Food & Wine Extravaganza...the TR. Finished 12/6

[KatMark]

Great update, Kelly. We definitely want to do Nemo next year (we did Lion King this year); we've also never done Flights of Wonder. I love the Jammin' Parade too.

 

[onelilspark]

I'll have to wait until I get home to see the actual reference. No You Tube at work.

Lame. Whose decision was that?

Great update, Kelly. We definitely want to do Nemo next year (we did Lion King this year); we've also never done Flights of Wonder. I love the Jammin' Parade too.

Flights of Wonder was really neat, I'm glad we finally did it!

 

[Wyatt'sMommy]

I'm in love with your TR!
Keep up the great work!

 

[onelilspark]

I'm in love with your TR!
Keep up the great work!

Thanks! Guess I better get moving if I want to finish it by the time I leave for my next trip!

And to the DIS!

 

[onelilspark]

Our original plan for Monday was to head over to Hollywood Studios for Rope Drop and then head over to Epcot for more Food & Wine goodness. That all changed about a month or so before we left. My Mom and I were talking about how good we had heard the Wave was. So we decided to go for breakfast! I had a very easy time getting an 830am ADR. And when we walked in, we could see why! It was totally empty except for maybe 8 tables. We had a fantastic breakfast, but our waitress was a little flaky. All in all, I'd be back! You can find my full review of the Wave here.

After breakfast, Geoff & I headed over to Epcot while my parents had a golf date. We started by hitting Innoventions. Geoff is an engineer, he works for a company that is one of Raytheon's competitors. So we wanted to try their new "Sum of All Thrills" at Innoventions.

We giggled through the opening movie as it kept telling us what engineers did, but they made it really really simple. So of course I kept teasing him after we were done with the video. We made our roller coaster (it was pretty tame) and then had the chance to ride it. All in all, we enjoyed the experience, even if we were laughing. I think it's a great exhibit to show what you can do with math & science, and seeing how we're math & science geeks, we appreciated it

After that, we made our way over to the Land pavilion to grab our Soarin' FP and ride Living with the Land!
Bananas:

I always enjoy Living with the Land. I know it's simple, but I like going through the Greenhouse.

From there we headed over to Test Track and opted for the Single Rider line. And...the ride promptly stopped working. Only for about 10-15 minutes, but it was right before we were about to get on! It eventually started back up and we got on. After getting off, we headed over to the F&W Festival Center (in the old Wonders of Life building...*sigh* I miss Cranium Command!)

I got myself a fabulous spoon rest at the Festival Store & we picked up our Gift Card wristlet for the kiosks. We explored a bit, but didn't see anything that ZOMG WE NEED RIGHT NOW. So we left and made our way back towards the World Showcase.

We very lazily made our way around the pavilions & kiosks. To be honest...we didn't do much. We caught a Voices of Liberty performance in America, but I don't think we stayed to watch the American show.

Eventually we decided it was a good time to use our Soarin' FP and then head out for our mid-day break. If you want to look at the F&W reviews, look here.

To be continued

 

[onelilspark]

Around 5, we headed back into Epcot with my parents to explore the F&W kiosks for dinner.

One of my Dad's favorite rides is Spaceship Earth (the other being Small World. ) So upon entering, we of course had to stop.

Greetings from the future:

Afterwards, we headed right back to the kiosks to get noshing...with a quick side stop at the shop before entering to get my parents a wrist gift card as well. (Side note: we really liked these, it made it easy for Geoff & I to put our own money on it and then share food without going, "well, you got the last one, so I'll get this one...)

My Mom really wanted to start with some champagne...this is what she got:

After the first week, they apparently raised the prices and started pouring real pours. ^That was just sad. You can read all about everything else we got here.

We again made our way around the World Showcase, sampling tasty dishes and just enjoying being outside on a gorgeous night. We found a Photopass Photographer when we were rounding France who took this shot (possibly my favorite of the trip!)

I also decided to play with my Gorillapod and see what kind of nighttime shots I could take!
I'll share some of the better ones! In Japan:

Outside Italy:

Right before Illuminations we headed back to the Condo. A rather unexciting day, but it's the kind of Disney day I love

Up next: A FULL day at the MK!

 

[KatMark]

Nice update. I like the slower paced days every once in awhile...it helps to keep your sanity.

Looking forward to your full day at the MK.

 

[jenny105]

Spaceship Earth ride shot is great lol. I was so bummed, ours didn't work! We got the generic, computer generated faces. Everybody else's seemed to work. I blamed Kris and said he must've done something Disney didn't like and they refused to show our pictures.

 

[dekkerdisneydreamer]

I also decided to play with my Gorillapod and see what kind of nighttime shots I could take!
I'll share some of the better ones! In Japan:

Ooh Kelly, that one is BEAUTIFUL! You should share that one on the Picture of the Day Thread!

I will definitely have to try and convince my DH to explore Future World in Epcot more when we are there in April. There are so many things I've never seen.

 

[athenna]

I totally love his Pleepleus shirt! My fiance and I both have Pleepleus shirts and we wear them to Epcot, too No one ever knows what it is when we have them on...I can't wait to tell Scott someone else has one

 

[onelilspark]

Nice update. I like the slower paced days every once in awhile...it helps to keep your sanity.

Looking forward to your full day at the MK.

Agreed, definitely makes for a nice day!

Spaceship Earth ride shot is great lol. I was so bummed, ours didn't work! We got the generic, computer generated faces. Everybody else's seemed to work. I blamed Kris and said he must've done something Disney didn't like and they refused to show our pictures.

Hahaha...the first time I took Geoff on it, he kissed my cheek. So my picture had about half of his head and the other guy was the computer generated image

Ooh Kelly, that one is BEAUTIFUL! You should share that one on the Picture of the Day Thread!

I will definitely have to try and convince my DH to explore Future World in Epcot more when we are there in April. There are so many things I've never seen.

Thanks! I have to admit, I love innoventions. We usually just spend an hour in there, but it's so interesting to look around!

I totally love his Pleepleus shirt! My fiance and I both have Pleepleus shirts and we wear them to Epcot, too No one ever knows what it is when we have them on...I can't wait to tell Scott someone else has one

I got it for him last year on his birthday! Whenever we cross someone who knows who it is, most people do the little hand thing for burping

 

[onelilspark]

Tuesday dawned bright and early. We had a breakfast date to celebrate Friendship Day!

After reading the DIS, I knew that you could go in early for breakfasts at certain locations. We like doing at least 1 character meal during our longer trips, and after I told my Mom about getting into the MK early, we had our plans made! I snagged us an 8:25am ADR. Upon entering the park, we found it interesting that no one asked for our name to check if we did have an ADR. They had a breakfast entrance, but no one was checking Crystal Palace was also taking walk-ups.

Anyway, we entered the park around 8:10am, so we took our time walking down Main Street & snapping photos!

Before long we were being seated for a tasty breakfast! (For those of you who haven't been to the Crystal Palace, they celebrate "Friendship Day" with Winne the Pooh & Friends.) We had fantastic service and you can read more about the breakfast here.

After breakfast was over, we headed over to Tomorrowland. Our first ride of the day was Buzz. Where I promptly scored this:

I know secrets Geoff has declared he doesn't like this game. I think it's because I beat him.

Next up we headed over to Space Mountain. My Mom decided she wanted to do Astro Orbiters instead, so Geoff, my Dad, & I headed over to conquer the mountain. This was the first time Geoff & I had been on it since the refurb. It still kills my body. I don't know why I do it. We got off before my Mom had finished Astro Orbiters! So we waited for her before we did the TTA/Peoplemover...which is my Mom's favorite ride.

Next up? We headed to the Laugh Floor. I love this. Bad jokes are my favorite, so this whole thing cracks me up. Before we went in, my Dad had to take a call from work, so it was just my Mom, Geoff, & I on this one.

We met up with my Dad afterwards down where the smoking area is near the Plaza restaurant...I told him it was a quiet place (I've had a phone interview there before!) but the parade started when he was sitting there Oops.

To be continued

 

[dekkerdisneydreamer]

Very nice family photo!

Before long we were being seated for a tasty breakfast! (For those of you who haven't been to the Crystal Palace, they celebrate "Friendship Day" with Winne the Pooh & Friends.) We had fantastic service and you can read more about the breakfast here.
I always love CP, it never disappoints!

I take it that Geoff and your Dad were "posing"?
We met up with my Dad afterwards down where the smoking area is near the Plaza restaurant...I told him it was a quiet place (I've had a phone interview there before!) but the parade started when he was sitting there Oops.

To be continued

Yes, you have been to Disney A LOT if you've had a phone interview while there.

 

[onelilspark]

Next up? Our annual Adventureland Bridge Photo!

My Mom & Nana went in 1972 to WDW and took a picture on this bridge. Then when I went for my first trip (January 1988!) we took a picture of my Mom and I...and the tradition continued every year. I even got a picture of Geoff & I under the Adventureland sign at Disneyland (it was the best I could do!)

After this...I stopped taking pictures for a while We headed over to the dual mountains, my Dad and I did Splash Mountain (Geoff won't do it because of the big drop at the end.) I got absolutely soaked. How better to dry off than get wind blown over at Big Thunder?! Then we went over and did the Haunted Mansion (my favorite.) I keep joking with Geoff that when we say our vows next year I'll say "til death do us part" like the bride does on the ride. He's a little afraid I'll actually do it. (I won't. But I might do it during the rehearsal! )

One of my friends from HS was visiting Disney the same time we were with his girlfriend. Of course we needed to meet up! We wound up catching up with each other after they did the Country Bear Jamboree. After we saw them, my parents decided to leave and the 4 of us (Geoff, me, my friend, & his GF) went to grab lunch. We headed over to Columbia Harbor House, where the downstairs was a madhouse, but upstairs was really quiet. They were impressed You can see my review of CHH and the snacks we got afterward here. After lunch, we went on our separate ways, and Geoff & I decided to grab a few snacks, so we hit up the Dole Whip stand and got my favorite...Corn Dog Nuggets!

Halloween Decorations:

We spent some time shopping along Main Street and then decided to hop aboard the Express.

Views from the train:

After making the full circle tour we were just in time for the 3 o'clock parade! So we popped a squat along Main Street.

After the parade, we were starting to get tired, but we had booked the Dessert Party and didn't think it would be worth it to leave. So we decided to do a few things that were a little more low key...like the Steamboat! (I hadn't done this in years!)
Views from the boat...

To be continued...

 

[onelilspark]

Next up was something else I haven't done in years...Tom Sawyer Island!

I gotta say...this would be a lot of fun for kids, but for us, well...kind of boring. I even spotted someone taking a nap

After we returned to the main land, we headed over to the Jungle Cruise (another of my favorites because of the corny jokes!)

We finally were starting to get hungry, so we hit up Cosmic Ray's for dinner. We sat there far longer than it actually took to eat, but our feet hurt! We needed the rest! Review here.

Before heading over to the dessert party, we took one last spin on the TTA!

Before too much longer, it was time for the dessert party! Review here. After our sweets were loaded up, we settled in for the show!

And this was from the finale

We had a very nice, very busy day! Next up, attempt #1 for HS!

 

[onelilspark]

Yes, you have been to Disney A LOT if you've had a phone interview while there.

Yes, they were posing!
True story. It was spring break of my Senior Year (it did lead to an in-person interview!)

 

[jenny105]

Looks like you had a great day! MK is definitely my favorite park

I've never done Tom Sawyer Island! I've gotten in line for the raft before but it took to long and I was impatient so I got out of the line. The steamboat I did on last year's trip. I liked it, it's relaxing.

Does your dad not like TTA?

Perfect score on Buzz, nice! I either do really well or tank. That ride is so random!

 

[KatMark]

What a great day you had at the Magic Kingdom and some great photos as well. I love the People Mover like your mom. Do you know in over 20 visits, we have NEVER gone to Tom Sawyer Island...not even when the boys were little.

 

[onelilspark]

Looks like you had a great day! MK is definitely my favorite park

I've never done Tom Sawyer Island! I've gotten in line for the raft before but it took to long and I was impatient so I got out of the line. The steamboat I did on last year's trip. I liked it, it's relaxing.

Does your dad not like TTA?

Perfect score on Buzz, nice! I either do really well or tank. That ride is so random!

I think I just told him Small World was undergoing a refurb. He was sad (that's his favorite.)

What a great day you had at the Magic Kingdom and some great photos as well. I love the People Mover like your mom. Do you know in over 20 visits, we have NEVER gone to Tom Sawyer Island...not even when the boys were little.

I can't remember the last time I was over on Tom Sawyer Island...I'm sure I went once, but I have no idea when

 

[onelilspark]

I'll start by prefacing that this was not a good day for me. I know I was cranky in the morning.

Anyway, today was our HS day. We entered the park at 9:05am, figured we were there early enough, even with missing rope drop. Hah. Wrong.

First order of business was to jump in the TSMM line

And we waited...

And waited...

And waited some more.

We didn't get off the ride until 10:30!! And that was getting in line right away! I mean, I like TSMM, but not enough to wait an hour for it. After we got off, we headed over to ToT, and there was a 40 minute wait, and RnR was an hour. (This was supposed to be a low crowd day.) I had pretty much had enough of the crowds at HS...if I'm being honest, they weren't that bad, I was just in a mood.

So we caught the boat launch over to Epcot so we could get lunch & snack a bit.

Since we got in at the International Gateway, first on the agenda was France. We got these:

I fell in love with the Cosmo Slush, and instantly I felt better! ...Turns out the cold my Mom had in the beginning of the week I was starting to get. So I felt miserable over at HS too! With the bit of good 'ol "medicine" (i.e. Cosmo Slush!) I was feeling much better. It also helped that we only saw about 10 people walking around Epcot

We grabbed lunch at Tangierine Cafe (Morocco Quick Service.) Review here. I had wanted to try the Godiva Coffee drink in Belgium, so we gave it a try!

Small, but tasty!

We checked out the train village in Germany. They were having their own Food & Wine Festival

We finally wound up at Maelstrom! There was no wait, so we hopped on.

After that, we headed back out of the park and over to HS where we had parked. It was nap time for me (and time to get some actual cold medicine to improve my mood!)

For the evening, we had a DTD visit planned. We headed over and did a little shopping before hitting Raglan Road for dinner. Review here. After dinner, it was bed time. Exciting day, huh?

Coming up: HS try #2.