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

[dizneeat]

I am SO sorry there was NO update this weekend, but it was real hectic and busy here.
I am leaving for a school trip with my class of 23 14year old tomorrow. We are going to Vienna for a week and I was getting all the paperwork ready, did laundry, so Tom would have his uniforms for next week (YES, we have to do that ourselves) and I would have something to wear in Vienna!
Went shopping on Saturday for a new winter coat and came home with lots of stuff! Don't tell Mickey we spent ALL that money on clothes.
Today I packed the suitcase, we went to our school to drop off the suitcase so I can "hitch" a ride with my friend Elisabeth to school, then corrected 18 4page tests!
It's 10.30 here and I better get to bed soon, or I will be real tired tomorrow. I hope to pop in now and then and give you an update on how Vienna is, but I guess NO trip report update next week - we have quite a bit of an itinerary!

See you all lateron in the week!

Drive by hello....getting lost between the TR's...pathetic, I know, but no doubt I'll eventually come up with an excellent excuse.

Don't worry. I am loosing track myself sometimes!

We received your Halloween postcard today from you and Tom. Thank you again for brightening another day! What a nice surprise! My wife texted a pic of it to me when she got the mail in. Helped me get through the workday!

I am glad you liked the Halloween postcard! You and your beautiful family are very welcome to it!

Here too!! Postcard arrived today. Absolutely made my day and Sophia loved seeing Mickey! Thanks so much Karin and Tom.

Christine, you are so very welcome. I need to tell you that I haven't made it to the PO yet, to mail your package. It wasn't ready last Tuesday when I went to the PO and it will have to wait until I return on Friday! SOOOOOOO sorry!

Loving the mini TR. It looks like alot of the signs are in French too? Do they have any English signs? I would love to go someday, but I know my DH would never go that far from home.

Most of the signs are in French. But most of them have an English translation and most CMs speak English quite well!

Aww thanks for that You do know me well

I am prepared for it to be busy, just hope its not killer crowds though.

You will need to use your FP skills and make use of EMH (get into the park a little before it officially opens to get a head start - no need for early as only the Carousel, Peter Pan and Dumbo are open!
Be prepared for a high crowd level - we have seen the parks getting closed!

Is that gazebo with a pumpkin cap always there and they just decorated it differently? It's SOOO COOL! I love all the little photo spots, like the falling paint! It's so cool that DLRP has the Pumpkin man mascot for Halloween. I would love to see stuff like this at WDW.

Your "dinner feasts" always look so good. Especially since you always have yummy baguette and an eclair.

Speaking of desserts, I baked a cake last night! My first time making ganache. I think it went pretty well. It tastes alright.

Yes, the gazebo is always there and decorated for the different seasons. It's a nice photo spot!
There used to be pumpkin men fighting the Pink Witches, but they "have moved out" I think! We really like the many photo ops too!

for making a perfect cake! You are a very talented young lady!

 

[Minnie&Nana]

Christine, you are so very welcome. I need to tell you that I haven't made it to the PO yet, to mail your package. It wasn't ready last Tuesday when I went to the PO and it will have to wait until I return on Friday! SOOOOOOO sorry!

My goodness are you busy!! I hope I see that green turn to off very soon and you get some sleep!

It sounds like an absolutely wonderful week - have a great time with your students! Is yours the only class going or will there be other teachers along as well?

Please please do not give the package a thought! How soon you've forgotten how long it took me to get your pkg to the PO. Absolutely no hurry - you relax and take care of other more important things - the box will eventually get mailed and it will be a delight whenever it arrives on this side of the ocean.

Take good care, have fun in Vienna and get some sleep!

 

[jenseib]

Have fun!

 

[Schoolbread]

See ya in a week. Have a TERRIFIC trip!

 

[englishrose47]

Have a Fun week in Vienna Karin !!!Looking forward to more updates when you geet back !!!!

 

[YukiPhnx]

Have a safe trip Karen! Hope your kids don't tire you out TOO much

 

[Minnie&Nana]

You're first day in Vienna must be over...hope it was lovely and fun. Yippee - another TR!! I will be in WDW dance3 by the time you get home and will not have a laptop with me, but will catch up when I get home Tuesday (air down, train back).

Can't wait to hear about the school trip - of course we can count on you for lots pf pics!

Godspeed!

 

[Stefy]

I am SO sorry there was NO update this weekend, but it was real hectic and busy here.
I am leaving for a school trip with my class of 23 14year old tomorrow. We are going to Vienna for a week and I was getting all the paperwork ready, did laundry, so Tom would have his uniforms for next week (YES, we have to do that ourselves) and I would have something to wear in Vienna!
Went shopping on Saturday for a new winter coat and came home with lots of stuff! Don't tell Mickey we spent ALL that money on clothes.
Today I packed the suitcase, we went to our school to drop off the suitcase so I can "hitch" a ride with my friend Elisabeth to school, then corrected 18 4page tests!
It's 10.30 here and I better get to bed soon, or I will be real tired tomorrow. I hope to pop in now and then and give you an update on how Vienna is, but I guess NO trip report update next week - we have quite a bit of an itinerary!


You will need to use your FP skills and make use of EMH (get into the park a little before it officially opens to get a head start - no need for early as only the Carousel, Peter Pan and Dumbo are open!
Be prepared for a high crowd level - we have seen the parks getting closed!

Have a great time in Vienna

Judging from opening hours and EMH daily in Dec the parks open at about 7:30am for hotel guests. Is it not worth it to go that early if only a few rides are open?

 

[dizneeat]

My goodness are you busy!! I hope I see that green turn to off very soon and you get some sleep!

It sounds like an absolutely wonderful week - have a great time with your students! Is yours the only class going or will there be other teachers along as well?

Please please do not give the package a thought! How soon you've forgotten how long it took me to get your pkg to the PO. Absolutely no hurry - you relax and take care of other more important things - the box will eventually get mailed and it will be a delight whenever it arrives on this side of the ocean.

Take good care, have fun in Vienna and get some sleep!

I did get some sleep and we had a really fun week! Everything worked out great and all my planning paid off!
There were 3 classes going to Vienna that same week, but my friend Heidi and I were the only ones who organized the whole thing on our own. You can go through the school board and they will organize it for you, but then you need to stick to their rules. I never get the sights I want when going through the school board, so I decided to organize it myself.
My class, Heidi and I stayed on our own in a hostel and had our own itinerary.

Your box will go out this week - I promise!

Have fun!

We DID! We had a wonderful week in Vienna - everything worked out exactly the way I had planned it! Thank god for all that WDW planning - gave me room to "practice"!

See ya in a week. Have a TERRIFIC trip!

Thank you, Tina! We had a blast! I am going to give all of you a mini trip report inside the mini Paris trip report that is inside my WDW trip report!

Have a Fun week in Vienna Karin !!!Looking forward to more updates when you geet back !!!!

I will soon update my trip report, Rosie! It is already 10.30pm here, but I have a day off on Tuesday, so this will be update - day!

 

[dizneeat]

Have a safe trip Karen! Hope your kids don't tire you out TOO much

Thank you, Yuki! We had such a fun time in Vienna! My kids were well behaved and we did not have any problems, but boy, were we tired in the evenings!

You're first day in Vienna must be over...hope it was lovely and fun. Yippee - another TR!! I will be in WDW dance3 by the time you get home and will not have a laptop with me, but will catch up when I get home Tuesday (air down, train back).

Can't wait to hear about the school trip - of course we can count on you for lots pf pics!

Godspeed!

We had 5 funfilled days and yes, I did take a lot of photos, which I intend to post here for you all to enjoy.
Hope you enjoy your time at WDW, but how could you not!

Happy Birthday! Hope you are having LOADS and LOADS of fun!!!!!

Have a great time in Vienna

Judging from opening hours and EMH daily in Dec the parks open at about 7:30am for hotel guests. Is it not worth it to go that early if only a few rides are open?

Thank you, Stefy! We had a wonderful time.

As for EMH at DLRP - all I would do is, be there early enough to get a head start when the park actually opens!
Like being there half an hour early. You might be able to squeeze in a ride on Dumbo and Peter Pan before you head to the bigger rides.
Once they open the park get a FP for BTM (they are always gone first!) and if the line is still short, get in line. After that walk over to Indy - it usually has a really short line in the morning - we have been able to walk on it 2 - 3 times in the morning. Pick up another FP before riding BTM! If the crowds are high they usually open the passageway between Discoveryland and Fantasyland - it's a perfect shortcut!
Better stop myself here - let me know if you need any more tips!

 

[YukiPhnx]

WELCOME BACK Karin!!! Glad to hear you had a good time!

 

[dizneeat]

WELCOME BACK Karin!!! Glad to hear you had a good time!

Thank you, Yuki! Yes, we had a fun time!

 

[dizneeat]

NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am sure most of you know that we are going back to WDW in 89 days!
So far we were booked at Pop Century, hoping for an AP discount to upgrade to a moderate resort - preferably CSR!

Well, the wishing and hoping is over! The AP discounts are out and I was able to score a good discount. So for what we were supposed to pay at Pop Century we are now staying at CSR in a waterview room!

Tina, we WILL stay at the same resort!

I also started a new pre-trip report - Heigh Ho, Heigh Ho, it's off to the CSR we go! A February 2011 PTR

..... as if I wouldn't have my hands full with my dining review and trip report on our summer vacation!

So, that's the NEWS for today!

Short report on my week in Vienna to follow soon!

 

[dizneeat]

Extra Bonus Mini Trip Report inside the Mini Trip Report

Vienna

Day 1, Nov 15

Travel, the Viennese Opera House, St. Stephen's Dome and going to the cinema

This is a short trip report of our school trip to our capital city, Vienna.

It started on Monday, Nov. 15. I was able to "hitch" a ride with my friend Elisabeth, where our trip started.
There were 23 14 year old kids and two teachers. Heidi, who teaches RE and myself.
At 8am we got on the coach

and went to the main railway station in Linz. There we boarded a fast train to Vienna.

Once we had arrived we got on the underground and then walked to the hostel where we stayed for 4 nights. We were able to go to our rooms and after a short break we set out again to go and get some lunch.

We took another group photo in front of the monument of empress Maria Theresia, who had 16 children and gave us the school attendance law.

The kids all wanted to go to McDonald's but there was a Starbucks right across the street, so Heidi and I went there for some peace and quiet and some yummy hot coffee.

I had the Toffee Nut Latte. The rich, buttery flavour of sweet toffee is combined with the warmth of toasted nuts and blended with our smooth 100% Fairtrade certified Espresso coffee and velvety steamed milk, topped with whipped cream and toffee-flavoured sprinkles. (taken from the Starbucks site)

And I had an espresso brownie to go with it! Yummyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!

Then it was time to meet up with the kids again and head on over to the world famous Viennese Opera House. We had a guided tour through the very impressive building!

After we had spent an hour and a half in the opera house we went back to Kaerntner Strasse and walked back to St. Stephen's dome, where we met one of Heidi's friends, who gave us a tour of the dome and then the kids all got worksheets and off they went to explore the church on their own.

We walked back to the hostel, freshened up, had dinner and finally left again to go to a cinema. Some of the pupils wanted to see "Due date", so Heidi took them, while I took some of them to a 5D movie.

As we had time before the movie we went a little shopping and there were hats to try on as well.

Then it was finally time to go see our movie, which only lasted for 25 minutes but was lots of fun, especially since none of the kids had ever been to anything like it!

After the movie we walked back to the hostel and tried to catch up on some much needed sleep.

 

[Tickanee]

Hi Karin! I have been a longtime lurker of your trip reports and I always love reading them. Your pictures of the Opera House brought back a ton of memories for me. In 1985 I toured with my high school choir and we competed and performed at the Opera House for the International Youth and Music Festival. It was such an amazing experience!! We were in Europe touring for three weeks with one week entirely in Vienna. Thanks for your great reports!!

 

[dizneeat]

Extra Bonus Mini Trip Report inside the Mini Trip Report

Vienna

Day 2, Nov 16

Schloss Schoenbrunn, The Schoenbrunn Zoo, The Austrian Parliament and the Viennese Ferris Wheel at the Prater (fun fair)

We started day 2 with a leisurely breakfast at the hostel, before we got on the underground and tram to Schloss Schoenbrunn.

We had a youth tour and it was really interesting to hear about life at the Austrian Royal Court. After the tour the kids were allowed to dress up and experience life at the court for themselves.

We later walked over to the Gloriette (the building at the back of the next photo) through the palace gardens.

Our next stop was the Zoo that belongs to Schloss Schoenbrunn.

There are lots of animals to see.

In the meantime we all had gotten hungry and the kids got themselves some snacks while Heidi and I took a short lunch break.

Heidi had potato pockets with yoghurt sauce.

I had the Kaertntner Kasnudeln. These are pockets, made of pasta dough, filled with cream cheese, potato and mint! Very yummy. They come with lots of brown butter.

They were served with some mixed leaves with balsamic vinaigrette.

Needless to say, that I needed dessert!

Very nice hot apple strudel! After our break we walked through the zoo for a little more time before we walked back to the tram through the palace gardens and we just had time for one more photo!

 

[dizneeat]

continued ...........

Then it was off to the tram to take us to the Austrian Parliament.

We were invited to tour the Parliament building by one of our Representatives and therefore got some special treatment from our guide.

A little later our Representative came to answer some questions.

And we were even allowed into the discussion rooms.

When the tour was over we slowly walked back to our hostel to relax for a while, then we had dinner and finally headed back out to the Prater, a year round fun fair, where we wanted to ride the Viennese Ferris Wheel.

After our ride on the ferris wheel, the kids wanted to try the chairoplane (got that one from a dictionary!)

and the bumper cars.

Unfortunately one of the girls lost her purse while we were having fun. Thank god she only had little money and her travel card in it!

We got back to the hostel late again and the kids went to bed and fell asleep in no time!

 

[dizneeat]

Hi Karin! I have been a longtime lurker of your trip reports and I always love reading them. Your pictures of the Opera House brought back a ton of memories for me. In 1985 I toured with my high school choir and we competed and performed at the Opera House for the International Youth and Music Festival. It was such an amazing experience!! We were in Europe touring for three weeks with one week entirely in Vienna. Thanks for your great reports!!

Hi, and welcome! I am so happy you came out of lurkdom!

It's really great that you have such fond memories of Austria and especially the Opera House! It's so beautiful! I can only imagine what it must be like to perform there!

 

[YukiPhnx]

Mmmm, that toffee nut latte looks really good! My favourite drink of the Holiday season is their Peppermind Mocha. It's the one thing I like about winter. The season, not the holiday season, cause I love holidays.

That coach bus looks so cute and tiny! I'm not used to seeing those. How long was the train ride?

Any pictures of your hostel?

That opera house looks gorgeous. I wonder what it's like to sit in one of those private booths.

What's the 5D movie about?

 

[YukiPhnx]

Oh gosh, you updated before my last post! Double post right now perhaps? Dunno until I hit send....

Your parliament building is absolutely beautiful. I love the gold details on the exterior and that there are statues INSIDE the discussion room!!! To be fair, I've never been inside the parliament building in Canada, but I doubt it's as impressive.

A chairoplane? Is that what they're called? I love that ride! It's the best on a hot day cause the breeze is just lovely.

When I visit Vienna one day, that ferris wheel is going to be the first thing I go to. It's just so cool!

It's too bad one of your students lost her purse. I hope it wasn't something she liked TOO much. If it were me....I'd be devastated. I love my bags.