This morning we had an 8:00 reservation for Kona Café again. Bob loves it here and we had promised our younger daughter that we would have Tonga Toast for her on this trip. So, off we went. We split the Tonga Toast (New Item # 24) and got both the bacon and the sausage. I had Lilikoi Juice and Bob had the boring old orange juice.
We planned to meet at our bench at 11:30 so Bob went back to the room and I went to Epcot to shop for real this time. I made a quick stop at The BouTiki to buy a Hawaiian shirt Bob had liked. He says no one can ever be in a bad mood when wearing one of those so I buy him as many as he wants!
I rode Spaceship Earth again and then stopped at MouseGears. As I entered the door a CM came up to me and wished me a Happy Anniversary, also asking where my other half was. When I told her that he was back in the room taking a nap while I shopped she handed me a postcard of the Partners statue in the MK and told me I was welcome to take part in the Magical Moments program! I was allowed to fill out the postcard and address it to anyone in the USA and they would stamp it and mail it for me. This was the perfect opportunity for me to call my brother and tell him it was time to plan another family reunion to WDW like the one we had in 2007. He gave me his address and I promised to send my nephew the postcard. My brother said there would be planning going on since I was going to remind my 5 year old nephew that WDW existed again.
I bought stickers for my students, as well as gifts for two of my co-workers and another Pirates of the Caribbean plaque for my nephews bedroom. Had the package sent to the front of Epcot for pickup later in the day and went off to the F&W Festival Welcome Center.
I had fun here since I knew what I wanted to buy and had already checked into the shipping charges. First I got my glass of Prosecco!! Then I got the Festival cookbooks for myself and our 2 DDs, a gorgeous pewter F&W logo magnet for Bob, nice ceramic spoon rests with the logo in them for 2 other co-workers, a Ratatouille-themed childrens cookbook for my nephew and the 2009 F&W Festival wine glass for myself. There were a few other things that had caught my eye, but I decided none of those were necessary. Total bill, including shipping was only $135.94 so I thought I did very well!
Time to meet Bob! We stopped at the entrance to WS and had some PhotoPass photos done. I will have to post them later since I dont have my CD yet. Bob grabbed a Stella Artois at Promenade Refreshments and then
POLAND! Kielbasa and Pierogies and a Chopin Vodka Raspberry Cocktail (#25) took care of our purchases there. We added an order of Spanikopita (OPA!!) from Athens, Greece and sat in the shade enjoying our food and drink. We took the boat over to Morocco and backtracked a bit to the Louisiana exhibit. Very nicely done! And the Seafood Gumbo (#26) and Praline Bread Pudding with Bourbon Caramel Sauce (#27) were both delicious. We also got a Purple Haze beer (#28) which we shared, but didnt like as well as our DDs thought we would.
Next stop was Wellington, New Zealand. The Bay Scallops with Baby Greens and Cranberry Vinaigrette (#29) were very refreshing. We spent a little time looking at the New York State Wine Adventure kiosk but didnt purchase anything there. We moved onto San Francisco, USA! Here we bought the Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese (#30) and the Seared Beef Medallion with Cheddar Cheese Polenta (#31). They paired well with our next beer selections from the Hops and Barley kiosk: Honey Porter for Bob and the 13th Annual Festival Lager (#32) for me. I loved this beer. I liked the spiciness of it and found it to be different in taste from SAs Seasonal offering right now. Maybe it was my expectation that it was going to be different or maybe it really IS different. We both agreed that the beet salad and the beef medallion were some of the best we had sampled in the past two days. We sat in the area near the fountain at the American Pavilion and met a delightful couple from Wisconsin with whom we shared our picnic table. The four of us got a little teary-eyed at the Fife and Drum Corps presentation we watched. It always gets to me.
Along WS we sauntered, stopping next at Cork, Ireland. We got the Boxty with Bacon Chips and Kerrygold Garlic & Fresh Herb Butter (#33) as well as the Irish Cheese Selection which included Reserve Cheddar (#34), Dubliner, and Invernia Cheeses (#35) served with Apple Chutney and Brown Bread. Bob got a Guiness to go with these items. Both foods were good but the cheeses were especially good. We couldnt finish them all so we packaged them up to add to our stash from last night. We knew they would work perfectly for breakfast the next morning.
Before going any further in our travels I noticed a PhotoPass photographer near the Venice-like harbor area in Italy. Bob was hesitant, but finally agreed to have some photos done. This guy was a character! We didnt do all the things he wanted us to do (Bob said we had been married over 35 years and didnt do that stuff anymore, which stopped the photographer in his tracks. Mission accomplished!
)
In Italy we got our final offerings of the day. Dessert! Cream Puffs with Marcarpone and Gianduja Chocolate (#36) along with a Moretti beer for Bob and a glass of Tantinel Prosecco (#37) for me. We had finished more today than we thought we would so we were very happy! We planned to complete the circuit tomorrow for a light dinner before leaving for the airport about 4:30.
We took the boat from Germany and started out of Epcot (I did remember to pick up our package!), but I managed to catch a few shots to add to our collection:
Dinner tonight was at 6:30 at Yachtsman Steakhouse. Bob had a short nap while I started to do some packing.
We had the car brought around about 5:30 and made the short trip over to the Yacht Club. We stopped at the Crews Cup Lounge since we were early. Bob had a SA Seasonal and I had a brand new wine! Magicale, Brachetto, Piemonte DOC NV (#38). It is a lot like Banfis Rosa Regale but a little less expensive. It had its US debut in May 2008, at a dinner at the James Beard House in New York which featured Disney chefs. It will apparently only be available in the US at Disney Theme Parks and Resorts and the Cruise Line.
Our table was ready right on time and, once again, we received a personalized menu:
Our server, Bill Martin, was super. He said he knew we were celebrating and wanted us to know he was not going to rush us. We were to let him know when we wanted to move on with the courses. That was a refreshing change! I started my meal with the Lobster Bisque, served with Maine Lobster and Creme Fraiche finished with Brandy and Bob tried it, but wasnt impressed. Silly man! It is one of my favorites. We chose the Chateaubriand for Two, an 18-ounce tenderloin served with Bearnaise, Mashed Potatoes, and Sauteed Mushrooms to which Bob added an order of the Rainbow Carrots in Honey-herb Butter. I like my meat less well done than Bob does but that did not present a problem for the chef at all. It was perfectly cooked for both of us: medium rare for me and medium well for Bob. I had a glass of Woop Woop Shiraz and Bob had another SA. We took a long time enjoying this meal. We had been seated in the circular room with windows so it was a lovely place to sit and savor the food. We couldnt eat it all! And then Bill brought out a trio of chocolate desserts that were amazing. There was a mango mousse, a small lava cake and something else that neither of us can remember! They were all wonderful and again, we couldnt finish them. We had a glass of Magicale with dessert as well as coffee. We will ask for Bill again. He was a wonderful server and made the evening memorable.
After we drove back to the Polynesian we did a little more packing and I decided to try to get some nighttime shots from our balcony.
And then
the fireworks started! What a way to end the last night of our stay!
. All the food sounds so good yum. Can't wait for more. Hope you had a good time today
We got into line and a very nice CS rep came up and asked if we needed help. We explained our problem and he quickly found what was wrong. Seems Delta had changed our itinerary AGAIN and it was not followed through on his reservation for some reason. Luckily there was room for him on the plane and the agent actually guaranteed us the entire row to ourselves. Since the flight was almost full that was a nice thing. We again had connection problems in Atlanta on the way home but we dealt with it. We arrived in Richmond at about 11:30 p.m. and it was only 48 degrees there! I was still in my shorts and tank top. Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr
By the time our luggage arrived and we got our car and got out onto the highway it was midnight. We arrived home to a completely lit house at 1:15 a.m. Our younger DD had stayed up to see us. I think she and the dog missed us a little. 
That is really exciting! Now you can start your own New Item count, Diana!
