Obsessed w/Disney in OH
With hope, the imagination soars.
- Joined
- Sep 25, 1999
- Messages
- 254
The Sloneckers Holiday Trip to Disney-Kona Café, Typhoon Lagoon, Kitchen Sink, Downtown Disney(Part 7 of 10)
Slonecker Family:
Lisa-Obsessed w/Disney crazed planner; been planning this trip since last Christmas
Russ-DH, is a converted Disney-fan; read the Passporter this time
Holly-DD-15, even admits to her teenage friends that she loves Disney; future goal is to work at Disney as an architect and Imagineer
Emily-DD-12, spirited & creativeenergy galore, happy to be out of school
Jana-DD-8, nothing holds her backkeepin up with the sisters; roller coaster rider
Trip:: 7 nights at Beach Club for our third family trip to WDW-first trip for Christmas activities. November 29-December 6
We were up early this morning to make our 8:00 p.s. at Kona Café. For the last 2 days, we had been trying to call to see if we could change our p.s. to a later time. We probably spent ½ hour each time on hold, so we just finally kept our original p.s. although it would have been nice to sleep in a little! We were at the bus stop at 7:15, but of course the bus to MK took forever! We finally got to MK and jumped on the monorail to Poly. Transportation anywhere takes so long! We were a little late, but all was well and we were seated with no wait. I was immediately struck by this place. We had never seen Poly before and took a liking to it right away. It just seemed calm and peaceful. We decided to explore it further after breakfast as a potential resort for a future trip.
Russ and I opted for the Kona Coffeeoh my gosh, this stuff is heavenly!
The girls got the Orange Passion Fruit Smoothiethey were in awe! I decided on Tonga Toast after hearing rave reviews, Russ the Banana & Pecan Pancakes, HollyEggs Benedict, Emily-Eggs Your Way, and Jana-Goofy Toast. We really loved this breakfast 
, although I really could not finish the Tonga Toastway, way too rich! Holly shared her protein/eggs with me and I was happy. Jana got a kick out of the Goofy Toast(toasted bread with an egg cooked in the middle). She was especially impressed when I told her I knew how to make it and I promised to make it for her after our return home. (And I have many, many times! )
We explored Poly and was quite impressed. We have had quite a few discussions in our family during this trip about our accommodations at the BC. There are things our family liked about our former stays at POR and some that we liked about BC. During our tour of Poly, we all agreed that this resort might be a good potential combination of the two for our next stay. We loved the resort feel vs. the hotel feel(the separate buildings and beautiful landscaping along the paths), the convenience of the monorail, the peaceful feel of the beach and pool area, etc. We had considered the Poly for our current stay, but decided on the BC. We didnt regret that decision, but its always good to weigh your options for future stays!
We jumped on the monorail to MK and caught a bus to BC. We changed into suits and we were off to Typhoon Lagoon! We thought the bus wait might be long, but we were pleasantly surprised that it was a short wait and we were on our way. We were at BB in a previous trip, but weve never been to TL, so we were looking forward to it. Besides, we wanted to tell our friends in Ohio that we went to a water park in December!
I had to buy a ticket since I had an AP, so the others went in and we agreed to meet up at the lockers. Luckily, Holly came back to meet me and show me where they were, because Im not sure I would have found them right away! We headed off to find a place to put our towels and the girls headed to the Shark Reef. Holly and Emily did it first and Jana, Russ, and I headed to the underwater observation windows. I immediately knew that Emily would really love this experience. She is just wild about any type of creatures! They loved it and wanted to do it again and Jana thought she might try. I couldnt do it because of the salt water and trouble Ive had with my ears, so Russ agreed to go with Jana.
They got ready and I saw Jana balking and I knew she changed her mind. She came back out and said, No way am I doing that!. We watched the other three do it. Russ was in a hurry! We had to laugh at him chugging across the pool. He was moving! After he rinsed and came back, he said he momentarily panicked and found the breathing to be hard through the snorkel. He wasnt interested in trying that again!
The girls advise for the Shark Reef was: Rinse your face and mouth immediately after exiting the pool(yucksalt water!) and breath slow, steady breaths through the snorkel and dont panic! This was a great, fun experience for them.
We decided to go on the Castaway Creek, the lazy river. It was hard to get inthe water was a little chilly! But, once we got in, we were fine. We liked how they had 2-person tubes so Russ and Jana went together and she felt better about not getting separated. We floated around the circuit one time and moved on to find more to do.
We headed out to explore more and headed to the slides. We really didnt know what we were getting into, but just followed the stairs up and down, over and around, and up and down again. After walking and walking, we got to the beginning of the ride for the Storm Slides. I didnt realize that the only way down was to ride the slide or walk the path up, down and over again to get out of it. I was not going to do that whole path again, so I reluctantly sat down and went for the ride! I am not into body slides, but it was actually quite fun.
We have fond memories of the family raft ride at BB, so we decided to head to the family raft ride here, Gang Plank Falls. However, this family raft is small and to get to the loading area you have to steer the tube up over some steps to get in it. They tip it up on the side and you have to roll it up the stairs! It is hard to driveon its side over the steps!! We finally got it there and then practically sat on each other, and drug bottom the entire ride down the slide. Although we did get a laugh out of that experienceit was disappointing.
There is no comparison between this family raft ride and the one at BB. The one at BB surpasses this one by a long shot.
The girls decided to head to the tube rides and Russ and I headed to the chairs for some sun. I began to worry that the girls would not find us backthis place is winding and every corner looks like the next, but they found us back to announce they were heading to the wave pool. They had a great time on the tube rides and Emily returned to the Shark Reef for her 8th or 9th time! Emily and Holly both did Humunga Kowabunga and thought it was great.
This trip was the first time that they have gone off on their own without Russ or I. In some ways, it was so nice that they were old enough to be independent and responsible enough to keep an eye on Jana In other ways, it is quite sad that they grow so quickly!
We were sitting at the perfect place to check up on themat the side of the wave pool near the back where the waves originate from. We were high enough, we could see the kids and they could see us. We also noticed that some boys seemed to have made friends with them and of course DH had to keep an eye on that!
After a while, the announcement was made that the surf waves would be coming and Emily headed to deeper water--our daredevil, you know! We could hear the screams of anticipation when the roar sounded for the surf wave and soon we couldnt see the girls at all as the waves came crashing down on them! This really is quite scary watching it from above, but Holly held tight to Jana and we thought she would not like this at all, but she loved it! They all did!
Jana came back after a while and was exhausted and said her sisters were talking to some boys with an English accent like Harry Potter. We finally got the other girls attention and decided to head out. Since I forgot the shampoo, etc. we decided to forego the showers and just cover up and head to BC. Luckily as we walked up, the bus arrived. A family was waiting for the BC bus and said they had been waiting for about 30 minutes. Luckily, we timed that out well!
The girls regaled us with stories of the boys they met from United Kingdom. They very much enjoyed listening to them and their accent. The girls laughed about the boys asking them if they wanted to ride the dingy with them(the tube rides). We headed to BC for showers and a snack.
My mission this trip was to get to Beaches and Cream for the Kitchen Sink and today was going to be the day! Everyone was in agreement, although only I knew about the Kitchen Sink at Beaches and Cream. Their eyes got big when the lights went out and the announcement was made to everyone about our kitchen sink.
Everyone there cheered as the waitress placed it on our table and the girls were amazed. It was so fun! We ate and ate and ate. People were so kind when they stopped by our tables to cheer us on. As we got farther down, it got mushier and soupier. There were lots of flavors mixed with other flavors but we were determined to make a serious dent in it. We did very well, I think. We finished it all but the soupy liquid at the bottom of the sink! Oh my gosh, we were stuffed to the brim! OK, that might be lunch, snack, and dinner!
We waddled to the bus stop and headed to Downtown Disney. I was excited to check out the scrapbook place. However, I was unimpressed. The selection wasnt that great and I didnt see much that was any different that what I had seen in other places. I was even more unimpressed when I told her I had an annual pass and asked about the Marketplace discount, but the scrapbook store isnt included in that. Movin on to another store! We walked around and enjoyed cruising the shops. I loved the Disney at Home store and have dreams of re-doing my bathroom or kitchen and including everything Disney I saw there!
We headed to the World of Disney where they do give the AP discount. Holly ran into the boys she met at Typhoon Lagoon! It really is a small world! We enjoyed the Lego creatures and Jana wanted to see Santa which she did. Believe it or not, as the evening progressed, we were getting slightly hungry and we debated about where to eat. We wanted something other than burgers and fries. We checked out the menu at Wolfgang Puck Express and it looked like the different we were hungry for. We got: cheese quesadillas, BBQ chicken sandwich, ham & provolone sandwich(our least favoriteit was not a heated sandwich), and BBQ chicken quesadillas(my favoriteyum). This meal really hit the spot! We all enjoyed the variety and different choices. It wasnt the quickest express we have ever been too, but we would go again.
We decided we wanted to see the Electric Light Parade, we had never seen it before and wanted to view it from the beach at Poly since it was earliest there and Wishes would follow shortly after. So, we caught the bus from DD to Poly. We found some beach chairs and settled in. I was excited because people say they make a tradition of seeing this. However, it was cute...but I would not need to see it again. We did stay for the Wishes fireworks and the perspective from across the water was awesome. We could hear the music and the displays were so different when seen from afar. This was worth our trip to Poly.
We jumped on the monorail to MK and tried to catch a bus to BC which took forever!! Everyone was tired from our big day. And, the commando tourist(me!), survived coming to Disney and not being in any of the four main parks for one day! This was quite an accomplishment and I was proud of myself!!
Stay tuned for: Revenge of the kitchen sink, AK, Maras at AKL
Slonecker Family:
Lisa-Obsessed w/Disney crazed planner; been planning this trip since last Christmas
Russ-DH, is a converted Disney-fan; read the Passporter this time
Holly-DD-15, even admits to her teenage friends that she loves Disney; future goal is to work at Disney as an architect and Imagineer
Emily-DD-12, spirited & creativeenergy galore, happy to be out of school
Jana-DD-8, nothing holds her backkeepin up with the sisters; roller coaster rider
Trip:: 7 nights at Beach Club for our third family trip to WDW-first trip for Christmas activities. November 29-December 6
We were up early this morning to make our 8:00 p.s. at Kona Café. For the last 2 days, we had been trying to call to see if we could change our p.s. to a later time. We probably spent ½ hour each time on hold, so we just finally kept our original p.s. although it would have been nice to sleep in a little! We were at the bus stop at 7:15, but of course the bus to MK took forever! We finally got to MK and jumped on the monorail to Poly. Transportation anywhere takes so long! We were a little late, but all was well and we were seated with no wait. I was immediately struck by this place. We had never seen Poly before and took a liking to it right away. It just seemed calm and peaceful. We decided to explore it further after breakfast as a potential resort for a future trip.
Russ and I opted for the Kona Coffeeoh my gosh, this stuff is heavenly!
The girls got the Orange Passion Fruit Smoothiethey were in awe! I decided on Tonga Toast after hearing rave reviews, Russ the Banana & Pecan Pancakes, HollyEggs Benedict, Emily-Eggs Your Way, and Jana-Goofy Toast. We really loved this breakfast , although I really could not finish the Tonga Toastway, way too rich! Holly shared her protein/eggs with me and I was happy. Jana got a kick out of the Goofy Toast(toasted bread with an egg cooked in the middle). She was especially impressed when I told her I knew how to make it and I promised to make it for her after our return home. (And I have many, many times! ) We explored Poly and was quite impressed. We have had quite a few discussions in our family during this trip about our accommodations at the BC. There are things our family liked about our former stays at POR and some that we liked about BC. During our tour of Poly, we all agreed that this resort might be a good potential combination of the two for our next stay. We loved the resort feel vs. the hotel feel(the separate buildings and beautiful landscaping along the paths), the convenience of the monorail, the peaceful feel of the beach and pool area, etc. We had considered the Poly for our current stay, but decided on the BC. We didnt regret that decision, but its always good to weigh your options for future stays!
We jumped on the monorail to MK and caught a bus to BC. We changed into suits and we were off to Typhoon Lagoon! We thought the bus wait might be long, but we were pleasantly surprised that it was a short wait and we were on our way. We were at BB in a previous trip, but weve never been to TL, so we were looking forward to it. Besides, we wanted to tell our friends in Ohio that we went to a water park in December!
I had to buy a ticket since I had an AP, so the others went in and we agreed to meet up at the lockers. Luckily, Holly came back to meet me and show me where they were, because Im not sure I would have found them right away! We headed off to find a place to put our towels and the girls headed to the Shark Reef. Holly and Emily did it first and Jana, Russ, and I headed to the underwater observation windows. I immediately knew that Emily would really love this experience. She is just wild about any type of creatures! They loved it and wanted to do it again and Jana thought she might try. I couldnt do it because of the salt water and trouble Ive had with my ears, so Russ agreed to go with Jana.
They got ready and I saw Jana balking and I knew she changed her mind. She came back out and said, No way am I doing that!. We watched the other three do it. Russ was in a hurry! We had to laugh at him chugging across the pool. He was moving! After he rinsed and came back, he said he momentarily panicked and found the breathing to be hard through the snorkel. He wasnt interested in trying that again!
The girls advise for the Shark Reef was: Rinse your face and mouth immediately after exiting the pool(yucksalt water!) and breath slow, steady breaths through the snorkel and dont panic! This was a great, fun experience for them.We decided to go on the Castaway Creek, the lazy river. It was hard to get inthe water was a little chilly! But, once we got in, we were fine. We liked how they had 2-person tubes so Russ and Jana went together and she felt better about not getting separated. We floated around the circuit one time and moved on to find more to do.
We headed out to explore more and headed to the slides. We really didnt know what we were getting into, but just followed the stairs up and down, over and around, and up and down again. After walking and walking, we got to the beginning of the ride for the Storm Slides. I didnt realize that the only way down was to ride the slide or walk the path up, down and over again to get out of it. I was not going to do that whole path again, so I reluctantly sat down and went for the ride! I am not into body slides, but it was actually quite fun.
We have fond memories of the family raft ride at BB, so we decided to head to the family raft ride here, Gang Plank Falls. However, this family raft is small and to get to the loading area you have to steer the tube up over some steps to get in it. They tip it up on the side and you have to roll it up the stairs! It is hard to driveon its side over the steps!! We finally got it there and then practically sat on each other, and drug bottom the entire ride down the slide. Although we did get a laugh out of that experienceit was disappointing.
There is no comparison between this family raft ride and the one at BB. The one at BB surpasses this one by a long shot. The girls decided to head to the tube rides and Russ and I headed to the chairs for some sun. I began to worry that the girls would not find us backthis place is winding and every corner looks like the next, but they found us back to announce they were heading to the wave pool. They had a great time on the tube rides and Emily returned to the Shark Reef for her 8th or 9th time! Emily and Holly both did Humunga Kowabunga and thought it was great.
This trip was the first time that they have gone off on their own without Russ or I. In some ways, it was so nice that they were old enough to be independent and responsible enough to keep an eye on Jana In other ways, it is quite sad that they grow so quickly!
We were sitting at the perfect place to check up on themat the side of the wave pool near the back where the waves originate from. We were high enough, we could see the kids and they could see us. We also noticed that some boys seemed to have made friends with them and of course DH had to keep an eye on that!
After a while, the announcement was made that the surf waves would be coming and Emily headed to deeper water--our daredevil, you know! We could hear the screams of anticipation when the roar sounded for the surf wave and soon we couldnt see the girls at all as the waves came crashing down on them! This really is quite scary watching it from above, but Holly held tight to Jana and we thought she would not like this at all, but she loved it! They all did! Jana came back after a while and was exhausted and said her sisters were talking to some boys with an English accent like Harry Potter. We finally got the other girls attention and decided to head out. Since I forgot the shampoo, etc. we decided to forego the showers and just cover up and head to BC. Luckily as we walked up, the bus arrived. A family was waiting for the BC bus and said they had been waiting for about 30 minutes. Luckily, we timed that out well!
The girls regaled us with stories of the boys they met from United Kingdom. They very much enjoyed listening to them and their accent. The girls laughed about the boys asking them if they wanted to ride the dingy with them(the tube rides). We headed to BC for showers and a snack.
My mission this trip was to get to Beaches and Cream for the Kitchen Sink and today was going to be the day! Everyone was in agreement, although only I knew about the Kitchen Sink at Beaches and Cream. Their eyes got big when the lights went out and the announcement was made to everyone about our kitchen sink.
Everyone there cheered as the waitress placed it on our table and the girls were amazed. It was so fun! We ate and ate and ate. People were so kind when they stopped by our tables to cheer us on. As we got farther down, it got mushier and soupier. There were lots of flavors mixed with other flavors but we were determined to make a serious dent in it. We did very well, I think. We finished it all but the soupy liquid at the bottom of the sink! Oh my gosh, we were stuffed to the brim! OK, that might be lunch, snack, and dinner!We waddled to the bus stop and headed to Downtown Disney. I was excited to check out the scrapbook place. However, I was unimpressed. The selection wasnt that great and I didnt see much that was any different that what I had seen in other places. I was even more unimpressed when I told her I had an annual pass and asked about the Marketplace discount, but the scrapbook store isnt included in that.
Movin on to another store! We walked around and enjoyed cruising the shops. I loved the Disney at Home store and have dreams of re-doing my bathroom or kitchen and including everything Disney I saw there!We headed to the World of Disney where they do give the AP discount. Holly ran into the boys she met at Typhoon Lagoon! It really is a small world! We enjoyed the Lego creatures and Jana wanted to see Santa which she did. Believe it or not, as the evening progressed, we were getting slightly hungry and we debated about where to eat. We wanted something other than burgers and fries. We checked out the menu at Wolfgang Puck Express and it looked like the different we were hungry for. We got: cheese quesadillas, BBQ chicken sandwich, ham & provolone sandwich(our least favoriteit was not a heated sandwich), and BBQ chicken quesadillas(my favoriteyum). This meal really hit the spot!
We all enjoyed the variety and different choices. It wasnt the quickest express we have ever been too, but we would go again.We decided we wanted to see the Electric Light Parade, we had never seen it before and wanted to view it from the beach at Poly since it was earliest there and Wishes would follow shortly after. So, we caught the bus from DD to Poly. We found some beach chairs and settled in. I was excited because people say they make a tradition of seeing this. However, it was cute...but I would not need to see it again. We did stay for the Wishes fireworks and the perspective from across the water was awesome. We could hear the music and the displays were so different when seen from afar. This was worth our trip to Poly.
We jumped on the monorail to MK and tried to catch a bus to BC which took forever!! Everyone was tired from our big day. And, the commando tourist(me!), survived coming to Disney and not being in any of the four main parks for one day!
This was quite an accomplishment and I was proud of myself!!Stay tuned for: Revenge of the kitchen sink, AK, Maras at AKL
