Zombie Apocalypse and Pixie Dust - A 2 week Disneymoon (PTR link 11/14)

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

What a fun morning! Your story about Rafiki is too funny! I love when characters really get into interacted with people. I feel the same way about Dinosaur! I frighten really easily, too, and in my pictures on the ride I never look even the least bit startled. Ooohh, love all of those FPs. We had a day like that, too (at the MK) but sadly we didn't get to use too many of them.

 

[lovethattink]

Looks like you had AK all to yourselves!! Great interaction with Rafiki!

 

[discnewbie]

Love the Rafiki interaction!!

Based on your experiences with Yak and Yeti, would you recommend it? I'll be on the QSDP as well so it's always interesting to hear from those who have "been there".

Can't wait to read more!

 

[ronnmel]

OMG Yaaayyy! I am so happy to see you started you TR. I have not read it yet, but I wanted to let you know I'm in!!

Hope you enjoy the read.

What a fun morning! Your story about Rafiki is too funny! I love when characters really get into interacted with people. I feel the same way about Dinosaur! I frighten really easily, too, and in my pictures on the ride I never look even the least bit startled. Ooohh, love all of those FPs. We had a day like that, too (at the MK) but sadly we didn't get to use too many of them.

It's a lot of fun when characters do more than just sign and take a picture.
We too came back to the room with a some FPs left unused a few times.

Looks like you had AK all to yourselves!! Great interaction with Rafiki!

Crowds were really light that morning, especially around Rafiki's Planet Watch. It did get more crowded as the day went on. Kali River even ran out of fastpasses, though that might be more due to the heat than the crowd.

Love the Rafiki interaction!!

Based on your experiences with Yak and Yeti, would you recommend it? I'll be on the QSDP as well so it's always interesting to hear from those who have "been there".

Can't wait to read more!

Rafiki was definively one of my favorites character interactions (POP quiz answer). My other favorites come up way later in the trip.

We both liked the honey chicken at Yak & Yeti and would eat it again. We would have refereed to have it on a plate though, easier to eat a little bit of everything all at once instead of having to dig all the way down the box for the rice. The only complaint I have is that it gets very crowded and the seating area seems to always be full. We had to walk down the path towards Africa to find some tables by the water.

 

[Disneyfreak616]

yay! I'm so glad you joined in.

So jealous that you are DVC members! Is that new from your recent trip?

At first Kona was just a place for us to eat before watching Wishes, but it turned out to be the highlight of the night and now a new favorite.

Rafiki was awesome.

Glad to be here!

It IS! I am SO excited about it! You'll hear all about it in my next TR.

I know! I wasn't too excited about it the first time I went but it is now a family favorite.

Gotta love him.

We got even more FPs at another park later on in the trip! I love how they accept late FPs, it helps with touring a lot.

I love it too! It makes life a LOT easier.

 

[ronnmel]

Glad to be here!

It IS! I am SO excited about it! You'll hear all about it in my next TR.

Oh, can't wait to read about it!

 

[PhoenixStrength]

I love your interaction with Rafiki! I had a funny interaction with Naveen and Tiana at the end of MVMCP last November. It just makes it all the more fun when they get into character and have fun with you.

That's a lot of FPs! I've never taken pictures while riding KRR, too afraid the water would destroy my camera. I do take pictures from the line though.

 

[ronnmel]

Hi lurkers! Don't be shy, say hello.

The plan today was to work on my photopass pictures, but the site won't let me edit anything. As much as I loved getting my picture taken by all the photopass photographers and really got a good use of it, I'm frustrated beyond belief with the photopass website. It's very slow to edit everything and not user friendly at all. I wish there was a way to view multiple pictures at a time while making edits so I could decide which border I like best. I also would love to be able to put the photos I've already worked on in a different folder so I don't have to go through them again to get to the ones I haven't done.

Anyway, vent over. Since I can't do that, I'll post an update instead!

I love your interaction with Rafiki! I had a funny interaction with Naveen and Tiana at the end of MVMCP last November. It just makes it all the more fun when they get into character and have fun with you.

That's a lot of FPs! I've never taken pictures while riding KRR, too afraid the water would destroy my camera. I do take pictures from the line though.

I did not see Tiana at all while I was at Magic Kingdom. Where does she usually do meet & greets?

I bought a water proof camera last year and I love it! I can now take pictures at the beach, at the pool, at the water parks, on water rides and even in the rain. It's not very good for indoor or night shots, but amazing for underwater or bright summer days.

 

[disneybarbie]

Hi Mel.. I'm here!

All caught up and subscribing

Everything looks fantastic so far.. I've not been to Pop Century, loved seeing your photos of the resort - I really like the 'Disney Fifties' picture in the room, and the food court looks amazing!

That was a nice way to spend you first evening at the Polynesian.. we loved Kona Cafe last December - Steve had that steak Ron had and still says it was one of the best he's ever had

Enjoying the day at Animal Kingdom so far... I'm impressed you took photos, it's a really scenic ride but we've always hidden our cameras away on it! All the pictures are great :


Looking forward to more,


Emma x

 

[PhoenixStrength]

Hi lurkers! Don't be shy, say hello.

The plan today was to work on my photopass pictures, but the site won't let me edit anything. As much as I loved getting my picture taken by all the photopass photographers and really got a good use of it, I'm frustrated beyond belief with the photopass website. It's very slow to edit everything and not user friendly at all. I wish there was a way to view multiple pictures at a time while making edits so I could decide which border I like best. I also would love to be able to put the photos I've already worked on in a different folder so I don't have to go through them again to get to the ones I haven't done.

Anyway, vent over. Since I can't do that, I'll post an update instead!



I did not see Tiana at all while I was at Magic Kingdom. Where does she usually do meet & greets?

I bought a water proof camera last year and I love it! I can now take pictures at the beach, at the pool, at the water parks, on water rides and even in the rain. It's not very good for indoor or night shots, but amazing for underwater or bright summer days.

That night they were in the gazebo behind the Christmas shop, though I'm not sure if that is the normal place for her or not.

I am considering buying a water proof camera, but I haven't decided yet. Your pictures of KRR though make me want to go get one!

 

[ronnmel]

Day 1 part 2 - These Ears Sure Get Us A Lot Of Attention!

After we exited Maharaja Trek we started walking towards Africa so we could use our Safari FP. The parade was about to start, so we decided to find a shaded spot and sit down. It had to go all the way around the park first before it got to us, so we had quite a bit of a wait. At least we were sitting down and not in the sun anymore. Plus, I got to catch up on writing in my journal.

I was still very hot so I poured some water on my head.

The Minnie bridal ears really helped single us out from the crowd and we got lots of attention from the characters in the parade.

King Louie gave me a kiss and shook Ron's hand, after clapping to congratulate us. Baloo rubbed my face.

Timon made Ron and I kiss, then congratulated us as well.

Ron yelled out to Chip & Dale "You rock!" and one of them came to shake our hands. Several families get to ride on some floats and one woman gave us the thumbs up for our marriage.

Overall we really enjoyed the parade. It has great music and very colorful floats. Here are some more pictures of it.

Besides the fact that the parade was great, sitting down helped a LOT and I had a second wind after. It helped that the sun was on its way down and there was a lot more shade.

The second the parade was over we hightailed it through the back path to Africa. We actually even beat the parade there.

We went to the Pangani Forest Trail.

We learned about the naked rats. They are completely blond and walk backward as their tail is what tells them where obstacles are. They live underground and never come out. (2011-09-12 *Ron here...actually I think Mel meant to write "Blind" NOT Blond. And, I'd like to take the opportunity to apologize to any Blonds out there who may have been offended at the comment. Both Mel and myself like blonds and find them very intelligent...really!!! Hee hee hee).

They also sleep one on top of the other to help stay warm.

We saw some birds

The gorilla was just sitting there, posing for everyone.

The mom and baby were already gone for the night, as it was close to their feeding and bed time, but this other female was laying there.

A few more pictures from the trail

I love the mist, it gives a whole different feeling

Continued in Next Post

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[ronnmel]

Day 1 part 2 cont'd- These Ears Sure Get Us A Lot Of Attention!

I really wanted to ride the safari late in the day as I had heard the animals would be more active. It was about 5pm and our fastpasses were for 9:30am so the guy kinda questioned us, but he let us through. Turns out we did not need any FP at all as we made it through the merge before hitting the line.

We got lucky and got a full row just for the two of us! That meant we could each sit on one side and take pictures, or slide across the bench to the other side.

This time we saw lots of giraffes!

Lots of other animals out and about as well. Since there were a lot less trucks the driver was stopping often to let us take pictures.

Both times today the shaky bridge was working, and both times some mother got really scared. Funny!

Africa was really empty by then as it was close to closing time. Great for photos!

I was feeling really fine by then. Ron did not want to ride Everest alone and was just going to give away our FP so I decided to ride with him. Was it a mistake? We'll find out soon, but for now let's look at the pictures we took from the ride.

Yes, it was a mistake. The backward in the dark part made me feel queasy again, and the big turn with the high G force just finished me. I got a huge knot in my throat that luckily mostly went away as we walked.

I wanted some ice water, but all carts and CS were closed. I thought being in air air conditioned bus would help. NAH! My motion sickness kicked in real hard and by the time we made it back to POP I was feeling super dizzy and queasy.

I did not tell Ron though, and when he asked me questions he mistook my "concentrating really hard on keeping it together" for me "attacking" him. He got upset, but luckily it didn't last too long. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for my dizziness. I spent a long time just lying on the bed waiting for it to past. (I didn't sleep, as though I love the concept of napping, I rarely ever fall asleep).

I tried calling my mom, but by the time I felt okay enough to talk on the phone my step-dad had already left her. For those who did not read my trip report, my mom has brain cancer. It has really weakened her so she cannot live at home anymore. While I was in Cuba for my wedding she got super sick and had to be rushed to the hospital, so now I worry a lot when I leave on vacation. This will come into play again later.

Finally around 8pm I felt okay enough to go eat dinner. We went to Everything POP where I had cheese pizza and Ron had vegetable lasagna. He loved it! Said it was super yummy and considered having it again every time we ate at POP.

Sorry for the lack of picture, both cameras were charging at this point.

After dinner we put on our swimsuits and went to the bowling pin pool. Unlike moderate and deluxe resorts you have to bring your own towel, but you can get extra the next day if you see a purple cart along a hallway. Just take what you need (That's what the lifeguard said).

We swam until about 9:30pm, then went back to the room to watch some TV and settle in. We went to sleep around 11pm.

Characters today:
Rafiki
Jiminy Cricket

If you count the parade:
King Louie
Baloo
Chip & Dale
Timon


Photopass Pictures


Up Next, How many times can you ride before being Toy Story Maniaed out?

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[ronnmel]

Hi Mel.. I'm here!

All caught up and subscribing

Everything looks fantastic so far.. I've not been to Pop Century, loved seeing your photos of the resort - I really like the 'Disney Fifties' picture in the room, and the food court looks amazing!

That was a nice way to spend you first evening at the Polynesian.. we loved Kona Cafe last December - Steve had that steak Ron had and still says it was one of the best he's ever had

Enjoying the day at Animal Kingdom so far... I'm impressed you took photos, it's a really scenic ride but we've always hidden our cameras away on it! All the pictures are great :


Looking forward to more,


Emma x

Hi Emma! Kona is such a great restaurant, and as long as Ohana is there, Kona should remain fairly easy to book.

My water proof camera really allowed me to take pictures not a lot of people take.

That night they were in the gazebo behind the Christmas shop, though I'm not sure if that is the normal place for her or not.

I am considering buying a water proof camera, but I haven't decided yet. Your pictures of KRR though make me want to go get one!

I don't even know where the Christmas shop is. I didn't spend much time in Liberty Square.

You should buy a water proof camera! It's not even that expensive (for a camera), we payed less than 200$ for it.

 

[lovethattink]

Except for EE, it looks like you had an awesome day at AK!! Although your EE pics got great! I love the animal pics, you got some great shots! Glad you got extra special attention at the parade, the ears do help to make it easier to spot newlyweds!

I've never tried the vegetable lasagna at Pop. Maybe I will try it next time we eat there. Do they have it at both lunch and supper?

 

[discnewbie]

That's too bad about EE. I'm going to keep that in mind for when we go. I'm not a huge roller coaster fan -- I can deal with small ones, some twists and turns, but none of those super-dizzy, jolting rides. And it sounds like EE is one of those. Glad you enjoyed the rest of your time though! I'll make sure to try the vegetable lasagne. I've heard so many great things about the POP food court!

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

I don't think we've ever seen the parade at AK. We normally head about before it starts, so I guess that's why. I think we will need to stay around for it at least once though - it sounds like a lot of fun! I love reading about all of the character interactions that you're getting!

I LOVE that view on EE. To me, something about it is so peaceful, even though it's a far from peaceful ride! I'm sorry to hear it made you queasy, though!

 

[Johndough]

Sounded like a picture perfect first day of your disneymoon except for thequeasiness. I wonder if the heat and dehydration had a large role in that.
Can't wait to hear all the fun you had the rest of your 13 days.

 

[ronnmel]

Hello everyone...
Ron here...

I just felt the need to address the FP issue. While I absolutely love the current policy regarding FP allowance outside of the designated time slot, I also know that it can sometimes be a hotly contested debate amongst people. LOL!!

So please....don't hold it against us. If the rules change we'll indeed follow them, without argument.

But....Until then....ROCK THE FP BABY!!! hahahaha.

It never ceases to surprise me (or sometimes make me concerned) when we walk that long empty FP queue, staring at the hordes of Standby guests, sometimes with grim expressions, who also sometimes stare back at you, while you pass them.

I wish I could say that I'm sorry for your wait...but how can I, when I know that "everyone" is entitled to the FPs and that it is Free of charge. All I keep thinking is that...why would anyone voluntarily get into the regular queue, when the standby time is reading 120 minutes. And yet...everytime...you will always see some people walk right in. Madness I tell ya...utter madness hahahaha.

Ok...enough of my diatribe...and back to our regularly scheduled trip report. Take it away Mel....

 

[ronnmel]

Except for EE, it looks like you had an awesome day at AK!! Although your EE pics got great! I love the animal pics, you got some great shots! Glad you got extra special attention at the parade, the ears do help to make it easier to spot newlyweds!

I've never tried the vegetable lasagna at Pop. Maybe I will try it next time we eat there. Do they have it at both lunch and supper?

I love wearing my ears so much, I want to buy a new pair for my next trip.

If I'm not mistaken they have a veggie calzone at lunch and the vegetable lasagna at dinner. The lasagna is way better.

That's too bad about EE. I'm going to keep that in mind for when we go. I'm not a huge roller coaster fan -- I can deal with small ones, some twists and turns, but none of those super-dizzy, jolting rides. And it sounds like EE is one of those. Glad you enjoyed the rest of your time though! I'll make sure to try the vegetable lasagne. I've heard so many great things about the POP food court!

I used to be much better at dealing with coasters when I was a teenager, but not anymore. I would suggest trying it once just to see, as different coasters do different things to different people. For example, I'm fine with Rock N Roller Coaster (most of the time). Heck, on Space Mountain I was fine once, and then felt sick the next. I think it had to do with where I sat (front or back)

I don't think we've ever seen the parade at AK. We normally head about before it starts, so I guess that's why. I think we will need to stay around for it at least once though - it sounds like a lot of fun! I love reading about all of the character interactions that you're getting!

I LOVE that view on EE. To me, something about it is so peaceful, even though it's a far from peaceful ride! I'm sorry to hear it made you queasy, though!

Parades are not something I'll wait around for, but if I'm in the area when it starts then I'll watch. We are not big break people, so it helps in being there for the parades. But the AK parade is by far our favorite! Plus, there is a lot of shade on the path between Africa and Asia to sit and watch.

There is a lot more character interaction to come! Though I think our first day was hard to beat in terms of how much they interacted with us.

Sounded like a picture perfect first day of your disneymoon except for thequeasiness. I wonder if the heat and dehydration had a large role in that.
Can't wait to hear all the fun you had the rest of your 13 days.

The heat definitively played a role. I tried drinking a lot, but I just was not thirsty a lot of the time and I have a hard time forcing liquids down if I'm not thirsty. I believe getting up early and forcing myself to eat breakfast also did not help, as I'm not a morning person and usually wait a while before eating. It got better after a few days, but whether it's because I got used to the heat or because I stopped eating breakfast right away, I don't know.

Hello everyone...
Ron here...


Ok...enough of my diatribe...and back to our regularly scheduled trip report. Take it away Mel....

Hey Baby! Thanks for correcting my mistake about the naked rats, they are BLIND, not BLOND.

 

[ronnmel]

I don't know if I'll have time to update tonight, but for sure this weekend I'll put up day 2.

For now I just wanted to share a little piece of good news.
We always thought that out budget doesn't really allow us to go to Disney more often than once every 5-6 years. This was making us very sad.

Well, we took a good hard look at our finances and we think we should be able to save enough to go every 2-3 years!!! It's not as much as lots of you, and we'd have to do some serious number crunching to find the most affordable scenario, but I'm so happy! I'm gonna get to visit my paradise on earth again (relatively) soon!