now I'm back at my computer (obviously) at my desk at work and the kids are in school.
Last July we bought AP's since we were there for a ten day stay. After we got back home, I found out about the WDW Marathon (hubby is an avid runner) on January 7, 2001, and since the kids are out of school for Christmas break until Jan 8, we would do a quick (for us!) trip! By the way, "we" are Me (Deb), age 41, mom and trip planner, Daddy (Eric), age 43, kid at heart and marathon runner, Jennifer, daughter, age 9, and Mark, son, age 5.
So, here's what we did:
DAY 1, Wednesday, Jan 3:
Arrival
Left Iowa at 8 am, flew TWA, arrived in Orlando at 1:30 pm. Met Scoobey at baggage claim, and found he gave us a free upgrade from a towncar to a stretch limo!! (I had made a comment to Scoobey that last time we were there, our kids loved the VCR in the car, and asked if we could have one again. Scoobey said that the stretch was the only one with a VCR available that day! Jennifer's eyes almost popped out of her head!). Checked into Dixie Landings at 3:15. Wonderful resort, beautiful theming, got all our requests (Alligator Bayou building 15, non-smoking room, trundle bed, upper floor). Got unpacked, then got on bus for Epcot. Realize that we left our AP's back in the room (!). Had to ride bus back to room to get passes! Go back to Epcot to get to our PS at Biergarten. Had great dinner there. I got "captured" by band member after doing "chicken dance" with daughter, and was drafted as a contestant in a yodeling contest!!!
After MUCH embarassment and a very feeble attempt at yodeling, I receive a Beck's Beer t-shirt as a souvenir of my most embarrassing moment (luckily, we did not bring our video camera this time, so I don't have to see it again!). After recovering from that trauma, we go out to see Tapestry of Nations, skip Illuminations for now, and go back to DL to bed.
DAY 2, Thursday, Jan 4:
Animal Kingdom
Got Fastpass to Dinosaur first, then went to Boneyard (kids love playground stuff). Did Dinosaur, then It's Tough to Be a Bug. Ate lunch at Flame Tree BBQ, and FROZE (all outdoor seating, and temp was 45 degrees!). Went to Kilamanjaro Safari (no wait), then saw Festival of Lion King. Back to DL for rest and hubby to run. Dinner at Beach Club at Cape May Cafe for clambake - great food, steamed clams and mussels, clam chowder, salmon, ribs, cornbread, out of this world desserts! Unfortunately, bus takes an hour to get there (took Downtown Disney bus, connected to Beach Club bus at Pleasure Island). After Cape May Cafe, walked out across International Gateway, and got a spot by England for Illuminations. Then back to DL and to bed.
DAY 3, Friday, Jan 5:
Sports Complex/MGM
Took MGM bus, connected to Sports Complex bus to pick up marathon packet (race number, timing chip, instructions, souvenir t-shirt, etc). Back to MGM, stored stuff in locker. To Star Tours first for Fastpass (son's request). Did Great Movie Ride while waiting for Fastpass to come up and got the "cowgirl" story this time (had gotten the gangster one before). Did Star Tours. Headed over to Tower of Terror, got Fastpass. Ate lunch at Catalina Eddies/Rosie's All American Cafe while waiting for Fastpass. Did Tower of Terror (I LOVE this attraction, especially theming and special effects; kids are not so thrilled with it). Got Fastpass for Rock 'n' Roller Coaster. Did Drew Carrey while waiting for Fastpass to come up. Dad and Jennifer do Rock 'n' Rollercoaster; I wait with Mark (too short). By now our PS for Mama Melrose is up; no time for me to do R 'n' R with Jennifer, so I give away my Fastpass. Head over to Mama Melrose for dinner; very good Italian food. Had special mussel soup (delicious!); hubby had pasta and a martini, with tiramisu for dessert. Kids had "ice cream cone that fell in the dirt" for dessert. Headed over to Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights, but could not find 3-D glasses. Still pretty impressive. Afterwards, while walking out, daughter spots a pin station, and gets first lanyard (sp?) and pins, and instantly becomes addicted to pin trading. Back to DL and bed.
DAY 4, Saturday, Jan 6:
Magic Kingdom
Sent hubby to Space Mountain first to get Fastpass. Kids and I got a ride on the trolley to Cinderella's Castle forecourt area. Met hubby at Buzz Lightyear, did that with 10 minute wait. Next did Space Mountain; son gets measured and first guy says "Sorry, too short", but second CM says "Wait a minute, let's try that again. Yup, he's OK!". So we all go on Space Mountain; everyone loves it. Jennifer and I do Alien Encounter while Dad and Mark do Tomorrowland Transit Authority. Do Indy Racers next (Mark wants this). To Goofy's Barnstormer, Mickey's house and Minnie's house in Toontown Fair. Do Tea Cups next. I go to Spash Mountain to get Fastpass, kids hang around Fantasyland and get more pins. Mark really wants to do "Sword in the Stone" ceremony in front of the Carrousel, so we do that while waiting for our Fastpass to come up. After that, we do Splash Mountain, and get really wet. We go to Pecos Bill for lunch and to dry off. Then to Big Thunder Mountain (another one of son's requests). We see the Magical Moments afternoon parade after this. Next to Adventureland and we go on Pirates of the Carribean (no wait). Stop for a Mickey bar before doing Jungle Cruise (5 minute wait, so we do not get Fastpass). Check out Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse (daughter Jennifer wants to see this). Then to main entrance and ride the Magic Kingdom train for the complete circuit. Then to Tony's for 5 pm PS. Got our request of a table on the outdoor balcony. Kids get cheese pizza (in the shape of Mickey), I get eggplant pancakes (excellent), hubby pasta-loads on spaghetti. We stayed for the Main Street Electrical Parade (Tony's balcony is a great spot!), then head back and go to bed.
DAY 5, Sunday, Jan 7
MARATHON DAY
Hubby wakes up at 2:30 am . Buses for the runners begin at 3:30 am, and runners are required to be in their starting area by 4:30 am. Race does not start until 6 am, so all the runners, dressed in their running gear (shorts, t-shirts, singlets) get hypothermia for the next 1 1/2 hours waiting for the race to begin. Hubby finds a Porta Potty and hibernates there for a while 
Race begins 15 minutes late due to mass confusion at the starting line (runners are supposed to line up in two groups, red group and blue group, and according to race number, lowest to highest, but no one can hear the instructions and everyones goes at once). I get the kids up and we head over to Epcot to the finish line in the Epcot parking lot. Kids complain because there are people lined up 4 deep in places near the finish, and no one is very accomodating 
. Did see hubby finish in 3 hours 35 minutes and tried to get a picture, but probably shot the back of someone's head 
. Met hubby in Family Reunion tents. Hubby used some towels and water to clean up a bit and change into some clean dry clothes. After stretching a bit, we head into Epcot. I go get Fastpass for Test Track while hubby and kids locate our Leave a Legacy that we got in July. I meet them there and find our faces. Next we do Spaceship Earth, and go into Future World and get Mickey bars. We watch Goofy About Health in Wonders of Life pavilion while finishing the bars, then go on Body Wars (no wait). Then we do Test Track. We get lunch from a turkey leg cart, then go back to Wonders of Life for Cranium Command (Jennifer loves this show). Then over to the other side for Journey into Your Imagination. Kids do not want to do Honey I Shrunk the Audience, so we go back to DL. Kids and dad go swimming (they think it is neat to swim outside in January), and I do some laundry (I will NOT pack stinky sweaty running clothes!). We go to Boatwrights for PS for dinner. Hubby has the porterhouse steak, I have the grouper in lemon caper sauce, both very good. Hubby has the fudge brownie boat for dessert. We go back to our room. I confirm our flights (6 am the next day!), and our pick up with Scoobey. We are in bed by 9 pm.
DAY 6, Monday, Jan 8 T*O*D*A*Y!!
Departure Day
We get up at 3:15 am (2:15 am Iowa time!!), get our stuff together, and head over to the lobby of DL. Scoobey says to be there by 4:15 am, but when we get there a minute or two after that, no one is there! We wait for about 10 minutes--still no one. Scoobey is always VERY prompt, so I have a feeling something is wrong. I call Scoobey at just before 4:30 and tell him we don't have a driver; he says he'll be there in 15 minutes. I think he makes it in less than that. He is very apologetic, promises us a free upgrade, gives us a souvenir Swiss army knife, and refuses to take a gratuity. He says that it is his policy that if Atlantis Limo is responsible for making you miss your flight, he will pay for any additional charges, up to chartering a plane to get you back in time!! Luckily, we make it in time for our plane. We leave Orlando, connect in St. Louis, and land in Iowa at about 10 am local time. We get the car, and get the kids to school (much to their dismay) by 11 am, and I'm at work by 11:30 am.
In all, it was a quick but fun trip for us. We got to do pretty much all that we wanted to do. If we had another day, we would have gone to Typhoon Lagoon, because it would have been fun to do a water park in the winter. But then again, maybe it would have been too cold for us!
Deb
Last July we bought AP's since we were there for a ten day stay. After we got back home, I found out about the WDW Marathon (hubby is an avid runner) on January 7, 2001, and since the kids are out of school for Christmas break until Jan 8, we would do a quick (for us!) trip! By the way, "we" are Me (Deb), age 41, mom and trip planner, Daddy (Eric), age 43, kid at heart and marathon runner, Jennifer, daughter, age 9, and Mark, son, age 5.
So, here's what we did:
DAY 1, Wednesday, Jan 3:
Arrival
Left Iowa at 8 am, flew TWA, arrived in Orlando at 1:30 pm. Met Scoobey at baggage claim, and found he gave us a free upgrade from a towncar to a stretch limo!! (I had made a comment to Scoobey that last time we were there, our kids loved the VCR in the car, and asked if we could have one again. Scoobey said that the stretch was the only one with a VCR available that day! Jennifer's eyes almost popped out of her head!). Checked into Dixie Landings at 3:15. Wonderful resort, beautiful theming, got all our requests (Alligator Bayou building 15, non-smoking room, trundle bed, upper floor). Got unpacked, then got on bus for Epcot. Realize that we left our AP's back in the room (!). Had to ride bus back to room to get passes! Go back to Epcot to get to our PS at Biergarten. Had great dinner there. I got "captured" by band member after doing "chicken dance" with daughter, and was drafted as a contestant in a yodeling contest!!!
After MUCH embarassment and a very feeble attempt at yodeling, I receive a Beck's Beer t-shirt as a souvenir of my most embarrassing moment (luckily, we did not bring our video camera this time, so I don't have to see it again!). After recovering from that trauma, we go out to see Tapestry of Nations, skip Illuminations for now, and go back to DL to bed.DAY 2, Thursday, Jan 4:
Animal Kingdom
Got Fastpass to Dinosaur first, then went to Boneyard (kids love playground stuff). Did Dinosaur, then It's Tough to Be a Bug. Ate lunch at Flame Tree BBQ, and FROZE (all outdoor seating, and temp was 45 degrees!). Went to Kilamanjaro Safari (no wait), then saw Festival of Lion King. Back to DL for rest and hubby to run. Dinner at Beach Club at Cape May Cafe for clambake - great food, steamed clams and mussels, clam chowder, salmon, ribs, cornbread, out of this world desserts! Unfortunately, bus takes an hour to get there (took Downtown Disney bus, connected to Beach Club bus at Pleasure Island). After Cape May Cafe, walked out across International Gateway, and got a spot by England for Illuminations. Then back to DL and to bed.
DAY 3, Friday, Jan 5:
Sports Complex/MGM
Took MGM bus, connected to Sports Complex bus to pick up marathon packet (race number, timing chip, instructions, souvenir t-shirt, etc). Back to MGM, stored stuff in locker. To Star Tours first for Fastpass (son's request). Did Great Movie Ride while waiting for Fastpass to come up and got the "cowgirl" story this time (had gotten the gangster one before). Did Star Tours. Headed over to Tower of Terror, got Fastpass. Ate lunch at Catalina Eddies/Rosie's All American Cafe while waiting for Fastpass. Did Tower of Terror (I LOVE this attraction, especially theming and special effects; kids are not so thrilled with it). Got Fastpass for Rock 'n' Roller Coaster. Did Drew Carrey while waiting for Fastpass to come up. Dad and Jennifer do Rock 'n' Rollercoaster; I wait with Mark (too short). By now our PS for Mama Melrose is up; no time for me to do R 'n' R with Jennifer, so I give away my Fastpass. Head over to Mama Melrose for dinner; very good Italian food. Had special mussel soup (delicious!); hubby had pasta and a martini, with tiramisu for dessert. Kids had "ice cream cone that fell in the dirt" for dessert. Headed over to Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights, but could not find 3-D glasses. Still pretty impressive. Afterwards, while walking out, daughter spots a pin station, and gets first lanyard (sp?) and pins, and instantly becomes addicted to pin trading. Back to DL and bed.
DAY 4, Saturday, Jan 6:
Magic Kingdom
Sent hubby to Space Mountain first to get Fastpass. Kids and I got a ride on the trolley to Cinderella's Castle forecourt area. Met hubby at Buzz Lightyear, did that with 10 minute wait. Next did Space Mountain; son gets measured and first guy says "Sorry, too short", but second CM says "Wait a minute, let's try that again. Yup, he's OK!". So we all go on Space Mountain; everyone loves it. Jennifer and I do Alien Encounter while Dad and Mark do Tomorrowland Transit Authority. Do Indy Racers next (Mark wants this). To Goofy's Barnstormer, Mickey's house and Minnie's house in Toontown Fair. Do Tea Cups next. I go to Spash Mountain to get Fastpass, kids hang around Fantasyland and get more pins. Mark really wants to do "Sword in the Stone" ceremony in front of the Carrousel, so we do that while waiting for our Fastpass to come up. After that, we do Splash Mountain, and get really wet. We go to Pecos Bill for lunch and to dry off. Then to Big Thunder Mountain (another one of son's requests). We see the Magical Moments afternoon parade after this. Next to Adventureland and we go on Pirates of the Carribean (no wait). Stop for a Mickey bar before doing Jungle Cruise (5 minute wait, so we do not get Fastpass). Check out Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse (daughter Jennifer wants to see this). Then to main entrance and ride the Magic Kingdom train for the complete circuit. Then to Tony's for 5 pm PS. Got our request of a table on the outdoor balcony. Kids get cheese pizza (in the shape of Mickey), I get eggplant pancakes (excellent), hubby pasta-loads on spaghetti. We stayed for the Main Street Electrical Parade (Tony's balcony is a great spot!), then head back and go to bed.
DAY 5, Sunday, Jan 7
MARATHON DAY
Hubby wakes up at 2:30 am
. Buses for the runners begin at 3:30 am, and runners are required to be in their starting area by 4:30 am. Race does not start until 6 am, so all the runners, dressed in their running gear (shorts, t-shirts, singlets) get hypothermia for the next 1 1/2 hours waiting for the race to begin. Hubby finds a Porta Potty and hibernates there for a while Race begins 15 minutes late due to mass confusion at the starting line (runners are supposed to line up in two groups, red group and blue group, and according to race number, lowest to highest, but no one can hear the instructions and everyones goes at once). I get the kids up and we head over to Epcot to the finish line in the Epcot parking lot. Kids complain because there are people lined up 4 deep in places near the finish, and no one is very accomodating . Did see hubby finish in 3 hours 35 minutes and tried to get a picture, but probably shot the back of someone's head . Met hubby in Family Reunion tents. Hubby used some towels and water to clean up a bit and change into some clean dry clothes. After stretching a bit, we head into Epcot. I go get Fastpass for Test Track while hubby and kids locate our Leave a Legacy that we got in July. I meet them there and find our faces. Next we do Spaceship Earth, and go into Future World and get Mickey bars. We watch Goofy About Health in Wonders of Life pavilion while finishing the bars, then go on Body Wars (no wait). Then we do Test Track. We get lunch from a turkey leg cart, then go back to Wonders of Life for Cranium Command (Jennifer loves this show). Then over to the other side for Journey into Your Imagination. Kids do not want to do Honey I Shrunk the Audience, so we go back to DL. Kids and dad go swimming (they think it is neat to swim outside in January), and I do some laundry (I will NOT pack stinky sweaty running clothes!). We go to Boatwrights for PS for dinner. Hubby has the porterhouse steak, I have the grouper in lemon caper sauce, both very good. Hubby has the fudge brownie boat for dessert. We go back to our room. I confirm our flights (6 am the next day!), and our pick up with Scoobey. We are in bed by 9 pm.DAY 6, Monday, Jan 8 T*O*D*A*Y!!
Departure Day
We get up at 3:15 am (2:15 am Iowa time!!), get our stuff together, and head over to the lobby of DL. Scoobey says to be there by 4:15 am, but when we get there a minute or two after that, no one is there! We wait for about 10 minutes--still no one. Scoobey is always VERY prompt, so I have a feeling something is wrong. I call Scoobey at just before 4:30 and tell him we don't have a driver; he says he'll be there in 15 minutes. I think he makes it in less than that. He is very apologetic, promises us a free upgrade, gives us a souvenir Swiss army knife, and refuses to take a gratuity. He says that it is his policy that if Atlantis Limo is responsible for making you miss your flight, he will pay for any additional charges, up to chartering a plane to get you back in time!! Luckily, we make it in time for our plane. We leave Orlando, connect in St. Louis, and land in Iowa at about 10 am local time. We get the car, and get the kids to school (much to their dismay) by 11 am, and I'm at work by 11:30 am.
In all, it was a quick but fun trip for us. We got to do pretty much all that we wanted to do. If we had another day, we would have gone to Typhoon Lagoon, because it would have been fun to do a water park in the winter. But then again, maybe it would have been too cold for us!
Deb
