We're headed to DLR next Friday for our first trip. We have been to WDW many times. The kids think we're going to WDW and I can't wait to surprise them the night before with our secret! I have loved Walter Elias Disney since I was a small child, so the excitement is incredible for me.....
However, this will be our first time to miss Star Wars Weekend in several years and we're Star Wars freaks....So of course now they have that awesome Star Wars character breakfast at Sci-Fi (which is one of our favorite restaurants) so I am kind of having buyer's remorse on switching to DLR....But I know we'll have a great time anyway.
Great report, btw!!!!
You got some fabulous shots inside pirates! I wish I would've taken my 30mm with me that day and got a few better ones. Or at least a better chance at better ones!
Hey Janet what kind of camera bag do you own?
Wonderful pictures.
Looks like you enjoyed the ambience at Blue Bayou. I'll have to try the chicken gumbo next time.
Well done for ticking Elsa and Anna off the M&G list.![]()
Again lovely pictures. I always look up to you and your photography skills Janet. Currently I only use a gadget bag but I really want to but a backpack style one from Best Buy this weekend. I'm just not sure if it would suit me. I like the idea of having my hands free and not fighting a bag on one shoulder but just not sure how I would switch out lenses in a hurry. I would have to sit the bag down flat to change stuff out, right?
I hope you and Janet don't mind me butting into this discussion.
Bret and I had a very similar discussion about a month or two ago. The first bag I got was the Slingshot but it's not good for my back. I suffer from scoliosis and it just wasn't worth me carrying the slingshot. So, I ended up getting the LowePro Pro Runner 200. I think Bret ended up with the 350 size. It's a backpack style bag rather than the slingshot. The 200 is the right size for my back and I've configured the inside padding so that it holds the dSLR with 2 - 3 lenses. I can just about squeeze the 50 mm, f/1.8 in it as well.
If you're in the market for a camera backpack style bag, it might be worth checking it out.
I hope you and Janet don't mind me butting into this discussion.
Bret and I had a very similar discussion about a month or two ago. The first bag I got was the Slingshot but it's not good for my back. I suffer from scoliosis and it just wasn't worth me carrying the slingshot. So, I ended up getting the LowePro Pro Runner 200. I think Bret ended up with the 350 size. It's a backpack style bag rather than the slingshot. The 200 is the right size for my back and I've configured the inside padding so that it holds the dSLR with 2 - 3 lenses. I can just about squeeze the 50 mm, f/1.8 in it as well.
If you're in the market for a camera backpack style bag, it might be worth checking it out.
Your photos are sooo enticing. I know I'm going to enjoy looking at them when I get back because I've started zooming through photos on TRs so there will still be some excitement and newness when I arrive -- in 9 days!
I have two hopefully easy questions. If you were going solo, where would you eat your first night? And, I'm trying to figure out what kind of a bag to carry in the parks. I made a sting backpack for WDW because I go in winter and need to carry a sweatshirt and poncho (I've been some VERY cold Februarys). I light to travel light. I don't think I need to carry much more than sunglasses and my phone. I keep my wallet in my front pocket. Am I forgetting any necessities that I need to carry on my person throughout the day?
Thanks.![]()
Blue Bayou's decor seems so nice! Love all your New Orleans Squres pictures.
I'm sure a 90 minute wait was hard to stomach, but at least it wasn't what it is now! At least the area is much better themed than in WDW- love that Olaf! Great pictures with Anna & Elsa, I love that you were each wearing a shirt too![]()
I have been lurking since you started this one! I am loving your photos so far! My sister and I debated on going to the Blue Bayou restaurant. We always bail at the last minute though for some reason or another. I love your Anna and Elsa photos! Your tshirts are awesome too! Where did you get those?
Thanks Princess for the heads up. I'm off to check it out.
Thanks Janet for the reply as well!
Lovely pictures, Janet. Really crisp and clear shots. Such great photos on POTC, too!
Oh drat! You mean to tell me that I missed seeing someone from Jersey Shore (and those guards look as though they were headed to Blue Bayou or Club 33)? Darn. (I am being facetious, of course, as I have no desire to see anyone from Jersey Shore!I'm content with my Kurt Russell sighting!)
You know, that giant gold masquerade mask suspended over the entrance to the New Orleans Square alley was all new last year. There used to be a Christmas wreath with a mischievous crescent moon-headed jester dude sitting in the middle of it, creepily staring down at passersby, in that exact spot. But suddenly the giant gold mask appeared in its place. I am guessing that, since DL keeps all the other masquerade masks and Mardi Gras beads up through the Bayou Bash/Mardi Gras time, someone in the Enhancement Department must have felt that the giant mask was a better decoration to display through the holidays and into Mardi Gras, rather than the wreath -- which basically worked for the holidays and not for Mardi Gras.
Your photos are sooo enticing. I know I'm going to enjoy looking at them when I get back because I've started zooming through photos on TRs so there will still be some excitement and newness when I arrive -- in 9 days!
I have two hopefully easy questions. If you were going solo, where would you eat your first night? And, I'm trying to figure out what kind of a bag to carry in the parks. I made a sting backpack for WDW because I go in winter and need to carry a sweatshirt and poncho (I've been some VERY cold Februarys). I light to travel light. I don't think I need to carry much more than sunglasses and my phone. I keep my wallet in my front pocket. Am I forgetting any necessities that I need to carry on my person throughout the day?
Thanks.![]()
Your trip report is making me want to go out there so much! If only I didn't have that pesky relative problem out there that I think I told you about![]()
aboveH20 --
I hope Janet doesn't mind my popping in to comment on this specific question that you asked her, but I do solo DLR trips (in fact, I actually prefer them now, to a large degree!) and thought I could throw out a few suggestions for you.
aboveH20 --
I hope Janet doesn't mind my popping in to comment on this specific question that you asked her, but I do solo DLR trips (in fact, I actually prefer them now, to a large degree!) and thought I could throw out a few suggestions for you.
I think your solo dining choice largely depends on what kind of food you like and whether you want to go the table service route or the counter service route.
On some nights I simply get a sandwich to go from Earl of Sandwich in Downtown Disney and bring it back to my hotel.
Also on my last solo DLR trip I ate at Tangaroa Terrace in the Disneyland Hotel -- it is counter service, but there are interesting, tasty menu options and -- on that day -- the seating area was nice and quiet. I took a table overlooking the pool.
I've also dined solo at Storytellers Café in the GCH -- which felt kind of awkward because it is a busy table service restaurant and I can never get used to dining solo in a table service restaurant. The server couldn't have been nicer, but I still felt odd.I think I would have felt less odd, somehow, if I had chosen Carnation Café instead, because of the outdoor seating. For some reason I feel less awkward dining solo when I can sit outside than when I am forced to sit indoors.
I've dined solo at Taste Pilots' Grill in DCA, at night when the outside seating area was not busy. That was pretty decent.
I know that a lot of people like White Water Snacks in the GCH for the location and the food (it's counter service), but I haven't eaten there yet -- either solo or with friends. I keep telling myself that I will, but I end up at Earl of Sandwich or something and never make it over there!
Anyway, hopefully Janet will have some other ideas for you!
ETA: I almost forgot that I ate at Plaza Inn solo last year too -- I sat outside again! It was great!
So happy to help get you in the mood for your upcoming trip!
Are you going to the parks that first night? If I was going to be in the parks, I'd still consider Blue Bayou. It would set a great tone for the trip. Or maybe get a chicken dinner from Plaza Inn.
Outside the parks? I'm not sure we ever ate anywhere but Earl of Sandwich!I'd definitely go there. And I wouldn't need to ask Katie her opinion. She'd definitely second that.
I'm sure you can get by with a much smaller bag than me just because I always have extra camera gear.
You probably won't need a sweatshirt of jacket, but you should be prepared in case you do. I know on one of our June trips it was over 100 early in the afternoon so we left and swam at the hotel. By the time the sun went down cool winds brought in much cooler temps and we wished we had jackets.
Thanks for the suggestions. Blue Bayou might get the call. I've read so much about Earl of Sandwich that I was thrilled when I finally got to eat in one at an airport (forget where).
I'd forgotten about coolness at night, so maybe my string backpack will work. It's LOUD so it'll make it easy for my son to lose me.
Are you sewing any more?
Thanks for the suggestions. I have reservations at Storyteller's Cafe my last morning because I could only get a 5 day ticket so figured I'd spend my last morning in the atmosphere if not in the parks. I've done WDW solo many times, so don't mind eating alone. There's something about going solo that I really enjoy.
Since you're from the area, can I ask you two additional questions?
My last day I'm taking the train to Santa Barbara to see my younger son. I have a reservation that morning at Storyteller's Cafe at 9. My train is at 11:23. Do you know what time I should leave the Grand Californian to make it to the train station? I understand it's only about 4 miles away. I've already reserved a seat.
Here's my other question. I don't know if it's anything you've had experience with. My older son lives in West Hollywood and is thinking of joining me for two nights. He will have a car -- and SoCal tickets. Do you know if it's going to be a hassle to add his name to my room so her can have a key and park? I'm wondering if I should do it when I check in or wait until the next day before he arrives.
Back to Janet's regularly scheduled TR, full of amazing photos and fun!