Sleepy and Grumpy visit Tatooine–A SWW TR! - The End - All done and Link to new TR

[cj9200]

Sunday, Day 5 of the Trip

Clearly we had exhausted ourselves and it was time for a break. I thought that I had anticipated this and scheduled our FP+ for later in the day. I think that when I realized how hot the weather was, I changed our FP+ for earlier in the day. But since we both had a good night’s sleep we were up pretty early, I have a tradition on our WDW DVC vacations of making us a bacon and eggs breakfast. Today was the day.

That looks sooooo good. We made breakfast every morning at Aulani. Saved a boatload of money and I do say for myself, I can make a good breakfast. When the points get built back up after the Hawaii/Disneyland trip (an Aulani Ocean View 1 BR eats a ton of points) we will be in 1BR again and the breakfast that awaits.

Hey I would be happy to serve breakfast to you and Jo! Next time you are there when we are, let's make a breakfast meet in our Villa! Just don't mind the mess and we'll cook you up an awesome breakfast. I'll even go above and beyond this simple breakfast. I have some great brunch ideas that I would make for guests that a just as easy and even more tasty. This is me trying to save time and just eat well. If we had a meet, I would make something really great!

I'm in. Do you require 180 day must reserve window for reservations?

Thanks Bret! I really don't like the Epcot Soarin. I like coming up into Condor Flats not "the Land". It really messes with my phychee to come up not in Condor Flats so I prefer not to ride the WDW Soarin. Besides they don't even call it "Soarin over California", they just call it, "Soarin'" I wonder if people who ride it realize that everything in the ride is in California.

Soarin = Borin
Not a fan, mostly for it's California centric experience.

 

[PrincessInOz]

That is a great tradition for bacon and eggs breakfast. It looks yum!

Seems like you managed to get a few attractions done this morning. Nice pictures inside SE and I love your future house.

Sounds like you have a few more trips planned.

 

[afwdwfan]

I'm pretty relieved too. I think that car is now "done". The electrical is up to snuff, it has seatbelts, A/C the engine works, what else do we need?

Well, I could come up with a few things, but if you're going for the classic, original look... I'd say you're done.

I have a tradition on our WDW DVC vacations of making us a bacon and eggs breakfast. Today was the day.

That looks like a great breakfast. Dare I say, better than the bacon and eggs you'd find at a WDW buffet.

At least the dining room table of the future will be clean enough that we can eat dinner on it instead of TV trays!

I know exactly what you mean.

 

[eandesmom]

Now we had been having problems with the Generator on and off for several months and know that this light being on will not cause the car to catch fire, or send a timing belt through the engine. It just means that the generator isn’t charging the battery, and we run the risk of the car eventually not starting.

However, about 100 miles out of SLO near Ventura, the Generator light came on again. We kept driving and almost made it home. We were on the offramp to our house and car died. Some nice people helped us push it to the side and then we started calling friends. Of all the folks we knew, Leshaface and her DH from the DIS who were supposed to meet us at the new house were the ones to come to the rescue. Talk about a lack of 3D friends!

And how’s this for weirdness? I texted Alicia about our location, they lived in Long Beach so they could find us. Well moments later a pick up truck pulls up and it looks like Alicia and her DH. So I run over to the truck asking if they have jumper cables, they don’t, can you fit me in there? They can’t. Then I think, wait I thought Alicia lost the weight from the baby…when did her DH grow a goatee? Ewww cigarette smoke. Then it hit me, this isn’t Alicia and her DH. It’s two people from alternate universe, the one where Spock has a beard! I realized that I needed to get out of there and luckily they took off because I’m not sure what else I would have done!

Oh my word!



Alison!

Anyways, I got a cab back home, it was only a mile or two, picked up the modern car, and came back, we unloaded the Ranchero to the modern car and left the Ranchero at parked on the street by the mechanic. Thankfully Alicia’s real life DH had one of those things that you hook up to the battery and it will start the car. We got it to the mechanic so that Monday morning he could take a look at it.

Now that it has been a week, we had to take it to an electrical shop as the regular mechanic couldn’t figure it out. Turns out the problem is that we put an after market A/C unit on there, and a hidden audio system and those modifications would blow out the generator after 100 miles of use. So they put an alternator on the car and while it’s not period, it will keep the battery recharging even with the A/C. That way we can enjoy our A/C and stereo and not worry if the car will start.

As far as the rest of the night, we enjoyed some good down home BBQ once Leshaface and her DH took a tour of the house. Then we had a blast a DLR the next day. Back to your regularly scheduled programming.[/COLOR][/SIZE]

Wow, what a story, I knew a little bit of it but not all. YAY for Alicia!


Fun TR update and lots of future trip plans! I love cooking in the villa, there is something to nice about it to start, or end your day.

YAY for the Orange team!

 

[franandaj]

Looks like you and Fran will be really busy with all these upcoming trips. Sounds a lot of fun.

The EPCOT Soarin is nice and just like you, I am so used to being in Condor Flats at DCA when I am about to ride Soarin. "The Land" is nice but it is so cramp tight when walking all the way down to the entrance of Soarin. The wait times at Soarin at EPCOT are crazy where it can be in the 1-2 hour range where DCA can be less than an hour during the busy times. I always try not to ride Soarin every time I am at EPCOT since I can ride it at DCA and spend the extra time in EPCOT. It is surprising that the ECPOT version isn't called "Soarin over California" where you are soaring over California. I wonder when Disney will do the new versions for Soarin. Just have to wait and hear about it in the near future.

I can't wait for all these trips to wind down! The end is in sight!

I enjoy Soarin, but it really needs that update that they have been talking about. It's been almost 15 years now.

How kind offering to cook! Sweet but due to my diet I have to sadly decline! Too stressful but thanks anyway. Sweet of you. Def meet in the parks though!

You got some great vacations planned! DCL yeah! What's not to like! Gay games sound fun and WDW next April with kitty sitters woohooo! Lucky it worked out with Darcy! Nice one

That's too bad about your diet. I have been able to meet a number of dietary challenges, some probably more difficult than yours, but I understand. Yes, it is a relief to have the kitty sitters sorted out while we will be gone next April.

Had to do some work to catch up, but I did it! And once again, it was wonderful to meet you and hang out at DLR with you. Thank you for making it a magical day for us!

One regret (spoiler alert): I never did get to ride Indiana Jones.

I had a lot of fun with your family out at DLR, but you all sure wore me out! Sorry you never got on Indy, but I hope that you did get to do the Matterhorn finally!

Hopefully not all at once.

See that's the beauty of the Comma. It's the difference between "Let's eat, Grandma!" and "Let's eat Grandma!"

I'd love to see Vader as a guest on one of these talk shows. The video of him at DL was awesome!

Han shot first!

I asked her and she doesn't remember, but she thinks it was "Don't let the big guys get you down."

40 minutes for GMR?? That's 40 minutes they'll never get back.

I know, really!

That's quite the nap.

Cool. Fun movie, too!

We had fun watching it, although I suffer the fate that Julie does. We had to watch it over two nights and the second night we started around 5 o'clock.

I'm not a car guy, but I don't think that's good.

Yeah, pretty much.

I like it!

I'm amazed at the feats that these guys are able to pull off. Last year's James Bond (The Car Who Loved Me) themed event was filled with great props as well.

I'm with you on the weed salad. I have such a hard time eating tree leaves for dinner.

That's another good name for it. Whenever I get that plate of weeds, my eyes just roll in the back of my head. I would never order it knowingly.

Nice work! The car looked great.

Thanks! I particularly liked Fran's props from the Drive in Theater.

Hey, at least you had priorities!And that's....good?

Well, I think the color of the car doesn't help performance. Our last ride got us this score, which seems to be better, so I guess Fran is a better car designer.

Love cooking breakfast while at WDW. One of my favorite things about DVC. Looks good. I also like tomato juice and don't find many folks my age that do.

I love V8 for breakfast, it's one healthy thing that I can do while eating eggs, bacon and waffles!

I cannot wait to ride the new Test Track. It was closed during our last visit. This update is really making me miss WDW.

I like the new one, but I wasn't a big fan of the old one, so what can I say?

You have a lot on. I am glad that you have the cat sitter issue sorted out.

I have done Soarin a lot more often at California Adventure than at Epcot, but either is fine by me. I do like the line at California Adventure a lot better. Love all the historical aviation stuff and the single rider line is definitely a bonus.

Corinna

Glad to have something figured out so far in advance. I just prefer all the historical and interesting stuff on the wall in the queue, it just gives it a little more substance.

I do not think I would want a stream in my house.
Orange side, oh no. I could never do it. Good for you.
The future plans look good.

Thanks for following along!

That looks sooooo good. We made breakfast every morning at Aulani. Saved a boatload of money and I do say for myself, I can make a good breakfast. When the points get built back up after the Hawaii/Disneyland trip (an Aulani Ocean View 1 BR eats a ton of points) we will be in 1BR again and the breakfast that awaits.



I'm in. Do you require 180 day must reserve window for reservations?

I would say come on over on our next trip, but it's with some friends, so maybe the next one. I don't mind guests!

Soarin = Borin
Not a fan, mostly for it's California centric experience.

I like to look at it as where I have yet to go in California.

That is a great tradition for bacon and eggs breakfast. It looks yum!

Seems like you managed to get a few attractions done this morning. Nice pictures inside SE and I love your future house.

Sounds like you have a few more trips planned.

It just feels like vacation when I cook a nice breakfast. We did get a lot done and good thing....cue ominous music.

Well, I could come up with a few things, but if you're going for the classic, original look... I'd say you're done.

Yes, we are going for the period look.

That looks like a great breakfast. Dare I say, better than the bacon and eggs you'd find at a WDW buffet.

Thank you!

I know exactly what you mean.

I can't remember the last time I ate dinner on the dining room table.

Oh my word!



Alison!

Yeah that was quite the afternoon!

Wow, what a story, I knew a little bit of it but not all. YAY for Alicia!

They did good that day!

Fun TR update and lots of future trip plans! I love cooking in the villa, there is something to nice about it to start, or end your day.

YAY for the Orange team!

There will be a little more cooking, but not as much as I normally like on a DVC trip.

 

[franandaj]

When you’re hungry at Epcot the place to go for a great meal can be found around World Showcase. On our way there, Fran stopped to take pictures of this homage to the World Cup.





You’ll recall that I have been trying to work on my Golden Spoon, so we weren’t going anywhere that we’d been before. And those of you who know my tastebuds, you also know that I often enjoy the more exotic foods, especially from the East. So when Spice Road Table announced a menu of small plates inspired by Morroccan flavors, I was all over that. I love Morroccan food and especially anything that I can order in a Tapas format!



For most of our meal, we pretty much had the place to ourselves.



We were seated at a table with a view.





The menu









Here are our first drinks. I believe that Fran had the Andalusian Nights and I had glass of White Sangria.



Our first small plate arrived, which was the Chicken and Beef Skewers.



Then the Spicy Garlic Shrimp, it wasn’t all that spicy and it came served with some pita bread for dipping the garlic buetter.





We also got the Tingis Sampler. It consists of a Chicken Harissa Roll (sort of a Moroccan Egg Roll), a Lamb Slider and a piece of Lamb Sausage. This is where myself and the server had a little bit of a disagreement. When the restaurant opened they called the sausage by it’s proper name, Merguez. It still appears on Allears.net this way, but the menu has been changed so that more Americans might be apt to order it. I commented about that change and the server insisted it was still called merguez on the menu, however upon closer inspection she realized I was right.



Either way it was still tasty, but not quite as spicy as others I have tasted. I don’t mean to dwell on this cut of meat, but ever since I had it at a Moroccan restaurant in France (short history lesson, all nations with colonies have their colonies come back to haunt them by the colonists taking up residence in their colonizing nation), I have been smitten by the Merguez. My mother found a merchant at her farmer’s market who made it and bought me several packages which I froze and just finally finished the last package late last year. But I digress…

I ordered a flight of red wines for most of these tapas.



And the beauty of tapas, is that we were still hungry after all those small plates and ordered another small plate of calamari. Everything was quite good!



[Continued in Next Post]

 

[franandaj]

[Continued from Previous Post]

We paid our bill and were just getting ready to leave when the skies opened up and it began pouring. I don’t mean raining, I mean POURING rain, like SERIOUS Florida rain. Our scooters were actually parked outside and I rushed to get them inside the restaurant, the folks there were kind enough to let us weather out the storm in the lobby and it went on for quite some time.





We waited for quite a while and finally the rain did let up. Some. We had one poncho in our scooter bags. I’m not sure why, we had them in our owner’s locker, heaven knows we have bought countless ponchos in WDW, but we had to buy one more. And we made a break for it. We did great getting almost all the way to the entrance of the park before it hit us again. An enterprising young PP photographer was sitting at the gates capitalizing on all us getting drenched. Of course Fran stopped to retrieve our photo pass pictures!





And then we went to board the monorail, but not immediately. We had planned to visit the new Ice Cream shop in France before the skies opened up and we were going to get dessert there, but our plans were cut short, so instead we decided to stop at the little kiosk just outside Epcot and get a donut to split before we took the monorail back to the TTC and our resort.

Just as we got to the top of the platform the doors of the monorail were shutting on a packed train. Our little stops had caused us to miss the train.

So we waited for the next train which arrived shortly and we boarded. The doors closed and we waited to leave. And we waited. And waited. There was an announcement that the monorail on the tracks was experiencing technical difficulty and that they would be getting us underway momentariy. And the announcement came again, and again. And again.

Finally they asked us all to disembark and told us that they would have buses come and take us to our destination. About a half an hour went by before buses to the Ticket and Transportation Center arrived. Two busses filled up before they were able to get Fran and I on a bus, and still we got some dirty looks from passengers. Keep in mind, we were actually the first ones on that platform to miss the previous monorail.

Finally we got to the TTC and onto a resort monorail. We met up with some passengers from the “stuck” monorail on our trip around the loop. Evidently they had to be “towed” to the TTC. The folks we talked to had an ADR at BoG and were now an hour late due to being stuck on the monorail. I wonder if that story held up when they got there!

By the time we got back to the room it was almost 4PM and I needed a nap, again! However this time we set an alarm for Olaf to call us and we woke around 6PM for our ADR at Narcossee’s. We like this place, it is always a good solid meal for us.

We started off with the bread service.



Fran had the Lobster Bisque.



I went with the Caesar Salad.



We split the House Made Shrimp Fettucine. This was sooo good! I couldn’t finish it all and ended up taking it home for leftovers!





We had considered going to MK afterwards, but in the end we just went back to the room and went to bed. We were really trying to ward off Sleepy and Grumpy!

 

[dolphingirl47]

You must have been in food heaven that day. Like you, I love Middle Eastern and North African food and that restaurant is definitely on my to do list for next year.

What a shame that the weather put paid to your dessert plans. I had to smile about Fran stopping to get the Photopass pictures. What a pain with the monorail breaking down and you having to wait so long for a buss.

Narcoossee’s is my favourite restaurant and the Caesar Salad is my go to appetizer. Everything looks delicious.

On a completely unrelated matter, a certain package is showing as having been loaded onto the delivery vehicle so it should be in my greedy hands tomorrow.

Corinna

 

[mvf-m11c]

I can't wait for all these trips to wind down! The end is in sight!

I enjoy Soarin, but it really needs that update that they have been talking about. It's been almost 15 years now.

Soarin never gets old. It has been a long time since Soarin over California debut in 2001 during DCA opening and at EPCOT a few years after DCA Soarin. It will be nice when they do an update for Soarin.


The food at Spice Road Table restaurant at Morocco pavilion looks so nice. I keep saying this over and over on your trip reports, PiO and others hatt I should try this restaurant when I go back to WDW. The only problem is that you can't do all the restaurants during the trip. But all the food looks so good. I will have to do a lot of research and choose which places to eat.

Wow it was pouring when you were at Morocco pavilion.

I'm sorry to hear about the Monorail having problems. The Mark VI Monorails are almost 25 years old and I think that WDW should upgrade them. I do enjoy the Mark VI Monorails at the WDW and it has not been the same since we can't ride in the front cabin. It is so nice that the DLR updated the Mark V Monorails to the Mark VII seven years ago.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Look at that rain! And what great work by that PP Photographer.

Love, love, love the food. I did have a go at the Golden Spoon and came in at over 30%. It will be a long time before I push it along. Good for you for working at it.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

You’ll recall that I have been trying to work on my Golden Spoon, so we weren’t going anywhere that we’d been before. And those of you who know my tastebuds, you also know that I often enjoy the more exotic foods, especially from the East.

Just like me and my family!

We were seated at a table with a view.

Looks like a quality spot.

We paid our bill and were just getting ready to leave when the skies opened up and it began pouring. I don’t mean raining, I mean POURING rain, like SERIOUS Florida rain.

Wait, is that Noah?

We waited for quite a while and finally the rain did let up. Some. We had one poncho in our scooter bags. I’m not sure why, we had them in our owner’s locker, heaven knows we have bought countless ponchos in WDW, but we had to buy one more.

Murphy's Law strikes again! Disney's Poncho Profit Team thanks you.

An enterprising young PP photographer was sitting at the gates capitalizing on all us getting drenched. Of course Fran stopped to retrieve our photo pass pictures!

And we waited. And waited. There was an announcement that the monorail on the tracks was experiencing technical difficulty and that they would be getting us underway momentariy. And the announcement came again, and again. And again.

Ugh. That's becoming so commonplace.

 

[kid-at-heart]

Spice Road Table is one of my favorite WDW eateries. I really like their wine flights; the tapas also are awesomely good. Just seeing your photos makes me want to hurry back.

Kate

 

[bangzoom6877]

Hi there!! I had to stop by here to say hello. I will do my best to try and catch up with this TR...I miss reading your TR's!! I've missed you...it's so great to "see" you!

DH, my parents, sister and her family and I are in the early planning stages of Southern California and Disneyland for next summer! So, we will make it there the summer of the 60th anniversary! I know I had mentioned doing this a few years ago to you and Alicia. My parents and sister are also planning to drive up to San Francisco from there, but DH, the boys and I are gonna spend some more time in Southern California. Probably a total of 7-10 days, beginning in San Diego and then staying in anaheim and accessing the beach and LA from there.

 

[jedijill]

All the food looks amazing! I really want to try the new Spice Road next trip. Narcoosee's is one of my faves....I fell in love with the cherry cheesecake there a long time ago!

Jill in CO

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Lol re that PP photographer that is a classic I love it! We have many ponchos in our locker, as soon as it rains they all but one hide! They are in the same scheming club as socks in the wash.

Tapas looks great. We have many Tapas restaurant chains. Very good too. It's very popular. Well done on scoring some more on your Golden spoon. That does look fun trying to achieve that!

 

[afwdwfan]

And the beauty of tapas, is that we were still hungry after all those small plates and ordered another small plate of calamari. Everything was quite good!

This place doesn't seem to get much love, but I'm glad that you enjoyed it. It certainly looks like a prime location with a great view while you're eating.

We had one poncho in our scooter bags. I’m not sure why, we had them in our owner’s locker, heaven knows we have bought countless ponchos in WDW, but we had to buy one more.

That's just how it works. The one time you actually need them, you forget to grab them on the way out the door.

An enterprising young PP photographer was sitting at the gates capitalizing on all us getting drenched. Of course Fran stopped to retrieve our photo pass pictures!

Great action shots!

By the time we got back to the room it was almost 4PM and I needed a nap, again! However this time we set an alarm for Olaf to call us and we woke around 6PM for our ADR at Narcossee’s. We like this place, it is always a good solid meal for us.

Yuck... the whole transportation ordeal just sounds awful. I'm glad that you made it back at least in time for a nap before dinner.

 

[ACDSNY]

Whew, I'm finally caught up. I left off back at at the car show.

 

[rentayenta]

What a delicious day! Spice Road looks wonderful. Michael would love that place.

Photopass took those pics of you in the rain?

 

[eandesmom]

I would have been sleepy AND grumpy after that kind of deluge and delay.

I really liked Spice Road table, I am sad it isn't doing better, it is just lovely inside and everything I tried I liked.

No, not as flavorful as it could be but for Disney, more so than most.

Your dinner looks delish!

Love the photopass, those are fun!

 

[Leshaface]

Ooh, what is Eat24?!

I didn't know you liked Mission Space, much less the orange side! It's been a while, I think since 2010. I thought it was really cool but I felt so claustrophobic that that is all I remember now.

That's cool that they made some World Cup topiaries.


good job on correcting the server. I'm surprised she didn't know already? The food looks really delicious though!

I love the photos of you and Fran in your panchos! Perfect!

Ugh, that really stinks about the monorail. Especially the part where you had to wait for a bus and people still gave you guys dirty looks after you had been waiting.

I really do need to give Narcoosses's another chance. Just definitely won't be ordering the Surf and Turf again.