PTR/TR - An Aussie tribe’s American Adventure Dec 9 2010 – Jan 23 2011

[shushh]

I am glad you are still adding the photo's to your blog as I am really enjoying them. Your comment about the parade made me laugh. I staked out our spot early, making sure I wasn't looking into the sun, and that the view was acceptable. Everyone else thought I was being annoying.

So sorry to hear about Ethel's Dad, but so glad she made it home in time to see him.

Thanks for the info on the meals. Now I can continue planning without worrying about Max. May have to try Fantasmic, now to decide if it is worth doing the package.

Thanks for the encouraging comments on the photos...Most of my parade photos were shocking. Actually a lot of my photos are crappy!!! I have not used my tripod once...Will have to wait for a bit to see my lovely low light shots!

Still loving reading your blog Shushh and think your day at Animal Kingdom sounded great! Your photos are fantastic and the more I see/read about AK, I think it's the park I'm most looking forward to visiting. I worry that, as I've only scheduled 1 day there, it won't be enough

Thanks Travel Mum, I am glad you're enjoying reading along! We really loved Animal Kingdom. It really is beautiful. Even the extreme cold didn't take away from the experience. If you are short on time, 1 day will be more than enough. We take up more time than most would as we tend to go on rides twice because of very young children.

Just caught up on Day 14. The food porn is amazing! Thanks for remembering to take those shots...

Hehehe, I am getting better with the taking of photos as I go along. They are quite hard to take as all the restaurants are so dark! I'm just glad that some of them worked out alright.

Shush - Not sure if you're interested. Pea N Me just posted the list for the winter scavenger hunt on the photoboard. There are a lot of snow categories....you might want to see if you can snap them whilst you're in the US

I'm not even going to look. I want to avoid tempting myself...

 

[Jade+3]

Shushh, I just had a peak at your flickr. I love the balloon shot (well, they are all great, but the balloon is my fave). I will miss your updates while you are on the cruise. Now you have me thinking, do I really 'need' a tripod??

What about:

• Via Napoli, if you're planning on being at Epcot....
• Raglan Road in DTD
• ESPN Club or Flying Fish at the Boardwalk
• BOMA at AKL

We also liked Chefs de France at Epcot..

DS10 is also similarly traumatised by Fantasmic! He managed to stay until nearly the end in May...but it was a real strain on the people around us.

Thanks for the suggestions Princess. Via Napoli and ESPN are also contenders. Fantasmic still worries me a bit. I guess I can always send the kids out with DH and I will stay and watch.

 

[QuirkyButterfly]

Wow you are really updating fast, you are on a roll

I am glad that you are having such a wonderful time, Your photos look great, I can't believe that you are managing to get so much done while you are still away. The food pictures are especially good.

How are you coping with such a large group, I hope that everyone is getting along.

I am getting some great tips from you for our upcoming trip in September next year.

Can't wait to read more.

 

[shushh]

Here's the post forDec 16!

 

[shushh]

Shushh, I just had a peak at your flickr. I love the balloon shot (well, they are all great, but the balloon is my fave). I will miss your updates while you are on the cruise. Now you have me thinking, do I really 'need' a tripod??

Jade thanks for the input! I couldn't decide whether to enter the balloon or soldier for a monthly challenge that we set up between our friends. By the way, feel free to join us!

As for the tripod, it really depends on how much night photography you are planning to take. I had all these grand plans of taking wonderful fireworks shots as well as some HDR shots. But it really is hard with children, especially if they are young. We also had a big group with a lot of inertia!!!

You have to know your spots before hand and get there earlyish. Children don't do so well just waiting around...It was also hard to just set up the tripod with so many people around. We were jammed in and couldn't really move for the fireworks. I did wish I had a better spot and used my tripod but I suppose we're all perfectionists...All of my shots so far have been hand held and I think for the fireworks, it really showed. Otherwise, a fast lens will do for hand held shots.

Wow you are really updating fast, you are on a roll

I am glad that you are having such a wonderful time, Your photos look great, I can't believe that you are managing to get so much done while you are still away. The food pictures are especially good.

How are you coping with such a large group, I hope that everyone is getting along.

I am getting some great tips from you for our upcoming trip in September next year.

Can't wait to read more.

Thank you for your lovely comments and for sticking around! I love reading others reports for a few reasons. 1) I am just a sticky beak! 2) They are so helpful with planning.

So far it hasn't been too bad. The WDW section was probably the most "rigid" in terms of plans but otherwise, we have plenty of opportunities to do our thing! We are still friends. I think...In seriousness, no arguments...yet!

 

[PrincessInOz]

LOVE your shots of the castle. Particularly the one with the blue balloons and the night shots!

I hope you kept your camera handy from Dec 16 onwards.....

 

[QuirkyButterfly]

I am very glad that everyone is still friends that must make the trip much more relaxing.

As everyone has already pointed out the photos of the balloons and the one of the toy soldier are great. I think one of the things that I am most looking forward to is taking photos I know that a lot of people (my mother included) think that it is best to put the camera away because otherwise you spend your whole holiday looking through a view finder and you miss the world around you. But... I love taking photos it makes me happy, my DBF is the same, one of the things we are talking about the most while planning our trip are the lenses and cameras that we are going to take

 

[shushh]

Our day of rest!

Dec 17

 

[shushh]

LOVE your shots of the castle. Particularly the one with the blue balloons and the night shots!

I hope you kept your camera handy from Dec 16 onwards.....

Thanks!

But er...the camera dementia got worse. Please read post above!

I am very glad that everyone is still friends that must make the trip much more relaxing.

As everyone has already pointed out the photos of the balloons and the one of the toy soldier are great. I think one of the things that I am most looking forward to is taking photos I know that a lot of people (my mother included) think that it is best to put the camera away because otherwise you spend your whole holiday looking through a view finder and you miss the world around you. But... I love taking photos it makes me happy, my DBF is the same, one of the things we are talking about the most while planning our trip are the lenses and cameras that we are going to take

You've come to the right place! My "regulars" and myself are photography fanatics. It helps to have more than 1 person in the travel party to take photos!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Oh! Please tell me that camera dementia gets better....not much worse!!

BTW - Happy New Year!

(I finally remembered to lug a tripod to a fireworks display! )

 

[shushh]

Post for Dec 18

 

[shushh]

Oh! Please tell me that camera dementia gets better....not much worse!!

BTW - Happy New Year!

(I finally remembered to lug a tripod to a fireworks display! )

Happy New Year!!! It is still New Year's Eve here and we are having a quiet one at the hotel.

Sorry to disappoint but unfortunately, the camera dementia took a while to improve! Nice photo. The details in the clouds are very pretty.

 

[PrincessInOz]

* Sigh * You ate at Le Cellier and still no pictures?

 

[QuirkyButterfly]

I can imagine that with all of the credits that you are going to have left that you will end up coming home with a suitcase full of snacks

Is it worth it getting the dining plan, I thought it would be for us, but I have heard so many reports that it is just too much food. I think I will have to carefully plan out where I want to go and then see if it will be worth it for us.

 

[Jade+3]

Happy New Year.

How can you forget the camera???

The castle shots are fabulous. I can't wait to ditch DH and the kids for an evening and wander around on my own.

Just sent my TA an email to do a comparison between our free dining deal, and the kids stay free, and room only discounts.

Are you going to do the scavenger hunt? I have just printed off the list.

 

[shushh]

* Sigh * You ate at Le Cellier and still no pictures?

I know...I'm still kicking myself. I'm awaiting all the files from everyone. Hopefully it'll fill in a lot of my gaps! I will then update the blog with more photos.

I can imagine that with all of the credits that you are going to have left that you will end up coming home with a suitcase full of snacks

Is it worth it getting the dining plan, I thought it would be for us, but I have heard so many reports that it is just too much food. I think I will have to carefully plan out where I want to go and then see if it will be worth it for us.

We enjoyed the dining plan. I think without it, we wouldn't have tried a lot of the restaurants that we did. It is a lot of food!

Snacks are actually quite handy. We used it a lot for breakfasts and for some meals. We finished our stay with 0 credits!

Happy New Year.

How can you forget the camera???

The castle shots are fabulous. I can't wait to ditch DH and the kids for an evening and wander around on my own.

Just sent my TA an email to do a comparison between our free dining deal, and the kids stay free, and room only discounts.

Are you going to do the scavenger hunt? I have just printed off the list.

I don't know what I was thinking! obviously not thinking It would be awesome if you get a chance to wander around by yourself. It is especially pretty at night.

So which is the better deal? I haven't been keeping an eye out for discounts like I usually do!

As for the scavenger hunt, I am so tempted but I think I've got plenty to do as it is I won't get back home until late Jan, I might see what I can do in the last month

 

[PrincessInOz]

Scavenger hunt goes until the end of March.

And if you don't want to take a peek at the list, I'm going to post some items that whilst in the US and in cold/snow bound places, you should keep an eye out for (so that you don't kick yourself when you get back):

Angel in Snow (get your kids to make snow angels!!)
Americana (US Culture related)
Beignets
Berries, winter
Birds of winter feeding
Blizzaard
Breath (in cold air)
Cordwood/Kindling
De-Icing Wings on Plane (at the airports)
Deli Sandwich with pickle
Earmuffs
Eh? Canadian culture related
Frozen/Icy body of water (lake, ocean, river)
Fireplace with crackling fire
Floyd Turbo or Mad Bomber Hat
Grilling (in cold)
Galoshes
Hawk
Ice Fishing
Ice Sculpture
Icicle
Mardi Gras
Mickey Waffle
Pizza Dude
Pizza Over with hot pizza
Po' Boy
President related
Saved Parking Space in Snow
Sleigh
Snowflake
Snowman
Snow Plow Driver
Snow Removal
Snow Scene
Snowshoe
Soup's On
Rosy Cheeks (from cold)
Top of Snowy Mountain (with real snow)
Vacation, yours
Vehicle stuck in Snow
Villian
Winter Sport
Zamboni

 

[QuirkyButterfly]

Could someone please fill me in on the scavenger hunt not sure what that is.

 

[shushh]

Princess, you are an evil woman! How could I resist a list right infront of me?!?!? Thankfully, we have left the snow behind. Although I am already thinking about lost opportunities....

Quirky butterfly, the scavenger hunt is essentially a list of items that one tries to take good photos of in order to improve our skills/encourage us to use our cameras.

 

[shushh]

Post for Dec 19 is up!