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Jennifer Reall -- February 2000 -- Walt Disney World (ASMuR)Cast of Characters: Jennifer (Me); 35; 5th trip to WDW (3rd as an adult); lover of most things Disney especially Classic Pooh, Grumpy, and Splash Mountain; collector and trader of pins; recent IRCer (BookBabe). Dates of Trip: February 2, 2000 to February 7, 2000 The Planning 10/28/99 - arrive home from last visit to WDW 10/30/99 - pick up pictures from trip at CVS & make scrapbook in WDW 1999 photo album 11/99 & 12/99 - visit TDS at least weekly; read RADP daily; think fondly of October trip 12/29/99 - join DVC discussion list to get even more Disney info; download ircle and attend first IRC meet; boyfriend makes first mumblings about a mental health facility 12/30/99 - start thinking seriously about returning to WDW; decide it's feasible timewise as I have comp days from the holidays (I work retail but never took my Christmas Holiday or my New Years Holiday and had to work 6 days some weeks) but need to go either the last weekend in January or the first weekend in February for the least crowded experience. 12/31/99 - go over finances again and again; contemplate taking tent and sleeping bag on plane and staying at FW. 1/1/00 - make final decision to go the first weekend in February and to book an All Star Resort (hopefully Movies) but can't get through to CRO, who calls there on a holiday? : ) 1/2/00 - call CRO and book All Star Music (only rooms left) for $82.88/night (inc tax) but vow to keep trying for Movies (encouraged by Ronnie). Make ressie for 2/2 - 2/9 even though I only plan to spend four nights. Since my plane ticket is being paid for with my frequent flyer miles I will have to be flexible as there are limited seats and it's only a month in advance. Logon to United website to surf for flights. The ideal is to arrive at MCO before noon on 2/3 and to leave MCO around 4:30 PM on 2/7. I end up with getting to MCO at 7:24 PM on 2/2 and leaving MCO at 6:30 PM on 2/7. This means 5 nights in stead of four. I have a little anxiety as I am trying to save money and so far it's not working. I logon to #radp-friends to share my excitement and everyone responds appropriately : ). 1/3/00 - call CRO and change ressie to 2/2-2/7. 1/8, 1/10, 1/12 (3 wk mark), 1/16 - call CRO at 7:00 AM each day to check on ASMovies; at one point I book the first two nights at ASMovies and keep the last three at ASMusic in hopes that eventually Movies will open up. 1/17/00 - give up on ASMovies and change ressie back to 5 nights at ASMusic. I don't really want the hassle of switching resorts when I can spend that time at a park, around this time I also find out that the Babefest is going to be at WDW around the same time, I'm hoping to meet up with them at some point and will keep a lookout for a large group of women and Kenny. 1/24/00 - go to store and purchase food items for trip (cereal, granola bars, bottled water). I drag my suitcase out and pack a few things. Despite my best efforts I am going to have more luggage than I want. This is partially due to the unpredictable weather at this time of year (requiring both shorts and pants) and the food in my suitcase. Oh well. I also have to take my own pillow because I can't sleep on hotel pillows as they are too fluffy. I also stopped by TDS in search of something to put my pins in. I came up with a Minnie cosmetic bag which was on sale for $3.49 (regularly $10.00). I used a pair of socks to put the pins on; one sock for keepers and one sock for traders. I then rolled them up and put them in the bag. This will work for now. I know much more about the whole pin thing now than I did in October so hopefully I will overcome my trading shyness and initiate some trades. 1/25/00 - become obsessed with the weather forecast for central Florida. It's in the 50's. Not good. Also become obsessed with the weather in DC as I will be connecting there on my way down. Even worse. Come up with a backup plan: if there is snow enroute on my day of departure, I will go to the airport extra early in hopes I can get rerouted through Chicago. Since I'm not leaving until 3:15 PM this is always a possiblity as long as there is no active snow in Rochester. Today is my mother's 60th birthday. While she hasn't said it, I know she is disappointed that I didn't fly out to surprise her. She pretty much knew this wasn't going to happen when I told her I was going to WDW again. The next trip I will take with her as she really wants to go and my father will not go with her. I should've been a good daughter and thought of this for her birthday but since it was a last minute thing I did not. Anyway, I plan to get her something special at either the crystal arts shop at MK or somewhere in the World Showcase. I sent a card telling her Happy Birthday and that she would be receiving a gift soon from WDW. 1/30/00 - fax room request of non-smoking, 3rd floor, either Jazz Inn building to ASMusic. Jazz has been recommended to me by several RADPers so I'm going to go with it. 2/1/00 - finish packing. Everything fit. It's very snowy in Rochester. The original forecast was no snow for tomorrow but now that has changed. Fortunately snow is a way of life here so it's very rare that the airport is closed. I've checked forecasts for Dulles (connecting flight) and Orlando and everything looks good. Forecast now says 70's for WDW. I found out today that one of my favorite singers, Francine Reed, is going to be at the Jazz Company at PI for three nights and Thursday is one of them so I will be able to see her perform. She works a lot with Lyle Lovett and his Large Band. All this time I've been planning my itinerary which is, as always, flexible. The tentative plan at this point is:
My main goals for the trip are to see most of the things I missed in October and to experience the good things again. Part 1 - Plane/Check-In Wednesday, February 2nd After much anticipation about the weather, I arrive at the airport in Rochester prepared to shovel my way out but alas the plows have done their job and we are on our way on time. I get through Dulles with ease (my connecting gate is the same gate I came in on). I grab a Washington Post and a Washingtonian magazine from the newsstand. I really enjoy both of these publications and read them whenever possible. Due to the inconsistency of airplane food, I stop by McDonald's for some fries and bottled water. They upsell me to Evian (instead of the McDonald's brand) without asking but I don't really want to hassle with the refund so I don't say anything. I arrive at MCO at 7:30 (a few minutes late). I get my suitcase and go over to the Mears counter to buy my ticket. I use the $3.00 off coupon that I got from Cricket (thanks again) so it comes to $24.00 roundtrip. I go over to the other side of the the terminal to find my van. I get the front seat (very good since I get car sick) and we are off to Coronado Springs and ASMusic. I arrive at ASMusic at 9:00 PM and checkin. There are about 5 people in line and 2 CMs working the counter (1 is still earning her ears). I wait about 10 minutes and check in. I had requested the 3rd floor front side of either Jazz building and I get the 1st floor back side of Jazz building #2 (Room 2418). It is a handicapped accessible room with a king sized bed. Although it is not what I requested, the room seems nice enough. I find out fairly fast that the National Cheerleading Championships are going on at WDW and that many of the cheerleaders are staying at ASMusic. Now, I would be making an understatement if I told you that I am the anti-cheerleader. I am now very happy that I was not on the front side of that building. Most of the cheerleaders were back in Broadway, Rock Inn, and Country Faire so it was actually okay for the most part. After I put my luggage in the room, I went back to Melody Hall to look around. I stopped back at the front desk and bought my Unlimited Magic Pass. I got the new CM who was not sure how to sell me a pass with days chopped off so she got someone else to show her. I asked for my pass to start the next day and the supervising CM asked if I wanted the last day included or not. I did so I got a 5 day UMP ($253.36 with tax). I went to Maestro's Mickey's (gift shop) and purchased a Grumpy pin ($6.42). I then stopped by the food court (with my mug from my ASMovies trip in October) for a pizza ($4.92) and a beverage. I went back to the room and planned the next day and organized my pins. I went to sleep around 11:30 after arranging a 7:28 AM wakeup call and checking the weather forecast. Part 2 - Epcot Thursday, February 3rd Mickey wakes me up at 7:28 AM. The weather is 60ish and cloudy so I decide to go with long pants and a long sleeve shirt. I call housekeeping to request a hairdryer and someone brings it in ten minutes. I barely had time to run to the food court before the hairdryer arrived. I bring my banana and Coke (I drink cold caffeine in the morning) back to the room and enjoy them with my cereal from home while watching CNN. I catch the bus to Epcot and arrive around 9:00 AM. I missed most of Future World in October so I plan on doing it all today. I head to Test Track and inquire about the singles line. The CM points me up the stairs to the left and I'm in with absolutely no wait. This is definitely the way to go. I was worried about this ride because I do get motion sick but it's all dependent on whether or not I can see where I'm going. Space Mountain and ToT are not good to me but Test Track was. Very fun at 64.9 mph. I'm off to Universe of Energy to see Ellen and Bill. I wait about a minute to go into the next show which is virtually empty (maybe 25 people). Next I stop by Wonders of Life and do Cranium Command which is very cute. I look for Julie at Pure and Simple but am told she is not working that day. I later find out that she was reassigned before she even started there. I purchase an ESPN t-shirt for a friend at the sports gift shop. I got one for myself in October and she really liked it so I got her one. I had it sent to my room. This is a really great service that I have never taken advantage of. It really lightens up the backpack. Before heading over to the west side of Future World I go on Test Track again (64.8 mph). I go through Mouse Gears and buy a Jessie pin and the WDW pin with all 4 park symbols on it. I trade one of my TDS pins to a CM at the door for her baseball Mickey pin. I head to Ice Station Cool for some Kinley Lemon and then over to the Character Connection for a picture with Goofy. It is now almost noon and my PS for lunch is not until 2:10 so I stop at the Fountainview for a raspberry croissant ($2.96) which was very tasty. I go to the IBM portion of Innoventions West and send electronic postcards to friends and family. I only did two at a time and then got back in line to do two more. I didn't want to hog the computers. I headed over to The Land which is probably my favorite part of Future World (aside from Test Track now). I went to the Circle of Life where I encountered my quote of the day. "I don't think this is about the Lion King at all. It's about the land." Duh. After this I went downstairs to sign up for the Behind the Seeds tour. I really enjoy Living with the Land so I thought the tour would be a great extension of that. I pay for a spot on the 3:30 tour as I don't have time to take it before my PS for lunch. I go to Food Rocks where I wait about 5 minutes for the next show. The waiting area is very colorful and cute. Since my PS is at Le Cellier in Canada I head that way. I take some panoramic shots of the World Showcase with my disposable Advantix camera. I should mention that I have an array of cameras with me on this trip. In addtion to the Advantix I have my own 35 mm point and shoot and I also have a disposable no flash 800 speed camera. I am going to try using the 800 speed for Fantasmic and MSEP and see how it works. I get to Canada and am early for the 1:40 Off Kilter show. I missed OK in October because they weren't performing on the one day I could make it to the World Showcase. I bought the CD at that time and am anxious to see them in person especially now that those loins are officially registered. I use the time wisely and visit the infamous Mill Vill bathrooms. Holy cow!!!! Every concert and sports venue in the world should take a lesson from these bathrooms. I really want to take a photo but don't want to look stupid. Hello? Like I'd look stupid in a place where people where animated animals body parts on their heads? I don't think so. Regardless, I don't take a picture. I go back outside and get a seat for Off Kilter. Sadly, the bagpipe player (sorry can't remember his name) is not there so they can play exactly one song. Curses, foiled again. I show up at Le Cellier at 1:50 for my 2:10 PS. Of course, it is not crowded at all so I am seated right away. Having been inspired by Kevin's beer filled trip report, I order a Raftman which is an Old World Ale from Quebec. It was very tasty as was my entire meal. My CM was Debbie from Vancouver and she was very attentive. I got the Cheddar Cheese Soup and the 5 oz top sirloin with garlic smashed potatoes. The breadsticks were very good. I highly recommend this restaurant. I made my PS the day before so it doesn't book that fast. This was the best meal I've had in a very long time and I will definitely go back. The meal including the beer was $21.42 plus tip. After lunch I made my way back to the Land for my tour. The CM who was our tour guide was an intern in the greenhouse area. I'm no scientest so please forgive my lack of scientific terms. I live with a scientist so you'd think I'd get something through osmosis (there we go) but I haven't. Anyway, the tour goes through the greenhouses and the CM explained all the different ways they grow things there. I took many pictures. The tour takes about an hour and costs $6.00 per person. If you like the boat ride, I recommend the tour. After the tour I walked over to Mexico thinking that I would look for Paragon however, once I arrived I realized that I not only didn't know what she looks like, I've forgotten her real name. Oh well. I go on El Rio del Tiempo. I have a whole boat to myself. Not the best ride but very relaxing. I begin my quest for my mother's birthday present but find nothing in Mexico or in any other country for that matter. In Norway I notice the Grete Waitz statue for the first time. How did I miss this before? She is a Norwegian marathoner and having run competitively in high school and college in the 80's I am very familiar with her. I stop in China and watch the Pu Yang acrobats. They are fascinating. In Germany I encounter three CMs talking about the new smoking policy. Sorry, I love to eavesdrop. Apparently they feel that it has not been communicated well to the CMs. They are looking at a map of Epcot and trying to figure out where to send guests if they ask where they can smoke. As an aside, while I did see guests utilizing the smoking areas throughout the parks, I also saw guests walking along with cigarettes. As someone who is moderately bothered by cigarette smoke I have never had a problem at WDW. My only problem with smoke is when I can't get away from it (ie, I'm waiting in line). I continue on around the World Showcase getting many character photos. I get Minnie, Pluto, and Chip and Dale at American Adventure. I get Aladdin between American Adventure and Japan. At 6:20 I find a spot for the 6:30 ToN. I am at the edge of Morroco right where one of the parades comes out. This is a good spot. The guy standing next to me is obviously an off duty CM as he is mouthing all the words and doing mini motions (a la The Full Monty bank scene) at some points. Also, CMs in the parade are waving and smiling at him. I really enjoyed ToN. The music was great and the puppets were very well done. After the parade I decided to head over to Downtown Disney. I walked over to the Boardwalk and caught a bus. I found my mom's birthday gift at the Christmas shop. She collects Santas so I got her a plush Santa Mickey and a ceramic Santa Mickey ornament. I had it shipped to her in Montana for $8.95. Another aside, for some reason shipping from WDW takes 20 business days (that's the script). I didn't even think to ask how long because where I work we send stuff out the next business day and we always send it UPS 3 day (for the low, low fee of $3.95). To make a long story short, my mom's birthday was 1/25, I made the purchase on 2/3, I called on 2/15 to see why it hadn't arrived and they told me it was scheduled to arrive on 2/22 which was the day after my mom left Montana to fly to Florida to visit relatives. Just a little information if you are planning to have anything shipped. I visited most of the shops at the Marketplace and bought a Mickey denim shirt at World of Disney and immediately put it on as it was now about 50 degrees. I headed over to Pleasure Island. My first stop was the Jazz Company to see what time Francine Reed was on. The first show was at 9:35. I went to find a locker to store my backpack and I bought a drink from the bar on the street. I went back to the Jazz Company at about 9:15 and waited for the show. The Shadows came on at 9:35 and did about 5 songs. I kept wondering where Francine was. She finally came out and did only 4 songs. She was very good and I"m glad I got to see her but I wish she had done more. I made my way over to the Comedy Warehouse in hopes of seeing the much lauded Layton (or is it Layden?) who I missed on my last trip. I went to both the 10:40 show and the 12:05 show. Matt is my personal favorite and he was in both shows but alas no Layton. I caught a bus back to ASMusic and the whole ride wondered what high school cheerleaders had been doing out this late at PI *with* chaperones. It seemed a little odd but then I haven't been in high school for a very long time. I get back around 1:30 AM and decide to sleep in since I am going to E-Ticket night the next night and will be at MK until midnight or 1:00 AM. No need to get there for rope drop or anything. Part 3 - Magic Kingdom Marathon Friday, February 4th I woke up at 9:30 AM. It was a nice day (sunny and 65) so I decided to walk around ASMusic and take a few pictures. The cheerleaders were out in full practicing so it was not exactly a relaxing walk. I stopped by the food court and got a banana and a Coke. I noticed that they also now sell USA Today's at the checkout in the morning. This is a great idea and I'm fairly certain that they weren't doing this at ASMovies in October. I'm always a sucker for McPaper so I bought one. I stopped by guest services to puchase my ticket for E-Ride Night ($10). After a leisurely morning I arrived at the Magic Kingdom around 11:30 AM. I took the obligatory photos of the castle (like I don't have enough of those). I checked the tip board to see if I should start in Adventureland or Tomorrowland and Adventureland it was! I had missed most of these attractions in October as we spent most of our time in Fantasyland with the kids. I stopped at Jungle Cruise to get a fastpass. I went to the TikiRoom and since I had never been there I made the mistake of sitting directly under Iago (no jokes please) which made for some painful viewing. It was very cute and I enjoyed the show. Since it wasn't time for my fastpass I checked out the Swiss Family Treehouse. I ran over to Splash Mountain and got a fastpass with my E-Ride Ticket. I went back to the Jungle Cruise and got on with my FP with no wait. Very cheesy but I really like boat rides for some reason. After coming out of the Jungle Cruise I got pictures with Rafiki, Meeko, and Timon. I headed over to the Riverboat and the boat was just leaving so I hopped on. Next it was onto Splash Mountain which is my favorite ride at WDW. I had a 10 minute wait with the fastpass. I made the mistake because I did not wear my poncho. In October I rode SM three times and never got wet. Well, the water gods caught up with me this time as I was soaked. This was the perfect opportunity to purchase a new shirt so I did. I got some lunch at the Columbia Harbour House-fish basket and a coke ($7.64). By this time it was 2:30 and people were lining up for the 3:00 Magical Moments Parade so I went to find a spot and ended up in front of the woodcarving booth in Frontierland. I read my book (The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King) until the parade started. This was a very cute parade. After the parade I got on the train to Toontown. I asked if Bruce was working but the CM didn't know and didn't seem to want to help me find out so I left it at that. In Toontown I waited 15 minutes for a picture with the Mouse. I made my way to Fantasyland. The FP for Pooh was 2 hours out so I got two. It was here that I encountered by quote of the day. "I can't use this right now? I have to wait two hours? That's not very 'fast'." An FP aside: I just don't understand why people don't get this concept. It's not rocket science for god's sake. You put your ticket in the machine, you get a fastpass. You then continue past the machine and circle around that's why it's set up that way. You don't turn around and push your way through the crowd waiting to get their fastpasses. End of aside. I stood in line at the Character Festival and was delighted to see that WDW finally got a new Pooh costume! The old costume always bothered me because I didn't think it really looked much like Pooh; to the point that I would not have my picture taken with Pooh because I was so bothered. Anywas, since October they have made a new costume (more than one obviously). Anyway, got my pics with Eeyore, Tigger, and Pooh. No Piglet. In fact, Piglet would elude me the entire trip. I went to the Belle Storytime near the castle. This was very cute and interactive with the audience. Disney Mania was next on the Castle stage. Since it was now about 5:30, I went to guest services and got my wristband for E-Ride night. I also had to take out a small loan to buy a roll of film ($9 for 36 exposures). I had brought 3 rolls of film with me and here I was on the second day purchasing film. Oh boy. I walked through Tomorrowland where I was able to trade one of my TDS pins for a Rafiki pin. I headed back to FantasyLand and rode Snow White with no wait. It was now time for my Pooh FP so I rode with only a 10 minute wait. I made my way up Main Street so I could change into warmer clothes before the parade. I had stored them in a locker all day. After changing I went to the Camera Center to see the official picture of me and Mickey. It had been well over the two hours it said on the card (more like 4 hours) but the photo wasn't there. That in itself was okay but the way it was handled by the two CMs there was not okay. The one looking for my picture said "It's not here." I said "Do you have any idea when it will be here?". She looked at the other CM who replied in a very nasty tone "I'm not about to make any promises on this." It wasn't just me either. She was very impatient/rude with the person in front of me in line as well. The first CM said "you can try back later" to which I replied "no thanks." I went off to find a spot for the parade. I was looking for a spot where a trashcan would be in front of me so no one could block my pictures. I sat down in front of Sleepy Hollow near the bridge to Liberty Square at about 7:00 PM. You all know the parade drill. People constantly go past looking for a spot, asking if they can ram their stroller into a 4" by 4" spot. About 10 minutes before the parade started a woman came up and asked the woman next to me if a couple of kids could sit in front of her (next to me). The woman agreed and suddenly FOUR kids were pushing their way in. The parents stood behind the crowd with the kids out of their view. I tried to mind my own business but of course they were tired and very wiggly. I ended up entertaining them until the parade started. Their uncle bought them each a light up toy from the cart and they then started hitting each other (and those around them) with the toys. Oh well, what can you do? After the parade I crossed the bridge towards the castle and found a spot to stand and watch the fireworks. I struck up a conversation with the kids next to me and they were wowed by my Disney knowledge. They were easily amused. The fireworks were great. This was the first time I saw Tinkerbell go down the wire. Now it was time for E-Ride night (10:00 PM to 1:00 AM). I headed over to Splash, put on my poncho and rode three times without leaving the boat. I only got out because I thought the CMs would think I was weird if I rode a 4th time. Like they weren't already thinking this; single woman alone in a boat, wearing a big red poncho, riding again and again. Hmmm. Anyway, I made a critical error by going on Big Thunder Mountain. The last time I rode this I was in the front seat in the daylight so I was okay. This time I was in the back in the dark so I couldn't see and felt very nauseous when I got off. Damn. I decided to go to Country Bear Jamboree so I could rest and hopefully feel better. I have never seen this and I will never see it again. What a horrible show. I can't believe this thing is still around. I still wasn't feeling all that great so I walked over to Tomorrowland. On my way through the hub I saw Donald, Goofy, Pluto, Minnie, and Chip & Dale. I decided I could handle Buzz so I got on. I really wanted to ride more than once to get a better score but once was enough for my stomach (79,700 points). By this time it was midnight and I decided to retrieve the stuff from my locker and head back to ASMusic. Part 4 - Animal Kingdom and the meeting of the Babes Saturday, February 5th I wake up at 7:40 AM well before my wake up call because the people next door are opening and closing their dresser drawers very frequently and very loudly. I'm not sure what they had stored in those drawers but they sure were enthusiastic about whatever it was. Even though I was still tired I got up and got ready to head out to Animal Kingdom. I caught the bus and entered AK around 8:45 AM. It was once again around 65 and cloudy but I mistakenly wore shorts. I was fairly cold all day. Oops. I made my way to the Safari and got in line. I only had to wait about 15 minutes. I wanted to be on the left side of the vehicle as I had been on the right side in October but it was not to be. We saw a fair amount of animals but no lions this time. Still it was enjoyable. Next I went on the Pangani Forest Trail and was enamored with the meerkats. I made my way to It's Tough to Be a Bug. Boy that walk to the tree is long. There was no wait but I thought I would never get there. I loved this show! I did not go in October so it was a first for me. I headed over to Camp Minnie Mickey to see the Festival of the Lion King (also missed in October) and noticed that the Camp Minnie Mickey sign with the bear was gone. I asked a CM what had happened to the sign and she said it had been vandalized with grafitti and was being repaired. Since a show was in progress no one was waiting to see the characters so I got pics with Safari Minnie and Mickey and then Tigger and Eeyore (again, no Piglet). I got in line for the 11:00 AM show of Lion King at 10:40 AM. This was a great show. And since I'm so enamored with meerkats I got to see my favorite meerkat, Timon. I made two pin trades while I was waiting. Two TDS pins for a Minnie pin and an AK pin. After Lion King I was starving so I went to Pizzafari where I had my best counter service meal of the trip. I got a cheese pizza (very different from the other pizzas around WDW), a small coke, and a side ceasar salad ($8.78). I headed over to Kali River Rapids when I was done eating but didn't feel like my body could take getting any colder even with the poncho. I did Maharajah Jungle Trek instead. The tigers came right up to the windows and I got some great pictures. I checked out Dinosaur Jubilee which was interesting. I approached Countdown to Extinction and really wanted to go on it but was worried about motion sickness so I didn't. By 1:15 I was ready to leave AK so I caught a bus to the TTC with the intention of taking the monorail to Epcot and riding in the front cab. My wish was granted by Carl the monorail driver. I was seated up front with a family of three from Texas. There were very nice and we had a great conversation. Carl said nothing the entire trip and didn't even offer us our co-pilot's licenses. We took them anyway : ). I got to Epcot with a mission: see Off Kilter. I checked the times and saw that they were performing at 3:30. I had some time so I took the boat to France and got a piece of cheesecake and watched one of the statues. I walked towards Canada and entered the Mill Vill through the bathroom (once again, no pictures). I looked around the Marketplace and then went back out to get a seat for Off Kilter. The show was great and worth the wait. These guys are zany (okay, and cute). They have finished recording their new CD and are mixing it. It should be out by the end of February. Since I had missed the Imagination pavillion on Thursday I made my way over so I could weigh in with my opinion on JIYI. I did HISTA first. I was curious why the standby sign said that there was a 10 minute wait but the countdown clock until the next show said 17 minutes. Oh well. I waited. It was still as cute as I remembered it and I lifted my feet at the right moment. On to JIYI. Definitley lame. It was all shiny and new and colorful but that couldn't overshadow the general lameness of the attraction. Being from Rochester (home of Kodak) I really wanted to like it but alas, I could not be swayed. I decided it was time to go back to ASMusic and change before going to PI for the evening. I stopped by the Pin Station and bought the black WDW scarf to put my pins on when I arrived home. It looks very nice by the way. I only have about 50 pins so they fit nicely. The scarf was $10.00. I caught a bus to ASMusic. Once there I changed clothes and caught a bus to Downtown Disney. My mission was to find the Babes and Kenny who were supposed to be at the Adventurer's Club at some point that evening. I had never been to the Adventurer's Club and was a little apprehensive going there by myself but I decided to overcome my fears and give it a shot. First I went to the Comedy Warehouse for the 8:15 show. Matt was not working and the show was not that great. I went across to the Adventurer's Club and made my way downstairs. Since I was alone I sat at the bar. I looked around for anyone who looked like a RADPer but saw no one. There were two women at the bar one of who I later found out was Deb Wills but I didn't know that then. The Adventurer's Club was great. I went to the Mask Room show and then to the Library for the Balderdash Cup. After I came out I made my way back to the bar and checked in the Mask Room for any RADPers but saw no one. I talked to the bartender for awhile. He asked me if I was alone and I told him that I was looking for a large group of women but that I didn't know what any of them looked like. He thought that was weird. I told him that I knew what Kenny looked like from pictures posted on the web (have y'all ever noticed that Kenny is in a lot of pictures?). The bartender then asked me if Kenny was a woman and I told him that Kenny was an honorary woman which got another weird look. It was then that I noticed a red RADP button walking by. Poor John. I practically screamed in his ear. He directed me to the Treasure Room and told me that I would be welcomed with open arms. I made my way over there and he was right. Everyone was so nice. Of course, I will miss someone if I list all the people I met but here goes: Deb Wills, Linda, Deb Koma (dcdeb), Laura (tigger), Dotti (the soap lady), BigBrian, Peter (FilmInfo), Peter (Fudgie), Kenny, Jeff (tiggerfan), Gloria, Pat, Julie (ImKiwi10), Bill (whimmel), Cathy, Mel, John, and Pam. It was great to put faces with the names. We hung out for awhile and then went into the Library for a show. Pat got pulled up front to do some sort of dance or something while the rest of us were relieved that it was her and not us : ). After that everyone was tired so the party broke up and everyone returned to their hotels. What a fun group of people! If you ever get the chance to go to a meet, take it. Thanks to all of you who were there! I got the bus back to ASMusic and once again there were cheerleaders out at 1:00 AM coming home from Pleasure Island. Don't you have to be 21 to get in there after 7:00 PM? Very confusing and very loud. Oh shoot, I almost forgot my quote of the day. I was coming out of Mill Vill and two 40ish white men were behind me talking. One of them said to the other "This is another one of those politically correct things. This multiculturalism which basically says that all cultures are equal. So something like western culture which has provided the world with all of its science, literature, and art is equal to say Nigeria. I don't think so." Hmmm. Part 5 - Disney/MGM Studios and the toilet paper study findings Sunday, Febuary 6th I'm up by 9:00 AM and after stopping by the front desk for a copy of my bill, I have breakfast at the food court. I'm trying to assess if I am still in budget. Woohoo...I am! I hop on the bus to the Studios and since the front of the park seems a bit crowded, I head for the back areas. I find Jessie, Buzz, and Woody outside of Pizza Planet. It seems as if Buzz and Woody's popularity has exploded since October (and the release of TS2). Now there are roped off line areas and long lines to see the two of them separately. In October they were standing together in the backlot area and were waiting for people to come see them. I'm glad I got a picture with the two of them then as it is not an option now. I wait minimally for Jessie and get a pic. Two girls old enough to know better crowd in front of the line from the side. The greeter says to them in a very nice voice "The line is right here." They ignore her and push forward for autographs and pictures while their mother looks on, smiles, and takes the picture. And yes, they spoke English so it wasn't a matter of not understanding. From here I went to Muppet 4D which was as good as ever. They have some cool Muppet stuff in the gift shop after the show but I didn't buy anything. I passed Hunchback which was in progress and made my way to the Backlot Tour. The CM tour guide was a little blah. He read the script directly in a "Bueller? Bueller? Anyone? Anyone?" Ben Stein sort of way. I next went to Backstage Pass. This was fairly interesting but again a less than great CM. This time the CM was extremely agitated and stressed. At one point I wondered if he was on something. I enjoyed the 101 Dalmations set. Off to the Great Movie Ride to see if I could break my streak and not get the Gangster side. Nope. Gangster it is. I love the pre-show to this ride. I get a FP to RnRC for 2:30-3:30 PM and then go see the 2:00 show of Beauty and the Beast. I thought about it and thought about it and decided not to go on RnRC due to the motion sickness thing. I'm fairly certain this ride is dark which is not good for me. I stop at the candy shop on my way over to Soundstage and get some Buttered Popcorn Jelly Bellies (mmmmm). Soundstage was not to my liking. I'm glad I didn't wait more than 5 minutes for this attraction. It was now getting close to the time for the Mulan Parade so I got a seat right on the curb on Hollywood Blvd. People don't seem to line up for this parade as early as the MK parades. The pre-parade entertainment was a group of people who used audience names and made up songs about them. I really enjoyed this. I was seated next to a very nice family from Northern Kentucky and the dad got picked on during this bit but went with it making it even funnier. The Mulan parade was great. The floats were very well done. After the parade went by I decided to make my way over to Beaches & Cream at the Yacht/Beach Club. I took the boat which is not all that fast since it stops at Swan/Dolphin and Boardwalk as well. I looked around Yacht/Beach and checked out Stormalong Bay. Very nice. I stopped in the lobby bathroom which is where I realized that I had been conducting a toilet paper study my entire visit; I just hadn't realized it until now. I should start by saying that when I graduated from grad school many years ago I made two promised to myself; 1) no more cheap beer and 2) no more one ply toilet paper. I have managed to keep these two promises but as you know certain businesses use one ply toilet paper because they think they are saving money. They're really not because we use twice as much one ply as two ply for the same job. Where I work we have two ply tp in the bathrooms because I am in charge of ordering the tp. Anyway, I noticed when I checked into ASMusic that the tp was a bit thin (definitely one ply). I remember thinking in a joking way "you'd think Disney could spring for a better quality tp." Then at the parks I noticed the tp was even thinner (a half ply?). Well, when I got to the Yacht/Beach Club I realized that the price of a Deluxe resort includes....very thick toilet paper (2 ply). Of course, this bathroom had many more luxuries than thick tp. It was very plush and had fresh washcloths on the counter so guests could wash their hands and faces. I don't have much experience with luxury so this was the first time I had seen this. Done with my bathroom tour, I made my way to Beaches & Cream. I sat at the counter and ordered a strawberry shake and a burger and fries. It was all very tasty. I made my way back to the Studios by a very circuitous route. I stopped in the Swan and the Dolphin to check them out. Very nice. I then went to find the path to the Studios that I had seen from the boat on my way over. I found it and walked back to the Studios. It took about ten minutes. I arrived at Fantasmic at 6:07 PM for the 7 PM show. I was trying to get a better seat than in October and I succeeded. I was in Malificent about halfway up. I read my book until the show started. The preshow was the Bellhops but I couldn't really see them much. Fantasmic was excellent! I love this show. I used my camera with no flash and 800 speed film to test that out but alas is was not meant to be. Any other suggestions for Fantasmic photos? Next time I will take a video camera. I took the bus back to ASMusic where I organized my stuff and packed. I also planned out what I was going to do Monday. There is no quote for today. I guess I wasn't paying attention. Part 6 - Tonga Toast and Tattoo Boy Monday, February 7th I woke up at 7:58 and packed the remainder of my stuff. I took advantage of express checkout and left the room. I stopped by Bell Services and stowed my luggage for the day and then caught a bus to MK. At MK I caught the resort monorail to the Polynesian where I had a 9:45 AM PS at the Kona Cafe. I was slightly late but had no problem getting seated immediately. Garry was my CM server and he was great. He asked if I had been there before and I said "No, but I know about the Tonga Toast and that's what I'll have." He was surprised that I would already know about it and even though I tried to explain RADP, he had no concept of the magnitude of a newsgoup. If only he knew how often and the extent to which Tonga Toast is discussed. Anyway, nothing on this group prepared me for the size of the Tonga Toast. Holy cow! It's a half loaf of bread. I got the recipe and someday I may be brave and try it. Garry said the secrets are 1) prepare it the day before and refrigerate it and 2) use canola oil. If anyone wants the recipe let me know. I know its been posted before but someone may have missed it. After breakfast I walked around the Poly and ended up on the boat dock so I took the boat back to MK. I headed to Tomorrowland and did Carousel of Progress. I like this attraction and will be sad if it closes. Buzz had a 20 minute wait posted so I got in line. After about 5 minutes I feel a tap on my back (down low). I turn around and there is a four year old boy standing there. He says something which I cannot understand. I look at his dad who shrugs his shoulders. I ask the boy what he said and he comes out with the quote of the day "Tattoos are bad. You shouldn't have a tattoo." Oh boy. The mom immediately says "That's not true honey." I say "Well, tattoos are probably bad for kids because they hurt when you get them but when you're an adult you can decide for yourself." I then proceeded to show him my second tattoo. STOP! It's on my arm! I then had to stand in line for 10 more minutes with an awkward silence between his parents and myself. It was pretty funny because obviously at some point an adult had told this kid that tattoos were bad and the parents embarrassment was humorous as well. Oh, I got 117,400 on Buzz which was my highest score yet. I left WDW as a Planetary Pilot. I went across to Alien Encounter which was as scary as I remember it. I made my way over to the Haunted Mansion as I had missed it so far on this visit. There was no wait and I tried to take some pictures with the non-flash camera. I went to the Diamond Horseshoe Revue for the 1:15 show. It was fairly crowded by 1:00 PM. After this I decided to head out of the park and go to Downtown Disney. Once at the Marketplace I got a pizza at Wolfgang Puck Express and a Margarita at Captain Jacks and sat outside in the 73 degree sunshine knowing that in a few hours I would be back in the snow. I made one last stop at World of Disney and took some pictures for a co-worker of the Lego sculptures. I was supposed to take the 4:30 Mears shuttle from ASMusic but the Disney bus didn't arrive at the Marketplace until 4:10. We then had to stop at PI, Westside, and Typhoon Lagoon so I didn't get to ASMusic until 4:55. I barely made the 5:00 shuttle but since my plane wasn't until 7:00 I was fine. I got to MCO in plenty of time. I had my jeans in my backpack but since I still hadn't found a non-Disney gift for my boyfriend I didn't have time to change yet. I got him a Spiderman hat at the Universal store. I got to Chicago for my plane change a little late so I ran to the bathroom to change into my jeans. Oh look my shampoo leaked all over my jeans! Damn. I arrived in Rochester at 11:59 PM in shorts. People were staring. I had to wait for my luggage and dig out a dirty pair of pants to change into. Also, on my plane from Chicago I spotted a red RADP button. I knew this must be Beth Floro as I had heard she was at the Babefest but she wasn't at the Adventurer's Club so I hadn't met her yet. Once we landed I introduced myself. I'm sure she thought I was a stalker or something : ). Summary: It has now been almost 4 weeks since I returned from WDW and so far my addiction seems to be under control. Partially because I am going to Disneyland Paris this summer for a few days while I'm in Europe. My visits to TDS are down to only once a week and I've tried to keep my IRCing down to once a week as well. I'm not sure when I'll be going back to WDW but I would like to try and go again next February with my mom. We'll see. Thanks for reading my trip report! Jennifer Reall jreall14@earthlink.net Mail a Comment to Jennifer Reall |
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