I Can See Epcot From Here! ~ A November Trip and Dining Report ~

[lala3291]

Great pics of the BWI!!!! Makes me wish I was there right now.
Hope you are having a good week Shelly!!!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

All caught up again... you are a fast updater!

I can't believe you missed the fort at TSI! I don't know how we managed to find it, but DS7 had a blast exploring & shooting at BTMRR, which happened to be where DH & DS10 were!

I WILL HAVE A DOLE WHIP FLOAT IN JANUARY OR MARCH!!! I can't believe I've never had one, but I have to end that immediately!!

We explored that little area at BWI too - we took a little time on our last morning in October to check it out. It's so beautiful & quiet down there.​

I can't believe we missed the fort! The boys would have loved shooting at BTMRR!

You MUST get a Dole Whip!! I vote for January! Then you can get one again in March!!

Look at your ticker! I didn't realize you were going so soon. If I don't talk to you again before then -- Have a magical trip!

Great pics of the BWI!!!! Makes me wish I was there right now.
Hope you are having a good week Shelly!!!

Thanks Lauren!

I wish I was there right now too. I bet there's not a bunch of snow there!!

 

[Luvmepluto]

Hello........

Newbie to this thread!!!! I have enjoyed your vacation thus far. It seemed to be a little chilly there in November. I was there at the beginning of September...........can you say HOT!!!

Ok....just one thing......I LOVE Captain EO.....I had to get that off my chest. lol

I also want to stay at BWI now. We were set to stay at SSR, but now the party that was suppose to go with us this year, can't go. But today.....I received a 40% pin for a Deluxe.........I am more of a MK person....I might just book at the Poly or GF.

 

[Practically_Perfect]

Okay, get ready everyone -- it's Tonga Toast time!!

Here it comes - straight from the "Cooking with Mickey and the Disney Chefs" cookbook.

Tonga Toast - yield 4 servings
~ This decadent, deep-fried breakfast favourite has been served for more than a quarter of a century at Disney's Polynesian Resort, and is now on the menu at Kona Cafe ~

1 cup sugar
2 tsps cinnamon
1 loaf sourdough bread (8 inches long)
2 bananas, peeled
1 quart canola oil, for frying

1. Mix the sugar and cinnamon with a fork until thoroughly blended; set aside
2. Slice the bread into four 2-inch thick slices
3. Cut each banana in half crosswise, then each piece lengthwise
4. Place a bread slice flat on the counter and tear out just enough from the middle (do not tear all the way through) to stuff half a banana into it; repeat with each slice of bread
5. In a large pot or deep fryer, heat the oil to 350 degrees (farenheit); use a candy thermometer to mae certain the oil does not get any hotter, or it will burn
6. Gently place one bread slice into the oil for 1 minute, or until light brown
7. Turn and fry for another minute on the other side
8. Remove bread from the pot and toss it in the sugar and cinnamon mixture
9. Repeat for each piece


Finally, though it goes without saying, eat and enjoy!!

 

[*tinker*bell*]

Love the BWI photos, makes me want to stay there... although I am one of those silly people that the clown FREAKS out... it is just plain creepy to me! But I am not a big swimmer so I don't know that it even matters much. Hope your week is going well, we are starting to get snow here I HATE snow and unfortunately I will have to venture out in it tomorrow for a "fun filled day"... it totally wont be I'll be looking forward to your next installment

 

[Pluto_fan]

Thanks for posting the recipe, Katie!
I actually got a deep fryer for Christmas (I guess DH decided we've been eating too healthy, so we need to mix it up a little? ). I'll have to give it a try!

 

[Practically_Perfect]

Thanks for posting the recipe, Katie!
I actually got a deep fryer for Christmas (I guess DH decided we've been eating too healthy, so we need to mix it up a little? ). I'll have to give it a try!

Let me know how it goes. I live alone, so haven't really had the opportunity to make that much deep-fried breakfast foods for just me. I've never even actually tried Tonga Toast (only ever been to Kona Cafe for a late lunch), but that was the recipe that made me want to buy that book!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Hello........

Newbie to this thread!!!! I have enjoyed your vacation thus far. It seemed to be a little chilly there in November. I was there at the beginning of September...........can you say HOT!!!

Ok....just one thing......I LOVE Captain EO.....I had to get that off my chest. lol

I also want to stay at BWI now. We were set to stay at SSR, but now the party that was suppose to go with us this year, can't go. But today.....I received a 40% pin for a Deluxe.........I am more of a MK person....I might just book at the Poly or GF.

Welcome! I'm glad you have enjoyed the thread so far and hope you stay! Even thought you love Captain EO!!

Congrats on your 40% PIN. It seems like everyone is getting that. Everyone but me that is. I hope you get to stay at the BWI, the Poly, or the GF!

Here it comes - straight from the "Cooking with Mickey and the Disney Chefs" cookbook.

Tonga Toast - yield 4 servings
~ This decadent, deep-fried breakfast favourite has been served for more than a quarter of a century at Disney's Polynesian Resort, and is now on the menu at Kona Cafe ~

1 cup sugar
2 tsps cinnamon
1 loaf sourdough bread (8 inches long)
2 bananas, peeled
1 quart canola oil, for frying

1. Mix the sugar and cinnamon with a fork until thoroughly blended; set aside
2. Slice the bread into four 2-inch thick slices
3. Cut each banana in half crosswise, then each piece lengthwise
4. Place a bread slice flat on the counter and tear out just enough from the middle (do not tear all the way through) to stuff half a banana into it; repeat with each slice of bread
5. In a large pot or deep fryer, heat the oil to 350 degrees (farenheit); use a candy thermometer to mae certain the oil does not get any hotter, or it will burn
6. Gently place one bread slice into the oil for 1 minute, or until light brown
7. Turn and fry for another minute on the other side
8. Remove bread from the pot and toss it in the sugar and cinnamon mixture
9. Repeat for each piece


Finally, though it goes without saying, eat and enjoy!!

That sounds so good and oh so fattening!! I will have to give it a try one day. Although I'm sure it just won't be the same eating it here as it is eating it at the Poly.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Love the BWI photos, makes me want to stay there... although I am one of those silly people that the clown FREAKS out... it is just plain creepy to me! But I am not a big swimmer so I don't know that it even matters much. Hope your week is going well, we are starting to get snow here I HATE snow and unfortunately I will have to venture out in it tomorrow for a "fun filled day"... it totally wont be I'll be looking forward to your next installment

Well if you don't swim then you won't even know that the clown is there!!

My week is going well. It was a long day at school today - I worked with Kindergartners all day! It snowed here last night and on & off all day today. I hate it too!

Thanks for posting the recipe, Katie!
I actually got a deep fryer for Christmas (I guess DH decided we've been eating too healthy, so we need to mix it up a little? ). I'll have to give it a try!

Tonga Toast is definitely not healthy. Well, except for the banana part. Let us know if you try it!

 

[JoBird]

I wonder how many fat grams is in Tonga Toast..........

Do you think if I make that every day between now and the trip I will be swimsuit ready?????

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

I wonder how many fat grams is in Tonga Toast..........

Do you think if I make that every day between now and the trip I will be swimsuit ready?????

Yeah, about as swimsuit ready as me!!!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

After my solo tour of the BWI grounds I went upstairs to see what the boys were up to. DH was just relaxing and the kids were playing. We decided to head downstairs and get a pizza at the BW Pizza Window for dinner and take it to the pool. And hopefully get in a swim before it got too cold.

We ordered our pizza and were given a buzzer. We went over and had a seat here and waited.

About 10-15 minutes later our buzzer went off and our pizza was done! We picked it up and went out to the pool.

It was VERY good! I wasn't expecting much, but was pleasantly surprised. We got half cheese and half pepperoni. We brought drinks from the room.


Total Bill: $19.96
Rating: 5 out of 5



The sun hadn't gone down yet, but it was headed that way and it was cooling down fast. DS9 thought he'd jump in the pool before it got any colder. He lasted about 15 minutes and he was froze. The rest of us didn't brave it!

We bundled him up and went up to the room to decide what we would do the rest of the night.

After much thought and discussion about what to do for the rest of the evening, and almost going to DTD, we decided to just hang out. I looked at the resort activities and decided we would go to the Campfire Sing-Along. It said it was on the shores of Cresent Lake (which is the lake right there at the BWI). I was pretty sure it meant it was over at the YC/BC, because I had seen that sign over there before and had never seen anything about it at the BWI. We put on some warmer clothes and went down to the BW. We popped into the Screen Door gift shop on the BW and asked the CM's where the Campfire was. They had no clue. The one was like – well, um, this is Cresent Lake, I think. . . After about 4-5 CM's and 15 minutes later we were told that it was in-fact over at the YC/BC.

There was a pin trading board out in the gift shop so the kids stopped to make some trades.

DS9 was very happy with his trades!

We could see the boat was on it's way to the BW, so we waited on it rather than walking to the YC/BC.

The kids were pretty excited to sit in the back of the boat!

In just a few minutes we were at the YC/BC!

Got a few SAB pool pics.

And we made our way to the Campfire.

There weren't too many people there. Maybe 5-6 families. We were given sticks and marshmallows and told the rules.

We sang 2 songs and that was it. One was Happy Birthday to a little girl there. And I forget the other one. It was kind of weird. I thought for a Campfire Sing-Along we would do more singing. DS11 even asked the one CM if we were going to sing more and she said – um, we usually don't. Okay, whatever.

Then another CM came along. He was much more into his job. We still didn't do anymore singing, but he was a lot of fun. He was giving us riddles to solve and things like that.

Up Next: More Campfire pics and BW entertainment!
(continued in next post)

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

DS9 and I kicked off our shoes and played in the sand.

After awhile they were getting ready to start a movie. The kids weren't interested, so we went into the BC for a quick look around and a little shopping.

Then we walked back over to the BW.

We happened upon this guy on the BW and he asked DS9 how old he was and then said that was perfect because he needed a 9 year old for his next show!! This kids were thrilled!!

He got all set up and put on the most hilarious show. DS9 was in the magic bunny trick part.

And then DS11 was in the sword of death trick!

This was definitely the highlight of the trip for the boys!!


After our very fun time there we headed down the BW to see this guy.

Then we decided it was time for another snack. I guess the marshmallows weren't enough! So we went in the BW Bakery and got some treats – a brownie, a cheesecake brownie, a rice crispy mickey head, and cheesecake topped with a strawberry. The line was long, but it was worth the wait. Total: $16.04

Then we thought it was time to head upstairs and watch IllumiNations from the balcony and get to bed. We had a big day of Epcot coming up in the morning!


Up Next: Day 6 Thursday November 11 – Epcot!

 

[T*Bird]

What a nice evening y'all had! The view from the boat ride was beautiful with all the lights reflecting on the water. That's kind of weird about the CM's not having a clue about the campfire. I can see the CM's at MK resorts not knowing much about it, but you would think the ones in the Epcot area would at least know where it was! The same goes for the first CM at the campfire. It sure makes a big difference when the CM's have a good personality (even the Photopass photogs)! At least the 2nd CM made it a lot more fun!

That is so great that both boys were asked to be in a show at the BW. Disney is sure giving them a chance to be up on stage! They (especially DS11) have really seemed to enjoy the limelight!

And topping the evening off with desserts and then watching Illuminations from your balcony.......
Priceless!
5 out of 5

 

[JoBird]

What an absolutely prefect night!!!!!!

It was like I was right there- GREAT update.


Your boat rides there and back were so beautiful-- How relaxing.

The campfire singalong was more campfire than singalong. That was strange.

And Clarence the Clown!!!!! Yay Clarence!!!! He looked perfectly happy that your son was swimming with him.

The pizza DID look good! I'm surprised it tasted good too. Are those rooms above that restaurant window? I wonder if you smell pizza all the time in your room if it is??

The Sword of death.......... Belle thought it was real. I'm glad they got to do that- I know it made their trip- it makes them feel so special.


Thanks for the wonderful update. It fed my Cravings this morning.






Now as far as swimsuit ready----- Didn't you hear? Flab is the new thin. I'm soooooooo in style.

 

[lala3291]

It looks like you all had a great night! I love nights out on the Boardwalk
We got a ton of snow yesterday- 20 inches! So, we had a snow day yesterday and a two hour delay today. The kids were very happy, and It was nice having the day off of work. Hope you guys aren't getting too much snow!

 

[mari360]

Shelly - the night sounded perfect. No running around just like a nice relaxing walk..... cant wait to see more....

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Our Campfire Sing-A-Long at OKW was kind of a flop too. What a bummer. But at least you got some yummy marshmallows out of the deal. lol! (We got s'more kits. Did you also?) Your treats from the bakery looks really tasty too! How neat that the boys were picked for the show. That's always really fun for kids!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

What a nice evening y'all had! The view from the boat ride was beautiful with all the lights reflecting on the water. That's kind of weird about the CM's not having a clue about the campfire. I can see the CM's at MK resorts not knowing much about it, but you would think the ones in the Epcot area would at least know where it was! The same goes for the first CM at the campfire. It sure makes a big difference when the CM's have a good personality (even the Photopass photogs)! At least the 2nd CM made it a lot more fun!

That is so great that both boys were asked to be in a show at the BW. Disney is sure giving them a chance to be up on stage! They (especially DS11) have really seemed to enjoy the limelight!

And topping the evening off with desserts and then watching Illuminations from your balcony.......
Priceless!
5 out of 5

It was a pretty great night! Yeah, I was surprised the CM's had no clue, especially when it was listed on the BW activity sheet!

Oh yes, the boys were loving every second of being in the show!

What an absolutely prefect night!!!!!!

It was like I was right there- GREAT update.


Your boat rides there and back were so beautiful-- How relaxing.

The campfire singalong was more campfire than singalong. That was strange.

And Clarence the Clown!!!!! Yay Clarence!!!! He looked perfectly happy that your son was swimming with him.

The pizza DID look good! I'm surprised it tasted good too. Are those rooms above that restaurant window? I wonder if you smell pizza all the time in your room if it is??

The Sword of death.......... Belle thought it was real. I'm glad they got to do that- I know it made their trip- it makes them feel so special.


Thanks for the wonderful update. It fed my Cravings this morning.






Now as far as swimsuit ready----- Didn't you hear? Flab is the new thin. I'm soooooooo in style.

You probably feel like you were there because I was probably texting you telling you all about it when it was happening!!

The campfire was kind of weird. I'm so glad the second CM came along and made it fun!

Yes, DS9 and Clarence pretty much had the pool to themselves!

That pizza was so good! I was expecting it to be the regular WDW pizza like you get at Pizza Planet, Pizzafari, and the food courts. But it was SO much better! I wish I had one right now! Yep, those are rooms right above it. I wondered the same thing - if you could smell it! And how noisy it would be there.

Glad you enjoyed the update!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

It looks like you all had a great night! I love nights out on the Boardwalk
We got a ton of snow yesterday- 20 inches! So, we had a snow day yesterday and a two hour delay today. The kids were very happy, and It was nice having the day off of work. Hope you guys aren't getting too much snow!

Nights on the BW are the best!!!

I'm sorry you got so much snow. At least you got a snow day and a delay out of it! Our school would probably still go with 20 inches. In-fact I'm pretty sure we did one day in December!

It's still snowing here. I haven't bothered to check and see what we are supposed to get.

Shelly - the night sounded perfect. No running around just like a nice relaxing walk..... cant wait to see more....

Hi Mari

It was a fun relaxing way to spend the evening. I'm glad we decided to just hang out there rather than running around at a park!

Our Campfire Sing-A-Long at OKW was kind of a flop too. What a bummer. But at least you got some yummy marshmallows out of the deal. lol! (We got s'more kits. Did you also?) Your treats from the bakery looks really tasty too! How neat that the boys were picked for the show. That's always really fun for kids!

We never made it to the campfire when we stayed at OKW that time. There weren't any smores kits at the YC/BC campfire, just marshmallows. And they didn't charge us anything for them. I was surprised.

The BW Bakery has some really yummy treats! Too bad the line is always huge!