Scared Silly But Loving It

[dolphingirl47]

I pushed on to Storybook Circus. I was not sure about this the previous year and I have to admit, this had not grown on me this time round either. I did have a reason for being there though. The previous year, I had photos taken with the characters at Pete's Silly Side Show. I loved the costumes of the characters and he theming of the area. What I did not love were the photos. The lighting in that area is really difficult and all the photos had a pink tint. So I was hoping to get a chance to redo them. On the way, I spotted that Dumbo had a waiting time of 5 minutes. This is not a ride I would normally do mainly because the waiting time, but I had not done this ride since it moved and 5 minutes was too good to pass up. In the end, it took me that long to find the entrance. The set up is really confusing between the twin Dumbos and the line actually being inside a tent. Once I figured out where I needed to go, the waiting time was probably about 5 minutes. I did enjoy the ride.

When I had finished my ride, I headed over to Pete's Silly Side Show. I was delighted that the waiting time for Minnie Magnifique and Madame Daisy Fortuna was 15 minutes and for The Great Goofini and The Astounding Donaldo was only 5 minutes. I decided to see Minnie and Daisy first. Their waiting time was pretty accurate. Once I was done with them, I got in line for Donald and Goofy. The wait was probably closer to 10 minutes, but that was very fair, too. In the end I managed to see all 4 characters in the space of less than 30 minutes, which I call a result. The Great Goofini spotted my Ride-A-Thon t-shirt and made a bit of a fuss of me. This gave me a real boost. It was not long before I had to pick this up again and two of the rides scared me quite considerably. So it was nice that Goofy acknowledged this and let me know that he approved. As far as the photos are concerned, they are much better than the one from the previous year, but there is still scope for improvement. They need to find a way to sort out the lighting in there.

 

[dolphingirl47]

I still had about 45 minutes until my first Fastpass+ reservation of the day, which was for Space Mountain. I decided that I may as well head in that general direction and took the path from Storybook Circus to Tomorrowland. As I still had plenty of time, I decided to head for Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. This was part of the Ride-A-Thon by virtue of being included in Photopass+, but this is a ride that I actually rather enjoy. I enjoy it even more at Disneyland and Disneyland Paris where the laser guns can be removed from their holsters, but I always make sure to ride this on every Walt Disney World trip. The line looked a bit longer than I would have liked, but I decided to give it a go anyway. As I was approaching the standby entrance, I overheard that this had broken down. So I decided to check out the Fastpass situation. The Fastpass return time was only 30 minutes later and meant that I would be able to ride as soon as I had done Space Mountain.

That left me at a bit of a loose end. I decided to have a wander around. I was delighted when I saw Stitch out near the Rockettower Plaza Stage. Unfortunately I was told that his line is closed, as he had to get ready for the parade. I was not that bothered as I was going to see Stitch at breakfast the next day. His escort still gave me one of his autograph cards. I stayed behind for a bit to watch him from the distance, but then I realized that I was thirsty. I went in search of a counter service restaurant to get a free cup of ice water and I did not have to go very far. I sat down in the shade to take the weight off my feet for a bit and enjoyed my water. Once I had finished, I walked past Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin to see if it was up and running again. It appeared to be. By then my Fastpass window had opened and the Fastpass return time had not changed much so I decided to get another Fastpass before heading over to Space Mountain.

I was still a little bit too early for my Fastpass for Space Mountain. I stayed nearby and soon it was my turn. True to form, the Mickey head turned blue and the cast member told me that I had a Fastpass reservation for Splash Mountain at 17:30. I told him that I knew this, but that I also had a 15:30 Fastpass for Space Mountain. I got my phone out to show him and he granted me access. I had only ever done this once at Walt Disney World during our honeymoon and thinking of that experience still gives me goose bumps and not in a good way. Even though the ride vehicles had lap bars, I kept sliding backwards and forwards and was thoroughly traumatized. I have done Space Mountain since at Disneyland Paris and Disneyland, but they are very different rides. I could not really remember the ride vehicles at Walt Disney World, but I remembered only too well how they made me feel. Well, they must have switched out the ride vehicles at some stage. They now have molded seats and lap bars that positively bolt you into place. I actually rather enjoyed this. A cast member at Disneyland described their Space Mountain as a cross between Big Thunder Mountain and Matterhorn, which are both rides I enjoy. The more I think about this, the more I realize that Space Mountain at the Magic Kingdom is very much like Matterhorn, just in the dark. People have asked me after I completed the challenge if there are any rides I would do again. My answer at the time was Test Track and Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin definitely and Space Mountain maybe. Well, now that I had time to think about this, I have come to the conclusion that Space Mountain is a definite, too.



The layout of the ride is a little confusing and I got thoroughly lost trying to find the exit. Eventually I did find my way out and headed to the shop to add the photo to my Photopass card. They did this a bit different there and I rather liked this. There was still a counter where you could go to get your photos, but they also had a cast member with an iPad who was able to add the photo to Photopass cards. I had initially got in line for the counter, but she intercepted me and this was taken care off and I was on my way very quickly. I headed over to Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin to use my two Fastpasses back to back. I enjoyed the ride, but my scores were nothing to write home about. Still, I had a great time and this is the main thing. After each ride I had the photo added to my Photopass card.





By then it had just turned 16:00, which meant that I could get my wristband for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. I had found out that the location to pick up the wristbands for people who were already inside the Magic Kingdom was the Rose Garden. So I decided to head there next. The line was insane. This was the longest line I had seen all trip. So I gave up on this. I still had three hours to pick up my wristband before the party was due to start and I was hoping the crowd would die down. Instead I had some more photos taken. There was a photographer near the Rose Garden and I got some great castle shots and while I was in the area, I also got some photos in front of the Partners statue.

















I still had not collected my spell cards for The Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom for that day even though I could have done so as soon as I played the first portal that day. I had heard that there is somewhere near Ye Olde Christmas Shoppe where you can pick up the cards. So I headed in that direction. It is a little hidden away, but eventually I found it. The two cast members there seemed to be engaged in a lively debate. When I approached they told me that they had been discussing that Disney should have retirement homes for cast members. I told them that they would not need to as cast members never age. I got the biggest smiles I have seen in a long time. I got my spell cards for the day and asked if they would be open during the party and would be giving out the special cards for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. They told me they would and asked if I already had my wristband. I told them that I hadn't and how long the line had been at the Rose Garden and that I would go back once I had used my Fastpasses. They asked me where I was heading and I told them. They then let me know that there was another wristband pick up point near Tortuga Tavern in Adventureland and that this may be quieter. I decided to head that way. I thanked them and said goodbye.

By then, my Fastpass window for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was about to open. I was in no rush as my Fastpass reservations for Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain were back to back and I did not want to end up with a lot of spare time between the two. As my next mission for The Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom was in Adventureland, I decided to go and defeat another villain. This time round I was up against Scar. Before I found out about my mission, I ended up at the wrong portal though. I found the right one soon enough and I was on my way. My last portal was actually inside Tortuga Tavern. So once I had defeated Scar, I decided to check out the wristband situation. That line looked impressive, too, and snaked past Pirates of the Caribbean and into Frontierland. Again I came to the conclusion that this could wait.

I headed over to Big Thunder Mountain. Again, the Mickey head turned blue and I was told that I had a later Fastpass for Splash Mountain. I was ready with my iPhone and I was let in. I got very quickly to the staircase leading to the loading dock and then things seemed to just stop. In the end it was probably about 20 minutes until I was on the ride. It was worth the wait though and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride.





Once I had finished at Big Thunder Mountain, I still had 30 minutes until my Fastpass window for Splash Mountain opened. I decided to walk in that general direction and saw that posted waiting time was only 10 minutes. That was a no brainer. I just wanted it over and done with. In the end it was closer to 20 minutes, but I was still ahead of the game. I had only ever done this ride once in 1998 and remembered very little about this. I did know that it had elements of a dark ride and one thing that I definitely remembered is how much the drop freaked me out. The irony is that I have done and enjoyed the Jurassic Park River Adventure, but I felt safer in those ride vehicles. So I knew there was a drop, but I could not remember at what point it happened. This meant that even though there are parts of this that I would normally have enjoyed immensely, I did not as I was too worried about the drop. In the end, this was the ride I found hardest of all of them. With the others, I was pretty resigned to my fate and most of them were over before I had time to think too much. The fact that this was the longest of the rides may have something to do with it. At a couple of points, if I could have jumped off I would have done. Still, nothing beats the feeling after I touched down after the final drop. I had done it. Not just the ride, but also the whole challenge. This was it and from here on in, it was just about enjoying myself for the rest of the trip. I would never have chickened out as people had trusted me and sponsored me, but I equally never quite believed that I could actually do it. I had tears streaming down my face when our boat went through the final scenes and they were definitely tears of joy.



Once I got off the ride, I went to have the photo added to my Photopass card and then I found somewhere to sit down to post the last update about the Ride-A-Thon on Facebook. I was also going to cancel my Fastpass reservation for Splash Mountain as this was no longer needed, but then decided I would see if I could change this instead. I was surprised how many options were still open considering it was only about 90 minutes until the park was due to close for day guests. I was even more surprised that Peter Pan's Flight was one of the options. This showed a standby waiting time of 45 minutes, but when my Fastpass was confirmed, my window opened 25 minutes later. I was very happy with this. I had no plans to ride this on this trip as this always has some crazy waiting times, so this was a definite bonus.

I went back to Tortuga Tavern to get my wristband and the line looked still huge. It did end up moving quite quickly though and at the end of the line where plenty of cast members with modified iPads that scanned the party tickets and issued the wristbands. In the end, it took me about 10 minutes to get my wristband. I pushed on to Aloha Isle. I had promised myself to celebrate my successful completion of the Ride-A-Thon challenge with a Dole Whip Float. The Dole Whip Float consists of Pineapple Soft Serve Ice Cream with Pineapple Juice and is one of my favourite treats at Walt Disney World. It usually involves a bit of a line to get one and this was no exception either. It was so worth it though. It is delicious and refreshing.

While I enjoyed my Dole Whip, I walked through Adventureland and Liberty Square to Fantasyland. My Fastpass window for Peter Pan's Flight had opened while I was in line for my Dole Whip Float. When I got there, I was essentially able to walk straight on. I could not believe that the Mickey head turned green and did not need a manual override. I did enjoy the ride immensely and it was great to do something so gentle after so many thrill rides.

 

[dolphingirl47]

After I came off Peter Pan's Flight, I decided to check out the new Tangled restrooms. I had expected that I would get good and wet on Splash Mountain and had packed a change of clothes. As I was hoping to get quite a lot of photos that evening, I had decided to go with something festive and Christmassy. I had bought a lovely lightweight red 50s style dress for the cruise and I also had a green sating bolero. I also managed to find red and green Minnie ears at the Disney Store shortly before leaving for this trip so my "costume" was complete. In the end, I had only got a tiny bit damp on Splash Mountain and had dried by the time I even reached Peter Pan's Flight, but I decided to get changed anyway. The Tangled restrooms were in the perfect position for this. I have to say they did a great job with those and they are rather elaborate for restrooms.

By the time was changed, the beginning of the party had nearly arrived. I stayed in the general area as one of the special character Meet and Greets was next to Peter Pan's Flight. As soon as the line opened, I went over there, but there were still about 10 families or so in front of me. I was not even quite sure who would be meeting there, but it turned out to be Peter Pan and Wendy. I had met Peter Pan before, but Wendy was new for me. They took their time with everybody and I thoroughly enjoyed the banter.
















I checked my map and headed to the next meet and greet spot. One criticism that I have is that the map does not give any indications what characters are out and where they are. I headed towards the centre of Fantasyland and asked a passing cast member which characters were around. It happens that I was virtually next to the seven dwarfs. They had quite an impressive line, but they are so rare that I did not mind. I managed to get some nice castle photos as well while I was waiting. Eventually it was my turn and I got my photos with all the dwarfs.















I decided to check who else is around. Mary Poppins, Bert and the Penguins were near the carousel, but they had quite a line and no Photopass photographer so I passed. The waiting time for the princesses with their princes were all well over an hour. I had managed to meet three of them last year and I did not want to see Cinderella and Prince Charming that badly. So my next target was Minnie. Her line was not too long. Unfortunately she did not have a Photopass photographer with her either. I found this quite strange, as she is definitely one of the main characters. Her escort was only too happy to take a photo with my camera though, which came out quite nice.



I pushed on towards Storybook Circus and came across the meet and greet for Tigger, Pooh, Eeyore and Piglet. I was the last person that they let into the line for this set. The strange thing was that they had not even arrived when they closed the line. They did not turn up until about 10 minutes later. It was nice to see them all together. While I was in line, I got a powerful reminder why I had done the Ride-A-Thon. A couple of families ahead of me was a family with two disabled teenagers. The girl was severely disabled, but when it was her turn to see the characters, her posture changed and she just had the biggest smile on there face. This just reminded me what a big difference the magic in the parks can make to people.









When I had finished with Pooh and friends, I carried on to Storybook Circus. Scrooge McDuck had moved to there this year and he had Daisy and Donald with him. The line was again pretty impressive, but it was worth it, as you don’t normally find Scrooge McDuck in the parks. I had to smile when I saw that Donald was wearing his Alaska outfit.

 

[dolphingirl47]

For some reason I had got the timings all wrong. When I was finished with the ducks, I decided to head into Storybook Treats to see if I could get the t-shirt for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. Just as I was getting to the door, I heard a firework go off. I thought I still had 15 minutes and had planned to watch them from in front of Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid. This was not to be. I legged it to the path in front of Storybook Circus. I think I must have been really close to where they launch the fireworks. It was very noisy, but I loved the perspective. It felt like I was actually inside the fireworks. This was a very different fireworks experience, but one that I thoroughly enjoyed.

 

[dolphingirl47]

Once the fireworks were finished, I carried on to the Enchanted Forrest. By then I had enough and decided to slowly make my way to the exit. As I came past Ariel's Grotto, this showed a waiting time of 5 minutes. I asked the cast member near the entrance if this was for real, as I had never seen this with a waiting time of less than 60 minutes. She assured me that it was. So I jumped on this. In the end, I waited about 15 minutes, but I still felt I got a great deal and the interaction was special.












The reason why I had come this way rather than retracing my steps was that I was quite thirsty by then and I really wanted to try LeFou's Brew. LeFou's Brew is the signature drink at Gaston's Tavern and consists of Frozen Apple Juice with a hint of Toasted Marshmallow and topped with all-natural Passion Fruit-Mango Foam. This comes in a souvenir cup, but you can also just get the drink in an ordinary cup, which is what I went for. This was quite sweet because of the Toasted Marshmallow and therefore not quite as refreshing as I had thought, but I still enjoyed it.

Originally I had planned to watch the second parade, but I had run out of steam big time. So I headed for the exit. On the way, I went to the Emporium, as I wanted to get one of the special pins and a t-shirt. I was successful as far as the t-shirt is concerned, but the pins were all sold out. I went past the Fire House and picked up my special spell card for the party. I was also given another pack of spell cards. I then went to the exit and did not have to wait long for the monorail. I originally had thought that I would need to get a taxi after the party, but found out that the last Lynx bus left the Transportation and Ticket Centre shortly after midnight. In the end I managed to get the bus that left just after 23:00 and this saved me a lot of money. I was a little worried that I would not know where my stop was in the dark and this is the last stop before the bus gets on the freeway and heads to Downtown Orlando. I did not need to have worried. I found my stop all right and the only thing that happened is that as I walked through the grass while crossing the road, I got bitten by insects all around my ankles. In the end I was back in the hotel and in bed fast asleep before the party had even finished. I had another long, productive and fun day.

 

[tiggrbaby]

Great update! Congrats to you for conquering your fears for the children! Your evening outfit was very festive!

 

[Pinkocto]

Another fabulous day, and you got a lot done! Congratulations on finishing your challenge and bonus that you even enjoyed some of them.

You got some great pictures with the characters, my favorite is with Santa though, those were absolutely precious!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Love those character pictures. You sure got round. All 7 dwarves AND scrooge. WOW!

Looks like you're having a great time.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Congrats on completing your worthy challenge! How brave we should now call you Merida!

You have so many amazing photographs but Santa and the Dwarfs are my favourites. I didn't realise Mickey now talks! He didn't when we went in September I must FP+ it and experience the new verbal mouse in May!

Well done for Space Mountain especially. I agree I think it's exactly like Matterhorn in the dark. I find it too jerky for my arthritis now but Alison says in her PTR that Mine Train will be a less intense indoor coaster. So am looking forward to that.

You have a great photopass package. Is it the photopass+?

I love your dress that you change into for the photographs. I love Le Fous brews I use my souvenir cup ( I got the Belle one ) at home.

Mmmm BOG...oh wow re the tree and decs. How pretty. Haven't seen it during the holidays so thank you for sharing!

 

[dolphingirl47]

Great update! Congrats to you for conquering your fears for the children! Your evening outfit was very festive!

I am so glad that I managed to get through the challenge. That outfit was really a find.

Another fabulous day, and you got a lot done! Congratulations on finishing your challenge and bonus that you even enjoyed some of them.

You got some great pictures with the characters, my favorite is with Santa though, those were absolutely precious!

Thank you. I loved the interaction with Santa and I really like how the photos came out.

Love those character pictures. You sure got round. All 7 dwarves AND scrooge. WOW!

Looks like you're having a great time.

I definitely had a great time. I definitely scored as far as characters are concerned that day.

Congrats on completing your worthy challenge! How brave we should now call you Merida!

You have so many amazing photographs but Santa and the Dwarfs are my favourites. I didn't realise Mickey now talks! He didn't when we went in September I must FP+ it and experience the new verbal mouse in May!

Well done for Space Mountain especially. I agree I think it's exactly like Matterhorn in the dark. I find it too jerky for my arthritis now but Alison says in her PTR that Mine Train will be a less intense indoor coaster. So am looking forward to that.

You have a great photopass package. Is it the photopass+?

I love your dress that you change into for the photographs. I love Le Fous brews I use my souvenir cup ( I got the Belle one ) at home.

Mmmm BOG...oh wow re the tree and decs. How pretty. Haven't seen it during the holidays so thank you for sharing!

Yes, this was Photopass+. I loved getting the photo packages for the character meals at Disneyland in May so I decided to go with this at Walt Disney World, too. I definitely got my money's worth.

Corinna

 

[jenseib]

What a wonderful and full day. You did so many fun things and met so many characters too! I really enjoyed reliving this day with you.

 

[dolphingirl47]

What a wonderful and full day. You did so many fun things and met so many characters too! I really enjoyed reliving this day with you.

It was an amazing day, but I was absolutely exhausted afterwards.

Corinna

 

[dolphingirl47]

Before we go back to the regular programming and I post the next update, I have to share some news before I burst. As of lunchtime today, we are booked on the Westbound Panama Canal cruise on the Disney Wonder leaving from Miami on 2nd May. I can’t believe that 3 months from today, I am back on my beloved Wonder. This will be a very special trip for a number of reasons. This year is the 100th anniversary of the opening of the Panama Canal. The actual date is not until August, but this is close enough for me. This is also the last year before the new shipping lane opens and chances are that this is the last year that the Wonder will go through the exixting locks as she will get a big overhaul in the same way as the Magic did last year and once this has happened, she won’t fit through the old locks anymore. I also really wanted to see the Wonder once more before she is re-imagineered. Last, but not least, we were on the first Panama Canal cruise for the Wonder in 2011 and even though we had a wonderful time, this was a comedy of errors. The Wonder at that point had only ever done two cruises that were longer than 4 nights and they did not really know what to do with us on a long cruise with so many sea days. So in a way this is a do over. Now I have to find hotels in Miami and San Diego and do my online check in. I am going to be busy for a day or two to sort everything out. If all goes according to plan, this trip report will be completed on 2nd March and then I have two month for a pre-trip report for this cruise.

Corinna

 

[PrincessInOz]

Before we go back to the regular programming and I post the next update, I have to share some news before I burst. As of lunchtime today, we are booked on the Westbound Panama Canal cruise on the Disney Wonder leaving from Miami on 2nd May. I can’t believe that 3 months from today, I am back on my beloved Wonder. This will be a very special trip for a number of reasons. This year is the 100th anniversary of the opening of the Panama Canal. The actual date is not until August, but this is close enough for me. This is also the last year before the new shipping lane opens and chances are that this is the last year that the Wonder will go through the exixting locks as she will get a big overhaul in the same way as the Magic did last year and once this has happened, she won’t fit through the old locks anymore. I also really wanted to see the Wonder once more before she is re-imagineered. Last, but not least, we were on the first Panama Canal cruise for the Wonder in 2011 and even though we had a wonderful time, this was a comedy of errors. The Wonder at that point had only ever done two cruises that were longer than 4 nights and they did not really know what to do with us on a long cruise with so many sea days. So in a way this is a do over. Now I have to find hotels in Miami and San Diego and do my online check in. I am going to be busy for a day or two to sort everything out. If all goes according to plan, this trip report will be completed on 2nd March and then I have two month for a pre-trip report for this cruise.

Corinna

YAY!! That's awesome news.

Congratulations. Looking forward to cruising vicariously with you.

WOW!

 

[dolphingirl47]

YAY!! That's awesome news.

Congratulations. Looking forward to cruising vicariously with you.

WOW!

I am so excited that I could bounce of the walls. We had some serious Pixie Dust sprinkled on us today. By the end of the day the airfare was back to astronomical heights and I think I got the last cabin on the travel industry rate. I have been teasing Graham all evening where he has hidden Tinkerbell.

Corinna

 

[PrincessInOz]

I am so excited that I could bounce of the walls. We had some serious Pixie Dust sprinkled on us today. By the end of the day the airfare was back to astronomical heights and I think I got the last cabin on the travel industry rate. I have been teasing Graham all evening where he has hidden Tinkerbell.

Corinna

Good for you, Corinna. More spending money.

 

[PJB71]

OMG Corinna I'm sooooooooooooo jealous

I'm so pleased Tinkerbell visited you

Really looking forward to more updates

 

[dolphingirl47]

Good for you, Corinna. More spending money.

Indeed

OMG Corinna I'm sooooooooooooo jealous

I'm so pleased Tinkerbell visited you

Really looking forward to more updates

Just see on the bright side, there will be another trip report

Next update is coming in a couple of minutes.

Corinna

 

[dolphingirl47]

Day 10

After the late night the day before, we did not have too early a start that morning. I had made a 9:40 reservation for the character breakfast at ‘Ohana. This was the one meal that I absolutely wanted to do. We had breakfast there in 2010 and although the food was nothing special, this character breakfast has one redeeming feature: Stitch. The character interaction was also great. With Stitch becoming increasingly harder to find around the parks, I knew that this could be my only option to see him. The problem that I had is that I could not get a reservation for one on any day we were in Orlando, but I had no problems getting a reservation for two. So I just made a reservation for two and the original plan had been to just tell them that the second person could not make it when checking in. I would even have been happy to pay the $10 no show fee, but I was reassured that this only applies if nobody shows up. I had mentioned to Graham a couple of days earlier that I had this reservation and he decided to come along. So we were two people after all. We got up at 7:45 and got ready. We had to take the 8:20 bus to the Transportation and Ticket Centre. Fortunately the stop for this was right in front of the hotel.

This time round we had a bit of a longer wait for the bus. Right behind the bus stop is a creek with all kinds of interesting wildlife in it so we were entertained while we were waiting. Once the bus arrived, we had a clear run to the Transportation and Ticket Centre. When we got there, we took a while to find the walkway to the Polynesian Resort. In the process we were treated to a lovely view of the castle across the Seven Seas Lagoon. Eventually we found the walkway. There is quite a bit of construction going on. I assume that this has something to do with the DVC resort that they are going to add to the Polynesian. For the time being at least, all the construction seems to be well away from the rooms. Despite the construction it was a lovely walk to the Grand Ceremonial House where the restaurants are. We arrived at the restaurant about 10 minutes before our reservation. We were given a pager and then advised to get our photo taken. Once that was done, we waited to be seated. In the end we waited about 30 minutes, which was 20 minutes after our reservation time. Not long before we left for this trip, Disney changed the rules where they now charge $10 per person if people do not show up for their reservation. We had heard that there is a 15-minute grace period before you get charged. Graham suggested that this should work both ways and if they don’t seat you within 15 minutes of your reservation time, they should pay you $10 per person. I have to admit that he has a point.












Eventually we did get seated. We had a table near the window with a lovely view. Being near the window made taking photos a bit of a challenge and indeed, I have no photo of us meeting Lilo. We had a really nice surprise when it came to the food. This time round, the food was hot and delicious. There had also been some nice additions since the last time. Service was also very attentive and we got offered frequent refills for coffee, juice and food. As soon as we sat down, we were offered Coffee and Passion Fruit, Orange and Guava Juice. I love this juice and I had quite a few refills. We were then brought a basket with two different sweet breads. One had raisins in and I passed on that as I am not keen on raisins and the other had pineapple in and was absolutely delicious. I did not remember those from the last time nor do I remember that we had the Seasonal Fruit Platter. This consisted of Melon, Pineapple, Mango and Raspberries. It also came with some kind of fruit dip, but as I was not sure what was in this, I did not try it. We were then brought a huge skillet with Sausages, Bacon, Scrambled Eggs, Island-style Potatoes, Caramelized Onions & Spring Onions and Biscuits. Shortly afterwards somebody came round with Mickey Waffles and Syrup. The character interaction was great, too. Lilo came pretty much as soon as we sat down. Pluto came a bit later. As Mickey and Stitch were approaching, they were called for the parade for the children and then went on a break. They came back just as we were finishing off. Stitch in particular was great.



















Once we had seen all the characters, we left. We saw a really great t-shirt in one of the shops at the Polynesian that said, “I am Grumpy, Not Santa”. Unfortunately they did not have this in Graham’s size. I looked all over the Magic Kingdom for this that day, but they only had this in one shop and not in the right size either. By then I was in a bit of a rush as the window for my first Fastpass+ reservation for the day was about to open. Graham decided to come on the monorail to the Magic Kingdom with me. He was going to do some resort hopping and thought that the Magic Kingdom was as good a starting point as any as he could get a boat to Wilderness Lodge and Fort Wilderness from there. We did not have to wait long for the monorail and we even got a seat even though it was pretty full. As we got off the monorail, somebody attracted my attention. She asked me if I was dolphingirl47 and when I confirmed that I was, she told me that she recognized me from my trip reports and loves them. Graham was absolutely flabbergasted. I had the same happen on every day at Walt Disney World and had got used to this. I know that this trip report has had an impressive number of views already and many more than the replies indicate. So if you are lurking, come out and say “hi”. I can promise you that I don’t bite.

Graham and I said goodbye to each other once we left the monorail platform and went our separate ways. I was in a bit of a hurry. I had an 11:00 Fastpass reservation for Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid and it was about 11:40 when I entered the park. I did make it with about 5 minutes to spare. Again, the Mickey head turned blue. I was ready for this and had my iPhone to hand. The cast member advised to see Guest Services at the Fastpass kiosks near Princess Fairytale Hall, but let me in. I promised her that I would take care of this later. I have done this ride a number of times at Disney California Adventure, but the previous year whenever I wanted to do this ride, it was down. I was glad that I finally got the chance. I like the building much better than the one in California, but the ride is the same. I was still glad that I finally got to experience this.

My Fastpass window for Enchanted Tales with Belle did open shortly afterwards and I could not be bothered to walk over to Princess Fairytale Hall and then back again to Enchanted Tales with Belle. I was heading in that general direction afterwards anyway. So I enjoyed my surroundings and took a few photos and then headed to Enchanted Tales with Belle as soon as the Fastpass window opened. Again the Fastpass did not work, but the cast member just checked the reservations page on the app and let me through. I was not sure about this. I thought I would enjoy this, but the long waiting times for this attraction have always turned me off. I always heard that this is very much aimed at children. On the other hand, Beauty and the Beast has always been one of my favourite films and although I don’t normally get the whole princess hoopla, I have always liked Belle. So I figured with a Fastpass, I had nothing to lose.



Once I had scanned my Magic Band, there was a short wait until we we're let in Maurice's workshop. There was only one couple and I in the Fastpass line, which surprised me considering the wait times for this. The rest of the room was filled with people from the standby line. The children were invited to stand in front of Maurice's workbench and the adults were standing along the walls. There were a number of special effects, but I am not going to spoil the magic for those that have not had the chance to see this yet. While we were in Maurice's workshop, the scene for what as to come was set and we were given some rules. We were villagers and we were surprising Belle by retelling the story of how she met the Beast. Then we entered the next room. The centrepiece of this was a big wardrobe. Various roles in the story were assigned. I had heard that the roles were assigned to children, but in our case there was a mix of adults and children. Each person who was chosen to play a part was given a prop and shown what they need to do. They then had a chance to practise. Once all the main roles were assigned, the cast member asked if anybody else wanted to play a part in the story. I thought "why not" and raised my hand. About half a dozen of people did. We were given our props. I was the laughing picture frame. Then it was time to enter the library. The people who had been assigned a part entered first and we were all directed to a specific seat. Then the audience filed in and filled the rest of the room. One advantage of playing a part is that you get front row seats. Once everybody had settled down, Lumiere welcomed us and reminded us why we were here. The lights went out and Belle came in and we all shouted, "surprise". The story was told and the people playing a part were called up one after the other. After I had my 15 seconds of fame, a cast member took my prop of me and then I sat down again. Once the story was finished, everybody who had participated was called forward one at the time to meet Belle and to pose for a photo with her. There was a Photopass photographer in the library. It was worth volunteering for this. As we left, we were given a special Photopass card each. In itself this was a great souvenir, but I am so glad to have those photos. I had great fun and although this is definitely aimed at family with children under the age of 10, I think this is just as magical for those of us who have the heart of a child beating in a slightly older body.

 

[dolphingirl47]

I headed towards Princess Fairytale Hall and on the way I spoke to the Guest Services representative at the Fastpass kiosk. She could not understand why I had so much trouble as my Fastpass reservations showed up perfectly on her screen. She asked me if I had a smartphone and I told her that this is what had prevented this from becoming an absolute nightmare and she invited me to take a photo of her screen. I did not really see what the point in this was, but went ahead. While I was there, I got myself a paper Fastpass for The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. The Fastpass machines for The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid were also in this area.

I still had a good half an hour until my Fastpass window to see Rapunzel and Snow White at Princess Fairytale Hall opened. I am not really into the princesses, but I was curious what they had done with Princess Fairytale Hall. As I had a Fastpass reservation to spare and I figured that this would be the only way I would get to see it, I decided to go for it. I figured that Rapunzel and Snow White would be less thought after than Cinderella and Aurora so I decided to go with this. How wrong can one be? When I walked past Princess Fairytale Hall, the waiting time for Rapunzel and Snow White was 70 minutes and for Cinderella and Aurora, it was 20 minutes. As I had nothing else to do and did not want to venture too far as my poor feet were still very sore, I decided that I may as well go and see Cinderella and Aurora. I have to say I was very impressed with what they have done with Princess Fairytale Hall. It is hard to believe that this used to be a ride building. Unfortunately the lighting in there is not too good so I did not manage to get any photos. The waiting time was pretty accurate. The princesses also took their time with everybody. By the time I was finished, my Fastpass window to see Rapunzel and Snow White had just opened so I went straight back in. As per usual, the Mickey head turned blue. I have the feeling that the cast member at the Fastpass entrance had seen this a few times that day as he just granted me access manually without any questions. I had to wait about 10 minutes until I got to see the princesses. Again, they took their time and it was actually a lot of fun talking to them.































When I left Princess Fairytale Hall, my window for The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh was just about to open. I walked over there and I had no wait once my window had opened. I have to say that certain rides have become a different experience since I have read the Kingdom Keepers books. The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is one of them. I had visions of the villains taking over the ride. There was one thing I was looking out for this time, but still did not manage to find it. Apparently there is a painting of Mr. Toad handing the deeds to the ride over. I would have loved to see this.

After I came out of The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, I headed over to Liberty Square. On the way, I used the Tangled bathrooms, but somehow I forgot to take photos of the area. I wanted to ride Haunted Mansion and my next mission for The Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom was also in this area. The line for Haunted Mansion was insane. It stated a waiting time of 35 minutes, but the line was nearly to the dock of the Liberty Belle. I decided to try something. I had read before the trip that people had been advised by cast members to book their Fastpass+ for early in the day, as they would then be able to book more. As I had used all my Fastpass+ reservations, I decided to see if it would let me make another one. It prompted me to modify my Fastpass+ reservation for Princess Fairytale Hall even though I had already used this. I managed to make a Fastpass+ reservation for Haunted Mansion for about 20 minutes later. This gave me time to play the first portal for my new The Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom mission, which was next to the dock for the Liberty Belle and collect my spell cards for the day from the recruitment station near Ye Olde Christmas Shoppe. Then I headed back to Haunted Mansion. It was straight to the Stretching Room for me and I thoroughly enjoyed my ride.

I played a couple more portals for my The Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom mission, but the parade was about to start and I did not want to get stuck at Frontierland. So I decided that could wait and crossed over into Adventureland. I really wanted to try out Jingle Cruise and headed there next. The waiting time was 45 minutes and I decided to get a paper Fastpass instead, which was for an hour later. By the time I had collected my Fastpass, I was ready for some refreshment. I checked out Aloha Isle, but the line was huge. I had planned to try the Orange Soft Serve this time round anyway and somebody in the line at Aloha Isle the previous evening had recommended that people try Sunshine Tree Terrace as there is normally hardly a line. Well, there was that day, but it was shorter than the one for Aloha Isle. So I got in line. I must have ended up with the slowest cast member in the whole of Walt Disney World. It was worth it though. I went with a Citrus Swirl Float. I had chosen Orange Soda with Orange and Vanilla Soft Serve Ice Cream. This was so refreshing. I was looking for somewhere to sit in the shade and a lady who was by herself invited me to join her. Shortly afterwards we were joined by her son and daughter in law and we chatted for a while.

Once I had finished my Citrus Swirl Float and had said goodbye to my companions, I headed towards Pirates of the Caribbean. This was the only ride apart from Jingle Cruise that I really wanted to do and had not yet had the opportunity to ride. When I got there, the waiting time showed 5 minutes, but unfortunately some huge tour groups arrived just ahead of me and in the end the waiting time was closer to 20 minutes. I was Ok with that though. I
got to see something interesting on this ride. We were going through one of the last scenes when I saw two cast members off to the side of the scene opening a curtain and switching out boats. I had never given any thoughts to where the boats are when they are not in use.

I had one ride left to do and this was Jingle Cruise. My Fastpass window had opened while I was on Pirates of the Caribbean so I headed there as soon as I got off the ride. The Fastpass line was a slow as molasses. In the end, I waited about 30 minutes. I had been really excited when I had read that Jungle Cruise would be turned into Jingle Cruise for the holidays. All the boats had been renamed for the occasion and some holiday themed jokes had been added. I was aware that this was not a full overlay, but I still had expected a few more holiday touches. The only holiday touch that I remember is a red ribbon in one of the scenes. I remember two holiday jokes and they were not really funny, but then again our skipper was not funny at all. I normally love Jungle Cruise even though it is seriously cheesy as the skippers are normally real characters. To add insult to injury, we seemed to be stopped for ages in sight of the loading dock. The skipper tried to cover the waiting time with jokes, but it was obvious that her heart was not in it. It sounded like she was reading them off a list of jokes for such situations. It was pure torture. I think I would rather we stuck on It's A Small World. Eventually we did make it back to the loading dock and I could not get off the boat quick enough. This is one hour of my life that I will never get back.

There was one last thing that I had to do. I still had not managed to get my photos from Tusker House and I was also missing a bunch of photos. So I needed to pay the Photopass Centre a visit. It is actually not all that obvious where this is at Magic Kingdom so I had to ask a passing cast member. It is actually in the same building as the Town Square Theater. I had a bit of a wait, as this was quite busy. Still, the visit was productive so I did not mind. They finally did find my Tusker House photos and they were added to my Photopass account and I was given the prints. They also found all of the other photos and most of them did actually make it on my Photopass account. The only photo that refused to cooperate was the ride photo from Dinosaur. They were also kind enough to add only my photos from the special Photopass card that I was given at Enchanted Tales with Belle. This saved me a lot of time, as I did not have to go through all the photos and delete the ones that were not mine.

Once I was all done, I headed for the monorail. I just missed one, but the next one was not far behind and I managed to get a seat. My bus was just pulling in as I walked up to the bus park so I ended up having to run for my bus again, but I made it comfortably. I checked in online and updated my status on Facebook. Suddenly I was good and busy. Two people were messaging me. I had hoped to meet up with one of them, but unfortunately that had not worked out for a number of reasons. So it was nice to be able to at least chat online. The second person was our amazing photographer from our vow renewal. She was in Orlando. Neither of us had an idea that the other one would be in Orlando. She had only arrived the previous day and I was just about to leave Orlando so we had no opportunity to meet up, but I definitely would have loved to.

As I was so busy chatting, time just flew and soon I was back at the hotel. When I got back, I quickly packed most of my stuff. Graham had kindly done our laundry when he got back so packing was an easy process. He was already pretty much packed. We then decided to head out for dinner. I suggested that we could try Capital Grille at the Pointe Orlando. I had heard a lot of good things about this and I fancied a really nice steak. Graham liked the sound of this, too. This was very posh. We were in typical Florida tourist gear and we were both a bit worried that we were underdressed. Nobody batted an eyelid though. The food was absolutely divine. We both just had iced water, as we did not want anything to affect the taste. Graham had the Delmonico Steak: a 22 oz. bone-in rib eye served Au Jus. I went with the Dry Aged Sirloin Steak with Kona Coffee Rub. Both steaks were juicy, flavourful and cooked to perfection. We decided to share a couple of sides. We had the Creamed Corn with Smoked Bacon and the Parmesan Truffle Fries. Everything was absolutely amazing and this was a very nice last meal for this part of the holiday.

Once we finished our meal, we took the trolley back to the hotel. It was still quite early. I rearranged my hand luggage and caught up online and Graham read his book. At about 22:00, we got ready for bed and fell asleep as soon as we had settled down.