"One Step Ahead of the Slowpokes!"- A Dec '10/Jan '11 Trip Report! FINISHED 3/9 pg 38

[Nermel9]

Isn't the Poly so pretty! I'd love to stay there one day!

Mmm Kona for breakfast looks so yummy! I want to try that Tonga Toast, but I don't really like banana so I'm not sure if I'd like it!

LOL love all the pics that John took of you!

 

[wahoostampingirl]

I love, love, love Kona! My favorite is the Macadamia Nut/Pineapple Pancakes. So yummy. I keep meaning to try the Tonga Toast, but I can't stop myself from ordering those pancakes every time.

Isn't the Poly beautiful? We always make it a point to stop by on every trip, but in August we'll be staying there for the first time. I can't wait.

 

[DisneyFirefly]

I'd love to stay at the Poly someday It's just so gorgeous!

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

The sleigh ride sounded like a lot of fun! I can't believe how many lights people put up - that's more than the houses around me have for Christmas! That would be so much fun though - going to Fort Wilderness for the Winter months and just camping out. I am not a camper, but I think I could be if I was doing it at Disney!

I can't wait to try some Tonga Toast at the Poly! It's one of the things I'm most excited to eat on the disneymoon!

 

[TanzUnited99]

I love the pics of Poly and can't wait to visit this lovely resort!

Mmm am glad Tonga Toast lived up to all it's hype and can't wait to try it. Lol at DH trying to take all them pics of you - they look great!

 

[Disneyfreak616]

Mmmm that caramel apple looks delish!!

I am sooo excited for Kona in August! I will definitely be having the Tonga Toast!

 

[dancin_princess]

That juice is quite yummy.

Lol, when my boyfriend has the camera - he acts like paparazzi. He says "you never know, one pic might be better than the other - im an artist"

The 1970's setting is such bright colors

oh, tonga toast deliciousness - sadly, I have yet to have this yet.

 

[therussells08]

I am glad that you enjoyed Kona Cafe, I can't wait to try Tonga Toast, I am dreaming about it now , I hope it lives up to expectations. You remind me so much of me and my DBF, he will take photos like that of me when he is bored. They are funny because afterwards you can see me getting progressively more uncomfortable as they go on. Usually I get to my limit and make a grab for the camera . I am glad that you are having such a good time. I have just caught up reading through your previous posts, Can't wait to read more.

I am glad you are enjoying my TR! You are going to love Tonga Toast! It is amazing! That is so funny that your DBF is like John with the camera! He always ends up with the strangest pictures of me!

I love your report so far! I've been to Hollywood Studios a few times and have never seen that place where you did the drawings! I am definitely putting that in the itinerary for my October trip with my dad =]

Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying it! You have to do the Animation Academy! It is one of our favorite things to do at DHS!

Isn't the Poly so pretty! I'd love to stay there one day!

Mmm Kona for breakfast looks so yummy! I want to try that Tonga Toast, but I don't really like banana so I'm not sure if I'd like it!

LOL love all the pics that John took of you!

Yes! It's gorgeous! I just wish it wasn't so expensive!

I don't know, I think you could eat around the banana and it would still be really good!

I love, love, love Kona! My favorite is the Macadamia Nut/Pineapple Pancakes. So yummy. I keep meaning to try the Tonga Toast, but I can't stop myself from ordering those pancakes every time.

Isn't the Poly beautiful? We always make it a point to stop by on every trip, but in August we'll be staying there for the first time. I can't wait.

I was very tempted by those pancakes, but I had been thinking about Tonga Toast for months so I had to go with it! They sound delicious though!

It is beautiful! I am so happy for you that you get to stay there in August!

I'd love to stay at the Poly someday It's just so gorgeous!

Me too! It is absolutely beautiful!

 

[therussells08]

The sleigh ride sounded like a lot of fun! I can't believe how many lights people put up - that's more than the houses around me have for Christmas! That would be so much fun though - going to Fort Wilderness for the Winter months and just camping out. I am not a camper, but I think I could be if I was doing it at Disney!

I can't wait to try some Tonga Toast at the Poly! It's one of the things I'm most excited to eat on the disneymoon!

The sleigh ride was great! I'm the same way- I'm not a camper but I would be willing to try it at Disney!

You are going to LOVE Tonga Toast! It's amazing!

I love the pics of Poly and can't wait to visit this lovely resort!

Mmm am glad Tonga Toast lived up to all it's hype and can't wait to try it. Lol at DH trying to take all them pics of you - they look great!

I'm glad you liked the pictures! It really is a beautiful resort!

You are going to love Tonga Toast! It's delicious! Thanks for saying that about the pictures. I had no eye makeup on so I looked really tired!

Mmmm that caramel apple looks delish!!

I am sooo excited for Kona in August! I will definitely be having the Tonga Toast!

It was sooo good! I can't wait to go back to Karamel Kuche!

I'm glad you get to have Tonga Toast in August! That's definitely something to look forward to!

That juice is quite yummy.

Lol, when my boyfriend has the camera - he acts like paparazzi. He says "you never know, one pic might be better than the other - im an artist"

The 1970's setting is such bright colors

oh, tonga toast deliciousness - sadly, I have yet to have this yet.

Yes! The juice is amazing!

Yeah, I'm not a big fan of the 1970's setting!

You must try Tonga Toast! It is sooo good!

 

[therussells08]

We finished up with our delicious breakfast at Kona and left the Polynesian Resort. Now it was off to one of our favorite places: Downtown Disney!

As I'm sure you all know it is usually a pain in the neck trying to find a parking spot in Downtown Disney, but since it was still pretty early we didn't have too much trouble. We were able to find a great spot on the Marketplace side right by Team Mickey!

I guess we decided to start at the back of Downtown Disney and work our way forward, because the first store we went to was the Art of Disney.

I love this store! I could spend hours in here drooling over all the gorgeous art.

I think I mentioned earlier in this TR that my mom collects porcelain dolls. Her favorite doll artist is Marie Osmond, so I got really excited when I saw these Marie Osmond Disney dolls.

They were really cute and I spent quite a bit of time thinking about getting her one, but I finally decided not to. They were around $40 and not very big, so I thought she might like something else more. Maybe I will get here one on my upcoming trip.

Of course while we were there I had to stop and admire the gorgeous Thomas Kinkade paintings.

John and I actually had a momentary loss of sanity in this store when we found a Bambi Thomas Kinkade painting that was really big and only $430. Compared to the other Kinkade paintings that were over $1,000 this seemed like a steal! We spent about ten minutes staring at it and debating about getting it. In the end I said let's wait and see how many other souvenirs we buy and go from there. I think we both knew we weren't going to get it, but it was fun considering it for awhile!

We finally decided it was probably in our best interest to leave the Art of Disney before we maxed out our credit cards, so we left. On our way out I took this picture.

I would love to have a planter like that in my yard!

Our next stop was the Christmas shop! I had to take a picture of these guys!

Then I took a picture of the nice sign at the entrance (and my reflection).

We only stayed in here for a few minutes because it was really crowded and all of the Christmas stuff made me a little depressed. I still had a whole year to get through before it would be Christmas again!

After we left there we headed to one of my favorite stops: the pin store! It looks like Donald and Daisy were ready to trade!

Now, I'm not sure if you guys remember me mentioning that I am an avid pin collector, but let me just say I could honestly spend $1,000 in this place with no problems. I love all of the pins so much, and it's always so hard for me to pick a few! John is really patient with my pin trading addiction and he loves helping me pick some out, so we spent about half an hour going through and finding the goodies that I wanted. After we paid we went outside so I could sit on the bench and take pictures of what I picked.

I went with a limited edition New Years Eve and New Years Day pin. Each pin has Chip and Dale on it, and I thought it was fitting since we were in Disney for both of these events!

I also got this limited edition Then and Now pin. It is a rotating pin that has a former WDW ride on one side and the ride that took its place on the other. This one has Extraterrorestrial Alien Encounter on one side and Stitch's Great Escape on the other.

I love this pin! It has Scar and the hyenas from the Lion King and it says, "I'm surrounded by idiots." I bought this because I have another Lion King pin like it that has Nala holding Simba down and it says, "Pinned ya again."

They had a deal going on in the pin store where if you spent $30 you could get a mystery pin for $1. The mystery pins were various keys that are shaped like Disney characters' heads. I decided to get one because I love collecting the hidden Mickey pins. I was hoping for Pluto, but I still liked who I got!

Goofy! John and I made a mental note to keep our eye out for any other key pins that we could trade for while we walked around Downtown Disney.
After I finished looking at my pins we headed to a store that I had read about on the DIS but never been in before!

Tren-D! This place was really cool, but it was a little overwhelming. I noticed that most of the stuff was pretty expensive, so I just settled for browsing. I took a picture of the really pretty chandeliers hanging from the ceiling before we left.

Up next we went to the mother of all souvenir stores!

The World of Disney! Before we went in John had to stop and pose with the pirate!

Then we saw some more unsavory characters inside the door!

As always we spent a looong time shopping in the World of Disney! While we were there I took a few pictures.

The beautiful mini-castle!

I loved that the Genie was wearing a Santa outfit!

I can't remember exactly what we bought, but I know the original total was around $75. We had been saving our gift cards that my sister had gotten us for Christmas, so we used those and it ended up being right around $25!
One thing I do remember buying right then was a hot pink WDW shirt. The shirt that I had chosen to wear for the day had a really itchy tag in it, so after we left World of Disney I went into the bathroom and changed into my new pink shirt!

When I came out of the bathroom I noticed a perfect photo opportunity!

And here's the, "okay I'm done" shot.

Then I decided to stop and pose with Buzz Lightyear!

John and I started joking around that now I had my picture taken with both of the Toy Story men!

After we finished the majority of our shopping for the morning it was almost time for our lunch ADR at T-Rex!

Up Next: We go back in time for lunch, meet a very silly Santa, and see the one thing you never should see at Disney: a fight! Stay tuned!

 

[DisneyFirefly]

You guys are seriously so cute

Random, but do you still have my number? Feel free to text or send me pics while you're down there You'll be there right after my birthday!

 

[Nermel9]

I love Downtown Disney! Can't stand driving there, but I love being there! I love the Art of Disney stores...we spent so much time in the Epcot one in November, I thought we'd never leave! I want a Thomas Kinkade Disney painting!!! Someday, I hope! That Princess and the Frog one is beautiful!

You didn't stay long in my Christmas store??? That is seriously my favorite store in all of WDW! Although, I didn't even set foot in that store when I went in May, so I guess I can understand not wanting to be there right after Christmas!

TrenD is so pretty, but I usually end up getting overwhelmed in there and just browsing for a minute and then leaving!

I love the World of Disney...ok, maybe that is my favorite store, before the Christmas store! I always spend way too much $$ in there!

Wow, you might just finish this TR before your next trip!

 

[Cat0727]

Kona's breakfast is at the top of my must-try list. I know I'll love the tonga toast! Fried dough is so up my alley

Love all the shopping pics! Tren-D is a cool store. I like browsing there for a little bit but between the prices and crowds in there I can't stay for long.

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

I must say, I'm glad I'm not very into art - it seems like a very expensive thing to collect! I do really like the Thomas Kinkade paintings, though! I do wish I could get into the pin trading, though. I seems like a lot of fun! Do you actually trade them with cast members, or do you just collect them? I'm pretty shy, so I can't see myself going up to someone asking to see their pins, but it might be fun to just have a collection somewhere. Maybe I should just buy a pin or two when we're there and see if it sparks some interest!

Oh, World of Disney. How I do love that store. I get very serious about shopping there. I have a strategy that we must follow! I feel like you need one, though. It can get so overwhelming!

 

[Disneyfreak616]

Yayy for shopping!!! My little sister is DEFINITELY going to want one of those Marie Osmond dolls.

I Thomas Kinkade! I want the Peter Pan painting, but man they are pricey! Oh well, maybe someday! The Princess and the Frog one is gorgeous as well! And that's saying something coming from me, because I'm not too big on Tiana. The movie was super cute though.

Yayy for pin trading and a new shirt! That's a really pretty color!

Can't wait to hear about T-REX! I'm so excited to go there in July, it's soo cool!

AND YOU'RE GOING TO WDW IN 10 DAYS!!!!!!

 

[TanzUnited99]

Yay on DTD shopping!! Looks like a lot of fun and I can't wait to visit all the stores.

I think I've mentioed this before but I love the paintings by Thomas KinKade!

Great pin purchases. I'm trying to stay away from the addiction of collecting pins - I visited our Disney store today and was so tempted to purchase one

 

[sbprincess]

So I'm a little behind again. We visited my parents over the holiday so let me catch up:

The sleigh ride looks so fun! We may have to try that if we're ever there at Christmas again. And I love the decorations that were the icons and resorts that you pointed out - so cool!

Sorry about your crabby server but I am glad the food was good at Kona! We had this scheduled on our last trip but didn't make it. I have an ADR for our departing day in October...we'll see if we actually do it though! I couldn't fit it anywhere else.

And I too love the Art of Disney stores! I know I'll be spending some money there on our next trip. I almost bought something in December but decided not to since we flew but now I regret it. That's a store I could spend some serious money in for sure!

 

[wahoostampingirl]

I love the Then and Now pin that you bought. I'll have to keep an eye out for those next trip.

We took the kids to T-Rex a few years ago. I'm looking forward to hearing what you thought about it. I'll save my comments until then.

 

[JessicaFaye508]

Whoa I missed three updates! I'm slacking haha

After reading about your sleigh ride I'm seriously considering booking one for my christmas trip. It's for my family of 4... but I know that we would all enjoy seeing the decorations. Plus, we love chatting with the CM's and such like you did! I went on a carriage ride in August one time when I was like 11, so that was really fun! It would be enjoyable to do it again!

I'm glad you loved the Tonga Toast! Sorry to hear about your bad service

And I love love LOVEE shopping! It looks like you had fun! I can't wait till the day I can contemplate with my husband on whether or not to buy expensive disney art He's going to think I'm insane and I'm going to secretly want it really bad

 

[therussells08]

You guys are seriously so cute

Random, but do you still have my number? Feel free to text or send me pics while you're down there You'll be there right after my birthday!

Awww, thanks!

Yes, I still have your number! I will most definitely text you on my trip! Send me your address in a PM and I will send you a postcard too!

I love Downtown Disney! Can't stand driving there, but I love being there! I love the Art of Disney stores...we spent so much time in the Epcot one in November, I thought we'd never leave! I want a Thomas Kinkade Disney painting!!! Someday, I hope! That Princess and the Frog one is beautiful!

You didn't stay long in my Christmas store??? That is seriously my favorite store in all of WDW! Although, I didn't even set foot in that store when I went in May, so I guess I can understand not wanting to be there right after Christmas!

TrenD is so pretty, but I usually end up getting overwhelmed in there and just browsing for a minute and then leaving!

I love the World of Disney...ok, maybe that is my favorite store, before the Christmas store! I always spend way too much $$ in there!

Wow, you might just finish this TR before your next trip!

I love DTD so much, but you're right, driving there is a pain!

I couldn't bring myself to be in the Christmas store very long! It was too crowded and it made me wish it was Christmas again!

I am the same way with TrenD!

I always spend way too much money in World of Disney too!

It looks like I won't be finishing the TR before the next trip! I am going to try, though!

Kona's breakfast is at the top of my must-try list. I know I'll love the tonga toast! Fried dough is so up my alley

Love all the shopping pics! Tren-D is a cool store. I like browsing there for a little bit but between the prices and crowds in there I can't stay for long.

Oh yes, you would love Tonga Toast! It is amazing!

I am the same about Tren-D. It's fun to look, but I don't see myself buying anything there!

I must say, I'm glad I'm not very into art - it seems like a very expensive thing to collect! I do really like the Thomas Kinkade paintings, though! I do wish I could get into the pin trading, though. I seems like a lot of fun! Do you actually trade them with cast members, or do you just collect them? I'm pretty shy, so I can't see myself going up to someone asking to see their pins, but it might be fun to just have a collection somewhere. Maybe I should just buy a pin or two when we're there and see if it sparks some interest!

Oh, World of Disney. How I do love that store. I get very serious about shopping there. I have a strategy that we must follow! I feel like you need one, though. It can get so overwhelming!

I am definitely more of a pin collector than a pin trader. I usually am not that intimidated trading with the CMs because they have to accept your trade unless they already have your pin on their lanyards. I do get intimidated trading with other WDW guests, though. They don't have to accept my trade, so I'm always afraid of rejection!

Having a strategy in World of Disney is a good idea! I always end up wandering aimlessly for a really long time then buying waaaay too much stuff!