Robert's Live TR 4/22 - 4/27
- Thread starter robertl30
- Start date
TinkerBelle_325
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 21, 2001
- Messages
- 4,267
I'm loving your report! Live reports are always awesome because you feel like you are living the magic step by step at you read 
Glad that you are enjoying CSR, it is my favorite moderate resort (and I'll be there in 132 days hehe)
Can't wait to hear more
Glad that you are enjoying CSR, it is my favorite moderate resort (and I'll be there in 132 days hehe)
Can't wait to hear more
OK, friends, let me just pause this live report here because I need to interject a question. Apologies for skipping ahead a bit in the sequence here. I actually just finished a very long Day 2 at WDW and it'll take me time to get full details posted. I need to "catch up" so to speak. So think of this as a pause on your Tivo as I ask a "live" question...
OK. I just got back from MK and seeing "Wishes" for the first time. Now, I'd read about this show here so I assumed I knew what I was in for. You sit around the castle and you listen to piped-in story-line & music as fireworks go off. I've seen the Epcot show so I figured I had the basic gist... I even heard that "Tink" would come flying down from the castle and head toward some bridge somewhere and it was quite a neat thing for the kids to see.
Evan & I settled down to a nice grandmotherly-type lady on a bench somewhere between main street & Adventure Land. I'd asked the lady if she saw the show before and she said, "Oh yes, many many times". Great. So, is this a good place to sit? Yes. And then she started feeding Evan the details of what to watch for.. now the castle will change colors and then the music will start, and then, see that cable up there? Tink will come down. Watch for her. She's green. She's beautiful. It's all so wonderful.
Now that all sounded great and here I am thinking, OK, they're going to drop some sort of animatronic/stuffed/or-otherwise-FAKE thing down the cable and the kids will ooh and ahh. Maybe it'll be some sort of holographic projection or lightshow... or I don't know what. But it's disney.. it'll be plastic. And it'll be fake.
Imagine my surprise when what I appear to see is some chick go diving out the window and careening down this cable at full terminal velocity. Tell me I did not see that. Tell me I was fooled and that was just some clever bit of disney magic that fooled me. It's happened before. I had to do a double-, nay, a triple-take to be sure that the Captain Jack in POC was really animatronic. That was GOOD fakery. But this Tink thing looked completely like a real live woman plummeting toward her inevitible death. Tell me it ain't so.
If it is real? Just what, exactly is the life expectency of these brave souls that go leaping out of a 200' high window on a daily basis. Are these folks regulaly tested for mental instability?
Just curious.
OK. I just got back from MK and seeing "Wishes" for the first time. Now, I'd read about this show here so I assumed I knew what I was in for. You sit around the castle and you listen to piped-in story-line & music as fireworks go off. I've seen the Epcot show so I figured I had the basic gist... I even heard that "Tink" would come flying down from the castle and head toward some bridge somewhere and it was quite a neat thing for the kids to see.
Evan & I settled down to a nice grandmotherly-type lady on a bench somewhere between main street & Adventure Land. I'd asked the lady if she saw the show before and she said, "Oh yes, many many times". Great. So, is this a good place to sit? Yes. And then she started feeding Evan the details of what to watch for.. now the castle will change colors and then the music will start, and then, see that cable up there? Tink will come down. Watch for her. She's green. She's beautiful. It's all so wonderful.
Now that all sounded great and here I am thinking, OK, they're going to drop some sort of animatronic/stuffed/or-otherwise-FAKE thing down the cable and the kids will ooh and ahh. Maybe it'll be some sort of holographic projection or lightshow... or I don't know what. But it's disney.. it'll be plastic. And it'll be fake.
Imagine my surprise when what I appear to see is some chick go diving out the window and careening down this cable at full terminal velocity. Tell me I did not see that. Tell me I was fooled and that was just some clever bit of disney magic that fooled me. It's happened before. I had to do a double-, nay, a triple-take to be sure that the Captain Jack in POC was really animatronic. That was GOOD fakery. But this Tink thing looked completely like a real live woman plummeting toward her inevitible death. Tell me it ain't so.
If it is real? Just what, exactly is the life expectency of these brave souls that go leaping out of a 200' high window on a daily basis. Are these folks regulaly tested for mental instability?
Just curious.
MousekaMaddi
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 23, 2006
- Messages
- 2,589
tink is definately "real"! Ive seen her fly 15 adorable flights so far
cool huh?very cool. In a suicidal sort of way. I wonder how often they get hurt. That's like a serious movie stunt. I didn't think Disney went in for the real death-defying type stuff. I'm definitely impressed.
I wish I could stay awake to write up a report. It's going to have to keep until at least the morning. Going night night.
Well here's a teaser to prime the pump. I should probably sleep on this anyway...
Day 2... Autistic Adventure at Breakfast. At least for the poor waitress.
...Kids graduate to Splash and Space Mountains!
...Cat Fight breaks out at Pecos Bills. No winners.
...Guest Blows Top at Fast Pass line.
...Space Mountain -- EXPOSED!
...Boy steals the Jungle Cruise show from poor skipper. Too Funny.
...Spoodles... Not quite living up to all expectations.
...My son is an OFFICIAL Monorail Co-Pilot. I'm so proud!
...Woman leaps toward death from high tower. Film at 11.
...Sticky Faced Boy Amuses Bus Riders
I wish I could stay awake to write up a report. It's going to have to keep until at least the morning. Going night night.
Well here's a teaser to prime the pump. I should probably sleep on this anyway...
Day 2... Autistic Adventure at Breakfast. At least for the poor waitress.
...Kids graduate to Splash and Space Mountains!
...Cat Fight breaks out at Pecos Bills. No winners.
...Guest Blows Top at Fast Pass line.
...Space Mountain -- EXPOSED!
...Boy steals the Jungle Cruise show from poor skipper. Too Funny.
...Spoodles... Not quite living up to all expectations.
...My son is an OFFICIAL Monorail Co-Pilot. I'm so proud!
...Woman leaps toward death from high tower. Film at 11.
...Sticky Faced Boy Amuses Bus Riders
IkeandMike
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Apr 30, 2006
- Messages
- 197
I'm not sure if Tink is always quite so feminine. There was a picture posted on here about a year ago, a close up of the flying Tink, and upon the close-up one could see that Tink had a rather thick mustache and very european looking legs, if you know what I mean. Too funny.
Glad you're having a blast so far. Thanks for keeping us posted, feels like I'm already there.
Glad you're having a blast so far. Thanks for keeping us posted, feels like I'm already there.
I haver seen wishes twice and didnt actually see that Tink is real! I will be sure to really watch out next time.
I agree about the Wolfgang Puck Calamari~ I was a little put off by the curry aioli but oh my it was a taste sensation. Definitely the best or 2nd best I've ever had.
Looking forward to more!
I agree about the Wolfgang Puck Calamari~ I was a little put off by the curry aioli but oh my it was a taste sensation. Definitely the best or 2nd best I've ever had.
Looking forward to more!
KathyRN137
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2006
- Messages
- 7,882
Tired? What do you mean? You're tired? At 12 midnight after a full day of WDW? With kids?? 
It's okay, Rob, we understand!
Kathy
It's okay, Rob, we understand!
Kathy
always on vacation
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2007
- Messages
- 179
Thank you so much for this report. We'll be there 4/29-5/4 & were hoping for light crowds. We're also eating at WP cafe our first night & now we must try the calamari.
BriarRosie
<font color=blue>Creator of Tag Fairy Haiku:<br>Cl
- Joined
- Mar 7, 2002
- Messages
- 11,164
Great trip report so far! Love the teasers. I feel like I need to tune in
to the same bat-time on the same bat-channel.
to the same bat-time on the same bat-channel.
05:45 Had a very fitful night's sleep. Hard getting used to a double bed when you're used to a king. And very hard getting used to sleeping with a boy who likes to cling to you like Velcro all night long. New arrangements will need to be made. I gave up at a quarter to six and went for a walk. First I came upon the hammocks lining the beach and wondered if they'd be a comfortable place to sleep. They were covered with dew, but there were some dry towels nearby and I lined the hammock with these. Ah, peace at last. But after a few minutes I gave up. I was up for good now. I do wonder if a CM would kick me out of here if they found me sleeping at 2am. 
Continued by walk around the 1.75 mile loop around the resort lake. Ran into several other early birds (not that I'm usually one) power walking or jogging around the lake. Discovered the convention center, salon, and fitness center. Explored deeper into The Dig Site and found the playground and spa. Nice. Then dropped into the bakery and bought a refillable mug filled with coffee for Evelyn. She needs her coffee fix, while I never touch the stuff. Headed back to the room to find the kids up and Meme and Auntie Sue ready to take them to breakfast. Nice. I went back to La Tienda and bought Ev some cereal and milk and a danish and OJ for me. We got to shower and get ready kid-free. Very nice.
07:45 Kids return and we learn that Evan had an episode at breakfast. He is on the autism spectrum and one of his conditions is sensory integration disorder (SID). He has a lot of difficulty coping with new experiences, tastes, smells, sounds, bright lights, darkness, etc. He has some coping mechanisms, and if we prepare him well for new things (like Splash Mountain!) he can deal with them. But if he gets caught off guard, bad things happen. So, when he popped some sausage meat into his mouth that was very spicy and he'd never had anything like that before... well, this was inevitable: he threw up breakfast all over the Maya Grill table. Actually, I hear he landed most of it on his plate. 'Atta boy! The wait staff was great and helped get things cleaned up in a jiffy. I'm told there was a little girl at another table who witnessed all this and she started to look like she might get sick too. I feel bad that we impacted her day. <sigh>
08:00 Ah well, we recovered, got the kids ready to go to MK. On the way to the bus stop my phone rings. It's my dad. Odd. He says, "So guess what? Your sister is on vacation with her family. Guess where?" No way. Yup. They're at Disney World. How weird is that! We don't stay in close touch. Birthday cards and such. But I figured this was worth a call. I called her and it turns out she was calling me at the same time. Eventually we got hooked up and I learned that they were going to MGM as were going to MK and then they were headed home the next day. So we weren't going to hookup as everyone had dinner plans and such. But it really is a small world after all.
08:30 Arrive MK. Note bag check line backed up all the way down the hill. Note No Bags line, essentially free-flowing with no wait. Glad we didn't bring bags. I actually brought a daypack with us, festooned with LGMH even... and I was excited about sporting this and hunting for other DIS'ers. But then when we getting ready I realized that I have these nifty cargo shorts on with a zillion pockets and, let's see, the only thing we actually need to bring to Disney world is... yeah, our room card. So the heck with lugging a backpack around all day. Aunt Sue and Meme however, were each wearing fanny packs. Evelyn and I just decided that there was nothing we needed to bring. MK has everything we could possibly need. And what does one need anyway? So while it took us about 2 minutes to get in from the buses it took them about 15 minutes. Grrr. Time's a wastin'! Oh, well.
08:45 Primary Objective: Obtain GAC. All else is secondary. Now, I know from my fine research here at the DIS that I go in, turn left, see City Hall, and obtain a GAC. Buy my MIL Who Knows All says she's been with elders here who needed a special pass and you get them at Guest Relations over to the right of the ticket takers. <sigh> There's no point in arguing so we go over to Guest Relations. Where she makes a big show of wanting to know where she can get a Special Pass for her Grandson who has AUTISM. I wonder, aloud to my wife, if she could possibly be any louder. The CM she's speaking with says we get those over at City Hall; through the main entrance; turn right.
I start heading over there and quietly ask Evelyn if she could do whatever it was in her power to do to see if I could possibly get the GAC on my own with Evan as I'd done some research on the topic and was pretty sure I HAD IT COVERED. She agreed.
OK. Been to WDW 4 times before. Never been in City Hall. Frankly, never knew it was there before. Now I'm mostly likely have some ASD issues myself (most likely Aspergers from my own research) so I'm not exactly the most comfortable trying new things, especially when they involve engaging other people. But here goes. I somewhat cautiously entered the short queue in the center of City Hall and waited patiently. Wondering to myself what the other folks in there were there for. Everyone seemed pretty "normal". But then, Evan probably seemed pretty normal. Evan was fidgeting a lot. A lot for a neurotypical kid, not a lot for Evan. I think I probably had an expression on my face which combined embarrassment, aggravation, exasperation, and anxiety. Mostly anxiety now that I think about it some. After just a minute a very nice man, Pablo, called us over. As I approached I started in with my prepared speech. "Hi, I understand there's..." That's as far as I got. Pablo put up his hand and then waved me in to speak quietly and privately to me, "How many in your party, sir?" Now I was flummoxed... did I miss a step? "Uh, six... you see my son here..." Pablo interrupted again "And how long will you be visiting us here at Disney World?" I stammered, "Uh... til Saturday... " We spent some moments calculating the exact dates. Then he began stamped the card (Wait! I thought. I haven't discussed our NEEDS yet! How could you be stamping the card already. This is NOT how this is supposed to go down. Don't you CMs ready the DIS?) Pablo then went to work filling out the particulars of name and dates on the card and I finally blurted out, "OK, my son has autism and he doesn't do well..." Interrupted again! "Sir, that's why I just asked how many in your party. I know some parents don't want to talk about the child's condition in front of them. I could clearly see what you needed when you walked in the door. I'm familiar with this. That is why I came over and opened this station, so I could take care of you personally." OK. Would it have been wrong of me to have given Pablo a hug at this point? I restrained myself, more stunned than anything else. Well, I'm thanking him profusely and he's explaining to me that I should save this card for future visits because next time I come in, even if it is years from now, I should just show this card here and they will replace it with a new one good for a future visit. That way I won't have to explain anything to CM. I then started stammering on about how I might not even need one on a future visit, that Evan could very well get better, that I might not even use it much today, it's just a safety net. And he responds, "I hope your son does get better. But even if he does, use the card. You have enough to deal with. Take advantage of our hospitality, we are here to help you have a wonderful time.... " His words just sort of blurred together at this point. I was having my very own magical moment.
After we left City Hall, Evan and I rejoined the rest of the family and I related the story. Evelyn had been inside for part of it but then waited outside with MIL I think primarily to let me do my thing on my own. (Once she saw that I was OK!) Well, I finished the story, and we had GAC in hand (I kept thinking of Willy Wonka and the Golden Ticket -- even though our GAC was Red.) and then we all noticed that Meme was crying. What the... What happened here... So I take the kids ahead and Evelyn is talking to MIL and then I learn a little bit later that MIL just lost it when she heard that Pablo could tell Evan was autistic when we entered the building. That just hit her pretty hard. She doesn't know what it's like to deal with this day in day out. So I guess we're kind of used to it.
Well, I'm getting emotional just recalling this wonderful beginning to our first day, so I'll pause here and try to post some more tomorrow.
In realtime, we've enjoyed Blizzard Beach and Epcot and are getting ready to start Day 5 tomorrow. I'll catch up this report as I can.
Continued by walk around the 1.75 mile loop around the resort lake. Ran into several other early birds (not that I'm usually one) power walking or jogging around the lake. Discovered the convention center, salon, and fitness center. Explored deeper into The Dig Site and found the playground and spa. Nice. Then dropped into the bakery and bought a refillable mug filled with coffee for Evelyn. She needs her coffee fix, while I never touch the stuff. Headed back to the room to find the kids up and Meme and Auntie Sue ready to take them to breakfast. Nice. I went back to La Tienda and bought Ev some cereal and milk and a danish and OJ for me. We got to shower and get ready kid-free. Very nice.
07:45 Kids return and we learn that Evan had an episode at breakfast. He is on the autism spectrum and one of his conditions is sensory integration disorder (SID). He has a lot of difficulty coping with new experiences, tastes, smells, sounds, bright lights, darkness, etc. He has some coping mechanisms, and if we prepare him well for new things (like Splash Mountain!) he can deal with them. But if he gets caught off guard, bad things happen. So, when he popped some sausage meat into his mouth that was very spicy and he'd never had anything like that before... well, this was inevitable: he threw up breakfast all over the Maya Grill table. Actually, I hear he landed most of it on his plate. 'Atta boy! The wait staff was great and helped get things cleaned up in a jiffy. I'm told there was a little girl at another table who witnessed all this and she started to look like she might get sick too. I feel bad that we impacted her day. <sigh>
08:00 Ah well, we recovered, got the kids ready to go to MK. On the way to the bus stop my phone rings. It's my dad. Odd. He says, "So guess what? Your sister is on vacation with her family. Guess where?" No way. Yup. They're at Disney World. How weird is that! We don't stay in close touch. Birthday cards and such. But I figured this was worth a call. I called her and it turns out she was calling me at the same time. Eventually we got hooked up and I learned that they were going to MGM as were going to MK and then they were headed home the next day. So we weren't going to hookup as everyone had dinner plans and such. But it really is a small world after all.
08:30 Arrive MK. Note bag check line backed up all the way down the hill. Note No Bags line, essentially free-flowing with no wait. Glad we didn't bring bags. I actually brought a daypack with us, festooned with LGMH even... and I was excited about sporting this and hunting for other DIS'ers. But then when we getting ready I realized that I have these nifty cargo shorts on with a zillion pockets and, let's see, the only thing we actually need to bring to Disney world is... yeah, our room card. So the heck with lugging a backpack around all day. Aunt Sue and Meme however, were each wearing fanny packs. Evelyn and I just decided that there was nothing we needed to bring. MK has everything we could possibly need. And what does one need anyway? So while it took us about 2 minutes to get in from the buses it took them about 15 minutes. Grrr. Time's a wastin'! Oh, well.
08:45 Primary Objective: Obtain GAC. All else is secondary. Now, I know from my fine research here at the DIS that I go in, turn left, see City Hall, and obtain a GAC. Buy my MIL Who Knows All says she's been with elders here who needed a special pass and you get them at Guest Relations over to the right of the ticket takers. <sigh> There's no point in arguing so we go over to Guest Relations. Where she makes a big show of wanting to know where she can get a Special Pass for her Grandson who has AUTISM. I wonder, aloud to my wife, if she could possibly be any louder. The CM she's speaking with says we get those over at City Hall; through the main entrance; turn right.
I start heading over there and quietly ask Evelyn if she could do whatever it was in her power to do to see if I could possibly get the GAC on my own with Evan as I'd done some research on the topic and was pretty sure I HAD IT COVERED. She agreed.
OK. Been to WDW 4 times before. Never been in City Hall. Frankly, never knew it was there before. Now I'm mostly likely have some ASD issues myself (most likely Aspergers from my own research) so I'm not exactly the most comfortable trying new things, especially when they involve engaging other people. But here goes. I somewhat cautiously entered the short queue in the center of City Hall and waited patiently. Wondering to myself what the other folks in there were there for. Everyone seemed pretty "normal". But then, Evan probably seemed pretty normal. Evan was fidgeting a lot. A lot for a neurotypical kid, not a lot for Evan. I think I probably had an expression on my face which combined embarrassment, aggravation, exasperation, and anxiety. Mostly anxiety now that I think about it some. After just a minute a very nice man, Pablo, called us over. As I approached I started in with my prepared speech. "Hi, I understand there's..." That's as far as I got. Pablo put up his hand and then waved me in to speak quietly and privately to me, "How many in your party, sir?" Now I was flummoxed... did I miss a step? "Uh, six... you see my son here..." Pablo interrupted again "And how long will you be visiting us here at Disney World?" I stammered, "Uh... til Saturday... " We spent some moments calculating the exact dates. Then he began stamped the card (Wait! I thought. I haven't discussed our NEEDS yet! How could you be stamping the card already. This is NOT how this is supposed to go down. Don't you CMs ready the DIS?) Pablo then went to work filling out the particulars of name and dates on the card and I finally blurted out, "OK, my son has autism and he doesn't do well..." Interrupted again! "Sir, that's why I just asked how many in your party. I know some parents don't want to talk about the child's condition in front of them. I could clearly see what you needed when you walked in the door. I'm familiar with this. That is why I came over and opened this station, so I could take care of you personally." OK. Would it have been wrong of me to have given Pablo a hug at this point? I restrained myself, more stunned than anything else. Well, I'm thanking him profusely and he's explaining to me that I should save this card for future visits because next time I come in, even if it is years from now, I should just show this card here and they will replace it with a new one good for a future visit. That way I won't have to explain anything to CM. I then started stammering on about how I might not even need one on a future visit, that Evan could very well get better, that I might not even use it much today, it's just a safety net. And he responds, "I hope your son does get better. But even if he does, use the card. You have enough to deal with. Take advantage of our hospitality, we are here to help you have a wonderful time.... " His words just sort of blurred together at this point. I was having my very own magical moment.
After we left City Hall, Evan and I rejoined the rest of the family and I related the story. Evelyn had been inside for part of it but then waited outside with MIL I think primarily to let me do my thing on my own. (Once she saw that I was OK!) Well, I finished the story, and we had GAC in hand (I kept thinking of Willy Wonka and the Golden Ticket -- even though our GAC was Red.) and then we all noticed that Meme was crying. What the... What happened here... So I take the kids ahead and Evelyn is talking to MIL and then I learn a little bit later that MIL just lost it when she heard that Pablo could tell Evan was autistic when we entered the building. That just hit her pretty hard. She doesn't know what it's like to deal with this day in day out. So I guess we're kind of used to it.
Well, I'm getting emotional just recalling this wonderful beginning to our first day, so I'll pause here and try to post some more tomorrow.
In realtime, we've enjoyed Blizzard Beach and Epcot and are getting ready to start Day 5 tomorrow. I'll catch up this report as I can.
rentayenta
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Feb 28, 2007
- Messages
- 27,424
Pablo! That is Disney magic at it's finest. 
I am sorry your son got sick but glad he bounced back!
SpaceMounatin
Just one of those Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah-Days
- Joined
- Jun 9, 2003
- Messages
- 667
I did this when I went. I did live trip reports too! It's cool (for me) to see an autistic child through the eyes of a parent, being my twin brother and I have aspergers (I was "formally diagnosed" so I suppose I'me fine). I also got to see "Space Mountain Exposed" back in january.
-Dainan "Keep them coming" Rafferty
-Dainan "Keep them coming" Rafferty
KathyRN137
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2006
- Messages
- 7,882
Rob,
I'm tellin' ya, those CMs are the best!! It's such a relief, isn't it, to be able to experience WDW just like other families, simply by being given a little help. Makes you feel almost normal.
When you get back you can fill in all the daily details... it's great to get a live report, but your primary job right now is to have fun!!
Until later,
Kathy
I'm tellin' ya, those CMs are the best!! It's such a relief, isn't it, to be able to experience WDW just like other families, simply by being given a little help. Makes you feel almost normal.
When you get back you can fill in all the daily details... it's great to get a live report, but your primary job right now is to have fun!!
Until later,
Kathy
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