RobDoc
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Aug 14, 1998
- Messages
- 34,195
Our plane arrived at 2:50pm and we checked in with DME shortly after. We waited only a few minutes and boarded the DME bus with guests bound for OKW, POR/POFQ and FW. OKW was to be the first stop.
On the way, it became increasingly apparent that our DME driver was making his first DME trip - possibly his first time at WDW at all. As we approached WDW he opted to stay in the middle lane as we approached the Crossroads area and he thus entirely missed the left turn onto WDW property. He went to the next stop and made a left turn and then announced he "could continue on this road, but was making a U-turn so we could experience the usual route into WDW." We made the U and headed back towards SSR. Passing SSR, he missed the left turn onto DCV Drive and continued on thru a very scenic route past the WDW warehouses - finally admitting he was lost. He then got out a map and proceeded to turn back onto 535 (where we had made the U-turn). Eventually he made his way onto Vista way, past more WDW storage facilities until we neared the back entrance to PO. I made my way to the front of the bus and directed him to the drive to the check-in area at POR where he missed the bus lane and got stuck behind some delivery trucks. He eventually made it to the Lobby stop and offloaded 3 families. Next he opted to leave the PO area and get back onto the roadway towards POFQ where he finally negotiated the turns to the lobby area. Again, I directed him towards OKW where he offloaded us at the WDW bus stop instead of the arrival stop. (He was properly scolded by one of the Bell staff.) He refused a tip when we finally got off the bus, telling me he couldn't accept that because of the way he got us there. Hopefully he found his way to FW for the remaining guests onboard. Our scenic route added about 30 minutes to the trip - but we still arrived safely. We left Indiana this morning with a temp of 38 - it was 84 in Orlando at arrival.
We'll really miss the snow flurries and 28 degrees tonite, but I'm sure we'll have a chance to catch up on those hometown features when we return.
At check-in, we were greeted with a Welcome Home and got our room assignment in building 62- thrid floor!
. Our requests had been non-smoking, upper floor and Peninsular Road (I've never requested the "new" buildings). Our room is great, 1BR, top floor (with elevator access) with a great view of the lake towards Bldg 22 and unobstructed view of Illuminations. This is our 63rd (I think) week at OKW since 1993 and we have never stayed in Building 62 before. This is the building on the site of the former "Commodore House" which was the original DVC sales center.
Room is great, no problems. We went to Epcot and walked around WS- stopping at the New Zealand kiosk for a dinner of Scallops and Sea Salad and Lamd with appropriate wine pairing. We walked around WS and sampled a couple of other wines as enjoyed the British Invasion concert before heading back to OKW to stop at Conch Flats store for some essential provisions.
Tomorrow we will catch the DVC preview of Nemo at Epcot and we have a reservation for the "Call of the Wild" dinner at Le Cellier. We have several other F&W options scheduled, plans to enjoy the Beach Boys, Little Richard and 3 Dog Night at Epcot, Innovations in Action tour and dinners at California Grille and Narcoosee's as well as a number of the F&W kiosks.
I'll try to report more as the week goes on.
All is well!
On the way, it became increasingly apparent that our DME driver was making his first DME trip - possibly his first time at WDW at all. As we approached WDW he opted to stay in the middle lane as we approached the Crossroads area and he thus entirely missed the left turn onto WDW property. He went to the next stop and made a left turn and then announced he "could continue on this road, but was making a U-turn so we could experience the usual route into WDW." We made the U and headed back towards SSR. Passing SSR, he missed the left turn onto DCV Drive and continued on thru a very scenic route past the WDW warehouses - finally admitting he was lost. He then got out a map and proceeded to turn back onto 535 (where we had made the U-turn). Eventually he made his way onto Vista way, past more WDW storage facilities until we neared the back entrance to PO. I made my way to the front of the bus and directed him to the drive to the check-in area at POR where he missed the bus lane and got stuck behind some delivery trucks. He eventually made it to the Lobby stop and offloaded 3 families. Next he opted to leave the PO area and get back onto the roadway towards POFQ where he finally negotiated the turns to the lobby area. Again, I directed him towards OKW where he offloaded us at the WDW bus stop instead of the arrival stop. (He was properly scolded by one of the Bell staff.) He refused a tip when we finally got off the bus, telling me he couldn't accept that because of the way he got us there. Hopefully he found his way to FW for the remaining guests onboard. Our scenic route added about 30 minutes to the trip - but we still arrived safely. We left Indiana this morning with a temp of 38 - it was 84 in Orlando at arrival.
We'll really miss the snow flurries and 28 degrees tonite, but I'm sure we'll have a chance to catch up on those hometown features when we return.At check-in, we were greeted with a Welcome Home and got our room assignment in building 62- thrid floor!
. Our requests had been non-smoking, upper floor and Peninsular Road (I've never requested the "new" buildings). Our room is great, 1BR, top floor (with elevator access) with a great view of the lake towards Bldg 22 and unobstructed view of Illuminations. This is our 63rd (I think) week at OKW since 1993 and we have never stayed in Building 62 before. This is the building on the site of the former "Commodore House" which was the original DVC sales center.Room is great, no problems. We went to Epcot and walked around WS- stopping at the New Zealand kiosk for a dinner of Scallops and Sea Salad and Lamd with appropriate wine pairing. We walked around WS and sampled a couple of other wines as enjoyed the British Invasion concert before heading back to OKW to stop at Conch Flats store for some essential provisions.
Tomorrow we will catch the DVC preview of Nemo at Epcot and we have a reservation for the "Call of the Wild" dinner at Le Cellier. We have several other F&W options scheduled, plans to enjoy the Beach Boys, Little Richard and 3 Dog Night at Epcot, Innovations in Action tour and dinners at California Grille and Narcoosee's as well as a number of the F&W kiosks.
I'll try to report more as the week goes on.
All is well!
.
