Is 7 Days Enough to Make a First Timer Fall in Love??--Aug'11 TR-- FINAL UPDATE 8/26

[IheartDDuck]

Oh man, I would have been devastated if my significant other told me that SE was meh. I could ride that over and over again, no joke.

First time trying Beverly is always fun to capture. My nephew when he was a year and a half drank it and just had this reaction.

Can't wait to hear more.

 

[teekathepony]

Great update! Though too bad about your test track experience making you feel like an outsider But at least you got to concentrate on the ride! I, like you, would rather come back in a few hours to ride together.

 

[FosterA]

First off, I gotta say that I really love that black and white photo of you guys at Epcot

Little bit of a bummer though that you didn't get to do Test Track together. I'm glad your BF liked the end of that ride. I've never done it at all but it's going to be fun to see what the end even is!

Not sure about Mission Space. Me and hubster both have motion sickness issues.

Can't wait to hear more!!
keep up the good details. I'm taking notes! lol
p.s. I'm doing the opposite that you did and not telling my husband a single thing about what to expect so I sure hope it far exceeds any expectations he's brewed up. He wouldn't be able to name one attraction at Disney if I asked him, really.

 

[Cin]

Great pics! They make me wish I was there. It looks like you are having fun and the boyfriend too.

 

[TanzUnited99]

Love the Epcot pics and getting DBF to drink Beverley - I tried the same trick! We are kind aren't we?

Yay on enjoying Le Cellier - it looks like a great meal!

 

[heathsf]

OH MY GOSH! I can't believe you met him! How crazy! DH and I are HUGE baseball fans (San Francisco Giants )

When we went to Boston on our mini tour of New England, we walked around the entire stadium and went to that bar underneath the stands...not remembering what it's called. But it's a gorgeous stadium indeed.



Loved your update!

I'm the same way about SR lines without my riding companion...I want to experience the laughs and screams with my DH whenever possible. However, if it shaves off an hour of waiting, we'll just have to sacrifice.

I must say, I'm a little disappointed there is no Beverly picture of you!!!

I'm so sorry about not having a Beverly pictures of me. But I guess this means that I must plan another trip so I can go back and get a picture this time! I just got caught up on your PTR and saw your mini TR on New England. It looked like a lot of fun

 

[heathsf]

Oh man, I would have been devastated if my significant other told me that SE was meh. I could ride that over and over again, no joke.

First time trying Beverly is always fun to capture. My nephew when he was a year and a half drank it and just had this reaction.

Can't wait to hear more.

It was a little disappointing but at this point I was started to accept that BF doesn't feel any nostalgia about any part of WDW and that he wouldn't love everything just because I do But he said he liked it so that had to be good enough for me

Great update! Though too bad about your test track experience making you feel like an outsider But at least you got to concentrate on the ride! I, like you, would rather come back in a few hours to ride together.

I know! It made me sad that he was willing to ride without me but also kind of happy that he was *that* excited to ride that he couldn't wait!

First off, I gotta say that I really love that black and white photo of you guys at Epcot

Little bit of a bummer though that you didn't get to do Test Track together. I'm glad your BF liked the end of that ride. I've never done it at all but it's going to be fun to see what the end even is!

Not sure about Mission Space. Me and hubster both have motion sickness issues.

Can't wait to hear more!!
keep up the good details. I'm taking notes! lol
p.s. I'm doing the opposite that you did and not telling my husband a single thing about what to expect so I sure hope it far exceeds any expectations he's brewed up. He wouldn't be able to name one attraction at Disney if I asked him, really.

I think your plan with your DH is a good one. As you showed with your story about him not recognizing the photo of the Poly, he is going to be totally blown away by everything since he really has no idea what to expect!

Great pics! They make me wish I was there. It looks like you are having fun and the boyfriend too.

Thanks!

Love the Epcot pics and getting DBF to drink Beverley - I tried the same trick! We are kind aren't we?

Yay on enjoying Le Cellier - it looks like a great meal!

He actually knew it was going to be bad...I just couldn't help myself and probably told him way too much before the actual trip.

 

[heathsf]

Sunday, August 21 - Part 5

From Club Cool we headed to the Imagination Pavilion. BF did not want to do this. He had heard the "Imagination" song and he was not a fan. But he knew I was going to make him try it as long as there was no wait. And there never is. And I guess there's a reason for that... But off we went!

And there was no wait to ride! I will say, I do enjoy doing this just once per trip. You can be in and out of the pavilion in 10 minutes if you want to be. So even if you don't love it, it's not like it takes up too much time. And BF did not love it. Or like it. He said it was "creepy." Oh well. He had a lot more fun playing with the fountain outside. It was pretty hot at this point so standing right in the path of the dancing water seemed like a great idea.

BF got wet

Now it was *finally* time to use our Soarin' FP so we walked towards The Land. BF had really been looking forward to this all day. He kept asking when we would be able to go ride Soarin'

If I remember correctly, it probably took us around 20 minutes to board. The FP line for Soarin' usually takes about that long. We were going to end up in the back row so I asked the CM if we could please wait for the first row and of course he was accommodating. We just waited off to the side and were the first ones in Row 1 for the next flight. Which also meant that we were all the way to the right but that was okay with me. I really do feel that there are no bad seats but at the same time, I wanted BF to ride for the first time without feet dangling over his head. Although I do feel that you stop noticing them pretty quickly, I wanted him to get maximum enjoyment out of this ride! And I'm so happy to report that he absolutely loved it! He said it was very cool and even though I had set his expectations very high, he still totally enjoyed it! He would have wanted to ride again that day but of course, all FP had already been distributed. Oh well, we had another Epcot day planned.

As we were leaving Soarin', I noticed that The Land was a walk-on. I couldn't help but say to BF that we should have waited and done it now. He sarcastically agreed with me, demanding back his 3 minutes that he had waited earlier that day. He has this way of pointing out my ridiculousness in a way that never fails to make me laugh

Next we walked over to The Seas Pavilion.

Not only was the ride a walk-on, but we were literally the only ones walking on! We were surrounded by empty clam-mobiles on both sides. It was pretty cool.

We explored the fish tanks for a while. It was very relaxing and I really enjoyed it, especially since on my Feb trip with my mom we pretty much blew past everything in here.

BF and I always get excited when we see Sting Rays ever since swimming with them in Grand Cayman. I have to say it was one of the coolest things I've ever done. But I'm getting side-tracked....

Hidden Mickey!

I took a lot of pictures of some cool looking fishies but I won't bore you with them. We were headed to the World Showcase as it was getting close to our dinner ADR in Mexico and we wanted to grab FP for Maelstrom first.

But I suppose we weren't in that much of a hurry because we stopped in Innoventions first and got to star our own video game.

You stand in a little booth to be recorded moving around and then you get to play a video game starring you with your movements! It's very funny and you can even play it at home after your trip is over (for a limited amount of time though...I think).

Now we headed into the World Showcase. It was a lot less exciting on foot as opposed to a segway though.

We started on the Mexico side and I zoomed in with my camera at Morocco so I could get my first real look at one of my favorite rides: Tower of Terror! The back of it is painted in such a way so that it will blend in with Morocco since it can be seen from the World Showcase. WDW is amazing.

Some more pictures:

We walked right by Mexico since we would be going back for dinner very soon and soon arrived at Norway. On the way, BF noticed Mexican Donald was outside but the line was very long. I was pretty disappointed because I know Donald is one of the few characters BF would be willing to wait (just a little while) for.

Some impeccable detailing in Norway:

I sent BF in with our KTTW cards to get FP. The return time was only 40 minutes away. He came back out with 2 FP he got from the machine, and 3 FP that someone handed to him because they weren't going to use them. The 3 gifted FP were ready to use now. I suggested that BF give them to someone on line and we could use ours after dinner but he suddenly wanted to ride Maelstrom right then and there. I figured we'd still be paying it forward if we gave away our two new FP with the extra gifted one we wouldn't need so we rode it then. There was no one on the FP line ahead of us so we walked right on to our viking ship. BF liked this, but didn't love it. We also opted not to watch the film at the end as it was time for dinner at San Angel Inn! But not before making BF don a viking hat and sword in the gift shop. It took a bit of convincing to get him to agree, however once he got into costume he was 100% in character:

Up Next: Dinner at San Angel Inn

 

[PrincessAmongPrinces]

Okay, I'm all caught up on your TR! It looks like you guys had an amazing trip! Can't wait to read more

 

[IheartDDuck]

I would agree that having a first timer ride Soarin' from the first row is always the best. I wouldn't want to have feet dangling in my face either.

I love the picture of your DBF as a viking. Classic.

 

[Leshaface]

I love the last picture of him!

I never even noticed the back of Tower of Terror before. That is brilliant how Disney made it blend into the back of Morocco!

I can't wait to hear about San Angel Inn. Have never eaten there before but want to! The ambiance looks somewhat romantic and relaxing!

 

[PixieMama]

Glad he liked Soarin'! On my trip last month, my BFF rode Soarin' for the 1st time and her reaction was, "Meh." What?!


I never knew that about ToT! That is too cool.

 

[FosterA]

Oh wow, that is awesome how they did the back of Tower of Terror! I've never heard that before.

Ok, glad to hear that BF liked Soarin. I have a pretty good feeling David will like that one alot too since he seems to be becoming an old fart and not loving thrill rides anymore and Soarin' is so mellow.

oh and that video game that you can star is sounds cool too. I've never heard of that and my family would dig that. Thanks for mentioning it!

 

[TanzUnited99]

Yay on getting front row in Soarin! That's the best way to ride this attraction!

Love the WS pics and lol at DBF getting in character at the end!

 

[heathsf]

Yay on getting front row in Soarin! That's the best way to ride this attraction!

Love the WS pics and lol at DBF getting in character at the end!

Yes it is! By the way, I'm planning to head over to your TR as soon as I write today's updates

Oh wow, that is awesome how they did the back of Tower of Terror! I've never heard that before.

Ok, glad to hear that BF liked Soarin. I have a pretty good feeling David will like that one alot too since he seems to be becoming an old fart and not loving thrill rides anymore and Soarin' is so mellow.

oh and that video game that you can star is sounds cool too. I've never heard of that and my family would dig that. Thanks for mentioning it!

I would be totally shocked if your DH doesn't love Soarin' and same for the kids! And the video game thing is a lot of fun. If you want, I can send you the link to our game (turns out it does still work!) so you can see what it is but that may spoil some of the fun for when you do it with your family.

Glad he liked Soarin'! On my trip last month, my BFF rode Soarin' for the 1st time and her reaction was, "Meh." What?!


I never knew that about ToT! That is too cool.

WWWHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTT!!??!!?? MEH!?!? Seriously???? How can that be? Were her eyes open??? I can't believe that! What was your response to that?

I love the last picture of him!

I never even noticed the back of Tower of Terror before. That is brilliant how Disney made it blend into the back of Morocco!

I can't wait to hear about San Angel Inn. Have never eaten there before but want to! The ambiance looks somewhat romantic and relaxing!

This was my second time eating there and I really enjoyed both times, although the restaurant has changed a bit. I'm going to post that update right now.

I would agree that having a first timer ride Soarin' from the first row is always the best. I wouldn't want to have feet dangling in my face either.

I love the picture of your DBF as a viking. Classic.

Haha I will definitely pass that message along to him. You wouldn't think that he was resistant to wear the hat and it took a bit of convincing. I guess he figured if he's going to do it, he may as well give it his all!

Okay, I'm all caught up on your TR! It looks like you guys had an amazing trip! Can't wait to read more

Thanks! More coming soon!

 

[heathsf]

Sunday, August 21 - Part 6

It was time for our 6:30 pm ADR at San Angel Inn. I had eaten here once before two years ago and really enjoyed it. Of course, this was BF's first time

I LOVE the inside of this pavilion. It's so easy to forget that you're not really outside at dusk.

I peeked into La Cava del Tequila for the first time and while small, it looked like a fun place for a drink. Sorry I didn't take a picture.

I had noticed that San Angel Inn had a decent number of negative reviews around the Dis and I started to get a little nervous. I had really liked it last time I ate here but they had changed the restaurant since then. There are new tables and chairs and they are *way* closer together than they used to be. I had read this and seen pictures even before my trip. I had also read mixed reviews about the new menu. A few weeks before the trip, I started checking occasionally to see if I could get lucky and find an opening at Teppan Edo for this night's dinner since I had absolutely loved my meal there in February. But I wasn't able to find anything and was reluctant to switch to any other restaurant because this was one that BF had picked himself more than 6 months ago! So we stuck with it.

You can see right away that while the new tables and chairs are more elegant than the ones they used to have, the tables are certainly much closer together than they used to be. If you really enjoy your privacy (and want your neighbors to have theirs too), you may not be comfortable here.

Here are some menu pics:

They start you with some chips and salsa. Both cups of salsa were the same and if I remember correctly they were just a little spicy.

The metal thing off to the left was holding a candle and that was really the only light source. I had to hold my menu up to it to see, and even then it was still hard to read the menu. The menu pictures I posted were lightened on my computer which is why the quality isn't so great. And I'm sorry for cutting off some of the dishes' descriptions but it really was difficult to see. And between the candle and the somewhat large contraption for the chips and salsa, the small table was very crowded.

BF ordered the Traditional Mexican Dinner ($34), which was covered by the regular dining plan, and included the regular entree and dessert plus an appetizer. Score! However the three courses are specified on the menu (see menu photo #2 above).

First up: The appetizer - which BF was kind enough to share with me

Tostadas de Tinga ($10 a la carte) - pulled chicken seasoned with roasted tomato and chipotle, served on tostadas with black beans, green tomatillo sauce, queso fresco and sour cream

These were absolutely outstanding! So flippin' delicious! I kind of wanted to fight BF for the right to eat all of them.

BF's dinner was the Tacos de Pescado (which I did not see listed under the regular entrees) -Mahi-Mahi served with chipotle-lime aioli, cabbage, lime and green tomatillo suace, all served over flour tortillas

BF really enjoyed these although he did say he wished he was hungrier. It came with rice and black beans as sides:

I really liked the black beans, and that's saying a lot because I'm usually not a fan of eating them on their own. They were prepared really well and the cheese (not sure what it was) just wrapped up the whole package. I wanted to order an extra side of them for myself but unfortunately once our entrees were served, we didn't see our waiter again for a long time. Well, we saw him but only from a distance. All of the waiters and waitresses looked hard at work, rushing around to tables and in and out of the kitchen. They seemed like they may have been understaffed. If I *really* wanted those beans, I could have just grabbed any waiter walking by the table but they honestly all seemed so busy that I decided to just share a little bit of BF's. No big deal. I had plenty of food on my own plate anyway.

I ordered the Pollo a las Rajas ($23) - grilled chicken breast served with red peppers & onion cream sauce, poblano rice, and queso fresco

I think this was very similar to what I ate on my last trip to San Angel Inn. It was very very good, but didn't blow me away like last night's dinner at The Wave did, or like my lunch at Le Cellier did. Although I will admit, those will be two very difficult meals to top. I really liked the sauce on my entree but I found myself wishing for the same pulled chicken that was used for the appetizer (as opposed to grilled). That pulled chicken was just delicious.

BF's dessert was supposed to be the Crema Bavaria (creamy bavarian mousse served with mixed berries, cinnamon and orange liqueur $8) but he asked the waiter if he could make a substitution for the Helado de Dulce de Leche and he was accomodated.

Helado de Dulce de Leche ($7 a la carte) - caramel ice cream

He thought it was good but in the end, it was just ice cream.

I ordered the Crepas de Cajeta ($11) - warm crepes served with "cajeta" - caramel sauce, and topped with toasted almonds

The sauce was really yummy but I remember thinking the crepes were a little more soggy than spongy. I still managed to eat the whole thing however

All in all, this was a very delicious dinner. The table was very crowded and the service was just okay (although I certainly don't blame our waiter for that, he was clearly very very busy along with every other waiter/waitress in the restaurant) but I think the quality of the food more than made up for it. There are so many restaurants in the WS that I haven't tried yet that I do want to eat at, and even so, I would return to San Angel Inn again.

Up Next: We ride Test Track again...but together this time!

 

[IheartDDuck]

I haven't been at the San Angel Inn for a while. It's always been a good meal, not a great one. I'm glad to see that the menu has changed a little bit though. I think it needed some sprucing for sure.

The food looked really good. Making me hungry.

 

[TanzUnited99]

Glad you both enjoyed San Angel Inn We didn't eat here but your description of the appetiser alone makes me feel like this meal was worth it! Great food porn!

 

[PixieMama]

WWWHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTT!!??!!?? MEH!?!? Seriously???? How can that be? Were her eyes open??? I can't believe that! What was your response to that?

I know!!! In her defense, she really really really loves thrill rides. So I can understand how Soarin' wouldn't measure up to RnR. But, still. Soarin' is AWESOME! How can you not love it?!

 

[heathsf]

I haven't been at the San Angel Inn for a while. It's always been a good meal, not a great one. I'm glad to see that the menu has changed a little bit though. I think it needed some sprucing for sure.

The food looked really good. Making me hungry.

I think you were right about the sprucing--and it did them really well. It was so yummy! I always get hungry when I write an update about one of my meals

Glad you both enjoyed San Angel Inn We didn't eat here but your description of the appetiser alone makes me feel like this meal was worth it! Great food porn!

Thanks! I have to go catch up on your TR to see where you did eat!

I know!!! In her defense, she really really really loves thrill rides. So I can understand how Soarin' wouldn't measure up to RnR. But, still. Soarin' is AWESOME! How can you not love it?!

I really really love thrill rides too but there's still room in my heart for Soarin' of course!