Three Generations of Adults do Disney! Our first DVC trip! Updated 9/12/08! -Page5

[JenSop]

Hi folks! This is my first trip report, so please be gentle. We actually leave tomorrow, but I wanted to set the stage for the trip to come. (Not long enough for an actual "pre-trip" report, I suppose!)

This trip will be DH, myself, my parents and my grandmother. Our first trip as DVC owners, we are determined to show our family how much fun Disney can be without kids!

Will my parents be brave enough to try EE? Will my grandmother have enough of her perpetual youthful energy to get through a week at Disney? Will DH and I be patient tour guides? Will all my fanatical planning pan out into the best Disney vacation ever?! I guess time will tell!

Let's meet the cast!

Jen (ME) age 32 (although I don't feel a day over 18, ahem) - professional singer and voice teacher and complete Disney freak. I've been hooked since my first trip in 1984 at age 8. No kids, as we've put off having them because of my singing career, but will probably eventually go that route...

Brian (DH) age 34 - band director/music teacher and Disney fan (not quite the Disney freak that I am, but I'm trying to work on it!) He became more of a fan ever since our Disneymoon in '01. We returned for our anniversary in '06.

DMom - age 61 - OR Nurse. Hasn't been to Disney in ages! She was with on that first trip of mine in '84, and then for a one day trip to MK in '96. Boy, is she in for a shocker!

DDad - age 61 - retired social studies teacher. Chaperoned some Disney trips as a teacher, but last big trip was in '84.

DGrandmother - age 83. It was her and my grandfather who took my sis and I to Disney many times during our childhood. My grandfather passed away 12 years ago, but he'll be there in spirit with us!

We'll be staying in a 2BR in BCV for seven nights with the whole crew, then DH and I will stay on by ourselves for an additional 2 nights in a 1BR at AKV, our DVC Home!

I don't have a laptop, so I won't be able to update the report until I get back! But wish me luck - this'll be a unique situation!

 

[JenSop]

We're back! Got back last night. I will be figuring out how to use Photobucket so I can start adding photos - and we have some AMAZING photos!!!!!

But it will have to wait a couple days. While i was on vacation, I got a phone call from a theatre I auditioned for - I have a call-back for "My Fair Lady" this coming Saturday (in addition to a show I'm in starting performances in just over a week!) So the next week is crazy busy. I will post updates soon!

We had a great time - and we're so happy with our home resort (AKV.) When I post the pictures, you'll easily see why! Also did the Segway tour our last day - so much fun!

Hope you'll come along for the ride!

 

[KadysMom]

I cant wait to read all about it! Especially the segway tour because we are thinking about doing it.

 

[momof2boyz12]

Great start. Can't wait to see your pictures and here all about it.

 

[WDWRocksMySocks]

Sounds like fun! I love going to WDW w/o kids. It's such a different perspective. Look forward to hearing more. Hope your call back went well. My sister is currently working on her PhD in vocal performance (opera) at Indiana University. She absolutely loves performing!

 

[JenSop]

Okay, so I'm going to try to do a test of posting a pic from Photobucket. This is our cat Grey Kitty, who missed us just terribly while we were away. It was his first ever time home alone for an extended period (his brother - a litter mate - just passed away two months ago.) We never saw a happier cat in all our lives when we got home.

*****Okay it didn't work. Anyone know how to get a picture from photobucket to a post here?

 

[JenSop]

 

[JenSop]

okay - it was too large. Back to the drawing board.

 

[JenSop]

Here is another test. My DH (Brian) and I on our anniversary trip in 2006 - by the fountain in Italy in World Showcase.

 

[JenSop]

Alright! That last one worked! I will have some time on Sunday to start putting together the report on here! Stay tuned.....

In the meantime, here is a pic from our Disneymoon in 2001. My, how much younger we look! This is from before we had a digital camera, so the image is from a scanned photo.

 

[Sooze]

I'm here Jen!! Thanks for the link. Glad to see you figured out Photobucket! Can't wait to read all about your LONG trip with LOTS of family. It was great to see you and DH last week. I just can't believe how little he has changed since college!!

Carry on....

 

[Hedy]

Looking forward to more!

 

[JenSop]

Hi all! I'm busy downloading photos on to the computer. We have almost 900!!! Yikes. Obviously, I won't be able to include them all on the TR, but I've been picking out my favorites and putting them on Photobucket.

Since I'll be directing some of my non-DisBoard friends to this Trip Report, I thought I'd let them in on some of what the abbreviations stand for. (And for those new to the disboards too, of course!)

AK = Animal Kingdom
MK = Magic Kingdom
DHS = Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly MGM)
DVC = Disney Vacation Club - Disney's version of a time share (but oh so different!)
AKV = Animal Kingdom Villas - the DVC portion of the Animal Kingdom Lodge
BCV = Beach Club Villas - the DVC portion of the Beach Club Resort
Home Resort = when you buy into DVC, you buy into a specific resort, which gives you booking priority there. (AKV is our home resort)
EE = Expedition Everest - the awesome roller coaster at AK
EMH = Extra Magic Hours. Every morning and every night, one of the parks opens early or stays open late for people staying on Disney property.

I may add to this list as we go along. Just ask if you have any questions!

 

[jordanyosh]

Okay..SOOZE said I should come over so here I am...stop by mine if you get a chance.

 

[JenSop]

Day 1 -

We started VERY early. Heck, I actually never went to bed! I got home from rehearsal at 11:30pm, and we had to be at my parents' house by 4:15, so what was the use in going to bed? Besides, I still had SO MUCH to do! You know, it's funny, you can plan and prepare for months, then there's still so much to do at the last minute!

We got dropped off at the Lehigh Valley Airport at 5am. (My dad's friend owed him a favor!) Because of other situations beyond our control, we were flying from Allentown to Philly, then on to Orlando. (Otherwise we would have just flown non-stop from Philly.) Anyway - long story - not important!

I can't tell you how excited I was to get on that Magical Express!!! My trip was finally starting! We had a few other stops before we were dropped off at the Beach Club. From the start, we were treated so nicely! We got checked in, but our rooms were not ready yet. (I was expecting this from what I'd been reading on the boards!)

Here we all are, in the Beach Club lobby - all ready to start our trip!

At the concierge desk, they transferred our AAA park tickets to our KTTW cards without a problem. She also asked if there were any special celebrations in our group like birthdays or anniversaries. We told her our anniversary was two weeks ago, and she said that was still close enough, so she gave us Happy Anniversary pins. I tell ya, EVERYONE was wishing us a Happy Anniversary. It was kind of cool getting that attention.

We headed out to Epcot. After sending the family out to World Showcase, Brian and I ran to Soarin' to get FP's for all of us. We got a great return time - just a little before our dinner time at Coral Reef - perfect!

We caught up with my family and grabbed lunch at the Yakitori House in Japan. Everything was very good. But we had our first experience of having too much food. The cast member at the counter was especially nice. She asked us where we were from and commented that PA was one of the original 13 colonies. We complimented her on her knowledge, and she said she was going to be trying for the citizenship test. We wished her the best of luck!

After lunch, we continued on, but the skies were not looking good. Little did we know this would be a very common theme throughout our vacation. Storms were coming! We got as far as Germany and the torrential downpours came.

We were trapped in Germany for a little while, so we decided to have some wine! My family is german, so we were amused to see Graff wine (our last name is Graf - I kept my maiden name) and decided to try some of the Graff Riesling. By the time we were done, the resort called to let us know our room was ready! And the rain had started to let up. So it was off to BCV; BUT we had to make a quick stop on the way there - in France for some Grand Marnier and Grey Goose slushies!

At BCV, we were in room 302 - a 2BR villa. The room was great! Here are some shots of the villa!

And here's the view from our balcony:

We got out of the rain for the time being, but what did the evening hold for us? That's for the next entry. Let's just say it was a most interesting time watching Illuminations that night....

 

[JenSop]

I cant wait to read all about it! Especially the segway tour because we are thinking about doing it.

Thanks for joining my TR! We had a fabulous time on the Segway tour! I would say go for it! We absolutely will do it again on our next trip!

Great start. Can't wait to see your pictures and here all about it.

Thanks!

Sounds like fun! I love going to WDW w/o kids. It's such a different perspective. Look forward to hearing more. Hope your call back went well. My sister is currently working on her PhD in vocal performance (opera) at Indiana University. She absolutely loves performing!

Thanks for the well wishes. I had the call back yesterday morning. So I'm HOPING and WISHING for a phone call soon! It's a tough life to be a performer - zero job security. Getting this gig would mean two months of full time singing employment in the fall! Best of luck to your sister! I've often thought about going back to get my doctorate. Maybe someday. As it is, I'll be paying off my Master's for the next thirty years!

I'm here Jen!! Thanks for the link. Glad to see you figured out Photobucket! Can't wait to read all about your LONG trip with LOTS of family. It was great to see you and DH last week. I just can't believe how little he has changed since college!!

Carry on....

Hi Sooze!! It was great to see you down in The World! (Brian enjoyed the compliment that he hasn't changed much since college!) I've got so many pictures - it's been a real challenge to narrow them down!

Looking forward to more!

Thanks Hedy! I'll try to put up a little each day - although I've got several rehearsals this week leading up to some shows next weekend - but I'm an overachiever, so I'll try to do it all!

Okay..SOOZE said I should come over so here I am...stop by mine if you get a chance.

Thanks for joining my TR! I'll make sure to stop by yours as well! Brian and I went to college with Sooze, but only recently found her on Facebook. (Although, in college, I didn't really know Sooze - I remember her being a fellow marching band member, but that's it -- she and Brian were friends.)



More to follow later!

 

[Sooze]

Okay..SOOZE said I should come over so here I am...stop by mine if you get a chance.

Yes... Jordan is here! Feel honored, Jen.. feel very honored! And, really, check out his report! It's hilarious!!

 

[Sooze]

Day 1 -
You know, it's funny, you can plan and prepare for months, then there's still so much to do at the last minute!

I SO know what you mean!!

I can't tell you how excited I was to get on that Magical Express!!!

You don't have to tell us.. we know already!

Here we all are, in the Beach Club lobby - all ready to start our trip!

So fresh and full of energy! How long did THAT last?

I tell ya, EVERYONE was wishing us a Happy Anniversary. It was kind of cool getting that attention.

We did the Anniversary pins in January.. so much fun!

The cast member at the counter was especially nice. She asked us where we were from and commented that PA was one of the original 13 colonies. We complimented her on her knowledge, and she said she was going to be trying for the citizenship test. We wished her the best of luck!

Isn't it sad that people who have to become citizens know more than most of us who were born here?

Little did we know this would be a very common theme throughout our vacation.

Yup... got a taste of this one!

At BCV, we were in room 302 - a 2BR villa. The room was great! Here are some shots of the villa!

Great shots of the villa! I LOVE LOVE LOVE Beach Club! I sure hope you got to try out the pool!!

We got out of the rain for the time being, but what did the evening hold for us? That's for the next entry. Let's just say it was a most interesting time watching Illuminations that night....

Yessss! Illuminations.. our favorite! Can't wait to hear how it was 'interesting'...

 

[Mickeefan]

Great start! I'm looking forward to more.

 

[JenSop]

Day 1, Part 2.

Last I posted, we had checked into our lovely 2BR villa at BCV. We hung out a little while until we got our groceries and luggage. We ordered our groceries through Disney, and it worked very well for us. (Although I've heard good things about Garden Grocer, so perhaps we'll try them in the future.) Fortunately none of our luggage was lost and was all delivered to the room with plenty of time to get ready to head out next.

Our Soarin' FP return times were for 5:25, and we had ADR's at Coral Reef for 6:20. We decided to head out a little before 5:00 to walk over to Epcot and head over to the Land Pavilion to go to Soarin'.

Since we had such an early start to the day, my grandmother was starting to get tired from the walking. She's always been 'very young' for her age, and I think this trip is the first time we saw her having trouble keeping up. Although for 83, she's still kickin' butt, if I do say so myself!

We donned our rain gear (yes it was still raining) and headed to Epcot for Soarin'. We got there just in time for our FP return time.

Let me just say that this ended up being my Dad's favorite ride of the whole trip. After this ride, all he could talk about the entire trip was Soarin'. When were we going on Soarin' next? Is there time for Soarin' tomorrow? Let's go on Soarin! (You get the idea.)

Next it was off to the Coral Reef!

When we checked in, they noticed the Happy Anniversary pin and must have made a special note on our slip, because when we got seated, our server said he knew that we were celebrating our anniversary and wanted to treat us to complimentary champagne. How nice! I'm sure it was not top shelf by any means, but it was still a nice gesture.

I have to give credit to our server, Bob. He was especially patient and helpful, even though he had a three table party with lots of kids right next to us. Plus, my grandmother wanted to get that glowing Tinker Bell thing for my 3 year old niece, and he was nothing but nice when the first one broke (he brought her a new one free of charge.)
Here we all are:

All of our food was great. I had been a little nervous after reading some mixed reviews on the boards about the food at Coral Reef, but everything was wonderful. My dad and I had the seafood pasta dish, which was very tasty, while Brian had the Mahi Mahi (also very good.) I believe my mom and grandmother had the same? (Funny how these little details begin to slip your mind!)

And I did notice that the theme of the trip seemed to be, Let's drink more because we're on vacation! (Such wonderful fun drinks, how can you resist?)

After dinner, it was still raining, so we decided to go right around the building and head into The Living Seas. (Yeah, I know it's called The Seas with Nemo and Friends, but I like the old name better! )

We hopped on the Nemo ride. (Sorry, but this was really boring. Good thing there was no wait.)

Then we walked around and checked out some of the fish and aquariums and such!

While inside, my mom bought some of those Disney ponchos. Brian and I used the thin AAA ponchos, while the other three used the new Disney ponchos (which starting to rip and break almost immediately.)

Anyway, we headed towards World Showcase, as that was our way home, AND a chance to see Illuminations.

I really like Illuminations. Way better than Wishes. But try watching Illuminations in a torrential downpour while partially obstructed by a big ol' tree. Not ideal. We got SOAKED. My wonderful new Ecco sandals became water sponges of the most uncomfortable variety. We didn't even stick around for the finale. (Not to worry, we got a great showing of it a few days later!)

We all hobbled back to the villa, knowing that we had an early morning, as we were going to be heading to AK for EMH the next morning. And with all this rain out of the way on the first day, surely the rest of the trip would have much less rain, right?

Next up - rope drop at AK!