"Jungle" All the Way! A Christmas TR (NEW 11/26) Good thing that tree is Swiss!

[magichusky]

UPDATE!

Well hello everyone! I hope people are still reading- I've been encumbered by ridiculous school things. I thought I would post a small update while I'm preparing my next post on our CRT breakfast; it should be ready quite soon!

I had a blast last Sunday w/ one of my scientist friends making our audition video for "The Amazing Race." We successfully submitted our application on Monday, July 18th! I was so excited that I took a pic of my computer displaying the "successfully submitted" message:

Unfortunately I don't think I can post our audition video here or I would get in some serious trouble! We're still waiting for a callback- I love how I become completely convinced that I'll get a callback when I submitted one of probably 3,000 or so applications.

I also want to give a shout out to space shuttle Atlantis for successfully landing at the Kennedy Space Center, completing not only its final mission, but the end of NASA's space shuttle program. Hopefully a new manned space flight program will be developed in the foreseeable future... Fabulous DBF nabbed me the special patch that was made for this extra special mission (they're wonderfully rare!):

And another new development: I have another new ticker! The darn thing barely fits in my siggy- at this rate, it's a good thing I invested in the golden Premier Passport (best $700 I ever spent haha). The DBF is getting promoted to Captain on Halloween and I didn't think I'd be able to swing it, but today I found a magical roundtrip plane ticket to MCO for $260! Usually a ticket from CA to FL is an easy $400-500 so I was stoked to say the least. Hopefully we'll make it over to WDW before Halloween to check out the lovely decor, but the main attraction is the F&W Festival! I'm so excited to finally get to experience the mystery that is F&W- DBF has been there before and wound up pigging out.

I'M SO EXCITED!!!! See ya real soon w/ the CRT breakfast post!

 

[axpo23]

I have subscribed to your trip report. I just have to say that if you get selected for Amazing Race I will definitely DVR it. I love the show anyway, but your writing style already cracks me up, so I bet you'd be a hoot on the show to watch! Good luck! I can't wait to read more.

Have fun on Labor Day! I'm so jealous that you are in California and have gone to WDW more than I have and I'm in Va!

 

[magichusky]

I have subscribed to your trip report. I just have to say that if you get selected for Amazing Race I will definitely DVR it. I love the show anyway, but your writing style already cracks me up, so I bet you'd be a hoot on the show to watch! Good luck! I can't wait to read more.

Haha thank you!!! That's the nicest thing anyone could ever say to me! I get so jealous every time a new season of The Amazing Race comes on b/c I want to be on it so badly- so I DVR all the episodes and refuse to watch them for a month. Then I watch them all at once and always cry when the winning team crosses the finish line. It's just so beautiful!

Have fun on Labor Day! I'm so jealous that you are in California and have gone to WDW more than I have and I'm in Va!

Thanks! I don't understand it either! It makes me not really mind that my BF is stationed in FL for the time being!

 

[magichusky]

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2010
DAY 3.1: The MK is OK

Last time, we had just finished our first full day ever at WDW- we were monsooned upon at DTD, encountered insanity at the Earl, journeyed into AK for the first time and were rattled around a bit in that outlandish EE, Heather and my Dad had dinner-related meltdowns, and we embarked on a RATHER foggy Wishes Cruise, but that was ok b/c we were promptly scheduled for a free do-over.

Well, today was the big one. Let me remind you that this was our very first trip to WDW, so everything was delightfully brand new. Today we were entering the MK for the first time! And not only that, but we had an extra special breakfast planned inside the castle at Cinderella's Royal Table (CRT) for 8:40am. All of that combined made it pretty much alright that I had to wake up at 7:30am (which was basically 4:30am as far as I was concerned).

I managed to stumble out of bed but was horrified b/c I didn't have enough time to straighten my hair. As a result, I would surely look totally horrifying in my CRT pictures. Oh dear. My phone informed me that the high that day would be 67 degrees. I proceeded to happily put on shorts (this will be important later). I despise pants so much that 60 degree weather is perfectly acceptable short weather. I believe that the sign of a true Californian is the ability to wear shorts comfortably in inclement weather.

Anyway, we all walked to the SoG bus stop in high anticipation of a very royal breakfast; even my Dad was excited. I took a pic of the bus stop through the tunnel that leads back into the lower level of the resort. You can see my Mom and Heather standing at the very end looking back at me like I'm crazy. You can also see that the weather was still a bit dreary! But I still had faith in my phone, which assured me that it would clear up later.

The SoG bus took us to the TTC, and then we boarded the express monorail for the MK. In my early morning stupor I started scrambling up the ramp towards the Epcot monorail, but my Mom immediately rectified the situation.

We arrived at the MK super quickly after that (we had tremendous luck w/ the monorails this trip) and went through the turnstiles. I wanted a picture of us in front of the train station before we went through the tunnel, so I instructed everyone to wait so we could get a hold of the PP photographer who was stationed there.

While we were waiting, I was super duper excited but so far, things were pretty Disneylandish and there was nothing out of the ordinary- I took a pic of the Mickey Mouse ornament made out of flowers planted in the grass. I thought it was really cute that they added the metal hanger at the top that you use on regular Christmas balls to attach them to the tree branches. I exerted a reasonable amount of energy positioning myself so that no one was in my field of view. And then this happened:

Ummm excuse me??? Okay- that's better:

The PP photographer was finally finished w/ this one family, who took forever. I then marched up and requested that he take a pic of us, but he haughtily informed me that this other family was waiting in line and that I would have to wait; the tone was practically accusatory, like I was trying to cut in line or something! So this second family wandered over from like 20 feet away and proceeded to have a photoshoot. How was I supposed to know that they were even queued up?

Okay dude, it's 5:15am PST- just take the darn thing already:

We bid adieu to crankypants over there and traveled through the West tunnel, which is funny b/c we for some reason ALWAYS enter DL through the West tunnel, so why rock the boat? Whenever I had thought of going to FL and FINALLY making my way into the MK (which I had been wistfully doing for 25 yrs), I always imagined Main Street to be blazing hot and chaotic, w/ the view of an electric blue castle at the other end semi-disturbed by huge bundles of balloons and Danny Tanner striding across the hub. This wasn't what I had expected at all, but it turned out to be way better. It was cloudy and deserted, the pavement was so black and cold that it was almost blue, and it was completely silent. It was still dark enough that the clock face on City Hall was still illuminated:

The first thing that caught me off guard and that jolted me to the full realization that I wasn't standing in DL was the scale of the place. The buildings were SO HUGE! Everything was just- bigger!

DL 2 weeks prior:

My family was annoying me b/c they were power walking past everything to get to CRT- and we still had almost 15 min before our ADR! You can barely see my Dad in the blue hat and khaki pants, taking up the rear, trying to catch up to my Mom and Heather on the right hand side:

Loving the Christmas wreaths everywhere:

Looking back towards the train station:

The same view at DL:

This pic cracks me up b/c my sister looks SO small just standing there in front of that behemoth castle:

Toto, we're not in Anaheim anymore...look at the difference!

I'M FINALLY HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was STOKED to be there!! My paranoid family insisted on continuing the powerwalk and getting to CRT, since our ADR was getting close. I wanted to just stand there and stare at the crazy huge castle for a little while longer, but I started getting hungry so I hurried after them all. And if you know me, you'll know that food always comes first!

NEXT TIME: CRT breakfast, Belle offends me

 

[magichusky]

DAY 3.2: A Belle smackdown at CRT!

I'm planning on doing my best to move this TR along since I've been terribly negligent lately and only have 3 weeks left until my Labor Day trip! Today we're finally moving on to our much anticipated CRT breakfast. Back in late June when I was gathering all of our ADRs, CRT was probably the ADR that we were all most excited for. Even my Dad opted to join us instead of going to play golf that morning, which was his usual modus operandi this trip. Ugh, what a waste of a 6-day park hopper!

I was so excited and sleepy that I forgot to take a pic of the CRT entrance! Anyway, we went inside immediately to a huge foyer where Cinderella was waiting for us. I was wearing my crown from DL (which is slightly too small for my head since it was manufactured for a child but who really cares?) and my family made me take a pic w/ Cinderella solo! My Mom took a pic w/ my camera as did a WDW photographer so I do have photos of this, but I am just downright refusing to post them as I look like I just rolled right out of bed (which I did). Cinderella exclaimed that my favorite color most certainly had to pink and I replied that her favorite most certainly had to be blue.

After the photoshoot, we ascended a spiral staircase to the dining room. I took a pic of this stained glass window we passed along the way:

And the view of the foyer down below w/ Cinderella:

We finally got up to the dining room and it was so very pretty! It had vaulted ceilings, a million chandeliers glowing orange, and a fabulous view of Fantasy Land. We were ushered to our table, which was on the far side in an elevated section against the wall. Here's our view:

Snow White arrived even before our food did. She wound up being pretty boring and simply came over and asked us if we wanted a photo. I find myself continually laughing at the resulting pic b/c her hand/arm was at a really weird angle!

A basket of pastries and croissants was then delivered along w/ a "wishing star" for each of us, magic wands for me, Heather, and my Mom, and a sword for my Dad. We all terminated our pastry basket before I remembered to snap a pic, but I made Heather model the wishing star:

Our meals arrived very quickly after that. The way it works in CRT is that they give you a menu made up of 3 or 4 dishes and you select one dish, then you can have your dish refilled as many times as you like. My Dad got the sausage/bacon/eggs combo:

And my Mom, Heather, and I all got the stuffed French toast w/ strawberries and bacon:

Pretty soon Ariel bustled over:

Ariel was extremely personable and asked us where we were from. After hearing that we were from San Diego she exclaimed: "Oh! Well that's a very long way to swim!" She then proceeded to ask us if we had any suggestions for her Christmas present for Eric. I suggested some new boots b/c his old ones were a little fishy or maybe a new snarfblat. "Ugh yes, he's always throwing those things into the ocean!" Ariel complained.

Ariel was followed by Aurora. I insisted that Heather be in this photo w/ me w/ her wand. Heather was being cranky as usual and didn't want to at first, but she couldn't very well make a scene in front of Aurora! Haha!

Aurora was funny b/c she just totally broke out of character during our conversation. I was thinking how it would be so much easier to play a character in a suit b/c then all you would have to do is wave and dance and give hugs and such.

I had read online that there was some special ceremony that took place about every 30 minutes or so and that Cinderella and Prince Charming came out and danced in the center of the dining room followed by Suzie, Perla, and the Fairy Godmother. It wound up being called the "wishing ceremony" and all of the princesses and knights were instructed to brandish their wands and swords. It was pretty cute but not what I had expected; I filmed the whole thing and YouTubed it- check it out here:

CRT castle breakfast; the wishing ceremony!

My sister was obviously quite agitated that her wishing star was refusing to be magical. I thought it was hilarious b/c even my Dad picked up his sword and participated in the ceremony!

Directly after the wishing was accomplished, Belle stopped by:

We all had a little chat but the only thing that stuck was what I like to call the Belle smackdown. Towards the end of the conversation Belle noticed my crown and exclaimed: "Oh my! Well you're a little past the spindle pricking age, aren't you!" HAHA! Why thank you, Belle. Thank you. I had no idea what on earth to say to that so we just had our picture taken. Maybe next time we dine in the castle I'll wear my Nemo hat!

As we were finishing our meals our waitress appeared and delivered our complimentary portrait in a special pink CRT cardboard album:

Inside was our "royal invitation":

The photo was the one I had taken earlier w/ Cinderella in the foyer. I refuse to zoom in on this photo any further! Honestly in all of my CRT pictures it looks like not only did I just roll out of bed, but like I'm 6'2" and training for the Olympics. The princesses were just the shortest things ever! There was also a nice pic of the exterior of Cinderella Castle along w/ Jaq-Jaq, Gus-Gus, Suzie, and Perla dancing on the bottom:

Before we made our royal exit we insisted that our waitress take our photo while flourishing our wands and sword:

I took this on our way out:

All in all, we had a REALLY fabulous time breakfasting at CRT. As far as we're concerned, you can't go wrong w/ any type of breakfast food, so we enjoyed our meals and cleaned our plates. I was convinced I was going to wind up being a pig in CRT since I am usually ravenous at breakfast buffets but our stuffed French toasts were super rich and filling so I wound up not ordering a second helping. I would recommend splurging on CRT at least once- I've actually already made us another CRT breakfast ADR for next December! My parents requested it, surprisingly enough!!!

By the time we were finished w/ breakfast it was about 10am. I was crazed b/c I had a special mission I needed to accomplish that I had been looking forward to for absolute months. I was ready to bust out of the castle and just do this! What was this special mission and would I be successful??? It's coming up in the next post!

See ya real soon!

 

[amazingact21]

That sounds like a great breakfast. I've never been to CRT before, and I felt a little silly trying to get a reservation for just DF and myself, but seeing your whole family there makes me want to go.
And I don't know what Belle was talking about, you're never too old to wear a crown at WDW!
Looking forward to seeing what your mission is!

 

[axpo23]

I love this! I had previously ruled out CRT bc of the expense (we prob won't be doing a dining plan and I have two little boys who could care less about princesses...) but based on pics, this may be back in the running. Maybe my daughter and I could have a girls breakfast while the boys go do something manly like shoot something...although, they would like the swords...


off to watch the video..

 

[conan]

I really liked all of the CRT pictures- it's something you don't see very frequently! I'm definitely considering making an ADR there for our next trip. And omg, Belle was so out of line!

 

[magichusky]

That sounds like a great breakfast. I've never been to CRT before, and I felt a little silly trying to get a reservation for just DF and myself, but seeing your whole family there makes me want to go.

Haha you should totally go! I'm totally surprising my BF w/ an Akershus breakfast when we go over Labor Day weekend. Just bring a crazy Disney headpiece and have a photoshoot!

And I don't know what Belle was talking about, you're never too old to wear a crown at WDW!

Haha seriously! I was horrified!

I love this! I had previously ruled out CRT bc of the expense (we prob won't be doing a dining plan and I have two little boys who could care less about princesses...) but based on pics, this may be back in the running. Maybe my daughter and I could have a girls breakfast while the boys go do something manly like shoot something...although, they would like the swords...

I think they'd all love it so much! It is quite expensive but well worth it to do it once- your daughter would adore it b/c all of the kids were able to interact w/ the princesses quite a bit. Even my Dad insisted upon joining us!

I really liked all of the CRT pictures- it's something you don't see very frequently! I'm definitely considering making an ADR there for our next trip. And omg, Belle was so out of line!

Yes- I wish I could go to CRT again in September w/ my BF but had to settle on Akershus since it's a bit less expensive. I'm truly still laughing about that Belle comment!

 

[magichusky]

DAY 3.3: Welcum to Florida! Love, Tom and Huck

Hello again friends! I'm trying to maintain my momentum and keep up w/ the updates! I've been helping my parents clean out the garage and I tell you, if I have to squeeze into one more corner filled w/ dried out spider carcasses I am going to scream!

Anyway, last time we had finished eating breakfast at CRT and Belle basically told me that I was far too old to be wearing a crown. I of course heartily disagreed and continued to prance around the MK while proudly sporting my crown for the rest of the day.

We all descended the spiral staircase (it was far more crowded on the stairs and in the lobby than it was when we arrived) and somewhere along the way my Dad and I lost my Mom and Heather (this will become a theme as the trip progresses) who apparently had gone to the restroom. I remember my Dad and I waiting in front of Sir Mickey's for them to emerge from the castle for what seemed like 15 minutes! I took this pic to distract myself from the ensuing cold. The castle was looking very non-Florida-ey today:

They finally appeared and we gave my Dad all of the wands, wishing stars, sword, and CRT paraphernalia to take w/ him back to SoG (it was seriously like 5 lbs of stuff). He was headed to play golf for the day and then meet us for dinner later. After my Dad left, I was practically bouncing up and down to explore the rest of the MK, plus I had a special mission that I had been planning for simply months- but we had to hurry b/c it was already approaching 10am! Enough of all of this standing around!!

We headed past Peter Pan and I instructed everyone to get FPs, since I absolutely refuse to wait in line for that thing but at the same time insist upon riding it constantly. There are no FPs for PP in DL so it's almost impossible to get on w/out waiting in a line that seems to be perpetually 45 min long. Anyway, I was stoked b/c we received free, bonus Philharmagic FPs! My Mom almost didn't see hers- I've never gotten a bonus FP before!!!!

Anyway, we were still on a mission so we hightailed it out of Fantasy Land, but of course not without me flipping out and yelling to everyone about how different it all was from DL. Don't hate me but I feel like some parts of Fantasy Land at DL are cuter than its WDW counterpart.

So where were we heading in such a rush? Here's a hint: we passed Splash along the way:

Pretty soon we could see our destination:

Tom Sawyer Island!! I'm a huge Mark Twain fan and absolutely adore The Adventures of Tom Sawyer but that wasn't why I was screaming over there w/ my crown flying off of my head. I read on the DIS a long time ago that every morning, a CM would hide a few paintbrushes on the island and if you found one you'd get free FPs. However, there were only about 5-6 paintbrushes hidden each day and they would usually not be re-hidden. I read that the island opened by around 10am every morning, so we were definitely cutting it close, since it was around 9:55am or so and I wanted to be on that first raft!

However when we were within eyesight of the loading dock, it was already bustling w/ other guests- it seemed as if TS island had opened early that morning! We raced to the dock so we could hop onto the raft that was just about to leave and I immediately started drilling the CM about the paintbrushes. "So. Are the paintbrushes out this morning??" I asked cryptically. I was horrified when the CM informed me that they had all been found except for one! We all got super excited and started strategizing- which way should we go first? As our raft neared the island, I was enraged (well not crazy angry, maybe more deflated) to see a teenage girl standing at the dock waving a bright red paintbrush in the air. Our entire corner of the raft let out a collective wistful sigh and the CM told me better luck next time!

I was so revved up about dashing from cave to cave and combing the island for the sole unfound paintbrush that once we finally got to the dock I had no idea what to do. So I resigned myself to a fairly leisurely pace and we went left!

Welcum!!! I was SOOO excited about the advertised "Zhakey Bridgez!!"

Here's Heather modeling this fabulous windmill:

Unfortunately this bridge was pretty solid and not "shakey" in the least bit:

Looking back towards Fantasy Land:

Entering Fort Langhorn. We were seriously the only ones in the entire place! Naturally, I loved being in such solitude while ensconced in the #1 tourist destination in the entire world.

There was this great stable that you could peer into w/ a bunch of animatronic horses, cowboys, a dog, and chickens. I LOVE crazy, random stuff like this, which is why I LOVE Disney:

I probably stood there for about 5 min b/c I was so amused by the situation. All of a sudden, Heather disappeared into a narrow cave! And like, totally didn't come back. My Mom and I were pretty confused. I eventually ran into the cave after her and discovered this secret passageway to the other side of the island:

I went back through the secret tunnel to retrieve my Mom and we went around the long way, since my Mom refused to travel through such an uncertain, dank passage.

View of BTMR!

Eventually, making our way back around to the other side of the island and passing the HM (shudder!), we finally found a good old fashioned "shakey" bridge! I was delighted and raced onto the barrel bridge, followed by my hilariously trepidatious Mom and sister. I then proceeded to jump all over the place and bounce everybody around!

Heather disappearing around the corner of the half white-washed fence:

On our way back to the dock, we passed Harper's Mill. I totally forgot to look inside- apparently there's a bird nest wedged into one of the gears, just like in that old Silly Symphonies episode.

I don't recall how long we spent on TS Island but it probably a good 25 minutes to half hour. Even though I didn't get a chance to race for a paintbrush, I adored wandering around in solitude and clambering through the assorted secret tunnels and caves (it was pretty darn tight in some of those though- so be forewarned!). The island at DL is still officially called TS Island but has been recently tweaked to look more like a ghost pirate island w/ partially sunken ships and buried treasure and such, so I was thrilled to enjoy some good old fashioned un-Johnny Depp-ified Tom & Huck. If you've never been to this great place, then I highly recommend it- especially early in the morning when it's totally deserted. There's nothing worse than a traffic jam in a claustrophobic secret tunnel. Kindergartners don't really get the concept of traffic flow.

NEXT TIME: A ride that incessantly horrifies me but my sister insisted, and a ride that drives my Mom and Heather crazy but I insisted!

 

[magichusky]

TANGENT #4: Party Like It's 1996

Hello everyone! I'm hard at work on another segment of DAY 3; in the meantime I hope you enjoy my fourth random tangent!

First order of business, I purchased a Tables in Wonderland card! It was $75 since I have an AP, but it will no doubt go beyond paying for itself once it's all said and done. The card gets me a 20% discount on the bill for 90% of restaurants at WDW and I believe 100% of sit-down restaurants (including CRT and all character dining!). It works for me and up to 9 other people! After getting burned by a ginormous Le Cellier bill back in April (I couldn't even order the mushroom filet b/c they jacked the price up to like $45 since December!), I knew something had to be done!

Second order of business, I ordered a new park bag off of Amazon. After touring WDW twice, I've realized that my park bags I enjoy using at DL are not as efficient for my 15 hour days at WDW! I rotated between 2 park bags: (1) a mini Puma backpack, which was too small for all the stuff I needed at WDW, plus it was annoying to be constantly shifting the bag from the back to the front whenever I needed something or had to extract a FP. (2) A hot pink plaid Mickey Mouse tote bag, which had no interior compartments so everything kept getting jumbled around and it was hard to find stuff quickly. It also hurt my shoulder after a few hours.

I decided to look for a crossbody bag w/ interior compartments to avoid the problems I encountered w/ my DL bags. The Dooney & Bourke Disney crossbody bags were too small, the strap looked like it was too thin, and it was too expensive! So I eventually found this "Moped Day Pack" by "Lug Life." For some reason, "ocean teal" was almost $20 less than the other colors, so I did the unthinkable and passed up the hot pink version!

I got the bag in the mail today (btw funny story: it was Fedexed and apparently had to be signed for. It arrived at 11:15am but I was of course sound asleep, so instead of leaving a "sorry we missed you" post-it as usual, the Fedex guy had my neighbors across the hall sign for it and left it w/ them! He left a post-it on my door with the "neighbor" box checked off. I don't know my neighbors, who are elderly and don't come out very often, so I was pretty perplexed. I knocked on their door and the husband opened it a crack so I could only see one eye and he peered out. "Hi! Uh, did you sign for a package this morning...?" He shoved the package through the crack and slammed the door in my face! "Golly, well thanks! Sorry to bother (SLAM) you!" HAHA! I'll be sending all of my packages to my parents' house from now on, thank you very much!

Anyway, the bag is perfect but the color isn't quite what I expected. It's more of a green teal than a blue teal, and I'm not a huge fan of green, and it's darker than I'd like. I'm more of an electric blue/hot pink kind of crazy! I tried to take pics but it once again doesn't look like its true color.

I was on the edge earlier and was thinking about returning it and just getting the pink one, but I hate going to the post office and don't feel like spending another $20 exclusively for a particular color. Can't wait to try out this baby during my Labor Day trip!

And the last order of business: care for a 1996 flashback?? I was at a used bookstore the other day and found this completely amazing WDW guide book from 1996. The photos inside were SO perfectly 90's and hilarious that I couldn't resist posting a few of them here. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

Love the beach photo- flesh eating bacteria and all:

Nice laptop!

Do you guys remember America Online?? I love how when you look at old advertisements they spell out the entire URL, like http://www.thisisold.com instead of thisisnew.com!

What a room! Wish I could enjoy some good old 1996 pricing; standard rooms at the GF are listed at $265 - $365, concierge rooms listed at $470! You could stay at the Poly for as little as $200 a night.

What a great tip. Like I'd need to "disorient [myself] further by looking UP into the towering void before the shaft opens to a window on the park."

This is from that old "Wonders of Life" "mostly whimsical pavilion devoted to health and fitness concerns" that closed many years ago. Never got a chance to experience such an amazing pavilion!

Love the special illustrative emphasis on the American Pavilion that has been added to this map of the world showcase!

My dear AK! You were but a dream:

My personal favorite! This was in a section talking about the DVC:

I would love to drive up to the GF in such a grand, suave fashion:

Well, that's it for now! I hope you thoroughly enjoyed our blast from the past- the 90's was a truly special decade that is very dear to my heart. See ya real soon!

NEXT TIME: A ride that incessantly horrifies me but my sister insisted, and a ride that drives my Mom and Heather crazy but I insisted!

 

[axpo23]

Ok...these pictures CRACK me up. Seriously! I graduated high school in 1996 (ack! Showing my age here..) and I don't know ANY ONE that wore high jeans like that with the crazy belt buckles. Where were the grunge kids that wanted to be like Eddie Vedder and Kurt Cobain? Didn't they go to WDW? LOL.

 

[amazingact21]

Those pictures are hilarious!!! I got a good laugh at all the clothes and hairstyles, not to mention Micjey and Minnie's outfits in that one picture by the pool.

Tom Sawyer Island sounds like so much fun! I've never been before, but you're the second TR I've read that people have had a great time at it.
And I had no idea that they gave surprise FPs! That had to be a nice surprise!

 

[Eight]

Wow, I feel like it's been way too long since I commented! I've kind of been on a DIS hiatus, and now I need to catch up on everything! (and update my own TR.. )

Totally crossing my fingers that you get a callback for the Amazing Race - how awesome would that be? That's one of my favorite shows! As much as I would want to be on it, I would do so badly. I don't do well under stress haha. Aah, I really hope you get a callback!

I can not believe that Belle! Ugh, that's lame. I really want to go on a rant here, but I'll refrain. She had no right, man, no right.

Okay, you know what's weird? When my mom and I went to CRT in January, we were at a table next to a window except there were curtains over the window, and when I tried to look out, they told me there were no windows and the curtains were just for decoration. But in your pictures, there are very clearly windows that look out. Can someone explain this?

I've never been to Tom Sawyer Island at WDW but it looks kind of fun. Maybe I'll have to make a point of going over there next time.

I love the 1996 guide! That's so awesome. I love old Disney photos.

So, how incredibly excited are you for your Labor Day trip?

 

[VBsHustla]

What great updates! CRT sounds pretty awesome. I love the wands, but what I really need is one of those swords. There's nothing I love more than crossing swords! That Belle sounds highly ridiculous, but at least Ariel was amusing! I'm afraid to go to CRT, though, because I hate having to speak to characters who aren't hidden beneath giant costumed heads and who have the ability to speak back. It looks really awesome, though. The MK photos are putting me in a Christmasy mood. I'll have to pop in The Santa Clause immediately!

I love the pics of that barn with the dog and horses on the Tom Sawyer island! So cute! I'm afraid to go there in the summer/fall months, though. I'm pretty sure bugs would be on the attack! You'll have to let me know if you brave it this trip!

Also, that bag looks completely different in this photo! Haha how odd. Well, it looks like the perfect thing to carry around there, so hopefully it's working out well! I love that crazy book, too. I'm especially loving that ridiculous Mickey golf cart that the one guy is sitting in and creepily observing that other guy playing golf. And obviously I can't get enough of that Muppets 3D picture! Plus all of those outfits! What a find that book was!

 

[magichusky]

Ok...these pictures CRACK me up. Seriously! I graduated high school in 1996 (ack! Showing my age here..) and I don't know ANY ONE that wore high jeans like that with the crazy belt buckles. Where were the grunge kids that wanted to be like Eddie Vedder and Kurt Cobain? Didn't they go to WDW? LOL.

HAHA fashion was just so great in the 90's! My sister graduated from HS in 96 as well and I clearly recall her participating in simply beautiful trends including the oversized flannel shirts, denim overalls, and jean shorts. You and your pals must've been ahead of your time!

Those pictures are hilarious!!! I got a good laugh at all the clothes and hairstyles, not to mention Micjey and Minnie's outfits in that one picture by the pool.

They really are! I really need to watch that old Full House WDW episode immediately!

Tom Sawyer Island sounds like so much fun! I've never been before, but you're the second TR I've read that people have had a great time at it.
And I had no idea that they gave surprise FPs! That had to be a nice surprise!

It's so awesome! Only in the morning though of course b/c you don't want to be jammed into those caves and trails w/ 50 million small children! I still didn't manage to get a paintbrush when I went back in April or over Labor Day weekend and it's driving me crazy!

Totally crossing my fingers that you get a callback for the Amazing Race - how awesome would that be? That's one of my favorite shows! As much as I would want to be on it, I would do so badly. I don't do well under stress haha. Aah, I really hope you get a callback!

Ugh still haven't heard back! I love that that's also your fav show! I want to be on that show so bad that I can't even stand it!! I don't think anyone could predict how they would handle such a crazy situation. I'd of course like to think that I would blast the competition away but just b/c I'm overeducated doesn't mean that I'd be a whiz at navigating the streets of India or climbing the Matterhorn! (I was STOKED that they actually went to the REAL Matterhorn!!!!)

I can not believe that Belle! Ugh, that's lame. I really want to go on a rant here, but I'll refrain. She had no right, man, no right.

HAHA seriously! I wasn't offended at the time but when I told various friends about it weeks later they were horrified and I was like oh, I guess that was slightly offensive, huh?

Okay, you know what's weird? When my mom and I went to CRT in January, we were at a table next to a window except there were curtains over the window, and when I tried to look out, they told me there were no windows and the curtains were just for decoration. But in your pictures, there are very clearly windows that look out. Can someone explain this?

That's so funny! I would've been so confused! There definitely are real windows in CRT that look out towards the carousel but they're only on that one side. You can't look out towards Main Street, for example. However I recall seeing that the backside of Cinderella's Castle was at some point during this year under construction, so the CRT windows were blocked off. Maybe that was when you were there?

So, how incredibly excited are you for your Labor Day trip?

Dude, it was SO awesome! I seriously cannot believe that until December, I had never had the honor of visiting WDW and now I've been there 3 times within 1 year! Crazy! That place is darn hot in September though- I was so offended. Definitely prefer that 30 degree weather any day!

 

[magichusky]

What great updates! CRT sounds pretty awesome. I love the wands, but what I really need is one of those swords. There's nothing I love more than crossing swords! That Belle sounds highly ridiculous, but at least Ariel was amusing!

OMG well I'll have to get you an extra sword when we go back to CRT in December! My Dad even enjoyed brandishing that thing around a little, and he's such an incurable grump usually! Haha thanks to Belle, I am seriously not wearing my crown next time we eat there. Ariel was pretty hilarious- the CRT Ariel was much more amusing than the one at Akershus.

I'm afraid to go to CRT, though, because I hate having to speak to characters who aren't hidden beneath giant costumed heads and who have the ability to speak back. It looks really awesome, though.

I don't blame you- it is pretty strange! I would prefer just going to CRT and eating uninterrupted. I feel like it's totally reasonable to eat at CRT since you're obviously just there for the ambience. I wound up feeling like a total nerd at Akershus though b/c the food was mediocre and there wasn't anything particularly interesting about the inside of the restaurant. They totally seated us in the reject section w/ a bunch of empty tables, two other couples in their twenties, and a family of adults. I was snickering about it pretty much the whole time.

The MK photos are putting me in a Christmasy mood. I'll have to pop in The Santa Clause immediately!

I've really been needing to watch "To Grandmother's House We Go" lately! I can't even tell you how excited I am for Halloween when I get to watch my annual screening of "Double Double Toil and Trouble." It's the highlight of the Fall season!

I love the pics of that barn with the dog and horses on the Tom Sawyer island! So cute! I'm afraid to go there in the summer/fall months, though. I'm pretty sure bugs would be on the attack! You'll have to let me know if you brave it this trip!

We never managed to get over there! We didn't do any rope drops this time around so by the time we got into the MK, the island was infested w/ obnoxious small children. Plus it was SOOO hot that I couldn't imagine walking through those stuffy caves and little buildings! Speaking of bugs, we sat at the edge of the Poly beach one night for like 10 minutes to watch the fireworks and were attacked! I had two huge bites on my ankle that took seriously like 2 weeks to heal. Gross!

Also, that bag looks completely different in this photo! Haha how odd. Well, it looks like the perfect thing to carry around there, so hopefully it's working out well!

Haha the bag actually wasn't as great as I thought it would be! The strap wound up being a bit uncomfortable b/c it kept getting twisted around and it would make the bag fall at a weird angle. If it wasn't for the weird strap though, the bag would be perfect. I really think the perfect Disney bag is no bag. We went to the MK one night and didn't bring anything w/ us- Matt carried our passes and a $20 bill in his pocket and we just chilled out. It was so liberating! I'm trying to figure out how I can do that all the time but I fear it may not be possible during the day!

I love that crazy book, too. I'm especially loving that ridiculous Mickey golf cart that the one guy is sitting in and creepily observing that other guy playing golf. And obviously I can't get enough of that Muppets 3D picture! Plus all of those outfits! What a find that book was!

They don't use those AMAZING Mickey golf carts anymore but as we were walking out of SoG one night, we totally saw one through the window of the clubhouse for the adjacent golf course. It looked like it was on display or something! What a classic piece of Disney history.

 

[magichusky]

TANGENT 5: Back from my Labor Day trip! A few pics.

Hey there, friends!! I've finally emerged from my Disney coma enough to post another update. As you know, I traveled to WDW over Labor Day weekend to see the dear BF, who lives nearby. We stayed at SoG for $78 a night for 5 nights and had an absolute blast. It was HOT HOT HOT though! When my plane landed at MCO around 10pm, the windows instantly fogged up b/c it was so humid outside.

I've never actually experienced humidity like that before so I was seriously exerting energy a lot of the time to refrain from whining about it. It was reasonable at night, but there was one day at DHS during which we were positively boiling! It was so hot that we only went on TOT once!

We also discovered two things that we had never done before but insist upon doing every time from now on: (1) miniature golf and (2) the outlet stores! We played the fairways at Fantasia Gardens and it was one of the most hilarious and amusing things we did surprisingly enough! The outlet stores were equally as amusing b/c the place was absolutely exploding w/ tourists visiting from overseas. Those people were snapping up bags and bags of stuff like there was no tomorrow! I have truly never seen such a violent case of mall insanity in my entire life. The Adidas store was so crowded that I couldn't even really look at anything, and it was WAAAY more crowded than WDW. I always manage to find something though (my Mom and sister, who are both clotheshorses always make fun of me b/c I'm not terribly into clothes but whenever I go shopping w/ them they always come up w/ nil and I always find something perfect!) and I found a pair of pink Puma ballet shoes and a pink paisley Tigger and Eeyore from the Disney outlet store. I had seen them in the Pooh gift shop at MK back in April and just loved them, but they were $25 each. I even took a pic at the time:

The Eeyore is even cuter and has pink and blue ribbons for his mane. Anyway, I wanted to get a Tigger for my niece, Baby Lily, and my almost-here-niece, Baby Avery, who is due in November. At the outlet store, I found the same stuffed animals for $14 each! I was so excited and got a Tigger and Eeyore to bring to Lily and Avery for when my Mom, sister, and I travel to Texas for Baby Avery's arrival in November. I guess Baby Lily can pick whichever one she wants and the remaining animal will be for Baby Avery. Haha I can't figure out which one she'll pick!

I haven't decided if I took enough photos to do an entirely new TR, but for now here a few of my fav pics:

It was a relief to get back home where it doesn't feel like I'm walking around in a steam room (I actually required a jacket today) but it's so sad that dear BF has to be so far away!

After it was all said and done, we saved a total of $54.85 w/ my Tables in Wonderland card and $26.19 on regular AP discounts, for a total of $81.04! I only paid $286 extra on top of my DL Premium AP for my golden Premier Passport so this is really turning out to have been such a great idea!

NEXT POST: back to day 3 from December 2010 in the MK!

 

[magichusky]

DAY 3.4: I Insist!

So last time we had raced over to Tom Sawyer Island after our CRT breakfast; we weren't fast enough to find a paintbrush but had a great time exploring the island. We decided to double back to Fantasy Land and use our FPs for Peter Pan and Mickey's Philharmagic before the usual Peter Pan insanity ensued. Unfortunately, we had gotten a terrific view of the HM during our island celebration, and crazy Heather being the creeptastic, zombie lover that she is (how is it possible that I share DNA w/ this character??), INSISTED upon going into the HM on our way to see Peter.

On our way to that looming mansion:

An equivalent view at DL:

My Mom made us pose w/ the stocks in Frontierland b/c the stocks were for some reason the only thing she remembers from her one and only other trip to the MK back in 1972. I'll have to see if I can find those old pics and post some of them! Unfortunately I couldn't get my head through the whole thing b/c my crown got in the way, plus there was this crazy kid who randomly posed with us! Excuse me!

Shudder!!!

The new queue was under construction at the time but I got to see it when I went earlier this month and took a few pics. I was quite offended b/c the HM at WDW apparently does not have a special holiday version like the one in DL. I pretty much only find it even slightly acceptable to enter the DL HM during the holidays since it's a wee bit more whimsical and not as disturbing in that state.

The DL HM decorated for the holidays:

The one difference between the two that I did like was the staircase room at the beginning of the WDW HM- it reminded me of Harry Potter's Hogwarts and the Winchester Mystery House (I've actually visited the Winchester House and yes, there's totally a staircase inside that leads to nowhere!).

Just for fun, the real Winchester Mystery House:

After Heather had her fill of hauntedness, we ran back over to Peter Pan and used our FPs. We pretty much walked on. Our FPs prob saved us about 15 min:

I LOVED the little tee-pee village at the entrance to the ride:

I enjoyed observing all of the differences between the MK and DL. The Fantasy Land architecture was no exception. I decided that I liked the DL Fantasy Land better- it really looks like it's from an old, worn out storybook. The WDW equivalent looks too new and polished. Plus the WDW FL is laid out strangely; I'm sure it'll look fabulous once that new Princess castle area is finished though! Can't wait to get my paws on an ADR for the future Beauty & the Beast restaurant!

WDW:

The same area in DL:

As revenge for Heather making me go in that terrifying HM, I insisted that she and my Mom accompany me to a Small World:

Once again, I found the DL version to be far more appealing. Additionally, the train at DL travels right through the Small World facade, directly over the boats as they sail into the building; waving to train passengers from the boats and vice-versa is such a delight!

Back to Florida:

Well, Heather and my Mom wound up surviving 15 min of "It's a Small World After All!!" without any lasting effects. So when it was all said and done, Heather and I were even! Now it was time for my Mom to select a destination!

See ya real soon!

 

[Eight]

So glad to hear you had a great time on the Labor Day trip!!
I've never done mini golf or the outlet stores, though based on your description, I'm not sure I want to go to the outlet stores! Sounds crazy! Though the paisley Tigger is absolutely adorable, and I kind of want one now even though I'm not even a fan of Winnie the Pooh. I would love to see other characters done in that style, or with other interesting fabrics.

I love the 101 Dalmatians pumpkin, it's way too cute. You don't see those little dalmatians much around the park, so I'm glad they at least got a pumpkin.

Man, the humidity is something else. It does feel like you're walking around in a steam room! My friend and I made so many jokes about that in June.

I'm kind of surprised you don't like the Haunted Mansion. I hate the stretching room part because it always makes me feel claustrophobic (and one time when I was 12, we got stuck in there for a few minutes, and I freaked out), but I love the rest of it. And I especially love the holiday overlay.

Yeah, I like the architecture at Disneyland better as well. I love your pictures comparing them, it's funny how similar yet totally different they look.

P.S. What is this new ticker? You're going back at Halloween? Too awesome!