National Lampoons Aussie Vacation - 12/12/16 to 25/1/17 Universal - 40+ Days at Disney World

[wsssup]

DAY 25 - 5TH JAN

The sickness continued. It was a bit of a bummer waking up and feeling no better. We had planned for a park day but it just was not going happen. We really needed to try and get a little better before venturing out. We had a fair bit of stuff we had purchased from Universal and the like and packed it up into boxes. The night before we had gone to the concierge and asked about postage internationally and was told no problems. Box it up and we will send for you.
So with out box all packed we took it to the front desk. All of a sudden we were told no we don't send internationally. Why one person told us yes and now they were saying know was not very professional. Pop services do seem to have a fair bit of miscommunication. The guy we were dealing with was very apologetic and I said it's ok mate we will figure something out.

So we jumped in the car and headed down to Celebration as it was the closest place with a UPS store. Plus we had not been down here yet and wanted to walk around and check out the place. We arrived at the UPS store and walked in with our 2 average size boxes. A friendly guy greeted us and I said International post. He had a look on his face that was funny, as he knew instantly this was going to be expensive. We told him to Australia and he said ok i'll give you a quote first. $560. Haha, we all looked at each other and laughed, no way mate. He suggested USPS but said it would be a fair bit as well.
Ok so this was not looking good. Back to the car and boxes back in the boot.

We had a look around Celebration and relaxed, once again though we were all not feeling the best and needed some more rest. A quick trip into Publix for some supplies and it was back to Pop with our tail between our legs. How were we going to get all this stuff home? We had 6 suitcases each but they were filling up pretty quick and some of the fragile things we did not want to put in the suitcase.

Back at pop it was time for rest. Later in the evening we grabbed a bite to eat and browsed the Pop shop again. We met the manager of the shop and she was very nice. Bec was chatting away and had told her about our UPS adventure today trying to send things home Internationally. She instantly said, we can send any Disney Product your purchase from the parks or here and send them home for you internationally.
This was good to know now, she even said the front desk should have told you this.

We grabbed some of the Disney items and packed them to send 1 box home. It was pretty much the same box we took to UPS, and Disney use UPS and it came to around $60. This was good to know and was going to be a life saver for us, at least all the Disney items could be sent home and everything else would be packed into our suitcases.

Bec was off to the Concierge again, as we had been having some problems with Housekeeping. We had asked to have the sheets changed, and they had not done it after asking a few times. Floors were never vacuumed well, it really was a pretty average and quick room clean they were doing. A few other problems were mentioned that they were aware of. Management had a good chat with Bec and were very helpful and disappointed with the room quality after checking it out. We were not asking for anything just to have things rectified. Management however added 2 extra fastpasses to our account for the rest of our stay. We could use these on any ride apart from Frozen. This was a very nice thing for them to do and we appreciated it.

With the parcels figured out, and our other problems sorted it was relax time again to try and get a little better. It was time to get back on the horse tomorrow.

 

[wsssup]

Love reading the report guys. We were there around the same time too - Dec 16th-31st. We loved Universal probably more than we loved Disney this time but still I want to go back! Am having massive disney planning withdrawals!

Thanks for reading along. We were surprised by Universal as well, they are much cleaner and staff is much more friendlier. Ahh the withdrawels, still going through it ourselves. Will be awhile before we go back, waiting for Star Wars Land, and will be back to Disneyland and we do prefer it.

 

[bcwife76]

Oh my gosh, I'm sorry this cold was really lingering for you all!

What a mess trying to sort out the shipping but in the end $60? Fantastic!!!

Hoping you all got over this sickness in the next couple of days, bummer. Good thing you had 40+ days to enjoy your trip

 

[Romib]

Loving the trip report

 

[wsssup]

Oh my gosh, I'm sorry this cold was really lingering for you all!

What a mess trying to sort out the shipping but in the end $60? Fantastic!!!

Hoping you all got over this sickness in the next couple of days, bummer. Good thing you had 40+ days to enjoy your trip

The colds did suck. Unfortunately they hang around for most of the trip here on out. We were lucky to find someone who had an idea about the shipping back home to Australia, so this was a huge relief for sure.
Even though we were all sick we still powered on

Loving the trip report

Thanks for following along.

 

[Beccybooboo]

Oh my gosh, I'm sorry this cold was really lingering for you all!

What a mess trying to sort out the shipping but in the end $60? Fantastic!!!

Hoping you all got over this sickness in the next couple of days, bummer. Good thing you had 40+ days to enjoy your trip

Yes it was a good thing we had so much time. Didnt have to feel so bummed out about being sick. It also helped us slow down a little and just enjoy our vacation.

Such good value to send from Pop.
Which was good for us it meant we could do lots more shopping...yippee!!

 

[wsssup]

DAY 26 - 6TH JAN : MAGIC KINGDOM PART 1

Gotta get up and get into it. Our colds were in full effect, worst thing was they were head colds too, so there's the cold and then there's the drowsy feeling that goes with it. All of us juiced up on medicine, but high on energy for our exciting day. Nothing was going to stop us from rocking on.
Magic Kingdom had some extra hours tonight so we headed out before lunch so we could stay until closing again which was Midnight. The weather was warming up so off to the car we loaded up and away we went. The car was serving us well. No more long Bus lines or waiting made getting to the parks so much easier. Ah hello again Magic Kingdom as we rolled up to the Parking entrance.

With the car parked we thought we better take a picture of where we are parked, knowing our luck later on we would probably forget, and we had seen it a few times already people walking around trying to find their car. We waited for the tram and on we jumped. I struggle on these trams, doesn't matter where you sit all the fumes come flying in your face choking you to death almost, not cool. It wasn't looking too crowded and next was to decide , Ferry or Monorail. We had done the ferry already so lets try the Monorail. It seemed everyone else was opting for the Monorail as well.

It took awhile to arrive and we were lucky to get a seat. The is one other thing that is a slight disappointment about Magic Kingdom. You get there and Park your car, and it still takes awhile just to get in the gates, just doesn't feel that easy to get to.
The Monorail takes alot longer than the Ferry and they shove you in like sardines. We arrived and jumped off the Monorail and all said let's not do that again, the ferry was much better.
Through security again for bag check and random check. Once again security loved the BB8 and Stormtrooper bags, and we were back in the place of Magic.

Just walking back in can cure the cold blues. Sun shinning and the place of happy times is all you need with loved ones to smash out the day.

We hit main street and started browsing in shops we had not been in as yet. The glass blown store was awesome. So many goodies in here. We did not want to risk it though purchasing items and sending them home. On our last trip to Disneyland we had purchased some glass items and it was a mission to get them home, no way we would send through post internationally.
We headed off to Tomorrowland, we had 5 fastpasses to burn today, thanks to our extra 2. Space Mountain was something India was wanting to ride so we headed over. But..... ride was down, and had been most the morning. Oh well onward's we marched. It was getting hot, real hot.
They had the water play area blasting near Goofy's rollercoaster. So 2 people were not going to miss out on cooling off.

India and Bec did a lap to cool off, much to the delight of India. This only made her want to get more wet.... so where else could we hope to get a little splash here and there. Did someone say Splash Mountain? India was screaming yes yes, another favourite ride of hers. I think this was the first time we were going to ride it here so we were keen to see the difference from Disneylands version.

We headed down towards Splash, the crowd was getting a bit busier down this neck of the woods. I think everyone had the same idea, with weather like this Splash was a no brainer and would be busy. Luck we could use a fastpass without having to book it. Everything was looking refreshing, the River looked fantastic and a nice breeze was helping with some cool air. We hung out in this are alot near Big Thunder, great for people watching and relaxing.

Hello Splash, oh how we missed you. The logs were rolling down the hill packed, people screaming and having a great time. Such a good spot here seeing the logs go under the bridge spraying water. Ok enough watching lets get to the doing part.

Oh dear, the line was long, even the fastpass line was blocked. Yes everyone wants to get wet. We ducked into the Pooh shop quickly and grabbed a drink and waited for the fastpass line to empty out. All of a sudden it was empty so we pounced and made our move. Lets hope this fastpass thing works. A tap of the band and wolah, Green and good to go. Awesome! The Standby line was huge, and the fastpass line had some length as well. It was moving pretty quick though and our log was rolling up. We were up the back, bugga... in a log full of kids who thought screaming in high pitched voices was fun.... By all means have fun kids but the screams were ear piercing. So the first little drop Daddy screamed loud, in an almost death metal voice. They got a bit of a fright, but everyone was laughing and at least their high pitched screams were toned down.
This version of Splash was so much better than Disneyland, it seemed to go on forever and just looked better. We were having the time of our lives, and the end was nearing. Oh noooo, Daddy doesn't like these drops,hahaha. We got to the top and away we went.... down down and down.... Oh my, yes I was screaming like a baby. We got a little wet but nothing like Dudley Doo Right, even the drop felt a bit small, but still what a great ride.

I had the 360 Camera for this one and it turned out well. May upload at a later date. Hahaha look at my face, the fear is so real hiding behind my backpack haha. Oh what fun this ride is. With Splash done we were back out in the sun, walking over the bridge we got some photopass shots in front of Splash Mountain.

I had to throw the ears up over India as she had been doing it to me in a whole lot of pics haha. These photopass people were real hit and miss, they seriously do not take very good pictures, lucky it was part of our Annual Pass as i would not be happy paying for this service. We also found the ride photo's to be average as well, very dark, compared to Disneyland they were pretty average as well. Yes another small gripe sorry, but we still love Magic Kingdom.

We continued on and pretty much did a lap of the whole park. People were getting spots for the Parade already, it really was too hot to be doing this. Bec was on a mission to find the Beast so we were heading off to his neck of the woods to see what we would find.

I think we are getting warmer...

Ah yes, found you Beast. They had some great goodies in here but we were here for one thing. The Beast, your coming with us buddy. Such a cool plush, we love the Beast. And we would be seeing him later on at Be our Guest.
The weather was changing and it was scheduled to rain later, but at this stage still warm as the evening was approaching.

PART 2 Coming..... Speedway , Princess's , Angry Parent's , and Be our Guest. FUN FUN FUN

 

[bcwife76]

I love your attitudes, soldiering on even when feeling ill! Like you said, a little sunshine and magic is a good cure!

We are Disneyland peeps (have only done Epcot so far for WDW) and that sounds a bit ridiculous (parking the car then having to take a ferry or monorail??) That's one of the best things about Disneyland/DCA, everything is so compact and when you get there you are THERE already

Interesting about Splash Mtn, guess we'll have to try the WDW version some day and compare I do wish people wouldn't 'dab' in photos (my 8yr old does this ALL the time) as you can hardly make out lovely India in this photo! Love that you held up the backpack and the look on Bec's face - pure joy

 

[wsssup]

I love your attitudes, soldiering on even when feeling ill! Like you said, a little sunshine and magic is a good cure!

We are Disneyland peeps (have only done Epcot so far for WDW) and that sounds a bit ridiculous (parking the car then having to take a ferry or monorail??) That's one of the best things about Disneyland/DCA, everything is so compact and when you get there you are THERE already

Interesting about Splash Mtn, guess we'll have to try the WDW version some day and compare I do wish people wouldn't 'dab' in photos (my 8yr old does this ALL the time) as you can hardly make out lovely India in this photo! Love that you held up the backpack and the look on Bec's face - pure joy

You cant let the sickness take over. As much as it did hurt some days it didnt take much to forget about it.

We love and prefer Disneyland , thats not to say Disney World is bad its different and still awesome. We preffered Magic Kingdom Big thunder mountain, Haunted Mansion , and Splash Mountain.

I must be old but I have no idea what Dab was. India told me and yeh not my thing haha. Lots of people doing it on rides.

The adventure continued on

 

[Beccybooboo]

I love your attitudes, soldiering on even when feeling ill! Like you said, a little sunshine and magic is a good cure!

We are Disneyland peeps (have only done Epcot so far for WDW) and that sounds a bit ridiculous (parking the car then having to take a ferry or monorail??) That's one of the best things about Disneyland/DCA, everything is so compact and when you get there you are THERE already

Interesting about Splash Mtn, guess we'll have to try the WDW version some day and compare I do wish people wouldn't 'dab' in photos (my 8yr old does this ALL the time) as you can hardly make out lovely India in this photo! Love that you held up the backpack and the look on Bec's face - pure joy

Disney cures everything.

That is something I love about Disneyland the fact that you are already there.

I do love splash mountain WDW version is lots of fun.

 

[wsssup]

DAY 26 - 6TH JAN : MAGIC KINGDOM PART 2

With Beast in the bag night time and the clouds were rolling in pretty quick. We headed over near Be Our Guest to take some pics and were lucky to see some nice little fireworks go off. Perfect timing indeed for some great pics. We had reservations for Be our Guest the previous night but due to being too sick we cancelled. Throughout the morning I just kept browsing for any times that may open for tonight and eventually a 9:15pm slot opened up so I quickly made the reservation. Very lucky for that to happen.

We would be back later on but while still light we had to get a pic of the sign. Time to go for some more rides. Back towards Tomorrowland we headed. The crowds were thinning out already, maybe people did not want to stick around as a storm was due to roll in sometime soon.
It was time for some driving action, and our fastpass for Tomorrowland Speedway was good to go.

The line was massive for this one. Yes for some reason people like this ride. It was slow going even with a fastpass, its just a real slow loading ride. Finally we were getting closer, India was to ride with me, she would steer and I would do the gas. Bec was going solo behind us. I was kind of looking forward to this as I loved Autopia but knew this was a fairly shorter track. Our cars rolled up and in we jumped. It was going to be slow going as the track was packed.

With India at the wheel we were on our way. Kids love this ride, and who wouldn't, when you get to have that feeling of driving a car. She was doing well, no bumping left or right, just very smooth driving all the way. All that gaming paying off haha.

Mum was behind us, smiling away . The cars were starting to pile up as we got closer to the end. Wow this really was a short track which was kind of disappointing. You just start having fun then all of a sudden it was coming to an end.

Speedway was done and dusted, India loved it but Bec and I did not think much of it. There is no way I would stand and wait in line for this ride.
The night was rolling in and we took time to relax on the People Mover again. Nothing better than sitting on this attraction and catching your breath.
We had another fastpass coming up soon to meet Elena and Cinderella. It was a bit of a wait though so we decided to sit down in New Fantasyland and just chill out and wait.

INSERT ANGRY PARENT
So we were sitting down on a brick ledge which had a garden behind it. A little kid probably about 4 or 5 started walking behind us on the ledge. There really was no room to be doing this. I had my Stormtrooper backpack on and the zip was slightly open. All of a sudden i felt a hand go all the way inside my bag. Startled I turned around to find this kid with his hand in my bag feeling around. I quickly said hey bud, dont put your hand in my bag. He walked off back to his mother. She was looking and said nothing. I looked at her and said Your kid shouldn't be walking around putting his hand in peoples bags. Well this is where it all went south. Speaking in Portuguese she started screaming a little, and I could tell a few words were not nice words. I told her to calm down and said again maybe you should be more worried about your kid putting his hand in my bag. Her excuse was he is just a kid and thought my bag was a toy. Confused by this i thought, my child never put her hand in peoples bags at this age. On and on she rambled, and she was getting very annoying and India was getting a little upset. Even the Husband was looking confused and not saying a word. I told her ok ok calm down you have a great holiday and yes maybe threw in an expletive as by this time I was over hearing her crap on. Yes she kept going and going, even Bec, who was sitting right near her told her calm down , look where you are. And on she went again hahaha. It was becoming amusing , so the best thing was to let her ramble on and ignore her. She all of a sudden stopped and they moved on.
Oh what fun that was. With our fastpass ready to go, it was time to forget about this and get back to having fun.

The line was very slow going for this one. Even with a fastpass you will be moving slowly. Our time finally came and we were lead into the room. India was very excited to meet Elena. With her autograph book in hand she gave her a big hug. Elena was awesome and really spent a fair bit of time with India, the best Princess meet by far. Even Bec was having the time of her life, and yes Bec had an autograph book too, hehe.

One of the better photopass photographers was in here taking the pics, so we got some great shots. Next was Cinderella, she too was pretty cool. We all have a soft spot for Cinderella and loved the Disney live action movie.

Another few autographs and a bit of chit chat, followed by some pics. Awesome meet and greet well worth the visit thats for sure. Even the room they were in looked awesome, really felt like you were in a Castle.

With the Princess's all done, it was time to head over to Be our Guest and check in. We were a little early but it was time to just sit down again and the wait was not going to bother us. It was going to be a 30 minute wait so we just sat on the bridge to wait until we were called. It was getting pretty dark and the clouds were rolling in.

This place was looking awesome and night. People would walk up as some had no idea what this place was. Others trying to get a booking. It wasn't long before our name was called out and off we went into Beast's Castle. Wow, this place looked amazing, the attention to detail was superb. Our jaws were dropping the whole way to our table, Bec was very excited to be here and so was India.
We were shown to our table and our waiter came over and introduced himself and left us to decide what it was we would be having for dinner.

It was hard to figure out what to have as we were too busy looking around in awe still. India had a kids meal Mac and cheese, Bec had some sort of pasta dish and I had the chicken. The food came out with India's first. It looked pretty crap to be honest. Mac and cheese you could get anywhere in the park. Bec's was next and then we waited. And waited and waited, mine was no where to be seen. Our waiter realised this and soon mine finally arrived. Kids are not that fussy and India enjoyed her mac and cheese, Bec was enjoying her meal but mine was well, it was pretty terrible. The chicken was extremely dry and I wouldn't call this fine dinning at all. The place looks amazing but really it is just quick service food. The waiter was more than happy to take the meal away and get something else for me, but I had nearly finished it so it was fine with me to not worry.
With dinner done we walked around and checked out the different rooms.

The rose room was pretty dark but wow, it looked awesome. Crap food or not, I could eat here everyday haha. We really did not want to leave, and it's good they don't push you to leave, they encourage you to get up and walk around and take it all in. We spent a fair few hours in here and it was a good way to close out the evening. It was that time thought, to go meet the Beast. All of us were pumped to meet him.

Even Beast was excited, so excited that he head butted India by accident haha. Ahh good times. Hes a big fella, and Bec had little Beast out which he loved.
We thanked him for letting us dine at his Castle, and I might have let him know that the chicken was not good haha. Even walking out we took our time past the talking armoured guards, they were pretty funny.
Upon leaving it had happened, yes the rain was coming down. The poncho's came out for all of us. The park was closing soon and it was pretty empty. We started to make our way to the exit, but first People Mover again. Anything to get out of the rain and relax again. Going in and out of Space Mountain the rain had gotten worse.
It was time to go i think before it got really bad..and well it did when we were on the Tram back to the car. It started pouring down, people were getting so wet on the Tram as it was raining sideways. We got off and it was a mad dash to the car, getting absolutely drenched, but laughing the whole time running to the car.
I took it easy on the way home, real easy. It was bucketing down real bad, lightning and thunder.

Back at pop safe and sound. So much better having the car, quick and easy to get home. Wow what an awesome day and night. Our colds were still hanging around but this was what we needed. A great day together just made everything else disappear. Thanks Magic Kingdom.

 

[TutuWahineLV]

Lovin your report. such an amazing time you're having. You did hear didn't ya, that the Raiders are moving to Las Vegas, lol. we've got no stadium for them to play in yet...but they're on their way.

Glad you are having fun at the stores too, (Walmart, Target, etc.) We just spent some time in Australia in January and are missing some of the stuff we found there....

looking forward to the rest of the story.

 

[wsssup]

Lovin your report. such an amazing time you're having. You did hear didn't ya, that the Raiders are moving to Las Vegas, lol. we've got no stadium for them to play in yet...but they're on their way.

Glad you are having fun at the stores too, (Walmart, Target, etc.) We just spent some time in Australia in January and are missing some of the stuff we found there....

looking forward to the rest of the story.

Haha I had only just found out about the Raiders move. Not to worry I followed them to LA then back to Oakland and well now off to Las Vegas.

Where abouts in Australia was your visit?
Thanks for reading along.

 

[TutuWahineLV]

Spent a few days in Sydney, then Brisbane to join a cruise, and finished up with a few more days in Brisbane. Hoping to get back for another visit next year. Absolutely fell in love with it.

Managed to get in visits to Taronga Zoo and Australia Zoo....and an afternoon on Bondi.

We're looking forward to having a pro team here...eventually. Stadium should be built in the next two years... Personally I think it would have worked better if they had a place for them to play before getting them to move.

Will be looking forward to the rest of the trip/story. I love WDW.. we'll be going back again in NOV this year, cant wait.

 

[Beccybooboo]

Spent a few days in Sydney, then Brisbane to join a cruise, and finished up with a few more days in Brisbane. Hoping to get back for another visit next year. Absolutely fell in love with it.

Managed to get in visits to Taronga Zoo and Australia Zoo....and an afternoon on Bondi.

We're looking forward to having a pro team here...eventually. Stadium should be built in the next two years... Personally I think it would have worked better if they had a place for them to play before getting them to move.

Will be looking forward to the rest of the trip/story. I love WDW.. we'll be going back again in NOV this year, cant wait.

Sounds like you had a great trip in Australia. The best thing about Australia is the beaches.

Ah the excitement of an upcoming trip to Disney, enjoy.

 

[wsssup]

Spent a few days in Sydney, then Brisbane to join a cruise, and finished up with a few more days in Brisbane. Hoping to get back for another visit next year. Absolutely fell in love with it.

Managed to get in visits to Taronga Zoo and Australia Zoo....and an afternoon on Bondi.

We're looking forward to having a pro team here...eventually. Stadium should be built in the next two years... Personally I think it would have worked better if they had a place for them to play before getting them to move.

Will be looking forward to the rest of the trip/story. I love WDW.. we'll be going back again in NOV this year, cant wait.

Glad you had a good time in Oz. Australia Zoo is a great place to visit. As for the Raiders, a few more years in Oakland will be fine, im sure fans will get over it eventually haha.

 

[wsssup]

DAY 27 TO 29 - 7TH to 9TH JAN : STILL SICK , EXPLORING AND FLORIDA MALL

Good morning all. Getting wet in the little downpour last night seemed to have flared up our colds. India was pretty much fine but Bec and I were toasted again. We had a full day planned again at a park but no matter how hard we tried we were really not feeling up to it. Being so drained we decided to not worry, we still had plenty of time left and lots of events planned at the parks to go. So what to do today. Coffee was needed for Bec and her love for Dunkin Donuts was ever present. We hoped in the car and headed down towards Kissimmee for some donuts and coffee for Bec.

I had noticed this with a few of these places that right next door was a Souvenir shop, with a connecting walk through door to Dunkin Donuts. While Bec was waiting for her coffee India and I checked it out. Wow what alot of crap in here. Lots of fake merchandise and nothing really jumping out at me. We wanted something from Florida but hey we can't bring an Alligator head home haha. Oh well, no worries. A few other shops we checked out along the way back to Pop.
The donuts were inside our bellies and Bec was feeling better after her coffee. Back at Pop not much else happened for the day. Sorry for the lack of excitement but the next few days were cruisy. We had Early Morning Magic coming up as well as the Star Wars Guided Tour so we needed to be feeling better than what we were.

Bec and I had a rough night, not much sleep. Coughing and sneezing. It was a beautiful day which we spent lazing around the pool with India, I did a few laps of the lake in the morning to try and get some energy flowing. It wore me out but made me feel much better. Applebee's was for lunch. Oh what delicious food it was. We got the bbq ribs, my mouth was having a party. This was our new go to place oh how we miss those ribs still haha. If anyone wants to freeze some up for us and also throw in a box of twinkies that would be great haha.

So another exciting day done.

A new day was here, Bec and I were shaking off the cold pretty well. It was time to head off to the Florida Mall, which was a fair drive but so much easier having the car. We were having no problems getting around and driving on the wrong side of the road, it was easier than back home even in peak hour on the i4. We arrived at the Mall and headed over to Hot Topic. We had an order to pick up.

This Star Wars Baseball Jersey, when I saw i on their website I had to get it. And for only $25 it was a bargain. Of course we got sidetracked in here again and found more Shirts and clothes to buy. Some Stranger Things shirts and some more cool things for Bec and India. We really are a family of nerd things. So we were in heaven as we just can't get this stuff back home. After Hot Topic we walked around the corner and found another Pop Culture Shop. I can't remember the name of it although it did have alot of Adult items up the back of the store. That's ok as Bec and I had both found something we wanted.

I found this awesome TMNT Baseball Jersey. Oh yes, Im such and old TMNT fan and this was a must.

And Bec, well she loves Deadpool, was very excited when I found this for her. Oh such good shops here, we have none of this awesome stuff back home so we had to stock up. Dicks Sporting goods was next. I was hoping to find some NFL gear or MLB gear but they had nothing. You could order online but I did not want to risk not having enough time.
Bec spotted my name on a sign at Dicks.

Hmmmm, code ADAM. I wonder if i get anything for free haha. It was a pretty cool store but nothing was there that I was after. More window shopping was done and we ended up in the M&M store. We got a few free samples but wow, this place was pretty expensive. It really was not worth buying anything, plus we are all not real big chocolate eaters anyway. A cool shop to be in though.

Ooh hello Nascar. Another sport I love, haha, we would have to be the most Un Australian family, we dont like AFL footy or Cricket, just all American sport.
A nice gentlemen browsing the shop took a happy snap for us, and I returned the favour for him. We then headed into Sears to check out. This place was pretty dirty and messy. It reminded us of Myer Back home in the 80's. There was not much in here so out we went and headed over to JC Penny.
Up to the clothes section and found a ton of Tampa Bay Bucs gear half price. Yes i am a Raiders fan but hey I'll root for the local team as well, plus their clothing is pretty cool. Half price jersey and some other cool merchandise and clothing was purchased. Ah our sporting needs were being met haha.
We found some more clothing for everyone and well we had done our duty. We came and we shopped picking up some great items. The perfect cure for the cold blues.
For we were to be up bright and early for our early morning magic event at Magic Kingdom. We were going to ride that Mine train until we were sick of it.

 

[elcmum]

I am FINALLY caught up!

Let's see... I am always cracking up at the lingo in the report. I totally understand the frustration of trying to talk to people (and in English) and them not understanding you. Glad you were able to get the car situation worked out and that you had an okay time driving! I still get confused when reversing and go on the wrong side of the road.

It sucks that you guys were sick! Probably a good thing to have the car to run around and get medicine.

Bummed that you had a horrible meal at BOG -- we haven't been there and it's always on my list and then it's off.

I loved that you love Olive Garden and Applebees. I guess I now take them for granted over here. Don't get me wrong -- I'd kill for a charcoal chook and chips and gravy, but if I moved back to Oz I'd definitely miss some of the food here.

I laughed at the UPS price. Oh, it's such a pain to mail something. Presents being mailed home are now relegated to just t-shirts.

And love love love the shopping at Hot Topic! You guys are going to be decked out for years to come.

 

[mikepdc]

Just wanted to share a note of encouragement! I'm really enjoying your trip report - thanks for sharing your story with us. I could only imagine what 40+ days at WDW might be like. Now I don't have to imagine; I can live vicariously through your family!

 

[wsssup]

I am FINALLY caught up!

Let's see... I am always cracking up at the lingo in the report. I totally understand the frustration of trying to talk to people (and in English) and them not understanding you. Glad you were able to get the car situation worked out and that you had an okay time driving! I still get confused when reversing and go on the wrong side of the road.

It sucks that you guys were sick! Probably a good thing to have the car to run around and get medicine.

Bummed that you had a horrible meal at BOG -- we haven't been there and it's always on my list and then it's off.

I loved that you love Olive Garden and Applebees. I guess I now take them for granted over here. Don't get me wrong -- I'd kill for a charcoal chook and chips and gravy, but if I moved back to Oz I'd definitely miss some of the food here.

I laughed at the UPS price. Oh, it's such a pain to mail something. Presents being mailed home are now relegated to just t-shirts.

And love love love the shopping at Hot Topic! You guys are going to be decked out for years to come.

Haha no matter how hard you try sometimes to speak slowly it can make it worse. I remember being in Walmart asking a worker for some NFL stuff. When I said Gday mate there was an awkward silence. I then said really slow Hello. Haha.
I know if we lived there Olive Garden and Applebees would become boring but we were loving it.
We were lucky to find things at Hot Topic and yes we made sure we were going to get enough to be decked out until our next trip.

Just wanted to share a note of encouragement! I'm really enjoying your trip report - thanks for sharing your story with us. I could only imagine what 40+ days at WDW might be like. Now I don't have to imagine; I can live vicariously through your family!

Thanks for the kind words and following along. Its hard trying to remember somethings but lucky there was lots of video footage to help refresh the memory. Writing the report helps with remembering and hopefully it can entertain or inform anyone who is interested.