Nory Report III: In the Third Person! After 3 Years, the Final Update! NEW 2/6

[KatMark]

Nory, your pictures at the Magic Kingdom at twilight are just stunning.

That is a good piece of advice for the fireworks up from the treehouse (now if I could just get Mark to climb up there with me).

I'm so glad you got on Peter Pan with a minimal wait.

 

[MEK]

Wow Nory. Just Wow! You have given me a great idea for my trip. I hadn't planned on a Halloween party and it would be pretty darn cool to be in MK as the day time crowds clear out and the party crowds enter.

When I look at your pictures I almost feel like I am there. The view from the treehouse is spectacular. I definitely have to find a way to get there at dusk. How perfect.

 

[teekathepony]

Your photos of MK at dusk are just gorgeous. It's a really beautiful time of day there! I also enjoy that little lull before the party. Love, love, love the view from the treehouse!

 

[norybell]

Sorry for the delay in replies...being at WDW is the best excuse though, right?

The view from the Treehouse is awesome. Maybe next trip I will get up there again.

I like twilight at MK. Seems just a bit more magical as the sun sets.

I think twilight at MK is my favorite time of day there. Well, that or right away in the morning. But the light is just so amazing at twilight!

I just found your TR. it took me a couple of days but I am all caught up now.

Your TR is very entertaining! Lol. Thanks for sharing!!

Congratulations on your little boy! He is super cute!!

I love MK in the fall! Pumpkins, mystery and excitement all in one!

Thanks for sharing all your tips, legs and arms up on Everest, fireworks from the treehouse. That would be fun!

Can't wait to read more...

Welcome, and thanks for joining in!

Nory, your pictures at the Magic Kingdom at twilight are just stunning.

Thank you!

That is a good piece of advice for the fireworks up from the treehouse (now if I could just get Mark to climb up there with me).

It is a bit of a climb! When it's empty, though, you can really take your time.

Wow Nory. Just Wow! You have given me a great idea for my trip. I hadn't planned on a Halloween party and it would be pretty darn cool to be in MK as the day time crowds clear out and the party crowds enter.

When I look at your pictures I almost feel like I am there. The view from the treehouse is spectacular. I definitely have to find a way to get there at dusk. How perfect.

Thanks, Mary Ellen. I think it's a great idea to go to the MK on a party day, even if you're not attending the party...I think they're low attendance days overall.

Your photos of MK at dusk are just gorgeous. It's a really beautiful time of day there! I also enjoy that little lull before the party. Love, love, love the view from the treehouse!

Thanks! It really is a beautiful view.

In other treehouse news, have you all heard this rumour that they might turn it into a Pixie Hollow tree? That would make me so sad. And it means it would probably never be empty like that again.

 

[norybell]

After a good twenty minutes brainstorming in the branches, Nory figured she’d better climb down before the CM started to worry about her. Pirates seemed as good a destination as any, so she headed on over. Though the Adventureland paths were emptying out substantially, a good number of people were filing into the right half of the ride’s entrance.

So Nory went left.

And within seconds, she was all alone.

There was no one in front of her.

There was no one behind her.

It was Halloween (or it felt like Halloween, anyway). Nory couldn’t help but feel just a little bit creeped out, in the dungeon-like passages, surrounded by cannonballs and concrete.

So she quickened her steps to get out of the deserted queue and into the loading area.

She was the only one there.

The opposite side, the right side, was full. Her side was empty.

“You get your own boat,” the CM said, waving her on board.

And there Nory was, sitting alone in the front row of a big empty boat. During the darker moments of the ride, when the perfect amount of space existed between her boat and the boats in front of and behind her, Nory couldn’t see anyone, at all.

It was the coolest ride on Pirates ever. Once again, she was the girl from her novel, running alone through the streets of a burning city, sneaking into the treasure chamber in pursuit of something for her quest. With no park guests to distract her, imagining this whole part of her story couldn’t have been easier.

“How’d she get a whole boat to herself?” she overheard a little boy ask as she disembarked. She smiled to herself as she took out her phone and whispered some notes on the way out.

***

Nory didn’t want to get stuck in Adventureland during the early parade, so she picked up her pace a little bit on her way back into Frontierland. Last year, during the parade, she’d been able to ride Splash and Big Thunder over and over again without even getting off in between rides, and she was hoping to repeat that experience.

First up: Splash. Again, she pulled out the poncho. Again, no water at all. They had probably turned off the jets in preparation for the parade, but Nory prefers to think it was her poncho that kept her boat dry.

She was excited to ride Big Thunder in the dark, when it feels much faster and more intense than in the bright light of day. She hoped to stay on the train for multiple rides, to get some really good ideas for what her heroine could find in the craggy mountains of the West.

Sadly, it wasn’t to be. A few CMs blocked the mine’s entrance as she approached, yelling out that Big Thunder was down, for now.

Now what? thought Nory. Figuring she might as well head back toward a hopefully non-crowded Fantasyland, she skirted along the riverside path to Liberty Square. And since the bright floats and addictive song of the parade were passing by, she decided to climb up on the ledge and watch for a while. It wasn’t the best vantage spot in the world, but it was far from the worst.

She only lingered for a few minutes, figuring she’d catch the second parade later that night. And when the path deposited her not far from the officially spookiest ride in the Magic Kingdom, she decided no Halloween would be complete without a trip inside the Haunted Mansion.

The CMs were once again decked out in their ghostlike makeup, and glowered with their most menacing stares. As Nory stood in the stretching room, listening to the eerie narration and watching the portraits grow taller and taller, the room was monitored by a short CM in a tattered uniform, her black hair in two long braids, her dark eyes deeply sunken in her pale face. When the introduction was over and the guests were ushered into the next part of the queue, Nory remained, allowing everyone else to pass in front of her.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the raven-haired CM standing to her left, perfectly still, staring straight at her.

Nory slowly started heading for the exit.

She felt someone’s eyes on her, and turned.

The same CM stood stock still, on the right side of the room this time, again staring at Nory.

How did she get from one side of the room to the other so quickly, without me noticing?

Nory stepped out of the stretching room, and looked back, one last time.

The CM was now in the center of the room, still staring intensely at Nory.

Nory felt a pleasant chill run down her spine. The CM reminded her of the girl from The Ring, one of the scariest movies Nory has ever seen.

Perfect for Halloween, she thought, smiling. Just perfect.

Another CM, this time an apple-cheeked blonde in pigtails whose ghost makeup couldn’t quite curtail her natural pinkness, directed Nory into her doom buggy. Once Nory sat down, the blonde CM, walking apace with the vehicle, also stared, fixedly, into Nory’s eyes, practically sticking her face into Nory’s buggy, tipping her head to the left and maintaining eye contact until the moving pathway ended and Nory moved off into the ride.

They must really practice that frightening stare for Halloween, Nory thought. It really pays to be the very last person out of the stretching room…they have a lot more time to play with you that way!

The CMs’ ghostly antics had put Nory in the perfect frame of mind for the Haunted Mansion, and new ideas for her novel tumbled after each other in quick succession. By the end of the ride, she knew what her characters would be seeking in the land of the ghosts, and why, and how they would find it in the end.

An excellent fifteen minutes of work, all thanks to those wonderful CMs.

***

 

[dismagiclover]

Awesome update! Makes me want to read your novel! That sounds like pretty much the coolest ride I have ever heard about on Pirates. I can imagine it would be pretty freaky being all alone. My kids sometimes talk about how cool it would be to be alone in the park, but I always tell them I actually think it would be creepy. How did your latest trip go? (Maybe I should hop over to your PTR and you'll tell me.)

 

[teekathepony]

All alone on pirates would be so awesome and more than a little creepy! Love the cms at HM on any day, but a Halloween party day makes them all that much better! So funny about the two of them doing the creepy stare!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[norybell]

Awesome update! Makes me want to read your novel! That sounds like pretty much the coolest ride I have ever heard about on Pirates. I can imagine it would be pretty freaky being all alone. My kids sometimes talk about how cool it would be to be alone in the park, but I always tell them I actually think it would be creepy. How did your latest trip go? (Maybe I should hop over to your PTR and you'll tell me.)

Thanks! Maybe someday I'll actually finish the novel, and then you can read it.

The Pirates ride really was the coolest thing. Possibly one of my best Disney experiences ever. I've always wondered if anyone has ever hidden somewhere on Tom Sawyer's Island at the end of the day...there would be so many spots to hide there, they couldn't possibly search them all, right? I mean, what if you climbed a tree or something and just hung out there until the park was closed (A la Katniss Everdeen)? That would totally be creepy, being out there alone after dark.

My latest trip was nice, had some wonderful moments with Simba, and a few less-than-wonderful ones (from my own childhood, I'm guessing that's just how traveling with kids goes!). I really hated the whole Fastpass Plus thing, which was a bit of a bummer. But the trip on the whole was good!

All alone on pirates would be so awesome and more than a little creepy! Love the cms at HM on any day, but a Halloween party day makes them all that much better! So funny about the two of them doing the creepy stare!

Those CMs were so into it, it was really cool! Must be a very fun spot to work during the Halloween parties.

 

[KatMark]

Nory, we were in Iowa visiting the newlyweds and our new grandpuppy, so I'm catching up tonight.

What a wonderful update.

How neat that you got a boat all by yourself for Pirates (although I would have been a little leery myself in the dungeon walking to the ride with no one else around).

I'm sure the poncho was the trick on Splash.

I have to say I felt like I was right there with you in that stretching room and entering your doom buggy. What an awesome experience.

 

[MEK]

Welcome Back!

Great pictures, especially on Pirates.

Way too creepy about the CM in the stretching room. Seriously, that would totally freak me OUT!

 

[Poolrat]

Welcome back.


How Creepy in Pirates and HM. But so special at the same time.

Look forward to hearing about your recent trip- the good the bad and the ugly.

 

[norybell]

Nory, we were in Iowa visiting the newlyweds and our new grandpuppy, so I'm catching up tonight.

I hope you had a great weekend!

What a wonderful update.

Thanks!

How neat that you got a boat all by yourself for Pirates (although I would have been a little leery myself in the dungeon walking to the ride with no one else around).

I have to say I felt like I was right there with you in that stretching room and entering your doom buggy. What an awesome experience.

Both Pirates and HM were really amazing Disney World moments!

Welcome Back!

Great pictures, especially on Pirates.

Thanks!

Way too creepy about the CM in the stretching room. Seriously, that would totally freak me OUT!

It did freak me out, but in such a good way!

Welcome back.


How Creepy in Pirates and HM. But so special at the same time.

Exactly that -- creepy but special, simultaneously

Look forward to hearing about your recent trip- the good the bad and the ugly.

Hopefully I can get to it before another three years have passed!

 

[norybell]

Nory wasn’t about to make the same mistake she had the night before: waiting in an interminable line for food right before Hallowishes. But she was feeling a bit hungry, so she grabbed some popcorn from a cart in the hub before staking out her spot, once again on the path between Main Street and the Tomorrowland bridge. Then she set up her gorillapod and camera on the railing and called her husband. The area didn’t fill up until about five minutes before the fireworks began.

Nory loved the show. But she still likes Illuminations better.
***

 

[KatMark]

All I can say is WOW! Those pictures are absolutely amazing Nory. I may have to steal one for my desktop photo!

I LOVE Wishes (and sorry to say...we never watch Illuminations anymore).

Thank you for sharing these beautiful pictures with us.

 

[wiigirl]

Awesome pics!

 

[MEK]

My favorite is the last picture. That is super cool! I love all your pics. It's like you are the only one in the park. Great location. Last year I kept getting the top of someone's witches hat in my pictures. I was so bummed it was in EVERY picture!

 

[Poolrat]

Love your pictures. What an awesome night.

 

[norybell]

All I can say is WOW! Those pictures are absolutely amazing Nory. I may have to steal one for my desktop photo!

I LOVE Wishes (and sorry to say...we never watch Illuminations anymore).

Thank you for sharing these beautiful pictures with us.

Thank you! And steal away!

Awesome pics!

Thanks!

My favorite is the last picture. That is super cool! I love all your pics. It's like you are the only one in the park. Great location. Last year I kept getting the top of someone's witches hat in my pictures. I was so bummed it was in EVERY picture!

Thank you! I remember that witch hat from your TR. I really recommend that little path for fireworks...even if you show up only 15 minutes early, you can still get a great spot, and there's lots of railings for good camera support.

Love your pictures. What an awesome night.

Thanks, Pat!

 

[norybell]

Now officially plan-less for the rest of the night, Nory strolled into Tomorrowland.

She then strolled right onto Space Mountain, without waiting at all.

After her front-row mission through space, she decided she could use some more candy, reasoning that a careful distribution of sugar throughout the evening would help her make it all the way to the end.

Eventually she found her way to the Alice in Wonderland treat trail. She’d heard rumors that the later it got in the evening, the more candy she’d receive, and she was hoping this would already be the case.

Sadly, it wasn’t. The trail was essentially one long, slow-moving line, with occasional stops for two or three pieces of candy. The Wonderland decorations did look very cool in the dark, Nory had to admit—if she squinted a little, she could almost believe the path was lined with playing-card soldiers. But other than that, the trail didn’t seem worth it at all.

With a little more time to kill before she had to secure a spot for the second parade, Nory wasn’t quite sure what to do with herself.

She ended up at It’s a Small World. Considering the park was starting to empty out, and very few people waited to ride, she was a bit shocked that the CM instructed two strangers to join Nory in her row.

Rather than hoping for inspiration to strike—she already had the It’s a Small World portion of the novel figured out pretty well, anyway—Nory spent the ride taking pictures, in the hopes they would help her out later when she was looking for details.

It was nearly 10:15 now, and Nory rushed over to Frontierland so she wouldn’t miss the Headless Horseman ride that signaled the beginning of the parade. She found a perfect spot, near the bridge, and waited.

And as she waited, it began to dawn on her that this evening—which had been practically perfect so far—was nearing its close. She didn’t want it to end. But she couldn’t deny it: By the time the parade was over, she’d only have an hour or so left to ride anything.

Clip clop clip clop clip clop. The Headless Horseman galloped past.

Screw it, thought Nory. She wanted to make the absolute most out of her last few hours in the Magic Kingdom, and if that meant skipping the parade, so be it. She turned her back on the waiting crowds and headed farther into Frontierland, toward the mountain she’d yet to ride that evening. With no line to speak of thanks to the parade, she rode Big Thunder twice in a row, in the back—her favorite spot—and finally figured out the challenges her characters would face there.

As she walked away from the mountains, Nory popped into another treat trail. This one seemed to wind through the bowels of Splash Mountain, somehow, which can’t quite be right, but it certainly felt that way to Nory. And now the ton-of-candy-at-the-end-of-the-night rumors started coming true: Each candy-doling CM dumped handfuls of it into Nory’s trick-or-treat bag.

The trail deposited her back near Big Thunder, at a viewing platform she’d never really noticed before. Nory looked at her watch: 11:00. She wanted her final ride of the evening to be the Haunted Mansion, and she wanted to enter the line right at midnight, hoping to be one of the last guests to ride it that night. She had one hour left.

***

 

[Poolrat]

What an awesome decision Nory made. The night sounded perfect and that you had fun!!!!