What! Cancel our trip to WDW!! No way!!!

[Teri1]

Intro: Me- Teri and DH- Mickey (prefers to be called Mick to avoid references to the Mouse!)
We were supposed to be going with DD and fiancé but DD got a new job and couldn’t go. We just could not cancel because we needed another break from work. (Went on the Disney Wonder at the end of Aug. but four days was just not long enough.) So instead of a road trip we decided to fly.

Day One: On Fri. Oct. 1st we were so excited to get our eight-night WDW vacation under way. Got a text from SW on our way to the airport in Columbus that our flight was delayed. ☹ Not a good way to start according to DH, but I do not like to let things ruin my trips so I encouraged DH to try to be positive. We had time to get dinner at the airport. Then we get another text that we have to change gates, so glad we signed up for South West’s text alerts (Some people were late getting to our full plane and were complaining that they had to find out the changes by overhead paging).

So we are on our way to Orlando an hour later than planed, around 6:30 pm, I think. DH starts again about now we might as well give up our plan to eat at Wolfgang Puck’s Express later. I told him that will be ok we can eat there a couple of other days on our trip to make up for it. We get to the airport and pick up our luggage and head for Magical Express. We got turned around headed for the desks on the A side and we were supposed to go to B side. Once we figured it out we were on our way and getting in line for our bus to CBR (This is our first time staying at CBR). A family coming up in one of the lines to the right of us are having a fit and being rude to the CM’s who direct people to the ME buses. They had picked the wrong line and were asked to move to the correct one for their resort and they must have been tired and cranky and were quite embarrassing to watch. I wanted to say “chill out, your going to DW” so bad, but didn’t want to cause an even bigger scene if they didn’t take my comment well. We were just glad they weren’t staying at our resort ☺. It was less than a 5 min. wait and we were on our bus.

We got to CBR just as the fireworks at EPCOT were going off and the CM out front took us across the street to watch them while we waited for the van to take us to our room. We did the online check-in and everything was done and took us less than min. to get our room key and info. I had asked for a first floor room close to a bus stop and the food court. We got Martinique 23, and a room facing a little courtyard (DH loved that because he loves to smoke Sosa cigars from DD). Once we got our stuff put away, we headed out to find Old Port Royale to get something to eat. We found our way to the sidewalk beside the lake and followed it over. It wasn’t that close, but the grounds are so beautiful we didn’t care. We really liked the CBR food court area and shopping, of course it could get crowded at times. We did not eat at the restaurant there because I didn’t care for what was on the menu and we just ate counter service for breakfast and snacks the rest of our stay. End of day one. (Hope I am not boring you, I haven't done a trip report in a long time.)

 

[Teri1]

Day Two: We headed to Epcot on our first day in the parks. We have 5 day hopper passes and plan to rest and shop on our off days. We started on the right in Future world, I had to see Captain EO and get fast passes for Soarin, we had an ADR for Coral Reef for dinner, so we walked to the Food and Wine booths in WS for our lunch. Since we had the DP for free on this trip we used our snack credits on the more expensive food samples. DH loved the escargot at the France booth and I loved the seafood pie at the Ireland booth. We made it around to the Belgium booth where I got Belgium Waffles for dessert, Yum! We headed back toward FW and Soarin. We rode a couple of other things and then had dinner at Coral Reef. We love the food there, we had crab cakes for an appetizer and I had the salmon for my entrée and the Choc. Wave for desert. DH had Scallops and Mussels and Crème Brulee for desert. We headed over to Mexico and rode the ride there and headed back to CBR to relax. End of Day Two.

Day Three: We slept in and went to Old Port Royale for breakfast and headed to DHS, got off the bus and headed toward the entrance when I realized I had left my backpack on my chair at OPR. I tried to get DH to go on and enjoy DHS while I rode the bus back to our resort but he said we were in this thing together so he went along. I found my backpack where I left it and we headed back to DHS. DH was ready to throw in the towel for the day because things weren’t going as planned and we were going to be late for our ADR at Sci-Fi Drive-In. I told him to relax and we will go and see if they will let us eat anyway, have a little faith. Things don’t always go as planned and if they don’t let us in we will have a counter service meal. Just chill!!! (this is beginning to become my motto ☺). We arrived 30 min. late for our ADR and there was a line at the door. When I got up there to check in there was no problem, the CM said it would only be a few min. so DH heads to the restroom and while he is gone they call our name. No DH around so the CM said I had to wait for my party to return before being seated so she said to just let her know when he gets back. I try to call him on my cell and he is lost. He went into the ABC Commissary and got turned around. 10 min. later we are seated and all is well. I enjoyed the black and blue salad and a sundae, and DH had a burger and a choc cake desert. We always eat here on our trips, we enjoy watching the old clips.

DHS was so crowded no way were going to get to ride TSM, no fast passes left. We head over to ride RnRC. It only had a 30 min. wait and I thought that was fine so we get in line and 30 min. later the ride had broke down or was delayed for some reason and I had to go to the restroom. (I don’t want to cause any DIS’ers to flame me but I had to leave the line!) I take a water pill and I kept thinking what if my bladder bursts on the ride!, if I try to hold it. Finally I tell DH I need to leave the line, he says all the things I have heard previously on these boards about how people aren’t going to like me leaving and re-entering. I told him if they won’t let me back in, I will wait on him and to stay in line and enjoy the ride. I make my way through the walled line and get under the ropes to head over to the restrooms. On my way back I see a CM at the line entrance and ask him if I could return to my place in line. He is nice and says of course as long as a member of my party is still in line. I thanked him and made my way back to DH saying excuse me a hundred times. DH had not moved far and the line was now moving again. I felt much better and I had a more enjoyable experience than if I would have waited for fear of being treated rudely for trying to mess us the line order.

After riding RnRC and TT we head out of the park to the boats to go to the BC to eat at Cape May Café. We love the seaside buffet there and our CM Leslie was very nice and we enjoyed talking to her. It was not crowded and we did not have to wait 2 min. to be seated either. After dinner we walked over to EPCOT and got a seat for the Eat to the Beat Concert with Taylor Dayne. I loved the show and knew all the words to her songs. DH did not have a clue, but endured for me. Afterwards we headed back to CBR to rest. End of day three.

 

[Teri1]

Hope you all don't mind my continuing this TR, since this is my only day off this week and I wanted to get it done before it was too late to bother.


Day Four: We slept in and had breakfast at OPR and went swimming at the pool and enjoyed the beautiful sunny day relaxing. We took the bus over to DD for lunch at Wolfgang Pucks Express (DH absolutely love the pizza here). We did some shopping, DH surprised me by wanting to buy tickets for Tuesday's 9pm La Nouba show (This was the first time for us to see the show due to the fact that DH didn’t think he would like it), and returned to the resort to get ready for our late dinner ADR at Ohana, this is our favorite restaurant at WDW.

We took the bus to MK and the little boat to PR. We enjoyed our food, but did not get to hear the music for Wishes due to the fact that something wasn’t working, that was a bit of disappointment, but we enjoyed talking to the people around us though.

Afterwards we head to the monorail and the buses at MK. Big mistake, there was a huge line for CBR since people were leaving MK after Wishes. I thought since it was EMH it wouldn’t be so bad. Anyway, people were complaining and making a fuss around us and I told them that they will see the back up and call for more buses. Within 5 to 10 min. there had been 4 buses and we were on the 4th bus and headed to CBR. No reason to get all worked up. I noticed on the bus people complaining that they had people standing in front of them and the bus was packed, but I figured they must be first timers and not used to the Disney bus system. DH and I talked later about how easy people get upset about having to wait. They certainly can’t expect everything to be perfect and run smoothly and always be first and never have to stand or have people standing all around your seat on the buses. We said looks like one of these days someone will lose it, because of their high expectations. (When we got back home a week later we hear about the guy who tried to choke a Disney bus driver over being denied entrance to a full bus.) “Just Chill” people! When something goes smooth, like getting a bus right away or having the first stop on the bus back to the resort we always say it’s “Disney Magic” at work. End of day four.

Day Five: We went to AK on Tues. Oct. 5th and got to ride all the rides we wanted, since we got there right after it opened. We got FP for the Safari and walked on EE and rode it twice, walked on Dinosaur, and went back for the Safari. We ate lunch at Rainforest Café and went back to see It’s Tough to be a Bug. DH does not like walking around to see the animals, but I do. So he did let me go see the gorillas, (I could stay there all day taking pics and video). There was a baby gorilla and I just loved watching it and it's mother interact. We didn’t want to stay for any shows so we headed over to the AKL to relax before our ADR at Boma.

We relaxed in the chairs near the animals and then DH was able to get the attention of a giraffe by waving his white handkerchief in the air above his head. She was quite a way back and looking towards us and as he was about to give up, she started walking our way. He kept waving and she came pretty close. A CM must have been watching us and came up behind us to say hello. She was probably wondering what we were trying to do. DH said he could get the attention of antelope in Colorado with this method and thought he would try it with a giraffe.

I was now hungry so we decided to show up a little early for our ADR at Boma and we were seated right away. DH loves Boma and his favorite thing was the butternut squash soup (He ate three bowls). I enjoyed the roasted chicken, the different sides (I can’t remember the names), and the deserts. The waiter was slow but since it was a buffet it really didn’t matter. We definitely weren’t rushed to leave!

After dinner we headed to DD to see La Nouba. We had B tickets and were in the third row back from the stage. We thoroughly enjoyed this show. DH said he should have went to this years ago, but was glad he finally did. We had people flying over our heads and the music and singer were awesome. We bought the DVD and souvenir book to take home since we couldn’t take pics. It was a perfect end to day Five.

 

[Teri1]

I hope you all haven't fallen asleep. Sorry I don't have pictures, I hate to admit it, but I don't know how to add them and I don't have Photo Bucket.


Day Six: We went to MK after breakfast and was able to ride all the rides we had planned on by using FP. We started in Tomorrow Land and rode SM after getting a FP for BL. We had fun watching Monsters Inc. where DH got spotted because of his dessert camo hat and everyone was told that he was buying Churros for everyone after the show. We were then able to ride BL with our FP, and then we headed over to get fast passes for BTM and then rode Splash Mt and PoC. We ate lunch after using our FP for BTM at Columbia Harbor House; we did not like it this time. DH got fish and fries and did not like the fish, I got the shrimp basket so I gave him some of mine, and it was just ok.

We went to the HM and back over to Space Mt. with FP. We were done with MK so we headed to EPCOT. We started on the left side of Future World and took the boat to Germany to have dinner at the Biergarden. We love this restaurant because we lived in Germany for three years and it is the closest we can get to our old home. The food is not quite the same, but there are a few hints. We got to see the show while we ate, and then headed off to find a seat to watch the Sugar Ray concert. We got the third row from the stage, the same as for Taylor Dane. DH enjoyed Sugar Ray because he knew all of their songs. They put on a great show. We were pretty tired so we head back to CBR, another perfect ending to day six.

Day Seven: This was another free day so after breakfast we relaxed by the pool and DH did the laundry. We went back to Wolfgang Pucks Express for lunch and shopping. I loved the Tren-D store and tried to get a bus to the Swan and Dolphin so we could go to Fantasia Mini Golf. We waited over 30min and gave up and walked to the CSR bus stop and took a bus there for our ADR at Maya Grill. We were an hour early, but we thought we would give it a try. They seated us anyway and we had the most romantic dinner. There was a man playing an electric guitar and the music was enjoyable. DH loves prime rib and that is why I picked this restaurant, the food was perfect and the service was great. We will definitely return to this restaurant and maybe stay at this resort. We walked around to check it out and will consider this resort the next time we go to the world.

After dinner we took the bus to HS and the boat to S&D to go to Fantasia Golf. As usual, DH beat me at mini-golf. We went the same way back and caught the bus back to CBR. Again we ran into some people complaining because the bus that had just left did not have room for them. We had just walked up to the line as the bus pulled away, and the lady beside us was complaining about not getting on the bus, I told her it won’t be long till we get another bus and you can sit instead of standing on the way back to CBR! (“Just Chill” people!) It wasn’t five minutes before a bus came and the lady was saying this is much better than standing on a full bus. I had to smile on that one, more Disney magic.
End of day seven.

 

[Teri1]

This is the last day in the parks and we wanted to be early to DHS to get a FP for TSM. We got them and headed over to RnRC, which was broke down (and remained broken the whole time we were at DHS), so we waited in line for ToT. I love riding this ride with newbies! It makes it so much more fun when there are first time riders screaming. RnRC was still down, so we watched Beauty and the Beast while we waited for it to reopen. We then went over to the Studio Backlot Tour and waited about 15 min. in line when they announced that the water feature was broke down and did not know when it would be up and running. DH is done with this park now.

We head to the boat for EPCOT. We have a 2pm. ADR for Via Napoli, I had read about this restaurant from a review on the Disboards done by Dizneeat. She had pics of the food and the restaurant that convinced me to get ADR’s. We ate a big breakfast at OPR, but now we were hungry. Via Napoli was very busy, and we were a few minutes late, but we weren’t turned away as my DH feared. We didn’t wait too long for a table, but got to see a man throw a fit because he had been waiting more than the promised time given him. (“Just Chill!” people}. I was so embarrassed for his family, it was obvious the place was crowded and the CM’s were doing their best to get people in. There was plenty to watch while you wait, with the guys tossing the dough and the pizza’s being made and put in the beautiful fired ovens. You could see it all through the glass waiting area. We were seated less than 15min. and it was obvious the server was a bit stressed. We were as pleasant as we could be to get her to calm down and not worry about us being demanding, because we are not. She was smiling by desert and the restaurant was starting to slow down a bit by then. We loved the pizza, I had pepperoni and DH had one called Coppa Amarena that had assorted vegetables on it. The deserts were wonderful!!

After our meal we went to ride Maelstrom at Norway. We waited about 20 min. in line and then got on the boat and headed up the hill and we heard a loud bang! The ride stopped, and we waited and waited and waited! There was an announcement overhead that told us to stay put and they would assist us shortly, then CM’s came by to tell us to stay put and they would get us off after they got all the boats in front of us. We entertained ourselves by talking to the other people in the boat. There were a couple of Canadian ladies in front of us that had us in stitches joking about our predicament. We took pictures of each other stuck on the ride while we waited to be “rescued”! Now after we were helped off the ride and returned to daylight, DH was done with the day of broken down rides. I begged him to take a chance on one more ride, so we rode Spaceship Earth, did some shopping and went back to the resort to pack and enjoy the evening. End of day eight.

Day Nine: We ate breakfast at OPR, did some last minute shopping, and got everything ready for the van driver to take us and our luggage to the ME bus. We got there just as a bus was almost ready to leave. The van driver (a very friendly man from Jamaica), asked the bus driver to let us on and we were off to OIA and Columbus, OH. We had a great trip and will be looking forward to an opportunity to go again some day. That is the end of this Oct 1st to the 9th trip report. Thanks, Teri.

 

[sweetpea29488]

Hi Teri1

Just finished reading your TR. Looks like you two had a great time at Disney.

 

[Teri1]

Hi Teri1

Just finished reading your TR. Looks like you two had a great time at Disney.

Yes, we are now empty nesters and are enjoying our vacations together.

 

[dizneeat]

Sorry Teri I am late to the party! It's been really busy here as I am taking my class to Vienna for a week tomorrow and I am in charge of everything. I will read your trip report during the train ride to Vienna tomorrow as it is already 11pm and I need to get up at 5am!
I'll get back to you from Vienna! Give Mickey a hug from me and Tom!

 

[Teri1]

Mick said to tell you and Tom hello and have a safe trip to Vienna. We saw on the news last night that Vienna was one of the best places in the world to live. Wish we had taken the time to visit when we lived in Europe.

 

[dizneeat]

Merry Christmas, Teresa and Mickey!