Day 4
We were awake relatively early again, but managed to get back to sleep and slept until around 7:00 AM. We were in no particular rush. Shopping was the name of the game that day and the shops would not open until 9:00. We got up and leisurely got ready. We had decided to check out the Orlando Premium Outlets at the top of International Drive. We ended up on the first I Ride Trolley of the day and had it all to ourselves all the way to Orlando Premium Outlets. It was interesting to see in daylight what was all happening along International Drive. When we got to Orlando Premium Outlets, it was still not quite 9:00 AM yet so the shops were still closed. We had planned to get some breakfast at Starbucks and that was already open. Graham had a White Chocolate Mocha, Ham and Swiss Panini and a warm Cinnamon Roll. I went with a Chocolate Chai Latte, Santa Fe Chicken Panini and a Cheesecake Brownie. I have to say I went with the Chocolate Chai Latte out of curiousity, as I could not really imagine how this would work, but it was delicious.
Once we were fed and watered, the shopping could commence. Graham was teasing me mercilessly that we only could visit every area of shopping centre once and that it was sad that the Dooney and Bourke outlet was in an area that we had already visited before the shops were open. I did not think much of this. We did go back and this confirmed a suspicion that I had. I dearly love my Disney Dooney and Bourke bags, but always thought that their standard range would not really appeal to me. This turned out to be true. There was only one thing that really called out to me and this was a piece of hand luggage shaped like an old fashioned travel trunk, but the price of this made my eyes water. So I left the shop empty-handed.
The next shop was more of a success. We came past an Elizabeth Arden company store. There was a time when I pretty much exclusively used Elizabeth Arden products, but at some point a number of years ago, I moved on to other products. I decided to have a quick look in the shop for old times' sake. I gravitated towards the Green Tea products, as this was always my favourite Elizabeth Arden scent. The products were heavily discounted and they even had a further discount on the product. In the end I could not resist a tube of Green Tea shower gel for $6.00. This also solved a problem. I am very limited as to what products I can use on my hair as most shampoos make my scalp itch. This was also the case with the shampoo the hotel provided even though it was Crabtree and Evelyn. I never had those problems with the Green Tea shower gel and it turned out that I still did not.
Next up was the bulk of my Christmas shopping. I got some Kipling handbags for a couple of friends and a Kipling wallet for the person who was looking after my team in my absence. I also managed to sort out my luggage problem. As my luggage was already at capacity, I needed to buy an additional piece of luggage to take the presents home. I fell in love with a great piece of hand luggage. It is a wheelie case that also has straps so that it can be worn as a backpack. As this was an outlet, the price was very fair. I love this bag. It has a lot of different pockets and it is perfectly balanced when worn as a backpack and very comfortable to wear.
There were some shops where I just paid a flying visit. I wanted to have a look at Le Gourmet Chef, which was always one of my favourite shops when it was still at Orlando Premium Outlets at the bottom of International Drive. This shop is smaller and unfortunately they did not have the Raspberry Chipotle Sauce that I always used to buy from them. It was still nice to browse. I had a quick look at the Crocs outlet, but did not find anything that appealed. Graham got a new battery for his watch and I had a quick look in a shop that sold Mac Cosmetics, but did not find anything I wanted to buy.
The next stop was Bath and Body Works. I have one of their Pocket Bac hand sanitizers hanging from my backpack and some of my colleagues have always been eyeing this. So during our trip in spring, I get them one each. They all proclaimed that this was the best hand sanitizer they ever used. Unfortunately due to the small size, this did not last very long. So I had planned to get them enough to see them through the year. The original plan had been to get them one for each month of the year in a fragrance that is appropriate for that month. That proved easier said than done and the fact that this was an outlet store did not help either. I did however get 12 different scents for the two females so they should be covered for the rest of the year. I did not do quite so well with unisex or male scents. I managed to get one and figured I just needed to visit another Bath and Body Works store to get the rest.
One shop I had not planned to visit beforehand had become a necessity. Shortly before we left for this trip, my watch needed a new battery. Graham kindly took this to our Fossil shop in town, but they did not seal the watch up properly afterwards and therefore it was no longer waterproof. I had no idea that this had happened and I really never take off the watch. So when I went swimming and in the hot tub the previous evening, the watch filled with water and stopped working. I initially thought I would see if I could get it repaired, but not having a watch was driving me crazy and I decided to check out the Fossil outlet. I really loved my old watch, which had a rose gold face with crystals around the edge and a white acrylic bracelet that looked like mother of pearl. I was hoping that I may be able to just replace this, but this is no longer available. Still, I got a great deal on a watch that has the same watch face, but also a rose gold bracelet. So I got this and I have to say that I am loving this even more than the old one.
The shop that I had been looking forward to visiting the most was the Disney Character Warehouse. I have always loved this shop and even in the old Belz days, I could always find something there. This time round I was very disappointed with the selection. Graham got a great Grumpy shirt saying "Don't Make Me Unfriend You", but I came out empty- handed. I had a quick look at the Yankee Candle store, but there was nothing there either that grabbed me. Still, I had a very successful morning of shopping.
By that stage we were all shopped out. Our plan had been to have lunch at Sweet Tomatoes, but at this stage neither of us was hungry. We headed out to the trolley stop and back to the hotel to drop our shopping off. I asked Graham if he would come to Walt Disney World with me to sort out my annual pass. I had originally planned to do this at the Transportation and Ticket Centre. He said he would and half in jest suggested we could walk from the Orlando Premium Outlets on Vineland Avenue to Downtown Disney. Once we were on the I-Ride Trolley I got my iPhone out and checked on my Google Maps app if this was possible. This was just the kind of off the wall stuff that appeals to me. Google Maps seemed to think it could be done so we agreed that we would do this and have our lunch at Sweet Tomatoes at Crossroads. We dropped off the shopping in our room and Graham suggested that I wash my hair with the Green Tea shower gel as I had been driving him crazy scratching my scalp all morning. Once I had done that, we headed out again and got on the I-Ride Trolley heading south.
I wanted to have a quick look at the Character Warehouse there and as we walked in, I saw the Dooney and Bourke outlet. Both shops had a better selection than the ones at the top of International Drive, but there was still nothing that really grabbed me and that I wanted to buy. This was just as well as we had quite a long walk ahead of ourselves. I did get a glimpse of the new The Avenues extension where the old Dixie Stampede Dinner Show used to be, but we did not stop to have a look.
The walk was actually quite pretty. The first landmark was the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe. This looks like a stunning although very modern church and I wish we had taken the chance to have a look at the church and the grounds. The next landmark that we came across was Plantation Park, which should be familiar to those of you who have read Mousetrapped. I have to say I admire her walking every morning from there to Downtown Disney, as it is not a short walk. We also came across a lake with all kinds of wildlife before we went underneath the I4 and ended up a Crossroads. I had never been to Crossroads before and this is bigger than I had thought. We could not quite figure out at first where Sweet Tomatoes was, but my Google Maps app put me on the right path.
By then we were definitely ready for some lunch and more importantly, for something to drink. Initially there was a nice breeze when we set off, but that had died down and now it was very hot. We both got a plate of salad and paid. We found a table and then I got some drinks. I had Strawberry Lemonade, which was lovely and refreshing. Graham had some Ice Tea. I then also had some Orange Soda, but that tasted like it needed the syrup replacing. Still, it quenched my thirst. We both had Herbed Turkey Soup with Stuffing and Deep Kettle Chili, which were both very nice. For dessert, I went with Eggnog and Vanilla Swirl Ice Cream and Graham had the Lemon Mousse. Lunch had definitely hit the spot. After a quick bathroom break, we got going again.
Once we were back on the main road, we saw the first signs for Walt Disney World. Shortly afterwards I entered Disney property for the first time this trip. Not in my wildest dreams had I imagined that the first time I would enter Disney property this trip, I would do so on foot. We walked along Hotel Plaza Boulevard, which was also a nice walk with a lot of landscaping. I was however relieved when I saw when I saw the huge characters on top of the World of Disney shop in the distance, which meant we were nearly at our destination.
Once we arrived at Downtown Disney Marketplace, Graham found himself a nice sunny spot to sit down. I had a quick look in Basin, the Pin Trading Station, World of Disney and Tren-D, but there was nothing that tempted me to buy it. I then went in search of Guest Services to sort out my annual pass. I had a print at home ticket for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party so I was quite surprised when he gave me a ticket for this, too. Getting the annual pass was a little more involved. This was a renewal and it was also a question of changing from an old paper pass to RFID pass. It took a little while to get this issued. There was also the little issue that the system had automatically linked this to my Magic Band, but was not due to pick this up until the next day. The cast member was a little concerned if it had linked properly, but we agreed that I would sort it out with Guest Services at Animal Kingdom if I had any problems. I was glad that I had decided to sort this out that day, as time would be at a premium the following day. The Photopass Centre for Downtown Disney was right across from the Guest Services desk so I was able to get my Photopass+ lanyard at the same time. I was now all set for the next day.
there is another outlet it has a North Face bit I can't recall what it is called. We buy loads there! I love North Face!
