Regarding Pool and Food Court Noise:
We are very quiet people, so obviously, your mileage may vary. With the Food Court announcement, you really couldn't get away from it even in the corners (we quiet people, always sit in corners and away from the bustle
). But as an old Disney buff and former cast-member, I think the Down By the Riverside bit was poorly executed. It was obviously a recording, but they played it like it was live, including a "Are you having fun - Oh you can do better than that" bit. Please. I'm sure 7 to 10 year-olds enjoy it; at least some of them. I'm a psychologist, love kids, and love watching them. But honestly, I don't think this much stimulation is desirable or wise. Believe me, they're excited enough already to be going to a theme park. Predictably, every day at the parks I saw children melting down, always about 3:00, from the stimulation and low blood sugar, and usually their parents were melting down along with them. Not Good. At Lunch there were not enough people to make the Riverside thing work, and at Breakfast, it was already too chaotic. As a cast member back in the day, I used to see the same thing with adults around 4 or 5 PM. They'd get surly and mean in the heat of the day, then bounce back after a meal and improved blood sugar levels around 6. You could set your watch by it.
As for pool noise, well I think it kind of defeats the purpose of many parents to have some down-time in the middle of the day. Kids love pools and don't need a cruise director to help them enjoy it. The extroverted kids will certainly enjoy the organized games, but really they could do this without the PA system or the un-themed music. If you haven't noticed, and at the risk of coming off too cynical, Disney designs things to keep you moving, to increase the likelihood of you spending money. For example, the rooms are nice and comfortable but not designed for hanging out in, because you can't spend more money while in a room. I suspect that some of the organized Resort activities are to get parents closer to places where you spend money. If the noise drives you away, you're more likely to ping-pong into a shop, bar or to a restaurant and tap your room key for a purchase. I know for a fact, that the seats in the cafe I used to work in at
Disneyland were intentionally hard, to encourage tables to turn over faster. And of course every major attraction exit dumps into a themed shop. (I was appalled at the Norway Pavilion where they actually closed off a double exit door with an emergency only sign on it, forcing you to walk the length of the retail space. What's the emergency? No one is buying their expensive stuff. Ski sweaters in Florida? really?).
Coffee Pods:
The are indeed the Senseo type pods. Little round pucks of coffee in a filter. I had one of these coffee makers in my office a few years back but it broke. Still had the pods so I brought some along. They are much cheaper than the K-cup type. The coffee from them is only slightly better than the Nescafe in the food court. Oddly, the Nescafe didn't bother me as much this time as it has in the past. But the in-room maker was simply more convenient than walking to the dining room. One cup won't do it though, they're small, and they only leave enough for two small cups of coffee.
Two more observations I left out:
Gift Shop: I think POR has perhaps the best gift shop of any of the resorts I've either visited or stayed at. Really. It was very pleasant to poke around in there, and more convenient for gifts than DTD or even park shops. The aisles were roomy and the merchandise varied enough to make it interesting for every body. Much of the merchandise here is the same as in the parks but because it's at your resort, you can think about your purchases before you actually buy. I DO wish they had more resort specific merchandise. I would've like a POR mug for example. It's all still over-priced of course, but we've all reconciled ourselves to that at Disney already. We've stayed at WL, and AKL, and while AKL has some very unique items, I think the POR shop has the slight edge! It's definitely better than the WL shop. (BTW, they do indeed sell a flat of bottled water, but it is outrageously over-priced at 24 bottles for $16.00. Compare to 40 bottles at Sam's club for 4.00).
Video Game Room:
I got my coupon with my Micky Mail and wanted to try the video games out. I know they are archaic and sooo 20th century. But I wanted to anyway darn it. But alas, it was a waste of time. The games did not work well, they were too expensive, and you couldn't really tell how much you were spending on them because they use a point system. It was a disappointment and I can't help but think the Imagineers could come up with a better use for the space. How about a book store and reading room for us introverts
- The Skyway Guy
Ha! It would be nice not to have to stop somewhere else to get it if I can get it at POR. Thanks!! 
