The Twelve Days of Swinter: From Castaway 'Key' to a Partridge in a Palm Tree!

[Lovemy3babes]

I had to laugh about your “Do Not Touch” sign comment. Yes, it's probably there for a reason. Kind of like the McDonald's coffee cup warnings.

La Hacienda looks fabulous! Yum, yum, yum. What a great meal with a beautiful view.

Perfect day is right.

 

[Woth2982]

What a wonderful day! I cannot believe that both TT and soarin were walk on!

Men....they have such a one track mind lol. I don't think I have ever seen a Disney restaurant that empty either! I am not the biggest Mexican food fan, but I have heard there is a QS place right outside there that is pretty good and if you can snag a seat is also a great spot for Illuminations.

 

[sharonW]

Sorry to be such a nag about the updates, Rinky...I just L O V E your TR'S to the max. can't get enough!!!

You Epcot experience was amazing without a doubt!! Cannot beat the no crowd thing!! Can't get over how lucky you were especially the chance to ride Soarin twice!!! WOW. Soarin is my favorite attraction at disney also.
Those folks can really work the magic!!!

I'll try not to pester ya for more(for a day or two)!!

Oh how I wish I were at the happy place right now but you report is the next best thing!! FUN!

 

[petals]

Well that's interesting. I'm not sure how authentic any of the food is. It would be fascinating to know how they decide what dishes will be served. The Colcannon sounds good though!

Colcannon is good. Disney should hire me and I'll cook proper Irish food for the Food and Wine festival Or I'll get it shipped over because for example they really should have some form of Tayto Crisps (chips in usa language) and Cadbury Chocolate as well. I know the stalls don't do snacks but omg you can't get much more Irish snack wise.

Luvin the updates btw. I need one of those Mexican stars for my bedroom. Your illuminations pics are fab!

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

What an amazing day! I think your photos of IllumiNations are awesome. It sounds like yall had an awesome time. Plus back to back Test Track AND Soarin rides? Seriously though? I need to visit in October!

I know! It was wonderful! I will tell you thought that it wasn't like that for the rest of the trip. I think crowds were really low the whole time, but none of our other days compared to that one. I have NEVER seen it that empty! It was great while it lasted though!

I totally agree!

Since Soarin' is my favorite ride in all four parks, as well, if we ever cross paths in WDW, we'll have to plan to meet there for a ride.

The lights in la Hacienda are very cool. We haven't eaten there since they made it into the full service, but we ate counter service there several times before the refurb. Definitely a nice place for Illuminations viewing.

I thought about your funny pictures of Brooklyn riding TT when I posted that picture. I remember the one from her first ride where she looked like a deer in the headlights! Such great memories, and yes worth every penny, nickel, dime, quarter, and green back you can scrape up!

You have a deal on Soarin'! I'd love to ride it with you!

What a wonderful day in epcot, I am guessing everyone was at MNSSHP. I would to try La Hacineda but not sure DH would like the food at all.

I so wish we could go back in the Fall. You seem to have the best luck with low crowds.

I was thinking the same thing about MNSSHP. Honestly, I don't care where they were, I'm just glad they were having fun elsewhere! But I have heard that the party on the 31st always sells out.

From what you have told me about your DH, I would say he would NOT like La Hacienda at all. Maybe you could try the CS option by yourself sometime though.

We did hit the jackpot with crowds this time. And all our trips have had low crowds. I think fall is still one of the last 'good' times to go. I just hope it's like that this year with the new stuff opening. I wonder if that will draw in the hoards of people.

Awesome day!!! I love how you got so much done! I hope we have some less crowded days like that in Nov!

I hope you do too! And btw, which cruise are you going on again? My DH is really pressing me to do another cruise this fall. I'm still on the fence about it though. But I was wondering which one you had booked. If we go, we might possibly be on the same one!

Wow! Wow! Wow! What a fantastic way to finish up your Epcot day. I have never seen Test Track without some sort of line. I love the picture of your daughter on Test Track with her hands in the air. It's those kinds of moments that make all those hard earned/spent dollars well worth it. And, while I'm wowing, let me shout out another WOW! over getting to ride Soarin' repeatedly.

I think the salsa that you ate was the same kind they served at San Angel Inn and we didn't like it either. I'm glad to here that there was a BUT inserted and the meal turned out to be great.

I think that, all around, your Epcot day should snag a best day of the trip award.

I really don't think you had enough WOWs in your post!

WOW is right though. That's what we kept saying all day! I just kept thinking that the crowds would start rolling in at any minute, but they never did. Halloween appears to be a great day to be at WDW! I will let the cat out of the bag though and tell you that our other days were nothing like that day at Epcot. Crowds were great for the whole trip, but that day was just unbelieveable! I wish they were all like that, but I don't think Disney could stay in business that way!

 

[jenseib]

We are going on the Nov. 4, 4 night Dream sailing!!!! You should do that one...yes! And your DD would have Claire to hang with,and my niece as well.

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

UGH!!! I'm so far behind.

Okay, so let's see.....Loved the last few updates!! Of course I love all of your updates!!

Beautiful World Showcase pictures. Wish I was there right now.

So glad to hear you loved La Hacienda. I think yours is the first positive review I have heard of the place. The mixed grill sure looks good. And what a wonderful spot to watch IllumiNations.

And Test Track and Soarin with very little to no wait, what an evening!!!

Can't wait to hear about your CBR adventures next!!

Hey, I was about to send the search party out looking for you! I'm glad to see you back and know that nothing is wrong. I was starting to wonder though. Whenever the 'regulars' go missing, I always wonder if everything is ok.

Your trip is right around the corner now! I am REALLY looking forward to your TR when you get back... I am assuming there will be one.



La Hacienda does get horrible reviews doesn't it? I was really hoping that it wouldn't be as bad as I had read. I think it must be one of those places that you have to know what to order because only certain things are good. We asked our waiter first thing what he thought was good and what did most people like. He recommended the mixed grill (they also have a seafood mixed grill but he said the chicken and steak was better). He said it was his favorite thing on the menu, so we went with it and crossed our fingers. Thankfully, it turned out well. I thought we would like it though b/c we usually order fajitas at our local Mexican place and that is basically what it was. It came with tortillas and we made fajitas out of it. YUM!

I hope you'll have more time to be on the DIS now b/c we've missed having you around!

Oh my gosh! What a fabulous day!!! I'm so jealous of your TT and Soarin walk ons!
So glad you enjoyed your dinner and got a prime location.

What day was this again? Wonder where everyone went?

It was Halloween which fell on a Monday and there were no extra magic hours at Epcot that day. I think initially everyone just stayed in their rooms b/c of the rain that morning, but then I'm thinking when they did get out and about, they were all at MNSSHP. And probably the locals were off trick-or-treating too. That is my very precise scientific hypothesis anyway!

Don't be too jealous though, the rest of our days were not that awesome with crowds. I couldn't complain about crowds at any point in the trip, but none of the other parks were as empty as Epcot was on the 31st.

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

I had to laugh about your “Do Not Touch” sign comment. Yes, it's probably there for a reason. Kind of like the McDonald's coffee cup warnings.

La Hacienda looks fabulous! Yum, yum, yum. What a great meal with a beautiful view.

Perfect day is right.

Ah yes, the McDonald's coffee cups. Well, I guess the signs are just to protect them against law suits...

It was a perfect day. Even the rain served a purpose... it got rid of the crowds. So the rain was perfect too... in hindsight anyway. At the moment I surely didn't see it as a blessing.

What a wonderful day! I cannot believe that both TT and soarin were walk on!

Men....they have such a one track mind lol. I don't think I have ever seen a Disney restaurant that empty either! I am not the biggest Mexican food fan, but I have heard there is a QS place right outside there that is pretty good and if you can snag a seat is also a great spot for Illuminations.

Yes, men do! Mine does anyway. Once he gets food on his brain, there is no going back!

We ate at that CS place on our first two trips and were not overly impressed. I wonder if it is different now that La Hacienda is open???

Sorry to be such a nag about the updates, Rinky...I just L O V E your TR'S to the max. can't get enough!!!

You Epcot experience was amazing without a doubt!! Cannot beat the no crowd thing!! Can't get over how lucky you were especially the chance to ride Soarin twice!!! WOW. Soarin is my favorite attraction at disney also.
Those folks can really work the magic!!!

I'll try not to pester ya for more(for a day or two)!!

Oh how I wish I were at the happy place right now but you report is the next best thing!! FUN!

You aren't nagging me. Heck, I'm just happy that there is someone out there who actually WANTS to read what I write and see my pictures.

Isn't Soarin' the best! It is the perfect ride for chickens like me who want something awesome, but not scary. And I love the smells and the breeze... it's the perfect ride. My neighbor went to WDW last week and I kept nagging her and telling her that she HAD to ride Soarin' and she HAD to call me as soon as she got off to tell me what she thought. She did and she loved it. She said, "Ok, I get what all the fuss is about now!"

Colcannon is good. Disney should hire me and I'll cook proper Irish food for the Food and Wine festival Or I'll get it shipped over because for example they really should have some form of Tayto Crisps (chips in usa language) and Cadbury Chocolate as well. I know the stalls don't do snacks but omg you can't get much more Irish snack wise.

Luvin the updates btw. I need one of those Mexican stars for my bedroom. Your illuminations pics are fab!

Oh I used to love those Cadbury eggs in my Easter basket when I was a little girl! I had no idea that was Irish! They are way too sweet fo rme now, but I ate my fair share of them as a kid!

I loved that star light in the restaurant. It was very cool!

We are going on the Nov. 4, 4 night Dream sailing!!!! You should do that one...yes! And your DD would have Claire to hang with,and my niece as well.

Well, if we do add a cruise, we will probably miss you by one sailing then. I am thinking that we will have to do the one on 10-25 or 11-1. But who knows. Anything could happen and change our plans altogether. Or we might not even do another cruise. I just can't decide this time what I want to do! I know my DD would LOVE Claire though! They are really close in age. I will surely let you know if dates change on our end.

 

[MEK]

Wait - what date was this?????? I want to know because that's when I want to go in 2013. Walk on everything? SCORE!!!!!!! What a great evening.

Can't see your pictures now because I'm at a restricted computer, so I will look at them later.

Your meal does sound great. My DH and I got the seafood version of your entree and it was fabulous. How wonderful to get a window seat. That IS the best. Glad your DD liked her meal as well.

OK - be back later for pics!

 

[Moodyzblu]

Fantastic EPCOT day ! You can not top walk on rides. Especially at EPCOT. Those rides are usually mobbed.
Your the second family that I read about on here that got to see illuminations from La Hacienda .. SO cool ! Glad you guys got to experience it.

We'll be at CBR in just a couple weeks !!

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

Wait - what date was this?????? I want to know because that's when I want to go in 2013. Walk on everything? SCORE!!!!!!! What a great evening.

Can't see your pictures now because I'm at a restricted computer, so I will look at them later.

Your meal does sound great. My DH and I got the seafood version of your entree and it was fabulous. How wonderful to get a window seat. That IS the best. Glad your DD liked her meal as well.

OK - be back later for pics!

It was October 31st...Halloween... a Monday... and no magic hours at Epcot.

I'm so glad to hear that you liked the seafood version of the grill. We thought about getting that, but our waiter recommended the chicken & steak. Maybe we will try that one next time. I wish you could get a sampler grill that had a little bit of all of it.

Fantastic EPCOT day ! You can not top walk on rides. Especially at EPCOT. Those rides are usually mobbed.
Your the second family that I read about on here that got to see illuminations from La Hacienda .. SO cool ! Glad you guys got to experience it.

We'll be at CBR in just a couple weeks !!

I can't wait to go back to La Hacienda and see those fireworks again. It was the best!!

I never thought I would say that I walked on Soarin'! And to do it twice!! The best day EVER!!!

I am so jealous that you are going to CBR. I would give my right arm to be there right now. I hope you have a wonderful time though. The next update should get you excited to go!

 

[sharonW]

yes, your exactly right. I'm a big chicken too, hate roller costers or any kind of drop which is why I don't like splash mt either.....but now give me Soarin, and I'm a happy camper. I did the same thing, told people to ride Soarin but they took my advice lightly and then were unable to get fast passes or didn't have the patience to wait in those loooooong sometimes disney lines!! They missed the "best" disney has to offer!!

Glad you don't think I'm nagging. I am loving your report and the pictures. So much fun reading all about those wonderful magical filled disney days!! It really is fun living the dream through other peoples trips!.....still wish I were going though!!!

 

[petals]

Oh I used to love those Cadbury eggs in my Easter basket when I was a little girl! I had no idea that was Irish! They are way too sweet fo rme now, but I ate my fair share of them as a kid!

Yup Cadbury is Irish. The Cream eggs are really sweet but they're only made for easter now. The Dairy milk type of chocolate isn't as sweet as the eggs and is super yummy.

I loved that star light in the restaurant. It was very cool!

I need one for my bedroom. Wonder would they notice one missing

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

yes, your exactly right. I'm a big chicken too, hate roller costers or any kind of drop which is why I don't like splash mt either.....but now give me Soarin, and I'm a happy camper. I did the same thing, told people to ride Soarin but they took my advice lightly and then were unable to get fast passes or didn't have the patience to wait in those loooooong sometimes disney lines!! They missed the "best" disney has to offer!!

Glad you don't think I'm nagging. I am loving your report and the pictures. So much fun reading all about those wonderful magical filled disney days!! It really is fun living the dream through other peoples trips!.....still wish I were going though!!!

Don't you hate it when people don't take your advice when you know how right you are? That same neighbor I mentioned before did that to me 3 years ago on her first trip. I told her she HAD to ride Soarin' way back then and she didn't listen. So on her 2nd trip, I told her that I wouldn't feed her dogs while she was gone unless she rode it! Needless to say she was glad that she finally listened and now it's one of her favorites too!

Yup Cadbury is Irish. The Cream eggs are really sweet but they're only made for easter now. The Dairy milk type of chocolate isn't as sweet as the eggs and is super yummy.


I need one for my bedroom. Wonder would they notice one missing

Yeah I think they might notice. And if they didn't, I think you might stand out with points sticking out everywhere from under your shirt!

You have reminded me how much I enjoyed those eggs each year for Easter and I'm going to make sure my DD gets some in her basket this time!

 

[MEK]

I'm so glad to hear that you liked the seafood version of the grill. We thought about getting that, but our waiter recommended the chicken & steak. Maybe we will try that one next time. I wish you could get a sampler grill that had a little bit of all of it.

I just saw your pics and the seafood presentation looks the same as the chicken & steak. It had a nice white fish filet, scallops, and shrimp. It was yummy!

You got some beautiful night time shots. Those fountains - spectacular. Nice Illuminations shots!

Epcot on October 31st - noted!

 

[sharonW]

Yes Rinky, I do hate it because folks ask for advice and then they totally ignore it!!! They don't have a clue what their missing by not experiencing Soarin, it is Disney at its best!

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

I just saw your pics and the seafood presentation looks the same as the chicken & steak. It had a nice white fish filet, scallops, and shrimp. It was yummy!

You got some beautiful night time shots. Those fountains - spectacular. Nice Illuminations shots!

Epcot on October 31st - noted!

Ok, the seafood grill sounds very good. I love all of those things, especially scallops! We might just be trying that one next time!

Thanks for the nice comments on the pictures. Every time I go to Disney I wish I had an SLR though. One of these days I'm going to finally make that jump, but I'm really dreading having to learn a new camera, especially when I don't really know how to use the point and shoot that I already have! I just know my pictures could be so much better if I would get an SLR... AND learn how to use it!

Yes Rinky, I do hate it because folks ask for advice and then they totally ignore it!!! They don't have a clue what their missing by not experiencing Soarin, it is Disney at its best!

Well sometimes us Disney lovers have to accept that not everyone is as crazy about WDW as we are. We know that it's their loss, but in a way that's a good thing b/c if we all were nuts over it, the parks would be insane!

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

On the seventh day of Swinter my vacation gave to me, 3 couples kissing, 2 girls a screaming, and a partridge in a palm tree.


Tuesday, November 1, 2011

We were seven days into our trip at this point and the fatigue was setting in. After a late night at Epcot, we made the choice not to set the alarm and just get up when our bodies decided it was time.

When we did finally arise from our slumber, I did a quick check of the weather and discovered the high for the day was to be about 72. Normally that would be an ideal temperature, however, I had planned for us to go to Typhoon Lagoon and that was sounding a bit chilly for a water park visit. In fact, the only day in the 5-day forecast that would be warm enough was Thursday, when it was predicted to reach 82. I studied my itinerary for a while and decided that we could switch plans with Thursday, our Hollywood Studios day, without too much trouble. So I put the bathing suits away and packed up the bag for a day in Hollywood instead!

Believe it or not, this was our third day at CBR and we had yet to see hardly any of the resort! Since we were in no real hurry to get to the bus stop, we decided to finally check things out.

Would you like to go with us on a mini walking tour of CBR?

But wait! Before you answer that question you might want to know what else is going with us on this little journey…

Just when you thought you were rid of that fan… there it is again!!! I will admit that I tried to talk her into leaving it behind, but she insisted on taking it along!

I loved the marina area of CBR… very pretty!

Jamaica beach…

Watching the fish that were hanging out near the bridge…

Heading onto the island that connects Jamaica/Aruba to the pool and food court area…

There is a really nice playground area on the island…

All the trails are nice and shady which makes for a very pleasant stroll. And what you can’t see in the pictures is the calypso music they had playing all over the resort from hidden speakers! Such an awesome touch!

There are lots of little side trails on the island that have hidden treasures like gazebos, benches, cannons, etc.

Continued in next post

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

I loved the hammock area! I’d give a million bucks to be swaying in those palms right now!

View from the hammocks…

The path across the island ends here, in front of the marina.

This is the building where the food court and gift shop are located (called Old Port Royal).

There was no shortage of pretty places to sit and enjoy a meal.

Now, let’s go inside and check things out…

Ok, all you CBR experts, do you know what this is?

Very good! It’s a treasure chest full of sparkling shells that you can buy if you are so inclined. We didn’t buy any, but I thought the colors were pretty.

It was around 11:00 and we hadn’t had anything to eat yet, so we were getting pretty hungry. We quickly looked through the food court area to decide what to do about lunch.

I think CBR has some of THE best theming among the Disney resorts.

Food court seating…

Continued in next post

 

[RinkyTinkyTinky]

We noticed they had a display set up of the winners from the previous night’s Halloween pumpkin carving contest.

5th place went to Captain Hook…

3rd and 4th place were captured by Jimmy Buffet and his Spanish friend from Margaritaville…

Captain Jack Sparrow came in 2nd …

And the grand prize went to Cindy, of ‘course…

We thought that was really cute! The competition was between the CBR CMs. I think it would be so much fun to work at WDW! I would love to get paid to carve Disney themed pumpkins!

We discussed eating lunch there at the food court, but I had planned to try Starring Rolls at HS because I’d read that they have wonderful sandwiches and cupcakes. We knew we would have plenty of opportunities to try the CBR food court later in the trip, so we headed on out for the bus stop. You can catch the bus right out front of Old Port Royal instead of going back to your resort stop, and that’s just what we did.

There is no shortage of gorgeous flowers and trees around CBR!

I know we didn’t wait long at all for a bus because we left the room at 11:00, did all that wandering around the resort, and still made it to HS by 11:45! Not bad!

Hello Hollywood!

We all know that Hollywood is famous for special effects and making things look extra magical, right? Well did you know that they can also make the seasons change overnight? I assure you that it’s true!

Yesterday was October 31st and pumpkins and scarecrows prevailed in the World, but all that changed in the wee hours of the night. It was now November 1st, and apparently that is when Christmas is heralded in at Disney World. This was the very unexpected sight that greeted us as we entered Hollywood Blvd.!

Every lamppost had baskets of poinsettias hanging from them.

We were very pleasantly surprised to see the Christmas decorations out! We oohed and ahhed all the way down the street. Our trip had been such a combination of seasons from the summerlike cruise to the fall temperatures and decorations, so seeing the Christmas stuff out just seemed to add another layer on the cake. It was actually kind of comical and I think the humor of it hit us at the same time because DH and I looked at each other and said, “It’s just like Swinter!”

We made a quick stop at the shop here…

DD bought a pouch to hang from her lanyard because she wanted to be the keeper of the Fast Passes for the rest of the trip!

Then it was time to get our fannies in gear and get some lunch because I was being updated by the minute by certain members of my party as to how they were nearing starvation! In fact, if I remember correctly, DH gave me his usual quote from Ursula that “he was wasting away to practically nothing!”

Movin’ on down the road…

As you can see, the crowds were nothing like they were at Epcot the day before, but they still were not bad at all.

Can’t you just tell that this guy LOVES his job?

I got lots of grumbles from my hungry crew but I insisted on us stopping for a PP picture.

And as you will see in the next update, it did not kill them and they certainly didn’t perish!

Up next: 1 super sandwich, 2 colossal cupcakes, and 3 couples kissing!