The Great Scooter Adventure, Christmas 06, now done

[tkd lisa]

Well, we’re back from our last WDW trip for 2006. It was a really great time, and once again it proved that no matter how many times you visit Disney World, it can be different every time!

First, the title of the report. I decided that my Mom’s scooter was probably the central focus of this trip, so I decided on “The Great Scooter Adventure”. You may remember that my mom had knee surgery the 1st of December. Her knee had bothered her our last couple of trips, and they finally decided to operate. It turned out she had a tear on both sides of her left meniscus. At first, she was sure she wouldn’t need a scooter, but I convinced her the trip would be much better with one, so I rented it from Walker Mobility and had it delivered to our resort.

Cast: Me, 42 year old single mom
DM, my mom, late 60s
DD, 14 1/2 , loves thrill rides
DS, 13, not a thrill rider

Occasion: My mom’s birthday, and enjoying the Christmas decorations
When: 18-20 Dec 2006
Where: Boardwalk Villas on the 19th, Animal Kingdom Lodge on the 20th

I had made very loose plans for this trip. The plans for today were: Arrive at BWV by 9 and pick up our scooter. Go to MK for the morning, then return to BWV in the early afternoon. After a break, we’d try to hit the early Candelight Processional at EPCOT, moving over to MGM for the Osborne Lights. I expected DD and I to stay for late evening EMH at MGM.

Here’s what really happened.

We left home by 7:15 and were at the Boardwalk in an hour. I went in to checkin while Mom left the car and baggage with valet (got to love that free valet with DVC membership!). I asked the CM at the desk if we could be close to the elevator to make the scooter access easier. He looked at his computer and said “I couldn’t possibly give you a standard studio that was any closer to the elevator!” They wheeled our scooter from around the back, and we were off! I gave Mom a quick driving lesson. We also discovered that her horn didn’t work, which was probably just as well. I did snap a quick photo of DD with the Boardwalk Christmas tree. DS wasn't in a photo mood, as usual.

We headed down the ramp to the bus stop. The first bus to arrive was MK, within about 7-8 minutes. Mom decided I should load up the scooter for her. Thankfully, this bus driver was very helpful! The bus was the kind that uses an elevator to lift up the wheelchair. To me, that was the best kind to use! I got the scooter on without any trouble, and the rest of the family hopped on. We stopped by the Swan and Dolphin, and were at MK by 8:55. I sent the kids on into the park, and Mom and I waited to unload the scooter. We took our time heading in, then stopped by guest services to get a birthday button for Mom. Here’s a couple of pictures we snapped on our way in. The weather was absolutely BEAUTIFUL. It was in the low 80s all day long.

My mom wanted to ride the Liberty Bell riverboat, so I checked the times guide and saw that it was supposed to start running at 10. DS was hanging out in tomorrowland at the arcade and didn’t want to join us. DD said she’d meet us for the boat ride. While we were waiting, Mom and I went on Haunted Mansion. The moving sidewalks were a little bit of a challenge for her, so we just let everyone go in front of us so we weren’t in a hurry. As we left the ride, I was showing her some of the tombstones, and she said “Hey isn’t this the place with the ring? Where is it?” So I asked the CM if he could show me. He told me that they had actually taken it out, but said that it never really was a ring. He said that there were originally gates at the exit, and there was a round hole where a post was dropped to lock the gate into place. Once the removed the gate, they tried to pry up the metal ring that surrounded the hole and the tool they used broke off in the ring. They just filled in the opening, and left it that way. It was a surprise to Disney that people thought that it was a wedding ring. Recently, they refinished the area, and removed the whole thing. So I guess I’ll never see the actual “ring”, even though I’ve seen pictures. I did get a good picture of the carriage out front!

We headed over to catch the Liberty Belle, but the sign at the dock said it wouldn’t be running until 11. So we headed over to Fantasy Land. I pulled FPs for Peter Pan, then we went into Mickey’s Philharmagic. DD called and met us there. DS was still in the Arcade, but he told me that he had won some kind of race. Mom drove her scooter into Philharmagic, and this was when I started to get an appreciation for how much work those things can be. She did okay working through the line. Most of it was blocked off since there weren’t many people in line. But when we got into the theater, she had a hard time parking it in the right spot. Luckily, there were other wheelchair spots, because she took up about 3 of them! We really did enjoy the show, but the wheelchair spots definitely aren’t the best viewing location. After this, we had about 5 minutes until our PP FPs were ripe, so Mom and I went in Small World. DD sat out, since that song gets stuck in her head! She sat on Mom’s scooter and read her book. Mom tried out her new camera (birthday gift), and got some interesting shots of her knees! She figured out that “delete” feature pretty quickly! The three of us went on Peter Pan, being careful with that moving walkway again, then headed over to TomorrowLand.

I wanted to watch the High School Musical Pep Ralley, so I called DS and told him to join us there. He wasn’t thrilled with the whole thing, but he humored me. Mom and DD liked the show. If you hadn’t seen the movie, it would be pretty confusing though. I have to agree that it does seem out of place in Tomorrowland. I also thought it was IN the Galaxy theater, but it was actually right in the main area outside of Space Mountain, so it was a bit of a bottleneck. We were all starting to get hungry, so we headed over to Cosmic Ray’s, which was a first for us. I ordered chicken strips for DD, and the ½ chicken meal which the rest of us shared. DS showed me his magical moments certificate. He said that they had some sort of car race in the arcade, and he won. He also had scoped out two rides that he REALLY wanted to go on, so I gave him $3 and he headed back over there after lunch. We ate in that section down by Sonny Eclipse. If you haven’t seen it, it’s a robotic type guy who sings pun filled lounge songs. It’s certainly not quiet, but it’s pretty fun. My mom decided to drive the scooter into the dining area, which was a bit of a challenge, but it worked out okay.

After lunch, Mom and DD headed back toward Frontierland. Mom wanted a picture of DD in the stocks to show how much she had grown. Way back on our trip in 99, she had a picture of the kids there, and she was working on an album of Disney pictures. I stopped over at the DVC booth to check on our room availability, and I was waiting on DS to finish his rides in the arcade. Our room was ready, but by the time DS and I made it across to Frontierland, the boat was pulling away from the dock. I called and confirmed that mom and DD were on the boat, then DS and I did a bit of shopping. He had $20 to buy a Christmas gift for his girlfriend. He decided on matching leather wristband with their names on it. He picked out the colors and charms he wanted and waited for them to be made. By that time, the boat was back, and we decided to head out to our room.

Our next bus ride wasn’t quite as good. The driver didn’t seem to understand exactly how to fasten the scooter in. The bus was the kind with the ramp that flipped out, and those aren’t quite as easy to maneuver in. He finally got the scooter hooked in, and loaded the bus, which was fairly full. But when he started to pull out, the bus wouldn’t move! Turned out he had forgotten to “unkneel” the bus! I thought he had missed a step! He was pretty grumpy about the whole thing though.

I stopped by bell services to get our luggage sent up. DS decided that his shorts would double as a swim suit, so he headed out to the pool. Our room was literally 3 rooms down from the elevator on the 3rd floor (one up from the lobby). It was a very good location. We were right over the pull through for valet parking. Our bags were there in about 5 minutes and Mom and I changed into our suits and hit the hot tub. Here’s some snapshots of our room.

Up next, enjoying the Christmas events!

 

[OhMari]

I can tell that you are a native of Florida, you seem so relaxed telling your story, letting your son go to the arcade by himself, yet you still keep in contact with cell phones. You are so lucky you live so close to WDW.

I see so many people complain about the scooters, but there always two sides to the story, I'm glad you are telling your experience with one that your mother is using. It sounds like it is not not easy and it takes a lot of patience.

Thanks for sharing your TR, hope to read more.

 

[tiki23]

Indeed, thanks so much for your report. Not only is it fun hearing about your family adventures, but I want to take my Mom to Disneyland within the next couple of years and I'll know she'll need a scooter, so your insight is very helpful!

 

[tkd lisa]

Thanks for the replies. Yes, we definitely visit WDW a LOT so I'm pretty comfortable letting my teens have some "alone" time. I think we've been there about 30 days this year. I'm definitely getting my money's worth out of our seasonal passes! I do insist that they either stay in the resort or in the same park as I'm in. And I'm not comfortable with them on their own at Downtown Disney yet.

There are more scooter adventures to come but overall, I'm very glad we got it. Now back to the story!

Evening of December 18th

When I left off, we had just checked into our studio at the BWVs. Our room was really beautiful. I do like the décor in the Boardwalk. It’s just so light and airy. The vanity is closed in underneath which just makes the look smoother. Here are a couple more photos of the bathroom area.

Once I had our stuff out that we needed for the evening, Mom and I went down to use the hot tub. We met DS on his way back up. He said that he’d enjoyed the pool, but wanted to use the workout room. Mom checked out their exercise bikes and said that she’d join him down there once she was done with the hot tub. She’s supposed to do 20 minutes of exercise for her knee each day. She said the bikes were very nice. There was hardly anyone in there when we were there. You do need closed shoes in order to use the equipment. They sent a couple of young men back to their room because they had on flip flops.

Once back in the room, DS decided to stay back while the ladies went over to EPCOT. DD had some grand plans to get my Christmas gift in the Japan pavilion. She needed Grandma with her though. She also had $20 to buy something for her brother for Christmas. So we walked over to the International Gateway and I went left while they went right. We entered the park about 3:15 or so, which meant we had plenty of time for the 5:00 Candelight Processional. I caught the very tail end of an Off Kilter set, and saw that the next show was at 4:00. The candy lady was working at 3:40, so I headed back over to Japan. Mom and DD were there. Mom and I decided that she and DD would hold our spot for the CP while I watched the next Off Kilter set. I grabbed a few pictures of the story teller in Canada which turned out pretty nice.

He was very interesting. He explained that since Canada is such a big country, there aren’t really National traditions, they are mainly regional traditions. He explained that the traditions are mainly based on what the regions’ settlers brought with them when they immigrated. For example, Quebec has Pere Noel, since it’s a predominantly French region. And one of the western provinces emphasized Scandanavian traditions, etc.

I settled in for a few songs of Off Kilter (here’s the best picture I got since all the benches were full), and my phone buzzed. DD said “Mom, you’ve GOT to come over here. Grandma’s going to hurt someone with that scooter, and I just can’t take it!” Mom got on the phone and said that they were in the line and the CM said they would probably get into the 5:00 show. The line wasn’t moving yet, so she would just stay put. I walked that way and met up with DD as she was heading to the International Gateway. She insisted that I open my Christmas gift right there. She had picked a pearl for me and Grandma had paid for the setting. She did pick a very nice one. Here’s a picture of it.

I called DS and told him his sister was on the way over. He said that he wanted to explore the Boardwalk area and I said that would be fine, but he had to keep the phone with him. I met up with Mom, who was just past the end of the rope line. She was behind a very nice family from Great Britain. I think they said they were from Manchester? We had a nice conversation about our plans to move over to AKL the next day. Mom showed me what DD had gotten for her brother’s gift. She picked out an anime t-shirt, but she didn’t realize that they were children’s sizes, so the shirt would be too small. I started to head to Japan to exchange the shirt when the line started moving, so I headed back in line. By this time, the walkways in world showcase were getting REALLY crowded. And moving through the line required some fancy steering. Thankfully the people were kind, and just kept an eye out behind them so no maiming occurred!

Once we got up to the pavilion, the CM asked if Mom could transfer, explaining that she’d have better seats if she could. I parked the scooter while Mom found seats for us. We were on the side where the Disney performers entered and exited. The local performers (usually high school kids) come in through the back. Our guest narrator was Doogie Howser, and he was very good. For those who haven’t seen the show, there’s a large orchestra (including 6 herald trumpets!) and a mixed choir who form a Christmas tree shape on the stage. The choir includes: The Voices of Liberty (the choir group who perform in the American pavilion), volunteer CMs from around Disney World, and local choirs who are usually high school students. My DD’s high school had performed there about a week before we were there. The choir performs about 10 different Christmas songs, some traditional, some new arrangements which are mixed in with the narrator’s reading of the Christmas story. We had an interpreter (sign language) who was EXCELLENT. It was so neat to watch her beautiful motions which really conveyed the feeling of the music. My brother is deaf, so I can understand some ASL. The show was truly awe inspiring! I know I was in tears at the end! One word of caution (which I should have known)! Bring a light jacket! It was in the mid 80s when we sat down, but that breeze picked up and it got downright chilly during the show. I wrapped the plastic shopping bag over my mom’s legs, and that kept her fairly comfortable.

Once the show was over, we waited for most of the crowd to clear out of the theater then I went after Mom’s scooter. The Voices of Liberty were exiting just as we got over there. I chatted for a minute or two, telling them how much we enjoyed their performances every time we saw them. Mom came over and the soprano saw her birthday button. So Mom got a personal Happy Birthday song by the VOL! That was her favorite part of the trip! Even though the theater was empty by now, the walkway was insanely crowded. It was dark by this time, and Mom’s scooter didn’t have a light. She decided to slide in behind another scooter and just take it slowly out of the park. I went ahead to the Japan pavilion to exchange the shirt for a bigger size, and we met up just outside of the park exit. Mom was really stressed over steering the scooter through the crowd. She kept saying “But they just cut right in front of me, and I CAN’T stop that fast!”

We made it back to the room, and fixed a small snack. DS wanted to see the Osborne Lights and ride RnR. DD decided she wasn’t feeling well and would just stay in the room and watch TV. She wasn’t interested in EMH or the lights. I made her some Macaroni and Cheese, then the rest of us headed back down the path to MGM. The park closed at 8, and we got there about 7:15. DS went on ahead to ride on RnR and get his EMH wrist band. We only had two goals: see the Osborne Lights and pick up our AP lithographs at the Prop Shop. I found out that the Prop Shop is back by the Backlot Tour, which was near the back entrance to the Osborne Lights. Great! There shouldn’t be too many people back there yet since Fantasmic is still playing. But there was just one minor problem. We needed to get our EMH wristbands, and the only location for that was down by RnR. Let me tell you, the seas of humanity were on that street as we were trying to head down it. It was truly a miracle that no one was hurt! I decided then and there to change my Disney ways! I know I have walked in front of scooters many times in the past and I hereby vow to never do that again! With the wristbands firmly attached, we headed back down the street toward the quiet area near the old Who Wants to be a Millionare? DS said that he was in the animation studio since RnR’s line was way too long. He did get his wristband before he left. Mom and I found the prop shop and picked up two lithographs of “Dumbo’s Flight”. We had both gotten vouchers since we have different addresses and aren’t considered one family. It’s always nice to get something for free!

We started in the back entrance to the Osborne Lights, and Mom figured out pretty quickly that the scooter wasn’t going to work in there. I drove it back out and parked it while Mom waited on a bench. Then we slowly made our way through most of the display. We got to see it “snow” and watched a cycle of the dancing lights. Our cycle was done to the “Carol of the Bells” which was really cool! For those who haven’t seen it, the Osborne Lights is a humongous display which covers most of the buildings in the Street of America down towards the Lights Motors Action show. And they now have some of it synchronized to music so that the different lights seem to dance in time! It was really wonderful to watch! By this time, it was about 8:30 and Mom and I were ready to head out. DS had finished with the animation tour (he drew Stitch and did a fairly good job). He made a quick trip through the lights while I got Mom a cup of hot chocolate. By this time, the non EMH crowds had cleared out so we had a fairly easy trip out of the park and down the path to the Boardwalk.

DS stopped by a cart for a churro on the way back to the room. Since they were closing the cart, he got two for one! Hey, more free stuff from Disney! We settled down for the evening, but the EPCOT fireworks started up. DS went out onto the balcony and could watch them over the entrance to the resort. DD gets grumpy when she’s tired, and that great location was starting to backfire on us. Every person that was on our floor had to walk past our room, and many of them weren’t using their “inside” voices! I stuffed some towels under the door to muffle the noise, and she finally fell asleep about 11:00. Note to self: Close to the elevator isn’t a good thing for a quiet room.

Up next: EPCOT EMH, Behind the Seeds Tour and Tea at the Grand Floridian. Lots of pictures in that installment.

 

[tkd lisa]

Tuesday, 19 Dec

Plans for the day: EPCOT EMH, Behind the Seeds Tour, Tea at Grand Floridian at 2:00 with friends, then Boma at 7:00.

Today did go according to plans for once! As seems to be the norm for me on vacation, I woke up really early (about 3:30 am), and couldn’t go back to sleep. I finally gave up trying about 4:15, and brewed a pot of coffee. Once it was done, I poured a mug and headed down to the lobby. I sat in front of the fire and had devotions. Once I was done, I still wasn’t sleepy, so I found all the hidden mickeys on the Boardwalk Christmas display. Then I decided to walk around inside some to try to get tired. I wandered the entire 3rd floor of the villas. I was looking for the cottages, but never did see them. I did see something called “The Attic”. Does anyone know what that is? It was closed up (not surprised since it was only 5:30 by then), but seemed to be a lounge? I finally laid back down and slept for a couple more hours. Everyone was up by 7:30. After a quick breakfast in the room, I let the kids head over to EPCOT by themselves, while Mom and I waited for bell services to pick up our luggage for the transfer to AKL. The kids knew we were moving, but didn’t know where. I did tell them they’d like it!

Mom and I made it through the International Gateway about 8:30, and got a couple of nice pictures in an empty Canada.

Once again, the weather was absolutely beautiful. Temps were in the mid 70s already. We headed over to Soarin and picked up fast passes for later. I had the kids meet us there to find out where we were staying tonight. I said “What would be the place you’d most want to stay anywhere on the property?” DD said “Poly or Animal Kingdom Lodge.” I said “Well, I thought about the Poly, but….” And they both said “We’re staying in the Animal Kingdom Lodge?????” They were really surprised! I told them they’d take the 11:15 Behind the Seeds tour, so to be back at the food court by 10:40 so they could use the Soarin Fast Passes first.

DD decided to stay with Mom and I, and we headed over to the Wonders of Life Pavilion. DD decided to see what it would be like to be blind, so she held onto the back of Mom’s scooter and let Grandma lead her around. Here’s a picture of them like that, in front of the EMPTY pavilion.

We got there just as they opened, and there was only one other family in there. We spent over an hour in there, enjoying all the exhibits except Body Wars. Mom can’t take the jerking motion, and I knew I’d get sick if I tried! Here’s pictures of an empty Body Wars line, and another empty exhibit.

The Making of Me was pretty cute. Later that week, there was an ad for Santa Clause 3, and I showed DD that Jack Frost was the guy from that movie. She said “Mom, that movie must have been REALLY old!” Then we went into Cranium Command. There were a few more people in there by then, probably about 15-20 people in all for the show. This was really cute! I had never seen it before. It’s set up a little like “Honey I shrunk the audience” where you have a pre-show movie, then move into the theater. But the pre-show sets the stage for your “mission” which is to control a pre-teen boy’s body for the day. I did recognize several of the actors, but I couldn’t tell you what else they’ve done since then. Here's pictures of the entrance, and inside the show, before it started.

After this, we headed out to try our luck with Turtle Talk. The holiday crowds seemed to be arriving though, because the line to get into the clam ride was WAY back on the walkway. DD decided to get in a ride on Figment, and Mom and I went on to the Land pavilion. I got her a bowl of soup as a quick snack, and we talked about the rest of the afternoon. DD came back and she and Mom went to use the Soarin FPs. DS had called and said that he was in the House of the Future (AGAIN!) and would be there shortly. By the time he got there, he didn’t have time to ride before the tour, so I gave away the last two FPs. DS had apparently come into the Wonders of Life just as we were leaving. He got to ride Body Wars and said it was fun. I gave him the $20 for my Christmas present then headed back to move the car over to the AKL. He got me two of the hydroponic plants they sell at the Soarin Exit. And I forgot to mention that the night before, he had picked out a perfect drawing for his sisters' gift at the Animation store. She LOVES anything Japanese! Here's what he got for her. It is from Tokyo Disney, and says something about the Happiest Celebration on Earth, 2006. DD took the picture to ask for a CM in Japan to translate it, but we never got back over there.

I told my mom that she’s going to have to write up a report about the Behind the Seeds tour. I know they had a wonderful time. It was my family, a couple, and one other family with a pre-teen. They spent about 1 ½ hours, even though it’s supposed to be a 45 minute tour! Here are a few pictures they took. Notice that Mom even got one of DS!

Once I left them, I headed back to the Gateway to pick up the car. As I was coming up that hill to go over the bridge to France, a middle aged lady in a wheelchair was struggling to roll herself up the hill. I asked if she’d like a push, then rolled her up to the top of the bridge. She said that her kids were singing at the CP that evening, and I told her how much we’d enjoyed it the night before. Just that little push was enough to convince me that the extra money for a scooter was WELL worth it! It’s HARD work pushing those wheelchairs!

I picked up the car from valet and drove over to AKL to checkin. I got a wonderful CM named Lauren. She was a student at Trinity College in San Antonio TX. We chatted a bit, and I asked about the bunk beds I’d requested. She said that she was sure we could get bunks, then she said “well, the room you’ve been assigned has a good view, but it’s not ready yet. Let me see what’s available now.” I told her that I could wait, but she said “Hmmm. Well, this room has one of the best views we’ve got, and it’s available now, but it’s a long walk. It’s all the way at the end of the hallway, but it overlooks the best part of the savannah.” Well, with a scooter, there’s no reason to have a short walk for the rest of us, so I took it! And after the people walking by the door last night, I thought the end of the hallway sounded pretty good!

I went down to the room, and boy was Lauren right! Our location was EXCELLENT! I opened the drapes and saw this!

Here’s a couple of pictures of the room before the family came in and wrecked the place!

Our luggage wasn’t supposed to be available until after 2, but I went ahead and grabbed a quick shower since there was no one else there to need the bathroom. About that time, DS called and said our friends had called and were at the Grand Floridian, so I headed out to meet them.

Up next, tea with friends, and an evening at AKL with dinner at Boma.

 

[diz8297]

I am loving your trip report! I aspire to live in Florida so that I can go as frequently as you do!! We manage a yearly trip thanks to DVC but still.....
My mom has to use an ECV on every trip-we rent off site and have it delivered too. Thank you for showing that an ECV is not an easy ticket to the head of the line, but presents it's own challenges. I am grateful that she has it to use otherwise she wouldn't be able to go with us. Looking forward to reading the rest of your report!!

 

[tkd lisa]

Tues, Dec 19th afternoon

This installment should be titled “Adventures in WDW transportation”.

When we left off, I had headed out to meet up with my family and an old friend for tea at the Grand Floridian. I went down to the bus depot, and must have just missed a MK bus. I waited about 20 minutes for the next one. I had a nice chat with a couple of ladies from the Miami area who had just arrived. I talked about the awesome view I had, and it turned out that they were about 15 rooms closer to the lobby on the floor below us. I actually saw them on their balcony the next morning. We all agreed on how cool the view was! The bus finally came, and I called the family to see how they were coming on getting over to the GF. They were just finishing up their tour. I told them to head over to the monorail and then switch to the resort monorail at the TTC station. I picked up the resort monorail at MK, and while I was on the train, I checked on them again. DD insisted that they didn’t need to switch trains, which I knew was WRONG. I finally talked to my mom, and she said the monorail was just leaving EPCOT. I had just pulled into the TTC stop, so I got off and met them over at the EPCOT monorail, and we made the last portion of the trip together. Using a scooter on the monorail requires a little bit of coordination, because the CM has to pull out a ramp for you. They ask you where you’ll be getting off, and then radio ahead so the CM can be ready with the ramp. It ended up taking me an hour and 10 minutes from AKL to the Grand Floridian, and it took the family almost an hour from EPCOT. Since it was in the middle of the day, they didn’t seem to have as much transportation running as they usually do. Our ADR was for 2:00, and we finally got there about 2:15.

We were meeting a friend that I had grown up with. She and her daughter met us last year when we had Mom’s birthday lunch at the Whispering Canyon Café. We all had so much fun, that we decided to get together again. Her DD is a few years younger than my kids, but they get along really well. Once we checked in, they suggested that Mom plug her scooter in while we ate. Here’s a picture of the kids watching TV while we were getting checked in.

We were seated near the window. After about 5 minutes of minor chaos, the kids settled down and behaved pretty well. Our server, Dotty, passed around some of the more popular teas for us to smell to help us decide. The kids all wanted the “Buckingham Palace Tea”, which comes with: Plate of assorted tea sandwiches, scones and cream, and either strawberries and cream or two pastries. We knew that they probably wouldn’t eat all of that, so the adults just ordered one plate of tea sandwiches, knowing that they wouldn’t eat many of theirs! Everyone except my friend’s DD got hot tea. Her DD got the hot chocolate. The tea came out in a really nice tea kettle. I had expected some type of china pot, but this was a clear glass pitcher type thing, with a plunger that pushed the tea leaves down to the bottom. We were there for about an hour and a half, and the tea was still hot at the end.

As expected, most of the sandwiches were eaten by the adults. The kids enjoyed the seafood ones, and the pear ones. My DD liked the chicken salad and almond one and the cucumber one too. All the kids liked their scones. I was surprised that they didn’t have lemon curd, but Dottie said that they had stopped serving it a few years back, and didn’t often get a request for it. Then came the best part of the food! DESSERT! I knew going in that I was going to have the strawberries and cream. I live just outside Plant City, where many of the FL strawberries are grown, and I had seen the workers picking from the fields over the last week, so I knew they would be FRESH. My friend also got the strawberries and cream. The kids all decided on two pastries from the tray, and my mom got an éclair. Here’s a photo of DD’s choices: the cream puff swan and a chocolate covered strawberry.

Once we finished up, we invited my friend back to the AKL to check out the animals. She had plans for the evening, but was able to stay an hour or so. I sent the kids back with her in her car, while Mom and I took the monorail over to MK, then transferred to the bus. I called bell services to get our luggage, but it took about an hour to get there. We spent the time watching the animals from our balcony while the kids watched tv. Here are a shot we took of them enjoying the room.

Our luggage got there just as our friends had to leave. After I got back, Mom, DD and I put on our suits to check out the pool. DS decided to head out to the firepit to listen to the story teller. DD tried out the main pool while Mom and I used the hot tub. There was a CM over by the savannah who told us that they would have night vision goggles out there at 8:30 to watch the animals. Then we headed back to our room to change for the evening. DD decided she didn’t want to eat at Boma, so I stopped by Mara and picked up chicken strips for her. Once we were all cleaned up, Mom and I headed over to Boma. DS met us there, and I had him check the buffet to be sure he wanted to eat there. He decided it looked good, so I checked us in to the podium. We waited about 20 minutes for our beeper to go off. We really enjoyed the food! DS told us some of the stories he had heard around the firepit earlier. I tried out the zebra domes, which were pretty good. In fact, everything was pretty good. As we were finishing up, our server brought out a platter for my Mom’s birthday. We took it back to the room so we could get a good picture of it. I had mentioned her birthday when I checked in.

We all headed back to the room. The kids didn’t want to go back out to watch the animals, so we just headed to bed. Next up: Animal Kingdom

 

[tkd lisa]

I forgot a fairly major part of Tuesday’s report, so I’ll just add an installment in here. It goes up after we tried to get into the Living Seas, but turned back because of the crowds. DD did split off to go see Figment, but Mom and I decided to get some character pictures. We parked her scooter at the exit, and got in line for some photos. Here are some of the good ones that we got. Chip and Dale in particular were really in character, and were snuggling with Mom and me. Mary Poppins was ever-so-proper. We wished every character a Merry Christmas. Mary replied “Happy Christmas to you as well.” DD had called and tried to join us, but she couldn’t find the entrance to the Character Connection, so we just met her as we were heading back over to the Land pavilion.

Now back to your regularly scheduled trip report

 

[tkd lisa]

Wednesday, 20 December

I didn’t set any alarms for this morning, but I was up around 7. Mom was up slightly before me, and we went out on the balcony to watch the sunrise. It was an absolutely beautiful morning. The giraffes definitely seemed to like the trees near us. We also had some neat cattle and wildebeests as well as a herd of gazelles all nearby. Here are some nice pictures we got.

The kids started stirring then, and we all finished up the breakfast things that I had brought from home. I repacked the things that we had used and loaded everything into the car. We spent some time wandering around the lobby and taking pictures.

As usual, DS didn’t want his picture taken. Here’s a picture of him sulking because I was taking pictures!

We found a really nice little alcove, just behind the area where you check in for the cruise. There was some neat artwork and African artifacts in there. Here’s a couple of photos there.

Once we were done exploring, we took the bus over to AK. For some reason, this has become our last day tradition. It’s probably because we don’t spend as much time in this park as we do at EPCOT or MGM. My plans were to try to see the Pocohantas show, catch a Nemo preview if possible, and eat something BESIDES Tusker House. We left the AKL about 9:30 which was quite late for us.

I also expected that this would be our worst day as far as the scooter. Since Expedition Everest has opened, AK is very congested. I also haven’t figured out good ways to get around the crowds in this park. For this reason, we sent the kids off on their own while Mom and I took our time. We had a photopass photographer take some photos of us in front of the tree. Wes Palm was out in the entry area, so I went over to snap a photo. He started talking to me about my Crocs. I said “Well, even though they’re crocs they don’t bite.” He said “I don’t have crocs, I have HEELIES, see???” As he wheeled across the ground. He was all decorated for Christmas too, see?

We entered through the Rainforest Café. While we were walking through the gift shop, we spotted some cute kids shirts at deep discount. Mom picked up one for my DD’s gift, and another couple for my brother’s kids. We headed over to Camp Minnie and Mickey to see if we could get any different characters. They were just starting a showing of Festival of the Lion King, and we managed to get seats in the handicapped area just as they were closing the doors. I took some pretty good video clips of the fire handler and the flying bird which I shared with my aunt and uncle over Christmas. Mom and I are on a mission to get them down to visit Disney with us. This is still my all time favorite show at Disney World.

DD called as we were leaving Lion King, and said she was in the Pocohontas theater. We had enough time to slide in just before that show started. The wheelchair seats in this show are pretty far away, so I didn’t get any good photos. The show was pretty cute, and about what I expected. But I doubt I’ll take the time to see this again, unless I’m with someone who really wants to see it. I did like the way they portrayed Grandmother Willow. Here’s the best photo I got there.

After Pocohontas, DD headed over to ride Expedition Everest as a single rider. DS had already been on once. We planned to meet up to see the Nemo show at about 12:45. Mom and I went over to the character trails. On the way, we saw these Christmas trees, and I just had to take some pictures because they were so unique. The first one is a dragon tree, and it was in the middle of three different trees. The next one was outside Donald’s line, and is a Donald tree. Notice that it’s decorated all in blue, and if you look closely, you can see his sailor hat at the top of the tree.

We saw that Donald was out, and Mom wanted a picture with him. The line wasn’t too bad. We chatted with a family who had young twin girls about 4 years old. They were very sweet and were really enjoying their vacation. Finally it was our turn. Donald was dressed in his Christmas outfit and he was really in character! He was flirting with Mom! The photopass photographer got a few good shots of that, but our picture is just the standard pose.

Once we finished there, DS called and said that he was in Africa and wanted to get a snack. I went ahead of Mom, and met up with him. He decided on a churro and then was off to DinoLand. Mom and I had planned to head back to Rafiki’s Planet Watch for more characters, but as I was on the bridge near the drums, the crowds heading toward the safari were TERRIBLE. I knew there was no way we’d make it down there to get back to Rafiki’s or to the Pangani Trail, not with a scooter! Once mom made it to the bridge, we decided to take the path through Asia and behind the Tree of Life to head over toward the Nemo theater. The crowd at that corner was bad enough to get through. There was a cart there, and we finally just had to ask people to let us through because there was no way around the line. Everyone was nice, and we were on our way.

I called DD and she said that she was already in the theater for Nemo. As we found our way over there, I realized that the line stretched way back into DinoLand, so I didn’t think we’d be able to get in. We settled down to just wait until the crowd cleared out so we could head off and do something else, but once the end of the line got up to us, the CM said that he thought we’d be able to get in so we went ahead and tried it. No one seemed to know what we should do about the scooter, so they eventually just told us to leave it outside the door and they’d move it to the exit for us. The wheelchair seating was just inside the door, and there were two seats left on that bench. I sat down next to Mom, when another family with a child in a wheelchair came in. There was an open spot for the child’s wheelchair next to us, and the family said they’d just stand. I was able to hop over the row in front of me into an empty seat, so they were able to squeeze in next to my mom.

I really didn’t know what to expect from the Nemo show. It turned out to be a pleasant surprise. I had heard it was done with puppets, and somehow I was thinking it was going to be like the Voyage of the Little Mermaid over at MGM. But instead of traditional puppets, it was more like people that were manipulating body puppets. So you could completely see the person, but the puppet costume made it clear that it was “Dory” or “Nemo’s dad”, etc. A couple of the cooler ones were “Mr. Ray” – the schoolteacher, and “Crush”. Even though this was still “soft” opening, I didn’t see any miscues in the whole show. If you hadn’t seen the movie, you probably would have had a hard time following the story line, since they fit the whole story into a period of about 40-45 minutes. I’ll definitely want to see this one again!

Once the show was over, DD called and she came up to wait with us for the theater to empty out. We chatted with a CM while we were waiting, and she said that they seat 1400 people in that theater, so it took a while! The CM eventually took us out a back door so we didn’t have to wait so long. I went on the hunt for the scooter while Mom and DD waited by the door. Once we were all back together, we decided it was time for lunch. I called DS and he was finishing up in DinoLand. I think he had ridden EE and Dinosaur again while we were in the show.

We all met up at Flame Tree BarBQue. This turned out to be the longest line we waited in the whole trip! I really don’t know what took so long, but I waited at least 30 minutes to get our food. I had planned on getting one rib platter and one chicken platter, but DD saw the fruit platter and wanted that. So I got a combo platter and a fruit platter, which turned out to be enough food for the 4 of us. I used my DDE discount here. I do like the fact that it can be used in the counter service restaurants at AK since they don’t have much table service there. We ate at one of the back patio sections, and watched the character boat go by. We had a good view of EE over the water.

Once we were done eating, we headed toward the front of the park. I stopped to have a photopass shot taken of us. Again, you can see that DS is THRILLED with this.

A quick bus ride back to AKL, where Mom and DD went to Bell Services to leave the scooter for pickup by Walker Mobility. I drove the car up and we headed west. An hour later, we were back home, just in time to pack up for our Christmas drive to Indiana, which started the next day!

Up next, Final Thoughts.

 

[tkd lisa]

Final thoughts:

Weather: It was absolutely perfect weather. I couldn’t have asked for anything better in December. We were able to swim, and wear shorts and t-shirts. On Wednesday it was in the mid-70s which was still very comfortable.

Accomodations: Both were very nice. I love the location for BWVs. Especially with spending so much time at EPCOT and MGM, that’s a big draw for my family. We are staying there in a 1 bedroom for Spring Break, and I’m really glad! I will ask for a room at the end of the hallway though, because hallway noise is an issue here. AKL was a once in a lifetime splurge for me. I am VERY glad that we did this. I enjoyed everything we did there, and I’m glad that DS spent some time at the firepit. This hotel is a long way from everything except AK. The transportation would bother me if I stayed there for any length of time. Once the DVC resort is finished, we may stay there again, but I wouldn’t plan on visiting parks, just enjoying the resort.

Crowds: They started building as the week went on. It wasn’t much of an issue for us because we go so often. We just did something different if the line was long, or it was congested. For those things we thought were important (Candlelight Processional, Osborne Lights), we allowed enough time to be sure we got in.

Magical Moments: Several CMs went out of their way to make things magical for my family. DS has 3 magical moment cards from this trip. 1) For winning the race in the arcade in Tomorrowland, 2) From the Behind the Seeds Tour where he was proclaimed “Overall Expert” by Bethany, and 3) Recycling Expert from the Custodial Staff at AKL. They apparently caught DS picking up some trash and throwing it away. DS really enjoyed his independent time this trip. I spoke to several CMs who said that he was a really good kid and they enjoyed talking to him. Lauren at AKL went out of her way to get us an excellent room! And the Voices of Liberty singing Happy Birthday to my mom was extra special to her!

Christmas “extras”: We really enjoyed the Candlelight Processional and the Osborne Lights. The story tellers are a lot of fun too. The only thing I really want to see now is Holiday Wishes. Oh well, there’s always next year! The decorations throughout WDW are really beautiful. Last year, we spent a day just resort hopping to see all the decorations. This year, the most decorated park seemed to be the Animal Kingdom. MK decorations were mainly on main street. We weren’t in EPCOT after dark to see the lights. I had seen them a week before this trip, and they were beautiful! Christmas is very special to me, and I just enjoy the way Disney does it. I imagine I’ll always spend a couple of days at the parks at this time of year.

Food: We tried two new TS experiences this time, and both were excellent. The Grand Floridian tea would be a very nice thing for a group of ladies to enjoy together. And my fairly picky family really enjoyed Boma at dinner. I wouldn’t have tried it at dinner if we hadn’t been staying there, but I’m glad I did. Although buffets aren’t a great value for my family, the atmosphere and quality of the food were well worth it. DS particularly enjoyed the beef. I failed to mention in that installment that he went back up to the chef who carved the meat for him to tell her how good it was! We also tried something new at AK! Flame Tree BBQ lived up to it’s reputation as something unique, filling, and tasty. The fruit plate would be a good vegetarian option, as an alternative to salads. I wasn’t really thrilled with the baked beans, but everything else was really good.

And finally, the scooter: As I mentioned in the report, I have a new appreciation for people who have to use one all the time. A scooter is definitely not a “scam” to get to the front of the line. Although we were given some perks because of it, the hassle of using it more than offset those few benefits. Without the scooter, Mom simply wouldn’t have been able to do the vast majority of things we did this trip. On Tuesday, she parked the scooter during her Behind the Seeds tour, and it also stayed parked when we went to Boma. She really felt the overuse of her knee the next morning, and had to take some medicine for the pain. It was definitely a necessity for her this trip. I mentioned my aunt and uncle that we want to take to Disney. When they come, they will definitely need scooters, because they have health problems that wouldn’t allow them to enjoy Disney without it. Now we know some of the tricks that will help them. For instance, we’d stay at the Boardwalk to minimize the amount of bus transfers required.

For those of you still with me, I hope you enjoyed the trip! Thanks for reading!

 

[byoung]

Great report!

 

[tiki23]

It sounds like you had a wonderful time with your Mom.

We all really like Boma as well, even picky-eater DS#2. He rated it in his top three, which really surprised me!

The view from your room was fabulous!

Thanks for sharing.