Once in a Lifetime Honeymoon!!! UPDATED!!!

[kittymasi]

I know. It sounds absurd. Of COURSE you can fit alot in in 13 days!! But WAIT. We have 13 days to see all the parks in their entirety, visit Universal (his idea!! ), a waterpark, go on the Seas Aqua tour, eat at the BEST restaurants we can, the Chef's Table at Victoria and Alberts, Cirque du Soleil, fine DeVine, go to Extra magic hours as much as possible, get addicted to pin trading, rent water mice, spend ridiculous amounts of money, and go character hunting!! CAN WE DO IT ALL???

Well, here goes.

Well it’s a little late in coming, but at last, I am sitting down to write my 13 day honeymoon trip report!!!! I am going to be as detailed as possible, so bear with me if I become excruciating.

Our cast consists of myself, 27, 3rd trip to Disney, studying animation in school, been obsessively planning for a year…
And my husband, 42, 5th trip to Disney, very laid back and happy to just wake up in the morning and say “Where are we going today?”

Honeymoon – May 15th – 28th, first 10 nights at the Polynesian, last 3 at Wilderness Lodge



Pre-trip

Our wedding had been on Saturday the 13th of May, in a small bed and breakfast on Martha’s Vineyard with about 35 people in attendance. Nice and small. Jeff and I have known each other for seven years, and we like to keep things simple, so a small wedding was perfect. It poured all weekend, so our Japanese garden style wedding was out, but it was beautiful indoors anyway. We dropped my family off at the airport in Boston Sunday morning, and crashed at home. We were exhausted!! Even small weddings are exhausting! Something was off, we couldn’t figure out if it was the rain, or the busy schedule, or what, but we weren’t as excited as we should’ve been. After all, I’d been on the disboards for a year planning this honeymoon, and it got to a point where it almost felt as if the wedding were simply an excuse to go to Disneyworld!! Whatever it was, we were subdued on Sunday. We ordered Chinese food for dinner, and watched Beauty and the Beast. This (watching Beauty and the Beast) was a very important ritual… you see, in order to make the time go by faster throughout the year, I had compiled a list of Disney movies, about 50 total, and we had been watching one every weekend for the last year. It was a fun way to countdown until the wedding and honeymoon, and every week we’d scratch another movie off the list. I’d saved B&theB for last, as it’s my absolute favorite. As the evening drew to a close, we realized we couldn’t sleep, and began fretting over the packing, alarm clocks, etc. I’d been packed for a while, but I went through everything again. I called to double check our cab, and worried over the rain. Parts of Boston were flooded, and I was hoping there wouldn’t be a problem getting to the airport. Finally got to sleep about 3 AM. Jeff wasn’t asleep until 4 AM. Which wouldn’t be such a problem except we were up at 5.

Monday, May 15th

We were waiting for the cab driver at 5:30, and it was still pouring. We couldn’t wait to get some Florida sun! It had been raining for about 3 weeks, and as much as I love rain, and I do, I was ready for some warm weather. So it was pouring, and we had a ton of luggage (one cannot go to WDW unprepared), and our driver did not get out to help us with it, which made Jeff mad. Ah well. We got to the airport okay, and I tipped him, though not as much as I would’ve if he’d helped us… Security was a breeze, though already we were dealing with line cutters!!! J Our flight was a Delta, and as we sat at the gate, I reminded Jeff to leave his phone on in case someone needed to call. I had planned on having Mickey call him right before we got on the plane, and it worked out beautifully. My DH is enamored of Mickey Mouse, and he thought it was great that Mickey called to wish him a good trip!! This was a great thing, it was fun and easy, and I can’t wait to try it on my child someday… not that DH isn’t a child, he IS!!!
Flight was uneventful. We like Delta very much, have had good luck with them. Our flight had those little mini TVs in the back of the seats, but ours were malfunctioning, so we basically tried to get some sleep. I was really getting bothered by the fact that I didn’t have that “We’re going to WDW!!!!” feeling in my stomach yet. It felt anti-climactic. I was beginning to wonder if all that time on the disboards had robbed me of my excitement, if I had over-planned, if my obsession had backfired and everything on this honeymoon was going to feel stale and un-magical. I determined to cheer up and have fun, and when we got to Orlando, I was forcibly chipper. Possibly annoyingly chipper. Jeff was desperate for a smoke, which I abhor, so I puttered around the Disney store in the airport while I waited. That made me happy. We had to ask where Magical Express was, but when we got there, everything went smoothly. They were sooo busy! It was wall to wall and crammed, but the lines moved really quickly, andin no time we were in line waiting for the Poly bus. Another honeymooning couple was in front of us, heading to the Grand Floridian. We talked about our weddings… we said ours was really small, and they said theirs was, too. “Only about 150 people.” I laughed. They were very nice, but very young and rather haughty. It made me giggle. I am not being mean, I swear, but we’re so laid back, and they were very preppy. I thought to myself that she was definitely a wear-heels-to-the-park kind of girl. Anyhoo, our bus came right away, and we were off!!
We got more excited during the bus ride. We started seeing signs that said WDW, and we watched the video, and that really got us in the mood! The ride didn’t take long, and Poly was the first stop. By the time we reached WDW property, Jeff and I were plastered to the windows. Neither of us had ever stayed on property before, and I had changed my mind about 5 times about our resort… I was nervous, and hoping I’d made the right choice. Boy oh boy.
We stepped off the bus into paradise. Literally. I’d never seen anything so welcoming and beautiful in all my life!! The trees, the foliage, waterfalls, flowers, gentle breezes, friendly “aloha’s” coming from everywhere! As we walked into the lobby, which was breathtaking, a cool waft of air hit our faces, and we knew immediately that we were HOME. This place was perfect. There was no line at all at check-in, but we approached knowing we might have to wait… we were there about noon. A CM named Clyda checked us in, and we could tell she was fairly new. She had a trainer with her. She said our room was ready, and I held my breath. I had booked a plain ole GV, but requested Fiji for the view. I was open minded, but I was hoping to get my request. As she looked up our room, I heard her supervisor say under her breath, “Oh, they’ve been upgraded.”
Jeff and I caught our breath. I knew there was a small chance of getting an upgrade, as our honeymoon had been noted on our reservation, but I wasn’t going to ASK for one. Jeff asked, “Did you say we’ve been upgraded?” I was thinking Lagoon view!!! Magic Kingdom View!!!
She smiled at us, and said, “You’ve been upgraded to concierge.”
We almost cried. This was a once in a lifetime trip for us, we could never have afforded anything close to concierge. We barely afforded Poly at all. We thanked them over and over, and I think our gratitude really touched Clyda. She was almost as teary as me!!
That cemented it. We were SO in the Disney mood!! We ran to the Hawaii building, said hello to the concierge staff, and went to check out our room on the 3rd floor. It was A-MA-ZING. GV concierge, huge room, beautifully remodeled, overlooking the quiet pool and the grounds. We felt like we couldn’t breathe. We were in shock. It was nicer than anything I’d ever dreamed of. Too good to be true.
After we got over the shock, Jeff and I realized how hungry we were, so we strolled the grounds, got a sandwich from Captain Cook’s, and took a nap in our lovely room. We woke up, showered, and caught a bus to Downtown Disney. Not bad at all, by the way. I’d heard horror stories about Poly trans to DD, and it was great. We waited 10 minutes for a bus, and the trip only took 15 minutes.
We had dinner at Portobello Yacht Club, (which I will detail in a dining report) and went shopping at World of Disney. Picked up the only thing I was looking for there… a veil and top hat. Bought Jeff some sunglasses, and headed home.
Back at Hawaii, Jeff was thirsty, and we headed to the lounge to get him something to drink. It was closing up, so I asked where I could get him some milk… he doesn’t sleep without it. Lo and behold, they disappeared and came back with three little cartons of milk!! I love this place!!! Bed was incredible; we slept like babies.

Tomorrow… Magic Kingdom!!!

 

[MemoryMakers2669]

Great report, can't wait to read more! And Congrats!

 

[kittymasi]

Tuesday, May 16th

We’d ordered a 630 wake up call, but we TOTALLY slept through it!! When we got up and dressed, we sat on our balcony enjoying the morning for a while, and we noticed that it was overcast and cool. The weather channel said there would be thundershowers all day. We thought that was funny, escaping Boston rain to be welcomed by Florida rain!! Not to be deterred, Jeff and I headed to Kona for our breakfast. We were ½ hour late for our ADR, but the place was pretty empty. It was delicious, btw.
We hopped the monorail to MK, and it was really quiet!! None of the rides had lines, and there were spurts of heavy rain all day, keeping the crowds down until the afternoon, when the weather warmed up and the droves of people arrived.
We had this great interaction with Captain Hook and Smee this morning… we’d spotted them behind POTC, and I chased them down to get a picture. The handler said they’d be back In the front in a minute, and to catch them there. Jeff and I ran and got in line. Both Hook and Smee reappeared soon enough, and when it was my turn, Hook stole my autograph book!!! He made me kiss him, and still wouldn’t give it back. I searched him and searched him, but I couldn’t find it. The whole line was laughing, and they were really getting a kick out of the whole thing. Finally, Smee showed me that they’d smuggled it to the next little boy in line, who was hiding it behind his back. So cute! So I grabbed it with a big show of indignation, and then Hook grabbed me and acted as if he were going to chain me to the wall, a pirate wench!! We probably played with them for ten minutes, and it wasn’t a bad thing, because the line was really short, and everyone was getting into it. It was great. Hook tried to claw my new wedding ring off with his hook. I’m not sure if that was a flirt… or simply an attempt at jewelry thievery!

We lunched at Plaza, great food, and managed to get front row seats for Cinderellabration. We enjoyed Hall of Presidents as much as we have in the past… what a great attraction. I overheard some lady complaining to the CM about the movie at the beginning… she wanted to know if they could see the Presidents without watching that “boring movie” at the beginning. What a shame.
Jeff bought me a lanyard despite my protests… I was determined not to get caught up in pin trading. But alas, I was defeated before the fight even began. He bought me a cute Stitch pin, and I was hooked.
Our blood sugar was dropping by 630, so when we sat down to dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern, we were sober and tired. Well, we perked right up, and watched with delight as the baby girl at the next table screeched in happiness whenever the characters walked by. She was so cute!!! It was a beautiful Disney moment, and I could see in the parents’ faces the wonder of that Disney magic. Great character interaction at these character meals, I highly recommend them.
After dinner, we staked out a spot for Wishes, and a little boy sat next to us. He was very talkative and enraptured through the whole show. He’d cry out in excitement at the bursts of color in the air, and Jeff and I sat on the ground, grinning and holding hands. It was as much fun to watch the boy as it was to watch the fireworks. And beautiful fireworks they were!! I’m not much into fireworks normally.. they’re stinky and loud. But this was breathtaking.
After it was over, in the mad dash for the gates, Jeff and I weaved in and out of foot traffic like old pros. We were GOOD, let me tell you. We’d see a hole and BAM! We were through it! We were at the gate in no time. Hopped on the resort monorail that was waiting for us, and took a deep breath. I looked down, and a gorgeous little girl was staring up at me from the seat next to me. She was dressed like Snow White. I said how lucky I was to be sitting next to Snow White, and she smiled. And began to talk. Fast. She didn’t stop talking for three stops. At one point, she declared that she liked this dress because it was “super spinney”, and she stood and began to spin to demonstrate. What a wonderful thing it must be to bring your children to a place that lets them be this open and talkative and happy.
Back at our room, we decided it was too cold for a swim. The mousekeepers had arranged my makeup beautifully, and adorned my teddy bear with a lei. So cute! They left us extra chocolates, too, and I was glad I had spent so much time hand decorating their tip envelopes.

MGM tomorrow!

 

[Bev J]

Great so far....I have a feeling this is going to be a very long TP- all the better!!

Bev

 

[kittymasi]

BTW, here's a link to our pics on yahoo. there's lots more, but these are all i have up for now.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/orangecandelabra/album?.dir=/5859re2&.src=ph&.tok=phtt18EBVYieQJ6O

 

[byoung]

Good going.

 

[Amy&Dan]

I am really enjoying your report, what a great thing to be upgraded to concierge at the Poly! I'd say your marriage is off to a very good start! Can't wait to read more.

 

[kittymasi]

Wednesday, May 17th

Woke up at 7 AM, and it looked to be a beautiful day. We donned our brand new ears, and as soon as we stepped out of our room, the “Congratulations!” began. That was awesome. We decided to breakfast in the concierge lounge, which was delicious, I might add!! They had tons of fresh fruit, cereal, bagels, wonderful pineapple bread, and a really good cheese Danish that I became quite fond of!! As I weaved my way in and out of tables with our food, some guy started humming “Here comes the bride,” and everyone smiled and was so kind. The attention was kind of fun, but it was just another element that made this trip special.
Once again, we were struck by the beauty of our resort as we headed for the bus. It really is beautiful, I cant even begin to describe it. Early in the morning, when it’s still quiet and cool, the sun hits those palm trees and flowering bushes, and… wow!
We got to MGM early enough to avoid the late morning crowds, and we headed straight for Tower of Terror, and fast passed it. We then ran to Rockin’ Rollercoaster, which was AWESOME! I should say that I am a huge roller coaster fan, but the last couple times I came to WDW, once I was sick with a stomach thing, and the other I had a migraine. This is the first time I could really enjoy this ride, and I REALLY enjoyed it!! We had to hold our bride and groom ears so we didn’t lose them, but when we got off the ride, a nice CM saw them in our hands, congratulated us, and asked if we liked the ride. We said vehemently YES, and he ushered us through a little back door that led us right back to the front of the ride again!! So we ride again, and when we got off the second time, the same CM gave us three fast passes for anytime during the day. We could come back and ride whenever we chose!! Yay!! We booked it to Tower of Terror, and got this great picture… Jeff and I were the ONLY people in our full car that had our hands straight up in the air. It was a great pic.
We got treated like VIP’s all day, I swear. If anyone has any misgivings about choosing Disney as their honeymoon… go for it! All day long, people were shouting well wishes, and CM’s were interacting with us… we felt like we were the only people in the park that got this kind of attention. I know we weren’t… we saw LOTS of other honeymooners, but it still felt so special!! Maybe it’s our vibe; Jeff and I are true children at heart, and we appreciate Disney so much because it allows us to be as childlike as we want. Jeff’s a maniac. He’ll giggle and hug the characters, and scream like a kid on the rides. I love that about him. I wanted to get him on stage at the Indiana Jones show (I’ve been on once), so we headed there next. Again, a CM stopped us, and gave us seats in the VIP section right up front! It was a full house when we got there, so we were so grateful. As soon as they started casting, Jeff started jumping up and down like crazy, and the lady called him up. They made me come too. We handed our camera to the nice elderly couple next to us (who turned out to be Indy’s parents), and they took pics for us. We got to meet Indy after the show, and we chatted, and got our pics taken with him, too.
Now, you’d think all this excitement would put us in grand moods, but it started to get REALLY crowded, and REALLY hot, and Jeff began to get REALLY cranky. He’d worn the Payless version crocs today, and while they are perfect bare footed for me, his feet started to sweat and get yucky. So I bought him some Mickey socks, which cheered him a little, and we decided to take it easy for the rest of the day. We were probably hungry, as I hadn’t scheduled a “lunch” persay… we just snacked along the way. By the time we got to dinner at the Brown Derby, we were starving. Good thing.
I had arranged the Fantasmic Dining Package, and while I won’t go into the details of dinner here, let me say that it was well worth the price!!! The food was delectable, and the value was really really good. Our waiter was cute, too, and Jeff and I giggled every time he left our table. One thing… I was pretty sure that drinks (I mean soda, not alcohol) was included in the package price, and they added them onto the bill. Maybe I was wrong. Anyhoo, we were happy with dinner. And our seats for Fantasmic were great, I don’t know what people complain about! It’s a fairly small stadium, all the seats looked pretty good to me. This was a terrific show, not to be missed. There was not an empty seat in the house, so I really do highly recommend the Fantasmic Dining Package. It’s great to have secured seats.
We left right after the show, and the bus showed up for us right away. This bus service is really impressive.

Hey, as I’m writing this, please feel free to ask anything. I am trying not to write a novel here… it’s not easy, I tend to write a heck of a lot more than I talk.

 

[Linxzy]

Enjoying your reports!

 

[OhMari]

Thanks for sharing your Trip with us and also your pictures.
Where you on the Dining Plan?

 

[kittymasi]

No, we weren’t on the dining plan… I had scheduled so many table service meals, and special things like Victoria and Alberts, that when I worked out the price, it just wasn’t the best deal for us. I think next time we go, we will probably be on the meal plan, because we won’t be on our honeymoon, and we’ll be eating a lot more burgers and fries type meals. More counter service than this time.

Thursday, May 18th

Slept in late today, 8 AM. That’s late for us!! We skipped our Kona breakfast, grabbed some light fare from Captain Cook’s, and ate on the beach. I had been looking forward to today for a loooong time, and I wanted to be relaxed and happy. I was wearing a scuba swimsuit I’d bought just for today, and Jeff was making a big deal over it. He thought it was cute, and that made me happy. I’m certainly not one of those skinny gals, I carry around a few extra pounds, so whenever he makes a big deal over my appearance, it always boosts my confidence a little. Anyway, we met our mousekeeper today as we gathered our things for the day. She was so sweet, and in broken English, she thanked me for the tip envelopes I left her. That made me feel GREAT. I was leaving her a couple dollars a day in these envelopes I had drawn and inked by hand. You know, cute things like a picture of the Cheshire Cat with the caption “We’re simply MAD about our Mousekeeping.” Made me happy that she liked them… she said she showed them to her boss, and she was bringing them home to her daughter. Since we’d been pixie-dusted so much, I was glad she was getting a little pixie dust of her own.
We were at Epcot today, and we puttered about Futureworld for a while. Jeff made me ride Mission:Space, which I did NOT want to do… I get motion sickness so easily. And yes I got sick. But we walked it off, and at least now he won’t ask me to ride it again.
Around 11:45, we made our way to the front gate and checked in for the Seas Aqua Tour!!!

SEAS AQUA TOUR

We waited for our tour guide by the guest relations window, and it was a great breather. There was a gentle breeze, as there always seems to be in Epcot, the sun was out, and old Disney standards drifted to our ears from inside the park. This is living. Our guides showed up at 12:15, and there was another couple and a family that was taking the tour with us. Everyone was super nice. I was nervous about swimming with people I didn’t know… I have such a complex about my thighs… but I wasn’t swimming with supermodels. They were nice, normal people, and immediately I felt relaxed and excited about our tour!! We took a backstage tour of the facilities, heard lots of fascinating information about the Living Seas, and I was really pleased to find out that part of our tour price went towards the Disney Marine Research fund. Disney is so great about wildlife conservation… it made me want to take the tour again! Great marketing…
We watched the introduction video, asked some questions, were instructed not to touch, well, anything, and then we were introduced to our wetsuits!! Boy howdy. Getting these things on was no picnic. All of us girls were in our locker rooms squirming, helping each other zip them up, pulling, tugging, hopping on one foot, until we were all nice and jammed in. I walked out in the hallway, and was greeted by Jeff, positively swimming in his suit. It looked like he’d just slipped in. He had ROOM to MOVE. Sigh…
Now for the fun part!! We were taken to the top of the huge tank, we put on our tanks, masks, and flippers, and we prepared to enter the water. Now, even though this is a snorkeling tour, we were given scuba tanks, etc, which was pretty cool. I’d never used one before, and it takes a couple of minutes to adjust your breathing, but once you get used to it, it’s awesome! When we first got up there, they were feeding the fish, so the fish and the rays were all at the surface flopping around. As we slipped into the water, I was adjusting my gear, and I felt this bizarre sensation on my leg. I looked down, and a stingray was sucking on my leg!! It thought I had food, and it was going nuts!! I couldn’t really touch it, you’re not supposed to, so I kind of squealed, and the trainers started laughing. It wouldn’t let go!! Really funny, Jeff was laughing so hard.
The tank is utterly indescribable. The multitudes of fish, the sea turtles, the sharks swimming the floor beneath you, the huge coral reefs, the rays, it was all so incredible. It was a great experience, swimming around, getting close to the marine life, holding hands with Jeff as we swam slowly over the coral, and checked out the starfish and the schools of tropical fish hiding inside. I can’t really explain how thrilling this experience is. We HAVE to do it again. It made me want badly to get my scuba license and go on the Scuba tour next time. There is something wonderful and magical about being that close to these creatures… the turtles were HUGE, and the rays were so playful. They’d swim right up to you. This is worth so much more than they are charging. We got a discount for being AP holders, too. This was something I’ll never forget. After our swim, we got a t-shirt and a commemorative photo, which turned out pretty good! And we were so hungry…

Today, we lunched around the world. We started with counter service egg rolls in China, which are delicious, btw!! Jeff hates egg rolls, and he couldn’t get enough! I mean, I’m sure they are far from authentic, and we’ve Disneyfied them, but heck, a good egg roll is a good egg roll! They’re inexpensive, too. Try them! Then we grabbed some bratwurst in Germany, coffee in Italy, and we stopped, because it was getting late, and I’d made ADR’s for a special dinner at Rose and Crown. As we walked, Jeff and I stopped by the African Outpost, where they were just beginning a storytelling show. They were calling for drummers, so we jumped in!! That was so fun. Jeff’s got pretty good rhythm. The message of the story was good, too, love, peace, and respect for all beings. It starred a turtle. This is significant. They ended it with “The only time you look down on someone is when you are bending to help them up.” We liked that.
We spent a good deal of time in Japan, where I was picked to be a princess in a Japanese folktale, also starring a turtle. We had a turtle filled day!! But it was great to be in the show, because I am a student of Japanese language and culture, and the storyteller was impressed with my Japanese. Yayyy! Got an honorary Epcot players pin. The spontaneous action of the day was really great… we never knew what was going to happen next, or where we’d be jumping in and participating!
So for dinner, the Rose and Crown was packed. We checked in, and I asked politely if we could have a table with a view for Illuminations. They said they’d do what they could, but it was really busy. So we sat to wait. Jeffrey, being the raucous boy that he is, saw a few R&C CM’s throwing a rugby ball around in the back, so he jumped the fence and started throwing it around, too!! They LOVED him. He laughed and joked and played with them for a half hour or so, and by the time they called our name for our table, he winked at me and said “It’s all taken care of.”
Sure enough, what a view!!! We could see right onto the lake. We sat on the porch, and when show time came, we had prime seats. What a great night. We finished up our chocolate cake while Illuminations played, and it felt like a perfect moment. We thanked the staff profusely, and walked back to the bus, leisurely. We were so grateful to be here.

 

[Bev J]

Great TP so far, hope to read more soon! It is true that it is so much more fun if you join in the antics!

Bev

 

[MagicMe]

Great trip report

Congratulations on your marriage!! Wishing you magical years ahead!!!

Can't wait for the next installment!

 

[OhMari]

Does your husband play Rugby? My 22-yr old dd does in college. If it is a 2 'clock Sat. afternoon call, I know it is from the emergency room telling me she is bruised or hurt.

 

[roberrl187]

I'm really enjoying your report. I look forward to the next installment.

 

[LisaIL]

Enjoying your reports! Keep them coming!

 

[Harmony272]

WOW! Sounds like you are had an awesome trip. Can I come next time? (heheh)

 

[Ozymoe]

Loving your Trip Report!

 

[kittymasi]

Sorry about the delay, folks…. I’ve been ill the last few days. Where was I?

Friday, May 19th

Today was our Universal day. Neither Jeff nor I had ever been to Universal, Sea World, etc., but he’d been wanting to go for years, so we decided to check Universal and Islands of Adventure out. I’d gotten five day tickets for the price of two, and we had planned 3 –4 days to explore these parks.
I was SOOO exhausted from yesterday, that I could barely get out of bed. I was already cranky, and dealing with Mears this morning did NOT help my mood.
I pride myself on research and preparedness… I’m a little Hermione-esque in this area. I had called Mears weeks before to make reservations for the shuttle to Universal from the Poly, and was told emphatically that I couldn’t make reservations, that the shuttle picked up from the Poly at 8:30, 9:30, and 10:30 no matter what. I called twice to confirm this information. Sigh…
We breakfasted in the concierge lounge (love those cheese Danish!) and were out in the front of the Poly by 8:25. No shuttle. We wait 15 minutes, and call. Oh, we were supposed to make reservations, they won’t pick up unless we do. Garrr… We TRIED, I told them. They were rude. So eventually, we made reservations for the 9:30, and we puttered about in the lobby til then. Bought more pins. Alas, I’m hooked.
Got in a crowded van, Jeff in the very back, me in the front chatting with the driver, and arrived at Universal. Crowded, loud, scary Universal.
You know, I am aware that Disney spoils us rotten, but come on… Universal was packed with unruly kids with no supervision, rude tshirts and language, and it is entirely possible that my opinions are biased because I was so hot and cranky and tired that day. A lot of rides were shut down, and as we were unwilling to fork over a heck of a lot more money for “fast passes”, we only rode those rides which were important to us. We loved the Curse of the Mummy, and we really liked ET, but really, that was it. Lunch was good. You know, another thing that gets me about Universal is the blatant anti-Disney sentiment that permeates the park. Posters making fun of the Enchanted Tiki Room, etc. really lowers the class of the whole place for me.
We left early. Jeff was tired of the park, too, so we were relieved to be back at the Poly. We FINALLY went swimming, even if it wasn’t for long… Jeff’s such a killjoy about water. He hasn’t got any fat on him, so he starts shivering pretty quickly. Me? I’ve got enough to keep me nice and happy in the water!!!
Epcot has evening extra magic hours, so we took a nice long walk around world showcase, and that wiped us out. Instead of going to Islands of Adventure tomorrow, which we’d planned, we decided to take it off and relax. We had time for Islands of Adventure later.

 

[kittymasi]

Saturday, May 20th

Wow. Okay, in order to understand what happened today, I’ll give a brief order of events.

We’d decided today was our “relaxing” day. We had nothing planned except for dinner at House of Blues this evening, and Cirque du Soleil after, something I’d been looking forward to for a loooong time. On a whim, we decided to go and talk to a DVC rep today, since we’d been talking about DVC the whole time we’d been here.

Okay! So Mike, the DVC guy in the Poly lobby, made an appointment for us to go to Saratoga Springs and talk with someone that afternoon, so we could be dropped off in Downtown Disney right after, and go to dinner. A nice guy picked us up from the Poly, and drove us to SS, where we met with a wonderful woman named Nancy. Nancy gave us a great tour, explained DVC beautifully, and was generally an extremely pleasant person, exemplary of Disney service and standards. We really enjoyed this meeting, and we were both excited about the prospect of joining DVC. Ah, but then the axe fell.
A CM, whom shall remain nameless b/c of disciplinary action being taken, picked us up I n the DVC van to take us to Downtown Disney after our appointment. Without being too specific (these ARE family boards), lets just say that several EXTREMELY inappropriate things were said to my husband and I of a sexual nature during the course of this 5 minute ride. Highly offensive and VERY non-Disney themed things. By the time we got to our destination, I was in total shock, furious, and it was all I could do to prevent my husband from killing the guy. I was shaking as we left him, and I didn’t know what to do. We went to dinner early, and talked it our over a delicious sushi grade salmon… ah, I wish I could’ve enjoyed it more. After, we decided to report the guy to DVC, and we approached the DVC kiosk in DD. To Disney’s credit, we were taken VERY seriously, and we were promised a phone call by the following morning. Just so I can drop this subject here, I will tell you that we DID receive that call, we were asked to come back down to Saratoga where we met with Nancy and the head of Disney transportation. I was able to recall every thing that was said, and I wrote a statement, and it was just handled very politely. In other words, I was not dismissed, which I appreciated. They tried to give us something, but we said all we wanted was someone to listen, and for it NOT to happen again to anyone else. God knows what he would’ve said/done if I was a single woman in his van!! But anyway. That’s that.
Cirque du Soleil!! It was sold out; this was the last night of this troupe’s performance this summer. Jeff and I had been waiting for years to see them, and we were NOT disappointed. It is really difficult to describe to someone who has never seen them… there’s so much going on that you have to look everywhere at once. It’s impossible to see it all. The color and lighting and everything is so artistic and beautiful. We were so impressed. I was so grateful that we were able to see this show before it changed. We had great seats, on the right about ½ way up, and we were able to see everything so clearly. Perfect night… for a couple of hours we were completely blown away by the show, and I totally forgot the rest of the day.

Tomorrow… Animal Kingdom!! With Jeff’s parents!!