It was worth the wait! 8 days at the Contemporary, food & fun! Updated 11/4, Day 7

[sbprincess]

Hi everyone! I’m back again. This will be the next to last entry for me on this TR. I did want to ask for your thoughts and/or prayers for some news I recently received. I know I don’t know most of you very well but I figure it wouldn’t hurt to have some extra positive thoughts. I had a small spot on my back that the dermatologist did a biopsy on last week. It came back as a basal carcinoma (yes, skin cancer) so I’m having that removed next Thursday. Not a huge deal but a little scary nonetheless. Like I said, I would just appreciate any extra support. Okay, on to fun stuff!!

Friday, May 14th

This is our last day! I was pretty bummed but still looking forward to a fun day. Oh, but I didn’t take any notes on this day so I’m hoping my memory and pictures will suffice!

I know we woke up pretty early because we had yet to see the Rope Drop show at MK and I really wanted to do this. I also wanted to get breakfast at Main Street Bakery and this was my last chance. So we took the walkway over to MK and waited in the front. It was pretty crowded by the time the show started, and it was HOT! I was already sweating and it was still so early.

Well, I must be somewhat of a Debbie Downer or something because I just didn’t see what all the fuss was over this. Yeah, it was kind of cute. Maybe I’m jaded somehow. I just don’t see why there is so much hype about it. But I know there are lots and lots of people who really enjoy it so...to each their own.

So after the show, we rushed through the gates and went straight to the bakery. We had already done so much in MK since this was really our third day at this park and the crowds had been so light. Plus, we were hungry. Remember, my stomach hadn’t felt great the night before so I didn’t eat much…yeah, that’s my excuse! Anyway, we were the first ones in line! I had heard and saw so much about the cinnamon roll I just had to try it. So I got that and a milk for 2 snack credits and Brian got the ham, egg, and cheese croissant with an apple juice and a water (counter service credit). We had already had coffee on our walk over from the Contemporary.

And Brian showing his sad face that this was our last day.

All I can say is O.M.G. I have a huge sweet tooth so I thought this was simply amazing. Huge – but so good! And I knew mine was fresh because we were the first ones. I definitely couldn’t finish it and Brian isn’t big on cinnamon so unfortunately I had to throw some away. Brian loved his croissant too.

Once we filled up, we were off to do and see whatever we hadn’t already up to this point. First, we got FPs for Peter Pan’s Flight since the wait time for this is usually so crazy-long. On our way through the castle, I took pictures of the mosaics inside. I love these!

We decided to take another ride on one of my favorites, IASW! I’m so glad we aren’t going to miss this is December. I saw pictures recently of the loading/exit changes. Definitely looks more efficient but still a little weird seeing it this way.

We walked around Frontierland for a while.

And then went on another POTC ride! We also did a first for either of us – The Swiss Family Robinson Tree House. This was one of my favorite movies as a kid so I was kind of excited about it. I wanted to take pictures but the family behind us seemed to just want to continuously keep walking, or so I thought. What was weird is that we would stop to let them through, take our time and then we’d come across them stopped at such odd places. So we’d pass them and then all of a sudden, they’re on our tails again! This happened at least 4 times – just a little irritating.

I kind of wish there was more involved with this area. I’m not an Imagineer so I really can’t say what, but it seems like they could do more.

We went over to Tomorrowland next and did the Monster’s Inc. Laugh Floor next. We had saw this in 2008 and while I was okay skipping it, Brian really wanted to see it again. One of the jokes during the show was about some guy just wanted to get up and dance. They picked Brian! It was so funny. Every time the camera cut to him, he’d get up and move it! He was a great sport because I would have been mortified if they had chosen me. He actually probably really liked it. He’s kind of a ham.

Next, one of the more nostalgic rides for me – The Carousel of Progress. I actually really enjoy this, and not just because it’s an air conditioned place to sit down. Granted, the “future” scene is a little dated but I do like it. That song just gets in your head too! “It’s a great big beautiful tomorrow…” Is it there now? You’re welcome.

Finally, it was time for Pan! I know this ride is pretty simple, but it’s another one that takes me back to when my family came here when I was a kid. And I love the movie too.

(continued in next post)

 

[sbprincess]

Brian was getting kind of hungry by this point so I told him about Pecos Bill’s. He thought that sounded great so that’s exactly where we went. I was still full from breakfast so I didn’t get anything here. I did take a bite of his pulled pork sandwich though and it was very good. I would like to try their taco salad in December, especially with all the extras at the bar! Oh, one thing we did do here that I haven’t heard very often. Since we used a CS credit for his meal, we were able to substitute an extra drink for his dessert. This was a nice perk!

We walked around a little more after this, just taking everything in. It was so sad knowing we were leaving. At that time, our December trip wasn’t even a thought so we didn’t know when we’d be back. We should have known we couldn’t stay away! Since we couldn’t think of too much else we wanted to do, we decided to leave. We had a lot of snack credits left so I tried to use them in the candy shop on Main Street but couldn’t really find anything we wanted.

As we were leaving, Brian needed to stop by the restrooms near Guest Relations. Little did I know, the afternoon parade was about to start and where do the CM come out as this parade begins??? Right by those bathrooms! So I got some really cool pictures since not many people were standing there with me.

We walked back over to our resort to catch a bus to DTD. We decided we wanted to try to catch a movie over there before our evening ADR. Another picture of our amazing “home” from the walkway over.

By the time we got over there, I was starting to actually get hungry. Where else am I going to eat in DTD besides Earl of Sandwich??? For those of you counting, this is my 3rd lunch here during our trip. I told you it was my favorite. This time, I decided to try the Italian - salami, capicola, roasted ham, mortadella, (all Italian deli meats, btw) mozzarella cheese, roma tomato and Zesty Italian dressing.

This one was great too! Still didn’t beat the Original, but a good sandwich. We sat at one of the outside tables while I ate. At one point, we noticed people gathering in the open area there and pointing towards the sky. We quickly rushed over to see what was happening and were able to see some sort of shuttle launch. It was really cool! I didn’t get a picture but I doubt it would have shown up anyways.

So after lunch we walked down to the AMC Theater to checkout the showtimes. We had thought about seeing Iron Man 2 again but saw that Robin Hood (the new one with Russell Crowe) was there. We decided to see that instead. Oh, and we thought the movie was good.

By the end of the movie, we knew we had two choices. A) Go straight to Epcot and wander around until our ADR or B) Go back to the Contemporary and relax, but not for long. I think especially since it was our last night, we chose to go directly to Epcot. If I remember right, we took a bus to the first monorail resort that came (I’m thinking it was the Poly, but it may have been the CR…or maybe they share a bus, I can’t remember exactly!) We still hadn’t done Soarin so I was hoping against all odds that there were still some FPs. Well, no such luck. Ah well, we’ll just have to do it when we’re there in December!

We decided to head through World Showcase through Mexico again. We really took our time in several of the stores. I can’t wait to be back.

Our ADR wasn’t until 8:30 but we tried to check in a few minutes early. Where were we eating?? Le Cellier! This was our second time because we had enjoyed it so much on our honeymoon.

We did have to wait about 30 minutes or so but we were seated a few minutes before our actual time. One thing I had read but didn’t remember from before was how close the tables were to each other. I had always thought people were exaggerating because like I said, I didn’t remember this at all from our honeymoon trip. Nope, no exaggeration. They’re tight!

Anyway, a very nice young lady took our order right away. I was pretty sick of the pomegranate lemonade by this point and I don’t drink soda or tea. So she said she could bring me out a bottle of water, which was great. I don’t have a picture but this really nice, glass bottle of water probably had 10 ounces of liquid in it! I know I didn’t technically “pay” for it straight out, but if I had known it would be so small, I would have just went with the tired old lemonade.

I ordered a cup of the Cheddar Cheese Soup and Brian and I shared this. Of course we also shared the bread basket – pretzel bread!!! I asked her for a refill on the bread but to only bring the pretzel kind but she never did. The soup was great but it was a tad salty, as I’ve been reading lately.

For our entrees, I ordered the Mushroom Filet Mignon with wild mushroom risotto, white truffle and herb butter sauce.

I have heard so many people say the serving size of this dish is small. I completely disagree. It wasn’t a huge serving but I thought it was plenty – and I consider myself a pretty normal to big eater. I adored everything about this dish! The filet was tender and cooked perfectly medium. And the risotto was just out of this world. Again, I’m definitely a carbs girl, risotto, potatoes, polenta, rice, bread, etc. This risotto was some of the best I’ve ever had. The flavor was just excellent and it was creamy and cooked perfectly.

Brian ordered the Coffee-rubbed Kansas City Strip Steak with hazelnut butter and cream cheese mashed potatoes.

I’m not sure how this will look in the picture to everyone, but it was a fairly large portion too. He really liked it. It didn’t compare to his steak at California Grill but he thought it was tender and flavorful. I tasted it and thought it was fine, but was happy with my decision even more.

We both ordered the maple crème brulee for dessert. Brian has had crème brulee before and enjoyed it but I never had. He enjoyed this but I did not. I don’t think it was their version I didn’t like though – I just don’t think this dish is for me period. I wish I had ordered the chocolate cake.

After our meal, our server gave us the check and took our KTTW cards to debit our dining plan for the meal. I don’t think I’ve mentioned this up until now because it was never an issue until this point. Before our trip, Brian and I started putting cash away whenever we had some extra. So by the trip, we had enough for spending money and tips without having to rack up a huge hotel bill. We had paid all of our tips with cash. Now, of course, most servers either explain the DDP or ask if you know how it works (which I completely understand – I wouldn’t want to be stiffed a tip either just because someone didn’t know.) So I forget exactly how it happened, but somehow she saw that I wasn’t leaving a tip charged to the room and came back to ask about it. Part of me tried to understand where she was coming from but part of me thought it was a little presumptuous of her to think we just weren’t going to leave a tip. I don’t think we came off as “new” to the plan. Like I said, we’d been doing it all along and I can’t imagine we’re the only ones who do this. I guess maybe we had made all of our other servers nervous until they came back to the table after we had left. I just thought it was a little odd. Maybe I should have written on there “paid with cash” or something? I don’t know. It didn't ruin the night or anything and I kind of felt bad for her because I think once we explained it, she was embarrassed.

So after we left, Illuminations was scheduled to start in only a few minutes. Since my dessert had been such a dud at the restaurant and we still had several snack credits, we decided to go to France’s Boulangerie Patisserie. The line moved very quickly and soon we were inside looking at all the amazing pastries. In all of my research, I had remembered they advertise a “coconut pyramid” and could never get the answer to what that was exactly. Well, in case anyone is wondering, it’s 4 coconut macaroons stacked like a pyramid. Nothing special and a little disappointing in my opinion. So I decided to try the Napoleon and Brian got the Chocolate Éclair. I got them to-go since I was still a little full from dinner. We walked the long way around World Showcase so sad to be really leaving. By the time we got around to the other side of the lagoon, the show was ending. We unhappily got on the monorail and headed back to our resort.

As we were coming up the monorail ramp, one of the CM working, a big older man, told me pastries from France weren’t allowed in the monorail cars. For a split second I believed him. I thought “Oh no! I guess they don’t allow food on there!” But I think he saw my face and started laughing. Realizing the joke I said, “Well, I guess you can take my last pastry of my vacation if you have to.” To which he said, “Oh darlin, I’d never do that. [and while patting his belly] But you can see, I’ve had a few too many of those pastries. I did know exactly where that plain white box was from, ya know.” It was pretty funny and a great CM interaction before heading home.

Oh, here are pictures.

Brian loved his éclair. His mom makes these too and he said this just inched hers out, which is saying something. My Napoleon was pretty good too. It was just so big! Back in the room, I ate maybe half of it and then picked the solid sheets out to eat by themselves. I had to throw most of the cream part away because it was just too much. This would be a great dessert to share.

When we got back to the room, I cleaned up as much as I could and got us ready to go. We eventually went to sleep and woke up the next morning to head home. Nothing interesting happened after this point so I’ll leave it at this.

Up Next:
Final thoughts
What I regret and will avoid next time
What I want to repeat in December

 

[francis6306]

35 more days... and you can go back and we WILL get to ride Soarin'!