Today felt like we were on a totally different vacation because we spent a lot of it off property seeing the harsh, gritty reality that is living on the mean streets of O-town, as Im sure the locals call it....
This is where the locals purchase their harsh, gritty T-shirts that say Holdin it down on the streets of O-town
But first, lets spend a little more time in La-La-Fantasy Land, shall we?
We awoke to the glorious sounds of birds twittering and delivery vans backing up under our window at the Wilderness Lodge. I told DH to go to Whitewater Snacks to get us some breakfast, and fortunately he knew I meant Roaring Forks, not the counter-service place at
Disneylands Grand Californian. Meanwhile, I dumped everything in suitcases so we could check out.
I cannot believe I forgot to take a picture of our pancakes and bacon will you ever forgive me?
And then it was off to the Beach Club Villas!
The Picture
The Picture Being Taken!
The first thing we noticed about the Beach Club was that the lobby had a different scent and not in a good way. Whatever they were pumping through there smelled like an industrial-strength nursing home scent-masker to me blech! Otherwise, everything else was just as we remembered it from our honeymoon.
I was surprised to learn they had a room ready for us at 10:30am; with DVC they always warn you about the 4pm check-in time. Unfortunately it was not our honeymoon room, which Id requested weeks ago and which our DVC contact had followed up on the week before. The desk agent kindly offered us a choice of the room directly below our honeymoon room (no balcony, directly across from the laundry room & elevators) or a different room on the same floor but facing the back of Epcot (huge extended balcony, maintenance closet instead of another guest room on one side). She told us we could go check out the second room (but not the one under our desired room) and then come back if we didnt like it.
I feel so silly I just agonized over this! The rooms were identical, but the views were not. I had this idea that it would be a magical enhancement to the anniversary trip to be in the same room wed had for our honeymoon. But the location of the almost-our-honeymoon room was just too crummy, so I picked the new room.
Honeymoon View:
Anniversary View:
OK, it looks kinda crummy, but you could actually see the top of the American Adventure, and we later learned you could see some of IllumiNations!
Honeymoon Fireworks Pirate & Princess
Anniversary Fireworks IllumiNations
Otherwise, the rooms were identical.
Its deja vu all over again!!!
View to the right
View to the left
Gimormous balcony that we could have had a party on if itd been warmer
Eventually I decided that I liked our new room because it was better to have a new and different experience for our anniversary. Plus it was nice not having other guests directly on both sides of us.
One really cool thing about this stay at BCV the secret pathway to Epcot was open! It had been walled off for some reason during our honeymoon, so wed had to go through the main lobby all the time. So it was very exciting to shave 3.7 minutes off the trip to Epcot by sneaking along the back side of the hotel!
We were drawn back to Morocco like moths to a flame or hungry people to an ADR at Restaurant Marrakesh.
Hmmm, a Kodak Picture Spot you say?
OK!
I was excited to see theyd finally completed renovations on the small museum, so we poked our head in briefly and decided to come back after lunch.
)
Oops, where did I hear that before?
the California Grill. I hate waiting around, but once you get to the table it's all good. 
Yummo!!!!!!
Has anyone in the history of the DIS ever used this one?
But Im sorry you cant see the pictures let me describe them to you: They are all gorgeous, perfectly composed gems of photographic goodness. Also, I look like Angelina Jolie. 
I mean, even if its technically not ice cream!
