of my favourite African dishes but I'm afraid Disney's version was not very pleasant. I wouldn't recommend it but everything I had was very nice. By the time I'd finished eating the characters had arrived!

Miss Daisy


Donald


I was really lucky because the very nice couple next to me took photos of me with the characters and then I did the same for them so they could both be in the picture. Phew! Some of the handlers did not seem so keen on helping a girl out!

After Daisy and Donald, it was supposed to be Mickey's turn but halfway through the room he had to lead a little dance procession with all the children in the room



But soon he was back on track and it was my turn



Last but certainly not least was the big man himself, Goofy! He was awesome and he gave me a massive hug and then we posed like a proper lady and gentleman




These last two photos which aren't great were the ones taken by a CM....typical!

But anyway, I really enjoyed Tusker House and it was a great way to meet the main crew (minus Minnie of course). The food was fairly standard but still tasty and I would definitely recommend it to others. ​

 

[godders]

Day 8 Part 2 - Just a little Animal Kingdom

After breakfast I had for some reason scheduled myself a FP+ for a m&g with Mickey and his friends but I figured as I'd already seen them that morning I wouldn't bother and instead I'd go to see Festival of the Lion King instead! I still had a little time to kill until the show so I hung around taking some pictures






I saw quite a few people go to start lining up for the show so I decided to join them. There was only about 20 people in front of me so I was happy that I was going to be able to get a seat near the front for once! Just behind me in the queue came 3 generations of a family from the UK with two of the cutest identical twin boys ever so all of us waiting had a big chat about the boys which definitely helped to pass the time.

Finally we were let in and I managed to get a seat on the third row from the front



Now for some reason I decided not to take any pictures of the show, I have no idea why so I don't have any more for you right now but I really enjoyed it (as per usual) and I swear I welled up at the start of every song! That show just reminds me so much of my childhood!

After FOTLK I only had Dinosaur left on my to-do list but my FP wasn't for another 30 minutes. I headed over in that direction anyway and the wait time for standby said 10 minutes so I jumped straight in! Ok, that ride is really scary!! There is just something about dinosaurs jumping out at you.... I'm pretty sure I didn't really look up the entire way through the ride! But I survived (just!) and by the time I got off the ride, it was getting pretty hot and busy so I decided to head back to the hotel for a bit of a relax before my first MNSSHP!!!!!​

 

[godders]

Day 8 Part 3 - MNSSHP Ep. 1

​

As I'd arranged all my FPs for Animal Kingdom that morning (not that I actually used any of them) I didn't have any for MK that night so I wasn't too bothered about what time between 4 and 7 that I actually got to the park. I decided to get up at 4pm and jumped straight in the shower to freshen myself up before putting together my Indiana Jones costume for the party. Unfortunately, I had a little accident when cleaning my teeth and ended up with tooth paste down my shirt (GRRR!). I tried really hard to get the stain out but it wasn't budging so I ended up getting changed into just my normal clothes again and decided that that would have to do!

I was able to jump on a bus straight away and it was only half full. There was a little girl on the bus who wasn't quite up to talking yet but she was so cute dressed as Snow White and she loved giving everyone high 5s. She kept us all entertained for the whole ride.

I ended up getting to MK at about 5.30 so they were already giving out wristbands. I grabbed a map and decided to take advantage of the short ride queues! Along the way to Tomorrowland I stopped to take some photos of the Halloween decorations:





I went straight to Space Mountain and the guy who came into the line after me kept bumping me and treading on the backs of my ankles....I mean seriously....had he never heard of personal space! I enjoyed the ride as usual but I'm always worried that my head is going to get knocked off by something if I sit up straight....

I decided to head on round to Fantasyland and took some photos along the way






I couldn't believe just how empty the place was! It was AMAZING! I decided to go sing along to some of my favourite songs on TLM



This time I even managed to get a few good pics from on the ride (without flash of course!)





*Spoiler alert*


And now I have Part of your World in my head.....

Next I headed to the main FL plaza and started to see more and more people dressed up and boy had some people gone all out! I saw an amazing Mad Hatter and there were quite a few Sallys' around. I managed to get on IASW and Peter Pan pretty quickly and then the sun was just starting to go down so it was a really good time to get some photos (shocking I know!)







After Peter Pan, the wristband police were out and about which meant the party had officially started!!!​