To Infinity and The Contemporary!

[Verandah Man]

Hiya Everybody!!!

Look, I've got my own screen name now! So now I don't have to wait for Aunt Kathy to post for me!

Welcome Tinkerbell Monkey to the DIS!!!

Captain Jack said to say hello to you.......

 

[njprincess]

Hiya Everbody

I know the title of this section is Kathy Checks In - Hyatt Regency Orlando Airport but I thought I'd begin by filling you in on the trip down as well.

I mentioned in the intro that I scored a free first class ticket down to Orlando using Continental frequent flyer miles. However, there were a few catches: 1) I had to fly on Saturday, the day before our Contemporary reservation started 2) I had to fly down on Delta and 3) I had to make a connection in Atlanta. All and all, it was still a good deal, since I am one of those dopey people that actually likes airports. Plus I hadn't been to Atlanta for awhile, so I thought it might be fun. Since I was coming down a day early, a booked a room for Saturday night at the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport (That hotel name is quite a mouthful, so why don't we just call it the Hyatt from now on, OK?).

Saturday turned out to be a great day to fly - my flight left Newark at 10 AM. Zipped through security (although I do have a Clear card, so that helps) and was in the Delta Crown Room 5 minutes later. When Tink & I arrived, there were only 4 other people in the lounge! I didn't expect much, foodwise, but it turns out they had these fresh little crunchy apple/oatmeal bars that were absolutely yummy!!! Plus they had fresh orange juice and biscotti for dipping. I had enough food to actually qualify as breakfast. Tink just had some juice:

I grabbed a healthy handful of the famous Delta Biscoff cookies (OK, so they're famous with people that use the Crown Room and fly Delta a lot), since I didn't know what the food situation would be on the next flight (turned out to be a wise move ). They're actually more like biscuits and they look like this:

These cookies are also in the snack basket on Delta.

I boarded the plane, right on time, with Tink riding in my carryon. The plane was a MD-88 and it and it had the smallest first class seat I've ever been in!!! There were a bunch of soldiers on this flight and I even had one sitting next to me (I think Delta upgraded a few of them, which was really nice.) One nice touch in Delta first class was that they had a small bottle of Dansani water waiting at the seat. Of course, the only food offered was from the Delta snack basket. The rest of the flight was pretty uneventful and we arrived in Atlanta early.

By the time we arrived in Atlanta, it was lunchtime. It had been raining in Atlanta but I checked my flight and it was listed as on time. We had a 2.5 hour layover, so we went to look for some food. I ended up with a grilled cheese from Dunkin Donuts (yum) and Tink had some Ben & Jerry's mint chip ice cream:

I really need to talk to her Mommy about her eating habits!

The next flight was on a much nicer plane - an Airbus 320, with 2 aisles. I was in the 2nd row and the lady in front of me had a blanket draped over her seat that was totally covering my video screen. I gently lifted the blanket and placed it on the top of the seat and she proceeded to push it back over. I said 'excuse me, but your blankie is totally covering my video screen' to which she replied 'well you didn't have to throw it on top of my head!!!!!' Okie dokie. Then she started talking to the man across the aisle about, of all things, NANCY GRACE! Please God, let us get to 10K feet so I can cover my ears with my Bose Noise Reduction headphones and listen to some nice, calm Metallica instead of NANCY GRACE!

We got to Orlando early, of course, because I wasn't going to Disney until the next day. Much to my surprise, my bag had taken an earlier flight than me and was actually sitting in the unclaimed baggage section. Thank goodness I spotted it before I waited at the regular baggage carousel! On the one hand, I was annoyed that my bag was sitting in this area, however, a guy did check my claim ticket. On the other hand, my bag was ready to go immediately, so I thanked my lucky stars and I headed off to the Hyatt.

Now I should mention that Hyatt is one of my favorite hotel chains. I have platinum status with them so I get some nice perks. But I especially like the Hyatt at the Orlando airport. The service there is amazing. I always feel like I'm in the movie Truman when I'm there - everybody seems to know my name! When I went to make the reservation, they offered me something called a junior suite for the same price as a regular room, so who could turn that down!

The very comfy bed:

The vanity:

The sitting area:

And last but not least, the view from the room:

Now, the room had a couple of quirks: 1) It had a 2nd 'lock off' bedroom attached, and 2) that bedroom had a window that looked onto my balcony (ewww).

I wandered around the airport for awhile, which is fun to do when you don't have to catch a plane. Of course, I was naturally drawn to this place:

I was starting to run out of steam and I wanted to rest up for my big day tomorrow so I picked up some McDonald's and headed back to the room. I ended up catching the Inauguration Lincoln Memorial Concert, which I hadn't had a chance to see yet and really enjoyed. Then off to bed, so I could get up early and head to you-know-where to see you-know who. At least that's what I thought...

Around 11:30 I woke up. I heard a voice that sounded like it was in my room (no it wasn't Tink!). Then I realized that the voice was coming from the connecting door to the other bedroom. Now, I was awake, so I couldn't help but hear the conversation (at least one end of it). Here's some random bits and pieces:

'So cancel the darn wedding. What'll we lose? $500? I don't need a big wedding'
'I don't care if you wear a big, fat wedding dress'
'Look, my family isn't going away, so you better get used to it'

It just went on and on for 1/2 an hour! The poor guy's fiance was having a meltdown while he was on a business trip! Apparently, she wanted to cancel their wedding and whatever she wanted him to say, he wasn't saying it. It wasn't even like I was trying to listen, he was speaking so LOUD that I could help it. I finally put a pillow over my head and fell asleep.

I woke up early the next morning and this is what I had for breakfast:

Yum, Yum. I just LOVE room service when I'm on vacation!!! Unfortunately, they brought me strawberry jam for my toast (I am allergic to strawberries and this will be a recurring theme). This being the Hyatt, the room service person scurried off to find me some grape jelly and returned in a couple of minutes, slightly out of breath, but holding 2 small jars of grape jelly (don'tcha just love this place?)

We packed up, called the bellman and he came and whisked away our luggage to the motor court. Tink and I hiked over to Avis, where my keys were waiting and I found they had upgraded me to a Chevy Impala. They DO try harder after all! Headed back to the Hyatt where they loaded up the car and off we went!!!

We just had to make one stop - it was Sunday and it's a Catholic thing. More about that in the next post.

If you read this far, thanks for sticking with me!

 

[Tinkerbell Monkey]

Woo Hoo! - welcome!

Now you're a big girl with your own sign on name

Thanks!!!

This is fun! I feel so important! But I still don't have a Facebook page like my brother Brownie

 

[Tinkerbell Monkey]

Welcome Tinkerbell Monkey to the DIS!!!

Captain Jack said to say hello to you.......

Thanks!

Tell Capt. Jack I said HI Do you think he likes me?

 

[Verandah Man]

Thanks!

Tell Capt. Jack I said HI Do you think he likes me?

Me sure does sweetie, your CJS

 

[njprincess]

Hiya Everybody!

When last we left you, Tink and I had packed up the rental car (well, actually the Hyatt bellman did that, but we did tip him) ad were on our way. But not to Disney yet - we needed to make a stop along the way.

I am Catholic. And there happens to be this big, beautiful Catholic Shrine right on the way to Disney (well, just a little out of the way). Since it was Sunday, I thought it would be a good way to start the week by going to Mass. So we headed for the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe.

A little background: Starting back in the late 70's, the Diocese of Orlando began a tourist ministry to serve all of the Catholic tourists that were visiting Orlando. It wasn't long before they realized that they needed a permanent structure to handle the volume of tourists that wanted to attend Mass every Sunday.

The Diocese obtained a 17 acre piece of land on Vineland Road, off of Route 535, which became Mary Queen of the Universe. I remember going to Mass there back in 1984, sitting on folding chairs, in what is now the gift shop. The actual Shrine opened in 1993. The most amazing thing about this place to me is that every single brick, ceiling tile and stained glass window was paid for by Catholic tourists. This is not a regular parish, so they rely on the donations that they get from around the world to support this place.

I arrived there at 9:25 for Mass at 9:30 - yikes! I was in time to hear the beautiful brass bells that came all the way from Italy. Take a listen, but you might want to turn down your sound - they are pretty loud!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqrqbwuVDCE

I managed to find a nice seat in the 'good Catholic' section, which is basically the back half of the church. A really ancient Irish priest (I was a little concerned he wasn't going to make it down the aisle ) was celebrating Mass with the rector, Fr. Ed McCarthy. Now, Mass always takes awhile here, because Fr. McCarthy has to do a little pre-Mass schtick by quizzing the crowd: Who's from outside the continental US? (and, by the way, New Jersey is on the continent). Who's from New Jersey? Who is the oldest, who is the youngest, who has been married the longest? It's always the same but it's always fun. Then you have to introduce yourself to your neighbors: I had Canadians in front, Hawaiians next to me and Columbians behind me.

After Mass, I took some pictures. The main alter:

The Risen Christ, at the back of the church:

The outdoor chapel:

B/T/W Tink did NOT go to Mass! Now we were finally ready to head for the Atrium Club! I could hardly wait - or maybe I should have...

Thanks for reading along!

 

[Timon]

Gotta hate loud, rude neighbours Sorry you didn't sleep well.

On the bright side, room service is fabulous!!!!!! I love me some room service

Can't wait to read more

 

[Walt & Di]

Hiya Everybody!

!

Loved the pictures of the Church...Will have to make a stop when we visit on the MC...

Walt

 

[njprincess]

Gotta hate loud, rude neighbours Sorry you didn't sleep well.

On the bright side, room service is fabulous!!!!!! I love me some room service

Can't wait to read more

I actually started feel sorry for the guy - sounded like all of his possessions were going to be on the front lawn we he got home

In the next installment, I'll get to the good stuff - the Contemporary!

Loved the pictures of the Church...Will have to make a stop when we visit on the MC...

Walt

It is very beautiful!

 

[cntkg1]

Hiya Everybody!!!

Look, I've got my own screen name now! So now I don't have to wait for Aunt Kathy to post for me!

Welcome to the DIS Tink!

****

Kathy, What's a Clear Card?

Don't ya just love the Hyatt? We stayed there before and after our cruise in 05 and made it out of Orlando right before Wilma made sure we wouldn't. Love their service (and the lotion in the bathroom).

I'm hoping the conversation next door to you didn't keep you up too long. We're worried about the same thing on the cruise this year as we have a connecting cabin with some "questionable" guests. (Just kidding, Jeff).

I think I told you about my crappy monitor here at work, right? Well, I thought your potatoes were pickles!!! I need a new monitor or a better glare screen.

Looking forward to "It's a Catholic Thing".

 

[goslingl]

Hiya Everybody!

When last we left you, Tink and I had packed up the rental car (well, actually the Hyatt bellman did that, but we did tip him) ad were on our way. But not to Disney yet - we needed to make a stop along the way.

I am Catholic. And there happens to be this big, beautiful Catholic Shrine right on the way to Disney (well, just a little out of the way). Since it was Sunday, I thought it would be a good way to start the week by going to Mass. So we headed for the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe.

A little background: Starting back in the late 70's, the Diocese of Orlando began a tourist ministry to serve all of the Catholic tourists that were visiting Orlando. It wasn't long before they realized that they needed a permanent structure to handle the volume of tourists that wanted to attend Mass every Sunday.

The Diocese obtained a 17 acre piece of land on Vineland Road, off of Route 535, which became Mary Queen of the Universe. I remember going to Mass there back in 1984, sitting on folding chairs, in what is now the gift shop. The actual Shrine opened in 1993. The most amazing thing about this place to me is that every single brick, ceiling tile and stained glass window was paid for by Catholic tourists. This is not a regular parish, so they rely on the donations that they get from around the world to support this place.

I arrived there at 9:25 for Mass at 9:30 - yikes! I was in time to hear the beautiful brass bells that came all the way from Italy. Take a listen, but you might want to turn down your sound - they are pretty loud!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqrqbwuVDCE

I managed to find a nice seat in the 'good Catholic' section, which is basically the back half of the church. A really ancient Irish priest (I was a little concerned he wasn't going to make it down the aisle ) was celebrating Mass with the rector, Fr. Ed McCarthy. Now, Mass always takes awhile here, because Fr. McCarthy has to do a little pre-Mass schtick by quizzing the crowd: Who's from outside the continental US? (and, by the way, New Jersey is on the continent). Who's from New Jersey? Who is the oldest, who is the youngest, who has been married the longest? It's always the same but it's always fun. Then you have to introduce yourself to your neighbors: I had Canadians in front, Hawaiians next to me and Columbians behind me.

After Mass, I took some pictures. The main alter:

The Risen Christ, at the back of the church:

The outdoor chapel:

B/T/W Tink did NOT go to Mass! Now we were finally ready to head for the Atrium Club! I could hardly wait - or maybe I should have...

Thanks for reading along!

Beautiful Church!

 

[goslingl]

Church FO

 

[GOS]

I woke up early the next morning and this is what I had for breakfast:

Kathy...enjoying so far. What were the things on the plate with the omlette and the grilled tomato. They look like cooked slugs!

 

[GOS]

Hiya Everybody!

When last we left you, Tink and I had packed up the rental car (well, actually the Hyatt bellman did that, but we did tip him) ad were on our way. But not to Disney yet - we needed to make a stop along the way.

I am Catholic. And there happens to be this big, beautiful Catholic Shrine right on the way to Disney (well, just a little out of the way). Since it was Sunday, I thought it would be a good way to start the week by going to Mass. So we headed for the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe.

A little background: Starting back in the late 70's, the Diocese of Orlando began a tourist ministry to serve all of the Catholic tourists that were visiting Orlando. It wasn't long before they realized that they needed a permanent structure to handle the volume of tourists that wanted to attend Mass every Sunday.

The Diocese obtained a 17 acre piece of land on Vineland Road, off of Route 535, which became Mary Queen of the Universe. I remember going to Mass there back in 1984, sitting on folding chairs, in what is now the gift shop. The actual Shrine opened in 1993. The most amazing thing about this place to me is that every single brick, ceiling tile and stained glass window was paid for by Catholic tourists. This is not a regular parish, so they rely on the donations that they get from around the world to support this place.

I arrived there at 9:25 for Mass at 9:30 - yikes! I was in time to hear the beautiful brass bells that came all the way from Italy. Take a listen, but you might want to turn down your sound - they are pretty loud!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqrqbwuVDCE

I managed to find a nice seat in the 'good Catholic' section, which is basically the back half of the church. A really ancient Irish priest (I was a little concerned he wasn't going to make it down the aisle ) was celebrating Mass with the rector, Fr. Ed McCarthy. Now, Mass always takes awhile here, because Fr. McCarthy has to do a little pre-Mass schtick by quizzing the crowd: Who's from outside the continental US? (and, by the way, New Jersey is on the continent). Who's from New Jersey? Who is the oldest, who is the youngest, who has been married the longest? It's always the same but it's always fun. Then you have to introduce yourself to your neighbors: I had Canadians in front, Hawaiians next to me and Columbians behind me.

After Mass, I took some pictures. The main alter:

The Risen Christ, at the back of the church:

The outdoor chapel:

B/T/W Tink did NOT go to Mass! Now we were finally ready to head for the Atrium Club! I could hardly wait - or maybe I should have...

Thanks for reading along!

Lovely to see some pictues of this. I've past it so many times.

 

[njprincess]

Hiya Everybody

So this is it!!! We're finally on our way!!! I was getting more and more excited as we got closer. When I went into the MK entrance, I proudly said "I'm checking into the Contemporary!" and the CM said, oh boy you must be excited! Stay to the right follow the blue line and make a right at the 2nd light (good thing he told me because I had only ever been to the Contemporary by monorail!). The next thing I knew I was at the entrance and I told the guard 'Checking In'! He asked for my name and then he tried to call someone on a radio. Then he said 'no one is answering. Drive up to the front entrance and make sure to tell them you have a concierge reservation'. He was excited for me too!

Sorry, I need to take a little flashback here, because I forgot to explain something: since I was the 1st one arriving at the hotel, Frank had given me the procedure for checking into the concierge level. I was supposed to identify myself as a concierge guest. Then, magical things were supposed to happen! My luggage would be magically transported out of my car. Someone would greet me and grovel and magically whisk me to the 14th floor where I would be magically checked in! He also said, whatever you do, don't get in line with the unwashed masses that are waiting to check into to the 'regular' part of the hotel! Oh no, you are a concierge guest and people will be falling at your feet! I couldn't wait!

Now, here's what really happened: I drove up in front of the hotel and repeated my magical line 'Checking In!' but I added the words 'to the CONCIERGE LEVEL' to the valet. Then came my big let down - he wasn't excited at all. He went over to the desk and said something to someone, then he came back. By this time, I had popped the trunk in anticipation of my luggage being removed. The valet looked in the trunk and said 'you want me to unload this stuff?' Duh? I said YES, and I tried my magical line again - maybe he hadn't heard me the first time - 'CHECKING IN!' He looked in the trunk again and said 'all of this stuff?' I could see he was eyeing my purple Owner's Locker. I guess he thought it might be loaded with bricks. Now, I was starting to lose my enthusiasm and I was starting to get, dare I say it, annoyed? He unpacked my car and asked me what I was going to do with the car. Since I didn't think it would fit on the elevator, I ask him to valet park it. 'Valet parking is $10 a day m'am'. Oh no, he 'm'amed' me! I said fine, just give me the ticket. He then asked 'Do you want to go inside?' At this point, I was trying to figure out if he could really be that dumb or if he was playing with me. I said YES, I would like to go INSIDE because I am CHECKING IN! We walked inside and he told me to wait with the luggage. He walked over the the greeter and whispered to him and he headed for the concierge desk. Then I stood there for 5 minutes while several people stared at me. Finally the valet said, 'someone down there is going to check you in. Just call when you're ready for your luggage. I hope he wasn't expecting anything because his 'tip meter' had hit zero by then.

I was then greeted by a smiling concierge, let's call her Mallory (I later found out that she was a student and should never had been asked to check in a concierge guest on her own.) She said that she was going to check me in because no one was available 'upstairs'. Now here comes the stupidest line of all - she actually said this to me - 'What's your room number?' What's my room number? I'M TRYING TO CHECK IN TO THIS STUPID HOTEL - I DON'T HAVE A ROOM NUMBER. IF I DID, I WOULDN'T NEED YOU!!! OK, so now I was officially upset. All of my promised concierge special treatment went right out the window! She apologized and asked me to come to the desk to check in. We did all the usual stuff, including me providing a credit card (store this info for future reference ) except in slow motion. She has our Hoop Dee Doo tickets, but she doesn't know how to print them. She confirms reservations at the Rainforest and 50's Prime Time that we never made. Finally, it turns out, if we want a Magic Kingdom view, we have to take a mini-downgrade to the 12th floor. I had no problem with this. She told me my room wasn't ready yet - I had no problem with this. She gave me the keys and said to call at 3 PM to get the rest of the room number. Okie dokie. Then she had another stupid question 'So, what are you going to do now?' I told her I would like to see the concierge level because I was told I would have access to the lounge until the room was ready. 'Oh, of course, I can take you up there! I didn't realize you wanted to see it'. Duh. So, we went up to the 12th floor - you have to put your key into a slot for the button to light up. Imagine my surprise when I got off the elevator and there was not one, but TWO concierges sitting at the desk. Mallory explained that I had had a lot of problems checking in and neither of them looked too concerned. They told me to help myself to the lounge.

The lovely lounge:

A blurry Mickey Mouse cupcake:

But the best part was the view:

I ate a Mickey cupcake and took a seat on the balcony to drink in the view. I started to breathe deeply and chant 'there's no place like Disney World'. I started to feel better. I decided to take Tink over to MK for a Dole Whip when I suddenly got the urge to call and check on the room. OMG - it was 1:30 and it was READY! I ran down to the room and stuck my key in the door - it didn't work. Oh no! I tried it again, heard a little tinkle and the door was open!

We were the 3rd closest room to the MK and the view was amazing!!! The room was very large and futuristic looking:

Frank called the light-up ceramic tile under the TV our 'fireplace':

The bathroom:

Here you can really see the seizure-inducing wallpaper in the bathroom:

The view:

On the way out, there was a new concierge at the desk name Sharon. She turned out to be our best friend for the week! I poured my heart out and told her everything that happened and she kept apologizing and saying 'that never should have happened!'. She was able to pull up ALL of our ADRs and reservations to confirm them. Finally, I asked her to check on the chocolate monorail that I had ordered as a Thank You for Frank, since everything else had gone so badly. When she told me that they said they had no record of the order, I was pretty close to tears. But Sharon saved the day! She ordered a chocolate monorail for the following day (they take 24 hours) to be charged to the concierge. She also got a bottle of wine, 2 WDW wine glasses for us to take home, balloons and a chocolate box filled with truffles that had the Contemporary on top, plus a card signed by the Big Cheese!

Yippee!!! Tink & I headed over to the Magic Kingdom and picked up her '1st Visit' button. She already wrote a trip report for this part.

At 5:15. I left for the airport to pick up Frank. His flight was early and we were back at the Contemporary in no time. After Frank was settled, we went down to the Contempo Café for a bite eat. This is the newest restaurant in the Contemporary and it's located right next to Chef Mickey's. Here's how it works: You look at the great big menus, then you go over to a touch screen monitor and order your food. It spits out a ticket, which you take to the cash register and then they give you a pager. When the pager goes off, your food is ready and you go pick it up (or you send your brother ) ! One interesting thing here was that they don't sell individual cups or cans of soda - you HAVE to buy a reusable mug (don't mean to bring up bad memories, Nancy!). Interesting tactic. I had a cheeseburger, which was quite tasty and Frank had a flatbread, which was really a pizza. We headed back up to the concierge lounge for dessert and then headed back to the room to unpack.

'Ohana character breakfast (Tink could hardly sleep, she was so excited!), MK and the Hoop Dee Doo Revue tomorrow!

Thanks for reading!

 

[Walt & Di]

I am really enjoying your trip report. Sorry about the mishaps but it still sounded like you had lots of fun. What a nice room! It looked really futuristic. Wow what a view!!! Walt and I stayed at the Contemporary about 5 years ago with kids and grandkids and we had the same view. I really enjoyed the floor that you had to use the special key to get on. The food and drink were yummy. Diane

 

[GOS]

Hiya Everybody

So this is it!!! We're finally on our way!!! I was getting more and more excited as we got closer. When I went into the MK entrance, I proudly said "I'm checking into the Contemporary!" and the CM said, oh boy you must be excited! Stay to the right follow the blue line and make a right at the 2nd light (good thing he told me because I had only ever been to the Contemporary by monorail!). The next thing I knew I was at the entrance and I told the guard 'Checking In'! He asked for my name and then he tried to call someone on a radio. Then he said 'no one is answering. Drive up to the front entrance and make sure to tell them you have a concierge reservation'. He was excited for me too!

Sorry, I need to take a little flashback here, because I forgot to explain something: since I was the 1st one arriving at the hotel, Frank had given me the procedure for checking into the concierge level. I was supposed to identify myself as a concierge guest. Then, magical things were supposed to happen! My luggage would be magically transported out of my car. Someone would greet me and grovel and magically whisk me to the 14th floor where I would be magically checked in! He also said, whatever you do, don't get in line with the unwashed masses that are waiting to check into to the 'regular' part of the hotel! Oh no, you are a concierge guest and people will be falling at your feet! I couldn't wait!

Now, here's what really happened: I drove up in front of the hotel and repeated my magical line 'Checking In!' but I added the words 'to the CONCIERGE LEVEL' to the valet. Then came my big let down - he wasn't excited at all. He went over to the desk and said something to someone, then he came back. By this time, I had popped the trunk in anticipation of my luggage being removed. The valet looked in the trunk and said 'you want me to unload this stuff?' Duh? I said YES, and I tried my magical line again - maybe he hadn't heard me the first time - 'CHECKING IN!' He looked in the trunk again and said 'all of this stuff?' I could see he was eyeing my purple Owner's Locker. I guess he thought it might be loaded with bricks. Now, I was starting to lose my enthusiasm and I was starting to get, dare I say it, annoyed? He unpacked my car and asked me what I was going to do with the car. Since I didn't think it would fit on the elevator, I ask him to valet park it. 'Valet parking is $10 a day m'am'. Oh no, he 'm'amed' me! I said fine, just give me the ticket. He then asked 'Do you want to go inside?' At this point, I was trying to figure out if he could really be that dumb or if he was playing with me. I said YES, I would like to go INSIDE because I am CHECKING IN! We walked inside and he told me to wait with the luggage. He walked over the the greeter and whispered to him and he headed for the concierge desk. Then I stood there for 5 minutes while several people stared at me. Finally the valet said, 'someone down there is going to check you in. Just call when you're ready for your luggage. I hope he wasn't expecting anything because his 'tip meter' had hit zero by then.

I was then greeted by a smiling concierge, let's call her Mallory (I later found out that she was a student and should never had been asked to check in a concierge guest on her own.) She said that she was going to check me in because no one was available 'upstairs'. Now here comes the stupidest line of all - she actually said this to me - 'What's your room number?' What's my room number? I'M TRYING TO CHECK IN TO THIS STUPID HOTEL - I DON'T HAVE A ROOM NUMBER. IF I DID, I WOULDN'T NEED YOU!!! OK, so now I was officially upset. All of my promised concierge special treatment went right out the window! She apologized and asked me to come to the desk to check in. We did all the usual stuff, including me providing a credit card (store this info for future reference ) except in slow motion. She has our Hoop Dee Doo tickets, but she doesn't know how to print them. She confirms reservations at the Rainforest and 50's Prime Time that we never made. Finally, it turns out, if we want a Magic Kingdom view, we have to take a mini-downgrade to the 12th floor. I had no problem with this. She told me my room wasn't ready yet - I had no problem with this. She gave me the keys and said to call at 3 PM to get the rest of the room number. Okie dokie. Then she had another stupid question 'So, what are you going to do now?' I told her I would like to see the concierge level because I was told I would have access to the lounge until the room was ready. 'Oh, of course, I can take you up there! I didn't realize you wanted to see it'. Duh. So, we went up to the 12th floor - you have to put your key into a slot for the button to light up. Imagine my surprise when I got off the elevator and there was not one, but TWO concierges sitting at the desk. Mallory explained that I had had a lot of problems checking in and neither of them looked too concerned. They told me to help myself to the lounge.

The lovely lounge:

A blurry Mickey Mouse cupcake:

But the best part was the view:

I ate a Mickey cupcake and took a seat on the balcony to drink in the view. I started to breathe deeply and chant 'there's no place like Disney World'. I started to feel better. I decided to take Tink over to MK for a Dole Whip when I suddenly got the urge to call and check on the room. OMG - it was 1:30 and it was READY! I ran down to the room and stuck my key in the door - it didn't work. Oh no! I tried it again, heard a little tinkle and the door was open!

We were the 3rd closest room to the MK and the view was amazing!!! The room was very large and futuristic looking:

Frank called the light-up ceramic tile under the TV our 'fireplace':

The bathroom:

Here you can really see the seizure-inducing wallpaper in the bathroom:

The view:

On the way out, there was a new concierge at the desk name Sharon. She turned out to be our best friend for the week! I poured my heart out and told her everything that happened and she kept apologizing and saying 'that never should have happened!'. She was able to pull up ALL of our ADRs and reservations to confirm them. Finally, I asked her to check on the chocolate monorail that I had ordered as a Thank You for Frank, since everything else had gone so badly. When she told me that they said they had no record of the order, I was pretty close to tears. But Sharon saved the day! She ordered a chocolate monorail for the following day (they take 24 hours) to be charged to the concierge. She also got a bottle of wine, 2 WDW wine glasses for us to take home, balloons and a chocolate box filled with truffles that had the Contemporary on top, plus a card signed by the Big Cheese!

Yippee!!! Tink & I headed over to the Magic Kingdom and picked up her '1st Visit' button. She already wrote a trip report for this part.

At 5:15. I left for the airport to pick up Frank. His flight was early and we were back at the Contemporary in no time. After Frank was settled, we went down to the Contempo Café for a bite eat. This is the newest restaurant in the Contemporary and it's located right next to Chef Mickey's. Here's how it works: You look at the great big menus, then you go over to a touch screen monitor and order your food. It spits out a ticket, which you take to the cash register and then they give you a pager. When the pager goes off, your food is ready and you go pick it up (or you send your brother ) ! One interesting thing here was that they don't sell individual cups or cans of soda - you HAVE to buy a reusable mug (don't mean to bring up bad memories, Nancy!). Interesting tactic. I had a cheeseburger, which was quite tasty and Frank had a flatbread, which was really a pizza. We headed back up to the concierge lounge for dessert and then headed back to the room to unpack.

'Ohana character breakfast (Tink could hardly sleep, she was so excited!), MK and the Hoop Dee Doo Revue tomorrow!

Thanks for reading!

So sorry you had such a bad experience, Kathy. It ended up all right in the end, but still leaves you with bad memories.

 

[njprincess]

Welcome to the DIS Tink!

****

Kathy, What's a Clear Card?

Clear is the registered traveler program, but it's not available in all airports yet (Orlando was the 1st). I'm not sure what it costs anymore, I know it's $120+. They 'vet' you through the TSA and Homeland Security and if you are approved, they store your fingerprints and retina scans on a little chip on your membership card. You go to a special security line where you insert your card, let it read whatever you've chosen as your ID (mine is my right thumb) and you'er though. One of their people escorts you through a special security line and helps you with your stuff.

I decided to do it because I had a very traumatic experience getting groped in MCO several years ago. I filed a complaint with the ACLU and I ended up getting interviewed for a Good Morning America segment!

http://flyclear.com/

Don't ya just love the Hyatt? We stayed there before and after our cruise in 05 and made it out of Orlando right before Wilma made sure we wouldn't. Love their service (and the lotion in the bathroom).

Yes I do! I also stay at a Hyatt when I visit Frank up in CT. They have a beautiful on in Old Greenwich.

I'm hoping the conversation next door to you didn't keep you up too long. We're worried about the same thing on the cruise this year as we have a connecting cabin with some "questionable" guests. (Just kidding, Jeff).

I really did feel bad for the guy! I never had a problem with noise at that hotel before, but the difference was the connecting door. Good luck on the cruise - you have to keep us all informed!

I think I told you about my crappy monitor here at work, right? Well, I thought your potatoes were pickles!!! I need a new monitor or a better glare screen.

Looking forward to "It's a Catholic Thing".

Well, I guess they do sort of look like pickles!

 

[njprincess]

Kathy...enjoying so far. What were the things on the plate with the omlette and the grilled tomato. They look like cooked slugs!

They do sort of look like slugs! They are actually very tasty broiled fingerling potatoes.

Lovely to see some pictues of this. I've past it so many times.

And they built an outlet mall right next to it!

If you ever get a chance to walk around the grounds, it's really quite beautiful and peaceful. Until those bells start ringing!

I am really enjoying your trip report. Sorry about the mishaps but it still sounded like you had lots of fun. What a nice room! It looked really futuristic. Wow what a view!!! Walt and I stayed at the Contemporary about 5 years ago with kids and grandkids and we had the same view. I really enjoyed the floor that you had to use the special key to get on. The food and drink were yummy. Diane

Wow, lucky you! We did have a number of problems with the hotel (you'll hear about a few more later on) but it didn't affect our overall enjoyment at all. They have these amazing new beds that are so comfortable!

So sorry you had such a bad experience, Kathy. It ended up all right in the end, but still leaves you with bad memories.

Many more good than bad!

 

[Timon]

I think I told you about my crappy monitor here at work, right? Well, I thought your potatoes were pickles!!! I need a new monitor or a better glare screen.

I don't think it's your monitor Nancy...I thought they were pickles too!