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Helga Bergthold -- February 2001 -- Walt Disney World (ASMoR)
FIRST PLANS: DD had been bugging me for years about taking her to WDW. Her Dad and I had gone in 1998 because I had to go to a conference in Orlando and she was definitely feeling left out of the fun! So I finally made plans to take her in 2001. I wanted to go in February because it's not as crowded (I see enough crowds at DL) but DD remembered how cold it was in 1987 in January-30 degrees (in Florida?). I told her the alternative was October and she decided she couldn't wait that long. Mom wins again! I researched the weather, checked trip reports and told her February would be just fine (I hope). I decided to stay at the All-Star resorts again. When hubby and I had stayed there, we got tired of being the last bus stop all the time, so midway in our stay we switched over to the Beach Club. Epcot is our favorite park, so we really liked being so close. BUT... for the money, the Beach Club was not worth it to us. Yes, it was very nice, but our room was very far from the elevator, the lobby and of course, the bus stop. We shared the bus with the Swan, Dolphin and Yacht Club, so it was the same as making multiple AS resort stops. The restaurants were very expensive, and it was a long walk to Beaches and Cream for a "quick" breakfast. All in all the AS are such good values. If you do your research and know which building to request, eat at the Food Court for light breakfast, you can then spend more for great dinner meals and cool Disney stuff! DD said "You're paying, Mom, wherever we stay is okay with me." Wise words. In September I contacted Dreams Unlimited Travel (www.dreamsunlimited.com) to make reservations. I found out about them through the DIS website. They would make my hotel reservation and all my Priority Seating reservations as well. Since we planned to eat many great meals, this was a big plus for me. We were going for 9 days, eight nights. Two days would be taken up in traveling from the West Coast, so that gave us 7 full days of WDW fun. Since DD and I like to shop till we drop, we decided to spend one full day doing that, so 6-day Plus Park Hoppers were our passes of choice. MKC discounts were not available at the All-Star Movies (due to the transition to The Disney Club) so we got the value-season rate of $86, tax inclusive. (Later I would have been able to get a 10% discount with TDC, but it would have meant a $200 deposit and a full payment 45-days in advance with no cancellations allowed after that. I decided to stick with what I had, leaving a 5-day cancellation possible. Hubby's got a lot of health problems, so I had to be open to that possibility.) We requested a room in Fantasia Bldg. 8, but later changed it to Toy Story Bldg. 9 or 10 to be sure of getting a non-smoking area. I knew from my web research that these were the closest buildings to the Food Court and bus stop! The next thing I did was purchase Rita Aero's book "WDW's Essential Guide to Amazing Vacations" (in my opinion the best book about WDW - and has a great member's only website too!). DD and I devoured it and made lists. We each made a list of the top ten restaurants we wanted to visit and then compared them. Each of our top five were then selected, with some compromises. I then looked at the early entry parks for the week and planned our days according to whether we wanted to use EE or stay away from that park that day. I contacted Dreams Unlimited Travel and gave them our list. 205 days to go! Again using Rita's book, DD went through and listed all her "must-see" attractions. I then added a few I knew she would enjoy, and a few I couldn't go without seeing again. All in all it looked like we would have plenty of time to enjoy everything our hearts desired, and then some! Now I had to research airfare from Los Angeles. (Did I tell you I like to research and plan and then research and plan some more?) $330 from LAX, but I knew I could do better if I waited for a sale. The sale came in October-$200, but I waited a bit too long and the sale was over. Drat! He (or she) who hesitates... At 120 days, DUT made my PS at the Epcot restaurants: Garden Grill, Coral Reef, Biergarten, Teppanyaki; and the resort locations: Whispering Canyon and the Villain's dinner at 1900 Park Fare; and MGM lunches: Sci-Fi and 50's Prime Time. I threw in a late morning reservation for a character meal at Breakfastosaurus for our AK visit. Yet to come were our 60-day PS at Fulton's, Hollywood & Vine Fantasmic Pkg. and Cinderella's Royal Table for lunch. I knew we probably didn't need PS for every meal, but I also knew we could cancel them if we decided to eat elsewhere. A tentative plan for our days:
This would leave us plenty of time to go back to see things we miss, with optional evenings at Pleasure Island or resort hopping, as the parks closed early in February. Since we know Disneyland so well, we would spend very little time at the Magic Kingdom, only seeing the attractions we don't have or are significantly different from California. After reading all the wonderful things about the Tiffany Towncar transportation service, I decided to splurge on that as a surprise to DD. It's not really cost-effective for just two passengers, but I wanted to give her a magical moment when we arrived. Of course I had to make those darn plane reservations first! FINAL PLANS: I finally bit the bullet and, instead of booking online, called our travel agency at our churchwide offices in Chicago. They could get me discounts on United and American, but not Delta, the nonstop flight I wanted to take. I bought the tickets at $330 and they promised to automatically re-ticket if the fare went down substantially. When I got the confirmation in the mail a couple of days later, I was delighted to find the charge was $239 per ticket. The price had lowered the next day and my agent was able to re-ticket without the $75 fee. This is a good reason to use a travel agent instead of booking it yourself through the Internet. I did book Tiffany Towncar through their website, but I called a couple of days before leaving to confirm. My reservation agent at Dreams Unlimited Travel was supposed to fax a room request to ASMo, but after not hearing from her about it, I faxed a request myself the day before we left. My all-around experience with Dreams Unlimited was okay, but not great. My agent was not all that attentive to me. She did not always answer my e-mails. When I got my final "personalized" itinerary, the parks did not even match my Priority Seatings! The most valuable thing was having someone else make the PS times. Lisa handled this for me. She was very prompt in her responses and I got almost everything I asked for. (Not Cindy's, but it wasn't a high priority, so I was okay with that.) There were some last-minute changes to our daily plans. Early entry at Magic Kingdom turned out to be non-essential for us. None of the attractions we wanted to see were open early and I wasn't able to get an early lunch at Cindy's, so we opted to visit MK on Friday instead. That way we could get there whenever we felt like it and stay to see the Main Street Electrical Parade, our nostalgic old favorite from Disneyland, once again. Instead, we would go to AK on Monday morning as well as Thursday, moving Hollywood & Vine and Fantasmic to Thursday night. TRIP NOTES: Saturday 2/3 After a pleasant Delta non-stop flight, we arrived in rainy Orlando 15 minutes later than the scheduled 3:40 p.m. Tony from Tiffany Towncar was waiting for us in baggage claim. He retrieved our two bags from the carousel and led to us our waiting car. DD asked him if he could make the 30-minute drive to our hotel in 15 minutes. When we arrived at the ASMo at 5 p.m. he quipped, "15 minutes, as promised." What a relief not to have to wait for a van and especially not to have to lug our own bags around. That changed when we stepped into the All-Star Movies lobby, of course. We wheeled our bags over in a corner and I got in the long line to check in. My watch told me it was 5:08 p.m. About 30 minutes later Danny called me to the counter and immediately found my reservation. Room 806 in Buzz's building. My request for building #10, second floor had been met, but we were at the far end of the building, opposite from my request. As it turned out, it was a short walk to the bus stop down the back stairs, so it worked out fine. I asked Danny to cancel one of my Priority Seatings, book the Fantasmic package at Hollywood & Vine, print out my complete PS list, give me information on Friday's E-Ride night and requested late checkout on Sunday the 11th. I know, a lot to ask at one time. Tickets for E-Ride were not yet on sale. During his orientation "spiel" about the resort, Danny asked if I had ever stayed with them before. I told him we had stayed at the ASMusic two years previously. He asked, "Did you bring your refillable mugs with you?" When I responded, "Yes," he said, "Great because you can use them here!" Dragging our bags behind us, we entered our room at 6:03 p.m. DD's eyes about popped out of her head at the color scheme and loud decorations in our room. She especially hated the star-studded bathroom shower curtain, which she claimed gave her a headache. As a teacher of young children, she said this room would have them bouncing off the walls. Lucky for her, we wouldn't be in the room with our eyes open for long periods of time! We quickly unpacked a few items and headed for the bus stop to make our way to the Wilderness Lodge for dinner. The Magic Kingdom bus came almost immediately. At the MK we boarded the launch to WL, and made it to our dinner reservation right on time. 15 minutes later, tired and hungry, we were seated at the worst table in the room, in the far corner by the kitchen. The restaurant was very crowded and I didn't feel like waiting for another, but I was grumpy throughout the meal. Our server, Suzanne, made us feel special in spite of our location, but it was difficult to see and hear the activities going on around us. DD then informed me that she did not enjoy "interactive" dining anyway. Uh-oh, what other dining plans did we have this week? The fish special was Mahi-Mahi, DD's favorite, which she enjoyed very much. I ordered the St. Louis-style ribs and ate way too much food. I was disappointed that I didn't leave enough room for the Worms in Dirt. After dinner we wandered around the Lodge for a short while with a Hidden Mickey clue list obtained from the front desk. We must have been very tired, because our brains could not decipher the clues. Another guest helped us find one, so we figured our hunt was successful and walked to the bus stop. DD wanted to make a quick stop at Downtown Disney. This involved taking a bus to the transportation center (after a stop at Fort Wilderness) and catching a different bus to DTD. No direct bus from the WL to DTD? We spent an hour and a half there-shopping, eating Ghirardelli's ice cream and making my first two pin trades. Sunday 2/4 We awoke to a cool, clear morning. I almost didn't wear a sweatshirt, but was later glad I did. Stopping to get a quick breakfast in the Food Court, we didn't get to early entry at MGM until 8:30 a.m. First stop, my favorite, Tower of Terror. No wait there. Then over to Rockin' Roller Coaster. Again, no wait. This was DD's preference of the two. We got a fastpass for each. Don't know why RnRC dispensed the FP to us as we already held them for ToT. The cast member said "Don't tell anyone." Spent a while in the Rock Around gift shop and bought stuff for the grandkids back home. Cast member Todd helped us and asked a lot of questions about California Adventure. When I opened the bag of purchases delivered to the hotel the next day there was a note from Todd, "Have a Rockin' Day!" Disney magic is alive and well. We walked through the shops and I bought my hubby some ESPN logo gifts. On sale, woo-hoo! Actually all the CMs we met that morning were great. The park wasn't busy yet so they spent lots of time gabbing with us. I was told about the 29th WDW Anniversary pin being issued today, so I stopped by the pin cart to pick one up. Had a snack of French fries and coke just before our FP time for ToT ran out, so we scrambled over there. I asked for the seat belt seat, but at the last minute DD traded me. After this visit to the Hollywood Tower Hotel she said, "Now I know why you like this ride so much! That was a much better ride!" She asked for that seat (and got it) every time after that. We even bought the photo because her expression was just so amazed! Then we ran over to RnRC to use that FP before it expired. Next stop the Great Movie Ride, which we both enjoyed. We got the cowboy side today. Now it was time for our PS at the Sci-Fi. We were seated after a 10-minute wait. The last seat in the last car in the restaurant. What's with the crummy seats? I asked if we could have another and was told that seats were pre-assigned and we couldn't move. (huh?) Oh well, we couldn't see the screen very well and the speakers were at the front of the car so I couldn't hear a thing either. At least we enjoyed a great meal-not! DD had the "okay" honey-glazed Black Forest ham sandwich (piled high with ham) and I had the "mediocre" smoked pork loin sandwich (accompanied by an excellent cucumber salad). Our server Tung was not very attentive. Maybe it was partly the seating, but we both said we would not come back here again. We stopped to see Sounds Dangerous before leaving MGM. A funny show with Drew Carey, it wasn't as loud as they warned us it would be. The Sound Stations at the exit were very disappointing. Many of them were out of order (both marked and unmarked), had missing knobs, or the microphones weren't working. It was drizzling as we left the park for a quick nap at the hotel. Arriving at Epcot at 4:30 p.m. we immediately headed for Test Track for FP. I couldn't help but notice (how can you not) the horrific granite Leave a Legacy tombs. This is not a sight I want to see when I first enter my favorite park! Sorry, Disney, I know you have to make money somehow, but these sad edifices are truly ugly. One can't help but notice all the empty space that hasn't been filled in the year these monstrosities have been on display. Enough said. Our FP time was 7:30, just right for after dinner. We loved the Mouseworks store. I lost DD several times. On our way to the Living Seas we went through Ice Station Cool. My big surprise was that we got snowed on! Right down my neck, brrr! I did get DD to try Beverly and I got it as far as my lips. It even smelled nasty. No thanks. DD loved the dolphins and manatees at Living Seas. We stayed until it was almost time for our PS at the Garden Grille-and ended up 15 minutes late. This time I requested a table on the lower level and we were seated immediately. This restaurant was my favorite of our trip! The privacy of our booth, the attentive server Amanda, the slowly changing landscape, and of course dining with our friends Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale made this meal truly unforgettable. Served family style, we started with salad and bread, followed by the entrée of roast chicken, flank steak (perfectly medium rare) and fried catfish. This was served with mashed potatoes, stuffing, broccoli and carrots. Everything was delicious. The characters spent a lot of time at each table, even with these two adults. When Chip stopped by a second time, I was making notes for my trip report. He wanted to sign my book, but I told him I was writing a report so he took my notebook and wrote, "Then Chip came along and wrote in my book!" along with his name and a smiley face (with two front teeth). The wonderful dessert was sliced apples in caramel, topped with raisins, flaky turnovers and whipped cream, served warm in a skillet-yummy, yummy! We rolled out of the restaurant and stopped at the Circle of Life movie. DD liked it so much she saw it again a couple of days later. When we got to Test Track for our FP time it was completely down, but we could see they were testing it for reopening. After a 10-minute wait, they began loading the FP line. Although the theming and basic concept of testing a new car is different, this ride is very similar to Rocket Rods at Disneyland park. I hated the Rocket Rods at Disneyland park. Not too surprisingly I hated TT. Stop, start, stop, start. Zoom real fast for a few seconds. I'm sorry, this I can do on the Southern California freeways every day! It also didn't help that two teen boys in the throes of puberty were behind us in line. They were so hyped about this ride, both before and after, that it was positively nauseating. Since DD and I were not teen-age boys, this ride did nothing for us. As we were leaving Epcot, Spaceship Earth was a walk-on so we made a quick detour. Unfortunately, DD left a package on the ride and we had to wait at Guest Relations for the maintenance crew to find it. Of course this left us exiting the park after IllumiNations so the buses were crammed. We got back to our room at 10:30 p.m., ready for bed by midnight. Monday 2/5 I arrived in the Food Court at 7:30 a.m., dismayed to see how crowded it was. I took a cup of coffee back to my room and we decided to grab some muffins at the Animal Kingdom. DD got her first look at the Tree of Life. It didn't look as life-like as I remembered it. The leaves on top were too green, not even close to the color of the real plants and trees surrounding it. We walked on Dinosaur. Man was that ride loud! The picture they took had us both covering our ears. Too funny-we should have bought it! There was a 10-minute wait at Kilimanjaro Safari and, even though it was late morning, a lot of animals were out for us to see: crocodile, hippo, rhino, giraffe, zebra, elephant, cheetah, warthog and a female lion on Pride Rock. Lunch today was split between two restaurants. I bought a chicken salad in a bread bowl from Tusker House and met DD at Pizzafari, where she had purchased the Penne pasta with meat sauce accompanied by Caesar salad. My salad was okay, though the dressing was tasteless. Having it in a bread bowl seemed to be a real waste to me, I didn't nibble but a few bites of it. DD liked her pasta, but the salad was very watery. After lunch DD went shopping and I walked the Maharajah Jungle Trek to see the tigers. I don't know how many live there, but I saw four, although all but 1 were sleeping. We met up again at Kali River Rapids and donned our disposable ponchos. It seemed like a lot of trouble for such a short ride, but our clothing stayed dry. Unfortunately DD's hair was not so lucky. After riding I gave my poncho to someone in line and we returned to the ASMo. My hubby had ordered a welcome basket for us and it finally arrived today. He had to make four long-distance phone calls before it was delivered. It was huge with lots of treats and fruit for nibbling. We snacked on it the rest of the week. I went to the lobby to pick up yesterday's purchases and was finally able to buy our E-Ride tickets for Friday night. The package pickup window at ASMo is at one end of the check-in counters and is only open from 2-10 p.m. There was never anyone staffing it whenever I stopped by during the week and, as these hours are also busy check-in hours, I was routinely ignored while I waited there. I always had to ask a CM to help retrieve my packages. What did they think I was standing there for? DD wanted to ride RnRC and ToT again, so we stopped at MGM on our way to dinner. We got FP's for RnRC and waited 25 minutes stand-by for ToT. At Epcot we took a leisurely walk to World Showcase, sharing a Mango Margarita on the way. Arriving early at the Biergarten, I asked for a good table. We were immediately seated front row, center. Hey, I guess all I have to do is ask politely! Good Germans that we are, we enjoyed the meal here very much. Traditional German favorites like potato salad, red cabbage, sausages, spatzle and sauerbraten are at the buffet. They also have a schnitzel bar where they cook it up fresh for you. It's chicken schnitzel and very tasty. DD was surprised when I told her it's usually made with veal. (And dismayed that she had eaten it that way before!) The show was fun for us, too. We sat with a nice couple from Chicago and because we were up front, the band came and sat with us during one of their numbers. At least he didn't stick the microphone in my face. Outside once again, it was almost time for the Tapestry of Nations Parade. Sorry, I just don't get this one, and I will be hearing that annoying music in my dreams. The puppets were beautiful and interacted nicely with the crowd, but (maybe I'm missing something) I did not understand what this all had to do with world harmony. We also had a crummy viewing spot in the United Kingdom, so that didn't help. We moved to a great spot to watch IllumiNations, right on the water between Morocco and France. We shared Café au Lait and chocolate crepes while we waited. Even though the view was great, I thought the IllumiNations I saw two years ago was better. We did enjoy the fire/water works. Although I'm sure it's fabulous technology, the spinning globe did not impress me much. After the show we took our time as we made our way to the bus stop, returning first to the pin cart at American Adventure. Whenever CMs hear that we're from California, we have wonderful conversations about Disneyland and California Adventure. I was very happy that we had been to a DCA preview, so I could share what I knew about the new park with them. The bus, of course, was standing room only, but this has been the case for every bus we have boarded so far. I don't know if it's an indication of how many people are actually staying there, but the ASMovies and Sports lines were twice as long as Music. If I ever stay at a value resort again, I would choose Music. I think the theming of sports and movies is much more popular with families of small children. (Now why didn't I think of that before this trip?) Tuesday 2/6 Today is Downtown Disney day. Our 6-day passes would not last us through the week unless we took a one-day break from park-hopping, so my plan was to shop until we drop, then visit Pleasure Island for an evening of fun. However, this morning DD informed me that she did not want to go clubbing with her mom, she didn't like comedy shows and she definitely was not interested in the Adventurers Club (no interactive dining, remember?). This kind of put a crimp in my plans, but I can be flexible when I have to be. Anyone want to purchase 4 passes to Pleasure Island? Just kidding. The Food Court was super-crowded this morning. Did I tell you that the pom-pom girls (that's what they want to be called, honest!) and the cheerleaders were here for competitions this week? And that they're all staying at the All-Star Resorts? I have one daughter, and I really did not have any desire to mingle with dozens of teen girls in their pajamas at the Food Court. We decided to have an early lunch at the Rainforest Café today instead. We arrived at 10:30 a.m. and were seated immediately. There are several of these restaurants in Southern California, so we are very familiar with their menu. DD ordered the Caribbe coconut chicken appetizer with waffle fries and I had the chicken fried chicken (yes, for breakfast!). Both were predictably satisfactory. Our server was politely attentive. The restaurant was empty, but filled up by the time we were finished eating at noon. We split up to do our shopping at the World of Disney store, but gathered at the register for our Disney Club discount. This was our big shopping excursion and we had a huge bag of stuff delivered to our hotel. DD said, "I can't believe you bought all that stuff." I defensively replied, "I'm sure that's not even close to the biggest order these CMs see every day." They heartily nodded their heads in agreement. (Thank goodness). When we got to the West Side we decided to see a movie at the AMC, first visiting the Candy Cauldron for movie snacks of candy apples and truffles. This shop is wonderfully themed with villains from Snow White. I stopped to make a pin trade with the DVC salesperson, but told him I didn't have time to talk about a purchase because we had a movie to catch. That way I wouldn't be tempted! After the movie, we hiked to the West Side bus stop (this ended up being a very long walk from the theater). We just missed our bus and had to wait about 20 minutes for the next one. Got to the ASMo at 5:30 and went directly to package pick-up, where we were once again ignored until I asked for assistance. DD wanted to do some laundry, so we decided to eat in the Food Court and not go out again tonight. DD ate her pasta with meatballs, which she thought were excellent, during the time I waited in line for tonight's special-rib eye steak. Before I ordered I asked if it was possible to have it "rare." I could see that the meat was very thin so I wanted to be sure. The response, "Sure, no problem." I took it back to our table and confirmed what I suspected, well done. I returned to the grill and asked if they could please just "throw a steak on the grill, turn it over and hand it to me." "Sure, no problem." I waited several minutes watching the cooks and never saw my steak hit the grill. When they finally got around to me, she left it on one side for a bit longer than I would have, flipped it over, then gave it to me. Medium rare. Not perfect, but I knew I wasn't going to do any better. I should have known better than to try to have it "my way" at the Food Court. That said, it was actually pretty tasty, and the cheapest meal we had for dinner all week! After dinner, I called to confirm late checkout for Sunday. As I suspected, it had not been entered in the system, but she cheerfully entered it for me. I then made a PS for Artist Point so that we could have breakfast with the Hundred Acre Wood gang. Lights out was an early 9:30 p.m. Wednesday 2/7 Early entry was planned for this morning, but our alarm didn't go off. Nevertheless we were on the bus by 7:45 a.m. We got FPs for both ToT and RnRC (using the room key trick this time), rode each twice and then did the Backlot Tour. Ho, hum. Universal does a much better job with theirs. We grabbed seats for the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular just after the show started. DD's not big on shows, but she did enjoy this one. They do a good job of making you think you're watching a movie being made. (We never did go back to use those FPs) Arrived a bit early for our PS at the Prime Time Café and were seated within minutes. Patrick was our very unenthusiastic server. The seating seemed much more intimate (e.g. squished together) than I remembered from a previous visit. I looked around with delight, remembering many items from my mother's 1950's kitchen. DD, being a child of the 70s, didn't get it. She also didn't like the "acting" of the servers. She did however, like her turkey sandwich and chocolate shake! I had the chicken salad croissant sandwich, which is a new addition to their menu. Pretty good, too, but my S'mores were not melted and Patrick never returned to check on me. Kind of difficult to eat them that way. Oh, well. Now that I've been here twice, I may not be back. It just didn't excite me like before. DD decided she wanted to experience the Magic Kingdom, so we took the bus to the TTC and the monorail to the park, arriving at 12:45 p.m. I'm not sure why, but it was a brief 10 minute wait for Splash and Big Thunder. We walked on to the Jungle Cruise and the Tiki Room. Our longest wait was for Winnie the Pooh. 20 minutes, which the CMs said was "nothing." We spoke with CMs, made a couple of pin trades and then went back to the hotel to change for dinner. Tonight our dinner PS was for the Coral Reef. I once again asked for a good table and we were seated right next to the glass of the aquarium. DD had the Mahi-Mahi with the Thai sauce on the side and she loved it. A little too bland for me-pour on the Thai sauce! I ordered the Snapper. Our server told me it was a whole fish, so I asked for him to please keep the head and tail in the kitchen, thank you very much. This dish was also a little bland, but the potatoes and vegetables were quite good. For dessert we shared the awesome Chocolate Wave. Next time I'm having it all to myself! Later, in Innoventions, we took advantage of the free stuff. We had a calendar made with our photo at the Xerox exhibit and sent photo e-mails to family members from the IBM exhibit. We opted not to try the video e-mail because we didn't think we could speak for 30 seconds. Ha! Leaving Epcot at 8 p.m. to beat the crowd, we went back to the resort. I made a half-hour phone call home, took a bath to soothe my tired legs, popped some Tylenol PM and fell asleep immediately. Thursday 2/8 Okay, remember how I said I didn't mind the All-Stars? Breakfast time at the Food Court today was an absolute zoo. At the Music in November '98 everyone seemed to be gone by 8 a.m. to get an early start at the parks. At the Movies they must all like to sleep in! Wow! All things considered, this is my only complaint about this resort when it's at full capacity. Expect lots of people and noise at the Food Court. It was warm enough today to wear shorts! We got to the AK a little late, and had to speed race to Donald's Breakfastosaurus. Before you're allowed in the restaurant, they take a photo of you and try to sell it to you later. (We bought ours!) Our server this morning, Billy, was really great. We were at the tail end of the breakfast rush so the buffet line was uncrowded, but I was pleased to see, still well stocked. We chowed down on scrambled eggs, biscuits, veggie omelet, coffee, juice, donuts (tasting like Krispy Kreme wannabes), mixed fruit with mango and pineapple and the dinomite Dino Hash. I've heard mixed reviews about the food here, but we thought everything was wonderful. Except the characters. You notice I didn't mention them, did you? They seemed to be around, but barely gave these two adults the time of day. We were happy to see that they spent more time at tables with children, so it was okay with us. After breakfast we went over to the Festival of the Lion King and sat in the giraffe section. "Okay, now make a sound like a giraffe!" Huh? Anyway we loved the show, especially those tumble-monkeys. DD left me at AK to return to Downtown Disney, so I strolled over to Tarzan Rocks and had an ice cream bar (yes, I know I just had that huge breakfast!) while I sat and people-watched. I talked to a few CMs and remembered that today was the opening of California Adventure. I called hubby on the phone and asked if he had seen any news reports about it. Nope. Wonder what kind of a madhouse that was? (Little did I know how quiet the opening turned out to be.) It was now time for Tarzan Rocks. Enjoyed the "Two Worlds, One Family" theme and the roller-bladers, but left before the show was over. Too LOUD! Duh! What did the term "Rocks" mean to me? I was asked to take a survey when I exited the park! I'm never asked at Disneyland. I think it's the AP stamped on my forehead. Anyway, I gave the CMs and the park an excellent rating. Is this becoming my favorite WDW park? I boarded an empty bus and waited-forever it seemed-for the changing of the drivers. After resting for an hour I went to the MGM and stopped at the pin cart before meeting DD. I bought 2 of the new Limited Edition Hat series pins, Sorcerer Mickey. Then I tried to get FPs for ToT. The CM standing at the machines wouldn't let me. He said there was only a 10-minute wait and it would only get shorter as it got later. I got them for RnRC instead. DD was waiting when I arrived for dinner at Hollywood & Vine 1/2 hour early. You can't enter this restaurant early because they have to clear out the characters from lunch. Guess we're not allowed to see them. We had the Fantasmic package, so were told to enter at Oscar's no later than 6:30 p.m. At 5 p.m. we were finally seated inside and our very personable server, Bill, brought us our beverages. This is another all-you-care-to-eat buffet restaurant with first-rate food. The very tasty turkey was the best entrée, but the citrus chicken was also good. The exceptions were the flank steak marinated in wine, which I don't care for, and the shrimp Alfredo-downright nasty. Much better items we sampled included Yukon gold mashed potatoes, curry rice (yum!), sweet potatoes, corn and green salad. For dessert we chose Red Velvet cake with cream cheese frosting (too sweet), German chocolate cake and awesome brownies. We do love our chocolate! All in all we enjoyed Hollywood & Vine immensely. It's even great looking-pink and aqua retro-diner style. Back at the pin cart after dinner I made a trade with a very friendly super-trader before trying to use our FPs at RnRC. The ride was down so we went to ToT. The stand-by time was now 15 minutes and that's how long we waited while I fumed about the CM not letting me get FPs. RnRC was back up so we used those FPs. It was now time to head over to Oscar's for Fantasmic priority seating. Be forewarned! It is a long uphill walk from Oscar's to the seating area. Those who have trouble walking should not attempt this trek. While we were walking, I thought, "Oh well, at least when the show is over we will be right by the exit." Not! You are funneled into the shops on Sunset Blvd. instead. Disney says, "Gotcha!" The seats are not the best either, way off to the right side. However it sure beats waiting 2 hours. Chris and Colleen did a fun warm-up show, complete with the audience doing the Wave-oooh-several times. The show itself is similar to Disneyland. Seems pretty loud and scary for little ones. On the way out we got chocolate-covered strawberries from Beverly Sunset for a nightcap. Back at the All-Stars we spotted our creative housekeeper's window display in our room. The first and only one we had all week. I left tip envelopes for them each day so tipping or not tipping did not have any affect on this. Friday 2/9 I left DD sleeping this morning and decided to go back to AK. I wanted to do Kilimanjaro Safari once more and it turned out to be a spectacular ride. It seemed as though all the animals were out today. The giraffes were up-close and personal with the jeep. All the cheetahs were roaming about. Saw lots of black and white rhinos and both the male and the female lions were on Pride Rock. Wow! Afterwards I strolled the Pangani Trail. I'm glad I took the time to do this. It has very nice natural habitats for hippo, meerkats (think Timon) and of course the gorillas. I was able to see the entire family and the bachelors too. A very pleasant way to spend the morning. Then I spent some time chatting with AK's pin expert, Rick. He told me about the other Hat pins that were being offered today and tomorrow. Today was the day to get the Goofy Hat at the Contemporary resort. Saturday's pin would be the Donald Hat at Epcot. The Sorcerer's Hat I had purchased yesterday was, of course, sold out. Okay, now I was on a mission. I took a bus to the Contemporary. There was no one else on board until we stopped at Fort Wilderness, so I talked to the driver about California Adventure. When I commented on how well I thought the bus system worked he informed me that the entire WDW bus system was changing at the end of March. Computers, by radio, will tell the drivers where to go, instead of following specific routes. This way they will go to where they are most needed and never drive empty buses around. He was not too enthusiastic about the change, saying, "You know Disney, when something works, they have to fiddle around with it and make changes." He wasn't sure how the computer would know where people were waiting. Are they going to monitor each bus stop with a human and a radio? Hmmm, let's wait and see how this is going to work. Mission accomplished at the Contemporary, I attempted to return to the ASMo. First I took the monorail to the TTC, took another monorail to Epcot, then the bus to the resort. Probably not the best way to go. All in all it took 90 minutes of travel time. DD was just getting ready to leave for MK after her lunch (breakfast) of burger and fries ("too greasy") from the Food Court. I walked over for my own breakfast (lunch) of Minestrone soup (good) and tuna salad (blah). After resting, I planned to meet her for E-Ride night. I actually fell asleep and woke with a start at 3:15, but I still made it to MK by 4 p.m. and we got our wristbands at City Hall. I made her accompany me to my old favorite Carousel of Progress and embarrassed her by singing along. We then did Pirates with no wait and I made 2 great pin trades in the House of Treasure store. Time to eat and get a seat for the Main Street Electrical Parade. We chose the Columbia Harbor House for dinner-fish and chips and clam chowder in a bread bowl (disappointing because the bread was not sourdough like Disneyland and the soup itself was pretty watery). Then we staked out a place in Liberty Square for MSEP-right next to some DL annual passholders from Long Beach, Calif. Unfortunately our spot turned out to be right next to a walkway. 15 minutes before the parade lots of people began congesting the walkway. Benjamin the CM was pretty helpless to stop them. Did they not notice everyone around them sitting? When the lights dimmed Benjamin asked them to sit and they, of course, ignored him. We stood up on the wall we were sitting on and still had a good view. I love this parade and couldn't let it be spoiled. We walked over to the bridge and had a great view of Tink's flight, then scurried back to Liberty Square for a great view of the fireworks before riding Haunted Mansion. MK's is creepier than DL's version. Big Thunder Mtn. had no wait and we rode 3 times, getting off and back on. Then we rode 4 times in a row without getting off-E-Ride night had begun! Splash Mtn. was nearby, but when the CM said, "You ladies are brave," and we were alone in our boat, I knew this was a bad idea. My hair got soaked. Luckily the rest of me wasn't bad. Then we did Timekeeper, Buzz Lightyear (DD didn't like this one too much. Could it have anything to do with her score of 1500 to my 38,000?) and finally Space Mtn. twice. We didn't like this version-you sit too high in the cars, with no neck support and, worst of all, no music. Sharing a hot dog and Sprite on the way out, too tired to stay any longer, we waved bye-bye to the castle, falling into bed at 1 a.m. Saturday 2/10 Though I was awake at 7:30 a.m., I didn't get up until 8:15. The Food Court was mobbed with cheerleaders again, but I grabbed a cup of coffee and kept my nose in a book until I left for Epcot. DD slept in. Arriving at Pin Central at 9:45 I got in the long line for the Donald Hat pin. During my 1-hour wait, I talked to some super traders, traded a couple of DL pins and traded Sorcerer Mickey Hat for Peter Pan Hat. No takers for the other two. I still wanted the Mad Hatter and Jiminy Cricket Hat pins. Well, I still had one more day of trading left. I walked into World Showcase as it was opening. The smiling CMs all said, "Welcome" to me. It was wonderfully quiet and felt great to be the first person they saw today. I was headed for the American Adventure and wanted to see the show before lunch. They started late, so I was 15 minutes late to meet DD at Teppanyaki. We were seated right away, served tea and salad and within minutes our chef, Tom, began the show. This is such a fun place to eat and DD voted it the best meal she had this week. DD ordered the Steak and Lobster and I opted for Steak and Shrimp. You are served each item (except rice) by the chef as it is cooked-vegetables, entrée, bean sprouts. Tom demonstrated his skill with the knives and we all applauded politely. He told us that this location in WDW is the busiest Teppanyaki restaurant in the United States. Our table companions were from New York, Minnesota and Florida, and pleasant conversations accompanied our meal. As everyone sits around the grill, don't expect any privacy here. DD and I walked slowly around WS and ended up at the Beavertail stand in Canada. We couldn't agree whether to share cinnamon or apple, so the CM suggested she prepare it half-and-half. She even cut it down the middle for us. DD wanted to revisit the manatees, so we walked over to the Living Seas. I decided since I had gotten an earlier start, I would go back to the hotel to rest. DD returned to the Land and watched the Circle of Life film again, then came back to ASMo. At 5 p.m. we got on the bus for the Magic Kingdom. Richard, the singing bus driver, had us all singing along and the trip was over in no time. We took the monorail around the resorts. At the Contemporary we went to the 15th floor and stopped to gawk at the marvelous view. When we arrived at the beautiful Grand Floridian, we still had an hour to kill before our Villains Dinner PS. We strolled around, soaking in the atmosphere, enjoying the live music you could hear throughout the multi-floored lobby. Stopping at 1900 Park Fare, DD disappointedly looked at the list of villains. No Cruella! No Wicked Queen! She said, "Why don't we eat at the Poly instead?" And off we went. Without a PS, we waited 40 minutes for 'Ohana. As we were being seated I thought the room was filled with very long tables, luau style, but actually they were smaller tables about 10 inches from one another. Very cozy, but we were elbow to elbow with a very nice couple from Minnesota. Meals are served family-style here. So-called appetizers (slaw salad, sweet & sour pork dumplings, honey chicken wings, stir fried rice) are served in a lazy susan and are fabulous. The danger is that you eat too many and don't have room for the skewers of meat that your server brings-turkey, beef, pork and shrimp. We liked the shrimp best, although they are the peel and eat variety, difficult because they are served hot. The final touch is fresh pineapple with caramel dipping sauce-sounds weird, but is absolutely delicious! When the MK fireworks start, they dim the lights in the restaurant and pipe in the musical accompaniment-a nice touch. After dinner we took the monorail to MK, open until 10 p.m. tonight. We immediately took the train to Frontierland and Big Thunder Mtn. riding 5 times before they shut it down for the night. We stopped to watch the MSEP again. This is a great place to catch it with no crowds, just before the floats go backstage. Strolling slowly towards Main Street, we stopped at Nestlé's ice cream parlor. We savored our sundaes as we watched the castle change colors, finally saying goodbye at 10:45. There were so few people by this time that it took several minutes before we could find someone to ask to take our farewell photo. At the bus stop there were no crowds and our bus came right away. Great timing! Sunday 2/11 We decided to skip breakfast at Artist Point this morning, our last day in the World. Housekeeping knocked on our door at 8 a.m., so I called to verify that we did indeed have late checkout. DD and I had breakfast in the Food Court together for the first time all week. She had mediocre French toast with bacon, and I had a not-so-good cheese omelet, potatoes and biscuit. We got most of our stuff packed and left for Downtown Disney at 10 a.m. I just had to get 2 more t-shirts! Of course I also stopped by the pin cart. I managed to trade for the Jiminy Cricket Hat pin. I just need Mad Hatter to complete my set. Oh well, there's always E-Bay. We stopped to snack on a pretzel and watch a mama duck and her six babies, so we just missed our bus at the Pleasure Island stop at 12:15. After waiting 15 minutes for the next one we had to sit through the changing of the guard again. I asked if we would get to ASMo by 1 p.m. "Nope, we're not scheduled to be there until 1:20." Say, what? The driver assured me we would not be locked out of our room and we met housekeeping at our door at 1:20. We grabbed our bags and lugged them to the lobby where our Tiffany Towncar driver, Darcy, was waiting for us. "You're not Tony!" "He had another assignment," he retorted, "but I'm better than he is anyway." Actually, both of our drivers and Tiffany Towncar's service was wonderful. I plan on using them whenever I return to WDW. Darcy dropped us off at MCO for Delta's curbside check-in. We're on our way home. Final Thoughts ...about the hotel. I still really like the All-Star resorts. I had been told at check-in that they were at full capacity, but the only places that seemed crowded were the Food Court and lobby. Building 10 was very close to the Food Court, and once we figured out how to get to the bus stop from the back stairs, it only took us a minute to get there. I would choose the All-Stars again for a trip of 5 days or more. The outdoor design is wonderful, whimsical and fun. I spent some time walking around the grounds and admiring the larger-than-life theming of each building. When you look around you know you are not staying in a luxury resort! At a value resort, you give up room size and amenities for the economy price. Staying at the All-Star resorts gives you all the benefits of staying on Disney property for a very reasonable price. No matter which resort you are staying in each bus makes several stops, so if you are using bus transportation be prepared for waits and delays to get from point A to point B. Although, who knows, maybe the new bus system will be much more efficient. ...about dining. What can I say? WDW has so many wonderful options for food and I am so glad we made the most of our mealtimes! Garden Grill, Biergarten, 'Ohana, Hollywood & Vine and Teppanyaki will be the ones we visit again. Sci-Fi, 50's Prime Time and Columbia Harbor House we probably will not. The All-Stars Food Court was a convenient place for breakfast and a less expensive alternative for dinner, but not surprisingly the food was average at best. The Priority Seatings we made saved us a lot of waiting time. Even in relatively slow February, 30-40 minute stand-by waits for the more popular restaurants were not uncommon. With PS we never waited more than fifteen. ...about pin trading. I am so glad I came decked out in lanyard and pins. What a great way to begin conversations and meet people from all over. The quest for the Hat pins was a lot of fun and a great added diversion. I came home with a bagful of new pins, but I am definitely not a super-trader. I collect what I like, that's all. ...about the parks. Early February in WDW is awesome! Minimal crowds and very pleasant weather. Use Fast Pass even when you think you don't need it. Stand-by lines were reasonably short, but with FP you can even bypass that. Take a break mid-week and mid-day! Our day spent at Downtown Disney and relaxing at the resort was, according to DD, "One of your best ideas, Mom." We spent a lot more time in the Magic Kingdom than I thought we would, but like Disneyland, it's a magical, happy place. At MGM we spent nearly all of our time racing between Tower of Terror and Rockin' Roller Coaster-we didn't see much of the rest of the park at all-and we didn't seem to miss it. Epcot has been my favorite park, and I still like it a lot, but this time, maybe because everything is much the same as my previous visits, it did not have the same charm. And that Leave a Legacy entrance-ugh! Animal Kingdom turned out to be my favorite park. The exotic flavor, the animals, even the sprawling layout simply added to the "lost in another world" feeling I experienced each time I visited. I'm already concocting plans to return next year with a stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Well, a girl's got to dream doesn't she? Helga Bergthold mauskateer@aol.com Mail a Comment to Helga Bergthold |
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