the Legend
Master of Attractions and TourGuide Hopeful!
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2001
- Messages
- 347
Cast of Aladdin
Rob (as Aladdin) - That's me. 36yo Princely Rogue and Princess Pamperer.
Lydia (as Rajah the Tiger) - My Mum and very staunch protector of the Princesses.
Nadine and Adair (as the Princesses Jasmine) - 7yo identical Twins. Regal Renegades seeking love and adventure in far off lands.
Michael (as the Genie) - Local Tour Guide and Master Planner of our holiday
Wed Aug 29: Day 3 - Dreams come true! Pt.1
Ring Ring! Ring Ring! ... It was 6.30 AM. Time to get up and at 'em! We were on our way to the Magic Kingdom. I knew it. The Girls knew it and this time I made sure Mum knew it. We were meeting Tour Guide Michael at the MK Bus Stop and I didn't want to be late. We lathered, lotioned and left at little after 7. The early morning humidity hit us like a bad hangover, woah, it was going to be HOT today! Passing by the Foodcourt, I thought "We've got plenty of time, I'm just gonna grab a bottle of water!". Famous Last Words. As things turned out, We got to see the MK bus pull out
The next one didn't arrive until 7.45. Well, it wasn't the way I wanted to meet Michael and I could tell by his pacing that we were late. However being the consummate professional, he took it in stride. As I made a vain attempt to produce an excuse, one of Girls interrupted "Uncle buyed a Water and we missed the Bus". Thank you Girls, Thank you very much. With my credibility shot to pieces and the introductions over, we entered MK. Mum was limping/waddling behind us. The Girls were raring to go. We had to make a decision. If you've been keeping up, you'll know that Mum has bad knees, one plastic, one Arthritic. Being Country-born and raised, she wasn't about to be put in a wheelchair. She needed convincing and I needed help. I asked Michael to explain todays objectives and the distances we would be covering. Fortunately for her, common-sense prevailed and by the end of the day she realised it was for the best and used a wheelchair for the remainder of our holiday.
Objective #01 ..... Breakfast.
Location ............. Main St Bakery.
Mission ............... To have fulfilling meal before embarking on a full morning of MK attractions.
Michael offered to push Mum as he knew where all the wheelchair entrances were. As we proceeded up Main St. USA, the Girls got their first glimpse of Cinderella's Castle. "Castle! Castle!", they kept jumping and shouting, nudging us to make sure we knew that the Castle was ahead. Mum watched from the middle of Main St. . Seeing it in all its entirety meant we were finally here. The Kiwis had indeed landed.
Michael and Mum got a table facing the Castle while the Girls and I went inside the bakery for breakfast. We bought Pastries, Muffins, Juice, Coffee, Cereal and Milk. However with all the excitement of being here, very little was eaten. "LOOK! LOOK! ITS MICKEY AND MINNIE AND ...!" Before you could say "What tha...?", the Girls were gone. In full sprint after the Fire Truck full of Characters, Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto and Rafiki. There were more but I cant remember who 
Photos were taken and I managed to round up the Twins. Still nothing was eaten and now, after their first Character sighting, the chances of them eating anything was near zero. It was Q&A time for us, Michael laid down the law about water (Drink a lot and drink often) as well as what to do if anyone got lost. He said he'd run away sometimes (to get Fastpasses) and went over what we were going to do today. In a nutshell, Fantasyland, Frontierland, Adventureland, Lunch at the CP with Winnie and Friends, Liberty Square, Magic Moments Parade then back to the All-Star. I must admit when I first read this in the e-mails we exchanged before the trip, I was surprised and adamant this could not be done especially with my Mum and the Twins in tow. But he assured me, it could and would be done without much waiting in lines. Really? Well who are you going to believe? The one-time offsite Kiwi or the ex-Disney VIP Tour Guide? Lets find out!
Objective #02 ..... Rides.
Location ............. Fantasyland
Mission .............. Have Fun. Rendezvous at the Fantasyland rope drop.
Walking up to the Castle, a mass of people had gathered. I would put the number at just under 200. Using his Tour Guide sense of crowd perception, Michael was able to ascertain that the Masses, who were tripping over themselves and stepping on small children, was what he termed a very very light crowd and that we were in for a great day! Really? We were waiting for the countdown to the rope drop and joined in at 3 ... 2 ... 1 ... Yay! As the Masses blazed their own trails, Michael was definite on what we were going to ride first. Dumbo was a walk-on and Michael told me this would be as good as it got for the remainder of the day adding the line would get over an hour by lunchtime. Really? We were on the first ride of the day and I never had so much fun going up and down and round and round. What great way to start the day! From there, we went to the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh then Peter Pans Flight. Both were charming rides in their own right. Snow Whites scary adventure was not as scary as I thought but it was fun. From there, Michael took us down to the Teacups. << Play "Jaws" music here! >> Now I'm no chicken. 200-foot Rollercoasters. no problems. 70-foot drops in logs. Easily done. But Spinning Teacups. No Way!
Mum and I offered support from the sidelines as Michael and the Twins rode the Teacups. From there, we walked over to Cindy's Carousel and waited as the Girls went for a spin. 9.45 and we had ridden every open ride in Fantasyland (Its a Small World was closed for refurbishment). Choosing whether to stay for the Lion King show, we voted to move on, knowing they 'd be other days to visit it. Objective 2 complete.
Objective #03 ..... Rides.
Location ............. Frontierland
Mission .............. Have Fun. Rendezvous at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
From Fantasyland, we passed through Liberty Square on our way to Big Thunder. Michael ran on to get FPs for Splash Mountain. Having Mum in the wheelchair meant we got backdoor entry to both Splash and Big Thunder. We waited for a train before boarding the back three rows. Now anyone who knows anything about Coasters know the fastest seat and the most air (that feeling of floating out of your seat) is experienced in the back. "Mum, you sit at the back with Michael"
"Make sure that bar is down tight!" ... hehehehe ... Big Thunder was a hoot. Easily making the top of everyone's ride list, the speed, the drops and turns made it a ride to remember. We would ride Big Thunder many times over our 10 nights at WDW. What a great ride and much better at night! From there, we went to Splash Mountain. Now we've ridden log flumes before and Ive even ridden Splash Mountain Anaheim but this was a different setup. 2-across meant we could sit pretty close together and Michael told us the Story of Brer Rabbit and the search for his laughing place. For all of us, actually knowing the story helped us better understand what was going on. Peter Pans Flight and Winnie were so enjoyable because we knew the story and the rides were like bringing them to life so too with Splash. Watching Brer Fox and Brer Bear chasing our Brer Rabbit made much more sense now that we knew why. Now what type of Disney Tour Guide would Michael be, if he didn't know any Disney Trivia. Although he wasn't dropping it by the bucketload, Michael did let on some secrets (e.g. the FSU Racoons etc.) about Splash. We had reached the last lift hill and everyone knew what we were in for Almost there ... Get ready! Hands up! ... Here we gggooooooooooo ... Rounding the turn in the Briar patch, Mum looked like she'd seen a Ghost (we did later on ... 999 to be exact!) but calm returned when we heard Zip-a-dee-doo-dah (Thank you WDW Tour Channel for teaching me to spell it properly) "Anyone for another ride, I have Fastpasses!". Poor Michael, there weren't any Takers 
We took another ride on Big Thunder before heading to Adventureland. We still had the Bears to go but other than that Objective 3 was complete.
Objective #04 ..... Rides. Shops.
Location ............. Adventureland
Mission .............. Have Fun. Rendezvous at Pirates of the Caribbean.
A pet fascination of mine is the difference in pronunciation of words (Toe-may-toe/Toe-mar-toe being the classic example) Caribbean has always troubled me. As Kiwis we say Care-rah-bee-an but Michael pronounced it Car-Rib-Bee-an and each time he did, we chuckled. He came to the fore again explaining Pirates to us as we went in. Now Ive been on Pirates, both Anaheim and here, many times, but I didn't know the slide represented travelling back in time but it made sense. From the opening Skeleton scene, travel back in time, to the Pirate era. duh? We loved Pirates and it was a welcomed break from the morning sun. The Girls laughed when they saw the Prisoners trying to coax the Dog and the woman chasing the Pirate with the broom (Im sure it was the other way round at Disneyland ). On to Jungle Cruise, we were given some very special treatment. The Captain let us board first and we got what was basically the best seats in the boat, if there is such a thing. Before I continue, I should let you know a little about Michael. He is ex-Disney, that goes without saying, and once held one of the exclusive VIP Tour Guide positions at WDW. These Guides were literally hand-picked based on knowledge and years of service and were regarded as best-of-the-best CMs. They needed to be because they were the Guides called upon to handle VIP guests like heads of states, foreign dignitaries, high-profile guests like movie and sport celebrities as well as Company Directors and CEOs etc. Most CMs knew who the VIP Tour Guides were and even if they didnt, you could tell them by their distinctive dress uniforms. CMs were always on their very best behaviour around VIP Tour Guides and their parties. A bad mistake here could cost you your job. So it was strange indeed that we were getting this treatment. As we went through the cruise, the monologue was borderline boring but filled with enough chuckles to keep you interested. Michael whispered that he was reading the Disney Script word-for-word. At the end, I found out why! The Captain was an old friend of Michaels. They had done the College program at WDW together. He didnt know that Michael had formed his own Company and assumed we were a VIP Tour Group (well, we were to Michael). We all had a good laugh at the truth and started making our way to the Crystal Palace for our 11.30 PS. Stopping in at the Agrabah shops, the Girls spotted must-have Souvenir #1 Princess Jasmine Dolls! Well, I can only stand so much of the "PLEEEEZ ... PLEEEEZ!" torture so the Dolls were theirs. Just up from his Carpets was Aladdin and a Tree???, we got photos and autographs and moved on. Thanks Aladdin but if I dont get something to eat in the next 10 minutes, the Carpets won't be the only thing flying around here!
Summary - Magic Kingdom Part 1.
Big Thunder Mountain
Splash Mountain, Pirates, all of the Fantasyland rides, Wheelchair access
Jungle Cruise
Teacups, Shops everywhere!
Crystal Palace, More Objectives and the Magic Moments Parade ...
Read in the next instalment of 'The Kiwis have landed (Day 3 - Dreams come true! Pt.2)'
Rob (as Aladdin) - That's me. 36yo Princely Rogue and Princess Pamperer. Lydia (as Rajah the Tiger) - My Mum and very staunch protector of the Princesses. Nadine and Adair (as the Princesses Jasmine) - 7yo identical Twins. Regal Renegades seeking love and adventure in far off lands. Michael (as the Genie) - Local Tour Guide and Master Planner of our holidayWed Aug 29: Day 3 - Dreams come true! Pt.1
Ring Ring! Ring Ring! ... It was 6.30 AM. Time to get up and at 'em! We were on our way to the Magic Kingdom. I knew it. The Girls knew it and this time I made sure Mum knew it. We were meeting Tour Guide Michael at the MK Bus Stop and I didn't want to be late. We lathered, lotioned and left at little after 7. The early morning humidity hit us like a bad hangover, woah, it was going to be HOT today! Passing by the Foodcourt, I thought "We've got plenty of time, I'm just gonna grab a bottle of water!". Famous Last Words. As things turned out, We got to see the MK bus pull out
The next one didn't arrive until 7.45. Well, it wasn't the way I wanted to meet Michael and I could tell by his pacing that we were late. However being the consummate professional, he took it in stride. As I made a vain attempt to produce an excuse, one of Girls interrupted "Uncle buyed a Water and we missed the Bus". Thank you Girls, Thank you very much. With my credibility shot to pieces and the introductions over, we entered MK. Mum was limping/waddling behind us. The Girls were raring to go. We had to make a decision. If you've been keeping up, you'll know that Mum has bad knees, one plastic, one Arthritic. Being Country-born and raised, she wasn't about to be put in a wheelchair. She needed convincing and I needed help. I asked Michael to explain todays objectives and the distances we would be covering. Fortunately for her, common-sense prevailed and by the end of the day she realised it was for the best and used a wheelchair for the remainder of our holiday.Objective #01 ..... Breakfast.
Location ............. Main St Bakery.
Mission ............... To have fulfilling meal before embarking on a full morning of MK attractions.
Michael offered to push Mum as he knew where all the wheelchair entrances were. As we proceeded up Main St. USA, the Girls got their first glimpse of Cinderella's Castle. "Castle! Castle!", they kept jumping and shouting, nudging us to make sure we knew that the Castle was ahead. Mum watched from the middle of Main St. . Seeing it in all its entirety meant we were finally here. The Kiwis had indeed landed.
Michael and Mum got a table facing the Castle while the Girls and I went inside the bakery for breakfast. We bought Pastries, Muffins, Juice, Coffee, Cereal and Milk. However with all the excitement of being here, very little was eaten. "LOOK! LOOK! ITS MICKEY AND MINNIE AND ...!" Before you could say "What tha...?", the Girls were gone. In full sprint after the Fire Truck full of Characters, Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto and Rafiki. There were more but I cant remember who Photos were taken and I managed to round up the Twins. Still nothing was eaten and now, after their first Character sighting, the chances of them eating anything was near zero. It was Q&A time for us, Michael laid down the law about water (Drink a lot and drink often) as well as what to do if anyone got lost. He said he'd run away sometimes (to get Fastpasses) and went over what we were going to do today. In a nutshell, Fantasyland, Frontierland, Adventureland, Lunch at the CP with Winnie and Friends, Liberty Square, Magic Moments Parade then back to the All-Star. I must admit when I first read this in the e-mails we exchanged before the trip, I was surprised and adamant this could not be done especially with my Mum and the Twins in tow. But he assured me, it could and would be done without much waiting in lines. Really? Well who are you going to believe? The one-time offsite Kiwi or the ex-Disney VIP Tour Guide? Lets find out!Objective #02 ..... Rides.
Location ............. Fantasyland
Mission .............. Have Fun. Rendezvous at the Fantasyland rope drop.
Walking up to the Castle, a mass of people had gathered. I would put the number at just under 200. Using his Tour Guide sense of crowd perception, Michael was able to ascertain that the Masses, who were tripping over themselves and stepping on small children, was what he termed a very very light crowd and that we were in for a great day! Really? We were waiting for the countdown to the rope drop and joined in at 3 ... 2 ... 1 ... Yay! As the Masses blazed their own trails, Michael was definite on what we were going to ride first. Dumbo was a walk-on and Michael told me this would be as good as it got for the remainder of the day adding the line would get over an hour by lunchtime. Really? We were on the first ride of the day and I never had so much fun going up and down and round and round. What great way to start the day! From there, we went to the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh then Peter Pans Flight. Both were charming rides in their own right. Snow Whites scary adventure was not as scary as I thought but it was fun. From there, Michael took us down to the Teacups. << Play "Jaws" music here! >> Now I'm no chicken. 200-foot Rollercoasters. no problems. 70-foot drops in logs. Easily done. But Spinning Teacups. No Way!
Mum and I offered support from the sidelines as Michael and the Twins rode the Teacups. From there, we walked over to Cindy's Carousel and waited as the Girls went for a spin. 9.45 and we had ridden every open ride in Fantasyland (Its a Small World was closed for refurbishment). Choosing whether to stay for the Lion King show, we voted to move on, knowing they 'd be other days to visit it. Objective 2 complete.Objective #03 ..... Rides.
Location ............. Frontierland
Mission .............. Have Fun. Rendezvous at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
From Fantasyland, we passed through Liberty Square on our way to Big Thunder. Michael ran on to get FPs for Splash Mountain. Having Mum in the wheelchair meant we got backdoor entry to both Splash and Big Thunder. We waited for a train before boarding the back three rows. Now anyone who knows anything about Coasters know the fastest seat and the most air (that feeling of floating out of your seat) is experienced in the back. "Mum, you sit at the back with Michael"
"Make sure that bar is down tight!" ... hehehehe ... Big Thunder was a hoot. Easily making the top of everyone's ride list, the speed, the drops and turns made it a ride to remember. We would ride Big Thunder many times over our 10 nights at WDW. What a great ride and much better at night! From there, we went to Splash Mountain. Now we've ridden log flumes before and Ive even ridden Splash Mountain Anaheim but this was a different setup. 2-across meant we could sit pretty close together and Michael told us the Story of Brer Rabbit and the search for his laughing place. For all of us, actually knowing the story helped us better understand what was going on. Peter Pans Flight and Winnie were so enjoyable because we knew the story and the rides were like bringing them to life so too with Splash. Watching Brer Fox and Brer Bear chasing our Brer Rabbit made much more sense now that we knew why. Now what type of Disney Tour Guide would Michael be, if he didn't know any Disney Trivia. Although he wasn't dropping it by the bucketload, Michael did let on some secrets (e.g. the FSU Racoons etc.) about Splash. We had reached the last lift hill and everyone knew what we were in for Almost there ... Get ready! Hands up! ... Here we gggooooooooooo ... Rounding the turn in the Briar patch, Mum looked like she'd seen a Ghost (we did later on ... 999 to be exact!) but calm returned when we heard Zip-a-dee-doo-dah (Thank you WDW Tour Channel for teaching me to spell it properly) "Anyone for another ride, I have Fastpasses!". Poor Michael, there weren't any Takers We took another ride on Big Thunder before heading to Adventureland. We still had the Bears to go but other than that Objective 3 was complete.Objective #04 ..... Rides. Shops.
Location ............. Adventureland
Mission .............. Have Fun. Rendezvous at Pirates of the Caribbean.
A pet fascination of mine is the difference in pronunciation of words (Toe-may-toe/Toe-mar-toe being the classic example) Caribbean has always troubled me. As Kiwis we say Care-rah-bee-an but Michael pronounced it Car-Rib-Bee-an and each time he did, we chuckled. He came to the fore again explaining Pirates to us as we went in. Now Ive been on Pirates, both Anaheim and here, many times, but I didn't know the slide represented travelling back in time but it made sense. From the opening Skeleton scene, travel back in time, to the Pirate era. duh? We loved Pirates and it was a welcomed break from the morning sun. The Girls laughed when they saw the Prisoners trying to coax the Dog and the woman chasing the Pirate with the broom (Im sure it was the other way round at Disneyland
). On to Jungle Cruise, we were given some very special treatment. The Captain let us board first and we got what was basically the best seats in the boat, if there is such a thing. Before I continue, I should let you know a little about Michael. He is ex-Disney, that goes without saying, and once held one of the exclusive VIP Tour Guide positions at WDW. These Guides were literally hand-picked based on knowledge and years of service and were regarded as best-of-the-best CMs. They needed to be because they were the Guides called upon to handle VIP guests like heads of states, foreign dignitaries, high-profile guests like movie and sport celebrities as well as Company Directors and CEOs etc. Most CMs knew who the VIP Tour Guides were and even if they didnt, you could tell them by their distinctive dress uniforms. CMs were always on their very best behaviour around VIP Tour Guides and their parties. A bad mistake here could cost you your job. So it was strange indeed that we were getting this treatment. As we went through the cruise, the monologue was borderline boring but filled with enough chuckles to keep you interested. Michael whispered that he was reading the Disney Script word-for-word. At the end, I found out why! The Captain was an old friend of Michaels. They had done the College program at WDW together. He didnt know that Michael had formed his own Company and assumed we were a VIP Tour Group (well, we were to Michael). We all had a good laugh at the truth and started making our way to the Crystal Palace for our 11.30 PS. Stopping in at the Agrabah shops, the Girls spotted must-have Souvenir #1 Princess Jasmine Dolls! Well, I can only stand so much of the "PLEEEEZ ... PLEEEEZ!" torture so the Dolls were theirs. Just up from his Carpets was Aladdin and a Tree???, we got photos and autographs and moved on. Thanks Aladdin but if I dont get something to eat in the next 10 minutes, the Carpets won't be the only thing flying around here!Summary - Magic Kingdom Part 1.
Big Thunder Mountain Splash Mountain, Pirates, all of the Fantasyland rides, Wheelchair access Jungle Cruise Teacups, Shops everywhere!Crystal Palace, More Objectives and the Magic Moments Parade ...
Read in the next instalment of 'The Kiwis have landed (Day 3 - Dreams come true! Pt.2)'
