JoeSam
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Aug 8, 2005
- Messages
- 356
Wednesday 23rd November
With a GMF brekkie booked for 9.15am, we got to the gates around 9am. Beautiful morning but beyond cold!! I remembered the good advice, and declined the train ride to get a beautiful walk through the empty park. My Hubbie the photographer complained jokingly all the way there – he’s extremely wimpie when it comes to cold – and couldn’t make his fingers work to take any pictures. When we got to the Chalet au Marionette however, it was dead quiet with no queues, and he was really impressed when the train crowd arrived around 10 minutes later in droves and we were comfortably seated with food. We didn’t get out early though because they had Nutella, which Joe loves (none at the Sequoia Lodge brekkie!!!!) so he ate about 5 croissants. Lovely to see him eating like this at breakfast time (not v healthy tho!).
When we got out it was 10am anyway, but it was so quiet we didn’t need the early morning advantage. We sensibly(!) decided to head for our favourite Pirates of the Caribbean first. Brilliant!!!! DH wants to live in this ride! My Mum had to tape it all the way round for my Dad who couldn’t make it this year and also loves this ride. We then spent a happy hour or so in the caves and rope bridges around Skull rock for Joe who by now thinks he is a pirate.
By this time Joe’s autograph book is burning a hole in his pocket so we head for the hub. Really impressed to see Robin Hood for the first time, also the Sheriff and Prince John. Also got a piccie with Rafiki who doesn’t sign (why not??) and a good few others.
This year we are on a mission for Lilo & Stitch and I’ve heard he’s sometimes in Discoveryland so we head there. No Stitch. Head for the shop to buy a Buzz Lightyear Space Blaster with Night Scope to make up for it! Space Blaster in hand we do Star Tours which Joe absolutely loves! Then HISTA which was great fun. Joe is still talking about the mice!! Then Nautilus is open for the first time that I have ever seen. It’s quite good, Joe wants to know if the giant squid is real? It’s now lunchtime and I have a plan. The French performance of Lion King is finishing at 1.30pm so we head for Café Hyperion at 1.25 and wait for all the French to leave, scoring a brilliant table at the front. We then ate our lunch in the half hour before the performance – cool eh?
Anyway, the show was fantastic as ever. A funny thing happened. During the performance, a CM kept coming up to Joe and saying things about Scar. Things like “are you scared of him?” and “I’ll get him up here in a bit” stuff like that. We thought it was a bit odd really. A couple of minutes before the end he came and stood by Joe again, pointing at him. Scar ran off the stage and up to Joe, roared at him, pinched his Space Blaster and shot him, ruffled his head, and then ran back on stage. Well……………..!!!! One beaming child, three astonished adults. We hadn’t queued for tickets so I wasn’t expecting that.
After the show we headed for Frontierland. I had checked on the website before going for closed attractions and knew Phantom Manor was closed, but on the park maps it said closed 1st & 2nd December. So we ran!! Space Blaster in hand Joe was well up for shooting a few ghosts and vampires. And when we got there – yep it was closed. So we managed to be disappointed twice over!
We watched the magical Christmas Parade, I just love the music, I wish I had bought the CD now. We then queued to see Father Christmas in Town Square so that Joe could remind him he wants a Robo-Raptor and Disney Top Trumps and then went back to the Sequoia for a rest and a warm.
We came back in time to do a few walk on rides again, and catch Fantillusion again of course, and then headed off to Café Mickeys for a riotous meal. This is Joe’s favourite place I think. I had booked a table in the morning for 8.30pm although I didn’t think I’d need it. I was glad I had though cos the queues were really big compared to the quietness of the park. Saw Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Goofy, Eeyore, the back of the Genie (L), Captain Hook and danced with Mr Smee. Finished off the night with a lovely stroll around the lake back to the Sequoia.
With a GMF brekkie booked for 9.15am, we got to the gates around 9am. Beautiful morning but beyond cold!! I remembered the good advice, and declined the train ride to get a beautiful walk through the empty park. My Hubbie the photographer complained jokingly all the way there – he’s extremely wimpie when it comes to cold – and couldn’t make his fingers work to take any pictures. When we got to the Chalet au Marionette however, it was dead quiet with no queues, and he was really impressed when the train crowd arrived around 10 minutes later in droves and we were comfortably seated with food. We didn’t get out early though because they had Nutella, which Joe loves (none at the Sequoia Lodge brekkie!!!!) so he ate about 5 croissants. Lovely to see him eating like this at breakfast time (not v healthy tho!).
When we got out it was 10am anyway, but it was so quiet we didn’t need the early morning advantage. We sensibly(!) decided to head for our favourite Pirates of the Caribbean first. Brilliant!!!! DH wants to live in this ride! My Mum had to tape it all the way round for my Dad who couldn’t make it this year and also loves this ride. We then spent a happy hour or so in the caves and rope bridges around Skull rock for Joe who by now thinks he is a pirate.

By this time Joe’s autograph book is burning a hole in his pocket so we head for the hub. Really impressed to see Robin Hood for the first time, also the Sheriff and Prince John. Also got a piccie with Rafiki who doesn’t sign (why not??) and a good few others.


This year we are on a mission for Lilo & Stitch and I’ve heard he’s sometimes in Discoveryland so we head there. No Stitch. Head for the shop to buy a Buzz Lightyear Space Blaster with Night Scope to make up for it! Space Blaster in hand we do Star Tours which Joe absolutely loves! Then HISTA which was great fun. Joe is still talking about the mice!! Then Nautilus is open for the first time that I have ever seen. It’s quite good, Joe wants to know if the giant squid is real? It’s now lunchtime and I have a plan. The French performance of Lion King is finishing at 1.30pm so we head for Café Hyperion at 1.25 and wait for all the French to leave, scoring a brilliant table at the front. We then ate our lunch in the half hour before the performance – cool eh?
Anyway, the show was fantastic as ever. A funny thing happened. During the performance, a CM kept coming up to Joe and saying things about Scar. Things like “are you scared of him?” and “I’ll get him up here in a bit” stuff like that. We thought it was a bit odd really. A couple of minutes before the end he came and stood by Joe again, pointing at him. Scar ran off the stage and up to Joe, roared at him, pinched his Space Blaster and shot him, ruffled his head, and then ran back on stage. Well……………..!!!! One beaming child, three astonished adults. We hadn’t queued for tickets so I wasn’t expecting that.
After the show we headed for Frontierland. I had checked on the website before going for closed attractions and knew Phantom Manor was closed, but on the park maps it said closed 1st & 2nd December. So we ran!! Space Blaster in hand Joe was well up for shooting a few ghosts and vampires. And when we got there – yep it was closed. So we managed to be disappointed twice over!
We watched the magical Christmas Parade, I just love the music, I wish I had bought the CD now. We then queued to see Father Christmas in Town Square so that Joe could remind him he wants a Robo-Raptor and Disney Top Trumps and then went back to the Sequoia for a rest and a warm.

We came back in time to do a few walk on rides again, and catch Fantillusion again of course, and then headed off to Café Mickeys for a riotous meal. This is Joe’s favourite place I think. I had booked a table in the morning for 8.30pm although I didn’t think I’d need it. I was glad I had though cos the queues were really big compared to the quietness of the park. Saw Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Goofy, Eeyore, the back of the Genie (L), Captain Hook and danced with Mr Smee. Finished off the night with a lovely stroll around the lake back to the Sequoia.


