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Ron Mattioli -- June 2002 -- Walt Disney World (ASSR)
Departed Providence a few minutes late around 11:30 and arrived in Orlando around 2:15 or so. Nice flight. The flight attendants were cracking jokes. They were a quite funny. I told both of them that they made my day and that they would fit in nicely on the Jungle Cruise at WDW. One of them told the flight, "It is a $2K fine for smoking on an airplane. However, if any of you had $2K you wouldn't be flying Southwest!" Orlando Airport to All Star Sports roundtrip transportation: Martha and I had numerous discussions about the best way to go round trip from the airport to All Star Sports etc. On our last trip in '94 we hailed a taxi and that worked out fine. However, I noticed that Birnbaum mentioned Florida Towncars, so we gave them a call to see if they could accommodate the 5 of us. Pleasant people to deal with. They met us at baggage pickup. The driver then walked us to the limo pick up area. She stated that she would be back within 10 minutes as she had to park the limo, given that the flight was a little late. No problem. She arrived within 10 minutes, we loaded up the limo and off we went to WDW. Cost: $85 round trip plus tip. She was waiting for us the morning of departure. We would not hesitate to use them again. Check in at the All Star was a breeze. Pleasant CMs gave us two adjoining rooms. # 234 and #235 in the Touchdown building. Very short walk to the bus stop, food court, pools etc. NOTE: Adjoining rooms are not connected; they are next to each other. So, if anyone wants two connecting rooms, they need to specify exactly that. I had planned out the daily schedule using my spreadsheet from the '94 trip plus all the Mike Scopa hints I could handle. Thanks Mike! Wednesday 6/19 After checking in and unpacking, we headed for the MK. The place was packed with lots of families with doublewide carriages. We were only able to ride the Pirates of the Caribbean this day. BTMR broke down as we were in line. No timeframe as to when it would be fixed. Hey, what is that woman eating? Oh, it's a turkey leg. I didn't think you could eat on a ride. No enforcement. We left after waiting about 15 minutes. Everyone was a little tired and couldn't stand the smell of the turkey leg. It started to rain as we headed out so we headed back to the All Star. Observation: Turkey legs smell. Un-Disney like experience. Dinner at the All Star food court. Not bad at all. Lots of choices. Average $30 - $35 per meal for the 5 of us. The first meal was more expensive because the boys bought the refillable mugs ($9.99 each). They eat 24/7 anyway so it was worth it. Thursday 6/20 We opened MGM. We had PS at Mama Melrose's for dinner and seating at Fantasmic. We used Fast Pass for the first time. Worked like a charm. Lots of rides on Rock 'n" Roller Coaster and TOT. Play Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Dan is # 1 once. Headed back to the All Star to rest. Early evening we went back to MGM for dinner and Fantasmic. We all enjoyed our meal and the 9:00 p.m. Fantasmic. Nicely done! After the show we rode RNRC and TOT again and again. We stayed until closing. Observation: Turkey legs for sale near RNRC and TOT. Still not keen on the smell. Friday 6/21 We opened Epcot and made reservations at Guest Relations for Rose & Crown for 7:20 p.m. seating. After the rope drops we ran to Test Track to get Fast Pass. We then walked back to Honey I Shrunk the Audience. The boys said they were bored after the show so it is back to the Test Track for our ride. The boys were no longer bored. We Fast Pass to ride Test Track again. While waiting we decided to go on the Universe of Energy ride. No videotaping or flash photography please. The woman next to me is videotaping the whole show. We rode the Test Track again and then headed back to the hotel for awhile before heading back to Epcot for dinner. Our meal and service at the Rose & Crown was excellent. IllumiNations was, as always, a real treat. Observation: Lots of folks run and I mean run as fast as they can to be first in line at the Test Track. Within minutes of us getting our Fast Passes the wait was up to 60 minutes. Some folks ran over around and through the stores to be first. Amazing. Cool ride, still having some technical problems with it. Lots of construction activity at Mission Space. We decided to head into MGM after dinner. The boys met up with a friend from school while Martha and I went off to enjoy the rest of the park. We ran into a friend of the boys who is a CM at RNRC and TOT. He is a pleasant young man but he was never in character. We met back up with the boys. They rode RNRC and TOT numerous times. Martha and I ride with them two more times. Another beautiful night. Close MGM again. Saturday 6/22 Animal Kingdom. No crowds. Got on the Safari. Rain comes. Enjoyed the safari but we want to do this again without the rain. Dan and Bryan ride the Kali River Rapids with me. Shawn and Martha decided to watch. No line, no waiting, step right up. We go around once. Dan gets soaked. The CM asks if we want to go around again. Sure thing. CM joins us on the ride. Her name is Robin. She opens and closes the ride. She used to work at the Great Movie Ride. She has graduated college and has been working at WDW for a few years. She wants feedback. Okay, the ride is fun; a little less soaking would be better. Provide her feedback on the turkey legs. I also asked her nicely why are people allowed to use flash photography and videotape when they are told not to. I ask these questions as I picture a friend (Mike!) videotaping Country Bear Jamboree. Robin stated that if guests did not follow the rules on the GMR then she used to stop the ride and explain that the rules were for safety and enjoyment etc. She thanked me for my feedback and asked if we wanted to go around again. We could ride as many times as we wanted as long as there was no line. We said thank you and that we would come back later. We headed to DinoLand U.S.A. HOT TIP: There are fans in the waiting line at The Primeval Whirl. This is a way for the soaked Kali River Rapids riders to begin to dry off. The Primeval Whirl is a fun ride. We go on this a few times. I like the oldies music and the screaming of kids of all ages. Note: 4 people per car. Dinosaur - Nicely done. We ride this twice. Make faces at the camera. Next - It's Tough to be a Bug. We loved this. The special effects are terrific. Lots of audience screams and laughter. Everyone is smiling as they leave the theater. Grab lunch at McDonald's. Not the best food in the World but fills us up. Head to Kali again. Everyone rides this time. Meet Robin again, big smile and a wave by both of us. I try to get Martha to sit where she won't get soaked. That works, but she doesn't move far enough along, so I get the unlucky seat. I was drenched but I was laughing the whole time. That is what we are here for! We left the park just as it started to rain again. We decided to head back to the hotel to dry off. We had dinner at the food court and decided to hang out due to the rain. Sunday 6/23 Blizzard Beach - We arrived early and set up at Melt-Away Bay. We all enjoyed ourselves. We went on everything except Summit Plummet. Melt-Away Bay was fine, but we like the Surf Pool at Typhoon Lagoon better because it has the waves. Goofy showed up and played in the water with the resort guests. Lots of smiles from kids of all ages. I raced the boys on the Toboggan Racers and lost... several times! Teamboat Springs was an enjoyable family ride. Martha screamed and laughed almost all the way down. Ah, memories that will last forever. Snow Stormers - I raced the boys and was able to beat them. They figured they would beat me given my poor showing on the Toboggan Racers. We also went on the Runoff Rapids and Downhill Double Dipper several times. We would finish a ride and then do it over or go right to a different one. It was a day we did not want to end. Nice view of WDW from the top of Mt. Gushmore. When we worked up the courage to give Summit Plummet a try in the late afternoon, an announcement came over the loudspeakers that they might have to close the park due to a severe weather warning. We were able to go around the park in the Cross Country Creek and then packed up for the bus ride to the All Star. We got on the bus just as the heavy rains came. Dinner was at the Rainforest Café at Downtown Disney. Wait time was no more than 30 minutes for a 6:00 p.m. seating. We really enjoyed our meals and the atmosphere. The fact that it is a busy place did not bother us. Dinner for the five of us, without dessert, was $102.00. We explored the stores and Pleasure Island. At Disney Quest we did the Pirates of the Caribbean. I was the Captain because the rest of the family wanted to shoot at the pirates. We also went on the roller coaster ride. Overall, not a bad experience. Access was part of our package but I would not spend extra to go there. Dessert was next at Ghiradelli's. Yum! This was a nice way to finish up the day. Monday 6/24 We opened Epcot and got our fast passes for the Test Track. Checked out Innoventions West and saw the Ultimate Home Theater show where the CM explains the history of the radio, television, 8-track etc. They then lead you into a living room that has remote control lighting, surround sound, HDTV etc. After this experience, they lead you into a mini movie theater so that you can experience what the latest movie theaters offer in sight and sound. Okay, enough dreaming about having my own movie theater. On to Wonders of Life and then Test Track. We decided that we wanted to take our time to see the countries so we headed over to the World Showcase. The ropes dropped and there we very few people around. Must be in line at Test Track. This was very enjoyable without a crowd. The boys bought some snacks and some mementoes. It is almost lunchtime and we must decide where to have lunch. They all wanted Italian, so we made reservations at Alfredo's for noon. Pasta and pizza. I had a pasta dish with sausage and an Italian beer. Martha and Dan had pasta dishes with chicken. Bryan and Shawn had pizza. The food was tasty and the service was excellent. Cost $87.00. We toured the rest of the countries and then headed back to the All Star for a swim. After dinner at the All Star it was time to go to MGM again. We went on our favorite rides several times and stayed until closing. Tuesday 6/25 Off to the MK and arrive about 30 minutes before opening. Fast Pass Splash Mountain and walk on BTMR. Back to Splash Mountain. Everything is damp and musty smelling due to all the rain the past week. The ride was fun but the handles on the ride left a horrible smell on our hands. Next was The Haunted Mansion. I rode with Bryan who says, "That was okay Dad, but I think this ride has run its course." Space Mountain is next and Dan decided to head back to the All Star because he can't get the Splash Mountain smell off of his hands and is having an allergic reaction. There was a torrential downpour at that time. We waited under cover until our Fast Pass time arrives. The remaining family members enjoyed Space Mountain. They rated it # 3 after RNRC and TOT. The rain had stopped so we did Alien Encounter and then decided to head, by boat, to our favorite resort, The Grand Floridian. Lunch was at the Café. Not many people were around the hotel which made this a nice and peaceful experience. Izzi is our waiter and he is very knowledgeable about the meals. He was very funny and accommodating. Martha had a Grand Club sandwich, Bryan and Shawn had Earl of Sandwiches and I had a swordfish special. The food was great and the service outstanding. As a result, we decided to have breakfast there the next morning which allowed us to use a couple of our flex features. The rest of the day was spent at the pool. Nice day as the rain had dissipated. MGM was the plan for this night and a bite to eat at Pizza Planet. We take in the sights and sounds of MGM and people watch and then ride our favorite rides until closing time. Wednesday 6/26 Our wedding anniversary. Martha and I have dinner reservations at the California Grille at the Contemporary. We headed to the GF Café for breakfast. Izzi isn't working today. Janet is our waitress and is very nice. We eat well, Mickey waffles etc. Walked around the GF and bought a few things, took some pictures and headed back to the All Star to begin packing. Martha and I relaxed by the pool as the boys played video games. Dinner for two at the California Grille. It was nice to be alone with my wife for part of an evening. The food and service were wonderful and the view was outstanding. The plan was to contact the boys when we were done with dinner. Our waiter told us to come back to watch the Fantasy in the Sky fireworks from the top of the Contemporary. We took the bus back to the All Star to round up the boys and then headed back to the Contemporary in time for the fireworks. I hadn't been at the top of the Contemporary since 1974. It was a special treat for all of us and a fond anniversary memory for Martha and me. Summary
Best Regards, Ron Mattioli rmattioli@egenera.com Mail a Comment to Ron Mattioli |
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