What is This Wet Stuff Falling on Us? September 2021 Food and Wine TR! (RL Update 10/2!!)

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So as mentioned in my last post, I just started a cooking website, and part of the fun of keeping it up is trying new recipes. Well this week one of the recipes I wanted to figure out was how to make the Avocado margarita from La Cava del Tequila in Epcot.

I'm happy to say, I think I did it, I think I figured out the closest replica to the La Cava Del Tequila Avocado margarita I can make!

It only took trying 10 variations and a ridiculous number of limes, but I found one that tastes pretty close to the real thing! And don't worry, I didn't drink 10 margaritas in one weekend. After the first day of making whole margaritas I realized it may be better to halve the ingredients so I wasn't walking around drunk all weekend.

The only thing missing was the hibiscus salt, I ordered some but it's on backorder. So I can't wait to try once that arrives, but until then this one is pretty darn delicious! You can check out the recipe here!​

 

[Wood Nymph]

I'm going to try your recipe for roasted Brussel sprouts. I haven't been able to find the correct cooking temp and time yet but yours look good.

 

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Day 8, Part 1: A Slow Day at Animal Kingdom!

We were up nice an early this morning, at 5:45. I opted to stay in bed until 6 since I was still tired, but eventually got up and got ready for the day. We were moving slowly this morning, but it was ok since we didn’t really have any solid plans, this morning was our slow morning at AK, so we were there for pictures, shopping, and just exploring and not worrying about rides.

We ended up missing the first bus and ended up on the one that came at 7:04. Once again, since this seems to have been the trend for the week, just as we were about to leave a family ran up and asked if they bus could wait for them. This time it wasn’t for their family to join them, no, this time was so they could enjoy their coffee at the bus stop before getting on board. Seriously, people suck. Shockingly, the bus driver agreed! So we sat there for about 5 minutes for this family to just stand outside the bus casually enjoying their coffee.

Finally, they finished up and hopped on the bus. While we were waiting for them a ton of people arrived and got on the bus, so it was packed.

Even though the bus was already full from the YC, it still swung by the BC to pack a few more people on. Finally, we were on our way and after a quick drive we arrived at AK!

Our first stop upon arriving was a photopass photographer out front!



We also swung by the Up surround photopass off to the side.




Scary Kevin!

Finally we made our way into the park. Since the park was already open at that point, there was no wait and we quickly made our way in. We went right through the Oasis to avoid the masses heading to FoP, and it was really nice over on that side, we had the path to ourselves!

Once in we, surprise surprise, found more photopass photographers!




Not scary Kevin

During our trip they were putting out the 50th statues in the parks, and between the first time we went to AK and this trip, the ones at the front of the park had arrived! So of course we had to go get pictures of them!







Finally after all our pictures, we decided to stroll around the park taking in all the theming and of course taking pictures.

It was EMPTY over in Asia!



Eventually we made our way to Africa and decided since we were there, and the posted wait was only 5 minutes, to ride the sarafi!

The wait ended up taking a bit over 20 minutes instead of 5, but it looked like they just opened, so maybe it was a late opening for the day?

There weren’t as many animals out this early in the morning as we normally see, so not the best safari, but it was still enjoyable. We got to see a lot of the babies again, so that was always a plus! Oh, and we had the funniest driver, every single fact he had about the animals had to do with poop.


Baby Hippo! So stinking cute!




Baby Giraffe!


I feel like it’s so rare for us to see a cheetah, let alone two! These guys were interested in something!

Once off the safari we decided to head over to the Maharaja jungle trek, but when we arrived we saw it didn’t open until 9, so we kept walking on over to EE!

On the way we took a bunch of pictures.







EE was a total walk on, and we almost had the entire train to ourselves!



Next up: What is this Wet Stuff Falling on Us? Animal Kingdom Version.​

 

[Wood Nymph]

We ended up missing the first bus and ended up on the one that came at 7:04. Once again, since this seems to have been the trend for the week, just as we were about to leave a family ran up and asked if they bus could wait for them. This time it wasn’t for their family to join them, no, this time was so they could enjoy their coffee at the bus stop before getting on board. Seriously, people suck. Shockingly, the bus driver agreed! So we sat there for about 5 minutes for this family to just stand outside the bus casually enjoying their coffee.

Maybe if the bus drivers refused requests to wait, people would get the hint and stop this selfish behavior.
I'm surprised that the bus stopped at BC.

There weren’t as many animals out this early in the morning as we normally see, so not the best safari, but it was still enjoyable. We got to see a lot of the babies again, so that was always a plus! Oh, and we had the funniest driver, every single fact he had about the animals had to do with poop.

We were on the safari one early morning and saw a huge group of giraffes running down the hill. It looked like they were let out of their cages at 8:30am. It was cool to see.

It is nice to have a driver deviate from the standard dialog once in awhile. We had a really fun one who went off script, too. It made it a whole new experience.

EE was a total walk on, and we almost had the entire train to ourselves!

I love being in a section without any other people. It is also nice to skip the rides and just enjoy the park.

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Wow. I cannot believe (I believe you that it happened) that a bus driver would decide to keep a bus of people waiting so a group could have coffee. Were there others on the bus yet? Maybe the family thought it was an empty bus when they asked? But the driver obviously know you were on board -- and what if you had an ADR to get to? That's infuriating. Glad you had a good rest of the day. I love the safari - different every time. And some drivers are truly outstanding and really get into it.

 

[VAtink]

Maybe if the bus drivers refused requests to wait, people would get the hint and stop this selfish behavior.
I'm surprised that the bus stopped at BC.

I really wish the drivers would refuse, it is so obnoxious! One of the bus drivers who was asked to wait told the family they were allowed to wait until the next bus to that park came in about 5 minutes, but at that point why can't the family wait the 5 minutes for the next bus? Makes no sense to me.

As for swinging by the BC, the AK morning buses always did this trip, it was annoying. At least the MK bus went straight to the park!

We were on the safari one early morning and saw a huge group of giraffes running down the hill. It looked like they were let out of their cages at 8:30am. It was cool to see.

That would have been cool to see! I do love how the safari is different every time we go on it.

It is nice to have a driver deviate from the standard dialog once in awhile. We had a really fun one who went off script, too. It made it a whole new experience.

Yes! It was so funny, I'm actually amazed the guy knew so many poop facts!

I love being in a section without any other people. It is also nice to skip the rides and just enjoy the park.

Isn't it amazing? It worked really well in AK with so many people heading over to Pandora, the right side of the park was dead early on, it was great! We got to spend a lot of time reading all the signs around and really just taking everything in. It was a great morning!

 

[VAtink]

Wow. I cannot believe (I believe you that it happened) that a bus driver would decide to keep a bus of people waiting so a group could have coffee. Were there others on the bus yet? Maybe the family thought it was an empty bus when they asked? But the driver obviously know you were on board -- and what if you had an ADR to get to? That's infuriating. Glad you had a good rest of the day. I love the safari - different every time. And some drivers are truly outstanding and really get into it.

I know! I couldn't believe it, it was so obnoxious I really wish the bus drivers would just say no!

The rest of the day was great, it was so nice exploring the park and not rushing anywhere. The safari was so funny this time, I love when the driver adds their own flair!

 

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Day 8, Part 2: What is this Wet Stuff Falling on Us? Animal Kingdom Version​

We last left off with a ride on EE! We could have gone on a few more times, the line was still non-existent, but we opted to move on since we had early lunch plans that day and there was more exploring we wanted to do before that.

Our next stop was the Maharajah Jungle trek. We got there right when they opened at 9 and there was a decent crowd waiting to be let in.

Since it was so crowded we hung back a bit and walked super slow to let the crowds get ahead. Sadly, it seemed half the crowd had the exact same idea so it was fairly crowded for the first part of the trail.

Oh well, we eventually spread out more as we made our way through the trail.

We stopped for a while to watch the tiger.



Per usual, once we made it into the aviary, we found a bench to sit on, and spend a while just relaxing and enjoying the birds.




It is sooooo pretty in there!

We were relaxing enjoying the peace in there until I felt rain! Nooooo!

Only, it wasn’t rain, it was worse. One of the big ol birds in there pooped while directly over my head!

Annnd now you know the other reason for the title of this trip report!

Anyways. After acting as a toilet for one lucky bird, we quickly made our way out so I could find a bathroom and clean up.

After cleaning up, we wandered some more, stopping at photopass photographers we passed.



We finally found our way to the trails around the ToL. It was really nice back there, we love getting up close to the sculpted animals on the tree.





We even ended up finding another tiny world photopass back there!



We even got to watch a cavalcade go by!



When we finished up our ToL exploring we headed over to Pandora. We strolled around a bit getting pictures.



We eventually found a photopass photographer, so of course had to stop!



This photographer was awesome, while the group ahead of us was getting their picture, these two girls tried to squish up next to them to get a selfie with the same background, which would totally ruin the groups photopass picture. Luckily the photographer was having none of that and told the girls rather firmly (but nicely) that if they want to get a picture in that location they need to wait in line just like everyone else.

We strolled around a bit more and of course got more photopass pictures!



Finally it was around 10:30, so we made our way over to Nomad to go wait in line for opening. We ended up being the first ones there, but by 10:35 there were already 14 groups waiting in line! Glad we got there early!



Next up: A Perfect Nomad Afternoon​

 

[2xcited2sleep]

I love a "lazy" day exploring Animal Kingdom. But the aviary is where we part ways. I am terrified. I was once pooped on in there too. I now always skip it by taking the path for guide dogs around it. I always forget about the trail around the Tree of Life ... need to remember to explore that next time. Always a good time for Nomad's ... it seems the secret is out if there were 14 groups by 10:35!

 

[Wood Nymph]

We stopped for a while to watch the tiger.

We never seem to catch the tiger in that exhibit. I don't know where he hides but it must be a pretty good hiding spot.

Per usual, once we made it into the aviary, we found a bench to sit on, and spend a while just relaxing and enjoying the birds.

This is a really nice aviary. We love watching the birds in this exhibit. It is really disgusting to be pooped on. Hopefully it was in a spot that was easy to wash.

When we finished up our ToL exploring we headed over to Pandora. We strolled around a bit getting pictures.

We need to take the time to stroll through here. It is nice and relaxing and usually empty.
Pandora is a great picture spot but it does get crowded.

We ended up being the first ones there, but by 10:35 there were already 14 groups waiting in line!

That is crazy! I guess the word is out that the food is good.

 

[VAtink]

I love a "lazy" day exploring Animal Kingdom. But the aviary is where we part ways. I am terrified. I was once pooped on in there too. I now always skip it by taking the path for guide dogs around it. I always forget about the trail around the Tree of Life ... need to remember to explore that next time. Always a good time for Nomad's ... it seems the secret is out if there were 14 groups by 10:35!

Me too! We usually love the aviary, however I'm a bit less enthralled with it these days! I didn't even realize there was a path around it.

I was shocked at how crowded Nomad was that early! Secret is definitely out!

 

[VAtink]

We never seem to catch the tiger in that exhibit. I don't know where he hides but it must be a pretty good hiding spot.

I feel like we're 50/50 with seeing the tiger. It is really awesome when he's out though, I love watching him!

This is a really nice aviary. We love watching the birds in this exhibit. It is really disgusting to be pooped on. Hopefully it was in a spot that was easy to wash.

Yes! The bird got me mostly right on top of my head, and a bit on my shoulder. Fortunately it was pretty easy to clean off, but yeah, big yuck!

We need to take the time to stroll through here. It is nice and relaxing and usually empty.
Pandora is a great picture spot but it does get crowded.

It is a nice place to wander through, there is some really cool scenery!

That is crazy! I guess the word is out that the food is good.

I know! I couldn't believe how quickly the line built. The secret is definitely out about Nomad.

 

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Day 8, Part 3: A Perfect Nomad Afternoon​

We last left off with us getting in line for Nomad at 10:30. We were let in at 10:50, and once again were able to pick which table we wanted. We wanted to sit outside against the railing again to see the cavalcades, so grabbed one of those.



I was surprised to see that nearly everyone else in line opted to eat inside. I feel like the porch is such an awesome environment plus you can watch the cavalcades! Although I guess the AC inside is kinda nice too!

Our waiter arrived quickly and we wanted to start with the octopus from the Tiffins menu like I had done out there back in April, but we were informed that we could no longer get any Tiffins menu items out there. Whomp whomp.

So I ended up getting the sliders with the yucca fries (these fries are sooooo good!), and mom got the charcuterie board.

I also tried to order the leaping lizard drink, but sadly they were out of some of the ingredients, so I ordered the Lamu Libation instead but without the banana rum since I don’t like bananas.

It was a good substitute and actually ended up tasting a lot like the leaping lizard!

My mom ended up ordering the Annapurna Zing.

Here are our drinks.





Our food came out pretty quickly, and it was delicious!





We of course also got to enjoy the cavalcades while eating our lunch.







After finishing our food we ordered a second round of drinks. I got a white wine (pinot grigio maybe?) and mom got the Tusker Lager.





It was so nice relaxing out there with our drinks watching the cavalcades go by. I could seriously spend an entire day out there!

Finally around 1:30 we decided it was time to head out, so we paid and made our way out of Nomad and towards the front of the park.

On the way we saw a photopass photographer, so of course stopped!



And of course we found more as we made our way out of the park….





Before leaving we did swing by the store for some quick shopping, and I picked up a new journal since the one I’ve taken the last 6 years of trip report notes is almost full! I’m oddly going to really miss this one, I love it, but I need more room to keep my notes for upcoming trips!

Once out of the park we decided to swing by the Up photopass spot again, and this time had the nicest, yet most talkative, photographer! We ended up chatting with him for almost 20 minutes! He was such a nice guy, and took a ton of pictures of us.



We also got on more photopass picture before heading to the buses.


Finally we made our way to the bus stop and it must have been our lucky day since a YC bus arrived a few minutes later!

It was a quick ride back, and soon we were back in the room napping.

Up Next: A Stormy Night in Epcot​

 

[Wood Nymph]

Our waiter arrived quickly and we wanted to start with the octopus from the Tiffins menu like I had done out there back in April, but we were informed that we could no longer get any Tiffins menu items out there. Whomp whomp.

Maybe that is why people don't sit on the porch. I'm surprised they don't serve the entire menu out there, though. Maybe they want a quick turnover.

My mom ended up ordering the Annapurna Zing.

That is the drink that I want to try.

It was so nice relaxing out there with our drinks watching the cavalcades go by. I could seriously spend an entire day out there!

That is where we would sit, too. We love watching the boats from the deck at Josh Lindsay's and this would be similar.

 

[VAtink]

Maybe that is why people don't sit on the porch. I'm surprised they don't serve the entire menu out there, though. Maybe they want a quick turnover.

No idea, we used to be able to get some items off the Tiffins menu out there so it was surprising we couldn't anymore. Although, I don't think Tiffins opened until noon, and with Nomad opening at 11 maybe it was an issue with Tiffins just not being open.

That is the drink that I want to try.

It was really good, my mom loved it!

That is where we would sit, too. We love watching the boats from the deck at Josh Lindsay's and this would be similar.

It is such a great location, I love getting the breeze off the water, and getting front row seats to the cavalcades! Can't wait to go again in September!

 

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Day 8, Part 4: A Stormy Night in Epcot​

After a nice break back at the YC, we were ready to head back out. This time we were heading over to Epcot for dinner at the food booths!

While we were napping it had rained a lot, and looking at the radar there was still a lot of rain around, even though it wasn’t raining at that moment. So we decided to bring our ponchos, and I opted to bring my umbrella too. I figured it would come in handy if we had to eat in the rain. Spoiler alert, it did!

We ended up heading over to Epcot around 4:30 and quickly made our way through security and into the park.

Our first stop was Morocco where I got the chicken kabob and mom got the lamb kabob, we also got the cider flight to share. Once we had the food in hand we found a table outside that was partially covered, which was good since shortly after sitting down the rain started. It wasn’t super heavy at that point, so we just donned the ponchos and enjoyed the food.







The kabobs were delicious, I loved them both! The cider flight was good, my favorite was the cinnamon nutmeg one, that one was amazing!

Once we wrapped up in Morocco, we made our way over to Greece where mom got the lamb moussaka.



I ended up really loving this, I wish I got one for myself!

The rain was on and off at this point, so it wasn’t really raining at Greece, but by the time we got to our next stop it had started again. Our next stop was Hops and Barley! Since the rain had started again, we watched out for tables under the canopy to open while we were in line, and once we saw one that did, mom ran over to grab it. I ended up grabbing us the food, we got the steak sandwich, the carrot cake, and the strawberry lime beer.







The sandwich was good, not my favorite, but not bad. The carrot cake however was great! I loved that. The beer was also good.

Our next stop was Italy! The line was super long, which was surprising since it was really raining at that point, but we waited anyways. It took about 20 minutes, which wasn’t ideal in the pouring rain, but fortunately we had ponchos and I had my umbrella to sort of keep us dry! I ended up getting the ravioli and the limoncello margarita and mom got the Moscato.

By the time we got our food it was absolutely pouring, so lucky for us there were plenty of tables to eat at! We found one by the water and enjoyed the food. Thankfully I had my umbrella so I was able to keep the food, and most of us, dry!



We were pretty full after Italy, so decided to continue making our way around WS towards the front of the park.

I wanted to check out the new Creations store since it had just opened the previous day, but I was concerned with the rain that it would be packed. We decided to head there anyways though and fortunately it wasn’t very crowded at all!

Compared to the old Mouse Gears I wasn’t a huge fan, it seems like there is far fewer stock and not a great selection. Funny enough I feel the same way about the change to World of Disney in Disney Springs. I get that this big open space with limited shelving is in these days, but I’d rather have more walls and shelves to display a wider variety of merchandise….I don’t really care if I can see the entire store from one end to the other!

Ok, off my soapbox and back to the report!

We browsed a bit and I ended up getting a Dug cookie cutter/spatula set, and got to try the mobile check-out for the first time! It was actually super easy, and let us avoid the long check-out line, so this is a change I am 100% on board with!

After shopping we made our way over to the Land since Soarin’ had a posted wait of only 10 minutes! Wahoo!

It took about that long, maybe a hair longer, and soon we were flying! We were in 2C this time, but had the seats closest to B, so the distortion wasn’t as bad.

After our quick flight around the world, we decided to go check out Journey Into Imagination since there was no one there. It was ok, I think the last time I was on it was back in high school in the 90s, and I remember liking it more back then. It was still good to see it again, although I think it’ll be another 20+ years before we go on it again!

By the time we were off the ride it was just past 7 and we were getting tired and sick of the rain, so we started to slowly make our way out.

On the way we stopped at the Ireland food booth where I picked up the fishermans pie. This was good, but not my favorite item at this years fest.



Finally we made it out of the park and back to the YC. Since it was only about 7:30 at this point, and we were already soaking wet, we decided to go for a night swim!

The pool was empty this night, but that’s probably since it was still raining. We had fun floating around the lazy river for a while before finally calling it a night and heading back to the room to watch some football and enjoy some wine.

Next up: The Race to Norway!​

 

[VAtink]

Just popping in with a quick RL update! I finally did it, I finally booked my recovery free stay at the Yacht Club! It was so much easier than expected, and it wasn't fake which I was oddly very worried about. I'm going at the end of January, so finally get to check out FARTs, which I'm super excited about.

The CM I spoke with was awesome, and he did say something that caught my attention. In the typical spiel about booking park reservations early since they do fill up, he did make a comment that it was only precautionary since they haven't announced yet that they were eliminating them. I could totally just be reading into it, but the way he said it, it seemed to imply that an announcement was coming. I sooooo hope this is true, and especially the park hopping at 2 is eliminated, that would be amazing! There is also a solid chance I'm just reading into things, but oh well, a girl can dream!

Alright, that's all the fun new updates for now. I'll be posting a new chapter in this TR soon! ​

 

[Wood Nymph]

I finally booked my recovery free stay at the Yacht Club!

I'm glad that the free stay was honored and that you will be there for FARTS. That event gets better every year.

In the typical spiel about booking park reservations early since they do fill up, he did make a comment that it was only precautionary since they haven't announced yet that they were eliminating them.

CM's usually know less about WDW then the avid fan base knows. But it would be nice if they do drop the reservation system. I would be thrilled if they dropped the 2pm rule. It makes it hard to go to Epcot for lunch.

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Hurrah for booking a new trip. I think you'll really enjoy the Arts festival. I think it's my favorite. The food and wine is very good but there's also a lot to do (and buy). Interesting comment from the CM on the park reservations. I'm pretty sure Disney has said officially on earnings calls with investors that they plan to continue the reservation system so I'm not sure I'd put a ton of stock in that comment ... but who knows, circumstances change. Back to the TR, seems like you made the best of a rainy evening. Morocco has been a go-to for me the last several festivals. I'm not sure if people are "scared" by the food or if it doesn't get noticed since it's "hidden" in the old Tangierine Cafe location but I've rarely encountered a big line, and the food is fresh and very good.

 

[VAtink]

I'm glad that the free stay was honored and that you will be there for FARTS. That event gets better every year.

Me too! I was putting off calling since I had convinced myself it wasn't real. So glad it was, and that I finally get to check out FARTS!

CM's usually know less about WDW then the avid fan base knows. But it would be nice if they do drop the reservation system. I would be thrilled if they dropped the 2pm rule. It makes it hard to go to Epcot for lunch.

Haha, I wouldn't be surprised if he knew nothing, also wouldn't be surprised if I was 100% reading into things because I really really want the 2pm park hopping rule to go away! It really does make going to Epcot for lunch hard. When we're there for F&W we love doing one park in the morning and heading to Epcot for lunch at the food booths, so yeah, the 2pm rule totally ruins that for us. Fingers crossed that the rule goes away soon!