Goat. Cheese. Polenta.
Saturday, 11/10, Part 3
Guys. Before I start this update, guess where I'll be in 19 DAYS?? Give up? Disney World!!!
Yeah, to say I'm excited is an understatement, I cannot WAIT for this trip! Caitlin was over today and all we talked about was Disney World, it is going to be so much fun to play in the parks with an 8 year old! She's even going to help me get over my Princess fear and meet Rapunzel with me! And maybe Belle!
Now for the update!
Brandon and I just finished eating at POR, and we went back to the room and rested, showered and got dressed. We had an ADR at one of my new favorite restaurants, and I could not WAIT to get there! We were eating at California Grill that night! YUM! We ate there for the first time in May, and we loved it SO much, so I was thrilled to be going back!
We drove over to the MK parking lot and parked in the Zurg section (which reminds me, why isn't Zurg a more prominent villain in the parks?
) and trammed (yes, trammed is a world. Just like monorailed!) over to the TTC to hop on the monorail. We then monorailed over to the Contemporary! (Yeah, try to find a more grammatically correct paragraph in another trip report, because it won't happen!
)
I absolutely love the CR! It's definitely one of my dream resorts, and I actually kind of get to live out that dream in February when we stay at Bay Lake Tower for a few days! I mean, I know it's not the CR Tower, but still, it's connected, and the location is insane! Like, the MK is in our backyard! How is this even happening???
We were super early for our ADR, so instead of checking in, Brandon went to the arcade and I looked around the shops. I bought a weird Vinylmation
wandered around, and then went had to drag Brandon away from the games so we could finally check in for Cali Grill!
Pretty much as soon as we were checked in our little beeper blinky thing went off, and we were whisked up in the elevator to the top of the CR!
Like I said, the Cali Grill is definitely one of my favorite restaurants now, it's so beautiful and the VIEW! You cannot ask for a better view! AND we were seated right near the window!!! Sadly though, it was about as far away from the MK as you could be, but if I wanted to look to the left and creep people out all night, I could see the castle!
Our server came over and Brandon got some kind of red wine, and I got one of their seasonal drinks, Pumpkin Cider. I kind of wanted sangria, but I thought if I drank wine, I'd get tired way too fast, and don't forget, we had magic hours til 3 AM to look forward too!
We both knew what we wanted too, I was dreaming about this meal for months, so of course, I got the Grilled Pork Tenderloin...with the GOAT CHEESE POLENTA.
The pork is good, it's got kind of a barbecue-y flavor, but the star of this is the polenta. It is probably the best thing I've ever tasted. It's ridiculous. It seriously tastes like the best Thanksgiving stuffing you've ever had, but with a slight goat cheese flavor. I could eat a vat of it. Seriously. If they brought me out a barrel full of the polenta, I'd eat my way to the other side, it's so amazingly good.
Oh yeah, and Brandon got sushi
:
The one on the top was the spicy kazan roll and the other one was a special, surf and turf. I didn't try the spicy one because I tasted a little of it in May and it was too hot, but I did try the surf and turf and it was really good! I wish I could remember what was in it!
The only bad thing about Cali Grill is it takes forever to get out of there! Luckily, we weren't having desserts, so we paid and quickly left. I was hoping to get into the Magic Kingdom before Wishes started, so we had to hurry!
Luckily, we made it to the Magic Kingdom by 9:30! I always love the entrance of MK at night, when everything is lit up, especially with the Christmas decorations
but sadly, I didn't have too much time to admire them. We heard the ending of the MSEP going on, so we knew we'd have to get in there and fight the crowds to find a good spot for Wishes!
We went in, and it was just wall to wall people, so instead of fighting it, we watched the end of the MSEP. I suppose I should probably see the whole thing in it's entirety someday, but that music just kills me. I miss Spectro!
When it was over, I wanted to stop really quick for a photopass picture since there wasn't a line
and then we got ready to battle our way up Main Street!
There were tons of people just standing still on Main Street, waiting for Wishes, so it was insane trying to get close to the castle. I mean, you were basically pushing and shoving your way through. We saw another couple doing the same thing, so we kind of just followed them and luckily, we made it to the middle and found a pretty decent spot for Wishes! We still had a while, so I took about 10,000 pictures of the castle with the dream lights:
Finally it was time for Wishes!!!
It all starts with a Wish...
Wishes CAN come true!
I LOVE the end of Wishes near Christmas, when the turn the dream lights back on! And then, once the fireworks are over, and the lights slowly come back on, the castle is pure white, with all of those sparkly lights before the color comes back...I always try to get a picture, but I'm always too late! But trust me, it's gorgeous!
Up next...how long do we actually stay for Magic Hours??
This has been a dream of mine since they were little & well, although it has taken forever (they will be 16 & 21), I'm making that dream come true! We are also staying at POR Royal Rooms River View. I'm hoping for Oak Manor like you were, but we shall see. 
