Weird and Ninja’s Pre-Disneymoon [Completed!]

[RNBelle]

Oh goodness- I have a lot to catch up on. I will start with the February trip first!!!

 

[RachelNinja]

Can I just tell you how much I absolutely LOVED that update?! I love how you described all the detail in the queue. Fantastic morning at DHS!

I don't know that I can handle waiting that long in the queue again! Haha, I really enjoyed the fast pass line later on in the day!

That's too bad about that family on POTC ruining your ride.

I love the Adventureland area...those night pictures are great!

I'm glad you decided to still go to DHS after your rest day!

I love TSM! We have somehow not ridden it the last two times that we've gone to Disney, so I'm glad you had so many pictures from the queue.

I can't wait to experience all the other lands at night when it's dark out! It's like an entirely different atmosphere!

I'm so glad we decided on DHS too! It was DEFINITELY the best day of the entire trip!

So I don't know how you can keep your two TRs straight, I can't!

Been away for a bit, but catching up now. What a score with the $0.49 pins! I was kicking myself for not buying more pins at the outlet a few years ago, especially now that DD is so into trading them. If only I had known!

Loved this most recent update because I just absolutely adore the theming for TSM. I love the sense of nostalgia that I get when going through the line. So many fun things to look at.

Haha, it's difficult to keep both TRs going as evidenced by the fact that I haven't been here in FOREVER. I do need to finish at least one of them before starting a PTR! I have been tempted because the Disneymoon planning is getting me excited now!

Yeah, we're still kicking ourselves with missing out on those $0.49 pins! We're going to bring the number of the store with us and call and ask if there's a sale by any chance. We don't want to take a taxi all the way to the outlet JUST to check on pins, haha.

Oh goodness- I have a lot to catch up on. I will start with the February trip first!!!

Haha, wondering if you caught up with this one since I totally didn't update in ages!

 

[RachelNinja]

Friday, April 9: One Man's Dream is One Girl's Nightmare!

As we left Toy Story Mania, I saw that the High School Musical 3 show was about to begin! I think this is when we decided to watch it. Yes, I willingly admit that I love HSM3! It's the best one out of the 3, in my opinion. I know it's weird for me to be in my 20s and actually have a preference. The first movie bothers me since it's not really Troy's singing voice. The second movie bothers me because the plot is so corny and really untrue (haha as if the other 2 are realistic). The third one is just the best one! It has a cute storyline, and the music is fun! So yes, I gladly watched this show! I wasn't going to join in and volunteer for anything wacky, but it was fun to watch.

You can see that it was a very dreary-looking day. I was so glad to have my zip-up jacket thingie to keep me warm.

Since we were in the area and just going with the flow before our last minute ADR at Hollywood Brown Derby (hmm, I don't think I mentioned it that the night before, I did a search for an ADR there and easily got one at the restaurant's opening!), we decided to hit One Man's Dream.

I was excited to see everything, but at the same time, I was a bit creeped out to be there knowing that Finn Whitman has to sneak in there in Kingdom Keepers!

Many desks were in the exhibit!

I can't wait to one day explore Disneyland!

I saw this part and got excited.

I had to have Howard take a close-up (remember, he was still learning his camera, so it's kinda blurry!). KK readers will know why! (I THINK it was this office, right?)

The models were really fun to look at, but I was getting tired of being on my feet, so I couldn't really enjoy all the details.

Old Mouseketeer things.

I think this was my 2nd favorite model there.

This was my 1st favorite! Peter Pan!

It was around this time, I believe, that I started getting creeped out. I had seen the suit from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea as well as the Nautilus submarine or whatever it's called. I did NOT like that ride after a while because of I distinctly remember looking out my little submarine window and out of nowhere seeing the big octopus. I shudder even now thinking of it! I wish they would use bright lights all over that exhibit instead of having those darker corners with things hanging from the ceilings!

The golf ball.

As I get older, I grow to really love seeing the castle. I was never one of this girls who got into the princesses, but now I really see all the magic! Plus, there's all the Kingdom Keepers stuff, haha.

Look at good ol' honest Abe!

I like the Donald and Mickey cups!

Playing with an animatronic bird. I got kinda scared of this too. Haha, at this point, I was cautious about everything.

And then there was THIS. Um, get me out of here!

AGH, a boat!

AGH! A laptop! Haha, just kidding. There's a ton of D23 stuff here. When they first introduced D23, I was excited and was wondering if it'd be worth the cost. I have a friend who is a member, and she lent me the first 2 issues. I wasn't that big of a fan. It had a lot of history and in-depth information that just didn't entice me.

Gotta love Wall-E! Howard and I saw this in the theater, and everything reminded us of us and our inside jokes!

Howard and I had a lot of fun looking at all the little trinkets. Haha, it'd be too cluttered for our future apartment though. Oh, and random thing is that I played Scene It with some of my students the day before our Christmas break started, and I didn't like it. The questions were either really difficult (ex. knowing the actors who voiced the characters) or really easy (ex. just giving the name of the movie). We didn't use the DVD since we were at school, but I thought the questions would be more fun. Plus, it bothers me when trivia games use questions that are then reused in future games.

I would totally love all those books though!

(continued in next post)

 

[RachelNinja]

(continued from previous post)

El arbol de vida (haha is that poorly translated?).

I like that this photo was taken at this level.

This trip was the first time I saw the hat as the icon. That's how long it's been since I've been to MGM!

We shoudl've taken more from this angle! Haha, it makes me feel miniature.

I will never ride this again. I did when it first opened up before they changed the sequence to be random. It dropped a little once and then dropped all the way down.

Haha, I was so ready to leave.

TOO MANY SCARY THINGS!

Silly Symphony stationery!

Okay, that was the last picture. It was time to head on over to Hollywood Brown Derby!

 

[RachelNinja]

Friday, April 9: Brown Derby Cobb Mush

One Man's Dream was interesting, but due to the fact that so many things frightened me, I was happy to leave! We made our way over to the Brown Derby for our lunch reservation. We passed the archway thingie that I knew I wanted a picture in front of because I have a pic there as a kid (maybe 4 years old?) looking a little pouty (from what I remember). I stood in the same position and had Howard take that picture. Oh, I just realized that in this TR, I call Howard "Weird," but I haven't written here in so long that I forgot. Whoops! Haha, oh well.

We went to the restaurant, and it was a little bit before our ADR so technically the dining room wasn't even open yet. I checked in with the CM there, and we were told it'd be a few minutes. We took a seat on one of the couches. Here's a picture of the ceiling. I guess Howard likes the structural pictures! He was an architecture major in college after all.

We tried to figure out who the people were in the caricatures, but we weren't having much luck.

I guess the one kind of in the middle is Groucho Marx? I remember in junior high, I had "Cinema" as an elective. We watched all the old-timey films like Charlie Chaplin and the Marx Brothers. It was actually really interesting. It wasn't just watching them; the teacher also taught us about them as well. That's when I learned the term "slapstick comedy." Another random tidbit is that when my family went to Bermuda when I was in the 6th grade and my older brother was in the 8th, that teacher just happened to be at the same hotel! And then everywhere we went, we saw him! It was the funniest thing because we'd take a trip to the town on the bus on one particular day, and we saw him there too (and the town wasn't that close, and there were many places to walk to so to run into each other was hilarious). Then we had dinner reservations for each night, and some nights they lined up with his! I didn't have him as a teacher yet, but my brother did. We didn't say hi, but at the end of the semester when I had "Cinema," I told him that I saw him in Bermuda! Wow, all this rambling from a potential caricature of Groucho Marx!

Here we are still waiting on the couch.

They had a red carpet rolled out for the day's opening of the restaurant.

The old-fashioned floor tiles really set the mood, but I have to admit that tiles like this make me uncomfortable. Haha, I think it's because they remind me of bathrooms? Or I think about the dirty grout in between? Or all the little tiles remind me of a swarm? I don't know; I'm just not a fan!

The CMs chose a family to open restaurant. While I was there, I was thinking that it would've been cool had we been chosen to do it because we were the first ones to check in. Haha, maybe we didn't look interesting enough.

After that family was seated, we were seated also. We had a two-top (is that how it's written?) that was actually near the entrance of the dining room. We were on the higher level of seating. This is the view from where we sat. Part of me wished we were seated a little bit more into the restaurant, but it worked out fine here because I really liked the CM we had as our server.

It wouldn't have made sense to have a cozy round booth since we were only 2 people, but they looked so cool!

Here's more of the restaurant environment.

We got our menus, but I already knew what I wanted. Now as I look at all these appetizers, I would like to try everything! Howard wanted the tuna appetizer, but I don't think I was into eating sushi-ish stuff as much then as I like it now. The CM actually recommended the crab cake, so we went with that.

Here's the bottom of the menu.

For our appetizer, we split the "Blue Lump Crab Cake with Potato Crust, Green Cabbage Slaw, Cognac Mustard Sauce, and Remoulade," which was $12. At the time, I was so shocked that it was that expensive, but now after reading more of the Disney menus, I know that that's a normal price for WDW! The potato crust was really good, and I really enjoyed the flavors. Everything worked together, and I liked the slaw that was light and refreshing since the crab cake had that crunchy, fried texture to it.

Here am I in the restaurant.

And here's my Howard in the restaurant. Haha, every time I look at these Florida photos, I have to laugh at how long his hair was! He doesn't let it get that long now.

My choice for lunch was the Cobb salad, which is described as "Finely-chopped Greens, Turkey Breast, Bacon, Egg, Tomatoes, Crumbled Blue Cheese, Avocado, Chives, and Cobb Dressing." I absolutely love cobb salad at other restaurants because the combination of blue cheese and the addition of avocado really wins me over! It's all stuff that I like. Our server brought it over to the table, and tossed it in front of me. We didn't get a picture of it when the ingredients were all separated. I actually should have chosen to mix it myself.

I had seen this salad so much in pictures in other people's TRs that I was excited to have my own bowl in front of me!

I was very excited to eat it. Alas, the salad didn't live up to my expectations. I thought it would blow me away, but for whatever reason, I just didn't like it. I mean, it wasn't that it was disgusting. It just was too chopped up for my tastes, and I just couldn't distinguish any of the flavors. It just didn't seem like salad to me. I think I also didn't like the chives that were in there because it changed the taste for me. I was disappointed in this becacuse I had been looking forward to it for SO long! I guess I still do prefer to have the components kind of separated enough for me to choose what will go in each bite. It probably also didn't help that I started not to feel well. I think the pressure of my thinking that the restaurant was pricey so I had better finish my food was weighing on me, which actually made me feel nervous about eating. That wasn't an uncommon thought because I hate wasting food (my mom and I pretty much always bring home leftovers from restaurants), and this was expensive food!

Howard, thankfully, enjoyed his meal. He had Duck Two Ways, which was "House-cured Pastrami with a Vanilla-White Balsamic Melon Pear Salad, and Braised Leg with a Ginger-Carrot Puree, and Natural Reduction." That was $28.

Here's a close-up of the right side of his plate.

And here's the left side. I wasn't even feeling well enough at that point to try his meal, which is so insane because how could I not taste another dish when I had the option?!?

It looked like I barely ate anything by the time I finished. I was worried the whole time and really wasn't feeling well, so I took a break and went to the bathroom as Howard stayed behind to tellthe CM if he could pack it up for us. I was so afraid that the rest of our DHS day was going to be ruined because I didn't feel well and my stomach was bothering me. When I returned, my salad was packed for me, so at least I knew that I could eat it later. I usually feel better once we actually leave a restaurant. Haha, I'm really a mental person. We paid for the check, and then we headed outside where I did start feeling better almost immediately. Maybe super expensive restaurants aren't my thing! I'm happy with counter service!

It was definitely an experience eating here especially since it was both of our first ADRs ever in our lifetime. Would I eat here again? Probably not. I think I'd rather try other restaurants first before making a stop back here again. I really am satisfied with a burger with tons of cheese sauce, so it might be a while before I ever return here!

 

[Jennifer48]

I have to admit, HSM2 is my favorite with 3 in close 2nd. I totally agree with you about the first, its not Zac Efron singing! That makes me angry in any movie

I've read the 1st Kingdom Keepers book and I have the next 2 and they are next on my list to read! I can't wait to catch up. There is a book 4 now, correct?

We are not D23 members either. There was nothing about it that enticed me to buy in. The price was so high and all the major benefits would be for those that live in or able to visit CA often. Obviously, we are not. I'm ok with being a DVC member

I'm sorry you didn't enjoy your HBD lunch. That is one restaurant on my must-do list that I haven't made yet. I too enjoy Cobb salads so I hope it doesn't disappoint me if/when I'm able to try it!

 

[RachelNinja]

I have to admit, HSM2 is my favorite with 3 in close 2nd. I totally agree with you about the first, its not Zac Efron singing! That makes me angry in any movie

I've read the 1st Kingdom Keepers book and I have the next 2 and they are next on my list to read! I can't wait to catch up. There is a book 4 now, correct?

We are not D23 members either. There was nothing about it that enticed me to buy in. The price was so high and all the major benefits would be for those that live in or able to visit CA often. Obviously, we are not. I'm ok with being a DVC member

I'm sorry you didn't enjoy your HBD lunch. That is one restaurant on my must-do list that I haven't made yet. I too enjoy Cobb salads so I hope it doesn't disappoint me if/when I'm able to try it!

The reason I don't like HSM2 is because Sharpay really bothers me a lot in that way. Haha, she's so irritating. And I like Ryan, and Sharpay is so mean to him in that one! Plus, I also don't like when Troy is out on the open golf course screaming during that song. Haha. I like HSM3 because it reminds me of high school theater, which I loved!

Yup, there are 4 books so far! I think the next book is on the cruise line, so that'll be interesting since I don't know much about the cruise ships.

I remember seeing the D23 magazine at the Disney Store a few times, so it was nice that you could buy that separately, I guess. But that was also super expensive as well! I agree that it would have only been fun if you could actually go to the expos and conventions! That'd be such an experience!

I think the cobb salad just wasn't right for me because I do tend to deconstruct a lot of things that I eat. When I used to eat california rolls, I used to pull the separate items out to eat. I once in a while still do that with sushi rolls, haha. I think the mixed cobb salad bothered me because it prevented me from separating anything! I'd definitely think it's still worth the try. There are so many others who love it!

 

[wdwgirl03]

I would have to agree, the 3rd HSM is the best, followed by the original and then the second (atleast in my opinion). That show was a lot of fun. I sort of want to see the new Disney Channel Rocks one even though the only songs I would know are from HSM! haha

Some of the displays in One Man's Dream are really cool. The one of the fan's room/office cracks me up because I'm pretty sure that when I get my own apartment that's what it'll look like. That's crazy that your visit was the first time you've been since the hat's been there!

Bummer about the salad not living up to its expectations.

 

[RachelNinja]

I would have to agree, the 3rd HSM is the best, followed by the original and then the second (atleast in my opinion). That show was a lot of fun. I sort of want to see the new Disney Channel Rocks one even though the only songs I would know are from HSM! haha

Some of the displays in One Man's Dream are really cool. The one of the fan's room/office cracks me up because I'm pretty sure that when I get my own apartment that's what it'll look like. That's crazy that your visit was the first time you've been since the hat's been there!

Bummer about the salad not living up to its expectations.

I wouldn't know anything from the new Disney Channel Rocks show either! It's smart on Disney's part to make it though since there are a lot of younger kids who think they're too cool to like HSM even though they like the other Disney shows!

Haha, I'd love to see how you'd decorate your own apartment!

Yeah, I'm upset that it wasn't as amazing as I thought it would be, but I'm glad I tried it or I'd still be thinking about it!

 

[Bridora]

We've never been big on HSM in our house. My DD was too young when it came out, and it's not something we've really gone back to watch. We did, however catch Sharpay's Fabulous Adventure a couple of times this summer.

I've always wondered if I'd like the Hollywood Brown Derby or not. I don't really think it would be something I'd suggest, but if my DH or one of the kids wanted to try it, I would. That salad was really chopped wasn't it? And I'm kinda the same way about those kinds of tile floors. I think it must just look dirty? But then again, they can be really pretty at the same time!

 

[RachelNinja]

We've never been big on HSM in our house. My DD was too young when it came out, and it's not something we've really gone back to watch. We did, however catch Sharpay's Fabulous Adventure a couple of times this summer.

I've always wondered if I'd like the Hollywood Brown Derby or not. I don't really think it would be something I'd suggest, but if my DH or one of the kids wanted to try it, I would. That salad was really chopped wasn't it? And I'm kinda the same way about those kinds of tile floors. I think it must just look dirty? But then again, they can be really pretty at the same time!

I have to admit that as much as I love HSM3, I actually miss the older Disney Channel movies! They were on ALL the time, and it was possible to watch bits and pieces of the same movie once a week! Haha.

Seriously, that was one CHOPPED salad! The texture was just too odd for me. I would've preferred it be a little less chopped. Yeah! Maybe that's why I don't like the tile floors! They remind me of bathrooms too.

 

[RachelNinja]

Friday, April 9: Wandering Around DHS

The last time I updated, Howard and I had just finished our lunch at the Brown Derby. We decided to just take it easy and walk around outside. The warmth and the sunshine made me feel better pretty much automatically. Just being out of the restaurant was a relief. Like I said last time, I'm kind of a wackadoo because I have anxiety issues. Getting away from a place where I felt anxious or felt sick usually makes me feel better.

From what I remember, we tried going to the Indiana Jones show, but they had already closed it off to any other audience members, so we knew we had to catch a show later in the day. It all worked out though in terms of the timing, which I'll explain later. Well, since we were in the area, I purposely wanted to go around and see the well and pull on the rope!

It was so funny to hear all the phrases that the "guy" at the bottom said in response to my pulling the rope! Even though the sign encourages you to pull it, I'm the kind of person that never would have done it unless I had known that it was allowed. Thanks to the DIS, I knew it was part of Disney's magic!

Later on in the day, I had Howard try it out and I recorded it. I like the one where it sounds as if something is breaking. I also thought it was funny when a kid was like, "Who's in there?" By the way, the reason why his facial expression is funny is because apparently people were walking by and giving him a look that he was doing something he wasn't supposed to be doing!



We then walked around some more and ended up around Star Tours. I wanted to watch the show with Darth Vader, but it was a little hot under the sun.

Haha, not the show with Darth Vader ... it's called the Jedi Training Academy or something. Either way, don't you think that he looks a little short? I wonder if they do that on purpose so he's not as intimidating to little kids.

How adorable! I think the kids who want to do this are very brave! Of course, one of my favorite videos is the one in DLR where the girl wants to join forces with Darth Vader instead of fight against him!

These Stormtroopers weren't as cool because they didn't start dancing or anything! Haha, I love the video of the dances during Star Wars Weekends when they used pop songs like Spice Girls.

We didn't ride at that time because I didn't want to deal with a lot of movement since we did just eat. This was also in 2010 so it was before it was redone to be smoother. I am very excited to try the new version, and I know Howard is excited to be there for Star Wars Weekends during our Disneymoon, but that's for another PTR or TR (I still haven't finished this one!)

We really were just wandering and having such a fun time being able to take pictures whenever we wanted and go wherever we wanted! This is the life!

 

[LilAnn]

Um, I totally forgot that you still had this TR going. Good thing I was subbed to it!

Isn't it the best feeling when you can just tour the parks at a nice pace and not have a huge agenda? I love touring it that way, although we tend to have characters on our agenda.

I would totally have been way too afraid to get up and go near Darth Vader as a kid. Brave little ones.

Um, so fellow Gilmore Girls lover and fellow admirer of the south.....have you watched the show Hart of Dixie on the CW? I will admit that I love that show and love that they use the set from Gilmore Girls! I know they totally use stereotypes (and not always good ones) of the south, but I totally love that show. It's one of my shows (of which I have way too many).

 

[Jennifer48]

I learned about pulling the rope on the DIS also! I never would have done that on my own.

 

[RachelNinja]

Um, I totally forgot that you still had this TR going. Good thing I was subbed to it!

Isn't it the best feeling when you can just tour the parks at a nice pace and not have a huge agenda? I love touring it that way, although we tend to have characters on our agenda.

I would totally have been way too afraid to get up and go near Darth Vader as a kid. Brave little ones.

Um, so fellow Gilmore Girls lover and fellow admirer of the south.....have you watched the show Hart of Dixie on the CW? I will admit that I love that show and love that they use the set from Gilmore Girls! I know they totally use stereotypes (and not always good ones) of the south, but I totally love that show. It's one of my shows (of which I have way too many).

Haha, I sometimes forget that I still have this TR going as well. I gotta finish the two before my 2012 trips!

It was so relaxing just being able to wander and notice details. I can't wait to do that on our Disneymoon since it'll hopefully be less crowded (at least compared to Easter week)!

Haha, I actually haven't even heard of Hart of Dixie! I don't turn the TV on anymore. I just watch Grey's Anatomy and The Office on Hulu. Most of the time, I'm on Netflix streaming. My latest obsession has been Lie to Me! If I have a chance, I'll check out Hart of Dixie though. It's probably a completely different type of show than Grey's and The Office!

I learned about pulling the rope on the DIS also! I never would have done that on my own.

Exactly! Thank goodness for the DIS telling us to follow the sign!

 

[RachelNinja]

Friday, April 9: Hanging with the Muppets by Radiator Springs

We finally decided to visit an attraction since we had stumbled upon Muppet*Vision 3-D! This queue was so short that we didn't really get to enjoy all the details. I remember waiting for this show for such a long time years and years and years ago. The line was wrapped around every possible area! And of course, back then, I wasn't as interested in all these hilarious details like the eyes on the lights! And we did check for the key under the mat! It was quick though and in passing, so we didn't get a photo.

Only reading Disney trivia did I realize that this was a net full of Jello. (Haha, I wonder if they really wanted to say it was the REAL Jello as in the Jello brand because it is actually gelatin! Just like Q-tips are really cotton swabs and Vaseline is really petroleum jelly ... I digressed.) Of course, that was when I learned that it was for Annette Funicello.

Cute soldiers above! From what I remember, they're in the show too, so I thought that was cute how it all connected from the pre-show.

That's Jim Henson as a puppet. This is a blurry picture because I had Howard's DSLR at this point and was trying to take pictures with it. I was not doing well!

There's Sam Eagle! Extremely patriotic. And extremely creepy looking with those eyebrows.

I don't know what this spaceship/submarine thing is (I remember reading about it), but this is when Howard told me that I need to hold the camera still until I heard a particular sound since it was so dark in the queue area and it needed to be held in place for a bit longer.

In the theater, I had to take a picture of Waldorf and Statler. Those hecklers!

I guess I really did not remember this show at all or I never knew it was an actual person, but when I saw Sweetums walk through, I was so surprised!

At the end of the show, I snapped some shots of Waldorf and Statler again but with the holes in the walls.

There's that slightly annoying bunny with the holes in the walls! I had to look it up; it was Bean Bunny! Okay, I admit I like his name.

Here's the Yell and Howl projector, which is in reference to the Bell and Howell projectors that ordinary theaters use (that's from the Hidden Magic book).

We finished the show and headed on outside to catch a glimpse of the Miss Piggy billboard. Talk about larger than life!

I also love the thing that's top secret! I'd probably be afraid of it in the dark if I didn't know it was there though.

From the Muppets exit, we saw they had some Cars merchandise. The little Lightning radio controlled car was cute!

At this point, we decided to wait for Lightning since Howard is a huge fan!

Here's Mater from the line.

And I had to take a close up of Mater's teeth for some reason!

Here's the back of the Muppets. They really did a great job detailing that entire building inside and out.

Haha, there wasn't much else to do waiting in the sun. The line had a ton of kids too! Here's Howard with the Radiator Springs sign. The kid wouldn't move out of the way, so I just took it with him in there tugging on the rope.

Cute Luigi's sale sign.

Finally finally finally, Howard gets there to meet his favorite!

I took a bunch of pictures, and then the CM that was there told me to go in the picture too, which was nice of him.

I thought it was interesting how they cut out Mater! Haha, I guess they saw just how much Howard liked Lightning.

We were done with our pictures and then saw the machine for souvenir pennies. He had to get it, of course!

Where would we go next? Well, as we were walking away from the Cars area, I saw these barrels there, and I had to take a picture because I thought it was funny that it said itching powder!

But wait, did you see that backpack there in the picture as well? Because I happened to see this picture of the itching powder, I then ended up seeing someone famous! I just HAD to stick around and meet this person. Who was the owner of that backpack? Any guesses? Stay tuned to find out! Let me just say that it was the BEST part of the ENTIRE 2010 vacation!

 

[NeverlandClub23]

Any guesses?

Finn Whitman?

Great update! Can't wait to read more!! I can NEVER remember to do all the cool things I read about on the DIS when I'm actually at the park . I love the net full of Jello! Annette Funicello is my Dad's FAVORITE person, so I always tell him this when we go to see the Muppets. And it's like the first time he hears it every time .

Your wedding is getting close!! Are you more excited for the wedding or the honeymoon?

 

[RachelNinja]

Finn Whitman?

Great update! Can't wait to read more!! I can NEVER remember to do all the cool things I read about on the DIS when I'm actually at the park . I love the net full of Jello! Annette Funicello is my Dad's FAVORITE person, so I always tell him this when we go to see the Muppets. And it's like the first time he hears it every time .

Your wedding is getting close!! Are you more excited for the wedding or the honeymoon?

Haha, how cool would that be to meet Finn Whitman! Although if I really did, I'd be scared about what he was battling next! I'm curious to know how the next book will be since it's on a cruise ship, and I don't know much about them to imagine it all.

My dad would be the exact same way about any trivia I'd tell him! I'm so glad Howard loves Disney too. I remember riding Splash Mountain once with my dad trying to share all the trivia and secrets with him, but he was probably only half listening!

Yeah, unfortunately the wedding is getting closer. Haha, I'm not looking forward to it at all because I don't want to be the center of attention. I'm also not planning anything at this point because I just don't care! That's probably a bad thing. I mean, I guess TECHNICALLY we need invitations, but it doesn't seem very important to me! The Disneymoon, on the other hand, is EXCITING! DISNEY WORLD ON PROPERTY!

 

[RachelNinja]

Friday, April 9: My Buddies Lou Mongello and Jim Korkis

In the last update, I said that I saw the itching powder barrel, and that's what made me notice the backpack.

As you can see by the title of this post, the backpack belonged to LOU MONGELLO! I turned and saw the two men recording something, and I told Howard, "I think that's Lou Mongello!" Isn't that one of the most exciting things EVER?!?

Since we were still just enjoying the day and not on a schedule, I was willing to wait and wait and wait for however long it took before I could just meet him and get a picture if he was willing. We settled down by the "garage" area and just sat down. I was so giddy with excitement and nerves!

Those simple barrels! I'm so glad that we missed the Indiana Jones show and that everything was timed perfectly for us to be there at that exact time!

Since we were sitting, we really had a chance to examine the details of the back of the Muppet building. I love that Bunsen is at the top of it! He was definitely one of my favorites.

I love how the paint is all messy and that it says "Animal was here."

We waited in that area for about 15 minutes, so we had time to examine everything. There was this air conditioning vent above us, and we were discussing whether it was made to look old on purpose or if they got it old so that it would fit into the "scene."

I wanted to take a picture with me pointing to where Lou was, but I apparently am directionally challenged. Howard was laughing when he said that I was pointing in the wrong direction. Let's just say I was pointing out the itching powder barrels again!

Can you believe that Lou Mongello is right there?!? Just that past December, Howard and I also decided to forego regular Christmas presents and instead got the Celebrations magazine subscription. I also watched some of Lou's videos with that snack one in Japan being one of my favorites for some reason! That's why, if you remember, I had Howard take the picture by the koi pond when we were in Japan in Epcot!

Waiting waiting waiting ... it's almost time! I wonder if during that time, they realized we were sitting there and stalking them. Okay, more like that I was sitting there and stalking them, haha.

When they got up, I slowly approached them and said, "Are you Lou Mongello?" Of course, he said yes, and I don't even remember what happened in terms of the actual flow of the conversation! Lou did introduce us to Jim Korkis, who is actually a Disney Historian! Isn't that insane? A DISNEY HISTORIAN! I told them that I noticed them sitting there and recording only because I was taking a picture of the itching powder, which they seemed to really like because we were noticing the Disney details.

I asked them how they each got interested in Disney. Lou said that they were both single and not married, haha, so that's why they had the time. Jim said that he would watch the films and write down names of people in the credits and start calling them to try to make contacts. Isn't that evidence of someone who was so passionate? He'd actually look up their numbers and call them on the phone!

It was fun because they were even asking about us and wheere we were from, and when we said NY, Lou asked from what part. Howard said he was from Brooklyn, and Lou was remembering the times that he drove down the Belt Parkway. We said that we were there with my parents and that we had never stayed on property and that we wouldn't until our honeymoon. Lou asked us when we were getting married, and Howard said, "I have to ask first," haha. They then said that we must stay at a deluxe hotel (that'll be happening during our Disneymoon so yay!) and that after that, we should go on a cruise, and then we should go to Disneyland! I said that I hope we get to do those things if we can save up the money, and they gave us suggestions of specific hotels that are inexpensive that would allow us to visit more often (I don't remember what off-property hotels they said because I know that for the most part, we'll be at my parents' timeshare). Lou said that he would live and sleep in his car if there was a place to shower in the parks!

During our chat, I mentioned how I had Howard stand by the same rock in the koi pond in Japan so that I could get the picture of him there. I said, "Stand here because Lou Mongello stood here!" I also said that we were new subscribers to Celebrations magazine, and he pulled out a few back issues from his backpack and asked which ones we did and didn't have. I picked out an issue (when I came home, I realized we had that one, but I hadn't read it yet, but I knew we had the others too), and they both signed it. Jim Korkis writes for Celebrations as well. So cool that they signed it! Lou also gave us WDW Radio pins.

Jim and I actually got into a conversation about Disney educational materials once he found out that I was a teacher. He said that years ago, Disney released materials that I could probably find on eBay that had lessons or something in it. I told them that I try to fit Disney into my lessons or in my examples with them, and Jim said that I was "corrupting the generation" but in a good way!

It was a lot of conversation between them and me, but Howard also talked too. They were talking about some trivia things since we said we had just come from the Cars meet and greet area, and Howard knew the stuff about Lightning McQueen and his number 95 (the year that Toy Story came out). He and Jim were discussing those things.

At the end of our conversation, I asked if I could take a picture with him, and he obliged (well, they actually said it'd be okay if we cropped out their stomachs or photoshopped it out!). Look, it's me and my buddy, Lou! Yes, I now call him my buddy, haha.

Then Lou said, "You should have gotten his picture first!" I like that they just seemed so friendly and at ease to joke with each other. More people may know Lou Mongello by looks (or at least I know I did), but Jim Korkis is like, a legend!

They pointed out that it was an expensive conversation that was going to cost us money since they had suggested staying at a deluxe, going on a cruse, and searching eBay, haha! We said it was nice to meet them and talk with them, and we were finally on our way. I don't remember exactly how long we chatted, but it was a fairly long time! I thought it was going to be a quick hi-picture-autograph-goodbye and not an actual conversation! I have to say that those two were definitely the highlight of my entire 2010 trip! They were so friendly and very eager to talk about Disney. I absolutely love this community!

(And thank goodness for trip journals because even though I barely wrote anything on a day to day basis since I figured we had pictures, I purposely wrote down what I remembered from our conversation when we were driving on the way home to NY. Phew, who would've thought it'd be THAT long before I wrote about it on DIS!)

 

[LilAnn]

Wow, that sounds like an amazing encounter! I love that they were willing to just stand there and chat with you. Funny, I was just about to log on and post that I hope you didn't keep us in suspense for too long and you already had this update up. How awesome that you got the autographed magazine too. Sounds like they really appreciated your enthusiasm for Disney, too.