Value Resorts and Inside Staterooms? Bah Humbug! 30 days of Disney fun! 02/10 Day 30

[dizneeat]

A chocolate terrine? Oh my! What will they think of next? What a way to have a little Disney souvenir come home with me (on my hips! )

Let me tell you, that by the end of a 30 day trip, the souvenir is no longer a little one!
Even though I have to admit, that with all the walking you do all day it's much easier to have a few more "diet mishaps" and still get away with it.

 

[dizneeat]

Day 26, September 8

Rides galore, a parade and a final visit to the Animal Kingdom - Part 3

It took us a little over an hour until we had finished lunch and we were ready to conquer the World again.
First off Mary Ellen and Joe had a FastPass for Peter Pan and they wanted to ride it, so we waited outside.
Then we were all off to the Peoplemover,

to take in the sights and sounds and digest some of our lunch. Since we were already in Tomorrowland and lines were short we got in line to help Buzz Lightyear once again.

And the next stop was the rose garden where we had some photopass photos taken.

And while we walked towards Main Street we had to stop as two castmembers, who were selling popcorn were putting on a fun show.

They drew quite a crowd and earned lots of applause once they were done.
We all stopped in the Emporium and did a little shopping and then Mary Ellen and Joe headed back into the park, while Tom and I decided to leave as we had Extra Magic Hours to catch in the Animal Kingdom.
When we left the sweet shop we noticed that the afternoon parade was about to start and the volunteer’s car was already coming our way.
There was more than enough space to stick around, so we did.
We hadn’t seen the parade in a long time and it was fun to watch, no matter how often you have seen it.

 

[dizneeat]

Day 26, September 8

Rides galore, a parade and a final visit to the Animal Kingdom - Part 4

Once it was over we really left the park, trekked over to the parking lot and went back home to Old Key West to chill a little.
Around quarter to 5 we drove over to the Animal Kingdom for Extra Magic Hours and dinner at Sanaa.

Once we had gone through the turnstiles we headed right over to the Safari and caught one of the last Safari vehicles out.

 

[jenseib]

Wow...loving all the updates.
I do love the parades. I think the AK one is my favorite, but I like them all!

 

[dizneeat]

Wow...loving all the updates.
I do love the parades. I think the AK one is my favorite, but I like them all!

I love the parades too and I always PLAN for us to see them, BUT we very rarely stay for them in the end.
And I just love the ones at the MK! I really do .......

 

[dizneeat]

Day 26, September 8

Rides galore, a parade and a final visit to the Animal Kingdom - Part 5

Once we had gone through the turnstiles we headed right over to the Safari and caught one of the last Safari vehicles out.

Since we were one of the last Safaris the driver was able to stop a bit more, so we got lots of nice animal photos.

After we had gotten off the Safari we walked over to Expedition Everest, fully expecting to find quite a line there.
Comes to show that it was only a 10 minute wait and we were on the ride in no time. Since the wait was so short, we decided to get on right away, this time asking for front row. And again we were on and off again in no time. So why not try it for a third time?
We did and again it was kind of a walk on, only that the castmember who assigned the seats had us step aside so we could ride front line again. Well, we not only rode it three times but seven times, always encouraged by the castmembers to come back.

We finally gave in after those seven times and since Dinosaur was a walk on as well, we threw that in for good measure before we headed out of the park and back to our car to drive over to the Animal Kingdom Lodge for dinner at Sanaa.
We drove over to the Kidani Village, parked the car in their parking structure and walked over to the restaurant to sign in. We were handed a buzzer and walked outside to watch the animals but it did not take long until we were called back inside and were led to our table. It was right in the middle of the restaurant and our server came over to take our drinks orders. I started by ordering

a Kande Coconut Cooler - refreshing combination of Starr African Rum, coconut, vanilla ice cream and orange juice and a Diet Coke. Tom ordered

a Tusker Premium Lager from Kenya, which he enjoyed a lot and a Diet Coke. We decided to order two appetizers to share and

the Mustard Seed-crusted Scallops, with a Coconut Cream Sauce were one of them. The other one was the Salad Sampler. We chose

the Carrot, Orange and Mint salad,

the Chickpea with Cucumber and Tomato salad and

the Roasted Potato, Corn and Spinach salad. Thankfully we had not snacked much all day so we were hungry enough to finish it all. For his main course Tom chose

the Tandoori Shrimp, served with Basmati Rice. I ordered

the Slow Cooked in Gravy, Simple and Well Seasoned, choice of two served with Basmati Rice. My two choices were

the Beef Short Ribs and

the Shrimp with Green Curry Sauce. Again very generous portions and while Tom was able to finish his portion, I wasn’t able to do the same. There was still dessert and Tom chose

the Chai Cream, while I wanted to try

the Dessert Sampler - Chocolate Cake, Passion Fruit Kulfi, and Chai Cream. We took our time to finish these and then slowly walked back to our car to drive back to Old Key West where we arrived shortly after. I did a little packing and after that we sat down on the couch to watch a little TV before we got too tired and headed off to bed.

 

[jenseib]

I knew is better that to open up this when I am starving...YUM!!!! So was the chai like a mousse type dish? It looks good.

Notice I ask about the desserts

 

[dizneeat]

I knew is better that to open up this when I am starving...YUM!!!! So was the chai like a mousse type dish? It looks good.

Notice I ask about the desserts

Yes, you should know by now! NO reading MY trip reports when you are hungry.

The chai cream is a mousse, nice chai taste and not overly sweet!

 

[dizneeat]

Day 27, September 9

A look “Behind the Seeds” and waving goodbye to the Disney Wonder - Part 1

Another day we got up early and headed out to the parks.
This time Epcot was our park of the day. We arrived there shortly after rope drop and headed right over to Soarin. No one at the last three fast pass machines so we picked one up right away and got in line as the wait time was only 5 minutes.

Within 20 minutes we were back and able to sign up for the “Behind the seeds” tour which was starting at 11am. Since we had only had a snack for breakfast it was now time for some real breakfast, so we stopped at Sunshine Seasons.

We both ordered

the Adult Breakfast platter - Bacon, Eggs, Breakfast Potatoes, French Toast and a biscuit. While they really mean well, the food is usually cold or at best lukewarm when you are finally at the table. This was no exception. While it was tasting quite nice it was rather cold and we both did not finish our plates. When we had finished breakfast it was time for our first fass pass. And before we went on the ride, we picked up another one. Actually it was not worth using the fast pass, as there were only about 15 people in the regular line. Again we asked for the highest row and were granted it.
There was still a little time left, so we just sat and waited for the tour to start. While we waited the group formed and there were quite a few people in our group. A short time later our guide came and introduced himself.

We were then taken backstage and the guide explained how the operations work backstage

and what they are trying to achieve. And then we were off into the greenhouses.

For the first part we were hugely out of sight of the touring boats that go through the greenhouse. We were all offered a slice of cucumber to taste some that were grown in one of their new methods. Tasted fine to us.
Then we really went onstage and were part of the show. So our guide “told us” to smile and wave at the boats and “look interested”.
We all had a good laugh and followed him through the greenhouse where he explained even more of their new experimental methods of growing things.

He pointed out the planted hidden Mickey inside the lettuce

and explained that there were several more around the place.

The next one he pointed out to us was in the langoustine tank

and they even “have to” roll up water hoses in a Mickey shape.

Far too soon our one hour tour was over and we all thanked the cast member and went our merry ways.

 

[jenseib]

Great behind the seeds pictures. Skip and Claire did it one year. I might think about doing it in the future.

 

[dizneeat]

Great behind the seeds pictures. Skip and Claire did it one year. I might think about doing it in the future.

Jen, we can really recommend the tour. It's a fun look behind the scenes and we want to do it again soon as our guide told us NO two tours are the same, depending on the guide.

 

[dizneeat]

Day 27, September 9

A look “Behind the Seeds” and waving goodbye to the Disney Wonder - Part 2

Far too soon our one hour tour was over and we all thanked the cast member and went our merry ways.
Our first stop was right there where we got off, we still had fast passes for Soarin.

We got in line and this time it paid off a bit more as there were actually some people in the regular line. We had to wait for about 15 minutes before boarding the ride and this time we didn’t even have to ask for highest row, as we were assigned that anyway.
It was another fun ride and when we got off we knew it was time to head over to World Showcase for our lunch reservation.

We were supposed to have lunch at Tutto Italia, but we just didn’t feel like Tutto, we really wanted to go back to Via Napoli.

So we walked in to Via Napoli first and asked about availability. Sure we could be seated. So I quickly walked over to Tutto and cancelled my reservation and was back to Via Napoli before we were called.
We were seated at a two top towards the middle of the restaurant and had a fun little chat with the castmember once he found out that we came from an actual neighbouring county of Italy. We both ordered a Diet Coke and an Aqua Fresca. I had

a Strawberry Aqua Fresca and Tom tried

the Lemon Aqua Fresca. We placed our orders and soon after our starters arrived. Tom tried

the Calamari Fritti, corn-crusted rings served with spicy tomato sauce, while I had

the Minestrone Soup, vegetable & cannelini bean soup with basil pesto. Both helpings were pretty big and we were nearly full on the appetizers.
Next up were the main courses. Tom had

the Quattro Stagioni - eggplant, artichokes, prosciutto, mushrooms, which he enjoyed very much. I felt like having cheese, lots of cheese, so I ordered

the Quattro Formaggi - mozzarella, parmesan, fontina, provolone, which had lots of ooey gooey yummy cheese, but filled you up rather quickly.
We were thinking about skipping desserts but then gave in. Tom ordered

the Torta di "Mamma Rosaria" - apple cake with almond sorbetto, which was not your typical apple cake. There was a nice and crisp pastry, lots of yummy spiced apples and it went perfectly well with the sorbet! My choice were

the Zeppole di Ricotta - Ricotta cheese fritters, served with whipped cream and chocolate sauce. We both were not able to finish our desserts but really enjoyed what we were able to fit in. After we had stuffed ourselves silly we slowly walked over to the friendship dock

and crossed the lagoon, then we walked to our car and drove back to Old Key West.

Again, I did some laundry and packed things we no longer needed and spent a little time on the internet. By 3.30 we heading out again, this time we had a longer drive ahead of us. We wanted to go to Port Canaveral to wave goodbye to the Disney Wonder.

 

[Teri1]

I love the Zeppole di Ricotta! I can't wait to eat at Via Napoli again.

 

[dizneeat]

I love the Zeppole di Ricotta! I can't wait to eat at Via Napoli again.

They are wonderful, aren't they! I just love the chocolate sauce that comes with it!
Let's just hope they don't change the menu, so far it is pretty authentic and yummy!

 

[jenseib]

YUM!!!!! You always make me want to go there, and so far I just haven't been able to fit it in. I think I will have to put it at the top of the list.

 

[dizneeat]

YUM!!!!! You always make me want to go there, and so far I just haven't been able to fit it in. I think I will have to put it at the top of the list.

Via Napoli is great - pretty authentic Italian food! You really should consider it in the near future!

 

[dizneeat]

Day 27, September 9

A look “Behind the Seeds” and waving goodbye to the Disney Wonder - Part 3

We wanted to go to Port Canaveral to wave goodbye to the Disney Wonder.The drive takes a little over an hour and we made it to Jetty Park in plenty of time.

First the Carnival ship sailed out

and then it was time to say goodbye to the Wonder.

We had brought white Mickey gloves to wave to the people on the ship and by that time we put them on and got quite a few cheers from the guests on the ship.

We waited until the ship was far out at sea before we walked back to the car.

Since we were real thirsty and the little shop at Jetty Park was closed we drove into Cape Canaveral to find something to drink. We ended up at a large Publix, where we decided to cancel our ADR for that night as we were not able to make it in time anyway and picked up a few snack things for the night together with the drinks we so needed.
We then got back into the car and enjoyed the ride back home,

where we relaxed and watched some TV. Around 9pm we felt like we could use some dinner and since we were on vacation we decided on having dessert first. So we got into the car and drove over to Krispy Kreme,

where we were happy to see the Hot Now sign on. We again got

two dozen glazed doughnuts, one for us and one for the guards and

a Chocolate Milk and some Diet Coke to enjoy with our doughnuts.

Once we had had our dessert we then drove over to Downtown Disney to pick up some food from Wolfgang Puck’s Express.

We got

a Pesto Chicken Sandwich with lots of romaine and plum tomatoes and

a Rotisserie Turkey Club - avocado, bacon, red onion, plum tomatoes, romaine and remoulade. There was still some romaine in the fridge, so we made some Caesar Salad to go with it.

We were more than stuffed after we had finished our VERY late dinner. We sat for a quite some time and watched TV until we finally went to bed.

 

[jenseib]

I am hoping we can arrive at the Port area in Nov on time to see the Fantasy leave. As we get closer I may ask you more questions about the best spot to go and how to get there.

 

[dizneeat]

I am hoping we can arrive at the Port area in Nov on time to see the Fantasy leave. As we get closer I may ask you more questions about the best spot to go and how to get there.

Just feel free to pick my brain, Jen! We have already decided to drive to Port Canaveral in the summer to see the Fantasy leave! I just love watching the ships cruise out to sea slowly! It's clever that the Disney ships go last ...... the best always comes last!

 

[dizneeat]

Day 28, September 10

And where the heck is the Magic Kingdom? - Part 1

We slept in just a little today and after having showered and snacked on doughnuts and leftovers before we walked to the car and drove over to Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Since we had missed the rope drop mad dash to Toy Story Mania Fastpasses, all the passes with reasonable times were gone, so we jumped into the regular line and had a 30 minute wait.

After that we went right over to the Tower of Terror and picked up a Fast Pass for that.
The wait time said 13 minutes so we jumped in line right away

and walked right into the library. Two of the elevators were closed and there still was no line. We got off the ride and walked around and saw that there still was a 13 minute wait, so we got in line again right away. There were a few more people in line now and it took us about 10 minutes to get into the library. Again only two elevators were working and now they had built up a line. But nevertheless it was a pretty short wait.
Again the ride was a lot of fun and we had a little time to kill before our fastpass kicked in. Rock’n’Rollercoaster came to mind and we walked over, but we could see from afar that it was down.
So we walked over to the shops and browsed for a short while. Then we hurried back to the Fastpass entrance for Tower of Terror.

By that time there was quite a long queue outside and we were happy to be able to bypass them all in the Fastpass line.

After that third ride on the Tower of Terror it had become considerably crowded so we decided to leave the park and have some lunch.
Once we were in the car we decided to drive to Downtown Disney and have lunch at Wolfgang Puck’s Express. We still had to hand out a few gifts, so we went back to the villa and chilled for a while, then picked up our gifts and went to Downtown Disney hoping we would be able to deliver them.