Herding Schrodinger's Cats: A November 6-12, 2011 PTR

[PennyLane1084]

BTW I happened upon your website and I LOVE LOVE LOVE your steampunk costumes!!! STEAMPUNK FTW!!!!! I'm having a serious nerdgasm over here! Your costumes are so awesome! I really want to go to DragonCon!!!! Perhaps one day.

I've only made one costume from scratch which was a Little Sister from the game Bioshock.

Here are my good friends as Big Daddies. These are made out of Cardboard and Duct Tape.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

BTW I happened upon your website and I LOVE LOVE LOVE your steampunk costumes!!! STEAMPUNK FTW!!!!! I'm having a serious nerdgasm over here! Your costumes are so awesome! I really want to go to DragonCon!!!! Perhaps one day.

I've only made one costume from scratch which was a Little Sister from the game Bioshock.

Here are my good friends as Big Daddies. These are made out of Cardboard and Duct Tape.

I love that rollator. I don't think it's available to the public yet, but I am so buying one as soon as it's on the market.

Your Little Sister costume is awesome! Bioshock is one of my favorite game series. I am eagerly awaiting Infinity--it can't come soon enough. And speaking of Bioshock and costumes, I'm possibly working on a New Year's Eve Splicer from the first game for this year's Dragon*Con, since they've got a setup with the GA Aquarium for convention attendees. I mean... think of the photo opportunities!

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

Tuesday, November 8th is scheduled to be our Islands of Adventure day, hence the title of this post. I picked the Harry Potter spell locomortor mortis (i.e. - the 'leg-locker curse') rather than petrificus totalus because I assume the crowds won't be so bad that we'll be completely immobilized... just somewhat.

**ETA**
We've actually moved IoA to Wednesday, November 9th and are, instead, going to Epcot on Tuesday the 8th. Should help us dodge the weekend Food & Wine crowds.

Anyway, this is going to be another early morning, probably earlier than the day before because Universal is further away from where we're staying. I'm going to try to be out the door by 8:00 AM, but we'll see how that goes. I'll know from the day before how early we'll have to wake up to get people going, at least.

When we get to the park, we're heading straight to WWoHP to Olivanders, since I've done enough research to learn that will back up worse than anything else since it doesn't cycle as quickly, or hold as many people as Forbidden Journey. Nigel and Corey are very, very insistent they must do Olivanders, so it has become our #1 priority for IoA.

After Olivanders, then we'll get in line for Forbidden Journey. Maybe not doing it first will give us time to experience the interactive queue a bit? I have been told that you actually do want at least a 20 minute wait or so for this ride, simply because you miss out on stuff in the queuing area if you rush right through it.

After Forbidden Journey I'm sure we'll do Dragon Challenge and then wander around the area doing some shopping and sightseeing. I'd like to try to do lunch at Three Broomsticks, but I expect the place might be a madhouse. What might be surprising to some is that I'm actually not all that crazy to try either butterbeer or pumpkin juice--I'm not a fan of cream soda, which I've heard butterbeer compared to, and I hate the taste of pumpkin!

Once we've finished with WWoHP, we'll then move on to the rest of the park, through the Jurassic Park section. It's actually been a few years since I've been to IoA, so I really don't remember much else in Jurassic Park except the river ride and the walking trail with the triceratops (I think that's gone, though). I also can't remember whether you get wet on the river ride or not, which may be a deal-breaker for Corey. I know you send up a huge plume of water on the drop, but I can't remember whether any of it actually lands on the boat.

Apparently, Corey doesn't like water rides where you get wet. Yes, this means he's going to be skipping Splash Mountain entirely, even with the rest of the awesome that ride contains.

After Jurassic Park its onto Toon Lagoon, where I guess Corey will just sit on a bench while the rest of us will get wet on Dudley Do-Right and Popeye, then Marvel Superhero Island. We'll finish our day by looping around to Seuss Island.

Now... I know the Lost Continent is technically still there, but I think the only thing that still remains of the original section is the Sinbad show and Mythos (which is an awesome restaurant, don't get me wrong). The Sinbad show is really not enough of an incentive for me to linger there, honestly. I'm really not sure why they didn't just demolish that whole area, but maybe I'm mistaken. I guess I'll see when I go.

After we're done with IoA, we then head back to the hotel to shower and change, and are then off to my favorite table-service ADR: 9:15 at California Grill. This is my one "fancy" restaurant for the trip (I have to do at least one every time we go, and I thought I'd branch out from Jiko this time). Fortunately, it's got a pretty wide range of prices on its menu, so if people don't want to spend much, they still have the option of the fairly inexpensive flatbread pizzas. Also, I know they won't be running Wishes that night, so worrying about a good fireworks view wasn't a priority. No idea if they do fireworks for MVMCP, but I'm not worried about whether we'll see them or not.

Up next... the story of how Matt drives me crazy by trying to change my resort plans after my non-refundable deposit has already been paid.

 

[aprilisis]

Your plans sound great so far! I'm looking forward to reading more.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

Your plans sound great so far! I'm looking forward to reading more.

Thanks for joining us! It's taken a lot of prodding to get us to this point, but things are finally moving in a decent direction, I think. Now that the first deposit's been paid, things are starting to feel more real, you know?

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

So, we mailed off our deposit for Bonnet Creek a few weeks ago and got confirmation from Ken that he'd received it, and our reservation had been made and everything was a go. I emailed Corey and Christine and let them know the remaining balance on the room and when it was due (October) and sent them the link to buy their tickets whenever they felt like getting around to it.

(Note: Nigel and I still haven't gotten around to buying ours and probably won't until August or September, when we're a bit more flush... sad but true.)

It looked like everything was on track for our vacation in November. Then, late one afternoon, I got this text from Matt:

"How would you guys like to stay in my dad's timeshare for four days for $25 per person for the whole trip?"

Oh @#$% !&#%$.

Thus ensued a lengthy text war of me trying to explain to him that I'd sent off the deposit for our room already and that, no, I could not get it back, and that I'd asked him to ask about this sort of thing two months ago, and had checked with him multiple times before collecting the deposit money to make absolutely sure we couldn't stay at his father's timeshare before settling on Bonnet Creek.

Then, he tried to convince me to just lose the deposit money because we'd, "Still probably save more money staying at his place," except A) we'd really only end up saving about $40 per person, and B) we'd have to cut our trip short by two days because he could only get the time share for four nights, not six like we'd originally planned. And we'd be there mostly during the weekend and miss the Food and Wine Festival. Just. No.

Finally, I managed to convince him that, no, we were going with our original plan as we'd already mailed the deposit and put money in place and, honestly, I wasn't sure if anyone had bought their tickets yet. It would have really sucked if, say Corey had already purchased four day WDW tickets and two day Universal tickets to suddenly find out we were only going for four days.

Le sigh.

So, after all that, things are pretty much the same. Nigel, Corey, Christine and I are still staying at Bonnet Creek and will be arriving a few days before Matt & Linda. Matt & Linda are staying at Matt's dad's timeshare and will be showing up Wednesday or Thursday of the trip and meeting up with us at the World. I've made ADRs for six for the latter half of the trip. I can't guarantee they'll want to be at the same parks as us on the same days, but they're welcome to join us. I have made an effort to get the Universal stuff out of the way before they're there, however.

Hey, I'm doing the best I can to be accommodating.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

I think we've settled on our ADRs for the trip, so it's safe for me to post this. If you read any of my previous PTR, you know I changed ADRs like mad because I just couldn't make up my mind. I kept changing plans, or couldn't figure out where we were going to be on a certain day, or I just wasn't sure if we'd like a particular place... not so much on this trip. Our park days are pretty much locked in at this point:

Day 1 - Arrival Day/Downtown Disney
Day 2 - Magic Kingdom
Day 3 - Islands of Adventure
Day 4 - Universal Studios
Day 5 - Hollywood Studios
Day 6 - Epcot
Day 7 - Animal Kingdom (Possibly)/Departure Day

I've already mentioned that we always do Raglan Road on our arrival day, so you're aware of that. And I've mentioned I've made an ADR for Kona Cafe for a very early dinner on our Magic Kingdom day. I still haven't been able to move the ADR up any earlier, however, so it's still sitting firmly at 5:00 PM. I'm trying desperately for 4:30, knowing we probably won't get our food until 5:00-ish, but so far nothing's been available. Nothing to do but keep trying, though.

I'm still musing about what to do about lunch in the MK. I ate at Columbia Harbor House last time, because of the good reviews on the boards. I tried the tuna sandwich, because everyone raves about it, and I love a good tuna sandwich, and found it only mediocre. :/ I'm tempted to go back and try the Lighthouse Sandwich, but I'm wondering if I'll just be disappointed again.

Then for our IoA day, I'm positive we're eating lunch at Three Broomsticks, so that's pretty easy. Dinner, I've got no idea. Somewhere in Citywalk, I'd guess, but I think we're just going to pick a restaurant and go in. No ADRs to worry about, since we're not on Disney property.

Same deal for Universal. I'm considering Classic Monsters Cafe for lunch, or maybe Mel's Diner. There's also the big food court over by the Men in Black ride that's got a huge variety of food, though I can never remember what that one is called. I thing, probably, if I mention Classic Monsters Cafe, though, that's what my lovely little geeks are going to go for. Gotta know your audience.

After we're done with Universal, since it closes earlier than IoA, we're going to head back to Bonnet Creek to freshen up and then go to the meal I'm looking forward to the most on the trip: California Grill!

I picked California Grill because I love the Contemporary, and I've always wanted to eat there. Also, Nigel and I always do a really nice dinner on each of our trips, but we wanted to pick a restaurant where Corey and Christine could conceivably purchase something on the menu that wouldn't break the bank (i.e. - flatbreads, which run about $12 - $15 a person). So, if they want to spend the cash to buy an expensive entree, they can, but if they want to save money and buy a flatbread, they can. It's a win-win for everyone.

California Grill is our last ADR dinner of the trip as, at Hollywood Studios, we then switch to table service lunches. I booked Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater since Nigel loves it and I'm sure Corey and Christine would get a kick out of it. This is also the first ADR I've booked for six, in case Matt and Linda want to join us. There's a really early Fantasmic that night, so I'm still not sure what we're doing for dinner. I was considering booking the Brown Derby or something similar, but I really just don't know yet. I think I need more information.

Then, there's Epcot. We're going during the Food and Wine Festival, so I didn't want to book a big dinner at Epcot, but I did want to book something, because there are too many awesome restaurants to miss out. So, I made a lunch ADR for Biergarten for six. This will be my first time at Biergarten, so this will be a new experience for me. I'm hoping to be impressed. *g*

For dinner, I figured we'd continue grazing from the F&W booths and find a good spot for Illuminations.

Then there's our departure day. Normally I do DTD on departure day, but Corey really wants to eat at Restaurantasaurus in Animal Kingdom for some reason. No, I don't know why either. I've told him that T-Rex in DTD is much cooler, but he's being weirdly stubborn about this. So we're going to Animal Kingdom on our last day and eating there. Although I think I may make ADRs at T-Rex for our departure day just in case.

So, there you have it. The only things that might change at this point are the following:
I might add Matt and Linda onto the California Grill reservation.
I might add a dinner reservation for the Hollywood Studios day.
I'll probably make a reservation for T-Rex on our departure day (in fact, I think I'm going to do that now).

Other than that, these ADRs are pretty much set in stone. Everyone else has signed off on them and I've got my confirmation numbers. The noms, they are a go.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

Sorry about the radio silence on this post. It's been a few weeks and I'm in the process of preparing for Dragon*Con (a huge fantasy/sci-fi convention in Atlanta) as well as getting ready to head back to school in two weeks. I've got a few more longer posts in the works, but they may have to wait a few days until I get a break.

For right now, however, I figured I'd mention the things I've recently purchased, or will purchase, in preparation for the trip.

First, I really needed a new pair of flip flops. I normally wear Sketchers Tone Ups... not because I want to exercise, but because they're great for fallen arches, which I have in spades. My old pair did wonders at WDW last year, but I've pretty much worn them out. So, I've acquired a new pair. These:

Cute, no? I have a weakness for sparkly things. Also, they should be nice and broken in by the time November rolls around.

Another thing I've purchased is two new pairs of capris and several new tank tops. I've got two pairs of shorts, so I'm not sure if I'm going to get any more of those, plus it will be November, so I don't know if it will be warm enough for shorts. Tank tops are great for layering, however, and will work well with the hoodies I already have. I also got a pair of cargo pants that can be rolled up into capris if necessary. Pockets = good.

One thing I still need to buy, however, is a new swimsuit. I have one that mostly fits, but the top is a little low cut and I'm not sure how comfortable I'd be around kids in it. The other one I have is much to big for me now that I've lost a bit of weight. Note: I wasn't actually trying to lose weight, it's a side effect of my migraine medication, but I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Being a girl who, as one of my friends put it, is fairly "blessed" in certain areas, I need something that's going to conceal what needs to be hidden, be supportive, and still be flattering. I've got post-baby tummy, so bikinis are right out. That leaves me with one-piece suits, which tend to look like they're made for your grandmother. I think I've found a solution, though. One of my favorite retro clothing companies also makes retro swimsuits, and they have a gorgeous green one I've been eying for a while. I think, the next time I get a little spare cash, I'll be ordering it.

Finally, I really desperately need new luggage. It's awful. Nigel has a really old suitcase that is beginning to fall apart, and is so huge I could easily fit inside it. Naturally, this means if we pack it until its full (and Nigel tends to be an overpacker, so he always does), I can't actually lift it. My goal is to get both of us individual smaller suitcases, that way he can pack what he wants, but won't have a 500lb. suitcase when he's done, and I'll get something that doesn't look like it could disintegrate at any moment. I'm considering leopard-print, but I think he might kill me.

So that's it for the "stuff post." I may eventually post pictures of the new swimsuit when I get it, and will probably do something related to our pin collection, but I think we're good for now. Next up, our plan for Universal Studios.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

Remember when I said our ADRs were set in stone? Well, I was lying.

Granted, they haven't changed too much. I only added one meal and changed restaurants for another. I even mentioned I was going to add T-Rex in the ADR post. I couldn't get it for our departure day, however, so we've now got T-Rex scheduled as a late dinner after Fantasmic on our DHS day. We didn't have a meal for that night, and Bonnet Creek is very close to DTD, so it made sense for us to eat there. I hope Corey is satisfied with his dinosaur dining experience.

The other change I made was to that pesky 5:00 PM reservation we had for Kona on our Magic Kingdom day. You might remember that I was worried we wouldn't make it back in time for the Electrical Parade, because it starts at 7:00 on that day. No matter what I tried, I could not seem to get a 4:00 or 4:30-ish reservation for Kona. I've been trying every week for months and months.

Last time we did dinner at Kona, we did end up making the parade, but just barely, and we didn't get a good spot for it. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I really wanted a good viewing experience this time around. The rest of our party doesn't care where they eat, as long as it's not Liberty Tree for some reason (both Corey and Christine insisted their food sounded too heavy for being at a theme park). So, I've gone out on a limb and rebooked dinner for the Plaza at 4:35.

Now, this is a big deal for me because I had a terrible experience at the plaza three years ago and have refused to set foot in the door ever since. Nothing wrong with the food, mind you, but a Cast Member quite literally accused my mother of lying to try to get free ice cream when they forgot to fill her order. She whipped out her receipt and put an end to that, but then the CM was rude and sullen while she filled it. In hindsight, we really, really should have asked for her manager, but mom was so angry she just wanted to get out of there.

Granted, this was the ice cream parlor section and not the table-service section, but it still left a bad taste in my mouth and I had zero desire to go back there. However, I know realistically that CM probably isn't there anymore, and that she wouldn't be working in the table-service area anyway, so I'm willing to suspend my hatred of the Plaza and give it another chance.

That, and it was the only restaurant that had an opening at that time that wasn't Liberty Tree.

And, since Corey and Christine wanted a "light" dinner for that evening.... well, you can't get much lighter than sandwiches, salads and soups. Plus, I think I'd like to get a float. It also solves the problem about not making it back in time to get a good parade spot. Yes, I know 4:35 is a little early, but I'm A) pretty sure they won't seat us immediately, and B) know it will take some time to prepare the food and actually get it out to us. So, I'm thinking we'll actually be physically eating around 5:15 or so. If we're out the door an hour later, that should be plenty of time to settle in for the parade.

Now I just have to break the news to Nigel, since he loves Kona. I think he'll be fine though, seeing as he's the most laid-back among us.

 

[aprilisis]

I love those flip-flops!! Oh- and I can't wait to see the retro green swimsuit!
Isn't it funny how dining reservations change as the trip gets closer?? I'm going to WDW around the same time as you & I just switched a few of my ADRs, too.
Will you share some of your photos from Dragon*Con after you go? It is over Labor day weekend, right?

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

I love those flip-flops!! Oh- and I can't wait to see the retro green swimsuit!
Isn't it funny how dining reservations change as the trip gets closer?? I'm going to WDW around the same time as you & I just switched a few of my ADRs, too.
Will you share some of your photos from Dragon*Con after you go? It is over Labor day weekend, right?

The flip flops are working out nicely, though we've had a cold snap here in Atlanta recently, so I've had to shelve them for a few days.

I'm still eying the swimsuit, but as it's a bit pricey, I'm trying to figure out how to work it into our budget. Especially since Nigel also needs a new swimsuit.

I'll be doing a Dragon*Con-related post as soon as I get all my pictures back from the convention. I did two photoshoots with professional photographers who I'm waiting on to finish editing the pictures.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

I say "short" but watch this turn into the longest post I've ever made.

So, several things have occurred since the last time I posted. First, Nigel and I have acquired new luggage and had the chance to try it out at Dragon*Con two weeks ago. It is not leopard print (unfortunately), but it is teal, which is good enough, I suppose. I got it at Target and have been nothing but pleased with it so far.

The next important thing is that we've purchased and received our park tickets through Undercover Tourist. I'm not sure if anyone else has bought theirs yet (in fact I just sent an email to Corey asking about it), but with a month and a half to go, they'd better get to it!

Yes, I did say a month and a half. Or technically a month and three weeks according to my ticker. I can't believe how fast it's coming up! It feels like the summer just started and now we're already well on our way to fall. Everyone's really excited though, especially now that they've started releasing information about the Food & Wine Festival.

Since our vacation is fast approaching, it's also time to pay off the remaining balance on the room. Christine has already paid her share and Corey will be tossing his in this weekend, so that's almost out of the way. Then the only thing we have to be concerned with finance-wise is paying for gas, meals and souvenirs. I love it when a plan comes together!

Only, what's that? An additional complication? Where the heck did that come from?!

See, Christine has started a new job. Okay, really it's not that new; she started working there back at the beginning of the summer. And she told them when she started that she had this trip planned. Of course, now her boss is hinting he may not be able to give her the time off because they're shorthanded and she's been taking occasional weekends off over the past few months (she's a server). Thus, Christine has been negotiating with him about adjusting her schedule so she can get the time to go. This would mean she'd have to work most weekends, and she wouldn't be able to request any more time off until after the trip, but she thinks it will be worth it. Unfortunately, she's still not 100% sure he will agree to it. She said she'll know for sure in three weeks, however, so keep your fingers crossed for us!

And, for now, that's everything. I know this is neither the most entertaining nor fascinating post (it doesn't even have pictures) but I'm trying to keep ahead of school right now, as well as grad school application preparation. I'm talking to advisers and getting letters of recommendation and preparing to take the GRE... so yeah, my spare time is zlich right now. BUT, I will be back soon with pictures from Dragon*Con and details about whether we'll be plus or minus a Christine. Until then!

 

[aprilisis]

When are you taking the GRE? Did everyone else get their tickets? I know it hasn't been 3 weeks, but did Christine find out if she could get time off?
The trip is coming up quickly!

 

[Darkfirewolfe]

I'm subbing!!

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

When are you taking the GRE? Did everyone else get their tickets? I know it hasn't been 3 weeks, but did Christine find out if she could get time off?
The trip is coming up quickly!

I take the GRE in two weeks!

I still haven't heard whether Corey bought his tickets yet. I suspect he hasn't, so I probably need to poke him again. As for Christine... well, it isn't looking good. She transferred stores (probably to get away from her manager) but since she's at a new store they're being less flexible with her schedule. I am considering looking for a fifth for our room anyway, since we still have the sleeping space (pull out couch) and giving them her bed if she can't come.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

Yup, I'm at it again.

If you read my previous pre-trip report (I promise I'll get to the actual trip report eventually), you know that I can't leave well enough alone when it comes to ADRs. Add to that, Nigel asking if we could limit table-service meals for this trip and us moving some of our park days around, and well... things have changed.

Firstly, we've moved our Epcot day from Friday, November 11th, to Tuesday, November 8th. Why? Well, for a couple of reasons.

For one, we've hammered out our schedule with Matt and Linda. Since they aren't getting to Orlando until we're way into our trip, I wanted to keep the last couple days we were there in Disney parks so they could possibly join us. Keep in mind they aren't going to Universal, like we are. After talking with Matt about their schedule and our schedule, we decided we were going to make our DHS day (Thursday, November 10th) the day we did park stuff together. He and Linda are apparently going down with family and have other obligations to them, so that was about all we could squeeze in.

Which meant we didn't have to stick to days early in the week for our Universal days. And, since Epcot can sometimes be crowded on Fridays during the Food & Wine Festival, a day earlier in the week would work much better for us.

So our new schedule looks like this:

Sunday, Nov. 6 - We arrive! Dinner and shopping in Downtown Disney. We've kept the reservation for Raglan Road (of course).
Monday, Nov. 7 - Still Magic Kingdom day. I've dropped the dinner at the Plaza because no one's really feeling it and it will save us money in the long run.
Tuesday, Nov. 8 - Epcot day! No reservations because we've decided we're going to gorge ourselves on the food and wine booths.
Wednesday, Nov. 9 - Islands of Adventure. I want to do this one mid-week because I've heard that's when crowds are the lowest at WWoHP. We're keeping the late dinner reservation for California Grill, however.
Thursday, Nov. 10 - Still DHS day. Keeping the lunch reservation for Sci-Fi Dine-In because Nigel and I both love the atmosphere in that place. The late dinner at T-Rex has been moved to Friday.
Friday, Nov. 11 - Universal Studios day. Since US closes so early (6:00PM, seriously?) we've moved the dinner at T-Rex to 8:45PM on this date. I think that should give us enough time to run back to the hotel and shower if we want to. Also, since we're obviously not going to be at Epcot, the Biergarten reservation is gone. We'll have to try it on another trip.
Saturday, Nov. 12 - Still departure day. As planned, we're going to play it by ear.

So, for those of you keeping track, that's four table-service meals--Raglan Road, California Grill, Sci-Fi, and T-Rex. Yup, four. That's it. I'm pretty sure we're also going to squeeze Three Broomsticks in there as well, but that's going to depend on how bad the crowds are at WWoHP. I honestly don't think that's too shabby, and it won't cost us nearly as much money. Plus, I get my gastro-snob places (Cali Grill, Raglan Rd.) while still getting to do a couple of fun-themed but not quite as expensive places. I think, this close to the trip, I'm finally satisfied with how everything has shaped up.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

I know I just posted something, but this stuff is sorta unrelated, so you get two for the price of one tonight.

So, I posted this as a response, but I figured I should probably mention it in an "official" capacity. It looks like we're probably losing Christine. As she recently told me, "There's about a 75% chance I won't be able to make it," and those odds don't look good.

Yes, this sucks, but I can't see any way around it without Christine losing her job. Right now I'm just keeping my fingers crossed and hoping she can pull something out of her hat and maybe make that 25% work in her favor. I mean, it's not the end of the world if just ends up being me, Nigel and Corey, but I really, really want her to go.

In other news, my schedule has exploded right now. Aside from my regular schoolwork, I've also got the GRE coming up in about a week, I'm working on getting everything together to start applying to grad school, and I've taken on what is effectively an internship in publishing. So, to say I'm a little busy is a vast understatement.

I do not want to neglect my PTR, however, so I'm going to endeavor to post at least once a week until we leave. Since we're gone in four weeks, I don't think four more posts is an impossible feat. Plus, I've got a few more days itineraries to post, a Dragon*Con break post (that's what's going to be coming up next), and the inevitable, "OMG, my vacation is only a couple days away," freakout post.

So stay tuned. As we're closing in, there's going to be much more to come.

 

[Darkfirewolfe]

EEEEEE!!! Getting Close Celebration Dance

<--- excited for me and excited for you!

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

We interrupt our regular series of posts for a special Dragon*Con break.

Why? Because, if you've been following my PTR(s), you may have noticed that I mentioned I'm a costumer, and a couple of the costumes I did at the convention this year were versions of Disney characters. And, if you read my previous PTR, you'll note that Nigel and I also have a thing for steampunk. Well, at Dragon*Con our love for Disney and steampunk collided and we created costumes for steampunk versions of Disney characters.

There were two groups, one slightly more inspired by Disney than the other. First up, on Saturday of the con, I met up with a group of ladies who had all made costumes based on steampunk versions of Disney princesses. I was the Cinderella for the group (I'd signed on to do it back when I was a blonde, so I had to wear a wig, now that my hair is black). Instead of going the ballgown route, I decided to do a version of Cinderella's “peasant” outfit, since I tend toward “urchin” mode when I do steampunk stuff. The end result is pictured below. Do note my versions of Jaq and Perla in tiny Victorian outfits. Oh, and my bucket. Finding something to use as a wooden bucket was actually the hardest part of this costume.

Next up, on Sunday, Nigel and reprised our versions of steampunk Peter Pan characters from the previous year. These are slightly less based on the Disney versions in some cases. I was trying to keep the same blue used for Wendy in my costume (and I had a giant blue bow that refused to stay in my now-shorter hair), but these were more “inspired-by” rather than direct interpretations. Nigel was Capt. Hook, and he actually wore this costume to MNSSHP last year, minus the hook itself—since it was made out of metal, we figured security wouldn't let it through the gates. Also, you'll note our Peter Pan may look somewhat familiar. Christine was supposed to be a steampunk mermaid with us, but she lost her room key for the hotel and didn't get it back in time to change for the photoshoot. Oh well, there's always next year.

Note: there were more people in this group, but I didn't get a good shot of all of us together. Also, since none of the rest are going with us, I didn't really know if they wanted their picture plastered all over the interwebs.

That now concludes our exceptionally geeky break. We'll return soon with another daily itinerary and some pictures of cute stuff for the trip.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

...Community of Tomorrow!

Yes, we're a few days shy from the two-week mark, so I figured I'd better get busy with updating this thing. And, of course, since we moved or IoA day to Wednesday, that means I need to stick our Epcot itinerary in here somewhere. Oh, and we've also got a few updates, one of them not so happy.

So, as some of you may have guessed by now, we've lost Christine for the trip. We were pretty much expecting it, but it definitely sucks. Apparently her new boss is even less flexible than her old boss, which means no time off for the trip. Also, we are now, once again, left with too many beds. Unfortunately, it's way too close to when we're going to leave to try to fill the extra bed in Corey's room. We've asked around, but we really don't know enough people who can drop the money for a vacation/get the time off at the last minute. So it looks like Corey is going to have a room all to himself.

Also, I moved the GRE to the 29th of October, since no one told me until, like, a week before the event, that the previous one was scheduled on top of Nigel's sister's wedding. So I moved it, and we went to the wedding. Fortunately, this gives me a little more time to study, so I'm not all that broken up about it.

Now, a few other things....

It being almost the two-week mark, this is normally when I begin packing. I usually start by cleaning out the suitcase (if there's anything left in it from the previous trip) and putting things we don't use daily into it. So far, the cleaning-out has occurred, and I've put a few of our travel toiletries in one of the pouches. That's it! I need to pack a few more things--like swimsuits, sunscreen, travel books, etc.--but I've been so busy with school, my internship and preparing for the GRE, I haven't had a spare moment. I did take pictures of our new suitcase, however, as well as the most important things we will be bringing on our trip.

I'm talking about our pins, of course! Nigel became obsessed with pin trading on our last visit to the World, so he's asked me several times now not to forget to pack our lanyards this year.

The black lanyard is Nigel's, while the lavender one is mine. Sorry for the slight blur on the pics--I was having some issues getting our camera to adjust. The pins in the bottom pic are the special ones we picked up at MNSSHP last year. It's a tiny collection, but it's growing. Sadly, I had a whole other lanyard of pins from previous trips that went missing when my ex and I split up a few years ago. I don't think my ex actually did anything to them, mind you. I think they just got lost in the shuffle of moving. But every time I start packing for a new trip to WDW, I lament those lost pins.

Now, to completely change subjects, how about an Epcot itinerary?

Last year, during the Food & Wine Festival, Nigel and I didn't get to eat from as many of the booths as we wanted. Part of this was because we were spending that afternoon with Mike and Aldea, and they kept crisscrossing between the UK and Norway--without going through the rest of the World Showcase--so we never made it very deep into that part of Epcot. The other part was because we decided, at the last minute, not to eat from the booths for dinner and instead attend the soft-opening for La Hacienda de San Angel. La Hacienda was fabulous, so it was a good choice, but we really missed getting a full F&W experience.

Not so this year! We have no meals booked for Epcot and we're going to eat exclusively from the F&W booths. Also, we've made a list of things we must try before we leave the park. Hopefully our Food & Wine dreams will finally be fulfilled.

We're going to try to get up around 9:30 AM, since I figured we'd need a couple of days to sleep in at some point during the vacation. Since Epcot isn't one of those parks where you desperately need to be there at rope-drop, this seemed like a good day to do it. Obviously, we'll continue the tradition of eating breakfast in the room to save money before heading out to the parks.

I think we're probably going to get there between 10:30 and 11:00 AM, and we're going to start out in Future World. I know the first thing we're going to do is get fastpasses for Soarin' since that's kind of a necessity if you don't want a long wait. Then, since Nigel completely missed it last year, we'll head over to Test Track and hope the line isn't terrible. If it is, we can always ride Mission Space and Ellen's Energy Adventure, since we'll be in that part of the park. If we do have fastpasses for Soarin', hopefully riding the other two rides will kill the time until the window is open and we can get TT fastpasses.

Once we're done with that, we'll ride Spaceship Earth on our way to the other side of Future World. There we can ride things like Nemo and Journey into Imagination, and see Captain EO until our Soarin' fastpass time comes up.

I figure everyone will be getting hungry at this point, so that's when we're going to head to the World Showcase and start hitting the Food & Wine booths. We're planning on starting in Canada (cheddar cheese soup!) and going counter-clockwise until we hit Mexico, seeing the few attractions in the World Showcase along the way. I suspect this will take most of the afternoon/evening, so that should give us time to grab more stuff for dinner from the booths and snag a spot for IllumiNations that night. All in all, a much more leisurely day than what we've got planned for the Magic Kingdom.