NMAmy's Trip Report with no catchy title--Last installment FINALLY posted - 4/12/09

[MickeysMommy]

Ahh...Alex

 

[NMAmy]

Oh that is so nice you were on the 2nd floor and it was the same floor as the lobby! I HATE elevators!

Isn't the queue for TSM so cute?!

We loved not having to mess around with elevators. I usually ask for a higher floor but I didn't make any requests this time around. We were upgraded from a standard view to a water view so no complaints at all here!

The queue IS really cute. Which was good because we looked at it for quite a long time.

Ahh...Alex

Poor Alex would be embarassed and a bit mystified if he knew he had groupies.

 

[MickeysMommy]

You posted his pic just for me...didn't you, pal?

 

[heaven2dc]

I just stumbled onto your TR and am having the time of my life!! What a great story teller you are

I'm glad you chose the BW - I've gotten spoiled staying there 3 times now. Our first visit in 1997 we stayed in a 1-bedroom overlooking the quiet pool on the 4th floor and loved the view (we could see ToT). We stayed 10 days and there were 12 of us (4 adults and kids ranging from 15-21). I barely saw my 3 teenage kids (who wants to hang out with Mom - NO ONE!!) We loved being able to walk or take a boat to MGM or Epcot. I didn't get to go back until Jan 2008 and had a studio over the Gallery and had a HUGE balcony. You could have fit 6 chairs out on it. Finally my ultimate stay was in December 2008 in a one-bedroom villa with Boardwalk view Don't you just love the long walks to the elevator? (but having stairs close by works out great esp if you don't have to lug a stroller like my daughter would have had to if they hadn't have moved our room from rm 2001 to 3041).

I'm anxious to see if you got to see the Beach Club and if you would have preferred it over BW.

 

[Maleficent13]

Poor Alex would be embarassed and a bit mystified if he knew he had groupies.

You mean he doesn't KNOW???

We must rectify this, MM!

 

[MickeysMommy]

You mean he doesn't KNOW???

We must rectify this, MM!

ITA! You want to call him or do you want me to?

 

[AussieAngel]

Oh my goodness, that clown slide thing really is terrifying!! He really does look the It clown. Ewwwww!! You can't have that at Disney World!!

But the rest of the Boardwalk looks beautiful!!

The TSM queues look fun! We didn't get to see them properly since we went through the Fastpass line instead. Bummer! That's one queue I would have quite liked standing in!

 

[MagicShell]

I have never seen the scary clown slide in person, but when I see it in pictures I often wonder if I am the only one who thinks it is creepy. I am glad to know that I am not.

I don't blame you for going to Epcot. I couldn't sit and look at a park without going in either. I am looking forward to more.

 

[NMAmy]

I just stumbled onto your TR and am having the time of my life!! What a great story teller you are

I'm glad you chose the BW - I've gotten spoiled staying there 3 times now. Our first visit in 1997 we stayed in a 1-bedroom overlooking the quiet pool on the 4th floor and loved the view (we could see ToT). We stayed 10 days and there were 12 of us (4 adults and kids ranging from 15-21). I barely saw my 3 teenage kids (who wants to hang out with Mom - NO ONE!!) We loved being able to walk or take a boat to MGM or Epcot. I didn't get to go back until Jan 2008 and had a studio over the Gallery and had a HUGE balcony. You could have fit 6 chairs out on it. Finally my ultimate stay was in December 2008 in a one-bedroom villa with Boardwalk view Don't you just love the long walks to the elevator? (but having stairs close by works out great esp if you don't have to lug a stroller like my daughter would have had to if they hadn't have moved our room from rm 2001 to 3041).

I'm anxious to see if you got to see the Beach Club and if you would have preferred it over BW.

Thank you so much for the nice compliment and welcome! I really enjoyed the BWV's so much--it's just a lovely resort. We were kind of used to long treks to the elevator after our many stays at the Dolphin. But I was quite happy not to have to use one this time!

We did make it over to the Beach Club one day. I've got some nice pictures (and a hilarious one, as well) and I'm happy with our choice of BWV's although I'm sure we'd have enjoyed the Beach Club, too. I was telling Alex how much I'd have enjoyed it if we'd managed to snag one of those rooms that's REALLY close to Epcot!

You mean he doesn't KNOW???

We must rectify this, MM!

ITA! You want to call him or do you want me to?

Sure. That wouldn't freak him out at all.

Oh my goodness, that clown slide thing really is terrifying!! He really does look the It clown. Ewwwww!! You can't have that at Disney World!!

But the rest of the Boardwalk looks beautiful!!

The TSM queues look fun! We didn't get to see them properly since we went through the Fastpass line instead. Bummer! That's one queue I would have quite liked standing in!

Caitlin was traumatized by a babysitter watching the movie version of It in her presence and has had an issue with clowns ever since. I think she successfully avoided the clown slide for the whole trip!

The queue for TSM was a lot of fun. At least it kept me occupied during our wait. During the trip, though, I kept seeing waits of up to 120 minutes and I thought, "Well, it was fun but not two hours worth of waiting fun."

I have never seen the scary clown slide in person, but when I see it in pictures I often wonder if I am the only one who thinks it is creepy. I am glad to know that I am not.

I don't blame you for going to Epcot. I couldn't sit and look at a park without going in either. I am looking forward to more.

You're absolutely not the only person who is creeped out. The weather was a little chilly but I didn't notice that many people using the slide or that pool now that I think about it. There were quite a few people at the quiet pool, though. It could just be a coincidence but I'm guessing folks are freaked out by that thing.

I'm glad I have some support on my foray into Epcot. I felt pretty guilty but, heavens, Spaceship Earth was staring right at me!

 

[MickeysMommy]

Freak him out? He has 2 totally gorgeous, hot women who LOVE how he talks! Plus, he's a hottie!

 

[NMAmy]

Sun, continued:

Cait called as we were leaving TSM. I got a fast pass for her and Jen but the fast pass time was already for between 2 and 3 pm. I thought for sure the rest of the park must be empty since it was so busy there but ToT had a 60 minute wait and RnR had a 40 minute wait. It was madness. The only reason I could think of was that there were two Fantasmic showings that night. Maybe people without Park Hoppers were going to MGM and spending the whole day. According to the UG guide, it was only supposed to be a 5 that day. (Those are my notes from that day--it doesn't explain why MGM was a madhouse every single day we ventured over there. It was really weird.)

We decided to go to Muppetvision 3D. We were the first to arrive in the line but it was also the first time we had to sit through the whole preshow. It was kind of crazy how people were crowding the doors. Alex and I waited in the middle and so got a seat in the middle.

I the Muppets. We took a quick tour of the Muppets gift shop.

After that, we headed back to the BW to pick up the girls. We had a lunch reservation at Le Cellier. Here they are, finally ready to go!

Lunch was quite good and we had little wait. Epcot was way emptier than MGM. Caitlin had Portobello mushroom ravioli, Jen had the prime rib sandwich, I had a salmon BLT and Alex had a chicken sandwich. Our waitress was great until the end of the meal and I was just furious by the time we left. I'm really not one to fuss about service in a restaurant. But--well, you'll see.

The girls were done so we let them leave. Cait had ordered a chocolate moose before the rest of us were done eating and had eaten half of it. I wanted one to go and told the waitress. I KNOW she understood what I was asking because she said, "Sure. Is it okay if I just bring yours in a to go box and then add the leftover chocolate moose to the same box? That way you'll only have one box to carry." I was okey dokey with that.

After about 15 minutes, she came back with an empty box for Caitlin's leftover moose. I reminded her that I needed one to go and she told me she must have misheard me. I was fine--mistakes happen. She cleared our table completely except for Caitlin's plate and went back to place my order. Another 15 minutes later and she brought the bill. A few minutes after that, my moose arrived but with no silverware to place it in the box. When she came back to pick up my card and the bill, I asked for a spoon. She brought back a spoon and my bill for me to sign. Except now it was the wrong bill—about $30 less. Every time she came by another table, I’d try to flag her down, and she’d studiously look the other way. I finally grabbed another server and asked her to get our waitress.

When she came back finally, she told me, “I hear you SUMMONED me?” That’s when I lost it. For real? I said, “Well, yes, I did. This is NOT my bill. Could you remove this one from my charge card and give me the correct one?” She flounced off and finally brought it back about another 10 minutes later. I asked if the other bill had been removed from my card and she said very snottily, “Well, of course. I did that right away before I charged this meal.” Whatever, woman, you do realize you have made several mistakes, been rude to me, AND I haven’t added your tip yet, don’t you? She got less than a 10% tip after all that. It took almost 45 minutes from the time we finished our meal until we finally got out of there. I’ve never been so frustrated at a Disney restaurant before.

I shook it off, though, and Alex and I headed back to the hotel for a little rest. Neither of us was feeling great. Later that afternoon, we headed back to Epcot and since it was much busier, contented ourselves with some of the less popular rides—SE, Honey, I Shrunk the Audience, Figment, and Innoventions.

We walked over to Morocco so I could have dinner at Tangierine Café. Alex wasn’t hungry but I, of course, was ravenous—he had a pistachio cheesecake and a bit of my lamb platter—which was fabulous. See--I made it through that meal without getting in a fight with anyone but it WAS counter service.

Since Alex wasn’t feeling so great, we headed on back to the hotel. As a special treat and on the advice of Aussie Angel, I stopped on the Boardwalk and got a funnel cake with chocolate. I believe my American citizenship was going to be revoked since I had never in my life had a funnel cake. When I talked to Caitlin about it earlier in the day, she told me, "You don't like them--they taste like fry bread." For those who haven't had Navajo fry bread, it's very popular in the southwest and is either stuffed like a burrito with cheese and meat and beans or is sprinkled with powder sugar or sometimes with chocolate. I decided to try it anyway because unlike Caitlin, I'm not one to say I don't like something if I haven't actually tasted it.

It was ENORMOUS and very good. I cut it into quarters and shared it with Alex, Caitlin, and Jen. As I was carrying it into the hotel, several women in the lobby asked me where I’d gotten it and if I’d consider sharing it with them. When I declined sharing it, they got directions to the place where I'd gotten it on the Boardwalk. I could make Disney a fortune by just carrying a funnel cake back and forth across the lobby all day.

Caitlin and Jen came back but headed out again to go to EMH’s at MK. I tried to wait up for them but it ended at 1:00 am and I only managed to stay awake until 10. I slept the best I’d slept since we’d arrived and was just out like a light although I did wake up when they came in. Alex wasn’t so lucky. (DUM DUM DUM!--that's foreboding music, in case you wondered.)

 

[NMAmy]

Freak him out? He has 2 totally gorgeous, hot women who LOVE how he talks! Plus, he's a hottie!

Don't forget YOUNG. Most of the women who fawn over him are of a certain age. He totally doesn't get the fascination with his accent. But it does get him special treatment so he goes with it.

 

[MickeysMommy]

Don't forget YOUNG. Most of the women who fawn over him are of a certain age. He totally doesn't get the fascination with his accent. But it does get him special treatment so he goes with it.

Are you kidding! His accent is HOT...and so is he!!!

Ahh, pal, you're kinda cute too!!!

 

[dddisrunner]

Oh my goodness, this trip just doesn't seem to be going very well so far!! I feel bad that you and Alex weren't feeling well! What an idiot that waitress was...HELLO...no tip marked in yet and being rude Too funny about the funnel cake and EWWW that strangers asked you for some!

 

[NMAmy]

Are you kidding! His accent is HOT...and so is he!!!

Ahh, pal, you're kinda cute too!!!

You're very sweet, pal.

Oh my goodness, this trip just doesn't seem to be going very well so far!! I feel bad that you and Alex weren't feeling well! What an idiot that waitress was...HELLO...no tip marked in yet and being rude Too funny about the funnel cake and EWWW that strangers asked you for some!

Oh, I'm sorry if I'm making it sound like a bad trip! It had its downside this time but we really did have a good time. Any day we don't have to go to work is a good day. I did tell Alex that he'd have to take me back so we could do all the stuff we missed out on this time. Like that wasn't the plan already.

 

[NMAmy]

Monday, 2/23-

Well, I slept like a rock for the first time since we'd arrived. I woke up when the girls got back home and promptly fell immediately asleep again. When I woke up in the morning, I heard someone being violently ill in the bathroom. Poor Alex was soooo sick. I was really grateful we'd gotten the villa with the bathroom and the kitchen.

For some reason, Alex had brought coffee but no tea bags along with him. (He's British--he drinks tea all the time.) It was the only thing he really wanted so I waited for the General Store to open at 8:00 and went to find some. The only thing they had was Lipton's and, after Alex drank it, he told me he thought it had been sitting there on the shelf for awhile. It did the trick, though, and was the only thing he kept down. Surprisingly, on Friday, I found where all the good tea at WDW is--The Villain's Shop in MGM. They had a big box of different tins of tea with Alice characters on it. If only I'd known!

Alex managed to go back to sleep and the girls were sound asleep. Luckily, I had no dining reservations that day. My plan had been to go to DTD for lunch and then whatever we wanted for the rest of the day.

I read on the balcony for a while and then got bored and decided to go explore the Boardwalk Inn. Here are some pictures of my little tour. I was surprised by how dry the grass and gardens were.

First the hallway outside our room:

I like the way it looks like a picket fence with a garden.

The doorway to the stairs right outside our room (our room was to the left):

Sitting area before going outside to the Boardwalk Inn:

(I love that sofa)

Hidden Mickey on a garden suite gate:

The garden suites are so cute:

BWI Quiet Pool:

Back into the lobby again:

And then outside again:

The villas around the front of the Boardwalk (by the main entrance)

Continued next post!

 

[NMAmy]

Monday Continued:

The girls finally woke up around 11:30 and took until 1:30 to be beautiful enough to leave the hotel.

We caught the bus to the Pleasure Island and had no wait to go to Planet Hollywood. I had a $15 off voucher and Caitlin loves the Captain Crunch chicken strips there. At first she wanted to order the big appetizer tray but I reminded her that she NEVER eats that much and talked her into the smaller order and a house salad. She only ended up eating about half of her little meal so I was glad I hadn't forked out the big bucks. I got a wedge salad with bacon, tomatoes, and blue cheese which was very tasty. Jen got a turkey club. I also ate one of Cait's chicken strips and it IS very good. I wonder if I could recreate that at home. I like the slight sweetness.

I stopped on the way out to get our free gift which was a tiny keychain that Caitlin quickly confiscated.

Raglan Road:

Almost mmediately after we left, Caitlin remembered that she was now hungry for a churro. This was funny--I had to take the annual churro picture but the way they were holding them, all you could see was the white paper around them. When I said that, they each moved their arm up to show off the churro.

We picked up some gifts at World of Disney and got our annual Christmas ornaments at the Christmas store. Cait got a beautiful one with a castle on the top and we had her name and the year added. It would be delivered on Wednesday.

We then did the make your own t-shirt thing for both the girls. They got Rex and wrote, “Vote Yes to Save the Dinosaurs” with their names underneath it. They got a kick out of putting the little t-shirt in the machine and pushing the button so it went up the tube back to the t-shirt workshop. DTD was no where near as busy as the last time so we didn't have to fight anyone for the machines.

I was not feeling so hot and left them to wait for the hour it would take until the t-shirts were done. Alex was feeling better but not great and stayed in bed resting. He’d been able to eat a cheese sandwich and a hardboiled egg while we were gone. I had chips and dip and then got us ice cream from the Sweets store for dessert. Chips and dip and ice cream for dinner--must be on vacation, huh? I got chocolate for myself and cookies and cream for Alex. It was really delicious.

The girls went to EMH’s at MGM while Alex slept and I did laundry and watched House. I went to bed hoping for a more exciting day tomorrow!

 

[AussieAngel]

Awwww, sorry to hear both you and Alex weren't feeling well. That's just awful when you're at Disney!!

It sounds like you still had a fun couple of days though, apart from your grumpy server at Le Cellier. That place can be pretty hit and miss with their servers, I reckon!!

The Boardwalk looks beautiful. Compared to our grass here in Australia, I that that grass looks lush and fantastically green!! Hehee.

And yayyyyyy, you had a funnel cake!! Hehee! I'm so proud!! And you got lots of nice comments and everything! How funny! Glad you liked it - although if you didn't, it sounds like you could have made a profit from the leftovers anyway!

You're so speedy with your updates!! It's great!! Thank you!

 

[NMAmy]

Awwww, sorry to hear both you and Alex weren't feeling well. That's just awful when you're at Disney!!

It sounds like you still had a fun couple of days though, apart from your grumpy server at Le Cellier. That place can be pretty hit and miss with their servers, I reckon!!

The Boardwalk looks beautiful. Compared to our grass here in Australia, I that that grass looks lush and fantastically green!! Hehee.

And yayyyyyy, you had a funnel cake!! Hehee! I'm so proud!! And you got lots of nice comments and everything! How funny! Glad you liked it - although if you didn't, it sounds like you could have made a profit from the leftovers anyway!

You're so speedy with your updates!! It's great!! Thank you!

Thanks, Julie! And thanks for the heads up on the funnel cake. It was very tasty.

I was surprised the grass was so brown--it reminded me a bit of New Mexico.

 

[NMAmy]

Tuesday, 2/24 -

Alex still wasn’t feeling great but, bless his heart, dragged himself out of bed to accompany me for the day. A whole day of lying in bed had aggravated his back so we decided to go to the MK because there is a greater percentage of non-jarring rides there. Poor guy, if it wasn't one thing, it was another for him that week.

We arrived just as they were allowing people onto Main Street and dodged the clang, clang trolley dancers. Luckily, the dancers were distracting a lot of the guests so we got in front of them and headed toward Adventureland.

Isn't this just an idyllic view? I was SOOO happy to be at the MK and out of the room that day!

I thought Pirates would be a nice way to start the day--AND it wouldn't aggravate Alex's back.

It was a walk on and we had the required two children aboard who needed reassurance that it was NOT scary. By the end of the ride, both of them were begging to go back on it again.

Davy Jones wasn’t working this morning which probably helped with the scare factor but I missed him. I asked Cait later and she said she hadn't seen him when she rode Pirates the day before either.

Caitlin's favorite fountain--she was just fascinated by this when she was little.

Splash Mountain--too bouncy for today but I was enjoying how empty the park was!

We then decided to go to the Haunted Mansion—which surprisingly didn’t have as many frightened children. Or much of anyone--look at the empty queue!

By the time we were done, though, poor Alex was white as a sheet so we went back to the hotel for him to rest up some more. The girls were still asleep, of course.

Alex took a nap. I was bored and hungry so I decided to head over to Epcot for some fish & chips. Since Alex wasn't feeling well, we'd decided to forget our lunch reservation at the Rose & Crown but that didn't mean I wasn't craving something with malt vinegar. I stopped by the check in desk to cancel our reservation and then got in the Yorkshire County Fish & Chips line (which was enormous!)

Epcot was much more crowded and when I finally got my order, there were no tables available in that area. I remembered my favorite place in the UK at Epcot--the little square back behind all the shops. I headed back there and it was empty. I found a park bench and settled in to eat my lunch.

That's when my newest boyfriend showed up. We have a joke at my house--I am a magnet for little children and older gentlemen. This works out great with my FIL's, btw. So, I was sitting there, minding my own business, when an older gentleman in a motorized scooter rolled up to me. I said hello, and that was all it took.

He asked me, "Do you mind telling me why you chose this week to go on vacation?"

I laughed and told him that it was the week that worked out with my dd's school but if I'd known the entire state of Louisiana was going to be there, I'd have tried for a different time.

He told me that he and his wife lived an hour north of Disney World and they just weren't expecting it to be busy that day. Then he told me about all his kids and grandkids and the cruise he and his wife had been on. Then his wife rolled up to join the conversation. She told me that she should have known she'd have found him with a young woman. (I loved her immediately after that comment!) And that all of the numbers in his cell phone were for women--his bank rep, his travel agent, his dental hygienist. They were a lovely couple and kept me company while I ate my meal.

When I was done, I told my new friends goodbye and headed back to the BW. When Alex woke up, he apologized because I had to eat lunch on my own. When I told him I had a new boyfriend, he asked, "Is he short or is he old?" knowing it was either a child or an older man.

Don't worry--this wasn't the end of our day--we did more! To be continued...