Snow to 80 in 8 days–A spoonful of Holiday Cheer (2/5 update Ch 36 - Final Thoughts)

[jenbear123]

I think I got some points in that round. Great job sneaking up to the rope! What, no thumbs up tribute?

 

[KatMark]

Great update and photos, Marv. And a nice spot that you found for yourself for the dropping of the rope.

I don't think I got any answers right up to this point (but it is hard to remember because I think it was about three weeks ago when I answered them!).

I'm glad you are getting your son settled; drive home safely.

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

Bummer that you didn't get to see the real rope drop ceremony and after you worked so hard to get that primo spot at the rope.

It always amazes me the crush of bodies that heads to Toy Story at rope drop, not that I am not guilty of joining in but it still amazes me.

 

[PirateKate]

Great spot for rope drop! And here I thought you wouldn't have pushed your way to the front. So far, I think I've managed to get every question wrong this time.

 

[All7OfUs]

Dude! You rock! I'd have done the same thing; in fact, so much so that that might have been the only stinking point I got. Poo.

You make Tate proud! I wish my Tatey came with really cool glowing eyes!!

I can't believe you didn't get a pre-show. That's just wrong!

Pretty crafty pullling folks away from TSM with stupid LMA "fastpasses". A ploy for newbies, for sure, that one!

 

[Poolrat]

Marv is passing by me and I missed him.

I think I got all my answers all wrong too!

Especially the tribute one!!! Who would have thunk it was me? Not me that's for sure.

Hope you get home safe. Next trip up we meet for sure!!!!

 

[glennbo123]

Thanks for the shout-out Marv!

LMA! fastpasses for 9:20? Who're they kidding? Obviously trying to steer (no pun intended) some patrons that way. That showing's probably nearly empty without some push.

Nice job finding a spot at the rope. And no pre-opening show? What up wi' dat?

 

[marvali]

GREAT that you are such a good dad!! See you soon, then!

Thanks Liesa! It was pretty much non-stop from the time I headed down to get him all loaded up until I finally got home last night. Matt even commented he thought we would have been done sooner so we could have had a little time to relax and enjoy his new place before I had to hit the road, but we were running right up until the moment I got in the car to finally head home.

It is expensive setting them up in their own "digs." Good luck to Matt, and it will be nice to have you back.

Yeah, he pretty much didn't have anything he could use in his apartment, so we were starting from scratch. At least he could sleep, eat and stay somewhat entertained by the time I left. Still a long ways to go though before he has everything taken care of!

(and so glad all that sucking up kept you around until now.....)

Take your time! As much as we all like to tease you, we all know that family comes first. Congrats and good luck to Matt!

Thanks Jen, I know you are all just giving me a hard time! It is also great we all are here to support each other when that is needed too!!! What a great DIS family we all share here.....

 

[KatMark]

(and so glad all that sucking up kept you around until now.....)

So all those text messages and emails were just suck ups so I'd stick around your TR?

 

[marvali]

So all those text messages and emails were just suck ups so I'd stick around your TR?

Ah Dear Kathy, I can always count on you to bust my chops!!!

So were you there to welcome Dan, Candi and Parker back home when they arrived at the airport in Chicago last night???

BTW, I was thinking you were the one who got that first tribute at DHS until I went back and started looking at the pictures. Should be one coming in the next update though.......in 3 or 4 weeks!!!

 

[vamassey1]

I'm afraid I've been awol so I missed the WCC update and the next contest.

I am enjoying all the great holiday pictures you're getting and the fun you and the fam are having.

Love the move you made to get up on the rope for rope drop. I would have done the same thing too. Sorry the guys beat your score on TSM. Were you wearing your glasses? Cause if not you could have used that excuse too. Just saying.

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Well, so far I at least know where you would go first. Very sneaky to be near the mailbox! We tried to be sneaky and went down my PrimeTime - then they still had that pathway roped off, so we got stuck back there and couldn't get across.

You know, sometimes, younger people have quicker reflexes

 

[marvali]

I think I got some points in that round. Great job sneaking up to the rope! What, no thumbs up tribute?

Hey, I know how to catch a unique rabbit!!! Ropes are a piece of cake.

And the next few updates have a lot of my trip tributes to a number of my DISfriends, so hang in there.......

Great update and photos, Marv. And a nice spot that you found for yourself for the dropping of the rope.

I don't think I got any answers right up to this point (but it is hard to remember because I think it was about three weeks ago when I answered them!).

I'm glad you are getting your son settled; drive home safely.

Made it home safe and sound! (well, safe anyway.....) Need to work fast on these last updates before my next trip rolls around.......

Bummer that you didn't get to see the real rope drop ceremony and after you worked so hard to get that primo spot at the rope.

Yeah, I just knew I was going to get some of those great pictures for a change.

It always amazes me the crush of bodies that heads to Toy Story at rope drop, not that I am not guilty of joining in but it still amazes me.

Yeah, we are too, but if you want to ride TSMM at all, you pretty much have to be unless you can travel to Disney when the parks are relatively empty. Our upcoming trip we will probably get two days at DHS, so I'm going to probably skip that mob one of the days and do something different, just to see how it feels.....

BTW, how were the lines for Star Tours now that it has reopened? Was there any rush at all to collect FPs there that took some of the crowd away from TSMM?

Great spot for rope drop! And here I thought you wouldn't have pushed your way to the front. So far, I think I've managed to get every question wrong this time.

That's okay, a lot of those at the top of the scoreboard didn't fair too well, so you should still be okay....

Dude! You rock! I'd have done the same thing; in fact, so much so that that might have been the only stinking point I got. Poo.

You make Tate proud! I wish my Tatey came with really cool glowing eyes!!

Dan has gotten to be an expert on the DTD store where you can fill a box with parts for Tate. Maybe he saw some glowing eyes last time he was in there....

I can't believe you didn't get a pre-show. That's just wrong!

True dat! I was really looking forward to it that morning.

Pretty crafty pullling folks away from TSM with stupid LMA "fastpasses". A ploy for newbies, for sure, that one!

I didn't think anything about it when I grabbed them. I really didn't realize they did a show that early, and I've seen a tip on here that you can get FPs for LMA and they don't count against you on your ticket, so I just figured it was an extension of that.

Marv is passing by me and I missed him.

Yeah, I hate it didn't work out so we could meet.

I think I got all my answers all wrong too!

Especially the tribute one!!! Who would have thunk it was me? Not me that's for sure.

DHS! TSMM standby queue! Who else could it have been???

Hope you get home safe. Next trip up we meet for sure!!!!

Will definitely do a better job of planning ahead next time!!!

Thanks for the shout-out Marv!

Hey, even with all the ribbing back and forth you know I couldn't forget about you! Who else is gonna stalk me walking through Kidani?!?

LMA! fastpasses for 9:20? Who're they kidding? Obviously trying to steer (no pun intended) some patrons that way. That showing's probably nearly empty without some push.

yeah, they almost had me........ And I can't imagine a show that early having very many patrons, even with "free" FPs!

Nice job finding a spot at the rope. And no pre-opening show? What up wi' dat?

Yeah, that was indeed a bummer.

I'm afraid I've been awol so I missed the WCC update and the next contest.

I am enjoying all the great holiday pictures you're getting and the fun you and the fam are having.

The following day at AK is going to have a huge amount of holiday pictures! There were so many different things I set out to see that day!

Love the move you made to get up on the rope for rope drop. I would have done the same thing too. Sorry the guys beat your score on TSM. Were you wearing your glasses? Cause if not you could have used that excuse too. Just saying.

Come to think of it........... yes I was wearing my glasses.

Well, so far I at least know where you would go first. Very sneaky to be near the mailbox! We tried to be sneaky and went down my PrimeTime - then they still had that pathway roped off, so we got stuck back there and couldn't get across.

There was a group that gathered over towards the Hollywood Brown Derby, but the CMs wouldn't let them join the crush of people until the front of the line had passed. I think they have caught on to all the little "secret" tips that some of the websites pass out to their readers....

You know, sometimes, younger people have quicker reflexes

Yeah sometimes, but just what are you saying Tammie???

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

BTW, how were the lines for Star Tours now that it has reopened? Was there any rush at all to collect FPs there that took some of the crowd away from TSMM?

Hard to say. Our first day at DHS was before the ride reopened, our second day was Star Wars Weekends so crowd behaviour was not the norm.

I will say that the new Star Tours was loads of fun!

 

[jenb1023]

Woo-hoo - an update!

Those crowds don't look bad at all for Christmas week! Great job wiggling your way to be at the rope - I knew you would get there somehow! I wonder why they skipped the pre-show? I like riding TSM standy-by (as long as the line isn't too long) because there is so much to see while waiting. You love scrabble - do you play words with friends? I think I scored a few points!!! Can't wait to see the photos you got at AK!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Excellent work getting a spot by the rope! But no pre-show? That's just sooooo Universal Studios.

I think I'm getting worse at this prediction game as I go. Clearly my crystal ball is defective.

 

[marvali]

So to recap our arrival and the first part of our DHS morning, we made it to the turnstiles at 07:40 and after a very short wait we headed in. I caught up to the crowd at the rope at 07:47 and by 07:48 I had maneuvered my way up to the rope. Rope drop was at 08:00 and we were in the Standby line for TSMM, after Matt got the FPs, by 08:09. We were on the ride about 08:20 by the time stamp on the pictures, done and on our way for one of our favorite rides - Rock n' Roller Coaster! The lines seem to build faster here than at Tower of Terror, so we typically head here first unless we arrive and the lines are already insane.

When we make it to the entrance for RnR it is obviously too early to grab more FPs (besides, as efficiently as we are moving, those LMA FPs hiding in the bottom of my pocket just might be doable after all). We look at the Standby line and it is already rather long so we hop into the Single Rider line as we do quite often. I guess that is the benefit of having older kids who don't mind riding with strangers (yes, even stranger than riding with their own family members...) It becomes quickly apparent we made the correct decision as we walk up the ramp and almost all the way to the entrance door before reaching the end of the single rider line.

We were soon in the Pre-show, thrilled that the members of Aerosmith recognized us in the audience and wanted us to join them backstage at their concert! We positioned ourselves close to the door so we could make a quick escape to our awaiting limo and were soon waiting by the curb for it to arrive, load us up and whisk us away. After our whirlwind tour and mini concert we arrived at the RnR dump shop. I located the monitors and got the requisite Glennbo redneck ride picture. It didn't turn out too good since I took it with my cell phone, but you can just make out my Canadian salute to Jenbear (front seat, passengers side)......

We had given Matthew our tickets and as soon as he exited the ride he headed back over to TSMM to get a second set of FPs for later since our window was open again. We knew when DW arrived those precious FPs would probably be her only way to experience TSMM, so we opted for another set there instead of the ones we often get next for RnR. As we waited for Matt's return, we browsed around the dump shop and I saw something that reminded me of my dear DISfriend Kathy, whose wonderful husband Grumpy Romeo Mark is often found modeling every type of hat imaginable in the gift shops. I just had to give this one a try as a tribute to the two of them (along with another thumbs up for Jenbear).....

And yes, I knew it was on sideways but I liked that side of the hat better than the front although it has some wires in it that made it uncomfortable wearing it this way. By this time Matt had returned with the TSMM FPs and he decided he needed a similar picture. We told him about someone else we saw who also had the long rocker hair wig on and he went for the full effect....

After we had our fun we exited the gift shop and headed off for our next destination, the Hollywood Tower Hotel. We heard this was an exquisite hotel in its day and just had to be visited for its luxurious accommodations and fine adornments, even if one wasn't lucky enough to book a reservation here and experience the elite attention provided by the hotel staff in person. We were greeted at the entrance to the grounds with this sign, which seemed rather odd (with its eerie glow) for such a highly rated landmark, but it did remind me of a picture Liesa, another of my DISfriends, had posted in her TR.

I guess for a place with such high regard some things could be overlooked since it had been around for such a long time and still garnered such praise.

I thought it was rather odd we were having to wait in such a long line just to tour a hotel, but I guess that was a testament to just how impressed we would be when we finally made it inside. The wait didn't seem quite as long since we struck up a conversation with the family behind us who told us this was their first visit. It was interesting to hear their description of what they thought was ahead of them, and compare it to our previous research. We shared some of the things we knew but tried not to spoil anything for them. While we were in line I got the chance to take a quick Glennbo picture of the TSMM FP sets Matthew had gotten for us to use later on.

We finally reached the doors into the lobby of the Hollywood Tower Hotel and as we entered I started to suspect that this tour wasn't all it was cracked up to be. I heard rumors this place had been struck by lightning at one time, but really that was no excuse for the inattention to such minor details as I found.

As it turns out the hype surrounding this place just didn't hold up as the whole place looked in total disarray. There was dirt and grime and dust and cobwebs almost everywhere we looked. It was interesting that they took us into the basement areas of the hotel on our tour and I was somewhat bothered that it had been so long since safety inspections had occurred on some of the more important equipment there.

While touring this dreary location I saw something that reminded me of a happier place and time as the design of this furnace door appeared to have a shape similar to Mickey Mouse's head and ears on it! The picture didn't turn out so great but if you look closely you should be able to see it too. Or was this just some "Twilight Zone" type of experience like those in a long ago TV show??? (dew dew dew dew... dew dew dew dew...)

Finally our tour was coming to a close and we had to enter an elevator to return to the area where we would depart for other areas of the park. Like so much of the rest of the hotel this elevator was having its problems and seemed to jerk us up and down repeatedly before finally locating the correct floor so we could exit. I do have to admit sadly this just might have been the most exciting part of our tour, which otherwise was a disappointment with all the hype surrounding what was supposed to be such a plush hotel. As for the staff, I found them very cold and impersonal. It seemed to be an okay place to visit, but I wouldn't want to stay there.

After finally escaping everything including the bowels of the Hollywood Tower Hotel we decided we needed to take another limo ride to make up for the less than adequate experience we just had. We knew RnR was just around the corner, and being it is one of our favorite rides we headed back to check out the wait times. They weren't too bad yet so we again hopped into the single rider line. We were in line along the outside wall not far from the entrance doors about 10:09, two hours from when Matt got that first set of TSMM FPs. About 15 minutes later we were once again being treated to a private concert as we were whisked away in luxury. Time for one more ride picture before heading off to explore other sites around the park.

There's Marv rockin' out in the back seat!!!

Coming Up…..

Chapter 21 – DHS – Our Day Continues

 

[marvali]

Results for Round 6 of the Contest Questions

Rosie - 2 of 10
Kathy - 5 of 10 (+1)
Liesa - 3 of 10
Magdalene - 2 of 10
Jenb1023 (first timer) - 3 of 10 (+1)
PirateKate - 2 of 10 (+1)
Mark (Capt) - 2 of 10 (+3)
Molly - 1 of 10 (+1)
Tanya - 4 of 10 (+3)
Pat - 1 of 10
Glenn - 3 of 10 (+2)
Amy (scgirl) - 3 of 10 (+2)
Jenbear - 5 of 10 (+2)
Tammie - 2 of 10 (+2)
Dan - 2 of 10 (+2)

These are all the entries I have, so if I missed anyone let me know.

So after six rounds……..

Magdalene - 19 (+13)
Kathy - 19 (+4)
Dan - 18 (+12)
Liesa - 16 (+4)
Mark - 14 (+10)
Glenn - 14 (+7)
Pat - 13 (+7)
Kate - 13 (+5)
Amy – 13 (+3)
Jen - 12 (+4)
Rosie - 12 (+3)
Tanya - 11 (+9)
Tom - 9 (+2)
Vanessa – 9 (+1)
Molly - 8 (+5)
Tammie - 7 (+8)
Katharina - 7 (+2)
Rebecca - 6 (+2)
Tim - 4
Jenb1023 - 3 (+1)
*Seanaci* - 3 (+1)
Yuki - 2 (+1)

 

[All7OfUs]

Pictures won't load today, so I'll have to assume that my "tribute picture" is something really cool. I'll try to reload the page later when my internet is not so sucky.

Loved the story element to the update- nice work!

And looky there, I got the same HM picture on the boiler ... well at least that's what I assume it is...

Great that the standby lines weren't so bad- nor hte single rider lines. Good logistical playout there, even though I said you'd go back to TSMM after ToT.

And what is WITH me consistently coming in 3rd for the rounds, yet remaining in 4th place?? I just don't get that. And just to give you grief today, I'm going back to check my answers vs. what was told in the story... I'm feeling rather Magdalene-ish today.

Great morning so far, Marvatastic. (Bank that one for next time...)

 

[glennbo123]

Mighty impressive touring, my friend. TSMM, RnRC, ToT, and then back to RnRC....I did not see that last one coming.

I don't know what happened to that plush hotel. It was simply lovely the last time I was there.

I see that Jenbear was one of the big winners of this round, but what's her total?