The Seattle Princesses Have No Shame - June 2012 (Updated 8/5!!)

[Belle83]

Very cool update! The soup at Le Cellier sounds delicious

 

[Eight]

Very cool update! The soup at Le Cellier sounds delicious

Thank you! The soup is pretty much the only reason I go to Le Cellier. I mean, the hamburger was probably the best burger I've had on property, but the rest of the menu doesn't appeal to me as much. It's all about the cheddar cheese soup.

 

[Eight]

After successfully completing a trip around the world, it was getting close to being able to use our Soarin' Fast Passes.

But since we had some time to kill before that, I suggested we go to Mouse Gears, as The Friend wanted Captain EO merchandise, and we hadn't seen much in the Figment gift shop.

We couldn't find anything, at least not Captain EO related. I ended up buying a Stitch as Yoda Vinylmation figure. Stitch is probably my favorite Disney character, and Yoda is my favorite Star Wars character, so you know, perfect!

(The Vinylmation next to it is from the 20th Anniversary of Disneyland Paris collection, which I bought later that night at D Street. We'll get to that.)

We asked one cast member about Captain EO stuff, in case we had somehow overlooked it, but she said didn't think they had any, and had we tried the Figment gift store? We thanked her, and since we still had more time before our Fast Passes were good, we journeyed over to Figment and his gift store.

Alas, there was not much to be found there. All they had were Hooter and Fuzzball plush. Which, admittedly, were adorable, but not what The Friend was looking for. It was disappointing, especially since last June they had a whole cart full of stuff outside the entrance.

Well, at least it was almost time to ride Soarin'.

By the time we got downstairs at The Land, we still had about ten minutes before our scheduled time, so what better to do than ride Living with the Land? I hadn't ridden it in about four years, I think, and The Friend had never ridden it at all. Plus, there was no line, so that was perfect.

I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, because I had no memories of riding it four years ago (in fact, it may have been more like 8+ years ago. The more I think about, the more unsure I am.), and while I had seen pictures on the DIS in several trip reports, that made it seem like you were just floating through a giant greenhouse. Which, okay, that's essentially what it is, but I didn't realize that I would find it rather entertaining and enjoyable.

That was my unexpected surprise for the day.

This was my Red Phase. Later in the trip came my Blue Phase.

Finally, it was time to ride Soarin'! It seems like this line always takes forever, even with a Fast Pass. But the wait was worth it, as we were in the front row and center!

After Soarin', we sat down for a few minutes, and debated our next move. We had done almost everything we wanted to do at Epcot, we were both hot and tired, so we figured we hit up Spaceship Earth on our way out, and then go to Downtown Disney.

Our favorite part (well, I know I love it, and I think The Friend does too) of Spaceship Earth is that part at the end where you can create your future. I'm obsessed with it, and it's why I love the ride so much. Okay, it's that part, and the family from the 60's living room, and the lady scientist with the yellow tights, and the smell of the ride, and the part with all the blue lights. I'm obsessed with all those parts. Seriously.

This is the living room I'm talking about, and I want it in my house.

Of course.

I'm not sure why we look so disappointed about our future. I mean, we're in a flying car.

This is us zooming off to Tanzania, where we said we were from. Why not?

After nearly burning ourselves on the car seats because it was so hot, we drove to Downtown Disney.

First stop? D Street. Where, sadly, they were all out of Park 8 Vinylmation. I was so disappointed. But I ended up getting the Disneyland Paris Mickey, which I think is super cute, so it wasn't all bad.

We probably looked in more stores as we made our way to the other side of Downtown Disney, but I didn't take notes on that.

We passed the Adventurer's Club, and I will never forgive Disney for taking that out before I turned 21.

Story Time.

In 2008, when I was 18, my mom and I took a trip to Disney World. One night we were at Downtown Disney, and I told her about the Adventurer's Club, and that it was supposed to be really cool. My mom insisted that we try and get in, while I was like, are you crazy? I'm not 21 yet.

But she asked someone, and they said I could go in for a little bit, but I had to get a wristband or something like that if I wanted to stay the whole night, but since I wasn't 21, I couldn't get one. So I was able to go in for a while.

And it was glorious. I remember thinking that this was like the coolest thing ever.

Unfortunately, soon enough, we were herded out of the building along with all the other people who didn't have a wrist band.

And I told my mom, I cannot wait until I'm 21 and can stay there longer.

Sadly, that day never came.

The End.

I'm still upset about this.

Anyway.

We had dinner at Earl of Sandwich.

We had another merchandise disappointment at the sports store, because they didn't really have much runDisney gear. If I'm remembering correctly, all they had for women were shorts, and none in my size.

First Captain EO, then Park 8 Vinylmation, and then runDisney?

My wallet was probably happy, but I was not.

Exhausted, we figured we should probably drive back to the hotel since we had another early morning the next day.

When we got there, there were some giraffes to welcome us home.

And I crashed hard. I think The Friend may have gone to the bar to watch a baseball game, or maybe that was the night she went and worked out. Either way, she had more energy than I did. I was completely drained. I don't remember what time I went to bed, but it was early.

Up Next: The Magic Kingdom!

 

[mike the canuck]

Following along

 

[RachelNinja]

How was that burger at Le Cellier? When we went there, our server Jeremy said that the three course menu doesn't make much sense because there's no steak on it UNLESS you were in the mood for a burger because it's supposed to be REALLY good. Hubby and I split the filet, but in the back of my mind, I'm thinking about that burger!

I love the bag you got from Mitsukoshi (and Hi Chews really do taste super yummy!)! I am a sucker for bags that can hold a lot of stuff, except I have a nook and not a Kindle, haha. I usually like it to be able to fit my LL Bean water bottle too. I probably carry way too much for my good.

I was never really interested in the Adventurer's Club, but when I found out that a lot of the DHS Streetmosphere people worked there too, I understood why it could be so awesome! Those people are SO TALENTED!

 

[Eight]

Following along

Glad to have you following along!

How was that burger at Le Cellier? When we went there, our server Jeremy said that the three course menu doesn't make much sense because there's no steak on it UNLESS you were in the mood for a burger because it's supposed to be REALLY good. Hubby and I split the filet, but in the back of my mind, I'm thinking about that burger!

I love the bag you got from Mitsukoshi (and Hi Chews really do taste super yummy!)! I am a sucker for bags that can hold a lot of stuff, except I have a nook and not a Kindle, haha. I usually like it to be able to fit my LL Bean water bottle too. I probably carry way too much for my good.

I was never really interested in the Adventurer's Club, but when I found out that a lot of the DHS Streetmosphere people worked there too, I understood why it could be so awesome! Those people are SO TALENTED!

I had two burgers later on this trip, at Sci Fi Dine In and Liberty Tree Tavern. Those two were basically the same, but the Le Cellier burger was definitely better, in my opinion. I don't eat steak, so I can't really compare the two in terms of that, but I can say when The Friend and I ate here last year, she had a steak, and I think she said it was maybe her second favorite meal, and that she liked Yak + Yeti better. This year, she had the burger, and it was her favorite meal. But sometimes it all depends on the day you're there and the chef, I've heard bad reviews where people swore to never go back of my favorite restaurants where I've never had a bad experience. Who knows?

With all the said, I think you should try the burger next time.

I'm kind of the opposite, I prefer smaller bags. I don't think a water bottle would fit in the one I got, but they had bigger ones, and The Friend got a cute one that had balloons on it to use as a gym bag. I wish I had taken a picture of it! Oh, and they had these adorable pens too! I can't believe I forgot to mention those, because I am a big fan of pens.

Really? I didn't know that. It makes sense though. I always want to watch the Streetmosphere acts, but I always seem to miss them or be with people who don't have any interest in watching. But the little bits I've seen have always been amusing.

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

I am enjoying your trip report so far! I grew up in eastern Washington, so while I'm not a fellow Seattleite, it's sort of close. I do have relatives in Seattle. That should count for something.

The gardens by Le Cellier are inspired by the Butchart Gardens in Victoria, BC.

That bag you got is really cute! I don't remember seeing that living room set outside the Figment ride before, but the lamp is awesome!

 

[Eight]

I am enjoying your trip report so far! I grew up in eastern Washington, so while I'm not a fellow Seattleite, it's sort of close. I do have relatives in Seattle. That should count for something.

The gardens by Le Cellier are inspired by the Butchart Gardens in Victoria, BC.

That bag you got is really cute! I don't remember seeing that living room set outside the Figment ride before, but the lamp is awesome!

I'm so glad to hear that! Thank you for reading.
Hey, Washington is Washington. We have a house over on Lake Chelan, but that's really the only part of eastern Washington I know.

Aah, okay, cool! Thank you for letting me know! I just looked that up online, and wow, it looks amazing. Now I want to go there.

I'm rather fond of the carpet.

 

[Eight]

I hope you are all doing well!

We've finally made it to the second day, which started with a very special breakfast. If I may borrow an explanation from my PTR...

Let's time travel back a few months to an undetermined date in March.

Winter was rough. I don't want to get in to specific details, but it was a very hard time for me, and to make of long story short, I decided I would plan a trip for June once I was out of school. A carrot on a stick, if you will.

Now get back in that time machine and set the coordinates for mid-April!

While I had decided that I definitely wanted to go somewhere, I had yet to figure out where, and I figured I should probably start making plans soon. I tossed around a few ideas, like Hawaii and Costa Rica, but I've never been a fan of relaxing beach vacations.

Of course, the idea of Walt Disney World came up at some point.

"Hm," I thought to myself, "I was just there in December with my parents but if I could find a friend to come with me this time..."

Yes, that would certainly do, if I could find someone to go with me.

A week or so later, I went out to breakfast with my friend who had gone to WDW with me last June. I had no clue if she'd be interested in going or not, but I figured I'd try and bring it up. Like, "remember when we went to Disney World last summer? Would you want to go again?" or something like that. I had no clue. I was honestly kind of freaked out because I had convinced myself the night before that she would have absolutely no interest in going.

Well, I needn't have worried.

SETTING: A pancake house in a Seattle suburb. Two women in their twenties are a booth, looking at the menu.

RACHEL: Hey, they have banana pancakes!

FRIEND: Oh yeah! But I bet they're not as good as... what was it called? That french toast at Disney World?

RACHEL: Tonga toast?

FRIEND: Yes! I want to go back...

RACHEL: Well, you know...

I like to say this trip happened because of Tonga Toast (I mean, of course, there was more to it than that, but you know...), and on this morning we were headed to Kona!

We woke up very early at 6:40, because our reservations were at 8. I was hoping we would be in and out before the park opened, but I knew that would be pushing it.

We drove over to the TTC, parked (in one of the very first rows! No tram for us today!), and walked over to the Polynesian.

Let me just take the time to appreciate the Polynesian. I really love it. I stayed there in 2009, and I liked it, but I think my real love for it happened when The Friend and I stayed there last June. That was such an amazing trip, so whenever I go to the Polynesian now, I am reminded of all the good times that happened on that trip.

Plus, there's the whole relaxing, tropical vibe going on, and who doesn't love that?

And the Tonga Toast.

Oh yes.

Let's not forget what we were here for.

So, we checked in and had to wait about five minutes before we were seated.

The Friend and I didn't really need to look at the menu, because we both knew what we wanted. And if you don't know what that is, I suggest re-reading this chapter.

Shortly after we ordered, it arrived!

Isn't it beautiful?

I devoured mine quickly. The Friend has much better table manners than I do, and devoured hers in a more polite fashion.

We tried to convince the people to our right to get the Tonga Toast because they had never been to Kona before. "It's amazing," we assured them.

I don't think they ended up ordering it though.

We also talked to the people on our left about the parks. They were an older couple who were there with their children and grandchildren (although the children and grandchildren were not with them at Kona), and they were very sweet. They kept giving us tips about the parks, nothing The Friend and I didn't already know, but it was nice of them.

Finally, when the last of the Tonga Toast was eaten, we got our check, and took the monorail to the Magic Kingdom! Hurray!

Yes, we were still wearing our crowns.

Oh wait.

Are all those people waiting to get it?!

We got there just a little bit after 9, right after they started the opening ceremony, and we had to wait in line to get in, because they couldn't let any more people in to the entry area.

That was to my right.

I had never been to such a crowded opening.

It didn't take too long to get in after that, but it definitely felt crowded walking down Main Street.

First mission of the day?

Get Space Mountain Fast Passes.

We were able to get our Fast Passes quickly (I didn't write down what time they were for, but I think we can assume it was probably after 9:45 but before 11:30), and then it was time to travel across the park to the Haunted Mansion for our first ride of the day.

Of course, I made us stop for some pictures.

After riding the Haunted Mansion, we figured we'd hit up Pirates of the Caribbean.

But before we could get there, we were stopped by a Cast Member.

 

[Eight]

We are currently experiencing some technical difficulties.

My photobucket account seems to have decided to quit working. It won't recognize my username at all. I've googled this, and some other people have had this problem in the past, but I'm still not sure how to fix it yet.

At least my current pictures still seem to be uploaded and working.

But until this gets resolved, there probably won't be any updates, because I like pictures.

This is frustrating.

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

I can TOTALLY relate to the "carrot" vacation! I am a teacher and my DH and I are pondering vacation plans for next June so we can have something to look forward to. I don't think it will be Disney in 2013, but maybe 2014. I just like to research and plan and anticipate a vacation! Oh, and taking it is generally amazing also.

But the SUSPENSE! WHY were you stopped by a CM?! I do hope Photobucket gets it's act together soon so we are not left hanging!

 

[Eight]

I can TOTALLY relate to the "carrot" vacation! I am a teacher and my DH and I are pondering vacation plans for next June so we can have something to look forward to. I don't think it will be Disney in 2013, but maybe 2014. I just like to research and plan and anticipate a vacation! Oh, and taking it is generally amazing also.

But the SUSPENSE! WHY were you stopped by a CM?! I do hope Photobucket gets it's act together soon so we are not left hanging!

Yeah, I think spring quarter of college would have been 100x times harder had it not been for planning this trip. Something about planning Disney trips makes me me feel less stressed.
Where would you go instead in 2013?

I just checked again, and thankfully, Photobucket has decided to cooperate now, so hurray! I have no idea what that was all about. I'll hopefully get something up in the next day or two.

Also, I just noticed the Princess Half Marathon image in your signature. Did you do that? I really wanted to sign up for it, but I ended up going for the Tinker Bell half because California is a lot closer than Florida and the dates work better.

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

Yeah, I think spring quarter of college would have been 100x times harder had it not been for planning this trip. Something about planning Disney trips makes me me feel less stressed.
Where would you go instead in 2013?

I just checked again, and thankfully, Photobucket has decided to cooperate now, so hurray! I have no idea what that was all about. I'll hopefully get something up in the next day or two.

Also, I just noticed the Princess Half Marathon image in your signature. Did you do that? I really wanted to sign up for it, but I ended up going for the Tinker Bell half because California is a lot closer than Florida and the dates work better.

Yes, I did do the 2010 Princess Half Marathon. The 2010 Trip Report in my signature is the Princess Half Report. I wanted to do the Tinkerbell last year and the Princess Half in 2013, but it costs so much for just a weekend that I can't justify it right now. To go to the Princess for 3 days, I'd need to take a day off work, fly, get a hotel, and pay the race registration. Without park tickets, I was looking at roughly $1100 for just me for 3 days. I've gotten a bit out of shape and wanted a concrete, fun goal to work towards, but I think I will aim for 2014....both physically and financially. I don't know if I would do the Princess or Tinkerbell. I do love Disneyland, but it takes a lot longer to get to from here.

I also did the Disneyland Half back in 2010 to get the Coast to Coast medal. I never did get my photos uploaded or do a trip report for that.

As for 2013, we will probably go elsewhere than Disney because we just went to WDW in April of this year. We are thinking to do a road trip to maybe the Smoky Mountains or something. I think we can go for a week for the two of us in the $1000-$1500 range. WDW for a week in June would be $2200+ to stay at a moderate, get park tickets, and dining. I'm still pricing it out and we are in the really early stages of planning. We have time and we haven't booked anything yet.

 

[Eight]

Yes, I did do the 2010 Princess Half Marathon. The 2010 Trip Report in my signature is the Princess Half Report. I wanted to do the Tinkerbell last year and the Princess Half in 2013, but it costs so much for just a weekend that I can't justify it right now. To go to the Princess for 3 days, I'd need to take a day off work, fly, get a hotel, and pay the race registration. Without park tickets, I was looking at roughly $1100 for just me for 3 days. I've gotten a bit out of shape and wanted a concrete, fun goal to work towards, but I think I will aim for 2014....both physically and financially. I don't know if I would do the Princess or Tinkerbell. I do love Disneyland, but it takes a lot longer to get to from here.

I also did the Disneyland Half back in 2010 to get the Coast to Coast medal. I never did get my photos uploaded or do a trip report for that.

As for 2013, we will probably go elsewhere than Disney because we just went to WDW in April of this year. We are thinking to do a road trip to maybe the Smoky Mountains or something. I think we can go for a week for the two of us in the $1000-$1500 range. WDW for a week in June would be $2200+ to stay at a moderate, get park tickets, and dining. I'm still pricing it out and we are in the really early stages of planning. We have time and we haven't booked anything yet.

I'll have to take a look at your trip report then. I love reading race reports.
It is pretty expensive to do the races though, when you add everything in. That's why I couldn't do the Princess half, which is not the say the Tinker Bell half is much cheaper, but airfare from Seattle to one of the LA area airports can be anywhere from 1/3 to 1/4 of the price to Orlando. Plus it takes half the time to get there.

It may sound silly, but the only reason I wanted to do the Princess half more was that I liked the theme better. I am not a Tinker Bell fan at all. Oh well. It'll still be fun.

Ah, that would be fun. And probably a lot less expensive than Disney. As much as I love Disney, it does add up pretty fast.

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

I'll have to take a look at your trip report then. I love reading race reports.
It is pretty expensive to do the races though, when you add everything in. That's why I couldn't do the Princess half, which is not the say the Tinker Bell half is much cheaper, but airfare from Seattle to one of the LA area airports can be anywhere from 1/3 to 1/4 of the price to Orlando. Plus it takes half the time to get there.

It may sound silly, but the only reason I wanted to do the Princess half more was that I liked the theme better. I am not a Tinker Bell fan at all. Oh well. It'll still be fun.

Ah, that would be fun. And probably a lot less expensive than Disney. As much as I love Disney, it does add up pretty fast.

It's very expensive. They also moved the Princess weekend. When I did it, it was the first (2nd?) weekend in March. It was right after the Flower & Garden Festival had started, so that was an added bonus. Well, last year or the year before, they moved it so that it's the Sunday following President's Day. Most of the northeast gets that entire week off, so this is a Peak Season week at WDW. Peak Season = higher prices.

I totally understand about the theme. I love the Princess theme, but I'm not a huge fan of Tinkerbell. When I flew out to do the Disneyland Half, I had direct flights for Saturday morning; with the time change I was going to get in at a reasonable time to do the Expo. A month or so before the event, the airline (United? Delta?) threw a curve ball and made my direct flight one with a layover. I was not going to get to Disneyland in time to get to the Expo on Saturday. Fortunately, the airline let me cancel the flight. I was able to re-book on Southwest. I think I still had a layover, but I was able to fly out the night before. Of course, then I needed an extra hotel night. I ended up at the Quality Inn off Harbor for one night and then had to walk to the Park Place Inn for the rest of my stay before going to the Expo.

I think I've just come to the conclusion that I'll just go to Disney for a week-long visit and skip the races in the future. Less effort and it's not much more expensive for more time.

 

[RachelNinja]

Kona breakfast is on my list of things to try even though I don't think I'd order the Tonga Toast as I'm not a fan of bananas. I wish someone around me would order it so that I could taste it though (even if it's like, someone from a neighboring table ... haha, kidding)! I just can't eat the whole thing.

 

[Eight]

It's very expensive. They also moved the Princess weekend. When I did it, it was the first (2nd?) weekend in March. It was right after the Flower & Garden Festival had started, so that was an added bonus. Well, last year or the year before, they moved it so that it's the Sunday following President's Day. Most of the northeast gets that entire week off, so this is a Peak Season week at WDW. Peak Season = higher prices.

I totally understand about the theme. I love the Princess theme, but I'm not a huge fan of Tinkerbell. When I flew out to do the Disneyland Half, I had direct flights for Saturday morning; with the time change I was going to get in at a reasonable time to do the Expo. A month or so before the event, the airline (United? Delta?) threw a curve ball and made my direct flight one with a layover. I was not going to get to Disneyland in time to get to the Expo on Saturday. Fortunately, the airline let me cancel the flight. I was able to re-book on Southwest. I think I still had a layover, but I was able to fly out the night before. Of course, then I needed an extra hotel night. I ended up at the Quality Inn off Harbor for one night and then had to walk to the Park Place Inn for the rest of my stay before going to the Expo.

I think I've just come to the conclusion that I'll just go to Disney for a week-long visit and skip the races in the future. Less effort and it's not much more expensive for more time.

Isn't March popular with spring break-ers though? Or was it early enough that you missed them?

Oh man, that would be so stressful. I would love to do the Disneyland half though. I kind of wish I had known about these events earlier, so I could have done that one this year. Maybe next year.

Kona breakfast is on my list of things to try even though I don't think I'd order the Tonga Toast as I'm not a fan of bananas. I wish someone around me would order it so that I could taste it though (even if it's like, someone from a neighboring table ... haha, kidding)! I just can't eat the whole thing.

Aw, no Tonga Toast? No, it's totally understandable if you don't like bananas. They are fairly banana-y.
(Although there is a lot of bread around them, maybe you could just pick them out? )

 

[CSAColl]

I think the garden area in Canada is so beautiful. The Friend was telling me how it's actually based on some real garden in Canada, but of course, I cannot remember where or what it was. Soo.. Yeah.

You can't remember?! It's only a short 90 minute ferry ride from you in beautiful Victoria, BC! Now whenever you need a quick disney reminder fix you can just hop across the border and head to Butchart Gardens!

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

Isn't March popular with spring break-ers though? Or was it early enough that you missed them?

Oh man, that would be so stressful. I would love to do the Disneyland half though. I kind of wish I had known about these events earlier, so I could have done that one this year. Maybe next year.

It wasn't bad that year. Easter must have been later in the spring. I didn't consider that. Perhaps that is the reason they moved it. I think one year recently Easter was in early March? I can't remember.

The Tinkerbell will probably be better for you for a first race. It's probably a smaller crowd and predominately women. The Disneyland race felt very different from the Princess because it was much less women-centric and it was also a much bigger crowd. (At the time...the Princess has GROWN!) Also, the Disneyland race was much warmer than the Princess.

 

[Eight]

You can't remember?! It's only a short 90 minute ferry ride from you in beautiful Victoria, BC! Now whenever you need a quick disney reminder fix you can just hop across the border and head to Butchart Gardens!

I'm seriously going to have to go there sometime now!

It wasn't bad that year. Easter must have been later in the spring. I didn't consider that. Perhaps that is the reason they moved it. I think one year recently Easter was in early March? I can't remember.

The Tinkerbell will probably be better for you for a first race. It's probably a smaller crowd and predominately women. The Disneyland race felt very different from the Princess because it was much less women-centric and it was also a much bigger crowd. (At the time...the Princess has GROWN!) Also, the Disneyland race was much warmer than the Princess.

Maybe that was it. It is unfortunate that they do it around President's Day now. I went once during that week when I was 9, and while I don't really remember the crowds, according to my mom, they were awful.

I'm actually going to do the Tower of Terror Ten Miler first in September. I don't know, when I signed up, doing ten miles seemed a lot less daunting then a half marathon. There was something about those extra 3.1 miles... Whatever works though.