Moose & Goose- The 5th anniversary is the Dis Trip Anniversary- Baby Update #2 5/1

[jedijill]

OMG, for little dogs, dachshunds can take up a whole bed! Mine likes to sleep in the middle of my queen bed too.

Jill in CO

 

[mmeb144]

However- the DH snores... BADLY. And when he snores really bad to the point where it wakes me up and I can't sleep, I usually go sleep in the guest room... but because I couldn't do that here, I was worried about what would happen during our trip. Would I get any sleep at all? We were in bed by 10:30 and Moose was out like a light! I have trouble falling asleep at night and almost always end up watching an hour or more of tv before I fall asleep.

Would I get any sleep tonight? Would I be too tired to make it through my ride list?

Tune in next time to find out!

Thanks for reading along!
See ya real soon!

My DH snores amazingly well. So loud that you can hear him across the house with all the doors closed. After one WDW vacation, I banned him from accompanying us on the next overnight trip because of the snoring. That was a bit harsh on my part, but in my defense, I got so sick on that trip. Who wants to be sick at Disney? Anyway, we tried having him propped up on a wedge pillow, which seems to help the snoring because he doesn't sleep very well on an angle. Everyone else sleeps fine. He does get some sleep, eventually. It keeps the rest of my family from killing him. He is willing to sacrifice.

I figure that you make it through your ride list the next day because it's still possible to function if you've only lost one night of sleep.

Can't wait to find out what really happened. I'm glad your DH looks happier.

 

[smidgy]

so did you get your mug replaced cause of the broken lid? I hope so!!!

the king bed we had at roayal pacific was huge!!! nebo was practically on another continent.

now we usually get 2 queen beds on vacation.. and use both.... I know...hey! I like to sleep. so I turn on the radio on the night stand in the middle, and leave it between stations, really loud. so I hear the static, not nebo. but the problem of NOT being in the same bed is you can't do the "accidental" jiggle" of the bed.. the "oops, sorry" bump, and all the other things wives do to .. SHUT THEIR HUSBANDS UP!!!!(sorry, got a mite vociferous there)

now I find out you can ask for a box fan.. I use onne at home, just turn it to blow at the closet.

did you read what I did at pop century this last trip? I dragged 2 pillows and a blanket out to the bowling pin pool about midnight and slept there for a few hours. it was either that or become a widow (oh and spend the rest of my life behind bars)...

 

[emmysmommy]

Hi Rebecca! I've enjoyed your PTR/TR! Happy belated 5th anniversary!

He said "you know... we could probably add another day AT THE END OF OUR TRIP!"

Clearly your husband loves you!

Adorable and I love the tee!

I AM taking orders- since we are driving... if you would like "Mickey" to send your child a postcard or if there's something small you'd like me to get and send to you when we get back, let me know.
I'll see what I can do.

That was very kind of you!

My Welcome to Florida! I'm happy to be out of the car!

I love your "Minnie" nails!

FINALLY WE SAW THIS BEAUTIFUL THING!

You know what that means! VACATION HAS OFFICIALLY STARTED!

I completely agree!!

A few weeks before we went, we made "bucket lists" of things- specifically in Disney we wanted to do. The closer we got to the trip and the more things I read about that we could do, the longer my list got. And honestly, even though we were able to check somethings off- my list has grown since we got back from our trip! For instance- I still haven't tried the carrot cake cookie. So much Disney stuff to do- so little time to do it all in! (If you care to read it, I'll post my post-trip Disney bucket list at the end of the report.)

My Disney bucket list? (pre-trip)
1. Stay the night in Cinderella's Castle
2. The Tomorrowland Terrace Dessert party
3. Try to do EVERY ride in the Magic Kingdom in 1 day.
4. Stay at AKL with a Savanna view
5. Stay at POR room with the fireworks in the headboard.
6. Go to WDW in December to see the Osborne lights & MVMCP.
7. Do the "Pirate tour"- with Captain Hook
8. Eat mini-corndogs at Casey's.
9. The luau at the Poly
10. Tea time at the Grand Floridian
11. Behind the scenes tour
12. Kiss Mickey's nose


Moose's bucket list?
1. Stay in Cinderellas Castle
2. Go to Disney, just the two of us. (check!)
3. Drink our way around the world (at least one drink in every country in World Showcase).

Great lists! We have some in common. I'm looking forward to seeing how you did!

And, as you can see, someone made themselves at home, while I was checking things out and taking pictures.

Oh my gosh, my hubby does the same thing!

However, we got to the pool and decided... lets stop at the pool side bar! I had the pina colava... it's pina colada with raspberry in it... very good! But the slushy pina colada was SUPER cold so I didn't drink it very fast. Moose had a blue moonshine.

Are we any more alike? A Pina Colava was my new favorite cocktail this summer!!!

However- the DH snores... BADLY. And when he snores really bad to the point where it wakes me up and I can't sleep, I usually go sleep in the guest room... but because I couldn't do that here, I was worried about what would happen during our trip. Would I get any sleep at all? We were in bed by 10:30 and Moose was out like a light! I have trouble falling asleep at night and almost always end up watching an hour or more of tv before I fall asleep.

Yep, I'm married to a snorer who drives me to the guest room at times as well!

I'm looking forward to reading all about your trip!

 

[jedijill]

did you read what I did at pop century this last trip? I dragged 2 pillows and a blanket out to the bowling pin pool about midnight and slept there for a few hours. it was either that or become a widow (oh and spend the rest of my life behind bars)...

A jury of your peers wouldn't have convicted you...it would be a justifiable homicide.

Jill in CO

 

[Self_resqing_princz]

My DH snores amazingly well. So loud that you can hear him across the house with all the doors closed. After one WDW vacation, I banned him from accompanying us on the next overnight trip because of the snoring. Anyway, we tried having him propped up on a wedge pillow, which seems to help the snoring because he doesn't sleep very well on an angle. Everyone else sleeps fine. He does get some sleep, eventually. It keeps the rest of my family from killing him. He is willing to sacrifice.
Can't wait to find out what really happened. I'm glad your DH looks happier.

I'm glad to know I'm not alone in the snoring husband department. I may have to see if I can find him one of those pillows.

so did you get your mug replaced cause of the broken lid? I hope so!!!

Actually, I didn't... it's just a small part of the lid that's broken... so I left it.

now we usually get 2 queen beds on vacation.. and use both.... I know...hey!

We got 2 queens later in the trip at WL and we used both! I feel ya!

I like to sleep. so I turn on the radio on the night stand in the middle, and leave it between stations, really loud. so I hear the static, not nebo.
I don't know that I'd be able to sleep with that noise.... I'm a light sleeper.

but the problem of NOT being in the same bed is you can't do the "accidental" jiggle" of the bed.. the "oops, sorry" bump, and all the other things wives do to .. SHUT THEIR HUSBANDS UP!!!!(sorry, got a mite vociferous there)

I may or may not be guilty of that at home....

now I find out you can ask for a box fan.. I use onne at home, just turn it to blow at the closet.

I do that.

did you read what I did at pop century this last trip? I dragged 2 pillows and a blanket out to the bowling pin pool about midnight and slept there for a few hours. it was either that or become a widow (oh and spend the rest of my life behind bars)...

I did read that... and that actually popped into my head as I was falling asleep worrying about him snoring and keeping me up. I thought... I brought my sleep mask with me... I could sleep outside.

Hi Rebecca! I've enjoyed your PTR/TR! Happy belated 5th anniversary!
Thank you! I'm glad you joined us!


Clearly your husband loves you!
Yes! Evident from him letting me add a day!


Adorable and I love the tee!
He wasn't a fan.... The longest he had it one was so I could kiss his snout because I thought he was adorable in it.... and he had it off less than a minute later.


I love your "Minnie" nails!
Thank you- home done.

Great lists! We have some in common. I'm looking forward to seeing how you did!
Like I said, I have a new... and longer list since we came back... I added tea time because of your last TR!

Are we any more alike? A Pina Colava was my new favorite cocktail this summer!!!
They are good stuff!


Yep, I'm married to a snorer who drives me to the guest room at times as well!


I'm looking forward to reading all about your trip!

Glad you're here with us!

 

[pkondz]

This is going to be a pretty short update... but I doubt Sunday will be short. So... without further adu... a dew... a do?! Where's Nebo when I need him?!

I'm sorry, Nebo can't come to the TR right now. Meanwhile, here's a dew

After we got settled in our room, we decided to go to the main building to go back to the QS dining hall, the Riverside Mill.

Ha! I was right!

Where's my prize?

Our first thing to do was to get our refillable mugs. Moose's had the "rapid refill" label on his

I wasn't aware of the rapid refill mugs, so I googled it. If anyone else is wondering, here's a pretty good explanation: Rapid Refill Cups

(And my lid was broken but I didn't realize that until we were half way done with dinner. It still worked but upset me that it was already broken.

That bites. Did you replace it?

I had the BBQ chicken sandwich, which was pretty good. It comes on Texas toast and has coleslaw on it (vinegar based- I add this because I know to some people that's a big deal what the base is... at least to my mom it matters... but she's not on here.)

Your mother's right. Vinegar is where it's at, baby!

We went to fill up our mugs and the rapid refill machines weren't working. One of the screens was black, one was stuck on "fill complete" and the machines on the other side just said "rapid refill" but didn't seem to do anything. The coke fill stations worked independently of the rapid refill machines... which was good... but it was just kind of a hassle because people kept trying push the rapid refill buttons and then would either just fill it up or walk away-- but nearly all of them had to play with the buttons first- which took longer for everyone to get their drinks. Hiccups already.

That sounds like fun.... not!

I had a list of things that people had asked me to bring back for them: A nurse Minnie pin for my nurse friend, an R2D2 with Mickey ears for my co-worker, a new antenna topper for one of my producers and some postcards to send to friends & family

That's nice of you.
'cause when I travel, I only think of myself. It's all about me!

Me! Me! Me! Me!


(too much?)

.... and then of course stuff for me!

See? You get it!

I walked around and eventually found myself at the pin wall.

I also got a Mickey pen (yes PEN) for myself.

If this was a Nebo TR, we'd still be wondering what you got.

Someone is SUPER excited to be sitting in the heat and humidity while I talk on the phone!

It's the people in the background, right?

However, we got to the pool and decided... lets stop at the pool side bar! I had the pina colava... it's pina colada with raspberry in it... very good! But the slushy pina colada was SUPER cold so I didn't drink it very fast. Moose had a blue moonshine.

Nope. pkondz does not do coconut, so no pina colada's for me!

But what's in a blue moonshine?

And then he had a Yuenglings (because we can't get that at home and it's one of his favorites- which I didn't get a picture of).... and then a run and coke. He was READY to start vacation.

We thanked the bar tender and Moose decided to charge all of our drinks to the room..... (also a common theme through the trip).

dun, dun, dun, duuuuuuunnnnnnn!!!!!

We went back to the room, showered and got into bed. Going from a queen size bed at home that we share with a dachshund (where he likes to sleep so we form a letter H)... to a king size bed with just the two of us, felt like we had half a continent to ourselves! It was awesome!

I like your description.

Would I get any sleep tonight? Would I be too tired to make it through my ride list?

Tune in next time to find out!

Thanks for reading along!
See ya real soon!

Okay! Thanks for the post!

 

[MEK]

Yay! You've arrived. I love your room. I think its really pretty. The rooms looked very different the last time I stayed there. What a pretty resort. It is spread out, but in a good way. Everything connects really well.

Friends of mine just got back from the first trip to POR and they loved. They already booked the bounce back.

 

[Self_resqing_princz]

When we last left the stars of the show, they were going to sleep to prep for their big day.
....Or at least hoping to get rested up for said event.

We went to bed by 11:15 p.m. and I woke up around 3:15. Why? Because the room was quiet... SO quiet, it woke me up! No snoring... I thought there might be something wrong... or maybe he got up and I didn't notice. Nope... he was laying next to me... (well, like 4 feet away... because like I said- KING sized bed!)... anyway-- I actually checked to make sure he was breathing because he WASN'T snoring! He was breathing... so, I lightly said his name and he didn't answer, so he must have been asleep.

Being satisfied with the fact that my husband was in fact sleeping... un soundly... I rolled over and went back to sleep myself. Yay for no snoring!

Then, at 8:07, I was awoken by birds chirping and piano music... my lovely cell phone alarm.. it has to be the most peaceful alarm I've EVER heard! I LOVE it!

We were up, dressed, slathered in sunscreen and out the door and at the bus stop by 8:22. Sadly, we got to the bus stop just as a bus for the MK was pulling away... completely packed.

We waited... I wish I was kidding... 30 minutes for a bus! 30 MINUTES! Yeah... no way we were going to see the opening ceremony & rope drop at 9 a.m.. I was nearly in tears when the bus finally pulled up... we found seats closest to the back doors so we could get off an run for the gates. No pixie dust this morning. We stopped at one other bus stop and we were two of maybe 10 people on the bus.

We pulled up to the MK bus stop, booked it to the gates and got to the bag check just as the fireworks at the end of the opening ceremony were going off.... and the front area was emptying. The train had already pulled away... I missed everything. What a rotten way to start your first day! I was hoping this was not a sign of things to come. I checked the clock at the front gates... 9:02

If we were going to do EVERY ride in the MK, my plan was to start in Adventureland and work our way clockwise around the park. We stopped quickly to get a picture taken in front of the castle and then took a left at Casey's and took the little path to the bridge to Adventureland. As we were about to go under the sign for Adventureland, my husband, being the LOTR fan, yelled pretty loudly "I'm going on an Adventure-- land ride!"

SIGH! What a dork! But that's my husband and I love him!

We were on our way to our first ride....

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN! It was a walk on which was great AND we got front row... SCORE! And, they've updated this again since we were there last... Blackbeard is now in the misty waterfall... last time we rode it was Davy Jones. And they added the skeleton of a mermaid in the beach scene.
Weirdly though, at the part where you go down the little like 5 foot drop, for whatever reason, we got REALLY wet! Not front row of Splash Mountain wet... but still, wet enough.

Since this was not only our first ride of the day but also of the trip... of course we get stuck! In the room where the city is on fire and they sing "A Pirates Life for me". We weren't stuck long though. Maybe 2 or 3 minutes...

Then, I wanted to go on BTMRR and Splash before the lines got too long.. it was still Labor Day weekend... this morning wasn't too crowded, though. We talked it over and DH said even though it was hot, he didn't want to walk around wet all day.... so, we decided to leave that for the very end.... good idea or bad?

So, we decided to go see New Fantasyland! Although I was excited, I was a little hesitant to skip through the park and walk right by so many rides with shorter lines....


But, we hadn't seen Fantasyland since they put everything in... there was a big annoying crane in all of our castle pictures in 2010... NOT THIS TIME!
On the way to NF we saw something else that was new... some interesting bathrooms..




Then we decided since we were over near there, to grab fast passes for Peter Pan because it was already a 40 minute wait!

Then I saw these beauties!

(As you can see from the back of DH's shirt, it was already REALLY hot out!)

Construction on the mine ride was in full force today! I feel sorry for those guys in long pants and hard hats... I saw a guy with a welder's mask on later that day and felt SO bad for him! That must be so uncomfortably hot!


And... we passed Be Our Guest... which as you can see, already had a line for it to open for lunch... and it was just now 10 a.m.!


The sign:

Something I thought was really nice was that they had the menu at the entrance of the bridge, to get to the front doors... and they also had a little room there where CMs were helping people with questions and reservations. Which they said lunch was first come, first served, so we thought we'd try back later.... we weren't about to wait in a line to eat-- when it wasn't even open yet!

So, we headed to Gaston's for the first time and because Moose told me he wanted a drink, I went and got a seat. I found one in the corner of the main tavern room- with Gaston's big chair and the fireplace. I gotta say, I thought it was a lot bigger from other people's pictures. It's MUCH smaller than I thought it was.
outside:


Inside... the view from our table:


If I were to lean back in my chair and look into the room next to me, I'd be looking at the lines to order food.

Speaking of which... Moose came back with something I didn't intend on....


HOLY COW! I gotta say... this thing was HUGE! It was LITERALLY the size of half a loaf of bread. And... as far as taste... it was dry. It was cinnamon-y... is that word? It is now.
My biggest qualm about the cinnamon roll? It didn't have enough icing on it... and it was just dry. I'm a huge fan of icing and honestly, anything with sugar in or on it. But, as far as the cinnamon roll goes, size does not make up for lack of flavor. However... as you can see... that didn't really deter us from eating THE... WHOLE.... THING... I guess we were hungry.


Before we left, we decided to check out the rest of Gaston's.


From our table, if you're looking at the fireplace, to the left there is a small separate room that contains 1 large round table. It looks like it could seat about 10 people.... Speaking of seating, I've noticed that there's usually as many tables as they can fit in ALL of the eateries- no space is NOT utilized in order to get people in to eat. That is NOT the case at Gaston's. There were I think 7 tables in the main eating room... and only 4 more in the room on the opposite side. And there was room for at least 2 small tables for 2 people, in the main room... I think. Anyway- weird rant over.
This is the chandelier in the little off-chute room with the 1 big round table.


And Moose saw on the menu something he said we HAD to come back for later.... the Roasted Pork Shank. (thank you Dis Food blog!)


I thought it was odd that New Fantasyland was not bursting with people... I'm not saying it wasn't crowded... but it wasn't shoulder to shoulder with people.

Since we're in New Fantasyland, what should we do now?
How about the Under The Sea Ride? OKAY!
So, we went to see what the wait was like... the wait sign out front said 10 minutes... SERIOUSLY!? How is it NOT like a 30-40 minute wait?! I'm not going to question it, I'm just going to get in line!

I've got several pictures of the queue and a little video of the Under The Sea room... but you'll have to wait until the next chapter to find out all about it!

Thanks for reading!
See ya real soon!

 

[pkondz]

We went to bed by 11:15 p.m. and I woke up around 3:15. Why? Because the room was quiet... SO quiet, it woke me up!

It's quiet... too quiet.... <cricket> <cricket> <cricket>
Suddenly, gunfire erupts!!!

"Save the women and children!"




sorry

Nope... he was laying next to me... (well, like 4 feet away... because like I said- KING sized bed!)

That brings up a bunch of thoughts.

1. "C'm'ere so I can kiss you goodnight."
"No, you come over here. I'm too comfy to move way over there."
"No, why don't you come this way, I'm all tucked in."
"No, ...." etc. etc.

2. Two people shouting at each other.
"WELL... GOODNIGHT!"
"WHAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU!"
"WHAT DID YOU SAY? MOVE CLOSER!"
"WHAT?" etc. etc.

3. "Well, it finally happened. I slept with Bob last night."
"Really! Marcia, I didn't think you would! ... So... What's he like?"
"I don't know, I haven't met him yet, he was so far away..."

... anyway-- I actually checked to make sure he was breathing because he WASN'T snoring! He was breathing... so, I lightly said his name and he didn't answer, so he must have been asleep.

I was so expecting the next line to be: "So I screamed his name... that worked. I slept well the rest of the nigt... him, not so much."

Then, at 8:07, I was awoken by birds chirping and piano music... my lovely cell phone alarm.. it has to be the most peaceful alarm I've EVER heard! I LOVE it!

Sounds like a nice alarm to sleep through.

We were up, dressed, slathered in sunscreen and out the door and at the bus stop by 8:22.

That's good. Because if you'd mixed up the order (We were up, slathered in sunscreen, out the door and then dressed) you either would have been arrested, or subjected to a lovely round of applause, depending on the audience.

Sadly, we got to the bus stop just as a bus for the MK was pulling away... completely packed.

We waited... I wish I was kidding... 30 minutes for a bus! 30 MINUTES!

I can't get worked up about that. Our transit system in our home town is so horrible that if you wait 30 minutes for a bus, you consider yourself fortunate that it was "only" 30 minutes.

I was nearly in tears when the bus finally pulled up.

There's no crying in Disneyworld!

We pulled up to the MK bus stop, booked it to the gates and got to the bag check just as the fireworks at the end of the opening ceremony were going off.... and the front area was emptying. The train had already pulled away... I missed everything. What a rotten way to start your first day! I was hoping this was not a sign of things to come. I checked the clock at the front gates... 9:02

Sorry your day didn't start well... but hey, look at the bright side. You're at Disney!

I'm at work!

As we were about to go under the sign for Adventureland, my husband, being the LOTR fan, yelled pretty loudly "I'm going on an Adventure-- land ride!"

SIGH! What a dork! But that's my husband and I love him!

Blackbeard is now in the misty waterfall...

I don't remember if anyone was in the misty waterfall... or if there was even a misty waterfall at all, last time we were there.

Weirdly though, at the part where you go down the little like 5 foot drop, for whatever reason, we got REALLY wet! Not front row of Splash Mountain wet... but still, wet enough.

I'd heard that happens occasionally. Guess it was just your turn.
Or maybe you just got on 'George's' wrong/right side that morning.

We talked it over and DH said even though it was hot, he didn't want to walk around wet all day.... so, we decided to leave that for the very end.... good idea or bad?

hmmmm.... if you're there late, late... then I'll say good... and bad.

good, because I think by late at night, the line won't be very long.
bad, because if it cools down, you'll be wet and cold all the way home.

On the way to NF we saw something else that was new... some interesting bathrooms..

Only a DISer gets excited about new bathrooms!

Then I saw these beauties!

Hmmmm.... well, I assume one of the beauties is Moose... so that just leaves the little kid to his left. Someone you know? Or just a generic cute kid?

(As you can see from the back of DH's shirt, it was already REALLY hot out!)

And if you hadn't said anything, I would've just assumed it was from POC.

Is that?... On his back... His shirt... Is that?....

nahhhhhh..... He only appears on burnt toast these days.

CMs were helping people with questions and reservations. Which they said lunch was first come, first served,

Really? No ADRs? I wonder if it's because it just opened?

I gotta say, I thought it was a lot bigger from other people's pictures. It's MUCH smaller than I thought it was.

Interesting observation.

If I were to lean back in my chair and look into the room next to me,

You'd fall over?

I'd be looking at the lines to order food.

oh.

HOLY COW! I gotta say... this thing was HUGE! It was LITERALLY the size of half a loaf of bread.

Figuratively, it was the size of a horse.

And... as far as taste... it was dry.

That's definitely not a good thing. I love cin buns... but they have to be moist, right?

It was cinnamon-y... is that word? It is now.

Of course it is.

size does not make up for lack of flavor. However... as you can see... that didn't really deter us from eating THE... WHOLE.... THING... I guess we were hungry.

And I love how you posted the empty plate pic to prove it!

And Moose saw on the menu something he said we HAD to come back for later.... the Roasted Pork Shank.

I'd try that. Looks good.

I've got several pictures of the queue and a little video of the Under The Sea room... but you'll have to wait until the next chapter to find out all about it!

Oh, you're such a tease!

Thanks for reading!
See ya real soon!

Thanks for the chapter!

 

[Self_resqing_princz]

Thanks for the break down. So much fun to read your chapter reviews!

 

[Self_resqing_princz]

For those who have been asking, NO.... I did NOT get my mug replaced. I thought, it's not badly broken and I'd rather get it than a child who may cut themselves on it. Yes, it's broken but it still works and it's not a huge deal... I'll just think of it as "character" for my mug. If I think about it, I'll try to remember to post a picture of the broken mug with my next update.

When we last left our fearless heroes: (insert hysterical laughter here)....
We were leaving our "breakfast" at Gaston's and had decided to go see Ariel's world... Under The Sea. This was our first time on the new ride and we were anxious to see what the new ride was like, firsthand. Of course I had read all about it on the Dis... but DH had not. He had no idea what to expect.


I love that there are little waterfalls in the outside part of the queue. There are also little star fish in the walls too... I'll post a picture of that in the next time we go Under the Sea. (sorry... I know... spoiler alert!)


When we passed Ariel on the front of the boat and walked into the inside part of the queue. If you haven't been in the new queue, the beginning part of the queue is outside... and then covered so you're out of the sun, but not technically inside yet, then you go through the doors that lead you to a room where Scuddle is and then you're actually inside.

Throughout the beginning the queue there are little coves you can peak into that have crabs in them and little trinkets. If you point at the trinket, the crab will grab the trinket and haul it away.
I tried to get a picture however the crabs and trinkets never showed up.... so.. here is a sign that tells you the rules... sorry it's blurry.

If you can't read it... it says:
Dear Friends, Help the crabs sort Scuttle's collection of human stuff into piles. If they bring out something that doesn't belong in the pile - point at it and they will take it to Scuttle. Thanks,

What was really cute was later Scuttle was in another room and did a cute little chat with those waiting in line... similar to that with Mr. Potato Head at TSM. Next to where Scuttle sits, though out his little conversation, the crabs will actually show up next to Scuttle and show him the items that you pointed at-- and they carry it to him. He names what they are... dingle hoppers and and what not.

In the room where you board your clam shell, there is a big mural on the wall with Ariel and friends.

The basis of the ride is that Scuttle is trying to tell you the story of Ariel and how she got to be a human and fall in love.


Ariel and Flounder: (at this point your shell is leaning back and this is actually on the ceiling.)


Ariel in her treasure trove:

something I love about this part is... in the little treasure box on the wall on the right, which you can't see in this picture sadly... Sebastian pops out of the box and spies on Ariel.

My favorite part of the ride is the Under The Sea room... here is a short video of the room... my favorite part? After you pass Ariel who seems to be conducting the music, is the fish butt-dancing with Flounder... poor Flounder! In a state of perpetual butt shaking.... which he has a terrible look on his face (but it's REALLY hard to see in the video).


Of course, after you go Under The Sea, you meet mean old Ursula who takes Ariel's voice.



And then... because you've all seen the movie.. you know Ariel then meets Prince Eric and he tries to "Kiss the Girl":

My favorite part about this room? You can't even see! In the trees there are lightning bugs that light up!


The next room? Honestly-- it's just a door way of them kissing and her singing... my favorite part of that room? I little paining on the wall, off to the side... I thought it was HILARIOUS!


In the last room, everyone is celebrating and happy that Ariel has legs and is with Prince Eric.

I love the LED fireworks on the back wall... very cool!

And then the happy couple waving Goodbye!


If you LOVE the Under The Sea ride and think it is perfect and you'd like to keep your rose colored glasses on, please skip down to the next real paragraph because my critique of the room begins here:


So... I'm not going to make this all sunshine and fireworks... because there are a few things I would like to see changed about this ride. Especially in the Under The Sea room... they direct your eyes were to go... if you look at the wall on the outside of the room- they are bare painted a green-ish color... BORING! They could have at least painted fish on them or something! If nothing else, maybe waves.
Second- I think they should add something hanging from the ceiling in there... there's a disco ball and lights up there... but.. okay... there could be more! Do like in it's a small world and just have fish hanging from the ceiling who look like they are dancing. You don't HAVE to take directly from the movie... you people are creative.
In the "transition" room- between the Under the Sea room and Ursula you've got Ursula's two giant Eels telling you Ursula is more powerful than Triton... in a black room... no seaweed... none of those little twisty people- into sea creature things- nothing.. just the two giant eels. Again.. boring. Give me more.
My last qualm- in the end where they are all celebrating... 1. They use the exact same Sebastian as in the Under The Sea room... why? Couldn't they get another one? Also, they have some purple slugs or whatever those things are that are dancing... you can see them spinning in the first picture of the celebration room- on the far right. And they have lobsters on the top ledge that are from the Under The Sea room too... why?! They have nothing to do with that scene...
Why don't they add some of Ariel's sisters in there waving good bye? Also, They should have the scene with her meeting him on the beach.. we skip that part and go right to them on the boat.
There are several things I think they can do to improve this ride. Don't get me wrong, I like it... I really like the Under The Sea room.. but I just want a little more. If you've got OCD, I don't think you'd be a fan of this ride... because unless you're looking at what they WANT you to look at, there isn't much to see... At least is most other rides, they do a good job of hiding the "white space"... like in pooh and Peter Pan... it's just blackness so you CAN'T see anything else... however, in IASW they OVERLOAD you on things to see... and where there is "white space" there's not much of it.


Sorry- rant over....

Moose and I both agreed it was a fun ride and that we would have to do it again before we left... which I completely agreed with because I missed so much of it while I was taking pictures and videos. I love capturing memories on film and video so I can share with family and friends once I get home.. but I also like to actually get to see what I'm there to see. When you're looking through the viewfinder it's harder to capture all of it and remember the great parts- that may be outside the frame.

On to the next ride... continuing in New Fantasyland, we decided to go to the new Dumbo. I'm going to be honest... I've only seen Dumbo maybe twice all the way through... when I was little the "Elephants on Parade" part scared the CRAP out of me and I'd either run to the other room or pull the tape out of the VCR so I didn't have to see it. However, now that I'm older and I actually own it on DVD, I've seen it a few times and the part where Mrs. Jumbo picks Dumbo up with her trunk just makes me cry. It's so sad and sweet... Oh Walt, how you know how to tug at the heart strings!

Also- I love the little touch in the pavement over by Dumbo with the peanuts and the animal foot prints in the pavement.
So, we tried out the new Dumbo ride. We only had to wait for the ride to end and then we were on! It was less than a 5 minute ride.


I love the inside play area for the kids... that's a great idea!


And the double Dumbos! Also another GREAT idea!
I had heard somewhere that they were originally going to put Dumbo under the big top... but I actually like it outside... it'd be nice to have one inside and one outside for inclement weather... but I like the new design.


Also, I really like the little fountains under the ride... very cute!

The one thing that I am sad about is that I wanted to ride this at night and never got back over there in the evening to ride it. But we did walk by it later on this day and it was all lit up. It was VERY pretty. I would love to ride it at night. I bet the lighted fountain adds even more to the ride experience.

The arch way on the way out of the ride... SUPER cute! I'm glad that they included Timothy... he's usually kind of forgotten about.

In between the two Dumbos, there is a Dumbo ride vehicle that sits in front of a circus facade and you can have your picture taken in him. Kind of cute. We didn't have our picture taken in it because there was about 6 families in line to have their children's pictures taken in it.

So... it's now about 10:45 a.m. We got to the park at 9:02 a.m.... but let's not bring that up again... I may break into tears again.
We've got: 3 rides marked off (Pirates, Under The Sea and Dumbo)... in less than 2 hours... not too terrible... but we're going to have to be able to keep this pace if we're going to get ALL the rides in the MK done in 1 day! The park was open from 9 a.m to 1 a.m... with extra magic hours from 1 a.m. to 3 a.m.
Can we do it?!
Probably not without a nap....
dun dun dun.......

Thanks for reading along!
See ya real soon!

 

[smidgy]

we liked the ride, it was "cute". I guess that's about it. I knwo my grandkids would love it (well kaylee and mason , 5 and 2.. not sure about jackson, just about 8)

we didn't eat at be our guest. I really wanted to use a CS credit there.. a great use of a CS credit. but we, too did the new fantasylnad in the morning, before beour guest was open.. we were over there later at night, but by that time it was table service.

 

[emmysmommy]

I had no idea about the crabs and Scuttle in the Little Mermaid ride queue. I will have to pay attention to that next time.

My favorite scene in the ride is when Ariel and Eric almost kiss in the boat. One interesting note for this ride in California, the original Ariel in the Under the Sea room had a swirly hair-do but it wasn't well received since it looked like soft serve so they changed it to the way you see it at MK.

Love the details for Dumbo including the peanuts in the concrete. I agree, riding at night is pretty awesome.

I'm anxious to see if you fit in everything in this loooong day. Are you planning on doing Tom Sawyer island too??

 

[MEK]

Sorry you missed the opening show. I know how frustrating that is because I tried to make it there myself in June. I got there, but I couldn't get through the gates to see anything. So frustrating! At least you made it to the park nice and early and you had a great morning so far.

I enjoyed your critique of LM. Definitely not a rant, just some honest feedback. I wish I could be that observant when I do a ride, but I really can't. I tend to see the whole pictures and no details.

I love that antler chandelier in Gaston's tavern. Really cool!

 

[Self_resqing_princz]

I had no idea about the crabs and Scuttle in the Little Mermaid ride queue. I will have to pay attention to that next time.

My favorite scene in the ride is when Ariel and Eric almost kiss in the boat. One interesting note for this ride in California, the original Ariel in the Under the Sea room had a swirly hair-do but it wasn't well received since it looked like soft serve so they changed it to the way you see it at MK.

Love the details for Dumbo including the peanuts in the concrete. I agree, riding at night is pretty awesome.

I'm anxious to see if you fit in everything in this loooong day. Are you planning on doing Tom Sawyer island too??

There are little port holes you can look into that are in the walls and if you look in them, you can see the CG crabs and items that they will take to Scuttle.

No, no Tom Sawyer Island... I've never done that before... and I don't know how to get onto the Island... odd.

Sorry you missed the opening show. I know how frustrating that is because I tried to make it there myself in June. I got there, but I couldn't get through the gates to see anything. So frustrating! At least you made it to the park nice and early and you had a great morning so far.

I enjoyed your critique of LM. Definitely not a rant, just some honest feedback. I wish I could be that observant when I do a ride, but I really can't. I tend to see the whole pictures and no details.

I love that antler chandelier in Gaston's tavern. Really cool!

The only reason I was so observant was because we ended up doing that ride somewhere between 5 & 7 times in a span of 3 days... so by about the 4th time, I was making myself look places I normally didn't.

 

[pkondz]

Haven't abandoned you! Just busy. I'll comment on your last update soon.

 

[pkondz]

For those who have been asking, NO.... I did NOT get my mug replaced.

Okay! Okay! You don't have to shout!

I thought, it's not badly broken and I'd rather get it than a child who may cut themselves on it. Yes, it's broken but it still works and it's not a huge deal... I'll just think of it as "character" for my mug. If I think about it, I'll try to remember to post a picture of the broken mug with my next update.

You should've returned it anyway. There's no way Disney would put a used, broken mug back into circulation.

Walmart? Definitely.
But Disney? No.

Unless you didn't return it 'cause it just wasn't worth the hassle.

When we last left our fearless heroes: (insert hysterical laughter here)....

Hysterical laughter? Oh, no. Not at all.
I totally believe you when you say you're fearless heroes.

Really.



Honest.

<snicker>

Disregard that last line.

I love that there are little waterfalls in the outside part of the queue. There are also little star fish in the walls too...

The star fish are IN THE WALLS!?!?!? OMG! Get them out!!

I'll post a picture of that in the next time we go Under the Sea. (sorry... I know... spoiler alert!)

That's it! I'm done!
There's no point in going on, now!


Oh, all right. Maybe I'll stick around just a little longer.

If you haven't been in the new queue, the beginning part of the queue is outside... and then covered so you're out of the sun, but not technically inside yet, then you go through the doors that lead you to a room where Scuddle is and then you're actually inside.

You just made a line sound complicated!

Throughout the beginning the queue there are little coves you can peak into that have crabs in them and little trinkets. If you point at the trinket, the crab will grab the trinket and haul it away.

What was really cute was later Scuttle was in another room and did a cute little chat with those waiting in line... similar to that with Mr. Potato Head at TSM. Next to where Scuttle sits, though out his little conversation, the crabs will actually show up next to Scuttle and show him the items that you pointed at-- and they carry it to him. He names what they are... dingle hoppers and and what not.

I like that! That's really cool!

something I love about this part is... in the little treasure box on the wall on the right, which you can't see in this picture sadly... Sebastian pops out of the box and spies on Ariel.

Gotta love the details.

My favorite part of the ride is the Under The Sea room... here is a short video of the room... my favorite part? After you pass Ariel who seems to be conducting the music, is the fish butt-dancing with Flounder... poor Flounder! In a state of perpetual butt shaking.... which he has a terrible look on his face (but it's REALLY hard to see in the video).

My favorite part is just after you see Ariel, near the end of the video, a little girl (?) cries out "Hi Ariel!"

My favorite part about this room? You can't even see! In the trees there are lightning bugs that light up!

Nice.

The next room? Honestly-- it's just a door way of them kissing and her singing... my favorite part of that room? I little paining on the wall, off to the side... I thought it was HILARIOUS!

Hilarious? I dunno... She looks pretty angry.

When Ruby's angry, I seldom find it hilarious.
Oh, I did... once.


Bad mistake.
Bad.

If you LOVE the Under The Sea ride and think it is perfect and you'd like to keep your rose colored glasses on, please skip down to the next real paragraph because my critique of the room begins here:

Not me.
I don't wear rose coloured glasses anymore.

I kept running red lights.

So... I'm not going to make this all sunshine and fireworks...

That's good. 'Cause fireworks are best when there isn't any sunshine.


Just sayin'...

Especially in the Under The Sea room... they direct your eyes were to go... if you look at the wall on the outside of the room- they are bare painted a green-ish color... BORING!

Disney exec: "What's with the bare wall?"
Imagineer: "Don't worry. We're directing their eyes somewhere else. That's the beauty of it! Nobody, and I mean nobody will ever see it!"

They could have at least painted fish on them or something!

I've heard of flying fish, but not painted fish. What do they look like?

Oh, nevermind. Found it on wiki:

The term painted fish refers to ornamental aquarium fish which have been artificially coloured to appeal to consumers. This artificial colouring, also known as juicing, is achieved by a number of methods, such as injecting the fish with a hypodermic syringe containing bright fluorescent colour dye, dipping the fish into a dye solution, or feeding the fish dyed food.

This process is usually done to make the fish a brighter colour and more attractive to consumers. The colouring of the fish is not permanent, and usually fades away in six to nine months.

That's terrible! You want Disney to inject some poor fish with dye every few months??

If nothing else, maybe waves.

I try not to make waves.

Second- I think they should add something hanging from the ceiling in there... there's a disco ball and lights up there... but.. okay... there could be more! Do like in it's a small world and just have fish hanging from the ceiling who look like they are dancing. You don't HAVE to take directly from the movie... you people are creative.
In the "transition" room- between the Under the Sea room and Ursula you've got Ursula's two giant Eels telling you Ursula is more powerful than Triton... in a black room... no seaweed... none of those little twisty people- into sea creature things- nothing.. just the two giant eels. Again.. boring. Give me more.

Two thoughts.
1. Could it be that since it's so new that it's not quite finished yet? Maybe more props will show up in the coming months/years?
2. I also wonder, if all this was noticed because it's so new? What's the ceiling like in other rides? Like Pooh, or PP?

And yes, I get that those are older rides, still...

My last qualm- in the end where they are all celebrating... 1. They use the exact same Sebastian as in the Under The Sea room... why? Couldn't they get another one?

They could. But he was booked at the Bellagio for two weeks.

Also, they have some purple slugs or whatever those things are that are dancing... you can see them spinning in the first picture of the celebration room- on the far right. And they have lobsters on the top ledge that are from the Under The Sea room too... why?! They have nothing to do with that scene...

What. Slugs can't be happy?
I've never known an unhappy slug.

Why don't they add some of Ariel's sisters in there waving good bye?

Backing up Sebastian at the Bellagio.

Also, They should have the scene with her meeting him on the beach.. we skip that part and go right to them on the boat.

I agree. That does sort of stick out as an oversight, doesn't it?

If you've got OCD, I don't think you'd be a fan of this ride...

Obsessively compulsed disneyholic?

Okay, I can see that.

like in pooh and Peter Pan... it's just blackness so you CAN'T see anything else...

Well.

That answers that question.

Sorry- rant over....

Don't apologize!
1. Sorry, but we have the copyright on apologizing up here in Canada.
2. I really enjoyed hearing your thoughts on the ride. Frankly I get a little tired of, as you put it, all the "sunshine and fireworks".

I love capturing memories on film and video so I can share with family and friends once I get home.. but I also like to actually get to see what I'm there to see.

On to the next ride... continuing in New Fantasyland, we decided to go to the new Dumbo. I'm going to be honest... I've only seen Dumbo maybe twice all the way through... when I was little the "Elephants on Parade" part scared the CRAP out of me and I'd either run to the other room or pull the tape out of the VCR so I didn't have to see it.

DD16 was the same when she was little.

So, we tried out the new Dumbo ride. We only had to wait for the ride to end and then we were on! It was less than a 5 minute ride.

Wow. It used to be if you weren't there first thing after rope drop, you had a loooong wait ahead of you.

The one thing that I am sad about is that I wanted to ride this at night and never got back over there in the evening to ride it. But we did walk by it later on this day and it was all lit up. It was VERY pretty.

Pics, later?

The arch way on the way out of the ride... SUPER cute! I'm glad that they included Timothy... he's usually kind of forgotten about.

Matter of fact, I forgot him too, until now.

In between the two Dumbos, there is a Dumbo ride vehicle that sits in front of a circus facade and you can have your picture taken in him. Kind of cute. We didn't have our picture taken in it because there was about 6 families in line to have their children's pictures taken in it.

You coulda just shoved 'em outta the way.
Kids are little, it would've been easy!


What?

Thanks for reading along!
See ya real soon!

Thanks for posting!

No, no Tom Sawyer Island... I've never done that before... and I don't know how to get onto the Island... odd.

Oh, that's easy.

 

[tinkerbell60]

You totally should have gotten your mug replaced!!!!!!!

 

[Self_resqing_princz]

Rocky & Bullwinkle Narrator: "When we last left Moose and Goose they had just gotten off the elephants and were trying to figure out what to mark off the list next."

Per some of your questions, "rides" that are NOT on my list... Hall of Presidents, Swiss Family Tree house or Tom Sawyer's Island... because to me none of those are rides.
And the ferry and the railroad are "transportation", again, not rides.
Sadly, even if we fit those in, we still weren't going to hit them all because Jungle Cruise was down for refurbishment.

So... count with me... there are 25 rides (not counting the aforementioned attractions) total in MK. (I'm starting in Adverntureland and working around clock wise)
Pirates, Tiki Room, Flying Carpets, Splash, BTMRR, Country bears, HM, IASW, Peter Pan, PhilharMagic, the Carousel, Under the Sea, Dumbo, Winnie The Pooh, Barnstormer, tea cups, Speedway, Astro Orbiter, Space Mtn, Stitch's great escape, people mover, Space ranger Spin, Laugh Floor and Carousel of Progress.

Okay, so... recap, rides completed?
Pirates, Under the Sea & Dumbo.
22 rides left

So, we decided to go see what the wait for Space Mountain was. However... it was completely down.


You know what this means right?!
Yup! People Mover!
Obligatory feet picture:


The Castle:


And of course, the whole point of doing People Mover when Space Mountain is down...
SPACE MOUNTAIN UNDER THE LIGHTS! I gotta say, I'm REALLY proud of this picture... I thought it turned out REALLY cool!


and yet another....


and another...


had enough yet? Okay.. how about a cute couple picture instead...


This could probably be a postcard:


Here's a feel for the crowds that morning... it did get a little busier that afternoon though.


So what was our next ride?
Buzz Lightyear... (picture obviously from the People Mover)

Here's something I've never seen before... instead of where Buzz normally is, there was a giant black curtain... what's that about?



I'm not ashamed to say, I got my BUTT KICKED!

That was a TERRIBLE game! But the reason I got my butt kicked? I fell asleep.

Just kidding!

Then we went to visit our favorite monsters... as we walked in, we passed a MALE cast member named Mike, oddly enough. However, he did a SPOT ON ROZ! I wish I had recorded him, but the line was inside, so even when we got to the back of the line we were well passed him. He saw how impressed with his impression I was and I think he kinda milked it. But he was AWESOME so I didn't mind. He did an incredible Roz. He said (as Roz) "have a great time. Be sure to laugh." It was such a great whiny Roz... he was PERFECT!

We sat in the back so we weren't picked for anything.

Then, we headed over to Stitch.

I can't remember the last time I did stitch.

After stitch, we went over to Space Mountain, which WAS OPEN! And it was a 15 minute wait, so we didn't use our fastpasses.


This next part, I'm trying it almost verbatum how it was said.. however I know, that it is factually inaccurate and will later be rectified... in the best possible way... I promise.. which is one of my favorite parts of the trip and you'll get to experience it with me....

After we zoomed through space, Moose said "Okay, we're done with Tomorrowland... what now?" I looked at him like he was crazy.
"We are NOT done with Tomorrowland! We still have the cars and the casserole!"
Now, he looked at me like I was crazy.
"The cars.. okay... the CASSEROLE?!"
I shook my head... "Okay, sorry... it's a Dis thing.... well, a Nebo thing... it's the Carousel... Carousel of progress."
He just kind of sadly shook his head and said "yeah.. it's definitely a Dis thing..."

On our way over there, we realized neither of us had ever done the carousel of progress. (I know I took a picture... but now I can't find it... if I do find it, I'll come back and amend this chapter.) And we also kept accidentally saying casserole.. which we giggled about until the show actually started.

After we found out that there's a great big beautiful tomorrow, waiting at the end of every day, we decided it was time to eat... considering it was now nearly 2. Moose also knew one of the things left to mark off my bucket list was the mini-corn dogs at Casey's. Can you believe I've never had them before? We thought that since it was well passed lunch time, Casey's would probably be fairly easy to get a table at.
So, we walked back to Main Street U.S.A and BOY WERE WE WRONG!
Every table had people at it... and the lines to order food were out the door.
So, I told Moose what I wanted and he went to get it for me so we both didn't have to stand in terrible lines and so I got vulture us a table should one become available.
While I was waiting, I got to hear the piano man... No, not Billy Joel.


However, after 2 quick songs, he said it was time for Dream Along with Mickey so he had to stop. I found a standing table... and Moose came back with our food, just as Dream Along With Mickey was starting.

Those corndog nuggets really hit the spot! So glad we got them! Moose got cheese to dip them in.. but I just liked them with ketchup. And there were almost too many for me... by the time I had 2 left I was full.. but not being one to let food go to waste, I made sure to finish them all.

As we were eating, a nice guy named Mitch was sweeping and clearing off some tables near us. As Maleficent was telling everyone how stupid dreams were and that they were a waste of time, I heard her lines in stereo... what?!
Mitch was saying all of her lines... and ALL the other character's lines with them.
I looked at him and said "I guess that's a perk of the job that you know all the words and songs."
He smiled and said "occupational hazard I suppose. Although, I have no need to buy the Main Street soundtrack because I know all of the songs."

We chuceled as we threw away our trash as Mitch was helping Mickey chant something about dreams. I wish I knew, but I've never actually seen the show, as my husband is not one of the shows.

Since we were had made our way back around to Advertureland, we crossed the bridge again. We headed over to the Magic Carpets... where apparently my husband pretended to be a camel:

and then the Tiki room... which was no longer under new management.... which was another change we noticed from last time.


Random side note: on Wednesday I was coming home from the grocery store and one of the presets on my radio is RadioDisney... and they were playing the TikiRoom song... It was a nice little reminder of our trip... and I sang along.

Since it was right next door, we decided to go over to Country Bears... but we had about 15 minutes until the next show... and luckily for me, the parade was going on! Moose is NOT a parade person... so he went and sat inside in the A/C. I however, found a GREAT place to watch the parade from. The porch of the Country Bear Jamboree! I got to lean against the railing and no one was directly in front of me.. they were all crowded up by the rope. So, there was no one within about 4 feet of me in any direction and I had a GREAT view!





Then it was time to visit the country bears...
MOOSE PICTURE! (I felt it mandatory to take a picture of any Moose we saw on vacation... either the one I was married to or otherwise.)

Oddly enough, one of the bears really reminds us of Moose's grandpa Johnny... the one on the far left. --- The Moose I'm married to... not the one on the wall. I can see that one coming back to bite me later....


I'm going to stop here... because we're almost done with the first half of the day!

Before I go, let's see what we've marked off our lists:
From DH's list: Go to Disney by ourselves... check.
Have Corndog nuggets from Casey's... check.

We'll do a ride count next time.

Thanks so much for reading... and please be sure to stick around for our night at MK.. there's a video I promise you won't wanna miss! DH and I have seen said video at least half a dozen times and every time we laugh at it.... I didn't realize how excited I was when I took said video. ...anyway... that's for another chapter.

See ya real soon!