How I Spent a week in Florida w/o getting a tan!!!

[dismom9761]

Great pics from DTD! Looking forward to reading about your first day in the parks!

 

[ShhhQ]

Day 4
August 29th.... MGM

When we rolled out of bed, we got dressed... slathered on the sunscreen, packed everything we thought we may need in our carry bags to the parks... Donned our hats and got Mom in her wheelchair... then we went down to the luggage assistance to pick up our scooters (we both rented one because she has trouble walking more than a couple of feet, and I have bad feet and didn't want to be in pain the entire trip). At first they told me only one had arrived and it wasn't charged up.... then a few minutes later they brought both of them out.... both charged up! Here is a picture of one of them...

We got on the bus to go to MGM and this trip was uneventful......

We had high expectectations... well I did.... unfortunately they were too high!
We didn't have very much time to spend at this park and there was so much to do that I never got around to... First things first.... I had to head straight to ToT and get a fastpass. We decided to look for the Backlot tour... but we spotted the Great Movie Ride first and got in line....I tried to take pictures, but with not being able to use flash, most of them didn't come out..... here is what I did get...

After this it was time for me to get to ToT.... on the way we got fps for Little Mermaid... Mom wanted to look at the gift shops so we were to meet up in half an hour and I went to go ride ToT... here are some pics of the lobby....

One word for this ride..... AWESOME!!!

It took me only a few minutes to spot Mom... now we were ready to see Little Mermaid... were going to use our FPs but there was no need, we were the first to need wheelchair accessible seats and thanks to a helpful gentleman who got people to move out of the lane we got in with no problems.... again the show was too dark for any pics....

After that.... we headed to the Backlot tour..... I took several pictures here...
The little stunt show at the beginning...

The Movie prop graveyard....

As we went down the workshop aisle.... I just started snapping pictures at all the windows.... this is the only one that turned out

 

[ShhhQ]

Enter the movie set... aka the disaster area...
The calm before the storm...

The FIRE!

The FLOOD..... OMG Its coming right at us!!!!!!!

Pretty Cool!
After we got off that, there was a costume museum type place.... I had to capture these!

Now our time was up at MGM... I snapped a few shots of the cities that were cool....

We left MGM and headed to the bus to AK!
The bus pulled up and loaded our EVCs onto it, but not sure exactly what happened then..... all the other people waiting to go to AK were directed to get on another bus.... MOM AND I HAD THE BUS TO OURSELVES

But this was one of the worst trips!!!!!
Wanna know what happened? Stay tuned.....

 

[mousescrapper]

all caught up, sorry to hear about the unbelievable mix ups on your trip down, so GLAD you made it down safely.

I didn't stay in that Knights Inn, but one outside Hot Springs Arkansas....um yeah

Hope you enjoyed POP! like your window decorations, did you add pictures on the paper?

Great pictures at the Backlot Tour, haven't been on that in a few years, so that was cool to see.

Keep it coming...what happened on the bus????

 

[dismom9761]

Enjoyed the updates and pictures.

I have always liked TOT but this time I didn't.

What happened?!

 

[ShhhQ]

all caught up, sorry to hear about the unbelievable mix ups on your trip down, so GLAD you made it down safely.

I didn't stay in that Knights Inn, but one outside Hot Springs Arkansas....um yeah

Hope you enjoyed POP! like your window decorations, did you add pictures on the paper?

Great pictures at the Backlot Tour, haven't been on that in a few years, so that was cool to see.

Keep it coming...what happened on the bus????

I found some Disney Scrap book paper and I added some stickers that a DisFriend sent me.... I meant to keep them and use them for memory sheets, but they got torn quite a bit when I took them off the window.

 

[ShhhQ]

The Worst Bus Ride!

As I stated before we got on the bus from MGM to the Animal Kingdom..... both of our scooters were loaded and locked down.... but no one else got on the bus. I couldn't hear what the driver was telling people but I do believe he was pointing them to another bus that had pulled up... No one else was allowed on the bus.... which I really found strange. He must have been going on a break but had to take us because we were already loaded.... at least that was my thought at the time.... not sure now.

After a few minutes, the driver says its just us and starts pulling out..... about a minute or two after pulling out of the lot, while the bus was turning a corner, the bindings tying my scooter down came loose and I found myself being thrown to the other side of the bus... fortunately I had enough foresight to put my right foot down on the floor and was able to right myself and the scooter before doing any damage!

I kept my foot down, and shortly the driver was on the radio informing (I guess) dispatch that he was pulling over due to a toppled wheelchair!!! He pulls over at the nearest place, which happens to be the Swan, and comes back to check on the situation... he first asks if I am ok... which I am.... then he adjusts the straps to fix the scooter back down... Mom was in front of me and oblivious to what had happened so I had to tell her what was going on. After this I opt to spend the rest of the trip on the bus seat!

We pull out of the Swan lot and continue our journey to AK.... then, I see the signs.... (if I remember correctly the directions) turn right for Animal Kingdom park... continue straight for Animal Kingdom Lodge!!!! and.... the DRIVER DOESN'T TURN!!!! I blurt out "NOT THE LODGE" but doubt the driver can hear me..... now I am freaking out! I am already shook up from the tumble, and now he is taking us to the wrong place!

He pulls up at the lodge and opens the doors.... (one good sign, he didn't come back to unhook us) no one boarded and then we started moving again... this time we really were heading to AK.... and I was glad to arrive..

But we hadn't eaten all day, so we decided to find a place to eat first....

Next up... Adventures in the ANIMAL KINGDOM!

 

[Simba22]

Wow you did not have very good luck with the Disney busses so far! I am so sorry to hear of all of your bus troubles! We have never had a problem with the Disney transportation and we have been there 5 times!

Glad you had a good time at MGM! The backlot tour has changed a lot since May 2006 when I went on it last! They added a lot of new stuff! Can't wait to go on it again in October!

 

[ShhhQ]

Wow you did not have very good luck with the Disney busses so far! I am so sorry to hear of all of your bus troubles! We have never had a problem with the Disney transportation and we have been there 5 times!

Glad you had a good time at MGM! The backlot tour has changed a lot since May 2006 when I went on it last! They added a lot of new stuff! Can't wait to go on it again in October!

Thanks.... MGM was great, just wish we had done a whole day there because there was soooo much I wasn't able to do... that goes double for AK (don't wanna say to much about that yet)... most of the bus trips were ok... with the worst part being the embarrassment of having a whole crowd of people waiting for me to get my scooter on, Mom to get her scooter, and the driver to get them fastened down.... with some of them having waited longer than we had, I felt bad about it... but we did have one more "bad" ride..... but I am getting ahead of myself there!

 

[pamouselover]

That is such ashame. I found the buses to be not so great this trip. We had our car and I wished we used it more then we did.

 

[ShhhQ]

We finallly arrived at AK! But our time is waning away and we haven't ate yet! So after a quick trip to the ladies room, we went in search of a CS restaurant that takes the DDP.... we weren't sure which ones did and which didn't.... But I did remember that Pizzafari was on the list.. and I spotted it on the map. We get there and the place was PACKED!!!! We got in line and decided what we wanted, I sent Mom to get us a table while I got the food. The line seemed like it took forever!!!! When I finally got near to ordering, I started to wonder.... "How in the world am I going to carry all this food on this SCOOTER?" So after I made my order I asked the cashier if anyone could help... he said he would get someone. But a moment later, another cashier relieved him and he said HE would help!!!! THANK GOD!!!!!

I got the pepperoni pizza, mom got the Italian sandwich. For dessert she chose the pie while I got the frozen strawberry lemonade. An hour and a half later we are finally done eating..... and outside it is raining cats and dogs!!!
I have to admit, I lost it!!! I started crying! Here it was almost 4pm *the park closed at 5pm that day with Evening EMH* and we hadn't even done anything!!!!! And Now it was raining!!!!! Were we gonna get to do ANYTHING here???? Mom was the calm one..... she asked for the ponchos.... but i kept thinking.... we can't get these scooters wet!!! Not to mention, in the basket of each scooter was the charger! I took her charger and put it in my basket, and instead of putting my poncho on myself, I covered up the basket.... while she put hers on!

By the time we got out the door, the rain had relaxed to a drizzle instead of a downpour!!!! But we still didn't have a lot of time! We are both animal lovers and we wanted to see some animals.... first stop Pangani Forest Exploration Trail

I loved the Meercats!

But this guy scared him off.....

 

[pamouselover]

Hi,
I love meerakats. Great picture. I just wanted to let you know that you will have to check in to my TR. I will be making you famous soon.

 

[ShhhQ]

Then we came upon the Gorillas!!!!

This guy was camera shy!!! Everytime I got focused on him he turned around!

This guy just sat there and let me take his pic

Here is a pic of the campsite.... I asked about this, and they said this was the researchers campsite....

After this we got our wristbands, and went straight to Kilimanjaro Safari...
Got some good pictures, but most of them were to blurry to keep (my digital camera had to be held still to focus properly)

I especially loved this pic where I caught the Elephants reflection in the water...

After this ride, it was time to get to the DISmeet!!!!! As a matter of fact, I thought we would be late! We rush all the way to the other side to EE, I was afraid I would miss out! I get there a few minutes late, but close enough to be ok... but don't see anyone! Then someone comes behind me and asks if I am Michelle.... I turn around, and there is MsSpinShady and her 2 sons... We waited and waited, but no one else showed up. We had arranged to meet and ride EE and everyone was to get FPs, but I wasn't able to get one.... they had an extra one and we started to get in line... unfortunately, they didn't take FPs during EMHs!!! The standby line said 30 min... they decided they didn't want to wait that long so we said our goodbyes! I unfortunately forgot to take pictures!

After that Mom and I discussed what we were gonna do.... we had planned on riding Kali River Rapids, but she didn't feel like it (Kilimanjaro Safari was a bit rough for her) So I said I would go try out Dinosaur and let her go look at shops..... I go to the ride and the standby time was 40 mins... I didn't want to ride it that badly, so I went back to find her....

At this point, my scooter is slowing down some......

I meet up with Mom again, and she had to take this picture.....

I hate it!!

We decided it was time to head back to the room and get ready for our dinner ressies.... but things weren't going our way!!!

My scooter was dying!!!

We were heading up a hill and it came to a complete stop!!!!!

I got off switched it to neutral, and pushed it up!

Got back on and rode it for a bit, until it did it again!

This time a friendly couple helped me push it....

We stopped several times and let it rest and it would work better for a little while, but it was slow going!

We finally made it to the exit, and there was a squirrel dancing around for food! I tried to get a pic of it, but wasn't able to focus fast enough!

Then a boy came by and kicked at its tail.... it didn't like it and took off!

We eventually got on the bus and went back to POP!

Now we had to figure out how we were going to meet our 9pm ADRs at Maya Grill at Coronado Springs!

Next up.... DINNER.... and a few little things I forgot to mention!

 

[dismom9761]

Yikes! Glad you didn't get hurt on the bus.

Loved all the pictures.

 

[ShhhQ]

Yikes! Glad you didn't get hurt on the bus.

Loved all the pictures.

Thanks.... it really shook me up... I am just glad it was mine and not Mom's... I used a scooter because I knew if I did all that walking my feet would be throbing and I wouldn't be having any fun.... so I was able to catch myself, whereas she wouldn't have been able to and would have gotten seriously hurt. As it was, she had an accident on her scooter where she hit her leg on a pole, and due to the fact she is on Plavix, she had a gigantic bruise on her leg.... which she didn't even tell me had happened until we were driving home!

Sad to say that a trip to Disney and the scariest ride you went on was a bus ride!!!

 

[winniethepoohsmom]

Thank god you pulled over and slept after taking the tranquilizers you could've fallen asleep behind the wheel. It's ashame only 2 of you showed up for the EE dismeet, we did'nt make any. I'm keeping tuned in to see what you did next. Linda

 

[mousescrapper]

Those are some really nice pictures from AK, I love the one of the elephant too, great! Really makes me excited to go back soon. Hope you make it to your ADR on time, and your scooter doesn't give you anymore trouble.

 

[ShhhQ]

There were two important things I forgot to mention earlier....
One is that I met another Disser on the bus that morning on the way to MGM (she may not read this report, but felt I should include it anyway). Anyway, after we got loaded onto the bus and the other people piled in... a lady stopped in front of me and informed me that she had seen my LGMH attached to my scooter and wanted to say hi.... then I saw hers... and believe it or not it was actually someone I had talked to in an August Popper board! Crossfamily!

The other thing I forgot to mention I have to bring up because it soon comes into play..... our first night there, the oxygen pump that I had dragged up to our room.... she couldn't get it to work... there we are at midnight, and this thing will do nothing but buzz!!!! She had to give up! When we got up in the morning she called the o2 company to let them know it wasn't working and so they could fix it or send another one..... she expected them to deliver to the room! Don't know why we kept thinking this since nothing ever was, but we did!

Soooooo..... now we are back to POP with the slow going scooter..... we finally make it back to the room, just a little slower than usual... I immediately plug in the charger.... Mom states.... they didn't come! So we think they possibly may have delivered a new one downstairs.... I think she actually called down this time, but I still ended up going down to get it..... took the dolly up with the new air pump on it upstairs, brought the dolly back down and asked about the best way to get to Coronado Springs.... I finally decided that we should drive! But I knew we couldn't get Mom's scooter into the car, and she could never walk that far.... so I asked if we could borrow one for dinner... they had me sign for it!!!

We get cleaned up and get in the car.... don't even get lost getting to it!

We got seated immediately and were given this weird bread w/ some green sauce! Mom liked it, but I found the bread kinda hard.... I don't remember what she ordered for her appetizer (probably a salad or soup) I ordered a crabmeat chalupa.... now for those of you who have no idea what a chalupa is... join the club!!! I was thinking of those taco type things from Taco Bell, on fried flatbread.... this was nothing like that!!!!! My honest first impression of it was a gigantic turd sitting on a plate!!!! It was a big round ball sitting on some salsa stuff.... I hated the salsa stuff, but I got brave enough to try the turd and it actually tasted pretty good!!!


I of course ordered the steak and steak fries.... I decided I should start taking pictures of the food so....

Mom had this trio dish, steak, ribs and the catch of the day along w/baked potato.....

Payback for the earlier picture????
got her eating!

We weren't even able to finish it all..... but we still got dessert!
I decided to try a Creme Brulee!

and Mom got a fried Cheesecake...

after dinner we decided to check out their gift shop, wasn't much different but I did see a pretty shirt I wanted but Mom said no, its too much (was $26), never saw another one I liked as much in my size! Soo I didn't get a shirt..... we decided it was time to head back "home" and call it a night... after I get her upstairs and return the chair I am ready to pass out!!!!

End day 4... next up Early EMH at MK!!!!

 

[dismom9761]

Great update! Sorry so much trouble getting the o2. The dinner looks delicious! Looking forward to reading more!

 

[winniethepoohsmom]

Sorry to hear you had problems with the chair battery and the o2. We did'nt think the appys at the Maya Grill were that good but we enjoyed the rest of the meal. I also saw a shirt they had on display right in front of the shop that I really like but did'nt want to spend the money, maybe next trip. Linda