Laurabearz
I cant load my bobbin!
- Joined
- Nov 25, 2001
- Messages
- 13,634
Cast
Laura, Huge Disney fan, planner of all vacations
Ozo, Husband, Loves Roller coasters, Likes Disney, hates to spend money, prefers to be led around.
Madeline, turned 3 days before this trip.
Juju, 1 ½ years old. Became a full fledged bratty little sister on this trip .. We are soooooo proud!
First 4 days at Beach Club Concierge level..... now we move on to...........
Monday, May 13th we switch hotels from the Beach Club to the Poly. Check out from BC went smoothly (did express check out at the Con desk, since the front desk forgot to send it up) We checked out right at 11 am! I needed the whole morning (and most of the night before) to pack up . Slow packer here! Plus, since we had just done the laundry I had to pack it all neatly! Next time I think we will cram it all in the suitcases and wash it on the other end .. Oh wait . Next time we will be staying at a DVC resort and have our own laundry machines in our Villa . Never mind!
We arrive at the Poly and are greeted by Luis (a valet guy, and the winner of my BEST customer service award!!) He was amusing and a very happy guy. Big smiles and lots of personal attention. He made us feel welcome and special.! Always a good start!
The lady at the Front desk was less that enthused about helping us . I wish I had gotten her name . Coz she really burst my bubble I was so happy to be at the Poly this was a huge thrill for us all . And her mannerisms screamed I dont care, so what . Blah blah blah.
We check in and our room is not ready, but I had prepared for that by packing all our swimming stuff in a smaller bag. The front desk gal says we could go to Hawaii, if we wanted too . But check in isnt until 3 pm and she didnt know what they would do with us (this was after I had mentioned we planned to hang out at the pool until our room was ready ..Yick . I really didnt like her.
We did get the Amex pin straps, and White glove booklet, for using our Amex card for room charges. Something we didnt get at Beach Club .
I shrug off the CMs attitude and we head to Kona for a bite to eat. They were still serving breakfast. I had the eggs benny and Ozo had the Calabash Breakfast. Both were good. The Eggs benny comes with Ham as appose to Canadian bacon. I didnt really notice the difference. A gentleman at the table next to us had ordered the Tonga Toast. MY oh MY that thing is HUGE. He said it wasnt as bad as it looked . Not as sweet or as filling. We will take his word on it! LOL I was drooling over the breakfast menu and toyed with the idea of eating there every morning just to sample it all . But we didnt. I guess that is what future trips are for!
The walk thru the Poly lobby is wonderful the whole place if wonderful!! The fountain was stunning! The smells . All green and wonderful. The girls loved all the plants and mirrors. Madeline found the Kid station and TV right away! Sat down and started coloring! We hung out in the lobby for a bit then headed to Hawaii .
On the way to Hawaii, we came across one of the many families of ducks that are around the property. The main stream leading down to the Volcano pools is the home of two families. We loved to watch them. One gaggle (?) had 4 or 5 chicks that were very small .. The second family had 3 large chicks. All very cute! (I took lots of pictures of ducks this trip!!) I knew right then we would have to tack on 5-10 minutes for duck watching when heading to the parks.
We finally make it to our building and fumble with the door as the staff watched. Once inside I approached Luis (the second, Luis of the trip thus far) I explained that we had just checked in at the front desk, who informed us our room was not ready. And asked if there was a place we could change into our swim clothes while we waited. He didnt seem to understand, why we need a place to change Then looked up our room and said it wasnt ready. UGH. DUH. Oh well.
I noticed our room assignment was 3501. I asked it that was near an elevator. He said it was not . That is was across the hall from the elevator. UGH. DUH. I asked if there was any way we could to be moved farther down the hall from the elevator, and then explained how I was 3 doors down and a floor away from the elevator at the BC and had not slept it 4 days because of it . His reply was room 3501 was not near an elevator, it was across the hall ..UGH
I asked, again if there was any way we could to be moved farther away from the elevator. I am really sound sensitive, something I didnt know until this trip, and cant take the chance on yet another restless night. I said, we didnt care if it meant a longer wait for our room. We planned on swimming the day away. He grunts and calls the room assigner. A couple of minutes later he says . Well, the room assigner had to change all of his plans for the next week for you, and it is messing up his whole day, but he moved you. Your in room 3509 and it is ready.
SPLAT!
I was stunned .. Not because there was an available room (and we had to wait for ours) but that Luis said how we messed up this whole guys day and such. Is there anything more unprofessional? We came in there, on our wonderful Disney High, smelling the smells, taking in the greenery, enjoying the nature, happy. And our first impression of the Concierge staff was Luis. It sucked. I have been in CS all my life. When someone comes in with a complaint and they are great about it, as I am, years in CS taught me to be nice and gracious when complaining or asking for favors, your job is to do your best to help them out. I always taught my staff to say Let me see what I can do to help you out no matter what kind of mood they are in. If those are the first words out of their mouths . Good things will follow. Luis needs to be reminded of this. (IMO)
Now back to the story ..
We didnt stop to peek in at the lounge. I was eager to set up camp so we headed straight to our room. We noticed a smoky smell when we got off on the third floor. Not bad . But it hits me when the elevator door opened. This didnt really bother us, but we smoke. (not in the room with the kids, but out on the balcony) And a smoky hallway comes with that right. You give a little you get a little. BTW Our room did NOT smell of smoke, at all . Very fresh.
The hallways were nicely lit and we didnt think they were dark at all.
The good news is once we opened the door to Room 3509 all our troubles melted away again, and we were in HEAVEN!!!!!!! The room was HUGE! Much much large than the one at the Beach Club. We were thrilled! I love the bathroom layout. (One sink) but much larger feeling space to sit while reading the paper (as my husband puts it)
THE VIEW! Jaw dropping great! Pristine view of the Castle, Space Mountain and the Contemporary (with a palm in between the later two) Oh and the GF off to the left. I can see why Tikiman digs room 3505. Hey Steve does that Palm block any of your views of the Contemporary? LOL I loved the palm it took up the space between SM and Cont. perfectly!
I hastily unpack while the girls get their swim suits on .We tromp down to the pool. Again skipping the lounge.
The Volcano Pool was nice. The theming was wonderful. BUT why oh why does the darn thing have such a slippery entrance?? Our kids wiped out over and over, and so was everyone else. Very annoying! Both our girls love the squirting play area. Again, very slippery. But the girls learned to walk quickly, yet safely, to make it to the next squirt!!
I gotta say, I loved walking out our door and into the pool . Very very different from the Beach Club where we had a 10 min hike to SAB.
Juju liked this pool much better too . The sand from the beach bugged her a bit (she is such a girl! What am I going to do??) but she soon became fearless of the water! She would keep walking towards the deep end until she had water coming out of her nose! Over and over . didnt phase her at all! Hacking up water . Poor thing. Now mind you I was within 1 foot of her always! But she wanted nothing to do with me! All she wanted was to walk to the deep end (well the 3.5 foot end which is 1.5 feet over her head! LOL) We also really enjoyed the tickle bubbles at the far end. Juju would walk back and forth back and forth . Miss Madeline preferred the 1-2-3 run to daddy game in the shallow end. As did a lot of the other kids . Every time I looked back at Ozo he had 2 or 3 other kids all playing the 1-2-3 run game! Too cute! (basically you stand at the pools edge, in about 2 feet to avoid the slippery entrance) and Ozo counts 1-2-3 and all the kids run towards him then fall and pretend to swim the rest of the way .) Lots of fun. It was funny how some parents reacted to this They kept apologizing for their kids bugging us, trying to lure them away to save us . But we loved it. Our girls were happy, They got to play with other kids, and that is always more fun than just playing with mommy and daddy!
One thing I regret is not bringing a cheap camera . My Power Shot G2 ran me over 800 bucks and I am NOT leaving it unattended. SO we have no pool pictures. Next time I will buy a couple of the disposable water proof cameras .
Ozo and I did the slide a couple of times, It was fun and fast. I dont really like the all enclosed slides, but this one moved FAST! I loved seeing the tidal wave my husband creates when he hits the pool! Too funny and the kinda of stuff that makes for great pictures!
When we got back to the room there was a message from Luis, I returned his call He said he didnt realized we were checking in when we saw him earlier and he had a bunch of stuff for us. UGH. My husband goes down and gets our packet. It has a newsletter, welcome letter, and some other info. He also scouted out the Concierge lounge. He brought back all sorts of yummy treats. I forget what I will recap all the offerings at the end of this post .
We decide to go to Kona for Dinner. We start with the Crab cakes, Very good. I had the tenderloin and Ozo had the prime rib. Both really good! The girls have Noodles. We finish up with a Kiddie cone. Man those are HUGE!!!! Very yummy too! Over all a wonderful dining experience!
That night we feel asleep watching the castle change colors .
We wake up early, With plans to get to MK by 900, we make it by 915 J Not bad. The monorail ride took longer that we thought. About 10-15 minutes. Still not bad and NOT complaining just noting it ..
We stop by the Town hall and pick up Madelines Birthday button, since today is the day we are celebrating Madelines Mickey mouse Birthday. She was excited. We got some comments from CMs and ran into several others who we having birthdays too. It was fun.
Madeline remember she had not ridden Dumbo last trip so we Head there first. Line ran about 10 minutes. Both girls were in heaven. We then rode the merry-go-round twice, before hitting Its A Small World. Madeline and I talked about going on Peter Pan she didnt want to Not Today Mom . Maybe tomorrow, lets drive the cars so we headed to the Autopia Maddie loves driving!
From there she spots BUZZ!!!! Now the last two trips she could care less for Buzz . But this trip that was her thing. Must have rode it 20 times total! (My trip high score was 465,900 points, Ozo came in second with 251,000 not shabby considering he doesnt aim, Maddie was a distant 3rd with 3700 points and Juju well juju was very happy with her score of 100 points!) Ozo had to ride with Madeline on BUZZ her fave thing to do is spin spin spin and frankly it made me ill! So her and Ozo were buzz buddies!
Buzz also had the longest line of any of the rides we went on about 20 minutes, but it goes quickly. I am soooo sooo proud of my girls for doing such a wonderful job in line. It does this moms heart good. Anyway we used FP a lot on this ride and often got a second set of FP when the old set started then we would ride the people mover a couple of times while we waited for them to activate. That way Maddie could ride 4 times in a row without waiting. J
Everyday we tried to leave the parks before meltdown. The same held true here . We left by 11 am the first day. We had ridden in two hours . Dumbo, horseys, IASW, Horseys again, Autopia, Buzz, people mover, buzz, buzz. Then lunch at the Space port place (NEVER AGAIN), the counter service place with the alien organ player. The food is horrid and there is a lousy selection for kids . If you can make fries you can make nuggets .. (I know I know I should be more concerned with the fact that Madeline is a picky eater .. And not the lack of the 4 foods she will eat! LOL But Hey, I gotta find one thing to gripe about each trip and this was it!) I gotta get her to eat hot dogs . But I cant even get one down so I dont think there is much hope. Now Juju . Juju will eat anything you put in front of her . Esp if there is some sort of sauce for dipping (be it ketchup or spaghetti sauce) Two kids, same parents, so different life is cool!
We head back to the hotel after lunch and go swimming.
Nap
Wake up . We are having our Birthday celebration at Chef Mickeys tonight.
We arrive for our 630 PS early. The place was JAMMED! When I had made the ressies, I did it for ½ before the MK was scheduled to close . A slow time at Chef Mickeys, but they changed the hours and MK closed at 6. . And everyone wanting to eat at 630! I was a bit bummed. We had to wait 15 minutes for our table, which we put to good use in the bar.
Goofy was out front, as was Donald. We do the photo op and are seated. We were off to the right next to the kitchen door. Not a major biggy but .. The route that the characters ran . Hmmm how to say this . Well it ended right across the way from us so they blasted by us on the way back to the beginning Our timing was bad so when we arrived 3 Characters were already past us, so Madeline had to watch them play with everyone else and walk past her, before Chip (the first one to get to us) arrived at our table. This was really rough on a three year old. And on her parents! It was a rough start. But we looked forward to the Birthday dance with all the Characters. Oh I forgot to mention Madeline got a special birthday placemat and another birthday button.
Then the music starts . The napkins go flying and no characters are to be found . Then Minnie runs by us and heads into the far section . More napkins are flying and someone brings over a cupcake .. Still no characters to be seen . Song ½ over and Chip runs over to our table for a minute . And it is over .. Seems like every other kid was having a birthday too . Not enough characters to go around and our section (they was another birthday girls sitting next to us) got the short end. Ah well Madeline liked the cupcake.
Just a note I had seen kids on their birthdays get to MAKE a cupcake with Goofy . And ALL the characters came by to celebrate with you . I am glad I didnt let Miss Madeline know about all that. I can deal with disappointments better than she can. Still . We felt jilted a bit . She was fine with it! LOL
The next day was pretty much like the first . Except we ate lunch In Town Square and Dinner was a combo of Concierge lounge offerings and a trip to Capt Jacks . Yick.
We went to the New Tiki Room show and I hated it! They turned a sweet show into a scary one.... We left dispointed. We saw Allaidin and Jasmine riding their ride again (saw them last trip too... still a thrill) Skipped JC coz the line was to long.....
Thursday I had a PS for CP in the MK. I asked Weds if they had any PS available for CP for breakfast and they did . So we canceled lunch for an 810 AM PS there instead.
Thursday we got to the entrance to MK by 800 am! Strolled down main street, it was so nice and peaceful . And made our way to the CP. Breakfast was wonderful. All the Characters were wonderful. Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, Eyeore. Lots of photo ops. The place wasnt crowded at all very relaxed. We finished breakfast in time for the rope drop and headed right for Dumbo .
This day Madeline decided was the day for Peter Pan . I had done all I could to prepare her . And she did great. She didnt want to go on it again, this trip but she said she would go on it next time . Maybe. Too cute! I love her so much!!!
Friday we decide to go to Epcot for a bit. We walked to the TTC from the Poly . Quite a hike from Hawaii and all up hill!!! LOL I then notice I have LOST my AP!!!! I freaked and headed straight for Guest services in a matter of minutes, I had a new AP. Piece of cake. He also discovered our original APs had our last name mis-spelled . No biggy . But I am going to keep my eye out for mail with the wrong spelling in case we get a postcard deal or something.
Epcot was nice. Again, I would love a couple of days there without the kids.
We went to The Land, and did the Simba movie thing . Both girls loved the movie all the animal . Nicely done.
We grabbed a FP for the Boat ride and grabbed lunch. I like the food court in the Land only because they have a pasta place, so I know my girls will eat. I forgot we what we ate . Something mediocre for sure .
The boat ride was nice . And interesting. I loved seeing the new ways to grow produce.
We walk in and then out of the Food Rocks, area . The girls arent interested and more importantly Ozo isnt either.
We opt to head to the Living seas! I do have another complaint No shaded stroller parking areas around the Living Seas . We flip our strollers upside down to keep the seats bearable .
I find a hidden Mickey Woo HOO!! The girls love running around the observation deck. We lucked out and got to see a fish feeding took some neat pictures of that .
Then it was time to head back ..
Spent the afternoon swimming and packing up .. Dinner at Kona again . And again it was wonderful. We decided to skip OHanas this time . Been both our last trips. Ozo loves it I could take it or leave it and they dont have much my kids will eat .
Our bill upon check out was 18 dollars .. Gotta love DVC!!!
Both girls slept on the plane the whole way home. A great ending to a great trip!!!
OVER VIEW OF POLY CON
The food offerings we wonderful. Far far better that what the Beach Club presents . The chef made wonderful food carvings . It was a treat to walk into the lounge! They also have smaller plastic water bottles, so it was really easy to throw them in the bottom of our stroller on the way out.
The food ranged from egg rolls, sushi (with wasabi sauce, my husbands FAVE), to fried things, and fruity things! LOL I cant remember it all but it all was very good. I am a big fan of the late night desserts . Man oh Man were those yummy! Kudos for the kitchen staff at the Poly .. We could eat a meal from the offerings here .
We had a fridge in our room a tiny one which we managed to put all of the following in . 5 bottles of beer, 3 wine coolers (the 6th beer and 4th wine cooler were being ingested while we stuff the fridge) ¼ watermelon, 6 small yogurts, 8 pack of cheese, ½ lb of ham sliced, two cartons of milk (pints) 2 med size apples, 3 waters . I should have taken a picture of it . It was quite lovely!!! HA HA
I had mentioned before a run in or two with the Poly staff . I was really really disappointed with them. I cant tell you how many times I returned to the building with packages in hand fumbling for my room key to open the door and seeing them all sit there . And not open the door for me. Drove me nuts. And Luis . UGH. Now the Luis who was a valet . He was wonderful. Helped me with my packages . If he saw us coming he would come up and greet us with a smile and made sure no one but him would help us . We were his special vacationers . Now I am sure everyone was treated so finely by this man . But he really really made us feel welcome. Didnt feel welcomed or special from anyone at the Poly Con lounge .. L
I did hear a lot more noise at the Poly from the hallways. But I BLAME the parents of those children . You DO NOT run in hallways NOR do you YELL in hallways You walk quietly to your room because you dont know if anyone is napping . Period. And PLEASE doesnt anyone wear shoes in the lounge there is a sign. One that I read and therefore had my shoes and my kids shoes on, and constantly had to tell my children that even though all those other kids had there shoes off it was wrong and against the rules. Are they bad mommy? No dear, Dont their mommies love them? Of course they do dear . How come the mommies dont listen to the signs?? I dont know honey I am glad you listen mommy! BUT Why are those kids running and yelling in the hallways . Why are those kids throwing rocks at the birds why are those kids UGH People PLEASE!!! Have your kids WALK in the hallways. It is common courtesy. If I can get my two wild children to behave in public . Anyone can! Drove me batty!!!! Just because you on vacation, it doesnt mean all bets are off . Your still human! Okay okay done with my rant . But this really irked me. Can ya tell! And I feel, as a mother of two, I can comment on this I hope it doesnt start a debate .. Or offend anyone ..
Every time I walked by room 3505 I thought . If Steve were here he would be two floors down . LOL And once, after being snubbed at the door, for the millionth, I thought about shaking my finger at them and saying Now wouldnt Steve be disappointed in you all But didnt <eg>
All in all a wonderful trip. We all preferred our stay at the Poly, much better than BC. The food was better, the room was larger, the pool was closer, the monorails are quicker, the view was so MARVY, everything was better, except the staff. The staff sucked at the Poly. Ah well . As my husband says . Food good, staff bad, eat food, eat staff. Problem solved!
NO TOWEL ANIMALS AT POLY AT ALL.... zero zip nada.... BC we had little cute face towel creatures every day. I was a bit bummed....
Oh one more quick note . As it turns out room 3501 (our original room) had some sort of problem or better said, a problem outside the room which led to a service man and all this equipment to be camped right outside the door for 3 days.
We had such a great time this trip. Our learning curve is going way way up . Forgetting less, doing less, and each trip is getting better and better. Next time will have the waterproof camera . Gotta capture our fun at the pools.
We are all so blessed to be able to travel as much as we do. To have this time with our children. I love that I have the chance to bring them up Disney. I see it all the time in Madeline. Her growing into rides like Buzz . And testing new limits with Pan . The thrill of Barnstormer, turning into the thrill of Splash Mountain, then RnR .She remembers merry-go-round horses from pervious trips . It is mind boggling! The social skills this all builds in wonderful to see too . Waiting nicely, sharing, taking turns, thinking about others (esp in hallways GRRRRRRRRR) developing a sense of time and priorities . We didnt even go to ToonTown this trip . And it wasnt a big deal to her she knows we will be back . Someday .
Listening to our kids signals .. Following there limits (and pushing them a bit) made for a great trip. I really look forward to when the girls are older and we can do the parks from open to close . But until then we are all enjoying this slower paced trip style.
Thanks for reading this novella . I tend to get carried away a bit. I also want to apologize for spelling and grammar I havent reread this enough to make is clean, and even after 16 plus pages I fear that I would begin to add even more details as they pop into my head. And I wish to spare you all
Any questions????????
Laura, Huge Disney fan, planner of all vacations
Ozo, Husband, Loves Roller coasters, Likes Disney, hates to spend money, prefers to be led around.
Madeline, turned 3 days before this trip.
Juju, 1 ½ years old. Became a full fledged bratty little sister on this trip .. We are soooooo proud!
First 4 days at Beach Club Concierge level..... now we move on to...........
Monday, May 13th we switch hotels from the Beach Club to the Poly. Check out from BC went smoothly (did express check out at the Con desk, since the front desk forgot to send it up) We checked out right at 11 am! I needed the whole morning (and most of the night before) to pack up . Slow packer here! Plus, since we had just done the laundry I had to pack it all neatly! Next time I think we will cram it all in the suitcases and wash it on the other end .. Oh wait . Next time we will be staying at a DVC resort and have our own laundry machines in our Villa . Never mind!
We arrive at the Poly and are greeted by Luis (a valet guy, and the winner of my BEST customer service award!!) He was amusing and a very happy guy. Big smiles and lots of personal attention. He made us feel welcome and special.! Always a good start!
The lady at the Front desk was less that enthused about helping us . I wish I had gotten her name . Coz she really burst my bubble I was so happy to be at the Poly this was a huge thrill for us all . And her mannerisms screamed I dont care, so what . Blah blah blah.
We check in and our room is not ready, but I had prepared for that by packing all our swimming stuff in a smaller bag. The front desk gal says we could go to Hawaii, if we wanted too . But check in isnt until 3 pm and she didnt know what they would do with us (this was after I had mentioned we planned to hang out at the pool until our room was ready ..Yick . I really didnt like her.
We did get the Amex pin straps, and White glove booklet, for using our Amex card for room charges. Something we didnt get at Beach Club .
I shrug off the CMs attitude and we head to Kona for a bite to eat. They were still serving breakfast. I had the eggs benny and Ozo had the Calabash Breakfast. Both were good. The Eggs benny comes with Ham as appose to Canadian bacon. I didnt really notice the difference. A gentleman at the table next to us had ordered the Tonga Toast. MY oh MY that thing is HUGE. He said it wasnt as bad as it looked . Not as sweet or as filling. We will take his word on it! LOL I was drooling over the breakfast menu and toyed with the idea of eating there every morning just to sample it all . But we didnt. I guess that is what future trips are for!
The walk thru the Poly lobby is wonderful the whole place if wonderful!! The fountain was stunning! The smells . All green and wonderful. The girls loved all the plants and mirrors. Madeline found the Kid station and TV right away! Sat down and started coloring! We hung out in the lobby for a bit then headed to Hawaii .
On the way to Hawaii, we came across one of the many families of ducks that are around the property. The main stream leading down to the Volcano pools is the home of two families. We loved to watch them. One gaggle (?) had 4 or 5 chicks that were very small .. The second family had 3 large chicks. All very cute! (I took lots of pictures of ducks this trip!!) I knew right then we would have to tack on 5-10 minutes for duck watching when heading to the parks.
We finally make it to our building and fumble with the door as the staff watched. Once inside I approached Luis (the second, Luis of the trip thus far) I explained that we had just checked in at the front desk, who informed us our room was not ready. And asked if there was a place we could change into our swim clothes while we waited. He didnt seem to understand, why we need a place to change Then looked up our room and said it wasnt ready. UGH. DUH. Oh well.
I noticed our room assignment was 3501. I asked it that was near an elevator. He said it was not . That is was across the hall from the elevator. UGH. DUH. I asked if there was any way we could to be moved farther down the hall from the elevator, and then explained how I was 3 doors down and a floor away from the elevator at the BC and had not slept it 4 days because of it . His reply was room 3501 was not near an elevator, it was across the hall ..UGH
I asked, again if there was any way we could to be moved farther away from the elevator. I am really sound sensitive, something I didnt know until this trip, and cant take the chance on yet another restless night. I said, we didnt care if it meant a longer wait for our room. We planned on swimming the day away. He grunts and calls the room assigner. A couple of minutes later he says . Well, the room assigner had to change all of his plans for the next week for you, and it is messing up his whole day, but he moved you. Your in room 3509 and it is ready.
SPLAT!
I was stunned .. Not because there was an available room (and we had to wait for ours) but that Luis said how we messed up this whole guys day and such. Is there anything more unprofessional? We came in there, on our wonderful Disney High, smelling the smells, taking in the greenery, enjoying the nature, happy. And our first impression of the Concierge staff was Luis. It sucked. I have been in CS all my life. When someone comes in with a complaint and they are great about it, as I am, years in CS taught me to be nice and gracious when complaining or asking for favors, your job is to do your best to help them out. I always taught my staff to say Let me see what I can do to help you out no matter what kind of mood they are in. If those are the first words out of their mouths . Good things will follow. Luis needs to be reminded of this. (IMO)
Now back to the story ..
We didnt stop to peek in at the lounge. I was eager to set up camp so we headed straight to our room. We noticed a smoky smell when we got off on the third floor. Not bad . But it hits me when the elevator door opened. This didnt really bother us, but we smoke. (not in the room with the kids, but out on the balcony) And a smoky hallway comes with that right. You give a little you get a little. BTW Our room did NOT smell of smoke, at all . Very fresh.
The hallways were nicely lit and we didnt think they were dark at all.
The good news is once we opened the door to Room 3509 all our troubles melted away again, and we were in HEAVEN!!!!!!! The room was HUGE! Much much large than the one at the Beach Club. We were thrilled! I love the bathroom layout. (One sink) but much larger feeling space to sit while reading the paper (as my husband puts it)
THE VIEW! Jaw dropping great! Pristine view of the Castle, Space Mountain and the Contemporary (with a palm in between the later two) Oh and the GF off to the left. I can see why Tikiman digs room 3505. Hey Steve does that Palm block any of your views of the Contemporary? LOL I loved the palm it took up the space between SM and Cont. perfectly!
I hastily unpack while the girls get their swim suits on .We tromp down to the pool. Again skipping the lounge.
The Volcano Pool was nice. The theming was wonderful. BUT why oh why does the darn thing have such a slippery entrance?? Our kids wiped out over and over, and so was everyone else. Very annoying! Both our girls love the squirting play area. Again, very slippery. But the girls learned to walk quickly, yet safely, to make it to the next squirt!!
I gotta say, I loved walking out our door and into the pool . Very very different from the Beach Club where we had a 10 min hike to SAB.
Juju liked this pool much better too . The sand from the beach bugged her a bit (she is such a girl! What am I going to do??) but she soon became fearless of the water! She would keep walking towards the deep end until she had water coming out of her nose! Over and over . didnt phase her at all! Hacking up water . Poor thing. Now mind you I was within 1 foot of her always! But she wanted nothing to do with me! All she wanted was to walk to the deep end (well the 3.5 foot end which is 1.5 feet over her head! LOL) We also really enjoyed the tickle bubbles at the far end. Juju would walk back and forth back and forth . Miss Madeline preferred the 1-2-3 run to daddy game in the shallow end. As did a lot of the other kids . Every time I looked back at Ozo he had 2 or 3 other kids all playing the 1-2-3 run game! Too cute! (basically you stand at the pools edge, in about 2 feet to avoid the slippery entrance) and Ozo counts 1-2-3 and all the kids run towards him then fall and pretend to swim the rest of the way .) Lots of fun. It was funny how some parents reacted to this They kept apologizing for their kids bugging us, trying to lure them away to save us . But we loved it. Our girls were happy, They got to play with other kids, and that is always more fun than just playing with mommy and daddy!
One thing I regret is not bringing a cheap camera . My Power Shot G2 ran me over 800 bucks and I am NOT leaving it unattended. SO we have no pool pictures. Next time I will buy a couple of the disposable water proof cameras .
Ozo and I did the slide a couple of times, It was fun and fast. I dont really like the all enclosed slides, but this one moved FAST! I loved seeing the tidal wave my husband creates when he hits the pool! Too funny and the kinda of stuff that makes for great pictures!
When we got back to the room there was a message from Luis, I returned his call He said he didnt realized we were checking in when we saw him earlier and he had a bunch of stuff for us. UGH. My husband goes down and gets our packet. It has a newsletter, welcome letter, and some other info. He also scouted out the Concierge lounge. He brought back all sorts of yummy treats. I forget what I will recap all the offerings at the end of this post .
We decide to go to Kona for Dinner. We start with the Crab cakes, Very good. I had the tenderloin and Ozo had the prime rib. Both really good! The girls have Noodles. We finish up with a Kiddie cone. Man those are HUGE!!!! Very yummy too! Over all a wonderful dining experience!
That night we feel asleep watching the castle change colors .
We wake up early, With plans to get to MK by 900, we make it by 915 J Not bad. The monorail ride took longer that we thought. About 10-15 minutes. Still not bad and NOT complaining just noting it ..
We stop by the Town hall and pick up Madelines Birthday button, since today is the day we are celebrating Madelines Mickey mouse Birthday. She was excited. We got some comments from CMs and ran into several others who we having birthdays too. It was fun.
Madeline remember she had not ridden Dumbo last trip so we Head there first. Line ran about 10 minutes. Both girls were in heaven. We then rode the merry-go-round twice, before hitting Its A Small World. Madeline and I talked about going on Peter Pan she didnt want to Not Today Mom . Maybe tomorrow, lets drive the cars so we headed to the Autopia Maddie loves driving!
From there she spots BUZZ!!!! Now the last two trips she could care less for Buzz . But this trip that was her thing. Must have rode it 20 times total! (My trip high score was 465,900 points, Ozo came in second with 251,000 not shabby considering he doesnt aim, Maddie was a distant 3rd with 3700 points and Juju well juju was very happy with her score of 100 points!) Ozo had to ride with Madeline on BUZZ her fave thing to do is spin spin spin and frankly it made me ill! So her and Ozo were buzz buddies!
Buzz also had the longest line of any of the rides we went on about 20 minutes, but it goes quickly. I am soooo sooo proud of my girls for doing such a wonderful job in line. It does this moms heart good. Anyway we used FP a lot on this ride and often got a second set of FP when the old set started then we would ride the people mover a couple of times while we waited for them to activate. That way Maddie could ride 4 times in a row without waiting. J
Everyday we tried to leave the parks before meltdown. The same held true here . We left by 11 am the first day. We had ridden in two hours . Dumbo, horseys, IASW, Horseys again, Autopia, Buzz, people mover, buzz, buzz. Then lunch at the Space port place (NEVER AGAIN), the counter service place with the alien organ player. The food is horrid and there is a lousy selection for kids . If you can make fries you can make nuggets .. (I know I know I should be more concerned with the fact that Madeline is a picky eater .. And not the lack of the 4 foods she will eat! LOL But Hey, I gotta find one thing to gripe about each trip and this was it!) I gotta get her to eat hot dogs . But I cant even get one down so I dont think there is much hope. Now Juju . Juju will eat anything you put in front of her . Esp if there is some sort of sauce for dipping (be it ketchup or spaghetti sauce) Two kids, same parents, so different life is cool!
We head back to the hotel after lunch and go swimming.
Nap
Wake up . We are having our Birthday celebration at Chef Mickeys tonight.
We arrive for our 630 PS early. The place was JAMMED! When I had made the ressies, I did it for ½ before the MK was scheduled to close . A slow time at Chef Mickeys, but they changed the hours and MK closed at 6. . And everyone wanting to eat at 630! I was a bit bummed. We had to wait 15 minutes for our table, which we put to good use in the bar.
Goofy was out front, as was Donald. We do the photo op and are seated. We were off to the right next to the kitchen door. Not a major biggy but .. The route that the characters ran . Hmmm how to say this . Well it ended right across the way from us so they blasted by us on the way back to the beginning Our timing was bad so when we arrived 3 Characters were already past us, so Madeline had to watch them play with everyone else and walk past her, before Chip (the first one to get to us) arrived at our table. This was really rough on a three year old. And on her parents! It was a rough start. But we looked forward to the Birthday dance with all the Characters. Oh I forgot to mention Madeline got a special birthday placemat and another birthday button.
Then the music starts . The napkins go flying and no characters are to be found . Then Minnie runs by us and heads into the far section . More napkins are flying and someone brings over a cupcake .. Still no characters to be seen . Song ½ over and Chip runs over to our table for a minute . And it is over .. Seems like every other kid was having a birthday too . Not enough characters to go around and our section (they was another birthday girls sitting next to us) got the short end. Ah well Madeline liked the cupcake.
Just a note I had seen kids on their birthdays get to MAKE a cupcake with Goofy . And ALL the characters came by to celebrate with you . I am glad I didnt let Miss Madeline know about all that. I can deal with disappointments better than she can. Still . We felt jilted a bit . She was fine with it! LOL
The next day was pretty much like the first . Except we ate lunch In Town Square and Dinner was a combo of Concierge lounge offerings and a trip to Capt Jacks . Yick.
We went to the New Tiki Room show and I hated it! They turned a sweet show into a scary one.... We left dispointed. We saw Allaidin and Jasmine riding their ride again (saw them last trip too... still a thrill) Skipped JC coz the line was to long.....
Thursday I had a PS for CP in the MK. I asked Weds if they had any PS available for CP for breakfast and they did . So we canceled lunch for an 810 AM PS there instead.
Thursday we got to the entrance to MK by 800 am! Strolled down main street, it was so nice and peaceful . And made our way to the CP. Breakfast was wonderful. All the Characters were wonderful. Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, Eyeore. Lots of photo ops. The place wasnt crowded at all very relaxed. We finished breakfast in time for the rope drop and headed right for Dumbo .
This day Madeline decided was the day for Peter Pan . I had done all I could to prepare her . And she did great. She didnt want to go on it again, this trip but she said she would go on it next time . Maybe. Too cute! I love her so much!!!
Friday we decide to go to Epcot for a bit. We walked to the TTC from the Poly . Quite a hike from Hawaii and all up hill!!! LOL I then notice I have LOST my AP!!!! I freaked and headed straight for Guest services in a matter of minutes, I had a new AP. Piece of cake. He also discovered our original APs had our last name mis-spelled . No biggy . But I am going to keep my eye out for mail with the wrong spelling in case we get a postcard deal or something.
Epcot was nice. Again, I would love a couple of days there without the kids.
We went to The Land, and did the Simba movie thing . Both girls loved the movie all the animal . Nicely done.
We grabbed a FP for the Boat ride and grabbed lunch. I like the food court in the Land only because they have a pasta place, so I know my girls will eat. I forgot we what we ate . Something mediocre for sure .
The boat ride was nice . And interesting. I loved seeing the new ways to grow produce.
We walk in and then out of the Food Rocks, area . The girls arent interested and more importantly Ozo isnt either.
We opt to head to the Living seas! I do have another complaint No shaded stroller parking areas around the Living Seas . We flip our strollers upside down to keep the seats bearable .
I find a hidden Mickey Woo HOO!! The girls love running around the observation deck. We lucked out and got to see a fish feeding took some neat pictures of that .
Then it was time to head back ..
Spent the afternoon swimming and packing up .. Dinner at Kona again . And again it was wonderful. We decided to skip OHanas this time . Been both our last trips. Ozo loves it I could take it or leave it and they dont have much my kids will eat .
Our bill upon check out was 18 dollars .. Gotta love DVC!!!
Both girls slept on the plane the whole way home. A great ending to a great trip!!!
OVER VIEW OF POLY CON
The food offerings we wonderful. Far far better that what the Beach Club presents . The chef made wonderful food carvings . It was a treat to walk into the lounge! They also have smaller plastic water bottles, so it was really easy to throw them in the bottom of our stroller on the way out.
The food ranged from egg rolls, sushi (with wasabi sauce, my husbands FAVE), to fried things, and fruity things! LOL I cant remember it all but it all was very good. I am a big fan of the late night desserts . Man oh Man were those yummy! Kudos for the kitchen staff at the Poly .. We could eat a meal from the offerings here .
We had a fridge in our room a tiny one which we managed to put all of the following in . 5 bottles of beer, 3 wine coolers (the 6th beer and 4th wine cooler were being ingested while we stuff the fridge) ¼ watermelon, 6 small yogurts, 8 pack of cheese, ½ lb of ham sliced, two cartons of milk (pints) 2 med size apples, 3 waters . I should have taken a picture of it . It was quite lovely!!! HA HA
I had mentioned before a run in or two with the Poly staff . I was really really disappointed with them. I cant tell you how many times I returned to the building with packages in hand fumbling for my room key to open the door and seeing them all sit there . And not open the door for me. Drove me nuts. And Luis . UGH. Now the Luis who was a valet . He was wonderful. Helped me with my packages . If he saw us coming he would come up and greet us with a smile and made sure no one but him would help us . We were his special vacationers . Now I am sure everyone was treated so finely by this man . But he really really made us feel welcome. Didnt feel welcomed or special from anyone at the Poly Con lounge .. L
I did hear a lot more noise at the Poly from the hallways. But I BLAME the parents of those children . You DO NOT run in hallways NOR do you YELL in hallways You walk quietly to your room because you dont know if anyone is napping . Period. And PLEASE doesnt anyone wear shoes in the lounge there is a sign. One that I read and therefore had my shoes and my kids shoes on, and constantly had to tell my children that even though all those other kids had there shoes off it was wrong and against the rules. Are they bad mommy? No dear, Dont their mommies love them? Of course they do dear . How come the mommies dont listen to the signs?? I dont know honey I am glad you listen mommy! BUT Why are those kids running and yelling in the hallways . Why are those kids throwing rocks at the birds why are those kids UGH People PLEASE!!! Have your kids WALK in the hallways. It is common courtesy. If I can get my two wild children to behave in public . Anyone can! Drove me batty!!!! Just because you on vacation, it doesnt mean all bets are off . Your still human! Okay okay done with my rant . But this really irked me. Can ya tell! And I feel, as a mother of two, I can comment on this I hope it doesnt start a debate .. Or offend anyone ..
Every time I walked by room 3505 I thought . If Steve were here he would be two floors down . LOL And once, after being snubbed at the door, for the millionth, I thought about shaking my finger at them and saying Now wouldnt Steve be disappointed in you all But didnt <eg>
All in all a wonderful trip. We all preferred our stay at the Poly, much better than BC. The food was better, the room was larger, the pool was closer, the monorails are quicker, the view was so MARVY, everything was better, except the staff. The staff sucked at the Poly. Ah well . As my husband says . Food good, staff bad, eat food, eat staff. Problem solved!
NO TOWEL ANIMALS AT POLY AT ALL.... zero zip nada.... BC we had little cute face towel creatures every day. I was a bit bummed....
Oh one more quick note . As it turns out room 3501 (our original room) had some sort of problem or better said, a problem outside the room which led to a service man and all this equipment to be camped right outside the door for 3 days.
We had such a great time this trip. Our learning curve is going way way up . Forgetting less, doing less, and each trip is getting better and better. Next time will have the waterproof camera . Gotta capture our fun at the pools.
We are all so blessed to be able to travel as much as we do. To have this time with our children. I love that I have the chance to bring them up Disney. I see it all the time in Madeline. Her growing into rides like Buzz . And testing new limits with Pan . The thrill of Barnstormer, turning into the thrill of Splash Mountain, then RnR .She remembers merry-go-round horses from pervious trips . It is mind boggling! The social skills this all builds in wonderful to see too . Waiting nicely, sharing, taking turns, thinking about others (esp in hallways GRRRRRRRRR) developing a sense of time and priorities . We didnt even go to ToonTown this trip . And it wasnt a big deal to her she knows we will be back . Someday .
Listening to our kids signals .. Following there limits (and pushing them a bit) made for a great trip. I really look forward to when the girls are older and we can do the parks from open to close . But until then we are all enjoying this slower paced trip style.
Thanks for reading this novella . I tend to get carried away a bit. I also want to apologize for spelling and grammar I havent reread this enough to make is clean, and even after 16 plus pages I fear that I would begin to add even more details as they pop into my head. And I wish to spare you all
Any questions????????
