The 5 trips of My "Disney Free Year" - A Mermaid, A Buzz, A Boat and A Steak - 7/8

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

Wow your cruise penthouse suite/villa looks awesome! I would have DEFINITELY been freaked out about the chickens meandering around. There most likely would have been some running around and arms flailing on my part.

Hey, I don't deny my charisma

Disney in a week! Ahhh how fun!

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

Wow your cruise penthouse suite/villa looks awesome! I would have DEFINITELY been freaked out about the chickens meandering around. There most likely would have been some running around and arms flailing on my part.

Hey, I don't deny my charisma

Disney in a week! Ahhh how fun!

Yeah, I wasn't the biggest fan of the chickens, but they were pretty tame - If they would have run after me, I'm pretty sure I would have been flailing all around right with you!

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

Friday morning, I woke up with a horrible case of allergy eye in my left eye, I couldn't even open it in the morning it was leaking so badly. But I wasn't going to let that get me down. Nope, I was headed to Disney today! So I made a quick stop to the drug store on my way to work, and picked up some nectar of the gods... or Visine Allergy, as normal people know it.

Now that I could effectively see out of both eyes, I was ready to face the day!

I walked into work almost exactly 12 hours before my flight was leaving. This was going to be a loooong day. To help it go a little faster, I decided to check in for my flight. In a last minute decision (fueled by the fact that my allergies were definitely kicking my butt in a major way at that point) I decided to upgrade to Business Class. The thought of a nice comfy seat and a cocktail would be the perfect beginning to the trip and just what I needed. This was a double edged sword, because I still had a whole day ahead of me, and now my business class boarding pass and big ole gift card were burning a big 'ole hole in my pocket, making the seconds tick down even slower.

I also was super proud of my mad-skillz that I had managed to pack everything I need into my purse. I didn't even have a small carry-on to deal with, just my purse. Yep. This was good! This was really distracting and made me want to get to the airport and not so much stay at work.

Fortunately, I had a bunch of stuff to do, so I kept pretty busy. But I could tell my allergies were kicking my butt big time, and they're usually worse in FL because the air is so thick. I was really hoping that there was enough Claritin on the planet to keep me from being mistaken for at least 3 of the 7 dwarfs (sneezy from the alergies, sleepy from the histamines, and grumpy for missing my trip because I was so sneezy!)

At noon, I drove home to get my stuff and drop-off my car. Then my mom picked me up and we had lunch together. But we were both kind of grumpy and uninventive, so we ended up at McDonalds. Super great for the not feeling sleepy in the afternoon.

She dropped back at work and the count-down was on. The first part of the afternoon ticked by pretty quickly. But at about 3, the seconds ticked by like seconds while standing in the Soarin' line. There was just an hour until DH was standing in my office asking me if I was ready to go! After forcing DH to do some manual labor in my office (moving a bookshelf ☺), we were on our way.

It was still 3 hours before my flight so we had a few errands to run. First up the bank, to get some cash-ola.

I was excited to be going to Disney. DH was sick of me taking pictures, so I turned the camera on myself.

Then it was off to Barnes and Noble for some magazines for the flight.

I also checked out the movies and picked up a few for the flight.

After B&N, we had some time to kill so I wandered into Bath and Body Works.

$40 later, we headed to Pot Bellys for Dinner.

Before we ordered, Panic called to say she was at the airport and everything was on time.

Yum! I love Pot Bellys so much, I think it is why I'm reluctant to go to EOS. I feel like I'd be cheating on Pot Bellys!

I got the A Wreck

DH got a Chicken Cheddar Melt

So Yummy!

Dinner in our tummies, we headed to the airport.

I was so glad to be able to spend this time with DH, and I was sad he wasn't coming with me.

He dropped me off at the airport, and we kissed goodbye for the weekend.

I was kind of worried that there would be heightened security, but it wasn’t bad at all. Except for this poor little doggie that they were making go through the scanner and he was barking like crazy. He did NOT want to be scanned!

Soon, I was re-combobulating and heading towards the gate.

I've got to say, this is my least favorite part of traveling. You can't possibly get comfortable in those seats, and you don't really want to pull out your book or magazines because then you have to re-combobulate all over again. This is also the part where I feel very alone.

Soon, my super-awesome priority boarding status paid off, and I was taking my nice plush seat. I got settled in and enjoyed a beverage (or 4).

I don't always upgrade myself (and if I'm even considering it, it has to be less than $50) but if I'm not feeling well, it is the best thing I could possibly do. Just not being cramped and feeling a little more relaxed really helps big-picture.

Once the electronics were approved, I turned on a movie which always helps my antsy anticipation. I need to be distracted. But I did keep telling myself "meet panic at Terminal B" "B" "B" "B".

The fight was uneventful, except that somewhere over Georgia (I think) there were wildfires. I’ve never seen a wildfire from the air before. It was kind of a spetacular sight at night. The glowing red and orange and the smoke billowing out, were kind of surreal. I do hope that no one is harmed in them – it seemed like a pretty big area.

 

[tksbaskets]

Yeah you're on the way to Disney!!

 

[Caretames1]

I can't wait to find out how your trip went. BOO for your allergies, YAY for an upgrade.

 

[wdwgirl03]

Hey, it's Bayshore!! I know that place all too well, haha. Potbelly's is good but not quite as good as Earl of Sandwich!!!

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

Yeah you're on the way to Disney!!

It's a great feeling!

I can't wait to find out how your trip went. BOO for your allergies, YAY for an upgrade.

I'm so spoiled now. I want to upgrade my trip to Vancouver next week too... I'm not sure if I can swing that though

Hey, it's Bayshore!! I know that place all too well, haha. Potbelly's is good but not quite as good as Earl of Sandwich!!!

He he. Yes, it's Bayshore. I know it a little too well too! Hmmmm.... I might just have to suck it up and go to Earl of Sandwich next time!

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

We landed about 30 minutes early, and I texted Panic who had also just landed. I think what I like most about Business class is the quick exit. I hate waiting for people to file out because I'm always so stiff and twitchy after a flight. As usual, we landed at the very far end of the A terminal, so it was quite a trek to find Ms. Panic. We did have one of those conversations “I see the big fountain. But I don’t see you. Where are you? “ But soon, I saw a familiar face!

After a quick hug, we were off to find the ME. As is typical for that time of night (it was a little before 11 pm at this point) the ME terminal was pretty deserted.

Since Panic was a late addition, we had to stop at the desk to get her squared away, but that took no time at all, and soon we were on our bus and on our way!

Yay we’re here!

Once we arrived at OKW, we were both pretty spent. The welcome home balloons were a very welcome sight.

It was here I realized, I had forgotten/decided not to check in online I realized that this meant that I hadn't put in a location request. Normally I don't, but with the big sprawling resorts like OKW and SSR, I try to. It was only two nights, but I really really hoped we weren't out in the boonies somewhere, and that we were at least near a bus stop.

We checked in and were assigned our room. Moment of Truth. Would we be relegated to Siberia, or would we have a nice close room?

About Mid-Way between. I’m a fan of the Miller’s road Bus Stop, but this building was on the far side for my tastes.

Instead of a golf cart we had a van take us to our room. Snazzy!

We got into our room and holy moley! It was huge!

I’m glad Panic joined me, I’d have felt silly with such a huge room with just me.

We decided that Panic should take the bedroom, since I’m an insomniac and would likely be up early.

Inspection of the bathroom revealed that we had an accessible room.

I was disappointed, because that meant the shower would be hard to control.

We had a first floor room, which was awesome – no stairs!

Yep, we had a renovated room.
Welcome to the 20th century OKW!

We briefly discussed trying to go to DTD, but it was already almost 12, and we weren't sure if anything would be open. Plus, we were both pretty tired, so we decided to call it a night.

After 10 minutes of trying to pull out the pull out.

only to reveal that there were no sheets on the bed. Bad show OKW. Making me (okay Panic) work for my night’s sleep. I was not happy.

So after that, we got ready for bed.

I took advantage of the accessible room , and took a seat to talk to Panic.

Strike a pose!

Here, I discovered the weirdest towel animal ever,

Why is the elephant upside down??

Panic went to sleep, but for whatever reason ( I blame allergies) I could not fall asleep. I watched a movie and read a while, hoping I could fall asleep.

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

I have been seriously staring at this thing for like 5 minutes trying to think of something witty to call it, but honestly, I've got nothing.

Yay you're there!!! The room looks nice, I definitely would have deemed that little thing in the tub a chair too.

 

[Caretames1]

So that was the elephant in the room...................(crickets)

 

[lovealldisney]

I recognized Bayshore as well!! Us southeastern Wisconsinites so need to have a DIS meet! We could all go to PotBellies! Hey if you ever need a travel buddy give me a call I'll go in a minute!

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

I have been seriously staring at this thing for like 5 minutes trying to think of something witty to call it, but honestly, I've got nothing.

Yay you're there!!! The room looks nice, I definitely would have deemed that little thing in the tub a chair too.

I know. I did the same thing. There has to be something witty there, there just has to!

I've got to say OKW is really growing on me I can see why some people swear by it. The rooms are really nice. I just wish it wasn't so big. That little tub chair was awsome! I want one for my house!

So that was the elephant in the room...................(crickets)

Winner!

I recognized Bayshore as well!! Us southeastern Wisconsinites so need to have a DIS meet! We could all go to PotBellies! Hey if you ever need a travel buddy give me a call I'll go in a minute!

Mmmmm Pot Bellys. Mmmmmm.... I think it would be so fitting for me to finally meet a Diser in real life and have it not be at Disney

Hehe. I'll keep you in mind!

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

As is typical when I'm in Disney or really any vacation, I popped out of bed nice and early. Which wasn’t good at all since I’d slept for maybe 2 hours, but oh well. I was awake now. Since it was much to early for Panic to wake up – I mean the sun wasn’t even up yet!

I decided to go for a walk and take some pictures.

Maybe it's just me, but I love walking around Disney resorts early in the morning. They're very serene and nearly deserted, except for the occasional dad juggling 3 refillable mugs and a few boxes of cereal.

I think it really lets you enjoy the beauty of the resort, and I happen to think that OKW is one of the prettier resorts.

I mean It's not Poly pretty, but it reminds me of my grandpa. When we were little we'd always stay at golf resorts because he was an avid golfer, and the rest of my family are/were also golfers. Last time I tried golfing, I ended up with stitches (and not the cute grey ones with big ears either). But there's just something pretty and homey about a golf-resort to me.

I think I’ve been watching too much Harry Potter, because this time, the slide kind of looked evil!

Okay it looks more calm in this picture.

Hey you…. Yeah you… I know your scolling

Made you look!

I was having so much fun playing with my new camera and the settings, I almost forgot there were Parks to go to.... almost

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

I was apprehensive to venture into parts of OKW unknown, because the busses had only just started running, so I stuck to the main building.

On my walk my tummy started growling. I had such an early dinner on Friday, I was quite hungry, so I decided that meant that it was time to go back to the room and wake up Panic. I had a date with a chocolate-filled croissant from Starring Rolls, and I wasn't going to be late!

To my surprise, Panic was up and getting ready when I came back. It was only about 7:00, so I was shocked that we were up and moving so early after such a late night. We are girls that like our sleep!

We both showered and were ready to go!

I’m not a tourist. Nope, not me!

We headed out to the bus to catch some Extra Magic Hour goodness at DHS! DH isn't a morning person at all. Usually it's a miracle if we're out the door by 10, so morning EMH was a new experience for me.

Hey you, I brought my camera too, I’m just not as obnoxious about it!

I was hoping it would allow me to do something I have wanted to do for some time. Ride RnRC going though the regular (not single rider) line.

When we arrived at DHS, I headed straight for the ticket booth. I had decided to just buy a 1 day park-hopper for now since I wasn’t sure if I’d be back before January. The lady at the ticket booth was hard-selling me anything but a 1 day park hopper. And even confused me into saying yes, to something that if I hadn’t had a gift card I wouldn’t have caught and been out like $400. She said, your 1 day park hopper will be $144. You can buy a 6 day park hopper with no-expire for $280. So I said Okay, and handed her the $250 gift card an $30. But it was $280 on top of the $144.

Well I'm sorry but why would I do that? If I would do that, I’d be better off using my DVC discount on an AP – which I told her I had. I’m so glad I had the gift card otherwise, she would have just charged my credit card, and I would have been none-the-wiser until I got my bill. Then I would have been Peeved!

When I convinced her that no, I really just wanted a 1 day park hopper, she seemed really put out that I would be that stupid to just get a one day pass. Look lady you're not running on commission here... The whole thing felt really seedy and un-Disney, and kind of put me in a bad mood.

Park hopper (finally) in hand, we headed into the park. Which immediately made my bad mood disappear.

Panic “why are you taking pictures of construction walls, there is something wrong with you”

We were more concerned with riding RnRC and ToT, so we decided leave TSM to chance. Since I have the game at home, it's not the end of the world if we would skip it.

So we headed down Sunset Boulevard, towards our favorite. Rockin’ Roller Coaster!

We grabbed a RnRc FP for later and hopped in line. I LOVE this ride! If we waited 5 minutes, I’d say that was a lot.

Hey Steven Tyler just gave us backstage passes - how cool!

Uh oh. Traffic looks bad… Hope we make it to the concert on time!

Seriously?

Yeah! Bay-be!

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

OKW does look like a pretty resort - I've never visited there but I love the pics you too!

And it's okay, I totally take pictures of the construction walls too. And those brief windows when lightbulbs are burned out. Not sure how those are related. Oh, they're both fixed up for our "future enjoyment!"

 

[Caretames1]

You got some really nice pictures! I am really going to focus on getting more scenery pictures when we go back in Sept.

My favorite pic...the last one. Very Artsy

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

OKW does look like a pretty resort - I've never visited there but I love the pics you too!

And it's okay, I totally take pictures of the construction walls too. And those brief windows when lightbulbs are burned out. Not sure how those are related. Oh, they're both fixed up for our "future enjoyment!"

It never held any intrigue to me at all, until we stayed there last year on a last minute trip - since it was the only room available. But now I actually ask for it over SSR.

Haha.. I totally take pictures of the lightbulbs too. I just like that the construction walls aren't just ugly construction walls, they take the time to theme them too.

You got some really nice pictures! I am really going to focus on getting more scenery pictures when we go back in Sept.

My favorite pic...the last one. Very Artsy

I love Disney scenery pictures, but it was a big personal shift to switch from all "people" pictures to detail pictures, it took a lot of self training. I recommend a training regiment in which you reward yourself with Margaritas

Thanks! I was having fun playing with my settings, and really hoped that liked that one. Though, I'll admit... I had to go back and look because I really thought the last picture was the picture of the ride picture, and I was starting to question your taste in "art"

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

Our two major “must-do” rides out of the way, by 8:30 we were headed for Starring Rolls for a little nourishment.

For those of you keeping track, there’s still 30 minutes until the park officially opens, and this is my 3rd installment for the day. I think I really need to work on my descriptors. Obviously I don’t take enough pictures or ramble on enough…

I’ve been waiting since October for you baby!

We saw this guy who totally looks like Scrat from Ice Age. You’re in the wrong park buddy!

After staring Rolls, we went to check TSM, but the FPs were already for 2:00 and then wait was 50 minutes.

The park still wasn't even open at this point. We decided that it wasn’t worth that wait for us, so we headed to the Animation Academy. Only to be told the first class wasn’t until 9:30. Boo!

It was eerie to see everything so empty!

Kind of fitting, Panic’s a Princess

and I’m Dopey

Since we had ample time to kill, we decided to wander to the other side of the park and take a peek at Star Tours.

Betty White’s statue looked new (and nothing like Betty White – even from her Sue Anne Nevens days….)

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

We were secretly hoping there would be a super improbable soft-opening for Star Tours. But no such luck.

We wandered around a bit more, and then back to the animation studio. There was actually an animator there…. Cool!

We had about 10 minutes before the class started, so we took seat and formulated our plan for the rest of the day.

For the class, we had our favorite animator, Ryan! He’s fun and sarcastic. Just the way I like ‘em.

He polled everyone, so we could draw something that no one had drawn. Let’s see if you can guess who we drew...

Anyone?

Anyone?

Bueller?

Yep, Buzz Lightyear!

Yeah, this one was really hard for me. I think it’s not fair – he’s computer animated!

 

[Caretames1]

I recommend a training regiment in which you reward yourself with Margaritas :

So your saying, I should start training now? Endurance is important.

Though, I'll admit... I had to go back and look because I really thought the last picture was the picture of the ride picture, and I was starting to question your taste in "art"

Hey, if it ain't dogs playing poker, it ain't art!

Do you know if there is an age requirment for the animation academy? Kid wise.