Pin Trading, Pineapple Bars, and Italian Wine, OH MY! Sept. 2010 TR UPDATE 8/20 pg 9

[Belle_princess]

Since we were in Norway, I HAD to try the Schoolbread. I wasn't terribly hungry since we had just eaten, but I was here. . .

Yep, I caved and bought one!! (I tried very hard not to eat things Nikki couldn't try, at least! Nikki told me to go ahead and get one since I'd heard about it!)

Yum!!! Everyone who can MUST try this. It was wonderful!!!!!

As I sat there and ate my Schoolbread, I shot some pictures.

While we sat there, Nikki scoped out all the CMs and their pins! One CM walked by, and Nikki stood up to check out her pins. The CM seemed a little startled. She said it was her first day, and she wasn't used to having the pins. Nikki and I both traded with her. She said we were her first trades ever! We shot a picture with her, but it has yet to be found! Maybe later I can add it!

We decided to ride the Maelstorm. I had never ridden it. We got in line, after a pin trade with the CM at the entrance, of course. It was a fast line. We were loaded int he boats and took off. It is a cute ride- worth it for someone who had never ridden it before! We got off, and watched the little Norwegian film (which was terribly outdated and needs to be redone!!!)

Of course, you are dumped into the shopping area in Norway. The only way out is to go all the way through. We stopped at each CM to see their pins as we did some shopping!

Norwegian candy. . .

and a pin Nikki was deciding if she wanted or not (Maleficent and Aurora!):

We finished out time in Norway for now and headed on. . .

 

[Belle_princess]

HI.. im tonya!! and im joing in! .. i have to go back and read.. but an ALL GIRLS TRIP?? sound great!! can wait to read more

Tonya

It was only two girls, but we are both Disney freaks! It was awesome! I hope you enjoy!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Hidden Mickeys in bird poop and sweat. Brilliant!

 

[Belle_princess]

Hidden Mickeys in bird poop and sweat. Brilliant!

WOW! I got an "Brilliant" from Captain Oblivious! My life is complete!!

Captain! Hope you'll stay around for the ride!

 

[Belle_princess]

Moving on from Norway, we headed to the China pavilion! There was a crowd of people, so, naturally, we joined said crowd. There were some acrobats performing! They were incredibly impressive. One woman laid on her back and 'juggled' things with her feet- a large pot and a table! WOW! Then, a group of boys did stunts while jumping rope! I had no idea people could be so talented!

Once the acrobats were finished, we walked into the pavilion.

We went into the Temple of Heaven exploring. We saw the display of the tomb warriors. I've seen pictures, but I was never sure where to find these guys.

I took a bunch of pictures, but most of them were blurry. *sigh*

After viewing the display, we walked out to hear beautiful music. There was a CM playing a zheng which is like a zither that is plucked. She did a beautiful job. Nikki and I sat and listened to her for a while. On one hand, she had little picks on each finger that she used to pluck the strings. The other hand pressed on the strings to create different notes! Very cool, however, my photo doesn't do it justice!

We listened for a while and then decided to move on. We went into the Chinese shops. So much fun to see what they have! I love these lights that look like flowers

There was all kinds of interesting things in this shop. Nikki found a dress she had to try on. She grabbed several different dresses with different patterns and tried them on. While she tried them on, I waited and shot a few pictures. Here is a random light picture for Leslie!

Nikki decided on the one she liked, but, as with our other purchases, she decided she would wait. We checked out the rest of the stores and then made our way to the front of the pavilion. This was a cool set up

We passed the Lotus Cafe, and it smelled delightful. Nikki stopped to peruse the menu only to find that there was very little she could eat. (We had discussed eating at Nine Dragons before the trip, but we decided against it since Nikki couldn't eat much of it!)

We left China and walked through African Outpost. Nothing spectacular here. We looked at the shops, and I squished a penny! We checked out the pin stand and all the pins of the CMs.

Germany was the next stop. We checked out the shops looking for pins and candy and anything else that caught our eye.

There wasn't much in Germany to separate me from my money! I considered buying a hat that DH and I tried in back in '08. It looked really good on both of us, but I couldn't find it! No big deal!

We checked out the little train set up between Germany and Italy. Then we headed to Italy. We stopped by the Lagoon where all the bridges and 'canal' are like in Italy. I noticed, tied up behind the American Theatre was this ship.

I know from other DISers it has an official name and that isn't always there, so I had to shoot a picture of it! However, I can't remember what makes it such a big deal!

Anyway, onto Italy. . .

Gosh, I LOVE this pavilion! No idea why. . .It is just so beautiful!

This plant was growing near the bridge. Anyone know what the fruit is?? I don't either!

We puttered around Italy just soaking it all up. We looked in the shops again. Nikki and I both purchased some Italian Chocolate. We tried a very dark chocolate. I can't remember the name. I thought the brand or name was Black, but maybe I'm confused because it was in a black wrapper. (If anyone can help me, please do so. I can't even find a picture!!) Nikki was unimpressed. I liked it. It is was definitely different.

We were on our way out of Italy when Nikki saw someone carrying a small plastic wine glass with a pink liquid in it. She ducked back into the Wine shop and asked them what the cool pink liquid was.

The CM said she knew exactly what Nikki wanted. She reached below the counter and brought out a chilled dark bottle and poured Nikki a glass. It was a sparkling wine that was pink in color. Nikki paid for it and sipped it. She said it was fantastic. I ordered a glass, too- honestly, what did I have to lose? I tried it. . .

AHHHHHHH

The angels were back! This wine was exquisite! The CMs said it was a dessert wine that was meant to go with chocolate. We told them we'd just tried some chocolate in the store next door. Wow! What an incredible wine! We shot a picture to remember the wine's name!

Rosa Regale! Wow! As if the Italian Pavilion didn't hold enough exciting things for me. . .Now, it was home to this wonderful creation!! Woo-hoo!

(I could go on and on about this wine, but I will leave that for future posts when we return again. . .and again to Italy for wine!!)

 

[Lady Lallie]

You are an updating machine!!

I love the random light fixture pictures.

The tacos look so very yummy. I want tacos for lunch now.

 

[Belle_princess]

You are an updating machine!!

I love the random light fixture pictures.

The tacos look so very yummy. I want tacos for lunch now.

Thanks, Leslie! I've found, since I'm not working, if I do an update or two each morning, I feel I'll finish this TR- unlike my last one. Plus, it is fun to relive!

The tacos were great! We even went back on our last day to get some more. . .and more wine!

 

[Lady Lallie]

Thanks, Leslie! I've found, since I'm not working, if I do an update or two each morning, I feel I'll finish this TR- unlike my last one. Plus, it is fun to relive!

The tacos were great! We even went back on our last day to get some more. . .and more wine!

I hear ya. Part of me wants to finish my TR really really fast and the other part of me wants to make it take longer so I can relive the trip longer.

 

[Belle_princess]

As we indulged in our glorious Italian wine, we wandered into the American Pavilion. I wanted Nikki to see the American show. (Can't, for the life of me, remember what it is called- the big one with the annoying song!) We checked the time, the next one started in 10 minutes. We had to finish our wine, so we checked out pins for trade on all the CMs and the little pin cart nearby.

After we finished our wine, we got in line to get into the theatre. The main door was closed, and they were letting guests into the exit to get into the theatre. I thought that was strange, but I found out later that they were having something in the the other part of the building- something for some big-wigs. Ohhhh.

We went into the theatre and grabbed middle of the row seats. The CM introduced the show and it started. I decided not to shoot pictures but just to enjoy the show. I'd seen it once, but I wanted to see it again. This was new for Nikki. It was good, and I think Nikki liked it. At the end of the show, there is a song they play- something about "American, spread your golden wings. . ." Nothing was really special about that song now, but it comes into play later. (I don't have it marked in my notes, but one night we were leaving EPCOT, and we heard the instrumental version of this song. It took us a while to figure it out. Once we did, the song was, of course, stuck in our heads. Then, we heard the song EVERYWHERE! It was a running joke for the rest of the trip and once we got home!)

After the America show, Nikki saw a beach towel she wanted to look at. While we were there, we talked to a CM. We got to talking about pins and the pins we were on the hunt for. This CM told us that at 5pm every day, a pin cart was brought out by the fountains of EPCOT by the pin station. He said there were often harder-to-find pins in that cart. He indicated that it was a pin trading deal. Well, by this time, it was well after 6pm. Nikki and I decided we had to get to that pin cart at some point before we left.

As we walked toward France for our dinner reservations, we discussed when we could get back to EPCOT for this pin cart. We decided Saturday would be our best bet! That was our AK day and then back to EPCOT for dinner at 8:55. There would be plenty of time for the pin cart.

We got to Les Chefs de France to find it crawling with people. (Low EPCOT day my foot!)

I checked it and received the pager. The CMs were turning people away saying you had to have reservations! Woo-hoo! Score! This was one of my top choices for our ADRs! I was happy to be there with my pager in hand and waiting for my time to be seated. Nikki found a place to sit by the fountains. She uploaded her photos from her phone while we waited. I called DH.

After a short wait, we were called. We were lead into the restaurant and into the area by the windows. I was hoping we'd get to sit here, but I knew requesting it would be out of the question considering the vast amount of people there!

We were seated in the corner at a small table. We looked at the menu and I shot a picture of the restaurant just to have.

Little did I know that our waiter was the very tall man on the right. He greeted us and talked to us a little. We had indicated Nikki's allergy, so he talked to her about her choices. He would go talk to the chef and return with answers to any questions she had.

We both ordered some sparkling French wine (Rosé Côtes de Provence- I think). It wasn't as good as the Italian wine, but it was good. They had an option on the menu where you could get an appetizer, a main course, and a dessert with a regular (not Deluxe) dinning plan option. We both chose to go that route here. We ordered our meals, and then our waiter asked Nikki if she would like him to bring her a glutten free bread. When he brought it out, Nikki and I stared at it. It looked like a white roll. For those of you who don't know, most glutten free bread is not white because it isn't made with regular flour but with a combination of nut flours which makes the bread darker and heavier. Nikki asked him multiple times if he was sure it was glutten free. He was absolutely certain. Here is Nikki with her first white-glutten-free bread

I got a small baggette

Both were very good. Nikki let me try her roll. It wasn't as light as white bread, but it tasted very much like it! Our appetizers came shortly after the bread

Nikki's Salade au bleu

My Soupe a l'oignon gratinee (French onion soup with Gruyere cheese on top).

WOW! My soup was mouthwatering!! I like onions, but I'm a little picky as to how I like them. I wasn't sure about the soup, but I had heard nothing but good things about it. That is why I tried it. This soup was so good. Once I broke through the cheese crust, the soup was light and not too strong. I ate as much as I could, and when my meal came, I ate the rest of the wonderful cheese! Yum, yum, and YUM! I want to try and make this during the winter, so DH can try it! It was delicious!!!

Then our meals arrived:
Nikki: Demi poulet fermier roti, pommes rissolees et tomate grillee - Half of an all-natural roasted chicken, rissole potatoes and grilled tomato (I think they had to put the sauce on the side because it had some wheat in it. Nikki can have a little- just not a whole bunch!)

Kristin: Plat de Cote de Boeuf au Cabarnet avec pates - Beef short ribs braised in Cabernet with pasta, pearl onions and mushrooms

Nikki wasn't extremely impressed with her meal. I tried it, too. It was just roasted chicken- nothing special. . .the sauce did help a little. However, this was one of the only things on the menu she could eat without getting sick. Ok, my bad!

My meal was very good! My only complaint was there were only like two mushrooms on the plate. I LOVE mushrooms, so I was disappointed that there were so few! However, the beef was delightful. It was tender and just fell apart. The noodles didn't seem to make sense. . . they were kinda plain. OH well. I was eating French food- what did I care!

While we were eating, I saw one of the chefs setting out desserts. Look at all the desserts he has lined up on the counter

I am completely intrigued by French desserts! I've studied them on my own and even tried to make the most finicky of all- the French Macaron with some success! (A French Macaron is an almond meringue cookie that is sandwiched with another cookie and some cream or ganache in the center. They are incredibly hard to make, but I love them!)

Next. . .DESSERT. Real. French. DESSERT! I was so excited!!
Nikki: Creme brulee - Vanilla creme brulee and a Madeleine

Kristin: Profiteroles au chocolat - Puff choux with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce

Both were fantastic! Nikki's Creme Brulee had a great sugary crust on top with a hint of vanilla in the cream. My dessert was self explanatory. I was trying to stay away from the traditional ice cream and chocolate, but I just couldn't this time! Yummy!!

On our way out of EPCOT, we decided to find the Chessire cat again in the UK store. I found him sitting on top of a small souvenir display. We brought him to the CM and she brought us out the Happily Ever After buttons. Hmm. . .not exactly sure why, but pretty cool none-the-less.

We decided to ride Soarin' before leaving. We got our FPs out and headed into the Land Pavilion. We stopped to check the CMs' pins and then headed down stairs. We got right into the line. There were a few groups ahead of us. We waited in line briefly. We thought we could ride Soarin and get out before the fireworks, however, the line was longer than we expected. No matter. We were assigned our loading line. . .we were on the first row! SWEET. I've always wanted to ride there, but I wasn't sure. I had ridden this ride in California, and I knew what to expect. However it was just as exciting! I had to leave my camera bag on the floor as we rode- I was little nervous about that. The ride was great, and I enjoyed just as much as I did 9 years ago when I rode it in Cali!! We 'landed' and got our things. As I was walking to get my bag, a teenage boy grabbed it for me and handed it to me. I was blown away. THank you to that mother who taught her child polite manners!

We left Soarin and made our way to the exit. I think the fireworks were over, so we didn't make a mad dash for the buses. We did stop at the restroom and then headed out. Honestly, I can't remember how the ride home went, but this bus driver wasn't Tom!!!!

We got back to ASMu to find the gift shop still open. We walked in to check CM pins. We started talking to one girl and pins and the ones we were looking for. At that point, Nikki was looking to for pins from a Figment Hidden Mickey set- the pin was a rectangular pin with Figment's neck and wings on it. We'd seen it through out the day, but Nikki didn't realize it was part of the set. She didn't know she needed it. The CM checked in the back and came back with the pin in hand! Nikki was so excited. We started talking to the CM about the Hidden Mickey sets. She said they are sets of pins given to the CMs to wear for trade. She got out a book that showed the sets that were available. Nikki's Figment set was on there as well as a pin I had gotten that day because I liked it. I didn't realize mine was part of a set, so I was determined to complete my set as well! (My set was the third row down, and Nikki's was the fourth row down).

The CM also told us about the 'chaser' pins that went with the sets. Apparently, some of the Hidden Mickey sets have a 'chaser' pin. It is a pin that is part of the set, but it isn't pictured with the others as it is harder to find or you have to purchase it (like a gift with purchase. . .you buy so much, you can but this extra chaser for a dollar). Nikki's chaser was a yellow shirt with an F on it. We had seen it, and I can't remember if Nikki had it by this point or not. The CM didn't indicate if my set had a chaser or not.

We thanked the CM and went back to our room. We showered, recorded our purchases and went to bed!

Up next. . .our first trip to the Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios!

 

[Belle_princess]

I'm actually going to start with one last picture from Wednesday. Here are the pins I traded for on Wednesday! I forgot I took these on my phone!

Ok, on to Thursday, September 23. This was our first Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios day! I LOVE MK, so I was super excited to get going!! On our way to the bus stop, I took a few pictures of our hotel! WE were looking out from the third floor of our building.

We headed to the bus stop, and immediately, a Magic Kingdom bus was there! Woo-hoo for Magic Kingdom pixie dust!!! (Originally, I had planned to spend all day at HS, but I read that it would be packed because of the two Fantasmics scheduled that night. I decided we'd split the day because MK was supposed to be light!!) We were off to MK after fighting off the Love bugs!!!

I love MK, and I was thrilled to see it all dressed up for the Fall! I couldn't wait to get there. Of course, ASMu is one of the resorts furthest from MK! The bus ride seemed to take forever! Remember me

Finally, we arrived and we jumped off the bus and headed for the turn styles and through Bag Check! Woo-hoo. . .I was finally home!

We walked under the train station and onto Main Street. I was shooting pictures as I walked because I LOVE Main Street!

On our way up Main Street, we, of course, found a photopass photographer!!!
She, of course, shot one with my camera as well. I LOVE this picture- one of my favorites from the trip

We headed toward Tomorrowland to get FPs for Space Mountain. We ran into two more PHotopass photographers! Uh, of course we stopped! We didn't pay for the photopass for nothing!!

We journeyed through Tomorrowland. Can you believe it: there were people actually in line for the Stitch ride. . .COME ON! I wanted to scream at them not to waste their time. . .oh well. Let them figure it out on their own!

As we approached Space Mountain, we saw the posted wait time was 5 minutes. Who needs FPs??? We jumped in line. We told the CM that we came for FPs, but the wait was so short, we decided to ride. He said it would be short all day because it was going to be a slow day!! Woo-hoo!

We pretty much walked through the entire que area. I did see several changes! They added some interactive games in line, but they certainly weren't needed today!! We got right into the loading area and on our ship! I LOVE Space Mountain! I hadn't ridden it since the refurb, so I was excited to see the changes. There were some on the ride itself. The thing I most noticed is it is considerably smoother than it used to be! Yea!

Of course, we were dumped into a shop! It had changed as well. It was much bigger and they added a small arcade in the back! Cool!

Before our trip, I was researching Vinylmation and was very intrigued by it. During the trip, I was kinda obsessively checking out all the Vinylmation displays. When I saw this guy, I HAD to get a picture!!

Totally cool! We shopped a little and then continued through Tomorrowland to Fantasyland. We stopped to get the infamous Pineapple Bar! Yum! A great treat at any time of day!! We ate our rapidly melting bars as we walked into Fantasyland. We pass the tea cup ride, and decided it would only make us sick! No thank you!

We passed the Fantasyland expansion walls and the Pooh ride. Nothing exciting there, however, we were scoping out EVERY CM who had pins as we walked. We traded for a few. (The day before, Nikki had found a baby Jiminy Cricket and a Mickeyball pin. I liked them both. I wanted to find them if I could get them to trade!!) Well, we actually found one CM with a Mickeyball pin, so I traded for it! Hooray! (I'll explain the Mickeyball in a little while!)

We stopped by the shop at the end of Snow White's Scary Adventure where Nikki found a CM with a really cool Retro EPCOT pin! I almost took it, but Nikki beat me to the punch! Oh well. It was a good find for her. Her favorite park is EPCOT, and this was a limited edition pin! Very exciting.

We continued through Fantasyland. I spotted Lady Tremaine and the Stepsisters greeting guests. We were about to get in line, but the CM said the line was closed because they had to prepare for the parade. Oh man! I really wanted to meet them! Oh well. We did talk to that CM about pins. I remember she gave us some good information, but I don't remember exactly what now!

(Too many pictures. . .more in the next update!)

 

[Belle_princess]

We decided to see Mickey's Philharmagic because the line was short! Nikki had to stop and trade pins with a CM, and as we stood there, the line got longer and longer. OH well. She was happy with her trade, and we got in line anyway! I love Mickey's Philharmagic! It is just fun! I tried to take pictures of the waiting area in 08, but they were all blurry! Here you go! French Horns on the wall!!!!!

After the show (which is so cute, and I don't think it will ever get old for me!), we headed out. I wanted to stop at the shop because I didn't have a picture of the Donald tied up in musical instruments- come one! I'm a musician! I NEED that picture. Of course, we were in the middle of the swarm of people leaving. Like a salmon going against the flow, we made our way through the crowd to the store

This, my friends, is a Mickeyball! Yes! Nikki had one of these at her house after her trip last year. Apparently, she saw them at Pop Century, and the CM there said they were ONLY available at PC. She didn't buy one and wished she had. Her mom called WDW and had one shipped to her and gave it to Nikki as a Christmas present. That is why the Mickeyball is a big deal to Nikki! I always thought he was adorable! I wanted one, but the price was $18.95!! Umm. . . I'll think about it. (At this point, we started seeing the Mickeyballs everywhere! It kinda became an icon of the trip!)

WE checked out the CM's pins and then headed on. We decided to get FPs for Peter Pan because, according to my phone's app, the wait time was like 50 minutes! Umm, no! Nikki had never ridden it, so FPs it was. We grabbed our FP for Peter Pan and headed through Fantasyland toward Liberty Square.

On that way, I looked carefully at the architecture of the buildings. It fascinates me how they go from a Medieval fair to the colonial buildings. Aren't Disney Details fantastic! If you don't pay attention, you don't realize how seamlessly things are done. Before you know it, you are in a new 'land!' LOVE IT!

We decided to ride Pirates, so we headed through Liberty Square to the passageway to Adventureland! We did a little shopping and pin trading (of course) on our way.

Another cool light fixture for LL!

We got to Pirates to see the wait time was 10 minutes! We followed some people in towards the ride wait entrance. They went on the left side; Nikki and I went on the right. There was NO one on that side. We ran through the que and ended up at the boats and jumped right on! So much pixie dust. We were laughing the whole time we sprinted through the wait!!

The ride, of course, was awesome!!

 

[Belle_princess]

After our awesome Pirates ride, we poked around in the shop!



Oh My Goodness! Is that Jack Sparrow?????

Oh, no. . .it is just Nikki pretending to be Jack Sparrow.





Ahh, there is Jack Sparrow. . .and. . . .

. . . WILL TURNER! Oh, be still my heart! Yummy. . .


Oh, I'm sorry. . .did I say that out loud? Hmm. . . maybe I should be more careful; their might be innocent eyes reading my TR!



Oh, but wait. . .look what I found!

Score! The Rum ISN'T all gone!



Ok, ok! (That was far too much fun to write!) We looked around the Pirates shop. We checked out the Christmas store in Liberty Square. Growing up, my parents always bought us an ornament on every trip we went on, so I'm continuing that tradition. However, I already have enough ornaments to topple at 10 foot tree! Nikki did some pin trading as I looked around. I couldn't find any ornament with 2010 on it that I particularly liked. Oh well.

Across Liberty Square, we checked out a little store will Halloween merchandise- including Nightmare Before Christmas stuff. Nikki loves that movie, so we checked all they had to offer.

Then we decided to head back to Fantasyland to use our FP for Peter Pan. We got right on, jumped into our pirate ship, and sailed off. I attempted to take pictures, but our ship must have been in warp speed because they all came out blurry. Fun ride, though.

As we left the Peter Pan ride, we decided we wanted to get some lunch, however, we were distracted by this guy

Look at all those pins!!!! Nikki was drawn to him like a moth to a flame! We talked to him for a long time about pins. He said the vests and lanyards he had on were said to weigh 45 pounds! He said he had on about 500 pins, but that was only a few of the 6,000+ he had at home. He said he only traveled with these!! (We were in the presence of greatness! ) He told us about pins and his journey collecting them. He showed us the first pin he ever traded for. It was a patriotic pin that said USA and had Daisy on it (I think!) He said he always wears that pin and he will never trade it! We looked at all his pins. Some were ones you could currently buy, some were very, very old, some were pins I had, some were pins you couldn't get at WDW. . . it went on and on. He was fascinating! After we talked to him, we had to take a picture. Without a picture, this guy would be hard to believe if you just heard the story!! WOW!

We thanked him for his time and headed on toward

where we ate lunch. We both got a Mediterranean Salad. Yumm! I wasn't sure about getting a salad but nothing else on the menu looked appetizing. . pizza, hamburgers. . . So, Salad it was. It was so good, and it made me feel so much better than any of the greasy offerings they had there!!! We also got the Strawberry Swirl CHeesecake!

We found a table under a Monstero mural and ate our lunch. We happened to be sitting next the door the CMs use to get to the kitchen area. We would check out all the pins that walked by. We made a few trades. Earlier that day, Nikki's "I'm Celebrating" button broke. I figured we stop by the Town Hall on Main Street and get another. However, one Cm walked by with all the buttons on. We asked her if we could get a new Celebrating button for Nikki. The CM said sure, and she asked what we were celebrating. Nikki said the trip was for her birthday. The CM offered to bring her a birthday button, but Nikki said it wasn't actually her birthday. The CM urged her to take the button, and so did I. (I knew with a birthday button, you got a lot of attention and some extra special things, so I wanted her to get one just to see what it was like!) The CM disappeared and brought out the Celebrating and Birthday buttons. She said she didn't have a marker to write NIkki's name on the button. Nikki kinda shrugged her off.

We finished lunch and threw away our trash. Nikki wanted to get her name on her button, and I had to find a restroom- we asked a nearby CM. Nikki told me she'd meet me at the restroom. She stopped to get her name written on her button, and I walked through the restaurant to the restrooms.

When I was finished, there was Nikki wither her birthday button on! We decided it was time for Big Thunder Mountain, so we headed through Liberty Square again. All the CMs who saw Nikki's button would wish her a happy birthday. And, so , it began!

We stopped in a shop between Fantasyland and Liberty Square just to look. Of course, we both did a pin trade or two! We left that store to see two CMs with pins standing outside the Columbia Harbor House. We looked at their pins, and one CM had a Mr. Fredrickson pin (from UP). Nikki was on a hunt for UP pins, and we hadn't seen any at this point. Nikki flipped out. She dug through her pins only to realize she didn't have any left to trade. She was trying to decide which of her newly traded pins she wanted to give up. I told the CMs we were going to have to buy more pins to trade because we were both almost out. The CM smiled and gave Nikki the pin and told her to go buy some trading pins and bring one back to her. She said if she wasn't there, to give the pin to a CM and tell them to give it to Dana! Nikki was ecstatic, so we made a b-line for the Emporium to get some pins!

 

[Belle_princess]

Hey folks! Sorry it has been a while since I posted. I just got bogged down in my unemployment and trying to find a job. Sheez! I know there is something out there, but no one has called yet. Maybe I am destined to stay home and create web pages and art!

When I left you, Nikki and I were making a b-line for the Emporium to buy some pins to trade. Wow! Disney is so brilliant. . .allow guests to trade pins with CMs, and when they run out of pins they want to trade, they will go buy more! Yes, my friends, that is JUST what Nikki did. I still had a few trade-able pins, so I was good (um. . .for now!)

As we walked into the hub in front of the Castle, there was a show going on, so we stopped to watch for a few minutes.

We pressed on to the Emporium! We hunted pins through the store until we found them right in the middle of the ENORMOUS store! We looked around until Nikki could decide what she was going to buy. (Sorry, Nik, I can't remember what you bought!!!) She bought a set of pins and immediately opened it up. I think she even traded with one of the CMs at the register before we headed out of the store.

We left the store, and Nikki suggested we sit some where, so she could organize her pins. We grabbed a small section of curb along Main Street. People were already lining up for prime view of the parade, but the parade was still 30 or so minutes away! I shot some pictures while Nikki organized her pin loot.

Then I heard music- band music! (For those of you who don't know, I play French horn and was in band all the way through college. I marched and played in concert band. I'm officially a Band Geek!) I looked down the street to see these guys:

I was thrilled! I'd never seen the Main Street Marching Band before! Score! I watched wide-eyed like a little child as they passed by. I knew I was in the presence of greatness! (Woo-hoo for me! That's twice in one day I was in the presence of greatness!!!!)

Nikki finished organizing her pins, so we took off for Liberty Square. We made our way back to the Columbia Harbor House. Dana was no where in sight. We looked around inside the restaurant, but she wasn't there. There was a big, burly CM standing out front. We went to him, explained the whole pin thing, and handed him a pin to give to Dana. He didn't seem to comprehend at first, but he took the pin with a promise to get it to her.

Ok, we had a little time left before we had to go to HS to be sure we were there in time for our reservations. We decided we wanted to ride Big Thunder Mountain and marched in that direction.

The posted wait time wasn't too bad- maybe 20 minutes. We hopped in line.

It seemed to take a while to go through the line. Nikki and I saw a little boy with a lipstick kiss on his cheek. Hmm. . .someone saw a princess!!! Nikki was telling me about how her nephew is in love with Ariel and about the times he met her on their trip the year before! So cute!

We finally boarded our runaway train! We're terrified, can't you tell?

I tried to take a few pictures during the ride.

Of course, the ride was a BLAST! Both of us love that ride! As we got off and started walking toward the hub again, we saw the parade was about to pass near where we were. We pressed up to the line of people. . .more like the three to four deep lines of people waiting to see the parade. I did my best to shoot some pictures because I knew this was my only to see this parade. It was very cute!

Then, like a little child, I spotted my favorite. . .and she was on my side of the float! Score!

 

[Lady Lallie]

I was behind a few updates but I'm caught up now.

I learned my lesson a few trips ago to make sure I brought enough pins down. I rather have too many from ebay then have to buy traders at Disney, that gets expensive!

Sounds like you are having a fantastic time!

 

[Belle_princess]

After the parade, we made our way toward the hub and the exit. Of course, we had to take pictures along the way because we noticed the crane. . .aka, the dragon (explained later) was not there!!!

One landscape one to use on my computer as wallpaper (which will be put up after the holidays because I have the Christmas Castle up now! )

Nikki took the same shot, but her's came out better!

We headed down Main Street. .

We turned down one of the little alley ways to look at a store window

We stepped into the store, but not without hearing the singing/tap dance lessons that are some times piped through that alley for the most observant guests!

Inside, we found figurines. . .one of Belle and the Prince (which you nearly NEVER see!!) and one of Prince Phillip and Princess Aurora whose dress was half pink and half blue. . .FINALLY!

We strolled through the other stores looking at artwork and all kinds of merchandise. As we got to the end for us (beginning for most others) of Main Street, we stopped to take pictures of the scarecrows that were there! They are so cute!

Nikki's friend, Bryan, is a baseball player. . .we had to have Nikki in this picture. Doesn't she looked thrilled??

I love this one. . .she has an Emporium bag and a little scarecrow doll wearing Mickey ears! Gotta love Disney's details!!!!!!

On our way out. . .

We got on the monorail headed to the TTC and then off to Hollywood Studios!!

 

[Belle_princess]

I was behind a few updates but I'm caught up now.

I learned my lesson a few trips ago to make sure I brought enough pins down. I rather have too many from ebay then have to buy traders at Disney, that gets expensive!

Sounds like you are having a fantastic time!

Yeah, I'm afraid it took me until this trip to realize we needed to bring enough pins to trade! Nikki ended up getting 3 or 4 sets to use as traders, and I think I got 2! Yeah, definitely hitting ebay up before my next trip. In all fairness, I've never been to Disney for that length of time while pin trading was so big, and I had NO idea I would create a pin-trading-monster when I gave Nikki some of my pins to trade with. Oh well. Next time, I'll bring too many pins!!!!!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Nice pictures. I like the one from the top of the hill on BTMRR looking over the park. And the castle shots are great.

 

[Belle_princess]

Nice pictures. I like the one from the top of the hill on BTMRR looking over the park. And the castle shots are great.

Thanks, Captain!! I appreciate your compliments!

I need to catch up on your TR. I'm sure I'm massively behind on points!!

 

[pinkxray]

I'm joining in. I have to go back and catch up.

I love all the EPCOT pictures. My daughter was 5 on our trip so other than looking for Jasmine and Aladdin the WS didn't hold her interest. I'm hoping to spend more time checking out all the countries next trip.

Wow! That guy has a lot of pins!

 

[Belle_princess]

I'm joining in. I have to go back and catch up.

I love all the EPCOT pictures. My daughter was 5 on our trip so other than looking for Jasmine and Aladdin the WS didn't hold her interest. I'm hoping to spend more time checking out all the countries next trip.

Wow! That guy has a lot of pins!

I'm so glad you are here. We have LOTS of pictures of WS, so stay tuned. Plus, I'm in the middle of writing another update, so stick around!!