It's a SO-LO trip report! Oct 09, CR/YC, MNSSHP, F&W, and Independence! FINAL UPDATE!

[glennbo123]

I really enjoyed this installment....partly because I've never eaten at Jiko.

The bus stopped at Kidani first, and almost everyone on the bus disembarked. From that unavoidable eavesdropping that happens when you’re sitting alone on a bus, I knew that most of these people were heading to Boma and were getting off at the wrong stop (the announcement was very unclear, even to someone used to the unintelligible speaker system of the NYC subways). I wanted to say something, but I didn’t want to be an annoying know-it-all. So I kept quiet, and felt a little bad about that afterward. I really, really hope that all those people enjoyed their walks over to the main lodge.

I probably would have done the same thing. But then again, I had a little trouble finding my stop at SSR and nobody helped me.

Bichon? Our bichon has a rope toy that he loves too.

I took some photos, none of which turned out particularly well.

Are you kidding? I especially like this first one.

I was experimenting with the aperture settings on my camera, which I still don’t really understand. I mean, I understand the definition of “aperture”, but I don’t necessarily understand how changing it changes the photos. I’ve read and read about it, but the info just won’t stick in my brain. I plan to figure it out one of these days.

The aperture is the size of the hole letting light into the camera. It controls two things: how much light (obviously), and depth of field (probably not as obvious...not to me anyway), which means how much of your photo, distance-wise, is in focus. A higher f-stop number means a smaller aperture opening, less light entering the lens, and a greater depth of field. A low f-stop number means a larger aperture opening, more light entering the lens, and a smaller depth of field. This is good for portraits, when you want your subject in focus, but the background to be out of focus. So, if depth of field is what you want to control, set the aperture to where you need it and then use whatever shutter speed you need to get enough light for the picture.

Tracy and Jim were really great, and we ended up chatting through the entire meal.

That's great that you made some new friends.

Speaking of the meal:

The food looked great.

This was good, if you like beets. I love beets, and I never get to have them because BF hates them, so I was happy.

I'm the only one in my family that likes them. My wife will plant the seeds in the garden, but she never harvests them. If I wanna eat them, I've gotta dig 'em up and prepare 'em. She'd let them rot in the ground.

While it was still good this time, it wasn’t nearly as delicious as I had remembered. I think they’ve switched chefs in the meantime, so maybe that’s why? Or maybe my expectations were too high this time around?

I'm hoping that it soon gets back to the prominence it's been known for.

 

[praisehisname]

The descriptions and pictures of the food made it sound really good; sorry it wasn't as great as you were hoping. At least you had the entertaining company!

 

[norybell]

Nory, your dog is sooooooooo cute in that picture.

Cute dog picture too!

Tracy

I just love your dog, what a cutie

Thanks! He is a cutie. A spoiled rotten cutie.

For poops and giggles, let's all follow a DVC van the next time we see one. Maybe it'll make a McDonald's run.

I really want to follow the DVC van now!!!

I think we have an awesome reality show in the making here. Join a motley band of WDW-obsessives as they follow a red DVC van across the country!

Nice update Nory, good to hear you ment some friends at Jiko..Those pictures of the lodge bring back so many memories from my last trip there.. Thanks for sharing, cant wait to see your next update..

It really is a beautiful lodge. I hope to stay there some day!

Bichon? Our bichon has a rope toy that he loves too.

He's a havanese...so related to the bichons, I think...

The aperture is the size of the hole letting light into the camera. It controls two things: how much light (obviously), and depth of field (probably not as obvious...not to me anyway), which means how much of your photo, distance-wise, is in focus. A higher f-stop number means a smaller aperture opening, less light entering the lens, and a greater depth of field. A low f-stop number means a larger aperture opening, more light entering the lens, and a smaller depth of field. This is good for portraits, when you want your subject in focus, but the background to be out of focus. So, if depth of field is what you want to control, set the aperture to where you need it and then use whatever shutter speed you need to get enough light for the picture.

Thanks, glennbo! I think I need to go out and take a bunch of pics of the same thing with lots of different settings, and then look at them on my computer immediately, so I can really see the difference. I'm hoping that then it'll stick in my brain a little better. I tried doing that at AKL, but I couldn't really see the differences enough on the camera screen for them to mean much to me.

I'm the only one in my family that likes them. My wife will plant the seeds in the garden, but she never harvests them. If I wanna eat them, I've gotta dig 'em up and prepare 'em. She'd let them rot in the ground.

What's up with these crazy beet-haters we love? They don't know what they're missing!

The descriptions and pictures of the food made it sound really good; sorry it wasn't as great as you were hoping. At least you had the entertaining company!

The food was very good! Just not quite amazing. But still nothing to complain about; I'll definitely go back there.

 

[Sawhiskey]

You would love it there. The room decor was awesome, IMO... I got a standard room for 155 a nite in august, only way I could afford it... Im jealous over you stayin at CR, that is my number one to stay at.. One day, one day..

Cheers

 

[Tribilín]

I took some photos, none of which turned out particularly well.

They look pretty good to me .

I loved the colors in this thing.

My Fav!

Oh, and you dog is beyond cute... but didn't you say you had a cat too? I guess he deserves to be in you trip report too... cats have feeling too, you know, evil feelings perhaps, but they have them, thank you

 

[norybell]

Oh, and you dog is beyond cute... but didn't you say you had a cat too? I guess he deserves to be in you trip report too... cats have feeling too, you know, evil feelings perhaps, but they have them, thank you

OK, Tribilin, since you've made me feel guilty...

Allow me to translate.
Dog: What'cha doin'? Are we doin' somethin' fun? Can we do somethin' fun? This is so fun! You are so fun! I love you I love you I love you!
Cat: I suppose, since you do feed me, and scoop my litterbox, and clean up my vomit, and pet me when I condescend to sit near you, I suppose I will allow you to live. For now. But I refuse to look at you for your silly little photo.

This one just proves that it's nearly impossible to take a photo in our house without a dirty sock sneaking into it somehow.

 

[norybell]

Today’s update will be short…I probably should have just folded it in with the last one, but I’ll admit, I’m to the point of drawing this TR out because I don’t want it to end!

To make up for it, I think it’s time for another song.

I decided to challenge myself with this one (how many words can you come up with that end in “ity”? Any use of a rhyming dictionary will be considered cheating, because for some insane reason I have set myself rules for these things). The results are somewhat questionable.

Sung to the tune of “Bare Necessities” from The Jungle Book:

Look for some sociability
Some friendly personality
To chat with at Disney World while you dine
With Disney obsessivity
There’s always a community
Discovered while you sip a glass of wine

Whenever I travel, if I’m all alone,
I’ll sit at the bar where, studies have shown,
People will greet you with a smile
It’s often great, rarely a trial
When you say hello they say hello
You’ll be having fun, before you know
I promise—try it too!

And Disney sociability will come to you
It’ll come to you

Social approachability
Helps foster hospitality
But don’t worry if you’re a little shy
Discuss the food, its quality,
Your home (for me, New York City),
And soon you’ll want to stay, not say goodbye

Now when you have a cocktail
Or a glass of beer
And your talk starts to feel stale
Don’t fret or fear
Another drink often prevails
Your hotel is near if you start to flail
But you don’t need a fourth cocktail
Because too many beers can make you fail
Have I given you a clue?

Soon Disney sociability will come to you
It’ll come to you

***

Reading that over, I’m a little afraid it makes me sound like a big drinker. I only had two glasses of wine with dinner, I swear! “Cocktail” and “beer” were just easy to rhyme with!

Anyway. Back to Jiko. Tracy and Jim and I ended up finishing our meals at the same time. They asked what my plans were, so I told them I was going to take the bus back to Epcot. They said they were heading to Epcot, too, hoping to catch Illuminations, but it was already after 8:00—would I like a ride?

How awesome was that? Not only had they made my dinner much more fun, but they spared me the hassle of taking the bus back!

We chatted the whole drive, and they proved they were true Disney masters by the way Jim scored a great parking spot in the Epcot lot. It was pretty close to 9 by the time we got there, so we booked it through the park, meaning I didn’t actually take this picture until the following night:

They led me to their favorite Illuminations-viewing spot, which I won’t disclose here. It was a great spot, though, and we had no problems seeing the show, even though we didn’t get there until a few minutes before it started. I remember the days when my family and I used to camp out in the WS plaza area a full hour before Illuminations…if only we’d known better! Jim insisted on getting us each a prosecco from one of the F&W booths—seriously, could nicer people exist? I don't think so!—so he ran off for a minute…I forget which booth he ran to, unfortunately. Austria, maybe? But he returned empty-handed, because the booth was closed already. This puzzled us. It was an EMH evening. The fancy-crystal kiosk was still open. Sorry, dear, I know you’re thirsty. Here, soothe your parched lips with this $300 Swarovski Dopey figurine!

Only moments later, Illuminations started. Granted, I’ve only seen Wishes once, but I just can’t imagine loving another nighttime show more than Illuminations. Fantasmic doesn’t compare for me. I really love the way Illuminations is mostly abstract—I can think and feel about whatever I want to think and feel about while I’m watching it. Does that make any sense? Fantasmic, with all the characters, feels like watching a movie, while Illuminations feels like listening to a symphony.

Of course, the last time I went to the symphony was about a million years ago, and I fell asleep, so that shows how cultured I am.

But a symphony with pyrotechnics? How can you beat that?

After the fireworks ended, while they played the time-to-leave-Epcot-now song that always plays after Illuminations, Tracy and Jim danced together. They said it was their Illuminations tradition, and it was the cutest thing ever. Then we went to walk around the WS, in the opposite direction of all the people leaving. I’d really been looking forward to strolling through an emptying-out WS, but, sadly, since it was EMH, it wasn’t really emptying out that much. We did finally get our glasses of prosecco, though, I think in Italy. When we reached the International Gateway, I said goodnight to my new friends. Not to be too over-the-top about it, but meeting them truly did feel like Disney magic to me.

Tracy & Jim, thanks again (I really can’t thank you enough)! If I ever randomly run into you at WDW another time, the prosecco’s on me!

I decided to walk back to the YC the long way, past the Boardwalk.

I actually took a bunch of pictures along the way, but unfortunately I didn’t discover the “Twilight” setting on my camera (it was such a revelation when I did!) until the next night, so most of them didn’t turn out at all. I’ll spare you.

As I neared Jellyrolls, I thought, why not? I was having so much fun being unexpectedly social, I suddenly didn’t want the evening to end. I wasn’t even swayed by the ridiculously long line to get into Jellyrolls. Seriously, it was the longest line I waited in my entire trip. It stretched almost all the way across the boardwalk to the water. It turns out there was an IT conference going on at the Swan or the Dolphin, and all the attendees were out partying it up that night; a group of them halfheartedly befriended me in line. Considering that most of them clearly did not want to be at WDW (crazy people!), I think they thought I was bizarre for wanting to be there so much, I’d go by myself. They really weren’t my kind of people, to be honest, but I entertained myself by being super full -- borderline-ridiculously full -- of Disney spirit. I even gave away a few Mickey pins. I was kinda sorta mocking them, and I think they were kinda sorta mocking me, and a good time was had by all.

Of course, once we finally got inside, it was all about these guys:

They were great, of course. It was too packed to sit down, so I got a beer at the bar and just stood in the back, singing not-too-loudly. It was fun, though unsurprisingly not as much fun as when I’d been there with my sisters, so I didn’t stay too long.

I got back to my room sometime between 11 and 12, I think. Despite my big dinner, since I’d been drinking I still wanted to eat something before I went to sleep, and room service was really my only option. I was very disappointed with the late-night room service menu. How hard would it be for them to include some sandwiches, or something? Who wants a salad or a fruit plate at 1:00 AM? I wanted something warm, and there was only one warm item on the menu, so that’s what I got:
Chili and Cheese Chips - house-made chili with jalapeno cheese sauce and sour cream with Corn Tortilla chips

It was delicious.

Coming Soon – 9 to 5 (actually, 8:30-5:30) at the Animal Kingdom: My Longest Day at a Disney Park Ever!

 

[glennbo123]

Enjoyed the conversations of your pets. That was "fun, fun, fun"!!!!

I’ll admit, I’m to the point of drawing this TR out because I don’t want it to end!

Oh, do I know the feeling. Mine is almost over!!!

Jim insisted on getting us each a prosecco from one of the F&W booths—seriously, could nicer people exist? I don't think so!

I'm starting to think you made them up! Like that astronaut boyfriend of Liz Lemon's on 30 Rock.

—so he ran off for a minute…I forget which booth he ran to, unfortunately. Austria, maybe?

(Assuming you meant Germany.) I think this is narrowing down the secret Illuminations viewing location. I think it's somewhere between Norway-Italy. Or was Austria intended to throw me off the trail?!!

Chili and Cheese Chips - house-made chili with jalapeno cheese sauce and sour cream with Corn Tortilla chips

It was delicious.

This looks fabulous....and being on a solo trip you didn't have to share it. I'm so jealous.

 

[praisehisname]

Jim and Tracy seem like an awesome couple! That's so great that you got to spend time with them and get to know them!

 

[onelilspark]

I think my favorite part was when you mocked the people from the IT conference.

 

[Tribilín]

In the tradition of Lolcats: The brainz... I haz it.

Very handsome evil mastermind!

Awesome update, glad you met wonderful people

 

[hucifer]

They led me to their favorite Illuminations-viewing spot, which I won’t disclose here. It was a great spot, though, and we had no problems seeing the show, even though we didn’t get there until a few minutes before it started. I remember the days when my family and I used to camp out in the WS plaza area a full hour before Illuminations…if only we’d known better! [/b]

Spill it, baby. We want to know. Or shoot me a PM. Pleeeeeeeeeze?

Another great update, Nory. I loved the new Bear Necessity lyrics...now I can't get it out of my head.

I hope your new Disney friends are on the DISboards, this was a nice tribute to them.

And your dog...he's so cute I could eat him up. Seriously.

 

[GreatBiscuit]

On the way to AKL, we were driving next to a red DVC van that said: “Follow me to an Information Center!” I wonder if any random car has ever, on a whim, decided to follow a DVC van, and ended up at a gas station? I mean, they can’t always be en route to an information center, can they?

:lmao

I had been looking forward to walking around AKL and looking at the animals, especially the giraffes. I love giraffes. This is a relatively newfound love for me, mostly based on the fact that this is my dog’s favorite toy:

That dirty-looking piece of rope used to have eyes. And be yellow. In a nutshell, it used to be a giraffe. He loves it so much, it’s actually Giraffe #2; Giraffe the Original fell apart last year and had to be replaced with an identical twin. (Also, I’m a bit embarrassed about the surrounding mess in this photo—I’d like to state for the record that all those dirty socks belong to BF, not to me!—but I include it anyway for the book in the background. Recognize it? Yep, it’s the Unofficial Guide!)

That reminds me of the stuffed Zebra Pippy played with as a puppy. We replaced it half a dozen times. Of course once she hit about 5 or 6, she quit playing with toys and took to sleeping all day and shooting off random howls in the middle of the night. (Gotta love beagles)

Soon enough, it was time for me to check in at Jiko. I requested a seat at the Cooking Place (the chef’s bar), and I ended up being the first person seated there. I met Andy, the appetizer chef, who promised he’d slip me some appetizer samples (ah, the perks of eating at the bar!).

Cool!

How awesome was that? Not only had they made my dinner much more fun, but they spared me the hassle of taking the bus back!

Very Awesome!

They led me to their favorite Illuminations-viewing spot, which I won’t disclose here. It was a great spot, though, and we had no problems seeing the show, even though we didn’t get there until a few minutes before it started. I remember the days when my family and I used to camp out in the WS plaza area a full hour before Illuminations…if only we’d known better!

You know you could finance your next Disney trip by selling that info around these parts.

Of course, the last time I went to the symphony was about a million years ago, and I fell asleep, so that shows how cultured I am.

Picture it, San Antonio, 1991. A high school band has spent the day performing at a music festival and is now settled into the glorious padded chairs of the Majestic Theater listening to the San Antonio Symphony. 20 minutes into it, most are completely asleep, when suddenly 2 cymbal players smash the opening note to the next song and a collective jolt, “WAH!” and subsequent snickers erupts from the lower level, back 6 rows. (That was actually my last trip to the Symphony as well.)

As I neared Jellyrolls, I thought, why not? I was having so much fun being unexpectedly social, I suddenly didn’t want the evening to end. I wasn’t even swayed by the ridiculously long line to get into Jellyrolls. Seriously, it was the longest line I waited in my entire trip. It stretched almost all the way across the boardwalk to the water. It turns out there was an IT conference going on at the Swan or the Dolphin, and all the attendees were out partying it up that night; a group of them halfheartedly befriended me in line. Considering that most of them clearly did not want to be at WDW (crazy people!), I think they thought I was bizarre for wanting to be there so much, I’d go by myself. They really weren’t my kind of people, to be honest, but I entertained myself by being super full -- borderline-ridiculously full -- of Disney spirit. I even gave away a few Mickey pins. I was kinda sorta mocking them, and I think they were kinda sorta mocking me, and a good time was had by all.

This had me rolling. Then sad and bit irritated that my IT team never got to go to a conference at the Swan and Dolphin. Of course if we did, I’d pretty well miss EVERY stinking session they had so I guess it’s a good thing they don’t’.

I wanted something warm, and there was only one warm item on the menu, so that’s what I got: Chili and Cheese Chips - house-made chili with jalapeno cheese sauce and sour cream with Corn Tortilla chips

Oooohhhhhhhgrlllllllllllzrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrmmmmmmmmmmmmk. That looks goooooooooooooooooooooooooood!

Glen already answered the aperture setting. I will say, having experimented on my brother in law’s digital SLR, the aperture settings do not have as much of an affect on Depth Of Field as they do on my film camera. It seemed that a shallow depth of field was more difficult to attain. Not sure if it was just an anomaly of his camera or if it’s a true of digital SLR’s in general that they tend to clarify images, whether you want them to or not. The folks on the photo board could probably tell you though.

 

[glennbo123]

Spill it, baby. We want to know. Or shoot me a PM. Pleeeeeeeeeze?

I agree. If you're PMing, please include me!

I will say, having experimented on my brother in law’s digital SLR, the aperture settings do not have as much of an affect on Depth Of Field as they do on my film camera. It seemed that a shallow depth of field was more difficult to attain. Not sure if it was just an anomaly of his camera or if it’s a true of digital SLR’s in general that they tend to clarify images, whether you want them to or not. The folks on the photo board could probably tell you though.

Interesting observation. I don't know the answer, but agree the photo board is the place to go.

 

[breagirl]

I was so excited when I signed in only to find TWO updates! I think I even squealed a bit as DH looked at me like I was nuts!

Love the pics and so glad you found a fun couple to hang out with. Can't wait for more updates!

 

[nursegirl]

Still with you! And still loving it!

The kitty and doggy exchange was inspired, and I agree about the food at Jiko - the setting is better than what we ordered, but still good. Our waitress was super nice, but very, I don't know... I think on an episode of Seinfeld she would have been the whispering waitress or something. We could barely hear her, and we think it was meant to be for effect or atmosphere or maybe she's just breathy in general. Sorry! Odd and off topic.

Anyway, am so loving that you got to be social, I'm hoping I'm brave enough to get some conversation going with some normal Disney freaks like me when I take my solo trip. I have never been to Jellyrolls, but sounds fun - those IT folks, feel bad that they aren't riding the Mickey train, different strokes I guess! Non Disney people on a free WDW trip... what a waste.

Keep it up!

 

[norybell]

I'm starting to think you made them up! Like that astronaut boyfriend of Liz Lemon's on 30 Rock.

My imaginary Disney friends!

I think my favorite part was when you mocked the people from the IT conference.

This had me rolling. Then sad and bit irritated that my IT team never got to go to a conference at the Swan and Dolphin. Of course if we did, I’d pretty well miss EVERY stinking session they had so I guess it’s a good thing they don’t’.

I have to admit, I was maybe enjoying my mostly-internal mocking of them a little too much. But part of me was so irritated with them for not being happier to be at WDW, conference or no! I mean, sheesh, last time I went to a conference it was in the middle-of-nowhere New Jersey. I'd take WDW over that any day!

Jim and Tracy seem like an awesome couple! That's so great that you got to spend time with them and get to know them!

I hope your new Disney friends are on the DISboards, this was a nice tribute to them.

They were really great. When I emailed Tracy to ask if it was OK for me to post her blog, she said she knew about the DIS, so maybe they're floating around here somewhere...

In the tradition of Lolcats: The brainz... I haz it.

Very handsome evil mastermind!

Awesome update, glad you met wonderful people

The cat thanks you for your compliments. And slinks away for more sinister plotting.

Another great update, Nory. I loved the new Bear Necessity lyrics...now I can't get it out of my head.

Thanks, hucifer! I've been working my way through your old TR in your siggie for a little while now, and I have to say, it's hilarious! When are you going back, so you can write another one for us?

Glen already answered the aperture setting. I will say, having experimented on my brother in law’s digital SLR, the aperture settings do not have as much of an affect on Depth Of Field as they do on my film camera. It seemed that a shallow depth of field was more difficult to attain. Not sure if it was just an anomaly of his camera or if it’s a true of digital SLR’s in general that they tend to clarify images, whether you want them to or not. The folks on the photo board could probably tell you though.

Thanks, Biscuit. I was wondering if something like this was coming into play. And I don't even have an SLR, but a Super-Zoom, which probably makes it even more of an issue.

I was so excited when I signed in only to find TWO updates! I think I even squealed a bit as DH looked at me like I was nuts!

It makes me happy to know my TR is squeal-worthy!

(Assuming you meant Germany.) I think this is narrowing down the secret Illuminations viewing location. I think it's somewhere between Norway-Italy. Or was Austria intended to throw me off the trail?!!

Spill it, baby. We want to know. Or shoot me a PM. Pleeeeeeeeeze?

You know you could finance your next Disney trip by selling that info around these parts.

Now c'mon, what kind of person would I be if I repaid their kindness by revealing their top secret Illuminations-viewing spot? I will say two things about it:
1. There was an Austria booth at F&W. This may or may not be a clue.
2. It was somewhere between Germany and Japan.
And that's all you're getting out of me!

 

[Tribilín]

Now c'mon, what kind of person would I be if I repaid their kindness by revealing their top secret Illuminations-viewing spot?

You are right! We need you to disclose information of how to contact Tracy and Jim, they should have even more juicy WDW secrets! Muhhahaha!

 

[hucifer]

Thanks, hucifer! I've been working my way through your old TR in your siggie for a little while now, and I have to say, it's hilarious! When are you going back, so you can write another one for us?

Thank you so much, Nory! And....you are SO going to kiss the ground when you hear this one....I am about ready to post a TR on my solo trip in July. Okay, I'm way later than you are, but I have an excuse...I have a toddler. I was just downloading some pics for my first day. I think on Thursday or Friday I'll have the first installment up. Soon enough you'll see more pics of me and think, "Wow, she really is my older, yet wildly sophisticated and talented twin."

Now c'mon, what kind of person would I be if I repaid their kindness by revealing their top secret Illuminations-viewing spot? I will say two things about it:
1. There was an Austria booth at F&W. This may or may not be a clue.
2. It was somewhere between Germany and Japan.
And that's all you're getting out of me!

Duuuuuuude...that's not right. It's not like we're all going to be there at the same time and clog up this top-secret spot or anything. I say we all snub her TR until she spills it.

 

[hucifer]

Our waitress was super nice, but very, I don't know... I think on an episode of Seinfeld she would have been the whispering waitress or something. We could barely hear her, and we think it was meant to be for effect or atmosphere or maybe she's just breathy in general.

She was a low-talker?