Where the magic lives! An August solo dining adventure! Final thoughts and cost analysis 11/12.

4 parks/1 day challenge continued! After a lovely and relaxing swim at AKL, I was ready to head back out. Soon I was on my way to Hollywood Studios and was lucky enough to catch the March of the First order as I entered the park. I was on a quest for one of my favourite snacks and made my way towards Sweet Spells for an extremely delicious carrot cake cookie.
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My plan was to save this for breakfast the next morning BUT I just couldn't resist taking a small bite. Just then the rain started pouring down and I was stuck in the store for a little bit. Oh well, I might as well enjoy a bit more of my cookie waiting out the storm, right??? I polished off about 1/2 of it and of course it was everything I hoped it would be. Moist, yummy cake with creamy icing....so good! I thought I'd dash across to Anaheim Produce and stake out a table under the canopy. Of course, I needed a little snack when I was there. I noticed they had my fave Grapefruit beer but I could not justify paying $9 US for the same beer I can buy for $2.85 CDN at home. So I went for something not readily available in Canada, the Kona Longboard lager. The perfect accompaniment to my refreshing beer was a hot Mickey pretzel with cheese sauce for dipping. Mmmm, everything just tastes better when it is Mickey shaped!
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I took the rest of my beer over to the theatre with me as I headed in for the "Music of Pixar Live" which was amazing!!!! I really hope they bring this show back. My next plan was to head over to Epcot and meet up with @Tracy161! We enjoyed strolling through World Showcase and had fun riding FEA. Of course we had to make time for a beverage and headed back over to France to enjoy a yummy Grey Goose slushie!
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It was so fun to hang out with Tracy and chat about all things Disney. She is such a sweetheart! I had a date with Magic Kingdom next for my first viewing of HEA. This was phenomenal and I might just love it as much as Wishes......this is a huge admission for a dedicated Wishes fan like me.
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After HEA I made my over to Adventureland to Aloha Isle for my last snack of the night, a Dole Whip float. This was perfect, cold, tart and so refreshing. I enjoyed the park until close at midnight, happy to have completed my 4 parks/1 day challenge!
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Totals for today:
Banana at the Mara ~ $1.80
Cinnamon glazed almonds at AK snack cart ~ $5.99
Vegetable curry pods at Satu'li Canteen ~ $10.99
Carrot cake cookie at Sweet Spells ~ $3.99
Mickey pretzel and Kona Longboard at Anaheim Produce ~ $14.69
Grey Goose slushie at the France wine kiosk ~ $10.75
Dole Whip float at Aloha Isle ~ $5.49

Food total for today ~ $27.96
Beverage total ~ $19.75
Savings vs using DDP ~ $69.35 - $27.96 = $41.39
 
The carrot cake cookie looks so yummy, I didn't have one this trip. I love that cookie! Your 4 park day looks awesome! What a great dis meet for you all at Epcot, so fun! I loved HEA as well, not quite as sentimental as Wishes for me but wonderful in its own way!
 
So jealous...as much as I love my family, I would love to just choose all my favorite meals and treats on a vacation. Looks like a great visit so far!
 


Glad you succeeded with your 4 parks, 1 day challenge! Steve and I did that one year and I was very proud of us lol

Cinnamon Glazed Almonds from one of the treat carts in Africa.
One of our favorite snacks, all 4 of us enjoy these.

To be honest, I was disappointed with these. There was so much sugar in the coating you couldn't even taste the cinnamon. I was hoping for more of a savoury snack but these were way, way too sweet. I ate about 1/2 before giving up on them. Oh well!
Yeah they're very sweet, definitely a sweet snack and really not savory at all. Now that you mention it there really isn't a cinnamon flavor, just sugar and the nut taste when the nut is on the larger size.......but I like sugar so it works for me :)

After the show I headed down to Pandora for the first time. I love the level of detail that went into this land. It truly is spectacular. My plan for lunch today was Satu'li Canteen. Again, perfect theming was evident throughout.
Regardless of whether you liked the movie or not or have any interest in Pandora or not, there's really no denying the beauty of the land and how detailed the theming is. Every area, the gift shop and as you say, Satu'li Canteen.

I would have preferred a higher vegetable to bun ratio as I did find the buns a bit doughy.
I had the cheeseburger pods earlier this year and I felt the buns were doughy too, and that the meat to bun ratio was off (needed more meat). I wasn't a big fan of them anyway but for those who do I feel they need to add more meat.

I think I'll go for one of the bowls on my next visit here.
Steve had a bowl when we went and love it!

I was on a quest for one of my favourite snacks and made my way towards Sweet Spells for an extremely delicious carrot cake cookie.
Mmm, one of my favorites, too!
 
Time for a super fun 4 parks/1 day challenge!

I was wondering if you ended up doing it!!!

It was so fun to hang out with Tracy and chat about all things Disney.

So fun!! If only I had been able to stay a few more days I could have met you both!!! Looks like an amazing day and congrats on completing the challenge, with some truly awesome snacks too!!
 
I am surprised at how relaxing your day looks for having done all four parks in one day! I love the treats you had this day. It's so fun to snack at WDW rather than necessarily having square meals. I have got to get over to MK to grab a Dole Whip float and enjoy it during Happily Ever After. That sounds like the best nightcap!
 


The carrot cake cookie looks so yummy, I didn't have one this trip. I love that cookie! Your 4 park day looks awesome! What a great dis meet for you all at Epcot, so fun! I loved HEA as well, not quite as sentimental as Wishes for me but wonderful in its own way!
How I love that carrot cake cookie! It took all my willpower not to devour the whole thing during the thunderstorm. Yes, I had some lovely meets this trip, Disfriends are the best!

So jealous...as much as I love my family, I would love to just choose all my favorite meals and treats on a vacation. Looks like a great visit so far!
I love my family trips too but it is so nice to just please yourself for a whole week.

Just joining in. It all looks great.
Welcome Niki! Glad to have you along!

Steve had a bowl when we went and love it!
Yes, definitely going for a bowl next time. There are so many great options here. :)

So fun!! If only I had been able to stay a few more days I could have met you both!!! Looks like an amazing day and congrats on completing the challenge, with some truly awesome snacks too!!
I know!! I would have loved to meet you too. Come on out in October to the Disney meet here and we can connect and chat all about our trips. I loved my 4 parks/ 1 day challenge, it was so fun!!

am surprised at how relaxing your day looks for having done all four parks in one day! I love the treats you had this day. It's so fun to snack at WDW rather than necessarily having square meals. I have got to get over to MK to grab a Dole Whip float and enjoy it during Happily Ever After. That sounds like the best nightcap!
You know it was surprisingly low key and fun. I think travelling on my own really helped as I didn't have to worry about anyone's needs except my own. Dole Whip floats are a great treat for HEA for sure. :)
 
I love that you were able to do 4 parks in one day, I don't think I'd be able to do that. I think the most I've done in a day were two. Your Aloha float looks delicious, I need to try that. I've only had it as just the ice cream and not as a float.
 
I mean, how could you ever get tired of this??
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I don't think I want to ever meet the person who COULD get tired of it, it's magical!!

I decided to go with the Cinnamon Glazed Almonds from one of the treat carts in Africa.
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To be honest, I was disappointed with these. There was so much sugar in the coating you couldn't even taste the cinnamon. I was hoping for more of a savoury snack but these were way, way too sweet. I ate about 1/2 before giving up on them. Oh well!

Aw, this is disappointing. I've never met a roasted almond I didn't like, and usually seek them out at local craft fairs and things. I've always been curious about them at the parks, but I think they're on my pass list!

Mmmm, everything just tastes better when it is Mickey shaped!

Agree!! And you know, I've never had one of the carrot cake cookies, I always forget...it's on the list for next month for sure!

This sounds like a yummy day! You can't go wrong ending the night with a dole whip!! Love that you did 4 parks in one day AND got to hang out with Tracy
 
Looks like a great trip so far and you've made some fun snack choices! Can't wait to see more!
:welcome:Glad to have you joining in!

Yay for a dis meet! Your carrot cake cookie looks amazing :)
It really was the best!

I love that you were able to do 4 parks in one day, I don't think I'd be able to do that. I think the most I've done in a day were two. Your Aloha float looks delicious, I need to try that. I've only had it as just the ice cream and not as a float.
It was so fun to do! If you keep your expectations in check, it really is very manageable. The Dole Whip float is awesome....such a great combo!

I bet those margaritas were refreshing!
It certainly was! Cucumber and lime is a great combo!

Agree!! And you know, I've never had one of the carrot cake cookies, I always forget...it's on the list for next month for sure!

This sounds like a yummy day! You can't go wrong ending the night with a dole whip!! Love that you did 4 parks in one day AND got to hang out with Tracy
It was so fun! And yes, you have to try a carrot cake cookie! I was so happy to do the 4 parks/1 day and be able to share part of the day with Tracy. It really was a great day!
 
Time to head out for a fun filled day at Hollywood Studios! After enjoying my fruit and coffee on the balcony, I was ready to go. I was so looking forward to finally seeing the Frozen Sing Along this morning and it did not disappoint! I laughed so much! Unfortunately as I was wiping tears of mirth away, I managed to get a tiny amount of sunscreen in my eyes. If this has ever happened to you, you know how uncomfortable it is. After flushing my eyes extensively I felt a bit better and was soon ready to head over for lunch at 50's Prime Time. Michelle was my waitress and she was awesome! We discovered we were born the same year and she was also a mom of teenagers. So we bonded over that while I looked over the menu and continued to bathe my still stinging eyes. She wondered if she should be nice to me because I was uncomfortable but I encouraged her to play it up so I had to set the table and got chastised for having my phone out. It was a lot of fun to watch her interact with the other tables as well.
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As I still wasn't feeling 100%, I decided to go with an unsweetened ice tea to drink. This was so refreshing!
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My plan was to go for two appetizers...... I started with the fried cheese with raspberry sauce, served with grapes, sliced apples and crackers. This was delicious; I think the cheese was Boursin, which is one of my faves. It was good to have some fruit too.....I was at the part of my Disney trip where fruit and veggies were seriously lacking in my diet! The raspberry sauce was yummy with the soft herbed cheese.
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My next choice was the Crab cake, served with succotash. The crab cake was okay, certainly not the best I've ever had but not the worst either. I really enjoyed the succotash which had a nice kick to it.
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I wasn't thrilled about the nut free dessert options so decided to pass on it. Michelle brought me another iced tea in a to go cup as well as a birthday card since we had the same birth year. I really enjoyed the ambience as well as the service and would be happy to come back here for another meal one day.

After lunch I headed over for my FPs for RRC and ToT. While waiting for my ToT window to open up I headed over to the Joffreys cart and ordered this little beauty. An iced cold brew with no sweetener...... it was excellent and very refreshing in the heat.
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Next up......the best Disney bargain ever, yes it does exist!
 
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Love all you got done on your 4 parks challenge! Even better you to to do it with 2 of my favorite snacks, mickey pretzels and carrot cake cookie! We were gonna try and do this on our next trip with the express transportation, but now that its gone I don't think Casey will have much of a tolerance for it.

Glad to see you enjoyed your 50's lunch! Its always so much more fun when you get a good server.
 
Love all you got done on your 4 parks challenge! Even better you to to do it with 2 of my favorite snacks, mickey pretzels and carrot cake cookie! We were gonna try and do this on our next trip with the express transportation, but now that its gone I don't think Casey will have much of a tolerance for it.

Glad to see you enjoyed your 50's lunch! It's always so much more fun when you get a good server.
I think it would be a bit much for Casey yet. She is a Disney vet but even rockstar six year olds have their limits! 50's was great, I think the boys and DH would love it too.

Nice appetizers! I have had both of them and I agree on the crab cake.
Yes, the crab cake tasted as though it was made with canned crab, rather than fresh. I did love the fried cheese though. :)
 
Happy 50th birthday! Great trip so far. Waiting to hear about the bargain.
 
Your tea and cheese at 50's Prime Time look great. The menu has never appealed to me so I've never made a reservation, but I want to experience the 50's style and getting yelled at by the waitresses. I think I'd actually enjoy that cheese plate, I might consider going for just appetizers.
 

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