Shamu & Jousting & Mickey - Oh My! Jan 24 - 29, 2013

[geckodani]

So, once upon a time, there was a TR. And then we bought a house and I dropped off the face of the planet.

But I'm back, and ready to tell you all about Day 3, Part 1: Someone Get That Mermaid a Tuning Fork!

Day 3 dawned sunny and absolutely gorgeous. The plan was to spend the day swimming, and then meet up with our friend Ducky to go to Medieval Times later that evening. There had been some talk about going to Hollywood Studios, but I knew Adam wanted to enjoy the sun and pool, so it hadn't been fully decided.

We slept in, and when Adam woke up he took one look at me un-enthusiastically digging out my bathing suit and started to laugh. "You really want to go to Hollywood Studios, don't you?" Well, of COURSE I do! "Even though we'll only be able to stay for a few hours?" YES!!!

So we had breakfast, added a day on to our tickets and headed over to HS to ride my second favorite ride:



We grabbed FPs for ToT, but the wait was only about 20 minutes, so we rode... and then rode again as our FPs had come due. After our second ride we grabbed FPs for RnR for later in the day, and then wandered around a bit trying to decide what to do next.

Neither of us had ever seen Voyage of the Little Mermaid, so we ducked in there and enjoyed the show. The only thing I disliked was that Ariel must have been having an off day; she was insanely flat the whole time and it was driving me NUTS. Someone needed to get that mermaid a tuning fork! Scuttle must have one hiding somewhere, right?!?! We survived it though, and overall enjoyed the show.

After our visit with the slightly tone deaf mermaid, we stopped for some lunch at Starring Rolls (no pics, bad DISer) before catching a ride, or three on Star Tours.



We used our RnR FPs and rode ToT one last time (3 times in a 5 hour span - not bad!) We decided to check out the Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow before we headed out to DTD to meet up with Ducky!

Overall... not impressed. It wasn't terrible, but they had so many people crammed in there it was hard to see anything, and the long wait... well, frankly I didn't think it was worth it.

I seem to have a knack for not checking into the bus routes closely enough. I really, truly thought we could catch a bus from HS to DTD. I was wrong, which we finally figured out after wandering for a bit with no luck. I pretty much just stuck my head into the first bus that pulled in and asked how to get there. He suggested I hop on a bus to Saratoga Springs because it's right next to DTD and then transfer to a DTD bus from there.

So that's what we did!

Don't mind Adam, he decided to stretch out and catch some Zs on the way.



We arrived in DTD and were off to meet Ducky who would be taking us to Medieval Times!

Up Next: Beverages Should Always Come in Glowing Containers!

 

[teekathepony]

3 ToT rides in 5 hours sounds like a success! Glad you were able to get so many in on a short trip.
Yikes, poor Ariel. Maybe she had a cold that day.
I thought you could do DTD from DHS too actually! How odd. Oh well, at least you're on your way!

 

[geckodani]

3 ToT rides in 5 hours sounds like a success! Glad you were able to get so many in on a short trip.
Yikes, poor Ariel. Maybe she had a cold that day.
I thought you could do DTD from DHS too actually! How odd. Oh well, at least you're on your way!

This is actually the second time I've tried to take a bus from a park to DTD. You'd think I'd learn! Methinks they do this so people don't park at DTD and take the internal transportation to the parks. We did in fact manage to get there though!

Ariel... it was bad. Really bad. I hope she had a cold and that wasn't normal for her!!!

 

[geckodani]

Day 3, Part 2: Beverages Should Always Come in Glowing Containers!

After our slight bus mishap, we arrived in DTD to wait for Ducky to come pick us up for Medieval times! Continuing on with the theme of getting slightly lost this trip, we actually got off on the wrong bus stop and had to walk across half of DTD to where Ducky was going to get us. It wasn't a bad walk though, and pretty soon I was waving my glow necklace around like a mad woman.

Duck lives in Orlando, so whenever we are there we try to see him for dinner or a drink. As I am completely obsessed with things that glow (this will come into play a bit later in the evening) I ALWAYS have glow sticks, or a necklace, or something else flashing with LED on my person. It's become something of a tradition for me to point out where we are by flashing him.

With my glow sticks you naughty readers!

One thing we hadn't taken into consideration was our mode of transportation. Ducky drives a pickup. Adam is 5'10, I'm 5'8 and we both like to eat. I ended up sitting in the middle, and felt a bit like this for the ride:

Worth it though, because before long we were ready for some Medieval fun!



The crown looks good on him.





If you haven't been, Medieval Times is a lot of fun! We were able to score a pretty deep discount on the tickets, and it was a totally reasonable price for a great show and decent dinner.

While we were waiting for the show to start, I started noticing drinks in some completely awesome cups. Flashing LED! I HAD to have one!!!



Beverages should ALWAYS come in glowing containers!!!

Once I settled down after my glowing drink excitement, dinner arrived and we enjoyed the jousting!



Alas, our knight did not have a very good showing in the trials. But it was still an enjoyable evening nonetheless!

And, alright, what he lacked in skill he made up for in attitude. He was rather pretty too.



Bellies full, happy and tired after a long day, Ducky dropped us off back at POFQ and we turned in for the night.

Up Next: As big as you like sir, as big as you like!

 

[teekathepony]

I LOVED Medieval Times when we went! We had a great time, I'd like to get back some time. Sounds like you guys had fun too!

 

[geckodani]

I LOVED Medieval Times when we went! We had a great time, I'd like to get back some time. Sounds like you guys had fun too!

We had a great time.

By the way - thanks again for commenting so often! It's nice to know someone is reading! I'm making it my new goal to comment often on the TRs I read. Even if it's a small comment, I'm coming to realize that it means a lot to know someone is reading!

Hey lurkers! Say hi!

 

[geckodani]

Day 4, Part 1: As big as you like sir, as big as you like!

Day 4! Epcot day! Adam loves Epcot. Loves it. Adores it, even. So today we were Epcot bound!

But first - it was time to get our swim on! As I mentioned earlier, our room was tucked away in the back corner of POFQ, but we found that the walk to Doubloon Lagoon (the pool) wasn't bad at all! It was shaping up to be quite a hot day, so that water felt oh so good!

We had a lazy swim, chatting with the life guards. I had a long conversation with a CM from New Zealand, which was really cool to hear about! While we were lazing about, Adam was eyeing the slide. So far no one had gone down, and he wanted to play! Allow me to borrow a pic from Portorleans.org:



We hadn't seen anyone slide, and neither of us are particularly small, so we weren't sure if there was a weight limit to slide. Adam floated on over to one of the other life guards, and one of the funnier exchanges I've ever witnessed took place:

Adam: Excuse me, but how fat can you be and still ride the slide?

Lifeguard, trying desperately not to laugh: As big as you like sir, as big as you like!



I about died laughing. Seriously, the look on that poor life guard's face was absolutely PRICELESS!

With that ringing endorsement, we decided to slide! And slide! And slide some more!

When that got old, it was back to the room for a quick shower, and then off to Epcot!

You might be thinking that we were only there for a few days, how could we possibly spend half of a day in the pool?!?! The answer to that question requires some knowledge of our 2011 December trip. There is no TR for that trip. There will not be a TR for that trip. Because frankly, that trip was fun, but not nearly as fun as it could have been. Because we ran ourselves into the ground. Getting up early, staying up late, trying to do it all. And it ended up exhausting us past the point of fun. I was determined not to let that happen! I'd also just been to Disney in December, so I was okay taking it easy.

The best part - it worked! But back to this TR - to Epcot we were bound!

I must apologize for the lack of pics of these last two days. I didn't know I'd be doing a TR, and frankly we were just enjoying ourselves and not worrying too much about pics!

I do have this one though:



Once we got to Epcot, I know we rode Nemo, saw Turtle Talk, and checked out Test Track. I think we also rode Living With the Land, but I'm not 100% certain. But mostly - we were in Innoventions!

We made our own roller coaster at Sum of all Thrills. We planned our financial future with the Great Piggy Bank Adventure. Put out fires at Where's the Fire? and pretty much ran around the whole place, East and West acting like the giant kids we are.

One of my favorite moments of the day came after Storm Struck. Adam was in the dump room where there are various games/exercises to help kids learn about storm safety. I'd run around the corner to use the restroom, and when I came back I saw him eyeing one of the roped off activities.

I started to laugh and asked him if he wanted to play. I could tell by the look on his face that he really wanted to!!! The CM manning the station had a BALL with him. Asked him all the questions she'd ask the little kids, about what you need in an emergency kit etc. As he put the blocks away, he had to answer the questions:



But by far my favorite pic is this next one. Look at the expression on that kid's face! CLASSIC!!!



So. Funny. So funny. Still laughing.

After playing with all the things, we took a quick run on Maelstrom before heading to the Rose and Crown for dinner!

Up Next: Day 4, Part 2: Guinness. From the UK. Also Known as HEAVEN!

 

[teekathepony]

Adam: Excuse me, but how fat can you be and still ride the slide?

Lifeguard, trying desperately not to laugh: As big as you like sir, as big as you like!



I about died laughing. Seriously, the look on that poor life guard's face was absolutely PRICELESS!

With that ringing endorsement, we decided to slide! And slide! And slide some more!

OMG I just about died just reading about it! Sounds like something my DH would ask me quietly but be too afraid to ask the lifeguard! If he's concerned about the slide in November I'll have to tell him that he's not the first to wonder.
I adore Epcot, definitely my favourite park!

But by far my favorite pic is this next one. Look at the expression on that kid's face! CLASSIC!!!

That's incredible. I love that he played the game and that kid looks like there's hope for the future and not all adults are stuffy!

 

[geckodani]

OMG I just about died just reading about it! Sounds like something my DH would ask me quietly but be too afraid to ask the lifeguard! If he's concerned about the slide in November I'll have to tell him that he's not the first to wonder.
I adore Epcot, definitely my favourite park!

I still laugh about that. So funny. Shy we are not, LOL! I'm actually kind of ambivalent towards Epcot. I don't dislike it, but if I had to skip a park... I might skip Epcot. Sacrilege, I know! Adam adores it though, so we always go.

That's incredible. I love that he played the game and that kid looks like there's hope for the future and not all adults are stuffy!

Yeah... not so much with the stuffy either, LOL! The CMs were having a blast with him. We literally played with every single thing on both sides. I can't look at that pic without laughing though. That kid - so priceless.

 

[geckodani]

Day 4, Part 2: Guinness. From the UK. Also Known as HEAVEN!


So, I love beer. Especially Guinness. But up to this point I had never experienced the cup of heaven that is Guinness, from the UK.

Adam and I had made our way over from Maelstrom for an ADR at the Rose and Crown. We both ended up getting the Shepherd's Pie, and each ordered a beer. I have no idea what Adam ordered - I was too busy being in absolute, complete, and total HEAVEN when my Guinness arrived. OMG you guys. I don't know what they do differently, but this may have been the best pint I've ever had. So good.

Oh, and the food was good too.

We also had a funny moment when we struck up a conversation with the table next to us. At some point they mentioned that I seemed to know a lot about Disney, and asked if we came every year.

At this point I turned bright red. You see, I went over 12 years without a trip to the world. And at the point the question was asked I was on my third trip... in 14 months. And had in fact just been there one month prior! We had a good chuckle about that after Adam gave me a hard time for vacationing without him on the previous trip.

After I finished off my most heavenly pint, we went to score a seat for Illuminations!

Actually, I take that back. We went all the way to Spaceship Earth, rode, and THEN went to look for a seat for Illuminations! We ended up sitting between Mexico and Norway against the railing. It was a pretty good view, I must say!

I handed out the obligatory glow sticks to the folks around us.



And enjoyed a few for myself as well.

And then it was time for Illuminations!

I must admit. I cry at Disney fireworks. All of them. Most especially Wishes, but even Illuminations is enough to take me back to childhood, and all the good memories I have of Disney, and my family.



After a slightly moist eyed but wonderful show, we followed the masses back out to the bus stops.

I also recall having a discussion with Adam about all the different geometric shapes that can be made on Spaceship Earth. Random, but I remember it!

We went back to POFQ, soaked in the hot tub for a bit (no slide running at night, unfortunately) and then went to be to get ready for our last day!

Up next: Day 5 and Departure: How does one get hit in the head with a stroller?!?

 

[dismagiclover]

OK so I'm a little late, but I came over from my trip report. We're actually planning on staying at POR for a couple of days for the first time in December so I liked seeing your POFQ pictures since they are sister resorts. Hopefully we'll get a chance to wander over and check out that resort too. We have a Medieval Times about 15 minutes from us. My daughter has been a couple of times. (They even went on a school field trip there.), but I've never been. One of these days I'm going to try it.

 

[geckodani]

OK so I'm a little late, but I came over from my trip report. We're actually planning on staying at POR for a couple of days for the first time in December so I liked seeing your POFQ pictures since they are sister resorts. Hopefully we'll get a chance to wander over and check out that resort too. We have a Medieval Times about 15 minutes from us. My daughter has been a couple of times. (They even went on a school field trip there.), but I've never been. One of these days I'm going to try it.

Thanks for wandering over and commenting! I love FQ. It's the best, IMO! POR is gorgeous as well, I just love how small FQ is. You should totally do Medieval Times sometime - it's a lot of fun! You can usually score some pretty good ticket deals online too.

 

[geckodani]

Day 5 and Departure: How does one get hit in the head with a stroller?!?

I'm ashamed to admit that I have only ONE photo from the next 2 days! I'm truly not sure how I managed that. We were just sort of soaking it all in. I'll try not to be too wordy as I wrap up our short but sweet trip!

Day 5 was our Magic Kingdom day! Now, I adore the MK and am meh about Epcot. Adam adores Epcot but is meh about MK, LOL!!!

We also slept in this day, but if I recall it was a little chillier so we skipped the pool. I think. Anyway, we got to MK and the place was PACKED. I haven't seen it that busy in previous trips, so we decided to hop immediately onto the train and ride around to Frontierland.

There's a fine tradition of Adam getting smacked in the head with balloons, or run over by strollers at MK. I was really hoping that wouldn't happen this time. But, of course... we got on the train, and the people behind us let their stroller fall forward... right into the back of his head. So literally within 15 minutes in the park he'd managed to get conked with a stroller. Le sigh.

Aaaanyway. We rode quite a few things this day. Thunder Mountain, Haunted Mansion (twice, of course), skipped the Tea Cups (I made him sick the last time we rode) Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, Space Mountain, Buzz, Peoplemover... all the good stuff. Pirates, Ariel... etc. ad naseum.

Oh look, I haz a pic to prove we were there:



Shortly after riding Pirates, around 4:00 we were starting to get hot. And tired. And crowded. Trying to learn from past mistakes, I decided that it was time to be done with MK for the day. I'd debated staying for Wishes, but it just felt like the right thing to do was whip out my phone and search for a dinner reservation. And I found one - Kona!!!

As we were walking down Main Street on our way out, Move it Shake it Celebrate! was happening, and I started to boogie down Main Street singing along.

Unexpectedly, Adam grabbed me and planted one on me, right in the middle of Main Street! He was so happy that we were leaving the park on a high note! The last time we went together, we were so tired, and sore, and cranky, and I was so sad to be leaving... it was not good. This time we were happy, and rested, and dancing, and on our way to dinner, and I got a huge kiss in the middle of Main Street! Great way to end the trip in my book!

Dinner at Kona was predictably lovely, and we took a cab back to POFQ to pack up for the morning. We soaked in the hot tub for a while before bed as well, which was lovely! ME came far too early, and around noon the next day we were back home!

Overall it was a great trip. We warmed up, had a good time, and I think I've discovered the trick to Disney with Adam (hint hint, it involves the pool! ).

Thanks for reading along!

 

[dismagiclover]

Your report is over already. I feel like I just got here. My DH doesn't really like the MK either. He really really tries to like it, but it is his least favorite park. That does sound like the perfect way to end your trip.

 

[geckodani]

Your report is over already. I feel like I just got here. My DH doesn't really like the MK either. He really really tries to like it, but it is his least favorite park. That does sound like the perfect way to end your trip.

Aw, and here I felt like I had dragged it out, LOL! It really was the best way to end the trip. We were both happy, we had fun, and didn't get home feeling like we had been hit by a bus!