Our Month-Long Trip to Orlando (7/9 - 8/6) I'M BACK! TRIP REPORT COMPLETE!

[babieemelly]

A box of nails, also used as a torture device

The Bone Crusher, and shackles

Another form of torture

The next room was really dark, and there was a big window. On the other side of the window was a mirror, surrounded by pictures of people who were able to make crazy faces, and a bunch of signs encouraging people to try to make the same faces. Of course it was a one-way mirror, and we were able to see everyone trying to make these crazy faces! In Atlantic City they had the same thing, and we have the FUNNIEST video! The Ripley's in Orlando was pretty empty, though, so no one walked by while we were watching

The one-way mirror

Some skeletons in a hallway, trying to set an eerie mood

A dinosaur skull

The skeleton of a Komodo Dragon

This man was out ringing a bell in a thunderstorm, when he was struck by lightening. There was a whole story that went along with it (along the lines of the guy doing this frequently, thinking he was really lucky and would never get struck by lightening), but I don't remember the whole thing.

A close-up of his face

The next room had objects of all different shapes, sizes, and collections. There was also a TV set up in the front of the room... what was that? It looked like people's butts.... oh no! They were broadcasting the video from the room where you look through the hole, with a sign that said, "We told you not to look in that hole!" So whoever was in that room at the time that we were in the other room saw us putting our faces in the camera and everything! Too funny!

My mom and dad in a giant’s chair

A midget’s chair and a giant’s chair

The TV broadcasting people’s butts… look, there’s one now!

 

[babieemelly]

A collection of bedpans… interesting

The world’s biggest tire

The next room was very small, and had some information on the Boston Mummy.

The Boston Mummy

Information on the Boston Mummy

The actual Mummy

The next room had information on all amazing, and often funny, animal feats.

A dog wheelchair

A dog who would steal it’s owners dentures

A dog that ran for mayor of it’s town… and won! :rolleyes

A dog’s dispatch papers from WWII

The army dog was a Beagle

Ripley and his “Cyclops Dog”

Information on a Dog Bakery in Orlando!

 

[babieemelly]

The last room was really dark, with neon paint and signs all over. There were a few exhibits, and then there was a revolving room. There was a bridge that you walk over, and the walls around the bridge were spinning. I LOVED this illusion in Atlantic City, but I couldn't take it this time! Mike walked right through, as did my Dad, but my Mom ran through to get out quick! I was going to take the non-moving exit, but I decided to try it, and right when I got to the middle of the bridge I got SO dizzy. I was screaming, "Oh my God, Oh my God!" I seriously thought I was going to go flying... it was making me so sick! Of course everyone was cracking up Well, I guess I deserved it after making fun of Mike after the whole Cat In the Hat fiasco! So I just closed my eyes, held on to the banister, and pulled myself to the end!

My dad looking at an exhibit in the neon room… the flash made the room look brighter than it actually was

Information on Fool’s Gold

Information on the “Petrified Man”

Some more information

The Petrified Man, real or not?

A close-up of his face… he still has teeth!

My mom, dad, and Mike at the end of the revolving tunnel, right before I ran through it! It was PITCH BLACK, the walls were spinning, and the specks of light were glowing… it was crazy!

After walking through the tunnel the tour was over, and we went into the gift shop. My mom got another ankle bracelet, and I got a Ripley's keychain and a souvenir guidebook. As someone who loves to travel and really wants to see the world, I love Ripley's. Yes some of the exhibits are very gross, but everything about his life was so unbelievable (which I guess is an appropriate word ) and makes you wonder just what you may find if you leave your hometown and comfort zone, and venture out into the world.

Coming Up Next – Put the plate down!

 

[Sandy22]

Awesome report! But I can't believe you haven't been to Disney yet and it's already day 6! Looking forward to reading more

 

[babieemelly]

I promise we'll get to Disney soon!

By the time we left Ripley's it was around 5:30, and we were all hungry. We had seen a ton of Golden Corral buffets all over the place, so we decided to try it out. We drove down to the one on International Drive, about ten minutes away from Ripley's, parked and went inside. The place was pretty crowded so we took that as a good sign. You pay before you're seated so we paid for drinks and four buffets, with the total coming to $50.

After we paid we waited around for two minutes before a hostess came to seat us. When she brought us to a table there were tons of crumbs and bits of food all over it, and instead of bringing us to a clean table, or carefully cleaning it off, she simply used her hand to fling the food onto our seats, and left. Ew. I don't do well with any type of grossness, especially when it comes to eating, so that really skeeved me out. However, we didn't make a big deal out of it, and we just went to get our food.

We went to get our food, and what a shock that was. Why? Because there was hardly any! There was fried chicken, mashed potatoes, salad, macaroni and cheese... and that's it. We thought we might as well make the best out of it and just fill up on the salad bar, so my mom and I went to get salad. While we were there an employee came to wipe up the area. She sprayed cleaning fluid on a rag, wiped the counter, and the rag went right into the macaroni and cheese, and she just walked away. EW! That was all we needed to see. We found Mike would couldn't find anything that he liked anyway, and my dad who had filled his plate with tons of fried chicken We told him to put the plate down, because we were leaving. He just left it on the side of the buffet table!

We went up to the front podium and my mom told the girl there that she wasn't feeling well, and we needed our money back. My mom's usually very outspoken and says what's on her mind, so I don't know why she lied. I would have just said that the restaurant was filthy and there was no food! After speaking with a manager and filling out a few receipts we eventually got our money back and were on our way, vowing to never go to a Golden Corral again.

We weren't sure where to go, but we saw a Friendly's down the block and figured that you really can't go wrong at Friendly's. My dad parked while my mom, Mike and I ran in to get a table (it was getting pretty crowded). The guy at the podium asked us how many, and when I said “four” he asked us where we were from. When I said New York he said he could tell from my accent (I had said "faw" and "New Yawk" I have a really strong Brooklyn accent). He then asked if we were Yankee fans and I said, "Of course!" He said that he was from Boston and that the Yankee's wouldn't catch up to the Red Socks for first in the American League East division, and I just said, "Yea, well, we'll see what happens!" (Just as a side note, the Yanks clinched the Division Pennant when they beat Boston, thank you very much). We were seated and I asked if he was going to school in Florida, but he said that he was just dispatched from the Army and was taking some time off in Florida. He looked just like Brandon Flowers from The Killers, and I LOVE Brandon, so I was a little over-excited

Our waiter eventually came and we ordered loaded waffle fries as an appetizer, and then my mom and I shared chicken fingers and a tuna melt, Mike got chicken fingers, and my dad got a chocolate shake and a sandwich of some sort (I don't remember what kind). When the food came my mom and I got a Turkey sandwich instead of a Tuna Melt, and our fries came after our food, but we didn't make a big deal out of it. We were tired and hungry, and the food was all good, so we didn't mind too much.

When we left it was raining, and of course we got lost trying to get back to the main road. We went in a big circle around Sea World twice, but eventually found I4 to take us back into the heart of Kissimmee.

Coming Up Next – Michael…DON’T LOOK!

 

[missj1975]

Wow, I love your trip report so far. I can't wait until you reach Disney World. Thanks for being so detailed. This is better then t.v.

 

[OhMari]

Love the Ripley's post. We have a Ripley's in Wisconsin Dells. Everytime we would go over the WI Dells, we would see the attraction and my youngest dd-11 at the time would beg to go. Finally at the end of summer, me and my dh took her over and we rode the boat on the River and went to Ripley's. It took us over 2 hours. She was truly fascinated. I got the guide book for free-found a code on the internet.

Really enjoying your report-I would love to be able to stay a month like your family.

 

[luvpooh]

I just wanted to let you know that I have read your whole report just now, and I'm hooked! I love the details!
Please keep it coming!

 

[lindakmonty]

enjoying the TR,and pictures!! I'm ready for a month trip to Orlando!! I better wait til ds5 is a little older!

thanks for sharing!

 

[staticg21]

I love your TR sooo much! I have never been to WDW or even FLorida, but reading your report makes me want to go soooo bad!! I keep telling my bf we should go but he keeps saying "it's too expensive...blah blah blah" But thanks again so much for sharing!

 

[babieemelly]

Thanks for all the comments!

Mike and I were really tired at this point and just wanted to go back to the condo. Yes, we're party poopers My mom and Dad, however, wanted to go out for the night. Mike and I were not in a good mood, but off to Universal Studios we went. We were supposed to park all the way at the end of the lot, but there was no one directing traffic so we drove around to the very front and found a ton of spots. We then began the long trek through CityWalk, and went over to Island's of Adventure. The entrance to the park was PACKED, though, more so than the entrance to either park had been so far. It was already 7:30 and we didn't feel like dealing with crowds so we walked over to Universal Studios and walked right in. This wasn't before a big fight as to whether or not we should just leave. My dad wanted to stay, though, so we did.

After entering Universal Studios we stopped at the Cheesecake Factory right near the entrance to see if they had Italian Cheesecake. Mike LOVES Italian cheesecake and he looks for it wherever we go. They didn't have it, though, so we walked over to the Gory, Gruesome, and Grotesque Horror Makeup Show. The next show didn't start until 8:30, so we went over to Twister so my mom and Mike could go on it. There was only a five-minute wait listed, but we wound up just walking right into the pre-show. As usual the attraction was great. This time we were in the front row, and Mike got SO scared when the roof caved in and came swinging towards us. He's really tall and the roof got so close to his head that it just freaked him out. I was CRACKING UP!

The storm-chasing van from Twister

When we left my mom and I ran into the bathroom while Mike and my dad went ahead to the Horror Show theater to get us seats. We got to the theater at 8:20 but they hadn't let anyone in yet, so we waited in the pre-show room. Each month they have props from different Universal horror films in the pre-show room, and this July they had props from Van Helsing. Mike loved this movie, but I had never seen it, so it was nothing special to me.

Mel’s Drive In was themed after the diner in American Graffiti, but we never got a chance to eat there

Outside the Gory, Gruesome, and Grotesque Horror Makeup Show theater

Some Van Helsing props

When the doors finally opened we were right in front of them, and everyone went RUNNING in, completely trampling us. I just hung out in the back while my dad went in to get seats. When we met him inside he had a spot in the front row, with three seats saved. There was also a lady behind him, screaming. I asked what was going on, and he said he went in and saved three seats for us, but two kids came and sat in our seats. He asked them to move down since he was saving the seats, and when they moved down someone else sat down on the other side of them, leaving no room for their parents. The kid's mom was flipping out, screaming at my dad for not letting kids sit in the front row. Excuse me? I am NOT a violent person, but I wanted to slap her so bad. First of all, we were the first people in line, and got to the seats first. Second of all, your kids are just that… kids. If you want to sit with them, don't send them off on their own to run in between and in front of everyone, and then jump in seats. Take their hands, and walk with them. Then you'll get seats together. It made me SO mad, and it still does when I think about it. Sometimes I just really don't like people, there are too many stupid ones out there.

Eventually the lady calmed herself down before she popped a blood vessel, and the show started. Around the stage were props, masks, and replicas of different things from scary movies, including a Chucky doll! Mike is unbelievably afraid of Chucky, and all dolls/dummy's, to the extent that it's a little not normal for a guy his age So as soon as I saw that Chucky doll, and that it was right in front of us, I just started cracking up. The look on Mike's face was priceless! I don't think he looked at it the whole time!

The show itself was GREAT! Just really, really funny! First a mad scientist-looking guy stumbled out onto the stage with a knife in his chest, and he eventually fell onto the floor. Then he pulled himself over to the front row and went over to a really pretty girl, who was about seventeen. He said he needed help, and whenshe got up to help him he went to hug her. She jumped away and we all laughed. It was really funny! Eventually he got up and told us that he was a special effects artist for Universal Studios, and then the host of the show came out.

First we watched clips from some of the most popular Universal horror films. Then they asked for a volunteer, and a bunch of people had their hands up. Of course they picked someone who didn't have their hand up! It was a lady named Charlene, and she was a great sport! They put a fake knife to her arm and started "cutting her arm" and it looked cool, until the blade went completely through her arm! It looked sick! Charlene freaked out and started screaming! They then took the knife out of her arm and showed us how it worked... there was a secret compartment that was pushed out of the knife and put up against her arm to look like the blade was going through it. Very cool. The host then said that makeup artists are skilled professionals and are great at what they do, and they never drink on the job. He also said to the kids in the audience that none of them should drink or try these effects at home - they should do it at a friends’ house.

Then they showed more clips from scary movies, including a clip of the moon. They asked all the kids in the audience what movie they thought it was, and they all screamed, "ET! It's ET!" Then they showed a scary-looking werewolf howling at the moon, and the host said, "That's right kids, he's back and he's pissed!" I was cracking up! It was actually a scene from “American Werewolf in London”, and we were shown amoving animatronic head of how they made the transformation from man to beast in the movie. It was awesome!

They then needed another volunteer, and more people raised their hands. The host said, "We need someone really fearless for this one. Someone who isn't afraid of anything, and is willing to do anything... Charlene!" They pulled Charlene back up on stage! They gave her a vest to wear which had controls on the arms, saying that they had created the first motion-based animatronic. They then pulled the curtain off of a huge wolf-like creature. As Charlene moved her arms the wolf would move its arms; as Charlene moved her head, the wolf would move its head. It was cool, but we all knew that something was up.

They then told her to go stand next to the wolf so that they could take a picture for her. She was afraid to go up to it, though, because she knew something would happen, so she refused to go. Eventually she went over to it when the host said he would go over there with her. Right when she got over there she grabbed the host around his waste and closed her eyes. The host was surprised and said, "Wow, this is like the prom picture I never had!" Eventually the wolf sprang out at her, and started running around the stage. She got SO scared, it was priceless! Of course there was someone in the costume the whole time, but it was still very, very funny. The show ended after that, and I absolutely loved it! Definitely worth the trouble the psycho lady gave us

Oh no, it’s Chucky! Mike, don’t look!

A replica of the mask used in The Exorcist

Done with the show, we went back to the front of the park and went into the Lucy store. My mom picked out a few magnets and my dad got a nightgown that he was going to buy her, but my mom wound up putting everything back We then went into the main Universal Studios store and I got a Universal keychain with a spinning Universal globe in the middle of a ring, all in gold. I also got a clapboard-looking picture frame that said Universal Studios, and it came with a picture from the set of Moulin Rouge. I LOVE that movie, so it was cool. My mom and dad also got a Universal mug for my cousin Ryan (He's 15 but thinks Spongebob is the funniest thing ever, so we made sure Spongebob was on it )

My mom and I then ran into the bathroom, and we went into a small sports-related store at the very exit of the park. We wound up getting a Spiderman car for my cousin Zach, and my mom got a little Woody-Woodpecker picture frame magnet. We wound up leaving the park at 9:30, and we were at the car by 9:50 (I'm telling you, it was a LONG walk!)

Right when we got to the entrance of the Emerald Island resort we saw fireworks in the distance, right behind the silhouette of Cinderella's Castle! I wish I would have taken a picture, it was BEAUTIFUL. It was then that I realized just how close to the Magic Kingdom we actually were, and I loved it! We were also able to hear the fireworks, too, which was cool.

I got in my pajamas at around 10:30 and read my Ripley's guidebook. I had a lot of trouble falling asleep. As tired as I had been earlier, I just couldn't get myself tired again. I eventually drifted off to sleep at 1:00, but I woke up at 2:30 and again had trouble falling back asleep.

Coming Up Next – Day 7: Take It Easy…

 

[babieemelly]

Day 7 - Friday, July 15, 2005

I woke up at 10:00 this morning, and heard the TV on. Figuring that my mom and dad were downstairs I went down to have breakfast, but they were nowhere to be found. They were gone, but had left the TV on for Oreo I watched some videos on VH1 (including "Behind These Hazel Eyes" by Kelly Clarkson, "These Boots Were Made For Walking" by Jessica Simpson, and the new Beck, Joss Stone and R Kelly videos) How's is THAT for detail!

My mom and dad came home at 10:30. They had been up the road at Dunkin' Donuts getting breakfast. I had a chocolate chip muffin and half of a bagel. I seriously ate like a cow on this vacation I then watched the premier episode of the Surreal Life on VH1, and just lounged around the house. I was determined to just take it easy all morning.

My mom and dad in my room…nice face, mom

I eventually went up to take a shower at 1:30, and after getting dressed and blowing my hair, I was done by 3:00. When I came down Mike was watching TV and Oreo was laying on the couch with him. My mom and dad had gone out to a big flea market and then over to Target. My mom later called me and said that she found the souvenirs we had bought at Universal Studios for cheaper at Walmart. Oh well, now we knew for next time. With our Universal 35% discount, though, nothing was really that much cheaper.

Mike and Oreo watching TV

Oreo lounging on the couch

My mom and dad were home by 4:00, when they decided to drive over to the Clubhouse to check their e-mail. Mike decided to go with them, but I sat in my room and organized all of our souvenirs. I organized my room (it was already a mess!), separated the souvenirs by who got what (all of my souvenirs were in one bag, Alison's were in another, Zach's were in another, my cousin's Cari and Ryan's souvenirs were in a separate bag, etc), and then I went downstairs and did my nails while I watched the "Celebrities Caught On Tape" special on VH1. M mom, dad and Mike were back by 4:30, when I was watching the "E True Hollywood Story" special on Cops, being repeated on VH1. We all just relaxed, and got ready for our busy night.

Coming Up Next – A gorgeous view!

 

[Philadisney]

i love your report and how detailed it is, and all the pictures you included! I feel like i'm on a tour of orlando I lived there for 4 months in college when I worked at Epcot, but I had no car and worked a lot so I barely got to see anything outside of Disney property (all that time there and I only made it to Universal once, and we only did IOA ). thanks for an awesome report so far! (your dog is the CUTEST!)

 

[babieemelly]

We left at 5:30 and headed towards the Polynesian for our 6:30 Priority Seating at ‘Ohana. I was so excited, I love anything Polynesian, Hawaiian, or Caribbean, and I really wanted to explore the resort. ‘Ohana was also the priority seating that I was looking forward to the most, so I was psyched!

We drove to the Magic Kingdom section of Disney property and told the parking attendant that we were eating at the Polynesian, and he waved us through. We took a wrong turn, though, and ended up at the Ticket and Transportation Center. We went in a big circle around the entrance to the Magic Kingdom parking lot and again went though the parking gates (to a different CM this time!). Then we again made the same mistake Wow, this driving around Orlando thing just wasn't working out for us. Eventually we figured out where to go (we had to make a right turn instead of a left when we went through the gates), and made it to the Polynesian parking lot.

We parked and walked into the Polynesian, only after the CM's out front all welcomed us with a big ALOHA! The lobby of the Polynesian was absolutely gorgeous, like no hotel I had ever seen before. We've been to a lot of gorgeous hotels, but the Polynesian was so tropical and exotic. I absolutely loved it! We walked around the hotel for a little while, looking at all of the cute Hawaiian costumes that they had. When we went to the Luau back in 1992 my mom and Dad wound up buying me a Hula Girl costume from the Polynesian, which I wore for that Halloween! Wow, those costumes were EXPENSIVE.

We eventually went up to ‘Ohana and checked in. There were a lot of people hanging out in the lounge outside the restaurant, but the restaurant itself didn't look too crowded, which we took as a good sign. We were given a pager, and decided to go over to Trader Jacks to do some shopping. My mom got a few cute magnets that look like soda bottle tops with retro advertisements, some of which featured Mickey while some had Minnie. I saw a few CDs that I had wanted, and a really cute Hawaiian Stitch stuffed animal that would go great with my Hawaiian-themed room, but I decided to come back later to get them.

The pager went off no more than five minutes later, at 6:20, and we walked back over to the restaurant. Our “cousin” Chris welcomed us and gave us a tour of the restaurant. We all had to laugh because we have a cousin Chris, and we were reminded of him. It was pretty empty! It was crowded enough for it to have a fun atmosphere, but it was no where near as crowded as I thought it would be. We were brought around to our table, and wow... we had the best table in the restaurant (or so Chris said)! We had a view of Cinderella's Castle, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and the Grand Floridian! It was gorgeous! Of course Mike had to ruin the moment, though, by looking at the menu and having a fit about the $25 price. Um, hello.... since when are you paying?

Our beautiful view

Our waitress came around to get our drink order, and my mom, dad and Mike got soda while I got lemonade. My mom and I then went over to the bathroom before our food came, and the bathroom was spotless. It was really nice, and the coconut soap is now one of my favorite parts of the trip! I LOVED that soap!

Five minutes after we were back at the table our appetizers came, and wow... that was some GOOD food! The shrimp wantons and honey-lime dressing on the salad were so unbelievably delicious... I crave them both at home now! The green beans were also absolutely delicious. The chicken wings were GREAT, too.... my dad loved them! As we were eating our appetizers the Hula Hoop contest started for the kids, and it was too cute. They were all so excited!

As much as Mike complained, he loved the food

My dad enjoying the chicken wings

My mom loved the shrimp wantons

Done with our appetizers, our waitress brought out the skewers of food. I didn't try the pork, but I got some turkey, steak and shrimp. I didn't like the shrimp since they were peel and eat. It was making a mess, and I didn't like how the shrimp weren't de-vained (especially wit them being so big). The turkey was good, though, and the steak was GREAT! I don't normally like steak that much, but this steak was delicious. My mom loved the shrimp and turkey, my dad loved the turkey, steak and pork, and Mike loved the steak and turkey. The food was topnotch, and all delicious. We were all so full, really just completely stuffed, after eating our first round of food, that none of us had seconds. There was a lady at the table next to us, though, who completely filled up on shrimp. Whenever the waitress came around with the skewer, so would take every single shrimp on the skewer.... every last one! It was hysterical

As we were sitting around, waiting for our pineapple, we were brought warm towels to wipe our hands. Nice touch. We also saw the fireworks from Cinderellabration, which was cool. We had such a great view! Eventually our pineapple and hot caramel came out, and it was DELICIOUS! The perfect ending to a delicious meal. My mom and I both LOVE pineapple and caramel, so we were in heaven My dad and Mike really enjoyed it, too. The caramel made a mess and was all over the table by the time we were done, but it really was delicious. Before even having tried it, Mike already knew he wouldn’t like it, so he ordered some vanilla crème brulee. He wound up loving the pineapple with caramel, but he also really enjoyed the crème brulee.

Our pineapple and caramel

When we were done eating we relaxed around the table for a little while longer, waiting for the check. I was looking around the restaurant, and one of the waiter's looked liked Simon Rex… I love Simon Rex! Yes, leave it to me to notice the cute waiter The bill eventually came, and dinner came to $111, excluding our $25 tip. The dinner was absolutely delicious, the atmosphere was amazing, and it was one of the most memorable experiences of our trip. It was the first time that I actually felt the "magic". We had been in Orlando for almost a week already, and I hadn't yet gotten that "magic" feeling, but I guess it took seeing the Castle, some great food, and the amazing Disney atmosphere to bring it out. Even my mom and dad are still raving about the restaurant!

We were done eating at around 7:30, and we decided to go take a monorail ride around to the Grand Floridian and Contemporary, and then watch the Electric Water Pageant and Wishes from the Polynesian beach. This had been the plan all along, ever since I originally started planning the trip. It was something I was really looking forward to. Mike had to ruin it, though, and was complaining that his knee hurt and he didn't want to walk around. : We still had time before the 9:00 Electric Water Pageant so we decided to just drive him home. The Hawaiian flip flops that I had worn were cutting into my feet and killing me, so I took it as a chance to go change my shoes. No big deal.

As we were driving off of Disney property my dad said, "You know, I'm starting to get excited about going to Disney. I can't wait to see all of the parks and go on all the rides." I, of course, came back with, "I've been excited about going to the Disney parks for the pas four years, I'm glad you're starting to get excited now that we're finally here!" When we got back to the house we were greeted by tons of Geckos (they were always all over), and we all went in for a few minutes. I changed my shoes and got some more money before working on my trip report notes for a little while, and we were all (well, all but Michael) back in the car by 8:10.

A little gecko

Coming Up Next – “Please stand clear of the doors.”

 

[babieemelly]

We were out of the house and on our way back to the Polynesian at 8:10. We made the right turn this time, and went back to the parking booth at the Polynesian Resort. The attendants had changed shifts so it didn't look weird when we again said that we were eating at ‘Ohana

A blurry picture of the Disney sign

I hadn't gone to the bathroom when we ran into the house, and I had to go so bad. That may be too much information, but that's what happened So my dad dropped my mom and I off in front of the entrance to the resort and we ran into the bathroom while he parked. We went to the bathroom in the back, right under the stairs that lead up to ‘Ohana. When we were done we looked in the big gift shop on the first floor and they had a ton of charms for the charm bracelet I had ordered online. I didn't get any, though, because there wasn't room for any more on my bracelet, and I didn’t feel like putting together an entirely new bracelet.

My dad still hadn't come in from parking yet, so my mom and I took some pictures by the fountain in the lobby. We though it was taking a long time for my dad to park, so we went outside to call his cell phone, but right when we stepped outside we saw him coming. We then took some more pictures by the fountain, and sat around the lobby for a few minutes.

My mom in the lobby

My mom and dad by the tropical garden

At around 8:40 we went out to the back of the Polynesian, near the pool. There were tons of people in the pool... the place was packed! We just walked through, though, and went out to the beach. It was pretty empty, and we walked all the way to the right, down to the end near where the rowboats are docked and the hammocks are. The hammocks were all taken so we sat on the lounge chairs and settled in for the night. The view of the castle form there was absolutely gorgeous! There were two little kids (maybe around four and five years old) and they were building a sand castle, trying to get it to look like Cinderella's Castle. Each time they added something new the little girl would call her dad over to look, it was the cutest thing! When we first got down to the beach the sun was setting, and it was just gorgeous. Within minutes, though, the sun was gone and the entire beach was dark.

My mom and dad relaxing on the beach

Rowboats docked on the beach

Ahh, burying my feet in the sand

The view across to the Contemporary

At 8:50 we saw the barges being pulled out for the Electric Water Pageant, and the parade started at 9:00. It was cute, but not what I had expected. I thought the parade would be pulled through the water, but all of the barges docked, and each one took its turn lighting up, while they played a cute digital-sounding song. It sounded a lot like the music that they used to play for the Main Street Electrical Parade. There was a sea king with his horseshoe carriage, an octopus, a dolphin, a turtle, and a few other sea creatures. The end of the show was nice, with all of the sea creatures turning into flags and stars, as they played patriotic music. It was hard to get pictures because my flash wouldn't reach the barges, so the pictures were either dark or blurry. I did manage to get a few pictures, though. Overall, the Electric Water Pageant was cute, but it's more for kids. I wouldn't go out of my way to see it again any time soon.

 

[babieemelly]

When the pageant was over we walked over to the monorail and waited in line to get on. There was a really long line, and it took a while for the monorail to come, but we were standing within the lush foliage of the Polynesian, so I didn't mind. Eventually a monorail came and we went all the way to the back and got our own car. I love the whole monorail spiel - "Please stand clear of the doors.” I also loved how they had Stitch saying, "Are we there yet?!" in the background. Very cute!

The area surrounding the Polynesian monorail stop is truly beautiful

My mom and dad on the monorail

We enjoyed the short ride, and got off at the Grand Floridian. I had never really liked the Grand Floridian. From the pictures and videos I had seen, it always looked very stuffy. So we got off of the monorail and walked inside, and... WOW! Wow, wow, wow. That's all I have to say. I am now in love with the Grand Floridian. It was absolutely gorgeous, like no hotel I had ever seen before. Like I said previously, we've stayed in the nicest hotels, but nothing compared to the beauty and charm of the Grand Floridian. When we walked in there was a band playing an instrumental version of "Beauty and the Beast" which is one of my all-time favorite Disney songs. And yes, I got all teary-eyed. It was all just SO gorgeous! It was truly Disney magic at its best.

Walking into the Grand Floridian… I like the kid with the wedgie

Looking down to the first floor of the lobby

The Grand Floridian band

We went into Mickey Mercantile and looked around. I wound up buying the Hawaiian Stitch that I had wanted, and it was only $13 which I thought was pretty good. I also wanted a Minnie stuffed animal to go with my Mickey, but I decided to wait and see if I could find it cheaper outside of Disney. My mom bought Mickey coconut patties, which we wound up eating the next week and were so good! We then walked around the entire top floor of the lobby, past the lounge, and we saw a few dead bugs on the floor. My mom said, "For $350 a night, there shouldn't be bugs!" and she had a point. Oh well, I'd still LOVE to stay there!

We then got back in line for the monorail, and this time the line was really, really long. We went all the way to the front, and my mom and I got a seat but my dad had to stand, which wasn't a big deal. When we went around to the Magic Kingdom tons of people tried to pack into the car…it was pretty ridiculous. A few people did get off, though, and my dad got to sit down. He got up for a little girl to sit, though, but she didn't want to so he sat back down. We were going backwards at this point, and my mom didn't like going backwards since she gets motion sickness really easily, but she was fine. When we got around to the TTC hardly anyone got off of the monorail, so we were in for a crowded ride back to the Polynesian. We were originally planning on getting off to explore the Contemporary, but we didn't since it was getting late and we knew we wouldn't get a seat coming back if we got off now.

We were back at the Polynesian by 9:40, and we ran up to the bathroom. As we were laving the bathroom we saw the lady who had taken all the shrimp at ‘Ohana! They were probably just leaving, three hours later We went back outside and my mom wanted a coffee so we stopped at Captain Cooks and she ran in while my dad and I wanted outside. We waited, and waited and waited... it took FOREVER. Twenty minutes later she came back out and said that they had run out of milk, and she had to wait for them to get more. What store runs out of milk?!

Captain Cooks

Right outside Captain Cooks, under the archway of torches

We went back down to the beach, and it was a lot more crowded now. However, we again went all the way to the right and sat in the same lounge chairs that we had sat in earlier, and it wasn't as crowded down there. We waited for ten minutes before we saw the lights of the Magic Kingdom dim, and Wishes began. It was really, really nice just sitting out on the beach, watching the fireworks! The fireworks were nice, but I have to admit that the show wasn't that great without the music. It was still nice, though, and we got to see the flight of Tinker Bell, even though we were far away. You could hear some music if the wind blew in the right direction, but not much. It was still gorgeous, and one of the most magical and relaxing nights of our entire trip.

When Wishes was over, my mom said that she really liked it, and that we had a better view than we would have in the parks. She was right, but I still wanted to see the show from the Magic Kingdom, with the music. We left at around 10:15 and walked back around the pool, and it was still packed. We went out to the parking lot and my dad had parked all the way at the end, since the parking lot was pretty full. As we were pulling out of our spot there were a few people standing by the car next to us, along with a little boy. We were trying to pull out, and they didn't move the little boy, they just stared at us. My dad's a great driver, but these people didn't know that. Unless they wanted their son to get hit by a car, wouldn't it have made sense to move him? Yes, people amaze me.

There was a lot of traffic on 192 on the way to the condo, since the parks had just closed and everyone was heading back to their hotels. We made it home by 10:30, though, which wasn't too bad. I took a shower and was asleep by 11:30. I was exhausted! I woke up twice throughout the night, but I wound up getting a good night's sleep for the first time on the trip.

Coming Up Next – Day 8: To Infinity and Beyond (Literally!)

 

[ChIP&DaLEfan]

loved the updates! really enjoying ur report

 

[jimenyfan]

I am really enjoying your reports. I cant imagine being in Orlando for a full month. What a great experience for you.

 

[Sandy22]

Keep 'em coming

 

[babieemelly]

Day 8 - Saturday, July 16, 2005

I was up at 9:00, and was finished getting ready by 9:30. That’s FAST for me. We had decided to go to the Kennedy Space Center today since we didn't want to go to a theme park on a Saturday, and we wanted to leave at a reasonable hour. Michael was up at 9:30, and my mom and dad walked Oreo at 10:15. While they walked the dog I had a small coffee cake for breakfast, and we were in the car and on our way to Cape Canaveral at 10:45. Much like this paragraph, the morning was very rushed!

On the way to Cocoa Beach I listened to Cher and My Chemical Romance on my MP3 player. Yes, I went from Cher to My Chemical Romance. I have very varied tastes in music. The ride took about an hour and ten minutes, which wasn't too bad. Once we got into Cape Canaveral the sky was just absolutely gorgeous! I had never seen clouds so low, puffy, and perfectly white before. The clouds here are really high up, so it was just weird to see. I’m very easily amused

The area itself was absolutely gorgeous! The water was crystal clear, and the palm trees were bright green. You could tell that the entire area was a protected nature reserve. There were also lots of signs and billboards letting us know that we were on the Space Coast.

When we pulled up to the entrance of the Kennedy Space Center everything was very patriotic, and there were signs all over about the launch of the Discovery. We wanted to go on the day of the actual launch, but it had been changed so many times that we didn't want to pay extra to see it, and deal with the crowds, when the launch may not even happen.