The ABCs of a New 'Ohana Adventure-G is for: Greetings From Teppan, Good-Byes, and Good News!!! - COMPLETED 1/7

[Steppesister]

to date I have not done any of these "extras" really, mostly because I have never had the time trying to see and do everything else. That said, this was supposed to be the year with my AP where I'd have time to do more trips and take more time to smell the roses....now we all know how that turned out...but hopefully 2021 will see more of that and more time to pay attention to the little things. I can't believe how well some of those Pascals are hidden...it's quite amazing that you found them all.

Hopefully, Kathy, with the extensions of APs you'll still get that time to slow and smell the roses. I was the same in my earlier days of Disney trips when it was more important to simply get on the attractions and see the shows. It wasn't until several trips in that I added the extras and didn't feel like I had to do EVERYTHING every trip.

And you are right! Some of them are so well hidden it took me YEARS!

 

[vamassey1]

Congrats on getting your badges. I don't think I would have the patience to do it so I commend you. Your Italy tip sound fabulous. Do you plan to do a trip report on it?

 

[Steppesister]

It's so cute that you did this. When we did the VIP Tour in March, Jon pointed out all the Pascals!!!! So, it was cool seeing them all up close in your blog.

I'm glad I did it, just for the bragging rights. I didn't know you guys had time for that on the last stop on that tour! LOL! I thought you raced to 7DMT and called it a day.

 

[Steppesister]

As long as you're not flying through the thunderstorm.

It's been a long time since I've studied, but I believe it's 20 mile avoidance.

A very, very important one.

Good for you! I remember when you spoke of them before and couldn't find that last one.

Glad to have the bragging rights.

Oh, no. They're not. Which is now there's only nine and I have this neat little souvenir.

It looks great on my deck.

I'm not even a little bit surprised. I walked by and gave it a cursory glance... then another... then a long look... then searched in earnest

It's a bit addicting.

I love how Anara finds it but it clinched "your" success in finding them!

Oh, man. That's a tough one. I know I didn't find that one!

I don't know if I'd have found that one on my own tbh.

It took me a while to find that even in your photo!! Yikes!

I know!! Some were SO HARD!

Hmmm... I can't really think of too much other than the Pirate's Adventure. I enjoyed that. Fun.

Now that you have an AP, maybe you can take some do take a few more in.

 

[Steppesister]

Hey, congratulations! Some of those look really tricky.

Believe me.

It's a good thing there's a potty right there. For those of us who have to see it through.

If I have the time, sure. I remember doing a scavenger hunt provided by the front desk of the Wilderness Lodge. And collecting transportation trading cards from the drivers. All those little things add a little magic to the Disney experience.

Nice!! I started one there of Hidden Mickey's (given to me by the front desk). Didn't get very far on it... but that chapter's coming...

I don't think I've ever even SEEN a transportation trading card. Post one and show me. I do remember my kids getting a monorail "driver" one a billion years ago. Yes... magical!

 

[Steppesister]

Congrats on getting your badges. I don't think I would have the patience to do it so I commend you. Your Italy tip sound fabulous. Do you plan to do a trip report on it?

YAY me! LOL!! It served to see a lot more of AK and some of the kiosks were in places I'd NEVER have gone otherwise, like the Dinoland play area and a certain trail by the Tree of Life.

Yes, I will do a TR on it, but probably not on this TR area. I think there's another area where other travel goes. ???

 

[pkondz]

If you know me at all, I’m a sucker for hunts and games and challenges in and around the Disney properties,

As your last chapter illustrated.

Free is good you know.

It’s even better when given with chocolate.

Wait... free chocolate?
nah... too much to ask for.

Ready to become a Wilderness Explorer with me?

I'd say yes... but I've read ahead and seen the time commitment. So... nope!

The only cost will be time. A lot of time.

tooooo much time! I don't have that kind of time!

Then again... you did say you did it over more than one trip. Maybe if they keep it for a few... years.

CMs who will guide you through a super cheesy “swearing in”

What was that like? Please tell me it was at least moderately embarrassing.

a 29-give-or-take-a-few young lady… ahem….

I totally believe you.

The challenge is to find the locations, do the accompanying activities, and collect all 31 Wilderness Badges.

31!?!?!?
If it was... 7... maybe.

if you’re having a bit of a hard time locating the kiosks, but once you do, you’ll learn something. I promise.

To not start the process?

there are little projects, questions, or challenges to do

I particularly was impressed with the bat house you drew. Such talent!

But honestly it, more than anything, satiates the Completist in me.

Knew this about you.

There’s something wholly gratifying in applying the little stickers throughout the Handbook that scratches my Accomplishment Bone.

After what added up to a total of probably somewhere around 12 hours of hunting and doing,

I became a Senior Wilderness Explorer

Congratulations! Sounds like it was well earned.

and am seriously considering going as one for a Halloween Party someday.

Oh! that's a great idea.

Speaking of Exploring, I’ve spent an entire week resting and recuperating at my parents’ home in Kentucky and spend pretty much the entire time mapping out my September trip to Italy.

Sounds like you had a nice time.

In a nutshell, I’ll be spending 3 weeks in Rome, Tuscany including Florence, Venice, the Puglia Region, and Naples.

Wow! 3 weeks! That's great!

My mouth is already drooling for pizza, espresso, Chianti, pasta, and gelato.

Great. Mine is too, now... and I'm not going!

Most sources are saying the monuments and museums will be opening up on June 3rd.

Really! That fast! I'm both surprised and happy for you.

One massive snafu is that literally 2 hours after I booked a rental car with Hertz I heard that they may be folding.

Oh, no. I heard they declared bankruptcy.

 

[pkondz]

It's been a long time since I've studied, but I believe it's 20 mile avoidance.

5 miles, but 20 is strongly encouraged.

Glad to have the bragging rights.

It looks great on my deck.

It's a bit addicting.

No kidding!

"I'm not gonna do this, it's silly. Besides, there's one right there."
"And there's another. Too easy. I'm sure I can find another..."

...

"WHERE'S THAT LAST ONE?!?!?!?!?!?"

Now that you have an AP, maybe you can take some do take a few more in.

Yeah... about that.
I just got an email from Universal. It says "Welcome back!" And goes on to tell me how the park is opening and how my AP is extended....

Big deal. I can't get into the country, let alone the park.
I have a feeling that my AP for Disney will activate before the border opens, too.
If (if!!) the border opens and it's safe to travel and the restrictions for me (14 day quarantine upon return) aren't odious... I'll head on down. But... it sure doesn't look like it'll be anytime soon.

 

[Terra Nova guy]

Now it’s YOUR TURN:
Have you done any of the non-attraction “extras” around the parks like hunts or collecting? Tell me about your successes or, if you don’t enjoy them, why not?

My family has never done one of the organized challenges like Sorcerers or Wilderness Explorer.
We did take a little time to find Pascals once but only got 4 or 5.
But of course we always do our self invented Princess challenge where we meet all 11 official princesses. We’ve done it every trip and I’ve gotten so attached to it I think I would keep doing it even if the girls are not traveling with us.

In a nutshell, I’ll be spending 3 weeks in Rome, Tuscany including Florence, Venice, the Puglia Region, and Naples.

I hope everything works out for you. I would love to get to Italy one day, with the food being a big part of the reason why!

 

[missjackiemcg]

Our family absolutely LOVES the Wilderness Explorer adventure at AK. Jimmy had so much fun learning and earning his badges, that he even requested a second stop at a couple of the posts. He got duplicate badges for stopping by again, which was not necessary, but so nice

My only wish is that at the end, when you've completed the whole book, you could go back to the Wilderness Explorer post where you start off, and they would give you an "I'm celebrating" type button that says you are a Senior Explorer! Wouldn't that be so cool?!

 

[Steppesister]

X is for: X Marks the Spot(s)!

​

Happy Memorial Weekend, All who celebrate and remember! After a week of vacation away from all things work and chores, I am rested and rejuvenated, ready to carry on for the next several months before a much bigger vacation. Hopefully. I’m holding it all with an open palm ready to give it up if circumstances out of my control dictate. Time will certainly tell, and I know I am not alone in all of this nonsense.

I know these last few chapters have been short and to the point. I apologize for the ho-hum nature of the writing and perhaps content, but I’m trying to do a bit of “tidying up” so to speak with a few things I wanted to share. Maybe these little “hunts” and “challenges”… games…whatever you want to call them don’t float your boat, but I do enjoy them and perhaps you’ll find some value in the information I pass along. If not, feel free to skip entirely and it won’t hurt my feelings one iota.

In addition to the Wilderness Badges and the Pascal Hunts I completed this trip, I also did the Remy Hunt in EPCOT. In one day. And for a fee.

Let me expound…

Every year, the Festivals have a little hide and seek game to keep you on the hunt. Food and Wine is no different and all around the park are hidden Remy’s you can look for. Once in the park at various locations, you can purchase a map that comes with stickers for each Remy you find. It’s not expensive in the grand scheme of things, and for $6.99 (less if you’re an AP holder) you get the map and stickers and you’re on your way! In exchange for your completed map (you do get to keep it, but I didn’t) you get to choose from 4 cold beverage cups. I’ll show you those choices and which one I got at the end of this chapter. I mean… I doubt you could find a similar cup with lid in the Emporium or MouseGears for $6.99. The fine print is that Disney is making a giant killing off these hunts because they draw the game-players into the shops where they stick you for ginormous markups. It's also friggin' hot in WS and hunting works up a wicked thrist; they're gonna nail you on drinks too.

Anyway, on this particular hot, September morning, my kids ditched me (which was fine, we had loads and plenty of time together) which freed me up to tackle this little tour around EPCOT. Remy was waiting to show me the world- no magic carpet required. Of course, I’d be squeezing in a few samples from the F&W kiosks to keep up my stamina. Just as Disney's marketing team planned. It was the expensive right thing to do. Map in hand, I started in FW and found a few as I started my Eat-a-thon.

(and a little libation as well marked up at 500%)​

I started off and found a few, but not all, of them. I headed towards FW and started in Canada because that’s the best way to make a WS circuit.

​

One by one, I ticked off the rat sightings and collected my “ingredients” for a nice dish of ratatouille. “Huh?”, you might be saying. Each Remy was holding in his dainty little paws an ingredient included in the namesake dish of his story-made-movie. In the end, you collected garlic, parsley, eggplant and so forth. On the back of the map you applied the stickers to as you found each Remy had the recipe for this signature dish of French peasants as an additional keepsake. Nice touch, I thought.

​

This, as with all of these sorts of hunts, included some that were quite easy to find; others were quite difficult and vexed me greatly. (I really need to watch Pride and Prejudice again- Mrs. Bennet is like a train wreck you can’t stop watching but cringe deeply. If you've seen the movies, you know exactly what I am referring to.) I confess, I did my fair share of asking for hints from amongst the CMs who I came across. I took a sorbet break in France, and that’s where I made friends with the autistic boy where we chatted for quite some time about this and that of Disney, just to tie parts of this TR together.

​

Moving forward... some were in shops, some on food kiosks, others hidden well on pavilion exteriors. See if you can find them all!

(promise... he's there.)








Look closely!




(Yes, he's there too. Just gotta look harder.)​

I ended up back at Mexico because we were going to all meet up for that yummy dinner at San Angel that I’ve already written about. As you’ll recall, that was a surprise favorite for this trip.

​

Not having quite finished up with my quest, after dinner I circled back around to FW and snagged the last couple that I hadn’t found yet.

​

DONE!! Completed map in hand, I trotted off to the redemption center at Disney Traders at the entrance to WS. It goes without saying that the walk between FW and WS after an already long day in the parks sucks hard. But, when a job must be completed, it must be done.

... I paid for that cup, and by golly, I’m gonna get it!

​

And in honor of my grand achievement, I’m having a nice big cup of ice water with a slice of lemon in it right now for posterity. Here’s to you Remy… thanks for the memories!

​

 

[Wood Nymph]

I never considered that adults could participate in Wilderness Explorers, but of course Disney would allow them to play, too. It looks very educational and a good way to spend the day in AK.

Your trip to Italy sounds wonderful. Did you find that they were offering lower prices than normal for hotels and airfare?

I knew that you had to pay for the Remy hunt in WS, but I didn't know you got a drink glass as a prize. That makes it worth it.

 

[missjackiemcg]

I really enjoyed coming along on your jaunt through WS!! Ariana (@Pluto0809 ) and I did the hunt for Spike the Bee during Flower and Garden on our Epic trip. He was near a patch of a specific kind of flower in each garden that we had to sticker into place on the map. I agree, it's a fun little adventure, and the prize is worthwhile! (We also snacked and drank our way around.....genius marketing....while doing our search.) Our prize was a set of patches. I believe Minnie gardening was one of the options, but I remember we both went with the Figment set.

 

[disneyAndi14]

I enjoy your scavenger hunts. We have tried to find all the Pascals and have come up short!
We have also started the WE and have never completed it, we are quitters
I have always wanted to try the WS hunt during the festivals but have yet to do one. I will one of these trips!
I hope the Italy trip happens, it sounds wonderful! I have been twice and hope to go back again someday.

 

[pkondz]

After a week of vacation away from all things work and chores, I am rested and rejuvenated,

Good!

before a much bigger vacation. Hopefully. I’m holding it all with an open palm ready to give it up if circumstances out of my control dictate. Time will certainly tell, and I know I am not alone in all of this nonsense.

Yeah... I hope that works out for you, but as of right now, I'm not making any plans at all. Actually, I got a call this morning from my supervisor asking if I wanted any summer leave (I'm at the top of the seniority list, so he had to call me in order to move on) and I told him no. What's the point? Where am I supposed to go?

I apologize for the ho-hum nature of the writing

Hardly.

Maybe these little “hunts” and “challenges”… games…whatever you want to call them

Quest.

don’t float your boat

It depends. Short little games are fine, but the longer ones? I just don't usually have the time for them.
If a game is going to take a few hours and I only have a few hours... to do everything else... something has to give.

I also did the Remy Hunt in EPCOT.

I spotted a few of them.

In one day.

Is this not the norm? Do people normally do it over a few days? I really don't have any idea.

It’s not expensive in the grand scheme of things, and for $6.99 (less if you’re an AP holder) you get the map and stickers and you’re on your way! In exchange for your completed map (you do get to keep it, but I didn’t) you get to choose from 4 cold beverage cups.

Yeah, that's not bad. Fun plus a "free" gift at the end.

The fine print is that Disney is making a giant killing off these hunts because they draw the game-players into the shops where they stick you for ginormous markups. It's also friggin' hot in WS and hunting works up a wicked thrist; they're gonna nail you on drinks too.

Plus... not everyone will complete it. I can see parents giving in and doing it for their kids who quit after finding 2-3. Plus I also see people not returning for their cup.

my kids ditched me

At a certain age, you have to keep them from wandering off. Then you can't lose them if you wanted to. Then you have to insist they stay with you. Then they leave you. Then you can't get rid of them again.

Circle of parenting life.

Of course, I’d be squeezing in a few samples from the F&W kiosks to keep up my stamina. Just as Disney's marketing team planned.

I'm thinking you were okay with that.

It was the expensive right thing to do.

Wow that looks good. Bloody Mary, I presume?

I headed towards FW and started in Canada because that’s the best way to make a WS circuit.

Unless you go the other way. Deny it if you dare.

collected my “ingredients” for a nice dish of ratatouille. “Huh?”, you might be saying. Each Remy was holding in his dainty little paws an ingredient included in the namesake dish of his story-made-movie. In the end, you collected garlic, parsley, eggplant and so forth. On the back of the map you applied the stickers to as you found each Remy had the recipe for this signature dish of French peasants as an additional keepsake. Nice touch, I thought.

Nice little added touch.

(I really need to watch Pride and Prejudice again- Mrs. Bennet is like a train wreck you can’t stop watching but cringe deeply. If you've seen the movies, you know exactly what I am referring to.)

'Fraid not. Never read it nor seen it.

I took a sorbet break in France,

mmmm…. sorbet. Love sorbet.

and that’s where I made friends with the autistic boy where we chatted for quite some time about this and that of Disney

I remember.

(promise... he's there.)

Found him. Easy one.

Look closely!

Okay that one was tougher!

(Yes, he's there too. Just gotta look harder.)

Got him! And again, not easy.

I paid for that cup, and by golly, I’m gonna get it!

This surprises me not at all.

I think I'd pick that one too. Not positive, since I can only see one side of the cups, but... probably.

 

[LexisAuntieLala]

Made it through your entire trip report so far! Am really enjoying it! We haven’t been to Disney in a couple years, but i used to read trip reports all the time! Now we are planning our next trip, fingers crossed, sobI am back! Thanks for scavenger hunt ideas! I love to do those especially when there is a prize! We did Easter eggs last time we went to Disney!

 

[Steppesister]

As your last chapter illustrated.

And the next!!!

Wait... free chocolate?
nah... too much to ask for.

I'd love some right now!

I'd say yes... but I've read ahead and seen the time commitment. So... nope!

I know.... you have a lot of other stuff to keep you busy.

tooooo much time! I don't have that kind of time!

Then again... you did say you did it over more than one trip. Maybe if they keep it for a few... years.

I'm sure they will. There's a lot of work that went into it.

What was that like? Please tell me it was at least moderately embarrassing.

31!?!?!?
If it was... 7... maybe.

I know.... so MANY!!

To not start the process?

LOL!

I particularly was impressed with the bat house you drew. Such talent!

We can't all be perfect in everything. I am excellent at eating... drawing not so much.

Wow! 3 weeks! That's great!

It's enough time to see a good portion. But like many places in Europe there's always more. I honestly don't think I'd ever tire of it

Great. Mine is too, now... and I'm not going!

But you HAVE been. Read that TR, ya know.

Really! That fast! I'm both surprised and happy for you.

I am checking a lot to see what the statuses are. We'll see...

Oh, no. I heard they declared bankruptcy.

I think it's still in process. I'm not hopeful. My air ticket on Norwegian Air that was booked by RCL is also in jeopardy, so I'm getting another ticket TO Rome as a backup. If Norwegian cancels I can use it for getting there next May for the cruise.

No kidding!

"I'm not gonna do this, it's silly. Besides, there's one right there."
"And there's another. Too easy. I'm sure I can find another..."

...

"WHERE'S THAT LAST ONE?!?!?!?!?!?"

That was pretty much it. I mean once you start, and you're down to that last one, you just CAN'T give up!!

Yeah... about that.
I just got an email from Universal. It says "Welcome back!" And goes on to tell me how the park is opening and how my AP is extended....

Big deal. I can't get into the country, let alone the park.
I have a feeling that my AP for Disney will activate before the border opens, too.
If (if!!) the border opens and it's safe to travel and the restrictions for me (14 day quarantine upon return) aren't odious... I'll head on down. But... it sure doesn't look like it'll be anytime soon.

I think it'd be fair and reasonable for them to start doling out AP refunds for the foreign customers. Goes for both companies.

I think the quarantines will be short-lived once we see that there won't be any surges that overwhelm any medical systems that are mitigated to the hilt now- which was the intent, lest I need to remind again.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

I especially love it when these fun little games are FREE.

*--with the cost of admission.

They are ALL over the park in every area, some much harder to find than others. Usually the CMs are quite helpful if you’re having a bit of a hard time locating the kiosks, but once you do, you’ll learn something. I promise. Often, they are staffed with college kids who have to do their homework or with older CMs who’ve had the time and want to do their homework. You can spend as much time as you’d like at each kiosk and some CMs, like everywhere, are more engaging than others. As you trek along, using the maps and clues in the Handbook, there are little projects, questions, or challenges to do before you get your badge.

I would expect Drew to be up for this, given his Junior Ranger experience.

It’s actually quite a lot of fun. But honestly it, more than anything, satiates the Completist in me. There’s something wholly gratifying in applying the little stickers throughout the Handbook that scratches my Accomplishment Bone. Silly for sure.

That's pretty much exactly what we do with our national park passport!

Speaking of Exploring, I’ve spent an entire week resting and recuperating at my parents’ home in Kentucky and spend pretty much the entire time mapping out my September trip to Italy.

I hope you get to pull off this trip! It sounds amazing.

One massive snafu is that literally 2 hours after I booked a rental car with Hertz I heard that they may be folding.

Hope you get to pull it off. Bankruptcy doesn't necessarily mean closing down...

After a week of vacation away from all things work and chores, I am rested and rejuvenated, ready to carry on for the next several months before a much bigger vacation.

I was kind of jealous that you were able to leave your home (and state!).

Maybe these little “hunts” and “challenges”… games…whatever you want to call them don’t float your boat, but I do enjoy them and perhaps you’ll find some value in the information I pass along.

I enjoy them and enjoy watching the kids complete the tasks. I doubt I'd spend the whole day on it, though. My "gotta get on rides!" meter would be filling up fast.

It was the expensive right thing to do.

This is Disney, in a nutshell.

(I really need to watch Pride and Prejudice again- Mrs. Bennet is like a train wreck you can’t stop watching but cringe deeply. If you've seen the movies, you know exactly what I am referring to.)

I bet the train wreck was awesome, like in The Fugitive.

(promise... he's there.)

Had to work on that one for a while.

Look closely!

And I couldn't see this without zooming in.

It goes without saying that the walk between FW and WS after an already long day in the parks sucks hard.

Done that one many times. My feet never hurt more than when I'm at Disney.

 

[Steppesister]

My family has never done one of the organized challenges like Sorcerers or Wilderness Explorer.
We did take a little time to find Pascals once but only got 4 or 5.
But of course we always do our self invented Princess challenge where we meet all 11 official princesses. We’ve done it every trip and I’ve gotten so attached to it I think I would keep doing it even if the girls are not traveling with us.


I hope everything works out for you. I would love to get to Italy one day, with the food being a big part of the reason why!

Your challenge is LOT harder I think than any I've ever done! I've seen how long they can take and how much work you put into them. Sometimes I wonder if it's less the content, and more the challenge of just finding something a bit more unique to do in the parks.

Little by little, the trip is coming together. One major developement is that my youngest MIGHT come with me now. I'll know in the next days or so.

 

[Steppesister]

Our family absolutely LOVES the Wilderness Explorer adventure at AK. Jimmy had so much fun learning and earning his badges, that he even requested a second stop at a couple of the posts. He got duplicate badges for stopping by again, which was not necessary, but so nice

My only wish is that at the end, when you've completed the whole book, you could go back to the Wilderness Explorer post where you start off, and they would give you an "I'm celebrating" type button that says you are a Senior Explorer! Wouldn't that be so cool?!

Aren't they a blast?! I really have had some awesome interactions with some- especially the cultural ones where the CM is from a certain country, like Thailand or India, and they tell you about their home. AMAZING!!

I think they could do one better!! Why not a limited edition PIN?! Or a set of badges you could buy. I KNOW there is a market there and Disney is seriously missing out on this merch opportunity.