No Day But Today- FINAL post on page 40!

[pongoperdigirl]

ANother great report so far Crystal.
I have read them all, feels like we all know you and are best friends with you.

Thanks for the link to your site, love the stories there too!

 

[fizz13]

I think you're right, i don't remember that fence being there in October i saw an amazing thing when I saw the tigers last, one was sleeping in the corner like it always does, and the other one came prowling over,but in slow mo, like it was stalking its prey, lifting each foot so carefully, and crept all the way over to the sleeping tiger, breathed over it....then went for its ear! i know they are not in the wild, but that to me, was the closest i will ever get to seeing a tiger's natural hunting instinct, very cool.
Looking forward to more,

 

[blue_river]

On my way from Africa to Asia, I came across Devine! I’ve always thought she was cool, but this was the first time I really noticed how beautiful her movements are! She’s really amazing to watch!

This is why I love reading trip reports. I always find out about stuff we missed and we totally missed this!!!

Thanks for sharing!

 

[Brocktoon]

Is this fencing in the tiger area new? I don’t remember it being there before!

I don't know, I was last at AK over Halloween and for some reason I think I remember there being a fence. But now I'm not so sure ...

For your next trip report, you need to start taking pictures of strange random tourists. I think I may be visiting WDW during the sametime ... who knows, my stupid mug may show up in one of your excellent trip reports (also I have a strange fascination with the clueless background bystanders apearing in vacation pics)

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

I feel like such a disappointment to you guys who were looking forward to the Everest description- it doesn’t come until a later day! The line at Everest was longer than I wanted to wait in today, so instead, I just took a few photos, and did some shopping! (At least you have something exciting to look forward to!)

(Didn’t this truck used to be over near the entrance to Asia? There were big construction walls up over near that area, btw. Not sure what’s going on there!)

I made my way into the shop at the Everest exit- quite the feat, because it was packed in there!

I ended up buying two sets of prayer flags- I’ve been wanting some for a while, but could never find good ones on ebay. These are smaller than what I wanted, but I couldn’t resist! (I wish they sold the bigger ones that they use in the park!)

I also got this fab Everest mug, and a Yeti of my very own!

Yes, I took them outside in the snow so that you could see the Yeti in his natural habitat. I *may* have too much time on my hands these days.

I almost bought a nifty Christmas ornament- it was a clear glass ball with shredded silver stuff inside, and the silver stuff was made from oxygen tanks that have made the trip up Everest! I’ll have to remember to get one next time!

How many people walk right past this Yeti display without noticing it?

Are we in the Mask Room at the Adventurers Club? Nope! These guys decorate the area around the ride photo pickup window!

I was a little bummed that they didn’t have one thing I was wanting- remember back when Everest was about to open, and the Travel Channel and Animal Planet aired shows featuring Joe Rohde and Jeff Corwin respectively, both in the Himalayas researching the Yeti? I’m a huge Joe Rohde fan, so I was hoping they might have it on DVD here, but no luck! (It’s on my list of things to suggest to Disney, though, along with selling the WDW episodes of Great Hotels, and adding an up-close look at the Yeti to a backstage tour!!)

By now it was 1pm, and I had been up and running since about 7 without a chance to rest or eat yet! Resort break time!!!

When I got to the bus stop to catch a bus back to the WL, a bus for the Polynesian pulled up. I decided to take that one instead- another yummy flatbread pizza and some beach time, please!

(I really wish they didn’t have to add a Blizzard Beach stop in with Animal Kingdom busses- it seems to add a lot of time onto the trip, and 8 out of 10 times, there’s nobody getting on or off!)

I did take a photo of the new design of Captain Cook’s this time!

As well as one of the pizza!

(Only ¾ of the pizza shown here- I got hungry!)

I took my pizza out to the beach near Luau Cove- my favorite spot! It’s always so quiet and peaceful out there, and you have a great view of the castle and GF!

Now, let me tell you guys- if you think your cat or dog or child knows how to beg for food, you have never met the ducks of the Polynesian beach! These guys saw that I was eating, and I had company! Allow me to introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. Quacksalot!

Could YOU say no to that face?

I admit it- I gave in and gave them each a little crumb of my pizza crust.

BAD IDEA!

Mr. and Mrs. Quacksalot have friends! Many many friends!

See all of the little ducky footprints? That sand was all smooth before they invaded!


I really enjoyed just relaxing on a beach chair, toes in the sand, ducks nibbling on my pants, sunshine on my face! Burying my toes in the cool sand felt so good on my tired feet! And that pizza really is good! I spent about half an hour here just relaxing and eating. Good times!


Afterwards, I spent a few minutes reconnecting with my beloved resort.

Why the heck is a Sassagoula boat over at the Poly? Wrong resort category, boat!

Oh, so that’s what Stitch has been up to all day!

Am I the only one who thinks this mannequin looks like she belongs in…um… some kind of “adult” store?

Ooooh, look! Things to buy! Can you resist?

I couldn’t! I walked out with a $30 painting of the Poly. (It got creased on the flight home- I’m sad! Trying to flatten it back out, though!)

I did the ol’ monorail to MK, bus to WL combo to get back “home”. It was around 3pm when I got back to the Lodge, and Katie wouldn’t be out until after 6. Nap time again! (Nothing goes with a lazy beach lunch like a follow up nap!)

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

Katie made it over to the Lodge again later that evening, and we drove to Epcot- paying attention to which parking lot we parked in this time! (Journey! We remembered by singing horrible renditions of “Open Arms”.)

Hey look! They put a giant golfball at the entrance to Epcot- neat!

Our first stop was the Land to pick up Fastpasses for Soarin (You know it’s quiet season when there are still FPs available at 7pm!)

I hate to say it, but I really hate the newly decorated inside of the Land! Bring back the beautiful blues, the fountain, it was so pretty before! Now it’s just… wrong!

Our next stop was Living Seas (It will always be Living Seas to me!), to check out the new Nemo ride. Another walk-on!

The fish look normal if you use the flash, but if you don’t…

Their evil nature is revealed! I think Marlin is planning to eat me! Or suck out my soul or something!

Run, Katie! He’s right behind you!!

Mine! Mine!

The new queue area is really cute!

It’s built for a much longer line than I think the attraction will ever reach, though!

I really enjoyed the new ride- it always made me sad that the old ride area was going to waste! I do miss several aspects of the Pre-Nemoizing, but mostly, I like it! (And the tunnel with Crush is fun!)

After Nemo, we decided to catch Turtle Talk. We almost left the line because it seemed to be taking forever, but we finally found out why! A little boy had misplaced his parents while leaving the prior show, and they couldn’t do anything until they were reunited! (Which we got to see- very cute!)

Turtle Talk is always hilarious, and I enjoyed seeing that they’ve now added Dory!

After Nemo, our Soarin FP time was up, so that was the next stop! The FPs turned out to be useless- there was no line up until where the FP and Standby lines joined together, so the line would have been the same either way. We got the front row (yay!), and soon we were soaring over California! (Are they ever going to do a Florida version?)

We hadn’t planned to stay for Illuminations, but the time just seemed to work out that we had about 15 minutes before it was started, so we decided to stick around. Katie was hungry, so we stopped at the Mc Donalds stand at the World Showcase entrance. (If you recall from my last reports, Katie doesn’t even like chicken nuggets, but seems to end up eating them every time we go to Epcot!)

There was a great viewing spot for the show just across from the food, so I secured a spot while Katie waited for food. A lady came up next to me and asked if it was worth standing near the lagoon- if there was much that went on low. I explained the show to her, and she ended up standing there next to me. She said it was her first time seeing Illuminations, and asked if we had seen it before.

I promise you that I didn’t laugh.

Not at the time anyway.

Well, not out loud.

(If you recall my Dec 05 report, Katie and I saw Illuminations pretty much every freaking night without even trying to!)

I did video tape the show (except for the globe part…yawn!), so I’ll probably be sharing that (or at least part!) soon!

As a side note, while I hope they don’t replace Illuminations anytime soon, am I the only one who could do with a lot less spinning video globe? It’s too far away to be able to see what the pictures on it are very clearly, and it goes on FOREVER. I’ve heard that the globe is going down for refurb soon- I wonder what they’ll use during that time?

After the show, we joined the massive Epcot exodus (which I also video taped! It includes such highlights as Katie throwing away a soda! Oooh, ahh!)

We found the car quickly (Journey parking lot!), and Katie dropped me off at the WL, and another long day came to an end!

Actually- not quite!

I stopped in the WL gift shop on my way in to pick up some postcards, and snapped this picture of some of the food available, just in case you were curious!

Okay, NOW it’s over!

Coming up tomorrow- A day so great that my trip could end right now, and I’d be happy!

What’s all the excitement about? Here’s a clue!

Any guesses?

 

[Belle Amy]

Coming up tomorrow- A day so great that my trip could end right now, and I’d be happy!

What’s all the excitement about? Here’s a clue!

Any guesses?

That's Joe Rohde's ear. It has to be. Did you meet him?? Cause that, is awesome.


I know what you mean about the Illuminations globe...last time we saw Illuminations, we had the pleasure of a teenage girl standing behind us, commentating on every picture she saw..."oohh, ponies!" "Look, mountains!"

I swear she mentioned every picture she knew....we snickered when she came up blank when the continent of Australia came up.


Love the report!!!

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

That's Joe Rohde's ear. It has to be. Did you meet him?? Cause that, is awesome.


I know what you mean about the Illuminations globe...last time we saw Illuminations, we had the pleasure of a teenage girl standing behind us, commentating on every picture she saw..."oohh, ponies!" "Look, mountains!"

I swear she mentioned every picture she knew....we snickered when she came up blank when the continent of Australia came up.


Love the report!!!

You may be right... you may not! I'll be mean and keep up the suspense for now.

I zoomed in on the Illum. globe when I video taped it this trip, and watching it back at home, I was finally able to figure out what most of the stuff on it was! The teenage girl must have better long distance sight than me!

Love the Firefly sig pic- have you ever seen Wonderfalls? You would recognize a certain actress in it! (Plus a lot of the Whedon show crew moved over to Wonderfalls when Firefly got the axe.)

 

[Belle Amy]

Love the Firefly sig pic- have you ever seen Wonderfalls? You would recognize a certain actress in it! (Plus a lot of the Whedon show crew moved over to Wonderfalls when Firefly got the axe.)

I've heard of it, and I knew that Tim Minear and Jewel Staite worked on it, but I never saw it. I went and read a synopsis on it, and it sounds amazing!! Now I've gotta go buy the DVD!



The suspense is KILLING ME!!! I need to know what the picture is!!

I'll be waiting!

 

[MomofCKJ]

Loving your report Crystal! The reason I have an interest in going on a solo trip is to be able to stop and notice and appreciate the little things that you have highlighted in your pictures. With 3 excited kids it is hard to do that. Love your photos!

We saw Divine on our trip and she is pretty cool. Moves a lot like a snake we thought. It was our first time at AK and I have to say it is right up there with MK as my favorite. I really, really loved this park and can't wait to go back!

Allyson

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

Loving your report Crystal! The reason I have an interest in going on a solo trip is to be able to stop and notice and appreciate the little things that you have highlighted in your pictures. With 3 excited kids it is hard to do that.

And when you tell just yourself you're going on vacation, the response is much more predictable! But not nearly as funny.


I spent ALL day yesterday writing, y'all. Days 4 and 5 are totally done. Just gotta upload the photos!

 

[Brocktoon]

I've heard of it, and I knew that Tim Minear and Jewel Staite worked on it, but I never saw it. I went and read a synopsis on it, and it sounds amazing!! Now I've gotta go buy the DVD!



The suspense is KILLING ME!!! I need to know what the picture is!!

I'll be waiting!

Obviously off topic, but being a fan of comics and all things Whedon, I felt it my duty to mention that Joss is writing season 8 of Buffy in comic book form. I think the 1st issue is being released in ~ a month. I hadn't collected comics in years, and then Joss got me back in the comic shop years ago when he wrote FRAY (Buffyverse slayer in the far future). Now he's finishing his 2 year run on X-Men, starting up a run on Runaways and Buffy, and working on the Wonder Woman flick. Great time for comic geeks

Oh ... and please check out Wonderfalls, its' cancellation hit me almost as hard as Firefly ...

Now back to the regularly scheduled trip report (sorry to go off topic but these posts hit on some of my fav topics)

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

Obviously off topic, but being a fan of comics and all things Whedon, I felt it my duty to mention that Joss is writing season 8 of Buffy in comic book form. I think the 1st issue is being released in ~ a month. I hadn't collected comics in years, and then Joss got me back in the comic shop years ago when he wrote FRAY (Buffyverse slayer in the far future). Now he's finishing his 2 year run on X-Men, starting up a run on Runaways and Buffy, and working on the Wonder Woman flick. Great time for comic geeks

Oh ... and please check out Wonderfalls, its' cancellation hit me almost as hard as Firefly ...

Now back to the regularly scheduled trip report (sorry to go off topic but these posts hit on some of my fav topics)

I can't wait for the Buffy comic! Much excitement! (And the beauty of Wonderfalls DVDs is that you get all of the episodes that never aired.)

And, um, topic? Um.... Day 4 coming up as fast as I can upload photos! It involves a tiger, tea, and a lot of silly photos!

So, following the "Get her WORDS out!" of a certain Wonderfalls chamelion, I am going to upload, so I can get my words out!

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

Day 4- Wow, they really DO make dreams come true here!

Well, guys, I didn’t win the free DVC membership on this trip. I didn’t win the trip to all of the Disney parks around the world. I didn’t even get a dream fastpass. But without even knowing it, Disney made my dream come true today!

How?

You’re about to find out!

As I mentioned in day 3, I learned on the Backstage Safari tour that the Animal Kingdom vets would be doing an exam on a tiger today, which sounded pretty nifty, so I made plans to get out to Animal Kingdom by 10am, so I could catch it. It ended up being more like 10:30 before I hit the train out to Conservation Station- some days getting out of bed is hard!

I usually skip over the bus rides, but this one was pretty funny. Today’s Bus Annoyance was getting seated behind the Cutest Kid Ever… with the Stinkiest Diaper Ever! What on earth did they FEED this kid? Yeep!

It was another one of those bus situations where I was the first person at the bus stop, but a ton of people pushed in front of me to get on. At least I got a seat this time! A lot of people didn’t, and so when we stopped at Blizzard Beach and a group of girls started to push their way through the crowd of standing people, a man standing asked them if they were going to Blizzard Beach (making sure they were getting off at the right stop.) One of them snarled back “Duh, why else would we be getting off?” So, off the bus they get, and then about thirty seconds, climb back on. Guess they weren’t headed to BB after all!

But back to Animal Kingdom! A few of my Photo Pass photos from entering the park…

I made a beeline for the train to Conservation Station- none of my usual wandering! I had a tiger to see!

I thought it was kind of funny that while we weren’t allowed to take any photos yesterday on the backstage tour, you can get some fairly good ones from the train ride over to Cons. Station.

Ooh, the glamour of backstage at DAK!

Hey, I was here yesterday! You can sort of see Bulwagi (not sure of the spelling!) the elephant (who had an exciting date with one of the keepers yesterday!) inside the pen.

Rafiki is all “This way, y’all! You’re missing the tiger!” I nearly fell over laughing when I heard a kid call him “Ra-freaky!”

If you’ve never gone over to Conservation Station to check out the vet window, I highly recommend it! You’re never quite sure what you’re going to see! I’ve always been fascinated by medicine- I spent most of high school planning to be a vet, so I find just about anything that they’re doing to be interesting, but how often do you get the chance to see a tiger on the exam table? (Well, actually, the tigers get exams once every two years.)

The tiger on the table today is named Peaches- she’s a female, about 10 years old. Besides the regular checkup, she’s getting an endoscopy and an ultrasound. Talking to the vet yesterday, I found out that she (Peaches, not the vet) had been throwing up, and had a problem with something like acid reflux, so they were checking up on her stomach today. While she was there, she was also getting her teeth cleaned. There was a CM set up on the guest side of the window with a microphone to keep everyone informed on what was going on, and from time to time, a vet on the other side would also speak about what they were doing.

The procedure started around 10:30, but I didn’t make it there until around 10:45, so I missed a little.

If her body temperature started to dip, they would cover her up with this air blanket to warm her back up.

Getting her teeth cleaned

How many people does it take to turn a tiger over? Six!

About fifteen or twenty minutes after I arrived to watch, the door to the vet exam room opened and a large group of people filed in. It took about a split second for my eye to dart to a very large earring.

I don’t know if you guys remember the “What is your dream?” (or whatever it was called!) thread, back when YOAMD was announced, and everyone listed what they would pick if they could have any dream at all. It was such a fun thread for daydreaming! Well, I had two. One was to get to dance in the Festival of the Lion King, and the other was to go to Animal Kingdom with Joe Rohde. (And now that I’ve had time to think about it, I’d like to add a third! I want to join in the cast of the Adventurers Club for a night! I’d make a great maid!)

Today, without knowing it, Disney made my crazy, daydreamed dream sort of come true!

Joe Rohde is the executive designer of Walt Disney Imagineering and the lead designer of Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Squee! Joe is the genius behind Everest, and even nearer and dearer to my heart- the Adventurers Club! (Not sure if he was the head of the Adv Club design, but he was involved!) He’s been working with Disney since before I was born. I know he also worked on Norway in Epcot, too, but I don’t have a full list of his work. Anyone know anything I’m leaving out? Anyway, if you’ve watched any of the travel channel shows about WDW, you’ve probably seen Joe. He’s known for wearing big tribal jewelry, to the point that the other designers put this up in and around Tusker House as a tribute:

It’s one of my favorite imagineer shout-outs!

(I should mention that I had some confusion about how to spell Joe’s name. I’ve always thought it was Rhode, but when I searched Disney.com, it came up as Rohde. I checked one of my books, and it says Rohde, too, so that’s what I’ll go with!)

You can see more about Joe’s trip designing Everest on this Discover School page-

http://school.discovery.com/everest/explore_yetimyth.html

Also, Coaster Radio podcast actually did an interview with the fab Joe a while back, which can be found here:

http://www.coasterradio.com/articles/rhodeinterview.html

So, remember back before I got off on this tangent, and the door to the vet exam room opened, and a group of people filed in?

It was a big group of Imagineres who had worked on Animal Kingdom, there to check out the tiger exam. And of course, included in that group?

JOE!

One of my dance friends and I get what we call our “nerding out” face- when someone we admire or who we just find otherwise intimidating comes to talk to us after a performance, we’re usually so awestruck that we’re pretty sure we get a really stupid face- Our eyes cross, our lips curl up, our tongue kinda hangs out… you start laughing like Goofy- “heh-hyuk!” Basically, you lose every last shred of dignity.

I’m pretty sure that’s what I did when I saw Joe.

And then he looked over at me.

Joe Rohde! Like teen feet away from me! And he looked up!

I spent the next 20 minutes fighting back tears.

I am the biggest nerd EVER.

This photo was my laptop wallpaper for weeks! Joe is right in the middle back there.

You can see the image from her endoscopy on the video screen in the top right corner. Also pictured: Joe! (hee!)

After a while, the group of Imagineers left the room (Bye, Joe! Don’t forget to write!) and another group came in- we found out this group was there with some kind of vet conference, and one person was filming it for the group.

It was about 11:30 when they finally finished up and wheeled her out of the room.

Bye, Peaches!

The whole vet visit for her took about an hour and a half, and I’d been lucky enough to catch about an hour of it. And yes, I video taped some parts, so I’ll probably post some clips!

I was in the BEST mood after watching the exam, obviously! Watching vet stuff is always exciting, but watching it with my hero just the other side of a window was the best! Although my “dream” was to get to tour Animal Kingdom with Joe, this was close enough for now!

The posters at the exit of the train station- notice the “Jorodi” one in the corner!

I decided to continue the “Yay, Joe!” theme by setting off to visit his latest creation- Everest! (Or “Avalanche Explosion!”, if you read the stupid overheard things threads!)

On my way through Asia, I passed this tiger statue, and had to snap a pic since I’d just spent my morning with a tiger!

It drives me nuts when I see kids climbing on this, btw- they even have signs asking you not to climb! (I learned on the Wild by Design tour a few years ago that they chose the tiger to be the spiritual mascot of Asia’s Anandapur because they didn’t know of any religions it was actually connected with.)

More of Day 4 to come soon!

Belle Amy gets a whole new respect from me for being able to identify Joe by an ear, by the way. That was awesome!

 

[Belle Amy]

I feel like a stalker...I keep coming in just as you are posting...I promise I'm going out and living life in between your posts....

I'm really jealous! One, you got to see an amazing procedure on a tiger!! I have never seen anything cool like that when I wander by the window...where do they post the schedule for the vet procedures?

Two, you were mere feet away from Joe Rohde!! Thats so cool. There are no words!

I am really glad that you had that opportunity!!

Can't wait to read more..

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

...where do they post the schedule for the vet procedures?..

Normally you can only find out the schedule that day. I found out that if you stop at guest relations on your way into the park, they will call back for you and find out what the schedule for the day is, otherwise you have to take the train out and check the sign. I got way lucky finding out during the tour the day before!!! Talk about serendipity!

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

Well, hello there, Everest!

Quick, get educated about mountains!

I don’t think I’ll ever tire of photographing this freaking mountain!

I came over with the plan to *ride* Everest, but it was down! Booo! So instead, more pictures! (I promise that I DO actually ride it on this trip!)

I loved this tree! Very funky!

Post your Yeti sightings here!

Loved this little thing in the display!

I noticed this couple trying to take a photo of themselves, so I went over and offered to take one for them. They returned the favor!

Buy your Yeti paraphernalia here!

I love this building as you approach Everest. I wonder what’s inside?

Upon closer inspection of the building, I found this melted thingey. What the heck was it?

On the other side of the building, I found my answer!

I guess the first one gets more sun exposure!

I love the artwork in this area!

My favorite! I wish they sold these as postcards or something!


Since Everest was out of the question, I thought I’d just wander through Dinoland on my way out of the park. I always avoid that land because I hate the DinoRama area, but I thought that maybe I was missing something, so I thought I’d give it another try.

I passed by the new Nemo theater on the way… someone requested photos of it in my Stitch List post, so here ya go!

More soon!

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

So, did I find anything to like about Dinoland?

Some of the billboards are pretty nifty.

You know it’s a quiet day when there’s nobody on the ride!

I can’t remember what these performers were called, but they’re pretty neat to watch!

I liked the ceiling in this shop, too- lots of hanging dinosaurs! (But why exactly do they have a store selling High School Musical stuff in Dinoland?)

I think this guy was my favorite. Isn’t he made out of all recycled bottles or something?

Hehehe… the McDon of time! That’s McFunny!

…and that’s pretty much my time in Dinoland!

I had one last stop to make before leaving the park. I had TWO shirts to exchange. One was a size Large, and WAY too big, the other was an XL, and WAY too small! Confusing, eh? They didn’t have the XL in a larger size, so I had to just return it (sad! I liked it!), but I was able to exchange the large for a medium. Yay! (Except not. I tried on the Medium later, and it was WAY too tight! I had to re-exchange it for a Large, which is still WAY too big, but I really wanted the shirt!)

I left DAK around noon to head back to the Lodge, because Katie was on her way over- we had reservations for tea at the Grand Floridian coming up at 2pm!

(On the way out of the park, Chip & Dale were out taking photos, and I heard the guy behind me say “Hey, there are those chipmunks!” and the other ask “Who?” and the first guy say “You know… Alvin and Simon!”)

I took a few minutes to re-pretty myself, and then noticed that I had about 15 minutes before Katie would be there. I had way too much energy to just sit in the room for fifteen whole minutes, so I went over to VWL to explore!

Have you ever tried to tour a resort in ten minutes or less? It’s a fun challenge!

There are a lot of great, quiet little seating areas tucked into the VWL lobby. This would be a great place to curl up with a book sometime!

The hallways….

And elevator doors

And the gym! One place on WDW property I’ll probably never set foot in!

I loved these moon date paintings in the main lobby area. I say we get rid of our calendar months and go by these instead! Seriously, what’s cooler, “May” or “Frogs Return Moon”?

By now I was pretty sure that Katie would be arriving any minute, and I didn’t want her to be stuck outside my room all confused, so I rushed back over to the main WL building! On the way, I discovered a hilarious light fixture.

Is it just me, or are these buffalo engaging in distinctly un-Disney activities? (And you know that I had to show this to Katie as soon as she got there, too!)

I made it back to the room just minutes before Katie got there- whew! This was one time I was glad to have her car- it would take way longer to take a bus/boat to MK and then monorail to the GF than to just drive there! (Although the non-valet parking at the GF is REALLY far away from the main building!)


I haven’t spent much time at the Grand Floridian, so I had no idea where the Garden View Lounge even was- luckily, Katie knew her way around! We found the Lounge where tea is served, and checked in. They start serving at 2pm, which is also the time I had an ADR for, but we had to wait about 10 minutes before our table was ready. We couldn’t really figure that out- there were a ton of empty tables, so why did we have to wait? Confusing!

We got our table and menus, and spent some time trying to decide what we wanted. Katie went with the Buckingham tea, which includes tea sandwiches, scones, and a choice of desserts. I ordered a la carte- scones and a pastry.

Would you believe that we spent THREE hours on this meal?

They bring you a selection of teas to smell to help make up your mind. It’s a hard choice! I finally narrowed it down to the Eros or the Whole Fruit tea- they both smelled so good! (I remember Katie proclaiming that she wanted to take a bath in one of them, but I can’t recall which!) I finally settled on the Eros- according to the menu, it’s “Medium bodied Ceylon: Sweet Mandarin orange with warm vanilla for a sweet, smooth and creamy finish.”, and Katie ordered the Earl Grey. (Or was it English Breakfast? Oh, whatever, she had tea.)

The only bad thing about doing tea is that when they bring you out your steaming pot of tea, do the whole pouring it through the strainer into the cup thing, and leave you to drink is that the tea smells sooooo good, but it’s way too hot to drink for about eight hours! We sat there for about three weeks, just waiting for it to cool down!

Katie’s tea sandwiches arrived first:

I think that one was cucumber something, one was pear and something… one of those two involved watercress… I think? And the other was chicken salad or tuna salad. And the onion tartlet, which was the only one to get a thumbs down.

Scones were next- served with yummy raspberry jam, yummier cream, and a little raspberry tart. It was all SO good, but SO rich that you could only nibble a little bit at a time.

For dessert, Katie had the strawberries and cream, and I had a tiny chocolate eclaire. (And we somehow forgot to take pictures of these! Yeesh!)

We were seated right by the window, and the view really was nice!

The photo isn’t very good, but we could see the Polynesian across the water, and a lot of people going to and from the pool.

For some reason, I really liked the mirror near our table!

Near the end of our tea, they went around and passed out roses- a nice touch!

Now, let me give you guys a quick warning about the GF tea. It's kind of addictive. The Eros tea was really good. When I got home, I tried to find something similar, but no luck. I found the website of the company that makes the ones used at the GF (tealeaves.com), and guys, I spent $70 on tea. TEA! I am apparently either insane, or the tea has super addictive properties! I'm just sayin'- you've been warned! Be sure to think of going for tea as an investment! (Man, I can't wait for my tea to get here.)

Up next- a TON of post-tea photos!

 

[DebIreland]

Crystal, your TR is fabulous, just FABULOUS!

 

[tubachick]

LOVE YOUR PICTURES!!!!

and your reports!!! yes we take pics of everything also!!!