The Mousekafreak Returns to the World!

[Linzybrooke]

I don't know why my pictures aren't showing up? I used Snapfish and did it the same way as I always do, though I usually use shutterfly. Anyone know whats going on?

 

[DonnaLeah]

Hi, Lin!!! I'm anxiously waiting for more of your trip report!!! Good luck with your pics.

 

[lyzziesmom]

Lin: Try using photobucket, I know they always work for this site. I think the DIS is pretty picky about where it's pictures are hosted.

 

[Linzybrooke]

Lin: Try using photobucket, I know they always work for this site. I think the DIS is pretty picky about where it's pictures are hosted.

Buggar! That means I have to redownload them...monkey buttocks.

Thanks for reading along!!!

 

[Linzybrooke]

Hoping to get another section up in the AM. I just got home from work and its time for night-night.

Thanks to everyone who is reading this!

 

[Linzybrooke]

Act Two:
Scene Two:
Location: Animal Kingdom

Ashley and I hopped on the bus from Pop to Animal Kingdom and we were on our way. Now, I will admit, I’m not really a fan of Animal Kingdom. But, Ashley’s husband, Andrew, used to work there so it holds a special place in her heart. It was fun to see it through her eyes.

Our first stop was the infamous picture in front of the tree of life.

Then to Everest to grab a couple of Fast Passes before heading to Tusker House for lunch. I had never eaten at Tusker House but Ashley said it was the best, and she was not wrong! We each had a half Rotisserie Chicken with mashed potatoes and green beans. I have never had a chicken so juicy! My next trip will certainly include a trip to Tusker House.

After lunch we hopped on the Kilimanjaro Safari and then headed back towards Everest so Ashley could use our Fast Passes.

Not being one for rollercoasters I waited at the lookout and managed to snag a picture of her as she came down the first time. I know that you can't tell which one she is, but I promise she is in that picture!

Then a few more trains came down and then it all stopped…I mean nothing happened. After 5-10 minutes of no trains coming sweeping down the mountain we heard an announcement that there was a malfunction and then saw a team of about 5 Cast Members head up the mountain to retrieve the guests who were stuck on the inside. Imagine walking down the escape stairs from the top of Everest! That would have been something neat to see. Ashley was not one of the ones stuck inside though and about that time came around the corner.

From there we noticed that there was a Finding Nemo: The Musical show starting in 5 minutes so we hauled our butts over to the Theatre in the Wild to see the new show.

I have a degree in Theatre Design and I have to say that the scenery, costumes and visual effects were astounding! I was not all that thrilled with the music they wrote for the show, but if you have kids they will enjoy the songs. They are just a little over-the-top cheesy and stuck in my head the entire day. But, it is definitely worth sitting through at least once just to see it. It was very well acted, great singers for the parts and just visually stunning. Sorry, there are no pictures of the show, no flash photos during the production!

From there we went to Dinoland USA to ride my favorite Animal Kingdom ride, Dinosaur. I swear when my husband and I were there in June the ride was totally dark right before the Dinosaur jumps out at you for the picture but this time the lights came on about 5 seconds before. Either way, I think it is an awesome ride!

Then it was off to It’s Tough to be a Bug and then some shopping before catching the Jammin’ Jungle Parade, which I have never seen before.

By this time the park was getting ready to close so we walked back to our bus and headed back to the resort to rest for a little bit before heading back to Downtown Disney and our ADR for the evening, Raglan Road!

 

[Linzybrooke]

Act Two:
Scene Three:
Location: Raglan Road and Downtown Disney

Our ADR at Raglan Road was for 6:00 so we headed over to the West side about 5:30. There were 6 people on the bus including us if this gives you any indication of crowd levels during our trip. We got off at the West side and headed straight towards Raglan Road. It was nice to see Pleasure Island NOT under construction! My last three trips the majority of it was all boarded up for “our future enjoyment”. For all you Harley fans there is now a Harley store across from Raglan Road.

We checked in for our ADR and were promptly seated in the “Music Room” area of the Restaurant. For those of you that didn’t read my last trip report I fell in love with Raglan then and this was the only ADR I made for this trip. I was very excited to eat and glad we got to sit in a different part of the restaurant this time.

Our waitress brought us some Soda Bread and dip made of Guinness, Oil and Sugar before we ordered and it was soooo good! Chris and I didn’t get any of this last time so I will have to go back again on our next trip so he can try some. Then we got our meals. I had Chicken Pie in the Sky and Ashley had Potato Soup and homemade Chips, (French fries). Neither of us like beer so we didn’t have any Guinness, which my husband considers blasphemy. Then we ordered dessert, I had the Bread Pudding (too die for) and Ashley had the Raspberry and Strawberry Torte. Both were delicious and I had a great time sharing my favorite restaurant with my sister-in-law.

Then we walked through the West Side shops and then headed towards the Marketplace to do some shopping at World of Disney and the surrounding stores. We also needed to stop by Guest Relations and get new Visa Rewards Cards.

As slow as this time of year is World of Disney was still a zoo! I get so lost in that store somehow. We made a circle and then did the middle and I only got lost twice. A record for me! Ashley and I both knew that we wanted to buy a new zip-up sweatshirt while on our trip and while examining the one Ashley really liked we had a great revelation. There was a cast member stocking the shelves on the fixture and she told us she would let us in on a secret since we are cast members…, which we are not. This was the first time of many that we were mistaken for cast members this trip. Weird. Anyway, we told her we weren’t but she said she would tell us anyway…that all the 1971 merchandise was going 40% the next day! Bonus for us! I wanted the Christmas Ornaments in that line and Ashley was excited about the sweatshirt. So, we waited on that. But we did find plenty of other stuff to buy! Including my sweatshirt.

Then we went to the Basin and then to Guest Relations…. where we witnessed a protein spill and the poor cast member that got to clean said spill up. It was gross and we all gave the CM a hand for doing it so quickly!

Then we shopped some more before heading back to our resort to prepare for our day at Epcot that was quickly approaching!

 

[lindakmonty]

Great TR Lin!! Can't wait to see more.

 

[DonnaLeah]

I'm really lovin' your trip report!!! Can't wait for the next installment!!!

 

[OhMari]

Thanks for the picture of the Cast Building. It made me a little sad, my dd was up for a job (in office) for security. She didn't get the job. I was so ready to go in Jan. April and June, oh well.

Enjoying your TR-why do people think you are cast members?

 

[lyzziesmom]

Great report Lin! Sounds like you had a wonderful time... Keep it coming!

 

[MousekaMaddi]

keep it coming,l uvin it

 

[Linzybrooke]

Enjoying your TR-why do people think you are cast members?

This is a very good question! I have worked for TDS for 7 years so I guess I have a certain air about me? It was wierd... Maybe someday...

keep it coming,l uvin it

Thanks for joining us MousekaMaddi!

 

[Tinkerbell_Girl]

Great TR Lin! I can't wait to read more!

 

[Linzybrooke]

Great TR Lin! I can't wait to read more!

Thanks Nicole! I'm about to start the next section in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

 

[lyzziesmom]

Hurry up Lin, type faster!!

 

[Linzybrooke]

Act Three:
Scene One:
Location: EPCOT

Ashley and I had agreed that we weren’t going to rush ourselves in the mornings all trip. We would set the alarm for 9:00 but everyday I was up and in the shower by 8:30 and we were out the door by 9:15…odd how that feels like sleeping in when I’m at Disney but at home I want to sleep until 10! We were quickly out the door and headed towards the bus with a quick stop to grab coke refills and some pop-tarts for Ashley (I was saving room for the bakery in France!)

Our first stop after entering the park was MouseGear to snag some of the 40% stuff we had been tipped off about the night before. Ashley got the sweatshirt and I got the ornament set and shot glass, oh, pardon me, “toothpick holder”. We also grabbed an ornament set for our in-laws since they have sort of a sad homemade ornament assortment of both of our DH’s and basically nothing else. Chris and I always make it a mission to get them an ornament in Disney so Ashley and I didn’t want to break tradition!

After MouseGear we charged our way towards Soarin’ to grab a couple of fastpasses, and the posted wait was only 20 minutes so we hopped in line…and an hour of boring nature trivia later we were finally in our hanger and ready to sail over Cali. We didn’t let the wait bother us though and had a great time on our Soarin’ adventure.

Then we headed over to The Seas with Nemo and Friends to check out the new Nemo ride. Its very cute. The que line is forever long (no wait though) but cool to look at. If you look up at the ceiling it looks like you are underwater and there are big posts with barnacles “growing” on them and at one point a little boat overhead. It is very well done.

The ride itself is very cute. The technology is pretty neat to see and the story is cute. I don’t think I would wait in line to ride it but I’m glad to have done it. The clamshell cars are very cute!

From there it was back to the Land to eat lunch and the hit Soarin’ again with our fastpasses. The Land has changed a lot since my last visit in June…or the visit before that because I don’t really remember it from last time. The food court area has been redone and the new layout is very nice. And we didn’t have a problem finding a table. Score!

Lunch was great and we still had a little bit of time before our Soarin’ fastpass so we decided to hop on Living with the Land to kill some time. It was neat as always. But, sadly all the Sunflowers were dead. I don’t remember it with a live host so I can’t tell you how I preferred it now that it is automated.

Now it was time for Soarin’. We went up to the fastpass line and were lead quickly into Hanger A. As we were being told which glider to go too we heard cheering and figured it must have been a birthday or honeymoon. There seemed to be a little confusion about which glider people were being told to go to but we were in the middle row of the middle glider…and once in our place we realized why there was cheering and confusion. The Dream Squad! There they were, announcing that we had all just received a Dream Lanyard! It was very exciting and they were so friendly with everyone! But, it was so exciting we forgot to take pictures! I had to copy this picture from ebay (who would auction this off!)

 

[Linzybrooke]

Act Three:
Scene Two:
Location: EPCOT

After our Dream Soarin’ Experience we ventured back towards Test Track with a stop to send a virtual postcard to the boys in Innoventions. We snagged a couple of Test Track fastpasses and then hopped in the standby line, which had a posted wait of about a half hour. Well, as soon as we got in line they announced a ride malfunction and that it would take a little time to get it fixed. Lots of people got out of line and there was much grumbling and complaining around us. But, we were relaxed and just waited it out without a problem. It took about an hour to get through the ride and through the entire line we got to listen to two moms talk nonstop about their daughter’s friends and relationships and how their daughters are not “those girls”. I had a hard time keeping a straight face. All I could think about was kpk89’s trip report, The Meanest Mother in the World, where the plane ride back she got to listen to the mom with the kid reading in multiple languages. Also, these were dance team moms and I was on dance team…enough said.

We finally got onboard and had a great time helping GM test their vehicles out. I really do like Test Track, its very enjoyable.

After Test Track we headed towards Mexico to start out leisurely walk around World Showcase. We headed through Mexico to Norway to ride everyone’s favorite ride, Maelstrom and then towards China to see if the Hong Kong Disneyland exhibit was still up…which sadly it wasn’t. That exhibit was fabulous and I was sad that Ashley and Andrew had missed it on their honeymoon and that they would never get to see it. Good thing I took lots of pictures last summer!

From there we continued making our circle stopping to shop some in Germany where we came across a Swarovski crystal Cinderella’s Castle that cost 37,500 dollars! I kid you not! Its more than I make in a year!

Then through Italy on our way to hit up America to hear Voices of Liberty perform and see the American Adventure, Ashley’s favorite Epcot attraction and new one for me!

I used to perform with an acapella girls choir and I had never really realized that Voices of Liberty was an acapella choir. They were fabulous! I will not miss them again. And you shouldn’t either. American Adventure was really good too.

Then it was around to France to get a snack at Boulangerie Patisserie. I never miss a change to get a crème Brule! It did not disappoint this time either! Ashley had never stopped here and was very pleased with her crème puff!

We waddled on to the UK to do some shopping. In the Twinnings Tea Caddy I happened upon some Darjeeling Tea! I almost died. Now, you see, Darjeeling is the tea that Buzz Lightyear gets a little bit, um, tipsy, on in the Toy Story when he is having Tea with Sids sister and stuffed animals. I work at Disney Store and for months that clip was on our Media Loop. I have two girls at work that recite it constantly; it even made it onto their myspace pages. But none of us ever knew what Darjeeling was…and now I have found it! So, naturally I had to buy them each some! I also picked up some Black Peach Tea and Ashley got some Four Red Berries Tea, both were wonderful.

Then we wandered through the rest of the shops and caught a performance of The British Invasion…and Alice who was hanging around the courtyard playing with the kids before the show started.

From there we were getting a little sleepy, a little chilly and a little hungry for real food. So, we continued to Mexico where we thought we might try San Angel Inn. Needless to say it was surprisingly booked for the evening so we just went and ate at the counter service restaurant instead.

This turned out to be a great turn of events because, while we couldn’t find a table we found a tree planted that was directly in front of the Lagoon and a perfect spot to view Illuminations! We had thought we might get a margarita but didn’t feel like paying 7.00 for one out of a machine so Ashley got a Conga Fruit Drink instead and I had a Diet Coke. We enjoyed our Nachos (very tasty) and drinks and had a nice, relaxed meal and then made calls to our spouses while waiting for Illuminations to begin. And took a couple of silly pictures.

We were not wrong that this might be a great place to see Illuminations, as you can see from below!

Following Illuminations we grabbed wristbands for Extra Magic Hours so we could use our fastpasses for Test Track and then headed to the bus to go back to Pop. Magic Kingdom was up next and we needed our sleep!

 

[lyzziesmom]

I love the part about you two waddling around World Showcase! Been there, done that girlfriend. You're making me want to be there NOW!!

 

[Linzybrooke]

I love the part about you two waddling around World Showcase! Been there, done that girlfriend. You're making me want to be there NOW!!

But you will be there SO soon! I am determined to finish this before you guys go!