jrgutknecht
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2000
- Messages
- 199
Day 3 May 7th Magic Kingdom (EE) and Epcot (Illuminations)
Cast of characters: Me 36 first trip in about 15 years
Tom also 36, first trip to WDW
First, I have to thank all of you who have responded to my posts. After my last one, I was worried they were getting too long. Im glad you enjoy reading them, I certainly am enjoying writing them. Im writing them for myself as much as everyone else. We are both still excited about the trip and I think everyone of our friends and family are tired of hearing about it, so Im thrilled to have an outlet for sharing my enthusiasm. Now, onto to day 3!
We decided to get up at 6:30 instead of 6 this morning. Since MK is closer and since yesterday we were up before the concierge staff had breakfast out. However I think both of us were up before the alarm went off, after all we were going to the MAGIC KINGDOM!!!
We grabbed a quick bite from the buffet (if you can call it that) We each had a Danish and some fresh fruit and some juice. Neither one of us eat big breakfast normally, so this was more than enough food. We headed down to the boat dock around 7:10 and I snapped some quick pictures on the way to the boat dock of the hotel in the early morning mist. One of them turned out to be my absolute favorite picture and you can see it by clicking here.
As we turned the corner to boat dock I was suddenly shocked to see this large group of people congregating at the entrance to the dock. My first thought was Oh no, theres a line all the way to here for the boat!! But in reality there was a great blue heron sitting on one of the dock posts and the kids were scared to walk by it. So we made our way around the crowd and walked right past the bird. I guess everyone else figured if he didnt attack us, it was okay to go by. Just then one of the CMs on the fishing cruise (who was preparing his morning tour) threw a small fish. As soon as the fish hit the dock the heron swooped down and stabbed it with his beak. There was a large collective Ohhh from the crowd as we all watched the bird gulp the little fish down with great efficiency. We spent the next few minutes watching the bird coax a few more bait fish out of the fisherman before the boat arrived. Once on the boat we watched from our seats as the bird continued to amaze those still on the dock. This bird must be a regular at the dock, I know we saw him on all of our subsequent trips on the boats. He was a real joy to watch and I really applaud Disney for their efforts at supporting local wild life.
As we headed for the Magic Kingdom, I could hardly contain my excitement as we pulled out into Bay Lake and within moments Space Mountain loomed larger than life. I got my first real good look at the contemporary as we made our way through the channel. Tom commented on how it looked like something out of Logans Run and I reminded him that it WAS designed in the late 60s and at the time, it did look very futuristic. We agreed to come back later and give it a closer look, but also agreed that we liked our choice of hotel much better.
It was just about 7:30 when we pulled up to the boat dock and we quickly made our way up the hill and through the entrance gates. There were only about a half dozen turnstiles open, but we had almost no wait to get through, the crowds at this point were very light. It was a real treat for me to return to this park after so many years, I felt immediately at home. I had no need of a map for today (even though I brought one just in case) the layout of the park was somehow intuitive and familiar all at once. I really enjoyed watching Toms face light up with delight as we walked under the train tracks and turned the corner of Main street as the castle came into view. My only regret of going so early was that they didnt have enough photographers working Main Street. I REALLY wanted a picture of us with the castle in the background, but I could only find 1 photographer working and there was a line to get your picture taken. Neither of us wanted to stand in line for a picture, so we made our way down Main Street to the hub and snapped a couple quick pictures with Walt and Mickey before heading over to Tomorrowland.
We were following the unofficial guide Two-Day touring plan right out of the book and the first thing on the agenda was Space Mountain, so off we went. We walked right through the queue and it was 8am on the dot as we came up the ramp and could see the first batch of cars loaded with guests heading off onto the ride. We probably waited less than 5 minutes to get into our spaceship. Just enough time to point out the flying cookie asteroid to Tom and watch some of the video on the overhead monitors. The cars were reconfigured since the last time I was here, and I liked the comfort of the new seats, however at 65 I still had trouble squeezing my legs into the car. The ride is still just as fun as I remember, but somehow a little bumpier than I remember. Having ridden RnRC the previous morning, this was a bit of a let-down. I hope that someday they will replace the rollercoaster inside Space Mountain with something like the one in Paris, or RnRC at Disney MGM.
After our ride on SM, we headed over to Alien Encounter and arrived just as the doors were opening for the pre-show. We walked in and remembering our lessons from the previous day we positioned ourselves in the middle of the crowd. After the short film, the doors opened and I was pleased to learn that by staying to the LEFT, we ended up in the front row of the pre-show. I was astonished at the flexibility of the robots movement. We all enjoyed watching Skippy get toasted and then disappear. As we went into the main theatre, I was surprised that NOBODY was sitting in the front rows. There were few if any CMs directing the guests, so not being sure why nobody was sitting there, I just followed the crowd and we ended up in the back row. The show was fun, but not as scary as I thought it would be. The illusion of people behind me talking and screaming just didnt work because I knew we were in the back row. Overall, both of us were kind of disappointed in this attraction, HOWEVER, when we returned on the last day of our trip, we sat in the front row and it was an ENTIRELY different experience. So for those of you who are scared of things that go bump in the night, or have small children who might frighten easily, sit in the back row. If you really want to experience the terror up close, sit in the front row, its a very different experience.
Next our plan called for us to head over to Fantasyland and ride the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. It was approaching 9am and official opening time, so we headed over in hopes of avoiding a wait in line. As soon as we turned the path to head up to Fantasyland, the crowds mysteriously quadrupled in size. Now I realized why tomorrowland was so empty everyone was in Fantasyland! The standby line for Pooh was 30 minutes, but they were giving out fast passes for 9:35, so we grabbed one of these and headed over to see Peter Pan which had a 10 minute posted wait. I dont imagine we were in line for more than 5 minutes before we were off to soar over London and visit Never Never Land. I have never been on this ride before and I really enjoyed the detail and the illusion of flying. I could ride this over and over again and never get bored with it. And Im not even that big of a fan of the Peter Pan movie! After Pan, we headed over to Its a small world (which had a 0 minute wait) and I we both commented on how CLEAN and BRIGHT everything looked inside the attraction. I cant even imagine having to keep that attraction clean inside. Unlike Pan which was a dark ride, this attraction is lit up so well you can see everything and it looked like it had just opened yesterday. As much as its not one of my favorite rides, I really appreciated the work that they put into keeping this signature attraction running they way it was designed. After a quick bathroom break, it was time to head back to Pooh and use our fastpass. As we went by I noticed the next Legend of the Lion King show was due to strart in 10 minutes so the timing couldnt have worked out better. We agreed to come right back as soon as we were done with Winnie the Pooh and friends. When we arrived back at Pooh, the line was still 30 minutes and the fast pass return was now 10:30. We walked right on and in spite of the number of people waiting in line we got a honey pot all to ourselves. I was a BIG fan of Winnie the Pooh when I was a kid, but somehow out-grew him by the age of 10, so I was surprised at how all of the details of the story came back to me as we relived the adventures in person. This is a great attraction and I really enjoyed the way Tigger kept popping out at us as we made our way through. I enjoyed it so much I picked up a Tigger T-shirt on the way out.
After our encounter with Winnie the Pooh and his friends, we made our way back to the Legend of the Lion king and practically walked right in for the next seating. This was another first for both of us and we didnt know what to expect, but we did manage to position ourselves in the middle of the crowd going in (we waited twords the back as people pushed their way ahead of us) when the doors opened we ended up in the fourth row dead center! We had quickly mastered the art of queueing up for shows! Heres another hint NEVER be the first ones through the door at a show, unless you want to be the first ones out. Disney is very good about filling all seats, so position yourself in the middle of the crowd to get the best seats. I loved this show and am slightly saddened to hear it might be closing. I would love to know how this show is done. I appears to be a mixture of animitronics and puppets, but I couldnt tell if some of them were puppets controlled by people or if they were controlled by animitronics. Either way it was a great show and reminded me that I need to get a copy of Lion King on DVD if its available.
By the time the show was over it was a little before 10:30 and we had done everything on our list for Fantasyland. So we headed over to the Haunted Mansion which was next on the list. The wait here was less than 5 minutes, just enough time to look at the tombstones outside before we were ushered in to the library. This is one of my favorite rides and I recall that when I was here in high school with our marching band, I rode this attraction about 5 times. It is still one of my favorites to this day. As we headed up to pick up our hitchhiker I slid over in the seat so there would be room for him in our doombuggie and Tom was just amazed at the way our hitch-hiking ghost fit perfectly between us. We both loved this ride and agreed to make sure we came back to do it again before we finished our vacation.
According to the unofficial guide touring plan, lunch was next, but our PS was not until 11:30 and it was still just past 10:30, so we headed over to check out the Country Bear Jamboree which was on the plan for after lunch. We arrived just after a show had started so we grabbed a bench and waited for the next show. The lobby quickly filled with people all of whom were pushing their way to the doors. When they doors finally did open, we just kind of casually made our way into the theatre and again ended up with perfect seats right in the middle. I remember seeing this show once, and finding it kind of silly, and knowing that Tom likes Corny humor, I figured he would like it. We both enjoyed the show and since Im the Disney Nut in the family, I was at a loss for words when Tom asked me where they Country bears came from??? Something I didnt know about Disney that I was going to have to look up when I got home!
After the show we were heading back to the Liberty Tree tavern for our lunch when we noticed the riverboat was getting ready to pull out. We had about 20 minutes to spare so we jumped onboard and enjoyed a nice leisurely cruise before our lunch. We pulled back into the dock at 11:20 right on the nose and headed right over for our 11:30 PS. You can read my review on the Resturant Board on this meal for all the details. I will say that the food was very good, but the service left a little to be desired. I think we just ended up with a CM who was having an off day, but it was a little disappointing. Regardless, I wouldnt hesitate to go back here for another meal in the future.
After lunch we checked the plan and realized we had done everything on it for day one with the exception of Tom Sawyers Island. We were both still a little tired and decided to skip the island and return to the hotel. We did some quick shopping on the way out. Even though we were headed back to the hotel, I decided to use the resort delivery on items I bought. This is such a great perk, and it worked out in Disneys favor, as I bought stuff I wouldnt normally have bought because I knew I could have them sent back to the hotel. So if youre staying onsite, take advantage of this free perk.
We arrived back at the hotel around 1:00 and the plan called for arriving at Epcot around 2pm. We decided a nap was more important so we didnt get back to Epcot until around 4pm.
We also used the unofficial guide two-day plan for Epcot and did what I think was the 2nd day of the plan first. This plan worked perfectly with the Magic Kingdom plan as it was designed to end with Illuminations at the end of the night.
We rode Spaceship Earth first (of course) and I enjoyed it as much now as I did when I first rode it some 18 years ago. I really liked the new additions at the end. The ride is starting to show its age however in the mechanics of the cars. I dont remember so much SQUEAKING the last time I rode, and I had some trouble hearing the narration since the speakers were behind my neck instead of my ears (a curse of being tall) The one complaint about this ride was the fact that I missed the Walter Cronkite narration.. There is just something about his voice that fit that ride so much better than the new one (who is it ?? Jeremy Irons??)
We then headed over to the Living Seas, which sadly is REALLY starting to show its age. The introduction movie is really out of date and the queue line is filled with dated, although still interesting, information. I really hope they can get a new sponsor for this to bring it up to date. Regardless we enjoyed the ride through the aquarium and we spent about 30 minutes exploring the attractions. I think any city aquarium probably has more to offer than the Living Seas does, and Tom was a little disappointed in the lack of depth the exhibits had. We were scheduled to do the Dolphins in Depth tour on Thursday and we were disappointed in the fact that we didnt get to see the dolphins during our quick visit. I guess they were already in their own tanks for the day.
The touring plan called for a visit to the Land pavilion next, but we got a late start and had a 6pm dinner at La Cellier, so we skipped this section of the plan and headed out for Canada. We arrived in Canada around 5:30 and decided to just hang out until our dinner reservation. We explored the shops and went up to look at the waterfall. We then went down to the restaurant and checked in and waited in the garden until our beeper went off.
Again, you can read my full review of the restaurant on the restaurant board, but Ill just tell you this was my 2nd favorite meal the entire vacation. The food was excellent and the service was very good.
After dinner we spent some time exploring the United Kingdom briefly and noted the location of the Rose and Crown as we were supposed to come back here for dinner in two days. We had access through our package to reserved viewing areas for Illuminations so we headed back to Morroco to check out the area where we were supposed to meet. On our way through France we came across the living statues and stopped to check out their interactions with guests. I was surprised at the number of people who were standing around the show and the number of people in line waiting to get their picture taken with the statue. They dont show THAT on the promotional video! As much as I would have liked to have had my picture taken with the statue, I didnt want all these people staring at me, so I was content to just watch and laugh along with the crowd.
We found the boat dock in Morocco where were supposed to meet at 8:45 and it was now just a little before 8 and we were going to find a place to watch the parade just as an announcent was made that due to the high winds the Tapesty of Nations parade was being cancelled. So instead we headed over to Japan to check out the department store. They had some amazing things in the store and I really liked the bonsai trees. I wanted to buy one, but I heisted because I didnt want to carry it on the plane and I wasnt sure they would ship them to me at home (as it turns out they do, but I still for some reason didnt buy one a fact I know regret) Tom continued to check out the offerings in Japan and I went outside to listen to the performance being given on the drums at the temple building. We spent some time watching the coy pond and then headed back to Morroco.
We checked with the CM at the reserved area to make sure we were in the right place and she would have let us in at that point, but we decided to go explore morocco a little bit first. I loved the illusion that was created that makes you feel like youre really wandering the streets of some distant village. I also love how you can get lost in such a small pavilion we finally had to ask for directions to the exit LOL..
We arrived back at the boat dock at 8:45 and we were let in to the ramp area that leads down to the dock. I wasnt sure what to expect with this perk but I was expecting more than this. The ramp was already filled with people. The view to center of the lagoon was obstructed by the awning over the boat dock, so we found a position along the side that would give us 1. something to lean against before and during the show, and 2. the least obstructed view of the lagoon. As it was the awning and blocked most of the view and a large tree to the left blocked more of the view. When the show started one of the guests who was farther down the ramp in front of us, put his kid up on his shoulders which blocked the rest of the view. In addition to this a young girl who was probably all of 3 years old started SCREAMING as soon as the first fireworks went off. So in addition to the fact that our reserved area had an obstructed view, there were no speakers in the direct area so we couldnt hear the music and narration all that well, this girl screaming drowned out everything but the exploding fireworks.
After a few minutes I was just about ready to go ask this guest with his son on his shoulders if he wouldnt mind putting his son on the wall in front of him where he had been 5 minutes earlier. After all there was NOBODY in front of him, why did he have to be up on his shoulders and then I thought to myself This is DISNEYWORLD its for KIDS CHILL OUT!!! So I just made the best of it and with a little bobbing and weaving from side to side, we managed to see most of the show.
As we had seen the night before with Fantasmic, people in the reserved area started leaving BEFORE the show was over. I dont understand this mentality lets get there early and take up the best viewing areas and then leave early so everyone has to watch us walk in front of them but well get out before the crowds . Luckily for us the ones to leave early were the family with the screaming baby and the 5 year old on the shoulders. After they cleared out another couple (who was also having trouble seeing and hearing) looked over at us and said All that fuss and they leave early??? I just nodded in agreement and we all made our way down to the corner of the ramp so watch the finale of the show.
As the lights came back up and we were headed out, I noticed that the surrounding areas of the world showcase were all less crowded than our reserved area. We probably would have had a better viewing spot from somewhere (anywhere) else along the lagoon fence. So if you buy the Discovery Magic Package and you get the reserved access passes for fireworks, UNLESS the park is really crowded, dont bother, youll find a better spot on your own. We had a reservation at the Rose and Crown for 7:30 on Wednesday, which we agreed would probably be a better viewing area.
So we made our way to the entrance, which because of the crowds took about 30 minutes. It wasnt too bad, but because they only have half of the path around Spaceship Earth open, the crowds got REALLY think at the exit.
We managed to make it back to the Hotel by 10 and took a quick dip in the pool. As it was the previous night, the mother duck and here babies were in the pool. We spent about 30 minutes with them in the pool and relaxed for short time in the hot tub before calling it a night. Even though we had taken a short nap that afternoon we were both really tired and decided that we were going to skip early entry tomorrow at Epcot and sleep in instead. Only day 3 and we were already falling behind in our plan.. I decided not to get too stressed about it, after all I knew I was going to have to be flexible and we had plenty of open time at the end of the trip, we would somehow make it all work.
Cast of characters: Me 36 first trip in about 15 years
Tom also 36, first trip to WDW
First, I have to thank all of you who have responded to my posts. After my last one, I was worried they were getting too long. Im glad you enjoy reading them, I certainly am enjoying writing them. Im writing them for myself as much as everyone else. We are both still excited about the trip and I think everyone of our friends and family are tired of hearing about it, so Im thrilled to have an outlet for sharing my enthusiasm. Now, onto to day 3!
We decided to get up at 6:30 instead of 6 this morning. Since MK is closer and since yesterday we were up before the concierge staff had breakfast out. However I think both of us were up before the alarm went off, after all we were going to the MAGIC KINGDOM!!!
We grabbed a quick bite from the buffet (if you can call it that) We each had a Danish and some fresh fruit and some juice. Neither one of us eat big breakfast normally, so this was more than enough food. We headed down to the boat dock around 7:10 and I snapped some quick pictures on the way to the boat dock of the hotel in the early morning mist. One of them turned out to be my absolute favorite picture and you can see it by clicking here.
As we turned the corner to boat dock I was suddenly shocked to see this large group of people congregating at the entrance to the dock. My first thought was Oh no, theres a line all the way to here for the boat!! But in reality there was a great blue heron sitting on one of the dock posts and the kids were scared to walk by it. So we made our way around the crowd and walked right past the bird. I guess everyone else figured if he didnt attack us, it was okay to go by. Just then one of the CMs on the fishing cruise (who was preparing his morning tour) threw a small fish. As soon as the fish hit the dock the heron swooped down and stabbed it with his beak. There was a large collective Ohhh from the crowd as we all watched the bird gulp the little fish down with great efficiency. We spent the next few minutes watching the bird coax a few more bait fish out of the fisherman before the boat arrived. Once on the boat we watched from our seats as the bird continued to amaze those still on the dock. This bird must be a regular at the dock, I know we saw him on all of our subsequent trips on the boats. He was a real joy to watch and I really applaud Disney for their efforts at supporting local wild life.
As we headed for the Magic Kingdom, I could hardly contain my excitement as we pulled out into Bay Lake and within moments Space Mountain loomed larger than life. I got my first real good look at the contemporary as we made our way through the channel. Tom commented on how it looked like something out of Logans Run and I reminded him that it WAS designed in the late 60s and at the time, it did look very futuristic. We agreed to come back later and give it a closer look, but also agreed that we liked our choice of hotel much better.
It was just about 7:30 when we pulled up to the boat dock and we quickly made our way up the hill and through the entrance gates. There were only about a half dozen turnstiles open, but we had almost no wait to get through, the crowds at this point were very light. It was a real treat for me to return to this park after so many years, I felt immediately at home. I had no need of a map for today (even though I brought one just in case) the layout of the park was somehow intuitive and familiar all at once. I really enjoyed watching Toms face light up with delight as we walked under the train tracks and turned the corner of Main street as the castle came into view. My only regret of going so early was that they didnt have enough photographers working Main Street. I REALLY wanted a picture of us with the castle in the background, but I could only find 1 photographer working and there was a line to get your picture taken. Neither of us wanted to stand in line for a picture, so we made our way down Main Street to the hub and snapped a couple quick pictures with Walt and Mickey before heading over to Tomorrowland.
We were following the unofficial guide Two-Day touring plan right out of the book and the first thing on the agenda was Space Mountain, so off we went. We walked right through the queue and it was 8am on the dot as we came up the ramp and could see the first batch of cars loaded with guests heading off onto the ride. We probably waited less than 5 minutes to get into our spaceship. Just enough time to point out the flying cookie asteroid to Tom and watch some of the video on the overhead monitors. The cars were reconfigured since the last time I was here, and I liked the comfort of the new seats, however at 65 I still had trouble squeezing my legs into the car. The ride is still just as fun as I remember, but somehow a little bumpier than I remember. Having ridden RnRC the previous morning, this was a bit of a let-down. I hope that someday they will replace the rollercoaster inside Space Mountain with something like the one in Paris, or RnRC at Disney MGM.
After our ride on SM, we headed over to Alien Encounter and arrived just as the doors were opening for the pre-show. We walked in and remembering our lessons from the previous day we positioned ourselves in the middle of the crowd. After the short film, the doors opened and I was pleased to learn that by staying to the LEFT, we ended up in the front row of the pre-show. I was astonished at the flexibility of the robots movement. We all enjoyed watching Skippy get toasted and then disappear. As we went into the main theatre, I was surprised that NOBODY was sitting in the front rows. There were few if any CMs directing the guests, so not being sure why nobody was sitting there, I just followed the crowd and we ended up in the back row. The show was fun, but not as scary as I thought it would be. The illusion of people behind me talking and screaming just didnt work because I knew we were in the back row. Overall, both of us were kind of disappointed in this attraction, HOWEVER, when we returned on the last day of our trip, we sat in the front row and it was an ENTIRELY different experience. So for those of you who are scared of things that go bump in the night, or have small children who might frighten easily, sit in the back row. If you really want to experience the terror up close, sit in the front row, its a very different experience.
Next our plan called for us to head over to Fantasyland and ride the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. It was approaching 9am and official opening time, so we headed over in hopes of avoiding a wait in line. As soon as we turned the path to head up to Fantasyland, the crowds mysteriously quadrupled in size. Now I realized why tomorrowland was so empty everyone was in Fantasyland! The standby line for Pooh was 30 minutes, but they were giving out fast passes for 9:35, so we grabbed one of these and headed over to see Peter Pan which had a 10 minute posted wait. I dont imagine we were in line for more than 5 minutes before we were off to soar over London and visit Never Never Land. I have never been on this ride before and I really enjoyed the detail and the illusion of flying. I could ride this over and over again and never get bored with it. And Im not even that big of a fan of the Peter Pan movie! After Pan, we headed over to Its a small world (which had a 0 minute wait) and I we both commented on how CLEAN and BRIGHT everything looked inside the attraction. I cant even imagine having to keep that attraction clean inside. Unlike Pan which was a dark ride, this attraction is lit up so well you can see everything and it looked like it had just opened yesterday. As much as its not one of my favorite rides, I really appreciated the work that they put into keeping this signature attraction running they way it was designed. After a quick bathroom break, it was time to head back to Pooh and use our fastpass. As we went by I noticed the next Legend of the Lion King show was due to strart in 10 minutes so the timing couldnt have worked out better. We agreed to come right back as soon as we were done with Winnie the Pooh and friends. When we arrived back at Pooh, the line was still 30 minutes and the fast pass return was now 10:30. We walked right on and in spite of the number of people waiting in line we got a honey pot all to ourselves. I was a BIG fan of Winnie the Pooh when I was a kid, but somehow out-grew him by the age of 10, so I was surprised at how all of the details of the story came back to me as we relived the adventures in person. This is a great attraction and I really enjoyed the way Tigger kept popping out at us as we made our way through. I enjoyed it so much I picked up a Tigger T-shirt on the way out.
After our encounter with Winnie the Pooh and his friends, we made our way back to the Legend of the Lion king and practically walked right in for the next seating. This was another first for both of us and we didnt know what to expect, but we did manage to position ourselves in the middle of the crowd going in (we waited twords the back as people pushed their way ahead of us) when the doors opened we ended up in the fourth row dead center! We had quickly mastered the art of queueing up for shows! Heres another hint NEVER be the first ones through the door at a show, unless you want to be the first ones out. Disney is very good about filling all seats, so position yourself in the middle of the crowd to get the best seats. I loved this show and am slightly saddened to hear it might be closing. I would love to know how this show is done. I appears to be a mixture of animitronics and puppets, but I couldnt tell if some of them were puppets controlled by people or if they were controlled by animitronics. Either way it was a great show and reminded me that I need to get a copy of Lion King on DVD if its available.
By the time the show was over it was a little before 10:30 and we had done everything on our list for Fantasyland. So we headed over to the Haunted Mansion which was next on the list. The wait here was less than 5 minutes, just enough time to look at the tombstones outside before we were ushered in to the library. This is one of my favorite rides and I recall that when I was here in high school with our marching band, I rode this attraction about 5 times. It is still one of my favorites to this day. As we headed up to pick up our hitchhiker I slid over in the seat so there would be room for him in our doombuggie and Tom was just amazed at the way our hitch-hiking ghost fit perfectly between us. We both loved this ride and agreed to make sure we came back to do it again before we finished our vacation.
According to the unofficial guide touring plan, lunch was next, but our PS was not until 11:30 and it was still just past 10:30, so we headed over to check out the Country Bear Jamboree which was on the plan for after lunch. We arrived just after a show had started so we grabbed a bench and waited for the next show. The lobby quickly filled with people all of whom were pushing their way to the doors. When they doors finally did open, we just kind of casually made our way into the theatre and again ended up with perfect seats right in the middle. I remember seeing this show once, and finding it kind of silly, and knowing that Tom likes Corny humor, I figured he would like it. We both enjoyed the show and since Im the Disney Nut in the family, I was at a loss for words when Tom asked me where they Country bears came from??? Something I didnt know about Disney that I was going to have to look up when I got home!
After the show we were heading back to the Liberty Tree tavern for our lunch when we noticed the riverboat was getting ready to pull out. We had about 20 minutes to spare so we jumped onboard and enjoyed a nice leisurely cruise before our lunch. We pulled back into the dock at 11:20 right on the nose and headed right over for our 11:30 PS. You can read my review on the Resturant Board on this meal for all the details. I will say that the food was very good, but the service left a little to be desired. I think we just ended up with a CM who was having an off day, but it was a little disappointing. Regardless, I wouldnt hesitate to go back here for another meal in the future.
After lunch we checked the plan and realized we had done everything on it for day one with the exception of Tom Sawyers Island. We were both still a little tired and decided to skip the island and return to the hotel. We did some quick shopping on the way out. Even though we were headed back to the hotel, I decided to use the resort delivery on items I bought. This is such a great perk, and it worked out in Disneys favor, as I bought stuff I wouldnt normally have bought because I knew I could have them sent back to the hotel. So if youre staying onsite, take advantage of this free perk.
We arrived back at the hotel around 1:00 and the plan called for arriving at Epcot around 2pm. We decided a nap was more important so we didnt get back to Epcot until around 4pm.
We also used the unofficial guide two-day plan for Epcot and did what I think was the 2nd day of the plan first. This plan worked perfectly with the Magic Kingdom plan as it was designed to end with Illuminations at the end of the night.
We rode Spaceship Earth first (of course) and I enjoyed it as much now as I did when I first rode it some 18 years ago. I really liked the new additions at the end. The ride is starting to show its age however in the mechanics of the cars. I dont remember so much SQUEAKING the last time I rode, and I had some trouble hearing the narration since the speakers were behind my neck instead of my ears (a curse of being tall) The one complaint about this ride was the fact that I missed the Walter Cronkite narration.. There is just something about his voice that fit that ride so much better than the new one (who is it ?? Jeremy Irons??)
We then headed over to the Living Seas, which sadly is REALLY starting to show its age. The introduction movie is really out of date and the queue line is filled with dated, although still interesting, information. I really hope they can get a new sponsor for this to bring it up to date. Regardless we enjoyed the ride through the aquarium and we spent about 30 minutes exploring the attractions. I think any city aquarium probably has more to offer than the Living Seas does, and Tom was a little disappointed in the lack of depth the exhibits had. We were scheduled to do the Dolphins in Depth tour on Thursday and we were disappointed in the fact that we didnt get to see the dolphins during our quick visit. I guess they were already in their own tanks for the day.
The touring plan called for a visit to the Land pavilion next, but we got a late start and had a 6pm dinner at La Cellier, so we skipped this section of the plan and headed out for Canada. We arrived in Canada around 5:30 and decided to just hang out until our dinner reservation. We explored the shops and went up to look at the waterfall. We then went down to the restaurant and checked in and waited in the garden until our beeper went off.
Again, you can read my full review of the restaurant on the restaurant board, but Ill just tell you this was my 2nd favorite meal the entire vacation. The food was excellent and the service was very good.
After dinner we spent some time exploring the United Kingdom briefly and noted the location of the Rose and Crown as we were supposed to come back here for dinner in two days. We had access through our package to reserved viewing areas for Illuminations so we headed back to Morroco to check out the area where we were supposed to meet. On our way through France we came across the living statues and stopped to check out their interactions with guests. I was surprised at the number of people who were standing around the show and the number of people in line waiting to get their picture taken with the statue. They dont show THAT on the promotional video! As much as I would have liked to have had my picture taken with the statue, I didnt want all these people staring at me, so I was content to just watch and laugh along with the crowd.
We found the boat dock in Morocco where were supposed to meet at 8:45 and it was now just a little before 8 and we were going to find a place to watch the parade just as an announcent was made that due to the high winds the Tapesty of Nations parade was being cancelled. So instead we headed over to Japan to check out the department store. They had some amazing things in the store and I really liked the bonsai trees. I wanted to buy one, but I heisted because I didnt want to carry it on the plane and I wasnt sure they would ship them to me at home (as it turns out they do, but I still for some reason didnt buy one a fact I know regret) Tom continued to check out the offerings in Japan and I went outside to listen to the performance being given on the drums at the temple building. We spent some time watching the coy pond and then headed back to Morroco.
We checked with the CM at the reserved area to make sure we were in the right place and she would have let us in at that point, but we decided to go explore morocco a little bit first. I loved the illusion that was created that makes you feel like youre really wandering the streets of some distant village. I also love how you can get lost in such a small pavilion we finally had to ask for directions to the exit LOL..
We arrived back at the boat dock at 8:45 and we were let in to the ramp area that leads down to the dock. I wasnt sure what to expect with this perk but I was expecting more than this. The ramp was already filled with people. The view to center of the lagoon was obstructed by the awning over the boat dock, so we found a position along the side that would give us 1. something to lean against before and during the show, and 2. the least obstructed view of the lagoon. As it was the awning and blocked most of the view and a large tree to the left blocked more of the view. When the show started one of the guests who was farther down the ramp in front of us, put his kid up on his shoulders which blocked the rest of the view. In addition to this a young girl who was probably all of 3 years old started SCREAMING as soon as the first fireworks went off. So in addition to the fact that our reserved area had an obstructed view, there were no speakers in the direct area so we couldnt hear the music and narration all that well, this girl screaming drowned out everything but the exploding fireworks.
After a few minutes I was just about ready to go ask this guest with his son on his shoulders if he wouldnt mind putting his son on the wall in front of him where he had been 5 minutes earlier. After all there was NOBODY in front of him, why did he have to be up on his shoulders and then I thought to myself This is DISNEYWORLD its for KIDS CHILL OUT!!! So I just made the best of it and with a little bobbing and weaving from side to side, we managed to see most of the show.
As we had seen the night before with Fantasmic, people in the reserved area started leaving BEFORE the show was over. I dont understand this mentality lets get there early and take up the best viewing areas and then leave early so everyone has to watch us walk in front of them but well get out before the crowds . Luckily for us the ones to leave early were the family with the screaming baby and the 5 year old on the shoulders. After they cleared out another couple (who was also having trouble seeing and hearing) looked over at us and said All that fuss and they leave early??? I just nodded in agreement and we all made our way down to the corner of the ramp so watch the finale of the show.
As the lights came back up and we were headed out, I noticed that the surrounding areas of the world showcase were all less crowded than our reserved area. We probably would have had a better viewing spot from somewhere (anywhere) else along the lagoon fence. So if you buy the Discovery Magic Package and you get the reserved access passes for fireworks, UNLESS the park is really crowded, dont bother, youll find a better spot on your own. We had a reservation at the Rose and Crown for 7:30 on Wednesday, which we agreed would probably be a better viewing area.
So we made our way to the entrance, which because of the crowds took about 30 minutes. It wasnt too bad, but because they only have half of the path around Spaceship Earth open, the crowds got REALLY think at the exit.
We managed to make it back to the Hotel by 10 and took a quick dip in the pool. As it was the previous night, the mother duck and here babies were in the pool. We spent about 30 minutes with them in the pool and relaxed for short time in the hot tub before calling it a night. Even though we had taken a short nap that afternoon we were both really tired and decided that we were going to skip early entry tomorrow at Epcot and sleep in instead. Only day 3 and we were already falling behind in our plan.. I decided not to get too stressed about it, after all I knew I was going to have to be flexible and we had plenty of open time at the end of the trip, we would somehow make it all work.
Excited to see what you do next.
