Year of Fun Grand Finale (COMPLETE) – An Orlando Trip Report – June 2016 (with PICS)

[gregf71]

The latter half of 2014 and beginning of 2015 was a tough year for our family. The details are not important, but suffice it to say, we needed to bring the fun back into our lives and go a little nuts! What started out simply as a plan for a return visit to Disney World in December 2015 morphed into what we called the “Year of Fun!”

It all started back in July 2015, when our adventurers, myself Greg (44), my wife Lisa (40) and our daughter Hailey (10), San Diego residents, plunked down our Disney Visa to purchase our Premier Disney annual passes. Ouch, that one sure stung, but it was going to be worth every penny! You see, earlier on, we crunched the numbers and realized that the cost of these super passes, good for both Disneyland and Disney World, including all of the benefits thereof, actually saved us money overall given our want to renew our Disneyland passes coupled with our plans for WDW in December; plus it opened the doors for a lot of fun, including something from my bucket list!

Summer 2015 rolled on…in August, my daughter and I enjoyed a short staycation in San Diego; three awesome days of mini-golf & bumper boats, a special behind the scenes tour at SeaWorld San Diego, and a bowling alley virtually all to ourselves! The capper on all of it?! Three days at Disneyland, including our very first visit to D23…which was AMAZING! While I got to meet some of my favorite Disney podcasters (*cough* *cough* from the DIS!), our daughter met and got a picture with Zendaya and the cast of KC Undercover!

But wait! There’s more! September and October took me to Las Vegas twice; once escorting my mom out for a little vacation and then secondly to honor my beautiful wife’s 40th birthday (image from La Reve at the Wynn below)! Two very different Vegas experiences, let me tell you! Add my birthday (when I scampered up to Disneyland for the Mahaloween Luau at Trader Sam’s!) and our 14th wedding anniversary to the October calendar and we had one heck of an awesome month!

November was basically the chill month…that is, until that fateful day of November 7th when…our first ever MagicBands arrived! Cue the angelic trumpets and singing!!! Had it not been for the Turkey & Stuffing Seasoned Kettle Chips from Trader Joes debuting a week later, these little beauties would have been the #1 highlight! Hmmm….turkey and stuffing kettle chips….hmmm….sorry, lost it there for a second. Anyway…November! A pre-Thanksgiving jaunt up to Julian for apple cider and apple dumplings and a post-Thanksgiving trek up to Solvang perfectly brought us into the Holiday Season.

Finally…December! The Disney World trip that we had been planning for over a year had arrived! We had a wonderful trip and for the first time ever actually wandered off property for DISapalooza and Diagon Alley! Yes, Hailey, there is a world outside of Disney. For details, see our trip report.

Bucket List time! Having Disneyland annual passes for several years, we always had the ones with blackout dates, specifically around New Years. Well not this year!!! I had always wanted to ring in the New Year at Disneyland and this year we had that chance! The crowds were monstrous, the late night weather chilly (and sadly a tad too windy for fireworks), but we survived and sang and hugged one another to 12am on January 1, 2016! Will we ever do it again? HECK NO! That was crazy!

January brought some unexpected business travel to Boston, which I had never visited before. What a magnificent city and people…oh, and the food! I must return someday as a pure tourist. And this segues perfectly to this trip report. I know, I sure took a long time to get here. Oh wait…did I forget to mention the return of the Disney California Adventure Food & Wine Festival?! Oh, that made April awesome! And let’s not forget our baby girl turning double digits, seeing The Cure live in concert, rescuing a little puppy from the middle of the 15 freeway (he was adopted by a great family by the way), feasting at the SeaWorld San Diego Seven Seas Food Festival, and spending Father’s Day at the San Diego County Fair! Geez, I am getting tired just typing this all up.

Anyway, we now arrive to June 2016. As it turned out, an annual conference that I regularly attend for work just so happened to be in Orlando this year. Back in January, when I was starting to make my travel plans, an email popped into my Inbox from my dad and his wife. “We have timeshare points that we need to use or lose. Anyone interested?” Um yes please! Do you have anything available in Orlando in, oh I don’t know, late June? You do?! Well how convenient! Fate, as it were, suddenly shined upon us…and the dominoes started to fall into place! The timeshare they could book for us just so happened to be one of the conference hotels! And my dad’s wife’s daughter, who I have known since elementary school, an employee of SeaWorld San Diego, could hook us up with free tickets to SeaWorld Orlando…AND serious discounts for Discovery Cove! Hmmm…we have a week in Orlando after the conference…what else could we do? Oh I don’t know…Universal!!! And let’s not forget that we still have our active Premier Disney annual passes! Bonus value! We really had no choice!

So here was the plan:

· Day 1 – Fly from San Diego to Orlando with dinner in the Magic Kingdom
· Day 2 – Animal Kingdom (with me showing up after my conference duties were completed)
· Day 3 – Epcot (again with me showing up in the late afternoon)
· Day 4 – Magic Kingdom
· Day 5 – Universal Islands of Adventure
· Day 6 – Universal Studios
· Day 7 – Discovery Cove
· Day 8 – SeaWorld
· Day 9 – Epcot
· Day 10 – Fly home

Now, keep in mind, something like this was completely new to us. We have visited Orlando several times in the past, but for the very first time we were not staying at a Disney resort, we expanded our horizons outside of Disney property, and we rented a car and battling the Orlando motorways ourselves! How exciting and scary at the same time!

Everybody ready?! Here we go!

Day 1 – Travel Day & Be Our Guest

Up early for our morning flight, since we would be effectively losing 3 hours with the cross country trip, our ride delivered us to the airport. Checked in and through security fairly quickly (better than we thought it would be actually), we found ourselves sitting in the terminal with a lot of time on our hands…along with a highly energetic co-ed high school rugby team. Methinks we planned the morning arrival to the airport a little too conservatively, but hey, better to be there early than late. Eventually boarding time arrived! Another first for us…our flight was direct between San Diego and Orlando; at roughly 4 hours and 30 minutes of flight time, it significantly reduced the overall travel time that we endured in the past by connecting through another city. Boy, was it awesome! That said, it was the longest flight that our daughter has undergone thus far and she did get a tad squirrely. “You want to go to Disneyland Paris someday, right,” I asked her. “This is nothing compared to that,” I said with a smile. Needless to say, we kept her entertained and truly the time seemed to “fly” by.

We landed in Orlando a few minutes early, around 530pm, exited the plane, hit the bathrooms of course, and then jumped into the monorail to the airport center. As we followed the signs to Baggage Claim, my wife made a sad little noise and pointed towards the Disney Magical Express sign. Another first…no magical Disney bus wide to our resort…sigh. Luggage successfully claimed, we made our way over to the rental car desks. The very nice Enterprise Car Rental (booked through Costco.com) representative quickly took care of us and the next thing we know we are leaving the air-conditioned bliss of the airport and ramming head on into the Orlando heat and humidity of summer…not a first for my wife and I, but it was a bit of a shock for our daughter, who had never experienced weather like this before. Truth is, I called it somewhat mild. Hey kiddo…we get this for 9 more days! She rolled her eyes.

The rental car structure is immediately across the street from the airport terminal. We made our way across, took a quick right and met another Enterprise rep who was ready to help us select a car. Having booked a full size car, she led us down a nearby row and pointed out our options. We picked a Toyota Camry. Bags loaded in the trunk, documents authorized and signed, air-conditioning cranked up to 11 and we were off! Our destination was the Hilton Grand Vacations Sea World. We found the drive to be quite pleasant. Taking about 20 minutes, traffic was minimal (a concern I had for a Friday evening around 6:15pm), we eased through the toll booth (cash ready) and easily found our home for the next week and a half. Checking in was an absolute breeze; in fact, they couldn’t have been nicer. As the first portion of our stay was officially for my work conference, I booked a smaller room with the intention of moving to the larger 2 bedroom timeshare room Sunday evening. First surprise…they upgraded my initial reservation to a 2 bedroom for free! Second surprise…they arranged it so that we didn’t have to change rooms come Sunday and could simply stay in the same room for our entire stay! Awesome!

Our room was beautiful! Situated on the 5th floor of the Sandy’s building, we were blown away at the amount of space we had! A full size kitchen with all of the amenities, full size dining table and chairs, living area with a couch, chair, coffee table and large flat screen TV! The master bedroom, where my wife and daughter would be residing (because she always sleeps with mom on vacation), included a king size bed, a huge jetted tub and separate shower, another flat screen TV, a safe, lots of storage, and access to an enclosed (screens to keep the little critters out) balcony. My bedroom sat across the main room, where all by my lonesome I was forced to enjoy my own queen size bed, my own flat screen TV, my own bathroom with a tub/shower combo, and access to my own enclosed balcony. I missed my family terribly all the way across, but I thought I’d survive!

Time for dinner! Wanting to make sure that we had enough time, given the potential for airport, flight, and traffic delays we scheduled our first meal at the Be Our Guest Restaurant for 9pm. MagicBands on, we hit the road towards the Magic Kingdom! Again, I must say, the traffic, particularly along the I4 corridor was phenomenal. Being veterans of the Southern California freeway system, we felt the I4 was an absolute pleasure throughout the trip. Even when we did hit a bit of traffic, it always moved well and we never hit any serious delays. Take that Anaheim!

Even though we Google mapped and printed driving directions for everything, we hardly used them once we hit the I4. The signage was sublime, easily visible, and got us exactly where we needed to go. Honestly, I fully expected the arterial roads within Disney property to be packed with cars, but I was so wrong. Reaching the Magic Kingdom gate, we presented one of our Disney Premier passports and we were in! Snaking around to the left and then right, we made our way to someplace we have never been…the deepest reaches of a Disney World theme park parking lot!

Jumping on a nearby parking lot tram, we made our way to the TTC. As the Monorail was temporarily down, a CM directed everyone to the ferry boat dock…another first for us! Entering the ferry, we made our way up to the second deck and grabbed a spot along the front railing. We could see Cinderella’s Castle gleaming in the distance, the resort Monorails whizzing around, and a variety of watercrafts throughout the lake. Finally, the announcement came, the gates were closed, and the ferry began to slowly move away from the dock. Our first official ride of the trip, it was very enjoyable, save for the two couples next to us posing with their extended selfie-sticks. Truth be told, given this initial selfie-stick encounter so early in our trip, I was concerned about it being a frequent issue, but the fact is we never really ran into it much over the duration. Maybe we were lucky. Who knows?

Now for the least enjoyable portion of the ferry ride…disembarking. The Disney Cruise Line this is not! I mean everyone behaved themselves. There was no pushing or shoving or anything like that. It was just so crowded. Apparently A LOT of people got onto the ferry after us and most of them stayed on the first level. As we made our way down the stairs from the second floor, we joined the masses. Shoulder to shoulder, we all made our way towards the narrow dock bridge. Sweat started beading up on my forehead almost immediately, dripping down my face, as the heat radiated like a sweatbox with all of the bodies moving slowly in unified direction. Holding each other’s hands we made our way to the bridge, as it swayed left and right to the march of the ferry passengers. After a few minutes, we were free!

Through security, noticing that our bags were much more thoroughly evaluated versus December, we hit the MagicBand entry checkpoint. While my wife and I made it through without any problems, our daughter had a slight issue. Having procured a new purple MagicBand since our last trip, it seemed that it was not linked to her finger print. The CM had her try several times before calling over a supervisor. After several taps on a tablet, a new photo, and finger scan, she was good to go! So much for simply adding it to our My Disney Experience profile. Anyway, having a little time before our dinner reservation, we took our time walking around (honestly surprised to find it not very crowded for a summertime Friday evening), making our way to Fantasyland for our first FastPass…Peter Pan. It always trips me out how similar yet very different this version of the attraction is in comparison to Disneyland, especially the voice of Captain Hook. Sauntering through Fantasyland with still a bit of time to spare before dinner check-in, we popped into Gaston’s Tavern for a LeFou’s Brew (so good) to share. This will become a family tradition.

A quick comment on FastPass+. Since we were staying off property and annual passholders, our FastPass reservation window opened 30 days out. It also meant that we could only make our reservations one day at a time. This was drastically different from our December trip and we were worried about what would be available so close to our dates. Boy, were we surprised! We went into it expecting limited selections, but each day proved just the opposite! We got everything we wanted, including the soon to be opening Frozen attraction in Epcot! Now, just prior to our window opening up, I learned that Disney was changing their policy about the time that one could get online to make the reservations. Previously, it was 12am eastern (9pm for us on the west coast) and now it was 7am eastern, meaning 4am for us! Upon hearing about this, I scoured the website for confirmation, but found nothing confirming this. Eventually, I set up a chat session with a CM and she affirmed it. Well, ok, I am not getting up before 4am for FastPasses; not going to happen! We agreed that we would see what was available at 6am the next morning. But wait! While lounging on the couch the night before, at around oh 9pm San Diego time, I decided to log into the My Disney Experience app and guess what?! The window had opened!!! Shocked, bewildered, and tearing slightly, I made the FastPass reservations for Day 1. But surely this was a mistake, a glitch in the app, right?! Well, that glitch occurred every night at 9pm for the next 10 days as I made the remainder of our reservations. Is the app still allowing it?

OK, back to Day 1. We checked in at Be Our Guest a couple minutes early and were told that they were running about 10 minutes behind. They took my cell number and said that they would text us when our table was ready. Didn’t we get a Lumiere-like candelabra as a buzzer in December? Those were awesome! “10 minutes behind” proved to be a bit inaccurate; try double that, but it could have been worse. Finally texted, greeted, and escorted in, we were seated in the Grand Ballroom. Last time, we loved dining in the West Wing. It was beautiful in there, though we did grow weary of all of the other guests coming in to check out the scenery and take pictures, several times coming a tad too close to us and our table for comfort. The Ballroom was massive and open and not a single person encroached into our space this evening. It was wonderful!

Keep in mind that the last thing we ate, excluding a bag or two of cheese crackers and peanuts on the flight, was at roughly 730am PST that morning. We were HUNGRY! Blessed by the man who brought us the bread! Yeah, it was gone almost instantaneously. Alright…to the meal! My wife ordered the Grilled Strip Steak, which I adored back in December, while I decided on the Grilled Pork Chop. Our daughter? Well, you see, she is now 10 years old, so per Disney logic, she is now considered an Adult. I have never quite understood this classification, but Hailey was absolutely enamored with the idea of ordering from the adult menu! Ultimately, she chose the Pan-seared Chicken Breast, served with wild rice, blistered heirloom tomatoes, roasted wild mushrooms, and a citrus beurre blanc. Our meals came and they were delicious…absolutely delicious. I devoured the pork chop; it was amazingly flavorful, as was the corn mélange accompaniment. My wife ate most of her steak and I helped a little bit too, heh heh. Now the chicken…it was wonderful. Perfectly prepared, moist, full of flavor…delicious! But, it seems that our dear daughter’s palate may not yet be ready for “adult” dishes. I mean she liked the chicken very much and enjoyed the heirloom tomatoes, but the rice and the mushrooms were not a hit, though my wife said that they were both tasty.

Choosing to grab dessert on the way out of the park, we said adieu to Be Our Guest and made our way over to Tomorrowland for a ride on that classic of classics, that gem of gems, the Tomorrowland Transit Authority Peoplemover. Man, do I miss it in Disneyland. It was no nice that we rode it twice! Time for our second and final FastPass for the evening, we hit Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. In December we rode this attraction twice, both during daylight. If I am honest, we all found it fun, but were completely perplexed at the massive wait times. We agreed at that time that it was not worth more than a 30 minute wait. However, this time we rode it at night and wow, what a difference that made. Something about the exterior portions of the track in the dark was so much better! Not being able to clearly see the path of the track made it much more exhilarating. We all concurred…going forward, Mine Train is a night time attraction for us.

Getting late, we meandered back through the castle and down Main Street. A quick stop in the candy shop for some goodies and we were back in the ferry headed towards the TTC. Once again situating ourselves on the second level, we enjoyed a nice cool-ish cruise, this time taking our sweet time to exit sans the masses. Jumping on a tram, we made our way back into the depths of the parking lot, where our chariot awaited. In the car, AC pumping, we drive our tired bodies back to the Hilton and passed out.

Up Next - Days 2 & 3 -- Animal Kingdom and Epcot

 

[gregf71]

Day 2 – Animal Kingdom

OK, Day 2 of the trip, but Day 1 for my conference. Up at 7am, we all prepped for our plans for the day. While my wife and daughter put on theme park attire and sun screen, I dressed more business casual. Out ahead of them, I made my way to the designated conference bus stop in front of the Hilton and found my ride to the convention center. Soon afterwards, the ladies jumped into the rental car and were off to Animal Kingdom!

Now, driving to the parks this day and the next with just our daughter in the car, was initially cause for a bit of worry for my wife. Being in a place she was unfamiliar with, surrounded by crazy vacation drivers, concerned her a bit. However, all of her fears were quickly brushed away once she hit the I4 and easily followed all of the clear signs throughout the property leading to Animal Kingdom. While at the conference, I received a very excited text notifying me that they arrived safely. I’ll admit that I shared a little of her initial anxiety and was relieved to receive her message.

While I was working away, their morning in the park started with breakfast at Creature Comforts, in the form of coffee and juice, as well as the largest cinnamon roll they ever saw! They both said that it was absolutely delicious, but more appropriate for a family of five. Throughout the rest of the morning, they made their way around the animal enclosures, scouting out the critters. The 10am hour found them on Kilimanjaro Safaris with their first FastPass, later followed at 1230pm by the Festival of the Lion King, strolling through some shops, and then a late lunch.

By mid-afternoon, I accomplished all of my goals for the day and took a conference shuttle bus back to the Hilton. Quickly changing from business to theme park attire, I logged into my Uber app and submitted my very first ride request ever. Within seconds, my request was accepted and I walked out by the resort entrance plaza. A few minutes later, my ride pulled up and we were off! May I say, what an easy and pleasurable experience this was. The vehicle was clean and well kept, not what I can say about some cabs I have ridden in. The driver was very nice and personable and we chatted the entire way. As we neared the entrance gate for Animal Kingdom, I informed him that I had a pass to get free parking, but it turned out not to be necessary. Upon greeting the parking booth CM, my driver simply stated that he was dropping me off, whereby she directed him to a designated lane. We drove around the perimeter of the massive parking lot and I was quickly delivered to my destination! Once he marked the ride as complete on his end, my “first ride free” Uber coupon automatically validated in my app (procured via my Chase Disney credit card), I gave him a cash tip, thanked him for his services, and I was gliding towards the park entrance.

Texting my wife that I had arrived, I met up with them as they finished their late lunch at Pizzafari, but not before a quick stop at Harambe Popcorn to see about a Jungle Juice slush. Sadly, at least according to the CM, it was too darn hot for the juice to freeze. Hmmm, they had that same problem in December too, but it wasn’t nearly as hot back then. It must be me. I must be cursed! Anyway, still a bit loaded down by the awesomeness that was their colossal cinnamon roll for breakfast and the knowledge that we would be dining at Sanaa, with their amazing bread service of course, for dinner, my family ate light this afternoon, splitting the Meat Lovers Pizza and accompanying Antipasto salad, which they both felt was quite tasty. Nabbing a quick picture of our daughter next to a cat (her favorite animal) statue, we headed out towards Asia and their final FP reservation on Expedition Everest. On the way, my wife, sympathetic that I missed out yet again on my Jungle Juice slush, directed me towards Drinkwallah, where earlier in the day she very much enjoyed a coconut-lychee lemonade with a bit of rum. Of course I had to try it and it was refreshingly delicious! Unfortunately though, or fortunately (it depends on how you look at it), it didn’t prove thirst quenching on this unbearably hot late afternoon, so while they rode Everest, I hit the nearby Thirsty River Bar and enjoyed the non-alcoholic Flying Yak! Yum!

Nearing 430pm, it was time for my one planned FastPass on DINOSAUR. Truth be told, even though it was a Saturday in the summer, the crowds in Animal Kingdom this day were unexpectedly light and my FP was really not needed. Tapping my MagicBand, I walked all alone through the FP queue and was immediately ushered into the pre-ride show room. Beyond that, upon entering the loading room, I walked all the way down to the front of the line and boarded the first vehicle. I do very much enjoy this ride, but my wife hates it (not a fan of the dinos), so we do not always ride it when in the park. Needless to say, I had a blast!

Off of the attraction, I immediately accessed the MDE app on my phone and checked for a new FP for all three of us, nabbing a set for Kilimanjaro Safaris for later that evening. Yes, my wife and daughter enjoyed it earlier that morning, but they were more than happy to experience it again, especially at night! Meandering through a few shops, picking up some mini Tsum Tsums for our daughter, a Figment/Spaceship Earth MagicBand for me, and an Orange Bird MagicBand for my wife, we decided that we needed to make our way out of the park and over to the Animal Kingdom Lodge for dinner at Sanaa.

Ugh, the Disney shuttle buses. You know, they really make you appreciate having your own car; too bad we chose not to use it this evening. Crammed in like sardines (hot and sweaty sardines), in standing room only, we tried hard to keep our balance as we made our way to Kidani Village. “This here is the WILDEST ride in the wilderness!” Arriving at Kadani and entering the main building, I was immediately struck by how small it is in comparison to Jambo House. It’s tiny! A service desk to the left, a little shop to the right, and big, clear windows looking out upon a petite savannah. Don’t get me wrong, the place was beautiful; it just wasn’t nearly as grand as the Jambo lobby.

A tad early for our reservation, we crashed in a good sized entertainment area off to the right side of the lobby. Comfy seats, Star Wars: The Force Awakens playing on the TV, a nice view of the savannah, and free cups of flavored ice water. Nice! Eventually, it was time, so we made our way downstairs to Sanaa. Seated very quickly, we met our server and immediately ordered the Indian Style Bread Service with all of the accompaniments! Reading reviews and listening to podcasts, this appetizer is the thing of legend and we had to experience it!

Five types of bread, including Naan, Garlic Ginger Naan, Spiced Naan, Onion Kulcha, and Papadum! Nine sides to enhance them, including Red Chile Sambal, Cucumber Raita, Coriander Chutney, Mango Chutney, Coconut Chutney, Garlic Pickle, Spicy Jalapeno-lime pickle, Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus, and Tamarind Chutney! To say that it was delicious is an understatement! All of the breads were hot, fresh, and perfect! And the sauces, oh the sauces! Sorted in order of mild to spicy, they were all special in their own way, but the best of the best had to be the Tamarind Chutney. Sweet, savory, sublime! After the bread was all gone, I kept the dish of Tamarind so that I could dip other things into it!

For our entrees, my wife selected the seasonal fish, which she enjoyed very much, while I ordered and loved the Braaivleis, a South African sampler plate of sausage, a lamb chop, and a pork tenderloin. So very good! The sausage and its spice mixture was admittedly unusual, but still very tasty. The lamb was prepared perfectly and the pork was wonderful, especially with a bit of Tamarind sauce on it! Now, our daughter, still on her “I am a Disney adult” kick again insisted on ordering from the adult menu this evening (no, it didn’t last the entire trip). Inspired, but still not very daring, we discussed the more kid friendly options with our server and she decided on the Potjie Inspired entrée, which gives you the choice of two items served with basmati rice. She chose the Paneer Tikka, essentially marinated cheese curds in a curry sauce, and the Braised Beef. Impressively, she enjoyed the flavors, but just like Be Our Guest the previous night, the amount of food proved too much, so my wife and I sampled a bit. Both the Tikka and the Beef were very good. Skipping dessert because we were too darn full, we made our way out to the savannah viewing area outside the restaurant. Zebras, giraffe and something with horns. The only problem was the gas fire pit that was already on and giving off heat. Um, the sun is still out and it is smoking hot still! It is a tad too early of the fire pit!

Back on the Disney shuttle bus, we returned to Animal Kingdom to enjoy the park for the first time after dark! Still light though, we made our way back to Asia and meandered through Maharajah Jungle Trek before the sun went down before deciding to head over to Africa and catch a performance of Legend of the Lion King, second time for them today. By the time we came out, it was dark and the park took on a new life of its own! Live music was playing in Harambe and guests of all ages were dancing and laughing along. We decided to simply grab a table under a large overhead fan (yes, it was still quite warm and humid) and enjoy a couple Dole Whips from Tamu Tamu Refreshments, one with a splash of dark rum for my wife and I and an original version for our daughter. Wow, just wow, our Adult Dole Whip was heavenly. Cool, refreshing, with a little zing!

Pretty soon, the time arrived for our evening ride on Kilimanjaro Safaris. The FP queue ended up being a tad longer than what the ladies experienced earlier in the day, but it still got us on a vehicle within 10 to 15 minutes, much better than the 60 minute standby line. “No flash photography, no lights on your cameras,” requested the CM driving the vehicle, as it will undoubtedly spook the animals. What animals? I hate to say it, but we barely saw any. Don’t get me wrong, the enclosures were by no means barren of animal life, but very few could be seen clearly. There was a giraffe standing amongst the trees in the near distance. While you could theoretically see her, it was more of an outline that was chewing. Overall, kind of disappointing. And those giant orange screens meant to replicate the setting sun! My God they looked awful and so fake. I really don’t mean to come off negatively here, but while it was a nice try, I really don’t think that nighttime safari rides is a viable concept; that is unless Disney wants to start lending night-vision goggles to the riders! I understand that Disney wants to make Animal Kingdom an all-day park, and I applaud them for this effort, but I think they need to focus on other attractions and special nighttime events and activities. Let’s leave the animals be after dark.

Departing the safari ride, we made a left for one final stroll through the park. Entering Asia, the Jungle Book: Alive with Magic show was already performing. Having heard mostly negative comments about it, we agreed to skip it, however it was enjoyable to listen to the music as we sauntered by. Our full circle tour eventually brought us back out in front of the Tree of Life, just in time for one of its awakenings:

Wow! Just, wow! The lights, the projections, and the music! Simply beautiful! Definitely worth a pause, especially since I hear that they rotate the show throughout the evening. It was the perfect ending to our Animal Kingdom day.


Day 3 – Epcot

Sunday morning and once again I was up early and off to the convention center for my meetings. The ladies, on the other hand, were up and off to Epcot! Breakfast this day for them was at Sunshine Seasons. They entered the building with a flood of people, but quickly found that 99% of them headed into the new Soarin’. As they entered the food court, they were virtually by themselves. It was awesome! Selecting the Adult Breakfast Platter (bacon, eggs, sausage, potatoes, and a biscuit) and a fruit cup, they split the munchies and crunchies between them and were actually quite pleased with the quantity and quality. Their three FastPasses today would take them onto Frozen Ever After (at least that was the plan), The Seas with Nemo & Friends, and finally into the Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival. Unfortunately, only one-third of these attractions came without issue. Apparently, the brand new Frozen Ever After ride breaks down a lot. Well, it broke down this morning, in fact there was some question as to whether or not it actually ever opened at all. In any event, they were very disappointed, but there was a silver lining as the FP automatically converted into a flex option for any other attraction. Lunch brought them into the World Showcase and the Germany Pavilion, where they thoroughly enjoyed a fine meal of bratwurst and potato salad at Sommerfest. My wife even imbibed with a wonderful pink grapefruit Hefeweizen.

After lunch, they made their way back over to Future World and their FP for Nemo. Here is where a little trouble started. As they entered the FP queue, they tapped their respective MagicBands on the sensor as usual. The walked down the line and came upon another FP station, which happens on other attractions as well sometimes (for example Seven Dwarfs Mine Train), but this one was covered. My wife walked right by, not interacting with it at all, but our daughter somehow got her MagicBand too close and it was recognized! At first, my wife didn’t think anything of it, but once out of the Living Seas Pavilion, she checked My Disney Experience and discovered that Hailey’s flex FP from the Frozen breaking down was now gone! Inquiring with a CM at the Living Seas, she was told that they couldn’t resolve the problem there and referred her to Guest Services near Spaceship Earth. Having some time before their Film Festival FP, they headed to Guest Services to hopefully get it all straightened out. Unfortunately, the CM that assisted them was not very helpful initially. According to my wife, she got the sense that they were reluctant to do anything at first, which was really surprising given that they were able to look up the activity on our daughter’s band and confirm a second Nemo usage within minutes of the first. I guess the question was did our daughter actually go into Nemo twice. Eventually, the CM agreed to do something, pressing a lot of keys on her computer, and telling my wife that the app would eventually show a new flex pass for our daughter, the key word being “eventually.”

My work done for the day, I grabbed a shuttle bus from the convention center, returned to the Hilton, and once again summoned an Uber. This time, my driver was a local real estate agent who picked up Uber passengers on the side. He was super nice and got me to my destination in comfort for a much better price than a cab. While enjoying my ride, I accessed MDE on my phone and noticed the FP weirdness that my family endured earlier. At that moment, I could see a flex FP for my wife only, which was puzzling. Dropped off, I made my way into the park and texted my wife that I was there. With my first FP of the day on Spaceship Earth, I decided to meander near the attraction, hitting Club Cool for some free cold beverages! I did have to stop and take this shot though:

Soon my wife called me from Mitsukoshi in the Japan Pavilion, enthralling me with her tale of the MagicBand double scan and her subsequent issue with the Guest Services CM. Being so close, I told her that I would pop over to Guest Services to get it all straightened out. Entering that air-conditioned oasis, I was almost immediately summoned up to the counter for assistance. A very nice woman from France listened carefully as I tried to explain what I knew of the earlier events. Retrieving our account, she reviewed things, affirming that a new flex FP was queued for our daughter. I brought up MDE on my phone and showed her that it was still not appearing. She admitted that it might not actually appear there (news to us!), but assured me that it was active. She then, without my asking, went the extra step and gave me a special hand written single-use FP for any attraction, except Frozen, at any park over the next seven days. That was great customer service!

Thanking her genuinely for her help, I folded up the paper FP, placed it in my wallet, and turned to leave. Suddenly, I realized that it was a lot darker outside than it was when I came in ten minutes earlier. Wow! Something serious just blew in over Epcot! Within seconds a torrential downpour started. I stood within Guest Services watching those unprepared scurrying for cover. Is it bad of me to say that it was kind of funny? Pulling off my cinch-sack, I retrieved and put on my rain jacket and set off. Very quickly, I realized that my wonderful rain jacket didn’t quite cover my shorts as much as a rain parka would. Serves me right for internally laughing at those folks who got caught in the rain earlier. Anyway, with my Spaceship Earth FP window soon to open, I hunkered down in Mouse Gears, along with a lot of other folks, hoping that the rain would quickly subside. It eventually did, but not as quickly as we all wished. I must say though, on a hot, sticky, humid day, it is so nice and refreshing immediately after a rain shower.

Finally riding Spaceship Earth (my personal favorite, but our daughter thinks it a snore-fest), I optimistically made my way over to the Norway Pavilion for my Frozen Ever After FP. Needless to say, it was still down. I felt so sorry for the CMs who had to respond to the same questions over and over again. “Is it down?” “When will it be up?” Their constant answers, “Yes, it is down. We don’t know when or if it will be running today.” To my knowledge it never did.

Now I had a flex FP! Yay! Or darn! I really wanted to experience the new Frozen attraction. Ah well, it was not meant to happen on this day; perhaps on another?! Receiving a text from my wife of their current whereabouts in the World Showcase, I decided to go back into Future World and ride Journey into Imagination. Total walk on! I actually had a FP for it an hour later, but figured that I was there and there was no line, so why not! I do enjoy this attraction. Is it perfect? No. Do I wish the original with Figment and Dreamfinder was still there? Absolutely! That said, I still find it fun. I read rumor of a possible Inside Out overlay. That could be cool, but I hope that there is some way to keep Figment in there. He is an icon.

OK, time to reunite with the family. The last update had them still in Mitsukoshi. This was their highest priority for shopping in Epcot, so I wasn’t surprised that they spent so much time in there. Going the long way, I walked by Mexico, Norway, and China, pausing at the Refreshment Coolpost for a frozen Coke. Next came Germany, Italy, the U.S., and then finally Japan. Searching the store, hoping to surprise them, I could not find hide nor hair of either. Checking my phone, there was new text message. Italy! Dang it, we must have walked right by one another! Turning around and heading back, I finally found them in one of the shops as the rain began to fall again, not nearly as hard as before, but steadily.

After spending some time in the Italy and Germany shops, it was getting close to our dinner reservation, so we made our way back towards Morocco and Restaurant Marrakesh. I failed to mention this earlier, but in regard to dining on this trip, we really wanted to branch out and try some new places. We had to include a few of our old favorites (e.g. Be Our Guest the first night and later the Crystal Palace and Ohana), but for the most part the majority of our meals at Disney this time around were first time experiences and it was exciting! As we approached the Marrakesh building, my daughter asked, “There’s a restaurant back here.” Yep, there sure is, but its front façade sure blends into the scenery. One could walk right by it and never know that there is a restaurant there. Now, let me tell you. I have read dining reviews for this place. I have listened to podcasters who aren’t very positive about it and claim that it is the easiest ADR to get on property. Well, to his their own, we liked it very much! With a nod to Aladdin, it is a diamond in the rough!

I will say that the chairs in the entry way could use more padding and be a bit more comfortable, and that the dining room lacks shape, as it is just a big boring rectangle with elevated sections on either side of the floor, but admittedly that is me just being picky. We found ourselves seated up on one of the elevated side sections, which was actually nice as it allowed a good view of the dance floor in the center. To start, we ordered an appetizer of Beef Brewat Rolls, baked layers of thin pastry filled with seasoned minced beef and eggs, fried and sprinkled with cinnamon and powdered sugar. Delish! Sweet and crunchy on the outside and warm and savory on the inside! For drinks, my wife ordered hot Moroccan mint tea, while I got the non-alcoholic Moroccan Sunrise and our daughter the Watermelon Delight. Lisa found the tea quite good and Hailey and I loved our refreshing fruity drinks. For our entrees, my wife and I both ordered the Couscous M’Rouzia Fassi; braised beef, served with prunes, balsamic vinegar, honey, sesame seeds, and eggs on a bed of couscous. Every bite was delectable, absolutely delectable! Our daughter, given her adult menu experiences at Be Our Guest and Sanaa that last two nights, decided not to take a chance on this menu and chose the kids’ meal hamburger. And guess what? She happily ate the whole thing! I still question Disney’s philosophy that once a child reaches 10 years of age that their palate is mature enough or their appetite large enough to enjoy most adult meals.

Halfway through the meal, the entertainment arrived. As the music started, a lone woman, dressed in what most would describe as a traditional belly dancing outfit, came out onto the dance floor. From our vantage point, we could see her quite clearly. She was an excellent performer and kept the audience entranced. Soon she beckoned all of the kids in the dining room to join her. After a little coaxing on my part, our daughter joined in. Parents popped up from all over the restaurant to get just the right angle to photograph their child happily dancing along. Unfortunately, Hailey managed to grab a spot mostly behind a column, so my shots were limited; that may have been her intent. Overall, it was a nice performance, one that I wish, over the course of the entire meal, there was more of.

As we exited Restaurant Marrakesh, completely satisfied, the sun was starting to lower in the western sky. What to do with our flex FastPasses? Oh, I know! How about the new Soarin’?! YES!!! Being Disneyland AP holders, we actually didn’t plan any FPs for Soarin’ this trip because firstly Frozen Ever After was the priority (oh well there) and secondly we figured that we could eventually ride it at Disney California Adventure. But fate had a different plan for us this day. No Frozen, so it’s time to soar! First of all, I was VERY happy to see The Tick, um I mean Patrick, still greeting us on the pre-show video screen. The new Soarin’ film? Great! We liked it very much. Our glider was off to one side, so some of the taller locations, such as the Eiffel Tower, appeared slanted, but overall it was a wonderful enhancement to the original. My wife though didn’t care much for the Taj Mahal imagery, feeling that it looked fake, too CGI. I hear that is a frequent comment.

Tired after a long day, we called it a night and walked out to the rental car. Again, may I say, we love, love, love staying on Disney property and using Magical Express from and to the airport, but having our own car to get around during the vacation is so much nicer than Disney Transportation. Not only is it a massive time savings, but the drives are much more comfortable, think air-conditioning and no cramped surroundings. Practically perfect in every way!

Up Next - Day 4 -- Magic Kingdom

 

[gregf71]

Day 4 – Magic Kingdom

As of this morning, I was officially on vacation! Hazzah! Today’s fun was to be had at the Magic Kingdom, kick started by breakfast at the Crystal Palace! One of our tried and true breakfast locations on property, it has never failed us in either quantity (it is a buffet after all) or quality, plus we get visits from Pooh and friends! The food offerings are standard American buffet items, but they were all well prepared and tasty. The highlight of the meal though had to be the breakfast lasagna. Layers upon layers of pure bliss! Waffles, pancakes, pound cake, strawberries, and bananas topped with pastry cream and caramelized sugar! My wife and I both honestly admit that at first glance we were both skeptical, but once we tried it, we were immediately hooked! I wish they sold this as a snack through a walk up window!

Breakfast over, we hit the nearby restrooms to quickly wash hands and what not. I only mention this for location context. Finishing first, I found myself leaning against a wooden column people watching (ok, I may have been playing on my phone a little bit too). A partial group of multiple families, with two or three fully loaded strollers among them, stood chatting next to a nearby decorative water fountain; this one to be exact:

As they were preparing to head out for their own adventures, one of the women removed the lids from several water bottles and proceeded to fill them with water from this fountain. Granted, it was the water cascading down and not that sitting inside one of the receptacles, but still. Is this water clean enough to drink? I sure as heck wouldn’t drink from them given the potential for anything and everything to blow, fall, and be excreted into it. Yuck!

FastPasses du jour included the entire MK mountain range: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Splash Mountain, and Space Mountain. Even though we have versions of each of these attractions in Disneyland, it is always a pleasure to ride them here because they are so different. Yes, thematically they are the same, but the track layouts are completely different for Big Thunder and Space Mountain (very similar for Splash I think), plus we much prefer the side-to-side seating on the MK Splash Mountain. For those not in the know, the Disneyland logs are narrower, so is the flume I suspect, and the seating is single-file.

Before hitting any attractions though, I made one demand on my family this day. Back in December, I visited Momento Mori near the Haunted Mansion and purchased a lenticular ghost portrait of myself. At $20 plus tax, minus the AP discount, it goes down in my Disney Souvenir Hall of Fame for uniqueness, quality, and value! So, this trip I wanted to have the family set completed! Heading straight there, we requested and paid for my wife’s and daughter’s portraits and were immediately escorted into one of the photography studios. The process is fairly simple for the subject. Sit on a stool, look at the camera, smile and hold still for a few seconds. Before you leave the room, the CM verifies the quality of the image and then you step outside and wait. The waiting is the longest part of the process, lasting around 10 minutes or so. Eventually, there is knock from behind a secret door and a CM opens a small panel to find your print(s). We immediately checked them out (ghoulish indeed!) and then filled out the paperwork to have them sent up to the front of the park for later pickup.

That all squared away, we hoped to ride the Haunted Mansion, but alas it was temporarily down, so we hit some other attractions! Big Thunder, Splash, Pirates, and the Tiki Room intermixed with visits to adjoining shops. Try as I might, as hot as it was (even with the wonderful air-conditioning inside) and as crowded as it was getting , I could not for the life of me convince them to go into the Country Bear Jamboree nor the Hall of Presidents. They were not ready for naps apparently. Regarding the crowds, of all our Disney days this trip, the Magic Kingdom was by far the most crowded. The evening MK from Day 1, followed by days at Animal Kingdom and Epcot, were nothing compared to the crowd this day. Even still, it wasn’t horrible at all. In fact, we actually felt that it was less crowded than our visits in early December last year, a presumably quieter time. Had it not been for the heat and humidity, it wouldn’t have been that bad at all.

Lunch time! Back in December, we missed the opening of Skipper Canteen by a week. I was so bummed, but hallelujah we were back a little over six months later! The original plan was to high tail it over here to make a same day reservation (originally the only option), but thankfully ADRs opened up a month or so prior to our trip, allowing us to ensure a visit. Given our large breakfast and even larger dinner plans, our thinking this day was to sample and share a trio of appetizers. Greeted warmly, we sat and waited for just a bit. They have seating available both outside and inside the entrance. Soon we found ourselves called and escorted into the restaurant, through the Crew’s Mess Hall and into the Falls Family Parlor (what a beautiful interior), seated right next to their Great Wall of China (the dishes, not the country). Our first cheesy joke of the meal! This was going to be great!

Unfortunately, things started going downhill pretty fast after that. Our server, Nathanael, introduced himself, welcomed us, and began a little standard chit chat. All good so far, but there was already a creepy vibe emanating from him, one that would linger and grow as the meal progressed. We discussed drink options and I chose the Schweitzer Slush, our daughter the Little Mermaid Punch, and my wife a simple iced tea. I also asked for a glass of ice water, not an unusual choice given the temperature outside and one I made frequently during this trip at other table service restaurants without issue. Nathanael’s response to that request was simply, “bubbles or no bubbles?” Figuring that he was asking me if I wanted soda water versus plain, tap ice water, I replied, “No bubbles.” Oh, I should have clarified that!

Soon, the drinks arrived and sure enough, while I was admiring my Slush (sans collectible mug, which was a tad depressing, but that’s ok), the next thing I know he is pouring a bottle of chilled Evian water into a glass (did you realize that Evian spelled backwards in naïve?). My wife looked up at me a little shocked and I returned the look. But, I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. I figured that it was my fault not to reaffirm when he asked earlier, so oh well. For the meal, my wife and I chose three appetizers: the Baladi Salad, the Falls Family Falafel, and the House-made Arepas. Our daughter chose from the kids’ meals menu, selecting Smiley’s Little Croc, chicken noodle soup with a side of fruit and choice of drink. Having already ordered the Punch for Hailey, we figured we’d just get an extra bottle of water to take with us.

First, the good! My Schweitzer Slush was quite tasty. It could have been a tad sweeter, but overall I found it enjoyable and refreshing, especially the bursting green apple boba balls. The complimentary bread and honey sauce for dipping was delicious, and all three of the appetizers were fantastic! The vinaigrette on the salad was unusual, but tantalizing. The falafel balls were crispy on the outside, soft and savory on the inside, but it was the white bean dip and tomato-cucumber salad accompaniments that stole the show with this dish. Finally, the Arepas plate, which was made up of slow-cooked beef, black beans, fried plantain chips (aka tostones), and queso fresco, was hearty in flavor and very satisfying, especially if you made a little “tostado” with the plantain on the bottom, then black beans, the beef, and the cheese on top. Very, very good!

Now, the bad. As already mentioned, Nathanael’s shtick (attempt to be funny like a Jungle Cruise Skipper) came off initially as creepy. Sadly, it never changed and grew disturbingly weirder as the meal progressed. Most of the jokes he attempted were not funny, yet he laughed to himself at all of them, somewhat under his breath, sounding like Muttley. As we finished our appetizers (of which he tried to get us to order more of on multiple occasions) and Hailey her soup, he walked up next to our table, not looking at us, staring at the dessert menu, mumbling in a very dry tone something like, “This is the moment when I stand here awkwardly, wondering if you want anything for dessert.” We declined pleasantly, but pointed out that my wife never received her iced tea refill and our daughter her side of fruit nor bottle of water, both things that we had mentioned previously. Regarding the fruit, seeing that she was finished with the soup, he offered some Monkey Bites from the dessert menu, basically chocolate covered banana slices, which she agreed to. Unfortunately, they too never came. After several minutes of us just sitting there waiting, he returned, bill in hand, asking if we needed anything else. We reminded him about the Monkey Bites (and the iced tea refill and bottle of water for that matter), to wit he said, “Oh yes,” reaching to reclaim the bill from me. “I didn’t put that on there.” Wait, he was going to charge us for it when he offered it as a replacement for the fruit our daughter never got as part of her meal?! Then, I looked more closely at the bill! That bottle of Evian that I didn’t really ask for was $4.75! Plus, there was an extra line item that I didn’t recognize. “What’s this,” I inquired, pointing to that item. He said that it was our daughter’s punch. No, I pointed out, this other line is that, so what is this? “Oh, that must be a mistake,” he retorted, “I will remove that and add the bananas.” No, no, you won’t. We never got the bananas and didn’t want them at this point. We will just pay the bill and go. Returning with an adjusted bill, sans that mystery item, I handed over my credit card for payment. He took it immediately and came back a few minutes with the paperwork for me to complete and sign. I did so and we were out!

Before we left though, I paused in the lobby and asked to speak to a manager. The CMs looked shocked that I would make such a request, but I was really frustrated with the experience and felt that it should be addressed. Quickly, a manager arrived and we detailed our experience. I explained how excited we were to try the Canteen and that I hoped that it would have been one of the culinary highlights of the trip, for the food, the ambiance, and the CM interaction. We made a point to express our sincere satisfaction with the first two categories, but Nathanael was a bust! Honestly, I didn’t want anything from the manager. I simply wanted to provide immediate feedback so that no other guests experienced what we just did. While still in the dining room, I could see that the table next to us was worryingly taking notice of our issues with Nathanael towards the end. The manager, Lori, apologized profusely and told us that she was going to comp our meal. Initially, my wife and I declined that offer because the food was still really good, but she insisted, so I handed over the receipt. She then offered us a free FastPass (sans Frozen), similar to the one I received at Epcot the day before, good for the next seven days at any of the parks. We graciously accepted both, thanked her for her time and generosity, and left. Walking out of the restaurant, towards Main Street, I pulled out my wallet to store the new flex FP. My credit card wasn’t there!!! “He never gave me back the credit card,” I yelped! My wife and daughter both rolled their eyes as I turned, rushing back inside the restaurant. The manager, still in the lobby, surprised to see me return, asked what the matter was. “He didn’t return my credit card,” I exclaimed. Lori, ever so helpful, immediately spun around and told me that she would get it. A few minutes later she returned, our credit card in hand, again apologizing. Thankfully, Nathanael noticed that he still had it and following procedure gave it to another manager for handling. Phew! It was time for a Citrus Swirl!!!

Over to Tomorrowland, we used our third FP on Space Mountain and then took another twirl on the Peoplemover. Snapping up a set of very soon FPs for Buzz Lightyear, we meandered around the nearby shops until it was time to ride. Given the crowd level this day, I was really surprised how we were able to so easily get additional FPs throughout the remainder of the day. Use that app, folks!

Speaking of the app, once we finished with Tomorrowland, we checked wait times on other attractions and found the Mansion was not only open again, but that the wait time was actually quite good. Taking the long way there, stopping by Gaston’s for one last LeFeu’s Brew, we enjoyed the back way through Fantasyland to Liberty Square. Not having FPs this time around, we made a point of enjoying the Stand By line and the interactive crypts:

Again, yet another sister attraction to Disneyland, but still oh so different and special in its own way!

One final set of FPs for Mickey’s Philharmagic and we agreed to call it a day around 6pm. With the heat, the crowds, and all of the fun we had, we were beat, yet satisfied. Dinner tonight was at Ohana at the Polynesian Village Resort. Claiming our lenticulars on Main Street, we jumped on the Resort Monorail, made our way through the Contemporary and TTC and returned to our wonderful stomping grounds from December’s trip. Arriving about 30 minutes early for our ADR, we checked in and managed to grab seats in the waiting area. I hoped that we might be able to get in early as well, but was informed that they were actually running 15 minutes late that evening. No big deal, comfy seats and air-conditioning beckoned us. About 45 minutes later, I received the text that our table was ready and we found ourselves seated along the front window with this awesome view:

Priority #1 for me this evening was a Lapu Lapu! Myers’ Original Dark Rum and tropical fruit juices served in a fresh pineapple, topped with Barcardi 151 Rum. It was joyous and as big as my head!

You know the menu here: all you care to enjoy pineapple coconut bread, salad with Lillikoi dressing, honey coriander chicken wings, pork dumplings, stir fried noodles (drizzle some of the peanut sauce on this) and vegetables, skewers of peel-n-eat shrimp, sweet and sour chicken, and Szechuan sirloin steak! We had it all! Topped off at the end with the famous Ohana Bread Pudding! Oh man, so happy! It certainly balanced out my Lapu Lapu!

Thoroughly fed and tired from the day, we decided not to return to the Magic Kingdom. It was certainly early enough, around 9pm, but we had a big day ahead of us tomorrow. Having parked in the Magic Kingdom lot, we simply walked from the Polynesian over to the TTC, grabbing the first tram. It was hosted by a very energetic CM named Anthony. You see, he apparently prided himself as quite the comedian and he was in a really good mood. As the tram pulled up, he was already cracking jokes, bad jokes, but funny nonetheless. I remarked to my wife that he should have Nathanael’s gig at Skipper Canteen. In any event, his jovial remarks continued as we drove out to the parking lots, keeping us all entertained. As it turned out, having arrived so early in the morning, ours was one of the first stops. We exited the tram and walked towards our car as the tram started to pull out. Then, our daughter yelled out, “Goodbye Anthony!” Seemingly shocked, Anthony enthusiastically asked over the tram’s microphone, “How do you know my name?!” Hailey shouted back, “It’s on your name tag!” Everyone started laughing. It was a great end to the day.

Up Next - Days 5 & 6 -- Islands of Adventure & Universal Studios

 

[gregf71]

Day 5 – Islands of Adventure

Prior to this trip, our only Orlando theme park experience outside of Disney was DISapalooza in December. Every one of our previous Orlando vacations occurred solely on Disney property, staying in one of their resorts and visiting only their parks. Being in such a centrally located resort this time, it seemed a no brainer that we would branch out and spread our wings. During trip planning, we decided on two days at Universal, ideally one day at each park. Feeling that we wanted the most out of our first full-fledged visit and fearing that the summer months may be extra crowded, we decided to bite the bullet and purchase two-day park-to-park passes with the Universal Express Unlimited add-on. It was quite the investment, but after the fact we agreed that the time savings more than made up for it.

Driving to Universal from our resort was super easy. Again, I cannot express how wonderful the signage is in and around the Orlando theme park district and traffic was really nothing at all. Selecting not to pay for upgraded parking, we ended up in Section 109 of the Kong structure. We made our way up the escalators and began the trek towards the central hub. Thank God for the moving walkways because that is one heck of a walk. Within the hub sat a large number of security check points with x-ray machines and walk through metal detectors. When did we get to the airport?! All kidding aside though, this setup was awesome, especially compared to Disney. Was it pretty? No. Did it take away from the show? No, but to be fair it was nowhere near the actual theme parks, so there really wasn’t a show to take away from per se. Was it efficient? Heck, yes! Much faster than any of the Disney security checks we went through! Did I feel safe afterwards? Yes, and actually safer than I do when entering a Disney park if I am honest. This isn’t a diatribe against Disney security at all, but truly, even with the increased scrutiny of bags and the random metal detector requests, I’ve always felt that they could be more thorough. I wish it wasn’t necessary, but it is what it is sadly.

OK, off of the soapbox! Through the security check point, we made our way through CityWalk en route to Islands of Adventure! Having purchased our park tickets online, we needed to stop at Guest Services kiosks to convert our printout to actual ticket media. As we approached, I immediately noticed that all of these kiosks were actually self-service machines. Thankfully, the interface was very user friendly and short turn we had our passes! It was about 30 minutes before opening time, but we noticed that they were already admitting guests inside. We figured that we could check out the shops, but upon having our tickets scanned for entry, the staff member said that we had VIP access and pointed us in a specific direction. Completely unaware that we had this privilege, we happily proceeded as instructed and suddenly found ourselves trekking out to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter Hogsmeade!

This was our first time experiencing Hogsmeade and it was stunning. You just kind of had to pause, take a deep breath, and soak it in, but not too big of a soak because we needed to hit Forbidden Journey before the masses arrived. Locker procured and items stored, we made our way through the lengthy queue. Believe me, we counted our blessings as we just kept moving and moving and moving along without stopping. In the end, I think our wait was only about 15 minutes. What an attraction! The combination of the ride vehicle movement with the 3D screen effects and animatronics was breathtaking. I can see how many folks with motion sickness issues would find this attraction challenging, but having taken my Bonine this morning, I was prepared and it worked perfectly! The only challenge I experienced was getting secured into my seat. Admittedly, I am not a small person and I could certainly stand to lose several pounds, but I wouldn’t call myself overly Pooh shaped at all. However, my shoulder restraint had a little trouble getting that one last click that they apparently required. A simple readjustment of how I was sitting resolved it (which I made sure to remember for the next time), but it was something unexpected.

Our first flight with Harry completed, we reclaimed our goods from the locker and flew over to Flight of the Hippogriff. It is a nice little coaster, more of a kiddie coaster, but fun nonetheless. Needing a little more excitement, my wife and daughter handed over their items and headed off to Dragon Challenge. I don’t do upside down, even on Bonine! So, while they rode, I explored Hogsmeade. As fate would have it, I ended up in the Hog’s Head pub and soon found myself with a bit of hard cider in a collectible mug. It wasn’t until a few moments later that I realized that I was drinking an alcoholic beverage at 10am. Truth is, I originally asked for a Butterbeer in the mug, but they only sold it with an adult beverage, so what choice did I have, right?!

A bit shaken from Dragon’s Challenge, I met up with the ladies and escorted them back into Hog’s Head, where they ordered a Pumpkin Juice and a Butterbeer. Oh my, that Pumpkin Juice! Sweet and spicy! Honestly, I didn’t expect to like it at all. I am not a pumpkin fan at all, but this stuff was delicious! The Butterbeer was its usual awesomeness! Cool beverages enjoyed, we meandered around Hogsmeade and checked out Filch’s and Honeydukes. This is a grand village indeed, but it was time to explore the rest of what Islands of Adventure offered!

My priority was Marvel Super Hero Island and the Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man! As we entered the area, we walked under the Hulk coaster and I could hear the sigh from my wife as it was still behind construction walls. She hoped we might get lucky with a soft opening when we saw them running cars, but with the walls still up and the realization that they had test dummies in the cars, it was not going to happen. Spider-Man was really fun! One of the many motion simulator attractions at Universal; wow, they have a lot of them! Not brave enough to try Doctor Doom’s Fearfall nor Storm Force Accelatron (we’d prefer to keep our breakfast inside our stomachs, if you please), we turned back and returned to Seuss Landing.

Seuss Landing! What a beautifully, amazing, imaginative land! The facades of these building seem to leap from the pages of Dr. Seuss!

First things first, The Cat in the Hat! A true dark ride at Universal, how refreshing! But, truth be told, the Cat animatronics were really creepy. I think what got me the most was that his mouth wasn’t fully articulated. His face seemed more like a scary mask. Overall, it was an ok little ride, but you can certainly see a difference in quality, and not in a good way, versus Disney. Next came the Caro-Seuss-el, which turned out to be the most pleasing of the Seuss Landing attractions for us. Yes, it was a simple carousel, but the quality of figures was so good. Lastly, we hit the High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride. Meh, it was ok, but it needed more show scenes and less looking down at the ugly, un-themed tops of buildings.

Lunch time arrived at Mythos. Listen, I have heard the DIS gang rail against this place, saying that it is the worst food in the park. It boasts winning an award for the best theme park restaurant that is admittedly several years old, but when you want air-conditioning, a nice inside table to sit at, and someone serving you, it is worth the risk. How bad can it really be? Our answer, not bad at all. Was it gourmet? No. Was it bad? No, in fact, we found it quite good, certainly better than any counter service, and much better than our worst, most disappointing table service meal this vacation (nope, it wasn’t Skipper Canteen). Would the places in CityWalk have been better? I am sure that they would have, but we didn’t want to spend the time walking out there and back in the heat of the day. Mythos would suit us just fine and you simply cannot beat its mythic look and feel. The place is awe-inspiring and we scored a nice table near the windows. Our server was very attentive, keeping our drinks refreshed (in fact he gave us fresh to go drinks as we left), and offered great recommendations. We started with the free bread service. Very basic, served with butter, but tasty. Our daughter ordered the Grilled Chicken BLT, which she loved, allowing me to steal the pickled red onions. My wife ordered the Mediterranean Chicken Salad Wrap, while I got the Pressed Porchetta Panini. Both were surprisingly good. In fact, our server brought me a small bottle of Worchestershire Sauce and recommended dripping it on my sandwich for each bite. It was a great little addition to an already very flavorful sandwich. In the end, we didn’t expect much from Mythos going in, but it was a true highlight of the day! Give it a chance!

Very satisfied with our lunch, we hopped across the way and entered Poseidon’s Fury! Dubbed a “special effects spectacular” it is basically a walk-through attraction that takes guests into a series of rooms with a mix of live and projected actors, all enrobed in a variety of exciting special effects. There are moments of darkness and loud noises. It can be intimidating to younger kids, in fact our 10 year old daughter exhibited fear on a number of occasions, but we held her close and she braved it. Absolutely the greatest effect had to be the water tunnel! Walking from one room to another, effectively through a vortex tunnel of water, guests are surrounded by rushing water, shooting around you cylindrically. It was so cool!

Leaving the Lost Continent, we brushed by the Wizarding World and made our way into Jurassic Park!

I think that I already mentioned that neither my wife nor daughter are big fans of the dinos. When we first discussed the attractions in Islands of Adventure, the River Adventure was on the list of things I might enjoy alone. Thankfully though, the spirit of fun took over (plus the idea of getting wet on this hot day) and after a quick jaunt into the Discovery Center we hit the river! Oh, what a nice, calm, relaxing little cruise; very reminiscent of It’s a Small World. Admittedly, the ladies were a little tense along the way, much like I get in It’s a Small World, but in the end that darn T-REX didn’t get us and we enjoyed an exhilarating plunge and splash. We ended up getting only a tad wet, mainly on our faces. Sitting in the second to last row of the boat, those in front of us took the brunt. Still, it whetted our appetites!

Exiting Jurassic Park in the direction of Toon Lagoon, fate sent us a wonderful gift! Rounding the corner, we gazed upon the massive awesomeness that is SKULL ISLAND: REIGN OF KONG! For many weeks leading up to our trip, I checked the internet for news on its opening, soft or otherwise. I hoped upon hoped that we would be lucky enough to time it right and be there on a day it was open. Unfortunately, none of my online searches nor podcast listening begat any solid information, so I went into the park that day with a hope and a prayer. Well, fate indeed shined upon us this day! Nearing the attraction entrance, I noticed a medium-sized crowd of guests in front of a group of Universal staff. I also noticed that unlike the Hulk Coaster there were no construction walls up. Suddenly, we heard a cheer and the mass of people began entering the Kong queue! I looked at my wife and said, “We have to do this!” She agreed as we each grabbed one of our daughter’s hands, joining the flow of people. It was shoulder to shoulder to say the least, but thankfully everyone behaved themselves, no pushing or cutting, and eventually we were into the line, strolling very quickly into the gigantic building! The queue is so well themed, especially if you are going for a dark, scary, mythic, cannibalistic vibe! Actually, Hailey started getting a little scared, changing her mind about going on the attraction. When we entered the room with the female shaman animatronic, she really started to freak out, and when a women screamed in the line ahead of us, she started to cry. Calming her down, we reassured her that it was all pretend and part of the fun, but told her that we would leave if she really wanted to. She took a few deep breaths, wiped the tears away, and agreed to continue. Entering the queue section that resembles a narrow cave with dried dead bodies hanging from the ceiling, I recalled hearing about actors dressed as native cannibals possibly jumping out to scare you. Given our daughter’s recent emotional outburst, I prayed that we were not victimized by one of them. Thankfully, we made it through without incident.

Finally arriving in the vehicle boarding room, we were assigned our row; row 1, just behind the truck driver. I was on the far right, on the outside, our daughter in the middle to my left and my wife to her left. Being in the front row, our view was somewhat obscured, but we had a great view of the animatronic driver, which was amazing! As our truck started off, everyone cheered with delight! Exiting the loading area, our ride, on a completely trackless system, began outside, making its way towards and through the colossal, and very intricate, grey doors!

Entering the first room, we saw on the left the skeletal remains of a large ape, while huge glowing eyed bat-like creatures hung from the ceiling on the right. The first screen room was just ahead, as we are introduced to our heroine and the 3D adventure begins! Grabbed and carried away by one of the bat creatures, our vehicle made chase, leading us into the second 3D screen room with the disgusting slug monsters. The 4D water effect simulating the guts of one of the creatures being blown onto you was cool, but gross (yes, I know it was just water, but still)! Finally, we entered the third screen room, whereby we were immediately surrounded by very angry, and I bet hungry, raptor dinosaurs, who began chasing our vehicle. Thank God for the three T-REXs that came to our rescue, or did they?! Raptors subdued, the trio soon set their sights on us! What will we do?! Who will save us?! Wait! There is a rustling the foliage! Could it be?! Yes! It’s Harry Potter! Oh wait, sorry, wrong movie! It’s KONG!!! The 4D effects were amazing during this final battle scene! Partnered with the 3D film projections on both sides of us, the truck tilted and shifted back and forth as the fight went from the left to the right and even on top of us! Suddenly, the ground gave way (virtually of course) and we fell down into a gorge of sorts; thankfully the massive vines and that giant gorilla slowed us down and righted our vehicle, guiding us out to the final showroom. Here, the great ape himself, at least his head and shoulders, was there in audio-animatronic glory, to bid us adieu. He looked and sounded a little perturbed. All in all, a wonderful adventure! Asking our daughter after our vacation concluded, KONG was her absolute favorite attraction of the entire trip!

At this point, it was really getting hot, I mean really hot. As luck, not sure if it was good or bad, would have it we just so happened to be leaving Kong and entering Toon Lagoon. Oh Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls looked ever so refreshing! Express passes to the ready, we made our way through the front of the façade and into the inner queue, eventually (this one took a little longer than expected for some reason) finding ourselves in our vessel. Positives: a fun, fast, wet (and I do mean wet) ride that definitely refreshed us on this steamy hot day. Negatives: the attraction really needs more things to look at along the flume path, especially during the slower interior portions; too many dark sections and visible, un-themed space. Oh, and did we get soaked! As we initially approached the attraction, we saw many other guests exiting; most, if not all, were wet to some extent, but no one appeared to be the level of damp that we enjoyed! I guess we were the lucky ones, huh?

So, pretty much drenched at this point, you would think that we were good as far as water rides were concerned. Oh no, you are so wrong! The logic, at least to our daughter, was basically that since we were already wet, then we should hit Bluto’s Bilge Rat Barges next. Truthfully, the logic was sound. We couldn’t possibly get any more wet than we already were, right? Oh, were we ever wrong! Similar in nature to Kali River Run in Animal Kingdom, the Barges spin you through white rapids and water falls. Um, yeah, is there another level of moist beyond drenched, because we were it! I don’t know that I had a dry inch anywhere on my body. Everything, and I mean everything, was dripping with water. Sitting along a planter outside of the ride, I pulled off my shoes and socks, wringing out the latter, astonished as to how much liquid kept falling from them. Did I mention that my walking shoes have memory foam in them? Well, memory foam sure does love to suck up and retain liquids. Every step I took for the next several hours was met with a squish. Any my wallet? I forgot to stow away my wallet from my pocket. Mistake! Leather likes water too it seems! Now, you would think that on a hot day like today that our clothes would dry quickly as we walked around the park. You see, this is where Mother Nature’s sense of humor really comes out. Yes, it was hotter than heck, but the humidity level prevented us from drying out as fast as we would have liked. Let me tell you, walking into a hyper air conditioned gift shop while sopping wet is rather chilly! I will never, ever make fun of folks wearing rain slickers on water rides ever again!

After killing some time in the shops of Toon Lagoon and Marvel Superhero Island, we sloshed our way back to the Port of Entry, exiting the park en route to CityWalk for an early dinner. The meal this evening would be had at Cowfish! I have to say, I was very excited about this meal. The whole fusion of burgers and sushi fascinated me and I looked forward to sinking my teeth into something new and different! Sitting upstairs on the third floor, which I highly recommend, not only for the view, but it was a lot quieter and relaxed up there. Scanning the menu, I knew that dinner was going to be an adventure! Bypassing all of the burgers and sushi, which all looked yummy by the way, I found the famed Burgushi section! Oh, did I have a hard time deciding! Ultimately, with our server’s recommendation, the High Class Hillbilly Southern Style Bar-B-Q-Shi:

My wife ordered one of the Burgushi bento boxes:

And our daughter got the PB&J Sushi Roll bento box:

Overall, it was all good! Honestly, I could have done with much less of the fried potato strings atop my sushi, but the roll itself was very good (though I regret not asking for a little BBQ sauce on the side for dipping). I am quite the dipper of sushi! My wife enjoyed her bento box immensely, really liking the Thai cucumbers and sweet potato fries that came with. The coolest meal though, had to be Hailey’s with the simple PB&J rolls accompanied not only by fries and orange wedges, but a super cool Rice Krispies Treat piece of “sushi” with a Swedish fish atop it! Oh, and I am so glad that their chairs were hard plastic (not normally something one would be thankful for) because once our meal was over, we simply had to wipe down our seats (our shorts were still super wet remember). We would have felt really bad had we left damp seat cushions for the diners who followed us.

Back to the Islands! Now beyond 7pm, it was getting cooler, a relative term of course, which didn’t help our clothes situation much at all. Having ridden everything that we wanted to at least once, we agreed to visit the Wizarding World one final time, very much wanting to see the area at night. Arriving in the World, we were stunned to find the stand-by line for Forbidden Journey to be 15 minutes! Oh yeah, we are hitting this one more time! Items stored, we entered the labyrinthine queue. Strangely, it didn’t move nearly as quickly as it had in the morning. Earlier, it moved pretty steady, rarely did we stand in one place for more than a few seconds, but this time it stalled several times. In the end, I think that we waited 20 minutes in total, but I would take that any day for this attraction. The only problem this time was me, or should I say my stomach. I guess eating at Mythos and Cowfish slightly increased my circumference since this morning. In other words, it was a little bit more of a challenge for them to harness me into the ride vehicle this time, but they eventually did and the ride was once again amazing!

We hung out in the area for next hour or so, checking out the shops yet again or simply people watching. It is so much fun watching people here. Satisfied with our day, we raided Honeyduke’s for some candy goodness and began the long march out to the parking structure and our car, stopping to take a fun picture on the way out:

It had been a wonderful and long day. Tomorrow, Universal Studios and Diagon Alley!


Day 6 – Universal Studios Orlando

Now knowing that we had the VIP early access, we set our alarms earlier this morning and were out the door, grabbing breakfast at the Hilton’s Provisions Market. Decent little market and counter service for a few hot items. Traffic was light and we found ourselves parked in the Kong structure once again, very close to where we were the day before. Through security, we entered CityWalk and made the right turn towards the Studios park. Scanned in quickly, we followed staff and signage towards London and Diagon Alley! First things first, Gringotts! Belongings stored, we soon relived our wonderful first ever ride during DISapalooza. It was just as wonderful as the first time! The blending of an immersive 3D simulator ride with a roller coaster is simply sublime. So, which is better, Forbidden Journey or Gringotts? For us, Gringotts wins the gold (yes, I am typing this up during the 2016 Summer Olympics).

Off the ride, we then hit something that we missed out on during DISapalooza, Florean Fortescue’s Ice-Cream Parlour. Though we very much wanted to enjoy some free ice-cream back in December, the line proved too long for us given the limited amount of time we had at the party and all that there was to see and do. This time however, there was no line; in fact, upon entering the establishment, we found no line whatsoever! Joy! Butterbeer soft serve for me, Earl Grey & Lavender ice cream for Lisa, and Chocolate & Raspberry for Hailey. Deee-lish!

A few minutes in the shops and of course Knockturn Alley, we then made our way over to Kings Cross Station and a ride on the Hogwart’s Express. Virtually a walk on as the park had only just officially opened, we made it all the way to the station itself and were immediately assigned a boarding section. The train arrived within 5 minutes or so. The ride experience still impresses me, especially the projected effects on the cabin door side. Off the train near Hogsmeade in Islands of Adventure, we simply walked around and entered the queue for the return trip. Back in the boarding station within a few minutes, we enjoyed our ride back to London. All this walking though aggravated a chronic injury with our daughter’s knee unfortunately. Upon exiting the train the second time, she asked if we could take the elevator rather than the stairs. We of course obliged her request and made our way to the nearby lift, as did an older couple, a man pushing a woman in a wheelchair. As we entered the elevator, making sure to hold the door open for them, the man then said, “You know this is for disabled people, right?” A little put off at his question, I simply responded, “Our daughter has a knee injury which makes stairs painful sometimes.” He looked at her and immediately realized his error in judgement. You can’t always judge a book by its cover. No, she didn’t have a brace on her knee, or crutches, or exhibited anything obvious, but the fact remained that she needed that accommodation at this particular moment and we were more than happy to share with them.

Leaving London, we decided to hit Men In Black Alien Attack. A little shocked that here too riders had to store their belongings in a locker, we did so and entered the Express queue. In Disney attraction terms, Men In Black is a mixture of Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin and to a certain extent the Tea Cups. Riding in a vehicle with mounted laser guns, you enter a course with a series of alien targets. You shoot, you hit, and you score. Simple as that. The Tea Cup comparison comes when you are suddenly pitted against another group of riders, who can shoot a target atop your vehicle, causing it to spin. Well, that other team must have had a sharpshooter because we spun around a lot. So much so that, even having taken my Bonine that morning and feeling no issues after Gringotts, I started to feel a little woozy. Overall, a fun attraction. I like shooters, but I thought the spinning was a bit much for me, so be warned.

Next, Springfield and the Simpsons Ride! Pausing for a picture in front of the giant Krusty head, we entered the quick queue and were honestly surprised to find the majority of this line outside. It was still morning, but the heat and humidity were starting to get somewhat uncomfortable. Finally, we enter the final room, whereby groups of riders are assigned small pre-boarding rooms to enjoy a short video. The problem was our video never came on and after several minutes of just standing in there, one of the other group members popped his head out to report it. Unlike us, they had been on the attraction before and knew that something was amiss. The puzzled Universal staff member ushered us to another room and soon we were watching the pre-show. Entering the next room, we discovered our ride vehicle and the other family, knowing that this was our first time, very nicely allowed us to sit in the front row. Simpsons is another simulator attraction that lifts the ride vehicles up towards a massive screen, not too dissimilar to Soarin’. Unlike that wonderful glider simulator attraction at Epcot, this ride is MUCH more insane and, honestly, rough. So much so that our daughter complained of a headache and a little motion sickness afterwards, and she has never does. First the knee and now this, uh oh.

Time for a break with lunch at the Simpsons Fast Food Boulevard, specifically Krusty Burgers! Love, love, love this dining concept, I just wish that the facades were a little more developed and immersive, but that is nitpicking I suppose. While our still slightly dizzy daughter grabbed us a table, we ordered a trifecta of Krusty Burgers and fries:

How were they? Meh. Not great, certainly not terrible. They were very slightly a step above what I could call basic theme park burgers, mainly because of the sauce on them. The fries were soft and listless with no crunch whatsoever. But, hey, it’s a Krusty Burger!

Popping out through Moe’s Tavern, I stopped for a picture with Barney and then we were off to check out Woody Woodpecker’s Kidzone and one particular attraction: E.T. Adventure! OK, yes, this is a ridiculously cheesy dark ride, but the ride vehicles are so unique and fun! You just have to ride it!

Passing through Hollywood, popping into the Hello Kitty store, we made our way into Production Central and Despicable Me Minion Mayhem. Our daughter is a HUGE fan of the Despicable Me films and this attraction was on top of her To Do list today. A good portion of the queue is outside, covered but still outside, so when we soon found it moving slowly, even the Express queue, coupled with the highest heat level of the day, it was kind of anguishing. I really felt sorry for those folks in the Stand By line. Eventually, we made it inside and watching the pre-show film. It was funny and set up perfectly for what awaited us. Entering the main room, we found our designated “ride vehicle,” though it was more like a couple of benches on a platform. 3D glasses on, the show began, and it was pure mayhem! My wife and daughter very much enjoyed playing the mobile phone game version of this attraction, so being pulled into it was quite an adventure! That said, it took its toll on our daughter. It was becoming painfully clear that she had a threshold for 3D motion simulator attractions and we were very close to that limit.

Leaving through the Minion shop, we checked out all of the cool trinkets and then made our way across the way to Shrek 4-D. Again, yet another covered outdoor line. Knowing this, I wish we had planned the time better given the heat and humidity, but what are you going to do? Another Studios attraction, another pre-show lobby video. Entering the theater, the seating very much resembled that of the old Honey I Shrunk the Audience and Captain Eo theaters at Disney. Glasses on, the film started, and yeah, it was basically HISA and CE, but with much more bouncy (almost uncomfortably so) seats!

Leaving the Shrek theater, we hit the shop and discussed our plans moving forward. Unfortunately, our big green friend was the final straw for Hailey. Too many 3D motion rides. Now we know. She was effectively done and it was only about 3pm. The idea at this point was to find a nice cold beverage and a place to sit in the cool shade. My wife was bummed because she really wanted to ride the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit coaster and Revenge of the Mummy, which normally our daughter would happily join her on, but that wasn’t going to happen this day. Plus, Lisa really didn’t want to ride alone and one of us had to stay with Hailey. I, on the other hand, really wanted to experience Transformers. An agreement was soon reached. We found a covered table near Mel’s Drive-In, procured a couple cold drinks for the ladies, and I was off to Transformers for one final ride! Unfortunately, fate dictated otherwise, as it broke down as I was a mere five people away from boarding. Ah well, we have it here in California too, so someday it will happen!

Grudgingly returning to my family, we agreed that it was time to simply go. Yes, there was more that we would have liked to do, but the heat and the motion rides beat Hailey and we didn’t want to press it. Regarding the heat, yes it was very hot this day, but what added to it, at least in our opinion, was the blacktop throughout the park. It really felt like the sun was just beating down on us from above and then reflecting back up onto us from the ground. I don’t recall similar sensations at Disney. Perhaps it was our perception that there was also a significant lack of shade. Either way, we were physically wiped. For the time spent, we still felt that we had fun. On the way out, the ladies paused for a picture with one of their favorites:

So, what to do now? Well, our original plans had dinner sort of open. We originally discussed dining at the Leaky Cauldron, possibly Finnegan’s Bar & Grill, and even Cowfish again, given our previous night’s experience. But, needing to leave and get away from the park, none of those ideas seemed viable any longer. Then it hit me, I recalled that the new Rick Bayless restaurant, Frontera Cocina, was due to open soon in Disney Springs. Pulling out my Smartphone, I googled away and discovered that it had opened just a few days before! It was sort of a soft opening and no reservations were being accepted, only walk-ins. Having thoroughly enjoyed his Frontera Grill and XOCO restaurants in Chicago a few years ago, as well as his commercial sauces from our local grocery stores, I easily convinced the ladies that this was destiny! Trekking back to the car, Hailey thankfully started feeling better and said that we could go directly to Disney Springs to walk around instead of first recuperating at the Hilton. The next thing we knew, we were out of the Kong parking structure and heading down the motorway en route to the Springs! This day started our great, got a little mushy in the middle, but was going to end on a major high note, I just knew it!

Finding our way directly into the Orange Garage was so easy, plus the green lights above the parking spots indicating availability was simply awesome! I have only ever seen that before in some of the nicer casinos in Las Vegas. It should be a standard in any parking commercial garage. Popping out near Splitsville, we made our way towards The Landing. When we last visited Disney Springs in December 2015, the new section of The Landing was still generally behind construction walls. It was an absolute pleasure to see it mostly unwrapped! Since it was still early for dinner, we took our time strolling around, soaking it all in, and window shopping a bit. There is a lot to take in here, but yes it does send a serious outlet mall vibe, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Eventually, we found our destination! Eager staff stood outside the entrance of Frontera Cocina, menus in hand, ready to chat with curious passers-by about what they offered inside. They didn’t need to convince us whatsoever, as they happily pulled open the doors for us and motioned us in. Immediately met by a hostess, we were sat without any wait in a mostly empty main dining room. It was still early for dinner, plus with it being only walk-ins at this point, I wasn’t terribly surprised at the number of open tables. Seated in the corner, next to the window, we were quickly met by our server and listening to drink recommendations.

Lisa ordered the La Cava Avocado margarita, highly recommended by our server. She was blown away!

Since I was driving, both Hailey and I stuck with Coke. As an appetizer, we ordered the Bacon Guacamole and Chips. Oh my God, this was SO GOOD! Now, let me tell you, I do not like avocados and especially guacamole. Several years ago, while on a business trip in Chicago, I had the opportunity to try Chef Bayless’ guacamole and immediately fell in love with it. There is something about his spice mixture that is transformational to me. What it does to those “yucky” avocados (no, no, they use excellent quality avocados I am sure) is simply amazing and then you add bacon to it, uh yes please!!!

Needless to say, we polished it off completely! For our entrees, Hailey ordered the Carne Asada for making Soft Tacos dish, while Lisa got the Shrimp Enchiladas Suizas. Her word, “Yum!” I ordered my absolute favorite Bayless dish, his Carne Asada; red chile-marinated Angus steak, refried black bean with Cotija cheese, and caramelized plantains with crema and queso fresco! Sheer perfection!

Listen, we live in San Diego. We know good, heck we know great Mexican food, and this is GREAT! It is definitely pricey for Mexican food, but this is truly Mexican cuisine and worth every penny. Skip the rest in Orlando and dine at the best; experience Frontera Cocina!

While enjoying our meal, we noticed a small crowd of people looking over a nearby railing, down onto landscaped area along the water. Contently leaving the restaurant, I really wanted to hit D-Luxe Burger for one of their famous Red Velvet Burger Macarons, which happened to be in the direction of that railing. Walking by there, we immediately noticed what had been drawing all of those people over…kittens. There must have been half a dozen and no mama cat to be found. Most were sleeping, but a few were moving around and playing with one another. Having recently rescued a puppy from the middle of the freeway and making sure it was adopted to a new forever home, we were understandably concerned about these little fuzzy things. Noticing our interest, a CM from the nearby Disney Springs Welcome Center came out and settled our emotions. She affirmed that they were well aware of them and being well taken care of by their mother, who was most probably out looking for food at the moment. She added that the current plan was to claim them the following day and get them into the local adoption program. Satisfied with the information, we made our way into D-Luxe and grabbed a trio of these little babies:

A quick pop into Basin to grab a couple bath bombs for Lisa and Hailey and we called it a day. Tomorrow…a much needed break, or so we thought, at Discovery Cove.

Up Next - Days 7 & 8 -- Discovery Cove & SeaWorld Orlando

 

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Day 7 – Discovery Cove

Two words: blissful oasis! This perfectly describes Discovery Cove. With the Hilton just down the road and not having to worry about breakfast, since it is included with Discovery Cove admission, or slathering on our normal daily coatings of sun screen (because you have to use their fish-friendly version), we enjoyed extra sleep this fine morning. Pre-printed and completed waivers in hand, we set off and arrived at DC around 730am. Entering the beautiful tropics-inspired lobby, we were immediately met by a staff member who ushered us to a nearby service desk for check in. Paperwork accepted, reservations and package enhancements confirmed, photos taken, IDs printed and attached to lanyards for each of us (including a small property map), and we were off to breakfast!

Walking down the windy path towards the heart of the park, we were immediately struck by the vibrant and full landscaping, not to mention the calm serenity. Arriving at the centrally located Laguna Grill, we entered the fairly short line and made our selections. The meal was cafeteria style and pretty basic; bulk produced scrambled eggs (never haute cuisine, but ok nonetheless), bacon, sausage, potatoes, yogurt, assorted pastries, and fresh fruit. Milk and juice were available, but you could also use the soda dispenser if that floated your boat.

The covered outdoor seating area offered a lot of tables (chairs too), but it also presented easy access for the local avian wildlife, and not too surprisingly they were somewhat aggressive when it came to abandoned food. Staff members attempted to clear the tables after guests departed, but it was keenly obvious that they could have used an extra set of hands or three for this task. The family sitting at the table next to us left and within seconds three to five birds of varying sizes and species swooped in and started making a mess. DC staff eventually made their way over to the table, but their initiative was less than stellar as I watched a couple of them notice the event and continue wiping off clean tables.

Meal over and table cleared, it was time for the fun to begin! Regarding our agenda, as previously mentioned in the preface to this trip report, a close family friend, who is a SeaWorld San Diego employee, hooked us up with discounts for Discovery Cove. Not only was our admission, including the dolphin interaction, significantly reduced, we were able to add the Elite Package upgrade at a discount too, as well as a SeaVenture experience for me (no discount for that)! The Elite upgrade included a DC tote bag and photo frame, a small plush dolphin toy, a private cabana (with a stocked fridge, a basket of snacks, a personal locker, and attendant service), and the Discovery Photo Package. The photo package itself included a selection of prints, a poster (of one of our prints), a photo album, another picture frame, a PhotoKey membership for downloading all of our images later, and a DVD of our dolphin interaction. Even if it was not discounted, the value of this upgrade is astounding, especially when we compared it to the itemized cost of everything included, not to mention a 4 hour poolside cabana rental at Disneyland in 2015. What a deal!

Reporting to the Guest Services desk near the main gift shop, we checked in again and were provided our Discovery Cove swim vests, a wetsuit for me (required for the SeaVenture experience), snorkels and masks. The very pleasant staffer then confirmed and escorted us to our home for the day, our little personal oasis, the cabana.

Located on the beach of Serenity Bay, it was completely surrounded by tall greenery (which wasn’t the case for other cabanas we saw elsewhere) and accessible via a short bamboo gate. We wondered if the more “private” cabanas were reserved for the upgrade packages, while the others were assigned to guests who just reserved a cabana singularly. It included a free-standing hammock (i.e. suspended by its own frame, not between two trees), two lounge chairs, three chairs, a medium sized table, and a tall, thin wood structure that housed the fridge and safe, with its wrist-band key inserted in it. Yeah, it was awesome!

The only negative of this particular location was its vicinity to a nearby smoking area. It wasn’t horrible by any means, and certainly didn’t ruin the day, but it was a bit of an annoyance on a couple of occasions.

Before she left, the Guest Services rep confirmed that we had everything we needed in the cabana. Noticing that the fridge was stocked with sodas and water, but missing the wine and beer, we requested a bit of both. Rattling off a few options for each, we made our selections and she said that she would notify our attendant. Not long afterwards, as we were applying our official sunscreen and I struggled to get into my wetsuit (more on that later), Alex, our attendant appeared with a stack of towels and some bottles of beer (Anheuser-Bush products all) and white wine (small). Introducing himself and already knowing that we had the photo package with the Dolphin Interaction, he let us know that he would take care of claiming and delivering our booty for us, which was very cool as he added that the pickup line gets pretty long towards the end of the day (time that can better spend relaxing and having fun).

All three of us lathered in sunscreen and me finally in my wetsuit, we grabbed our snorkeling gear and headed over to the Grand Reef! Let me warn you now, the water is cold; not chilly, cold. You will get used to it, but it is a bit of a shock at first, requiring either a slow immersion or crazed quick submersion (followed by a scream). I chose the first option, slow and easy. As it turned out, it was good that I did. For, as I eased in the water, a nice lifeguard quietly walked up to me and said, “Sir, your wetsuit is on backwards.”

What?! Really?! No wonder it was such a challenge to get it on in the first place! My wife noticed us talking and came over, inquiring what was said. I told her and she stared busting up. “But, there is no long pull string on the zipper. How can someone zip it up the back?” With help, I suppose. So, head held high, I exited the Reef and proudly walked over to the nearest changing room. The darn thing was almost as hard to get off backwards as it was to put on! But I did it! All by myself! Now put on the correct way, I returned to the Reef and my wife zipped me up the back. Time to swim “wit de fishes!”

Amazing! Crystal clear water and an awesome variety of fish, of all shapes, sizes, and species! They were all around you! To the left! To the right! Beneath! And sometimes above, if you dared to go down far enough in the deeper sections! I will admit, for most people there will be a certain fear factor at first. The sheer circumference of some of these rays was intimidating to say the least, but you just have to swallow your initial fear and just keep swimming! Our daughter, who has actually become quite a good swimmer, needed a little persuasion and courage. Holding one of our hands at all times, we led her out into the reef. She grasped the whole breathing through a snorkel thing really quickly, which I figured posed the greatest challenge, but she did great. Eventually, her confidence grew and she released our hands, swimming next to us, but still close enough that she could grab on (which she did on numerous occasions) if need be.

After exploring the reef for about an hour, it was time for my SeaVenture experience. Exiting the water, I walked around to the rear of the Grand Reef, checking in at the SeaVenture desk. Snorkel and mask stored in a communal basket (luckily mine was the only set in there, so no worries about claiming someone else’s gear afterwards), I waited for the rest of my group to arrive. I took the opportunity to inquire about pictures. Having purchased the package upgrade that included photos, I asked how it worked for this experience. Truth is it didn’t. SeaVenture is a completely separate thing and while they could allow me to borrow a digital camera, it would cost me around $30 for the images, from 1 to whatever. Plus, they really were not taking pictures of you and the group per se, but they would take pictures of you with “your” camera if you asked them to. They did end up taking a shot of each of us from up above after we put on the diving helmet and started lower ourselves into the water. In the end, I decided I would rather focus on the experience rather than worry about taking pictures, and $30 for the one shot of me dropping down into the water was so not worth it.

Once everyone was checked in, we were escorted to a nearby space with benches and a wall-mounted TV monitor, where we watched a short video and received some instruction, including hand communications and posture requirements (if you lean too much, the water will rise in the helmet), from the staff who would be leading our adventure underwater. Our group consisted of nine people, four groups of two and me. Since I was all by my lonesome, I volunteered to be last one to enter the water. The breathing contraption is pretty cool. Floating atop the water, it managed breathing tubes to each helmet. One by one, we climbed down onto the rails of a ladder, entering the water and stepping down just far enough for them to lower the helmet onto our shoulders. Finally, it was my turn. Helmet on and feeling secure, I made my way down to the bottom. Immediately, I could feel the pressure change under the water. It was weird; very sudden, but not uncomfortable at all. The low rhythmic sound of the air flow surrounded my head. I could feel a light pulsing sensation in my ears. Just breathe normal and all will be well, and don’t lean!

Joining the rest of my group, including the guide and two other staffers, we started off to the right (facing the ladder). The path was outlined by rock walls, probably ten to twelve feet high, with a hand rail on one side that shifted from left to right depending on the section we were in; all of it was a tad slimy to the touch because of the dusting of algae. As I walked, the floor did not feel slippery at all, though I am not certain if this was the texture of the floor itself or the fact that I was wearing water shoes, which I highly recommend for this adventure. In fairly close formation, we slowly snaked our way along the trail, stopping at a couple locations to observe the fish swimming around us or those behind a glass wall, namely the sharks. The guide wrote on a handheld Magna Doodle-type thing to communicate certain facts or ask questions, sometimes silly.

Eventually, we came to a section where we were all told to line-up next to one another. One of the two divers soon appeared directly in front of me, gesturing for me to cup my hands together. Holding them down and out in front of my stomach, not within my line of sight through the helmet, I suddenly felt something very strange in my palms. I can best describe it as light scratching of very thin fingers with long nails. Elevating my hands, I soon found myself holding a slipper lobster! Yeah, I prefer eating lobster (more on that later) over holding them! I think he sensed my feelings, as he almost immediately began flapping his tail as if trying to swim away. The staff member quickly reclaimed it and moved on to the guest to my right. Next, I found myself holding a sea star. Having grown up in San Diego and visiting Sea World all of my life, this was nothing new and exciting to me, but I was glad to see some of the others enjoying it.

After the interaction portion was completed, our guide led us to the next section for the grand finale! Feeding time! Bunching us shoulder to shoulder, they told us to clamp our own hands together, fingers tight. Why, you ask? Because fish bite when food is around! Already surrounded by a good number of fish, our guide pulled out and opened up a canister, allowing its contents to spill out in front of all of us. I swear to God, every single fish, EVERY SINGLE FISH, in the entire reef, THE ENTIRE REEF, must have swarmed around us. I could not see the guide, either of the two support divers, or any of my fellow adventurers for about 30 seconds. It was just FISH!!! You could feel and hear them rushing through the water, right next to you! It was insanely awesome! But, I think that the woman next to me started to freak out after a bit. As the fish started to clear I noticed her shaking, her son holding her hand seemingly for comfort. She was smiling, but I could tell by the look in her eyes that she was over stimulated.

Processing around the corner, we arrived at the end of our underwater journey. Under the direction of our guide, one by one we ascended a wall-mounted ladder. When my turn arrived, I awaited his beckoning to walk forward, but instead it was an aggressive stop sign! I acknowledged understanding his command and I froze. He started pointing down at my feet, which as you may recall I cannot see, so I started feeling a tad anxious. Pulling out his Magna Doodle, he wrote, “Guitar Fish” and once again pointed down towards my feet. As I nodded, I began feeling something doing a figure-eight around my calf muscles. It was surreal. I knew something was there, but I couldn’t see it, and I never actually did because it eventually swam away behind me. Ah well. Finally receiving clearance to move forward, I grabbed the ladder and began climbing up and out. Breaking the plane of the water, a staffer immediately hooked my helmet and pulled it off of my shoulders, sliding it off to the side, allowing me to exit the water completely. What an amazing experience!

Reclaiming my snorkel and mask, I returned to the Grand Reef in search for my family. Not finding them there, I returned to the cabana to peel off the wetsuit and switch over to the swim vest. Noticing that the beer had arrived in our fridge, I decided to partake in a nice cold beverage and relax a bit. Within twenty minutes or so, my wife and daughter appeared in the nearby Serenity Bay, extolling the virtues of the pool area and attached lazy river, the only negative being the very uneven floor in the shallow swimming area. Grabbing some float tubes, we headed out in into the Bay and river, as they gave me a wonderfully relaxing tour of this section of the park.

Lunch time! Arriving at the Laguna Grill, we noticed that only one side of the restaurant was open and a fairly good line had formed. Timing, as they say, is everything, for within a few seconds I noticed a staff member beckon guests over to the rear section. Entrée choices included a bacon cheeseburger, hot dog, chicken tenders, sweet and sour chicken on rice, grilled fish (I wonder if we swam with any of these), pulled pork or club sandwiches, mac and cheese, a couple pasta selections, and a tropical cobb salad. A variety of sides were available (fruit, fries, veggies, etc.), as well as several single serving desserts. My daughter and I both chose some of the sweet and sour chicken with rice and a little mac and cheese on the side. My wife went with the club sandwich and a side of potato chips. I may have snuck a slice of cherry cheesecake on my tray too. Overall, the food was ok; not great, but not bad. Honestly, I kind of hoped for something a little better, but it is what it is.

Returning to our cabana, we decided to just chill for a little while, allowing our meals to digest. Don’t want a cramp you know! With me and my wife lounging in the two recliners, our daughter nabbed the hammock. Popping up a couple times and hopping over to the nearby snack bar for a warm soft pretzel or frozen daiquiri, we simply relaxed in the tranquility until it was time to head off to our dolphin interaction.

Reporting to our designated meet-up cabana, we checked in, grabbed a seat, and awaited our pre-interaction orientation. Our specified time came and went, leaving us all sitting there for an extra ten minutes or so, which is an eternity when you are so excited about what is about to happen! Finally, a Dolphin Interaction instructor arrived and briefed us on what we would be experiencing. The excitement level was bursting throughout the entire group! “Are you ready,” he asked. Um yes!!!

Broken into smaller clusters, we followed a designated staff member out to the Dolphin Lagoon and our interaction section. Finding our family of three paired with a nice family of five from England, we were greeted by two interaction trainers, already standing knee deep in the water. They introduced themselves and welcomed us into the cold water, requesting that we remove our water shoes beforehand because apparently some of the dolphins think they are toys under the water. Now barefoot, we ever so slowly made our way forward into the pool, trying very hard not to slip on the slick surface. Once in position, one of the dolphins was summoned and quickly swam over. The trainer shared information about dolphins and asked us a variety of questions to see what we may already know. Presenting a few hand signals, the trainer asked the dolphin to position herself next to us, allowing us to essentially pet her. If you have never felt a dolphin before, they feel very much like smooth rubber.

The amazing marine mammal exhibited a series of behaviors for us, each time receiving a reward in the form of fish, ice, or gelatin; at no time did any of the guests feed the dolphins, it was always a trainer. Time for the kisses! One by one, each of us was escorted off to the side, whereby a dolphin came up, awaiting our signal (two hands cupped near the top of the water), allowing us to plant a kiss on the top of their snout.

We then positioned ourselves next to her and posed for an individual and family picture. Yes, they photographed and recorded everything.

Finally, it was time for the swim! Basically, you had to swim out about 50 feet or so into the deeper section of the lagoon and tread water until your “ride” arrived. Our daughter preferred to experience this part of the interaction in the shallow area, which is certainly an option (not sure if it is only for kids though). While a trainer escorted her off to the side, my wife and I swam out into the lagoon. Lisa went first, grasping lightly onto the dolphin’s (her name was LaToya) dorsal and left pectoral fin. At the sound of a whistle, the powerful creature took off, my wife holding on for dear life!

My turn! After dropping off Lisa, LaToya returned to my side. I carefully took hold of her fins and we were off! Wow! Just wow! The strength, power, and grace of this wonderful animal was humbling. She seemingly glided through the water effortlessly. My body turned horizontal, legs floating up from behind me, as we darted towards the shoreline. Small waves crested into my face, allowing me brief moments to gleefully yelp, “Woo-hoo!” What an awesome experience. I could only wish that I could do it again, but only one ride allowed.

Looking over to our left, in the shallow area, Hailey was now ready to go with LaToya. Holding on from the right side, they took off and Hailey enjoyed the ride of her life! “How was it,” I asked. “That was so much fun,” she yelled! Even though half of the time, Hailey’s face was partially submerged.

Once all of the swims were completed, the trainers re-positioned us together once again for a little more instruction, regarding the dolphin’s tail specifically. Another dolphin swam over and positioned himself to allow us each to touch and feel his tail. “Want to see something cool that he can do with his tail,” asked the trainer. We all nodded, so she gave a signal, and our marine friend moved out just beyond the deep water ledge. Going vertical, his tail emerged from below, reared back and sploosh, firing water several times at all of us. A fine laugh was had by all. A new signal from the trainer and he was off. “Watch the center of the pool,” she said, as the dolphin quickly emerged and flew up into the air doing a forward flip back into the water. Ooh! Ahh!

“Before we go, we have one more thing to do,” stated the trainer. Asking some random dolphin related question, she looked at all of us to see who might know the answer. Several of us raised our hands, but the fix was in. Hailey was called and responded correctly. “Excellent, we have a prize for you!” Positioning her in the shallows off to the right, our trainer signaled another across the way. Placing a buoy into its mouth, the other trainer sent the dolphin over to Hailey. Holding her arms open, the dolphin approached and initially refused to give up the buoy as Hailey attempted to claim it. They often use them as toys, so sometimes they do this apparently as part of a game. Eventually, she released it and posed for a picture with Hailey:

As I said previously, the fix was in. The buoy presentation was part of the package upgrade we purchased that included the cabana and photos. When purchasing it, we were allowed to include a customized message on the buoy; it reads, “Dolphin Swim 2016”.

Experience over, we turned and attempted to make our way out of the water. I say “attempted” because my exit was not the most glamorous. Remember that they asked us to remove our water shoes? Well, I suspect that they would have come in very handy in improving my grip on the slippery surface leaving the pool. Yep, I slipped. No big deal. I went straight down onto my knees. No harm no foul; more embarrassing than anything else. Laugh it off, I say! But, a word of warning to those who follow us into these majestic waters…be careful as you step.

Back onto the sandy beach, we reclaimed our water shoes and met up with our awaiting cabana attendant. Escorting us to the photo building, he left us in their good hands and confirmed that he would pick up all of our selections and deliver them to our cabana. Stepping up to a monitor, a staff member confirmed our photo package and then called up all of our group’s photos. As part of the package, we selected eight images for 6x8 prints and another for a 16x24 poster. We also had a choice of two picture frames. Order completed, we headed back to the cabana for a short respite, grabbing a quick snack along the way.

What next? There be otters here! Grabbing our floatation devices, we made our way over to the Freshwater Oasis area of the park. Wading into the water, we floated down the trail and into a cave-like covered section. Otters! Behind glass, but still…otters! Not incredibly active, but moving about, we hung out watching these adorable little guys for several minutes. Making our way out of the small cavern, we then floated down towards a small central island, home of the marmosets. Timing it perfectly, as we came by the back side of the island, a staff member was bringing out food for these tiny little monkeys. So cute!

So let’s see, we snorkeled in the reef, we floated down the lazy river, we swam with dolphins, and we visited the otters and marmosets. What’s left? Nearing 2pm and park closure only a few hours away, we decided to skip the aviary and return to the reef for more snorkeling. Hailey and I stayed together, allowing Lisa to enjoy the area on her own this time. After about 45 minutes, the highlight being checking out the sharks from the other side of the reef, the daughter and I were pooped and agreed to return to the cabana to chill. Lisa stayed to swim to her heart’s content.

While in the cabana, our attendant arrived, Discovery Cove tote bag in hand, full of all kinds of goodness! Inside the bag was a small dolphin plush for Hailey, a 6x8 photo album, two 6x8 picture frames, our rolled up poster print (in a thick cardboard tube), a DVD of our dolphin interaction, an all-image photo CD and online digital photo-key, and a sleeve with our eight 6x8 prints. In a word…awesome! The only problem, which we didn’t realize until later at the Hilton, was that they gave us a different picture frame from what we chose earlier at the photo building. The one we received was also nice, but a more subdued shade of blue. We liked it just the same.

Around 3:30pm, we noticed people starting to head away from the beach area, as the clouds started to roll in, the wind began to pick up, and we started hearing a not so subtle sound of rumbling thunder in the distance. Uh oh! By 4pm, the sky darkened and the thunder was much closer. Almost immediately, an alert went out to all of the staff that due to an incoming storm all of the pools needed to be cleared of guests. By this time, Lisa was already on her way back to the cabana and upon her arrival we decided that given the time, plus the fact that the park closed in less than an hour and a few water droplets were starting to fall, it might be a good time to pack up and head out. Making sure to give our cabana attendant a gratuity before we left, we made our way out of this wonderful oasis and back out into the real world.

As quickly as the storm blew in, it also blew out and the rain never really presented after all. We drove back to the Hilton and summarily collapsed. Who knew that relaxing could be so exhausting? Looking back now, it was all of the swimming. You don’t really think about when you are doing it, but several hours of swimming and snorkeling can really take a lot out of you versus standing in theme park attraction lines, even with the heat.

Dinner tonight was the splurge. Putting on our “nice clothes” and getting our “pretty” on, we boarded our rented chariot and made our way to the WDW Dolphin Resort for what we hoped would be a meal to remember at Todd English’s bluezoo. Finding parking near the convention center end of the resort, we meandered through the empty, wide halls of the meeting space, eventually finding ourselves in the beautiful main lobby. An escalator took down one level, where we found the entrance to our dining oasis.

Escorted to our table, the hostess pointed out the open kitchen to the left, where frenetic chefs worked their magic, but the highlight of the trek had to be the three fish “dancing” (actually skewered) over a hot grill. Our daughter was both amused and happily disgusted. Seated on the right-side of the dining room, we were almost immediately greeted by our server and given an introduction to the restaurant and the menu. Giving us time to peruse the delicacies, though I already knew what I wanted going in, our complimentary bread service arrived, which was very good, but I certainly didn’t want to fill up on it knowing what I planned to order.

Drinks! Two Zooberry cocktails (no, not each) for my wife and I, while our daughter ordered a Swedish Fish Soda! Folks, hand to God, there were the best drinks, without a doubt, that we have ever had! The Zooberry cocktails were dangerously delicious, sweet (if you like sweet, which I do), full of flavor, and while I knew that there was alcohol in it, I could scarcely detect it. Made with blueberry infused Russian standard vodka, fresh lemon juice, and rock candy syrup, served with a twist, it was amazing! Hailey’s Swedish Fish Soda, made with Swedish Fish candy syrup created in house, was perfection in the soda arts! She gave each of us a sip and I couldn’t get over how well they captured that taste!

Appetizers? We chose to skip them since we had the wonderful bread service and planned on ordering dessert instead. For our entrees, Lisa ordered the red snapper, Hailey the kid’s grilled beef tenderloin, and me? Well, I just couldn’t pass on the 2 pound Maine “Cantonese” lobster, fried and tossed in a sticky soy glaze! When our plates were placed in front of us, one massive grin surrounded our table, starting with Hailey, running through Lisa, and ending with me. Hailey was very happy with her tenderloin and Lisa’s red snapper, served with roasted garlic mashed potatoes, lemon-basil pesto hollandaise, and grilled summer squash, caused her to stop and slowly savor every delectable bite. And my lobster?! It was ok. Oh, who am I kidding? It was spectacular! Yes, it was $60.00, but it was worth every single penny! The chef removed all of the meat, including from the claws, during preparation, cutting it into large bite-sized chunks (except for the claw meat, which was left intact), flash-frying them, and then stir-frying it in a sinfully sticky soy-based sauce. It was plated and served majestically looking like a whole lobster, with the hollowed out upper shell and head resting off-center, chunks of sticky meaty goodness draping behind it, and the two fully intact claw meats off to either side:

It was a shame that I had to eat such beauty, but what are you going to do, eh? It is so hard to suffer so.

Time for dessert! Hailey ordered the “Dessert”ed Island, a chocolate boat filled with vanilla ice cream, sailing upon blue jello seas, exploring a chocolate island with a chocolate palm tree and crushed graham cracker sand. It looked and tasted amazing:

I ordered the Cherry Clafoutis, a cherry tart with pistachio mouse, cherry confit, and cherry sorbet. It too looked and tasted amazing:

But, the best dessert enjoyed this evening, winning for both taste and showmanship, was Lisa’s Chocorange, a chocolate fondant cake with chocolate orange cream, marshmallow, chocolate sorbet, and orange vanilla sauce. What’s special about this, you may ask? Well, it was the presentation that put it over the top, as our server slowly poured the warm orange vanilla sauce down over the chocolate sphere, unveiling the fondant cake inside!

One of the finest (and yes, most expensive) meals in our lives finally over, we gleefully made our way out of the Dolphin resort and back to the car. Let me reiterate, yes, it was expensive, but it was practically perfect in every way and a cherished memory.


Day 8 – SeaWorld Orlando

After a very satisfying sleep, we awoke around 7am, did our morning things, popped over to the Provisions Market at the Hilton for some grub and then jumped into the car, heading over to SeaWorld. Arriving near or at park opening at 9am, paying for parking was a breeze and we soon found ourselves parked fairly close to the main entrance. With our ticket vouchers in hand (including those for free limited Quick Queue access that we obtained the day before at the Hilton, a partner resort), we easily found the self-service ticket kiosks, scanned our documents and received our park tickets. Quick and easy! Then, we hit the security line (grumble, grumble, grumble). After two days of Universal’s efficient security checkpoint and the non-existent one at Discovery Cove, this was not good. It really didn’t move, and in the uncovered heat of the line, as it stretched back near the parking lot, was not pleasant. The most frustrating part, beyond the line moving painfully slow, was the fact that we couldn’t see where the end of the line was from our vantage point. Not knowing where the light at the end of the tunnel was made standing there melting all the more painful.

Thankfully, something happened and we started to move! Methinks that more security staff arrived and they opened more metal detectors, which we all had to process through. After about 20 minutes or so, we were through! Huzzah! Grabbing a map, we were side-tracked almost immediately by a photo-op for their PhotoKey service. Remembering that we received PhotoKey with our Discovery Cove package, I asked the photographer if it was the same thing, but unfortunately it was not. Kind of cheap, SeaWorld, kind of cheap. I mean, seriously, we are talking digital pictures, come on. It’s not like you own Discovery Cove, oh wait you do!

Being San Diego natives and SeaWorld San Diego annual passholders, we basically decided that we could skip all of the shows and focus instead on the exhibits and rides. Heading off to the left of Manta, we checked out the rays, the dolphins, and finally Turtle Trek to see Hailey’s favorite, the manatees. In case you are not aware, SeaWorld San Diego had a manatee exhibit for years, but it was replaced by our own turtle exhibit and these wonderful creatures were sent back to Florida. Turtle Trek is essentially split into three parts, a manatee viewing tank, a turtle viewing tank, and finally a 3D domed theater at the end. Sections 1 and 2 proved educational and entertaining, but the movie quickly became a problem. Apparently, our daughter’s 3D over-stimulation from the two Universal days was not out of her system yet. Halfway through the film, she complained of a headache and we told her just remove the glasses and lean up against us. She braved through to the end, but fought that headache the rest of the morning, into the afternoon.

Leaving Turtle Trek, we then headed over to the manatee rehabilitation tanks. Virtually by ourselves, we viewed two of these poor injured animals working their way back to health with the help of SeaWorld. An on-duty staff member was there observing the manatees and was available to answer any and all questions we had. Next, Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin. I’ll be honest, this was the attraction that I was most looking forward to this visit. I mean, we have a cool (see what I did there?) penguin encounter in San Diego, but I heard this one was leaps and bounds better. Entering through the Quick Queue line, we chose the non-spinning ride vehicles at Hailey’s request. The trackless ride through the icy storyline was cool (oops, I did it again), but truthfully a tad underwhelming. Honestly, I don’t think the spinning version looked much more enticing. The highlight though was the penguins themselves! Entering the freezing, and yes, I mean freezing, exhibit area, you immediately feel the chill. It was quite a shock for those of us in shorts and tee-shirts surviving an Orlando summer. In San Diego, our penguins are presented behind glass and guests don’t experience the temperature, or the smell for that matter. This was invigorating, but then I like the cold, my family not so much. I think though that one particular penguin was bored of being watched, as he seemingly pointed out the exit to everyone who paused near him:

Returning to the muggy heat, we made our way over to Pacific Point Preserve to visit with the sea lions. Timing, as they say, is everything. While admiring these seemingly posing, sunbathing actually, animals the docent came over to us, pointing out the newest members of the group; first the 9 day old:

Then the 5 day old:

And finally the 20 minutes old:

Reaching lunch time, we left the sea lions and found ourselves in the Sea of Delight section of the park. While trip planning, I inquired on the DIS Boards about lunch recommendations, admitting that our experiences in SeaWorld San Diego have been for the most part disappointing, excluding the Seven Seas Food Festival. I received several recommendations and even one comment that if you expect it to be bad, then it will be. Thank you for that opinion, but bad is bad, no matter how much you want it be good. I have my own cooking to attest to that point. In any event, having not pre-selected a lunch location in the park, we let fate dictate it for us. Coming out behind the Sea Lion & Otter Stadium, we found ourselves at the crossroads between the Voyager Smokehouse and Spice Mill Burgers. Preferring the waterfront view of Spice Mill, plus the fact that I planned on ribs for dinner that night, we chose Spice Mill. Our selections were a Spice Mill Club (Lisa), a Buffalo Chicken Sandwich (me), and a hamburger kid’s meal (Hailey). All I can say is that we really enjoyed the air-conditioning! I will leave it at that.

Lunch over, we next visited the sharks, which are always a thrill, though I think that I like San Diego’s version more. We stood there is awe at the sight of the new Mako rollercoaster. It looked amazing, but none of us felt brave enough to ride it, even Lisa, which surprised me. Slowly walking down into the Sea of Fun area, we observed the orcas in the viewing tank behind the stadium and then found our way into Wild Arctic. Surviving that awful film, we entered the chilly confines of the beluga whale, another of Hailey’s favorites, and walrus. Where are the polar bears? San Diego’s Wild Arctic has polar bears. Win for the west coast!

Once out of Wild Arctic, Hailey wanted to visit the nearby touch exhibit, which offered several creatures for folks to carefully feel. A nice line formed naturally off to the right side, as thoughtful guests waited their turn to experience these little animals. Unfortunately, several people, of all ages, were either ignorant of the line or dismissive of it, as they simply cut in as they pleased. Frustrating to say the least, but what can you do? We didn’t want to make a scene and apparently neither did anyone else.

Taking the bridge between the Sky Tower (which was closed this day) and Bayside Stadium, we found ourselves back up near the front of the park. Lisa, wanting very much to ride Manta, asked Hailey how her headache was doing from earlier that morning. Thankfully, Hailey agreed, as Lisa decided that she would not ride anything alone this vacation. So, as the two enjoyed a Manta coaster on steroids, compared to the San Diego version, I got a frozen Coke. As they came off the ride, I could immediately see in Hailey’s expression that the energy and excitement had returned! “That was AWESOME,” she enthusiastically shouted at me! Lisa glowed. I was so glad that she was able to get onto a coaster.

“What’s next? What other coasters are there,” asked Hailey. Well, we already agreed that Mako was a bit too much, but Kraken is not far away. But, excitement of another coaster soon turned to thirst as they noticed my frozen Coke. The next thing I know, I am leading them over to the refreshment booth where I procured mine and much frozen goodness was obtained.

Being where we were, we finished our drinks and then visited the Manta Aquarium, probably our favorite of the day, just beating out those in Journey to Atlantis.

The only issue we had here were thoughtless parents. Even though there is clear signage stating that strollers are not allowed inside the aquarium, several parents either missed or ignored it. Hmmm, might have been the same folks who cut in line over by Wild Arctic. In any event, the somewhat close quarters within the Manta Aquarium proved even closer with have a dozen stroller being pushed through, bashing into our daughter and I more than a couple times. I wish that they had a staff member out in front of the entrance controlling this. Oh well.

Nearing 3pm, the plan at this point was for the ladies to hit Kraken, meander around a bit, and then ride Atlantis, potentially getting soaked (not wanting a repeat of Islands of Adventure), to finish off the day. Unfortunately, while we were enjoying the Manta Aquarium, dark clouds started to roll in with, of course, its accompanying thunder in the distance; but this time, lightning joined the party! Almost immediately, an announcement came over the park’s public address system. All of the shows, attractions, outdoor exhibits and outdoor vendor carts were shutting down until the storm passed. Better to be safe than sorry. We totally understood. Using the time, we simply returned to a few of the interior aquariums we visited earlier and checked out several shops near the front of the park, grabbing another set of cold beverages along the way.

Intermittently, the sky dumped buckets of rain down on unsuspecting crowds. Really? Did you not notice that the sun was completely gone and the sky was grey and bellowing? Maybe they liked getting wet?

By 4pm things started to look better and there was actually hope that things would open back up. Making our way over by Kraken, we found that a queue had already begun forming in front of it and the nearby outdoor vendor carts began uncovering their merchandise. Walking back over to the Atlantis aquarium and shop, we killed a few more minutes, ever watching Kraken for possible line movement. Alas, Mother Nature decided to put the kibosh on everything. In a matter of seconds, what blue sky there was peeping through the grey was now completely gone again. The clouds darkened and once again we saw lightning in the near distance and heard claps of thunder growing ever louder. Yeah, that would be all.

So, the ladies missed out on Kraken and we didn’t get to finish the day on Atlantis. Kraken was a bummer, but we have Atlantis out in California too, so no great loss there. But, the excitement was not over yet! Oh no, for as we made our way to our car in the parking lot, we suddenly found ourselves immediately below a lightning strike! You know how you can tell how far away the lightning is by the time between the light and the sound of the thunder? Well, from the moment of the flash to the ear-splitting crash of thunder over our heads was milliseconds! It was stunning and not in a good way! Those of us trying to make our way beneath it either froze or started running. As we made it to our car, the deluge arrived. This was some serious rain. Thankfully, we didn’t have far to drive.

Pulling into the Hilton, I drove up next to the card scanner that we had used without issue several times during the trip. However, this time I noticed something. The outer lane, reserved for current guests to enter the parking lot, was not covered and the rain had not let up one bit. With my room keycard at the ready, I pressed the button to lower the driver’s window and extended my left arm out, inserting the card into the reader. Nothing. I pulled out the card and inserted it again. Nothing. By this time, my arm was drenched and the rain was starting to soak my inner door and left side, all the while the Hilton employee manning the gate entrance, who was safely undercover, just looked at me. “Can you just push a button to raise the gate,” I asked, to wit she responded to try again. Third times the charm I guess because the arm rose and we were in. Needless to say, I was not pleased.

Finally making it into our room, we got into some dry clothes and hunkered down, listening and watching this awesome storm. Yeah, we liked it now that we were no longer out in it. Go figure. With dinner reservations still a few hours away, we decided to just kick back and relax, praying that the storm would leave by the time we needed to head back out. Thankfully, that is exactly what happened.

Dinner this evening would be at Morimoto Asia in Disney Springs. Parking once again in the Orange Garage (LOVE those parking spot lights!), we arrived a tad early for our reservation and soon discovered that they were running a few minutes behind. No big deal. We stood there in awe at the surface of the first floor check-in desk, as it literally ran off to the left (as you are facing it) and up, streaming around the right edge of the main dining room to another desk on the second level. Simply amazing! What surprised us more than anything else was the number of walk-ins that came in hoping to grab a table on a summertime Friday night. The standby wait time was over 90 minutes, which shocked more than a few folks. It didn’t shock me, this place was busy!

Seated not too long after our reservation time, we found ourselves in the center of the main dining room, under those awesome dangling chandeliers:

Our server arrived promptly and took our drink orders: a soda for me, a housemade lemonade for Hailey, and a Sake Sangria for Lisa. Our daughter found her lemonade a bit too sour for her taste. I sampled it myself and can attest to her evaluation of it. It could have done with a bit of sugar. My wife’s Sangria, made with Asian pears, apple plum, tangerine juice, sake, light white wine, and plum wine was, in her opinion a bit of a letdown; the flavor was not very strong, compared to other Sangrias she has enjoyed, and just not as satisfying. My soda? It was mighty tasty. What?! It was a soda! Plus, it came with free refills! What a novel concept! OK, I jest.

Appetizers were an order of the Kanikama Rangoon, “krab” and cream cheese spring rolls, served with apricot sweet chili sauce, and an order of the Sesame Balls, sweet red bean paste enrobed inside a fried pastry ball covered with white sesame seeds. Both were super delicious! I am not a fan of “krab”, or real crab for that matter, not to mention spring rolls, but my wife insisted that I try one and it was great! In my opinion though, the Sesame Balls were the clear winner. Crispy on the outside, warm, soft and sweet on the inside! Perfect!

For our entrees, our daughter ordered the Orange Chicken from the Kid’s Menu, while my wife requested the Tonkotsu Ramen, and I the half-rack of Morimoto Spare Ribs. Um, yeah, everything was spectacular! Hailey called her Orange Chicken the best she has ever had, even better than Panda Express, which says a lot. Lisa adored her ramen dish. Savory, salty, rich, very flavorful, and prepared perfectly.

My ribs? Oh my, those ribs!

Covered in a hoisin sweet chili glaze, these were without a doubt the greatest Asian pork ribs that I have ever had. I am not being overly dramatic here; they were that good, no great! The flavor profile was complex, sweet yet delicately sour. The meat was a bit crunchy on the outside, but soft and perfectly chewy underneath. Get these ribs, people, get these ribs!

Now dessert. Oh that dessert! While our daughter every so happily munched away on her churros with a Nutella dipping sauce, Lisa and I, filled up nicely by our shared appetizers and respective entrees, decided to share something called Mochi Mochi.

Now, we very much enjoy Asian cuisine and have scarfed down many a mochi in our lives, usually of the ice cream variety, but not one of them was anything like this! Served in a bowl, this concoction of annin tofu, coconut mango soup, fruit boba, frozen mango, and lemon-yogurt powder, surprised us to no end. Every spoonful was delectably flavorful, fruity, sweet, soft and chewy. Very quickly, we started banging spoons within the bowl to fight for the next amazing bite. Admittedly, I was little uncertain about this dish, but in the end we both absolutely loved it. Thank you, Iron Chef Morimoto!

Up Next - Days 9 & 10 -- Epcot & Home

 

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Day 9 – Epcot

Final day of fun. How sad. Epcot! How awesome! Up early to make our pre-park opening breakfast ADR at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall (part of a strategic plan as you will see), we arrived at the nearly empty Epcot parking lot. It was so empty (“HOW EMPTY WAS IT?”)…it was so empty that there were no CMs out there directing us where to park. Can you guess what happened next? Yeah, I made a right turn where I guess I wasn’t supposed to, entering a portion of the parking lot off limits at that time. The next thing I know a security vehicle was on our tail. I stopped, explained our confusion, and he directed us where to go. Finally parked (super close to the front), we moseyed in, passed through the security checkpoint, and found the short queue for early ADR entry.

The park this morning opened at 9am and our ADR was at 805am. I called it strategic before because it was our anticipative failsafe if either a) we could not get Frozen Ever After Fastpasses or b) we got the FPs but fate dictated no ride (i.e. a breakdown), which as you may recall six days earlier turned out to be the case. The thought process here was that having this ADR gave us a jump on that queue, ahead of the masses who were set to storm the gates less than an hour later. Could it possibly work?! Well, you are going to have to wait to find out!

Checked in at the outside kiosk, we waited all of five minutes before being escorted inside. First, the obligatory picture with Belle, followed by a quick tour and explanation of the dining options. This not being our first time rodeo in Akershus for breakfast, we knew the score and were shown our table. Seated by 815am! Looking good! As Lisa and Hailey hit the buffet, I stayed at the table and welcomed our previously ordered beverages and the all-you-care-to-enjoy skillet; it was filled to the brim with scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, and potato casserole. To be succinct, this was the absolute worst food of our trip. The eggs were standard batch processed eggs, not particularly flavorful and rather rubbery; pretty much the standard I find in buffet-style breakfasts. The bacon? Oh that bacon (and not in a good way). I have railed in the past about the Disney bacon. It is so thin (“HOW THIN IS IT?”)…it is so thin that it disappeared when I turned it sideways! Frankly, I am not fan of bacon that I can easily see through, but I digress. The sausage was ok, but nothing to blog about honestly. And that, dear friends, brings us to the potato casserole. What a disaster! It was so salty (“HOW SALTY WAS IT?”…sorry last one, promise)…it was so salty that it could make the Atlantic Ocean seem sweet! One bite and that was it! I called the server over to ask for a replacement portion, explaining our reasoning. Surprised, he apologized and quickly brought us a new batch. Three words…not…any…better. Yuck! Informing the server a few minutes later, we soon had the manager over talking to us. He was perplexed too, but sure didn’t want to test our claim himself. Did we get any sort of discount for our displeasure? Nope, nothing was offered, and truthfully, I didn’t expect nor want one. Luckily, we had the pastries and fruit on the buffet line.

Now around 840am, we soon realized that they hadn’t yet put the “character” is “character meal.” We certainly were not paying these prices for the food only! Gosh, would that have been horrible! Looking around, I could see other families scoping out the restaurant for princesses, but none could be found. A few gave up and left, but I have to wonder if they just wanted to see about getting in line for Frozen Ever After too. Finally, the music started and the royalty entered. Even though our daughter isn’t really that much into princesses anymore, she happily posed for pictures and collected autographs.

Bill received and paid, I made the mistake of telling my wife that we paid more for that dreadful meal than we did for any dinner, excluding bluezoo, during the trip, including three courses and drinks at Morimoto Asia. She was absolutely shocked. Never again. The next time we want breakfast in Epcot we are going back to the Garden Grill. But, did our strategy, our ulterior motive, work?

Yep, it sure did! Exiting Akershus just before 9am, we immediately looked left and right, scoping out the empty Frozen Ever After queue. The access point, manned by a single CM, was just to our left. “Is it open? Is it working,” we asked. The CM smiled, said “Yes”, and using her right arm (pointing with two fingers of course) directed us in. Yahoo!!! As we entered the line, I swear that I could hear the rumbling of fast paced footsteps coming towards us from the hordes of other eager park guests now entering the World Showcase. Entering the show building, we happily found ourselves walking and walking and walking. We didn’t even pause until we entered Oaken’s Tokens and Sauna, and that was only so that we could look around a bit. Finding ourselves quickly passed by a few couples and families, we decided to continue moving forward and made it to the boarding area. So how was the ride? One of the finest dark rides that we have ever enjoyed. Simple as that. Being of Scandinavian heritage though, I do kind of miss Maelstrom.

So now what?! How about we meet the ladies of Frozen themselves?! With only a five minute wait at the Royal Summerhus next door, why now?! Wow, the theming in this building was spectacular. With all of the crowds vying for access to Frozen Ever After, the Summerhus was a virtual wasteland of park guests. Taking our sweet time and enjoying the ambiance, we made our way through the various rooms and Hailey got to meet her two personal favorites:

Thinking back to our December trip, where some of the hottest FPs to get were for Anna and Elsa in the Magic Kingdom, this was amazing!

Breakfast. Check! Burp! Frozen Ever After. Check! Meet and greet with Anna and Elsa. Check! Um…wow, we are way ahead of schedule and the rest of the World Showcase will not open for another couple of hours, or does it! Hello Gran Fiesta Tour! Yeah, we walked on and had our own boat! That’s the way we roll. Still, once out of GFT, the predicament was not too different. By now the line for Frozen was almost an hour, so off to Future World we went and a date with Living with the Land, personally one of my favorites (for a nap, wait no, that is Ellen’s Energy Adventure).

Honestly, the rest of the day was a blur. Even with it being a Saturday, the park was not crowded at all, so by using our already reserved FastPasses, plus getting new ones and using them (and so on and so forth), we did everything that we wanted: the American Adventure (Hailey fell asleep), SeaBase (skipping the ride portion), Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival (the 3D effects of “Get a Horse!” is stunning by the way), ImageWorks, Impressions de France (love that soundtrack), Journey Into Imagination with Figment, Test Track, and Turtle Talk with Crush! We even found ourselves having a lot of time to walk through the various World Showcase shops, particularly the glass store in Germany, where I picked up a nice glass drinking boot souvenir with Spaceship Earth etched into it! What?! No Soarin’? Hold your horses there buckaroo, we still had that super pass from our misadventure at Skipper Canteen the other day; saving the best for last! Oh, and did I mention that we got a picture with this guy?

Between all of the attractions and shops, we managed to fit a couple meals. Lunch was originally expected to be a counter service in the World Showcase. However, once I learned that Tutto Italia Ristorante was running a prix fixe lunch special during the summer, we simply had to try it (at least I did)! For $27 plus tax I enjoyed a soft drink, antipasto (composed of two meats, roasted peppers and mozzarella), an entrée of spaghetti and meatballs, and a cannoli for dessert. My wife, deciding to skip the prix fixe, chose the lasagna and our daughter a kid’s pizza. Overall, the quality of the good was very good, the service was even better! The singular item that we agreed to be the best (because we shared it) was the cannoli; crunchy and creamy goodness.

Dinner this evening was going to be another new adventure for us, just like Tutto Italia and Marrakesh days earlier. Tonight, it would be sushi at Tokyo Dining! When we arrived upstairs for our 730pm ADR, the place was packed! Checking in, we made ourselves comfortable for about 15 minutes before being seated. Our server was very nice and very traditional Japanese proper (if you understand my meaning). After perusing the menu, Lisa and I decided to order and share a seasonal “patriotic” roll in honor of the 4th of July (being just 2 days away at that point) and the Ume sampler, a mixture of Tuna, Salmon, Shrimp, and Eel Nigiri, four pieces Sunshine Salmon Roll, and two pieces each of California Roll, Spicy California Roll, Spicy Roll, and Vegetable Roll. It all looked and tasted delicious:

While Lisa enjoyed a hot tea accompaniment, I washed down this wonderful sushi with an awesome beer flight and edamame chaser! The highlight of the meal though had to be our daughter’s selection. Teriyaki chicken, rice, mixed veggies, and two pieces of California Roll served in a Monorail (I mean a bullet train)! I was so jealous! I wanted my sushi served in that!

Dinner happily enjoyed, it was now about 9pm, so time to pull out our special attraction pass and hit Soarin’ for the final ride of the vacation! Sweet!

Back to the Hilton at a fairly decent hour, we gave ourselves enough time to pack without much stress. A few things had to be sacrificed to make room in the luggage for souvenirs, but nothing that didn’t need replacing anyway. Thankfully, each of our bags measured under 50lbs. each.


Day 10 – Fly home

I’m not going to bore you with the details of leaving wonderful Orlando and flying home to wonderful San Diego, but I will say that it was much more pleasurable this time than back in December. Popping into the airport’s Universal store, I picked up some Harry Potter playing cards for the flight; couldn’t find any in either of the Universal parks, so score there! The security checkpoint actually moved and we found ourselves near the gate with lots of time to spare and hunger in our bellies. Satisfying our needs in a food court (sad that Jersey Mike’s was so much better than Akershus), we settled in and waited for our flight. From that point on, everything went smoothly and with the time change from going east to west with a direct flight, we actually got home in the early afternoon. Added bonus…we traveled on July 3rd and now had one more day of vacation on the 4th!

So that is it! That’s all he wrote! I hope that you enjoyed out adventurous tale full of frolic, food, and festivities! Thanks for reading! See you real soon!