FOOD, WINE, AND SANDERSON SISTERS OH MY!

[Paulaparm]

Love the puzzle!

 

[pkondz]

Michelle and I wanted Flame Tree BBQ and Danielle wanted Satuli Canteen.

I'll stick with you and Michelle...

I've never been much of a Satuli fan.

The first time we used Mobile order in 2018 it was new and not many people were using it. We felt like rock stars due to how fast it was, this time it was not so fast.

I so get this!

We did grab a table near the water

One of the nice perks of eating there is getting a seat by the water.

We stopped to take some photos at the Tree of Life before we told her goodbye.

Danielle is going to be part of the crowd of people who will really miss DinoLand when it's gone.

Um... what?
Are there plans for it to go??

Love this shot.

Having done most of what we wanted, but certainly not all

You never can... but that's why you keep going back.

I learned the hard way that if you plan to visit a park on your departure day and you're flying, you need to have a change of clothes and some body spray. You do not want to share your smell with your fellow passengers on the plane even if everyone is wearing a mask.

There's a story here...

And I'm sure all your fellow travelers thank you.

We were on ME by 3:15 and headed back to the airport. I know I'm not alone when I say I miss seeing this.

<sigh>

Yeah

Once we were through security we just went with the crowd like we usually do. I know it didn't look right when we got on the monorail and once I saw the signs for the airlines and Southwest was not one of them, I knew we were not where we needed to be.

Whoops!

But at least no harm done.

I do want to share this puzzle I picked up

Nice.
Do you break them apart after you're done or keep them and put them up?

Before I close this out I'm going to do a recap and maybe write a little about our May 2021 trip before starting our Girls Trip from 2021.

 

[amazingact21]

Sounds like a nice way to end your Disney trip. Glad Danielle was able to get a few of the Dinoland stuffies. They'll be a collectible once/if/when Dinoland gets changed!

That looks like a hard puzzle. A lot of blue!

It's funny you mention what to do if going to a park on departure day, because I was just having a conversation with Alex about not wanting to get sweaty before my flight home in April. Having a change of clothes is a smart idea.

 

[vamassey1]

Love the puzzle!

Thank you!

 

[vamassey1]

I'll stick with you and Michelle...

I've never been much of a Satuli fan.

I like Satuli but we were right by Flame Tree and we both llike BBQ and had a good experience here in 2018.

One of the nice perks of eating there is getting a seat by the water.

Very big benefit.

Um... what?
Are there plans for it to go??

Rumors are a land containing both "Moana" and "Zootopia" will replace it.

You never can... but that's why you keep going back.

Yes it does. I tell anyone going that you can't do it all.

There's a story here...

Yes there is. Dennis and I flew to DW in March of 2002, just the 2 of us. It was a trip he won through work. It was only my 3rd visit and his first. I had never flown there so it was a learning experience. We went to AK for the day up until we needed to be picked up by Mears. This was well before ME. It wasn't terribly hot but enough to give us an aroma of outside. We had checked our bags before leaving for the park and back then we locked them too. I really needed to freshen up but didn't have a spare outfit or time to go digging in our bags. I did search for some body spray in the airport shops and strayed myself heavily with a sample. I now always make sure I have a travel home outfit and access to deodorant and body spray.

Do you break them apart after you're done or keep them and put them up?

I break them back up and hopefully I'll circle back around in a few years. I have a collection of puzzles now. My sister showed me a nice cheat too. When you package them back up, bag the outside pieces in a separate zip lock. Dennis doesn't approve of the cheat but it sure saves time. My favorite puzzles are the Disney Thomas Kinkade ones. I also like the puzzles they sale at DW. I picked this one up in April 2022 and finally did it back in August.



I did this one over New Years. It was my reward for making it though Christmas.

 

[vamassey1]

Sounds like a nice way to end your Disney trip. Glad Danielle was able to get a few of the Dinoland stuffies. They'll be a collectible once/if/when Dinoland gets changed!

She doesn't even want to think about it.

That looks like a hard puzzle. A lot of blue!

It had it's moments. Blue is my favorite color so I was drawn to it.

It's funny you mention what to do if going to a park on departure day, because I was just having a conversation with Alex about not wanting to get sweaty before my flight home in April. Having a change of clothes is a smart idea.

Heed my warning, clothes and smell good stuff.

 

[afwdwfan]

I'm shocked that Dennis has agreed to go back so soon. He really hates giving more money to the Mouse but I think he also hates being left out.

FOMO is real. But I'm guessing the fact that he gets to visit Danielle gives it some extra pull these days.

We wanted a photo in front of Everest by the temple. We took a photo of a family who wanted one too and then they took one for us. I think this is my favorite picture from this trip. The light was so different.

That was a neat picture! Too bad it was in the era of mandatory face masks, even outside for pictures!

I do not ever remember actually seeing the que for Kali in many, many years. It was such an amazing que with so many details. I'm really glad we had the chance to see it. There's no way I would wait in a long line to do that now, but back then we had no choice.

I can't say that I've ever seen the queue for this one. I think I've ridden it once, ever, and that was with FP. Doesn't surprise me at all that it is so well done and detailed.

The penny pincher in Dennis is still debating if we should switch to Pop.

I don't blame him. DW and I stayed there over New Years and I can certainly see us returning, especially with the Skyliner. But for this trip... if you're not going park heavy, I think you've made the right call. I love POR and the room at Pop just feels so sterile now with the latest update.

Anyone else excited about all the news released in the last 2 days? Is anyone planning a trip so they can take advantage of the new perks or ride Tron or see HEA?

Mildly excited, honestly. I think the parking excited me the most and it is kind of like... well, it should be free, but giving that back is basically like, well, I guess we can use that money to buy magicbands for the kids, which used to be free as well. Nice gesture, but I think there needs to be more done if it is an effort to regain some goodwill.

DS has been pumped about Tron. Seeing it previewed on the Christmas Day Parade was the highlight for him. He was so sure that it would be open for spring break, since it was opening this spring. We're going to miss it by about 2 weeks.

The first time we used Mobile order in 2018 it was new and not many people were using it. We felt like rock stars due to how fast it was, this time it was not so fast.

It used to be such a great tool! I miss that!

Danielle is going to be part of the crowd of people who will really miss DinoLand when it's gone.

I'm with her on that. I really enjoyed it. Also wish that they'd have built the mythic beasts land that was supposedly in the works when it opened.

Before I close this out I'm going to do a recap and maybe write a little about our May 2021 trip before starting our Girls Trip from 2021.

Looking forward to it!

 

[pkondz]

Rumors are a land containing both "Moana" and "Zootopia" will replace it.

I support this rumour.
Sorry... other than the ride, never been a fan of the area.
You just can't compare it with... well... everywhere else.

Yes it does. I tell anyone going that you can't do it all.

It was a trip he won through work.

Wow! Nice prize!

I had never flown there so it was a learning experience. We went to AK for the day up until we needed to be picked up by Mears. This was well before ME. It wasn't terribly hot but enough to give us an aroma of outside. We had checked our bags before leaving for the park and back then we locked them too. I really needed to freshen up but didn't have a spare outfit or time to go digging in our bags. I did search for some body spray in the airport shops and strayed myself heavily with a sample. I now always make sure I have a travel home outfit and access to deodorant and body spray.

And thus, a tradition was born.

When you package them back up, bag the outside pieces in a separate zip lock. Dennis doesn't approve of the cheat but it sure saves time.

I like this cheat. I mean... everyone starts by looking for the outside pieces.

Like this one.

I did this one over New Years. It was my reward for making it though Christmas.

Good reward!

 

[vamassey1]

FOMO is real. But I'm guessing the fact that he gets to visit Danielle gives it some extra pull these days.

He does like to go see Danielle too.

That was a neat picture! Too bad it was in the era of mandatory face masks, even outside for pictures!

We have really come a long way. I do not miss masks.

I don't blame him. DW and I stayed there over New Years and I can certainly see us returning, especially with the Skyliner. But for this trip... if you're not going park heavy, I think you've made the right call. I love POR and the room at Pop just feels so sterile now with the latest update.

We really debated going with Pop. We all like having the Skyliner, even Danielle. I'm looking forward to the more relaxing atmosphere of POR.

Mildly excited, honestly. I think the parking excited me the most and it is kind of like... well, it should be free, but giving that back is basically like, well, I guess we can use that money to buy magicbands for the kids, which used to be free as well. Nice gesture, but I think there needs to be more done if it is an effort to regain some goodwill.

I agree. It's baby steps after they have taken away so much.

S has been pumped about Tron. Seeing it previewed on the Christmas Day Parade was the highlight for him. He was so sure that it would be open for spring break, since it was opening this spring. We're going to miss it by about 2 weeks.

Oh nooo! Looks like you'll need another trip in the future.

How was your New Year's trip? I know the game wasn't great but how was Disney?

I'm with her on that. I really enjoyed it. Also wish that they'd have built the mythic beasts land that was supposedly in the works when it opened.

I'm not the biggest Dinoland fan but I don't like change either. It takes me awhile to warm up to it.

I would have loved the mythic beasts land.

I took this photo back in 2007. It was left when the park was designed to have beasts. I don't think it's there anymore. It was to your right as you crossed the bridge into what was then Camp Minnie Camp Mickey.



I can still see the next picture I took of another rock formation.

Looking forward to it!

Thanks Andy!

 

[vamassey1]

I support this rumour.
Sorry... other than the ride, never been a fan of the area.
You just can't compare it with... well... everywhere else.

I agree with this, but I'm reluctant to change. I'm starting to warm up to the idea.

Wow! Nice prize!

Well it wasn't exactly a free trip to Disney.

He won 2 round trip tickets on Southwest and 2 night of hotel to the destination of his choice, but it had a price cap.

I convinced him on Disney. All Star Movies fit in the budget and so did the direct flight to Orlando from New Orleans. He was leaning towards Las Vegas which would have been above the limit and we would have needed to rent a car. You don't need a car in Disney. I won.

I like this cheat. I mean... everyone starts by looking for the outside pieces.

This was my thought process too.

Like this one.

I did too. Loved finding the different rides and areas. The white parts were a pain.

 

[Paulaparm]

I absolutely LOVE that park MK map puzzle! I might have to start doing puzzles!

 

[pkondz]

I agree with this, but I'm reluctant to change. I'm starting to warm up to the idea.

I spend so little time there. Just not interested. Go ahead and change away!

Well it wasn't exactly a free trip to Disney.

He won 2 round trip tickets on Southwest and 2 night of hotel to the destination of his choice, but it had a price cap.

But it sure help cut the cost!

I convinced him on Disney. All Star Movies fit in the budget and so did the direct flight to Orlando from New Orleans. He was leaning towards Las Vegas which would have been above the limit and we would have needed to rent a car. You don't need a car in Disney. I won.

And you just happened to not mention park tickets…

 

[afwdwfan]

How was your New Year's trip? I know the game wasn't great but how was Disney?

It was really good. We did a lot more than we ever expected we'd be able to... although we did so by spending money on Genie+ and ILL. We managed to do most everything we really wanted to. Got a last ride in on Splash and first rides in on ROTR, MFSR and Rattouille. I spent a lot of time stalking the ADR page leading up to the trip and would book, cancel and re-book ADRs as things became available that were more desirable locations or times. We had lunch at LTT on NYE, and then on NYD, managed to get an ADR for Oga's that morning and then dinner at Via Napoli to end our day, so I was happy with that! The parks were very crowded, but overall, not as bad as I maybe expected. MK on NYE wasn't bad at all until about 4 pm. We ended up watching the 6:30 NYE fireworks show then hopped on a monorail to EPCOT. We were going to stay for the midnight fireworks there, but WS was so incredibly crowded and the lines to get a snack, or a drink, or go to the restroom were so long that we gave up and bailed a little after 10. We ate dinner at around 8 at the Mexico QS. Stood in line for about 15 minutes before we got to a register to order. They gave us our drinks at the window and then we had to wait on our food. My margarita was gone about 20 minutes before we got our food. It was crazy busy! We couldn't even find a trash can to put our tray on. I ended up finding a place where a waist high fence made a 90 degree intersection and we balanced our tray on that.

 

[vamassey1]

I absolutely LOVE that park MK map puzzle! I might have to start doing puzzles!

I love doing puzzles.

I have the 50th Beacons of Lights puzzles. I think I'm going to tackle the MK one next.

 

[vamassey1]

But it sure help cut the cost!

Very much so.

And you just happened to not mention park tickets…

Park tickets were so much cheaper back then. We did 2 day passes. We didn't even buy the tickets until we were at the resort. Can't imagine doing that now. We did however set up our very first ADR at Coral Reef. It was the best experience ever. We have not been able to capture that same experience since then. We had a table for 2 on the glass. We even saw a diver while we were there.

 

[vamassey1]

It was really good. We did a lot more than we ever expected we'd be able to... although we did so by spending money on Genie+ and ILL. We managed to do most everything we really wanted to.

I've done this too. We had one park day back in June when we went to help set Danielle up in her new apartment. I used Genie + and ILL. We hit 3 parks in one day. We only rode rides in AK & DHS but we finished our night off in Epcot eating at F&G booths and watching Harmonius.

Got a last ride in on Splash and first rides in on ROTR, MFSR and Rattouille.

I'm so jelly you rode Splash. I have up my reservation on Splash for Dennis to ride in December. Glad you got to ride the new stuff.

I spent a lot of time stalking the ADR page leading up to the trip and would book, cancel and re-book ADRs as things became available that were more desirable locations or times. We had lunch at LTT on NYE, and then on NYD, managed to get an ADR for Oga's that morning and then dinner at Via Napoli to end our day, so I was happy with that!

You did good!

! The parks were very crowded, but overall, not as bad as I maybe expected. MK on NYE wasn't bad at all until about 4 pm. We ended up watching the 6:30 NYE fireworks show then hopped on a monorail to EPCOT. We were going to stay for the midnight fireworks there, but WS was so incredibly crowded and the lines to get a snack, or a drink, or go to the restroom were so long that we gave up and bailed a little after 10.

We did NYE 2005-2006. We started at MK and ended at Epcot. We planned on staying until midnight too and didn't make it. Too crowded. We could hear the fireworks going off as we lay in our beds at the resort.

We ate dinner at around 8 at the Mexico QS. Stood in line for about 15 minutes before we got to a register to order. They gave us our drinks at the window and then we had to wait on our food. My margarita was gone about 20 minutes before we got our food. It was crazy busy! We couldn't even find a trash can to put our tray on. I ended up finding a place where a waist high fence made a 90 degree intersection and we balanced our tray on that.

Sounds like you needed another margarita.

 

[pkondz]

We had a table for 2 on the glass. We even saw a diver while we were there.

Heh. Maybe it was me!

Okay the odds aren’t great, but I have done it three times so it’s not zero.

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

My favorite puzzles are the Disney Thomas Kinkade

I love his Disney calendars . They make me excited for each new month lol( simple pleasures).
I am also a puzzle fan and yours look great.
We tend to do a park on our last day and like you keep a change of clothes handy. Last trip we actually swam at the pool instead and used the showers poolside at Yacht Club to change. Then we decided we simply had to nip into the Rose & Crown for a final G&T

 

[vamassey1]

Heh. Maybe it was me!

Okay the odds aren’t great, but I have done it three times so it’s not zero.

I'll take those odds.

Did you see it? Your girlfriend is returning to her Grotto on January 22nd.

You need to go back and see her.

 

[vamassey1]

I love his Disney calendars . They make me excited for each new month lol( simple pleasures).
I am also a puzzle fan and yours look great.

I love the calendars too! Michelle gave my the 2022 calendar for Christmas 2021 and Dennis gave me the 2023 for Christmas this year. The photos are actually used in some of the puzzles. It's usually just a small part of the puzzle blown up.

We tend to do a park on our last day and like you keep a change of clothes handy. Last trip we actually swam at the pool instead and used the showers poolside at Yacht Club to change. Then we decided we simply had to nip into the Rose & Crown for a final G&T

You're one smart lady and know how to leave DW in style.