The Trip Where Nothing Really Bad Happened - The End 6/1, Bonus Features: Disney 100 Celebration, Mickey Minnie Runaway Railway queue 2/8

[franandaj]

I rarely if ever comment, but I really enjoy your TR's. However you post works for me

Thanks for chiming in!

 

[juniorbugman]

I love reading all your reports but I too don't comment much. I will wait for the next update whenever you want to post it.
Maybe I will comment more. I haven't been to Walt Disney World since 2011 and Disneyland since 2017 so everything I remember has all changed. It is nice seeing what the parks look like now.

 

[franandaj]

Wait!
I just logged on to catch up.

Once I'm done, feel free to post away, of course.

OK, sure.....

I still can't get over how you eat cereal with V8.

You see the picture with the V8 in the glass, you see the bowl of cereal with milk behind it and yet you still want to go down this path about me pouring my V8 on my cereal. Blech!

Huh.
There was just a discussion over on the DISdads about how the security for Epcot was a lot better now. Maybe that was after you were there.

From the International Gateway? I'm sure it's better from the front since they screen all the monorail riders before they get on the monorail, so that's a large amount of folks who get off the monorail without having to be screened, thus leaving only bus passengers and people who drive their own cars to go through the screening at the park.

Good timing!
Such an odd photo.
Lots of staff. Lots of room. Only one guest.

They were probably trying to avoid the scene the previous time where people were waiting 8 hours or more, and then they overcompensated!

I should hope so. I mean... that is its sole purpose.

Well no, it's sole purpose is to be a collector's item, otherwise it would just be a cardboard box.

I can see that. There's so much for the eye in Disney that I hardly see the people at all other than as an abstract mass that must be avoided.

And I see the people as targets waiting to put themselves in front of me so I run into them.

I try to not comment on typos (heck, I make 'em too), but... this just sounds funny.
Obviously some sort of medieval torture method.

Fixed and

What is that? I imagine eggs and cheese mixed and then cooked like a fritatta?

No not even that fancy. A piece of white bread, mayonnaise spread on it generously, and a slice of pasteurized processed cheese food, fold it in half.

This is such a great shot! I would never have thought that a Disney photog would get down that low to make this shot.
Or is it some kind of automated thing?

I believe it was an upside down tripod and the camera operator had a switch in his hand to take the picture.

Oh, really? I did not know that. I like to be immersed in the magic. I don't mind hearing about how things are done, but... I like to soak up the "magic".

The first time I'm on the ride I want to just experience it, but after that I'm curious. There is one part where you feel as though you are falling, and the first time I really thought we were. The second time I realized how they tricked the brain to think you were falling and make you feel that way.

Nice of him.
You should get yourselves a lackey.

I could sure use one......

Wonder how long that will take to finish?

They said it took a couple days to complete it.

Can you imagine if you'd coloured seven squares??? You'd be starved!

O.M.G. I can't even imagine. I could have eaten an entire cow!

Oh, sure. I saw one of those driving down the street just the other day.

They stole my design!!!!!!!!!!

What are friends for, if not to eat all the good things for them?

Of course!

That looks both good and clever.

Nope. I see enough "North" already thank you very much.

Su-Lynn and Steve do though.

Yup, every time.

Well there ya go. You need me to go with you to help out with the sharing.
It's only polite, you know.

Well sure! The more sharing the more different bites we get to try!

Interesting. I had sake not long ago and had it hot. Seeing it on ice was a bit of a jolt.

Well very often sake is served hot, that's how I had it when I first started drinking it. Then someone told me that when sake is served hot, it's usually not the good sake. My mom and dad are in a wine tasting group (have been since the early 70s), and one time when it was their night to host (host chooses the wines), she did a sake tasting. The hors d'oeuvres were all varieties of rolls and other such Asian inspired finger foods.

I learned a lot about how sakes are classified, which are more expensive, more processed etc. Ever since then I just drink it cold. Here is a link to my update on that party. I can't believe it was over 10 years ago!

Sake Tasting

I read this out to Kay. She wants to come back to California now. She loves dumplings.

Well there are three places I know that make excellent dumplings: The one close to me is called Northern Cafe in Cerritos. There is also Din Tai Fung which has multiple locations. That's a famous chain from China, they started as a mom and pop business and grew into an empire. The last is Mandarin Deli in Northridge. I started eating there in college, and every time we go to the Valley, I have to get something from there.

I keep hearing about how good those are. Some day!

They really are good!

Okay, you can go ahead and post an update now.

Thanks for your blessing. Except I have errands to run, so maybe when I get back....plus I have to take care of Fran....

 

[pkondz]

You see the picture with the V8 in the glass, you see the bowl of cereal with milk behind it and yet you still want to go down this path about me pouring my V8 on my cereal. Blech!

No, no, no!
I mean you have cereal. With milk. And then (or simultaneously) drink a glass of V8. I just can't.
I like both... but nowhere near at the same time.

From the International Gateway? I'm sure it's better from the front since they screen all the monorail riders before they get on the monorail, so that's a large amount of folks who get off the monorail without having to be screened, thus leaving only bus passengers and people who drive their own cars to go through the screening at the park.

I actually have no idea!

They were probably trying to avoid the scene the previous time where people were waiting 8 hours or more, and then they overcompensated!

Ah. Yeah, makes sense.

Well no, it's sole purpose is to be a collector's item, otherwise it would just be a cardboard box.

A collector's item as a receptacle for popcorn!

And I see the people as targets waiting to put themselves in front of me so I run into them.

So it's you!

No not even that fancy. A piece of white bread, mayonnaise spread on it generously, and a slice of pasteurized processed cheese food, fold it in half.

I was wayyyy off.
I don't really care for processed cheese... unless it's melted. Then it's yummy.

I believe it was an upside down tripod and the camera operator had a switch in his hand to take the picture.

Ah! smart.

The first time I'm on the ride I want to just experience it, but after that I'm curious. There is one part where you feel as though you are falling, and the first time I really thought we were. The second time I realized how they tricked the brain to think you were falling and make you feel that way.

Ah! Looking forward to that.

I could sure use one......

I know.

They said it took a couple days to complete it.

A couple days????? That's it?
I was wondering if it'd be done by the end of the festival!

O.M.G. I can't even imagine. I could have eaten an entire cow!

They stole my design!!!!!!!!!!

Sue for copywrite infringement!!

Well sure! The more sharing the more different bites we get to try!

Well very often sake is served hot, that's how I had it when I first started drinking it. Then someone told me that when sake is served hot, it's usually not the good sake.

Really! Had no idea.

My mom and dad are in a wine tasting group (have been since the early 70s), and one time when it was their night to host (host chooses the wines), she did a sake tasting. The hors d'oeuvres were all varieties of rolls and other such Asian inspired finger foods.

I learned a lot about how sakes are classified, which are more expensive, more processed etc. Ever since then I just drink it cold. Here is a link to my update on that party. I can't believe it was over 10 years ago!

Huh! I opened the link and will look after I post.

Well there are three places I know that make excellent dumplings: The one close to me is called Northern Cafe in Cerritos. There is also Din Tai Fung which has multiple locations. That's a famous chain from China, they started as a mom and pop business and grew into an empire. The last is Mandarin Deli in Northridge. I started eating there in college, and every time we go to the Valley, I have to get something from there.

I told K.
She wants to know if any deliver to Canada.

Thanks for your blessing. Except I have errands to run, so maybe when I get back....plus I have to take care of Fran....

You're saying that's more important than your readers????

 

[franandaj]

I love reading all your reports but I too don't comment much.

I just like to know that someone is actually paying attention out there and I'm not just speaking to the crickets!

I will wait for the next update whenever you want to post it.

Hopefully I can do it when I get back from my errands.

Maybe I will comment more. I haven't been to Walt Disney World since 2011 and Disneyland since 2017 so everything I remember has all changed. It is nice seeing what the parks look like now.

I'd like to hear from you! Lots is changing at WDW, so much new stuff when we were there and even more opening up. I can't wait to plan a trip back there!

 

[franandaj]

No, no, no!
I mean you have cereal. With milk. And then (or simultaneously) drink a glass of V8. I just can't.
I like both... but nowhere near at the same time

Well yes. I eat the cereal first because once the milk is poured on its a race against time to eat it before it gets soggy. Although I may have a sip of the V8 before I pour the milk on. But no I don't have a problem having one after the other.

I actually have no idea!

Well OK then!

So it's you!

No it's them! It's like I'm playing a game of asteroids and I have to keep avoiding all the obstacles!

I was wayyyy off.
I don't really care for processed cheese... unless it's melted. Then it's yummy.

I like it in my grilled cheese, but I also use Cheddar. I learned this technique in New Zealand where we ate a lot of "toasted sandwiches". I put the buttered side of the bread down in the skillet and place a slice of (we call it) "Sunny cheese" on one side. Then I put another slice if bread butter side down and put Cheddar on that slice. Once the cheese starts to melt, I put one slice on the other (cheese in the middle). Makes for a more melt sandwich that way. I used to assemble the sandwich and grill it, but I think it's better the NZ way.

A couple days????? That's it?
I was wondering if it'd be done by the end of the festival!

The person I asked said that this was probably the 10th one of the festival.

Huh! I opened the link and will look after I post.

What did you think?

I told K.
She wants to know if any deliver to Canada.

Although i was surprised that there are no Din Tai Fung in Canada.

You're saying that's more important than your readers????

Well only by a little bit...

 

[franandaj]

A Day Filled with Pixie Dust!

So today we had a really special day ahead of us. One of our friends had invited us on a VIP tour, let’s just call her Chunkydust. The tour wasn’t going to start until later in the day, so we needed to start off with a good breakfast.

Ever since Su-Lynn and I got together on this trip, she was trying to get me on Instagram. Those of you who know her, know that she is the queen of stories on Instagram. So my first post on Insta was this video of breakfast in the room.

Here’s our finished plates…hers



And mine



We ate our breakfast at around 8:45AM and we killed about an hour and a half before we left for DHS. I’m getting this information from the times on my pictures, nothing else. At 10:45 we were boarding the Skyliner. We took this route instead of riding the path to save our batteries. There goes Fran in her car.



Here we go!







We had an early lunch reservation at the Hollywood Brown Derby with our tour party. Not only did we need a good breakfast, but we needed a hearty lunch. We really wouldn’t be doing much stopping for eating in the following eight hours.

Chip and Dale were out in front of the restaurant doing socially distanced character meets while we waited for our table.



We were seated near a window and perused the pesky QR code menus. I got an iced tea because with that much activity ahead, I couldn’t start with a drink, but some in the group had a glass of wine or cocktail.



And we got the bread service with the sea salt butter.



Several people in our group ordered the Oyster and Brie Soup. Those are the fried oysters in the dish.





While she ate her soup, I ate my half of our Heirloom Tomato and Burrata Salad.



And then we split their Signature Famous Cobb Salad with Chicken. So good! Both were nice and filling but yet not so much that I felt like we rolled out of there stuffed.



We lingered over lunch until it was time for us to meet up with our tour guide. He was a nice guy and I don’t remember his name, but he was super knowledgeable and gave us so many random facts. Most of which I forgot, but I will share one or two in this post.

He met us outside the HBD so our first ride was pretty obvious Mickey & Minnie Runaway train.





This hidden Mickey was in the lights in the queue.



It was a super fun ride! I wish we could have gone on it again on this trip, but it just wasn’t in the cards. I won’t spoil it for anyone who hasn’t ridden, but I did not expect what the ride turned out to be. The only thing I will say is that it uses a trackless ride system. Those are very flexible! Also they had a special handicapped loading area, so that we could take all the time we needed, which was nice. I can’t wait until our version opens in Toontown. Right now everything that I can find on it says that it’s coming in early 2023.

Well after that we headed over to Toy Story Land.


Our first ride was TSMM and she beat me yet again, and was ecstatic about that.



Then we went on SDD, this one is so fun too!







Our next stop was Galaxy’s Edge, one of the fun facts that the guide pointed out to us was that all of the trash and recycling cans inside Galaxy's Edge say "trash to sector 3263827" in Aurebesh. Sector 3263827 is the number for the Death Star trash compactor where Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Leia Organa got stuck in the very first "Star Wars" movie.



Cool huh?

So our first stop was Millenium Falcon:Smuggler’s Run. Because we had a total of six of us in our party we would have the entire vessel to ourselves. Su-Lynn knew about this really cool thing called “Chewie Mode”. For those of you who have not been on the ride yet, there is a character named Hondo from the Star Wars series Rebels (animated series). He is a smuggler and your “guide” during the ride. His full name is Hondo Onaka and the company you are working for is called Onaka Transport.

The premise of the mission is that you are trying to steal coaxium from a “space train” on a foreign planet, so you take the Falcon there via Hyperspace get the coaxium and come back. Hondo is with you the entire time, egging you on telling the pilots when to do this, the gunners when to fire and the engineers when to release the harpoon, and other such things.

This is Hondo at the “pre-pre-show” where he starts to give you your mission.



Our CM who put us in the capsule, pressed all the appropriate buttons to activate Chewie modie. Now I don’t recommend Chewie Mode for anyone who hasn’t been on the Falcon before, but when you’ve been on it a bunch of times like all of us in our party, it’s a hoot. Instead of Hondo egging you on it’s Chewie the entire time! You don’t understand a word he is saying, but I think at one point he keeps saying “Fire, fire, fire!” because he keeps repeating the same line in Wookie! It was so hilarious! I would totally do it again if I were with five other experienced riders.

I only found out in January that you are actually rated with scores on this ride. Supposedly this is a pretty good score. There are 3 top levels and Pirate is the 3rd, I guess other times you don’t get a name rating. Either that or this is the level where everyone gets a trophy.





Our guide also showed us the Miniature Tai FIghter. Funny thing is that I have no idea where I took this picture, other than it was somewhere in Galaxy’s Edge!



We had been monitoring the situation with RotR. The ride had been down all day, otherwise we would have done that one before going to Toy Story Land, and as we walked past, it was still down so we just kind of gave up on it for the day.

We headed over to Hollywood Blvd, and debated riding ToT, but it would have taken us at least 40 minutes to ride because the Lightning Lane queue was really backed up. I guess that ride was down earlier in the day too. Besides only half our party wanted to ride it, so we passed.

A few of us wanted to ride RnRC, so we did! Su-Lynn and I got the front car!



I’m gonna leave off here for this part now and pick up the rest of the day in my next post which will be in a few days.

 

[buteraa]

OK folks i have a dilemma. I have my updates pretty much completed, and have scheduled them to post about a week apart. Today is the day that i have scheduled to post a new update, but the dilemma is that not one person has commented on the last update. I know folks have read it because four people have liked it.

Should I go ahead and post now or wait for more folks to drop by?

I need to post more, but I've read all of your trip reports and really enjoy them!!

 

[pkondz]

I eat the cereal first because once the milk is poured on its a race against time to eat it before it gets soggy.

Always.

No it's them! It's like I'm playing a game of asteroids and I have to keep avoiding all the obstacles!

I like it in my grilled cheese, but I also use Cheddar. I learned this technique in New Zealand where we ate a lot of "toasted sandwiches". I put the buttered side of the bread down in the skillet and place a slice of (we call it) "Sunny cheese" on one side. Then I put another slice if bread butter side down and put Cheddar on that slice. Once the cheese starts to melt, I put one slice on the other (cheese in the middle). Makes for a more melt sandwich that way. I used to assemble the sandwich and grill it, but I think it's better the NZ way.

When I'm feeling particularly ambitious, I take two slices and open it up and place it in the pan (or on the griddle) so the inside sides get browned. I then put the cheese in (and last time I did it, also sauteed white onion and apple slices (lesson learned, should have cooked the apple too and needed more onion)), and then brown the outside of the finished sammie, one side at a time. Makes the sammie extra crispy being toasted on both sides of the bread. Also helps the cheese melt as it's placed on hot toasty bread.

The person I asked said that this was probably the 10th one of the festival.

Really!

What did you think?

I think I need to come over for one of your parties!

Although i was surprised that there are no Din Tai Fung in Canada.

Never heard of it.

Well only by a little bit...

And once again, I'll have to come back to read the update another time. Having my own issues right now and I'm exhausted.

 

[jgl130]

I’m a long time lurker of your trip reports! I love your updates, keep ’em comin’!

 

[wendypooh22]

I have never noticed the hidden mickey in MMRR! I love that it's a full Mickey head instead of the circles. I wonder if the Chewie mode is available in Disneyland's version?? I will need to ask the CM when we go back.

 

[franandaj]

I need to post more, but I've read all of your trip reports and really enjoy them!!

Thank you! That's nice to hear!

 

[franandaj]

When I'm feeling particularly ambitious, I take two slices and open it up and place it in the pan (or on the griddle) so the inside sides get browned. I then put the cheese in (and last time I did it, also sauteed white onion and apple slices (lesson learned, should have cooked the apple too and needed more onion)), and then brown the outside of the finished sammie, one side at a time. Makes the sammie extra crispy being toasted on both sides of the bread. Also helps the cheese melt as it's placed on hot toasty bread.

hmmm...that's an interesting approach.....

I think I need to come over for one of your parties!

Well that was my Mom's party, although I probably had a say in some of the appetizers.

This was my last party. It was for my birthday and if you remember Fran came home from the SNF 6 days before my birthday. It was Wednesday day when I got her to agree we could have six adults over, and two kids that we put in the Olga suite with screens to keep them amused. I didn't want to deal with much, so it was pretty much Grab and Go stuff that I could pick up at the store. Jenny made Hot Artichoke Dip. We pretty much sat around eating and drinking wine or other beverages all afternoon.

This was basically the spread.....







Jenny's daughter (who just graduated from culinary school) made me this cake. I got to try the recipe when she made it as one of her assignments and it immediately became a favorite. I googled the recipe yesterday and I think I could actually make it myself. It's called a Charlotte Cake and it's a traditionally French thing. Sometimes they are made with Raspberry mousse, but I like chocolate.

And once again, I'll have to come back to read the update another time. Having my own issues right now and I'm exhausted.

OK......not like I'm waiting or anything.

Sorry you're having issues....

 

[franandaj]

I’m a long time lurker of your trip reports! I love your updates, keep ’em comin’!

Thanks for chiming in! It means a lot!

 

[franandaj]

I have never noticed the hidden mickey in MMRR! I love that it's a full Mickey head instead of the circles.

No, I wouldn't have seen it either, the guide pointed it out! And so cute!

I wonder if the Chewie mode is available in Disneyland's version?? I will need to ask the CM when we go back.

YES!!!!!!! It is! We had a group of six of us in February after I got back from this trip and we talked about doing it, but one of the people with us had never been on the ride before so we didn't ask about it, but yes! It can be done!

 

[franandaj]

I have never noticed the hidden mickey in MMRR! I love that it's a full Mickey head instead of the circles.

No, I wouldn't have seen it either, the guide pointed it out! And so cute!

I wonder if the Chewie mode is available in Disneyland's version?? I will need to ask the CM when we go back.

YES!!!!!!! It is! We had a group of six of us in February after I got back from this trip and we talked about doing it, but one of the persons in our group had never been on it before, so we didn't want his first time to be Chewie mode.

 

[suse66]

While I love having breakfast out, it's just so time consuming and expensive when you can just eat something simple and cheap in the room!

Agreed! I am a big fan of greek yogurt with granola and fruit, so always order that through Instacart. I am very fuusy about my coffee so I bring my Kicking Horse organic with me to make my own.

I am soooooo happy we bought into DVC, it's one of the best investments that I think we've ever made. I can't imagine five people in a room!

That was when the boys were younger. The last family trip with all 5 of us was in 2016. Jamie and Stuart (then 14) were in one bed, Jack (16) was on the daybed and Bill and I had the other queen. It was squishy but we made it work. That being said, when I take the twins for their 21st birthday trip next summer, I am going to get a 1 bedroom.

When we bought into the Grand Californian a couple years later, we bought with the intention of staying in studios, because we were only staying 25 minutes from home and it was silly to spend that much for something so close to home. Then one time we got a studio with the configuration that Fran's side of the bed was the tiny one against the wall. She couldn't even get into the bed, and at that first moment of having to trade sides, she said, "we are never staying in a studio again!"

I guess once you get used to more room, it is really nice to have!

It seemed that there was a pick-up window from 9:55 to 10:25 and it was around 9:47 right now! So with just a few clicks of the buttons, I would be picking up my own personal figment in about 10 minutes. I went on to check the paint by number location, but it was closed. So back to pick up my happy purple dragon!

Cute!

While Fran was in the shower, Su-Lynn texted that they had their art shipped home so they didn’t have to take it back to the room and wanted to ride Remy with us. I told her Fran was getting dressed and they said they would just hang out until we could get there. First we stopped for the photo-op.

Such a fun picture!

This worked out perfectly, there were three pieces and there were three of us. They were really good, but much too spicy for Fran to have shared it with me. I was pleased that I got to try a few extra dishes with Su-Lynn and Steve.

They look delish!

We packed up the Lo Mein to go and then we all said our goodbyes until tomorrow. Fran and I headed over to WoD as Su-Lynn had texted her a picture of a hat before dinner and she wanted to get one for herself. She always wants to purchase it herself, you know, to get the miles!

I am an avid miles collector. I don't think I've paid cash for a flight in over 8 years!

So today we had a really special day ahead of us. One of our friends had invited us on a VIP tour, let’s just call her Chunkydust. The tour wasn’t going to start until later in the day, so we needed to start off with a good breakfast.

Ever since Su-Lynn and I got together on this trip, she was trying to get me on Instagram. Those of you who know her, know that she is the queen of stories on Instagram. So my first post on Insta was this video of breakfast in the room.

Such a fun day!

He met us outside the HBD so our first ride was pretty obvious Mickey & Minnie Runaway train.

I still haven't done this ride....this summer for sure!

Our next stop was Galaxy’s Edge, one of the fun facts that the guide pointed out to us was that all of the trash and recycling cans inside Galaxy's Edge say "trash to sector 3263827" in Aurebesh. Sector 3263827 is the number for the Death Star trash compactor where Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Leia Organa got stuck in the very first "Star Wars" movie.

Neat!

Our CM who put us in the capsule, pressed all the appropriate buttons to activate Chewie modie. Now I don’t recommend Chewie Mode for anyone who hasn’t been on the Falcon before, but when you’ve been on it a bunch of times like all of us in our party, it’s a hoot. Instead of Hondo egging you on it’s Chewie the entire time! You don’t understand a word he is saying, but I think at one point he keeps saying “Fire, fire, fire!” because he keeps repeating the same line in Wookie! It was so hilarious! I would totally do it again if I were with five other experienced riders.

That would be so funny!

Jenny's daughter (who just graduated from culinary school) made me this cake. I got to try the recipe when she made it as one of her assignments and it immediately became a favorite. I googled the recipe yesterday and I think I could actually make it myself. It's called a Charlotte Cake and it's a traditionally French thing. Sometimes they are made with Raspberry mousse, but I like chocolate.

That cake looks incredible!

 

[disney212]

I too am guilty of reading and not posting. I will say I'm always excited to see an update from you!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Shhhhh......I mostly read along while I am at work so it's a quick read and like. I'll be sure to comment more because I know how much I enjoy interacting with those who read my reports.

 

[DnA2010]

These guys all eat hay that looks like what I feed my horses, makes sense, as they'd never be able to grow enough forage in the space they have for all these guys, neat to see though.

Some on 1 leg, some on 2! Neat!

I like the one up on the roof!

Goats on roofs seems to be a thing here now! Lots of little roadside fruit standings and things seem to have them now! Like big goat pens with various buildings and such for them to go on.

We had this 50th Anniversary cupcake for dessert. Cupcakes are not always delicious but this one certainly was. The chocolate cake was super chocolatey, and the caramel filling and topping were spot on. There may have been a little more frosting than I would have cared for, but it was very tasty and not too sweet. I still ate all of it rather than giving it to Fran (which I often do.)

Looks like a lot of work went in to this one! I don't like loads and loads of icing either, but when it's not too sweet, it's ok.

two bathrooms, proximity to monorail, fireworks from the balcony, that it still has a jetted tub, and large rooms make this one of my favorite resorts!

Sounds pretty amazing indeed! Lots of good features!

I can't seem to delete this- ignore.

I like my cottage cheese as savory, but she likes to mix savory and sweet.

I prefer it savory as well- mainly with pasta, or really just on it's own.