Just Go With It, a May 2014 Trip Report - UPDATED 6/26 FINAL PART

[PrincessInOz]

Wow Compshu. Your description of your reenlistment ceremony brought tears to my eyes - and I'm not even American! Congratulations and thank you for your service.

Sounds like you had a great day at Epcot despite the rudeness of one guest.

That's an amazing spot for Illuminations. I'm going to have to try and experience watching that show from that spot at least once.

 

[prettylittlelady]

That is a terrible picture of me..

 

[jlbmomof5]

Enjoying your TR Looking forward to next installment. I had FP+ to Enchanted Tales with Belle. Looking at what you wrote made me re-think that since we have mostly boys traveling (teens/adults). I think we should skip it this trip. Do you agree? Also thanks for the heads up on ability to add FP after using ours. Very helpful!

 

[PrincessInOz]

That is a terrible picture of me..

Not possible. Your Dis name is 'prettylittlelady'. Dis names NEVER lie.

 

[compshu]

Wow Compshu. Your description of your reenlistment ceremony brought tears to my eyes - and I'm not even American! Congratulations and thank you for your service.

Sounds like you had a great day at Epcot despite the rudeness of one guest.

That's an amazing spot for Illuminations. I'm going to have to try and experience watching that show from that spot at least once.

Thanks, it was a crazy idea that just happened to work out for us. I'm just glad that there were no issues with it.

That is a terrible picture of me..

Haha, Beverly face.

Enjoying your TR Looking forward to next installment. I had FP+ to Enchanted Tales with Belle. Looking at what you wrote made me re-think that since we have mostly boys traveling (teens/adults). I think we should skip it this trip. Do you agree? Also thanks for the heads up on ability to add FP after using ours. Very helpful!

Thanks for following along. I think that if you enjoy the story of Beauty and the Beast it is good to check out once. I wouldn't wait in a long queue for it, but if you have a FP+, I'd keep it. They do select people of all ages to play a role, so one or more of your party can be involved which might make it a little more fun for everyone. Plus, they did such a great job with the Wardrobe and Lumiere so I think it is worth it to check those out.

 

[Disney Commando]

Your ceremony has to be one of the Coolest things that I've ever seen at WDW

Thank You for continued service, it's families like yours that make this Country Great

 

[shan23877]

What an incredible idea you had for your reenlistment ceremony! I appreciate you sharing the story and photos!

Sounds like a fun, full day at Epcot! I can't believe that Malestrom had a 30 minute wait, but Test track was 10!

 

[prettylittlelady]

Not possible. Your Dis name is 'prettylittlelady'. Dis names NEVER lie.

Thanks..I like the way you think!

Haha, Beverly face.

I win for best Beverly face, you

 

[GoofyIsAsGoofyDoes]

Howdy!
Mind if I join in?
Actually I‘ve been reading along for a bit now but decided that a comment was in order.

Thanks for sharing you Reenlistment ceremony with us and congratulation on devising a new way for working even more magic in the MK. I’m glad you were able to work out a way to conduct it while y’all were down there. I suspect that once word makes the rounds, you may be credited with creating a new trend. The story about folks wanting pictures with y’all in from of the Kingdom was also priceless..

Looking forward to the next chapter. Your family looks to be having one mighty fine time and I’ve also picked up a couple of interesting tips from you experiences. Carry on sir.

 

[compshu]

Your ceremony has to be one of the Coolest things that I've ever seen at WDW

Thank You for continued service, it's families like yours that make this Country Great

Thanks.

What an incredible idea you had for your reenlistment ceremony! I appreciate you sharing the story and photos!

Sounds like a fun, full day at Epcot! I can't believe that Malestrom had a 30 minute wait, but Test track was 10!

Thanks. We couldn't believe the wait times either. It was not a very busy week, but there were some questionable lines at times.

Howdy!
Mind if I join in?
Actually I‘ve been reading along for a bit now but decided that a comment was in order.

Thanks for sharing you Reenlistment ceremony with us and congratulation on devising a new way for working even more magic in the MK. I’m glad you were able to work out a way to conduct it while y’all were down there. I suspect that once word makes the rounds, you may be credited with creating a new trend. The story about folks wanting pictures with y’all in from of the Kingdom was also priceless..

Looking forward to the next chapter. Your family looks to be having one mighty fine time and I’ve also picked up a couple of interesting tips from you experiences. Carry on sir.

Thanks, welcome aboard. Glad I could help. More to come soon.

 

[compshu]

The next day was our Animal Kingdom day. On our last trip, we spent half a day at AK, part of the afternoon at Hollywood Studios, and then finished out the day at the Magic Kingdom. This time, we planned to spend an entire day at Animal Kingdom because we felt that we didn't give the park enough credit. So we scheduled dinner reservations at Tusker House and made FP+ selections for the entire day. We planned to do Expedition Everest, which is one of Lili's favorite rides, Kali River Rapids now that Gabe was tall enough, and Finding Nemo the Musical. We got to the park just in time for morning Extra Magic Hours. We got in and went straight for Asia. When we got over the bridge, we could see a line for EE that stretched all the way out through the street. We were worried because even though we had FP+ for the ride later that morning, we wanted to hop on it first thing and maybe ride it again at our FP+ time. Well, the good news was that the line wasn't really as long as we feared. The ride just had a delayed opening for some maintenance and testing, so Lili and I waited for it to open while Becky, Alexa, and Gabe waited.

We didn't have to wait too long for Expedition Everest to open. Lili and I decided to wait for the front row, because there were only about three sets of guests waiting ahead of us. A few minutes later and we were off on our train ride through the forbidden mountain pass. When we got off the ride, I asked Lili if she wanted to ride again, because the line was still virtually nonexistent. She decided that once was enough this time, and then we went to find everyone else.



We found them sitting nearby, and we all went over to DinoLand USA. I took the girls on Dinosaur, and they didn't really like it. After that, we rode TriceraTop Spin and made our way over to Africa. As we were walking, we decided that we weren't going to stay at AK all day, so we stopped at Tusker House. Eddie was the Cast Member working at the check in booth that morning. I asked him if it would be possible to switch our reservations from dinner to breakfast. He said that miracles can happen, and then proceeded to cancel our dinner reservations, waiving the fee, and getting us a table for breakfast. We parked the stroller, had our picture taken, and went in to eat.



I had forgotten that Tusker House is a character meal at breakfast. The kids loved seeing everyone in their safari gear.



They also loved the "Jungle Juice" which to them will always be POG juice. We filled up on breakfast, and I logged into the My Disney Experience app to change our FP+ selections to Hollywood Studios. We decided to head over there and do some of the things we wanted to do before going back on Friday, because we weren't sure how busy the park would get for Star Wars Weekends.

During breakfast, we had gotten word that my grandfather was in the hospital and that they were running some tests on him because he had abnormally high white blood cell counts. When we were done eating, I called my grandmother to check in. She told me that they weren't sure what was wrong but that it wasn't his heart which was good news. I got to talk to him, and he sounded like himself, which was good. We got off the line just as the doctor was coming back in, and went to go find Pocahontas. We weren't able to meet Pocahontas on our last trip because she was "in the village" during her scheduled meet and greet time. This time, we caught her. The kids got their books signed and their pictures taken, and we started making our way out of the park.



On our way out, we stopped for a photo in front of the Tree of Life. Last time, our ToL photos never made it to our PhotoPass account, they were lost in cyberspace. Lo and behold, the same thing happened this time too. Unlike September, however, the photos were found and added to our Memory Maker after a phone call.

We got on the bus to Hollywood Studios, and we got the word from my grandmother that my grandfather would be okay and that it seems as though he only has a case of bronchitis. So that was very reassuring. We made it to Hollywood Studios and got a photo in front of the Sorcerer Mickey topiary.



After getting our picture, we went into the park. We headed for Star Tours, and stopped by the ABC Sound Studio to catch the Maleficent preview. Alexa loves villains, and Maleficent is her favorite because she can turn into a dragon. The preview was pretty short, and most of it was the same footage seen in the trailer, but it does look like a good movie, and we can't wait to see the whole thing. When the preview was over, I took the girls on Star Tours, while Becky took Gabe over to Muppet Vision 3D, and also got a picture on the speeder bike. There was a twenty minute posted wait time, but the girls and I walked right on. We didn't get Darth Vader this time. The Dark Lord of the Sith is another of Alexa's favorites, so we decided to go again, and walked back on. The second time, not only did we get Darth Vader, but Lili was also called out as the rebel spy. They were very excited about that, and talked about it for the rest of the day. We all got speeder bike pictures, and then went over towards Sunset Blvd, stopping in the Streets of America for a snack.



We got over to Rock 'n' Roller Coaster in time for my FP+. Unfortunately, none of the kids are tall enough for this one, so I went on by myself. When that was done, we walked over to Tower of Terror. Alexa wanted to ride this last trip, but she chickened out right as we got to the loading area. This time, it was as though she had to go on it as a personal achievement, so I took her and Lili. They both said they liked it, but only Alexa said she would do it again. This was the moment in the trip where she realized that she liked thrill rides. I think it was because she had faced her fears from last time, and came out just fine.

We got some photos taken in front of the ominous hotel, and then went over to find some of the characters at the Magic of Disney Animation. We met with Ralph & Vanellope, Sorcerer Mickey, and Mr. Incredible & Frozone.




After that, we decided that it would be a good idea to head back to the resort for a little rest and to get some laundry done. We spent about two hours in the room resting while waiting for the laundry to dry, which took much longer than we expected. It was good to get a little break though. When the clothes were dry (enough) we laid out some of the heavier garments that were still a little damp, turned the fan on, and headed out to the Magic Kingdom.

After grabbing some treats at the Main St Confectionary, we navigated through the parade crowds to get to Adventureland. I stopped by the FP+ kiosk at the Jungle Cruise, and made a FP+ for Space Mountain for later that night. I wasn't really sure if I would use it or not, but I wanted to confirm the park hopping option was working, since we had three FP+ selections at DHS earlier that day. Once the selection was made, we got on the Jungle Cruise. After admiring the Eighth Wonder of the World (the backside of water), I took the girls on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Alexa loved it, and her and I would wind up riding it a few more times by the end of the trip. Lili said it was too rough for her liking.

We rode a few more rides, and then made our way back to the resort to end the night. Since we had not used our quick service credits for that day, we decided that we would take the next morning a little slower and grab some breakfast at POR. We set the alarm for a little later than the past few days, and got some sleep. We had a full day at the Magic Kingdom ahead, with some DisDad meetups and Disneybounding.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Nice hopping!

I love EE, so you won't have any trouble convincing me of going on it.

Great job in swapping your night ADR to a morning ADR without being charged for it. Looks like your kids really enjoyed themselves there. POG juice???

Love the character M&G pictures.

Looking forward to seeing which DisDads you met with.

 

[compshu]

POG Juice:



It is very big out here, and is the same juice they serve at Tusker House and O'hana. I think I read that there are a few other places at WDW that have it too. You can get it in slush form at Taco Bell here too.

I almost didn't include the Pocahontas pic because I was having trouble finding one that had everyone looking at the camera and smiling.

As for the M&G, I will keep you in suspense, although there is a big clue on the first page in one of the comments...

 

[PrincessInOz]

Thanks for clearing up POG for me. We don't have that particular brand here. I'll have to take a closer look at what juice varieties are in the supermarkets.

I think I can guess who one of the Dads are.....looking forward to seeing the pics.

 

[compshu]

I think POG refers to the type of juice (Passion, Orange, Guava). There's a bunch of different brands here. I think it is a Hawaii thing (or at least a tropical thing) because I had never heard of it before we got out here, and they serve it everywhere, especially in the touristy areas.

 

[amazingact21]

I know it's already been said by other DISers, but I still have to chime in that coordinating your reenlistment in Disney World is one of the coolest things ever. Such a unique idea. I was looking at some of the guests' faces in the background of your pictures, and while I know you were right next to the characters, I think a lot of them were watching your ceremony. It had to be so fascinating for someone who has no military affliation whatsoever to see such a thing.



Glad you were able to switch your Tusker House dinner to a breakfast. AK is great, but I agree, it's really only a half day park. Maybe once they finish Avatarland and add that nighttime show it'll be worth staying at longer.


Good to know about the IllumiNations FP viewing location. That picture of the globe does look incredibly close.



Ugh, Disney dryers are the worst. Nothing ever gets dry in them.

 

[USAFdad]

Hello I'm joining in for the ride. I wish that I had, had the brilliant idea to reenlist at the Magic Kingdom. That is pretty awesome. Maybe if I am still stationed here next time I should try.

 

[compshu]

Welcome aboard. It is definitely a cool place to have a reenlistment or even award or promotion ceremony.

Next part of the report coming up later today!!

 

[compshu]

The next morning, we took things very slowly. After taking our time getting ready for the day, including taking some pictures in the room with Becky in her new Minnie Mouse dress, we went to grab some breakfast.



After we had eaten, we were going to catch the bus to the Magic Kingdom from the South Depot bus stop. For those that are familiar with Port Orleans Resort: Riverside, the South Depot is the "main" stop, right by the lobby. Well, today, this stop was packed, and we watched as full Magic Kingdom busses came by. So we decided to walk back to "our" stop, the West Depot. This stop is right by our lodge, and was usually the first stop. It took a little bit of walking, but we were able to get onto an empty bus.

By the time we got to the Magic Kingdom, we had enough time to ride a couple rides before grabbing some lunch at Columbia Harbour House. After lunch, we were going to catch a ride on the Liberty Belle, but the Cast Member there told us that we probably wouldn't make it to our Festival of Fantasy FP+ if we went then, so we made our way to the reserved spot for the parade. It was pretty hot while we were waiting, so we had to make sure we were staying hydrated. The parade began, and we realized just how nice the FP+ spot was. The parade went right in front of us. We were so close, that Elsa pointed out Lili's shirt, much to her delight. The walking characters came up to us and interacted with the kids. Minnie also noticed Becky's dress and pointed it out.








When the parade was over, we made our way through the castle to get to Under the Sea. We might have had an easier time going through Tomorrowland, because of all of the people also trying to navigate their way through the castle. There was only one of the castle ramps open at the time, and there seemed to be two way traffic set up to cross, with people going up staying to the right and going down staying to the left. Well, it turns out that if you are pushing a stroller you are in the way, and people feel the need to shove themselves around you. I'm pretty sure that I ran over a few people's feet as they shoved by. I wasn't doing it on purpose, it was just very hard to maneuver around all of those people, and some cut in front of me so closely that they essentially ran themselves over. We finally made it through the castle, and the path opened up. Funny thing is, we all made it to the top around the same time, proving that there was no need to push through the crowd.

We made our way over to the Little Mermaid area and waited for USAFDad for our planned meet. We tried to set up our FP+ around the same time as theirs, with the plan that we would all ride Under the Sea together, but unfortunately their FP+ had expired before they got there. We still had enough time for a little chat and a picture, and then we got on our ride.




When that was done, we decided to hop on the monorail to go to our dinner reservation at the Wave...of American Flavors. When we got to the top of the ramp, I overheard a Cast Member telling a guest in a wheelchair that the elevator was out of order at the Contemporary, and he suggested that they take the bus over. Well, I assumed that meant that we would also need to find alternate transportation, and we figured we could walk over there. It was very hot, and we were running out of time, so we decided to risk it and took the monorail. When we got to the Contemporary, we found out that the issues they were having with the elevator was resolved, and we went downstairs for our reservation.

Our dinner at the Wave was okay, but I don't think that we would do it next time. It wasn't horrible, and we might do it again, but it certainly wasn't an every time place for us. When we were done with dinner, we walked back to the Magic Kingdom. Becky went to go meet with Minnie Mouse in her dress, while I took the kids to the Enchanted Tiki Room.



After Becky was done, I took Alexa on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and everyone else went to Dumbo. When we got off the ride, we made our way over to the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor to meet back up with everyone else. We found a table along the construction wall, and had some dessert. After that, we rode a couple more things and then went back to the resort for some sleep. It was another great day, and we were ready to see what Epcot had in store for us.

 

[PrincessInOz]

That's a lovely Minnie dress. Looks great on your DW. See? Disnames NEVER lie.


Nice picture of you and USAFDad. Love when DisMeets happen. Shame that you couldn't get on the ride together.

That's a great spot for the FP+ parade.