The Luckiest Traveler on Earth returns from Disney Updated 9/25 & 9/29

[tiki23]

After Peco Bills and a session in stomach stretching

I have a feeling I'll be putting in a couple of those sessions, too!

Thanks for the great report so far!

 

[ralphie]

I'm on for the ride, I love your writing and I too dislike lines, crowds and traffic.

 

[MEK]

Ralphie - right on!

Part 7 (Day 3) August 30th Typhoon Lagoon, Crystal Palace, and MK at night

We were so happy to see sunshine today! Ernesto was well on his way to the Carolinas and we were on our way to Typhoon Lagoon. We didn't visit the water parks on our last visit, so this was going to be a treat.

Last year I purchased a 7 day, non-park hopping pass with my trip. This year I purchased a 10 day, hopping, with the pluses, pass. As I mentioned, I also have a trip planned for November. So I got the premium pass and made it non-expiring. I figured out that this would save me a couple hundred dollars over purchasing 2 separate passes. We used 5 days this trip and we will use 5 days in November.

I love the EMH at the water parks. It makes the opening so much more relaxed. After we entered TL, we found seats near the wave pool. Then we headed over to Crush N Gusher. This really is a fun little ride. Princess and I did the first ride together. Then Steamboat asked me to be his partner. He said I was a better partner than Charles because my weight held the raft down better. Nice! After we did all three slides, we ventured off the explore the rest of the park.

Charles and Kevin seemed much more interesting in the wave pool and the lazy river, so after doing a few of the other rides in the back of the park, they were ready to go back to the wave pool. Steamboat and I were more interested in the raft rides and we found the "one and done" attitude a little disconcerting while at the water park.

At one point Steamboat hurt himself. He tried to pick up one of the rafts to throw it over the rope. He should have given it to the lifeguard. He slipped into the wall and banged the side of his chest pretty hard. After that, he started to complain of bad stomach cramps. I was a little concerned that he may have seriously hurt himself, but it turned out that he just needed to use the bathroom. Phew! So while I walked Steamboat to the front of the park to use the bathrooms near the locker room, the other boys went on the body slides. Once again - one and done. By the time Steamboat got out of the bathroom, they were not interested in going back on the body slides. In fact, Charles and Kevin were looking downright bored. Go figure!

It was still fairly early. So we all went back to the wave pool and did the lazy river. Kevin and Charles regained some of their interest, so after the wave pool, we decided to have lunch. B King - he didn't care what we did. He just went with the flow. Now I know about the snorkeling thing at TL, but I didn't mention it to anybody. I'm not sure why. B king and Steamboat had done it once before, so they knew it was there. I guess I just didn't feel like trying to engage Charles and Kevin in a new activity. They just didn't seem interested in anything today.

After lunch, a thunderstorm blew through the area. I never knew this, but there are lightning rods all over this park. They are everywhere. So we gathered under a straw umbrella with another family and waited out the storm. After the storm, steamboat and I went back on the body slide rides he missed earlier. No one else wanted to go. Then we went back to Slush N Gusher. Again - no one else wanted to go. We would have gone to the back of the park to do the other raft rides again, but I was starting to feel like we were holding everyone up. So we left!

We got back to POP and still had a couple of hours before we needed to leave for MK and our ADR at CP. B king and Kevin bought a ping pong ball, filled their mugs with frozen coke, and went to play. They probably tied up the table for a good hour. There were a lot of small kids at POP. Fortunately, there were not a lot of school age kids vying for the pp table at the time.

Steamboat and I got drinks and walked over to the 70's section. He played twister, while I spun the dial. I could not get him to fall, so I gave up.

We had a pleasant ride to the MK and arrived in time for our 5:30pm ADR. CP was pretty crowded, but we got seated quickly. Princess was looking forward to this meal, since she is a big Tigger fan. I am somewhat partial to Eeyore (can you believe I forgot how to spell this). Of course, after my breakfast at Donald's, I decided I better not try to pose with any characters. I couldn't stand another rejection.

The food at CP was good and plentiful. There were plenty of cold salads to choose from. There was steamed shrimp and mussles. I had salmon. They had prime rib and a delicious noodle dish with chicken (which was probably 100 calories a bite). I enjoyed this meal. The desserts were very yummy and there was a huge selection.

After CP we headed over to Buzz and then SpM. I'm not very good at Buzz. I always get the lowest score. My score hit at all time low on this occasion. I can't tell you what my low score was, but rest assured that everyone reading could probably beat it with your eyes closed. I was sure my laser gun had to be broken.

SpM was fun as usual. I think we did it twice, then headed over to Snow Whites Scary Adventure. I have never done this ride before. The line was a little slow, and considering how I feel about lines, I almost got out of it a few times. But, it finally started to move. I'm glad I waited, because I enjoyed this ride. It was like the ET ride at Universal where you ride on top of everything. Definately a winner, IMO.

Before we could do any more rides, we needed to head over to the gift shop in the castle. Charles had his eye on this little glass dragon he had seen on Tuesday. Charles and Kevin both had a lot of spending $, courtesy of their generous grandparents, and they were determined to spend it. I am glad that my kids are pretty reasonable in selecting soveniers. B King collects baseballs and Steamboat collects shot glasses. Does anyone know how many different shot glasses there are in WDW? Alot! Trust me! Steamboat has examined everyone single one. So far, he only purchased one on this trip. It was an Expedition Everest shot glass.

By now it was sufficiently dark enough to enjoy the night time rides on Splash and Thunder. We went to Thunder first. This is SUCH a great ride in the dark. It feels faster and longer. Last year we managed to snag a ride on Thunder just as the fireworks started. This was great! When we got off thunder, we could see the parade in the distant. I really have to see the parade someday. But for some reason, all I want to do are the rides. Maybe in November.....

Splash was just as fun in the dark. I think we only rode it once because it seemed like it wasn't working that well. It kept stopping. So after Splash we did one more ride on Thunder. When we got off, we watched the fireworks and made our slow promenade to the front of the park.

This was our first experience with a MK POP bus line. The line for POP was out of the que and down the sidewalk. It looked pretty scary. So we waited and, Do you know what?.....the line actually moved pretty quickly. I'm pretty sure we had to stand, but we made it home and crawled wearily into our beds.

Next Up - DAY 4: MGM, Epcot, and LeCellier (AKA tired feet and here come the crowds......)

 

[dawgsgirl]

Enjoying your report and waiting for more! How's that for pressure???

 

[MEK]

Part 8 Day 4 and here come the crowds..... Actually the crowds in the park were not bad. But I noticed more and more people coming to POP for the Labor Day weekend. Each night the resort seemed to be swelling with more guests. It was particular noticeable, since I don't think a lot of people traveled during Ernesto. They made up for it in the days that followed.

We got up early (again) and assembled at breakfast. In actuality, we (meaning me, Steamboat, and B king) were always late for breakfast. We kept Princess and her boys waiting. Trust me ...... I tried to be on time! It wasn't me holding up the crew.... it was Steamboat. Some mornings it takes a cattle prod to get him going. It's very frustrating. I will think he is getting dressed, but I turn around again and he is still putting on his socks....The same socks he was putting on 5 full minutes ago. I love Steamboat to death. He really is a great kid. But, honestly, I feel like this when he is getting ready in the morning. Usually Princess and her kids were half way through breakfast when we arrived. Maybe that's why I am not a big breakfast fan. I rather skip it altogether, because it takes Steamboat so long to get ready.

We started a trend at breakfast. We would order the adult breakfast platter with 1 TS and a bagel with 1 snack credit. Then I paid out of pocket for an extra order of eggs. The boys split the food and I ate the left-overs. As I already mentioned, I am a food stalker, so eating left-overs is my nature.

We arrived at MGM right after park opening. This is a good time to arrive. The crowds are through the gate, but the park is still relatively empty. On auto pilot, I led the group right to ToT. I am not ashamed to admit that ToT makes me nervous. I'm not much of a "free fall" person, but the rest of this ride is so classic that I have to do it atleast once a trip. Princess said she planned to sit this one out. I should have suggested that she go through the pre ride and bail out at the elevator, but I was suffering from a case of butterflies, so I forgot about it, until we were inside.

Once inside, we had the best CM I've ever seen as the bell boy. He was tall, dark, and thin. He had a very spooky looking face. Either he was naturally like this or he was great at getting into character. He managed to get himself flat against the wall and no one knew he was there until the door closed.

I always wish this ride didn't make me nervous. I would love to appreciate all the finer nuances of the que, but I was just too nervous. I was mostly afraid that I might get dizzy again. Once we got to the elevator area, we walked right on. I didn't have time to get nervous again, since, before I knew it, I was strapped in and the door closed. No time to panic now, I told myself.

Now, I have to tell you about the first time I did this ride. Steamboat and I got on with a lady and her two teenage sons. Somehow we got separated from my DH and B King. Well, right before the door closes, one of the lady's sons gets off. Then the door closes and the lady starts to scream. At first I thought she was just messing around. But she wasn't.... she screamed through the entire ride. Not just the drop.... the entire ride! She worked herself into such a frenzy, I was worried about her. She was still emotional when she left the ride.

So now that I am on the ride, I decide I must relax and enjoy. The holograms are great. I keep reminding myself that the drop is only 10 seconds, or so I read somewhere. It always seems longer to me. One thing about doing this ride in August.... You always know it's GO TIME as soon as you feel that hot air. WHOOSHHHHHHHH.....up you go.....WOW what a view.......then down/up/down/up/up down in whatever random order the ride selects. There is always one drop where I can't wait to get off.....then it's over.

I was proud of myself because I felt pretty calm at the end of the ride. It was one of the easiest sequences I've experienced. I've read that the "toned" this ride down. I don't know if it's true or not, but I liked it. It was perfect for me.

After ToT, Steamboat bought his second shot glass from the gift shop. On to RnR folks. Princess wanted to do RnR today, so I held the bags so she could go on before she changed her mind. It seemed like I waited forever for their ride to end. Did anyone want to go again?????? Fortunately, I had a couple of takers. Unfortunately, we got placed in the last car. I don't like the last car because it throws you around too much and is not as smooth as the middle. I prefer any seat over the last car. Not good for someone like me who is newly prone to bouts of unpredictable vertigo. I was fine at the end!

On to the rest of the park.... We did the great movie ride and then headed over to the Lights,Aaction, and Motors (or whatever this show is called). I really enjoyed this stunt show when I saw it last year. It just didn't hold my attention this year. Now that I knew how all the stunts worked, I just kept thinking about how hot it was and I didn't focus as well on the show. Phew....that's done, I thought, when it was over. My favorite part of the day was upon us.... LUNCH in the AC!

After lunch we headed over to the muppets. I love the muppets, but a combination of sleep deprivation and post lunch lethargy made it hard for me to concentrate. I actually fell asleep during Ms. Piggy's solo. How the heck did that happen?

Princess really wanted to see the backlot tour. But guess what....it started to rain and they shut it down. I've done this tour once and I knew I could live without it, so I wasn't disappointed. Princess took her boys and B King to see the Chronicles of Narnia display. I knew this would be a good opportunity to take Steamboat to see his favorite exhibit, "One Man' Dream". I am also fond of this exhibit. I like to watch the movie. It really makes me appreciate Walt and his vision.

OOOOOPPPPPPSSSSSS -- I have to leave unexpectedly! Be back soon!

 

[MEK]

Part 8, Day 4 (continued)

Sorry about the quick escape. Hopefully I will get a little more done now. Let's see.... where was I?

Oh yeah.... I was talking about "one man's dream". I only allowed steamboat to watch the movie. He likes to look at all the displays, but I knew the others would be through Narnia, and if we dawdled too long, they would not be able to find us. Last year, Steamboat spent an hour looking at the displays in this exhibit.....and he still wasn't through. We finally made him leave.

Someday I will take Steamboat back to this exhibit and let him spend the entire morning there. It just couldn't be today.

Our timing was perfect. We met up with the other group as they were exciting Narnia. I asked if anyone wanted to go to the Animation attraction. I heard that this was interesting and I've never done it. Only Steamboat was interested, so we skipped it. We went to Sounds Dangerous next. It was good for a quick nap. Then we tried to use our FP's for one more ride on RnR. No luck - the ride was down. So we did our good deed for the day and gave them away.

Although I could easily have stayed at the park, the collective group was RTG. So we left. We actually didn't get much time back at POP before we had to leave for our 5:10pm ADR at Le Cellier. If you remember, I thought our original ADR for Coral Reef was 5:10pm. Here's where I messed up. I confused the two. Silly me !

Le Cellier was delicious. I think all the boys had the petite filet. Princess and I had the shrimp and pasta dish, which was awesome. Steamboat tried the potato soup, but passed it to me because it had onions. At least he tried. But he HATES onions. Princess and I had our first adult drinks with this meal. I had a nice martini and she had chardonnay. AHHHHH I honestly forget what we had for dessert. Whatever it was, it was good and chocked full of calories. Oh yes - we all enjoyed the pretzel bread, but declined a refill so we could eat our real food.

After dinner we did rides. We did Spaceship earth, Test track, Mission Space, the Mexico ride and the Norway ride. Only B king would do the orange version of Mission Space. I wanted to do the orange version.... really I did, but I got seriously dizzy on it last year and I was afraid of a repeat. The first time I did this ride, I thought it was awesome. It just really freaked me out after someone died on the ride. So as ridiculous as it was, last year I approached MS with much trepidation. I think I was so nervous that I hyperventilated myself into dizziness. As much as I hate to be a chicken, I did not want a repeat of last year.

I don't know why everyone else in the group opted for the chicken version (aka green version) Steamboat has done the centrifuge (orange) version many times, without ill effects. Maybe he sensed my discomfort and wanted to accompany me. No amount of coaxing would convince him to go with B king. B King really wanted to go a second time. I was cool with this, because the ride is really unique. It should be experienced more than once. I asked Steamboat to go with me again on the green side. He would not, and our "one and done" companions were not interested. Big surprise! Steamboat thought the green side was boring, but he still didn't want to do the orange side. I actually liked the green side. I think the film is very realistic even without the G force, and I don't particularly like the feeling of an elephant sitting on my chest, so I was good with the green and will do it again in the future.

As it turns out, we waited for B King to go again. I was not going to deny him a 2nd ride. This happens to be when Charles complained to his mom that "we always do what B King wants to do". What? I'm glad I didn't hear that. I think it might have irritated me. But I was sensing that maybe our families needed to go their separate ways for awhile. As it turns out, we didn't. We went over to the countries. By now illuminations was over and the extra magic hours were beginning. I could tell by the swell in the park crowd. We did make one more half hearted attempt to do Soarin, but the line was 50 minutes and looked every minute of it.

I'm sure the evening EMH is great, if you stay late enough. Staying late was not in the cards for us tonight. Everyone was tired and crabby and ready to go. My kids were starting to pick on each other. Of course, the bus line was very long when we arrived. I thought all the kids and princess were going to fall out when they saw the line. As luck would have it, we had to stand on the way home. I watched some poor man stand while holding his toddler. That looked much worse than having Steamboat leaning all of his 90 pounds of weight into my back as he was trying to sleep.

Next up: EMH at Blizzard Beach and the Trip to Whispering Canyon Cafe and back.

 

[blue_river]

Very humourous tr! Subscribing and waiting to hear about Blizzard Beach - we didn't make it there - only Typhoon Lagoon. I'd like to know which one you and your kiddies preferred.

 

[MEK]

Blue River -

My kids really liked Blizzard Beach better because they are 11 (12 next month) and 13. I actually liked BB a little better myself. The last time we visited the water parks, I think it was a draw. They were 8 and 10 then. TL is better for younger kids and BB is definately better for teenagers.

I'm not sure when I will get to post again. Hopefully soon. Definately take advantage of the EMH. You get alot done in that first hour.

 

[blue_river]

Thanks for your reply MEK. My DDs are both in their teens so I guess we'll have to try BB next time around! We did enjoy TL, they especially liked the waves but we missed out on Shark Reef.

 

[MEK]

Part 9 / Day 5 Blizzard Beach and our very longgggggg trip to and from Wilderness Lodge

I am certain I will need to stop before I finish Day 5, but I'm going to give it a go! Day 5 was our non-park day. I needed a non park day because I only wanted to use 5 days of my 10 day pass. It's a good thing that I hadn't planned on a park today, because, as you will soon see, we would never have made it to a park today.

Princess had a 6 day pass. I made sure she knew that, in case she and her boys wanted to visit a park today. I was "kind-of" hoping to split up a little bit today. Don't get me wrong....I had a great time with Princess and her boys, but sometimes you need a little down time with just your family. Then you can fight, complain, tease, nag, and say whatever you want without having to censor yourself. That's what families are for. Being your self!

We planned on Blizzard Beach in the morning. The afternoon....undecided. I told Princess that I thought I would take my boys to DD to do some shopping. If she wanted to go to a park, we would meet her at dinner. If not, we could all go to Disney Quest and then to dinner. She and her boys opted for DQ.

I got up early (again) for coffee and a run. I really loved the mornings at POP, because it was so quiet and the grounds were so fun to look at. I made a quick stop in the gift shop to get a shot glass for Steamboat. He has a birthday in October and I wanted to put it aside for a present. It's a cute shot glass with a picture and Walt and Mickey on it. I knew Steamboat would like it, because of his great affection for Walt and Mickey's older brother....Steamboat willie. Since we got home, I have hidden the shot glass and I hope I will remember where it is a month from now.

I know I mentioned this before, but if your kids really aren't sure what type of souveniors to buy, collecting shot glasses is really a great hobbie. They are everywhere, they are small, and they are generally inexpensive. People know the Steamboat collects them, so he often receives one unexpectedly from people after they return from a trip.

The EMH at BB was great! I was expecting crowds, since it was the Saturday of Labor Day weekend. We had the first hour all to ourselves. The boys went right to Summit Plummet. Not me. I opted for the slide next to Summit Plummet. I have been trying all morning to remember it's name, but I can't. I was totally prepared for a water wedgy and a scraped back, but I did two rides relatively unscathed. B King went down with me once and complained that his back hurt. He said you fall so fast on SP that you don't feel anything. No thanks. Anyway, the boys went down SP 3 times in a row before there was any type of line. Princess took pictures.

After the water slides we went to Teamboat Springs, which is the 4 person (or more) raft. You must have 4 people in your party. I guess that's to hold the raft down. We had 6 and our raft was going all over the place. This truely is a fun and fast ride. After TS, everyone wanted to hop in the Lazy River to get to our next destination. We floated part way around the park and got off at a stop that would bring us to the 1 and 2 person raft rides. Again, the names escape me. All I remember is that it's 123 steps to the top of the ride. Yup, I counted them. Counting took my mind off the fatigue in my legs. Princess went once and I went twice with the rest of the boys. I could have gone about 5 more times if there had been an elevator or escalator taking me to the top! Kidding.... I definately wanted to do more, but the troops were ready to move on.

We found another speed raft ride that had a small line. This is a ride where two people race each other. Another words, the heaviest person down wins! That would be me!!!!!! Thank you very much. That was fun and I could have done that ride again, but, ooooppppssss, time to move on. We did the body slides next. These are rides where you lay on a raft on your stomach. Another weight dependant ride. Do I hear a "Whoop, Whoop"? You know who won those rides!

At this point the crew was ready to circle the entire park on the lazy river. I am just too antsy for the lazy river. I hate bumping into people I don't know. I hate getting jammed in tight places on an inner tub. I spent most of the time out of my tube walking the lazy river. My legs felt a wee bit wobbly by the time I was done.

Another interesting observation. I always see one woman on the lazy river who has hair and makeup perfectly in place. I don't get it. How can their hair and makeup look like they just left the salon??? I really, really have to fight the urge to "accidently" splash water at them. (a touch of green....jealously perhaps) I don't look that good when I'm dressed for a formal party, let alone for a romp in a pool with hundreds of splashing people and waterfalls pouring out of overhead rocks. It is one of the great wonders of beauty I will never understand.

When the LR was done it was time for some eats. We ate at a CS which looked like an outdoor ski lodge. The food was good and they were kind enough to give us a receipt that allowed us to come back for dessert. Dessert was this big toll house cookie with ice cream in the middle. Yummy!

After lunch we tried Teamboat one more time and then went to the pool. This is like the wavepool at Typhoon Lagoon, but it has no big waves. Instead, there is a constant rolling motion to the water. There are inner tubes in the pool that people can relax on. I got hit in the head with one of them. Charles tried throwing one at Steamboat.....and you know who.... was right in the middle of the toss. I couldn't get mad because I knew it was an accident, but it took me so off guard that I felt like crying. The back of my head and neck were very sore and numb for about 15 minutes. Then I was fine.

I have to tell you....I am always a little uneasy in wave pools. They scare me more than the raft rides and body slides, because I always worry that someone is going to get trapped under a person or a raft and drown. I watch my kids like a hawk and I can't relax. I could never.....and I mean NEVER....be a lifeguard at a place like that.

I'm not sure what time we left BB, but we definately had an enjoyable day. This was our fav water park and we were hoping to go back in November. Unfortunately, it is close for refurbishment. Bummer.

Next Up ..... Part II (Day 5 continued.... the never ending trip to and from the Wilderness Lodge) and why I will always rent a car or take a taxi to an off site dinner!

 

[Mic_n_Min]

What a great TR!! Subscribing!

 

[MEK]

I'm so glad you are reading. Please continue to do so, because I can't wait to tell you about my dinner at the Wilderness Lodge and my final day at Disney. I probably won't get to it today, but I promise to post tomorrow.

I just ran into Princess yesterday at soccer. She says she can't wait to go back, so Princess, MEK and the boys may have to plan another trip soon. Maybe we'll even take the DHs'.

 

[ottawa_lynne]

but since you're unsure if anyone is reading, I'll subscribe )

Sounds like you had a wonderful time.

 

[blue_river]

since you're about your dinner at Wilderness Lodge - i can't wait to hear what happened

 

[MEK]

Part 10 (I think - I better double check) / Day 5 The Wilderness Lodge

I left off after our morning adventure to Blizzard Beach, which we all enjoyed. I had recovered from getting hit in the head with a 10lb inner tube and we were back at POP planning our depature to DTD.

We planned to leave around 3:30pm, which gave us a few minutes to shower off the chlorine, change, have an adult cocktail, and let the kids play a few minutes of ping-pong.

We decided to vist Disney Quest. I didn't really want to use up one of my plus visits. Now that I had paid for a non-expiring ticket, my pluses suddenly became much more valuable to me. But I wanted Princess and her boys to get to experience all that Disney and their park pass offered. I'm not a huge DQ fan, so 2 hours in a virtual, sensory overloaded world should be adequate, I reasoned. I had just enough buzz from my super strong adult cocktail (that I made myself with the small bottle of lemon rum I packed) to keep me amused.

I can't remember the names of the rides we did, but it was the virtual pirates of the caribbean, the virtual jungle cruise, the virtual buzz light year bumper cars, and the virtual roller coaster. I created a spectacular virtual roller coaster that I was sure would please all coaster enthusiasts. But once I was done, I remembered that Princess wasn't riding and I would have to ride alone. This thing had so many flips and turns that I realized I could never ride it alone. There is safety in numbers, you know. So I didn't ride. In exchange, I watched the kids do their rides. It was really hysterical and probably a much better investment of my time.

Time was running short so we encouraged the boys to do a few more minutes of arcade games and then we HAD to leave. We had a 6:40 ADR at the WL.

We arrived at the bus stop shotrly after 6pm. We watched a bus come for Fort Wilderness, the Grand Floridian, the Poly, Saratoga, Caribbean Beach, Contemporary, Port Orleans, POP, All Stars, Coronardo Springs, AKL...... did I miss anyone? ....... O yeah, the Wildnerness Lodge.

Then we watched a second bus come by for each of those resorts. In some instances, we watched a third. Finally, after 35 to 40 minutes, we were on a bus to WL. OK, now we are late for our ADR. But I'm sure the CM's will be kind to us. We'll be there soonn.......Then we made one more stop. Yup, you guessed it. We picked up a few wet stragglers from Blizzard Beach. I bet they couldn't wait to get home! BB had been closed for almost an hour.

When we arrived at the WL, the CM's were very gracious. "We will seat you at the next available table for 6," they said. I'm sure they say that to everyone, but I appreciated their customer service. We actually had very little time to explore the WL and our beeper went off. Princess had disappeared with Charles and we couldn't find them anywhere. So, I did what any other hungry friend who was already late for their ADR would do. I took the other 3 boys and we sat down. Princess showed up a few minutes late. Phew! I didn't want her lost in the WL while we were halfway through dinner.

Now a know a lot of you like the Whispering Canyon cafe, and I was really looking forward to this meal, so I was surprised that I didn't love it. I just didn't. I wanted to love it. I tried to love it, but it was just OK. It just paled in comparison to the Prime Time Cafe. Yeah - I know it's different. It just didn't entertain me like PTC did. And the food was not nearly as good. It just looked and tasted .....well.... kind of....blah! Of course, I made the mistake of ordering fish. I think it was grouper. Anyway... big mistake. This was not the place to order fish. Enough said. I did try some of the ribs and they were pretty good. My appetizer chicken wings were good, my smoothie good, and my dessert very good. Funny, I can't remember what it was. Oh yeah - I think it was either cheesecake or apple pie a la mode. Which ever it was (and I did have both this trip) - it was yummy.

After dinner (9pm) we walked outside to wait for the boat to MK. Of course, we just missed a boat and now it was starting to rain. Bummer! We stood under a tree (ponchos forgotten again ) and waited for the next boat. I was so happy when it came, because I wanted to get to MK before closing. What I didn't realize was that this boat was going to Fort Wildnerness. After the boat left FW it had to slow down (and practically stop) for the Electric light Parade. Then it crawled into the dock of the MK at a top speed of 5 mph. In other words, it was a much longer trip than I expected. Had it been daylight, I probably would have enjoyed it.

OMG The people! So many.... EVERYWHERE! Why weren't they inside waiting for the fireworks?????? As it turns out, we saw the fireworks.....while waiting in the incredibly long POP century bus line. The long line on Thursday night was short in comparison to tonight's line.

At least 6 buses filled before we got on one. I will give them credit, though. As soon as 2 buses left, another 2 or 3 pulled right up. We were just tired, and cranky, and our feet hurt, and we wanted to get home!

We did eventually get home at 11:15pm. And we learned a very valuable lesson tonight. You might call it an insider tip. Perhaps it is just plain, old common sense. When leaving the WL at 9pm and getting on a bus for POP, take a cab!. Whatever amount of $ it would have cost, it would have been worth it.

Well, so much for getting home a little early. Who would have imagined that a 6:40 ADR would end at 11:15 pm when factoring in transportation. Live and learn!

So I stayed up and packed. We were leaving tomorrow and we planned on getting up bright and early to print out our boarding passes, spend the day at Epcot, and head on back to Delaware to start school in 56 hours.

Next up - our final day in my most favorite place on earth and what other lessons I learned on my trip to the world!

 

[Mouse's Shadow]

I just read your TR from start to now. I am enjoying your vacation very much. I still have 8 days to go before I get to do the World. I'm glad Ernesto didn't have a great impact on your vacation. I know how you feel about having some down time with just your family. We're taking DMIL and DFIL plus we're meeting Alabama friends on this trip. I can't wait to spend some time with them, but I'm sure we'll be wanting some family time as well. Looking forward to the rest.

 

[MEK]

The luckiest traveler on Earth Returns from Disney The End!

Sunday, September 3rd.....

Wow .... here it is....our last day! I was sad our vacation was coming to a close, but happy that I would be sleeping in tomorrow.

As had been my practice during this trip, I got up before the sun and stumbled my way to the dining hall to get coffee. (Sounds like college!) I meant food court! Remember, earlier in the week I had been walking briskly, breathing in the morning air, whistling "zippidy - do - da". Today I was downright tripping and stumbling!

Wow, I was tired. Princess and I checked in at the concierge desk precisely at 7am to have our boarding passes printed. When the CM asked how we were this morning, I replied, "ready to go". I wasn't really ready to go. I just needed a long nap.

With so much to do, I decided to forego my usual morning run and run through POP with my camera to take some pictures. If you saw some crazy woman running from Icon to Icon to snap pictures early on the morning of Sept 3rd, it was mwaaaahhhh! I actually took the pictures a little too early and some are rather dark.

Next up - I got my kids' breakfast and brought it back to the room. Then I had the daunting task of waking them up and prodding them to get ready. If steamboat felt like I did, no wonder he was extra slow this morning. Poor kids - they can't even rely on a jolt of caffiene to get them going.

We checked our luggage in and set off for a final visit to Epcot. As many times as I've been to Disney, I never feel like I spend enough time in Epcot, particularly the countries. I think it's because the countries don't open until 11am. By then it's lunch time and it's hot.

We did make it to the countries, before having to leave to catch the ME bus. But barely! Everyone rode TT again while I went to get FP's for Soarin'. Given my choice, I would rather do Soarin', so I sacrificied TT to avoid a wait in line. When everyone was done TT, we went to Ellen's energy adventure. I'm not a big fan of Ellen, but I do like this attraction. However, sleep deprivation got to me and I kept nodding off during integral parts of the plot. Oh well. Last time I visited this attraction it broke and we were escorted off.

Next up - one last ride on Soarin'. When that was over I steered the group to Honey I shrunk the kids. Princess spoke up and said, "I'm going to take the boys over to the countries". Perfect, I thought. I said," how about if we just meet you back at the resort for the ME bus?"

That being settled, I took Brian over to MS. I knew he wanted to do it one more time. Unfortunately, the wait was 30 minutes. Not long, but if we waited for him, we would never make it to the countries. So we ate at the Umbrella place and headed over to France. Steamboat wanted to look in every gift shop. He was in pursuit of more shot glasses. Surprinsingly, the only country that really had good shot glasses was Germany. Steamboat added one to his collection. He now had four (He purchased one from soarin). B King bought two more to give him as birthday presents. That B King....sometimes he can be so thoughtful!

Well, who do you think we met halfway through the countries? - Princess and her boys. The countries were pretty empty, so I'm not surprised we saw them. We slowly made our way through the remaining countries and to the front of the park.

Shortly after we got back to POP, the ME bus arrived. Before I knew it, we were on our way to the airport.

I loved ME, but it got us to the airport sooooooo early.

After I went through security I noticed that they pulled Princess's bag again. I saw the TSA man pull a box out of it. OMG, I hope she didn't buy....... a.................... snow globe! Yup....that's she had. Poor princess. I was pretty sure she got it for her mom, who is a Disney nut. So guess what???? The TSA man walked her out to the Disney store in the airport and she was able to return it. Then they escorted back through security. What good customer service at the Orlando airport. Beats throwing it in the trash!

Remember how I told you I hate lines?????? And remember all the lines I was in at the world?????? And I did fine, didn't I? Did I ever once complain????? (well, maybe I did after that last bus line at the MK).

The first line I got in at the airport was at pizza/italian place. Before I know it, 3 cute little cheerleader types with diamond earings and manicured nails butt right in front of me. "Excuse me", I said. "Oh, tee hee hee, we're just looking", they responded. Well, that quick, I was back to my old self. I reminded them that they had just butted in front of me and I would be moving in front of them in line. Sheeeezzzz! The nerve of some teenagers in large groups!

Our flight left on time. We arrived in Baltimore by 8pm. We made it home to Delaware by 10:30pm. After I greeted my DH & cats, washed the kitchen floor (which my DH had made into a disgusting mess ) and threw in a load of laundry, I was in nighty-nighty land and dreaming of my next DIS vacation!

Next up - final thoughts.....What I learned on my 5th trip to the world!

Thanks for reading!

P.S. The at the airport were actually field hockey players. I apologize for the stereotype and hope I did not offend anyone. Diamond earings for field hockey?????? Oh My Gawd!

 

[MEK]

Post Trip Report - things I learned in Disney

What I love about Disney is that you experience something new everytime you go.

Here is the most interesting thing I learned from one of the bus drivers........

On any given day there are 250 Disney buses on the road.

Collectively, the buses travel 30,000 miles a day!

They run on diesel fuel, which gets 3 mpg.

At $3.00 a galloon they spend $10,000 a day on gas.

All this to get you and I to the


Next up - other things I learned on my trip!

 

[blue_river]

Mek - liked your TR. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Angelrose]

Loved your report. Thanks.