Touring the Tower of Terror and other Ghoulish Delights! Sept 13 TR | FINALx2 4/17!!!

[danimaroo]

Chapter 27: Praise the Heavens, our MagicBands actually WORK!
Day Six: September 16th, 2013

We got up this morning at around 8 or so, and decided we'd grab breakfast later to save on time. We got ourselves ready, and as soon as we stepped outside, my camera lens fogged up.

This was always an issue with my camera in this heat and humidity! Whenever I would be inside with AC, as soon as I stepped outside, my lens fogged up and would stay that way for a little while, haha.

We were headed for a Friendship Boat, so we went through the main lobby... I LOVE this walk so much! It's just the perfect way to start off your morning.

My beautiful Beach Club, with that perfect smell... and the relaxing music...

You can see my camera was still fogging up, haha.

I LOVE walking down the dock to catch a Friendship boat by the Lighthouse in the morning... I really missed these mornings over in the Beach Club/Yacht Club/BoardWalk area.

Lucky for us, a boat was coming in as we walked along. These boats were loving us this trip (well, aside from the Villains night).

Have I also mentioned how much I just LOVE riding Friendship boats in general? They're the best. I love the monorail but there is something about enjoying the boat ride and looking at all of the resorts and birds along the way that is just special.

We ended up arriving at around 9:20 at Hollywood Studios, which wasn't too bad. And we were able to FINALLY use our MagicBands to get into the park. YAHOO! They worked!

Fortunately, our FP+ reservations that I'd made the night before hadn't been wiped, so we were able to head over to Toy Story Mania to use them.

I was a bit nervous that they wouldn't actually work...

BUT WE FINALLY HAD SUCCESS!

The CM even welcomed us by our names... which was admittedly a little weird, but also kind of fun! I also liked how when you scanned your band, and it turned green, a little sound that was specific for the attraction would go off! I wish I could remember what the Toy Story one was, but I can't, I just know that each attraction had a unique sound for it.

We strolled inside, got our 3D glasses, and then scanned our bands again. It's right at the area before you go up the stairs, where they actually collect your paper FastPass (if you have one).

We headed right on up the right side of the stairs and waited for a few minutes... which meant PICTURE TIME!

So, no matter HOW hard I try, and really do my best, I NEVER BEAT MATT ON THIS RIDE! EVER. He seriously beats me every time! I don't know why or how, but I can never win.

And he doesn't even try that hard, either! He ended up with the best score in vehicle, too.

I think I need to study up on how to get a good score or something, hahaha.

Anyway, we headed out of Toy Story Mania and I was happy to see the Speak and Spell working. I've seen it working in a few other Trip Reports, and this was the first time I'd seen him on, too.

On our way to Toy Story Mania, we walked past One Man's Dream and I commented on how I'd always wanted to check that out. Matt agreed, so we decided to go and finally see it.

Continued in next post​

 

[danimaroo]

Chapter 28: We finally see One Man's Dream.
Day Six: September 16th, 2013

Oh man, this was so amazing to see! I can't believe after all these trips, that was our first time checking it out.

I especially loved seeing the desks of Walt... I had no idea the exhibit had such neat stuff.

And I LOVED how there was a lot about Oswald, too. Matt obviously really enjoyed that.

Seeing Walt's desk was amazing, too. I felt so inspired by everything.

And I know it's the tiny baby castle, but I have to say, Sleeping Beauty Castle just has such a charm to it!

It's a really beautiful castle and I look forward to seeing it again during our next trip to Disneyland... Especially since it'll be my first time seeing it without Christmas decorations all over it.

AHHH the Abraham Lincoln animatronic was SO cool to see in person. I'm amazed at the work they put into these, seriously.

AND ROBOT BUTLER. I know Matt was happy to see him... I wish I could have been around to see old school Epcot when I was little.

Matt and our friend Rachel (okw19) totally have bonded over their mutual love for old school Disney and especially old school Epcot. They know everything there is about it. And Rachel, being the awesome friend she is, sent us fabulous Disney t-shirts for Christmas. She got me this amazing Expedition Everest one (she knows my infinite love for that ride), and got Matt this AWESOME old school Epcot one. Needless to say, we were both excited. It's always awesome having friends who know you so well!

And Figment... this area was seriously Matt's childhood.

Okay, so I won't lie, when I spotted this...

I had a very difficult time not wanting to break into the exhibit and steal WALL-E and bring him home with me. I have an extensive collection of WALL-E toys from when the movie came out, and he would fit in so perfectly! I'm a huge WALL-E fan, so seeing this little guy made me happy.

Matt's not a big fan of Paradise Pier, but it was neat seeing this model...

Admittedly, it's not my favorite area of a park, but I still enjoy certain parts of it... Like California Screamin' and Mickey's Fun Wheel... except, ya know, riding the Fun Wheel during a torrential downpour.

NEVER AGAIN, my friends, never again.

We were both getting really hungry, so we decided to skip the movie and head back out. I know, I know, I want to sit down for the movie at some point, I do, but we were starting to hit that point of near-nausea status from not grabbing breakfast, so we waved goodbye to Walt..

I have to say, I LOVED it in there, and I look forward to going back and watching the film next time.

We decided to go to Starring Rolls for breakfast, since we knew they had pastries, and both got chocolate croissants and split an apple turnover.

There was no seating outside, but I thought I'd seen people eating around the corner earlier, and sure enough, there was a table open with comfy chairs over at the Brown Derby!

Fun tip: you can eat in the outside seating area there in the morning if there are no seats outside of Starring Rolls.

All of our pastries were actually really tasty, especially the apple turnover.

After we finished eating, we headed to Villains in Vogue for some shopping!

I ended up buying a Vinylmation Popcorn Stitch because he was too adorable not to (photo to come later), and we found the Haunted Mansion ear hat ornament (that we also own) and bought it for Danni and Johnny as a fun present.

While we were paying, I decided to trade Vinylmation... but definitely not in the clear box, as there was nothing good there.

I had this little lady from the Under the Big Top series..

And I ended up getting an Animation 2 Tigger!

This was actually a pretty good one to get from the trade boxes, though I already have him, so I figured I'd just continue to trade him throughout the day and see what I got.

After paying for everything, we decided to go get a few PhotoPass photos done in front of the Tower of Terror (because Matt didn't want to get any in front of the hat, hahaha).

Look at our scared faces... WE ARE SO SCARED.

Buuut Tower of Terror was NOT our next destination. Matt wasn't really up for it, plus we had some other fun plans for morning in Hollywood Studios.

Continued in next post​

 

[gracer9977]

I just love your photos leaving your resort that morning, foggy lens or not those pictures are gorgeous, especially with the blue sky.

So happy that your Magic Bands worked and got you into the parks and again on TSM! One of these times you will magically beat Matt. I have no idea what I am doing I just rapidly fire at everything and hope for the best but my 6 year old crushed me last time.

I saw One Man's Dream back in 2006 but missed it in 2011 because my 2 year old was terrified of any rides/shows that started out dark (which was more than you could imagine) but I really loved the movie when I saw it that first time and I did manage to drag him into the museum area so I could look at all the neat stuff again, even if I had to stay with him while everyone else watched the movie.

Great pictures of the 2 of you in front of TOT.

 

[maddiebee]

That picture of you and Matt on Buzz is totally priceless!
I agree that the Winnie the Pooh ride is adorable. And I almost prefer to wait in line so I can play with everything!

I can totally relate to your sentiment of "why didn't I use my nice camera?" I eventually get so tired of having it wrapped around me and in the way and sometimes my Iphone just takes photos faster! I always end up regretting it later but in the moment it seems to make much more sense, right?

I'm so glad you went into One Man's Dream. I totally cried! Maybe I was just so happy to be in AC, but it really is such a sweet and wonderful exhibit! Totally inspiring!

 

[mrs mouse10712]

Fell a little behind, but I'm all caught up now!

That Vinymation trading event looks like a lot of fun. I had no idea that it was so big. I had read somewhere that they were fazing out the trading boxes in the parks. I just assumed that it wasnt that popular. Guess I was wrong

You arent kidding that the Haunted Mansion ones are hard to find. I had to go on a wild goose chase for them back in October of 2012. I went to the Vinylmation store in Downtown Disney, nothing. Then went to the Poly because I thought I saw them earlier in the week, nothing. Magic Kingdom, nothing. Went back to our resort and thought I would just check the store and they had them! I was so excited! But, yeah, hard to find lol.

Cape May looks good. I havent been there. I havent really made an effort to go considering I live in New England and can have a clam bake any time. I will have to check it out though!

Geez. Im really sorry you had such a bad experience with the Magicbands. That really stinks. But its good to see that you finally got them working.

The Boardwalk/Beach/Yacht area looks so beautiful. I still have yet to get over there! I know! I'm terrible. Everytime I plan for us to go there, something happens and we have to change our plans. But now my husband and I are DVC members, so our next stay will definetly be in the Beach Club Villas

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

EEEEE, this is what concerns me about September Weather and ALL THAT HUMIDITY!! But I just may have to deal with it this year because I need some Boo To You.

Haha, the good news is apparently the boats hated everyone on Villains night. And the buses... and the helicopters... and the hot air balloons...

OK, I see the photo of the hat, but there seems to be something missing... like the look of aggravation and disdain from "someone". (EDIT, ok you explain that later).

Hmmm interesting fact about the FP+ sounds. I'll have to take your word for it since mine never worked, lol.

OK, so Matt beat you, but more importantly, did he tell you to "EAT IT!!!"

Um... So am I to understand this was your first time inside One Man's Dream? OK, I'll let it go this one time since you have seen it now. But isn't it AMAZING?????? And I have to confess that I only just watched the movie, so I can't give you too much of a hard time. But YOU NEED TO SEE THE MOVIE!!!

 

[APears]

YAY for working Magic Bands! I hadn't heard about the sounds that ding on each ride! That sounds so cool!

Wow I missed out on noticing Speak and Spell or going into One Man's Dream during my last drip, I definitely have to explore DHS more next time.

When is your next trip to Disneyland? We should have a Dismeet while you're here!

 

[Tiggerrn2]

So glad they finally got your MBs up and working right!!
Great photos!
I am seriously ALWAYS a Beaver in TSM! I think only once in all my attempts have I gotten to that cat. What is up with that?! I know there is a youtube video out there that goes through all the tricks and shows you how to score points. I've even studied up on it before riding. But you really need to be a crack shot (and it helps when your partner knows what to shoot at as well and you work as a team).

Loved One Man's Dream!!! Everything in there is so interesting to read.

 

[DisneytheKid]

That Walt exhibit looks so cool! I hope they bring something similar to DLR soon. Loving the updates. You're single handedly making the 2 week countdown until we go to Disneyland go a little quicker

 

[glaserjm]

Welp, just made it through the entire trip report in the past two days as I hadn't really been on the boards much since our November trip (I always feel like I drift away after a trip, like my subconscious is protesting that it's over) and I'm glad I'm all caught up.

We pretty much had the same MB issues during our trip and it was always attributed to having APs and the bands not being ready for APs yet. We didn't have a full day where they worked and probably lost about 4-5 hours over the course of the week at guest services. We did get a bunch of anytime/anywhere FPs to make up for it, which was nice. I'm hoping by the time we get there in March they've ironed out the AP/MagicBand issue.

Looks like you're having a great trip so far, even in the September heat...that's a pretty brave choice in my eyes. We went in August once and it was like the seventh circle of hell some days.

That Vinylmation event looks pretty cool, I'm actually surprised that Joe (DH and Joben here on the DIS) hasn't gotten into it, it kind of seems up his alley. It also looks like something that could get pretty addictive really quickly.

If I remember, I'll have to post a pic sometime of some of my Christmas presents that Joe got me this year, you'd probably really enjoy them. One was a Madame Leota cameo necklace and the other was an Epcot charm bracelet where each of the charms are the old school Future World pavilion discs; they're both pretty fantabulous. I love them both because they are so Disney but can totally pass for just some cool jewelry if I wear them to work and such.

I'm glad you finally made it to One Man's Dream. When you do get to see the movie, you'll really like it. We had a family trip to Kansas City last summer and we detoured on the way home to go to Marceline, MO, which is where Walt lived as a child. They have a museum dedicated to his life there and it was just amazing as the tour was given by a woman who actually knew him both as a child and an adult...it was such an inspiration. Not sure why you'd ever find yourself in the middle of North-central Missouri, but if you do it's a must see!

Looking forward to more awesome updates!

 

[Pimama]

Yay!! Updates from Dani! Woohoo!!! Seriously, these make my day, which some might consider sad, but let's not think about that too much..

The Beach club looks so gorgeous, definitely on my possible list for our anniversary trip next Sept! Such a bummer about those magic bands, I would've been in tears but I'm not sure I would've been coherent enough to speak my mind. I'm glad they gave you a credit to ease the frustration and I sure hope they get these figured out soon.

Nice score Matt, that's insane?!

I've never done One Mans Dream either and will definitely try to fit in in next time, especially since we will not have the kids with us. I wanted to last time but chickened out of trying to drag everyone in there!

Good to hear from you again and I'm glad you had a restful Christmas. I may want to pick your brain about DVC retail sometime. Unfortunately since we are a family of 6, my room options even with DVC are just so slim it's frustrating. Why did I have so many kids?!?! Just kidding of course.....mostly.

 

[rachel09985]

HI Dani! I am back after taking a long break from the DIS. The holidays caught up with me too! No Disney time.

Thanks for your explanation of the Haunted Mansion vinyls. I never knew about that series because I started collecting after. They all looked the same to me so I could never figure it out! Haha. I love your displays. I just bought 5 of the three tiered boxes from the container store. I love them!

I feel so bad about your problems with the magic band. We had the same exact thing happen to us in december at the boardwalk. Our magic bands and keys wouldn't let us into our room at all and we walked all the way for them not to work after the park and then had to walk all the way back from the long hallway. I was po'ed too!! I should have said something but I never did.

I agree with you about Cape May, it is expensive. We used TIW this trip but it is like 42.99 or something. It is one of the most expensive buffets. Luckily Corey eats 42 lbs of crab legs so we get our moneys worth! haha!

Loved reading your updates and am excited to read more!

 

[katt789]

Yay for updates for me to catch up on!! Lol!! Yay for everything working so far this morning! Including speak & spell! It was up and running in Oct the first time I saw it, it was great!

Glad you guys got to check out one man’s dream! I love it in there, and always make a point of taking ppl in there, especially if it’s their first trip! Yay for vinyl trades! I brought mine with me this trip but didn’t trade them at all, I guess it’s more exciting to me when there’s someone else around too bahaha!

 

[khertz]

I can't even beat DH on TSM when he has Paxton on his lap!!

I love every second of One Man's Dream. It's so inspirational to walk through there and think about what a legacy Walt left behind in so many different mediums.

 

[smile4stamps]

Oh my goodness I'm finally caught up!!

I have no idea what I wanted to remark on though except for your sore feet!!

What kind of tennies are you wearing? I found that crocs didn't work for me after awhile (and I had to look ridiculous and wear them with socks or they would hurt)

The only shoes I've found to be able to walk all day in without issue is my Asics. I usually switch between those and Teva Flip-Flops but even the Teva's can cause me some issues...

Oh yeah.. and I am so happy to hear your Magic Bands finally started to work! They are fabulous when they work!

 

[emmysmommy]

Oh my gosh.. what have I been missing!! I told you on my TR that I'd read enough to know a few details but now that I've read more I'm obsessed. I need to camp out overnight and get caught up.

I know you've probably answered this many times but what type of camera do you use? Your photos are so awesome.

I'm booked for the first time at VWL in May so I'm particularly interested in your villa experience. Being DVC - ahhh I'm sure that is pretty darn exciting.

I'm officially subscribed!

 

[ashw100]

Hi I am subbing in...late but here none-the-less. I just finished your previous TR and it had me laughing so hard, my husband thought I was crazy. You are a very entertaining writer. I am slowly catching up with TR and again it is very entertaining. Thanks for the great read

 

[Miss Potts]

I'm glad this day was better for your MB's! AND that your FP+ weren't lost!

Oh how I love One Man's Dream!!! It is now one of our favorite things to walk through... We don't always stay for the movie, just depends on our schedule. But I can't tell you how many times I walked by and never thought twice about going in. I had no idea the true treasures inside!

Your breakfast from Starrjng Rolls looks delish... Now I could go for something sweet....

 

[emmysmommy]

Ok Dani, I've read through most of your TR and have a ton of comments, if I can remember them all!

Some things I found we have in common, serious love of Mickey waffles , adore the Tangled restroom area (and I have a lot of photos INSIDE the restroom with all the details), HM (and Matt even has a that cool tattoo!), Peoplemover, and declaring that the MK should have a walk through attraction in the castle like DL!

I see that you are a Starbucks lover as well!

Your trip video was AWESOME! (Loved the Halloween costume.) Loved Matt's comment about discovering you are not a Beverly fan! Going for the second sip huh to make sure you really don't like it!

The awesomeness of your HM Dooney bag is not lost on me… I'm definitely Jealous!

Wow! Getting to DHS for the Villains event.. Goodness. MORE BOATS Disney!
How awesome about the Ambassador led DHS ToT tour …. Now I must await the 19th!

You are ever so popular with the Dis meets! You just keep running into Disers everywhere!

I like the Wishes Dessert Party not so much for the desserts since there were few that I actually liked but it is a great vantage point.

Goodness, you were hit on by the taxi stand dude at WL! Wow! That's taking the guest experience to a whole new level.

You are right, there's a "smell" to BC resort (and BLT) I just love it! I completely get coming back to the same resort time and time again since you can't stay away. We've stayed at BLT every trip since 2010 at least in part or whole. No judging you for that from me.

Oh my sorry about the MB/room key issue! How frustrating. (And needing to pee doesn't help the issue. ) At least they tried to make it right with a room credit.

Ahhh One Man's Dream such a wonderful journey into the genius behind all that Walt envisioned. I love every detail about that place.

There were a lot more things I'm sure I forgot to comment about but now I'm caught up!

Your long exposure photo of the MSEP was so very cool! Loved that.

 

[STLMickeyMom]

yay! more updates! my DH loves that walt exhibit too, but I don't remember ever going through it with him. it looks pretty interesting though. it's a good thing we didn't go through it this time--he might have been breaking into the case to get wall-e too! he loves wall-e--I even used it as his avatar on our mydisneyexperience page! and it always makes me want to watch hello, dolly!

I didn't realize all the attractions made a sound when you scanned your magic band. I only heard the chime-y bell sound at MK when we came in. well, now i'm going to have to go back so I can listen! (like I needed an excuse!)