Night-train
<font color=006666>Doomed<br><font color=660066>Kn
- Joined
- May 12, 2004
- Messages
- 1,815
April 15th 2005 and today were off to Magic Kingdom!! The alarm goes off at 6am and its a case of same old, same old. Yep, its Mickey and Stitch again. I can honestly say the novelty of the character wake-up call has now well and truly worn off! I hit the off-switch as quick as I can and rouse the rest of the crew. DW doesnt take much encouragement to get going but DD is a different matter. She flops around on her bed like a rag doll for a while before we finally get her up. Today is supposed to start with a character breakfast at Crystal Palace with Pooh and Friends at 8am, and were teaming up again with Scottish Maleficent and her family for this.
Once all the formalities in our room are done with we hit the road and, as its early, we arrive at MK in only a few minutes. As we are approaching the parking lot I see a large SUV in my rear-view mirror and as it gets closer I realise its Cath, Tony and the boys! Perfect timing!! We get parked up and decide to take the monorail over to the park. The kids are all excited and the fact that its a fairly cold morning doesnt spoil the occasion too much for any of us. The monorail train arrives and we are on our way.
The kids in the monorail, Christopher, Anthony and Caitline.
We make our way to the restaurant as quick as we can and check in at the podium. Theyre not quite ready for us yet so I line the kids up again with the castle behind them while were waiting.
Awwwwwww . . . .
We are called in shortly and shown to our table. Our waitress introduces herself and explains how the set-up works, where to find the food, when the characters come out etc, etc. We sort the kids out with something to eat first and shortly after we get our own breakfasts the characters start to do the rounds. Our table is over to the right from the entrance and we are among the first to get Pooh and co to visit. Tigger comes around first and we get autographs and loads of photos. Eeyore and Pooh follow but Piglet stays around the central area in front of the serving area. We manage to get all four quite quickly so we can get on with our breakfast.
Unfortunately I didnt get a pic of all three kids with Eeyore, dont know why but it happens! However, Pooh comes back again and this time he leads all the children in a conga all the way around the restaurant. Caitline and the boys join in and really enjoy themselves. Once finished here we all head straight over to Frontierland to ride Big Thunder Mountain, one of our favourites. The lines are still quite short and we are on the ride quite quickly. No doubt this will change before too long! Next stop is Splash Mountain. Gotta keep moving while the going is good, eh? DW and DD sit this one out as one is too short to ride and the other is a bit wary of steep drops! I go on with Cath and her family and get a front row seat.. On previous occasions I have ridden Splash I have stepped off with barely a drop of water on me. Not so this time . . . I get a proper soaking and as its still cool weather-wise I dont dry out none too quickly either! Ah well, cant be lucky all the time, and its bound to get warmer soon, isnt it? Cowboy Goofy is out and about as we make for Pirates Of The Caribbean next, with me squelching along at the rear. A high school marching band is parading through Frontierland in smart blue uniforms.
We take the left hand lane when the ride-line splits and we are on the boat in no time. I know I wont get wet this time so I relax and enjoy the ride. When we come outside we see that the sun has finally broken through and its much warmer already. We start working our way towards the Magic Carpets Of Aladdin and notice Wendy from Peter Pan nearby. We get a pic with DD and I ask a CM if Captain Hook is about. Im told he has just gone inside for a break but will be out again shortly.
We have a quick spin on the Carpets and then backtrack to Pirates to look for Captain Hook. Bingo! Hes there, and Mr Smee is with him! We get the kids into the line and in a few minutes we have our pics and autographs.
At this point we have to part with Cath and Tony and the boys as they have other commitments for the rest of the day so we say our goodbyes as this is probably the last well see of them on this trip. We watch for a minute as they disappear and then decide to have an ice-cream before going any further. DW has one of those huge cookie-type things, while DD and I have a Mickey bar each. Then we head over to Jungle Cruise for some adventure there. Our cruise guide wasnt as good as some Ive seen in the past and we made up for it by getting DD to point out all the different animals she could see. She liked the elephants best.
We decide to head to another part of the park and see from the Times Guide that Storytime With Belle is starting soon so thats where we aim for. I get a nice shot of the castle as we pass by. There is a large crowd here already when we arrive so we send DD to the front while we grab seats right at the back. She doesnt get picked to go onto the stage but shes ok about it, surprisingly. Id expected a strop but no, she enjoyed it nonetheless.
From here we go to Main Street USA to get our free family photo courtesy of Virgin, with the castle as the background of course!
Next we go to Mickeys Toontown Fair and the Hall Of Fame tent. We are looking for Princesses here, and Cinderella in particular. The lines are long and it takes ages to get to the Princess Room but when we go in we are greeted by Cinderella, Aurora and Snow White. We get more photos and autographs for DDs collection.
From here we go to Mickey and Minnies houses for a look-see before going for a very quick spin on Goofys Barnstormer. Its a fun ride but the 30 seconds you get on it hardly justifies the 30 minutes you spend queuing for it! Fantasyland is our next port of call. There is a 40 minute wait at Ariels Grotto so we decide to leave that for later and we put DD on Cinderellas Golden Carousel instead, where another little girl just beats her to Cinderellas own horse. She is happy enough to just be on it so theres no tantrum here either thank the Lord! When she gets off we go straight to Mickeys Philharmagic where a show has just started. The line is short so we get in place near the front and are soon inside. This show is just amazing. Those of you who have seen it will know what Im talking about. For those of you yet to experience it all I will say is put it on your must-do list, right at the top, ok?
Its late in the afternoon by now and we have planned to go to Pecos Bills for our dinner. We skipped the Share A Dream Come True parade to fit in more rides and stuff and have worked up an appetite as a result. Before we eat we decide to go into the Haunted Mansion as the line here looks reasonably short. This ride is always a lot of fun and I never fail to see things Ive never seen before on it.
The Haunted Mansion
On the way out we try to find the ring which is supposedly buried in the pathway there but we didnt have any luck! While we try to retrieve DDs stroller she decides to take a seat in a rocking chair on the porch at the Yankee Trader store. Pecos Bills isnt too busy and we are soon seated outside enjoying burgers and fries, simple fayre but fun! The Frontierland Hoedown passes by, featuring the Country Bears and cowboys and cowgirls dancing in the street.
Frontierland Hoedown
When wed finished eating we headed back to the castle to see Cinderellabration. We got a good spot just to the right of the stage where DD could sit up high on a wall and see everything. The show started almost immediately with the stage bathed in the evening sunshine. All the princesses were there with their respective princes, and it was really enjoyable. DD was entranced at seeing them all together and the look on her face when Cinderella stood just in front of her with Prince Charming was priceless.
As we were so close to Main Street again we took the opportunity to do some shopping. Daylight was fading fast now and the temperature was dropping fast too, at least by Florida standards it was!! A hooded sweatshirt was high on my list of things to buy as we still had Wishes and Spectromagic to stay for and I found a nice red Walt Disney World Resort one to do the job! Cost me nearly $60 though!
Main Street USA
Back to the attractions again and Buzz Lightyears Space Ranger Spin is next. We all enjoy this even though we dont exactly set the scoreboard alight. DW is in the mood for a cup of tea by now so while she goes off looking for one DD and I go for a ride on the Tomorrowland Transit Authority. She really enjoys this and is now a big favourite with her! Its dark now and we go back to Big Thunder Mountain to experience a night-time ride for a change. This is completely different to riding in daylight. It almost seems faster and seeing the park lights on from the top of the ride is way cool too! When we come off we look for a spot to watch Spectromagic from. We settle on a place across the street from the Frontierland Arcade. A CM invites children to come onto the parade route to play ball games and DD joins in. She is chuffed to bits when the CM throws the ball to her and she catches it and throws it back. The parade is almost on us by now so the CM gets all the kids back where they belong.
The characters who didnt feature on the floats brought up the rear. They included The Seven Dwarfs, Peter Pan, Mary Poppins and my favourite, Pluto!!
This parade, to me, is far and away Disneys best. There is something very nostalgic about the music that just sweeps you along with it and takes you right back to your childhood. I could watch this all day every day! But right now I dont have time. If we want a good view of Wishes we need to get to the railroad station quickly so we leg it as fast as we can back to Town Square. Most people seem to be leaving so we have no trouble finding a good spot on the balcony overlooking the square and Main Street. Wishes is another must-see, one of the most amazing fireworks shows youre ever likely to witness. It also brings to a close our day in Magic Kingdom. Its been a long one but a very memorable one as well. DD is all tuckered out and as we exit the park to head home we are surprised by one final Disney touch. Mickey is on the balcony waving goodbye to everyone and telling us all to come back soon.
DD waves back and shouts Bye Mickey! to him and all that remains to do now is get back to All Star Movies and get her to bed. I dont even remember now if we took the monorail or the ferryboat but by the time we found the car she was almost asleep. I didnt have to ask if she had fun, I only had to look at her.
Once again, gnight all!
Once all the formalities in our room are done with we hit the road and, as its early, we arrive at MK in only a few minutes. As we are approaching the parking lot I see a large SUV in my rear-view mirror and as it gets closer I realise its Cath, Tony and the boys! Perfect timing!! We get parked up and decide to take the monorail over to the park. The kids are all excited and the fact that its a fairly cold morning doesnt spoil the occasion too much for any of us. The monorail train arrives and we are on our way.
The kids in the monorail, Christopher, Anthony and Caitline.
We make our way to the restaurant as quick as we can and check in at the podium. Theyre not quite ready for us yet so I line the kids up again with the castle behind them while were waiting.
Awwwwwww . . . .
We are called in shortly and shown to our table. Our waitress introduces herself and explains how the set-up works, where to find the food, when the characters come out etc, etc. We sort the kids out with something to eat first and shortly after we get our own breakfasts the characters start to do the rounds. Our table is over to the right from the entrance and we are among the first to get Pooh and co to visit. Tigger comes around first and we get autographs and loads of photos. Eeyore and Pooh follow but Piglet stays around the central area in front of the serving area. We manage to get all four quite quickly so we can get on with our breakfast.
Unfortunately I didnt get a pic of all three kids with Eeyore, dont know why but it happens! However, Pooh comes back again and this time he leads all the children in a conga all the way around the restaurant. Caitline and the boys join in and really enjoy themselves. Once finished here we all head straight over to Frontierland to ride Big Thunder Mountain, one of our favourites. The lines are still quite short and we are on the ride quite quickly. No doubt this will change before too long! Next stop is Splash Mountain. Gotta keep moving while the going is good, eh? DW and DD sit this one out as one is too short to ride and the other is a bit wary of steep drops! I go on with Cath and her family and get a front row seat.. On previous occasions I have ridden Splash I have stepped off with barely a drop of water on me. Not so this time . . . I get a proper soaking and as its still cool weather-wise I dont dry out none too quickly either! Ah well, cant be lucky all the time, and its bound to get warmer soon, isnt it? Cowboy Goofy is out and about as we make for Pirates Of The Caribbean next, with me squelching along at the rear. A high school marching band is parading through Frontierland in smart blue uniforms.
We take the left hand lane when the ride-line splits and we are on the boat in no time. I know I wont get wet this time so I relax and enjoy the ride. When we come outside we see that the sun has finally broken through and its much warmer already. We start working our way towards the Magic Carpets Of Aladdin and notice Wendy from Peter Pan nearby. We get a pic with DD and I ask a CM if Captain Hook is about. Im told he has just gone inside for a break but will be out again shortly.
We have a quick spin on the Carpets and then backtrack to Pirates to look for Captain Hook. Bingo! Hes there, and Mr Smee is with him! We get the kids into the line and in a few minutes we have our pics and autographs.
At this point we have to part with Cath and Tony and the boys as they have other commitments for the rest of the day so we say our goodbyes as this is probably the last well see of them on this trip. We watch for a minute as they disappear and then decide to have an ice-cream before going any further. DW has one of those huge cookie-type things, while DD and I have a Mickey bar each. Then we head over to Jungle Cruise for some adventure there. Our cruise guide wasnt as good as some Ive seen in the past and we made up for it by getting DD to point out all the different animals she could see. She liked the elephants best.
We decide to head to another part of the park and see from the Times Guide that Storytime With Belle is starting soon so thats where we aim for. I get a nice shot of the castle as we pass by. There is a large crowd here already when we arrive so we send DD to the front while we grab seats right at the back. She doesnt get picked to go onto the stage but shes ok about it, surprisingly. Id expected a strop but no, she enjoyed it nonetheless.
From here we go to Main Street USA to get our free family photo courtesy of Virgin, with the castle as the background of course!
Next we go to Mickeys Toontown Fair and the Hall Of Fame tent. We are looking for Princesses here, and Cinderella in particular. The lines are long and it takes ages to get to the Princess Room but when we go in we are greeted by Cinderella, Aurora and Snow White. We get more photos and autographs for DDs collection.
From here we go to Mickey and Minnies houses for a look-see before going for a very quick spin on Goofys Barnstormer. Its a fun ride but the 30 seconds you get on it hardly justifies the 30 minutes you spend queuing for it! Fantasyland is our next port of call. There is a 40 minute wait at Ariels Grotto so we decide to leave that for later and we put DD on Cinderellas Golden Carousel instead, where another little girl just beats her to Cinderellas own horse. She is happy enough to just be on it so theres no tantrum here either thank the Lord! When she gets off we go straight to Mickeys Philharmagic where a show has just started. The line is short so we get in place near the front and are soon inside. This show is just amazing. Those of you who have seen it will know what Im talking about. For those of you yet to experience it all I will say is put it on your must-do list, right at the top, ok?
Its late in the afternoon by now and we have planned to go to Pecos Bills for our dinner. We skipped the Share A Dream Come True parade to fit in more rides and stuff and have worked up an appetite as a result. Before we eat we decide to go into the Haunted Mansion as the line here looks reasonably short. This ride is always a lot of fun and I never fail to see things Ive never seen before on it.
The Haunted Mansion
On the way out we try to find the ring which is supposedly buried in the pathway there but we didnt have any luck! While we try to retrieve DDs stroller she decides to take a seat in a rocking chair on the porch at the Yankee Trader store. Pecos Bills isnt too busy and we are soon seated outside enjoying burgers and fries, simple fayre but fun! The Frontierland Hoedown passes by, featuring the Country Bears and cowboys and cowgirls dancing in the street.
Frontierland Hoedown
When wed finished eating we headed back to the castle to see Cinderellabration. We got a good spot just to the right of the stage where DD could sit up high on a wall and see everything. The show started almost immediately with the stage bathed in the evening sunshine. All the princesses were there with their respective princes, and it was really enjoyable. DD was entranced at seeing them all together and the look on her face when Cinderella stood just in front of her with Prince Charming was priceless.
As we were so close to Main Street again we took the opportunity to do some shopping. Daylight was fading fast now and the temperature was dropping fast too, at least by Florida standards it was!! A hooded sweatshirt was high on my list of things to buy as we still had Wishes and Spectromagic to stay for and I found a nice red Walt Disney World Resort one to do the job! Cost me nearly $60 though!
Main Street USA
Back to the attractions again and Buzz Lightyears Space Ranger Spin is next. We all enjoy this even though we dont exactly set the scoreboard alight. DW is in the mood for a cup of tea by now so while she goes off looking for one DD and I go for a ride on the Tomorrowland Transit Authority. She really enjoys this and is now a big favourite with her! Its dark now and we go back to Big Thunder Mountain to experience a night-time ride for a change. This is completely different to riding in daylight. It almost seems faster and seeing the park lights on from the top of the ride is way cool too! When we come off we look for a spot to watch Spectromagic from. We settle on a place across the street from the Frontierland Arcade. A CM invites children to come onto the parade route to play ball games and DD joins in. She is chuffed to bits when the CM throws the ball to her and she catches it and throws it back. The parade is almost on us by now so the CM gets all the kids back where they belong.
The characters who didnt feature on the floats brought up the rear. They included The Seven Dwarfs, Peter Pan, Mary Poppins and my favourite, Pluto!!
This parade, to me, is far and away Disneys best. There is something very nostalgic about the music that just sweeps you along with it and takes you right back to your childhood. I could watch this all day every day! But right now I dont have time. If we want a good view of Wishes we need to get to the railroad station quickly so we leg it as fast as we can back to Town Square. Most people seem to be leaving so we have no trouble finding a good spot on the balcony overlooking the square and Main Street. Wishes is another must-see, one of the most amazing fireworks shows youre ever likely to witness. It also brings to a close our day in Magic Kingdom. Its been a long one but a very memorable one as well. DD is all tuckered out and as we exit the park to head home we are surprised by one final Disney touch. Mickey is on the balcony waving goodbye to everyone and telling us all to come back soon.
DD waves back and shouts Bye Mickey! to him and all that remains to do now is get back to All Star Movies and get her to bed. I dont even remember now if we took the monorail or the ferryboat but by the time we found the car she was almost asleep. I didnt have to ask if she had fun, I only had to look at her.
Once again, gnight all!
