We slept in a little bit the next morning because we were just too worn from the drive yesterday. By the time we got up, it was already 8am. I normally wake up at 5:30 am. We took our time to get ourselves ready and head out.
First thing we did was to re-checkin again. Why?? Because the night before was only an extra one night stay on top for our 11 days package. So we have to check out and re-check in to get our package. DW was told about it last night when she went to the front desk but they also told her because of the luggage issue and the fridge problem, they wouldn’t move our room. We shall see.
Once we got to the front desk at about 9 am, there were a few people in front of us at the checkin line. I was looking around for photo opportunity while DW was biting her nail waiting patiently for our turn.
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We didn’t wait too long for our turn and we were greeting by CM ‘Kash’.
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‘Kash’ was super nice. He took care of every thing for us and kept us at ease. Soon we got our third set of KTTW and we didn’t have to move. Yay!!!
I then asked him to print us a copy of all of our ADRs so I can match them with what I have. Every ADR was a perfect match compare to what I already enter into my iPhone. I have an app called ‘WDW Dining’ that let me enter all the ADR confirmation#, date, time and which restaurant. Next we stop by the concierge desk to register as flag raising ceremony before we went outside to start our day.
Our first ADR is 11:45am at Whispering Canyon Café, so we have a couple of hours to stroll around. We decide to head over to CR gift shop first to do some window shopping. So we went to the boat dock to catch a boat ride to CR. DW has to make sure I got all my gears before we left the resort. Temperature was in the warm side mid 70’s, I was able to wear t-shirt and short.
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Once we got to CR gift shop, DW was all over the Dooney & Burke Disney bags. She dragged me to check out all different version of the bags and showed me what are some of their characteristics. My head just kept spinning and thought…this is going to be expensive.
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I can not dragged DW out of the gift shop fast enough before she decide to buy one.
We hopped onto the monorail and headed to GF because we want to see the ginger bread house for the first time.
When we arrived GF and stepped off the monorail, DW immediately point out she spotted something at the tree next to the monorail station. It took me a while to spot him or her but there it was, hiding between the tree branches.
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This is the best crop shot I can do with him or her and I hardly ever crop any of my pictures. It was pretty far from where I was standing. After spending almost 10 minutes trying to get a better close up even with my most powerful zoom lens, I can not get a nice shot. I finally gave up and moved on going into GF.
The Christmas tree at GF was just as magnificent as the one at WL. (Don’t worry, I have quite a few shots of the WL tree for later.)
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DW and I circled down to first floor and check out the ginger bread house. I only saw this house on Travel Channel Samatha Brown Disney special but never in person. When I first saw the GBH, I thought it was a little small than I envisioned but with lots of details like the windows, chimney, front porch and all the decoration around the house. Then again, I am over 6’ tall so everything seems a little small to my eyes. LOL… Obviously, I took plenty of pictures on the GBH and DW was checking out the pricing for a piece of the house.
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Even we were just strolling around, before we knew it, lunch time approach faster than we thought and our stomach were growling. So we hop back on monorail again and got off at the MK stop then took the boat back to WL.
While we were waiting at the boat dock, it was about 11:15 am. I looked back at the Magic Kingdom entrance, OMG…people were piling in. It was about as crowd as the rope drop.
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Thank goodness the boat dock was completely empty. DW and I sat away from the shade. We were just enjoying the sunshine and the warmth. Once the boat docked and all the passenger got off, we were the only two passengers who were heading back to WL. So we choose to see outside at the back of the boat and catch some more outdoor air.
The pictures below might look similar but they were shot with two different cameras at different area. You can tell the difference by looking at the background. This is the beginning of my new obsession, self-portrait without any help. You will know what I mean as you follow the TR. Now, I have proof that I can show people I was actually at those places. LOL… I hardly have any picture of me in the last TR.
Here is us when the boat is still at the dock.
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Here is us after the boat left the dock.
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Loved your video. I saved it to my favorites so that whenever I need a dose of WL, I can just watch it again. Loved your DW's expression when she came out of the doors at Wilderness, wondering what was taking you so long.
That was a lot of work. 85mm became my favorite walk around lens and 24mm or 35mm were great for self-portrait. Then the 70-200mm became acceptable around the park as well. Unfortunately, that lens is just too heavy to carry around all day long. At some point, I might get a 28-200mm but that's a pretty slow lens. As long as I use it for outdoor, it should be okay.
