I See a Line, I Wait In It ~ A January 2016 TR - Completed 12/29

[rteetz]

Character spot is always a great time especially with medals.

I love your Test Track photo with your hair all over its hilarious. That marathon runner next to you had a long day!

I've never met pooh or tigger in Epcot. The doll thing is a little weird but at least they were interacting.

But Alice technically she's in "England" at the pavilion lol.

Can't wait to hear about dinner!

 

[Saphire5742]

Cute character photos!

I really like this night pic of the two of you in France

Where would we be enjoying our evening meal?

For more on dinner … stay tuned for the next update.

Coming Next: Dining with Princesses, Take One

Can't wait to read all about it

 

[disneydaydreamer33]

Alice forgetting how to gauge kilometers is hilarious to me! I've only been with Pooh and friends at Crystal Palace. It looks like a cute area where you meet them in Epcot!

 

[NJlauren]

So behind! All caught up now!!

Moral of the story: I really need to travel with a glasses screwdriver so that Beth doesn’t have to use tweezers to fix my glasses.

Haha, something I would never think to bring a glasses screwdriver is on that list!

As we were on the bus, Beth realized something. She had forgotten to pack the mini-golf vouchers. Uh-oh. After a short discussion, we decided not to go back to the room. We figured we’d see if they could do anything for us when we got there, and if not … we’d just pay for the mini-golf.

booo.... (I know now how this turns out so double booo)

As you may have noticed, we’re not wearing our medals in the Baymax picture. We were asked to remove our medals and bags for the picture. Fine, it makes sense, they want to be careful about sharps around an inflatable thing.
What doesn’t make sense is the attitude we got from the character attendant. She basically acted as if it was offensive to her that we were wearing the bags and medals in the first place. Seriously? I’m going to hope that she was just having a bad day and she’s not normally like this, but still … if you work in customer service (which is what all guest-facing jobs at Disney are), you act nice even if you’re having the worst day ever. That’s just the nature of the job. This was definitely a CM fail.
But whatever.

I really hate we CMs are blah, I mean to be honest if you can't be nice get a new job! It can really ruin a guests day!

We got to the check-in area (the background of the above picture) and asked if there was anything they could do for us if we left our vouchers in the room. Alas … no dice. We paid our $28 ($14 each) and were told that our tee time would be in about 20 minutes. We sat down to wait, and we weren’t the only ones waiting. There was a group of 4 high school or college age girls ahead of us. Remember these girls. I don’t hate all girls that age, but … sometimes they can be annoying. So I wasn’t excited

boooooo! Loved all the pics!

Best post-mini-golf snack ever, am I right?? (The answer is yes, I am right)

Nope your wrong, pretty much the best snack ever! Just saying

She asked us to bite our medals. It was weird. I don’t know how Olympians do it. It’s not something I’m looking to doing again any time soon.

I like this, it's cute!

This was the first time that we had ever seen the bridge up! We saw them bringing in the barges for Illuminations, which was a cool little thing that we had never seen before. It was a fun “behind the scenes but onstage” moment. (Waiting for them to put the bridge back down so that we could cross … not as fun)

I am not sure I even knew the bridge could go up.... I mean it makes sense but I guess I never thought about it.

Great character pics love that Minnie signed your medal!

 

[BlvInMagic]

Fun update! We always have good intentions of meeting Pooh and Tigger at the UK spot in Epcot, but it always never works out. Agreed -- pretty creepy that Pooh asked you guys to hold stuffed animals and pose. But, it's a funny story and that's what it's all about....the good memories

 

[natebenma]

Wow! Really great pictures at the Character Spot. Good choice of FP plus here.

And you still got Test Track, so that is good.

That is funny/weird at the 100 acre woods meet.

Is it me or does Alice look REALLY young?

 

[Elevationist]

Sorry, I don’t know what’s up with my hair or my face in that picture. Or the severe red eye that I felt no need to correct (seriously, I hate Photoshop, and I don’t have Lightroom or anything like that, so more often than not, my pictures stay as they are).

After spending more time than we should have getting that picture, we went in

Now I kinda wanna go out of my way to recreate this photo in October... Just for giggles.

we were just going there to catch a bus to Pop, which is what we told him. He said that he would call his dispatcher to see if he could take us to Pop Century.

We arrived at Disney Springs, where our driver told us that our next stop would be Pop Century – yay, we didn’t have to change buses!

YAY! Pixie dust!

Things seemed to be going okay in the morning … until my glasses broke. The glasses I travel with are my backup glasses, but I had just (irreparably) broken my regular glasses a few weeks earlier (I finally replaced them a little over a month ago), so I kinda didn’t want to break the only pair of glasses I had left. Thankfully, it was just that the screw had fallen out, and Beth was able to fix it. But that wasn’t exactly how I wanted to start my morning.

Oh MAN. Wow, I never even thought about this! Like, if my glasses got busted while at Disney, I would be SO SCREWED. I don't travel with my backup pair or anything, but maybe I should start! And I most certainly couldn't drive home without them. Yikes! I'm so glad Sarah was able to fix them for you!

It's so girly! I love it!

My favorite (by far) was “La Luna” (and I believe Beth agreed with that). I’m not going to spoil it (you can find it online if you’re really interested), but I found the story compelling, the animation beautiful, and the ending very sweet.

I'm so glad to hear this! La Luna is the one I'm looking forward to the most!

She asked us to bite our medals. It was weird. I don’t know how Olympians do it. It’s not something I’m looking to doing again any time soon.

Oh, I think it's a fun and unique idea! Good on that PP photographer!

This was the first time that we had ever seen the bridge up!

Wow, I didn't even know that it COULD raise up! Neat!

We had another FP+ coming up soon, and we had to head over to Future World for that. We did make a stop on the way:

I just love classic Daisy in her pink and lavender!

Posed picture:

This is just adorable!

 

[SarahDisney]

Character spot is always a great time especially with medals.

Definitely! We always love meeting the characters there, and they really loved seeing the medals.

I love your Test Track photo with your hair all over its hilarious. That marathon runner next to you had a long day!

Thanks. Test Track is one of those things that I have to find the hair funny, because there's no way for it to look normal.
And I'm hoping that the marathon runner had taken a break at some point during the day ... I can't imagine going straight to the parks and spending all day there after a marathon!

I've never met pooh or tigger in Epcot. The doll thing is a little weird but at least they were interacting.

We've met them there a few times and it's usually a great interaction, but this was definitely a little weird.

But Alice technically she's in "England" at the pavilion lol.

Apparently they use miles in the UK pavilion... or something.

Can't wait to hear about dinner!

Hopefully I'll get to that soon!

Cute character photos!

Thank you!

Can't wait to read all about it

Hopefully soon!

Alice forgetting how to gauge kilometers is hilarious to me! I've only been with Pooh and friends at Crystal Palace. It looks like a cute area where you meet them in Epcot!

That Alice thing really was funny.
I've never done Crystal Palace, but I really want to one day! We've met them in Epcot a few times, and I really like there M&G area there!

So behind! All caught up now!!

Thanks for taking the time to catch up

Haha, something I would never think to bring a glasses screwdriver is on that list!

I never thought I'd need one ... until I did.

I really hate we CMs are blah, I mean to be honest if you can't be nice get a new job! It can really ruin a guests day!

Exactly! Your job is to be nice and cheerful. Do your job!

boooooo! Loved all the pics!

Thanks!

Nope your wrong, pretty much the best snack ever! Just saying

Fair point. It is the best snack ever.

I am not sure I even knew the bridge could go up.... I mean it makes sense but I guess I never thought about it.

I had never thought about it either ... until I saw it. It was pretty cool.

Great character pics love that Minnie signed your medal!

Thanks!

 

[SarahDisney]

Fun update! We always have good intentions of meeting Pooh and Tigger at the UK spot in Epcot, but it always never works out. Agreed -- pretty creepy that Pooh asked you guys to hold stuffed animals and pose. But, it's a funny story and that's what it's all about....the good memories

Thanks! This was the second or third time we met them in the UK, and it's always a good interaction. Even if it is a little weird sometimes. But like you said ... it's a memory, and that's what these trips are all about!

Wow! Really great pictures at the Character Spot. Good choice of FP plus here.

Thank you! We usually use a FP+ there, and it always works out well - we always get great pictures!

And you still got Test Track, so that is good.

Yes! We really love Test Track.

That is funny/weird at the 100 acre woods meet.

Funny/weird is the perfect way of putting it. Very strange, but also entertaining.

Is it me or does Alice look REALLY young?

Yes! I mean, I get that she's supposed to be a teenager, but she looks really young!

Now I kinda wanna go out of my way to recreate this photo in October... Just for giggles.

DO IT! DO IT! DO IT!
Also ... my old boss used to call me giggles (I giggle a lot sometimes ... its a nervous habit). So now you really have to do it for giggles!

YAY! Pixie dust!

Pixie dust is the best!

Oh MAN. Wow, I never even thought about this! Like, if my glasses got busted while at Disney, I would be SO SCREWED. I don't travel with my backup pair or anything, but maybe I should start! And I most certainly couldn't drive home without them. Yikes! I'm so glad Sarah was able to fix them for you!

It's not a huge deal for me because I wear my contacts mostly, but I always travel with at least 2 pairs of contacts (and a third pair if I'm supposed to change them while I'm on vacation) and glasses. When I was younger (pre-contacts) I used to sometimes bring my backup glasses on vacation with me. It's never a bad idea to have extra glasses!
Then again, I'm also someone who breaks glasses regularly and often tears her contact lenses, so life has made me paranoid.

It's so girly! I love it!

Thanks! We like pink

I'm so glad to hear this! La Luna is the one I'm looking forward to the most!

All three shorts were great, but La Luna was definitely our favorite. Hopefully you'll love it!

Oh, I think it's a fun and unique idea! Good on that PP photographer!

Fun and unique, weird, same thing, right?

Wow, I didn't even know that it COULD raise up! Neat!

I didn't know either until I saw it, but it makes a lot of sense. It was definitely cool to see!

I just love classic Daisy in her pink and lavender!

Totally agree - it's my favorite of her outfits. And not just because I had a Daisy Duck shirt when I was a kid.

This is just adorable!

Thanks!

 

[afwdwfan]

Best post-mini-golf snack ever, am I right?? (The answer is yes, I am right)

Looks like a fun time playing mini-golf. I've still never been to either Disney course but they look awesome.

She asked us to bite our medals. It was weird. I don’t know how Olympians do it. It’s not something I’m looking to doing again any time soon.

You bite it to see if it is real, pure gold. I'm guessing you didn't have to worry about leaving any indentations. And I don't know why Olympians do it.

Beth remembered this (because she’s awesome like that), so she requested the front row – and the CM gladly obliged! So now you have to sit through some of my pictures:

I noticed that last trip. You don't really think about it much until you get that front row seat and then it is like a breath of fresh air and a whole new ride!

We showed Alice our medals, and she was very impressed. She saw the 10K medal and asked us how many miles that is.

Um … hey Alice, don’t you guys use kilometers where you come from? I was a little confused, so I asked … her answer was that she did grow up with kilometers, but she’s been here in the US for so long that she forgot her kilometers. Oh Alice.

Nice catch by you and a good recovery by Alice!

 

[SarahDisney]

Looks like a fun time playing mini-golf. I've still never been to either Disney course but they look awesome.

It was definitely a great course ... I think it's worth doing if you can find the time (which is never easy).

You bite it to see if it is real, pure gold. I'm guessing you didn't have to worry about leaving any indentations. And I don't know why Olympians do it.

I already knew it wasn't chocolate ... if it was chocolate, it would have melted. Or I would have eaten it.

I noticed that last trip. You don't really think about it much until you get that front row seat and then it is like a breath of fresh air and a whole new ride!

Exactly. I never thought about sitting up front, but once we sat there once, it was a whole different experience!

Nice catch by you and a good recovery by Alice!

Thanks ... although not such a great recovery by Alice. I wasn't totally buying it.

 

[SarahDisney]

Day 6, Chapter 5: Dining with Princesses, Take One
Sunday, January 10th, 2016
​

When you last saw us, we had just arrived at our dinner destination …

Before we get into the meal, I want to explain something. As I mentioned earlier in this report (like 5 months ago or something), Beth and I are kosher-observant. I'm guessing that among my audience of awesome readers I have people with varying degrees of knowledge of kosher, so I'm going to try to explain this in a way that makes sense to everyone, but isn't too technical.
Kosher is a set of laws relating to food. Primarily these laws dictate what foods can and can't be eaten, but they also deal with combinations of foods (for example, kosher laws prohibit eating meat and dairy together), and to some degree how these foods can be prepared. There are a lot of crazy, minute laws, and there are many organizations out there that specialize in kosher laws and assisting kosher consumers by certifying that foods have been prepared in accordance with kosher laws. Kosher-certified restaurants pay someone to supervise their kitchen and ensure that they are observing all of the kosher laws.
Long story short, Beth and I will only eat food prepared in a kitchen that is kosher-certified. While Disney does not have a Kosher-supervised kitchen on site, they do bring in pre-cooked food from an outside kosher-certified vendor, which they can reheat in any kitchen as long as the food remains in its original double wrapped packaging to prevent cross-contamination (Disney gets the food double wrapped and it stays that way from the minute it leaves the vendor’s kitchen until we open it). These pre-packaged meals can be purchased "on demand" at certain locations (generally one location at each park and in several hotel food courts), and most (if not all) table service restaurants can provide these kosher meals with advance notice (when you make the reservation (or any time after), you tell the phone CMs that you need a kosher meal, and they give you your options and you place your order over the phone). We've done this at a number of table service restaurants, and it usually works out well ... assuming the staff knows what they're doing (the chefs always know, the servers not as much).
So that’s the background on our food.

Back to the story …
We checked in with a very nice CM named Joe, who was a little confused about the kosher (and had it noted in the system as “allergy,” but whatever), but didn’t really question it too much. We were sent into this tiny little area to wait for them to call us in. While we were waiting, I took a picture:

After about 10-15 minutes (I think … I’m trusting camera timestamps here because I’m sure my memory is wrong about it being an eternity), our esteemed hostess was ready for us, and we were taken in to meet her. Because our hostess is one of my all-time favorite princesses, I had the honor of getting a solo picture taken with her:

Our hostess also honored us by taking a picture with both of us:

Once we had met Belle, we were escorted to our table, which we dubbed “The Most Awkward Table Ever.” It was kinda by the kitchen (which is good because that makes it more convenient for the chef to come speak to us) and against a wall … it was weird.

(This picture was taken later in the meal … I believe that’s our first course on the table there. In case you wanted to know what the kosher food containers look like.)

When we sat down, there were menus on the table:

The menus are not relevant to us, but they’re pretty, so we took a picture. Our server, Sindre, came and brought us allergy menus, which we did not need. We explained the kosher situation to him (I’m guessing the confusion came from the “allergy” noted in the system, which I still don’t understand why that was there), and once he had figured out what was going on, he took our drink orders (I don’t have it written down, but it was probably water for me and soda or water for Beth), he asked if we wanted to speak to the chef. We always like being able to talk to the chef, so he went back into the kitchen and sent out Chef Jen. Chef Jen was amazing - she went through our whole order with us (all three courses), and offered us paper plates, which is great because we can’t put our food directly on the restaurant plates, so this allowed us to not be forced to eat out of the container.

Chef Jen went back to the kitchen to start preparing our first course (soup), and we settled in a bit … but soon it was time for one of the many fun parts of a princess dinner! Young children were invited to join their favorite princesses for a princess procession through the restaurant.

Beth got some good pictures of the princesses (and a not-so-good picture of the side of my head). WARNING: Some of these are pretty heavily (and lazily) edited so as to not show the faces of random young kids.

Snow White:

Ariel:

Aurora:

Cinderella (who looked blurry in this picture even before the editing):

Shortly after the princess procession, the princesses started making their way over to our table. We each took individual pictures with each princess, but since I don’t have the best camera and I have an aversion to taking flash pictures indoors, the pictures are dark, blurry, and overall not great (some Photoshopping has been done, but not a lot).

Snow White was our first princess visitor:

Our next princess visitor was the always beautiful Cinderella:

At some point during the princess M&G, our first course (vegetable soup) showed up. We were getting ready to eat it, but we were interrupted by a curious princess … Ariel. I’m guessing she had never seen the kosher meals before, because she asked some questions (all within character, though). It was kinda interesting/fun/something. But anyway, eventually we took our pictures:

(I know what you’re all thinking … wow, finally a good picture! It’s because this one was taken on Beth’s cell phone so that she could send it to someone)

Our last princess visitor of the day was the lovely Aurora:

All of the princesses came early in the meal, which is actually exactly how we like it. It gives us a chance to see the princesses and then eat (relatively) uninterrupted.

We finished our soup, and our server was ready to bring out the next course, dessert.
Um … do you think maybe you skipped something there, Sindre?
We cleared that one up quickly, and after a little bit our entrées were brought out to us. Beth had honey glazed chicken breast with mushroom risotto and eggplant ratatouille. I had beef brisket with oven roasted potatoes and mixed vegetables. Both meals were edible … really not much else to say (the kosher food is fine, but it’s nothing to write home about).

Finally, it was time for dessert. We had one chocolate layer cake and one non-dairy cheesecake. The chocolate layer cake was too dense and the cheesecake was a little too wet. If you mixed the two together, they were actually decent. But I have yet to find a kosher meal dessert at Disney that I actually enjoy.

We finished our meal and it was time to pay. I went into my wallet to get my credit card … and the card I was looking for wasn’t there. I had a brief moment of “uh-oh” before I realized that I had put it in my running belt for the races (I like to carry a credit card just in case) and had forgotten to move it back to my wallet. Oops! Thankfully, I had another card I could use, so we were able to pay and get out of there with no trouble.

We still had some time before Illuminations, so we figured we’d hop over to Mexico for a quick ride on Gran Fiesta Tour. We made our way out of the restaurant, and we saw Joe, the CM who had checked us in at the beginning of the meal. Joe asked if he could ask us a few questions about the kosher meals. We said sure. From there … we had a 20 minute conversation about kosher, religion, and Judaism. Even though we didn’t end up getting to ride Gran Fiesta tour again … we enjoyed talking to Joe. It’s always nice to find a friendly CM who is genuinely interested in learning more about your culture.

Eventually it was almost time for Illuminations, which meant time for us and Joe to part ways. We had to find ourselves a spot from which to watch the show. And Joe had to get out of there ASAP because he hates fireworks.
That’s right, Joe hates fireworks. And he works at Epcot, where they have nightly fireworks as part of Illuminations.
I just don’t understand people sometimes.
Seriously.

Coming Next: Reflections of Earth

 

[rteetz]

Great review of your meal!

Thanks for teaching those who don't know about Kosher meals and how Disney does them. I think one of the best things Disney does is accommodating different needs for food whether it be allergies, gluten free, or Kosher.

You did get some good pictures even if they aren't the most clear.

I don't know how you can hate Illuminations but thats just me.

Can't wait for the next update!

 

[fallonkendra]

Your picture with Belle is adorable!

Thanks for all of the information around your meals, it's very interesting to learn about different practices and beliefs.

I'd love to do one of the princess meals sometime, but the menu at Akershus just really doesn't appeal to me at all I guess I'll just have to actually go to the princess meet and greets to get pictures!

 

[NJlauren]

So when i first started reading this update, I totally didn't think this was going this way. I thought for sure someone was going to mess up your meal, like take off the wrapping or removing the whole thing! So happy that's not what happened!

Overall seemed like a pretty good meal/experience. Nice to see people interested in learning about other religions and cultures. How funny he hates fireworks..... I'm still laughing about that one!

 

[afwdwfan]

Back to the story …
We checked in with a very nice CM named Joe, who was a little confused about the kosher (and had it noted in the system as “allergy,” but whatever), but didn’t really question it too much. We were sent into this tiny little area to wait for them to call us in. While we were waiting, I took a picture:

I think that is how Disney earmarks every food request just to cover their butts.

After about 10-15 minutes (I think … I’m trusting camera timestamps here because I’m sure my memory is wrong about it being an eternity), our esteemed hostess was ready for us, and we were taken in to meet her. Because our hostess is one of my all-time favorite princesses, I had the honor of getting a solo picture taken with her:

Well, I can agree that the wait there feels eternally long.

WARNING: Some of these are pretty heavily (and lazily) edited so as to not show the faces of random young kids.

I thought you did a nice job with the edits.

I’m guessing she had never seen the kosher meals before, because she asked some questions (all within character, though). It was kinda interesting/fun/something.

Well, Ariel is a student of human lifestyles.

Finally, it was time for dessert. We had one chocolate layer cake and one non-dairy cheesecake. The chocolate layer cake was too dense and the cheesecake was a little too wet. If you mixed the two together, they were actually decent. But I have yet to find a kosher meal dessert at Disney that I actually enjoy.

Glad you got your entrée and then your dessert. Sorry the dessert was nothing exciting.

We finished our meal and it was time to pay. I went into my wallet to get my credit card … and the card I was looking for wasn’t there. I had a brief moment of “uh-oh” before I realized that I had put it in my running belt for the races (I like to carry a credit card just in case) and had forgotten to move it back to my wallet. Oops! Thankfully, I had another card I could use, so we were able to pay and get out of there with no trouble.

Isn't that what the Magic Band is for?

We made our way out of the restaurant, and we saw Joe, the CM who had checked us in at the beginning of the meal. Joe asked if he could ask us a few questions about the kosher meals. We said sure. From there … we had a 20 minute conversation about kosher, religion, and Judaism. Even though we didn’t end up getting to ride Gran Fiesta tour again … we enjoyed talking to Joe. It’s always nice to find a friendly CM who is genuinely interested in learning more about your culture.

Cool! Always a neat experience to get to chat with a CM and share some culture (either yours or theirs)

 

[SarahDisney]

Great review of your meal!

Thanks!

Thanks for teaching those who don't know about Kosher meals and how Disney does them. I think one of the best things Disney does is accommodating different needs for food whether it be allergies, gluten free, or Kosher.

Disney really is amazing with the kosher. I'm always impressed at how well they can handle such an obscure dietary need.

You did get some good pictures even if they aren't the most clear.

Thanks! The princesses were great, and I'm glad we did get some decent pictures.

I don't know how you can hate Illuminations but thats just me.

I'm with you on that one!

Can't wait for the next update!

Hopefully it'll come soon! (I'm aiming for mid next week)

Your picture with Belle is adorable!

Thank you!

Thanks for all of the information around your meals, it's very interesting to learn about different practices and beliefs.

Thanks, I'm glad you found it interesting

I'd love to do one of the princess meals sometime, but the menu at Akershus just really doesn't appeal to me at all I guess I'll just have to actually go to the princess meet and greets to get pictures!

The good thing about needing the kosher meals is that I don't need to worry about the restaurant's menu appealing to us
It's definitely sad when you want to do a character meal and there's nothing that looks good on the menu. But the princesses are still fun to meet in the parks! (We actually usually try to meet them in the parks, even if we're also doing a princess meal)

So when i first started reading this update, I totally didn't think this was going this way. I thought for sure someone was going to mess up your meal, like take off the wrapping or removing the whole thing! So happy that's not what happened!

That's like my biggest fear. Last year we had a chef offer to open the meal in the kitchen for us ... I may have yelled at him (I'm a pretty terrible person). Thankfully, nothing went wrong this time!

Overall seemed like a pretty good meal/experience. Nice to see people interested in learning about other religions and cultures. How funny he hates fireworks..... I'm still laughing about that one!

It was definitely a great experience.
And yeah, we still laugh at Joe not liking fireworks.

I think that is how Disney earmarks every food request just to cover their butts.

That makes sense, but ... it's still annoying. As great as Disney is with the kosher, there are still things about the system that bug me.

Well, I can agree that the wait there feels eternally long.

I figured you'd understand

I thought you did a nice job with the edits.

Thank you! (I'm guessing you weren't looking to closely at the edges of the princesses' dresses ... I'm too much of a perfectionist to be okay with what I did there)

Well, Ariel is a student of human lifestyles.

Exactly. She was so curious about our weird human food.

Glad you got your entrée and then your dessert. Sorry the dessert was nothing exciting.

Thanks ... I'm a big fan of eating in order.

Isn't that what the Magic Band is for?

Confession: I hate paying with the MB. We've done if before, and I hate it. So I always have a credit card and cash.

Cool! Always a neat experience to get to chat with a CM and share some culture (either yours or theirs)

Yes! I love sharing little culture tidbits with CMs!

 

[Saphire5742]

but soon it was time for one of the many fun parts of a princess dinner! Young children were invited to join their favorite princesses for a princess procession through the restaurant.

That is so cute. They do the same at Crystal Palace

We were getting ready to eat it, but we were interrupted by a curious princess … Ariel.

I love Ariel! She certainly is curious and any interaction with her is fun

And Joe had to get out of there ASAP because he hates fireworks.
That’s right, Joe hates fireworks.

I just don’t understand people sometimes.
Seriously.

Me either. How can someone not like fireworks?????????????

Sounds like a lovely experience. And there are some fairly decent pictures. The experience is more important though and it sounds like you had a great one.

 

[SarahDisney]

That is so cute. They do the same at Crystal Palace

I didn't know that ... that's super cute!

I love Ariel! She certainly is curious and any interaction with her is fun

Ariel is definitely always fun to meet - her curiousity about the human world always makes for a fun interaction!

Me either. How can someone not like fireworks?????????????

I am with you on this!

Sounds like a lovely experience. And there are some fairly decent pictures. The experience is more important though and it sounds like you had a great one.

Thanks! We definitely enjoyed the experience!

 

[SarahDisney]

Day 6, Chapter 6: Reflections of Earth
Sunday, January 10th, 2016
​

When we last left you, we had finished our conversation with Joe (of “I don’t like fireworks” fame) and were headed to find a spot for Illuminations. While we were talking to Joe, a few people had come up and asked him about good spots for Illuminations, and he mentioned that watching from the Norway area was a good view (like he would know these things), so we decided to stay in the Norway pavilion area. We found a good spot near the water and settled in.

Illuminations is one of my favorite nighttime shows (although, I have to admit, I can’t think of any Disney nighttime shows that I don’t love). We first saw it in 2000, on our big family trip, and while we left early then (I was a cranky child and it was a long day), it still feels special to watch a show that connects me to that first trip. We had missed out on seeing it a few trips in a row (because of scheduling issues and trees in the American pavilion), so it was exciting to have a good spot to view the show.

I think that most of us know what happens in Illuminations, so I’m going to skip the description and just show you some of my favorite pictures (between Beth’s phone and my camera we took over 125 pictures, so this is really just a selection):

After Illuminations ended, our night was over, so we started to slowly make our way to the exit.

Of course, we stopped for pictures:

We made our way out of the park and back to the hotel. Once we made it back to the hotel, we walked through the store, and we saw some trivia questions:

Of course, I knew all of the correct answers … but in case anyone wanted to guess, I’ll put the answers under a spoiler tag:

Spoiler: Click Here For Trivia Answers

1. Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris

2. A half marathon or longer at both WDW and DL (running at one of those two plus DL Paris gets you the Castle to Chateau)

3. WDW – Star Wars Dark Side; DL – Avengers/Super Heroes (they changed the name of the weekend this year)

Yeah, I know all the runDisneys.

Anyway, we refilled our water bottles and made it back to the room. We had an early morning planned for Monday, so we had to get ourselves ready and organized for an early wakeup.

Coming Next: Dining with Princesses, Take Two