I Didn't Know Chameleons Could Blend into Rain (A June 2011 TR)

[rainydayplay]

Hi, all!

We just got back Friday from our trip (June 23 through July 1), and I have visions of a trip report dancing in my head.

We have three in our travel party :

Don't worry...better pictures will come....eventually....

DD (left). Her bday is June 25, and she turned 7 while we were on this trip.

Mom (right). Her bday was in February. I thought we'd celebrate her birthday on the 26th, but I was mistaken.

And me (no picture...yet...). My bday is June 24. Wow, really? You (almost) have the same bday as your child? Okay, sure, I know now that's far more common than I'd have ever thought, but it's still special to us.

There's a story there, of course. DD was due on June 6. Everyone I knew (or so it seemed) said "oh, the baby will wait and be born on June X since that's MY bday!" My response was always, "you know, if this baby is going to wait and be born on anyone's bday, it will be mine!" Next thing you knew, it was my bday, and I still didn't have a baby. Fortunately, she wanted her own day.

This was DD's 4th trip to WDW, and her 2nd for her bday. It's sad, kind of, because as soon as I tell someone (that doesn't know us very well) that we're going to Disney World, they start. "Oh, that is so wonderful! She'll just LOVE it! There's X and Y and Z...." The whole time, I'm thinking yeah, of course, we've been there and done that....but it's impolite to interrupt.... Her first trip was at 4 years old in October 2008. Believe it or not, she remembers more than you would expect from that trip.

Mom and I went on our first trip to the World in December of 1982. I was 2, so I remember nothing. I hear frequently about how it was right after Christmas and the crowds were horrible (because..well...why wouldn't people spend Christmas with their extended families?) and how the monorail was a ride and not a means of transportation.

My next trip was in 1988 (at 8 years old) with my uncle. I remember some from that trip, like, what I'm assuming was the Main Street Electrical Parade, a part on Main Street where you could stand and watch old Mickey Mouse cartoons plus had the penny/nickel machines. I also remember my brother ducking out at the last minute on Space Mountain and me getting suckered into riding a roller coaster when I didn't like roller coasters at the time.

Trip number 3 for me (2 for Mom) was in 1998, right after I graduated high school. I remember a lot more (okay..I remember sky buckets with Dad and him rocking them....did I mention I have acrophobia?? Why did I have to be ON those things??)

Trip 4 was my DD's first trip in 2008. I saw a horrible trend of once every 10 years, and was sad at the thought that it would be 10 years before we went again. After we got home, though, they started advertising that in 2009 you could get in free on your bday. We had done the non-expiring option on our 2008 tickets, and had 1 ticket remaining. My thought: Drive down on June 23rd, get the free ticket for me on the 24th and use DD's last ticket, then use my last ticket on the 25th and DD's free ticket, then drive home the 26th. Sounded simple enough, right? Well, once I started talking, it didn't take long before Mom handed me the deposit and said, "Book it." We also managed to get in on that "pay for 4, get 3 free" deal that was going on, so,yep, we got to be there for a whole week.

During December after that trip, we watched all the Travel Channel's specials on Disney World during the holidays, so in 2010, we made an extended weekend and went down again. (Trip 5) We were only there Friday through Tuesday, but we had a great time and got to see the Christmas decorations (and even did a little resort hopping to see at least the monorail resort decorations.)

I'm not really sure right now what got us talking about coming again so soon, but we've got 2008, 2009, and 2010 tshirts...Although, I did manage to buy a 2011 tshirt at the beginning of December... Hmm... well, I'm sure eventually I will be reminded what pushed us to going this year.

Maybe.

Feel free to join me in recapping this trip. There are lots of pictures (although, not nearly as many as some people have....) and we had a great time!

Next up, first day (traveling to the World!)

 

[rainydayplay]

I had a few last-minute things that had to be done, so I was up at 3:30 CDT that morning. Around 6, I woke DD up. I like to get a picture of her sleeping before I wake her up (just like, if we've done a countdown, I get a picture of her doing the last whatever to the countdown. Unfortunately, there wasn't one this year, but DD's interest in countdowns has never really been there.)

We were out the door by, uh...8...well, okay...at least it was AM and not PM, right? It is about a 6 1/2 hour drive, give or take. A little more if you count stopping for lunch. When we went in December, we had to wait for DD to get out of school and Mom to get off work, so it was after 4PM before we got to leave and a little after midnight in Disney when we arrived. (Of course, getting there at that time means that there are NO lines at check-in....)

We always expect DD to sleep on the long car drive. We were wrong this time. She stayed awake the entire trip. I kept trying to nap, though (Mom drives), but DD kept kicking the back of the seat, putting stuff in my face, or just, "Moooo-ooomm....."

Straight off, Mom takes the backroads. For about 40 minutes we were stuck behind a state trooper who was driving behind someone who felt "safe" driving is driving 5-10 MPH or more below the speed limit. That put us a little behind. Of course, before that...stop for gas and drinks...then breakfast before we got on the interstate later....lunch was in Gainesville around 1 (2 EDT), which was closing time for the restaurant we'd picked out. Good thing we found Panera Bread. On the turnpike, we stopped for gas, then had a stop at Walmart in Orlando for a couple of items that suddenly popped into our heads as "oh, yeah....we should have gotten that..."

Random driving pic:

Pic of DD being silly in the backseat of the car:

We finally arrived in Disney after 4 pm (all times from here on out in EDT). Straight to CBR. We had a preferred room. The location was excellent -- about an equal distance from Old Port Royale and right in the middle of two bus stops. Martinique, Building 26, room 2602, located just to the left of the cul-de-sac on the parking lot side of the building. Our last stay in CBR had us in a preferred room, but this location was just closer to everything. Also, this was a Nemo room!

Our door:

I don't seem to have gotten pictures on my camera of the room decor....must be on the cell phone...

Once we got our stuff into the room and were relatively settled, it was time for a tour. We walked to Old Port Royale and walked through the store among other things. After 7, we started to peruse the dinner options. Salmon for Mom and me; pizza for DD. We didn't think about taking pictures of the entrees...but we did get the desserts.

Plain ol' chocolate cupcake with vanilla icing....

Monkey Cupcake. The picture naturally does not do it justice. Vanilla cupcake with banana (pudding??) filling, peanut butter frosting, and a little chocolate drizzled on top (okay, I could have done without the chocolate drizzle)...this was Yummy!

Afterwards, we needed a walk to explore the rest of the resort. There were plenty of animals out and about.

Ducks & Fish & Turtles & More

Scenery, Etc.

(That bird in the background RAN to be in the picture....)

It wasn't long before we were headed back to the room. Long day tomorrow!


Next up...Epcot!

 

[anjalee6]

I am here. Can't wait to read more. We are already planning a trip for June 2012 as well. I think I need to get working on a new thread. lol.

 

[rainydayplay]

I am here. Can't wait to read more. We are already planning a trip for June 2012 as well. I think I need to get working on a new thread. lol.

Let me know when you do, and Mom (aka eeyore344) and I will be there!

It's funny. We were saying that, after this trip, we would be waiting a while before we went again. My brother has been twice ('82 and '88), but he's not the theme park type and really has no interest in going again. His wife, on the other hand, has never been, and she's dying to go. Their church planned a youth trip in which she was the only female chaperone. The first day, they made it about 2 hours down the road before they stopped to spend the night. The pastor wouldn't let them have their cell phones at all and told them that first night they'd better not step foot outside during the night or they'd turn around and go back. Well, Sis-in-law's sister stepped toe out of the door, and they packed it up and came back. No Disney!

On the way down, Mom and I were talking about it...and she said, "well, I guess we'll have to go next year so we can take Tracie." And thus the 2012 plans were born! Here's hoping for a pin code! (Or some June FD!)

 

[xDisneyAngelx]

Count me in to your TR I am looking forward to hearing about how well it went

 

[Mom2_4mouseketeers]

I'm here! Sticking with my Junies!

 

[rainydayplay]

Count me in to your TR I am looking forward to hearing about how well it went

I'm here! Sticking with my Junies!

Welcome aboard!

 

[rainydayplay]

The first "official" day of the trip -- okay, the first park day, anyway. Since it's my birthday, we go to my favorite park: EPCOT!

Naturally, I'm up way before anyone else. In fact, I think I woke up about once an hour until it was a reasonable (to me) waking time, then contemplated when I should wake up the rest of the party. I managed to get up, shower, get dressed and eat breakfast (we brought cereal, bagels, and pop tarts with us since we were just on the DDP this trip) before anyone else even remotely stirred. I think I might have gotten everyone else up by 6:30 or so, because we were at EPCOT for EMH by 7:30.

Before heading out, I put on my birthday button. I got the button from the CM at check-in (btw, both stays we've had at CBR, the CM at check-in did not say "Welcome Home". That's like one of my favorite parts of the stay.) I got 3 buttons. One for me, one for DD, then one for Mom. ( Because her bday is in February, and I teach and DD is in school, we will not be at WDW for her bday for a long, long time. (If ever.) I think, just once, we should celebrate her bday while we're there. We were going to celebrate her bday during our December trip, but her birthday button mysteriously disappeared.)

Anyway, I tried to at least talk DD into wearing hers. After all, when we were at WDW two years ago for our birthdays, we celebrated the entire week (and were encouraged to by CMs and other guests). DD would not wear hers because it was my bday.

As we were walking up to the bus stop, an EPCOT bus pulled up -- what luck! As I said, we were there by 7:30 and had to wait around half an hour until EMH started, but it was great time for planning. Once we were in the park we headed straight for my happy place: Soarin'. Twenty minute wait posted, but we were through the line and off the ride in fifteen. Then we got collected a FP (my stated goal was to ride Soarin' three times, but we only managed two.)

Next was Living with the Land, which was a walk on. I love this ride. I have a vague recollection of when you had a "tour guide" driving the boat instead of the recorded information. One day, I want to do the behind the seeds tour (maybe next year....) Living with the Land is a great place for pictures...

Alright...maybe I didn't get so many pictures that time through. But I was looking for the Mickey pumpkins! Where were they? I think that's the first time I've never seen one! And...uh...I was looking for Mickeys... and missed that perfect picture at the beginning...and...uh...yeah...

Okay! So onward to Nemo!

Wait! We forgot to take a picture of DD -- the, if she gets away from us, here's what she looks like, what she's wearing picture. We thought it might be a good idea to do a picture with the day and park on it so we could have a "break" of sorts between days of pictures. So, it took a few takes before we got it "right", which explains her expression.

As we approached Nemo, there was a CM standing outside that started talking to DD. He asked for a high five, then kept moving his hand out of reach so she couldn't get it. She was frustrated, and we were all amused...

There was a short wait for Nemo, and the ride was a lot better this trip than the last time we rode it, meaning, it only stopped once, and it was a short stop. I got annoyed at a couple of people taking flash photography, but only because I know that they THINK they will get awesome pictures, but instead will get odd pictures of nifty scenery and blank black screens. Trust me.

The most interesting thing about Nemo (to me) is the aquariums you can see after you get off the ride. We spent a long time gazing at the various fish.

Eels

Dory!

Nemo (even if it is a little blurry...)

Frog fish

Not sure, but it was in the same tank as the frog fish.

Lion Fish, I think..

Seahorses

Mickey

We sat through Turtle Talk (good as always, even if we have a tendency to miss it...), then it was time for us to use our Soarin' FPs. Back to the land for our second ride. Next was Journey into the Imagination with Figment. DD L*O*V*E*S this ride. I remember that it used to be different, but what I remember and miss the most was the play area at the end. I wish my memory about it was better.

Next up...Epcot, part II...

 

[anjalee6]

I love Soarin'. After this trip I love it more than I did before. I always got the 2nd or 3rd row before, never the first and really hated seeing feet dangling above me. I don't know what it was, but it distracted from my experience each and every time. This time however, first row. The feeling of being so far up and not seeing anything else in your way, especially no feet, was a great feeling. Love it.

I will try and get a June 2012 thread going sometime this week. I am glad to see there will be more Junies from 2011 planning trips again for next year. Makes waiting together that much more fun and exciting.

 

[rainydayplay]

I love Soarin'. After this trip I love it more than I did before. I always got the 2nd or 3rd row before, never the first and really hated seeing feet dangling above me. I don't know what it was, but it distracted from my experience each and every time. This time however, first row. The feeling of being so far up and not seeing anything else in your way, especially no feet, was a great feeling. Love it.

I will try and get a June 2012 thread going sometime this week. I am glad to see there will be more Junies from 2011 planning trips again for next year. Makes waiting together that much more fun and exciting.

Soarin' is definitely my happy place. I have the parks CD, and listening to that track on a bad day makes everything better. We have never sat on the 1st row until this trip, either. Had to ask, but I figured, if nothing else, it's my bday, so they should let me sit in the front! I'm not sure if I'd rather have the dangling feet or the top of the screen. I guess it's easier to focus farther down and not see the top of the screen than to tune out the dangling feet, though....

Did you notice...there is a hidden Mickey on the golf ball? All I can see of it is a black smudge on the right side of the ball as it flies at you. I will have to do a list of hidden Mickeys I found (even if I found several with the help of a certain book...)

I'm waiting for the thread! Maybe I'll be a little more interactive with it this time!

 

[Mom2_4mouseketeers]

LUCKY! We missed Living with the Land both days we went to Epcot, the first day we missed it because it closed at 7pm, and the second day we missed it because it was closed due to technical difficulties!

Glad you were able to have a great birthday!

 

[anjalee6]

Did you notice...there is a hidden Mickey on the golf ball? All I can see of it is a black smudge on the right side of the ball as it flies at you. I will have to do a list of hidden Mickeys I found (even if I found several with the help of a certain book...)

I'm waiting for the thread! Maybe I'll be a little more interactive with it this time!

I never noticed the hidden Mickey on the golf ball. It was a goal of mine to find new hidden Mickey's. I looked very closely for them this trip. I think I might have to get that certain book also. It would be fun to read.

I just started the new thread this morning under the Doing the Happy Dance area. It's called June 2012. The Return of the "Some like it Hot" Junies! Hope to see you over there. We can wait it out together again. Can't wait. Of course, I will check in here as well. Can't wait to read more.

 

[rainydayplay]

LUCKY! We missed Living with the Land both days we went to Epcot, the first day we missed it because it closed at 7pm, and the second day we missed it because it was closed due to technical difficulties!

Glad you were able to have a great birthday!

I can't imagine missing Living with the Land...although....I'm sure we've missed it before. I know we've done trips where we've missed the TTA and CoP, and I've always left after those trips feeling like I had missed the best part of the park.

I never noticed the hidden Mickey on the golf ball. It was a goal of mine to find new hidden Mickey's. I looked very closely for them this trip. I think I might have to get that certain book also. It would be fun to read.

I just started the new thread this morning under the Doing the Happy Dance area. It's called June 2012. The Return of the "Some like it Hot" Junies! Hope to see you over there. We can wait it out together again. Can't wait. Of course, I will check in here as well. Can't wait to read more.

I have had a 3rd edition of that book for a few years, but I've never really used it. This year...I read the book...then went into the park without the book and couldn't find anything. Then I started really reading it, and realized it was really outdated, so the LAST day...I went into the Emporium and bought a new copy of the book. If/When I get to that last day, there will be a few pictures of some hidden Mickeys!

I should be getting back to this and at least finishing out the 1st park day tomorrow. Today, I had pre-registration and measurements for eye surgery. I'm thinking of all the things that could go wrong, but the surgeon says they do more eye muscle surgery than anything else. Fun fact for the day: I learned what an actual "googly eye" is.

 

[rainydayplay]

I suppose now is as good of a time as any to explain the title...

I've finally watched Tangled all the way through a time or ten. I love Pascal. I mean, what's not to love? I was determined that, if there were a Pascal to go home with me somewhere in WDW (especially a soft, plushy Pascal...), he was coming home with me. Of course, DD, hearing me say that, said SHE had to have one TOO. Hrm. So..we're looking for TWO soft, plushy Pascals...

On the trip in 1998, Mulan was the most recent movie out. I wanted a Mushu. There were a few figurines in MGM (which is what it was called at the time). I said to myself that I should wait...surely they will have them in another store, in another park, right? WRONG!

In 2009, DD was all into Bolt. I'd promised her a Bolt plushie. What did I hear? Oh...no...if we have anything, it would be in HS. (What park did we NOT go to?) After Beverly Hills Chihuahua (can't remember what year that came out, but we have chihuahuas), nothing! "We have a Webkinz chihuahua." Honey, if I wanted Webkinz, I'd go somewhere back home and buy Webkinz. I'm at DISNEY, and I want something "official" and stamped DISNEY.

So here I was again on a hunt for a seemingly mythical item. Surely, as popular as that movie is....surely there will be something, right?

Seeing as how we were in EPCOT, Mouse Gear popped into my head. They have (or have had in the past) quite a large selection of plushies...maybe we should go there.... But, alas, no! Not this morning.

I think when I last left you, we had rode Journey into Imagination. Next, naturally was Captain EO. I was thrilled when we came in December and EO was still here. I remember seeing some special about how it was made on TV way back when, then I also remember seeing it during the 1988 trip. It was nostalgic for me.

Except for one teeny, tiny little detail.

I can no longer see any 3D effects.

I used to be able to see them...although...I've never been able to do the Magic Eye Puzzles. Remember that guy on Mallrats that spent all day every day standing there staring at the poster, trying desperately to see the picture while countless others walked up next to him and within a few seconds, "Hey, look! It's a sailboat!" Yep. That's me! (Except I'm waaaaay too impatient with things like that to stand there hour after hour, returning day after day. Ten minutes, max, and I was done.)

So, at this stage in my life, I have strabismus, which is the fancy-schmancy term for "lazy eye". My left eye drifts off into Nevernever Land. It's done this long enough that both eyes do not work together any more and I have no depth perception. That's why I cannot see 3D effects and also why I tend to be slow on the stairs until I'm sure of the steps. Yes, they DO still let me drive, and I over-compensate sometimes by waiting forever to make sure I'm not pulling out in front of that car (which usually tends to be driving way slower than I think it is) or stopping way earlier than I need to stop.

So, even with the 3D glasses on, all these 3D things just look...blurry. Just the edges. It's weird. It doesn't necessarily detract to the quality of the film or the story, it's just....annoying? Disappointing? One of those things that you know nothing can be done about. (Case in point: I'll be having eye surgery on the 19th to straighten out the eye the best they can, but, it will do nothing to improve my vision.)

I wonder why the only plushie sold for EO is the elephant-looking alien. The little cat with butterfly wings would sell more (err...we'd have one....) DD always wants a t-shirt, but we manage (somehow) to avoid buying one.

One of my favorite things is the leap frog pond. This picture is from our 2009 trip, but I think it's just such an awesome picture...

Here's one from this year, although not of the leap frog, but at least it's the fountain that runs up instead of down. (I'm sure there's a technical name, here, but I have no clue what it is...)

It was time to start heading for the World Showcase -- First stop, Canada for Le Cellier reservations! But on the way, how about some pictures?

Now, two years ago when DD turned 5, we did the KidCot stuff. She LOVED it. And it was so neat to get all the "Happy Birthday" wishes in our EPCOT passport. So, there's a little time before we need to check in. I'm thinking...KidCot and watch the show, right?

Wrong.

DD is not interested in KidCot. Actually...since it's Duffy and not the mask where you not only get the stamp but also got the paper cutout that represented each country...I'm not so sure that I blame her...But, eh. We manage to see the show (I love it! Especially the last scene with Martin Short..."Now...how do I get out of here? I have fastpasses for Soarin'...")

When the show is over, it's time for our ADR! Yay! Bday lunch at Le Cellier! Who could ask for more? We're in for our first surprise, which is, on the regular dining plan, you don't get an appetizer. Didn't we read....?

No problem. I want the soup. After the waitress goes...

Mom: "You do realize she said appetizers aren't on the plan, right?"
Me: "So? It's my birthday. I want the soup. I have money."

For some reason, our minds were not in "you must take piccies of the food!" mode, so...we don't have a pic of the bread or the soup. In fact...I think I took pics of MY entrees...and Mom took pics of hers...and we haven't downloaded her pictures yet. Hrm. There may need to be edits later....

Anyway...I had the mushroom fliet (medium rare). I don't really like mushrooms, but there were people at my table that were more than happy to take care of the mushrooms. The risotto, even having to eat around the mushrooms, is worth getting!

Naturally, for dessert, I had to have the chocolate mousse. Can't NOT have the moose, can you? (DD ate half of it for me, too...)

Onward...to...Mexico?

 

[rainydayplay]

(Note: I resized those photos, and at this moment it's not showing as smaller and rotated and such for me. Maybe it's just me...maybe it will correct itself later....)

After Le Cellier, we did walk around Canada a bit. I got suckered into buying a bear. See the bear?

The next words out of DD's mouth are "I want to go to Mexico!" She loves that ride. When the line's short (when is it not?), we have been known to ride it 4-6 times in a row.

So what do we do? Make a left turn at Canada and go back around the other way. We did see something we missed by going to the WS on the path closest to Imagination:

And off to Mexico! We always said we wanted to tour the WS from Mexico to Canada instead of Canada to Mexico..

Inside we go...and, pretty much, straight for the attraction (I know it should the Rio de Tiempo, but what is it called now??) It's a short line...then we get in the boat, the gate closes behind us, and Mom says, "Toomanycars."

"Huh?"

She points, trying not to be noticed. "Toomanycars. I recognize them from a picture."

"Why didn't you say something? You should have said something. Well..they'll be in the boat behind us..."

We get off, and I divert everyone into the crystal shop. From here, we can ambush people getting off the ride! DD wants to "buy me something special" for my birthday...or, rather, make Mom buy me something special. (How dare I stay in the shop!") I hover near the door... As soon as I see them, "Toomanycars?" Yes, it was!

We had a short conversation. It was their last day, and they were hoping to rock MK until 3am. Was it over 5,000 pictures or 7,000? Gosh...even putting our pics together, I don't think we hold a candle to that, although I think I may have come close to 2,000 pictures this trip. (And that makes for the one and only time we have met a DIS member on a trip. She thought she saw others, though...) And (in case one day toomanycars stumbles across this) sorry if I was distracted...DD was still in the crystal shop, and you know how little hands and delicate things don't always mix.

After we parted ways with toomanycars and his family, Mom and DD went back into the crystal shop and I was kicked out. I walked around. I had told myself that my non-Pascal plushie this time would be a Three Caballeros Donald, and there was one! But...there didn't seem to be any CMs around wanting to take my money, or the one line looked confusing (people lining up from both directions) so I decided that Donald could wait. Hm.. What else to do....? Ah! The Cava de Tequila! It's my bday! I deserve a margarita!

I decide this time that I'll get the Avacado margarita. I had the blood orange in December and liked it. The avacado...not so much. But, when you pay $15+ (including tax and tip) for a drink....you drink it! The sad thing is, when they got through, DD drug Mom straight to the Tequila Cave...Mom was protesting, until she realized that's where I was. Does my child know me or what...?

We head out of Mexico over to Norway. Mom has read so much about the School Bread that she had to try it. She buys it and some water and we go sit down with it.
Not the pastry, but this is what we were looking at...

The next thing we know. DD has found the Kim Possible kiosk and is talking to the CMs there. Mom head to the bathroom, and I go investigate Kim Possible. This doesn't sound TOO bad, so I sign her up. Where do we have to go first? Mexico. Weren't we already there?

We run around the Mexico pavilion again, following the clues (yay for the pictures of where you're supposed to go!) and completing the mission. Somehow or another, we wind up headed for China and skipping the Norway mission. Okay...

I teach 7th and 8th grade English. I have my 8th graders read the book Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Chinese Cultural Revolution by Ji-Li Jiang. So I welcome coming to China, yet I never get to explore. Usually, we start at Canada, so we're pretty tired by the time we get here.

Well, first, we have to find all the stuff for this mission. When we try to head into the store, DD gets upset, so I have Mom go in without me...we'll finish the mission.

We actually managed to find another family trying to find all of this stuff and were able to help out. We were so busy running around that DD didn't pay any attention to Mulan.

Finished with the Kim Possible mission, we head into the store looking for Mom. She's moved on to the exhibit hall. Hrm. We've never seen this before, and I've always wanted to see it....and I'm going to see it finally! Except...DD starts complaining that she wants to do another mission. No. I'm going to see this, get pictures...

And then the Kimmunicator beeps, asks if we need more time. I press okay, and it now says to drop in the nearest Kimmunicator pick up box in China.

Huh? I am sooo not amused. I get my pictures of the exhibit and beg for extra time in China. Mom takes DD to get the Kimmunicator redone and to do the mission in Norway (since that's where the kiosk is, plus I can have some semi-relaxed shopping time.)

Okay...It may be a couple of days before I get back to this. Somebody kick me in a pm if I take too long! But, I will be back with the rest of the day in EPCOT!

 

[rainydayplay]

I know it's been a bit since I last updated, and it's likely to be a bit longer, but I did at least want to check in. I had eye surgery Tuesday morning and did survive, although my left eye and the area around it is a bit swollen and sore. My laptop, on the other hand, did not survive -- the power cord, for whatever reason, has died. I've ordered a new one that should be here next week. Maybe, by then, it won't be such a pain to look at the computer screen for more than a few minutes, and I'll get back to the report.

 

[eeyore344]

Rainyday is doing well from eye surgery but is now having computer problems. She will return to her trip report as soon as possible. She asks that you please be patient. Thanks.