Skipping Christmas- WDW Style! December 24-28!

[wonderlanne]

...later that same week.....

 

[Soarin08]

December 25, 2008- Christmas Day​

Christmas Morning at Disney's Hollywood Studios​

Our next stop at WDW was scheduled to be DHS on Christmas morning. We figured DHS wouldn't be nearly as crowded as MK or even Epcot would be on the holiday.

However, our family morning at DHS quickly went down the drain when my brother woke up at 7am and started throwing up. My mom told my dad to take me and DS16 on DHS and she'd stay with DB8 just in case he'd come down with the dreaded Norwalk virus.

~ADD Moment: I'd been keeping up with the various reports posted on the DIS of members coming down with the ugly GI bug dubbed the Norwalk virus. Remember I wrote in the previous update of DB8 rubbing his hands on everything on the buses then licking himself? After reading several posts in which DISers mentioned guests vomiting on the buses..... yeah.

We drove on over to DHS and found the park to be extremely managable as far as crowds were concerned- wait times at major attractions like ToT and RnRC were all but non-existant at 8:30am. Just to be safe though, my dad got me and him FPs for ToT for 10:30am.

While we waited for the ToT FPs to kick into use, DD and I decided to ride what is now my new favorite ride (next to Soarin', of course- nothing will ever replace that) since it's wait time was a mere 20 minutes-

I am officially addicted to the Rock 'N Roller Coaster now! Seriously, what could be better than being shot from 0 to 57mph in 2.8 seconds flat, going upside down while "Sweet Emotion" is blasting in your ears? Only sitting in a hanglider simulator with a sweeping Jerry Goldsmith score playing in the background is better.

Toy Story Mania..... we didn't get to ride in June, so we decided to see what time FPs were available. We were shocked to see that the FP times had already shot to 1:30pm!! It was only 9:30am! Just how popular was TSM, anyway? A CM at AK told us TSM was the current most popular attraction at all four parks but come on..... FPs were already going that fast? The SB wait was only 40 minutes so we decided to just wait in line- what the heck, the ToT FPs wouldn't be ready to use for another hour anyway.

Here's some pics from the TSM queue-

Much as I love Space Ranger Spin over at MK, I liked TSM alot better. The ride was longer and the games easier- I scored 46,500 points with 60% accuracy! Not bad for my first try!

It was at long last time to ride ToT- my DS16 bowed out of riding so me and DD went on ahead to ride while she stayed behind.

~ADD Moment: DS16 is deathly afraid of ToT. She rode it one time in June and I honestly believe she is now scarred for life because of it. She certainly doesn't look at elevators in the same light anymore!!

I didn't enjoy ToT nearly as much as I did the previous two times I rode. My whacked vertigo, stuffy head, and 3-D induced headache from TSM made the free-falling on ToT a very unpleasant experience. I rode hands in the air the previous two times, eyes open the whole time. This time, I held on for dear life and didn't open my eyes but once. I love ToT- but this time, it just wasn't too fun to ride. Yet RnRC didn't bother me in the least (I now prefer RnRC over EE- much smoother and more fun).

Our ADRs at Garden Grill were scheduled for 5pm but me, DD, and DS16 hadn't eaten much breakfast. We stopped at a little place over by ToT and got one of those mini pepperoni pizzas (anyone seen those? They're about the size of a medium-sized plate) and shared it- great little snack to tide everyone over till our GG meal that night.

We got to wandering around DHS when we saw that the Studio Backlot Tour had a 10 minute wait time. I've always overlooked the Backlot Tour- but we just decided on a whim to get in line since the wait wasn't long and just see what it was. I for one am so glad we did. The SBT ended up being one of the highlights of our trip- we all enjoyed in immensely.

Two pics from the first part of the tour- CMs were demonstrating how water scenes were filmed in war movies such as "Pearl Harbor"-

I took this picture for my brother- one of the buildings we went past on the tram part of the SBT had this poster on the side and I knew he'd like it-

I liked this topiary of the Mouse as seen on the tour-

The real mouse ears tower and a topiary tribute, as seen on the SBT-

The "bone cage" as used in POTC 2: Dead Man's Chest, on the SBT-

Motorcycles used in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, on the SBT-

Catastrophe Canyon, picture 1-

Another Catastrophe Canyon pic-

Walt Disney's private jet, on the SBT-

Whatever this is, it's from Star Wars-

And finally, two crypts from The Haunted Mansion (I'm guessing the movie?) on the SBT-

We wandered around Streets of America for a bit after the SBT-

We then decided to go on back to POR and see if DB8 was any better. Turns out he was FINE- he just had a buildup of sinus congestion and he always vomits a couple times when that happens. He told my mother she ruined his Christmas by making him stay in the room! Helloooo!!!! He was the one puking! She just didn't want him to get sicker at the park!

Ok, well, I FINALLY got this one done (my laptop kept shutting down to install updates last night). The CP at Epcot and the GG dinner is coming later on!

 

[NMW]

Great report! Subscribing!

 

[wonderlanne]

December 25, 2008- Christmas Day​

Christmas Morning at Disney's Hollywood Studios​

Our next stop at WDW was scheduled to be DHS on Christmas morning.

KEWL!!!! i was surprised to see a naked earful tower...maybe they don't put a santa cap on it anymore? i'm glad your brother wasn't too ill. poor creatures.

 

[OhioDisneyLover]

Subbing ...

 

[chrisw127]

I do love a good trip report, Soarin'. You're a good writer.

I have to admit I did laugh at your brother licking his hands and whiping them on the bus, but then I have a six-year old boy so his behavior is sort of familiar.

 

[Soarin08]

I do love a good trip report, Soarin'. You're a good writer.

I have to admit I did laugh at your brother licking his hands and whiping them on the bus, but then I have a six-year old boy so his behavior is sort of familiar.

Thanks!! I find DB8's behavior mind-boggling, but then again, boys in general make me go .

 

[luckylady]

Boys will be gross. I'm just glad he wasn't sick for the trip.

 

[Soarin08]

December 25, 2008​

An Evening at Epcot- Garden Grill and Candlelight Processional​

We went back to POR around 1:30pm to discover that my silly DB8 was indeed fine- sinus congestion, that's all. Speaking of which, my head was finally starting to feel somewhat better, even after the human yo-yo experience on ToT played with it a bit. We all changed into nicer clothes and left a little early to go to Epcot, hoping perhaps to get lucky enough to get Soarin' FPs to use after our Garden Grill dinner. Our ADRs were for 5pm and we got to Epcot at 3:30pm- an hour and a half free to do whatever we wanted.

My dad walked over to The Land and came back a few moments later- needless to say, all the Soarin' FPs were gone for the day (the HORROR!!!!!!) and the wait time was 125 minutes!!! We decided to ride Spaceship Earth instead-

We wanted to do Honey I Shrunk The Audience after SSE but saw another HISTA show wasn't scheduled again till 5pm- darn, same time as our ADRs! We ventured over to The Seas with Nemo and rode the little clammobile ride instead (not the most exciting ride on earth, but I love Nemo, so I couldn't resist ).

It was now around 4:30pm and we decided to try to see if GG would let us eat early, as we were all absolutely starving! Sure enough, our table was ready and we got in to eat at 4:45pm. For some reason, GG wasn't revolving that night. Anyone know why? The last time we ate at GG was 11 years ago! I was glad to see, however, that nothing had changed much.

The meal was FABULOUS!!! We had catfish, roast beef, turkey and dressing, fresh vegetables (carrots and broccoli), mashed potatoes, green salad, rolls, and apple bread pudding for dessert. DB8 was thrilled to see all the characters stop by our table (my mom has pics of us with the characters- I'll get her camera and upload them sometime). To top it off, our server, Luis, was absolutely wonderful and attended to our every need! It's amazing how service in WDW is nothing less that perfect, really. We've never had a bad experience with anything there!

~ADD Moment: We ate at GG in March 1997 during our first WDW trip (10 days at the World; we stayed at the Hilton. I was 6 and my sister was 4- we hadn't had our b-days yet that year). We got Mickey, Chip, Dale, and Pluto to sign a napkin for us while we were there- but sadly, during one of our many moves over the next few years, our napkin got lost.

We were, needless to say, quite stuffed after that meal, so we thought a ride on Living With the Land would be a good after-dinner attraction. I then realized that the food they grow in the greenhouse part of the attraction we had just eaten up at the GG- they're growing those veggies right!!!

After LWTL, we decided to start heading over to WS to look at decorations. It was around 7pm and we still had till 8:15 before the CP started. I tried taking some pictures but my camera wasn't wanting to cooperate with me! This picture of the tree outside the American Adventure pavilion turned out ok-

We didn't want to stay too close to the American Gardens Theatre as a CP was already in progress, so we moved away and found ourselves in Italy. We decided to relax there for a few minutes. Here's a couple of semi-decent pics-

This one blurred but I'm posting it anyway; my mom took it-

Best I could do-

We headed back over to the AG Theatre around 8pm and got our seats- second row!! And these two pics turned out wonderfully thanks to those second row seats-

I thoroughly enjoyed hearing Edward James Olmos read the Christmas story. He put his heart into it, I could tell- I saw that when the choir sang, he sang along too. At one point I even noticed he was crying! He was an excellent narrator and I tell you, I wish I had somehow been able to shake his hand and tell him so!

IllumiNations was wonderful as well.... no pics. Grrrrr..... blame the camera. Enjoyed the fireworks tremendously.

And of course after IllumiNations we.... sigh, had to return to POR. All in all, I'd say Christmas turned out to be pretty good.

 

[wonderlanne]

 

[blestmom]

Great trip report...glad to hear everyone was feeling better.

 

[debbieandroo]

Yay - the trip report is back! Your mom is a saint, by the way. Yet another reason to flip your DB into a lake - no one would ever know the difference - bwahhhhh...

What a lovely way to spend Christmas and how sweet it was to hear that Edward James Olmos, even after all the rehearsals, was moved by the Christmas story.

Thanks for the tip about the Studio Backlot Tour AND about TSM - I will go to TSM first thing on our DHS day.

 

[SorcererDonald16]

Great trip report so far, Soarin'! I've gotten through the GF post; will read the rest tomorrow. I'm sorry your throat hurt so badly. That's no fun!

Oh, it's funny that you mention getting married at the GF. When we toured there a couple of weeks ago there was a bride and her brides maids in the lobby for a photo shoot.

It's also funny because my parents and I were just talking about the GF on Sunday, and I made the comment: "I could never stay there. It's way too frou-frou for me." What can I say? Whaddya expect from a gal who could live at a ballpark?

 

[#1hockeymom]

I'm really enjoying your report!

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

We were at the exact same show Soarin! I taped the whole thing and we noticed there were parts EJO got all choked up too. It was very moving. We were sitting on the center aisle about 6 rows back...great vantage point and looks like yours was perfect as well.

 

[Soarin08]

Yay - the trip report is back! Your mom is a saint, by the way. Yet another reason to flip your DB into a lake - no one would ever know the difference - bwahhhhh...

What a lovely way to spend Christmas and how sweet it was to hear that Edward James Olmos, even after all the rehearsals, was moved by the Christmas story.

Thanks for the tip about the Studio Backlot Tour AND about TSM - I will go to TSM first thing on our DHS day.

No problem. We didn't mind waiting, but getting a FP is so much better of course.

I'll get some more up later.... I need to let the creative juices flow a bit before I write anything else.

 

[PrincessShea]

Really enjoying your report! Subbing

 

[Soarin08]

Really enjoying your report! Subbing

Thanks! I see in your signature you're getting married at WDW? I'll be at WDW then as a CM! That's pretty awesome!!

Ok, ok, I'm getting started on another update guys....

 

[wardfamily1]

...It's also funny because my parents and I were just talking about the GF on Sunday, and I made the comment: "I could never stay there. It's way too frou-frou for me." What can I say? Whaddya expect from a gal who could live at a ballpark?

DH and I made the comment about hitting the lottery and staying there someday. Then we said we would look like the Clampets going to Bevery Hills. I think if I was going to dish out $$$$ for a room I'd get a suite at the Wilderness Lodge, that's more my style.


Great report Soarin, looking forward to the next installment.!

 

[Mahnahmahnah]

DH and I made the comment about hitting the lottery and staying there someday. Then we said we would look like the Clampets going to Bevery Hills. I think if I was going to dish out $$$$ for a room I'd get a suite at the Wilderness Lodge, that's more my style.


Great report Soarin, looking forward to the next installment.!

I see you now Soarin. Great reporting!!!

I'm so glad I got the chance to read it. And it's so nice to put a face to your name. And I agree with PP's who said you are a good writer!

I think GF is beautiful. I stayed there once with my BFF when we graduated HS. My DGM gave it as a grad gift. BFF and I were in heaven .


Lookin' forward to more!